Reporter Rose Schnabel Won Environmental Journalism Award
The award recognizes Schnabel's dedicated coverage of environmental issues across North Central Florida.
Updated on Oct. 2, 2026 in Environmental
Report for America Corps Member Rose Schnabel has been honored with the 2026 Waldo Proffitt Award for Outstanding Environmental Journalism. The award recognizes her body of work covering environmental challenges throughout the state of Florida.
Why it matters
This award highlights journalism that improves public understanding of environmental issues. It specifically honors reporting that documents rural inequities and ecological concerns in North Central Florida.
The selection committee evaluated a body of reporting focused on rural environmental coverage. Judges specifically analyzed investigative pieces regarding timber sector impacts, threatened native plants, and landfill odor complaints.
The players
Rose Schnabel
She is a Report for America Corps Member who focuses on environmental issues.
Zimmerman School of Advertising and Mass Communications
This department at the University of South Florida administers the environmental journalism award.
Miami Herald
The newspaper received the same award for its series Built on Sand.
The details
Administered by the Zimmerman School of Advertising and Mass Communications at the University of South Florida, the honor recognizes excellence in environmental reporting. Schnabel's work stood out to judges for its focus on documenting systemic environmental inequities in North Central Florida.
Timeline
Rose Schnabel won the Waldo Proffitt Award in 2026.
The Zimmerman School hosts the award presentation on Oct. 20, 2026.
The Big Picture
This award serves as an extension of the mission held by the Zimmerman School of Advertising and Mass Communications. It validates the essential role that local media plays in documenting regional environmental health.
Quality environmental reporting helps residents understand how local toll roads, timber industries, and landfills affect their daily surroundings. This type of journalism often uncovers public health concerns that might otherwise go unnoticed in rural regions.
The takeaway
Recognizing local environmental reporting encourages a higher standard of investigative work in under-covered regions. Readers can implement this by seeking out local news outlets that prioritize in-depth investigations into their community's ecological health.
What happens next
The Zimmerman School will hold an award presentation for the winners on Oct. 20, 2026.
Further reading
For more news on regional ecology and conservation, visit Florida Environmental.
Source note: This article includes information reported by WUFT | News and public media for north central Florida.
