News & Commentary

Urban Innovator

June 30, 2020 NRDC in ActionCharlotte, North Carolina, St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Paul, Minnesota, Austin, TexasKeith Mulvihill

Through her work in the buildings sector, Wendy Lee helps propel cities into a fairer and more energy-efficient future.

Alabama’s Waterways, Wildlife, and Recreation Are Up a Creek with Trump’s “Dirty Water Rule”

June 29, 2020 DispatchAlabamaRobynne Boyd

The rollback jeopardizes the streams that flow into the state’s rivers, lakes, and bays, millions of acres of wetlands across the country, and the drinking water supply.

Remembering Eeyou Pimatseewin, the Cree Life

June 18, 2020 PerspectivesCanada

Allan Saganash Jr. grew up in the bush, living off the land—then watched as industry shrank and changed his beloved boreal forest home. He’s determined to save what’s left.

April Showers Bring May Flowers. So Do Bumblebee Bites.

June 11, 2020 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

New research shows that bumblebees have the power to make plants bloom.

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.

Climate Change Is Drying Out the American West

June 4, 2020 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

A new study shows that drought is no longer a periodic crisis, but a harbinger of things to come.

The Fight for Equitable Access to Water and Electricity Has Never Been More Urgent

June 3, 2020 NRDC in ActionDetroit, Michigan, United StatesCourtney Lindwall

In the midst of a pandemic, NRDC advocates are stepping up their work to prevent the risk of mass utility shutoffs, now and for the long-term.

Experts Urge People All Over the World to Stop Killing Bats Out of Fears of Coronavirus

June 2, 2020 Latest NewsInternationalJason Bittel

Attacking bats does nothing to protect people from COVID-19 and sometimes, it can make things worse.

These Fanciful Sea Creatures Were Carried in on the Tide

June 2, 2020 PerspectivesOregonPatrick Rogers

An Oregon community is making spectacular statues out of ocean plastic to raise awareness about a crisis at sea.

Clean Energy Has Struggled During the Current Economic Crisis—but It’s Strong Enough to Recover

May 28, 2020 PerspectivesUnited StatesJeff Turrentine

Despite job losses and open hostility from the Trump administration, renewables are still poised to lead the way in our country’s recovery.

The Humble Beaver: Troublemaker or Climate Superhero?

May 27, 2020 DispatchMontana, WestAlisa Opar

Beavers create rich habitats and act as buffers against the effects of drought and wildfire—spurring efforts to pinpoint new ways to help us coexist with North America’s largest rodent.

Murder Hornets Are Scary. But Pesticides Are Scarier.

May 21, 2020 Latest NewsUnited StatesJason Bittel

While everyone is freaking out about invasive hornets, the largest threats to America’s pollinators remain unchanged.

We Speak on Behalf of the Multitudes in the Margins

May 20, 2020 PerspectivesUnited StatesNRDC

NRDC staff reflect on Asian and Pacific Islander American Heritage Month, and their work creating a more compassionate, more inclusive, and more just future.

By 2070, More Than 3 Billion People May Live Outside the “Human Climate Niche”

May 14, 2020 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

If we don’t act now to curb climate change, we may be faced with the migration of a third of the world’s future population.

These NRDC Experts Show Us How We Can Slow the Spread of Zoonotic Diseases

May 14, 2020 NRDC in ActionChina, United StatesCourtney Lindwall

It will take the highest levels of international cooperation, but by working to curb wildlife trade and conserve vast swaths of disappearing habitat, we can minimize the interspecies interactions that spread viruses.

No olvidemos a los trabajadores esenciales

May 13, 2020 PerspectivesUnited StatesJeff Turrentine

Los trabajadores que cosechan nuestras frutas y verduras son héroes, aunque rara vez se les trata de esa manera. Actualmente el cambio climático amenaza su seguridad y nuestro suministro de alimentos.

The Forgotten Essential Workers

May 13, 2020 PerspectivesUnited StatesJeff Turrentine

The laborers who harvest our fruits and vegetables are heroes, although they’re rarely treated that way. Now climate change threatens their safety—and our food supply.

New Water Worries in Climate-Stressed New Mexico

May 13, 2020 DispatchNew Mexico, Santa FeLora Shinn

Federal rollbacks could leave New Mexico’s limited water dirtier by excluding up to 90 percent of the state’s waterways from protection.

Expand the DAPL? Only Illinois Stands in the Way

May 5, 2020 DispatchIllinois, North Dakota, South DakotaSusan Cosier

Environmental advocates are fighting a proposal to double the amount of crude oil flowing through the pipeline.

A Translator for the Climate Crisis, Grief Included

May 4, 2020 NRDC in ActionNew York City, New York, Birmingham, AlabamaKaren L. Smith-Janssen

Writer, editor, teacher, and podcast host Mary Annaïse Heglar uses the art of storytelling to help people feel less alone in facing the climate crisis—and to build the movement for climate justice.