Rosanna Xia delivers a presentation, “Lessons on Climate Storytelling from an Environmental Journalist,” at the 2024 Sierra Writers Conference.

Online event. CLICK HERE for a general admission ticket for all online events at the conference.

Our relationship with the natural world has become increasingly fraught, but how do you write about a crisis as overwhelming as climate change? What is the balance between sounding the alarm and not losing all hope? Los Angeles Times reporter Rosanna Xia will share insights from her award-winning reporting on sea level rise and break down how journalists today are writing about environmental disasters — with lessons learned on what has (and has not) been effective. Through a guided group discussion, we will also explore and unpack the problematic language often baked into the way we think and write about climate change.

Rosanna is an environmental reporter for the Los Angeles Times, where she specializes in stories about the coast and ocean. She was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2020 for explanatory reporting, and her work has been anthologized in the Best American Science and Nature Writing series.