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Staff Writer

Climate choices reporter
Salt is spread on a street in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)
To clear ice and snow, there are rock salt alternatives that are safer for your pets and yard
Winter has its fans, but even those who enjoy playing in the snow probably dislike the chore of clearing up after a big storm that dumps several inches or even feet of snow and ice.
 
Vehicles are driven through whiteout conditions along Lake Michigan Drive during a winter storm warning in Ottawa County, Mich. on Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (Joel Bissell/Kalamazoo Gazette via AP)
How big winter storms create snow, sleet and freezing rain
When big winter storms move in, they can bring nasty weather that shows up as different things in different places — maybe it’s snow, or sleet, or freezing rain.
 
Snow covers homes during a winter storm in Cincinnati, Jan. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel, File)
Blasting heat at home and still freezing? There are easy fixes to save money and stay warm
It’s that time of year again, when lots of U.S. residents are blasting the heat in their homes and still freezing cold.
 
Workers work to restore power after severe storms, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Wrightwood, Calif. (AP Photo/William Liang)
A power outage can turn dangerous fast. Here’s how to prepare
Power outages can come from winter storms, heat waves, wildfires or a delivery driver backing into the power line by your house.
 
Shoppers wait in line to enter Macy's flagship store on Nov. 28, 2025 in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis, File)
Why your holiday gift returns might go to a landfill and what you can do about it
The month after Christmas has been dubbed “Returnuary” for good reason. The National Retail Federation estimates 17% of holiday purchases will be sent back this year.
 
Neil Frank, former hurricane center chief who improved public outreach on storms, has died
Neil Frank, a former head of the National Hurricane Center credited with working to increase the country’s readiness for major storms, has died. He was 94.
 
A young visitor describes to Santa Claus what he hopes to get for Christmas at Altamonte Mall on Dec. 21, 2022, in Altamonte Springs, Fla. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel via AP, File)
The holiday shopping season comes with tons of extra emissions. Here’s how to do it sustainably
The holiday season comes with a lot of pollution from materials, manufacturing, processing, packaging, shipping and wrapping.
 
A shopper picks through corn while browsing the vendor booths set up at the Owensboro Regional Farmers' Market in Owensboro, Ky., Aug. 31, 2024. (Greg Eans/The Messenger-Inquirer via AP, File)
The most climate-friendly groceries might not be in the supermarket
The grocery store is the default resource in the U.S. for fresh food. Meanwhile, there are subscription services that advertise themselves as providing cheaper food that wouldn’t otherwise be sold in the grocery store.
 
Cans of cranberry sauce line a turkey display case at Bongi's Turkey Roost in advance of the Thanksgiving holiday, Nov. 22, 2022, in Duxbury, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
Your Thanksgiving leftovers are harming the planet. There are ways to shop and cook smarter
Americans wasted an estimated 320 million pounds of food last year from Thanksgiving alone. The food waste nonprofit, ReFED, says that’s enough to feed every food insecure person in the U.S. five meals.
 
Climate choices
As climate change threatens our planet, AP climate choices reporter Caleigh Wells is explaining what readers can do. Here’s what she said:
 
Activists participate in a demonstration for climate finance outside the COP30 U.N. Climate Summit venue, Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025, in Belem, Brazil. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)
COP30 makes individual climate actions seem small. That’s why experts say to work in groups
Climate choices aren’t just individual actions. Sometimes actions in groups, like voting, petitions and protests, can have a far larger impact than one person can have alone.
 
Attendees sit under a globe in a lobby at the side events pavilions at the COP30 U.N. Climate Summit, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025, in Belem, Brazil. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
Climate change is in the news during COP30. We’ve got tips to tackle your climate anxiety
Global leaders have descended upon Brazil for COP30, and with the conference often comes a lot of negative news that evokes climate anxiety and dread.
 
Strong west winds from the approaching winter storm push Pamlico Sound water towards Hatteras Island near Rodanthe, N.C., March 6, 2013. (Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via AP, File)
Strong winds can bring gale warnings to communities near water. Here’s what that means
The strong storms and declining temperatures that come with winter can cause significant winds. When they get strong enough, the National Weather Service issues gale warnings for communities near water.
 
A cat named Poke sits on a couch at a home on Dec. 5, 2023, in Waipahu, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)
Pets contribute to greenhouse gases like us. Here’s how to reduce their carbon pawprint
Data shows that pet owners are increasingly buying food that resembles their own diets as part of the trend toward treating pets as family.
 
A man holds up a child while walking in a park at sunset, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025, in Shawnee, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Anxiety over global warming is leading some young Americans to say they don’t want children
Younger generations of Americans are increasingly citing climate change as making them reticent to have children.
 
Shredded organic materials are piled up at a GreenWaste Renewable Energy Digestion Facility in San Jose, Calif., Oct. 27, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
The food you toss costs you plenty and emits tons of pollution. We’ve got tips on how to cut down
Wasted food is a financial and environmental bummer. It costs the average person $728 per year, and it amounts to about the same planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions every year as 42 coal-fired power plants.
 
A traveler looks out at an airplane at Salt Lake City International Airport, in Salt Lake City, July 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)
Travelers bothered by their flight’s pollution can pay to reduce it elsewhere. Do offsets work?
Air travel results in a lot of planet-warming emissions, but it’s also sometimes necessary. That’s a quandary for people who may be concerned about their personal contribution to the problem of climate change.
 
Theodore Tanczuk, left, and Brayan Santos, right, of solar installer YellowLite, put panels on the roof of a home in Lakewood, Ohio, April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File)
Did you dawdle on installing solar panels or buying an EV? Better move fast to get those tax credits
Tax incentives that have saved U.S. residents thousands of dollars on home efficiency upgrades, clean energy installations and electric vehicles are expiring this year.
 
Eryn Murphy carries native plants Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025, in Littleton, Colo. (AP Photo/Brittany Peterson)
Move over, green lawns. Drier, warmer climate boosts interest in low-water landscaping
America loves its green lawns. Roughly one-third of water used in U.S. homes is used outdoors, with much of that going to irrigate landscaping dominated by grass.
 
A woman looks at her phone while watching the sun set in Kansas City, Mo., on Aug. 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
Climate tracking apps measure your carbon footprint. Here’s how they work
This idea of a carbon footprint comes up a lot in news coverage about personal climate impact. The concept is simple.
 
A data center owned by Amazon Web Services, front right, is under construction next to the Susquehanna nuclear power plant in Berwick, Pa., on Jan. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, file)
As AI becomes part of everyday life, it brings a hidden climate cost
As AI becomes a part of everyday life, its massive energy and water needs are coming more into focus.
 
A person types on a keyboard on June 6, 2024, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)
How to make climate-friendly and sustainable choices when shopping online
There’s clearly an appetite for shopping sustainably online. But it can be overwhelming to figure out how to find the certifications and companies that are actually making a difference.
 
A condenser sits on the roof during the installation of a heat pump on Jan. 20, 2023, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
Thinking about a heat pump? Some things to know about choosing what’s best for you
Switching to a heat pump is often touted as a climate-friendly choice that can help your wallet, too.
 
A woman walks her dog along the beach as the sun rises in Port Aransas, Aug. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
People often miscalculate climate choices, a study says. One surprise is owning a dog
It turns out many Americans misjudge which personal behaviors contribute most to climate change.
 
A pharmacist prepares an underwear for periods next to other items at a pharmacy in Barcelona, Spain, March 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, File)
Why more women are switching to reusable menstrual products
Reusable menstrual products, including cups, discs and period underwear, have gained traction as a cost-effective, long-lasting, environmental alternative to single-use products.
 
Homes sit in Cranberry Township, Pa., on March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)
A climate-friendly home starts with an energy assessment. Here’s how my 100-year-old house did
Our shelter accounts for one of our biggest personal climate impacts. How we heat and cool our homes, wash and dry our clothes, get our electricity and heat our water each has its own carbon footprint.
 
People sun tan in grass off the Lakefront Trail on the North Side as a haze of Canadian wildfire smoke blankets the Chicago area and creates poor air quality, Thursday, July 31, 2025. (Ashlee Rezin/Chicago Sun-Times via AP)
How to protect yourself from the bad air caused by wildfires
When wildfires burn, the smoke can travel long distances and degrade air quality far away, which presents risks for those breathing it.
 
Food scraps sit inside a residential compost bin Tuesday, July 29, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)
Composting helps the planet. This is how to do it, no matter where you live
Most of what goes into U.S. landfills is organic waste. It’s a problem because in that environment, organic waste produces methane, a potent greenhouse gas.
 
Carole Smith walks through her flooded home on April 5, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry, File)
Here are some things you can do to be better prepared for major flooding
Catastrophic floods often bring with them loss of power, cuts to key emergency communications and sudden hazardous situations that leave victims with only minutes or seconds to seek higher ground and stay safe.
 
Janelle Lowe prepares to charge her electric vehicle at a station May 22, 2025, in Long Beach, Calif. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
What to know about buying electric vehicles after the federal tax incentives end
The massive tax and spending cut bill that Congress passed Thursday ends federal tax incentives for electric vehicles.
 
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