By Sage Sutcliffe
Top Montana News Stories
1. Congolese refugees gather in Missoula for ‘Welcome Dinner’ (David Erickson / Missoulian)
An event hosted by the International Refugee Committee and Soft Landing Missoula welcomed new Missoulians to town. J-School grad (’06) David Erickson leads with:
“Last Saturday was a busy and very special day for the many refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo and other countries who now call Missoula home.
First, it was time to cook.”
2. Montana youths take climate case to trial in historical first (Megan Michelotti / Missoulian)
Sixteen young Montana plaintiffs are taking the state of Montana to court this June in Held et al. v. Montana. It will be the first trial of its kind.
“The case asserts that by supporting a fossil fuel-driven energy system, the state is violating its own ‘constitutional rights‘ to a clean and healthful environment…,” reports Michelotti.
3. Poll shows Westerners hold fast to conservation ideals (Laura Lundquist / Missoula Current)
“Westerners remain steadfast in wanting to conserve the land, water and wildlife that surround them, although concerns about overcrowding and water shortages reflected in a new eight-state poll are strengthening those desires,” writes J-School grad Laura Lundquist (’10).
Lundquist reports on the Conservation in the West Poll from the Colorado College State of the Rockies Project. Though the piece is data heavy, she translates the results effectively.
4. Bozeman Daily Chronicle journalists say company won’t budge on pay, work hours (Darrell Ehrlick / Daily Montanan)
Ehrlick reports on difficulties some Montana journalists face as employees of the Yellowstone News Guild and Lee Enterprises. “…The economic struggles told daily on the pages of the newspaper have also crept their way into the lives of the journalists writing those stories,” Ehrlick writes.
Top Environment and Science News Stories
1. Climate change may make it easier for mosquitoes to spread malaria (Dino Grandoni / The Washington Post)
Mosquito season is still several months away here in Montana. According to Georgetown University researchers, the disease-carrying pests are spreading into more northern latitudes and higher elevations as the climate warms. This is scary, because, “The deadliest impacts of climate change won’t just come from floods, droughts and other disasters. According to top U.N. climate scientists, some of the worst consequences will come from disease,” Grandoni writes.
2. ‘This is absurd’: Train cars that derailed in Ohio were labeled non-hazardous (John McCracken / Grist)
You’ve probably heard about the Norfolk Southern Railway train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio and the environmental disaster that ensued. McCracken’s reporting for Grist provides a clear rundown of the incident and the implications for residents and wildlife of East Palestine.
Top Alumni/Student Story
1. Senate committee advances bill to prohibit foreign adversaries from owning ag land in Montana (Keila Szpaller / Daily Montanan)
J-School grad (’03) Keila Szpaller is the Daily Montanan’s deputy editor and was previously the Missoulian’s city editor. In her story for the Daily Montanan, Szpaller keeps to the facts and reports in concise, clear graphs. We learn all we need to know about the story: there is a bill in Montana legislation that challenges ag land ownership, and the recent Chinese surveillance balloon debacle comes into play.
