Starbucks to-go cups can now be labeled "widely recyclable," despite little evidence that they're recycled more than 1-2% of the time. Experts say most plastic cups "end up in a landfill or ... burned for energy generation." My latest for @grist.org grist.org/regulation/w...

In our weekly Top 5: —Lessons from apartheid (@thedialmag.bsky.social) —Clever Claude? (@newyorker.com ) —Bodies anew (@GeorgiaReview) —Wax on, wax off (@grist.org) —Mine’s free (Dispatch Magazine) longreads.com/2026/02/13/t...

Exciting to see @longreads.com pick up the story Tik Root and I wrote for @grist.org, about the ski industry's transition away from ultra-fast PFAS waxes longreads.com/2026/02/12/p...

Tuning into the Winter Olympics? The 2026 Games will be the first since a ban on PFAS ski waxes, which were very fast but also toxic. For @grist.org, Tik Root & I talked to skiers & wax techs about the shift toward safer waxes — and its implications for race day. @grist.org grist.org/culture/the-...

Consensus decision-making is considered the "poison pill" that's stalled U.N. climate talks for decades. Is there a better way? @grist.org grist.org/cop30/un-cli...

Big Oil's cheerleaders (yes, including THAT John Yoo) are taking to right wing outlets to beg the Supreme Court to kill climate deception lawsuits. The fossil fuel industry is terrified of these cases. They knew, they lied, and communities deserve their day in court to hold them accountable.

In The Long Heat, Wim Carton and Andreas Malm offer a tour of the climate "solutions" on offer when society refuses to reduce GHG emissions in the near term. Check out my write-up of the duo's "Marxist IPCC report of a readable nature." @grist.org grist.org/culture/clim...

Philadelphia filed an extremely thorough lawsuit on Wed against SC Johnson (Ziploc) and Bimbo Bakeries over claims that their plastic bags are recyclable, accusing the companies of engaging in a "coordinated campaign of deception." @grist.org grist.org/accountabili...

In Pennsylvania, a plastics company has agreed to continuously monitor its stormwater and wastewater outflows for tiny plastic "nurdles" — and pay up if any of the pellets are detected. Green groups are hopeful that this will become standard practice. @grist.org grist.org/solutions/pl...

A new report from @newclimate.bsky.social finds little corporate support for durable CO2 removal, which is needed to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees C. Those that are investing in the technology aren't doing so in conjunction with deep emissions cuts. @grist.org grist.org/accountabili...

There is only enough safe underground storage space for 1,460 Gt of CO2, according to new research in the journal Nature. This is an order of magnitude less than previous estimates, and only enough to cut global warming by 0.4-0.7 degrees C, not 6 degrees. @grist.org grist.org/science/carb...

Another round of plastics treaty negotiations hamstrung by the search for consensus. "Every day, our oceans and ecosystems and communities are suffering from the consequences of our inability to make decisive and unified actions." @grist.org grist.org/internationa...

Great video from artist Benjamin Von Wong about protecting human health through the U.N. plastics treaty: www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pYl...

Will the U.N. plastics treaty prioritize human health? Scientists say it must, but oil-producing countries are lobbying against mandatory protections. @grist.org grist.org/health/un-pl...

The plastics crisis has gotten so bad that "the ability of future generations to enjoy a toxic-free environment conducive to a life w/ dignity is now compromised." Here's why legal experts are increasingly referring to plastic pollution as a human rights issue. @grist.org grist.org/equity/un-pl...

Since we are all affected by the microplastics everywhere, the least that should be done is to ban the known toxic chemicals in some plastics. Right now the plastics treaty is being negotiated and the Trump Administration is on the wrong side of history.

Over the past 3+ years of plastics treaty negotiations, art has communicated plastics' connection to fossil fuels, the health impacts of plastic pollution, and the need to curb plastic production. This was a fun one to write! @grist.org grist.org/culture/plas...

I've been in Geneva since Friday covering the sixth round of negotiations over the U.N. plastics treaty, and I've put together some resources to explain what it's all about! 1/ Starting with these 6 charts that explain the plastics crisis @grist.org grist.org/internationa...

We have a real problem with people in important positions spouting absolute nonsense. Human-caused climate change threatens the continued orderly development of human civilization. That’s the truth.

Rich countries are exporting plastic to poor countries in the form of “refuse-derived fuel." @jbwinters.bsky.social reports in @grist.org: Yuyun Ismawati shared, “If we are going to deal with plastic waste through RDF, then … everybody must be willing to learn more about what’s in it.”

A new study in Nature estimates there are 27 million metric tons of nanoplastic in the North Atlantic Ocean alone, and that these invisible plastic particles make up a greater fraction of marine plastic pollution than micro or macroplastics. @grist.org grist.org/science/ocea...

Green groups have described Trump's domestic policy megabill as “historically ruinous” and “a self-inflicted tragedy for our country.” Trump is expected to sign it into law tomorrow evening. @grist.org grist.org/politics/a-s...

The executive branch and the Supreme Court “are exhibiting extraordinary hostility to actions on climate change at a time when the planet is burning. ... It’s a pretty depressing story overall.” @grist.org grist.org/justice/supr...

The Trump administration is rescinding the Roadless Rule — a 2001 policy limiting the construction of roads in national forests — “to reduce wildfire risk.” Experts say that’s a pretense to increase timber extraction. @grist.org grist.org/wildfires/wi...

New research in the journal Science shows that when you outlaw or discourage the sale of plastic bags, fewer of them end up as litter on beaches. @grist.org grist.org/science/plas...

Republicans want to make 250 million acres of public lands eligible for sale to housing developers — including lots of national forests that, if you live in the West, you probably know and love. @grist.org grist.org/politics/pub...

The EU just told finance companies they can't call their funds "sustainable" if they're invested in fossil fuels. So companies got rid of fossil fuels from some funds. But for others, they just dropped words like "sustainable" from the name. www.climatechangenews.com/2025/06/03/a...

66% of the entire planet is deep ocean (≥200 m), but new research shows humans have visually observed less than 0.001%, a total area approximately one-tenth of the size of Belgium. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

I really enjoyed speaking with Portland's waste pickers for this story, co-published with @streetroots.bsky.social. “There’s this stigma that if you’re homeless, then you’re useless. But collecting bottles and cans — it is work." @grist.org grist.org/equity/portl...

“They’re claiming it’s a solution and it’s not, and they know it." Great piece exposing the truth about chemical recycling, based on the new @climateintegrity.org report, from @grist.org @josephwintervhs.bsky.social @davisallen.bsky.social #plasticpollution #advancedrecycling

Companies are using a complicated accounting system to call virgin plastic "recycled." Here's my attempt to explain how (including a very cool visualization!) @grist.org grist.org/accountabili...

Exposure to DEHP from plastics use caused 13% of global deaths from heart disease among adults aged 55 to 64, according to research published last week in The Lancet eBioMedicine. @grist.org grist.org/health/plast...

The Trump administration dismissed all 400 experts who had been working on the U.S.'s premier report on climate change. It's unclear who will now write the Congressionally mandated National Climate Assessment, or whether it will be written at all. @grist.org grist.org/science/trum...

The IMO's new fee for shipping emissions is both "historic" and insufficient. Modeling suggests it isn't enough to achieve the IMO's own target of 20-30% emissions reduction by 2030. @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/internationa...

ESG-related shareholder resolutions are down 34% this year as the Trump administration galvanizes the movement against “woke investing,” according to an annual report from @asyousow.bsky.social and Proxy Impact. @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/business/tru...

Juliana v. U.S. argued that the government's support for fossil fuels violated 21 youth plaintiffs' constitutional rights. It may have lost in court, but its legacy lives on in similar lawsuits and in the youth climate movement it helped to spark. @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/justice/juli...

Here's my story w/ @sachimulkey.bsky.social on Greenpeace's next steps after it lost in a North Dakota court. The organization plans to appeal and has already filed a countersuit in Europe. "You can’t bankrupt the movement," one of its attorneys said. @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/indigenous/a...

Gavin Newsom's office delayed implementation of California's nation-leading plastic reduction policy, offering only vague concerns about fairness and the need to "minimiz[e] costs for small businesses and working families." @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/regulation/n...

The Supreme Court shrugged off a Republican-led effort to block climate lawsuits, declining to hear a complaint that legal experts called "a political stunt." @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/regulation/s...

My colleague @siisiiko.bsky.social and I wrote about the sixth International Rights of Nature Tribunal, which highlighted the "age-old stories of greed, colonization, … and the ongoing ecocide" caused by Canadian mining companies. @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/equity/in-ca...

American banks' departure from the Net Zero Banking Alliance is a reminder that voluntary initiatives have never been sufficient to drive the sectors' decarbonization. @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/accountabili...

Looking for sources who have received a "stop work" order over DEI keywords in their environmental science research, despite their work not having anything to do w/ DEI. E.g., "diverse plant communities," like from this Reddit thread: www.reddit.com/r/conservati... DM me!

Massive encroachment by Bezos into The Washington Post’s opinion section - makes clear dissenting views will not be published I still have not felt encroachment on my journalism on the news side, but if Bezos tries interfering with the news side I will be quitting immediately and letting you know

One could generously say it's "unclear" whether Starbucks' plastic cups actually get recycled. Paper cups and ceramic mugs would help the company meet its goal of 100% reusable, compostable, or recyclable packaging by 2030. @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/accountabili...

Shivers from this quote: "Give your lectures, take your tests, do not ask why or what any of it means in a larger sense or question the enabling fiction that separates your work from the rest of the world. And never, ever ask where the money comes from ..." www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...

Trump’s attack on plastic straws is the latest salvo in a culture war that pits care for the environment against values like masculinity and freedom. @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/politics/tru...

Next Tuesday, Seattle voters will choose whether to fund the city's social housing developer with a new tax on wealthy corporations. Here's why doing so could be a climate solution. @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/cities/seatt...

Happy Friday Y'all! Follow all of our journalist and storytellers for smart climate news. And then share the starter pack with your community. Help us fight disinformation in the climate space. go.bsky.app/7mqjANC #Climate #News #Media #Environment #GreenSky

If "recycling" requires a constant stream of virgin plastic products, then what's the point? My cover story for @gristnews.bsky.social is about the problem of "downcycling," whereby used materials get downgraded into lower-quality products that can't themselves be recycled. grist.org/accountabili...

Exxon Mobil is considering putting a major new plastics facility in Point Comfort, Texas, where residents have already spent years fighting pollution caused by a Formosa Plastics plant. Co-reported with Tik Root for @gristnews.bsky.social grist.org/accountabili...