I am an award-winning freelance investigative journalist based in Washington state. My work focuses on the confluence between environment and humanity, and more precisely, on climate and environmental justice. I primarily focus on the cultural, economic, and political intersections of complex and controversial environmental issues, always with an eye toward historical context. My recent investigative stories regarding alleged water contamination and human rights abuses at a detention center in Tacoma, Washington were published by The Margin. Previous reporting on the detention center was co-published by The Margin and The Nation. Together, these stories were finalists for the Institute for Nonprofit News‘ Best 2026 Investigative Journalism award. I was interviewed on The Mark Thompson Show regarding this reporting, as well as other podcast and radio outlets.
My recent reporting on the Skagit River–highlighting the impact of my previous award-winning reporting–was published by The Margin. Notably, my long form investigation, “A River of Deception,” was co-published by The Margin and The Nation. This story won the Institute of Nonprofit News‘ 2025 Best Investigative Journalism Award. One judge called my story “gold-standard investigative journalism.” The same story won second place in the 2026 Society of Environmental Journalists’ Kevin Carmody Award for Outstanding Investigative Journalism. Judges said of the reporting: “This is an exceptional year-long investigation into how Seattle City Light systematically violated the treaty rights of the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe for over a century. By combining extensive archival research and open-records requests with deeply personal interviews from Tribal leaders, scientists and legal experts, the reporting successfully overturned a long-standing false narrative that natural barriers, rather than dams, prevented fish migration. The investigation is honored not only for its clarity in explaining complex legal and historical issues but also for its significant real-world impact — directly influencing dam license negotiations and contributing to the decision to grant only a temporary one-year operating license rather than a long-term renewal. This work stands as a vital piece of accountability journalism that centers the rights and ancestral lands of the Upper Skagit Tribe while forcing a correction of the historical record.”
A story on the Confederated Tribes of the Colville appears in BioGraphic and YES!. Previous publications on environmental and environmental justice issues appear in High Country News, The Margin, Audubon Magazine, The Boulder Weekly, DeSmog Blog, The Guardian, and High Country News. My stories have been re-published by numerous publications in the United States and abroad.
I offer Investigative Journalism Advising as well. Please connect with me to inquire about this service.
TIPLINE: If you have any tips or would like to connect with me on the subjects of my reporting, please contact me via the connect page form or to my end-to-end encrypted email: ricomoorejournalism [at] protonmail.com. I also use Signal which I’ll be happy to connect with you on after we connect via email or the contact form.
Rico Moore 