NPR News - Environment

Thousands of farmworkers labored in fields in Ventura County, Calif. in late January in wildfire smoke. They have little to no protection from its harmful effects.

(Image credit: Brian van der Brug)

Ecologist Gergana Daskalova moved back to the small Bulgarian town of her childhood. It's a place many people have abandoned — and that's the very reason she returned. At the same time as land is being cleared around the world to make room for agriculture, elsewhere farmland is being abandoned for nature to reclaim. But what happens when people let the land return to nature? This episode, science reporter Dan Charles explains why abandoned land has conservationists and researchers asking: If we love nature, do we tend it or set it free?

Read more of Dan's reporting for Science Magazine and NPR.

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In a world brimming with innovation and limited time, it can be hard to tell what technology has the potential to really shift life. Yet, every year, MIT Technology Review undertakes this very task and puts out an annual list to magazine readers of 10 Breakthrough Technologies. Today, host Regina G. Barber hops through highlights from the list with Amy Nordrum, an executive editor at the publication.

Check out the full list here.

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The study found that some local communities near tiger habitats have also benefited from the increase in tigers because of the foot traffic and revenues brought in by ecotourism.

(Image credit: Satyajeet Singh Rathore)

The recognition acknowledges the mountain's theft from the Māori after New Zealand was colonized. It fulfills an agreement from the country's government to Indigenous people.

(Image credit: Dita Alangkara)

A chemical plant fire near Atlanta last fall released a toxic plume that disrupted the lives of nearby residents. Many still experience health problems and don't know what was released in the plume.

Extreme conditions helped fuel the fast-moving fires that destroyed thousands of homes. Scientists are working to figure out how climate change played a role in the disaster.

(Image credit: PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)

The world's biggest iceberg, known A23a, is on a collision course with a tiny island in the South Atlantic, which is home to millions of seals and nearly half the world's population of king penguins.

As evacuation orders are lifted, people in Los Angeles are returning to their homes--if their homes survived. But the disaster doesn't end when the fire stops.

A single block and a half separates the Altadena home of Jennifer and Ed Barguiarena from complete destruction. Just down the street lies charred, flattened debris.

But for families like the Barguiarenas — the seemingly lucky ones, whose houses survived — an altogether different ordeal is just beginning.

The water still isn't safe to drink, cook or wash with. There are fine layers of ash and dust in people's homes and yards. And families like the Barguiarenas are also worried about what they can't see – the possibility that toxins like lead and asbestos might have drifted into their homes.

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A Trump executive order temporarily pauses leases and permits for offshore and onshore wind projects. Wind advocates say an offshore wind freeze could threaten states' climate goals and jobs.

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The U.S. claims the hacking was commissioned by a lobbying firm working on behalf of one of the world's biggest oil companies.

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Climate scientist Ben Hamlington works on understanding the impacts of climate change. Losing his house in the Eaton Fire has given that work new meaning.

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An economist's harrowing escape from fire, and her big ideas to rescue California from its insurance doom spiral.

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Lebanese volunteers are anxious to get back to sea turtle conservation on southern beaches that were off-limits to civilians when fighting escalated between Israel and Hezbollah.

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President Trump signed a "national energy emergency" that gives his administration new powers to boost fossil fuel development around the country.

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Some people who didn't evacuate are now hunkering down in their houses. The National guard and police warn that no one comes in and anyone choosing to leave won't be allowed back. Neighbors inside are making the best of the situation.

The old growth forests of Western North Carolina took a beating from Hurricane Helene. Now they've lost a bid for federal protection. This worries advocates that the forests could soon vanish.

The ash and debris created during the burns could be loaded with dangerous materials. Experts suggest taking care.

(Image credit: DAVID PASHAEE/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty)

The old growth forests of Western North Carolina took a beating from Hurricane Helene. Now they've lost a bid for federal protection. This worries advocates that the forests could soon vanish.

The air has improved in the LA region as firefighters get blazes under control, but there are questions about how safe the air actually is.

(Image credit: Ryan Kellman)