Some evangelical groups have labeled the environmental movement a “false religion” and continue to dispute the extensive evidence that human activities are heating up the climate, with destructive consequences.
But it wasn’t always so. Many white conservative evangelicals supported environmental efforts from the 1960s to the early 1990s.
Interdisciplinary scholar Neall Pogue explains that things changed when conservative think tanks and advocacy groups started expressing skepticism regarding climate change. Leading pastors began ridiculing environmentalists, often calling them “tree huggers,” and mocking their supposed left-wing extremism.
This week we also liked articles about the new AP African American history course, how most sheriffs perceive gun laws and the teensy creatures that make loud noises.
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A display questioning humans’ role in climate change, at the Ark Encounter in Williamstown, Ky.
Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
Neall Pogue, University of Texas at Dallas
It was in the 1990s that the idea of Christian environmental stewardship disappeared from the rhetoric of the religious right, paving the way for the anti-environmental position it holds today.
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U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder briefed the media about the Chinese spy balloon over the U.S.
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
Iain Boyd, University of Colorado Boulder
A Chinese high-altitude balloon violated U.S. airspace, a serious enough breach to nix a high-level diplomatic meeting in Beijing. The balloon itself, however, was not much of a threat.
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Black students are underrepresented in Advanced Placement courses.
Hill Street Studios / Getty Images
Suneal Kolluri, University of California, Riverside
A college readiness scholar says the new Advanced Placement course in African American Studies has been weakened by political pressure from the right.
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Estelamari Rodriguez, University of Miami
While lung cancer rates have decreased by 43% in men, they have risen by 79% in women. New screening guidelines and recognizing early symptoms can help address the changing face of lung cancer.
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Mirya Holman, Tulane University; Emily Farris, Texas Christian University
A significant number of county sheriffs across the US have a particular – and false – view of their role in defending Americans’ constitutional rights.
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Bernard Lohr, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
From insects to birds to bats to frogs, these little loudmouths have found ingenious ways to deliver their messages at high volume.
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Gerald P. Dwyer, Clemson University
The US spent $213 billion paying interest on the national debt in the fourth quarter of 2022 as the Fed jacked up borrowing costs at an unprecedented pace.
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The Conversation Quiz 🧠
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Fritz Holznagel, The Conversation
Test your reading with a weekly quiz drawn from some of our favorite stories. Questions this week on balancing the budget, the Fed, cancer and the mesopelagic layer.
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