Planning & Growth

What’s Ahead on Climate Justice, Climate Crisis Beat

What environment stories will matter most in 2024 to communities of color and Indigenous communities? Columnist Yessenia Funes sheds light on concerns ranging from the environmental damage in Gaza and extreme weather across the United States to the fallout from the U.S. presidential election to the local impacts of the clean energy transition. Insights in the latest Voices of Environmental Justice.

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Drainage Infrastructure Leads to Wet Basement Stories

Nothing may seem more personal than a home flooded by heavy rains. But the latest TipSheet points out that for local environmental reporters, there’s a bigger story to be told: how your community regulates stormwater and storm sewers, especially in the face of climate change-driven extreme precipitation. More than a dozen reporting ideas and resources.

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"Drought Touches a Quarter of Humanity, U.N. Says, Disrupting Lives Globally"

"The United Nations estimates that 1.84 billion people worldwide, or nearly a quarter of humanity, were living under drought in 2022 and 2023, the vast majority in low- and middle-income countries." "The crisis, worsened partly by climate change, has been accompanied by soaring food prices and could have consequences for hunger, elections and migration worldwide."

Source: NYTimes, 01/17/2024

"People Are Leaving Some Neighborhoods Because Of Floods, A New Study Finds"

"Hundreds of thousands of neighborhoods in the United States are seeing population decline as a result of flooding, new research suggests. Those neighborhoods are often located in areas that are growing in population overall, including parts of Florida, Texas and the region around Washington, D.C."

Source: NPR, 12/18/2023

"Virginia County Approves Data Center Project After 27-Hour Public Hearing"

"County supervisors in northern Virginia approved one of the world’s largest data center projects after a public hearing that ran through the night and lasted more than 24 hours."

Source: AP, 12/14/2023

Reporter Unravels Complex Dynamic Between Climate Change and Nature

Nature-based climate solutions have become a much-talked-of topic, one that journalist Gabriel Popkin turned into a loose beat through which to explore the complicated realities beyond some easy narratives. The resulting stories were published widely to high praise, and in the latest Inside Story Q&A, Popkin spoke about his efforts and offered up five critical factors for producing original, impactful journalism.

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"Why ‘Climate Havens’ Could Be Closer to Home Than You’d Think"

"According to a recent survey, nearly a third of Americans named climate change as a motivation to move.Some are headed to “climate havens,” the places experts say will be relatively pleasant to live in as the world heats up, like Duluth, Minnesota; Ann Arbor, Michigan; and Burlington, Vermont."

Source: Grist, 11/22/2023
December 4, 2023

Built This Way: Why Buildings Contribute So Much to Climate Change, and How Their Outsized Impact Holds The Key To Decarbonizing the World

Project Drawdown's webinar will explore how buildings contribute to climate change – including processes you may not have even known connected to the buildings around you; explain why climate solutions and climate problems are tricky to untangle in this sector; and discuss solutions. Noon ET.

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Some Houses Being Built To Stand Up To Hurricanes And Cut Emissions, Too

"When Hurricane Michael hit the Florida Panhandle five years ago, it left boats, cars and trucks piled up to the windows of Bonny Paulson’s home in the tiny coastal community of Mexico Beach, Florida, even though the house rests on pillars 14 feet above the ground. But Paulson’s home, with a rounded shape that looks something like a ship, shrugged off Category 5 winds that might otherwise have collapsed it."

Source: AP, 11/07/2023

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