Brad Sewell

1 month ago | nrdc.org | Courtney Lindwall |Brad Sewell |Matthew McKinzie

Everyone should be concerned about the fate of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) right now. Current employees are certainly alarmed—not only for their jobs but also for the crucial work they do in the name of science and public safety. Representatives of the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), overseen by Elon Musk, startled NOAA staff last month when they entered the agency’s Maryland headquarters unannounced to gain access to its IT systems.

Jul 16, 2024 | nrdc.org | Brad Sewell

The first half of 2024 was an eventful one for the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, a hotspot of ocean biodiversity about 130 miles off Cape Cod that is home to vibrant deep sea corals, rare whales and seabirds, and an abundance fish life (I wrote about the Monument most recently here and here). And the excitement is not over yet—at the end of the blog, I highlight two scientific expeditions to the Monument that are about to launch.

Apr 22, 2024 | nrdc.org | Brad Sewell

The Biden Administration launched a new website called “Conservation.gov” that includes both an interactive map (the “Atlas”) and an accounting of how much of the nation it believes has already been “conserved” for purposes of what is known as “30 by 30,” the global drive to save the world’s plummeting biodiversity by protecting at least 30 percent of the world’s lands and ocean waters by 2030.