Two years after floodwaters swept through, many immigrant families are still struggling to rebuild.
Communities
Posted inArticles
Fresno, California, aims to recharge its dwindling groundwater
Surface water projects give groundwater a break, in the state’s fourth year of severe drought.
Posted inArticles
In Colorado, a ‘rental crisis’ forces workers into the woods
Tent cities, waste and overcrowding have created something foul in Crested Butte.
Posted inArticles
No direction home
Nearly a year after San Jose shut down the Bay Area’s biggest homeless encampment, hundreds still live along city creeks. What went wrong?
Posted inArticles
Mass shootings in Western states, by the numbers
In October, a man opened fire at Umpqua Community College in Oregon, leaving 10 dead.
Posted inArticles
EPA releases a stricter, health-based smog standard
Failure to meet the new requirements can trigger serious economic consequences for some communities.
Posted inArticles
Can Eugene, Oregon become a haven for startups?
This May, 30 game developers were laid off at the Zynga videogame company office in Eugene, Oregon. But soon after, Joe Maruschak spoke at the Barn Light coffee shop on how to launch a startup business. Game developers crowded around the tables. Maruschak, chief startup officer at Eugene’s Regional Accelerator and Innovation Network, encouraged the […]
Posted inArticles
Can herbicides keep Tahoe blue?
A new chemical weed management plan has the lake’s water suppliers nervous.
Posted inArticles
Shell’s giving up drilling in the Arctic Ocean. Now what?
The (controversial) case for drilling the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
Posted inArticles
Pope Francis and Obama make joint appeal for climate action
Pope’s address promises to rile Republicans who deny human connection to climate change.
Posted inArticles
Dispatch from Valley Fire evacuation camp in California
State officials are calling the Lake County blaze one of the fastest-moving fires in memory.
Posted inSeptember 14, 2015: Close Ties in Big Landscapes
A displaced California tribe reclaims sacred land
The Mountain Maidu return to their valley, but the work of reclamation never ends.
Posted inSeptember 14, 2015: Close Ties in Big Landscapes
Claustrophilia: Do wide-open lands bring us closer together?
A writer finds that Colorado small-town life and Mongolian mishaps strengthen her human connections.
Posted inSeptember 14, 2015: Close Ties in Big Landscapes
Mitchell S. Jackson finds another Portland
An author speaks on growing up black in 1990s Portland and countering his city’s hipster image.
Posted inSeptember 14, 2015: Close Ties in Big Landscapes
Writing beyond the reservation stereotype
A Native author creates characters who are making a life in the urban West.
Posted inArticles
Are nonprofit models an answer for small ski areas?
As climate and economic challenges mount, some community ski hills find a new path.
Posted inArticles
In Colorado, a green fleecing worth millions
How hundreds of Front Rangers got scammed.
Posted inArticles
Why Silverton still doesn’t want a Superfund site
A polluted Colorado town wants to clean up on its own terms. But it’s been saying that for years.
Posted inAugust 31, 2015: Unlocking the Methane Mystery
Where FEMA fails
Better preparation can save money and lives, but pre-disaster funds are in short supply.
Posted inArticles
An interview with the first African-American president of the Sierra Club
Aaron Mair hopes to shift the club’s mission toward policies that better include the needs and values of minorities.