On the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act, a researcher contemplates the future of species we’ve tried to protect.
Extreme heat
Posted inNovember 1, 2023: November 1, 2023
The climate crisis is pushing Washington’s prisons to the brink
Why not let people out?
Posted inNovember 1, 2023: November 1, 2023
How Green River celebrates its melon farmers
Thousands turn out for Melon Days, but the future looks uncertain.
Posted inArticles
Q&A: Sacramento Homeless Union fights to end encampment sweeps during extreme heat
Activists are invoking emergency legal measures to protect unhoused communities.
Posted inArticles
Extreme heat hits the rural Southwest
How community members keep one another safe.
Posted inArticles
Yes, 90 degrees can be dangerous
From a jump in ER visits and gun violence to fears for maternal health, the Northwest’s May heat wave shows the dangers of more moderate, early heat waves.
Posted inArticles
In the once-cool forests of the Pacific Northwest, heat poses a new threat
Drought can stress trees to death, but heat’s effects are less known. New research could hold the keys to protecting conifer forests.
Posted inArticles
The West’s hottest county is also its most Latino
Some places in Imperial County, California, experienced 117 days above 100 degrees this year.
Posted inJune 1, 2022: A Legacy of Weapons and War
When the heat is unbearable but there’s nowhere to go
How last year’s record-breaking heat wave caused misery and chaos for Washington’s incarcerated population — and why it’s set to happen all over again.
Posted inArticles
How to cool one of the fastest-warming cities in the West
In Phoenix, a new heat office hopes to prevent more people from dying of extreme heat.
Posted inDecember 1, 2021: Visions of Wildness
How heat waves warp ecosystems
After the Northwest ‘heat dome’ this summer, scientists look for signs of ecological ruin — or resilience.
Posted inArticles
Why investing in libraries is a climate justice issue
For vulnerable communities, libraries are increasingly becoming a refuge in times of disaster.
Posted inArticles
Uncurbed climate change and extreme heat will extract a toll on outdoor labor
A new report forecasts the loss in workdays and wages if greenhouse gas emissions aren’t reined in.
Posted inSeptember 1, 2020: The Next West
Extreme heat is here, and it’s deadly
Gearing up for the fight against a new climate enemy.
Posted inArticles
Record heat in Alaska fuels wildfires
Anchorage sees 90 F as nearly 120 fires blaze across the state.
Posted inFebruary 4, 2019: Nizhoni Girls
Extreme heat hits Tucson’s poor neighborhoods hardest
Where city efforts fall short, activists try to add shade to the heat-stressed south side.
Posted inAugust 20, 2018: Where the West is Moving - and Why
Farmworkers face illness and death in the fields
‘The reality is that the machinery of growers is taken better care of than the lives of farmworkers.’
Posted inArticles
Extreme heat is killing people who lack shelter
Climate change is worsening the threats that homeless populations face.
Posted inAugust 21, 2017: Rooftop Revolution
Desert songbirds struggle with more frequent heat waves
The number of days Southwestern birds face deadly dehydration may be increasing.
Posted inJune 12, 2017: The Big Swing
The danger of urban ‘heat islands’
How built-up cities and higher temperatures threaten human health.