No More Shooting Crows. Nampa, Idaho Gets Creative To Solve Bird Problem

San Francisco’s chronically homeless population remains staggeringly high. Salt Lake City has managed to eradicate much of their chronically homeless by geographically placing supportive housing distant from the city’s center and receiving financial assistance from the Mormon Church. The housing is attractive, modern, and offers a good ratio between counselors and homeless clients—all of which helps make the homeless want to stay off the streets.

A Rocha Kenya is an environmental organization that connects Christian conservationists around the world to protect endangered habitats and species with the both the power of prayer and practical conservation efforts. Today, the group is also working to train local farmers in new methods to protect the forest, focusing on topics like promoting soil health, increasing crop yields and reducing water usage.

Instead of relying on Flint’s municipal government for basic services that it does not have the money for, residents are “picking up the slack” by joining block clubs. These community groups maintain parks, mow lawns, and clean up garbage, saving the city $4.3 million from 2015 to 2017. Though it’s not a permanent fix, block clubs are nonetheless making a significant positive impact on the city.

Gathering Place is the name of a new park in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It is a large-scale creative park project that, rather than receiving funding from the local government, was funded entirely through a local philanthropic foundation. One goal of the park is to bring different areas of the city together--though it remains to be seen if this will work as well as if privately-funded public spaces are effective in the future.

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.

Around the world, people are putting out Little Free Libraries—a small birdhouse like box for people to take, leave, or swap books. These libraries have helped create easy access to book ownership and reading as well as community among neighbors.

At a decommissioned chemical depot, a lone biologist has been building artificial homes for burrowing owls. To date, he's installed some 182 burrows. Not only have his efforts helped bring a declining species back across the region, but his studies have gone a long way to better understanding the birds.

San Diego residents may be seeing more placemaking projects, like murals or pedestrian plazas, because of a more streamlined permitting process. The city, notorious for making such projects difficult and expense to install, passed legislation and will be reviewing it to assess whether it should be expanded. San Diego has also created a fund that can help offset the costs of permit fees and other expenses.

To mark the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre, in which a white mob killed hundreds of Black residents and destroyed the thriving neighborhood of Greenwood, the Centennial Commission supported a number of initiatives to learn from the past and build a better future. At the base of an ancient elm tree that witnessed the massacre, Up With Trees distributed 100 elm seedlings to children to plant around Tulsa. The commission convinced state education officials to develop a new curriculum on the massacre for K-12 students.

Residents of Cambridge, Massachusetts, are planting Miyawaki forests to help regenerate the local ecosystem, sequester carbon, and cool the air. Originally created in Japan, these forests consist entirely of native plants made to mimic a natural forest in a small area of urban land.