
Articles by Caitlin Looby
Caitlin Looby is a science writer, editor and educator based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. She’s written radio scripts for the Loh Down on Science Radio program, worked in university media and reported for The Times-Picayune | New Orleans Advocate as a 2019 AAAS Mass Media Fellow. She also wrote an op-ed on climate change in cloud forests for The New York Times as well as feature articles for SUP Magazine and Canoe and Kayak Magazine, among others. She is a freelance editor where she’s edited books, dissertations, poetry collections and even restaurant menus. She also teaches a science communication class and writing workshops at the University of Minnesota.
As a former Mongabay intern, Caitlin is excited to join the team as the second Sue Palminteri Wildtech Reporting Fellow. Caitlin is a former scientist and spent twelve years hiking up mountains in the tropics to study microbes, soil and climate change. She holds a bachelor’s degree in molecular biology from the University of Connecticut, a master’s degree in biotechnology from Kean University and a doctorate degree in biology from the University of California, Irvine.
Caitlin spends her free time outdoors, paddling, hiking, camping and playing with her two dogs. One fun fact: she’s lived in every time zone in the continental US. You can follow her @caitlooby on Twitter or check out her website caitlinlooby.com.


Troubled waters: A massive salmon farm off the coast of Maine is stalled

Researchers turn to drones for that big-picture view of the forest canopy

Tech revolution holds world of promise for conservation, but challenges persist

For species on the very brink of extinction, cloning is a loaded last resort

‘We scientists engage in soft diplomacy’: Q&A with Christine Wilkinson

Boosting human and machine expertise with conservation tech: Q&A with Sara Beery

In wildlife traffickers, the internet finds a cancel target everyone agrees on

‘Superstitious belief kills pangolins’: Q&A with biologist Elisa Panjang

Drones are a knife in the gunfight against poaching. But they’re leveling up

Empowering Indigenous youths with tradition and tech: Q&A with Dawn Martin-Hill

New checklist aims to tackle racism in conservation science in higher ed

Sharing solutions: How a digital toolkit is strengthening Indigenous voices

Scientists turn to eDNA to curtail the freshwater extinction crisis

A global view from a mountain town: how conservation became ingrained in Monteverde

Empowering communities fighting new mines: an interview with filmmaker Jessie Landerman

Reef Market Economy: Energetics key to keeping fish in the sea and the store

Murky future for freshwater fish in the Amazon floodplains

A Christmas Miracle? Perhaps someday

Discovering the Congo carbon sink
Special series
Forest Trackers
- Poverty and plantations: Nigerian reserve struggles against the odds
- Logging, road construction continue to fuel forest loss in Papua New Guinea
- Guatemala braces for unprecedented year of deforestation in Maya reserve
- Smallholders and loggers push deeper into Sumatra’s largest park

Oceans
- In reversal, Mexico calls for moratorium on international deep-sea mining
- Congo’s waters are hotspot for endangered sharks & rays, reveals data from artisanal fishers
- Report shines partial light on worst labor offenders in opaque fishing industry
- Jamaica battles relentless plastic pollution in quest to restore mangroves

Amazon Conservation
- Germany signals boost in support for Brazil through Amazon Fund
- New algorithm looks at how Amazon vegetation will behave after climate change
- The coveted legacy of the ‘Man of the Hole’ and his cultivated Amazon forest
- End of impunity for Indigenous killings in sight for Brazil’s Guajajara

Land rights and extractives
- Lombok sand mine corruption probe continues as Indonesia to resume exports
- Paradise lost? Brazil’s biggest bauxite mining firm denies riverine rights
- The coveted legacy of the ‘Man of the Hole’ and his cultivated Amazon forest
- Australia crackdown on climate protesters grows amid fight against gas project

Endangered Environmentalists
- Vietnamese environmentalist sentenced to 3 years in prison for tax evasion
- Son of slain Quilombola leader will still strive for community’s rights
- Video: Five Tembé Indigenous activists shot in Amazonian ‘palm oil war’
- Indigenous activists demand justice after 5 shot in Amazonian ‘palm oil war’

Indonesia's Forest Guardians
- In Borneo, the ‘Power of Mama’ fight Indonesia’s wildfires with all-woman crew
- Pioneer agroforester Ermi, 73, rolls back the years in Indonesia’s Gorontalo
- After 20 years and thousands of trees planted, Kalimantan’s veteran forester persists
- Aziil Anwar, Indonesian coral-based mangrove grower, dies at 64

Conservation Effectiveness
- Forest restoration to boost biomass doesn’t have to sacrifice tree diversity
- How scientists and a community are bringing a Bornean river corridor back to life
- Forest restoration can fare better with human helping hand, study shows
- From rat-ridden to reserve, Redonda is an island restoration role model

Southeast Asian infrastructure
- Indonesia’s new capital ‘won’t sacrifice the environment’: Q&A with Nusantara’s Myrna Asnawati Safitri
- Small farmers in limbo as Cambodia wavers on Tonle Sap conservation rules
- To build its ‘green’ capital city, Indonesia runs a road through a biodiverse forest
- Robust river governance key to restoring Mekong River vitality in face of dams
