Lauren Sommer
Lauren Sommer covers climate change for NPR's Science Desk, from the scientists on the front lines of documenting the warming climate to the way those changes are reshaping communities and ecosystems around the world.
Prior to joining NPR, Sommer spent more than a decade covering climate and environment for KQED Public Radio in San Francisco. During her time there, she delved into the impacts of California's historic drought during dry years and reported on destructive floods during wet years, and covered how communities responded to record-breaking wildfires.
Sommer has also examined California's ambitious effort to cut carbon emissions across its economy and investigated the legacy of its oil industry. On the lighter side, she ran from charging elephant seals and searched for frogs in Sierra Nevada lakes.
She was also host of KQED's macrophotography nature series Deep Look, which searched for universal truths in tiny organisms like black-widow spiders and parasites. Sommer has received a national Edward R. Murrow for use of sound, as well as awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Society of Environmental Journalists.
Based at NPR's San Francisco bureau, Sommer grew up in the West, minus a stint on the East Coast to attend Cornell University.
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The International Court of Justice ruled that nations have an obligation to act on climate change under international laws protecting the environment and human rights. -
New York, North Carolina, New Mexico and Texas have all suffered serious flooding this month. Climate change is causing even more rain to fall during the heaviest storms. -
Rural communities are scrambling after the Trump administration canceled billions in disaster grants. Many were counting on the funds for infrastructure fixes meant to withstand future disasters. -
After extreme fires last year that claimed 102 lives, Maui is trying to tackle the invasive grasses that pose a big wildfire risk. That could mean restoring the land to what it once was. -
Towns across the U.S. want to stop building homes that are vulnerable to climate-driven disasters, like wildfires, floods and droughts. It's easier said than done. -
2020 and 2016 are virtually tied for the hottest year on record. That means more powerful hurricanes, more intense wildfires, less ice and longer heat waves. -
Homeowners are rebuilding after wildfires, but many won't be required by governments to use fire-resistant materials. Without such improvements, communities face harm again with the next fire. -
Many homeowners who lost everything in a wildfire had no idea they were at risk. Only two states require disclosing wildfire risk to buyers in the house hunting process. -
Wildfires and floods threaten tens of millions of properties in the U.S. But most Americans get little or no information about climate risks when they move. -
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order Wednesday that amounts to the most aggressive clean-car policy in the U.S. and would end the sale of new gas vehicles in the state in 15 years.
