Story Search Results

Advanced Search

There are so many ways to search the solutions journalism stories in this database. Explore our searchable fields:

Search Results

You searched for: -

There are 470 results for your search. View and Refine Your Search Terms

Reducing Recidivism and Building Green Industry Skills in Detroit

Nina Ignaczak

September 10, 2021 |

Belt Magazine |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Michigan

Between 2012 and 2017, the rate of recidivism, the number of people who return to prison after being released, was 71 percent across 34 states. An industrial recycling program called Greenworks is aimed at job training, access to resources, and jobs to formerly incarcerated people. Part of the green economy, these programs offer jobs to people most impacted by climate change, and Greenworks could be a model for other similar programs. The recidivism rate of Greenworks hovers around four and ten percent each year.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Masking opportunities amid ravaging COVID-19

Njeri Murigi

September 01, 2021 |

Sayansi Magazine |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Kenya

Compassion International Organization trained over 100 women so that they have the skills and equipment to produce masks for the coronavirus pandemic. The first contract was for 900,000 masks, and women were provided with all materials, including sewing machines, and a workshop where they can work. The women, most of whom struggled to make a living because of COVID-19, earned money for each mask they produced. Their enterprises have improved the economies of local communities.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Fresh start: Using agriculture to build confidence during recovery

Mia Ryder-Marks

August 29, 2021 |

Capital Press |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Oregon

Blanchet House is a nonprofit that provides food and housing for people in need. Men who are recovering from substance abuse can live at the farm and have an opportunity to work on the land and learn skills that promote self-sufficiency and confidence. Men generally stay up to 8 months with free room and board, attend daily AA and NA meetings, and are assigned jobs like tending to the animals and ground maintenance. Unlike other sobriety programs that emphasize deep self-reflection, Blanchet House focuses on the physical component of getting your hands dirty and learning responsibility.

Read More
Go to Original Story
How art can keep boys off truancy into gainful business

Mercy Gakii

August 16, 2021 |

Impacthub Media |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Kenya

An art program works with young men and teens who aren’t in school, takes them off the street, and gives them the skills to make different mediums of art, which are sold in the community. The teens and young men are given part of the proceeds and many have used the skills they learned to open up their own workshops.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Nonprofit Esperanza Threads helping refugees and immigrants stitch together their American dream

Danita Harris

August 05, 2021 |

WEWS-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Cleveland, Ohio

Esperanza Threads provides sewing training to refugees and immigrants so that they can find sustainable jobs and provide for their families. The students learn to make t-shirts, bags, and baby products, which are sold on the organization’s website. To emulate an actual job experience, the two-month long program pays the trainees a stipend for their time and their work. The group partners with resettlement agencies, shelters, rehabilitation facilities, and churches to reach new clients. The training has also had the effect of increasing hope and building self-esteem among the participants.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Beyond Poverty: Fight for the California Dream

Jeong Park Cameron Clark

July 27, 2021 |

Sacramento Bee |

Video |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, California

Employment programs that provide extra benefits such as paid training, books, childcare, and rent incentives allow people to switch to jobs in fields that pay living wages. Sacramento’s Digital UpSkill and Jobs Plus are two examples of programs that provide opportunities for those who need the extra support.

Read More
Go to Original Story
From a Prison Garden Sprouts Real Growth

Hannah Wallace

July 27, 2021 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Oregon

Lettuce Grow teaches gardening skills to 200 incarcerated people per year in 16 Oregon prisons and juvenile detention centers. The teaching includes college-level courses and hands-on gardening on prison grounds, which then yields hundreds of thousands of pounds of fresh vegetables for prison kitchens. Graduates of the program commit many fewer crimes than the average ex-prisoner and have found work after prison at nurseries and in other horticultural pursuits.

Read More
Go to Original Story
What Do Police Know About Teenagers? Not Enough.

Meryl Davids Landau

July 17, 2021 |

The New York Times |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Lafayette, Indiana

"Policing the teen brain" is a training regimen devised by Strategies for Youth that teaches police officers to de-escalate conflicts with adolescents to avoid unnecessary incarceration. Youth detention has dropped significantly since Tippecanoe County put most of its officers through the training. Police learn how to account for teens' lowered impulse control and undeveloped problem solving skills. The county decided to pay for the expensive training because detention, which hits Black youth hardest, can be even more costly – and leave lasting damage in the lives of young people.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Kathy Friedman and InkWell Workshops offer struggling writers a chance to turn the page

Ziya Jones

July 11, 2021 |

Toronto Star |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Canada, Toronto, Ontario

InkWell Workshops offers a safe space for writers who have experienced mental health and addiction issues. In addition to mentorships and other professional development guidance, the group offers free weekly drop-in workshops led by professional writers, all of whom have lived with mental illness. The weekly schedule provides routine, while the drop-in structure allows needed flexibility for those managing the ups and downs of their mental health. The group has made a point of reflecting participant diversity in their instructors. Participants have published work created in Inkwell’s workshops.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Rethinking policing: How Tempe de-escalation class changes officer behavior

Melissa Blasius

July 02, 2021 |

KNXV-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Tempe, Arizona

A controversial police shooting and other fraught encounters between Tempe police and residents prompted police to devise their own retraining regimen focused on de-escalation. The department observed other cities' programs and learned from its own officers who are known for defusing potentially volatile situations. After training some officers with the new curriculum, the department invited researchers to compare body-cam footage of trained and untrained officers. Though the findings did not show fewer shootings or uses of force, they did show a less aggressive, more calming approach.

Read More
Go to Original Story