Published Stories

Students in the Environmental Journalism program at NYU Sydney are eligible to have their stories considered for publication in Australia’s national student journalism magazine, The Junction.
The Junction selects the high quality journalism stories from 23 universities across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific.

Here’s an honour roll of our students’ stories, as published in The Junction since 2019:

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NYU STUDENTS PUBLISHED IN JUNCTION JOURNALISM

How Indigenous burning could address the extreme bushfires of our changing climate
9 Jan 2020 Saul Shukman reports

Australia’s First Solar Garden offers renewables for renters
14 Nov 2019 Catherine Devine reports

Climate change threatens the surf along Australia’s coasts, and surfers are worried
25 Jun 2019 Juli Miller reports

Never Too Young: Australian Students Fight for Climate Action
16 Mar 2019 Mary Pavlakos reports

Students Skip School to Fight Climate Change
12 Mar 2019 Makena Frederick reports

Gene Drives could eradicate invasive species – but is the risk too great?
04 Mar 2019  NYU student Sarah Field explores the possibility of ‘gene drives’ – releasing genetically modified animals into the ecosystem – to manage feral pests.

Murray-Darling Residents Advocate for Government Change
1 Mar 2019 Brooke La Mantia reports

Divers call for marine sanctuaries in Sydney waters
1 Mar 2019 Hayden Carey reports

Berrima Farmers, Landowners Threatened by Proposed Coal Mine
18 Feb 2019 Jack Brogan reports on a community’s fight against a new coal mine.

Climate change leaving koalas high and dry
7 Feb 2019 Amy Yang reports

Deforestation and Koala Extinction: There’s an economic cost too
30 Jan 2019  Lauren Zahm reports

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Some NYU Sydney students have their environment feature stories published in mainstream media outlets:

Jack Brogan (Spring 2018) had his final feature article published in MEININGER’S WINE BUSINESS INTERNATIONAL, the world’s leading international wine trade magazine:

Tasmanian wine producers look to a warmer future
26 Jan 2019
Tasmania’s winemakers are already feeling the effects of climate change, with fewer but more severe frosts, and the tiny island in Australia’s southern waters expected to warm by 2.9 C by this century’s end. ♦♦♦[PDF] to come.

Andrew Xie (Spring 2015) had his final feature article published in the Environment section of ABC ONLINE:

I don’t see-weed: the rehabilitation of Sydney’s underwater forests
12 JUN 2015
Scientists are slipping on wetsuits to save Sydney’s salty forests from an underwater enemy – and they are hoping to crowd-source their seaweed-planting project to boost the amount of brown ‘crayweed’ in Sydney harbour after a hardier (but less nourishing) green seaweed has replaced the original brown weed, killed by harbour pollution decades ago. [PDF]

Meanwhile, Julia Musto (Fall 2014) had a feature published in the Huffington Post:

Everything You Need to Know About Japanese Whaling
6 Oct 2014

Japanese whalers have killed upwards of 10,000 whales since an international moratorium on whaling came into effect in 1986, reports Julia Musto – and Japan seems set to kill plenty more, sending out whaling boats just a month after the international court in the Hague found that their whaling program was ‘unscientific.’ Julia Musto reports.  [PDF]

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Before our association with The Junction began in 2018, many NYU Sydney Environmental Journalism students were published in other publications which highlight the work of student journalists. These include  Reportage Online (the magazine of the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism at the University of Technology), and in Upstart Magazine (the magazine of La Trobe University in Victoria).

Here’s an honour roll of our students’ stories published in other university press outlets:

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NYU STUDENTS PUBLISHED IN UPSTART MAGAZINE

FALL 2016

Indigenous Land Reallocation Reemerges as a Global Phenomenon
10 Feb 2017
NYU student Isabel Avina examines the parallels between Australia’s Adani Carmichael Coal Mine and the US controversy over the North Dakota Access Pipeline.    [PDF]

NYU STUDENTS PUBLISHED IN REPORTAGE

SPRING 2016

Rabies over-reaction could drive Bali dogs to extinction
30 May 2016
Thousands of dogs were killed in Bali last year following the rabies-related deaths of fifteen people. Around 4,000 people in Bali suffer dog-bites each month – but local animal rights activists are begging the government to continue their previously-successful mass vaccination program which will be more effective than culling,  reports Meredith Brown.    [PDF]

Break Free from Coal Exports
3 Jun 2016
Sana Dadani reports on the 350.org protest action at the port of Newcastle, north of Sydney, where Pacific islanders and thousands of supporters engaged in non-violent direct action, taking to the water in hundreds of kayaks to effectively shut down the world’s largest coal export port for a few hours. [PDF]

FALL 2015

A sad tale of koalas and coal mines
12 December 2015
The proposed Shenhua coal mine could have devastating consequences for the local koala population, as Krystina Busacco reports. [PDF]

How “free” are your free range eggs?
9 December 2015
Mytam Mayo-Smith reports on the controversy surrounding free-range egg labelling. [PDF]

Can we save the planet by shifting our diet?
14 December 2015
Vegetarians may hold the secret to saving Planet Earth from devastating climate change, reports Simone Cooper  [PDF]

Riding the wave to renewable energy
14 December 2015
As energy costs in Australia rise, it is no surprise Australia is exploring ocean energy technologies, following a CSIRO report predicting wave energy could provide more than 10 percent of Australia’s electricity by 2050.  Christina Buru reports.  [PDF]

From Dry Seasons to Dry Pockets
14 December 2015
Mounting research warns it’s only a matter of time before food prices skyrocket and rising temperatures start exhausting Australia’s already vulnerable agribusiness sector, writes Catherine Stuck.  [PDF]

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SPRING 2014

Falling foxes
2 June 2014
The iconic fruit bat – found throughout New South Wales and Queensland – could be in danger. Colin Johnson reports.   [PDF]

Voices for rhinos
20 May 2014
Taronga Zoo is doing its part to raise awareness about the plight of the endangered Sumatran rhino. Jocelyn Bruno reports.  [PDF]

Environmentally friendly shark cull alternatives
20 May 2014
In response to the recent and controversial Western Australian shark cull, more environmentally friendly shark protection methods have been suggested. Sydney Lang reports.  [PDF]

Food security and prices an increasing concern in Australia
19 May 2014
The impact of climate change has been widely discussed but one lesser known issue is its potential effect on primary food production in Australia. Joy Madubuonwu reports.   [PDF]

Cane toads reach Sydney
18 May 2014
They have spread havoc throughout ecosytems in much of Australia and now cane toads have invaded Sydney. Jocelyn Bruno reports.  [PDF]

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FALL 2013

Under the sea: how shipping water is ruining the ocean
10 March 2014
Climate change and dredging in the Great Barrier Reef are among the environmental issues closest to the hearts of many Australians. But there is another problem that could do a huge amount of damage to our marine ecosystems. Jimmy Harney investigates. [PDF]

Fighting for the koala’s life
30 December 2013
In mid-2013, Australians learnt about the plight of koalas struggling to survive in timber plantations. Since then, much has happened to support the vulnerable and much-loved animal. Madalyn Danielson reports.   [PDF]

The food that’s left behind
30 December 2013
Dumpster diving for unwanted food is a growing movement in Australia and across the world. Meera Aiyagari investigates.  [PDF]

The Cost of Water Security
16 December 2013
In drought-prone Australia, important efforts to attain secure water supplies are both ongoing and controversial. Gabrielle Ewing investigates the efforts of some companies to recycle water previously used in mining coal seam gas in local Australian water supplies.  [PDF]

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SPRING 2013

The inevitable food wasteland
3 June 2013
The world’s population is increasing and with it grows the pressure on food production. Will there be enough to go around? Jessica Stolzman investigates.  [PDF]

A growing love of local food
3 June 2013
A small food cooperative in Sydney, Australia, is leading the way in affordable, sustainable and local food. Madeline Park reports.  [PDF]

Learning to be green
3 June 2013
As communities work to become more environmentally friendly, just how good is environmental education in Australian schools? Jamie McKillop investigates.   [PDF]

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FALL 2012

Inner city food-harvesting: a growing trend
17 December 2012
Urban Sydney is experiencing a back-to-basics food-harvesting renaissance in community gardens across the city, but the planned 2014 City Farm will cement local food production as a Sydney-wide norm, writes Sarah Kamenetz.   [PDF]