News & Commentary

Good (and Bad) Tidings

December 30, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesDavid Helvarg

Here was some of the big news coming in from the big blue sea in 2015.

The Most Eye-Opening Stories of 2015

December 28, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesClara Chaisson

Ten environmental visuals from this year that deserve another look.

Good Night, 2015

December 23, 2015 PerspectivesUnited StatesSusan Cosier

Check out the year’s best new #greenreads (and some old classics) for small children.

Flexibility Test

December 23, 2015 ExplainerUnited States, New JerseyElizabeth Royte

Plastic-pouch food packaging is showing up everywhere—except at recycling facilities.

Can Congress Stop the Climate Change Deal?

December 21, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

Here are the Senate’s options for trying to muck up the international agreement made in Paris.

Home Invasion

December 21, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesAlisa Opar

Forget cockroaches—around 100 species of bugs are crawling around our houses (and faces).

Slip-sliding Away

December 18, 2015 Latest NewsCaliforniaAlisa Opar

Heavy El Niño rains could trigger mudslides in California this winter. These scientists are trying to figure out the whens and wheres.

All’s Not Well

December 17, 2015 Latest NewsNorth DakotaSusan Cosier

North Dakota’s oil and gas boom is scaring away grassland birds.

Denying the Deniers

December 17, 2015 PerspectivesUnited StatesJeff Turrentine

The Paris climate agreement just took away one of climate skeptics’ favorite arguments for inaction.

Things Are Looking Up

December 17, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

The Department of Energy just announced what may be the most significant efficiency rule ever—and one that businesses can get behind.

Save Our Heritage!

December 16, 2015 ExplainerUnited StatesAlisa Opar

A popular conservation program became a bargaining chip in a bid to lift the crude oil export ban.

Promises, Promises

December 15, 2015 ExplainerUnited States, InternationalBrian Palmer

Cities, states, and businesses—not just those world leaders in Paris—will save us from climate change. Here’s what they’re going to do.

Step Aside, Gentlemen

December 10, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesPerrin Ireland, Brian Palmer

Women from around the world gather in Paris to solve climate change.

Burnin' Blubber

December 9, 2015 Latest NewsArcticJason Bittel

As warmer summers melt the Arctic, Pacific walruses have to work a lot harder to reach their seafloor feasts.

Stop, Drop, and Roll

December 9, 2015 DispatchChicagoSusan Cosier

Every week, barrels upon barrels of volatile crude oil crisscross Chicago by rail, endangering tens of thousands of schoolkids.

Frog vs. Fish

December 8, 2015 DispatchCaliforniaAlisa Opar

How cutting-edge technology may save endangered amphibians from hungry trout in Yosemite’s alpine lakes.

COP-ping Out

December 7, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

What’s it like to attend a climate denial conference for an hour? Here’s a minute-by-minute rundown.

The Cougar Next Door

November 27, 2015 PerspectivesUnited StatesJason Bittel

A new documentary reveals that mountain lions are not the solitary killing machines we’ve always thought.

Gobbler-smacked

November 25, 2015 ExplainerUnited StatesAlisa Opar

GPS tracking is giving us a revealing peek into wild turkeys’ sex lives, defense mechanisms, and more.

Advice and Resent

November 23, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

President Obama has cut the Senate out of the Paris climate change agreement. Cue the tantrums.