Houston Chronicle hires new energy reporter

Houston Chronicle deputy managing editor Todd Stone and business editor Al Lewis sent out the following announcement:

Hey crew –

We are pleased to announce that Ryan Handy — a journalist with strong experience covering oil and gas development and environmental issues in Colorado — will be joining the Houston Chronicle to cover energy news.

Ryan is a native westerner, born and raised in New Mexico. She says she loves to pursue revelatory stories about the consequences of how natural resources are used across the U.S.

During her time in Colorado, Ryan covered major environmental disasters, and spent years tracking federal and state money given to communities recovering from catastrophic fires, floods and landslides. Her work exposed Colorado’s lack of regulation on commercial and real estate development in wildfire-prone areas, as well as inadequate oversight of the state’s insurance industry.

Ryan graduated from Georgetown University with degrees in Russian and Comparative Literature. She received her master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.

Since leaving The (Colorado Springs) Gazette in March, Ryan has pursued other passions: backcountry skiing, cycling, reading, traveling and the Russian language. She is thrilled to be joining The Houston Chronicle, and while part of her will always call the Sangre de Cristo mountains home, she says she looks forward to exploring Houston’s opera, music and food scene.