Themes

My work focuses on climate, energy, and cities and how they relate to the natural world.

I'm currently the senior technology reporter covering innovation at Ars Technica and a senior lecturer in MIT's Graduate Program in Science Writing, a highly selective Master's program. Before that, I was a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT, where I took classes in architecture, electrochemistry, social enerprise, and entrepreneurship at MIT and Harvard. Prior to my fellowship, I was senior digital editor at NOVA, where founded the award-winnning digital magazine NOVA Next.

Before becoming a journalist, I earned my PhD in environmental science, policy, and management from the University of California, Berkeley under Maggi Kelly and my BA in English, environmental studies, and biology from St. Olaf College.

I also explore the future of publishing and science journalism at Future Proof, the first product review site to focus on climate change. Previously, I wrote and published Per Square Mile, where I explored density in its myriad forms and experimented with ways to tell long stories using data, infographics, and brief articles.

If you're interested in having me speak, send me a note.

Past Appearances

2021–present
Wharton Business Daily, SiriusXM
Recurring guest

November 17, 2020
Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Science & Lived Experience: Food, Land, and Water — A Storytelling Workshop
Invited moderator

July 2, 2019
World Conference of Science Journalists, Lausanne, Switzerland
How to earn a living in the new media landscape: innovative business models and how they work
Invited moderator

October 10, 2015
ScienceWriters 2015
Data journalism for every scale and skill level
Co-organizer and speaker

October 9, 2015
ComSciCon
Headline and Lede Writing
Invited expert

August 6, 2015
National Association of Black Journalists
Pitch Slam
Invited panelist

April 23, 2015
All Things Considered, WGBH Radio
Scientists Modify Human Embryos... and it’s Ethically Awkward
Radio interview

April 18, 2015
Cambridge Science Festival, Cambridge, MA
Reinventing a Genre: Pushing the Limits of Science Writing
Invited moderator

October 16, 2014
Greater Boston, WGBH TV
Latest Robots Come From All Over The World To Boston
TV interview

September 24, 2014
Greater Boston, WGBH TV
What We Can Learn From Maven’s Voyage Around Mars
TV interview

July 21, 2014
Greater Boston, WGBH TV
Genetic Breakthrough: Discovery Has Potential To Wipe Out Malaria
TV interview

August 16, 2013
Science Friday
Hyperloop: Hype or Future Transportation?
Radio interview

August 16, 2013
PRI's The World
Is Hyperloop the Future of Travel?
Radio interview

February 26, 2013
UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
Environment 150: Environmental Communications in the Anthropocene
Guest lecture

February 20, 2013
Sarah Lawrence College, Yonkers, NY
Paved, Poor, and Crowded: The Future of the World's Cities
Invited talk

September 20, 2012
Marketplace
A new way to measure income inequality
Radio interview

June 14, 2012
The Takeaway
Income Inequality, As Seen from the Tree Tops
Radio interview

July 12, 2012
Boston Public Radio
Greening the City
Radio interview