For Migrants, A Hopeful Journey Out of Darkness

Anna-Catherine Brigida

June 02, 2021 |

U.S. News & World Report |

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Response Location: Mexico, Matamoros, Tamaulipas

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) works with asylum seekers in Matamoros to address mental health issues while they wait for decisions in their U.S. immigration cases. MSF provides one-on-one and group counseling with a therapist trained to address the issues asylum seekers face. To build trust and decrease the stigma surrounding mental health and seeking treatment, MSF holds daily talks in the camp. Since kids show symptoms of trauma differently, MSF created mental health treatment in the form of interactive games and activities. MSF reports positive outcomes for the 3,100 mental health sessions held in 2020.

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‘Blind date' for political rivals? TV show is breaking down barriers.

Sara Miller Llana

May 05, 2021 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

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Response Location: Canada

The Canadian reality show, “Political Blind Date,” pairs two politicians from opposing sides to spend two days together visiting each other’s constituents and wrestling with difficult issues. Fifty politicians have participated over five seasons, averaging about 195,000 viewers per episode. The aim is not to get them to change their minds, but to humanize people with opposing political beliefs and break down the increasingly common ‘us versus them’ mindset in politics. Advocates say that this has a “trickle down” effect on viewers forging greater understanding and more respectful debate.

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How two Black CEOs got corporate America to pay attention to voting rights

Todd C. Frankel

May 04, 2021 |

The Washington Post |

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Response Location: United States, Georgia

A small group of prominent Black business leaders personally urged their corporate peers to oppose the restrictive voting laws being considered in dozens of states. Public statements framing voting rights as a moral, non-partisan issue led to hundreds of corporations - including Microsoft and Target – publicly opposing the bills, with some threatening to withhold investment and campaign donations in states that pass such laws. The Major League Baseball All-Star game was pulled from Georgia. Organizers believe White executives were more likely to listen to Black executives than Black grassroots activists.

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Clues to makes resident life work found during pandemic

Roberta Baker

April 29, 2021 |

The Laconia Daily Sun |

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Response Location: United States, Laconia, New Hampshire

Nursing homes adapted to COVID-19 so that they could protect residents’ physical well-being while also preserving their social and emotional health. Staff at Belknap County Nursing Home modified popular activities to make them safe, like hallway bingo, where numbers were called from hallways so that residents could stay in or near their rooms. Participation jumped 30% from pre-pandemic levels. An adaptation to another popular game, “Price is Right,” had staff bringing items, like snacks and toiletries, room-to-room so that residents could guess the price, with the person coming closest winning the item.

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How Senegal stretched its health care system to stop Covid-19

Jen Kirby

April 28, 2021 |

Vox |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Senegal

Senegal limited COVID-19 cases in the pandemic’s first year using an existing infrastructure built from dealing with Ebola outbreaks. Coordinated emergency response teams quickly expanded testing capacity across the country and positive cases were required to quarantine in hotels or health centers, where Red Cross volunteers staffed the beds, rather than at home. Village health workers, who were trusted community members, educated people on how to respond to the virus, helped reduce the stigma of the virus, and urged people to follow the strict social distancing, masking, and quarantining rules.

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The exchange project uniting young Americans during the pandemic

Stephen Staff

April 13, 2021 |

BBC |

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Response Location: United States

The American Exchange Project connects high school students from different socio-economic, racial, and regional backgrounds across the U.S, with hopes to become the country’s first domestic exchange program after the pandemic. So far, 175 students at 39 schools in 14 states have connected in weekly online “hangouts” where discussion topics range from favorite music and other commonalities in the lives of teenagers to more serious issues such as racism. Getting to know people from different backgrounds has helped dispel stereotypes and some participants have forged real friendships with one another.

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Deaths of Despair: The crushing toll of a pandemic in Maine's ‘forgotten county'

Barbara A. Walsh

April 11, 2021 |

The Maine Monitor |

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Response Location: United States, Baileyville, Maine

Police Chief Bob Fitzsimmons personally connects with residents to combat increasing suicide rates, particularly among teens. Teachers reach out to the chief if one of the town’s 330 schoolchildren misses school, and he personally visits their home. His department funded popcorn and ice-cream sundae parties, as well as a New Year’s Day gathering, to ease the difficulty of isolation during COVID-19. He ensures residents’ achievements are publicly celebrated and grieves with families during tragedies, ensuring everyone has support in the rural area where medical and mental health services are scarcer.

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Co-Governing to Build Back Better

Hollie Russon Gilman Elena Souris Rebecca Rosen

April 09, 2021 |

Next City |

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Response Location: United Kingdom, York

The city of York trained volunteers to help identify causes and solutions to loneliness and social isolation, an issue with public health consequences. Volunteers conducted research and spoke to 1,000 fellow residents and 100 other stakeholders to identify community knowledge and priorities. Working closely with local partners, volunteers helped design and implement solutions, including pairing young runners with isolated older citizens to serve as coaches and provide motivation. Participants reported positive outcomes, like feeling less lonely and experiencing improved well-being.

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What Other States Can Learn from Georgia's Historic Elections

Fiza Pirani

April 08, 2021 |

Yes! Magazine |

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Response Location: United States, Georgia

A complex combination of successful fundraising campaigns, engaging with and energizing Black voters, and mobilizing the state’s other ethnic and racial groups helped Democrats flip Georgia blue in 2020. Large financial investments allowed organizers to implement effective voter education and registration campaigns and distribute the resources to areas where the need to mobilize voters was greatest. Organizers tapped into Black culture through food, music, and the Black church to energize voters. They also conducted multiracial, multi-ethnic, and multilingual outreach to engage other marginalized groups.

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Meet the Black Mambas, South Africa's all-female anti-poaching unit

Emma Gregg

March 23, 2021 |

National Geographic |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: South Africa

The Black Mambas are an all-female anti-poaching and ranger unit based in South Africa’s Balule Nature Reserve. They patrol on foot and by vehicle to remove bushmeat snares and look for evidence of illegal poaching activities. They also run the Bush Babies Environmental Education Programme, which teaches local school children about wildlife and conservation. The group combines anti-poaching enforcement with efforts to ensure local communities have food security and understand the economic and employment benefits of tourism as a way to protect wildlife. The Mambas are seen as role models within the community.

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