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

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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.

Defender of Energy Efficiency—and Equity

NRDC in ActionGeorgia, Detroit, Michigan, Baltimore, Maryland, Norfolk, VirginiaKeith Mulvihill
Dawone Robinson, regional director of NRDC’s Energy Efficiency for All Project, works to create opportunities for low-income communities of color to save energy and money.

Albuquerque Commits to 100% Clean Light-Duty Fleet

Expert BlogNew Mexico, AlbuquerqueEloisa Portillo-Morales

Mayor Tim Keller pledged that any eligible new vehicles purchased for the city’s light-duty fleet will be electric, hybrids, or powered by alternative fuels. 

Principles for Parks and Equitable Development

Expert BlogUnited States, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Atlanta, Los Angeles, MemphisSasha Forbes, AICP

Assets in our communities that offer us increased connectivity, shelter, and planned outdoor spaces can act as triggers that escalate land values which usually price out existing residents, often low-income and people of color, and more often renters. But communities…

Energy Efficiency Boosts Prospects of Low-Income Marylanders

Expert BlogMaryland, BaltimoreDeron Lovaas

There has been considerable attention from national pundits and political operatives pointing at Baltimore as a city that has not reached its full potential. While they fixate on problems, Energy Efficiency for All teammates write about a helpful solution in…

Dear Mr. Trump: Don’t Retraumatize Our Communities

Expert BlogBaltimore, MarylandStephanie Gidigbi Jenkins

Trump’s comments about Baltimore being dangerous and rat-infested hurts—not just the people of West Baltimore and other neighborhoods like it—but all of us who want a better, healthier, more sustainable and equitable future.

Justice Warrior on the Affordable Energy Front

NRDC in ActionVirginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New YorkKaren L. Smith-Janssen
Dawone Robinson is righting the inequities that low-income communities of color face in accessing the benefits of energy efficiency—like more comfortable homes and lower energy bills, for starters.

A Fracking Boom Ransacks the Four Corners

DispatchNew MexicoTim Vanderpool
Native American activists in northwest New Mexico are putting up a firm resistance as the U.S. Bureau of Land Management hands over their homeland to allies in the oil and gas industry.

Northam Brings Virginia's Energy Future into Sharper Focus

Expert BlogVirginiaWalton Shepherd

While the Trump administration puts the nation in reverse on cleaning up vehicle pollution, Governor Ralph Northam put the Commonwealth on the road to cleaner energy in announcing yesterday a $14 million investment in electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across…

Why We Need the EPA

ExplainerPuerto Rico, New York City, United States, ClevelandBrian Palmer
Let’s not forget what America looked like before we had the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Our rivers caught on fire, our air was full of smog, and it stank (literally).

The Petcoke Problem: Where to Store the Risky Tar Sands Refining By-Product

ExplainerUnited States, Canada, Chicago, Detroit, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Virginia
Petroleum coke, typically stored outdoors in big open piles, can blow right into nearby homes and cause serious health problems. Unsurprisingly, communities are fighting Big Oil to keep this noxious material out of their backyards.