#SEJ2019

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SEJ's 29th annual conference took place October 9-13, 2019 in Fort Collins, Colorado, hosted by Colorado State University. Below, you'll find multimedia coverage provided by SEJ, volunteers and conference attendees.

Note: All audio recordings are posted. You can find them by session below. They're also now available as Apple and Google Podcasts, plus many places where you get your podcasts. Additional coverage:

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Public SEJ Fort Collins 2019 Flickr conference photo group, where you can upload/share your own conference photos.
See a list of all the coverage stories here.

It's critically important to SEJ to gather evidence on the impact of our work. So we're tracking stories inspired by or informed by our conference in Fort Collins. The stories don't have to be about Fort Collins or Colorado; they can be based on sources or ideas you got from being at the conference. Please help us to keep SEJ strong and share links, photos, copies of reporting generated or informed by this conference. Send your story links to Cindy MacDonald, SEJ's Web content manager. It's never too late. Please send yours! Moderators, speakers, tour leaders: We also welcome resources, tipsheets, etc., from sessions or tours that you wish to share.

"It's easy to feel isolated as a freelancer in Canada. But after joining my fellow reporters in Colorado, I now feel part of a community, inspired and ready to tackle this job."

— Lauren Kaljur, SEJ Member and Freelance Journalist Read more from Lauren about SEJ's Fort Collins conference. Post-conference survey results.

Panel Moderators, Tour Leaders and Speakers:

Translate your hard work for #SEJ2019 into a short report and reach thousands through the SEJournal Online! Fill out this brief form and we’ll be in touch to explain how.

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Wednesday, October 9
Thursday, October 10
Friday, October 11
Saturday, October 12
Sunday, October 13
Miscellaneous conference coverage and local news

Wednesday, October 9

Workshop 1. Covering Indian Country, Public Lands and Environmental Justice in the West

Covering Indian Country and Tribal Affairs: Audio file (01:34:58 / 66.8MB).
Hispanic Culture and Environmental Justice in the West: Audio file (01:01:12 / 43.1MB).
Attracting and Supporting Indigenous Staff: Audio file (00:38:24 / 27.0MB).
Mining Public Records for Stories on Public Lands: Audio file (00:42:59 / 30.2MB).
Public Lands Reporting From the Extremes: How to Cover Holistically: Audio file (01:25:02 / 59.8MB).
Event description.

Workshop 2. Climate Reporting Master Class, Presented by Climate Matters in the Newsroom

Scott Denning: Audio file (00:23:50 / 16.8MB).
Susan Hassol: Audio file (00:24:17 / 17.1MB).
Chuck Kutscher: Audio file (00:23:45 / 16.7MB).
Ed Maibach: Audio file (00:22:37 / 15.9MB).
Luke Runyon: Audio file (00:10:07 / 7.1MB).
Meera Subramanian: Audio file (00:10:20 / 7.3MB).
Brad Udall: Audio file (00:20:51 / 14.7MB).
Bernadette Woods Placky: Audio file (00:10:07 / 13.3MB).
"Farmer depression deepens as climate warms," Great Lakes Echo, Knight Center for Environmental Journalism, Michigan State University, November 27, 2019, by Cassidy Hough.
Event description.

Workshop 3. A Hostile Environment: Surviving Journalism

Event description and resources.

Thursday, October 10

Tour 1. Oil and Gas Clashes With Human Development and Public Lands

"Oil & Gas Industry Braces for Regulatory Crackdown," OilPrice.com, October 20, 2019, by Nick Cunningham (story informed by this tour).
Event description.

Tour 2. National Renewable Energy Lab: Treasure Trove of Story Ideas

"The future of crystal-based solar energy just got brighter," Science News for Students, January 7, 2020, by Kathiann Kowalski.
"To Limit Climate Change, Scientists Try To Improve Solar and Wind Power," WUWM Milwaukee/NPR, December 26, 2019, by Chuck Quirmbach.
"In era of cheap renewables, there’s still a need for research, NREL director says," Energy News, October 25, 2019, by Kathiann M. Kowalski.
"Hanging with the lab rats: NREL researchers lay groundwork to accelerate US clean energy transition," Utility Dive, October 22, 2019, by Gloria Gonzalez.
"NREL engineer on the ‘grand challenges’ of supersizing wind power on the grid," Energy News Network, October 18, 2019, by Kathiann M. Kowalski.
Event description.

Tour 4. The Grand Transect: From the High Plains to the Heights of Rocky Mountain National Park

"Even the Rockies aren't immune to algae problems," The (Toledo) Blade, October 14, 2019, by Tom Henry.
Event description.

Tour 9. Wildlife Restoration on the Prairies: Ferreting Out a Solution

"What A Special Black-footed Ferret Can Teach Us About Conservation Success," The Revelator, January 22, 2020, by John Platt.
Event description.

Tour 10. The Seed and Semen Bank

"For a Sustainable Food System, Look to Seeds," Yes Magazine, January 7, 2020, by Breanna Draxler.
Event description.

Friday, October 11

Opening Plenary: Public Lands at a Crossroads

Audio file (01:25:32 / 60.2MB).
"President To Withdraw William Perry Pendley Nomination As BLM Head," AP/K2 Radio Wyoming, August 15, 2020, by Tom Morton.
"Trump Taps Pendley for Land Bureau Chief After Year in Role," Bloomberg Environment, June 26, 2020, by Bobby Magill.
"He opposed public lands and wildlife protections. Trump gave him a top environment job," The Guardian US, May 20, 2020, by Jimmy Tobias.
"White Supremacy Goes Green" (opinion), New York Times, February 28, 2020, by Beth Gardiner.
"Who's Killing Arizona's Heber Wild Horses? 15 Dead So Far In 2020," Patch, January 15, 2020, by Beth Dalbey.
"Coalition Against Pendley: Local orgs join call for BLM leadership change," Moab Sun News, January 9, 2020, by Maggie McGuire.
"Acting Trump Public Lands Chief Gets Longer Stint Heading BLM," Bloomberg Environment, January 2, 2020, by Bobby Magill.
"Wild horses groomed as scapegoats for public land destruction," The Salt Lake Tribune, December 19, 2019, by Ginger Kathrens.
"Candidates Are Promising to End Federal Oil and Gas Leasing. But Can They?" Audubon, December 17, 2019, by Andy McGlashen.
"Trump Administration Accused of Ignoring Public Input Through Its Revamp of Lands Councils," Oregon Public Broadcasting, December 4, 2019, by Jes Burns.
"The Problem with the BLM Moving to the West," Outside Magazine, November 21, 2019, by Heather Hansman.
"Wild horses get sick at BLM corral in Utah, thwarting a major adoption event," The Salt Lake Tribune, October 29, 2019, by Brian Maffly.
"BLM chief’s wild horse fixation distracts from the real threats to public land," High Country News, October 25, 2019, by Jonathan Thompson.
"BLM Head Reiterates Focus on Removing Wild Horses, Burros From Western Lands," Boise State Public Radio, October 25, 2019, by Nate Hegyi.
"Another SEJ conference, another masterclass in speaking truth to power," Medium/The Public Interest Network, October 21, 2019, by Ross Sherman.
"BLM chief scorned 'deep state,' 'Pocahontas,' ESA 'hammer'," E&E News, October 17, 2019, by Jennifer Yachnin.
"Trump official says wild horses, not climate change, are 'existential threat' to federal lands," Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, October 17, 2019, by Dawn Stover.
"The Energy 202: Trump administration wants to open up more public trails to e-bikes. No one knows exactly what that means." The Washington Post, October 16, 2019, by Juliet Eilperin.
"Public Lands Decisions Best Made in D.C., Acting BLM Chief Says," Bloomberg Environment, October 16, 2019, by Bobby Magill.
"The William Perry Pendley Rehabilitation Tour," The Revelator, October 15, 2019, by John Platt.
"Scattering BLM will be good for policy, boss William Pendley says. Not with him at the helm, advocacy groups argue." The Colorado Sun, October 14, 2019, by Mark Jaffe.
"Acting BLM chief defends moving agency's HQ West, says D.C. managers out of touch," The Denver Post via Tribune Content Agency/AP (Colorado Politics), October 13, 2019, by Judith Kohler.
"Protesters Spotlight Trump Official’s View That Public Lands Should Be Sold," Colorado Times Recorder, October 12, 2019, by Jason Salzman.
"Trump administration calls wild horses biggest threat to public lands — here are the real threats" (opinion), The Hill, October 12, 2019, by Erik Molvar.
"BLM head: ‘What I thought, what I wrote, what I did in the past is irrelevant.’," High Country News, October 11, 2019, by Chris D’Angelo and Alexander C. Kaufman.
"The Controversial BLM Acting Director Refused To Address His Personal Views On Climate Change And Public Lands At An Environmental Journalism Conference," Colorado Public Radio, October 11, 2019, by Michael Elizabeth Sakas and Kelley Griffin.
"'Havoc' From Wild Horses Is Top Issue for Trump Lands Chief (1)," Bloomberg Environment, October 11, 2019, by Emily C. Dooley.
ON TAP TODAY (AROUND THE AGENCIES section), Morning Energy/Politico, October 11, 2019, by Kelsey Tamborrino.
"U.S. Public Lands Chief Says His Positions on Climate, Immigrants Don't Matter," The Huffington Post, October 11, 2019, by Chris D'Angelo and Alexander C. Kaufman.
"'What I Did in the Past Is Irrelevant,' BLM Chief Says in Fort Collins," Westword, October 11, 2019, by Chase Woodruff.
Facebook livestream.
"President McConnell’s remarks at the Society of Environmental Journalists conference," CSU Source, October 14, 2019, by CSU External Relations Staff (opening remarks prior to the plenary).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 1, THE CRAFT 2, Storyteller to Mediator — A New Path for Solutions-Focused Journalists?

Photo: © Andrew Revkin

Audio file (01:14:11 / 52.2MB).
"Join the Earth Institute’s Climate and Sustainability Communications Network," State of the Planet blog, Earth Institute/Columbia University, October 18, 2019, by Andrew Revkin.
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 1, ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, Covering Indian Country and Tribal Affairs

Audio file (01:07:19 / 47.4MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 1, ENERGY AND CLIMATE, Roadblocks to Renewables: Obstacles on the Road to a (Really) Low-Carbon Future

Audio file (01:10:18 / 49.5MB).
"Alleged National Grid management problems at 'the highest levels' prompt Massachusetts investigation," Utility Dive, October 14, 2019, by Robert Walton.
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 1, FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Beyond Conventional vs. Organic: Can Conventional and Organic Agriculture Find Common Ground?

Audio file (01:04:20 / 45.3MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 1, WATER AND SNOW, Covering Outdoor Recreation

Audio file (01:03:12 / 44.5MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 1, LAND AND CONSERVATION, What Will It Take To End Extinction?

Audio file (01:04:20 / 45.6MB).
"What Will It Take To End Extinction?" The Revelator, November 22, 2019, by John Platt.
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 1, NATION AND GLOBE, Future of the EPA

Audio file (01:12:10 / 50.8MB).
"Former feds claim runoff is 'wiping out' Great Lakes," The (Toledo) Blade, October 14, 2019, by Tom Henry.
Event description.

Luncheon Plenary: Elections 2020: Environment and Climate on the Campaign Trail

Audio file (01:13:12 / 51.5MB).
"Taking Care of God’s Creation," Earth Island Journal, Winter 2020, by Maureen Nandini Mitra.
"Declining US greenhouse gas emissions: a Republican fairy tale," Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, October 25, 2019, by Dawn Stover.
"Forum Focuses on Climate and the 2020 U.S. Election," Eos, October 22, 2019, by Randy Showstack.
"Climate change reaching turning point as issue in 2020 election," The (Toledo) Blade, October 16, 2019, by Tom Henry.
Facebook livestream.
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 2, THE CRAFT 1, Seeing Environmentally

Audio file (01:06:17 / 46.6MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 2, THE CRAFT 2, Freedom of Information in an Era of Decreasing Transparency

Audio file (01:02:34 / 44.0MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 2, ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, True West, True Stories: Why a Rainbow of Voices Is Missing From Our Federal Lands Coverage and How Redirecting Our Attention Will Mean Smarter Stories

Audio file (01:13:39 / 51.8MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 2, ENERGY AND CLIMATE, Can States, Cities and Companies Fill the Leadership Void on Climate Change?

Audio file (01:03:13 / 44.5MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 2, FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Can Green Be Clean? The Environmental Impacts of Legal Cannabis

Audio file (01:07:54 / 47.8MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 2, WATER AND SNOW, Water Rights, Water Justice?

Audio file (01:10:31 / 49.6MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 2, LAND AND CONSERVATION, Who Let the Bugs (Die) Out?

Audio file (01:04:29 / 45.4MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 2, NATION AND GLOBE, Air Pollution and Health: Covering an Invisible Killer

Audio file (01:24:01 / 115.1MB).
Event description.

Beat Dinner 11, Night Skies: Dinner and a Show

"Light Pollution Is Taking Away Our Night Skies. Here’s Why That Matters." HuffPost, November 13, 2019, by Kyla Mandel.
Event description.

Saturday, October 12

Concurrent Sessions 3, THE CRAFT 1, Reinventing the News Business: The Promises and Perils of News Startups

Audio file (01:09:47 / 49.1MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 3, THE CRAFT 2, Disaster Coverage Beyond Parachuting

Audio file (01:10:09 / 49.3MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 3, ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, Invisible Pollution, Invisible People: Covering Controversial Hormone-Mimicking Chemicals

Audio file (01:10:15 / 49.4MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 3, ENERGY AND CLIMATE, Coal in Transition: What the Industry's Decline Means for Coal Communities

Audio file (01:33:06 / 65.5MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 3, FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Soils and Earth and Greenhouse Gases

Audio file (01:23:09 / 58.5MB).
John Field's presentation (PPTX/9 MB)
Keith Paustian's presentation (PDF/1 MB)
Kevin Schaefer's presentation (PPTX/5 MB)
Diana Wall's presentation (PDF/18 MB)
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 3, WATER AND SNOW, Western Water: The Push for More Storage in Headwaters

Audio file (01:21:04 / 57.0MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 3, LAND AND CONSERVATION, The Wildfire Crisis: Can We Log (or Graze, Thin, Burn, Zone or Rake) Our Way Out of This?

Audio file (01:22:14 / 57.8MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 3, NATION AND GLOBE, Market-Based Mechanisms: The Good, the Bad and the Details

Audio file (01:11:03 / 50.0MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 4, THE CRAFT 1, Following the Money in Environmental Reporting

Audio file (01:02:45 / 44.1MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 4, THE CRAFT 2, Beyond False Balance: Social Scientists and Environmental Journalists Tackle the Manipulation of Environmental Stories

Audio file (01:13:08 / 51.4MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 4, ENERGY AND CLIMATE, Plastics and Climate Change: What’s Around the Corner

Audio file (01:14:42 / 52.5MB).
"Ethane Crackers Spark Pollution Concerns," Living on Earth, October 25, 2019, by Bobby Bascomb.
"APR: Chemical recycling is not 'silver bullet' for plastics challenges," Waste Dive, October 16, 2019, by Gloria Gonzalez.
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 4, FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Agriculture: Climate Change Culprit, Victim and Solution

Audio file (01:21:56 / 57.6MB).
"For Ohio farmers, wind turbine revenue helps take the sting out of a ‘bad’ year," Energy News Network, October 31, 2019, by Kathiann M. Kowalski.
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 4, WATER AND SNOW, Water in the West: Challenges and Solutions

Audio file (01:08:40 / 48.3MB).
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 4, LAND AND CONSERVATION, Leaky Mines: A Toxic Time Bomb

Audio file (01:07:12 / 47.3MB).
"What's in the Water," KUNR Public Radio/Nevada, November 14, 2019, by Paul Boger and Kathleen Masterson.
Event description.

Concurrent Sessions 4, NATION AND GLOBE, Why Don’t Journalists Talk About Human Population?

Audio file (01:02:28 / 43.9MB).
Event description.

Environmental Journalism Awards Luncheon

"Effort, obsession pay off for student journalism award winner," Covering the Planet, Michigan State University's Knight Center for Environmental Journalism, October 24, 2019, by Andrew Blok.
Event description.

Sunday, October 13

Due to technical issues, there is no audio recording of the Sunday authors panel.

Miscellaneous conference coverage

"Cash Flows: How Investors Are Banking On the West’s Water Scarcity," Aspen Journalism, KUNC, KJZZ and The Nevada Independent, June 2, 2020, by Bret Jaspers, Daniel Rothberg, Luke Runyon and Heather Sackett.
"When environmental journalists gather," In This Climate (podcast), October 28, 2019, by Indiana University’s Environmental Resilience Institute and The Media School.
"Climate Watch // Extreme Conservation," How on Earth/KGNU, January 7, 2020, by Susan Moran and Ted Wood (interviews with CSU conservation scientist Joel Berger and Audubon’s Alison Holloran).
"Hybrids Are Becoming More Common Rental Car Options," WUWM Milwaukee/NPR, December 23, 2019, by Chuck Quirmbach.
"Climate (COP25) Summit Review," How on Earth/KGNU, December 17, 2019, by Susan Moran (interviews with CSU grad student Sarah Whipple and PhD candidate Tashiana Osborne).
"Supercomputers, Climate Models and 40 Years of the World Climate Research Programme," InsideClimate News, December 6, 2019, by Judy Fahys.
"COP25 Global Climate Summit," How on Earth/KGNU, November 19, 2019, by Susan Moran (interviews with CSU professor/scientist Gillian Bowser and PhD candidate Tashiana Osborne).
"Our endangered species are even more endangered by climate change," The Hill, November 19, 2019, by Nicole Javorsky.
"SEJ Conference-goers talk environmental journalism," November 7, 2019, by Austin Fleskes (video on Videosix, 00:03:59).
"Jars of jam and a lot of joy," High Country News, October 28, 2019, by Helen Santoro.
"When environmental journalists gather," In This Climate, October 28, 2019 (podcast, 00:42:57).
"Flight Plight: Why I Chose to Fly to an Environmental Journalism Conference" (editorial) The Revelator, October 25, 2019, by John Platt.
"On a positive note… mostly" (opinion), Boulder Weekly, October 17, 2019, by Joel Dyer (speaker on October 12 mini-tour "Environmental Justice on the Plains").
"Journalists explore bison and ferret conservation, water issues, environmental justice, farming and more," CSU Source, October 14, 2019, by Mary Guiden.
"2019 Society of Environmental Journalists Conference," Planeta.com, October 11, 2019, by Ron Mader (with embedded tweets).
"SEJ enters middle age with grace," Environmental Health News, October 11, 2019, by Peter Dykstra.
"A Warm (or Maybe Cold?) Colorado Welcome to Our Environmental Guests," Energy in Depth/IPAA, October 11, 2019, by William Allison.
"CSU welcomes 700 environmental journalists to campus," CSU Source, October 10, 2019, by Kate Jeracki.
"Indy Environment: A wild horse plan in Congress, backed by animal welfare groups, angers advocates," The Nevada Independent, October 10, 2019, by Daniel Rothberg.
"The World’s Leading Environmental Journalists Meet in Fort Collins, Colorado," Environmental Protection, October 10, 2019.
"Reporters gather to talk environment, health, climate," Environmental Health News, October 9, 2019, by Douglas Fischer.

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SEJ's 29th Annual Conference Coverage