News & Commentary

Meet the activists and NRDC staff propelling change, read our expert analysis, and learn about the latest challenges and solutions to advancing a healthier, more sustainable, and equitable world.

Latest News

Stay on top of the latest research, policy updates, publication releases, and environmental news. 

Explainer

Get a breakdown of complex climate, public health, nature, and equity topics to inform your activism.

Dispatch

Read about activists tackling climate justice and other environmental causes in their communities and beyond.

Perspectives

Discover intersectional viewpoints from activists and artists on the environmental issues of the moment.

NRDC in Action

Find out how NRDC protects people and the planet by learning about some of our key fights.

Expert Blogs

Hear from our policy advocates, scientists, and litigators about the challenges and solutions for building a healthier and more just world.

Pollinators Notch Big Wins in Minnesota

Expert BlogSt. PaulLucas Rhoads

In a historic 2023 session, Minnesota reined in pesticide use, increased pollinator habitat, and built momentum toward additional protections. 

One Year Since Court Restored ESA Protections for Wolves

Expert BlogCalifornia, Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, WisconsinDr. Jennifer Sherry
Without these protections, wolf recovery could be stopped dead in its tracks—or even reversed—as we have seen happen when states with authority over wolf management work to cut populations down through aggressive measures.

Clean Truck Rules Will Benefit Southern New England

Expert BlogMassachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode IslandKathy Harris, Patricio Portillo

The states of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island stand to see $12.7 billion dollars in net societal benefits, improved health and air quality, and increased investments over the next 30 years through adoption of Clean Truck Programs in their states.

How to Stop a Highway

DispatchHouston, Texas, United StatesTim Vanderpool
Houston activists fuel a growing movement to increasingly center environmental justice in infrastructure and protect urban neighborhoods from endlessly expanding road projects.

Ecolabel Reinstated for a Fishery Entangling Right Whales

Expert BlogMaine, EastDr. Francine Kershaw, Heather Delanty

The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification of the Gulf of Maine lobster fishery has been reinstated even though the fishery still poses a direct threat to the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale.

Saint Paul Prioritizes People, Not Parking Spaces

Expert BlogMinnesota, St. PaulZak Accuardi

Saint Paul has taken an ambitious and important step toward meeting its climate and equity goals, passing two new ordinances—one eliminating parking minimums, and the other introducing rules that prioritize safer, healthier, low-carbon transportation options in new development projects.

Minnesota Advances to Become First Midwest Clean Cars State

Expert BlogMinnesotaDr. Simon Mui

The proposal to adopt a Clean Cars Minnesota program was given a greenlight today, which would mean Minnesota will become the first Midwest state to adopt a Clean Cars program to introduce more electric vehicles together with cleaner internal-combustion engine…

Holding Mexico Accountable for Vaquita Extinction

Expert BlogMexicoZak Smith
Mexico has a choice. It can save the vaquita by enforcing its laws and regulations or it can let the vaquita go extinct. It has already shown that it is inclined to choose extinction. The United States and others, like…

For a Family in Mexico, a Mission to Protect Monarchs

DispatchMexicoNicole Greenfield
Siblings Joel, Anayeli, and Patricio Moreno see the future of their community and that of the butterflies that migrate annually to the local Cerro Pelón forest as being intimately connected.

Protecting the Wintering Home of Migratory Birds

Expert BlogTexasJessica Carey-Webb

The Chihuahuan Desert is the largest desert in North America and home to the most biodiverse grasslands in the world, including 500 species of birds.

Life in the Chihuahuan Desert Grasslands

Expert BlogTexas, New MexicoJessica Carey-Webb

90 percent of the grassland bird species that breed on the Great Plains in the United States and Canada winter in the grasslands of the Chihuahuan Desert, which encompasses the northwestern region of Mexico, spreading into the states of Arizona…

Showing Migrating Monarch Butterflies Some Southern Hospitality

DispatchMexico, Texas, HoustonRobynne Boyd
Non-native tropical milkweed fuels monarchs on their journey through southern states, but when cooler weather hits, the plant can bring parasites and starvation. Here’s what butterfly-loving southerners can do.