When the West’s electrical grid is targeted, motives tend to matter less than ensuing propaganda.
Jane C. Hu
Jane C. Hu is a contributing editor at High Country News and independent journalist who writes about science, identity and the outdoors. She lives in Seattle.
Posted inArticles
How to prevent a hike from resulting in a heist
A new proposal aims to make trailheads near Seattle safe from car break-ins — but some worry it could compromise their own safety.
Posted inOctober 1, 2021: In The Graces of Grasses
When public health becomes the public enemy
Far-right extremists are robbing the West of the officials who protect community health.
Posted inArticles
The fires that follow us
A hiker copes with a new anxiety brought by a changed climate.
Posted inArticles
The long Western legacy of violence against Asian Americans
‘History is repeating itself.’
Posted inFebruary 1, 2021: End of the Line
New wind projects power local budgets in Wyoming
As the pandemic hit the fossil fuel industry, renewable energy projects filled community coffers.
Posted inArticles
Wyoming’s last contact tracers
After an astronomical rise in COVID-19 cases, the state is no longer contact tracing — but some counties and tribes continue their own programs.
Posted inJanuary 1, 2021: No Place Like Home
Tracking the seasons of pandemic response in Seattle
Disaster researchers take a Prius-eye view of how COVID-19 is changing the city.
Posted inArticles
Wilderness rescuers brace for a busy winter
Snow is on the way — and amid COVID-19, recovery missions are on the rise.
Posted inArticles
Should you recycle your disposable mask?
How masks are manufactured is important for the environment, too.
Posted inArticles
COVID-19 makes it harder to know when to harvest sugar beets
Decisions depend on the weather, but accurate long-term forecasts are another casualty of the pandemic.
Posted inNovember 1, 2020: When the Smoke Clears
How a pandemic-related drop in Oregon Lottery revenues could lead to a rise in invasive plants
Spiky-stemmed gorse pushes out native plants — and COVID-19 is imperilling measures to keep it in check.
Posted inOctober 1, 2020: Democracy's Frayed Western Front
What sewage can tell us about the spread of COVID-19
More cities are testing wastewater, but a poor federal response keeps efforts scattered.
Posted inArticles
Ellen Kuwana’s quest to feed Seattle’s frontline workers
The founder of We Got This Seattle on what keeps her going, six months into the pandemic.
Posted inArticles
A Washington town isolated from the U.S. is now cut off from Canada, too
COVID-19 border closures have curtailed the international routines of the tiny town of Point Roberts.
Posted inArticles
COVID-19 is complicating Seattle’s response to wildfire smoke
What happens when one public health threat compounds the risks of another?
Posted inFebruary 1, 2020: How One Woman Took a Stand Against Tribal Disenrollment and Paid For It
One woman took a stand against tribal disenrollment and paid for it
How a burglary, social media and politics led to a Nooksack Tribal Councilwoman being bullied out of office.
Posted inOctober 28, 2019: Where Hunting Still Has Meaning
Antibiotic resistance is spreading among marine mammals
A new study of seals and porpoises in the Salish Sea shows how antibiotic-resistant bacteria proliferate in coastal waterways.
Posted inOctober 29, 2018: When your neighborhood goes BOOM
Volunteer scientists study flowers to battle climate dread
The data they’re collecting is helping researchers evaluate how ecosystems change.
Posted inMay 14, 2018: Death in the Alpine
‘Unlikely hikers’ gain traction
Social media is raising the profile of underrepresented outdoor communities.