Environmental Issues

Bulldozers demolish shelters in Kathmandu, part of a nationwide drive to remove informal settlements built on public land.

A Reckoning Comes for Nepal A Reckoning Comes for Nepal

A year after its Gen Z uprising, Nepal faces a struggle not only for democracy and human rights but for climate survival.

Sep 8, 2026 / Feature / Wen Stephenson

A shepherd reading,, by Johann Heinrich Roos (1631–1685).

How a Creative Mind Lives in Nature How a Creative Mind Lives in Nature

Working in the wilderness could not satiate my intellectual impulses. But for the protagonist of Hothouse Bloom, the binary between mental and physical labor is what calls her.

Sep 5, 2026 / Dan Sinykin

A man surveys the debris of a collapsed building at a town along the Trishuli River, in Devighat, Nuwakot, Nepal, on August 31, 2026.

How Will Nepal Pay for the Latest Climate Disaster? How Will Nepal Pay for the Latest Climate Disaster?

An interview with Nepali UN climate expert Manjeet Dhakal on what the massive Himalayan flood will cost Nepal.

Sep 1, 2026 / Wen Stephenson

Killing Our Mother

Killing Our Mother Killing Our Mother

Data centers swallowing resources and killing the environment.

Aug 28, 2026 / OppArt / Peter Kuper

The saltmarsh sparrow.

This Little Bird Is in Big Trouble—and Trump Is Making Things Worse This Little Bird Is in Big Trouble—and Trump Is Making Things Worse

The saltmarsh sparrow’s numbers are cratering. Why isn’t the government doing something about it?

Aug 27, 2026 / Alexandra Tey

A downed street sign and stop sign are tangled in debris outside the Center Point Volunteer Fire Department after flooding.

A Second Year of Central Texas Floods Reopened Old Wounds. Communities Are Still Healing. A Second Year of Central Texas Floods Reopened Old Wounds. Communities Are Still Healing.

In July 2025, the Guadalupe River surged in a storm that killed more than 130 people. Only a year later, the waters rose again.

Aug 26, 2026 / StudentNation / Alice Scott

Trump’s Ballroom Isn’t Just a Farce Anymore—It’s a Threat

Trump’s Ballroom Isn’t Just a Farce Anymore—It’s a Threat Trump’s Ballroom Isn’t Just a Farce Anymore—It’s a Threat

In this week’s Elie v. US, our justice correspondent explains how the ballroom could gut key environmental protections. Plus, the heartbreak of Jason Arday.

Aug 21, 2026 / Elie Mystal

A patient rests in a corridor waiting for a room at Providence Cedars–Sinai Tarzana Medical Center in California on January 3, 2021.

Have We Forgotten Covid’s Lessons? Have We Forgotten Covid’s Lessons?

This summer’s deadly heat calls for news coverage based on science, not ideology.

Aug 20, 2026 / Mark Hertsgaard

A couple walks along Lake Michigan as smoke from Canadian wildfires blankets Chicago, Illinois, on July 16, 2026.

We Can’t Surrender to Climate Destruction We Can’t Surrender to Climate Destruction

Politicians and pundits are telling us to accept the escalating breakdown of our planet. We have to fight back.

Aug 13, 2026 / Sarah Lazare

People hold up signs on a pedestrian bridge during a nationwide protest against AI data center expansion in Berkeley, California, on July 18, 2026.

Willie Nelson Gets It—This Time About Data Centers Willie Nelson Gets It—This Time About Data Centers

“The last thing we need is a loud, water thieving, light polluting, data center anywhere near our town (or any others for that matter).”

Aug 11, 2026 / Katrina vanden Heuvel

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