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With a career that spans 20 years, I’ve covered numerous stories and topics. I’ve measured wheat crops in Kansas fields, hunted mushrooms in Asheville, elbowed my way on futures exchanges’ trading floors, learned about the science and economics behind renewable energy and a host of other subjects. Below is a sample of recent and featured work published in U.S. and international magazines, newspapers, newswires and websites.

2021-11-18T17:25:49-05:00
Opinion: Lithium is at the heart of the electric-vehicle revolution — here’s how the market for the raw material works

Opinion: Lithium is at the heart of the electric-vehicle revolution — here’s how the market for the raw material works

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Tesla drew attention to the raw materials needed to make electric-vehicle batteries when it signed a sales agreement with Piedmont Lithium to secure about a third of the startup’s production for up to 10 years, even though its mine isn’t operational yet.
MarketWatch.com

2021-11-18T17:22:43-05:00
greenwashing
How can I tell if this ESG fund digs deep on sustainability or is just greenwashing?

How can I tell if this ESG fund digs deep on sustainability or is just greenwashing?

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Sustainable investing is hot, and when Wall Street sees a trend, it wants a piece of the action. How hot? In 2020, US SIF Foundation, which measures this type of investing, said 33% of U.S. assets under professional management use environmental, social and governance criteria when investing.
MarketWatch.com

2020-06-09T09:45:16-04:00
India travels
India’s traveling, middle-class giant awakens

India’s traveling, middle-class giant awakens

As recently as 10 years ago, most hotel chains were only in India’s biggest cities, charging higher prices compared to surrounding countries. In smaller cities, independent hotels were often travelers’ only choice, says Manav Thadani, founder and chairman of consultancy Hotelivate. “There has been a shift in the thought process about traveling,” he says.
HotelsMag.com

2021-11-18T17:48:26-05:00
Italiante Update

Italiante Update

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“The eye of the owner is very important”: It’s a translated Italian saying that Sir Rocco Forte refers to when discussing what sets London-based Rocco Forte Hotels apart from other luxury brands. The London-based hotel company is focusing on growth, with about a dozen properties open and a few more teed up, including hotels in Sicily and Shanghai.
HotelsMag.com

2020-06-08T12:57:31-04:00
Getting Ready to Retire? Here’s a Planning Guide

Getting Ready to Retire? Here’s a Planning Guide

The five years before officially quitting fulltime employment is the time to finalize your plan for the next stage in life. But knowing
what to do, as well as when to do it to maximize any benefit or correct any problem, can be overwhelming for seasoned savers, let alone those who’ve been spotty in their planning. Here’s a checklist to get going.
Barron’s

2020-06-04T07:35:38-04:00
As Plastic Risk Rises, New Materials in Development to Reduce Exposure

As Plastic Risk Rises, New Materials in Development to Reduce Exposure

Environmentalists have long known about the damage caused by plastic pollution but the increasing threat of toxicity from plastics entering our food chain to be eaten by humans, as well as viral images of large, state-sized plastic gyres in our oceans full of debris, beached whales with tons of plastic in their stomachs and turtles with plastic straws in their noses has increased urgency to find alternatives to single-use plastic packaging.
AI-CIO.COM

2018-07-23T17:12:07-04:00
Gardening Getty Images
Pro tips: How to have a fabulous garden and save money

Pro tips: How to have a fabulous garden and save money

It’s easy to drop serious cash in a garden supply shop, falling in love with an exotic yucca plant or picking up a bunch of bargain tools. But when that sun-loving yucca dies in your shady, wet-soil backyard, or that plastic handled spade breaks the first time you use it, you’ve wasted money, and you’re frustrated. To help you avoid wasting money, garden experts shared common mistakes they see new gardeners make.
ChicagoTribune.com

2018-07-23T11:14:10-04:00
Investment Advisor Getty Images
4 Signs You’ve Outgrown Your Investment Advisor

4 Signs You’ve Outgrown Your Investment Advisor

A relationship with a financial advisor is very personal– after all, your advisor knows a lot about you. But there comes a time when you might be ready to work with someone else as your circumstances evolve. It may be hard to see those signs initially, and because of the personal relationship with the advisor, you may put it off switching as long as possible.

Money.USNews.com

2018-07-23T10:13:04-04:00
Mad Gasser photo
The Mattoon Mad Gasser Looking Back at a Textbook Case of Mass Hysteria

The Mattoon Mad Gasser Looking Back at a Textbook Case of Mass Hysteria

Aline Kearney was uneasy when she went to bed late on Sept. 1, 1944, in the small east-central Illinois town of Mattoon. Kearney’s sister, Martha, helped her count money from a check that Kearney cashed earlier – but Kearney had left open the windows and curtains on her one-story house, providing a view of their activity for anyone on the street.
Belt Magazine

2018-07-25T15:39:49-04:00
Finding Your Own Food on the Road

Finding Your Own Food on the Road

A group of 10 hikers stepped just inside the forest trail path, with graceful oak and hickory trees towering overhead. Shorter trees, such as sassafras and sourwood, filled in the landscape, as did smaller plants and shrubs, while fallen trees and leaves provided a carpet. Mushrooms peeked out.
ChicagoTribune.com

2018-07-23T09:53:43-04:00
whiskey photo for liquid gold
Liquid Gold

Liquid Gold

Not as well-known a collectible as wine, auction prices for high-quality, rare whiskeys are up sharply from as recently as 10 years ago.
Wealth Management Magazine