Reuben J. Brown/The Reynolds Center
In an Era of Energy Shocks, Chinese Solar Is the World’s Default Answer
As global energy markets reel from war and weather, new solar installations can’t come fast enough
I’m Reuben, a multimedia investigative journalist currently in Phoenix, Arizona. I work as a writer, photographer and editor on stories about very big systems, the people shaping them, and the people they shape
Special report
Cracking the SunHow an abundance of Chinese solar technology is changing Africa, Europe, and the world
Reuben J. Brown/The Reynolds Center. Source image: ESA
As Europe Welcomes Chinese Solar, Some See a Trojan Horse
In seeking a cheaper and more independent energy system, Europe has only Chinese technology to turn to. Are they handing the country a “kill-switch?”
Reuben J. Brown/The Reynolds Center
Africa Is Experiencing a Colossal Solar Boom. Can It Produce the Panels, Too?
The continent is now importing more solar components from China than finished panels
Reporting
I’m currently pursuing an M.A. in Investigative Journalism at the Walter Cronkite School in Phoenix, where I am a reporter at the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism and was a Steele Fellow in Investigative Business Journalism
How Japan Built an L.N.G. Empire Selling American Gas
Fear, greed, and American freedom have turned Japan into the world’s fourth-largest L.N.G. seller, despite producing none of the fuel itself
Reuben J. Brown
Gaige Davila
How Arizona’s Billion-Dollar School Voucher System Rose From the Ashes of Unconstitutionality
To get private education vouchers past Arizona courts, they needed fewer rules. The effects have been massive
Sven Hoppe/dpa via AP
The Death Spiral of Alpine Ski Resorts
Hundreds of Europe’s ski resorts have been lost to climate change. Those left are spurring their own demise
Reuben J. Brown / Cronkite News
For 113 Miles, the Colorado River is Now a Legal Person
With state-led negotiations in deadlock, one tribal nation has deployed a unique legal tactic to preserve its share of Colorado River water. It might help save the whole basin
Scientific American via Instagram
News Publishers Are Making Big Bets on Little Videos. Revenue Opportunities Are Similarly Slim
There are new audiences to be won on TikTok, but few new revenue streams
Reuben J. Brown
New Border Wall Construction Begins in Arizona, Threatening Endangered Species
Construction in the San Rafael Valley began September 16, a move sharply criticized by environmental groups
Reuben J. Brown
To Stop Workers Dying in the Heat, Give Them Time to Adjust
As worker heat deaths increase worldwide, a surprising amount can be achieved just by giving the body a chance to adjust
Photography
I’ve freelanced for The Wall Street Journal and been published in Icarus Complex. I’ve worked as a photo assistant for editorial and TV clients, and am a member of the L.A. Press Photographers Association. See more →
The New Push to Ready Millions for AI Career Upheaval
Coalition of employers, state governments developing strategy to help workers respond to AI age
Fifteen Years After Japan’s Great Earthquake, a Memorial in Fukushima
At a memorial event, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pledged to accelerate plans for a national disaster management agency
Phoenix Responds to the Killing of Alex Pretti
Hours after Border Patrol killed a second American citizen in Minneapolis, protesters assembled in Phoenix to say “No more”
Arizona State’s President Is Pulling Out All the Stops to Get on Trump’s Good Side
ASU is positioning itself as the anti-Harvard in Trump’s campaign to remake higher education
The Clock is Ticking on Spain’s Food Miracle
In Europe’s driest region, a vast plastic sea covers an agricultural system built on intensity and innovation. But the cracks in Almería’s miracle are growing, too
The Kilometer-Long Laser That Fits Inside a Basement
ASU’s Compact X-ray Free-Electron Laser is a hundredth the size and a fraction the cost of similar instruments. Its creators think it will reshape science
No Kings in Phoenix
An estimated five million people attended “No Kings Day” protests across the United States on October 18, 2025, likely making it the largest day of protest in American history
Video
15 Years After Fukushima, Why Japan Is Backing Nuclear
New Border Wall Construction in the San Rafael Valley
Why News Publishers Are Making Videos Like This One
The Colorado River Becomes a Legal Person
Reviews
After graduating from the University of Cambridge I was Digital Editor of The Architectural Review, where I wrote on architecture and politics and worked on cross-platform audience strategy
CUHK
Project Plum Grove in Mui Tsz Lam, Hong Kong, by CUHK
The renovation of two rammed-earth houses in a small village is part of a broader initiative of rural rejuvenation
Emil Basse
Thoravej 29 by Pihlmann Architects in Copenhagen, Denmark
The transformation of an ordinary 1960s building into the HQ of Denmark’s Bikubenfonden is a mirror to the organisation’s progressive evolution
The Taiwan-Reyhanli Centre for World Citizens
The Centre for World Citizens in Reyhanlı, Turkey, by Chiu Chen-Yu
Learning from the “additive architecture” of Jørn Utzon, a community centre for Syrian refugees in Turkey provides social infrastructure in a fortified shell
Iwo Borkowicz
A new school in one of Tanzania’s former refugee settlements beats the heat for students and the public alike
Wayair Foundation School in Ulyankulu, Tanzania, by Jeju Studio and Arh+
Batlleiroig Arquitectura
Amid Catalonia’s worsening droughts, Batlleiroig Arquitectura has reclaimed public spaces from cars while preserving precious water
Rambla de la Girada in Vilafranca del Penedès, Spain, by Batlleiroig Arquitectura
Mikael Olson
The remodelling of the lower floors of an Italian town hall into a café recalibrates the building’s relationship to the city
Caffè Nazionale in Arzignano, Italy, by AMAA
Atik Bheda
Indian rising stars A Threshold build a critical bridge from private commissions to public projects
The Bangalore-based practice imagines a public life for a private guest house
Henry Woide for The Architectural Review
Material Cultures combine design with research and education to engender a transformation in architectural production
The London-based practice combines architecture with materials research and educational programmes
Johnny Umans
NWLND take a razor to complex spatial problems and derive sharp, strategic solutions
In a workshop for a secondary school in Ostend, the Belgian duo use simple strategic moves
Tony Ray-Jones for The Architectural Review
Manplan Gets its Moment
A new exhibition highlights photographs from 1970s Manplan series, but its written archive is worth revisiting too
CV
Here are some résumé highlights. Or download a full PDF version
Work ↓
The Howard Center for Investigative Journalism
Reporter
2026
The Reynolds Center for Business Journalism
Steele Fellow in Investigative Business Journalism
2025–26
The Architectural Review
Digital Editor
2023–25
BBC Maestro
Production Assistant
2023
The University of Cambridge Architecture Society
President
2022–23
The World Around
Production Assistant
2022
Skills & Software ↓
Code, Data, Visualization
Python, Svelte, D3.js, Excel, APIs, GitHub, VS Code, Claude Code, HTML, CSS, JS, Mapbox, Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, Affinity, AutoCAD, Rhino 3D
Photography
Mirrorless stills and video, Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop, Photo Mechanic, off-camera flash, F.A.A. Part 107 license for aerial drone photography and video
Video and Podcast Production
Adobe Premiere, Audition, After Effects, Apple Logic Pro, Final Cut Pro
Content Management and Analytics
WordPress, Google Analytics, Microsoft Excel, Adobe Campaign, Shopify, Upland Adestra
Full U.K. and U.S. driving licenses
Education ↓
M.A. Investigative Journalism
Arizona State University
2025–26
B.A. Architecture
University of Cambridge
2020–23
State schools in Brighton, U.K.
Contact
