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Margaret
Cooney

Senior Campaign Manager of Storytelling, Energy and Environment Campaigns

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Energy and Environment Campaigns
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Tackling Climate Change and Environmental Injustice; Climate Change; Conservation

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Margaret Cooney

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Margaret Cooney is the senior campaign manager of storytelling for the Energy and Environment department at American Progress.

Cooney specializes in producing video products for websites and digital platforms that tell the stories of a diverse community of Americans, with a focus on advancing environmental and climate justice and building a more equitable, just, and resilient future for all. Prior to joining American Progress, Cooney worked on ocean conservation policy, sea otter nutrition and golden lion tamarin behavior research, and (reluctantly) assisted in the artificial insemination of a giant panda. In her early career, she was a municipal firefighter.

Cooney holds a master’s degree in sustainable development and conservation biology from the University of Maryland, a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Mary Washington, and an associate’s degree in fire science from Antelope Valley College. Cooney is originally from Northern California.

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Iran War Triggered a Diesel and Fertilizer Crisis for America’s Farmers Video
A farmer fuels a large tractor from a storage tank, with a cornfield in the background.

Iran War Triggered a Diesel and Fertilizer Crisis for America’s Farmers

Fertilizer and diesel prices have spiked to record highs due to the war in Iran, making it difficult for American farmers such as Aaron Lehman to grow their crops and make a living, and consumers are paying more for the food that they eat.

Margaret Cooney, Cody Hankerson, Hai-Lam Phan, 2 More Toni Pandolfo, Gibson Gillett-Behrens

FEMA Was a Lifeline After Hurricane Helene Decimated What Was Once Considered a ‘Climate Haven’ Video

FEMA Was a Lifeline After Hurricane Helene Decimated What Was Once Considered a ‘Climate Haven’

The Center for American Progress' award-winning documentary, "Asheville is Calling: A Climate Change Emergency," centers on Colleen Daly, an Asheville, North Carolina, native and small-business owner who lost her home and nearly lost her business to Hurricane Helene. While the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provided the essential lifeline that got her through the immediate crisis, seven months later, she and her community were still struggling to rebuild.

Margaret Cooney, Hai-Lam Phan, Olivia Mowry

The Trump Administration’s Sweeping Rollbacks of Pollution Protections Endanger the Health and Safety of All Americans Video

The Trump Administration’s Sweeping Rollbacks of Pollution Protections Endanger the Health and Safety of All Americans

Listen to one mom’s story as she talks about how her cancer journey triggered her awareness of harmful pollution and toxic chemicals and how the Trump administration is making children and families less safe by rolling back many safeguards.

Margaret Cooney, Olivia Mowry, Hai-Lam Phan

How Trump’s Cuts to FEMA and NWS Are Leaving Communities Defenseless Against Extreme Weather Disasters Article
A worker in FEMA’s National Response Coordination Center looks at a map of an approaching winter storm.

How Trump’s Cuts to FEMA and NWS Are Leaving Communities Defenseless Against Extreme Weather Disasters

Federal agencies help Americans prepare for, survive, and recover from extreme weather disasters, but the Trump administration’s cuts to the National Weather Service, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and Federal Emergency Management Agency weaken that lifeline at every stage of a storm.

Margaret Cooney, Devon Lespier

Trump’s ‘God Squad’ Is Killing Whales Under the Guise of National Security Article
The sun sets behind an offshore drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico.

Trump’s ‘God Squad’ Is Killing Whales Under the Guise of National Security

Under the pretense of national security, and amid a self-inflicted energy crisis of President Trump’s own making, the administration’s “God Squad” has exempted all Gulf of Mexico oil and gas activities from the Endangered Species Act, risking the extinction of critically endangered species such as the Rice’s whale.

Angelo Villagomez, Margaret Cooney

Los Angeles Wildfire Survivor Is Struggling To Get the Insurance Payouts That She Needs To Return Home Video

Los Angeles Wildfire Survivor Is Struggling To Get the Insurance Payouts That She Needs To Return Home

The home of Rossana Valverde, a storyteller with the organization Extreme Weather Survivors, was left essentially untouched by the flames from last year’s Eaton Fire. But the fire did leave toxic, cancer-causing residue in its wake.

Margaret Cooney, Hai-Lam Phan, Toni Pandolfo

Prioritize Community Needs Over Politics In the News

Prioritize Community Needs Over Politics

In an op-ed published by InsideSources, Margaret Cooney writes about the wildfires in Los Angeles and describes the practical ways local policymakers can better prepare to offset the effects of climate change.

InsideSources

Margaret Cooney

A Day in the Life of Climate Activist Adrian Arellano Video

A Day in the Life of Climate Activist Adrian Arellano

Spend a day with Adrian Arellano, manager for climate initiatives at NextGen America, as he attends New York Climate Week events and talks about the importance of climate action to Latinos, how the Biden-Harris administration climate investments are benefiting the community, and how Project 2025 is a threat to climate action and future generations.

Jessica Ordóñez-Lancet, Margaret Cooney, Hai-Lam Phan, 2 More Adam Reich, Toni Pandolfo

A Holistic Approach to Environmental Justice Video

A Holistic Approach to Environmental Justice

The Friendship House Association of American Indians is using Inflation Reduction Act funds to support the building of Village SF, an inter-Tribal community project that will help the more than 18,000 Indigenous peoples in the San Francisco Bay Area reconnect with nature, their culture, and their community.

Margaret Cooney, Jeremy Hill, Hai-Lam Phan, 2 More Olivia Mowry, Lauren Vicary

Organized Labor Is Uncovering the Truth About Offshore Wind in Rhode Island Video

Organized Labor Is Uncovering the Truth About Offshore Wind in Rhode Island

On the front lines of the clean energy transition, Rhode Island’s offshore wind developments and union workforce are disproving misinformation spread by the fossil fuel industry and showcasing the benefits of federal climate investments for local communities and economies.

Margaret Cooney, Devon Lespier, Hai-Lam Phan, 2 More Adam Reich, Olivia Mowry

Community Conversations Event Series Video

Community Conversations Event Series

The Biden administration’s unprecedented environmental justice investments are transforming despair into optimism and into tangible benefits in communities, including clean air and water, jobs, improved public health, and clean and affordable energy.

Margaret Cooney, Olivia Mowry

‘Clean Up To Green Up’: Building a Clean Energy Workforce and a Brighter Future in Detroit Video

‘Clean Up To Green Up’: Building a Clean Energy Workforce and a Brighter Future in Detroit

The Green Door Initiative is using federal investments from President Joe Biden's Justice40 Initiative and the Inflation Reduction Act to ensure that all people—regardless of race, income, or ZIP code—have access to good jobs and live in safe and healthy communities.

Margaret Cooney, Hannah Malus, Cathleen Kelly, 5 More Matthew Gossage, Toni Pandolfo, Jeremy Hill, Andrew Sonntag, Hai-Lam Phan

Securing Clean Air, Clean Water, and a Healthy Environment for All Video

Securing Clean Air, Clean Water, and a Healthy Environment for All

Industrial facilities are most often located in or near Black, brown, and low-income communities who face the brunt of harmful industrial pollution, climate change impacts, and other environmental and public health hazards—something Harold Mitchell experienced firsthand in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Fortunately, the Biden administration’s long-overdue environmental justice investments can ensure that all people—regardless of race, income, or ZIP code—have clean air and clean water and live in safe and healthy communities.

Devon Lespier, Margaret Cooney, Hannah Malus, 6 More Cathleen Kelly, Hai-Lam Phan, Matthew Gossage, Jeremy Hill, Andrew Sonntag, Toni Pandolfo

Facing the Fire: Phoenix Airport Workers Demand Protections Against Extreme Heat Video

Facing the Fire: Phoenix Airport Workers Demand Protections Against Extreme Heat

Amid record-breaking temperatures, Phoenix airport service workers filed an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) complaint against their employer and are demanding action to improve job conditions and safety measures.

Hannah Malus, Margaret Cooney, Devon Lespier, 4 More Toni Pandolfo, Hai-Lam Phan, Madalyn Reagan, Jeremy Hill

A Day in the Life of a Conservation Advocate Video

A Day in the Life of a Conservation Advocate

Follow Tina Sablan, former representative of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, as she goes to Washington, D.C., to advocate for a management plan for the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument—and for the inclusion of the Indigenous people of the Mariana Islands in the conservation of their lands and water.

Margaret Cooney, Angelo Villagomez, Toni Pandolfo, 2 More Ala Al Sadi, Hai-Lam Phan

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