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Citizens of the Week Gaye Harley and Jamie Powell

Jessica Press

August 12, 2019 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Wilmington, Delaware

In Wilmington, Delaware, Gaye Harley repurposes her hospital's operating room wraps, the oversize sheets of synthetic material used to package instruments, into portable maps for the homeless. Instead of disposing of the materials, she has urged the hospital to recycle them into nearly 100 mats and counting. They have also used the mats to make tote bags, which they distribute with donated socks, also to the homeless.

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How One City Saved $5 Million by Routing School Buses with an Algorithm

Emma Coleman

August 12, 2019 |

Route Fifty |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Boston, Massachusetts

A well-designed algorithm can help increase the efficiency of complex, and troublesome, transportation systems. In 2017, Boston Public Schools hosted a competition to redesign its complicated bussing system. The selected proposal, an algorithm created by PhD students, increased efficiency by 20% overall, helping BPD cut tons of carbon emissions and ease budget constraints. The savings will allow BPD to reinvest in its schools.

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A tiny garden in Boulder is showing signs of stress from smog. The scientist behind it is thrilled.

Amanda K. Clark

August 12, 2019 |

The Colorado Sun |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder, Colorado

A garden at Boulder, Colorado’s Museum of Natural History is being used to track the effects of smog and educate visitors as well. Called an “ozone garden,” this plot – and other like it around the world – shows researchers and visitors how plants are damaged by ground-level ozone levels. Beyond education, the researchers behind the ozone garden are using it to show how crops and food availability will diminish as climate change continues.

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The Viking Guide to Oil Wealth Management

Mitch Anderson

August 10, 2019 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Norway

Norway has been able to have a productive relationship with oil companies, while, at the same time, retain control over resource development and grow its resource revenue. Through the country’s culture of local control and indigenous governance, its resource revenue is over $1 trillion and helps pay for some of the country’s social programs; a model that could be potentially work in other places around the world.

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Chevron starts its unique project that buries carbon dioxide underground

Akshat Rathi

August 10, 2019 |

Quartz |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: Australia, Barrow Island, Western Australia

In the wake of a massive natural gas extraction project by Chevron, the Australian government asked the oil behemoth to bury as much as 4 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, which would otherwise be released into the atmosphere. The technology fueling the burying initiative, called carbon capture and storage (CCS), has had success in similar projects around the world in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the oil creation process.

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How a State Plans to Turn Coal Country Into Coding Country

Dana Goldstein

August 10, 2019 |

The New York Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Sheridan, Wyoming

Since Wyoming passed legislation in 2018 requiring all grade levels to teach computer science curriculum by 2022, teachers have spent significant time outside of work getting themselves up to speed. The idea is that these coding skills will transition the state's economy away from the coal industry and keep young people in the state. However, some critics note that there are few success stories of technology clusters in remote areas.

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Oregon Rethinks Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Life After the Chinese Import Ban

Maggie Mertens

August 09, 2019 |

Bitterroot |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Portland, Oregon

After China stopped buying recycling near the end of 2017, Oregon faced mounting piles of mixed recycling that seemed bound for the landfill--a move that might have been illegal under Oregon law. Instead, the state's recycling industry made adjustments, including limiting the types of items to be recycled and using local processing plants instead of Chinese ones.

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The desert gets a biocrust skin graft

Krista Langlois

August 09, 2019 |

High Country News |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Alamos, New Mexico

Scientists in southeast America are trying to rebuild the natural biocrusts that existed centuries ago. The biocrusts, which are concentrations of cyanobacteria, moss, and lichens, are a crucial part of ecosystems in its ability to prevent erosion and soil degradation. Researchers across the region have been growing them in labs, but the implementation into the environment has posed challenges.

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Improving our own environment

Madison Kuklentz, Gabriella DeMelfi, Thomas Garlick

August 09, 2019 |

The Mercury |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Schwenksville, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania’s Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy has built a grassroots base of volunteers that help clean up the local environment. Through education at schools and summer workshops, outreach projects, and asking volunteers to recruit new people, the Conservancy saw over 1,000 volunteers at its annual stream cleanup event. While the organization is still trying to figure out how to retain volunteers for long-term projects, the response to immediate projects has been overwhelming.

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In wealthy Silicon Valley, a $500 million plan to save threatened farmland

Johnny Magdaleno

August 08, 2019 |

Reuters |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, San Martin, California

In Santa Clara County, California, the Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation program is funding an effort to prevent development and bolster agriculture on local farmland. The County, home to Silicon Valley, purchases land at market prices to protect it from development, incentivize agriculture, and prevent sprawl. While still in the beginning stages, the county looking long-term to see how this program will be financially sustainable.

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