Whitney Bauck

@whitneybauck

Award-winning journalist reporting @ the Guardian and more Currently working on a book about fungi and the people fighting to save them Environmental Research Fellow @ Green-Wood

1.130 Folgt7.144 Follower437 Posts

Bluesky

Ist das dein Profil?Übernimm es — dann gehört dir whitneybauck.dirty.social.Profil übernehmen

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· 6d

Some big news: I'm writing my first book! It's about the race to save the planet's fungi, the ways these oft-overlooked organisms underwrite so much of life on earth, and the emerging movement to protect them before it's too late. I have my work cut out for me, but I couldn't be more excited.

A Publisher's Marketplace Deal Report screenshot that reads:
"Environmental journalist Whitney Bauck's EARTHSTARS, about the race to save the world's fungi, revealing how this often-overlooked biological kingdom underpins so much of life on earth, what is at risk as these organisms decline, and the growing movement to protect them beofre it's too late, to Anna Bliss at Chelsea Green, for publication in spring 2028, by Sarah Fuentes at UTA (world English).

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Jun 17

“As one of my friends would say, it’s too late for pessimism.” —Kim Stanley Robinson Such a pleasure to hear from this science fiction giant last night in Brooklyn, whose works like The Ministry for the Future give a realistic but still hopeful vision of the kind of world we could build

A photo of Kim Stanley Robinson and Janna Levin onstage in front of a crowd.

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Jun 8

Absolutely wild to see that the NYT is creating ads with ExxonMobil that are promoted via...playable versions of Wordle in the ad?!

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· May 6

Happy pub day @kkwilkinson.bsky.social 🩵

A picture of the cover of the book Climate Wayfinding by Dr Katharine K Wilkinson

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Mar 25

I love my public library and I love getting to hear from the authors who have shaped me there (cc @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social and @anandwrites.bsky.social)

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Feb 15

Saw “My Father’s Shadow” with a talkback featuring director Akinola Davies Jr. afterward and was pretty floored. What a stunner of a film—hard to believe this is his first (!) as a director.

A photo of the inside of a theater. On the screen is the movie poster for “My Father’s Shadow.” Sitting in front of it are two men, one of whom is director Akinola Davies Jr.

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Jan 16

I called KSR. He directed me to Cory Doctorow (of "enshittification" fame), who suggested: maybe it's more about gov support for the kind of infrastructure that supports a new kind of social media. A bit like the infrastructure that makes literacy possible: 3/

Take reading, which many think of as a public good. “There’s a lot of infrastructure of reading that is shouldered by governments at various levels, starting with going to kindergarten and learning your ABCs,” he said, also citing public libraries and literacy programs. “All of that stuff that is provided by the state and by various public entities makes reading into a public good that you can more or less take for granted.”

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Jan 14

So many things are Bad right now but tonight a friend and I went to a bar to listen to some scientists talk about bats and the room was full of people who still love and believe and support the work of scientists and that was pretty Good

People sit in front of a projected slide that has a picture of a bat eating fruit with a label pointing to the fruit that says “low in protein, fats, vitamins”

A picture of a pen, ticket, and a yet-to-be-filled-out bat trivia sheet

People sitting in front of a slide that says “Why hats make good New Yorkers”

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Dec 15

After 2 years of commissioning and editing stories on climate and culture, my time as print editor at @atmosmag.bsky.social has come to a close. It was such a joy to collaborate so many writers I admire. 1/

A photo of four print issues of Atmos, which are thick magazines with matte paper covered in images of flowers, animals and people.

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Dec 9

AND guess what? In this case, the conservative billionaire $ didn't win the race, because residents of this small suburb showed up and voted. As a result, those voters had a huge impact not just on clean power in their town, but on emissions in the country more broadly.

A screenshot of a quote that reads, “There has been so much focus on national politics in the last decade that people are missing really monumental decisions that are happening at the local level. The nine members of the Naperville city council have a major impact on one of the 10 largest greenhouse gas generators in the country,” said Holzhauer. “We’ve had two elections the last four years, and both of those elections were decided by under 60 votes.”

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Oct 31

Can’t imagine anything spookier than throwing away your vote in the NY mayoral race. New Yorkers, let’s get to the polls!

A photo of a sticker that says “Halloween Voter 2025” with a picture of a pigeon wearing a witches hat on it.

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Sep 18

Such an honor to have my story on the Palestinian Heirloom Seed Library for @theguardian.com win a 2025 @coveringclimatenow.org award. Such heartbreak that the horrors that prompted me to write the story are still ongoing. I'm proud of many of my stories, but this one in particular means a lot.

‘They Kept Us Alive for Thousands of Years’: Could Saving Palestinian Seeds Also Save the World?
THE GUARDIAN | WRITING
Whitney Bauck, with Bridget Badore

Read the winning story here.

This short feature profiles Vivien Sansour, founder of the West Bank-based Palestine Heirloom Seed Library. As journalist Whitney Bauck reports, Sansour’s mission is twofold: to honor Palestinian heritage and culture in the face of violence that threatens both, and to contribute to food security worldwide, with Palestinian seed varieties that are well-adapted to extreme weather. Bauck expertly weaves a host of complex topics, including war and conflict, food systems, biodiversity, and justice issues faced by the people living on the front lines of both the climate crisis and a literal war zone. While frank about the horrors of Gaza, Bauck’s nuanced and warm characterization of Sansour also suggests that repair is possible, making this story, in a way, “a breath of fresh air” and “beautiful,” judges said.

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Sep 8

Would you like to see something other than depressing news? Ok great cuz I found some good mushrooms this weekend

A picture with honey mushrooms in the foreground and a woman kneeling in the background

A pinkish orange coral mushroom sticking out of the leaves

The underside of a deep red gilled mushroom

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Jun 14

As a one time religion reporter I’m also always struck by signs like this one

A handwritten sign that reads, “Who Would Jesus Deport?”

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Jun 14

Spotted in NYC today #NoKings

A handwritten sign that reads “Break up with your Republican boyfriend”

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Jun 5

What a joy it is when the spring mushrooms start showing up in NYC #fungifriends

Photo of a clump of small mushrooms with whitish stripes and brownish gills

Photo of the underside of a mushroom with white gills against a blue sky

Photo of a young mushroom that hasn’t yet opened its umbrella peeking out through wood chips

Photo of a bunch of brown and yellowish mushrooms

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· May 15

Spotted at Harvard this week

A photo of a handmade sign in a window that reads, “invest in science, invest in the future”

A handmade sign in a window that reads “science” inside a hand drawn heart

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· May 1

i'm listening

An email subject line that reads, "Learn How You Can Torment the Ghost of Robert Moses"

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Apr 23

This is maybe my favorite-ever cover of any issue of @atmosmag.bsky.social (!). And we got so many good writers crammed into this issue, too—can't wait to get my hands on a print copy and to share the stories with you all soon. In the meantime, pls admire ✨Pearl✨, our praying mantis cover star

An image of the cover of the print issue of Atmos Volume 11 that features a close-up image of a praying mantis in a range of colors. At the bottom is a quote from Janine Benyus that reads, "This planet 4.5 billion years ago was not hospitable to life. And life actually sweetened this place. It learned how to live here in a way that makes it better. And that seems to me to be our design brief. Life creates conditions conducive to life."

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Mar 9

Heading out for a few weeks of travel, this is the reading list (feat @jeffvandermeer.bsky.social and a bunch of other authors not on bsky) 📚

A stack of books that includes the titles Absolution by Jeff Vandermeer, Edsa Uno by Angela Stuart-Santiago, an Introduction to the History of Mycology by Ainsworth, and Molds, Mushrooms, and Medicines by Nicholas P Money

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Mar 7

One of the thing that's really stuck with me was @globalecoguy.bsky.social saying that food is what will "make or break" the climate. We're making progress on so many other things (incl fossil fuels!), but food emissions just keep trending up—and that needs to change

A screenshot that reads, “This is the wild card that will make or break climate change – food. It’s gonna be a long fight against fossil fuels, but renewable energy is better and cheaper and faster; it’s going to win at some point,” he said. “But I don’t know if a climate-friendly food system is going to win or not.”

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Feb 19

Watching Kathy Hochul’s ~journey~ in relating to congestion pricing continues to be a truly a wild ride

Screenshot of a tweet from @nygov with the caption “beep beep babes we’re taking u to court” with a heart hands emoji. The tweet is quote tweeting a post from Kathy Hochul that reads “we are a nation of laws, not ruled by a king.” Underneath that there is a “Statement from a governor Kathy Hochul
on congestion pricing” that reads:
Public transit is the lifeblood of New York City and critical to our economic future - as a New Yorker, like President Trump, knows very well.
Since this first-in-the-nation program took effect last month, congestion has dropped dramatically and commuters are getting to work faster than ever.
Broadway shows are selling out and foot traffic to local businesses is spiking.
School buses are getting kids to class on time, and yellow cab trips increased by 10 percent. Transit ridership is up, drivers are having a better experience, and support for this program is growing every day.
We are a nation of laws, not ruled by a king. The MTA has initiated legal proceedings in the Southern District of New York to preserve this critical program. We'll see you in court.

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Jan 24

The corpse flower at Brooklyn Botanic Garden finally bloomed! Can confirm he stanky. This botanical wonder was just what I needed today

A photo of a newly blooming corpse flower growing inside a greenhouse. The flower has a long yellow pointy center and a large petal-like leaf that’s deep red wrapping around the outside

A close up of the reddish leaf-like petal of a corpse flower

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Jan 16

When the world is grim, visit your local Botanic Garden—you just may discover that a bucket list plant you’ve long dreamed of but never seen IRL, like, say, a corpse flower, is about to bloom in the dark of winter

A photo of a corpse flower in a plant conservatory room, with a tall yellow spike emerging from its top.

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Dec 29

When I think of Jimmy Carter, who died today, I will always think of him as the president who installed solar panels on the roof of the White House in 1979 — in that way at least, he was a man far ahead of his time

A photo of Jimmy Carter standing in front of solar panels

A photo of Jimmy Carter and 3 other men standing on the roof in front of solar panels

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Dec 17

Twenty-One Elegies by Danez Smith for @atmosmagazine.bsky.social Vol 9 🕊️

A photo of a poem on a printed page. The poem reads as follows:

Twenty-One Elegies

who owns the grief of these wings? how does the sky mourn?

in revenge, the crows peck holes in our rising prayers.

in protest, the rain refuses. no, we killed the rain.

& the catfish. & the mussels. & the flying fox. the white

of our palms a curse we pass by making, wanting. awful

kings, everything we touch we bless out of existence.

what will be alive at the end of us? the ōʻō gone

even the name shocked at its passing. Hawaii, like anything,

dies a little bit every day she’s American.

all that ash in Maui. the birds died of grief.

the birds, the people, the land, the birds

the people, the land, the birds, the grief,

the grief, the grief, the grief winged & everywhere.

Do you love the world? Why are you not crying?

you are nowhere. your heart is a nothing place.

there is no sky in you. you don’t have birds.

we don’t have birds. we used to be animals.

now the world is lost in us. forgive us, mother.

we have killed you so casually. & to our sisters

the birds, we have no right to favors, but fly by his ear

tell god it’s time again for the rain.

Whitney Bauck@whitneybauck· Nov 21

Maybe a long shot but: any other fungal nerds on here? And if so, anyone got recs for publications/books/newsletters on Chinese mushroom culture written in English? (photo is from an ancient Saveur article, photog not named, but I do love this portrait!)