In Mozambique, a Living Laboratory for Nature's Renewal

Raton, a town once surrounded by eight coal mines, now has a main street of boarded-up buildings. There is reason for optimism as the town diversifies its local economy, betting on "a mix of small manufacturing businesses, health care and specialty services, and hospitality for travelers" to endure the sudden decline in mining revenue. Its calculated revitalization may hold lessons for other towns.

There used to be a time when oil spills devastated entire populations of animals. Although still an environmental disaster, scientists and wildlife veterinarians have become profoundly more successful at treating oiled birds. Crediting much of the success to better understanding the importance of order of treatment, rehabilitated birds are surviving at a much higher rate than ever before.

Bozeman, Montana, a city grappling with how to plan for growth in a smart and strategic way, is looking to learn from Fort Collins, Colorado. The two cities are similar in terms of the features that make them appealing: once low-cost, small college towns with beautiful scenery and lots of space. Now, Fort Collins’ population has soared, and critics say development could have been smarter. Bozeman is learning lessons about planning and inclusivity, hoping not to make the same mistakes.

In Londonderry, New Hampshire, the Carriage Shack Farm hire out goats to eat unwanted plants like poison ivy or bittersweet. Contrary to humans, they aren’t harmed by the plant and actually enjoy eating it. Prior to being hired, the farm trains the goats so that their appetites and stomachs aren’t adversely affected.

Redeveloping and repurposing unused real estate provides a path toward economic revitalization. With a combination of public and private grants, the nonprofit group, International Sonoran Desert Alliance (ISDA), has purchased and redeveloped real estate in the town of Ajo, Arizona. The renovated town plaza and Curley School complex contain retail spaces, artist studios, and even house community gardens of the Ajo Center for Sustainable Agriculture.

In Indonesia, transferring land management rights to local residents is slow-going, but one community is setting an example for what can happen when the residents are in charge. Mandiri farmers formed a cooperative and began replacing hillsides; now, tourism to the area has increased and attitudes towards the land and community have changed.

For years, a rancher in Southern Oregon has been trying to keep a local pack of wolves from killing his livestock, and after many rounds of trial and error and collaborative efforts, a high-tech fence may be the solution. Although the fence isn't cheap, many came forward to help make this a possibility and show their support for a project that united people that historically have stood politically opposed.

Local Ocean Conservation is in Watamu, Kenya has made approximately 21,000 turtle rescues and "treated more than 650 turtles in its rehabilitation center and clinic" since it's inception in 1997. The group responds to fishermen who have accidentally caught turtles in their nets and then remunerates the fishermen for their "time, effort, and phone calls." This incentive-based relationship combined with a ban on the international tortoiseshell trade has helped decrease the poaching of turles, and the group has now expanded their efforts to include more initiatives to protect the endangered species.

The nonprofit group Save Giraffes Now, the Kenya Wildlife Service, the Northern Rangelands Trust, and local community members are working together to save the endangered Rothschild’s giraffe species. Rising lake levels and flooding have stranded the animals on its island, so they made a custom-built steel barge to relocate them to a protected wildlife reserve. It’s not easy to move giraffes, but so far they’ve successfully moved three out of nine of them.

Beavers and the dams they build have been found to be tools against climate change as the planet’s temperature continues to rise. Dams slow water down and allow it to seep into the Earth, providing groundwater for humans, and also cools down both water and air temperatures. Beaver dams also create wetland ecosystems that are practically resistant to wildfires.