Climate change is often covered as a vast, global crisis, defined by melting ice sheets, stalled international agreements and the persistent grip of fossil fuels. What gets far less attention are the local stories unfolding across the country: clinics adapting to wildfire, counties redesigning emergency response plans for extreme heat, public health responses to vector-borne diseases and more.
These stories reveal what’s working, who’s innovating and where communities are making progress in protecting public health. For health journalists, this gap is an opportunity — you just need to know where to look. In this webinar, we’ll explore strategies, tools and reporting pathways that can help you find compelling, community-driven stories at the intersection of climate change and public health.
January 21, 2026 @ 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm EST
Katie Burke
AHCJ Environmental Health Beat Leader
Katie L. Burke is an award-winning editor and serves as senior contributing editor at American Scientist. Burke has a doctorate in biology and a rich background in conservation, forest history, and disease ecology, bringing a profound understanding of scientific nuances to her work.
Joanne Kenen
Journalist-in-Residence, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Contributing writer, POLITICO Magazine
Long-time health reporter on and off Capitol Hill. Oversaw all the health coverage at Politico for about a decade – now I’m a contributing writer to Politico Magazine, and the Journalist-in-Residence at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where I also teach. I’m a regular on the KHN “What the Health” podcast. I was AHCJ’s first topic leader (on health reform) and the conferences are a highlight of my year. @JoanneKenen
Jenae Barnes
Health and environment reporter, Capital B Gary
Jenae Barnes covers issues at the intersection of public health, environmental justice, and the lived experiences of Black communities, with a particular focus on the Midwest and national audiences. She is recognized for deeply reported, community-centered journalism, blending investigative rigor with narrative storytelling. Her reporting frequently highlights the impacts of climate change, gender and health disparities, and she has experience amplifying underrepresented voices.
Barnes was selected as a 2024 Pulitzer Center Story Reach Reporting Fellow and participated in the 2023 Wake Forest University Environmental and Epistemic Justice Fellowship. She is also a 2025 participant in the AHCJ German Health Care Study Group, where she will report on the health care experiences of Black expatriates in Germany.
Matthew Tejada, Ph.D.
Senior vice president, environmental health, Natural Resources Defense Council
As the chief visionary and strategist for NRDC’s advocacy to protect human health, Matthew Tejada oversees NRDC’s clean air, water, toxics, and adaptation programs. He is also responsible for leading, scaling, and operationalizing the teams, structures, partnerships, and policy initiatives needed to tackle major health threats facing communities.
Prior to joining NRDC, Tejada served most recently as the deputy assistant administrator for environmental justice within the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office for Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights. In his 10 years with the EPA, Tejada led all aspects of environmental justice work throughout the agency and in coordination with other federal agencies, including the development of an array of grants and technical assistance vehicles, and the creation and deployment of a nationally consistent screening and mapping tool that highlights environmental justice issues across the United States. His work also direct community engagement, outreach and communication, and management of the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council.