Weekly newsletter: January 14, 2026

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2025 Wrapped: A year of impact at the

Ag & Water Desk

Hi ,

As we close out 2025, we're reflecting on an extraordinary year of collaborative journalism across the Mississippi River Basin. From groundbreaking projects to fun field experiences, our team of reporters has produced work that unpacks the agriculture and water issues shaping this region.

We celebrated this with the team last week on our final staff call of the year. This week in the newsletter, we explore some of the highlights: our most popular stories, landmark projects and team achievements. 

Desk Achievements

This year saw significant milestones for the Ag & Water Desk.

• More Basin journalism: We've published 207 in-depth, collaborative stories to date and morethan 2,200 local stories since the project began.
• Collaboration of the Year award: LION Publishers honored us with "Collaboration of the Year" in September. The judges noted, "the Ag & Water Desk collab is so impressive because it shows how a well-designed network can amplify the strengths of many small newsrooms while solving problems none could tackle alone."
• "Down the Drain" wetlands series: Our biggest collaborative reporting project yet featured eight primary stories, an interactive map and data visualization, a travel guide, and our first-ever photo contest. 
• SEJ conference: Desk staffers led multiple sessions in Phoenix, Arizona, at the Society of Environmental Journalists annual conference, sharing expertise and learning from our peers so we can better serve the Basin.

Our Best and Favorite Stories

Most Republished Desk Stories of 2025

• An alternative to the USDA Organic label could be more accessible for farmers. Can it stick with consumers? by Harshawn Ratanpal, KBIA - Certified Naturally Grown offers farmers a cheaper and less time-consuming option to communicate how they produce their food. But terms like "natural" on food labels can be confusing for consumers.
• Bogs sink carbon dioxide 'like no ecosystem on Earth,' but many are at risk of being drained by Jess Savage, WNIJ Northern Public Radio - Peat bogs sequester a massive amount of the Earth's carbon dioxide. But even as scientists work to better understand bogs' sequestration, the wetlands are under threat. 
• Uncertainty about federal disaster aid looms as storms roll in by Cassandra Stephenson, Tennessee Lookout; Phillip Powell, Arkansas Times; Lucas Dufalla, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and Illan Ireland, Mississippi Free Press - This article showed how multiple states bordering the Mississippi River had to wait for federal disaster aid decisions following severe weather.

Our Team's Favorite Stories:

• "Down the Drain" wetlands series - Yes, we're highlighting this twice, because it was a huge undertaking, and many team members mentioned this as a personal favorite. The series combined visuals with reporting from multiple states, examining wetlands loss, policy changes and the challenges of restoration. One team member noted that it "showcases what makes the Desk so special—the breadth and variety of the reporting and the many interstate collaborations resulted in a collection of stories that few other news organizations could replicate."
• Soybeans coverage by Cassandra Stephenson, Tennessee Lookout; Mónica Cordero, Investigate Midwest and Gabrielle Nelson, Buffalo's Fire, plus Mónica's Latin American ports story - This package of stories is an excellent example of collaborative, data-driven journalism. The first explains that soybeans have long been a top U.S. export, but what happens when sales dry up? The second examines how China's infrastructure investments in Latin America could permanently reshape options for U.S. producers.
• Estefanía Pinto Ruiz's Mental Health and Agriculture Reporting - Estefanía at KWQC TV6 has done an excellent job this year tackling some difficult topics. Her piece on farmers facing increased mental health challenges is personal and impactful.  She shares: "After covering farming for a year and a half, I've come to understand the very important work that farmers do and how much they struggle every day to feed us. I am happy that the Desk helped me to put this piece together so farmers can get the help and recognition they deserve." Her work on glyphosate health issues in farmers is important too.
• Bennet Goldstein's beaver series - Bennet's Wisconsin Watch series on beavers, wetland restoration, and coexistence is a crowd favorite. The series included stories on mock beaver dams, learning to coexist with beavers, and the team's quest to photograph beavers in the wild. 

Desk reporter Bennet Goldstein of Wisconsin Watch prepares for his beaver expedition by testing a camouflage suit. Though effective visually, it ended up being too loud for the task. Credit: Coburn Dukehart/CatchLight

Reporter Achievements and Memorable Moments

Beyond the bylines, 2025 brought unforgettable experiences.

Field Reporting Adventures:

• At the start of the year, Desk reporters gathered to tour Louisiana's Atchafalaya Basin for the wetlands project. Illan Ireland of the Mississippi Free Press said, "It's definitely among the most spectacular places I've visited in the South, even in winter!"
• Madeline Heim of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel explored the frozen Mississippi River for a story on our changing climate. "It was a blast to be able to stand on the river," she recalled.
• Olivia Cohen of The Gazette visited Iowa monks to learn about sustainable casket crafting and forest management.
• Elise Plunk of Louisiana Illuminator rode a four-wheeler with researchers while reporting on red wolf-coyote hybrids.
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Desk reporter Madeline Heim stands on the frozen Mississippi. Credit: Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Professional Development Wins:

• Multiple team members attended professional conferences and training sessions supported by Desk grants, including the National Association of Science Writers and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
• Illan Ireland had his first-ever audio story picked up by Marketplace.
• Many reporters won local journalism awards for their work, both with the Desk and individually.
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Support the Ag & Water Desk

We're almost to the end of our year-end fundraising campaign here at the Ag & Water Desk. In-depth reporting on agriculture and environmental issues is out of reach for many outlets, but the Desk helps to support sophisticated storytelling and share it with rural communities most impacted by these global machinations.

We're nearing our goal, but we're not there yet. Will you help support our mission? Through the end of the year, donations will be doubled by our partners at NewsMatch, but time is running out. 

Looking Ahead to 2026

Suffice to say, it's been a huge year for the Desk. Just in the last few weeks, we welcomed our new editorial director Chas Sisk, and we're preparing to welcome a new cohort of host newsrooms soon. As I write this, I am reminded of the adage: "A man cannot step into the same river twice, because it is not the same river, and he is not the same man." 

Our team will look different in 2026, and the Mississippi River keeps rolling down to the Gulf. We're glad to have shared 2025 with everyone here at the Desk. We're also grateful for your ongoing readership and support. We've got big things ahead. Here's to another year telling stories that matter across the Mississippi River Basin.

Thank you for reading, and happy New Year from the entire Ag & Water Desk team. More next week from across the Basin.

The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk is an independent reporting network based at the University of Missouri in partnership with Report for America, with major funding from the Walton Family Foundation. Click here for a map of the basin and our partner newsrooms.

Reach us at info@agwaterdesk.org or by replying to this email.