Elizabeth Hewitt

Elizabeth Hewitt is a freelance journalist based in the Netherlands. She's interested in how policy-making impacts lives, and likes to write about local solutions to big problems.

Breaking Down Barriers for Travelers With Disabilities

5 min read

From specialized excursions to accessible trails, travel experiences are increasingly geared toward meeting a broader range of needs.

No Matter Who Wins, Health Will Keep Improving on Common Ground

4 min read

Positive developments in health are unfolding all around us, from the staying power of telemedicine to life-saving naloxone access.

Living Well With Diabetes — With Help From a Peer

6 min read

So much of managing diabetes takes place outside the doctor’s office. That’s where peer coaches — who can give advice based on experience — step in.

The Hospitals That Send Patients Home With Nutritious Food

6 min read

Our diet impacts our health, as both health care and anti-hunger organizations have long understood. Now, they’re beginning to collaborate.

Seeds of Hope for Farmers’ Mental Health

9 min read

As awareness of rural mental health issues grows, so too does a mosaic of efforts to help: teletherapy, hotlines, “resiliency circles” and more.

When the Doctor Prescribes a Warmer Home

7 min read

Helping vulnerable people to live in comfortable temperatures through the cold winter months can help them stay in better health, too.

Drones Are Whizzing Lifesaving Supplies Across the ‘Last Mile’

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In hard-to-reach areas, the fast-moving tech is streamlining emergency deliveries, from blood for transfusions to snakebite antivenom.

How Women Are Helping Their Neighbors Heal From Depression

5 min read

In places with few mental health professionals, volunteer-led group therapy sends positive ripples through families and communities.

‘Composting Our Emotions’: How Climate Action Cultivates Well-Being

10 min read

As News Deserts Expand, Student Journalists Step Up

6 min read

From student-staffed statehouse bureaus to papers run by journalism schools, academic-media partnerships are bolstering local coverage.

How Farmers Are Preparing for a Saltier Future

3 min read

As salinity affects more cultivated land due to climate change, researchers and growers are turning to salt-tolerant crops.

A Ranch, Rewilded: The Transformation of California’s Next State Park

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Floodplain restoration is one key way to make the Central Valley more resilient as climate change intensifies both flooding and drought.

An Overdose Antidote Goes Viral

3 min read

Naloxone, the pocket-sized drug that can save the life of someone overdosing on opioids, is within arm’s reach in bars, libraries and vending machines.

A Tradition That Keeps Christmas Trees Alive

4 min read

When a family rents a tree in a pot, they can welcome the same live evergreen into their home year after year — no chopping required.

How Tiny Wetlands in the Midwest Are Combating the Gulf of Mexico’s ‘Dead Zone’

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Small, constructed wetlands on farms keep excess nutrients out of waterways — and the impacts can go a long way.

A ‘Tape Recorder for the Planet’: What Natural History Museums Bring to the Climate Fight

6 min read

Behind the scenes, their vast collections can help us better understand the past, present and future of our planet.

For Indigenous Peoples With Deep Ties to the Land, Climate Change Is Personal

9 min read

“Indigenous worldviews look at the land as an extension of the self, so can you argue that land is body?”

How Farmers Used California’s Floods to Revive Underground Aquifers

2 min read

Farms designed to recharge groundwater are answering the state’s existential question: How do you make sure devastating rainfall doesn’t go to waste?

To Restore Watersheds, Think Like a Beaver

6 min read

People are building beaver-inspired obstructions along waterways to make the surrounding landscape messier and more complex. That’s a good thing.

Fortified with Coconuts, ‘Living’ Shorelines Are Stopping Coastal Erosion

6 min read

From New Jersey to Texas, a nature-nurturing alternative to concrete sea walls is protecting America’s coastline.

The Flashlight-Wielding, Frog-Taxiing Guardians of Spring’s ‘Big Night’

6 min read

Once a year, as amphibians scramble across America’s roads to spawn, a devoted army of volunteers emerges to shepherd them pond-ward unscathed.

Is There Anything ‘Solar Meadows’ Can’t Do?

4 min read

Nourishing pollinators. Recharging groundwater. Preventing erosion. Sequestering carbon. Solar farms, once devoid of life, have become ecological superheroes.

Museums Are Improving Life for People With Dementia

6 min read

Custom-designed museum programs are alleviating depression, fostering connection and even lowering cortisol levels in people with dementia.

The Wollemi Pine’s Survival Proves We Can Save More Trees

5 min read

Decades ago, there were only 48 mature Wollemi pines left in the world. Then home gardeners stepped in.

By Adding Timber to Old Buildings, Stockholm Is Expanding Sustainably

5 min read

Architects are using lightweight wood to add on to existing buildings, preserving what’s already there and preventing wasteful demolitions.

How a Country Embraced the River It Feared

7 min read

After years of fighting floods on the Waal River, the Netherlands decided to let the water in — and turn a looming threat into a natural asset.

The Nature Lover’s App That Became a Catalog of Earth’s Biodiversity

5 min read

In the millions of posts on iNaturalist, users are unearthing new species, tracking invasive insects and making incredible discoveries. Scientists are taking note.

In Holland People With Dementia Can Work on a Farm

6 min read

On Dutch ‘care farms’ aging folks tend to livestock, harvest vegetables and make their own decisions.

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