Latest Articles

Mountaintop-removal mining is devastating Appalachia, but residents are fighting back

This article was originally published in Orion Magazine. Not since the glaciers pushed toward these ridgelines a million years ago have the Appalachian Mountains been as threatened as they are today. But the coal-extraction process decimating this landscape, known as mountaintop removal, has generated little press beyond the region. A mountaintop no more.Photo: Vivian Stockman/SouthWings.The […]

The more compact your neighborhood, the less time you spend in a car

One benefit of living in a compact neighborhood rather than a sprawling suburb: You don't spend as much time in your car. The chart below, derived from a national transportation survey, makes the point pretty clearly:

Biotech crops have benefited shareholders in seed giants, but nobody else

A couple of days ago, NY Times writer Andrew Pollack attempted to address the failure of biotech companies to "improve" fruits and vegetable crops -- that is, to bring a genetically altered fruit or vegetable strain (as opposed to grains like corn and legumes like soy) from seed to supermarket.

Unwittingly, the article illustrates the industry's hubris and the mainstream press's gullibility in covering the topic.

Pollack opens thusly:

A study on green degree programs

It's that time of year again ... time to write that college-application essay, sign that acceptance letter, and start packing boxes. Or is it? I'm not quite sure. I've been out of the college-application process for a while now ... what with having this real job now. But I'm sure somewhere out there you kids are looking all over the internets for some cool eco-programs to apply to, right?

And what better way to start off this biweekly column on college-related eco-initiatives than a post about some of the various green degree programs out there. (And also? What better way to title it? "Have Some Class" ... ha ha! Ahem.) But seriously, there are some great new curriculums out there -- and we're not just talking your generic EnviroSci. Responding to popular demand and an ever-expanding field of applicants, these inter-disciplinary majors allow students to focus on green issues within their field of interest.

The faces and voices of West Virginians battered by mountaintop removal

These photographs were originally published in Orion Magazine. In May 2005, photographer Antrim Caskey encountered Maria Gunnoe in Manhattan. Gunnoe had come to protest the practice of mountaintop-removal mining at a Massey Energy shareholders meeting. Two days later, Caskey left for the Cumberland Plateau, where she made these images. “People are scared,” Caskey says. “I’d […]

Umbra on carpeting

Dear Umbra, Our home is mostly wood floors, but we would like to have a carpeted den. My gut instinct is that the carpet pad (looks like the foam from the inside of a car seat all smooshed together with other pieces) is full of chemicals that will constantly offgas. Am I right? If so, […]

Al Gore: Coming to a theater near you

An Inconvenient Truth, the documentary about Al Gore's quest to raise the alarm about global warming (covered in Grist here), has been picked up by Paramount and will be distributed worldwide -- it opens in the U.S. on May 26.

Gore and Powerpoint? I smell March of the Penguins numbers here people! (Amusingly, the movie poster actually features penguins -- as opposed to, you know, Al Gore.)

Organic arugula, Lake Tahoe, and poverty

In kicking off its seven week series, the talented and witty team at Grist pondered the paradox of U.S. environmentalism: "In much of popular and political culture, the movement is dismissed as the pet cause of white, well-off Americans -- people who can afford to buy organic arugula, vacation in Lake Tahoe, and worry about the fate of the Pacific pocket mouse."

This perception, and how the environmental community responds to it, will determine whether it becomes a movement for everyone, or just for those with a Nalgene in every cupboard and a Gortex in every closet.

Many Americans, environmentalists included, see poverty as a necessary evil, a "by-product of civilization" that will always be with us. In other words, its existence is natural. This analysis of poverty may seem pragmatic, but it morally justifies the continuation of a social system that provides comfort and extravagance for a few, while leaving others to scrape, toil, and struggle to meet their basic needs.

The environmental movement has a sophisticated analysis of environmental degradation, eco-systems, and the political forces influencing the planet. Does the environmental movement have an analysis of poverty? If so, what is it? How do you explain the existence of poverty in the most affluent nation in the world? As an anti-poverty activist (and environmentalist) I'm interested in knowing what Grist readers think.

Seaweed’s Big Adventure

Scientists discover biodiversity hotspot on Caribbean atoll That ex-girlfriend was right — there are other fish in the sea! Scientists have discovered a biodiversity hotspot in the Caribbean, home to a (possibly) new fish species and a mini-rainforest of seaweeds. Over a two-week period at the coral-covered Saba Bank Atoll, 12 researchers braved heavy seas […]

Fiber Tactics

Asbestos trust fund derailed in the Senate Remember the titanic struggle erupting in the Senate all of eight days ago, as a landmark bill to create a $140 billion industry-financed trust fund for victims of asbestos-related illnesses moved to the floor for debate? Well, pack up your lawn chair: It’s over. Yesterday, the bill effectively […]