Scientists have found that many species in the animal kingdom, including several found in the Pacific Northwest, practice social distancing. Some species of insects, fish, monkeys, rodents, birds and bats all have been observed using forms of social distancing when illness or pathogens are present.

California Condors will soon be released into the wild for the first time in 100 years in the Pacific Northwest. For the Yurok people, the birds are sacred creatures.

Thursday night, people across the region were watching an unexplained phenomena shooting across the night sky. It turned out to be a rocket from Space X re-entering the atmosphere. But in the moment, it was all silent awe

Prosecutors and public defenders in Clark County are pushing for more consequences after district court judge Darvin Zimmerman derided a Black man killed by police in October.

The University of Oregon is starting a new institute to look at the intersection of racial and climate justice. Earlier this year, UO received a $4.52 million dollar grant from the Andrew W Mellon Foundation to support a three-year environmental humanities initiative called the “Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice.” 

As of this week, Oregon has administered 1 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. It’s a huge relief to healthcare workers, teachers and older adults. But Gov. Kate Brown’s plan for future vaccinations designates that grocery workers in Oregon aren’t eligible for vaccination until May 1. 

This month’s snow and ice storms in western Oregon knocked out power for more than half a million utility customers and littered streets and sidewalks with branches. Now a lot of trees are needing some TLC to help them recover.

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The zoo is back!

The focus on Black history has intensified this year, as districts also consider broader curriculum changes amid a national reckoning with racism and racial justice since the death of George Floyd last May and the protests that followed.

The Bureau of Land Management oversees 16 million acres of public lands in the PNW. The Biden administration wants to protect 30 percent of U.S. lands by 2030, but they’ll have to contend w/ local control issues, right wing extremists & climate change.