SEAL Awards Honors Independent Voices Driving Climate Accountability in 2026

The 2026 SEAL Environmental Journalism Awards honor twelve journalists whose reporting has deepened public understanding of the climate crisis across borders, beats, and media formats. This year's winners span established climate desks and independent outlets alike, reflecting a media landscape where some of the most rigorous environmental coverage increasingly comes from publications built specifically to sustain it.

SAN DIEGO, Nov. 12, 2026 — SEAL Awards today announced the twelve winners of its 2026 Environmental Journalism Awards, honoring reporters whose work has traced the climate crisis through policy failures, community impacts, and the data that connects the two.

"We increasingly honor the work independent publications are doing to fill the knowledge gap," said Safa Bee Wesley, Impact Lead, "but we're concerned by the downtrend in environmental reporting at major publications."

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This year's honorees include Aman Azhar and Keerti Gopal of Inside Climate News; Zeke Hausfather of Carbon Brief and Climate Brink; Ayesha Tandon of Carbon Brief; Nick Engelfried of Sierra Magazine and Columbia Insight; Robert Hunziker of Counter Currents; Mariana Mastache-Maldonado of El País; Tulani Ngwenya of Oxpeckers and Gizmodo; Elizabeth Ouzts of Canary Media and Mother Jones; Juan Carlos Partida of La Jornada; Dyna Rochmyaningsih of Mongabay and National Geographic; and Matt Simmons of The Narwhal.

Their reporting this year spans the mining and manufacturing behind the energy transition, the uneven toll of climate change on vulnerable communities, and the policy fights determining how quickly governments and corporations respond. Several honorees write for independent, climate-focused outlets built in the past decade specifically to sustain this kind of reporting, at a moment when some larger newsrooms have scaled back their environmental desks.

"In 2026, we increasingly honor the work independent publications are doing to fill the knowledge gap, and we're grateful for their service," said Safa Bee Wesley, Impact Lead. "But we're simultaneously concerned by the downtrend in environmental reporting by mainstream and major publications. The climate crisis affects everyone, regardless of borders or income, and the wellbeing of each one of us depends on all of us being able to stay informed and engaged, in order to democratically address the issues that affect our lives and preserve the world we live in. For that reason, we're calling on all major publications to reinvest in their environmental news departments, and we call on The New York Times and The Washington Post specifically to respond to the climate emergency with the alacrity it deserves by giving unlimited, ungated access to environmental reporting."

Winners were selected based on a panel review of their body of work, data-driven assessment of impact and reach, and special consideration for reporting that brings fresh social relevance and creative insight to environmental issues. The SEAL Awards continue to expand their search for honorees across all media formats and geographies, recognizing the global scale of the climate challenge and the diverse voices required to confront it.

2026 SEAL ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM AWARD WINNERS:

• Aman Azhar • Inside Climate News
• Nick Engelfried • Sierra Magazine, Columbia Insight
• Keerti Gopal • Inside Climate News
• Zeke Hausfather • Carbon Brief, Climate Brink
• Robert Hunziker • Counter Currents
• Mariana Mastache-Maldonado • El País
• Tulani Ngwenya • Oxpeckers, Gizmodo
• Elizabeth Ouzts • Canary Media, Mother Jones
• Juan Carlos Partida • La Jornada
• Dyna Rochmyaningsih • Mongabay, National Geographic
• Matt Simmons • The Narwhal
• Ayesha Tandon • Carbon Brief

SOURCE SEAL Awards