Yessenia Funes

Earther

Tribes Across the Midwest Are Gearing up for a Big New Pipeline Battle

The sun was still hiding Wednesday morning, November 8, when about 15 individuals woke up to leave Camp Makwa on the Fond du Lac Indian Reservation in northern Minnesota. The time was 3 a.m., and this time of year, temperatures can drop real low, like 20 degrees Fahrenheit. That didn’t stop this group, though. They … Continued

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FEMA Preps ‘Air Bridge’ to Bring Puerto Rican Hurricane Survivors to New York and Florida

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is planning to help Hurricane Maria survivors in Puerto Rico leave the island to stay in temporary housing in New York and Florida. Typically, FEMA’s Transitional Shelter Assistance Program provides the funding and resources to house those stranded from disasters—be it in a shelter, hotel, or motel—within their state. … Continued

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India’s Blinding Air Pollution Is Causing Fatal Accidents

Northern India is dealing with some severe air pollution right now, and breathing the toxic air isn’t the only concern. Driving may be equally dangerous, as evidenced by a massive pileup on an expressway on Wednesday. Air in the region is so full of particulate matter that a thick fog has enveloped the northern plains, … Continued

EartherEnvironmental Justice

Google Is Mapping California’s Air Pollution in Mesmerizing Detail

Residents across the country sometimes see Google Street Cars driving down their blocks. In California, these vehicles are gathering air quality data block by block, which could ultimately help shape local policy to benefit people’s health. Google released video footage Tuesday showing how the Golden State is doing when it comes to nitrogen dioxide, a … Continued

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Severe Air Pollution Has Transformed Delhi Into a ‘Gas Chamber’

Imagine looking out your window and seeing nothing but gray—and not a cozy, foggy, rainy day kind of gray, but a thick, dirty, WTF kind of gray. Imagine fog so thick that your usually clear view of the India Gate is blurry, opaque, nonexistent. That’s the reality right now for people in Delhi, India. Schools … Continued

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The Trump Administration Wants to Mine the Grand Canyon Because Why Not

Last month, the U.S. Forest Service recommended to President Donald Trump that he re-open lands outside the Grand Canyon to uranium mining, just five years after former President Barack Obama introduced a 20-year ban on new uranium mining on roughly one million acres of surrounding public lands. Obama’s ban allowed a handful of mines that … Continued

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The US’s Biggest, Baddest Eco-Warriors Represent at the Climate Conference

World leaders have gathered in Bonn, Germany, to talk climate change at COP23, where they will spend two long weeks hashing out details regarding the Paris Agreement. In a year where U.S. climate action has been stuck in reverse, there is real delight seeing what some of the badass names with the U.S. People’s Delegation … Continued

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Air Pollution Could be Affecting Your Brain Health

A new body of research is taking a closer look at how breathing dirty air can potentially impact mental health, with preliminary findings linking elevated air pollution with higher psychological distress. A study published in the November issue of Health and Place looks at the potential effects of particulate matter (PM), which is made up … Continued

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Tribes Prepare to Fight Trump’s Plan to Shrink a Sacred Monument in Utah

The Bears Ears National Monument tracks 1.35 million acres across Utah’s vast and rocky landscape. It’s a sacred place for nearby tribal communities like the Navajo Nation or Hopi Tribe. Many originated on this land. President Donald Trump and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke have been committed, however, to, at minimum, reducing the monument’s size and, … Continued

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Lawsuit Out of East Chicago Reminds Us America’s Lead Crisis Isn’t Over

In East Chicago, Indiana, lead is seemingly everywhere: in the soil, in the water, even in the dust in people’s homes. That’s because the community is sitting within the USS Lead Superfund site. Nearby, companies used to spew lead and arsenic into the air up until 1985. Now, 38 households in the Calumet neighborhood are … Continued

EartherEnvironmental Justice

Maria Dredges Up Painful Memories for NYC Puerto Ricans Who Lived Through Sandy

Rain pitter-pattered outside her window on October 28, 2012, but Maria Quiñones wasn’t fazed. She was busy cooking for her mother’s 75th birthday. Typical Puerto Rican dishes were on the menu: jamon, arroz con garbanzos, potato salad, and ribs. Quiñones and her family will never forget that day. Just 24 hours later, Hurricane Sandy swept into … Continued

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Pipeline Protest Pumpkins Send a Halloween Message to Louisiana’s Governor

It’s Halloween, but some environmentalists can’t take a break. In Louisiana, opponents to the proposed 163-mile long Bayou Bridge Pipeline headed to the Capitol today. And they brought pumpkins. Roughly 20 people went to demand Gov. John Bel Edwards require an environmental impact statement for the proposed crude oil pipeline, Cherri Foytlin, state director of … Continued

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This Standing Rock Protester Just Got Out of Jail, and He’s Ready to Challenge the Courts

Alexander Simon saw no danger when he decided to join a prayer walk in North Dakota on October 22, 2016. The group he was with walked atop ancient Native burial grounds singing songs and playing drums. They intended to show respect for the site—especially because the 1,172-mile-long Dakota Access Pipeline was set to run through … Continued

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Houston’s Athletes Offer Beacon of Hope After Hurricane Harvey

NFL player Justin J. Watt, aka J.J. Watt, isn’t giving up on his city. The Houston Texans’ linebacker raised more than $37 million for Hurricane Harvey relief when he announced a fundraiser back in August. His goal was just $200,000. Now, he’s making sure these dollars go directly into the community. Watt announced his plan … Continued

Earther

Why Environmentalists Should Be Furious About Trumpcare

Healthcare is set to change dramatically under President Donald Trump. While he couldn’t get the Affordable Care Act repealed or replaced, he found a way to undermine it instead. Hello, Trumpcare. On Oct. 12, the president issued an executive order to help promote “healthcare choice and competition.” In reality, this order will lead to disastrous … Continued

EartherEnvironmental Justice

Energy Company Accuses Anti-Pipeline Video Game of Eco-Terrorism

A video game has got an energy industry group riled up and accusing the game’s creators of eco-terrorism. “Thunderbird Strike” is a Windows PC game that allows players to take the form of a thunderbird. The mythological creature, rooted in indigenous culture, flies from the Alberta’s tar sands to the Great Lakes, where environmentalists are … Continued

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Nurses Mobilize to Lead the Fight Against Climate Change

Climate change and global health are inextricably woven together. And as climate change worsens health problems around the world, nurses are often left to pick up the pieces in hospitals and clinics. And they are. But in addition to helping the victims of natural disasters today, nurses are thinking about how to protect the most … Continued

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Trump Wants to Open the Gulf to Oil Companies Weeks After a 16,000 Barrel Spill

The Gulf of Mexico will soon be open for the taking. Secretary Ryan Zinke announced on Tuesday that the Interior Department is proposing the largest oil and gas lease sale in U.S. history. In March 2018, nearly 77 million acres of federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico will go up for lease—an area that … Continued

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Heartbreaking Video Shows Island-Wide Damage to Puerto Rico From Hurricane Maria

Across the globe, people have heard about the damage Hurricane Maria caused in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean when it swept through the region a month ago, but few have actually witnessed it. Much of the island remains unreachable by land as bridges and roads remain blocked or inaccessible. The only option left is to … Continued

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A New Bill Could Create Stronger Environmental Protections for People of Color

Low-income communities, communities of color, and indigenous peoples suffer disproportionately from pollution, but a bill introduced Monday by Sen. Cory Booker could solidify environmental protections for these groups—if it passes. With zero Republican sponsors, the Environmental Justice Act of 2017 feels like a long shot, but Booker is hopeful. “Many communities across the country are … Continued