Yessenia Funes, Author at Gizmodo

House Democrats Introduce Bill to Restore Utah Monument Trump Demolished

When President Donald Trump shrunk the Bears Ears National Monument in December 2017, Rep. Deb Haaland (D-New Mexico) didn’t yet have a seat in Congress. But the issue was personal to her then—and it remains personal today. “It’s my ancestral homeland,” Haaland told Earther of the national monument located in southeastern Utah. “It’s a spiritual…

Environmental Justice Yessenia Funes

January Was Officially Australia’s Hottest Month Ever

Australia had an intense January, complete with heat waves, wildfires, jelly invasions, and seriously sweaty nights. So it comes as no surprise to learn that January 2019 was officially the country’s hottest month ever recorded. The Bureau of Meteorology announced this new record Friday. Across Australia, the mean January temperature across Australia averaged above 30…

Earth Science Yessenia Funes

The Polar Vortex Just Set a Flurry of Low-Temperature Records

The polar vortex has shown no mercy this week. Heaters are on full blast. Ski masks have surfaced from that drawer of random gear. Fingers and noses are in pain. It sucks here in New York City, but that’s nothing compared to the Midwest, where temperatures have been shattering records across the board. Pittsburgh slumped…

Earth Science Yessenia Funes

These Elephant Seals Are the Only Winners of the Government Shutdown

A northern California beach has been invaded by strange creatures. They awkwardly waddle with their long, slinky noses hung high. About 60 of them have been lounging on the sandy shores of the Point Reyes National Seashore near San Francisco with their mini-mes. These aren’t any ordinary beasts—they’re elephant seals. These marine mammals, whose males…

Conservation Yessenia Funes

As Soon as 2025, Climate Change Could Cause More Birth Defects in the US

Looks like climate change may be breaking hearts in the near future. Literally. A new study out in the Journal of the American Heart Association Wednesday reveals the ways more intense heat and longer heat events as a result of our warming world will impact pregnant mothers and their unborn babies. In short: The U.S.…

Climate Change Yessenia Funes

Smog Is So Bad in Bangkok That Hundreds of Schools Are Closed for the Week

While hundreds of schools in the American Midwest are shut down due to freezing temperatures, hundreds in another part of the world are facing closures for a different reason entirely: air pollution. Thailand’s capital city of Bangkok has been dealing with shitty air quality all month, but now the incessant air pollution has forced the…

Environmental Justice Yessenia Funes

Chicago Scrambles to Protect Its Homeless From Life-Threatening Polar Vortex

Sandi Robinson was sure to layer up before hitting the Chicago streets Monday night. Sweatpants? Check. Tights underneath? Check. Long sleeves, gloves, hat, and boots? All check. Robinson is the co-founder of the community organization ChiGivesBack, and her priority right now is the 5,600 people who live on the streets of Chicago. You see, the…

Environmental Justice Yessenia Funes

AOC Slams Google, Facebook, and Microsoft for Sponsoring Conference Promoting Climate Denial

Our favorite woman from the Bronx is doing what she does: calling rich people out. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) sent a letter to Microsoft, Google, and Facebook executives dated Friday questioning whether these three tech giants are actually down to stop climate change. If they were, why did they recently…

Climate Change Yessenia Funes

Microplastics Discovered in Key Drinking Water Source

The one thing we humans have done an incredible job of leaving behind is plastic. Microplastics, in particular, are seemingly everywhere these days: in sea turtles, table salt, and even beer. Now, a new study offers evidence that microplastics may be infiltrating our groundwater supply, too. Illinois-based researchers found microplastics in springs and wells from…

Earth Science Yessenia Funes

These Abstract Paintings of Earth’s Oceans Are Spellbinding

Danielle Eubank, an award-winning international artist, has come a long way since she began painting the world’s oceans 20 years ago. She’s got one trip left in February: to the Southern Ocean around Antarctica. Eubank has already painted four of Earth’s major oceans, but this final Antarctica series will complete her journey. Her goal is…

Conservation Yessenia Funes

How Australia’s Deadliest Fires Made Thousands of Students Fall Behind

Natural disasters come in all many forms, from hurricanes to wildfires. They all have something in common, though: They ruin people’s lives. And the effects can linger years after the event has passed, especially for elementary school children whose education has only just started, according to a new study. Published in the Child Development journal…

Environmental Justice Yessenia Funes

Good News, North Atlantic Right Whales Are Finally Having Babies Again

Whale babies are popping off this season. Earlier this month, a critically-endangered Puget Sound orca calf was spotted in the Salish Sea. In even better news this week, the ailing North Atlantic right whale population has welcomed three new calves so far this winter. But the whales still have a long way to go before…

Conservation Yessenia Funes

Childhood Lead Exposure May Increase Risk of Mental Illness, Study Suggests

Lead exposure is no joke. Especially in children. We already know it can lead to behavioral problems and learning disabilities as these exposed children age. Now, researchers have uncovered another potential impact: mental illness. A study out Wednesday in the JAMA Psychiatry journal shows that early exposure to the toxic metal, which can be found…

Environmental Justice Yessenia Funes

The U.S. Government Needs to Start Taking Climate-Fueled Migration Seriously, GAO Warns

A number of U.S. departments that work overseas have been dealing with a serious problem since Donald Trump took office: lack of direction on climate change and how it impacts migration. Now, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) is recommending that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo get his shit together and offer these federal departments some…

Environmental Justice Yessenia Funes

How MLK’s Vision Helped Lay the Groundwork For a Green New Deal

More than 50 years have passed since the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Since then, we’ve come a long way as a nation—just look at our new Congress—but we’ve still got a long way to go. Poverty rates among black and Latinx people in the U.S. are more than double those of their…

Environmental Justice Yessenia Funes

Australia Just Experienced Its Hottest Night Ever

Australia’s heat wave isn’t slowing down. The Land Down Under broke records late last year with temperatures spiking 11 to 22 degrees Fahrenheit above normal around Christmastime. And 2019 hasn’t offered much relief. Thursday night set a new minimum temperature record of nearly 97 degrees Fahrenheit in New South Wales. This is the highest daily…

Earth Science Yessenia Funes

New York Governor Hops on Green New Deal Bandwagon

New York state is on a path toward a Green New Deal. Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a broad set of initiatives to get his state off fossil fuels Tuesday as part of his new executive budget. The Green New Deal has mostly been an idea floating around the minds of lawmakers. In short, it’s supposed…

Climate Change Yessenia Funes

The Trump Administration’s Plan to Clean Up Coal Plants Could Be Worse Than Doing Nothing

The Environmental Protection Agency likes to tout its proposed replacement to Obama’s Clean Power Plan as an effective way to combat greenhouse gas emissions. The Affordable Clean Energy Rule, proposed in August, really seems like the opposite though, according to a new study published this week. Much of the U.S. might be better off with…

Climate Change Yessenia Funes

More Than Half of Wild Coffee Species Could Go Extinct, and It’s Our Fault

If you’re a coffee aficionado, brace yourself because I’ve got some bad news for you. About 60 percent of the 124 wild coffee species worldwide are threatened with extinction, according to a new study published in Science Advances Wednesday. While the list only includes one of the roughly five coffee species used commercially around the…

Conservation Yessenia Funes

Criminal Enforcement at Trump’s EPA Is the Lowest It’s Been in Decades: Report

The Environmental Protection Agency was unusually lax in 2018. During the last fiscal year, which ended in October, the agency saw fewer prosecution referrals against polluters than at any other point in the past 30 years. And the Government Accountability Office (GAO) is investigating why. Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), an organization that rallies…

Climate Change Yessenia Funes

Yessenia Funes

House Democrats Introduce Bill to Restore Utah Monument Trump Demolished

January Was Officially Australia’s Hottest Month Ever

The Polar Vortex Just Set a Flurry of Low-Temperature Records

These Elephant Seals Are the Only Winners of the Government Shutdown

As Soon as 2025, Climate Change Could Cause More Birth Defects in the US

Smog Is So Bad in Bangkok That Hundreds of Schools Are Closed for the Week

Chicago Scrambles to Protect Its Homeless From Life-Threatening Polar Vortex

AOC Slams Google, Facebook, and Microsoft for Sponsoring Conference Promoting Climate Denial

Microplastics Discovered in Key Drinking Water Source

These Abstract Paintings of Earth’s Oceans Are Spellbinding

How Australia’s Deadliest Fires Made Thousands of Students Fall Behind

Good News, North Atlantic Right Whales Are Finally Having Babies Again

Childhood Lead Exposure May Increase Risk of Mental Illness, Study Suggests

The U.S. Government Needs to Start Taking Climate-Fueled Migration Seriously, GAO Warns

How MLK’s Vision Helped Lay the Groundwork For a Green New Deal

Australia Just Experienced Its Hottest Night Ever

New York Governor Hops on Green New Deal Bandwagon

The Trump Administration’s Plan to Clean Up Coal Plants Could Be Worse Than Doing Nothing

More Than Half of Wild Coffee Species Could Go Extinct, and It’s Our Fault

Criminal Enforcement at Trump’s EPA Is the Lowest It’s Been in Decades: Report

‘Butt Birth’-ing Rhinoceros from Ace Ventura Sequel Sold at Auction for a Whopping $60,000

The Ryan Gosling Sci-Fi Streak Will Continue Until Morale Improves

Study Challenges Popular Theory on Why Primordial Bugs Were So Darn Huge

Ewan McGregor and Anne Hathaway’s Mystery’s Sci-Fi Film Has Its First Trailer

Scientists Just Found the Salt Limit That Pushes Your Heart to the Breaking Point

White House Social Media Just Had Its Covfefe Moment

Roborock F25 Ultra Steam Wet Dry Vacuum Is Now at Its Lowest Price, but Only During the Spring Sale Window

This $450 Semi-Dumb Phone Is Barely Even a Phone

Startup Successfully Ignites World’s First Fusion Rocket

Shokz OpenDots One Earbuds Hit Their Lowest Price Yet Across All Color Options, Including the New Ones

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life

Nothing Headphone A vs. Headphone 1: Which Pair of ANC Wireless Headphones Wins?

Asus ROG’s Cetra Open Wireless Gaming Earbuds Might Be Better Than Wearing a Headset

Nintendo’s Talking Flower Is Annoying as Hell. I Love It

Level Lock Pro Review: As Good as a Secret Smart Lock Gets

Apple Studio Display XDR Review: It Looks So Good, I Wish It Were an iMac

RayNeo Air 4 Pro Review: My Eyes Love These Video Glasses, but My Nose Disagrees