 Shabecoff has received the James Madison Award from the American Library Association for leadership in expanding the public's right to know and was an original selectee for the Global 500 award from the United Nations Environment Programme.He also received the National Wildlife Federation’s “Connie” Award for achievement in conservation, the Sierra Club's David Brower Environmental Journalism Award, and the Worldwatch Institute’s Environmental Leadership Award “In honor of 20 years of pioneering environmental journalism”

Mr. Shabecoff grew up in the Bronx, New York, attended the Bronx High School of Science, and earned his B.A.from Hunter College; he earned his M.A.