Stories from Taylor Haelterman
Community Development
Microtransit Brings Public Transportation to Rural Doorsteps
Public buses and trains don’t usually extend into the outskirts of rural communities, if they stop in them at all. Microtransit helps more rural residents reach their local station, but it comes at a cost.
July 28
Nature
The 50-Year-Old Conservation Law With a 99% Success Rate
The Endangered Species Act was signed over 50 years ago, and almost all of the thousands of plants and animals it has protected still exist today. Though the legislation is widely considered a remarkable victory for conservation, it's become controversial on Capitol Hill.
June 29
Community Development
The Solutions Effect
The Solutions Stories Our Readers Loved in 2025
In 2025, we shared stories about solutions across the globe: repurposing mines in Australia, brewing beer with bread in the United Kingdom, the rise of employee housing in the Outer Banks and many more. Today, we’re revisiting some of the standouts from our solutions journalism series to kick off the new year.
January 7
Sustainable Living
The Solutions Effect
TriplePundit’s Guide to Holiday Giving
In the name of creating a space to learn from and support one another, we asked our writers and colleagues about the causes they're supporting this holiday season.
December 2, 2025
Nature
The Long View: 20 Years of Sustainability in Motion
From 2005 to the Decade of Ecosystem Restoration: Will We Reconnect with Nature?
Even as the average person becomes more disconnected from nature, conservation efforts that kicked off in the 2000s are successfully bringing ecosystems back from collapse.
November 6, 2025
Nature
The Solutions Effect
A Sign of Progress: High Seas Treaty Opens the Door for Global Ocean Conservation
The United Nations High Seas Treaty became law in September, lighting the way for biodiversity conservation projects in international waters. Meanwhile, ocean conservationists are bringing new solutions forward.
October 2, 2025
Justice + Equality
The Solutions Effect
What We Learned (Or Didn’t) From Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina sounded the alarm that disaster preparedness was vastly inadequate in the U.S. Two decades later, Americans are considering the changes made since and whether they're working.
September 4, 2025
Sustainable Living
The Solutions Effect
Does Climate Fiction Actually Help Us?
The climate fiction genre is gaining momentum across books, films and even video games. As it grabs more of the public’s attention, is it having the desired effect?
August 5, 2025
Community Development
The Solutions Effect
More Cities Are Becoming Bike-Friendly: Is That a Good Thing?
Cities are positioning bike-filled streets as a way to meet their sustainability goals, improve public health and reduce traffic congestion. Many are cruising toward a tipping point on bike infrastructure.
July 1, 2025
Voices for Change
The Solutions Effect
Do Sustainability Conversations Have to Be Divisive?
There's been a notable shift in social impact and sustainability communications in the United States, but that doesn't mean the conversation has ceased. Here's how people are opening up new dialogues about the issues we face right now.
May 30, 2025
Food + Farming
The Solutions Effect
How the Nation is Stepping Up to Support U.S. Farmers
As the growing season kicks off, farmers are losing access to funding and data they rely on to run their farms. Amid the chaos, leaders are rising to the occasion to support farmers trying to navigate the situation — and solutions journalists are covering it.
April 29, 2025
Finance
The Solutions Effect
For Outer Banks Businesses, Retaining Workers Means Investing in Housing
North Carolina's Outer Banks is struggling to sustain the tourism boom it built off of its long-standing vacation rental home industry amid an affordable housing crisis and other unintended impacts. As the region looks for long-term solutions, local businesses are buying employee housing.
March 31, 2025
Community Development
The Solutions Effect
Progress Is All Around Us, If You Know Where to Look
For many Americans, the news is feeding fatigue and frustration. But beyond the trending headlines are stories of individuals, communities, cities and states making progress on sustainability and social issues. If you're searching for stories like that, read on.
February 28, 2025
Community Development
The Solutions Effect
Net-Zero Cities: Local Approaches to a Global Problem
Cities around the world are heading toward net zero. Many plan to reach the milestone between 2030 and 2050. That might seem far away, but the projects that will make it possible are happening now.
January 31, 2025
Voices for Change
The Solutions Effect
Solutions That Sparked Your Interest: Our Most-Read Solutions Series Stories of 2024
In our first full year as a solutions journalism publication, we covered apps that reduce food waste, social and environmental protections in the mining industry, organizations empowering immigrant communities for climate justice, and so much more. Let’s wrap up the year with some of the stories you loved the most.
December 20, 2024
Nature
This Outer Banks Resort Centered the Environment From the Start, and It Paid Off
When Dick Brindley built the Corolla Light Resort in 1985, he was careful to preserve the unique environment that makes the place special. That forward-thinking allowed the property to weather environmental impacts better than those around it and continue prioritizing sustainability for decades.
December 12, 2024
Community Development
Slowly but Surely, the Outer Banks is Changing the Way It Looks at Tourism
For decades, North Carolina's Outer Banks aimed to attract as many tourists as possible to its picturesque shores. As the chain of islands experiences an incredible influx of visitors, and the environmental and social impacts that come with it, locals are looking to a new approach to tourism.
December 5, 2024
Community Development
The Solutions Effect
The Denver Nonprofit Tackling Food Waste and Hunger at Once
We Don’t Waste has rescued 220 million servings of food from going to waste, redistributing it to over 100 local hunger relief organizations, and it doesn't plan on slowing down.
November 26, 2024
Voices for Change
The Solutions Effect
What News Audiences Really Want
Audiences say the news industry does a good job of updating and educating them, but they want more stories with diverse perspectives, stories they haven’t heard of before and stories that give them hope. The user needs model helps news organizations find and fill these gaps.
October 31, 2024
Justice + Equality
The Solutions Effect
How Businesses Can Support Reproductive Rights
Reproductive rights are under the spotlight in U.S. politics. Business leaders have a role to play in supporting these rights, and it includes speaking up, the Leadership Now Project's Michelle Greene told us.
September 30, 2024
Community Development
The Solutions Effect
Wind Maps and Rice Terraces: How Cities Adapt to Climate Change
Climate change is reducing urban livability, pushing cities around the world to become incubators for innovative solutions. Each one takes a different approach to adaptation.
August 29, 2024
Voices for Change
The Solutions Effect
Let’s Talk About Failure
Stories about failure might be just what news-fatigued audiences need right now — if they're written with useful insights in mind.
July 30, 2024
Sustainable Living
Where to Shop Sustainably Online
When done right, online shopping can be better for the environment than driving to the store. These sustainable sites can help you get started.
July 1, 2024
Energy
The Solutions Effect
Solutions Journalists Take On the Energy Transition
Solutions journalists are making the energy transition less daunting by focusing their stories on the governments, communities and companies working to make the shift possible.
June 28, 2024
Sustainable Living
What Makes a 'Sustainable' Restaurant? Labels to Look For
Third-party certifications verify restaurants' sustainability claims, but seeing a blue fish, a frog, or an acronym in a circle on the menu isn't self-explanatory. Here's what your favorite restaurant's sustainability badge really means.
June 4, 2024
Food + Farming
The Solutions Effect
The Apps Fighting Food Waste
Entrepreneurs are designing mobile apps to reduce the more than a billion tons of food wasted by households, retailers and food service businesses each year. These forward-thinking founders want food waste reduction to be as easy as ordering takeout or curbside grocery pickup.
May 31, 2024
Voices for Change
The Solutions Effect
Is Joy Newsworthy?
Adding joy to the criteria journalists use to decide which stories to cover could improve our relationship with the news and our view of the world.
April 29, 2024
Voices for Change
The Solutions Effect
Solutions Storytelling Isn’t Only For Journalists
Journalism, cookbooks and video games are just some of the ways people are using solutions storytelling to tackle tough problems.
March 28, 2024
Sustainable Living
Sustainable, Money-Saving Swaps You May Not Know Your College Offers
The list of on-campus resources that professors share on the first day of classes can be easily forgotten, but the student benefits your college offers can help you save money and live more sustainably.
March 26, 2024
Sustainable Living
What Does It Take To Switch To a Sustainable Bank?
The hard-earned savings you’re holding in your bank account may be an indirect source of a ton of greenhouse gas emissions. So, we looked into what it takes to switch to a sustainable bank.
March 22, 2024
Voices for Change
The Solutions Effect
These Journalists Are Making It Easier to Read About Difficult Things
As news avoidance hovers around an all-time high, some journalists are covering the most pressing societal issues in a way that encourages agency and hope.
February 29, 2024
Sustainable Living
How Sustainable Lifestyle Choices Saved Me Money as a College Student
Sustainable living can feel out of reach as a college student on a strict budget, but making sustainable lifestyle changes doesn’t require buying new things or following trends — and it can save you money. These simple things made a big impact in my student years.
February 19, 2024
Technology
The Solutions Effect
Is 2024 the Year of the Train?
It looks like 2024 will be full of new developments in the rail industry. From high-speed passenger trains to battery-powered locomotives, these are the three trending train topics we have our eye on this year.
January 25, 2024
Nature
The Solutions Effect
Live Christmas Trees Bring More Benefits Than Just Holiday Merriment
Have you driven past a Christmas tree sale and wondered if chopping down, and inevitably disposing of, that many trees has a negative environmental impact? As it turns out, live Christmas trees can help local communities thrive environmentally and economically.
December 21, 2023
Nature
This Company Turns Retired Buoys Into Outdoor Clothing
Blue Ocean Nylon, made primarily from recycled fishing buoys gathered off the coast of Taiwan, is the star material in Livsn’s Ecotrek line of trail shorts and pants.
December 12, 2023
Community Development
The Solutions Effect
What Should We Do With All of This Empty Office Space?
All year we’ve seen companies take their stance on returning to in-person work. But what if returning to the office doesn't mean working there?
November 20, 2023
Sustainable Living
Can More Travel Solve the Travel Industry's Biggest Problems?
Some of the world’s most popular travel destinations are caught in a delicate balance between the negative impacts of increased tourism and an economy that depends on it. With a little effort, our vacations can help tip the scale towards sustaining healthy ecosystems and improving the lives of those who live there.
October 17, 2023
Community Development
Way More Than WiFi: This Program Upskills Students in Robotics and AI
The software giant Salesforce is stepping up with over $20 million in grants to help provide students with the tools and knowledge they need to succeed.
September 21, 2023
Voices for Change
Investment in People and Ideas is Key to Climate Change Adaptation for Tourism-Dependent Countries
Jamaica is calling for investment in local youth and innovation to build capacity for climate change adaptation in tourism-dependent countries. “Ideas, ideas, ideas,” he said said at the 2023 Global Inclusive Growth Summit last week. "That’s a power— to create innovation, to be creative and to add value."
April 21, 2023