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Cities Want Green Spaces. Here's How to Make Them More Fire-Resistant

Marianne Dhenin

November 06, 2020 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Ashland, Oregon

A 20-year project by the nonprofit Lomakatsi Restoration Project to restore native plants helped to spare Ashland, Ore., from the worst destruction of a wildfire. Along the Bear Creek greenway in Ashland, the restoration project's work to replace dense thickets of invasive Himalayan blackberries with native shrubs and trees is credited with slowing the speed and severity of the Almeda Fire. Traditional firebreaks and the greenway at other points on the creek failed to slow the fire, and in some ways even sped its destruction.

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A Lesson in Learning to Live With Fire, and Each Other

Laura Bliss

November 05, 2020 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Shaver Lake, California

A collaboration between former adversaries over forest management and preservation in the Sierra National Forest led to a $9 million investment into making 154,000 acres healthier, and able to withstand destruction in one of the largest wildfires in California history. The Creek Fire largely spared land in the Dinkey Landscape Restoration Project, despite severe damage in hundreds of thousands of adjacent acres. Years of strategic tree-thinning and intentionally set small fires proved effective.

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Gamification in Urban Planning: Participation Through Minecraft

Laura von Puttkamer

November 03, 2020 |

Urbanet |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Sweden

Urban planning using gamification is a viable way of engaging diverse parts of the population and placing people and communities at the center of the process. “Block by Block” is a collaboration between UN Habitat and the game company Mojang that holds participatory workshops, where people design public spaces using the game Minecraft. Over 25,000 people from diverse backgrounds and age groups have participated. Professional advisers are present and they adjust the designs for implementation. The method has been used by the City of Stockholm and to create the first skatepark in Kosovo.

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Take Me Out To The Ballot Box

Nathaniel Rakich

November 03, 2020 |

FiveThirtyEight |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

The coronavirus made cramped or high-risk polling locations untenable so at least 39 sports arenas have opened up their facilities for voting. Their expansive size allows them to welcome large numbers of voters while maintaining social distancing protocols. Many are outdoors, which lowers the risk of transmitting the virus even further. Prompted by calls from athletes, arena owners’ site the summer’s racial-justice demonstrations as inspiration for supplying the spaces since voting is a key way to create definitive changes. Voters were thrilled to cast their ballots in a sports arena.

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Cities deploy dedicated teams to combat racial disparities exposed by Covid

James Peterson

November 02, 2020 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder, Colorado

Several cities across the U.S. have organized Racial Equity Rapid Response (RERR) teams to address and combat "the racial disparities exposed and exacerbated by Covid-19." Although each city's version of this team looks slightly different, some commonalities exist such as enacting the teams at the municipal level and relying on community connectivity to drive impact.

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This Medical Team Is Working To Reach Those Most At Risk For COVID-19

Eleni Avendaño

November 01, 2020 |

Honolulu Civil Beat |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Hawaii

A group of health care workers and social workers formed to help connect hard-to-reach communities in Hawaii to COVID-19 testing and information about the pandemic. So far, they have been able to test more than 200 people who were showing symptoms or who had been at high risk of exposure. The director of the Hawaii Public Housing Authority has also reported that compliance with mask-wearing and other safety measures has increased since the effort began.

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In Michigan, Undocumented Immigrants Form Learning Pod So They Won't Lose Their Jobs

Michelle Jokisch Polo

November 01, 2020 |

NPR |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Undocumented parents face unique challenges to pandemic learning. Some don’t speak English or might not have access to Wi-Fi. To help, an activist in Michigan created an in-person learning hub for students of undocumented families in grades K thru 12. The hub was hosted in a church and provided 24 students with computers from the district, and support from teachers and tutors. The hub was funded through donations from the community.

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Chennai Ran Out of Water — But That's Only Half the Story

Erica Gies Dhritiman Mukherjee

October 30, 2020 |

bioGraphic |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: India, Chennai, Tamil Nadu

The city of Chennai in India is engaging in wetlands restoration and stormwater management by using traditional knowledge and community action to reduce flooding and ensure that people have access to drinking water. Through a development program called Water as Leverage, they are implementing “slow water” projects that restore flow paths for water, which could provide greater water resiliency for humans and protect and restore natural ecosystems. While it can be difficult to get government engineers to embrace green solutions, public awareness of the environmental work is helping move the projects forward.

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Community rallies to create free learning pod for Philly students

Jessica Blatt Press

October 28, 2020 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A new learning pod at a church is serving at least 30 students in Philadelphia. The idea for the pod was the result of a listening tour with the community. “We heard directly from parents and caregivers about their needs.” Now, students are learning lessons they had missed out on before they joined the pod.

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Bus Stop Shakespeare

Dorota Salus

October 26, 2020 |

Transitions Online |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Poland, Gdansk

A program at the Gdansk Shakespeare Theater in Poland is creating job opportunities for people with Down syndrome after partnering with the city and a local foundation that supports job training and coaching for special-needs individuals. The project has not just benefited the participants – patrons of the company as well as other businesses are realizing "that people with Down syndrome who have the appropriate skills can prove themselves at work."

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