2015 September/October | Sierra Club

Sierra magazine September/October 2015

2015 September/October

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As part of a Global Divestment Day, 350Africa.org artivists take part in an action outside Standard Bank in Rosebank, Johannesburg.

Divestment Goes Global

The student movement to defund the fossil fuel industry graduates and goes to work.

By Rosie Spinks

August 3, 2015

Departments

Tsechu Dolma, New York; founder of Yulha Fund

Tsechu Dolma and the Indomitable Greenhouse

A Columbia student helps Nepali villagers deal with climate change

By Wendy Becktold

August 4, 2015

Sierra readers shared their opinions in the 2015 survey.

Editor’s Desk

No More Doom and Gloom

August 7, 2015

Both nature and people deserve justice and full protection under the law.

Why Civil Rights Are Central to Our Mission

By Michael Brune

August 7, 2015

If you are into saving water, complement your unwashed car and xeriscaped front yard with these drought-savvy devices and appliances.

7 Wonderful Water-Saving Gadgets

August 4, 2015

An alternative to chemical dispersants for cleaning up oil spills: Mesh captures oil (red) at Ohio State University.

Notes from Here & There

A Less Toxic Approach to Oil-Spill Cleanup

By Lance Frazer

August 7, 2015

A thermal imaging of birds helps measure their stress levels.

Notes from Here & There

Freaky Thermal Images of Birds Reveal Hidden Stress

Infrared cameras reveal animal anxiety

August 10, 2015

Pope Francis greets the crowd as he arrives in St. Peter's Square, Vatican City.

Notes from Here & There

Saving the Climate Isn't Enough

Pope Francis challenges the world to defend the planet—and the poor

By Dashka Slater

August 10, 2015

Lisa Petterson, a sustainability-design architect in Portland, Oregon.

Faces of Clean Energy

An Architect Lights Up a University

Every day, the clean energy revolution is creating new jobs for American workers. As part of an ongoing series, we asked one of them to tell us her story.

August 6, 2015

A cellphone tower disguised as a pine tree stands near the eastern border of Yosemite National Park (from Robert Voit's New Trees collection).

Cellphone Tower Pretends to Be Pine Tree

August 10, 2015

The Sierra Club Environmental Law Program is fighting to end destructive mountaintop-removal mining, like this operation in West Virginia.

The Sierra Club's Coal-Kicking Attorney

By Wendy Becktold

August 10, 2015

Homey Hacienda El Tambo was built on Incan foundations and offers outdoor activities in the Andes.

Visit Ecuador's Down-to-Earth Hacienda

By Berne Broudy

August 10, 2015

Vast sky meets the cracked, crusty expanse of Argentina's Salinas Grandes.

Salt of the Earth

August 7, 2015

A redesign that preserves a landmark and provides needed homes in Chicago.

A Historic Hotel Reborn For a Green Age

By Megy Karydes

August 7, 2015

A man falls 20 feet while rock climbing. Did he do the right thing?

Survive a Rock Climbing Fall

By Clark Bledsoe

August 7, 2015

Compressed-air energy storage (CAES) for wind farms may offer a cheaper solution than storing surplus energy with large-scale batteries.

How to Store Renewable Energy For Later

By Eliza Strickland

August 10, 2015

In Madagascar, the satanic leaf-tailed gecko can hide from predators but not from purveyors of exotic pets.

Satan Lizard

By Michael Engelhard

August 10, 2015

The Okee Dokee Brothers write children's songs while on adventures in nature.

The Okee Dokee Brothers, Up a Creek

This bluegrass duo knows that to write a meaningful song, you’ve got to have a genuine experience. So they regularly get out in the elements.

By Avital Andrews

August 7, 2015

New companies are helping make safe sex more sustainable.

The Rise of Eco-Conscious Condoms

New companies are helping make safe sex more sustainable

By Nicholas Ibarra

August 4, 2015

Tony Nguyen, in Biloxi, Mississippi, became an environmental activist after the 2010 BP oil spill and later helped train activists in Vietnam.

How Deepwater Horizon Created a Cross-Cultural Activist

By Wendy Becktold

August 10, 2015

Leftovers aren't just for your fridge anymore. These artisan snacks and drinks prove that discards can be delightful.

5 Foods Made From Trash

August 7, 2015

The amount of water required to produce one ounce of key food items.

Water-Guzzling Agriculture

California's drought forces a look at the water required to grow what we eat

By Reed McManus

August 10, 2015

Moroccan goats engage in our favorite form of old-school environmentalist protest.

14 Goats Lead Tree Sit-in

By Catherine Schuknecht

September 24, 2015

Kick off fall on a good note with these hilarious videos of dogs playing in leaves.

3 Dog Videos That Leaf Us Laughing

September 18, 2015

Innovative ways to combat drought

4 Innovative Ways To Deal With The Drought

By Hope Corrigan

August 31, 2015

Still scrambling for a good costume? Sierra's interns are here to help.

4 Original Enviro-Themed Halloween Costumes

Text and photographs by Madison Kotack

October 29, 2015

Rob Hill Campground

5 Beautiful Urban Campgrounds

By Will Carruthers

September 10, 2015

Snorkeler in Reef

5 Environmental Stories You Don't Want to Miss

By Aliyah Kovner

October 22, 2015

Is this the future? Water on Mars, portabella mushroom batteries and shrinking bee tongues.

5 Environmental Stories You Don't Want To Miss

By Will Carruthers

October 1, 2015

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton joined two other Democratic presidential candidates in calling for a federal investigation of ExxonMobil

5 Environmental Stories You Don't Want To Miss

By Will Carruthers

October 30, 2015

Scientists discover new bananas and Chile creates a marine reserve the size of Italy

5 Environmental Stories You Don't Want To Miss

By Robin Walter

October 8, 2015

99 percent of birds will be affected by plastic ingestion by 2050

5 Environmental Stories You Don't Want to Miss

By Will Carruthers

September 3, 2015

Zebra Finch couple

5 Environmental Stories You Don't Want to Miss

By Aliyah Kovner

September 24, 2015

Insect hijackers ground a plane in Texas and Dole Food Company announces a recall on packaged spinach.

5 Environmental Stories You Don't Want To Miss

By Catherine Schuknecht

October 15, 2015

Hermaphroditic frogs in the 'burbs and McDonald's goes cage-free.

5 Environmental Stories You Don't Want to Miss

By Robin Walter

September 9, 2015

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5 Environmental Stories You Don’t Want To Miss

By Catherine Schuknecht

September 17, 2015

Take your relationship with plants, moss, and wildflowers to the next level.

5 Plant Manuals and Meditations to Help You Garden

By Robin Walter

September 16, 2015

For this National Day of Action, support a strong climate change agreement without leaving the office.

5 Ways to Take Action on Climate Change From Your Desk

By Wendy Becktold

October 13, 2015

There's lots more planetary activity in store for those of you waking at 6 am.

A Stack of Planets and a Celestial Ghoul for October

By Kelly Kizer Whitt

September 29, 2015

Among the Bone Eaters by Marcus Baynes-Rock (Penn State University Press, September, 2015)

Among the Bone Eaters

October 9, 2015

David Brower: The Making of the Environmental Movement, By Tom Turner, with a Foreward by Bill McKibben. (University of California Press, October, 2015)

David Brower: The Making of the Environmental Movement

By Bob Schildgen

September 30, 2015

If security kinks could be ironed out, smartphone-based voting could dramatically expand voter turnout.

Democracy—Is There an App For That?

By Catherine Schuknecht

September 9, 2015

The End of Doom

Does "The End of Doom" Have the Solution to Climate Change?

By Rosie Spinks

October 16, 2015

Sachiko Akinaga's "Sea Otter Mum & Pup," 2011

Everything is Awesome in "Beautiful Lego: Wild"

Curator Mike Doyle's third book of Lego art collections celebrates the interconnectedness of nature and Lego

By Wendy Becktold

September 24, 2015

Artist rendering of future OAW development

Ex-Black Panther Elaine Brown Has a Vision for West Oakland

By Aliyah Kovner

October 6, 2015

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Frontiers of Global Food Production

By Catherine Schuknecht

September 29, 2015

Starting September 12, over 170 events will be hosted across the United States and Canada.

Gear Up For National Drive Electric Week

By Catherine Schuknecht

September 10, 2015

Project Sunroof map of San Francisco building

Google Where the Sun Does Shine

By Aliyah Kovner

September 8, 2015

Bear 399 and her cubs

Grizzlies of Pilgrim Creek

A stunning look at Greater Yellowstone's iconic grizzly bears

By Aliyah Kovner

September 4, 2015

Join us in celebrating 125 years of adventure, environmental foresight, and unparalleled natural grandeur in Yosemite National Park.

Happy Birthday, Yosemite!

By Robin Walter

September 30, 2015

New literary revisionism might make the seer of Walden Pond more relevant to readers today.

In Defense of Henry David Thoreau

New literary revisionism might make the seer of Walden Pond more relevant to readers today

October 27, 2015

Butte fire mountain lion kitten

Injured Mountain Lion Cub Rescued from Butte Fire

By Robin Walter

September 18, 2015

Marilyn Baptiste

It’s Not Activism. It’s Necessity.

By Stephanie Steinbrecher

September 4, 2015

It’s the closest you’ll get to this fragile ecosystem without actually going there.

Jared Leto Narrates a Virtual Tour of the Arctic

By Wendy Becktold

October 6, 2015

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Megan Simcox Explores Accessibility in Our National Parks

By Catherine Schuknecht

October 12, 2015

Rescued Fisher kits

Orphaned Fisher Kits Move into Yosemite

By Aliyah Kovner

September 28, 2015

Another parent takes another video of their kid doing something cute. But this time, it’s a polar bear.

Overbearing Mom Films Cub’s First Steps Outside the Den

By Catherine Schuknecht

September 2, 2015

Scientists are developing a super plant to help clean up military waste.

Plants Can Detoxify TNT-Contaminated Soil?

By Will Carruthers

October 1, 2015

Ken Kwapis talks to the Sierra Club about how directing A Walk in the Woods made him want to take a walk in his own backyard.

Q&A With "A Walk in the Woods" Director Ken Kwapis

By Wendy Becktold

September 1, 2015

TDI diesel engine in 2011 VW Golf

Schadenfraud

Does your new VW Beetle perform like an old school bus?

By Reed McManus

September 23, 2015

Fishermen rely on salmon that spawn in the Chuitna watershed

Small Victory in the Fight to Save the Chuitna

Alaskans seeking to protect salmon from coal mining get a mixed response from the state

By Jake Abrahamson

October 26, 2015

A series of images shows the progression of a lunar eclipse.

Supermoon and Lunar Eclipse for September

The moon: You see it--and now you don't

By Kelly Kizer Whitt

August 31, 2015

The Adventure Gap, by James Edward Mills (Mountaineers Books, October 2014)

The Adventure Gap

By Scott Donahue

September 10, 2015

A lesson in life, love, and happiness from our animal counterparts.

The Animal Kingdom’s Guide to Love

By Catherine Schuknecht

October 26, 2015

The Point of Vanishing, by Howard Axelrod (Beacon Press, September 2015)

The Point of Vanishing

Howard Axelrod's memoir of complete solitude in the Vermont woods

By Scott Donahue

September 1, 2015

The Secret Lives of Bats by Merlin Tuttle, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (October, 2015)

The Secret Lives of Bats

October 27, 2015

Spanish Moon Moth

The Wild World of Butterflies

By Aliyah Kovner

November 3, 2015

Adventurer Rescues Puppy

Tough Explorers Save Fluffy Puppy

Two adventurers bring an abandoned dog along on their trek

By Aliyah Kovner

October 8, 2015

The Platte Basin Timelapse Project

Watching a Watershed in Motion

By Robin Walter

October 20, 2015

The good, the sad, and the hopeful in the world of rhino conservation.

What You Need to Know About the State of Rhinos

By Wendy Becktold

September 30, 2015

I thought I was buying a “green car.” What a fraud.

Why I’m Suing VW

I thought I was buying a “green car.” What a fraud.

October 15, 2015

The perks of living near urban trees are pretty incredible.

Why Urban Trees Solve So Many of Our Problems

By Catherine Schuknecht

September 22, 2015

A lemon shark (Negaprion brevirostris) at the surface in the Bahamas.

Lemon Shark Snaps

August 7, 2015

How Culture Shapes the Climate Change Debate, by Andrew Hoffman (Stanford University Press, 2015)

What Makes Climate Deniers Tick?

Hint: It's not the science. It's the culture.

By Jake Abrahamson

August 10, 2015

Cool Schools 2015

Cool Schools 2015

Cool Schools Full Ranking 2015

July 17, 2015

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Cool Schools 2015

Kudos to Colleges Abroad

By Avital Andrews

August 6, 2015

Top 10 Coolest Schools 2015

Cool Schools 2015

The Top 10 Coolest Schools 2015

Sierra Proudly Presents This Year's Eco-Valadictorians

By Avital Andrews

August 15, 2015

Mr. Green compares the costs of wind farms and solar power plants with those of other power plants.

Hey Mr. Green, How Much Does Clean Energy Cost?

By Bob Schildgen

August 17, 2015

What's the best way to handle food waste?

Hey Mr. Green, What's the Best Way to Deal with Food Waste?

By Bob Schildgen

August 17, 2015

Mr. Green thinks His Holiness is closely aligned with Sierra magazine.

Hey Mr. Green, What's Your Take on the Pope's Environmental Position?

By Bob Schildgen

September 28, 2015

You might be surprised to find recyclers closer to home than you think.

Where Can I Recycle #3 Through #6 Plastic?

By Bob Schildgen

September 21, 2015

May 2015 is the hottest May on record. In the United States, it is the wettest. Texas receives enough rainfall to cover the entire state in eight inches of water, leading to the worst flooding in the state's history.

Two Months of Environmental News, One page

August 10, 2015