All Environment
- Points of ProgressSmall actions add up to benefit ocean habitats and animals
Progress roundup: Women in Indonesia are replanting mangrove forests, fishers in Baja California tested LEDs on nets to reduce bycatch, and more news.
- Difference MakerA secret town’s renewal, from radioactive cleanup to recycling jobs
Northern Estonia once fueled the USSR’s nuclear arsenal. Tõnis Kaasik cleaned up the radioactive waste and created jobs for the Russians left behind.
- Can Europe give up Russian energy and still go green?
The war in Ukraine sharpened European thinking about the need to cut off Russian energy. But it may also mean a short-term cost to green goals.
- Volunteers step up to clean up France’s dirtiest city
Residents in Marseille are volunteering to clean up garbage after a recent strike, part of a broader citizen-led effort to beautify a grimy city.
- First LookIs hydropower the future of green energy? Why some say yes.
After years of criticism from environmentalists over water quality concerns and impacts on species like salmon, hydropower companies say that with innovation to tackle their dams’ problems, they can play an important role in the transition to green energy.
- The ExplainerClean energy depends on lithium. Can California supply it?
The world is clamoring for lithium. With minimal environmental damage, California could supply much of that sought-after resource from its vast brine reservoir.
- First LookWealthy nations on target to meet climate pledge commitments
John Kerry, U.S. climate envoy, told the U.N. Security Council that developed nations will likely meet their $100 billion climate financing commitment to developing nations this year, and definitely next. It’s thanks in large part to a boost in the U.S. contribution.
- Burger shaming is out: Coaxing carnivores to climate-conscious eating
Want people to eat more veggies? Watch your words. A study about meal choices in restaurants recommends welcoming carnivores into the plant-based fold.
- First LookAmid the gloom of climate change there is hope, says UN report
The U.N. has released a new climate change report full of despair and gloom. But scientists don’t see it that way. The report is designed to motivate world leaders to enact climate mitigation strategies and avoid worst-case scenarios, they say.
- Saving starving manatees: Can Florida solve a man-made crisis?
Conservationists are going to unprecedented lengths to save dying manatees in Florida – while the underlying problem of water pollution remains.
- Cover StoryHow Canadian families are saving the country’s old-growth forests
Small woodlot owners in eastern Canada are providing a template for how to manage forests more sustainably.
- First LookBlue skies in Beijing: China's air quality shows improvement
A decade ago, the world condemned China’s notorious air quality as smog regularly blanketed the nation’s capital city. Today, the skies are clear enough for athletes at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics to see nearby mountains, a result of China’s ambitious anti-pollution efforts.
- First LookCount of the penguins: Scientists get climate clues in Antarctica
Penguins aren’t just Antarctica’s most emblematic inhabitants. They are also giving scientists important clues about how climate change is impacting the southernmost continent.
- Shell offered South African villagers jobs. They chose their heritage instead.
Villagers in South Africa defended their ancestral fishing grounds from the oil company’s bid to use seismic exploration methods.
- First LookShrinking Great Salt Lake has new group of allies: GOP lawmakers
As the Great Salt Lake continues to dry up, reaching its lowest level ever recorded, Republican lawmakers are taking action. GOP-led proposals aim to prevent the environmental and economic devastation that would result if the lake turns to dust.
- First LookAre underground coal fires responsible for Western blazes?
The source of Colorado’s Marshall Fire is still being investigated, but history shows at least two blazes in the past 20 years could be blamed on coal mine fires that spread to the surface. Experts say coal mine fires are a growing threat around the globe.
- In Pictures: Sea turtle rescuers race against cold
Good neighbors help community members in need. On Cape Cod in Massachusetts, residents carry that a step further to include sea turtle neighbors too.
- Keepers of the flame vs. climate change reduction: Gas bans worry cooks
Natural gas bans passed in new construction in New York City and dozens of other towns, worrying those who love gas cooking.
- The ExplainerThey shrink. They grow. The tricky politics of national monuments.
Underneath the tug of war over the designation of national monuments lie questions about presidential power, checks and balances, and enduring change.
- First LookUphill climb: Ski resorts grapple with snow drought
Climate change induced drought has caused ski resorts to use snowmaking techniques to sustain their business and ski-town economies. But manmade snow uses a lot of energy and water, so resorts are now trying new, environmentally friendly technology.