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Courts rule

Emma Athena

August 20, 2020 |

Boulder Weekly |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Massachusetts

Almost half of U.S. states guarantee citizens’ rights to petition for ballot measures, but the coronavirus made gathering signatures in person infeasible. Massachusetts courts allowed electronic signatures, but other states have not approved virtual citizen initiative campaigns. Ballot initiatives allow citizens to advance solutions and enact structural changes without relying on support from elected officials. MA groups used DocuSign to gather 30,000 signatures to get a proposal for ranked choice voting on the ballot. Not all MA groups were able to quickly or successfully pivot to the e-signature process.

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Virtual Bronx Internships Put Youth First

Emily Nonko

August 20, 2020 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York

The Thinkubator, a Bronx-based nonprofit, launched "Thinkubator Solves" a virtual internship program that pairs Bronx high school students with local businesses. The paid one-month summer internship allows students to collaborate with employers who are struggling to cope with pandemic-related challenges. Students were grouped into teams who worked with organizations like Legal Aid and Advocates for Children of New York, Bronx Public Schools and a local restaurant.

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How an Indigenous Community in Brazil Used Tech to Contain the Coronavirus

Isabela Dias

August 19, 2020 |

Slate |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Brazil, Ipatse Village

An indigenous community in Brazil has been able to keep their count of coronavirus cases low during the pandemic largely due to the use of contact tracing. Using technology that was already in existence for the purpose of tracking "archaeological, sacred places and ancestral settlements, as well as cultivated areas," the community was able to identify potential cases, test those who had been exposed and quarantine anyone who tested positive.

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The day Bluetooth brought a cardiologist to every village in Cameroon

Morgane le Cam

August 19, 2020 |

Geneva Solutions |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Cameroon

A severe cardiologist shortage, especially in rural areas, led to the creation of the Cardiopad, an electrocardiogram device that allows local doctors to easily perform examinations and use Bluetooth to transfer them to cell phones to send to a cardiologist based in another hospital. The device is used in about 100 Cameroonian hospitals and 150 are used abroad in Comoros, Gabon, Guinea, Kenya, and Nepal, among other countries. Since 2016, 9,800 remote examinations have been carried out with the Cardiopad. The telemedicine capabilities fight medical deserts by bringing cardiologists to remote villages.

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How Taiwan is battling coronavirus with tech, crowdsourced data and trust

Jessica Yarmosky

August 17, 2020 |

Public Radio International (PRI) |

Radio |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: Taiwan

Taiwan has recorder fewer than 500 cases of COVID-19, and it is largely due to the country's reliance on "digital platforms to keep the public updated about medical supply availability and to monitor the status of quarantining citizens." From strict quarantine protocols – that include both monetary incentives and consequences – to a crowdsourcing app that shows mask availability, technology is driving much of Taiwan's response.

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'A Facebook page solved the riddle of my missing child'

Dina Aboughazala

August 16, 2020 |

BBC |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Egypt

More than 2,500 missing people have been found in Egypt because of work by the Facebook page Missing Children, which compiled a vast trove of photos and uses facial-recognition software to match faces to cases. The page collected the photo library with a campaign asking the public to photograph children begging on the streets. Using a Facebook grant, the page has expanded to a website with face-recognition tools and expanded to Romania, the first step of what it hopes is establishing a global reach.

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Remote Learning Progress Report: Technology another barrier for English-language learners

Kelly Burch

August 13, 2020 |

Concord Monitor |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Concord, New Hampshire

School districts across New Hampshire had to find new ways of teaching English as a Second Language students during the pandemic when classes switched to virtual learning. Some districts used volunteers and community liaisons to relay information, while others established informal monitoring programs to keep track of ESL students. Teachers used technology like Google translate and WhatsApp to help them translate. Throughout the state teachers shared resources with each other.

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Limited COVID-19 testing? Researchers in Rwanda have an idea

Ignatius Ssuuna

August 13, 2020 |

Associated Press |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: Rwanda

Researchers in Rwanda are using a mathematical approach as part of pooled testing to determine the number of cases of coronavirus in the country and slow the circulation rate. The algorithm they've developed "makes that process more efficient" which has been crucial because of the country's limited resources. There are limitations to where and how this approach would work, but other regions are taking notice of the practice as coronavirus continues to spread across the world.

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The faces behind the Apthamitra helpline for COVID-19 in Karnataka

Vinay B.S.

August 13, 2020 |

The News Minute |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: India, Karnataka

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, with its medical care system already overwhelmed, the government of Karnataka collaborated with businesses to start the Apthamitra helpline. More than 7,000 people per day could connect via a mobile app to doctors on call. A triage system determined if people could be helped remotely, or if they needed higher-level care. Though no substitute for an adequate healthcare infrastructure, the helpline provided immediate counseling and connections to services for people fearful of getting infected or getting sicker.

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COVID-19 has changed the way South Africa's only toll-free mental health helpline works. Here's why it matters

Andrew Wooyoung Kim

August 11, 2020 |

Bhekisisa |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: South Africa

In South Africa, telehealth is growing in popularity in the mental health field during the coronavirus pandemic, as a means of providing care to those who may be experiencing psychological distress. One institution that has adopted the practice has also "found new ways to support counselors" and distribute training sessions, which eliminates barriers for those who are trying to join the field.

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