It’s firefly season in the Blue Ridge. As the sun goes down, they begin to blink and glow along the water, in the trees, and across open fields. Some species twinkle in unison, others off and on. One of nature’s loveliest light shows enchants onlookers of all ages, especially in...
Inside New Orleans’ plan to fix its energy-hogging buildings
This coverage is made possible through a partnership between Grist and Verite News, a nonprofit news organization with a mission to produce in-depth journalism in underserved communities in the New Orleans area. As thousands of architects and planners flocked to New Orleans in 2014 for the world’s largest sustainable design conference,...
Louisiana is the latest state to greenwash gas
In Louisiana, natural gas — a planet-heating fossil fuel — is now, by law, considered “green energy” that can compete with solar and wind projects for clean energy funding. The law, signed by Republican Governor Jeff Landry last month, comes on the heels of similar bills passed in Ohio, Tennessee,...
Congress is killing clean energy tax credits. Here’s how to use them before they disappear.
The “one big beautiful bill” that President Donald Trump signed into law on July 4 is set to upend many aspects of American life, including climate policy. The law, which Republicans backed en masse, not only derails the nation’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, it could also strike a...
Drought is draining water supplies and driving up food costs where you’d least expect
Taking shovels and buckets to a dried-up sandy belt of the Vhombozi River in Zimbabwe last August, groups of Mudzi district villagers gathered to dig with the hope of somehow finding water. The southern African region had entered into a state of severe drought, which had shriveled the Vhombozi, a...
This Texas county asked for disaster resilience help. The flood came first.
Flooding is a fact of life in Texas Hill Country, a region home to a flood-prone corridor known as “Flash Flood Alley.” Judge Rob Kelly, the top elected official in Kerr County, said as much on Sunday. “We know we get rains. We know the river rises,” he said as...
Atlanta is embracing a cheap, effective way to beat urban heat: ‘cool roofs’
Walk outside into 100-degree heat wearing a black shirt, and you’ll feel a whole lot hotter than if you were wearing white. Now think about your roof: If it’s also dark, it’s soaking up more of the sun’s energy and radiating that heat indoors. If it were a lighter color,...
Disaster 101: Your guide to extreme weather preparation, relief, and recovery
How to prepare for a disaster Your guide to finding accurate information, emergency kits, evacuations, protecting your home, and more if you’re at risk of a hurricane, wildfire, flood, or other disaster. Lyndsey Gilpin How disaster relief and response work Your guide to the agencies and programs responsible for emergency...
The science behind Texas’ catastrophic floods
Rescue crews are scrambling to find survivors of catastrophic flooding that tore through Central Texas on the Fourth of July. It’s already one of the deadliest flood events in modern American history, leaving at least 95 people dead, 27 of whom were girls and counselors at a Christian summer camp...
How climate change is intensifying hurricanes
Extreme weather seems to make the headlines almost every week, as disasters increasingly strike out of season, break records, and hit places they never have before. Decades of scientific research has proven that human-caused climate change is making some disasters more dangerous and more frequent. The burning of fossil fuels...