Tribal representatives are pushing the U.S. Forest Service to respect treaty rights and bring cultural fire back to the region’s forests.
Natalia Mesa
Natalia Mesa is an editorial fellow for High Country News reporting on science, and environmental and social justice. Email her at natalia.mesa@hcn.org or submit a letter to the editor.
Posted inArticles
Repeal of the Chevron doctrine will have profound consequences for federal rulemaking
Climate, public lands and tribal law regulations are now likely to face legal challenges.
Posted inJuly 2024
A new documentary confronts water scarcity in the West
In Mirasol: Looking at the Sun, Colorado farmers fight to save their communities.
Posted inArticles
Supreme Court gives cities and towns power to criminalize homelessness
The Oregon case has been closely watched by Western cities and states.
Posted inArticles
The West’s wetlands are struggling. Some have been overlooked altogether.
Wetlands are carbon-storage powerhouses — and many are unmapped.
Posted inArticles
Denver’s new immigration plan, explained
The new program caps shelter stays for all new immigrants but expands services for 800 asylum seekers.
Posted inArticles
Denver lanza programa de asistencia para solicitantes de asilo
El nuevo programa busca brindar apoyo a 800 recién llegados, pero cortará recursos para los demas.
Posted inArticles
When dams come down, what happens to the ocean?
A long-term study of the Elwha River Delta reveals lasting change — and a healthier ecosystem.
Posted inArticles
Meet the women fighting to end detention and deportation in Washington
La Resistencia is working alongside people in immigrant detention to shut down the Northwest Detention Center.
Posted inArticles
Conozca a las mujeres que luchan por acabar con las detenciones y las deportaciones en el estado de Washington
La Resistencia, un grupo de base en el noroeste del Pacifico, trabaja junto a personas detenidas para cerrar el Centro de Detención del Noroeste.
Posted inArticles
Climate change is happening too fast for migrating birds
The early bird would get the worm, but migration timing isn’t matching green-up.
Posted inArticles
Washington’s controversial cap-and-trade program, explained. Really.
It’s hailed as the strongest in the nation, but will it reduce carbon pollution equitably?
Posted inArticles
Disaster disparities in the West
The risk of climate catastrophe is complex, but people of color often face ‘unnatural hazards.’
Posted inMarch 2024: Fertile Ground
Saving the Pacific lamprey
Documenting populations of
the ancient fish is a step toward ensuring their survival.
Posted inJanuary 11, 2024: The Creatures in Our Midst
Reviving the Samish Tribe’s kelp
Researchers are documenting the decline of once-plentiful kelp beds in an effort to reverse the trend.
Posted inArticles
Climate litigation to watch in 2024
These court cases could move the needle on the climate crisis.
Posted inArticles
First direct cash assistance program exclusively for Indigenous parents launched
The Nest, a Washington nonprofit program, seeks to serve Native people during and after pregnancy.
Posted inArticles
A new film asks: how do you make art in a city you can’t afford?
‘Fantasy A Gets a Mattress’ is a dark, surreal, fun adventure that deals with themes of eviction, homelessness and disability.
Posted inArticles
Western states saw increasing poverty and lower incomes in 2022
From Alaska to Wyoming, cash assistance can pull families out of income hardships.
Posted inArticles
Farmworkers fight for higher pay, better hours and fair treatment
Labor advocates rallied in Seattle to demand a union contract from Windmill farms amid allegations of poor treatment and retaliation.