https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/about daily 1.0 2025-06-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/f590aaa7-796d-4f4a-9e3e-b1c53c07071d/DSCF2165.jpg About I’m an award-winning reporter and producer based in the Bay Area. My work has been published by the New York Times, Reveal, NPR, Mother Jones, Snap Judgment and other outlets. Right now, I’m a staff reporter at the Food and Environment Reporting Network (FERN), where I cover labor rights and climate equity in both audio and print. My work has won statewide and national recognition (most recently a 2025 James Beard Award), and my investigation into human trafficking in the US sheep industry was a 2024 National Magazine Award finalist. I am also the “voice” of FERN’s audio division, including our new show, Buzzkill. Previously, I was a senior producer at World Affairs, a global politics show co-produced by World Affairs with KQED, and a reporter at KALW, where I covered public health and climate equity in the Bay Area’s immigrant communities. I cut my teeth as a reporter and part-time host at KYUK, where I covered public safety and climate change in Western Alaska’s indigenous communities. My work there won seven statewide journalism awards, including Best Investigative Reporting in 2018. Before I became a journalist, I sold eye patches in San Francisco and taught sex ed in Namibia. In a past life, I wrote children’s stories for American Girl. Send me news tips via Signal ([at] tmcotsirilos [dot] 26) or protonmail (tmcotsirilos [at] proton [dot] me) https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works daily 0.75 2025-06-27 https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/when-fires-burn-though-neighborhoods-some-immigrants-workers-become-first-responders monthly 0.5 2020-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/1605512340563-BR77OV9ZQOJRUUQA6N47/cotsirilos_wildfire_cleanup_image.jpg Selected Works - When Fires Burn Though Neighborhoods, Some Immigrants Workers Become First Responders - When Fires Burn Though Neighborhoods, Some Immigrants Workers Become First Responders KALW “When the Woolsey Fire started in 2018, Eladio Osorio was sitting outside the Malibu Labor Exchange in a strip mall by the beach, trying to drum up work.” Reporting for this story was supported by the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism's 2019 National Fellowship and the Dennis A. Hunt Fund for Health Journalism. https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/domestic-workers-learn-from-past-disasters-in-new-labor-rights-fight monthly 0.5 2020-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/1605500729355-KUECNVTAJJWP8EDAMM2U/cotsirilos_c19_domestic_workers_image.jpg Selected Works - Domestic Workers Learn From Past Disasters In New Labor Rights Fight - Domestic Workers Learn From Past Disasters In New Labor Rights Fight KALW “When the Tubbs Fire burned through Santa Rosa in 2017, Socorro Diaz started losing work. She cleans houses for a living, and when several of her employers' homes burned to the ground, she didn't know how she was going to pay her rent. So she picked up jobs where she could.” This story was supported by the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism's 2019 National Fellowship and the Dennis A. Hunt Fund for Health Journalism. https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/when-local-governments-fail-to-resettle-refugees-citizens-open-their-doors monthly 0.5 2020-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/1605499658321-BZ8CRAY94YI9XPAXNQT0/cotsirilos_venezuelan_refugees_pic1.jpg Selected Works - When Local Governments Fail to Resettle Refugees, Citizens Open Their Doors - When Local Governments Fail to Resettle Refugees, Citizens Open Their Doors The World “‘This is where the littlest children sleep,’ Duque says, gesturing to a cozy room crammed with bunk beds, “the babies and their mothers.” Mothers with slightly older children file into another room lined with Disney blankets and padded floor mats.” Reporting for this story was supported by the International Women’s Media Foundation as part of its Adelante Latin American Reporting Initiative. https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/an-unlikely-suspect-on-the-trail-of-a-california-serial-arsonist monthly 0.5 2020-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/1605499174014-8DKL6UXP6B2FKIPU5RLV/RS34288_window-qut-1020x680.jpg Selected Works - An Unlikely Suspect: On The Trail of a California Serial Arsonist - An Unlikely Suspect: On The Trail of a California Serial Arsonist The California Report Magazine In the early hours of Sept. 22, 2006, P.J. Phillips was awakened by a phone call from his parents. Phillips' sheep ranch in the Capay Valley — a rural stretch of walnut orchards northwest of Sacramento — was on fire. Winner of the 2017 Reva and David Logan Prize for Excellence in Investigative Reporting. Winner of the 2017 North Gate Award for Excellence in Radio Reporting and Production. https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/building-a-wall-out-of-red-tape monthly 0.5 2020-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/1605326758153-UW42G5FQ6CVKALJ0CV73/redtapewallpodcast-740x494.jpg Selected Works - Building a Wall Out of Red Tape - Building a Wall Out of Red Tape Center for Investigative Reporting (Reveal) Every year, 80,000 immigrants rely on H-1B visas to work legally in the U.S., and in many ways, they seem to embody the kind of highly skilled immigrants President Donald Trump says he wants. Yet H-1B denials are surging under his administration. Mother Jones reporter Sinduja Rangarajan investigates what’s behind the trend and whether people are being denied for legitimate reasons. Winner of the 2020 AAJA National Award for General Excellence (Radio/Audio). https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/as-ice-cracks-down-on-cambodian-communities-a-mother-says-goodbye-to-her-son monthly 0.5 2020-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/1605500921261-OP7FIX4AFTV44X71V9I1/elizabeth_hang_and_tj_hem_march_13_courtesy_of_ummra_hang__cropped_.jpg Selected Works - As ICE Cracks Down on Cambodian Communities, a Mother Says Goodbye to Her Son - As ICE Cracks Down on Cambodian Communities, a Mother Says Goodbye to Her Son KALW “A few hours before he’s deported, Kouen ‘TJ’ Hem starts working his way through a crumpled pack of Newports. ‘I'm about to smoke as much as I can before I go turn myself in,’ he says.” https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/cemeteries-turn-to-swamps-as-alaskas-permafrost-melts monthly 0.5 2020-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/1605499966447-9V5B92EOD19G2I0JIOGP/meltingcemetery1_wide-208aeaa26080cceaa697f6b9044b38d25214e889-s1500-c85.jpg Selected Works - Cemeteries Turn To Swamps As Alaska's Permafrost Melts - Cemeteries Turn To Swamps As Alaska's Permafrost Melts NPR “‘Her dad and my grandpa,’ Phillip said. ‘He's one of them that's under the water.’” https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/watching-over-mountain-village monthly 0.5 2020-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/1605324999746-K3KG6PYIU5ZK1BMY8ZW9/mountaintown-Wnyc_smCBJEp.png Selected Works - Watching Over Mountain Village - Watching Over Mountain Village Snap Judgment “When you think about Alaska, do you think about the mountains? The way Denali, one of the tallest mountains in the world, cuts through the clouds in the summer? Maybe your parents went on a cruise out there and saw the whales. Maybe you read all those Jack London adventure stories in high school. I’m talking Call of the Wild. Deadliest Catch. You can see Russia from your house! “This is a wild place. America’s last frontier. But we all know that frontier was built on top of someone else.” A version of this story was originally produced for KYUK, where it won Best Investigative Reporting (all categories) at Alaska Press Club 2018. https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/jinhos-journey monthly 0.5 2023-01-03 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/66873d7e-be66-4a38-83a5-cec7017529b0/2_Jinho+Web.png Selected Works - Jinho - Jinho Snap Judgment “I felt like I needed to do something other than write a song. I need to see something that I'm doing, working—just to see if I could choose to not pull the trigger.” A previous version of this story was aired on the California Report Magazine. https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/the-farmworkers-in-californias-fire-zones monthly 0.5 2023-01-03 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/e9d905a4-802b-435e-8517-a3df617c6da3/1_ag+pass+image.jpg https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/racism-robbed-this-historically-black-california-town-of-its-water-now-theyre-developing-water-of monthly 0.5 2023-01-03 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/1755b4bf-9ccf-4c0e-98ec-4faeadfc5571/4_RS58540_02_Allensworth00017-qut.jpg https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/escape-from-kabul monthly 0.5 2023-01-03 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/ef4299d5-7c00-4045-8cd1-8391ef207825/8.23.21_NPR_image_-_Afghanistan.png https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/extreme-weather-creates-a-food-crisis-for-california-farmworkers monthly 0.5 2023-02-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/36e0f46f-0309-4d4a-a1ce-a79f3e657e75/AP23013809958701-e1674754588896.jpeg https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/alone-on-the-range monthly 0.5 2025-06-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/7ab013eb-edb5-4422-9599-1a26d1d5909d/Screen+Shot+2023-11-19+at+11.47.06+PM.png https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/the-child-workers-who-feed-you monthly 0.5 2023-11-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/60c25892-4823-4d90-a51e-1d7160399c99/201512_CRD_US_TOBACCO_PHOTO_2_235.jpeg https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/californias-nuumu-people-claim-la-stole-their-water-now-theyre-fighting-for-its-return monthly 0.5 2025-06-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/5ffb23b7-c9cd-4988-a391-b3c870c95d7d/Owens-Lake-006-AR-KQED.jpg https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/the-essential-workers-missing-from-the-farm-bill monthly 0.5 2025-06-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/269ddf61-c20a-4df3-8a14-6f6b191de5ad/FERN-farm-bill_farm-workers_1200px.jpg https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/selected-works/buzzkill monthly 0.5 2025-06-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fae0dfb2624f40e7274ec88/f6e99e9f-1b4b-4f76-ba4c-818a9cafd691/Buzzkill-Featured-Image-80.jpg https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/portfolio-2 daily 0.75 2020-11-16 https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/portfolio-2/project-six-js8gl monthly 0.5 2020-05-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847421455-8JW2CPL3ZB56F2Z8ACLN/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Six https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847422112-G7ETRT5C07KF9PHFAV96/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Six https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847420762-AGPM8HHB51L8F01AAZN7/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Six https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847420322-U8QPDYBOD6HXYRSL8QW0/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Six https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/portfolio-2/project-five-hj46l monthly 0.5 2020-08-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847419968-YLRD4TYV9QU8K9LW04SP/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Five https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847419260-TLMPOGZEKRIR09EDXNAA/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Five https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847418911-D6BSPWP8P3O9YAF5R3SO/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Five https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847418431-66X2HHF6ZNWKOC9VHLZI/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Five https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847417789-TGDSX064I3PZELTJI8Q1/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Five https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847417384-6R65UAAJW6EW4KUCUT6U/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Five https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847416982-R2067X6OPKY3MG304FSJ/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Five https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/portfolio-2/project-four-4fzw7 monthly 0.5 2020-08-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847905386-9EM9GLHE12726EXM68S4/image-asset.jpeg Print - Project Four - Make it stand out. It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847906050-Q37PFW075QZ6YU9179YP/image-asset.jpeg Print - Project Four - Make it stand out. It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847907929-YZFF0BD112Q9PF2G1BK6/image-asset.jpeg Print - Project Four - Make it stand out. It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/portfolio-2/project-three-wraxy monthly 0.5 2020-05-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847411947-BSOTI2122B2HLPAP3XSL/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Three https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847412609-54WSVSAFRMKZEQTXDKB9/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Three https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847411502-9D27YNIMALNIHZYQ1CMG/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Three https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847410901-NW4BE1NIG86WQS26D48L/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Three https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847410514-YTA75TP5M5NY1DD11BB2/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Three https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847409407-NH9B3VB0PQWBG5LZEU5P/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Three https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847408362-3VSTKTYIWN0INM638YVD/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Three https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/portfolio-2/project-two-m8fzn monthly 0.5 2020-05-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847407784-0ZWK2VWHWVEO87VQWTE3/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Two https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847407287-985X24W2BPAEHHISD0C0/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Two https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847406849-K0MEB56K6G4CEGRZ4D2J/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Two https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847406249-J4HYEHES6F6UCY5TVM2A/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Two https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847405591-FZUNRUAT1SR1PVIL5TA8/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Two https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847404849-JBKU84SJXZL5LDL554SL/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project Two https://www.teresamariacotsirilos.com/portfolio-2/project-one-j6cl4 monthly 0.5 2020-05-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847404387-JU309UFEWQ1YR946FJVD/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project One https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847403763-CNHK66ERZAP3FARA51ND/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project One https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847403305-VJDKJA1VO786FIOO83WE/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project One https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847402884-2RBITFZTNVLDS1AJEKXW/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project One https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847402453-A0LKCHP0YA7NLI2E0WJA/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project One https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847402040-WALQWA4IM1JBBHBJZ731/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg Print - Project One