News & Commentary

In Planning for Climate Change, Native Americans Draw on the Past

March 11, 2024 ExplainerUnited States, CanadaTim Vanderpool

Across North America, Indigenous tribes and nations are consulting their traditional ecological knowledge to help prepare for a warming world.

Questions Answered on Canadian Wildfires—a Public Health Threat Linked to Climate Change

June 12, 2023 Expert BlogUnited States, CanadaDr. Vijay Limaye

Here is some key information that may help us prepare for the future and address the fossil fuels at the root of the problem.

House Agriculture Approps Bill Would Gut Key Farm Programs

May 17, 2023 Expert BlogUnited States, PennsylvaniaAllison Johnson, Matthew Kaplan, Jeff Slyfield

Congress should go back to the drawing board and build a budget that supports a healthy food system, conservation, and rural energy

Indigenous-led Collaborations Are Transforming Conservation

May 17, 2023 Expert BlogCanadaDr. Julee Boan

The pressure is immense and the clock is ticking to ensure the course correction needed to stave off the worst climate and biodiversity impacts predicted for our industrialized world. A new collective, called the Restore, Assert, Defend (or RAD) Network…

Cover Crops for Every Climate

February 17, 2023 Expert BlogWest, Midwest, East, Maine, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Idaho, New Mexico, TexasLara Bryant, Dr. Daniel Rath

Cover crops are adaptable, valuable, and effective enough that farmers can benefit from them in every region of the United States—even cold or dry areas.

New Program Will Help Ensure Reliable Electricity in the West

February 16, 2023 Expert BlogCanada, Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, WestKelsie Gomanie

The Western Resource Adequacy Program (WRAP) is designed to provide benefits for customers, utilities, and the environment.

Celebrating Mid-Atlantic and Southeast Food Matters Cohorts

December 9, 2022 Expert BlogBaltimore, Jersey City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C.Madeline Keating, Darby Hoover

This month, we mark the successful completion of our two-year partnerships with the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast cohorts. Our work with Great Lakes cities will continue in 2023.

A $3 Billion Milestone for the Western Grid

November 16, 2022 Expert BlogUnited States, California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Idaho, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, WestKelsie Gomanie

After a year of record-breaking heat waves, drought, and flooding, add to that list some good news for the Western United States: The Western Energy Imbalance Market (WEIM) is positioned to surpass $3 billion in cumulative benefits by the end…

Community Perspectives: Wasted Food in Philadelphia

November 7, 2022 Expert BlogPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaAndrea Collins, Madeline Keating

There is not a one-size-fits-all approach to crafting inclusive food waste prevention messaging. Philadelphia worked with community-based organizations to run community focus groups to better understand the biggest barriers to preventing food from becoming waste in local communities.

Canada’s Boreal Forest: Why It’s So Important

July 1, 2022 ExplainerCanada

Protecting the boreal is not only about saving trees and wildlife, says NRDC’s Jennifer Skene. It’s also about the people who’ve been living on the land for millennia and the urgent fight against climate change.

For Thousands of Years, Indigenous Tribes Have Been Planting for the Future

November 30, 2021 DispatchIowa, Canada, Pennsylvania, OklahomaSusan Cosier

With yields of biodiversity and a more climate-resilient food supply, a movement is sprouting in BIPOC communities across North America to save heirloom seeds and preserve culture.

On Climate, Pittsburgh Puts Its Money Where Its Goals Are

November 19, 2021 Expert BlogPittsburgh, PennsylvaniaJay Orfield, Irene Nielson

Transforming city budgets to address climate change will be essential to meeting our climate goals, and Pittsburgh has taken a first step.

Celebrating Year One of the Food Matters Regional Initiative

August 30, 2021 Expert BlogChicago, Cincinnati, Detroit, Madison, Ohio, Baltimore, Jersey City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, North Carolina, Memphis, OrlandoMadeline Keating, Darby Hoover

A year after the launch of the Food Matters Regional Initiative, we are pleased to report considerable progress and accomplishments from the 15 regional initiative participants.

P&G’s Board Must Be Accountable for Forest Destruction

August 26, 2021 Expert BlogUnited States, CanadaShelley Vinyard

Ten months after Procter & Gamble’s (P&G’s) shareholders resoundingly called on the company to address its impacts on climate-critical forests and Indigenous rights, P&G has failed to take meaningful action.

NRDC Sets Region Specific Water Targets for Each Office

August 10, 2021 Expert BlogUnited States, New York City, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Bozeman, Beijing, San Francisco, Santa MonicaMaria McCain

NRDC has seen a steady decline in total water usage institution-wide and has taken steps to advance water stewardship.

Blackfeet Nation Is Taking Back the Food System

June 21, 2021 DispatchMontanaNicole Greenfield

A tribal-led plan to build a meat-processing facility on the Blackfeet Nation reservation in Montana will help invigorate the local economy, safeguard cultural traditions, and protect community health and the environment.

Latin America at the Leaders Summit on Climate

April 23, 2021 Expert BlogArgentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, MexicoCarolina Herrera, Jessica Carey-Webb, Marilyn Kunce, Amanda Maxwell

The five Latin American countries that participated in the Leaders Summit on Climate – Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Mexico – displayed a broad range of ambition. Once again, some countries demonstrated their willingness to be climate action leaders while…

Pittsburgh Poised to Thrive on Biden’s Plan

March 30, 2021 Expert BlogPittsburgh, PennsylvaniaMitchell Bernard

An equitable recovery powered by climate action means millions of well-paying jobs—with the Steel City, and other places like it, at the center of it all.

Memphis & Pittsburgh Make Proclamations to Reduce Food Waste

March 23, 2021 Expert BlogMemphis, Tennessee, Pittsburgh, PennsylvaniaNina Sevilla

Cities participating in the Food Matters Regional Initiative are making public commitments to reduce food waste, and building leadership, credibility, and community buy-in throughout the process.

Latin America’s 2020 Climate Leaders and Laggards

December 21, 2020 Expert BlogInternational, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, BrazilAmanda Maxwell, Carolina Herrera, Jessica Carey-Webb, Marilyn Kunce

2020 was a turbulent year in Latin America—and a mixed bag on climate action. It will be important for the incoming Biden-Harris administration to put climate change front and center in its engagement with the region.