personal essays Archives - State of the Planet

A bobcat caught on camera

The Art of Catching a Bobcat

Chopped beaver and chilled urine. Shiny feather boas and smelly mating lures. The extreme lengths to which ecologists must go to catch an elusive animal.

by Alice Yan |March 14, 2022
Cascade Tuholske and his father Jack Tuholske

Watching My Dad Die With Optimism Changed My Outlook on Climate Change

His father’s positive attitude in the face of terminal illness has inspired Cascade Tuholske to apply the same optimism while studying climate change.

by Cascade Tuholske |May 21, 2021
claudia dreifus holds a sign saying "I got vaccinated for Patti"

My Experience Getting the COVID-19 Shot

A Sustainability Management instructor reflects on why she’s thrilled to get the coronavirus vaccine.

by Claudia Dreifus |January 26, 2021
che flowers portrait

Yes, You Do Know Someone Who Has Been Harmed by Systemic Racism

A Black student shares some of his negative interactions with the police, and explains why “silence equals death” is not an exaggeration.

by Che Flowers |August 26, 2020
sunset in antarctica

Reflections from Antarctica: A Landscape in Flux

Working as an Antarctic field scientist, I witnessed the destruction provoked by a rapidly warming planet. But I also found inspiration.

by |January 16, 2018