Articles by Grist staff

Give Peas a Chance

War-torn countries fight to protect genetic variability of crops Scientists and agricultural breeding specialists have developed a system to recover and restore rare but valuable crop varieties that might otherwise be lost forever to the ravages of war and heedless development. Called “smart aid,” the strategy involves searching out important genetic varieties — such as […]

The Clear Skies’ the Limit

Lawmakers defend states’ rights, introduce Clear Skies competition Govs. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-Calif.) and George Pataki (R-N.Y.), in a letter to a Senate committee that’s convening today to deliberate the Bush administration’s Clear Skies bill, emphasized the importance of protecting state environmental enforcement powers. Both California and New York have put in place environmental regulations stricter […]

The Lion, the Switch, and the … Oh, Forget It

Neoconservatives and greens find common cause on energy conservation And the lion shall lie down with the lamb indeed. A strange political alliance is taking shape in Washington, D.C., as neoconservatives anxious to sap political strength from their Middle Eastern nemeses form common cause with enviros anxious to slow global warming. What unites them? A […]

Perfect Pitch

Gristmill launches contest to find environmentalism’s elevator pitch Inspired by a similar (OK, nearly identical) initiative at fellow mag The American Prospect, we’ve launched a contest: We want you, dear readers, to develop an elevator pitch for environmentalism. Imagine yourself on an elevator with Jane Average Citizen, and you have seven floors to pitch her […]