By Johnna Geick Descending into the West Elk Coal Mine is like entering a new world: Lightless, filled with the buzz of machinery and occasional rumble of large vehicles. Underground, almost everything seems like a grayscale image. Heaps of crushed limestone dust coat the floor, flying up each time a heavy boot comes down. There…
By Johnna Geick Residents of Southern Colorado are feeling the effects of climate change, but remain divided on the value of personal efforts versus systematic changes. Big ski corporations like Aspen Ski Company are driving for political and institutional change, claiming individual conservation efforts are trivial. But others emphasize the importance of small-scale changes, to…
The Great Sand Dunes roll like waves without crests. Seven hundred feet tall, towering before me, their flawlessly smooth surface seemed impossible. Our class of twelve young journalists drove from our temporary home in Crestone, Colorado to Alamosa, hoping to clear our minds amidst the dunes after days of intensive interviewing and article writing. I…
By Johnna Geick CENTER – Nestled between the Sangre de Cristo and San Juan mountains, Colorado’s San Luis Valley is a place of peace. But in the serenity, farmers are struggling to survive economically while keeping their family traditions alive. They’re facing a water crisis. Climate impacts on mountain snowpack along the headwaters of the…
By Johnna Geick With fossil fuel emissions driving global warming, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is pushing hard to transition to cleaner, renewable energy state-wide. But closer to home, workers at the coal-fired Martin Drake Power Plant under Colorado Springs Utilities challenged the practicality of immediate change. Colorado aims to cut emissions…
By Johnna Geick The courtyard of the Colorado College campus is coated in lush green grass scattered plentifully with trees. Squirrels scamper around playfully and not a piece of litter is in sight. To the right is Tutt Library, running on a net-zero carbon energy system, and directly ahead is a purple-toned, midafternoon display of…
