Indiana has over six million residents but only a few full-time environmental reporters. What if we doubled that number? Wouldn’t that transform what we’re aware of and act on?
We started with an experiment at Purdue University. Over the past twenty years, their enrollment grew by about 20%. During that same time, however, their independent student newspaper withered on the vine. Its revenue per student descreased by 60%.
What if we paid students to be climate solutions reporters? What if we got the entire Purdue innovation ecosystem more and more focused on decarbonizing the global economy? From scientists discovering solutions to entrepreneurs and engineers implementing them.
Pilot – Fall 2021
So we started with one student, Lucas Bleyle:
Phase 2 – Spring 2022
Then expanded to fund several more climate solutions reporters:
Articles Published So Far
Aug 22, 2021 – How community members change their carbon footprint
Oct 18, 2021 – Presidential speaker sparks backlash among students and faculty
Oct 19, 2021 – Steve Koonin speaks with Daniels in Presidential Lecture Series
Oct 29, 2021 – Students march for Purdue carbon neutrality
Feb 22, 2022 – IU program aims to help cities address local climate impacts
Apr 8, 2022 – Students will release climate action plan for Purdue
Apr 12, 2022 – Purdue’s energy infrastructure contributes to climate change
Apr 14, 2022 – Building better buildings
Apr 19, 2022 – Professors voice concern, confusion over new Duke Energy natural gas plant
Apr 19, 2022 – Personal vehicles create majority of transportation-related emissions
Apr 24, 2022 – Earth Week keynote speaker discusses human dimensions of landscape architecture
More Interviews
The first journalist. Lucas Bleyle, student journalist at the Purdue Exponent.
The newspaper Editor. Joe Duhownik, Editor-in-Chief at the Purdue Exponent.
The Sponsor. David Harting, software engineer and carbon neutral household.