Sara Peach

2 months ago | yaleclimateconnections.org | Jennifer Oldham |Sara Peach

A decision by Colorado state regulators to put two multiwell oil and gas proposals on hold showcased the growing influence of Denver-area antidrilling groups that have organized over the last decade in the face of large fossil fuel developments proposed on the outskirts of their suburban neighborhoods. Colorado’s Energy & Carbon Management Commission in November rejected a controversial request by Extraction Oil & Gas Inc.

2 months ago | yaleclimateconnections.org | Katie Myers |Sara Peach

On a freezing cold Wednesday afternoon in eastern Kentucky, Taysha DeVaughan joined a small gathering at the foot of a reclaimed strip mine to celebrate a homecoming. “It’s a return of an ancestor,” DeVaughan said. “It’s a return of a relative.” That relative was the land they stood on, part of a tract slated for a federal penitentiary that many in the crowd consider another injustice in a region riddled with them.

Jan 22, 2025 | yaleclimateconnections.org | Katarina Zimmer |Sara Peach

When the sun is blazing and the wind is blowing, Germany’s solar and wind power plants swing into high gear. For nine days in July 2023, renewables produced more than 70% of the electricity generated in the country; there are times when wind turbines even need to be turned off to avoid overloading the grid. But on other days, clouds mute solar energy down to a flicker and wind turbines languish.

Jan 9, 2025 | yaleclimateconnections.org | James Arnott |Kaitlin Sullivan |Sara Peach

A tiny flying fox, cheery yellow warbler, and freshwater mosquitofish recently lost protection under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, and not for good reason. They’d been declared extinct. They are among the 21 species to lose federal protection as the result of nationwide extinction, a harbinger of more loss to come amid the increasing destruction of climate change. Among the delisted species were Guam’s Little Mariana fruit bat and the endemic San Marcos gambusia fish of Texas.

Nov 25, 2024 | yaleclimateconnections.org | Lela Nargi |Sara Peach

Ralph Loya was pretty sure he was going to lose the corn. His farm had been scorched by El Paso’s hottest-ever June and second-hottest August; the West Texas county saw 53 days soar over 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer of 2024. The region was also experiencing an ongoing drought, which meant that crops on Loya’s eight-plus acres of melons, okra, cucumbers and other produce had to be watered more often than normal.