Eric Holthaus (born 1981)[1] is a meteorologist and climate journalist.[2] He is the founder of a weather service called Currently[3] and started a publication called The Phoenix on Ghost.[4] He was formerly a writer for The Correspondent, Grist, Slate and The Wall Street Journal and is known for his mentions of global climate change.[5][2][6]
Eric Holthaus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1981 |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation(s) | Meteorologist and Climate journalist |
| Employer(s) | Currently; The Phoenix (on Ghost) |
| Known for | Environmental activism |
| Website | https://www.ericholthaus.com/ |
Biography
editEric Holthaus grew up in Kansas. His writing during Hurricane Sandy resulted in a substantial following. During his career, he has advised numerous groups and individuals on coping with changing weather, including, for example, Ethiopian subsistence farmers. In 2013, feeling that his extensive air travel was contributing to the climate problem, Holthaus vowed to stop flying.[7]
Holthaus is a co-founder of the podcast "Warm Regards" with paleoecologist Jacquelyn Gill and journalist Andy Revkin of The New York Times.[8]
Holthaus left The Correspondent in November 2020 and started The Phoenix;[9][4][10] The Correspondent itself ceased publication on January 1, 2021.[11] He is a proponent of the Green New Deal and identifies as an eco-socialist.[10][4]
Projects
editOn November 6, 2022, Abbie Veitch and Eric Holthaus announced Project Mushroom, an initiative to create a safe social media service centered on climate protection. The proposed service was to be run by users and its formation was in response to the harmful effects and biases embedded in established platforms like Twitter. [12] The Kickstarter campaign for the project raised $201,989. In April 2023, Holthaus discontinued financial support for Project Mushroom and turned over ownership of the service to volunteers from its community. Members of Project Mushroom and its companion service Spore.social accused Holthaus of inappropriately retaining and using email addresses for Currently’s newsletter. [13]
The Future Earth
editHolthaus's book The Future Earth, about imagining a future where society has reversed the effects of climate change, was released on June 30, 2020.[14] The book employs a "speculative journalism" approach to imagine how communities and society will respond, while interviewing and using sources from contemporary thinkers and scientists.[15] Holthaus focuses on the large scale organizing and social change needed to address the climate crisis rather than relying solely on technological solutions.[15]
Reception of the book was generally positive. Kirkus reviews called the book "an encouraging and diligently researched call to action"[16] Undark Magazine called the book "a welcome antidote to more dystopian climate writers such as David Wallace-Wells".[15] The podcast Warm Regards highlighted the book in comparison with Kim Stanley Robinson's The Ministry for the Future—noting that they both share a similarly optimistic and future forward approach to the climate crisis.[17]
References
edit- ^ Holthaus, Eric. "Eric Holthaus; Weather Nerd". qz.com. Archived from the original on 2015-09-06. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
- ^ a b "Meet Eric Holthaus, the Rebel Nerd of Meteorology". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
- ^ "Weather that changes the world". Currently Weather Service. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ a b c "Generation Green New Deal: S1 | Gen GND Conversation with Eric Holthaus on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 2021-02-21.
- ^ "Meteorologist Eric Holthaus' vow to never to fly again draws praise, criticism". The Washington Post. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
- ^ "Slate Meteorologist Eric Holthaus Stops Flying for A Year to Fight Climate Change". The Weather Channel. 4 October 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
- ^ Suzanne Goldenberg. "IPCC report makes US meteorologist cry – and give up flying". the Guardian. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
- ^ Revkin, Andrew C. (2016-07-15). "A Podcast on Climate Science, Communication, Pokémon, the Presidency..." Dot Earth Blog. Retrieved 2023-02-24.
- ^ Holthaus, Eric (2020-09-04). "I've got some personal news: As of November 30th, I'll be leaving The Correspondent. I'm available for freelance or full-time work beginning immediately". Eric Holthaus via Twitter.
- ^ a b "Articles by Eric Holthaus | The Phoenix (US) Journalist | Muck Rack". muckrack.com. Retrieved 2021-02-21.
- ^ Anyangwe, Eliza (2020-12-30). "The best of The Correspondent – recommended by the people who made the stories". The Correspondent. Retrieved 2021-02-21.
- ^ Veitch, Abbie; Holthaus, Eric (November 6, 2022). "Introducing: Project Mushroom". The Phoenix. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
- ^ Holthaus, Eric (30 June 2020). The future earth: a radical vision for what's possible in the age of warming. New York, USA: HarperOne. ISBN 978-0-06-288316-2. Paperback edition.
- ^ a b c "Book Review: A Hopeful Vision of Our Planet's Future". Undark Magazine. 2020-07-31. Retrieved 2021-03-20.
- ^ "Review:The Future Earth". Kirkus Reviews. April 5, 2020.
- ^ Regards, Warm (2021-03-08). "Building our Climate Futures Through Storytelling (Part 1), feat". Medium. Retrieved 2021-03-20.