Alejandra Borunda
Alejandra Borunda (she/her) is a reporter on NPR's Climate Desk, where she covers the intersection of climate change and health. She reports on how climate change is affecting people's bodies and minds—and how people can, and are, protecting themselves and others.
Before Borunda joined NPR in 2023, she wrote about climate science and environmental issues for National Geographic, where she reported on glacier retreat in Greenland, shade and heat inequity in Los Angeles, climate change's impact on ice fishing in the Great Lakes, and much more.
She has a PhD in Earth and Environmental Sciences from Columbia University, where she studied how tiny dust particles in the atmosphere affected climate change thousands of years ago. [Copyright 2025 NPR]
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More intense future wildfires, fueled by further climate change, could lead to 70,000 deaths from smoke exposure a year, according to a new study. -
People drink more sugary beverages when it's hot, researchers found, significantly increasing their sugar intake. That impact could grow as climate change raises the world's temperatures. -
Hurricane forecasts are now much more accurate, 20 years on — largely because of federal government research. -
As Canadian wildfires spread smoke across the U.S. the air pollution is dangerous to health. But there are ways to protect yourself. Here's what to know. -
Some medicines affect your ability to sweat, stay hydrated, or even to notice if you're overheating. Doctors say keep taking them, but make sure to keep yourself cool. -
Hotter temperatures make breathing problems during sleep more likely, even when it's not extremely hot -
The House and Senate both voted to loosen regulations on air pollutants like dioxin and mercury, which are associated with higher cancer risk. -
EPA announced plans to reorganize the agency, moving science-focused staff into different roles and reducing the overall number of employees. -
Despite improvements in air quality in past decades, 156 million Americans still breathe in too much soot or ozone, says the annual State of the Air report from the American Lung Association. -
The agency forecasts weather, manages fisheries, and researches the world's oceans, atmosphere, and climate. The proposed budget cuts would slash the climate work entirely.
