Keeping the Water Flowing in Rural Villages

Climate change has led to shorter, more violent rainy seasons in the highlands around Lima, Peru, meaning that - even though there is theoretically enough water during the rainy season to sustain the local population, it flows downhill too quickly, leaving residents short of clean water during the dry season. Now, an organization called Condesan is helping the community to restore ancient stone canals from the seventh century that will help to store water from rainfall through the dry season and supply residents with a steady water source.

Two federally-funded Seattle tech training programs tasked with increasing diversity in the industry returned dramatically different results over the course of one year. Experts credit Apprenti's employer-driven nature, use of an online screening tool, and close ties with the local tech community with its relative success in placing 220 people in apprenticeships in its first 18 months. 94 percent of applicants to Aprenti's program were women, veterans, or persons of color, with only 55 percent holding a post-secondary degree.

Uganda’s education ministry requires all schools to have incinerators to burn used sanitary pads. Lack of funding limits schools’ ability to comply. Even when incinerators exist, girls don’t necessarily use them. Educating both girls and boys about menstruation reduces stigma and increases the likelihood that girls feel comfortable enough to collect pads instead of throwing them in pit latrines.

The Anacostia, which has long been one of the most polluted rivers in the country, has been given a new lease on life, thanks to cleanup efforts and a recent sewer upgrade in D.C. Since water quality has improved, there's been renewed interest in waterfront recreation and development. Now local groups are working to mitigate displacement from gentrification, with some success.

After learning that poor hygiene and sanitation practices often leads to an increase in diseases, on man in Kenya decided to install pit latrines for his community to lead by example. This practice, along with other approaches such as handwash stations, has now spread to other communities and has shown a decrease in illnesses throughout the villages.

The simple addition of adding handles to bathroom stalls in the Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh has helped the camps' pregnant women regain a sense of empowerment and dignity. Providing support and balance, the design of these latrines have benefited the elderly in the camps as well.

Jordan is dealing with an influx of Syrian refugees that are putting a strain on already scarce resources like water. In response, the United Nations World Food Program has started to grow barley and other foods hydroponically in a process that uses 90% less water than traditional methods. Beyond the innovations in the lab, new technology is also allowing refugees to shop freely in local supermarkets and use their irises—checked with eye scans—to pay for their groceries from their given funds. This eliminates the threat of theft and is improving food access across Jordan.

To replace lost business and keep their employees on staff, Tasmanian businesses quickly diversified into new product lines to meet COVID-19-related demand. A camera accessories firm that saw nearly all of its sales to the film and TV industries dry up became a manufacturer of face shields. A plastic manufacturer increased its business by turning out acrylic counter-top protective screens. And a whiskey distillery began producing 2,000 liters of hand sanitizer per week.

More than 2,700 police departments in the U.S. have crisis intervention teams aimed at responding to mental health crises with fewer arrests and less violence, but the death of Daniel Prude in Rochester police custody offers clear lessons in the shortcomings and misuse of the CIT model. A lack of adequate mental health services across the country, coupled with superficial training of the police, too often means a police response to a crisis will not de-escalate the situation or lead to meaningful help for the person in crisis. A recent study found CITs have not shown they will lower violence.

The Society for Family Health developed a digital learning curriculum that intends to improve the knowledge base and train healthcare providers on how to properly administer hormonal IUDs. The digital training is available on the global learning platform Kaya and has proved to not only be more convenient and accessible, but is also more cost effective than traditional, in-person training.