Lili Weir — PAONIA and GOTHIC In a time where much of the conversation surrounding climate change is focused on human adaptability and global catastrophes, the individual lives of the flora and fauna living in these changing landscapes are being ignored. For many of the plants and animals observed at Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratories, changes…
By Lili Weir — GOTHIC, CO How are people living in this former ghost town evolving as the eyes of the world turn to Gothic and Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory for answers to their climate questions? For the scientists and data collectors who call this one road valley home, the increasing obligation to relay their…
By Lili Weir A regional trend of increased aridity will decrease the amount of water available to people in the San Luis Valley, and calls into question how residents of the greater area are responding to the economic and ecological shifts. “I don’t want to say bleak” but water levels “look diminishing” Rio Grande Water…
By Lili Weir Potato farmers facing a shift to aridity in the San Luis Valley are turning to alternative agricultural practices to sustain themselves in a changing environment. “We’re committed to making it work,” Rio Grande Water Conservation District general manager Cleave Simpson said in a recent interview. A fourth generation farmer, Simpson said he…
By Lili Weir Workers at Colorado Springs’ coal-fired Martin Drake power plant put on brave faces this month as a push for renewable energy threatens their jobs and makes their lives more precarious. “I really don’t have any concerns……..I will be in utilities somewhere,” plant operator David Bertrand said. Like other workers, he says his…
By Lili Weir The climate crisis is starting to affect people both physically and mentally. And according to a recent study, these effects often affect indigenous people more. Some on the Colorado College campus are suggesting indigenous practices could be a model for how to best deal with the mental health aspects of a changing…
