Feel-good reads to end the year on a high note.
Alaska
Where are Alaska’s snowy owls?
The birds serve as an alarm bell for the repercussions of environmental change.
An owl army, a tire-less elk and a minor coup attempt
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
What’s going on with the Tongass?
Newly reinstated protections continue decades of conflict over a 17 million-acre national forest in Alaska.
Books on the West we think you might like
Some brand new, some from the shelves, some for the kids and some for you.
Alaska Native villages band together to keep the Yukon River’s wild salmon afloat
‘As a unified voice, we are unstoppable — and we can manage the river better.’
Wildfire smoke pushes migrating birds hundreds of miles out of their way
‘I was glued to my computer for days, trying to figure out what these birds were doing, because it was so clearly, obviously, not normal.’
Just how fat are the fat bears?
Katmai National Park and Preserve’s famous bears from Fat Bear Week are helping provide some answers.
Trans-Alaska pipeline under threat from thawing permafrost
Structural integrity of the pipeline and potential oil spills are at risk.
A quest for Alaska oil sparks a fight over tribal sovereignty
An energy company with a history of environmental violations is conducting exploratory drilling in the Yukon Flats.
Alaska bumblebees are thriving
Extreme environments offer them an unexpected paradise, and now researchers are working to get a head count.
Still wild: A mining project divides a community
In Haines, Alaska, concern for a fragile ecosystem confronts the prospect of well-paying jobs.
Native students fight to wear traditional regalia at graduation
‘They took my sealskin cap, Mom.’
Impossible markets; Schroederisms; Western advice
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
Will a Native-led initiative spur an agricultural revolution in rural Alaska?
A grassroots project to build biomass-heated greenhouses aims to alleviate food insecurity in the communities most affected by it.
Massive drilling project on Alaska’s North Slope given go ahead
Critics say the lease is at odds with President Biden’s pledge to combat the climate crisis.
A rescue mule, bizarre humans and alarming politicians
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
The Biden administration’s critical role in Indian Country
Four important decisions will impact the forests, lands and waters of tribal nations.
Alaskans pursue permanent protections for Bristol Bay
‘It’s time to put Pebble to rest.’
Documenting destruction from above
A young photographer highlights the environmental crises facing Indigenous communities at home and abroad.
