All Environment
- GOP warms to idea of a climate change policy
Some Republicans in Congress are ready to seize the opportunity of clean-energy innovation after years of shunning climate action.
- First LookRain brings relief to Iraq, though climate challenges persist
In a country more familiar with droughts than downpours, Iraq is witnessing the wettest winter in a generation. As extreme weather events become more common, the Iraqi prime minister has vowed to revamp infrastructure and water policies.
- How offshore drilling became a losing proposition
Opposition to offshore drilling has become more bipartisan, focusing minds on the tradeoff between oil development and coastal protection.
- Are meal kits bad for the environment? You might be surprised.
Subscribers to Blue Apron and other meal delivery services often struggle with the amount of packaging. But waste lurks at the grocery store too.
- First LookUS steps closer to listing giraffes as 'endangered species'
The move, which comes after legal pressure from environmental groups, could lead to import restrictions on hunting trophies. Only 68,000 mature giraffes still live in the wild, and their numbers continue to decline.
- From trash in the streets to model city: How to get communities to zero waste
Laws aren’t always enough. It took education and leadership at many levels, but the people of San Fernando, Philippines, cleaned up their city.
- A doubly green deal? Clean energy jobs also pay well.
New analysis from the Brookings Institution suggests that transitioning to clean energy sources could open up a range of high-paying career paths.
- Aw shucks! Can oysters clean up New York’s harbor?
The Billion Oyster Project aims to help restore New York Harbor, with the help of students from the Harbor School on Governors Island.
- Nebraskans talk extreme weather. Just don’t call it climate change.
The severe flooding that inundated Nebraska last month washed away fields, bridges, and roads. But did it change minds about climate change?
- Is grocery packaging necessary? Not for these shops.
Packaging-free shops like Precycle in Brooklyn offer consumers a way to purchase food without all the extra baggage.
- Zero waste lifestyle: How one family learned to live with less
Bea Johnson’s family produces just one jar of trash per year. Ms. Johnson shares how her family came to adopt this zero waste lifestyle.
- If you can’t beat them, eat them: dangerous invasive species on the menu
A dangerous invasive species is ruining Florida’s reefs. The lionfish derby is one effort to curb this aquarium pet gone destructive.
- ‘Our Planet’ is beautiful. But can it change minds?
The Netflix series 'Our Planet' debuts Friday, April 5. The creators hope the project will draw attention to climate change and deforestation.
- Affordable, self-heating homes of the future, inspired by the past
Before the era of fossil fuels, buildings had to heat and cool themselves. Today, thoughtful design can help buildings do it again.
- Where nature has rights
Toledo, Ohio, isn’t the first community to try to enshrine “rights of nature” into law.
- First LookJudge blocks oil, gas drilling over impacts on climate change
District Judge Rudolph Contreras ruled the U.S. government must consider the cumulative nature of climate change when leasing public lands for oil and gas drilling. His ruling will block drilling across about 500 square miles in Wyoming.
- Can a lake have rights? Toledo votes yes.
Fed up with pollution-driven algae blooms on Lake Erie, residents of Toledo, Ohio, last month established the ‘Lake Erie Bill of Rights,’ marking a shift in how the law views humanity’s relationship with nature.
- [special project]Restoring Indonesia’s peatlands to their natural soggy glory
One-size-fits-all agriculture has robbed Indonesia’s peatlands of their moisture. Now the country is working to restore these historic swamps by embracing rather than fighting their boggy nature.
- First LookCalifornia calls National Guard from border for forestry help
California is pulling National Guard troops from the U.S.-Mexico border to help prevent wildfires. The state is doubling its efforts to thin miles of forest after the drought left millions of trees dead. The effort has drawn criticism from both environmentalists and President Donald Trump.
- First LookHawaii weighs first-in-nation plastic bans at eateries
Dozens of cities across the country have already banned foam plastic containers, but Hawaii’s effort could be the first state-wide. Discarded, slow-to-degrade plastic has shown up at sea and on beaches. But local eateries worry about the higher costs of biodegradable containers.