Written by Abby Hassler
Abby Hassler
Abby is a digital storyteller who grew up in East Tennessee and joined the communications team in December 2024. Before coming to Appalachian Voices, she spent ten years in strategic communications, academia and journalism. Recent roles include the Director of Creative Strategy of a strategic communications firm focused on clean energy, clean tech and economic development, and Executive Producer of a podcast about clean energy news in Tennessee.
Community advocates celebrate legislation to ensure coal mine cleanup
Advocates from across coal communities celebrated the introduction of three bills today to address the root causes of the “zombie mine” crisis — the increasing number of non-producing, unreclaimed modern-era coal mines.
English Language Learning in Appalachia
Learning English is always difficult. But current aggressive approaches to immigration policy are creating more barriers for learners and the programs that serve them than ever before in Appalachia and beyond.
Chaos at the Tennessee Valley Authority, Cuts to Public Input
The past year has brought turmoil and uncertainty to the Tennessee Valley Authority, the nation’s largest public power provider, and its more than 10 million customers across the Tennessee Valley.
Landmark Coal Ash Protections Under Attack
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is planning to eviscerate important, hard-won regulations on coal ash, a toxic waste left after burning coal for energy.
Building Community Resilience Hubs in Appalachia
Many community resilience hub projects are underway around the region. Here are just a few in North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
Ready for the Next Big Storm? A Practical Guide to Household Preparedness
Follow these simple tips to make your home safer and more resilient in the face of natural disasters or emergencies.
‘The Speed of These Processes is Not Survivable’
A year and a half after Hurricane Helene, many survivors are still struggling to secure stable housing because of delayed federal funding, financial challenges and bureaucratic red tape.
The Beast of Bristol Saga Continues
The Beast of Bristol is back. Or rather, the landfill’s impact and its intense odors, which have grown less frequent but never fully dissipated for some residents, have been recognized in a new federal public health agency report.
What’s next for TVA?
After months of turmoil on its board of directors, TVA’s newly sworn-in board immediately voted to keep its coal plants in operation, eliminate goals around renewable energy and equity, inclusion and diversity, and approve additional power for Elon Musk-affiliated data centers in Memphis.
Home on the Range … in Appalachia?
In Letcher County, Kentucky, the Appalachian Rekindling Project, an Indigenous, women-led organization, is seeking to reintroduce bison to the region on 63 acres of a reclaimed mountaintop removal coal mine.
