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 793 results for your search. View and Refine Your Search Terms

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.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Election Season Is Wildfire Season. These Voters Lost Everything.

Julia Thomas

October 29, 2020 |

The New Republic |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Oregon

Rule changes in counties impacted by wildfires have made it easier for displaced residents to vote in the 2020 presidential election by using their temporary residence, shelter, a P.O. box, or their county election office to receive a ballot. Social media campaigns inform residents about their voting options, in addition to wildfire responses, and thousands of people have changed the address where they want to receive their ballot. The number of registered voters also increased by tens of thousands in many counties.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Colville, Washington Survived the Timber Wars. Now It's Tackling Wildfire

Jake Bullinger

October 23, 2020 |

Bitterroot |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Colville, Washington

A collective of timber companies, conservationists, and forestry professionals has made the adjacent national forest more resilient to wildfires by focusing on small-diameter trees while preserving old growth. In 2019, the Northeast Washington Forest Coalition allowed for the harvesting of 87.1 million board-feet from the forest and 16,561 acres underwent controlled burns and mechanical thinning to mitigate the risk of wildfires. The group’s record of compromise and innovation could offer a blueprint for other areas looking to boost the resilience of fire-prone forests and rural economies.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Billions in COVID Relief Has Gone to Farmers. Just Not Black or Family-Owned Farms in Appalachia.

Beth Ward

October 19, 2020 |

100 Days in Appalachia |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Kentucky

Several organizations — including the Kentucky Black Farmer Fund, Community Farm Alliance, and Black Soil: Our Better Nature — are working together to provide disaster relief funds during the COVID-19 pandemic to Black farmers. They’ve been able to award 43 small farms with a one-time payment of up to $750, which was used to purchase equipment or personal protective equipment. That amount can only help them so much, but it’s a step in helping Black farmers receive federal aid, which they historically have been left out of.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Prescribed Burn Associations Are One Answer to California's Megafires

Colleen Hagerty

October 19, 2020 |

Sierra Club |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, California

Prescribed burns are fires set intentionally to reduce the fuel that can make wildfires so large and damaging. Despite the science favoring this approach for healthy ecosystems and fire prevention, government use of the strategy has remained small and stagnant. Local prescribed burn associations (PBAs) have filled some of the gap, educating and training landowners to conduct small-scale burns. PBAs cannot come close to filling the entire need. But they have prevented some disasters while returning fire management to local control, and to ancient native practices before fire suppression became the norm.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Lessons learned in real time at rural hospitals during pandemic

Lyle Muller

October 16, 2020 |

IowaWatch |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Osceola, Iowa

Small hospitals in rural regions in America have quickly had to learn how to cope with the influx of COVID-19 cases during the pandemic. While many lessons have been learned, in Iowa, hospital personnel have seen success from joining forces with municipal, school district, business, and other civic leaders, as well as allocating stimulus funding toward safety steps.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Snowsheds are just one part of Rogers Pass' extensive avalanche program

Tom Hallberg Bradly J. Boner

October 14, 2020 |

Jackson Hole News & Guide |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Canada, Rogers Pass, British Columbia

Snowsheds are just one tool in Canada’s arsenal to combat the impacts avalanches can have on their complex road systems. Snowsheds are aboveground tunnels where snow can travel over it and into the river, thereby reducing the number of road closures to cleanup the aftermath and allowing thousands of drivers to continue on their journeys. This idea is being explored by state officials in Wyoming as a way to improve their avalanche-mitigation tactics.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Ex-logger leads firefighters defending Indonesia's peatlands

Harry Jacques

October 14, 2020 |

Thomson Reuters Foundation |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Indonesia, Rawa Mekar Jaya, Riau

An Indonesian government program called Masyarakat Peduli Api, or “Fire Care Community,” aims to improve community responses to wildfires and restore peatlands — valuable ecosystems that store carbon. Through community engagement and education, this volunteer fire brigade patrols the peatlands and addresses small fires before they spread. The program remains underfunded, but residents recognize the importance of their work.

Read More
Go to Original Story
A world without avalanche closures

Tom Hallberg Bradly J. Boner

October 07, 2020 |

Jackson Hole News & Guide |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Snoqualmie Pass, Washington

A failed bridge construction project in the 1960s in Wyoming to mitigate the impacts of avalanches inspired Washington state to complete a similar project fifty years later. The project included an elevated bridge that allows snow from slide paths to pass beneath the roadway, which ends up saving losses of economic activity due to road closures. While the construction can be expensive, Wyoming is looking to see if a similar solution can be applied to their own mountain passes.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Cooperating over shared water in West Africa

Michelle Langrand

October 06, 2020 |

Geneva Solutions |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Senegal

There are over 250 rivers and lakes that are shared between countries, accounting for more than half of world's freshwater. This means that countries have to cooperate to share resources. In 1972, Mali, Senegal, and Mauritania did just that. They formed the Senegal River Basin Development Authority, or the OMVS (for its French initials). In 2005, Guinea joined. The organization is an example of how countries can join forces to share water resources cooperatively.

Read More
Go to Original Story