News & Commentary

Advocates Are Sparking a Revolution in Louisiana's “Cancer Alley”

November 10, 2022 DispatchSt. James Parish, LouisianaNicole Greenfield

Residents of St. James Parish are fighting to boot harmful petrochemical plants from this majority-Black community—and hoping to usher in more sustainable industries like solar.

Saving Salmon—from One Generation of Fisherwomen to the Next

March 1, 2022 DispatchOregon, Washington, WestNicole Greenfield

Keyen Singer, a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, carries on a maternal legacy of conserving salmon and preserving culture. Their efforts could soon pay off.

The Celilo Wy'am Are Still Here

March 10, 2021 DispatchOregonNicole Greenfield

Matriarch Lana Jack continues a decades-long fight for federal recognition of her band—and the right to continue living on the lands of her ancestors.

"We Are the Same as the Salmon": A Story of Suffering and Perseverance

December 17, 2020 DispatchWyoming, Idaho, Oregon, WashingtonNicole Greenfield

Thirty years ago, the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes led the effort to save Snake River sockeye salmon from extinction. Today, they’re still fighting for the fish’s survival—along with their own.

Connector of the Gulf South, 15 Years and Counting

August 24, 2020 DispatchNew Orleans, LouisianaKaren L. Smith-Janssen

Colette Pichon Battle is getting the conversation going—and the preparations moving—for Black and Indigenous communities of Louisiana who are still healing from Hurricane Katrina, even as they stand on the frontlines of climate change.

These Tiny, Treetop-Living, Ewok-Looking Creatures May Be Getting Socially Distanced to Extinction

June 8, 2020 DispatchOregonJason Bittel

Red tree voles spend their whole lives in Oregon’s treetops, but deforestation has cut them off from the rest of their kind.

As Sea Level Rise Threatens Their Ancestral Village, a Louisiana Tribe Fights to Stay Put

April 13, 2020 DispatchLouisianaBarry Yeoman

They survived the BP oil disaster, Hurricane Katrina, and decades of industry spoiling their wetlands. Whatever their future holds, the people of Grand Bayou want to decide it for themselves.

The Mother Who Became a Voice for the Gulf

April 6, 2020 DispatchLouisianaNicole Greenfield

After the Deepwater Horizon disaster, Kindra Arnesen went to the mat to help heal and protect her southeastern Louisiana community and the fishery it relies on. Ten years later, she’s still fighting.

Farmers and Salmon Advocates Agree: It’s Time to Talk about the Snake River Dams

January 2, 2020 DispatchWashington, OregonJodi Helmer

What used to be an idea touted mainly by salmon fishers and environmentalists is bringing around some farmers who’ve long depended on barge shipping to get their crops to market.

The Bomb Train Derailment That Sparked a Resistance in the Columbia River Gorge

September 30, 2019 DispatchOregon, CanadaLora Shinn

The fossil fuel industry maintains a strong presence in the Pacific Northwest thanks to its international export activity. But ever since a dangerous rail accident in 2016, local residents have served as a fierce check on its growth.

The People of the Isle de Jean Charles Are Louisiana’s First Climate Refugees—but They Won’t Be the Last

September 23, 2019 DispatchLouisianaRobynne Boyd

Whether and how to uproot communities are difficult and painful questions, and we need to get better at answering them.

California Beckons the Gray Wolf—but Can’t Guarantee a Safe Journey There

July 8, 2019 DispatchWest, California, Oregon, WashingtonCorey Binns

The future of wolves in the West depends on collaborative cross-border commitments to protecting this icon of the wild.

Portland Makes Strides to Cut Emissions and Move Beyond Four Wheels

March 4, 2019 DispatchPortland (Oregon)Becca Cudmore

The Rose City, a winner of the American Cities Climate Challenge, will reduce emissions as it revamps its transportation system—part of a new strategic plan called Central City in Motion.

In the Pacific Northwest, Testing Out New Wildfire Defenses on the Front Lines

October 30, 2018 DispatchWest, Washington, OregonLora Shinn

Where quick-spreading fires are the “new normal,” some state officials and communities are willing to try whatever it takes to prevent—or better prepare for—the next big blaze.

A New Approach to Oregon’s Growing Rat Problem

September 5, 2018 DispatchOregonBecca Cudmore

The city of Eugene is testing an unconventional solution to a serious issue, with a ban on feeding a slew of wild animals.

In the Columbia–Snake River Basin, Salmon Are Losing Their Way

July 18, 2018 DispatchWest, Washington, OregonJodi Helmer

As the fish disappear, native peoples are looking for solutions lest they lose a way of life too.

Oregon Has a Poaching Problem—and a Force to Reckon With It

June 8, 2018 DispatchOregonBecca Cudmore

The Beaver State is one of just two in the nation where illegal animal kills are addressed by the police.

The Gulf of Mexico Is Sending Out an S.O.S.—a Message in a Plastic Bottle

June 4, 2018 DispatchKansas, Louisiana, MississippiRobynne Boyd

Thanks to the Mississippi River’s trash stream, the Gulf has some of the highest concentrations of plastic in the world.

The Moss That Saved Portland

February 28, 2017 DispatchPortland (Oregon), OregonBecca Cudmore

Roadside plants helped officials trace the source of a public health crisis and led to new standards for clean air in Oregon.

Oregon Is Having a Tiny Home Boom

February 3, 2017 DispatchOregonBecca Cudmore

Some members of the small-house movement live off the grid—but Oregon’s cities want them to stay on it.