How to confront hard truths about climate change and ecocide.
Communities
Posted inArticles
What I learned from Iraqi and Kurdish students in Montana
Seeing encounters between foreign students and rural Westerners was eye opening.
Posted inJuly 24, 2017: Down the Dark Mountain
A young hunter moves past death threats from afar
The Apassingok family reflects on a formative kill of a whale and the social-media backlash.
Posted inArticles
Why I obsess about the names of plants and animals
Naming things makes individuals out of a landscape of birds, trees and bumblebees.
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A far-right rally meets backlash in Seattle
Violent clashes in Virgina over displays of Nazism set the stage for conflict in Washington state.
Posted inAugust 21, 2017: Rooftop Revolution
What would the rural West do without volunteer firefighters?
Small-town firefighters are often first responders to some of the biggest blazes.
Posted inAugust 7, 2017: Los Promotores
Amid California’s toxic dumps, local activists go it alone
They call themselves promotores, and they’re starting to see results.
Posted inAugust 7, 2017: Los Promotores
The West braces for a “cosmic traffic jam”
Hordes of travelers have filled up campsites and hotels in preparation.
Posted inAugust 7, 2017: Los Promotores
Recognizing California’s invisible activists
We are seeing a mounting intolerance toward undocumented farmworkers.
Posted inAugust 7, 2017: Los Promotores
A legal snarl in Idaho portends future conflicts over water
As the climate changes, dams face new challenges for water rights and releases.
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No, God won’t take care of climate change
Conservationists and religious folk need to find harmony for a healthy planet.
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Why so many hate crime victims choose not to report
A Colorado study examines the experiences of victims.
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The political right and left are stuck in polarizing myths
Neighbors in a small Colorado town are splintered, but neither are correct.
Posted inAugust 7, 2017: Los Promotores
Death and dying are different in the West
The rugged individualist mentality of the region extends to medical aid in dying.
Posted inJuly 24, 2017: Down the Dark Mountain
Crime-fighting squirrels; an undead columnist; voracious jackrabbits
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
Posted inJuly 24, 2017: Down the Dark Mountain
So what if we’re doomed?
Climate chaos, mass extinction, the collapse of civilization: A guide to facing the ecocide.
Posted inArticles
Do the laws on counterfeit Native art go far enough?
Ubiquitous fakes have far-reaching impacts on Indian Country.
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In remote Alaska, subsistence hunting helps villagers survive
Photos from Gambell, Alaska, help illustrate a different way of life.
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Help us report on hate in the West
High Country News joins a national effort to document hate.
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The women confronting California’s farm conditions
Female farmworkers face sexual assault, pesticide exposure and low wages.