Public Libraries Are Making It Easy to Check Out Seeds—and Plant a Garden

Small towns located deep in the valleys of steep mountains, like Rjukan, Norway, and Viganella, Italy, can be cut off from sunlight for almost half a year but computer-controlled mirrors are helping to change that. The tailor-made, computer-driven motors on giant mirrors track sunlight throughout the day.

A grass blend formulated specifically for northern Utah’s environment uses at least 30 percent less water than typical turf.

Este reportaje cuenta y explica la solución energética de Ticino, un pueblo de la provincia argentina de Córdoba. Quemando biomasa (cáscara de maní), la manicera de la localidad, que es también la empresa más grande del lugar, genera energía eléctrica que vende al Estado para abastecer al pueblo y a zonas vecinas. Esta solución beneficia a cientos de familias y permitió que durante el gran apagón nacional de 2019, Ticino continuara con luz.

The rapid development of emerging economies across Asia and Africa is lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty - but there is much debate as to how to best structure this growth. If these economies evolve in the same way as in the West - with unchecked, excessive resource consumption and heavy pollution - the planet may be on the fast track to disaster. Earthrise explores how these nations can grow sustainably using improved, eco-conscious technologies like renewable energy and eco-friendly farming practices.

The Ajo Center for Sustainable Agriculture has helped the town of Ajo in Arizona distribute affordable and nutrient-dense food to the community after the coronavirus pandemic created a significant financial strain on many families. Additional support has come from the town's participation in the Environmental Protection Agency's program Local Food, Local Places which "provides technical support and expertise to help towns leverage food systems to boost economic development."

Primera entrega sobre MASLAGO, una organización que trabaja por disminuir la sedimentación y contaminación del Lago de Anapás, que es una de las represas hidroeléctricas más importantes de Nicaragua, a través de la educación de los agricultores sobre la reforestación y eliminación de los monocultivos.

Two insurance companies, Discovery and Dialdirect, implemented a smartphone app for drivers to report potholes in their city. The companies then fill the potholes and brand them with their logos.

The Flight of the Angel attraction has helped the area to create more jobs and improve the economy through tourism. In 2007, when the attraction opened, there were only two restaurants and two hotels in the city. But now, there are about 50 bed and breakfasts, eight restaurants and over 130,000 visitors annually.

The Kansas City Streetcar provides fare-free transportation for residents, which helps to get them downtown and promote more economic development. The fare-free streetcar also makes transit more equitable by removing barriers for low-income passengers and improving mobility for people with disabilities.

The International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards trains employees in the tourism industry to become autism certified, ensuring they know how to care for neurodivergent youth and their families when they’re at places like restaurants or theme parks. Several of these businesses have practices in place like offering noise-canceling headphones, access to quiet rooms or even hosting autism awareness weekends, helping to make the city the first Autism Certified City in the world.