Phil McKenna is a freelance writer interested in the convergence of fascinating individuals and intriguing ideas. He primarily writes about energy and the environment with a focus on the individuals behind the news. His work can be found in the New York Times, Smithsonian, WIRED, Audubon, New Scientist, Technology Review, MATTER and NOVA.

Phil recently published Uprising, an eBook on the climate change implications of natural gas emissions from aging pipelines under US cities. Uprising has been called “the essence of crucial science reporting” by environmental writer and activist Bill McKibben and recently won a AAAS Kavli Science Journalism Award.

He holds  a master's degree in science writing from MIT and was an environmental journalism fellow at Middlebury College. In a previous life he had promising careers as a field biologist, English teacher, bike messenger, and sanitation engineer.