THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC
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The Arizona Republic, also known as azcentral, is one of the largest newsrooms in the USA TODAY network. With funding from the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust, I was able to join The Republic as an environmental reporter.
On this beat, I've been investigating pressing environmental issues in Arizona and the Southwest, such as the effects of the border wall on wildlife, water scarcity, uranium mining and wildfire mitigation. I've had the chance to produce photos and videos, as well as spearhead new engagement strategies on our team's social media platforms. As a part of the environmental team, I had the honor of working alongside phenomenal editors and reporters, such as Josh Susong, Shaun McKinnon, Ian James, Deb Krol and Erin Stone. |
STORIES AND ARTICLES
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Calls grow for undoing environmental damage of the border wall
Along the southernmost edge of Arizona, where the San Pedro River once flowed freely over the border from its headwaters in Mexico, a 30-foot steel wall slices across the channel. The barrier resembles a fortress, with massive floodgates, a concrete bridge and light poles that tower over the riverbed. Before the Trump administration broke ground on the new wall, the river and the shady forest along it had cut through the only opening in a stretch of 40 miles of fence. |
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Climate change lures 'snowbird' cormorants to Phoenix, upsetting ecosystems and residents
SUN LAKES — On every other swing, Larry Seckels pauses for a deep breath as his wife, Joan, calls out the number of flyouts. From the branches above, disgruntled caws interrupt the steady beat of his metal baseball bat. "You got six on that hit, hon," Joan shouts from the patio. "Less on that swing, just two." From the nests they're being rustled from, the neotropic cormorants have a clear bird’s-eye view of Larry... |
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How a rare squirrel could reveal changes in a forest ecosystem damaged by wildfire
CHIRICAHUA NATIONAL MONUMENT — There was a crunch with every step Melissa Merrick took as she veered farther off trail. She wasn't looking at the leaves littering the ground, but at the branches they fell from. Through her binoculars, Merrick scanned every treetop for a sign of a nest. Any cluster of leaves could be home to the rare species she was looking for: the Chiricahua fox squirrel... |
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To protect native fish, agencies put a bounty on brown trout in the Colorado River
LEES FERRY — The reflection of the red rocks made it tough to tell where the water ended and the cliffs began as Barron Tsinigine cast his line into the river. It was daybreak and he had been fishing for rainbow trout, until he found out he could earn $25 for landing a brown trout. That's when his plan changed... |
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Public lands activists hope Biden will permanently halt Grand Canyon uranium mines, restore monuments
KAIBAB NATIONAL FOREST — Wind rustles the barbed fence surrounding Canyon Mine as Amber Reimondo patrols its perimeter. For the last four years under the Trump administration, Reimondo, the energy director for the Grand Canyon Trust, has worked to make the temporary Obama-era uranium mining ban around the Grand Canyon permanent. So far, her efforts have not paid off... |