Mountain Journal and Montana Free Press in collaboration with Grist and High Country News are pleased to announce the hires of journalists Ellis Juhlin and Nick Mott to join the MoJo newsroom. The roles are in partnership with Report for America, of which Mott and Juhlin will be two of 78 new corps members placed in local newsrooms across the country.
Juhlin, who comes from a digital and radio background, will cover how climate change is impacting the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and beyond, from worsening extreme weather to shifting energy systems and economies.
Mott will cover accelerating environmental issues from Greater Yellowstone including associated public lands, wildlife, water and rural community impacts.
The two journalists will be employees of Mountain Journal and Montana Free Press, with the newsrooms and Report for America splitting salary costs as part of the new collaboration.
Juhlin comes to MoJo from Montana Public Radio, where she worked as the environment and climate reporter covering wildlife, natural resources, climate change and agriculture stories. She previously worked at Utah Public Radio and Yellowstone Public Radio, and in wildlife conservation before becoming a journalist. She has a master’s degree in ecology from Utah State University.
“Ellis brings passionate curiosity, knowledge and energy to the Mountain Journal/Montana Free Press newsroom, and we’re thrilled to welcome her reporting to the team,” said MoJo Managing Editor Joseph T. O’Connor. “We’re grateful for the Grist and Report for America collaboration and look forward to working together to bring some of the best climate reporting in the country to our publications.”
Mott comes to Mountain Journal as a longtime freelance journalist in the Livingston, Montana, area. He’s the host and creator of the podcast The Wide Open and author of the 2023 book, This Is Wildfire: How To Protect Yourself, Your Home, and Your Community in the Age of Heat. He’s written for both High Country News and Mountain Journal in the recent past, alongside many other outlets.
“Nick is an accomplished journalist with a boots-on-the-ground reporting approach that will build confidence with readers and sources across Greater Yellowstone and beyond,” O’Connor said. “We work together well, and his experience collaborating with High Country News will make this a seamless and strong relationship as he comes aboard alongside Climate Reporter Juhlin Ellis, our other Report for America/Grist corps member.”
Juhlin’s hire marks the continued expansion of Grist’s Local News Initiative, which aims to bolster coverage of climate change in communities across the United States through partnerships with local newsrooms. Grist also has reporters embedded with WABE in Georgia, IPR in Michigan, WBEZ in Illinois, BPR in North Carolina, Verite News in Louisiana, The Salt Lake Tribune in Utah, and Flatwater Free Press in Nebraska.
“Ellis cares deeply about the issues she reports on, and the communities she reports for,” said Katherine Bagley, Grist’s editor-in-chief. “We’re thrilled to have her joining this partnership. Montanans deserve quality, sustained climate journalism that helps to make sense of the changes they’re experiencing firsthand. Ellis delivers that perfectly.”
Mott is one of the first hires in High Country News’ Western Environmental Reporting Collaborative, which creates a West-wide corps of environmental reporters working in local newsrooms alongside the magazine. Alongside Mountain Journal, HCN will have reporters embedded in three additional newsrooms for the inaugural year, including Arizona Luminaria, Ouray County Plaindealer and Wyoming Public Media.
“Nick is an excellent reporter with a deep understanding for the people and community he’s reporting on,” said Gretchen King, executive editor of High Country News. “We are excited to work with him and help Montanans get the information they need to act on behalf of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.”