Most popular stories of 2020

Our 5 most read stories of 2020

Revisit the stories and words that most resonated with our readers.

It's always something of a mystery to see what most touches readers. Black food sovereignty, DuPont's pollution, fracking and horses—this year's most read stories from our newsroom reflect true diversity in the world of environmental health.


We were delighted to see that whether essay, straight science reporting, explainer piece, or investigative feature, our work can reach millions.

Don't miss out, see what others have been reading. Below are our top five most read stories from the past year.

1. We don't farm because it's trendy; we farm as resistance, for healing and sovereignty

For more than 150 years, from the rural South to northern cities, Black people have used farming to build self-determined communities and resist oppressive structures that tear them down.

2. A lasting legacy: DuPont, C8 contamination and the community of Parkersburg left to grapple with the consequences

"We all have stories of friends and family, neighbors, dying too young or being diagnosed with various medical problems"

3. Coronavirus, climate change, and the environment

A conversation on COVID-19 with the director of Harvard University's Center of Climate, Health and the Global Environment.

4. Fracking linked to rare birth defect in horses: Study

A new study has uncovered a link between fracking chemicals in farm water and a rare birth defect in horses—which researchers say could serve as a warning about fracking and human infant health.

5. Organic diets quickly reduce the amount of glyphosate in people’s bodies

A new study found levels of the widespread herbicide and its breakdown products reduced, on average, more than 70 percent in both adults and children after just six days of eating organic.

Banner photo: Tracy Danzey grew up in polluted Parkersburg, West Virginia. (Courtesy Seth Freeman Photography)

Two scientists in lab coats look at a computer screen displaying a colorful image from a molecular microscope.
Credit: NIH Image Gallery/Flickr

Federal health data removals leave scientists scrambling

Researchers are racing to preserve critical federal health data as the Trump administration removes online access to key government databases, raising fears about future disruptions.

Margaret Manto reports for Notus.

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Senator Whitehouse & climate change

Senator Whitehouse puts climate change on budget committee’s agenda

For more than a decade, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse gave daily warnings about the mounting threat of climate change. Now he has a powerful new perch.
A group of young, diverse scientists work in a laboratory.
Credit: NIH Image Gallery/Flickr

Trump’s funding cuts threaten the backbone of U.S. research

Trump’s National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding cut targets “indirect costs,” the behind-the-scenes expenses that keep labs running, sparking a fierce backlash from universities and scientists who say it will cripple American innovation.

Carolyn Y. Johnson, Susan Svrluga, and Joel Achenbach report for The Washington Post.

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Fire department personnel wearing protective gear walk along a street with the burned rubble of former homes.
Credit: CAL FIRE_Official/Flickr

Climate disasters are pushing society’s most vulnerable to the brink

The Los Angeles fires claimed 29 lives, most of them elderly, highlighting the deadly risks climate-intensified disasters pose to older adults.

Sarah Kaplan and Emily Wax-Thibodeaux report for The Washington Post.

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Looking down on a city in the desert with mountains in the background.

Arizona’s developers fight water limits in a dark-money showdown

A dark-money-backed lawsuit is challenging Arizona’s groundbreaking limits on development in areas with rapidly disappearing groundwater, a move that could reshape water policy across the Southwest.

Katya Schwenk reports for The Lever.

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A man in t-shirt and shorts digs in the sand next to a sign that says "sea turtle nest."

Major U.S. nature report in jeopardy due to Trump administration shutdown

Scientists were blindsided when the Trump administration killed a first-of-its-kind U.S. nature assessment, but key experts say they’ll finish it without government support.

Catrin Einhorn reports for The New York Times.

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aerial photography of grass field with blue solar panels and a road.

Clean energy growth shattered records in 2024, but political uncertainty looms

Clean energy installations in the U.S. surged 47% last year, driven by tax credits and falling costs, but future growth faces challenges from the Trump administration’s policies.

Akielly Hu reports for Canary Media.

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Donald Trump smiling at a campaign event

Trump defies court orders, continues to block climate funding

President Donald Trump has halted billions in Biden-era climate and infrastructure funds, despite court rulings ordering their release.

Jake Bittle reports for Grist.

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From our Newsroom
wildfire retardants being sprayed by plane

New evidence links heavy metal pollution with wildfire retardants

“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.

People  sitting in an outdoors table working on a big sign.

Op-ed: Why funding for the environmental justice movement must be anti-racist

We must prioritize minority-serving institutions, BIPOC-led organizations and researchers to lead environmental justice efforts.

joe biden

Biden finalizes long-awaited hydrogen tax credits ahead of Trump presidency

Responses to the new rules have been mixed, and environmental advocates worry that Trump could undermine them.

Op-ed: Toxic prisons teach us that environmental justice needs abolition

Op-ed: Toxic prisons teach us that environmental justice needs abolition

Prisons, jails and detention centers are placed in locations where environmental hazards such as toxic landfills, floods and extreme heat are the norm.

Agents of Change in Environmental Justice logo

LISTEN: Reflections on the first five years of the Agents of Change program

The leadership team talks about what they’ve learned — and what lies ahead.

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