In 2014, Ontario Power Generation made history by ending all coal burning for electricity, in a move it called “North America’s single largest climate change initiative.”

A decade later, amid calls to do away with natural gas, Ontario reporter Fatima Syed wondered: what would it take for the province to do the seemingly impossible — again?

“For years, person after person in Ontario’s energy industry constantly reminded me of this incredible past,” Fatima said. “As we stare down an uncertain future, looking to lessons from history isn’t just good journalism, it’s a dare to readers to also see opportunity, and even hope.”

Fatima combed through archives and spoke with the former premier and others who were in the boardrooms and control rooms all those years ago to piece together an immersive feature about the lessons of the transition away from coal. It was brought to life with illustrations by Kevin Ilango, creative direction by Shawn Parkinson and editing by Elaine Anselmi.

The story recently took third place in the multimedia category at the annual Solutions Journalism Network awards.

The Solutions Journalism Network is a global organization that promotes rigorous reporting on responses to problems. This year’s winners were selected among more than 900 submissions spanning six continents.

“Reporting on solutions is about so much more than celebrating successes,” Fatima said. “Broadly, it’s any effort to investigate a response to a problem, and tease out what’s working and what’s not working. It asks where lessons can be applied elsewhere — and where they can’t.”

Ending coal power in Ontario wasn’t easy, but it was possible.

“So often, when I talk to people about moving away from fossil fuels, there’s a deep-seated feeling of paralysis and futility,” Fatima said. “It’s easy to dwell on those feelings, and harder to figure out how to move towards action. At The Narwhal, we try to help bridge the gap through stories like these.”

Including this most recent accolade, The Narwhal’s deep reporting on the natural world in Canada has won eight awards from national and international programs this year.

The Narwhal’s reporters are telling environment stories you won’t read about anywhere else. Stay in the loop by signing up for our free weekly dose of independent journalism.