An illustration from a children’s book published in 1888.

Out of nowhere, a few days back, Andrew Revkin and Dot Earth came back from who knows where. In our first year or two they were among our most consistent sources of excellent reportage on environmental issues. Then, nothing. Now, something, sneaking into view within the Opinion pages of the New York Times (really, we need their old excellent reporting more than we need opinion, but…):

ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

No Time to Waste: Students Pursue Environmental Progress Instead of Exam Grades

By ANDREW C. REVKIN APRIL 22, 2014, 12:13 PM

This is an Earth Day shout-out to the dozen undergraduate students in the inaugural semester of our new Pace University Environmental Policy Clinic, a year-round course in which student teams, instead of studying for tests, work with nonprofit groups, communities or other partners to pursue achievable environmental goals.

You can learn about the four current initiatives in posts on ePolicy, the new class blog. Here are excerpts and links:

The class has created a communication campaign aimed at passing a law in New York State that would effectively bar traveling circuses that include elephants or other exotic mammals that cannot be trained or housed without abusive practices:

New York Law Could End Elephant Torture In Circuses

By the Circus Animal Team

In 1805, Hachaliah Bailey, a farmer from Somers, New York, acquired an elephant, one of the first elephants to enter the United States. He named her Old Bet, and visitors flocked from all around to see the remarkable animal.

Eventually, a distant relative of Bailey teamed up with New York City showman P.T. Barnum. The modern-day ring-and-whip American circus was born.

Today New Yorkers can play a role in retaining the magic of the circus while keeping exotic animals out of the ring. Two bills have been introduced —Assembly A5407 and Senate S5971 – that would effectively ban traveling circuses that use exotic animals from entering the state….

One team, working with the Westchester Land Trust, is creating a pocket card that provides a simple guide for New Yorkers to desirable and harmful garden plants:

‘Plant, Don’t Plant’: Fighting Environmental Invaders In New York

By the Wildlife And Invasives Team

Some of the worst environmental threats don’t come from a smokestack or a pipeline. Increasingly, New York State’s ecological health is threatened by an array of invasive plants…

Read the whole piece here.