Moira Donovan

In 2025, I learned something surprising: scientists were starting to freeze samples of threatened microbial ecosystems in the name of conservation.

For @noemamag.com I explored how this is part of the emerging idea of microbial conservation — a practice scientist say we need before it's too late

At odds over Aboriginal title Two very different decisions on Aboriginal title and private property rights expose a gap in Supreme Court doctrine

“I think it’s inevitable that this is going to make its way to the Supreme Court,” says Merle Alexander, principal at Miller Titerle + Company, and a member of Kitasoo Xai'xais First Nation. @moiradonovan.bsky.social has more. www.nationalmagazine.ca/en-ca/articl...

These N.S. volunteer firefighters have found themselves on the frontlines of climate change | CBC News A new episode of Atlantic Voice details how one Nova Scotia fire department is dealing with floods, fires and the mental toll it all takes on its small group of volunteers.

My documentary for CBC's Atlantic Voice. As climate change intensifies, a growing burden is falling on volunteer first responders. The group of Nova Scotian firefighters I spoke to are reckoning with how to protect their community - but it's taking a heavy personal toll www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Once in a while an editor suggests you take on something that seems like a head-scratcher at first. Thanks @jessehirsch.bsky.social for asking me to do this story on the rise in used cooking oil theft - and the greasy practices flowing from attempts to find alternatives to fossil fuels

At-sea observer program is ‘broken’ advocates say but electronic tools and AI could help | CBC News Advocates say the observer program for Atlantic Canada’s fisheries is "broken," with many fisheries failing to meet required levels for monitoring by at-sea observers.

FOI documents show in some Atlantic Canadian fisheries, at-sea observers cover less than 1% of trips - for CBC Nova Scotia, I dug into documents and spoke to advocates about why the observer program is broken, and how electronic monitoring could help www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

According to legal experts, Canada's backtracking on climate policy — including the Alberta MOU — opens the country up to legal, political and environmental risks. My story for @cba-nationalmag.bsky.social

American eel aren't just the basis of a lucrative Canadian fishery — they're also threatened by black-market trade. For @thenarwhal.ca I explored why advocates say Canada's vote against global trade restrictions at CITES shows a lack of leadership on a global wildlife crime

YouTube video by CBC News Nova Scotia Land & Sea: The uncertain future of Maritime forests

In Canada's Maritime provinces, much of the forest is in private hands, which is often clearcut when aging owners sell. For the CBC program Land & Sea, I profiled the people exploring a solution: protecting the forest, using the carbon contained within it www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKF8...

Offshore wind could provide clean energy not just for Nova Scotia, but for the whole country. For @thenarwhal.ca, I travelled to the communities who see offshore wind as key to their future, and spoke with the fishers worried it could consign some fisheries to the past

When In Drought, Farm Your Moisture - Offrange Can farmers pull a solution to the water crisis out of thin air?

During droughts, farmers are starting to "farm their own moisture."

@moiradonovan.bsky.social looks into the next frontier in water procurement for agriculture, pulling water out of thin air:
ambrook.com/offrange/env...

Very grateful to the survivors who were willing to share their insight and experiences for this story, and to @michellecyca.com for the thoughtful edits (not to mention Darren Calabrese for the stunning images)

What should happen to residential school sites? | The Narwhal Across Canada, Indigenous communities are deciding how to commemorate these residential school histories on the land

Across Canada, remnants of the residential school era — former school sites and buildings — stand as a painful testament to the past. For @thenarwhal.ca I spoke to survivors leading the complex work to reckon with those remnants, and preserve a record of that history thenarwhal.ca/truth-reconc...

‘It’s an all-you-can-eat buffet’: striped bass in a Canadian river are gobbling up all the salmon. Is a mass cull the answer? Whether to kill one species to save another has split biologists, anglers and Indigenous communities in the Miramichi

In the Miramichi, Atlantic salmon populations are dropping precipitously. Salmon conservation groups say the culprit is clear: striped bass. But as I explored in this story for @theguardian.com, the picture is murky, especially in a changing climate www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Groups conducting coastal restoration in N.S. say they face 'astonishing' red tape | CBC News Groups conducting shoreline cleanups and coastal restoration say they're facing long delays obtaining permits or unclear requirements from the province, which are sometimes forcing them to cancel proj...

In Nova Scotia, the provincial government is fast-tracking mining and other resource development - meanwhile, groups restoring ecosystems face nearly insurmountable red tape, forcing some to cancel projects. My story for CBC Nova Scotia www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

For Offrange, I dug into a hidden hurdle in adapting our forests to climate change: tree seedlings. We need billions of seedlings to restore forests being lost to fire and other impacts - and nurseries are nowhere close to that number. I heard about the ways people are trying to fill the gap.

Until recently, tools for tracking fish were too big for small swimmers, limiting our ability to understand the lives of diminutive species.

New technology is changing that - a potential boost for conservation. My story for @biographic.bsky.social (with edits from @colinschultz.bsky.social!)

Decision to refill Lake Pisiquid coming with side-effects, say some Windsor residents | CBC News Some Windsor, N.S., residents say a two-year-old decision to close the gates of an aboiteau and keep Lake Pisiquid filled with water is unnecessary and causing other problems.

In 2023, a controversial artificial lake was refilled, ostensibly for wildfire mitigation. Two years later, some residents are questioning the legitimacy of the government's decision - my story for CBC Nova Scotia www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

So grateful to be one of the journalists selected for this year's program - and very excited for the opportunity to dig into the scientific process with a group of fellow nerds 🤓https://www.mbl.edu/education/logan-science-journalism-program/2025-sjp-fellows

Can we save the Atlantic whitefish? | The Narwhal In Nova Scotia, scientists are racing to save an ancient species

The Atlantic whitefish is one of Canada's most endangered species; after 14 million years, its range has shrunk to three small lakes, and a set of tanks in a university basement. For @thenarwhal.ca I explored the race to save the species thenarwhal.ca/atlantic-whi...

Wired is dropping paywalls for FOIA-based reporting. Others should follow As the administration does its best to hide public records from the public, Wired magazine is stepping up to help stem the secrecy

They're called public records for a reason. Starting today, WIRED will *stop paywalling* articles that are primarily based on public records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, becoming the first publication to partner with @freedom.press to offer this for our new coverage.

Can Toxic Mining Waste Help Remove CO2 from the Atmosphere? On the coast of Newfoundland, waste from a shuttered asbestos mine has been a troubling source of contamination for decades. Now, a company plans to process the waste to draw CO2 from the air — one of...

Using mine tailings for carbon removal offers an opportunity to tackle climate change - while remediating environmental hazards. But some fear the attempt to address future threats could exacerbate past harms. My story for @yalee360.bsky.social e360.yale.edu/features/asb...

Climate change is reshuffling ecosystems in complex ways. In the Gulf of Maine, this includes baby lobster and their prey dropping out of sync - a shift that could have dire consequences for a lucrative fishery. My first story for @biographic.bsky.social

Pesticides come with a host of problems, from biodiversity loss to human illnesses. Scientists are looking to plants' innate defences for alternatives, with 'plant vaccines' that boost natural immunity. My story for Ambrook Research

The ‘slippery slope’ of sharing personal data New agreement allowing U.S. officials access to Canadian permanent residents’ information made without external consultations, critics say

“You’re now blurring the distinction between Canada and the U.S. when you’re sharing so much information,” says immigration lawyer Len Saunders. “Where does it stop — what’s next?” @moiradonovan.bsky.social has the story. www.nationalmagazine.ca/en-ca/articl...

Many thanks to @judeisabella.bsky.social for the astute edits, and for supporting this project. Hakai's willingness to invest in stories like these is a testament to what a special publication it was - and will be, as bioGraphic 🐟

The Personal Toll of Canada’s Broken Fishing Promises | Hakai Magazine Indigenous fishermen on the Atlantic Coast have spent centuries—and millions of dollars—trying to get the government to uphold treaties made in the 1700s. And younger generations aren’t giving up.

Despite a Supreme Court decision affirming Indigenous communities' right to fish for a moderate livelihood, dozens of Mi'kmaw fishers still find themselves before the courts. For @hakaimagazine.com —and in collaboration with Ku'ku'kwes News— I profiled one of them

hakaimagazine.com/features/the...