The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk, an independent environmental reporting collaborative based at the University of Missouri, has selected three new Expert Journalists to provide mentorship and editorial support for our Report for America corps members and contributors.
These Expert Journalists, chosen through a competitive nationwide search process, bring extensive environmental reporting and editing experience to the Ag & Water Desk. They specialize in covering climate, agriculture, energy, science, Midwest and coastal issues and environmental justice.
Ag & Water Desk Expert Journalists share their beat expertise, story and source ideas and other resources with our 17 Report for America corps members and other contributing reporters. They routinely share bylines with our reporters and contribute editing and reporting to Ag & Water Desk stories and special projects, which are distributed for free republication by any news outlet.
The new Expert Journalists are:
Julia Sklar, Story Editor, Sierra Magazine
Julia Sklar is the story editor for Sierra Magazine, where she commissions reporting on climate science, public health, and environmental justice. She spent many years prior as an independent science journalist, publishing award-winning reporting on food innovation, neuroscience, and climate change for the Boston Globe, Undark Magazine, and National Geographic. Julia also works as a mentor with Uproot Project and Empowerment Avenue. As a lifelong Bostonian, Julia has always been passionate about water and coastal issues.
Jared Strong, Senior Reporter, Iowa Capital Dispatch
Jared Strong is an agriculture and environment reporter for the Iowa Capital Dispatch, a nonprofit news organization that is part of States Newsroom. He is a lifelong Iowan who for most of his career has been based in a rural western part of the state, where he lives among farm fields near one of the most-polluted rivers in the state. He tends a small flock of chickens and an old Case tractor. He previously wrote for the Des Moines Register and the Carroll Times Herald.
Kristoffer Tigue, Midwest Reporter, Inside Climate News
Kristoffer Tigue covers climate change, clean energy and environmental justice issues in the Midwest for Inside Climate News. He’s written for numerous publications in his decade-long career, including Reuters, CNBC and Vox Magazine. He earned his Master’s degree in journalism from the Missouri School of Journalism, where his feature writing won multiple awards from the Missouri Press Association.
These journalists join the Ag & Water Desk’s returning Experts and Senior Advisors, who have supported the project since publication began in 2022. They include: Chris Clayton, Ag Policy Editor, DTN/The Progressive Farmer; Halle Parker, Coastal Desk Reporter, WWNO-New Orleans Public Radio; and Mark Schleifstein, Environmental Reporter, The Times Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate | nola.com.
Learn more about our staff and reporters here.
About the Ag & Water Desk
The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk is a collaborative network of journalists focused on increasing coverage of agriculture, water and other environmental issues surrounding one of the world’s major river systems. Founded in 2021, this award-winning independent initiative is based at the Missouri School of Journalism in partnership with Report for America and the Society of Environmental Journalists, with major funding from the Walton Family Foundation. Newsrooms can run the Ag & Water Desk’s stories for free and the public can subscribe to a weekly newsletter.