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On June 6, 2025, Laura Jones goes through boxes of Easy Touch syringes to be distributed by Milan Puskar Health Right in Morgantown, W.Va., which operates one of only three syringe exchange programs in West Virginia. Photo by Ty McClung/West Virginia University

‘Not in the Political Appetite’: Despite Decades of Research, W.Va. Counties are not Spending Their Opioid Settlement Millions on Harm Reduction 

By Ty McClung / July 1, 2025

On a warm summer day in late May, about 100 […]

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100 Days in Appalachia Coverage of Tucker County Power Plant Wins Report for America Award

By 100 Days in Appalachia / June 3, 2025

Reporter Laura Harbert Allen’s coverage of the debate surrounding a […]

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In Push to ‘Make Appalachia Healthy Again,’ Some Big Barriers to Health Go Ignored

By Taylor Sisk / May 16, 2025

West Virginia consistently ranks at or near the bottom among states for health outcomes. But despite a new focus on health, officials aren’t addressing the everyday barriers to healthy living.

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Big Tech Comes to Tucker County, WV

By Laura Harbert Allen / April 25, 2025

Local officials say a new power plant proposal is clearly meant to support data centers. And these promises of economic development are all too familiar in a region where extractive industries have come at a significant cost to people, communities and a healthy environment.

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Fasnacht in Helvetia, West Virginia

By P. Nick Curran & Griffin McMorrow / April 18, 2025

After 58 years, Helvetia’s Fasnacht celebration continues to stand as a testament to the Swiss roots of its earliest participants, while also becoming part of a uniquely Appalachian tradition.

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‘Hell or High Water’: Southern W.Va. Three Weeks After the Flood

By P. Nick Curran & Griffin McMorrow / April 3, 2025

On February 15, 2025, a catastrophic flood ravaged McDowell County, […]

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In North Carolina, Helene’s Destruction Underscores the Value of Homegrown Rural Health Care

By Taylor Sisk / March 20, 2025

In a region where many suffer from chronic conditions that require long-term medical care, cultural awareness can help provide a a firm foundation for doctor-patient relationships. 

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Mid-Ohio Valley Group Blends Religion, Politics to Affect Policy in Ohio and West Virginia

By Laura Harbert Allen, Keri Johnson and Dani Kington / February 28, 2025

Quietly, over the past 15 years, small group Bible-study-style gatherings near Parkersburg, W.Va. have formed the foundation for a movement that punches above its weight in terms of political influence. 

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Reclaiming and Revitalizing Resources in West Virginia’s Southern Coalfields

By Laura Harbert Allen and Taylor Sisk / February 6, 2025

The demand for clean water in McDowell County is but one element of a groundswell of community-based activism to reclaim and revitalize resources. 

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