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High Country News

High Country News

A nonprofit independent magazine of unblinking journalism that shines a light on all of the complexities of the West.

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HCN has covered the lands, wildlife and communities of the Western U.S. for more than 50 years. Get to know the West better by signing up to receive HCN’s on-the-ground reporting and investigations in your inbox.

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Washington

Small patches of fire slowly merge during a prescribed burn in northeastern Washington.
Posted inFebruary 2025: Immigrant Stories

The power of prescribed fire

by Kylie Mohr February 1, 2025January 31, 2025

A wildfire journalist steps behind the drip torch.

Posted inArticles

Pay wildland firefighters a living wage

by Riley Yuan January 24, 2025January 24, 2025

To reimagine our relationship with wildfire, we must recognize the real value of federal wildland firefighters — and compensate them accordingly.

Two AmeriCorps NCCC Forest Corps members participate in field training in California last summer.
Posted inArticles

The American Climate Corps fades away

by Kate Yoder January 20, 2025January 21, 2025

After just 8 months, Biden’s green jobs program shut down before Trump took office. What did it do?

Posted inJanuary 2025: The West's Most Wanted

Felonious furries, bunches of bats, a coyote commune and pumpkin paddlers

by Tiffany Midge January 1, 2025December 31, 2024

Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.

Posted inArticles

2024’s biggest conservation wins for the West

by Kylie Mohr December 25, 2024December 23, 2024

There were glimmers of good news across the region, from restored habitats to growing wildlife populations.

Posted inDecember 2024: Land as Reparations

Get to know the Pacific brant

by Sarah Trent December 1, 2024November 26, 2024

Tech advances are transforming knowledge and conservation of North America’s favorite goose.

Posted inDecember 2024: Land as Reparations

Raccoons rampage, kangaroos cavort, and ‘art bombing’ hits Oregon

by Tiffany Midge December 1, 2024November 26, 2024

Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.

Posted inArticles

Washington voters stand up for climate action

by Natalia Mesa November 13, 2024November 21, 2024

The state’s landmark climate law survived a repeal effort — and has raised billions of dollars. Here’s where that money is going.

The child of a Black Star Farmer coalition member holds kale that they harvested.
Posted inArticles

Meet Seattle’s radical gardeners

by Natalia Mesa November 7, 2024November 8, 2024

How Black Star Farmers cultivates community.

Western Yarrow, or Achillea millefolium, growing on a pocket prairie near Pullman, Washington.
Posted inNovember 2024: The Once and Future Prairie

Your lawn could host an endangered ecosystem

by Kylie Mohr November 1, 2024November 8, 2024

In the effort to restore the Palouse Prairie, no project is too small.

Sign with direction arrow for Tolt Dam Flood Evacuation Route in Carnation.
Posted inNovember 2024: The Once and Future Prairie

Tolt River Dam false alarms prompt worry and distrust

by Hannah Weinberger November 1, 2024October 31, 2024

The town of Carnation has declared a state of emergency and is threatening dam managers with a lawsuit.

The exhibit offers a variety of objects and personal histories from decades of the quinceañera tradition in the Yakima Valley’s Latino community.
Posted inNovember 2024: The Once and Future Prairie

In Washington’s Yakima Valley, quinceañeras connect people and place

by Natalia Mesa November 1, 2024January 21, 2025

Teens are making the tradition their own with high-top sneakers, glowing dresses and Tiktok dances.

Briarwood Estate, a farm and wedding venue in Skagit County, Washington.
Posted inNovember 2024: The Once and Future Prairie

Is a farm that hosts weddings still a farm?

by Rebecca Dzombak October 29, 2024November 8, 2024

Agritourism divides a rural Washington county.

Posted inArticles

A lens on the Latino vote in Yakima, Washington

by High Country News and Quiet Pictures October 25, 2024November 12, 2024

Organizers work to get out the vote within the diverse Latino population in the Yakima Valley.

Posted inArticles

In rural Washington, a ‘constitutional sheriff’ and his growing volunteer posse provoke controversy

by Paul Kiefer October 10, 2024October 10, 2024

Where some see a ‘rural neighborhood watch’ that saves money, others worry about liability and ties to extremism.

Posted inOctober 2024: Latino Vote

Latino voting power is building in Yakima

by Natalia Mesa October 1, 2024September 30, 2024

Activists in central Washington focus on informing voters and getting them to show up to the polls.

Una pintura por la artista local, Maria G Rueda, cuelga en el vestíbulo del Centro Chinampa en Yakima, Washington.
Posted inOctober 2024: Latino Vote

Poder latino

by Natalia Mesa October 1, 2024October 4, 2024

En el centro del estado de Washington, los organizadores latinos están promoviendo el voto y eligiendo a sus propios candidatos

An unhoused woman pushes her belongings down the street in Scottsdale, Arizona. An Arizona initiative could force local governments to crack down on unhoused people or risk losing property tax revenue.
Posted inOctober 2024: Latino Vote

The downballot issues driving the West’s 2024 elections

by Jonathan Thompson October 1, 2024September 30, 2024

From climate and public lands to shifting political allegiances, the region faces critical choices at the ballot box.

Posted inArticles

The Department of Energy promised Yakama Nation $32 million for solar. It’s nearly impossible to access.

by Tony Schick September 20, 2024September 30, 2024

Held up by a series of bureaucratic hurdles, the funding could expire before the government lets the tribal nation touch a dime.

Phil Rigdon, Corinne Sams and Shannon Wheeler (from left).
Posted inSeptember 2024: When Migrants Go Missing

What tribal leaders think about Interior’s dams report

by B. ‘Toastie’ Oaster September 1, 2024September 3, 2024

The federal government has acknowledged the harms of Columbia River dams. Now what?

Posts pagination

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Most popular stories

  • Days before Trump took office, Interior approved oil and gas leases for land bought during 2019 public auction
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Days before Trump took office, Interior approved oil and gas leases for land bought during 2019 public auction

Days before Trump took office, Interior approved oil and gas leases for land bought during 2019 public auction

The West in Perspective

AI on public lands and Biden’s environmental legacy

by Jonathan Thompson

We must protect our sacred lands

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Pay wildland firefighters a living wage

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