Tracy strongly believes our strength as a society is in the collective—in collaboratively thinking and acting differently to solve today’s urgent environmental and social justice challenges; and in being of service restoring a world balanced, free and at peace. During the pandemic in 2020, she and her award-winning team of journalists, photographers, filmmakers, artists and poets launched a pilot of Red Canary Magazine—an independent publication dedicated to deeply reported journalism focused on urgent environmental and social issues. Since launch, Red Canary Magazine has published over 160 environmental stories and won 19 professional awards, including recognition from the Los Angeles Press Club, the Society of Environmental Journalists, and the Society of Professional Journalists, as well as 2025 Webby Honoree recognition in the Magazine/Publication category. Prior to founding Red Canary Magazine, she worked in advertising and consulting for over twenty-five years building iconic consumer and business brands, as well as serving in leadership positions on many nonprofit boards.
An award-winning journalist, writer, and editor, Joe Donnelly is founding Editor-in-Chief of Red Canary Magazine and Senior Lecturer of English and Literature at Whittier College, where he continues to mentor the next generation of dogged journalists. He has led various newsrooms and publications to glory, near glory, and occasional infamy. Joe has written for many national and international publications, and his work has been widely anthologized. Previously, he was the Deputy Editor of LA Weekly, Executive Editor of investigative news site Mission and State and the Founder and Co-Editor of the award-winning journal SLAKE: LOS ANGELES. He is the author of the acclaimed collection L.A. Man: Profiles from a Big City and a Small World. His latest collection of nonfiction, So Cal: Dispatches From the End of the World, is out now.
linkedin.com/in/phuongcacnguyen
Phuong-Cac “PC” Nguyen is a journalist, storyteller and lifelong advocate for those too often left out of corporate media headlines. Her work centers the experiences of the underserved or overlooked—both on the page and off it. As a reporter and editor, her bylines have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Condé Nast Traveler, and the Knight Foundation-funded investigative outlet Mission & State. Her documentary on Brazilian lowrider culture, South American Cho-Low, was featured in the New York Times and aired nationally on KCET-TV. By day, she works as a service designer at a health care plan, grappling with how systems can be made to actually work for the people who need them most.
Sam Slovick is an award-winning journalist and documentary filmmaker who has been published in the LA Times, Los Angeles Magazine, LA Weekly, LA Yoga Magazine, Mission & State, GOOD, Interview, Huffington Post and many others. His feature documentary release, Radicalized (2016) has been called the definitive voice-of-a-generation millennial protest film. As a journalist his ability to access subjects and deliver deep narrative stories with video and photography are his signature. His original series, On Skid Row (GOOD /Reason Pictures) and Scenes From The New Revolution (Participant Media).
Nancy Hope is a Minneapolis-based Art Director/Designer with extensive experience in design and advertising, helping brands tell their stories. The projects Nancy has loved the most are those that improve lives. She was raised by progressive parents who cared deeply about environmental preservation and civil rights. These values are infused into her work ethic, with a goal of inspiration, inclusion and action. Nancy believes Red Canary Magazine is truly elevating the urgent issues of climate and social justice. She says it is an honor to work with an organization that feels like family.
“Everyone has been made for some particular work, and the desire for that work has been put in every heart.” Rumi
Erin Aubry Kaplan is a contributing editor for Red Canary Magazine, a columnist for the progressive news site Capital and Main, and book review editor for Ms. Magazine. She has been an opinion columnist for the Los Angeles Times, staff writer for the LA Weekly and contributor to many publications, including Politico and the New York Times. She is the author of two books, Black Talk, Blue Thoughts and Walking the Color Line: Dispatches from a Black Journalista and I Heart Obama.
Paige Meyer-Draffen is a writer and artist dedicated to expanding the public’s understanding of the world around it. Previously, she did so through independent environmental cartoons, led Whittier College’s The Quaker Campus as editor-in-chief, and now continues her mission by expanding Red Canary Magazine’s audience on social media.
Tony Barnstone teaches at Whittier College and is the author of 21 books and a music CD. His books of poetry include: Beast in the Apartment; Tongue of War: From Pearl Harbor to Nagasaki; The Golem of Los Angeles; Sad Jazz: Sonnets; and Impure. He is also a co-translator of Chinese and Urdu literature. His awards include: The Poets Prize, the Strokestown International Prize, the Pushcart Prize in Poetry, The John Ciardi Prize, The Benjamin Saltman Award, and fellowships from the NEA, NEH, and California Arts Council. He has also co-edited the anthologies Republic of Apples, Democracy of Oranges: New Eco-Poetry from China and the United States; Dead and Undead Poems; and Monster Verse. His new publications are a co-translation from the Urdu, Faces Hidden in the Dust: Selected Ghazals of Ghalib and a creativity focused tarot deck, The Radiant Tarot: Pathway to Creativity, with artist Alexandra Eldridge. He is currently working on the libretto for an opera.
linkedin.com/in/tannersherlock/
Tanner Sherlock is a writer and editor whose work centers around narrative-driven storytelling across fiction and non-fiction, with an emphasis on exploring stories that have a catalyzing impact on an audience. As Red Canary Magazine’s Assistant Editor, he is passionate about environmental and social justice investigative reporting. His feline writing partner, Ash, is his sole proofreader.
Luigi Ventura is looking through the lens of his camera as a first generation Angeleno with immigrant parents who were following the American dream. He has lived his life in the midst of a culture clash, simultaneously holding the foreign and native perspectives of a brown-skinned U.S. citizen. What Luigi has seen in 2020 is that the people taking to the streets of Los Angeles are a markedly diverse and inclusive crowd: young families with strollers, high school students, Gen Z youth, octogenarians, young women and members of the LGBTQIA + community, all showing up in record numbers, all taking seriously the power of using one’s voice. He has worked on more than 20 made-for-television series and more than 50 films and videos, including: The Good Place (2018); Destroyer (2018); Oprah’s Master Class (2018); VEEP (2017); and Santa Clarita Diet (2017).
Josué Rivas is an Indigenous Futurist, creative director, visual storyteller and educator working at the intersection of art, journalism and social justice. His work aims to challenge the mainstream narrative about Indigenous peoples, build awareness about issues affecting Native communities across Turtle Island, and be a visual messenger for those in the shadows of our society. Josué is a 2020 Catchlight Leadership Fellow, Magnum Foundation Photography and Social Justice Fellow, founder of the StandingStrongProject, co-founder of NativesPhotograph and winner of the 2018 FotoEvidence Book Award with World Press Photo. His work has appeared in National Geographic, The Guardian, The New York Times, Apple and Nike N7 among others. Available for photo assignments, film projects and exhibitions, Josué is based in Portland, OR.
Steven Gute is a filmmaker who has worn many hats in his now 20-year career. Gute works as a director, producer, writer, cinematographer, journalist and editor, and already has a long resume of credits stretching across a multitude of formats. While his origins lay in narrative films, he was eventually sucked into a documentary spiral beginning with Leonardo DiCaprio’s 11th Hour; followed by Radicalized, a portrait of millennial resistance during the Occupy movement; ongoing front-line documentation of protests at Standing Rock and Black Lives Matter; and ultimately, leading a team to the Arctic to film glaciers in decline for HBO’s Ice on Fire.
Red Canary Magazine’s Advisors are volunteers passionate about helping us achieve our mission: To publish deeply reported journalism focussed on urgent environmental and social issues— difference-making work that provokes discussions, inspires reflection and speaks to the times with stories that prove timeless. This incredible team of people are all experts in their respective fields, be it environmentalism, economics, conservation, permaculture & sustainable farming, natural resources, animal & human rights, behavioral science, biochemistry, investigative journalism, poetry, social & economic justice, climate solutions and global health. And all are committed to helping Red Canary Magazine achieve its goals.
Tracy strongly believes our strength as a society is in the collective — in collaboratively thinking and acting differently to solve today’s urgent environmental and social justice challenges; and in being of service restoring a world balanced, free and at peace. Prior to founding Red Canary Magazine, she worked in advertising and consulting for over twenty-five years building iconic consumer and business brands, as well as serving in leadership positions on many nonprofit boards. During the pandemic in 2020, she and her award-winning team of journalists, photographers, filmmakers, artists and poets launched Red Canary Magazine — an independent publication dedicated to deeply reported journalism focused on urgent environmental and social issues.
As a seasoned development professional, I am dedicated to empowering purpose-driven organizations to achieve their missions and make a lasting impact on our communities. With a background in nonprofit fundraising, I have successfully crafted and executed comprehensive development strategies, steering growing teams towards greater success. My expertise extends across various fundraising avenues, including individual giving, private & corporate grants, government funding, community partnerships, and corporate sponsorships.
Beyond my professional pursuits, I am deeply passionate about forging connections with individuals and organizations dedicated to addressing our most pressing environmental and social challenges. I firmly believe that by working together, we can harness our collective strength to effect meaningful change and create sustainable solutions for our communities. I believe in the power of business for good. Together we can harness our collective energy and drive to build a better future for generations to come.
Jesse Carmichael is an LA-based non-profit leader, educator and creative director, whose work has included directing professional theater in Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago where she was the Assistant Director at the experimental Redmoon Theater. From 2017 – 2022, she was the Executive Director for Biocitizen Los Angeles, a school of environmental philosophy. Unique to her vision while with Biocitizen, Jesse initiated curricular programs focused on the principles of Wonder + Connection + Stewardship, a pedagogy rooted in biophilia, the love of life and living systems. The mission: To inspire a new generation of earth stewards, one walk at a time. Jesse received a BFA in Theater Direction from Boston University School of Theatre with a minor Archetypal Mythology. She is thrilled to join the board of Red Canary – Their commitment to the work of finding and telling the truth, in story and art form, is what may be our saving grace as humans at this crucial time.
LA Press Club SoCal Journalism Awards
Environmental Reporting — Honorable Mention
Dean Kuipers, “Why You Want A Wolf?”
Website, News Organization Exclusive To The Internet — Honorable Mention
Red Canary Magazine
Anthem Awards
Sustainability, Environment & Climate: News & Journalism — Gold
Red Canary Magazine
LA Press Club SoCal Journalism Awards
Visual Arts/Design/Architecture Feature — Honorable Mention
Steffie Nelson, “The Good Earth”
Webby Awards
Websites and Mobile Sites – Magazine or Publication — Honoree
Red Canary Magazine
Society of Environmental Journalists Awards
Environmental Reporting, Outstanding Feature Story — Honorable Mention
Aaron Gilbreath, “A Fabled Lake Returns, But Can Its People Do The Same?”
LA Press Club SoCal Journalism Awards
Environmental Reporting — First Place
Aaron Gilbreath, “A Fabled Lake Returns, But Can Its People Do The Same?”
News Feature Photo Essay — First Place
Steven Gute, “Commodifying Nature”
Website, News Organization Exclusive To The Internet — Honorable Mention
Red Canary Magazine
Anthem Awards
Sustainability, Environment & Climate News & Journalism — Silver
Red Canary Magazine
Davey Awards
Best Visual Appeal, Magazine Website — Silver
Red Canary Magazine
Creative Communications (C2A) Awards
Best Visual Appeal, Magazine Website — Honorable Mention
Red Canary Magazine
Society of Professional Journalists Delta Chi Awards
Feature Reporting — First Place
Steffie Nelson, “The Art of Reparation”
LA Press Club SoCal Journalism Awards
News Feature Photo Essay — First Place
Ada Trillo, “The Ones Who Stay”
Columnist — First Place
Henry Cherry, “Driving to the End of Night”
Activism Journalism — Honorable Mention
Sam Slovick, “Rise of the American Favela”
Website, News Organization Exclusive To The Internet — Honorable Mention
Red Canary Magazine
LA Press Club SoCal Journalism Awards
Immigration Reporting — First Place
Sam Slovick, “At the Border”
Website, News Organization Exclusive To The Internet — First Place
Red Canary Magazine
“Deep in one of the world’s largest remaining rainforests —16 million acres of remote western Canada — the towering spruce and cedar trees are studded with cameras. The motion-triggered machines capture imagery that researchers with the distant University of Victoria then run through an AI-powered face recognition algorithm to identify individual grizzly bears. Makes keeping track of them much easier.
This kind of tech is everywhere in the modern wilderness. In central Africa, wild elephants are being fitted with Fitbit-like collars that monitor their physical and even emotional health by analyzing their movements. In the Pacific Ocean, orcas equipped with suction-cup cameras unknowingly transmit everything they see and hear, as well as their position and feeding behaviors, to scientists on land.”
⏤ VINCE BEISER
“Where the Things Were Wild: What Happens When Hyper Surveillance Comes to Conservation.” Red Canary Magazine, March 8, 2021