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Alternative toilet facilities in schools attract more children in Kibera

Henry Owino

October 02, 2018 |

Talk Africa |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Kibera, Nairobi

In a slum in Kiberia, Kenya, a new invention called Peepoople Kenya (or Peepoo for short) is addressing a mounting sanitation issue from open defecation and lack of clean facilities. The solution is a single-use, biodegradable toilet (via a bag that spreads across a small pot) in new and maintained facilities. Teachers and pupils testify to the cleanliness and usability of the toilets and have even found unexpected benefits as well, like the facilities in a safer location and less time lost from lessons by waiting in line for a latrine.

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New tsunami warning system

Marco Werman

October 01, 2018 |

Public Radio International (PRI) |

Radio |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: Indonesia, Sulawesi

The warning system in Indonesia to alert residents of tsunamis could not prevent disaster in Sulawesi because it hasn't worked for six years after many of the surface buoys were vandalized. However, a new system is underway where sensors on the bottom of the ocean detect tsunami waves and send acoustic signals back to shore, giving people 20 to 30 minutes warning to evacuate. A prototype has been installed, with more testing and infrastructure development planned.

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Fight for Cleaner Air in the Bronx

Cecelia Paladino

October 01, 2018 |

The Innovator |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

The New York-based organization, Sustainable South Bronx, is working to reverse the public health effects, namely asthma, that poor air quality has caused. The initiative works to educate residents about the environmental hazards they face while also working to reverse those hazards with projects like reflective roof coatings. With pollution disproportionately affecting low-income communities, the city too is taking steps toward reducing emissions in these areas.

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Pot luck: the paint recyclers who put leftover litres to good use

Helen Pidd

October 01, 2018 |

The Guardian |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United Kingdom

Home improvement projects often start with paint, but what happens when all of the purchased paint doesn't get used? Typically, it sits in someone's basement or storage closet with no plan for further use in sight. Community Repaint in the United Kingdom is committed to promoting the recycling of this paint, however, and has implemented 74 projects that work to re-sell or re-color unused paint, thus reducing the amount that's sent to landfills after it molds.

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Underneath This 'Pop-Up Forest' Is an Abandoned Highway

Alan Greenblatt

October 01, 2018 |

Governing |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Akron, Ohio

When the Innerbelt, a freeway in Ohio, was discontinued, a designer named Hunter Frank threw a party to liven up the space. From there, he pushed to transform it to a permanent greenspace. “There’s value in simply letting people use a space and allowing their behavior to inform a more permanent plan,” reporter Alan Greenblatt writes. While local governments often focus on planning and details, the success of the “Innerbelt National Forest” can be attributed to experimentation: kids playing alongside live music and trees may be what allows the “forest” to stay.

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Does solar power offer a brighter future for off-the-grid Navajo residents?

Fred de Sam Lazaro

October 01, 2018 |

PBS NewsHour |

Broadcast TV Programs |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, New Mexico

As a coal plant closes in Navajo Nation, and taking jobs with it, residents cautiously look to solar energy as a way forward. While the installation of the Kayenta Solar Project did provide jobs, those jobs were temporary. Beyond employment, the Navajo have historically lacked access to electricity, and so residents are installing off-grid solar units themselves.

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A Safe Place to Grow

Colin Lodewick

September 27, 2018 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The Sankofa Community Farm High School Internship Program in Philadelphia supports 25 students each summer (and 12 during the school year) by teaching them how to farm, bringing these skills back to their communities, and connecting them to college opportunities. The internship program is just one part of Bartram Garden’s network of programs that teach about African heritage and food justice. Through these programs, Bartram distributes over 15,000 pounds of food and teaches over 10,000 students each year - all while keeping the local produce affordable to the surrounding areas.

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Expanded early college program allows Howard students to get a 'JumpStart'

Jess Nocera

September 27, 2018 |

Howard County Times |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Maryland

Through JumpStart, a dual enrollment program in Maryland, students can graduate with not only a high school degree but also the credits equivalent to an associates. Over 700 students in Howard County participate in the partnership between several local high schools and the community college. "On its face, it’s an everybody-wins strategy," a former U.S. education secretary noted. But critics wonder if course quality and rigor are sacrificed in the process.

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Low-cost housing project begins next month

Aggrey Omboki

September 27, 2018 |

Nation Africa |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Kenya

Kenya is launching a program to build more affordable housing by providing infrastructure like water and roads, as well as funding from the World Bank and lower levies on the cost of doing business in order to attract private investors. The government will also provide land to investors on the condition they provide 20,000 low-income units for every 100,000 they build. But the plan faces major challenges including clear title and rising construction costs.

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Nutrition agents increase demand for CMAM services in Borno

Chibuike Alagboso

September 25, 2018 |

Nigeria Health Watch |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Nigeria, Maiduguri, Borno State

Being in a conflict zone, primary healthcare in the state of Borno in Nigeria has suffered in recent years. In response to the crisis, Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) centers provide Ready-To-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) to treat children with severe acute malnutrition (SAM). The centers also work in tandem with Community Nutrition Mobilizers (CNMs) to follow up with mothers to ensure that the children are taking the medicine, to educate them on malnutrition in children, and to offer other primary care provisions like immunizations.

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