The Bangor Daily News has hired an environment reporter, Mehr Sher, who is joining the newspaper as part of a partnership with Report for America. Sher will be writing about a range of topics touching on water, waste, pollution, air, energy, forests and climate.
Sher grew up in North Carolina, spent six years reporting in Pakistan and then completed her master’s degree at Columbia Journalism School in New York, with honors in investigative journalism. She speaks five languages.
Sher has reported on the female education ban in Taliban-governed Afghanistan, the femicide crisis in Turkey and hate crimes in Indiana. She also co-founded a film production company to report on terrorist attack survivors, the plight of child laborers and street children, and child sexual abuse cases in Pakistan.
Report for America is a national service program that places talented, emerging journalists in
local newsrooms to report on under-covered topics and communities. In addition to paying up to half of the journalists’ salaries, it provides ongoing training and mentorship by leading journalists, in addition to other support. It is an initiative of The GroundTruth Project, a nonprofit media organization.
Sher is one of 300 Report for America corps members serving in 200 newsrooms across the country. This new beat is made possible through a partnership with lead Maine sponsor, Unity Foundation. The foundation’s grant is matched for the first year by Report for America and Bangor Daily News readers.
What questions do you want to see answered about environment-related issues? Mehr Sher may be reached at [email protected].
