About the Observatory

From The Observatory

The Observatory is a free digital education resource. It offers the public useful information to help them both better understand today’s issues and navigate life in the modern world.

Visitors engage with the Observatory:

  • Via Search: For expertise by keyword, topic area, or a favorite author.
  • Via Guides: To get the big picture.

The Observatory uses MediaWiki, the software that powers Wikipedia, to publish content by a team of expert contributors.

Our doors are open: The Observatory is designed to incorporate reader feedback, and for input and collaboration with volunteer researchers and editors.

Our goal is to be an audience-supported education resource that can make a difference.

The Observatory Team

Jan Ritch-Frel
Observatory Co-Founder and Publisher
Jan Ritch-Frel is the executive director of the Independent Media Institute, a nonprofit organization that educates the public through a diverse array of independent media projects and programs. He has worked in independent media for more than two decades and has advised dozens of media companies.
Jenny Pierson
Observatory Co-Founder and Chief Content Officer
Jenny Pierson is the manager of editorial projects and the programs administrator at the Independent Media Institute. She has spent more than a decade in independent media working in both digital journalism (editing U.S. and international news and editorials) and book publishing.
Reynard Loki
Observatory Co-Founder and Environment and Animal Rights Editor
Reynard Loki is a writing fellow at the Independent Media Institute, where he serves as the editor and chief correspondent for Earth | Food | Life. His work has appeared in dozens of U.S. and international publications.
April M. Short
Observatory Co-Founder and Local Peace Economy Editor
April M. Short is a writing fellow at the Independent Media Institute and the editor for Local Peace Economy. She has led editorial projects on consciousness, plant medicines, care, and well-being, including Reset.me and Lucid.News (which she also co-founded). Her work has appeared in dozens of U.S. and international publications.

Authors Spotlight

Susanna Shanklin Browne (1880–1930) was the author of The Plain Sailing Cook Book (1922).
Elizabeth Henderson is an organic farmer. She is the co-chair of the Interstate Council policy committee of the Northeast Organic Farming Association and represents the Interstate Council on the Board of the Agricultural Justice Project.
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Esther Afolaranmi is an attorney, humanitarian, researcher, and writer. She is co-executive director of the Fair Start Movement.
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Sy Montgomery is a naturalist, documentary scriptwriter, and author of 31 books of nonfiction for adults and children. She is the recipient of lifetime achievement awards from the Humane Society and the New England Booksellers Association.
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Leslie Alan Horvitz is an author and journalist specializing in science. He serves as the science and tech editor at the Observatory.
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Carole Crumley is the director of the Integrated History and Future of People on Earth (IHOPE) initiative and professor of anthropology (emerita) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
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Alexander Zaitchik is a writing fellow for the Economy for All project at the Independent Media Institute and a freelance journalist based in New Orleans. He is the author of several books, including Owning the Sun: A People’s History of Monopoly Medicine from Aspirin to COVID-19.
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Robin Scher is a freelance writer and journalist based in South Africa.
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Lane F. Fargher-Navarro is the director of research at the Past Foundation, Ohio State University.
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Stephen A. Kowalewski is professor emeritus of anthropology at the University of Georgia.
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