Notes from Here & There

Not Your Grandparents' Drought

By Dashka Slater June 4, 2015

In this story: climate change, drought

Drought victim: Abandoned tomato field in Fresno County, California.

How Much Will Each Continent's Population Grow Over the Next Century?

By Reed McManus April 6, 2015

In this story: population

The world's population is unlikely to stop growing this century. Researchers from the United Nations and the University of Washington calculated that there's an 80 percent chance that the globe's population will rise to between 9.6 billion and 12.3 billio

How to Turn Crab Shells into Undies

By Dashka Slater April 6, 2015

In this story: technology, recycling, wildlife

Ancient alchemists wanted to transmute base metals into noble ones, like gold. Today's alchemists try to convert garbage into--well, anything really. Are the answers to all our material desires lying at the bottom of the dumpster?

The Pretend Conservation of “Translocating” Animals to Make Room for Development

By Dashka Slater April 6, 2015

In this story: wildlife, animals, endangered species

A well-planned, successful conservation translocation of 150 kangaroo rats by the San Diego Zoo in 2010.

Did an Orangutan Die for Your Oreos?

By Dashka Slater February 12, 2015

In this story: food and drink, forests, animals, wildlife

Is Big Coal Buying "Likes?"

Peabody Energy claims that half a million people support its "grassroots" campaign to fight energy poverty, but it smells a lot like Astroturf

By Sarah Kessler February 19, 2015

In this story: coal

Peabody Energy claims that half a million people support its "grassroots" campaign to fight energy poverty, but it smells a lot like Astroturf

Drought-Denying Ranchers Ride to Washington

Angry Nevadans travel by horse from the West Coast to the capital for the right to graze on water-starved rangeland

By Judith Lewis Mernit December 4, 2014

In this story: water, animals, saving wild places, public lands, climate change

Rush hour commute: Ranchers cross Washington, D.C.'s Francis Scott Key Bridge after a three-week ride from California.

Great Barrier Reef Madness

Dumping and dredging for new coal ports deal latest blows to Australia's natural treasure.

By Serena Renner October 1, 2014

In this story: coal, dirty energy, activism, saving wild places

Coal carrier Shen Neng aground on the Great Barrier Reef

Flying a Fine Line

Drones could be a boon for conservation—but first, they need to overcome their stigma

By Caitlin Kauffman July 24, 2014

In this story: animals, technology, activism

Drones could be a boon for conservation--but first, they need to overcome their stigma

Those Not-So-Wild Europeans

Re-creating wilderness on a continent that has almost none

By Lenny Antonelli June 4, 2014

In this story: saving wild places, public lands, wilderness, travel, hiking

Looking across Ballycroy National Park to the Nephin Beg Mountains, which are at the heart of Ireland's first wilderness area.