Covering Climate Now 2021

Covering Climate Now is a project co-founded by Columbia Journalism Review and The Nation aimed at strengthening the media’s focus on the climate crisis. WBUR is one of 400+ news organizations around the world that have committed to a week of heightened climate coverage in the lead-up to Earth Day 2021.

Kim Franklin from the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum digs up a tuft of invasive bufflegrass in Saguaro National Park. (Peter O'Dowd/Here & Now)

The Fight To Protect Arizona's Iconic Saguaros From Invasive Buffelgrass

Buffelgrass, an invasive plant, is choking out native plants in Arizona's Sonoran Desert and making the region more prone to wildfires.

Here & Now

06:48Apr 26, 2021

These Climate-Conscious Farmers Say Americans Eat Too Much Meat

The meat and dairy industry accounts for 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions. What would it take to reach net-zero?

Here & Now

05:43Apr 26, 2021

Interested In Eco-Friendly Gardening? Here's What You Should Know

Interest in eco-friendly gardening has surged in the pandemic. Mark Richardson, director of horticulture at the Tower Hill Botanical Garden in Boylston has recommendations on how to get started with...

Earthwhile

06:28Apr 23, 2021

A car drives through flood water by the Chart House on Boston's Long Wharf during a November king tide. (Robin Lubbock/WBUR)

Event Recap: Climate Resilient Cities: An Earth Day Discussion Of Sea-Level Rise

Earthwhile

Apr 23, 2021

Vehicles move along the the New Jersey Turnpike while a factory emits smoke on November 17, 2017 in Carteret, New Jersey. (Kena Betancur/VIEWpress/Corbis/Getty Images)

How To Cut U.S. Emissions In Half By 2030

Nathan Hultman, director of the Center for Global Sustainability at the University of Maryland, co-authored a roadmap to reducing emissions by at least 50%.

Here & Now

05:55Apr 23, 2021

Water crashes along the seawall on Winthrop Parkway during a recent high tide. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)

On Revere's Pearl Avenue, Residents Grapple With The Rising Tide Of Climate Change

As climate change makes sea levels rise and increases the intensity and frequency of storms, one tight-knit neighborhood in Revere confronts its future.

Earthwhile

06:49Apr 23, 2021

How 'Eco-Warrior' Alexis Rockman's Trippy Paintings Of Shipwrecks Confront The Climate Crisis

Shipwrecks have stoked fear in our collective imaginations throughout history. But what can these disasters at sea say about humans' damaging impact on the planet?

The ARTery

05:23Apr 23, 2021

President Biden speaks to the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate, from the East Room of the White House on Thursday, April 22, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Evan Vucci/AP)

Biden Vows To Cut U.S. Greenhouse Emissions In Half By 2030

The ambitious goal comes as scientists warn of the increasingly catastrophic toll of climate change.

Here & Now

05:19Apr 22, 2021

Sunset over Tucson, Arizona. (Wild Horizons/Universal Images Group/Getty Images)

Across The Southwest, Poor And Latino Neighborhoods Get Hotter Than Wealthier, Whiter Neighborhoods

A recent study shows that in cities like Albuquerque, Phoenix, Las Vegas and Fresno, the temperature is on average 4 degrees warmer during average summer days and during heatwaves.

Here & Now

09:34Apr 22, 2021

Protesters on March 24, 2021 in Bloomington, Indiana hold placards during the Keep the Promise rally in Dunn Meadow to advocate for Indiana University to reach carbon neutrality by 2040.
(Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

So You're Serious About Climate Change: Vote In Your Local Elections

Local elections are the low-hanging fruit of climate politics, writes Nathaniel Stinnett. A small uptick in turnout of environmental voters can swing results and have a big impact on policy-making.

Cognoscenti

Apr 22, 2021

Climate activists march in an attempt to occupy the Garzweiler open-cast coal mine and nearby gas infrastructure on a day of civil disobedience organized by the "Ende Gelaende" movement on September 26, 2020 near Grevenbroich, Germany. (Sascha Schuermann/Getty Images)

The Psychology Of Climate Change — And How To Engage With It

Climate change presents a grim future. We know what we’re up against, yet our impulse is to look away, to say we’ll worry about it later. We talk the psychology...

On Point

47:18Apr 22, 2021

Miami Beach. (Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)

Greening The Internet: How Underwater Cable Networks Impact Climate Change

The ocean floor has played a big role in long-distance communication going all the way back to the 1800s.

Here & Now

05:23Apr 21, 2021

An array of solar panels stands on the Dearborn STEM Academy roof. The roof is white to reflect heat on sunny days. (Robin Lubbock/WBUR)

How Solar Energy Policies Could Help More Low-Income Residents

Massachusetts is a national leader in solar energy, with 18% of the state's electricity coming from the sun. But most low-income residents haven't been able to take advantage of the...

Cognoscenti

Apr 21, 2021

Boston Landmarks Orchestra perform during a summer concert at the Hatch Shell. (Michael Dwyer)

Report: Air Quality Improving In Mass., Even Before The Pandemic

Boston and Springfield metro areas experienced fewer unhealthy days of high ozone, and relatively few spikes of particle pollution

Earthwhile

Apr 21, 2021

View of a glacier at Chiriguano Bay in South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. (Johan ORDONEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Thwaites Glacier Is Melting Faster Than Scientists Thought

The Thwaites Glacier contains enough freshwater to significantly raise global sea levels if it collapses.

Here & Now

05:34Apr 20, 2021

The Climate Footprint Of Growing Cannabis Indoors

A new study confirms that growing pot indoors in huge enclosed warehouses has a massive carbon footprint in Colorado.

Here & Now

04:47Apr 20, 2021

Climate justice activists Jayola Reid (left) and Jade Lozada. (Courtesy)

Gen Z Activists On What's At Stake: 'The Climate Crisis Doesn't Affect Us All Equally'

Young climate justice activists Jayola Reid and Jade Lozada are pushing for progressive change to protect the environment.

Here & Now

09:56Apr 20, 2021

Azalea Morgan, 9, (left) and her sister Ember Morgan, 10, (right) stand with their bikes on the porch of their home in Andover, New Hampshire. The sisters biked to New York City from Andover with their mom to raise awareness of climate change in 2019. (Ryan Caron King/Connecticut Public)

'It's My Future': A New Generation Of Young Climate Activists Takes The Helm In New Hampshire

Scientists and the United Nations say the world has about until 2030 to prevent the worst effects of climate change. Some kids and teens in New Hampshire are acting now...

Earthwhile

Apr 20, 2021

A farm about to be enveloped by a dust storm during the great Dust Bowl of the 1930s. (Corbis via Getty Images)

What The Dustbowl Of The 1930s Can Teach Us About The Origins Of A Looming Megadrought

The Dust Bowl had economic roots, writes Frederick Hewett. Government policies aimed to maximize profit without concern for the environmental consequences -- it’s analogous to what’s hampering the nation's efforts...

Cognoscenti

Apr 20, 2021

A gas-lit flame burns on a natural gas stove. (Thomas Kienzle/AP)

Are Americans Willing To Drop Gas Cooking To Cut Back On Carbon Emissions?

In the last two years, alone about 40 California towns and cities created bans on new gas hookups.

Here & Now

11:03Apr 19, 2021

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!

Covering Climate Now 2021

The Fight To Protect Arizona's Iconic Saguaros From Invasive Buffelgrass

These Climate-Conscious Farmers Say Americans Eat Too Much Meat

Interested In Eco-Friendly Gardening? Here's What You Should Know

Event Recap: Climate Resilient Cities: An Earth Day Discussion Of Sea-Level Rise

How To Cut U.S. Emissions In Half By 2030

On Revere's Pearl Avenue, Residents Grapple With The Rising Tide Of Climate Change

How 'Eco-Warrior' Alexis Rockman's Trippy Paintings Of Shipwrecks Confront The Climate Crisis

Biden Vows To Cut U.S. Greenhouse Emissions In Half By 2030

Across The Southwest, Poor And Latino Neighborhoods Get Hotter Than Wealthier, Whiter Neighborhoods

So You're Serious About Climate Change: Vote In Your Local Elections

The Psychology Of Climate Change — And How To Engage With It

Greening The Internet: How Underwater Cable Networks Impact Climate Change

How Solar Energy Policies Could Help More Low-Income Residents

Report: Air Quality Improving In Mass., Even Before The Pandemic

Thwaites Glacier Is Melting Faster Than Scientists Thought

The Climate Footprint Of Growing Cannabis Indoors

Gen Z Activists On What's At Stake: 'The Climate Crisis Doesn't Affect Us All Equally'

'It's My Future': A New Generation Of Young Climate Activists Takes The Helm In New Hampshire

What The Dustbowl Of The 1930s Can Teach Us About The Origins Of A Looming Megadrought

Are Americans Willing To Drop Gas Cooking To Cut Back On Carbon Emissions?