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Here comes the sun canoe, as Amazonians take on Big Oil

Francesc Badia i Dalmases

March 13, 2020 |

The Guardian |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Ecuador, Kapawi

The Kara Solar Foundation is looking to connect indigenous communities in Achuar territory in Ecuador to learn about solar power as an alternative to oil. By building solar-powered canoes, they can replace vessels that burn fossil fuels into the atmosphere. While the two boats in operation have run into technical problems, the intercultural training programs are instructing Achuar people on how to fix the technology. “Sustained and truly intercultural collaborations can create technological solutions that serve indigenous communities, rather than destroying them,” says Oliver Utne, the foundation's founder.

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In Kenya, herders turn an invasive cactus into biofuel

Robert Kibet

March 12, 2020 |

Deutsche Welle (DW) |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Laikipia County

The invasive prickly pear cactus is spreading over grazing lands in Kenya and is harming herders’ livestock. So a local environmental science graduate is testing a system to turn the cacti into biogas. While the system can be expensive to install, the gas can be used for cooking and fertilizer, which can free up time for pastoralists and reduce the amount of firewood used. The graduate is training eight women’ groups to use the system.

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Alaskan Roulette

Zoya Teirstein

February 25, 2020 |

Grist |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Old Harbor, Alaska

An initiative called the Southeast Alaska Tribal Ocean Research is the state’s first coordinated testing effort to ensure that harvesters are not selling shellfish that contain paralytic shellfish poisoning. The program keeps track of data from 42 beaches in southern Alaska. However, the program only covers a small part of the active fishing sites in the state, so data is limited. But since the testing program was set up, no one at those sites have become sick.

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University of Notre Dame converts tons of dining hall leftovers into energy

Catherine M. Odell

February 25, 2020 |

EarthBeat |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Notre Dame, Indiana

The University of Notre Dame installed three Grind2Energy systems, which aims to reduce the amount of food waste from the campus’ dining halls. The systems process the waste and send it to a local dairy farm where they break down the material to produce biogas that is used to generate electrical power for 1,000 homes each day in Plymouth, Indiana. While not everyone at the university has committed to the sustainability efforts, these systems can be scaled to be used on other college campuses.

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Montana's Grand Prairie Experiment

Jake Bullinger

February 21, 2020 |

Bitterroot |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Malta, Montana

According to the WWF, 69 percent of the Northern Great Plains remains untilled, providing great opportunity for making sure that land remains untouched. Two conservation organizations, the Nature Conservancy and the American Prairie Reserve, are butting heads as they both try to preserve the land, albeit via different means. Although they both face opposition for their methods, this article lays out exactly how both have already managed to make great strides in conserving the land and increasing biodiversity.

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Can rationing carbon help fight climate change?

Frank Swain

February 17, 2020 |

BBC |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Australia, Norfolk Island

As countries wrestle with how to reduce their carbon emissions, grassroots carbon rationing experiments are taking shape around the word. On an Australian Island of 800 people, a quarter of them participated in a test that calculated their carbon footprints with a goal of reducing their fossil fuel use by 10 percent. The average household reduced their usage by 18 percent and almost two-thirds of participants wanted to continue. Other experiments in Finland and the United Kingdom have taken place, yet some question if carbon rationing is equitable.

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PowerCorpsPHL trains Philly youth for careers that have a future

Jessica Blatt Press

February 12, 2020 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A workforce development initiative, PowerCorpsPHL, pays participants to learn skills and gain hands-on experience for jobs that offer long-term career opportunity in the field of environmental sustainability. Participants generally have criminal records or have been in the foster care system. In addition to job training and education, PowerCorpsPHL also provides services such as mental health counseling, securing childcare, navigating SNAP and AmeriCorps tuition benefits and helping with paperwork. The program helps 92 percent of participants secure either a job or post-secondary education.

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Can charcoal make beef better for the environment?

Mikki Cusack

February 06, 2020 |

BBC |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Australia, Manjimup

An unusual mixture of biochar — a charcoal-like substance that is produced by burning organic matter — and dung beetles is one way farmers could reduce their cows’ methane emissions to combat climate change, while also improving the health of their soil. Studies on Doug Pow’s farm in Australia have shown an improvement in soil-water retention and an increase in the amount of carbon retained in the soil, which prevents it from escaping into the atmosphere. “We are doing our bit to re-engineer the soil in a positive way, for the long-term benefits of our world,” Pow says.

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How The Carbon Disclosure Project Is Fostering Transparency For City-Level Environmental Policy Design

Chad Small

February 03, 2020 |

Blavity |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Baltimore, Maryland

Collecting data about environmental risks and resiliency projects facilitates investment and funding. The Carbon Disclosure Project’s (CDP) Cities Program and Cities Vulnerability Assessment encourage participating cities to report actions they are taking to address climate risks. CDP then uses the data to help cities invest in socially equitable solutions, advising community level projects through its Matchmaker project. The project has led to results in cities such as Baltimore and Cleveland.

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The divers rescuing a drowning island

Kamala Thiagarajan

February 02, 2020 |

BBC |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: India, Vaan Island

Vaan Island, off the coast of Indian in the Gulf of Mannar, is rapidly sinking. But scientists are working to prevent that erosion by replanting seagrass, which is an important plant in a marine ecosystem. Despite fishermen pulling up the seagrass with their nets, so far, nine acres of seagrass have been rehabilitated in the area.

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