News and Events

Accomplished journalists join newest class of Scripps Fellows

Anonymous — Mon, 29 Jul 2024 04:02:53 +0000

Accomplished journalists join newest class of Scripps Fellows Anonymous (not verified) Sun, 07/28/2024 - 22:02

Iris Serrano

The Center for Environmental Journalism at the University of babyֱ��app Boulder has named five exceptional journalists to its 2024-25 class of Ted Scripps Fellows in Environmental Journalism.

“This year’s terrific incoming class of Ted Scripps Fellows hails from around the country and works across multiple platforms, including photography, podcasts, documentary, long-form narrative and daily news,” said Hillary Rosner, assistant director of the Center for Environmental Journalism—which oversees the Scripps Fellows program—and a teaching assistant professor at CMCI. “Together, they bring decades of experience and expertise to CU Boulder, where they will learn from university researchers and share their knowledge with the community.”

Established in 1993, the Ted Scripps Fellowship has been based at the University of babyֱ��app Boulder since 1997. The program, which is supported by a grant from the Scripps Howard Fund, aims to give full-time journalists working in any medium the knowledge and tools to report on today’s pressing environmental issues in ways that resonate with diverse audiences. Over a nine-month period, fellows attend classes at the University of babyֱ��app Boulder, participate in weekly seminars and field trips, and pursue their own journalistic projects on a wide range of environmental topics.

The incoming class includes:

Steven Bedard, co-founder and editor, BioGraphic. Bedard has spent the last 25 years writing and producing science stories on everything from archaeology to evolution. During the fellowship, he will explore how species are responding to global change, looking at the intersection between systems-scale events and the individual organisms’ biology.

Taylor Dolven, reporter, The Boston Globe. Dolven focuses on how transportation intersects with climate change and babyֱ��app inequality. Previously, as a reporter at the Miami Herald, she exposed how cruise companies kept workers at sea without pay during the pandemic. As a fellow, Dolven will research how Americans’ reliance on cars and the transition to electric vehicles impacts lithium-rich communities in South America.

Catherine (Cat) Jaffee, founder and audio producer, House of Pod. Jaffee will spend her fellowship developing an audio series that explores how both ecosystems and human bodies repair themselves, and how overlapping biomedical and bioengineered solutions apply to both. Jaffee has produced more than 1,000 podcast episodes for outlets such as PBS and National Geographic.

Neeta Satam, independent photojournalist. Satam is an Indian photojournalist and National Geographic explorer whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Washington Post and elsewhere. As a fellow, she will expand a long-term project that documents the impact of climate change on a community in the Himalayas, with an emphasis on gender inequity.

Leah Varjacques, visual journalist and documentary producer. Varjacques has produced and edited digital and television documentaries for The New York Times, The Atlantic and Vice News, where she won an Emmy in 2021. She plans to study climate adaptation and human geography to produce a short documentary about the impacts of Indonesia's future capital city on East Borneo's Indigenous people.

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CU Boulder Center for Environmental Journalism welcomes 25th class of fellows

Anonymous — Tue, 13 Jul 2021 20:11:49 +0000

CU Boulder Center for Environmental Journalism welcomes 25th class of fellows Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 07/13/2021 - 14:11

The Center for Environmental Journalism is proud to welcome its 25th class of Ted Scripps Fellows, who will spend nine months at the University of babyֱ��app Boulder’s College of Media, Communication and Information working on long-term, in-depth journalistic projects and reflecting on critical questions. Read full announcement »

Meet the Fellows!

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Five Questions for the Fellows: Grace Hood

Anonymous — Tue, 01 Dec 2020 19:28:40 +0000

Five Questions for the Fellows: Grace Hood Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 12/01/2020 - 12:28

Julia Barnes

As part of the Ted Scripps Fellowships in Environmental Journalism, award-winning journalists have been coming to CU Boulder for 21 years. Fellows embark on a year of courses, projects, field trips, seminars and more — taking advantage of everything university life has to offer. This series is a chance to get to know this year’s cohort of talented journalists beyond what a typical bio page will tell you.

Grace Hood has covered water, science, and energy topics across the American Southwest as babyֱ��app Public Radio’s environment and climate reporter since 2015. Throughout more than a decade in public radio, she’s profiled octogenarian voters worried about climate change, scientists tracking underground mine fires, a visually impaired marijuana farmer and a homeowner who lives next door to babyֱ��app’s first underground nuclear fracking experiment. She has a particular interest in the rise of citizen science (public participation in scientific research) to help measure air pollution across the West.

Why did you choose to cover environmental topics and is there any memory that stands out as formative in your decision?

I grew up in a household where we got all the major newspapers, like The New York Times, the Des Moines Register, and also Science magazine. And NPR, of course, was on in the background constantly. At dinner we were just expected to have opinions about major news events and that included a lot of environmental issues. And also, the natural environment was just such a critical part of my upbringing. I mean, my brother and I played for hours in the woods behind our house. So, I was always tuned in to the environment. And my brother became a biologist.

I was a general assignment reporter for many years. During my time as a GA reporter [in the early 2010s], I remember there was one time I did a story about how biologists across different disciplines were able to use drones to count migrating birds. And it was such a cool thing to see this new technology in action. I really loved the story I was able to tell about science and action. And from that point on, I was really hooked.

What do you think is the most important environmental story happening today?

I find myself increasingly drawn to this intersection of climate change and environmental racism. I think the public's attention to climate change has come a long way, but it needs to go further. It's the same with some of these racist policies that have contributed to the framework of cities that we live in today.

For example, in the 1930s, federal officials redlined some neighborhoods in Denver and marked them as risky investments because the residents who lived there were black. And today those same places are some of the hottest parts in town during the summer, with very few trees and heat-trapping pavement. Now, the city of Denver has an initiative to plant trees and start to mitigate that problem. But that's going to take decades to really chip away at and correct the problem.

What is the most surprising thing you have learned at CU or in the Boulder community since you started the fellowship?

There are so many. But one of the most delightful things I've come across is NEST Studio for the Arts. It was started by a former Scripps Fellow, Erin Espelie. I think that NEST does a really amazing thing. It combines artists with scientists, and they come out with some really amazing projects. As I understand it, NEST gives them a small grant to approach difficult problems.

One example that I thought was so cool was this beautiful sculpture-like product that actually detoxifies the air at nail salons. Another pairing combined an artist who does paintings with a communications PhD [student], and they cataloged all the native grasses and species on campus, and they produced this beautiful artistic natural guide to campus that's now in the Boulder Bookstore.

What has been the most helpful part of the Scripps Fellowship so far?

I think it's the supportive environment, community, and people. The leaders of the Scripps program, Hillary Rosner and Tom Yulsman, have just really gone out of their way to create a space for the fellows to get to know each other, even during a pandemic. Erin Ashbaugh is also playing an amazing role in supporting the Scripps Fellows. And I see that the community they've created extends to my classes and instructors who really respect the Scripps Fellowship program and the quality of work that it produces.

I've also been impressed with the number of tutorials available on campus. For example, Phil White, I think he's the Earth, Environment and GIS librarian — he regularly holds online workshops that have to do with mapping, cartography and other associated programs. I've regularly attended a few of those online workshops and they've been very helpful to me.

What are your favorite things to do outside of journalism?

I'm definitely an outdoors person. I love hiking and cross-country skiing. But one of my favorite activities during the pandemic has actually been indoors. I volunteer at the Boulder Public Library once a week and sort all the books that are returned to the main branch of the library.

The library now has to quarantine all the books for a few days in a room. And so, I help with pre-sorting all the returns. I just really love the opportunity — one, to get out of my apartment — but two, in this time of isolation and introversion, I really love being around people who are just gathering books and learning. And, you know, I love seeing all the books that people are reading. It really reminds me that there's a great big world out there to explore.

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Welcome to the Newest Class of Scripps Fellows!

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Jul 2020 19:24:14 +0000

Welcome to the Newest Class of Scripps Fellows! Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 07/15/2020 - 13:24

The Center for Environmental Journalism is proud to welcome its 24th class of Ted Scripps Fellows in Environmental Journalism! This year's fellows are Stacy Feldman, Grace Hood, Alec Luhn, Amanda Mascarelli, and RJ Sangosti.

The group brings a depth of experience across a range of media, with backgrounds covering local issues as a public radio reporter and a photojournalist, overseeing a non-profit news organization and a science magazine, and reporting abroad as a Moscow correspondent.

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CEJ Welcomes New Journalists in Residence

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Apr 2020 06:53:51 +0000

CEJ Welcomes New Journalists in Residence Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 04/15/2020 - 00:53

In September 2017, the Center for Environmental Journalism welcomed an inaugural group of Scholars-in-Residence. This program, which we have renamed Journalists in Residence, hosts local working journalists who serve for two years at the CEJ—serving as resources for the Ted Scripps Fellows, students and CEJ leadership; contributing to new programs and community outreach for the center; and building on our existing foundation here on campus. In exchange for their service, they receive access to institutional resources at the university.

Moe Clark, Susan Moran, Hannah Nordhaus, Jason Plautz and Ted Wood have been selected as the 2020-2022 CEJ Journalists in Residence because of their commitment to the CEJ, and the center’s mission and their rich and varied career experiences.

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New Scholars in Residence program highlights local environmental journalists

Anonymous — Thu, 01 Mar 2018 00:59:47 +0000

New Scholars in Residence program highlights local environmental journalists Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 02/28/2018 - 17:59 Kelsey Simpkins

In September the University of babyֱ��app Boulder’s Center for Environmental Journalism welcomed an inaugural group of Scholars in Residence. This new program hosts working journalists, who serve as ambassadors for two years at the Center for Environmental Journalism, act as guides for the Ted Scripps Fellows, current students, and CEJ leadership, and are granted access to institutional resources at the University.

David Baron, Daniel Glick, and Laura Krantz have been selected as the 2017-2019 CEJ Scholars in Residence because of their commitment to the CEJ, their rich and varied career experiences, and their shared goals with the CEJ.

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Nonfiction 101: "Author, Author!" book panel provides publishing insight

Anonymous — Thu, 08 Feb 2018 17:57:02 +0000

Nonfiction 101: "Author, Author!" book panel provides publishing insight Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 02/08/2018 - 10:57

Kelsey Simpkins , Shannon Mullane

Five former Ted Scripps Fellows—David Baron, Scott Carney, Erin Espelie, Michael Kodas and Hannah Nordhaus—sat down together at the University of babyֱ��app Boulder campus on Feb. 1, 2018 to discuss the whys and hows of nonfiction book writing at the first ever Center for Environmental Journalism book publishing panel.

While each of these writers’ circumstances are unique in why and how they have pursued becoming nonfiction authors, they all returned to a similar thought throughout the discussion: to become published, make yourself—the writer—a high priority.

"The first thing you need is faith that you can do it,” said Carney, bestselling author of What Doesn’t Kill Us, The Enlightenment Trap and The Red Market.

The biggest hurdle to writing a book is often writing the proposal for the book, as the panel discussed in detail. First, how does one find the time to write a proposal with all their other priorities and responsibilities?

“You have to treat it as a job. An hour a day before you do all of your stuff," advised Nordhaus, author of The Beekeeper's Lament and American Ghost. She admits it’s been a labor of love, one for her that would not be possible without her husband’s support. There’s a “combination of confidence, futility and obscurity,” in the process, but for Nordhaus it’s worth it.

Second, what is the goal of writing the proposal?

“A book proposal is the book you write about the book you want to write," said Kodas, bestselling author of High Crimes and Megafire, and Acting Director of the CEJ. "It's supposed to convince your agent and your editor that you have the chops to do this."

“The proposal can be a good way to get ideas down on a page and start thinking about structure,” said Espelie, co-director of the new NEST (Nature, Environment, Science and Technology) Studio for the Arts and Associate Director for the CEJ. “It’s doing some of the work for you.”

The panel overwhelmingly agreed it is also critical to emphasize how the author’s marketing strategy for the book will be profitable for the publisher.

“Try to pinpoint as narrowly as possible how the book can sell,” said Espelie.

Next, there’s finding an agent and an editor for your book.

When choosing an agent, the “most important single denominator is enthusiasm,” Carney said. “Some people really invest in your work and edit it with you and those [folks] are the diamonds in the rough.”

“You don’t want the agent who represents the famous author. You want the agent who represented the nobody who ended up a bestseller,” he said.

Or as Nordhaus said: “A young, hungry agent is better than a full one.”

Carney often experiments with different ways to connect the creative and business aspects of publishing to make the process more financially successful. First, he said, retain as many rights as you can.

Carney retained the audio rights to his most recent book, What Doesn’t Kill Us, and recorded an audiobook himself—in his own closet. So while he would never see royalties on the paper copy, Carney knew every time he went out on the road to promote his book, he could sell copies of his audiobook and keep the full profits.

“I have actually ended up making more on the audio book then I did on my advance,” he said.

Carney also made a book trailer for his latest release, a video on YouTube that could be easily shared on social media channels and his website. Kodas agreed this kind of self-made promotional material seems to make a difference. The panel acknowledged that the publisher is unlikely to do much marketing for your book, and if you want good press, you will have to work on marketing it yourself.

When it comes to money, they all agreed to aim for as large an advance as possible. Between paying expenses for the reporting and the fact that usually 15 percent goes the agent, what looks like a lot at the beginning may leave you in the red at the end—if you’re not careful.

“I always shoot for six figures,” said Kodas. “You need to do the math in advance.”

David Baron, author of The Beast in the Garden, former Ted Scripps Fellow, and current CEJ Scholar in Residence, planned 19 years in advance for his most recent book, American Eclipse. He had the idea back in the late 1990s but knew there would be a total solar eclipse in August of 2017. While it didn't take that long to write, Baron’s book is a great example of not giving up on a good idea and waiting for the right time to pitch a proposal and publish.

It became clear that nonfiction book writing is a complicated, committed process of work for these authors. Yet all but one of them have at least two books to their name, and will likely write more. What motivates them to continue this career?

“Three things,” Nordhaus said: “sales, reviews and satisfaction with the process.”

For Carney, it is simply the best lifestyle. “I get to keep doing this,” he said, “and that is the reward.”

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Scripps Fellow presents at Society of Environmental Journalists annual environment and energy event

Anonymous — Fri, 26 Jan 2018 18:15:31 +0000

Scripps Fellow presents at Society of Environmental Journalists annual environment and energy event Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 01/26/2018 - 11:15

Interested in delving into environmental issues with all-star journalists? Scripps Fellow Jeff Burnside will present the Society of Environmental Journalists' "2018 Journalists' Guide to Energy and Environment" today in Washington, D.C. The event features a panel discussion on the environment hosted by Scott Tong, a correspondent at Marketplace's Sustainability Desk, and multiple speakers. Join the conversation live online Friday, Jan. 26 from 3 - 5 p.m. EST at www.wilsoncenter.org, and tweet questions during the event to #SEJ2018!

Welcome

Meaghan Parker
Senior Writer/Editor, Wilson Center; Board Member, Society of Environmental Journalists

Speakers

Jeff Burnside
Ted Scripps Journalism Fellow, University of babyֱ��app’s Center for Environmental Journalism; Board Member, Society of Environmental Journalists

Thomas Lovejoy
Senior Fellow, United Nations Foundation; Professor, George Mason University; Brazil Institute and ECSP Advisory Board Member

Ed Maibach
Distinguished University Professor and Director, Center for Climate Change Communication, George Mason University

Panelists

Matthew Daley
Congressional Reporter, Associated Press

Brady Dennis
National Reporter, Washington Post

Nirmal Ghosh
U.S. Bureau Chief, The Straits Times

Pat Rizzuto
Senior Reporter, Bloomberg Environment

Valerie Volcovici
Energy and Environment Policy Correspondent, Reuters

Ariel Wittenberg
Reporter, E&E News

Moderator

Scott Tong, Correspondent, Marketplace’s Sustainability Desk

For the last five years, the Society of Environmental Journalists and the Wilson Center have hosted the only annual event in the nation's capital featuring top journalists offering their predictions for the year ahead on environment and energy. Since 2013, more than 30 reporters from New York Times, Washington Post, National Geographic, Politico, Associated Press, Wall Street Journal and many more have shared their observations with thousands of policymakers, journalists, and business leaders in Washington, DC, and around the world. Always streamed live and always standing room only, this event is essential for anyone working to meet the critical energy and environment challenges facing our nation and the world.

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More than Just Mountains - A Book Talk

Anonymous — Wed, 24 Jan 2018 22:40:34 +0000

More than Just Mountains - A Book Talk Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 01/24/2018 - 15:40

Craig Jones's book The Mountains That Remade America reflects on the Sierra Nevada range and how those mountains have changed the way Americans live, from ski towns to national parks, fresh fruit to environmental lawsuits. Whether and where there was gold to be mined redefined land, mineral, and water laws. Where rain falls (and where it doesn’t) determines whose fruit grows on trees and whose appears on slot machines. The book combines geology with history to show how the particular forces and conditions that created the Sierra Nevada have influenced daily life in the United States, both in the past and into the present day.

Follow these walking directions to the CIRES auditorium.

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Author! Author! The Whys and Hows of Nonfiction Book Writing

Anonymous — Wed, 24 Jan 2018 22:33:44 +0000

Author! Author! The Whys and Hows of Nonfiction Book Writing Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 01/24/2018 - 15:33

Do you dream of getting published? Hear the inside story from five writers whose books span the realms of science, history, adventure, the natural environment and human endurance. Learn how to hone your topic, find a literary agent, craft a book proposal, secure a publisher and see your project to a successful conclusion.

Panelists:

Hannah Nordhaus – Bestselling author of The Beekeeper’s Lament and American Ghost.

Michael Kodas – Associate director of CU’s Center for Environmental Journalism, author of Megafire and High Crimes.

Erin Espelie – Associate director of CU’s Center for Environmental Journalism.

Scott Carney – Bestselling author of What Doesn’t Kill Us, The Enlightenment Trap, and The Red Market.

David Baron – CU scholar in residence, author of American Eclipse and The Beast in the Garden.

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