Dr. Jennifer Greer presenting the 2023 Polaris Award to Al Cross. (Photo by Sydney Turner, UK College of Communications) By Jenni Glendenning Institute for Rural Journalism, University of Kentucky After almost 20 years advocating for rural and community journalism in the College of Communication and Information, Al Cross is leaving the University of Kentucky as the Director Emeritus of the Institute for Rural Journalism (IRJ). Cross, who also served as an extension professor for the School of Journalism and Media, officially retires July 31. Cross may be handing in his UK office key ..read more

Fair competitor Emerson Wemark, 10, reclines with a cow. (Photo by KC McGinnis, STAT) For many farming families, more than a year of planning and work can go into having their farm animals compete at summer fairs. Adults and children look forward to getting their animals all gussied up and judged with excitement on par with a major holiday. But this year's showings are a bit different, with vets and animal farmers sharing concern over bird-flu, or H5N1, spreading from lactating cattle, reports Eric Boodman of STAT. Some states or counties have canceled their lactating dairy shows ..read more

Why babies do what they do is often a mystery. (Photo by Chris Anderson, Unsplash) Some of the most complicated human beings to deal with are the tiniest: babies. Often referred to as "bundles of joy" or "little miracles," babies can be cranky, impossible to calm and impervious to sleep. With that backdrop, it's fair to say new parents have it tough, and many lack the resources they need to confidently care for a newborn, which can lead to stress, emergency department visits, and even neglect or abuse. To address these needs and provide a response to high infant and mother fatality r ..read more

Aging systems can contribute to contaminated water. (Photo by Daniel Fazio, Unsplash) California declared clean drinking water a human right in 2012, but that promise remains a work in progress as residents in more rural or underserved counties still drink contaminated water, reports Ian James of the Los Angeles Times. "Approximately 913,000 Californians depended on public water systems that are failing to comply with drinking water regulations, while an additional 1.5 million people depended on water systems that are determined to be 'at-risk.'" The price tag for clean, affordable wa ..read more

Across western federal lands, some renewable energy expansion is going at such a frenetic pace that rural county officials in Nevada can't keep up with the requests, reports Jeniffer Solis of the Nevada Current. "Several rural counties are now asking state lawmakers to establish a policy requiring federal agencies to coordinate all their land use planning and management decisions with state and county governments when considering massive utility-scale energy projects. . . . As of June, there are over 130 pending applications to build renewable energy projects across Nevada’s public lands. Most ..read more

Dos Rios is also a destination for migratory birds along the Pacific flyway. (California State Parks photo) Filled with sunlight and the sounds of nature, California's newest state park steps back in time and into the future all at once. "The park opened this summer, emerging among the never-ending rows of agriculture the valley is known for. It's a lush 2.5 square miles now bursting with hundreds of thousands of native trees, bushes and animals," report Jonaki Mehta, Christopher Intagliata and Ailsa Chang of NPR. "But it isn’t like most state parks. In addition to bringing much-need ..read more

Vranesevich, left, is known for his local investigative reporting. (Beaver Countian photo) With his internal compass focused on news that isn't being shared, John Paul Vranesevich, the owner and only full-time reporter for the Beaver Countian, in western Pennsylvania, scooped key details of the Trump shooting story before national media could confirm it. While his stories revealed "some of the U.S. Secret Service’s most dramatic failure in decades," he credits his nimble reporting to his community connections, reports Elahe Izadi of The Washington Post. "He said that some of those lo ..read more

State funds are being used for road and utility work at the new high-ground development in Knott County called Chestnut Ridge. (Photo by Zack Hall, Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky) By Jenni GlendenningInstitute for Rural Journalism, University of Kentucky Matt Sawyers has $298 million to spend. Sawyers, a native of southeastern Kentucky, is commissioner of the state Department for Local Government. That puts him in a position to help make a difference in his home region as he helps his boss, Gov. Andy Beshear, decide where to put the $297.6 million the state has in a federal comm ..read more

Taylor’s book is available on Amazon.com. In spring 2021, Dave Taylor found out he had Stage 4 esophageal cancer. The veteran journalist and editor of the weekly Hancock Clarion in Hawesville, Kentucky, began writing about the experience the week afterward in a column series called "What I Learned From Dying." "If things go well this will be a long-term column that could serve as catharsis for me or a peek behind the gown for those who are curious," Taylor wrote in the first column. "If things don’t go as well, then maybe it’s just a long, rambling goodbye." Taylor's columns weren't ..read more

Dairy farming is expensive and labor intensive. Cows have to be milked twice a day. (Wisconsin Dairy photo) Department of Agriculture scientists want to sample U.S. dairy herds for bird flu infections, but many dairy farmers won't allow testing. As a workaround, the USDA is suggesting anonymized testing, reports Tina Reed of Axios. "Many farmers are refusing to test their herds, fearing the economic consequences, while concern builds that the relatively benign virus could morph into a much bigger risk to humans." Ashish Jha, who is dean of Brown University's School of Public Health ..read more