Congratulations to Trent Knoss, ’13, for winning the 2022 Excellence in Institutional Writing Award in the long-form category from the National Association of Science Writers. Trent claims the win alongside Kristan Uhlenbrock, Nicole Delaney, Juliette Luini, Catherine de Medici Jaffe, and Jason Paton, all from the Institute for Science and Policy at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

The team landed their victory for the second episode of Coal at Sunset: A Colorado Town in Transition, a podcast that chronicles how a coal community in Craig, Colorado, is affected by and coping with a transition to cleaner energy sources. NASW judges said that Episode 2, which covers the science and economics of coal, “takes a broad look at the issues and realities of coal and climate change through concrete stories and voices. The first-person account of what it’s like to see coal combusting in the furnace up close — ‘a wall of flame generating so much heat and light that it requires a tinted welding mask to view safely’ — is especially powerful.” Judges also noted that the podcast highlights diverse viewpoints and “does a masterful job explaining the rich history of coal as an energy source, the science of how it works, science policy, and the climate science that’s fueling the change in the state’s energy landscape.”

The Excellence in Institutional Writing Award isn’t the only accolade that Trent has scooped up this year. Trent was also an inaugural recipient of the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Awards for Excellence in Science Communications for his work on Coal at Sunset. Congratulations, Trent!