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“The Story of the Century; how we’re writing about climate change” panel discussion with Mario Alejandro Ariza, Helen Santoro, Ben Goldfarb. Chaired by Gretchen King.
Mario Alejandro Ariza is an investigative reporter for Floodlight news, where he writes about climate change and the people responsible for it. Previously, he was an investigative reporter at the South Florida Sun Sentinel. You can also find his byline in places like The New Republic, The Atlantic, Audubon Magazine, and the Huffington Post. In 2020, he published a book called Disposable City: Miami’s Future on the Shores of Climate Catastrophe. His essays have been featured in The Believer and selected for Best American Essays. He lives in South Florida with two cats, a dog, and a sturdy pair of waterproof boots.
Helen Santoro is a science journalist based in Gunnison who focuses on health, medicine and LGBTQ+ communities. More specifically, her passion lies in deep-dive and investigative pieces on health issues, along with transgender experiences and discrimination in health care. Her work has appeared in Kaiser Health News, High Country News, Slate, Smithsonian Magazine, WIRED, and more.
Ben Goldfarb is an environmental journalist whose work has appeared in publications including the Atlantic, the New York Times, National Geographic, Orion Magazine, and High Country News, and has been anthologized in the Best American Science and Nature Writing. His first book, Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter, received the PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award, and was named one of the best books of the year by the Washington Post. His next book, on the ecology of roads, will be published by W.W. Norton & Co., and received the Whiting Creative Nonfiction Grant for a manuscript in progress. He lives in Buena Vista, Colorado, with his wife, Elise, and his dog, Kit — which is, of course, what you call a baby beaver.
Gretchen King is the managing digital editor at High Country News (HCN), the nation’s leading source of reporting on the Western U.S. Here she oversees the magazine’s workflow, website, social media, newsletters and a variety of other duties. HCN is known for its award-winning environmental coverage. Previously, Gretchen co-owned and operated Revolution Brewing in Paonia – known as Colorado’s first nanobrewery. She lives in Gunnison, Colorado, and in the winter you’ll find her at Mt. Crested Butte ski area enjoying the high lift. (Hey, enjoy snow while it still exists!) In other months, find her on the local trails with her two dogs, husband and 16-year-old son.