Arizona Luminaria is thrilled to announce that Stephanie Casanova, a bilingual Tucson journalist with more than a decade of experience, is joining our team full time as a Report for America corps member.

Starting in July, Stephanie will cover environmental issues in Southern Arizona, Tribal Nations and other underserved communities in our state. Her work will examine how people are protecting their environmental resources, as well as investigate development, government policies, water use and land decisions affecting communities and ecosystems of the Sonoran Desert region.

Report for America announced Wednesday that it is placing 78 journalists in local newsrooms across the country as part of its 2026-27 corps. “These journalists represent hope: a new generation committed to local news reporting that helps people better understand their communities and one another,” said Kim Kleman, executive director at Report for America.

Stephanie is no stranger to Arizona Luminaria readers. She’s contributed to the nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom’s coverage as a freelance journalist, covering the contentious fight over the proposed Project Blue data center, including a community meeting where hundreds of Tucsonans confronted developers over water use and secrecy, and subsequent protests as construction of the 290-acre project began near the Pima County Fairgrounds.

She’s reported on bail reform, south side Tucsonans’ environmental justice work for clean water, and Arizona families’ fears over proposed changes to the state’s paid parent caregiver program for children with developmental disabilities.

We’ve heard from many readers sharing how much it matters that Arizona Luminaria provides news — free from paywalls that limit who can access these vital stories — to help them better understand complex issues and protect their communities. We recognize that readers want their local newsrooms to include journalists who have long lived in their home state, understand the problems we face and know those among us working toward solutions.

“Stephanie has already proven, right here in our pages, that she is exactly the kind of reporter Southern Arizona needs investigating environmental issues to hold people in power accountable to historically underserved and underrepresented communities,” said Dianna Náñez, executive editor and co-founder of Arizona Luminaria.

“She digs deep, centers the people most affected, seeks answers and solutions, and she doesn’t let complicated stories go untold. We are so excited to have her join our team full time. Please reach out to her for cafecitos to share ideas.”

We’re also excited to share that Stephanie’s reporting position is part of a new partnership with the High Country News Western Environmental Collaborative (WERC). The regional news organization dating back to the 1970s has dedicated reporting to uncovering the complexities of the West, shedding light on social, political and ecological issues.

Stephanie brings more than 10 years of bilingual, community-centered journalism to the environment beat. Before moving back to Tucson, she was a criminal justice reporter at Signal Cleveland, where her in-depth coverage of juvenile justice, mental health crisis response and reentry after incarceration drove policy change at the county level.

She previously covered criminal justice at the Chicago Tribune, where she helped with an award-winning investigation showing that Latinx communities in Chicago are disproportionately affected by heat and have less access to relief — work that earned a Peter Lisagor Award from the Headline Club.

Stephanie previously worked at the Arizona Daily Star, where she covered mental health, public safety and COVID-19 in Spanish and English news reports. Her investigative story on how the pandemic disproportionately affected Latinx communities won an Arizona Press Club award for Spanish-language reporting, and she received a Solutions Journalism grant to examine the Tucson Police Department’s response to people experiencing mental health and substance use challenges.

Earlier in her career, Stephanie covered county government and the Fort Riley military base for the Manhattan Mercury in Kansas.

She is an Ida B. Wells Society Investigative reporting fellow and an Altavoz Lab community journalism fellow. She also was a Maynard 200 fellow on the investigative reporting track and a SPJ Future Leaders Academy fellow. She earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism and philosophy from the University of Arizona.

Stephanie said she is eager to bring that same tenacity to the environment beat full time.

“It’s more important than ever to commit to accountability reporting focused on the environment and water in Southern Arizona, as we see our water and natural resources diminish, impacting some of the most vulnerable communities in our state,” Stephanie said.

“I want to make sure my storytelling centers those communities, focuses on environmental racism and injustices, holds powerful industries accountable and provides solutions for people to feel hopeful instead of seeing the destruction of our environment as inevitable.” 

When she’s not out reporting in the community, you can find Stephanie dancing salsa and bachata, baking something sweet or hiking with her adventurous dog, Solito. 

Report for America will fund a portion of Stephanie’s salary with Arizona Luminaria. Reporting the in-depth, community-centered stories that Stephanie will produce takes substantial time and resources. Becoming a member helps match the funds for her work and role.

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