Issue 51 / Spring 2014
51 / Sustainability
Reflecting on our changing world
Creative Nonfiction #51, our “Human Face of Sustainability” issue, features true stories about moms, scientists, farmers, and others who are trying to change the world. Plus, guest editor Donna Seaman talks with environmental writer Elizabeth Kolbert about climate change, her adventures with scientists, and why her books don’t have happy endings.
And, of course, there’s a fantastic new “Pushing the Boundaries” piece and a slew of sustainability-related micro-essays. All intricately illustrated by Marcy Miranda Janes.
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What’s the Story #51
"It is my fervent hope that this issue of CNF will help bring at least some small measure of clarity and urgency to our global 'failure to communicate' about the challenges facing us"Turning Out the Lights Just Isn’t Going to Do It
In this 2014 interview, environmental journalist Elizabeth Kolbert reflects on the challenges of writing about climate change, the biggest story of our time.Facing Facts
Why individual stories offer our best collective chance for overcoming global challenges threatening our well-being and survivalActs of Courage
Our schoolyards, food, and drinking water may be giving kids cancer. One mom suggests ways to fight backTrapped
Why does the author’s bicycle-built-for-four make everyone so angry?Depredation
Fracking is a big business, but there are some things money can’t buy. A farmer’s son calculates the rate of inflation for ecological sorrowIyabo Is Yoruba for “The Mother Has Returned”
A resourceful group of farmers outside of Chicago is trying to transform one of the poorest parts of the country into a new Garden of EdenNo Thirst
Annual rains can replenish vital supplies of groundwater in the Sudanese desert—but for how long?Seep
The Cosco Busan oil spill washed ashore at a marine rescue center, of all places. But nothing could prepare the first responders for the devastationRegeneration
The big brown bat could be the key to a great green futureWhat Happened in Humbug Valley
A mountain tribe struggles to regain stewardship of its ancestral lands in the Northern SierrasFood and Worker Safety across the Globe: A Nervous and Incomplete Case Study
A nervous and incomplete case studyAll Images Are Limited to Light & Dark
"I have seen people discount the medium as 'lacy,' or doily-like, not noticing that the lace is comprised of AK-47s and drones. Kind of like swearing in a lovely tone of voice"