The county was supposed to conduct an annual tally of people experiencing homelessness this month. Then disaster struck.
People & Places
Posted inArticles
How communities, officials and developers can work together on renewable energy development
Researcher Katherine Hoff explains how negotiation and dialogue can smooth the energy transition.
Posted inArticles
The beautiful and awful Butte, Montana
The indelible history of mining poisons a town yet extracts something new.
Posted inArticles
How to solve local opposition to green development
Bespoke community benefits agreements can offer residents tangible gains in return for the disturbance of development.
Posted inArticles
What it’s like to be an incarcerated firefighter
Eddie Herrera, a formerly incarcerated firefighter, talks about the job and how he sees what’s happening in Los Angeles.
Posted inArticles
How to understand the West’s ‘forever wildfire season’
Amid California’s deadly fires, here are 10 High Country News stories to help you bring context to wildland blazes.
Posted inIssues
‘I started to grass dance when I was just a little girl’
#iamthewest: Giving voice to the people that make up communities in the region.
Posted inArticles
How Utah’s Christmas Festival has buoyed a changing coal community
Thirty-five years ago, Helper was nearly a ghost town. Now, art and tourism are providing new paths forward.
Posted inFebruary 2025: Immigrant Stories
Unhoused people pay a disproportionate price for the West’s deadly roads
People experiencing homelessness are more likely to die from transportation-related injuries than the general population.
Posted inDecember 2024: Land as Reparations
Can land repair the nation’s racist past?
California’s approach to Black reparations shifts toward land access, ownership and stewardship.
Posted inDecember 2024: Land as Reparations
The aftermath of the Hermit’s Peak and Calf Canyon Fires
Devastation is hard to face, but
turning away is harder.
Posted inDecember 2024: Land as Reparations
Can Farmington hide from its legacy of anti-Indigenous violence?
It’s a reservation border town problem, not just a local one.
Posted inDecember 2024: Land as Reparations
The passion of the Mormon feminist
For 50 years, ‘Exponent II‘ has made the LDS Church squirm. It has no plans to stop.
Posted inDecember 2024: Land as Reparations
‘We’re all here together’
#iamthewest: Giving voice to the people that make up communities in the region.
Posted inArticles
Why did Nevada vote to ban slavery, when California didn’t?
Both states require incarcerated people to work — often for critical and dangerous jobs.
Posted inNovember 2024: The Once and Future Prairie
In Washington’s Yakima Valley, quinceañeras connect people and place
Teens are making the tradition their own with high-top sneakers, glowing dresses and Tiktok dances.
Posted inNovember 2024: The Once and Future Prairie
Tenis, vestidos brillantes, y bailes de TikTok
En el Valle de Yakima, las jóvenes hacen suya la tradición quinceañera.
Posted inNovember 2024: The Once and Future Prairie
The search for a taste of home in a new place
After a move from rural to urban Alaska, a writer hunts for the blueberries that nourish her family, body and spirit.
Posted inNovember 2024: The Once and Future Prairie
‘Music gives voice to the soul directly’
#iamthewest: Giving voice to the people that make up communities in the region.
Posted inNovember 2024: The Once and Future Prairie
Remembering a remarkable environmental journalist
Bob Jones’ pioneering reporting spanned the West and the world.