Austyn Gaffney

In 3 yrs, Eastern Kentucky’s AppHarvest dove from celebrated startup into bankruptcy. Now, former workers on the "beautiful pipe dream" they were sold: “This is sustainable, this is new, we’re going to make it. It turned out to just be a f—ing nightmare.” grist.org/agriculture/ap…

@beecycles @azcentral so cool joan!!

I'm riding my mountain bike on the 850-mile Arizona Trail this fall to see and write about #climate impacts along the way. We're publishing weekly dispatches from the trail in The Arizona Republic | @azcentral as I go. The first one just dropped: azcentral.com/story/news/loc…

Scientists know that extreme weather events are becoming more severe, @AustynGaffney reports. But the Trump administration’s actions are holding them back from predicting how bad floods could get: theatlantic.com/science/2025/0…

I wrote about the floods this summer, rain getting rainier, and how the Trump administration's proposed budget cuts to climate change research could impact our ability to predict and prepare for future precipitation @TheAtlantic theatlantic.com/science/2025/0…

we poured thru court docs for an in-depth look at how one traffic stop unfolded into almost a month of detention for two Vermont immigrants vtdigger.org/2025/07/09/fis…

Vermont is violating the federal Clean Water Act. Will a new state legal framework for regulating farm runoff help? vtdigger.org/2025/06/02/ver… by @AustynGaffney

More announcements as water subsides and cleanup begins, but this is far worse in town than it was in 2022. Please pray for Hazard tonight.

A very smart piece from @AustynGaffney and Mira Rojanasakul: utilities have extended the lives of a third of U.S. coal plants slated to retire nytimes.com/interactive/20…

@jasondovemark thanks jason!

Top notch reporting and wonderful storytelling here via @AustynGaffney about the wrenching decisions of whether to leave a beloved place for higher ground …saging-custom-newsletters.nytimes.com/dynamic/rend...

In my home state of Kentucky, former coal strip mines are being re-reclaimed into neighborhoods that can house flood survivors. I visited over new years and wrote about what home means in the age of climate change for @nytimes nytimes.com/2025/01/28/cli…

If you've followed my AppHarvest reporting here's an update via J.D. Vance: nytimes.com/2024/10/22/us/…

In southeast Alaska, 4 deadly landslides have killed 12 people over the last decade. I wrote about why more rain could mean more landslides, and what that means for communities who face a housing crisis and can't get insurance to cover their losses ⬇️ bit.ly/3BRD3dX

Last year @AustynGaffney & Martha Park documented rural Southern communities left to fend for themselves after catastrophic flooding, worsened by the climate crisis, because insurance companies refused to help them rebuild #HurricaneHelene #Appalachia grist.org/accountability…

Millions are underwater. Adaptation is urgent and abundantly possible. We list several here. with @AustynGaffney nytimes.com/2024/09/18/cli…

@lilyjamali amazing & congrats!!

Got some personal news: this week, I join the BBC as North America Technology Correspondent based in SF and Silicon Valley. I couldn’t be more excited to start work with this incredible team! New contact details are in my bio if you’re looking to be in touch

@taylormooresays @IWMF so sorry to hear that taylor! you were so helpful to work with, best of luck!

just re-upping this 👀

this is my favorite climate infrastructure idea

“[S]ometimes a story has deep roots. Sometimes, it roots into you.” — Through intimate portraits of those affected, @AustynGaffney excavates the TVA’s profound impact on both the living and the dead. Read “Brackish Water” from the #OutsideIssue: oxfordamerican.org/magazine/issue…

Ky's Kim Davis refused to issue gay marriage licenses in 2015 after the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage. This wk she appealed to overturn that landmark ruling. Law profs told me her case likely isn't viable, but it's part of a wider strategy that is: bit.ly/4cZ9Njk

@tomphilpott thx for reading it Tom!

@AustynGaffney Just finding this outstanding piece of yours. grist.org/agriculture/ap…

Jonathan Webb update for ky-ians: the CEO & founder of the agtech startup AppHarvest that lasted 3 yrs pre-bankruptcy is now CEO & co-founder of a nuclear fission company promising to put 6 gigawatts of energy into the grid by the mid-2030s canarymedia.com/articles/nucle…