Facebook logo LinkedIn logo Twitter logo Print HTML logo
Features

Features banner

 

SEJournal's regular Features section cover a wide-range of environmentally related topics in a variety of formats, including essays, first-hand accounts of reporting work, news analysis and opinion.

For questions and comments, to suggest future Features or to offer to write one, email SEJournal Associate Editor Frances Backhouse at sejournaleditor@sej.org.

Public

November 8, 2023

  • Reporting on Environmental Solutions and Equity — at a Watershed Scale

    Reporting on interconnected ecosystems lends itself to better environmental stories, and so tracing how water moves across landscapes, communities, industries and regulatory schemes can help the public connect the dots. That’s how Annie Ropeik, who helps run the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk, sees the watershed beat. She shares expert views and offers insights for environment journalists to use in their reporting.

    VIEW ARTICLE

October 18, 2023

  • Prying Open the Statehouse Doors

    Reporting on environmental stories often leads to the state legislature, where key material can be frustratingly hard to access. Whether that’s because the state is deliberately hiding information, has poor systems for sharing it or isn’t even tracking it, there are ways to get what you need. Four seasoned environment reporters offer tips, tricks and commiseration.

    VIEW ARTICLE

September 27, 2023

  • Disabilities and Disasters — What Questions Should You Be Asking Planners?

    As hurricane season ramps up, how are the disaster planners considering those with disabilities in your community? Texas-based journalist Greg Harman shares the story of one group that sued their city over claims it failed to properly prepare. And he extracts some rules of thumb to help determine if emergency planners are taking those with disabilities into consideration where you are.

    VIEW ARTICLE

September 6, 2023

  • Storm Warning — How To Prepare for Weather Disaster Reporting

    Major storms hit hard and fast. Successful on-the-ground coverage requires advance prep and consideration of how to deal with challenges. Seasoned reporter Emily Foxhall has learned a lot from Hurricane Harvey and other disasters — sometimes the hard way. She shares tips for planning, packing and getting colleagues back home to help with logistics, plus some reminders about self-care.

    VIEW ARTICLE

July 26, 2023

  • Expert Advice Helps Journalists Navigate Unfamiliar Scientific Seas

    Journalists who lack a strong science background can find themselves in deep water when reporting environmental stories. How do you avoid over- or understating research findings? What’s the difference between observational and experimental studies? And what about those pesky percentages? Former Washington Post science reporter Rick Weiss and his SciLine colleagues have some answers.

    VIEW ARTICLE

June 21, 2023

June 7, 2023

  • From TV Meteorologists, More Straight Talk About Climate Change

    Reporters covering floods, fires and other weather-driven disasters sometimes hesitate to link these extreme events to climate change. But TV meteorologists increasingly see an opportunity — and a responsibility — to help local audiences better understand the connections. Their unique relationship with viewers makes it easier to get past partisan divisions, while innovative tools are providing new ways to communicate information.

    VIEW ARTICLE

May 17, 2023

  • Tilling the Storytelling Fields on the Food, Ag and Environment Beat

    In his more than a decade at the helm of the Food & Environment Reporting Network, Samuel Fromartz was instrumental in shaping a new way of covering food, agriculture and environmental issues. As he prepares to turn over the top editor’s job to his successor, Fromartz talks about FERN’s innovative business model and the power of narrative.

    VIEW ARTICLE

April 26, 2023

  • Why Journalists Should Investigate the Twin Mental Health and Climate Crises

    The complicated interplay between climate change and trauma, poorly understood and little covered, is holding back the response by individuals and communities to the realities of the climate crisis, argues the head of a network of mental health and other organizations. Here’s what he has found when it comes to how climate-generated anguish is blocking climate solutions and what can be done about it.

    VIEW ARTICLE

April 12, 2023

  • Is EV-Driven Demand for Lithium on Collision Course With Environment Concerns?

    The push to replace gas-guzzling vehicles with electric-powered alternatives is hitting significant speed bumps. The existing supply of lithium for batteries can’t keep up with demand, and new mining proposals often face opposition from area residents worried about local impacts. Radio reporter David Boraks has been covering one such conflict in North Carolina. He shares his insights and reporting tips.

    VIEW ARTICLE

Pages

Search Publications

Browse Publications

Advertisement

Advertise with SEJ

 

Subscriptions

SEJournal Online is the digital news magazine of the Society of Environmental Journalists. Learn more about SEJournal Online, including submission, subscription and advertising information.