Lauren Sommer
Lauren Sommer covers climate change for NPR's Science Desk, from the scientists on the front lines of documenting the warming climate to the way those changes are reshaping communities and ecosystems around the world.
Prior to joining NPR, Sommer spent more than a decade covering climate and environment for KQED Public Radio in San Francisco. During her time there, she delved into the impacts of California's historic drought during dry years and reported on destructive floods during wet years, and covered how communities responded to record-breaking wildfires.
Sommer has also examined California's ambitious effort to cut carbon emissions across its economy and investigated the legacy of its oil industry. On the lighter side, she ran from charging elephant seals and searched for frogs in Sierra Nevada lakes.
She was also host of KQED's macrophotography nature series Deep Look, which searched for universal truths in tiny organisms like black-widow spiders and parasites. Sommer has received a national Edward R. Murrow for use of sound, as well as awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Society of Environmental Journalists.
Based at NPR's San Francisco bureau, Sommer grew up in the West, minus a stint on the East Coast to attend Cornell University.
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Hotter temperatures are threatening coral reefs worldwide. Now, scientists are pinpointing how some "super corals" are better able to withstand the heat. -
Delegates reached a last-minute deal to pay vulnerable countries for damages caused by climate change. But the final agreement does not put humanity on track to avoid catastrophic warming. -
Climate anxiety is on the rise in younger generations, as they face inheriting a hotter planet. Here's their advice on how to cope with those feelings. -
World leaders are discussing how to get climate change under control, but new reports show the post-pandemic rebound and war in Ukraine are driving emissions even higher. -
Global leaders are negotiating about how to cut greenhouse gas emissions as quickly as possible. Scientists say every passing day, and every tenth of a degree, makes a big difference. -
Pakistan's leader sounded the alarm, climate scientists called for more equitable research and the U.N. tried to crack down on greenwashing. Here's what happened at COP27 today. -
At global climate negotiations, developing countries say they're being devastated by a problem they didn't cause. So they're looking for compensation for the losses and damage from climate change. -
World leaders are meeting in Egypt for the next two weeks to talk about reining in climate change and paying for its deadly effects. Here's what you need to know. -
The world is set to start crucial climate change negotiations soon. To avoid extreme warming, nations have to make deep cuts in heat-trapping emissions, fast. -
Scientists are finding that Western wildfires can have far-reaching impacts. If they're burning while Central U.S. thunderstorms are forming, the rain and hail can be dramatically more destructive.
