• Lydia Möcklinghoff, a German biologist and science communicator, died on July 3, 2026, aged 45, in a plane crash near Campo Grande, Brazil, during a flight connected to Pantanal fieldwork.
  • She became one of Germany’s leading experts on giant anteaters, turning a little-understood animal into the focus of serious field research, public writing, radio reporting,

A person paddles a kayak down a flooded street lined with partially submerged buildings under a cloudy sky.
A person paddles a kayak down a flooded street lined with partially submerged buildings under a cloudy sky.
Brady Gervais uses a kayak to navigate flooded Route 5 in Lyndonville. File photo by Ethan Weinstein/VTDigger

Friday marks three years since the devastating floods of 2023 — and two years since 2024’s repeat in some towns. 

For many Vermonters, July 10 resurfaces memories of communities under water, homes inundated and neighbors supporting neighbors through disaster. 

A man in a dark blazer speaks on camera in a studio with wood paneling, a blue screen, and "Planet Hank Journalist" text label in the corner.
A man in a dark blazer speaks on camera in a studio with wood paneling, a blue screen, and "Planet Hank Journalist" text label in the corner.
Hank Poitras, better known as “Planet Hank,” speaks during a social media livestream in May 2026. Screenshot

Updated 6:28 p.m.

A new Vermont law regulating political media that’s generated with artificial intelligence is facing an early legal challenge from a content creator in Brattleboro.  

Hank Poitras, better known by his social media moniker “Planet Hank,”

Man in a dark pinstripe suit with a red patterned tie stands in front of a wooden wall, smiling slightly at the camera.
Man in a dark pinstripe suit with a red patterned tie stands in front of a wooden wall, smiling slightly at the camera.
Tayt Brooks was appointed secretary of the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development in July 2026. Courtesy photo

Theo Wells-Spackman is a Report for America corps member who reports for VTDigger.

Gov. Phil Scott has announced a change in leadership at the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, which oversees economic growth initiatives, housing

Key Takeaways

  • Forty-one Second Request investigations were opened, and 18 transactions were contested by the Agencies, both down from fiscal year (FY) 2024. But certain industries, including agriculture and food, housing, electricity, and healthcare, remain priorities for the administration.
  • Consent orders/decrees have returned as a viable pathway to closing a transaction with a negotiated remedy.

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