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Here comes the sun canoe, as Amazonians take on Big Oil

Francesc Badia i Dalmases

March 13, 2020 |

The Guardian |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Ecuador, Kapawi

The Kara Solar Foundation is looking to connect indigenous communities in Achuar territory in Ecuador to learn about solar power as an alternative to oil. By building solar-powered canoes, they can replace vessels that burn fossil fuels into the atmosphere. While the two boats in operation have run into technical problems, the intercultural training programs are instructing Achuar people on how to fix the technology. “Sustained and truly intercultural collaborations can create technological solutions that serve indigenous communities, rather than destroying them,” says Oliver Utne, the foundation's founder.

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How Taiwan is containing coronavirus – despite diplomatic isolation by China

Michelle Yun

March 12, 2020 |

The Guardian |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Taiwan, Taipei

Struggling countries look to Taiwan as an example of how to respond to a crisis like the coronavirus pandemic. Strategies that Taiwan uses include tracking of mandatory quarantines, border control, and its use of technology. They are now looking to expand testing even further.

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Singapore Wins Praise For Its COVID-19 Strategy. The U.S. Does Not

Jason Beaubien

March 12, 2020 |

NPR |

Radio |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: Singapore

As countries respond in different ways to the COVID19 pandemic, those with systematic government approaches have proven to be strongest thus far. Places like Hong Kong and Singapore created immediate systems for testing and quarantining, putting quick pressure on stopping the spread of the novel coronavirus. On the opposite end, places like Iran and the United States have fared worse because of a lack of immediate response and capacity for testing.

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Less is more: Lithuanian company's experiment with shorter working hours

Domantė Platūkytė

March 12, 2020 |

Lithuanian Radio and Television (LRT) |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Lithuania, Vilnius

A company in Lithuania cut back the work day from eight to six hours and noted an increase in morale without any negative impact on productivity. Employees reported a better work-life balance, reducing their stress and exhaustion and allowing them more time for activities that boost personal wellbeing.

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Advocates, teachers aim to help growing number of young Texas voters wield their power

Vicky Camarillo

March 11, 2020 |

Corpus Christi Caller Times |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Texas

Organizations and educators in Texas work to increase voter engagement among young people. Schools must provide voter registrations, but many don't, so some teachers register students and teach the importance of civic participation. Several groups also work to get high school and college-age voters to the polls. MOVE Texas and Texas Rising registered thousands of young voters on National Voter Registration Day in 2019. Utilizing technology, going to where young people are, and teaching media literacy increased civic engagement among young people in 2018, although the turnout was still relatively low at 25%.

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How Taiwan and Singapore Have Contained the Coronavirus

Chloe Hadavas

March 11, 2020 |

Slate |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Taiwan, New Taipei

Compared to countries of similar size and stature, Taiwan and Singapore both had extremely effective responses to halt the spread of the novel coronavirus. Each faced their own unique set of circumstances, but they used common tactics, including stopping flights from China, rationing mask purchases, and proactively finding new cases along with quarantining current ones. Both countries' government officials also had effective and clear communications with themselves and the public.

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Pour It On: How Dutch Cities Are Soaking up Rain and Reducing Flooding

Tristan Baurick Tegan Wendland

March 10, 2020 |

The Times-Picayune |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Netherlands, Rotterdam

A green roof initiative is one of the projects Rotterdam, a city in the Netherlands, is working on to capture and store more rainwater; a solution that might work in Louisiana. With heavier rains and more intense storms due to climate change in both places, the amount of rainfall coming down can overwhelm drainage systems. Although the price tag can be high to build these green roofs, Rotterdam boasts 100 acres of green roofs that have increased the city’s water storage capacity by about 1.6 million gallons.

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Private Prisons Profit Off Incarceration. One In Australia Shows How To Flip The Script

Rae Ellen Bichell

March 09, 2020 |

KUNC |

Radio |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: Australia

Using a performance-based contract to give a private prison company the incentive to lower recidivism has encouraged the private operator of Australia’s largest prison to foster a more positive environment and provide a rich array of rehabilitative programs. Instead of penalizing the prison operator for problems, the contract rewards it for success, defined as fewer people returning to prison. Early indications are that it’s working well, by providing job training, counseling that continues after incarceration, and help finding housing post-release.

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The Dutch are giving rising rivers more room. Should we follow suit?

Tristan Baurick

March 09, 2020 |

The Times-Picayune |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Netherlands, Noordwaard

The Dutch government bought out and relocated 200 households in high-risk areas as a way to create more space for rising water levels instead of building bigger levees. The program is called Room for the River, and more than 60,000 people now have much lower flood risk. The program also built new roads, bridges, and pumping stations, one of which doubles as a wildlife-watching tower. This, along with the green spaces, bike paths, and plazas, is credited for building public approval for the project.

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What Would a World Without Prisons Look Like?

Patricia Leigh Brown

March 06, 2020 |

The New York Times |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Oakland, California

Deanna Van Buren and her nonprofit firm Designing Justice/Designing Spaces use architecture to advance social justice and criminal-justice-reform ideas, designing workplaces, meeting places, and homes nationwide founded on the notion of "what a world without prisons could look like." The firm's projects, often planned with input from the people directly affected, have included privacy-enhancing temporary living units for people recently released from prison, a "peacemaking" space in Syracuse, N.Y., and two of the first restorative-justice meeting places for crime victims and those who harmed them.

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