Articles by Grist staff

Architect R.K. Stewart on building the future of sustainable design

If you build it, they will come. But if you build it green, you just may be able to save the planet. R.K. Stewart. Or so says a recent report, which suggests that green building could help cut North America’s greenhouse-gas emissions more quickly and less expensively than any other measure. And word is getting […]

Snippets from the news

• Governors protest the feds’ emissions plan. • Canadians blame themselves for climate change. • House legislation would help eradicate invasive species. • Non-plastic bottles hit the big time. • Can we rely on desalination for future water needs?

National parks will get spruced up

The National Park Centennial Initiative has announced its first round of funding for various projects and programs in — surprise! — national parks. Seventy-six parks in 38 states will see a total $51 million in federal and privately donated funding. The projects will run the gamut of everything from hiking-shelter improvements to wildlife protection to […]

Narwhals more at risk than polar bears, says study

Polar bears get all the press, but climate change may be even harder on the narwhal, says new research. Narwhals, the whales whose long spiral tusks kick-started the myth of unicorns, top a list of 11 at-risk Arctic marine mammals published in the journal Ecological Applications. Hooded seals, bowhead whales, and walrus rounded out the […]