When Paying It Forward Pays Us Back

Philadelphia's criminal justice system is overwhelmed. New York is allowing judges to release low-risk defendants accused of non-violent crimes with the goal of saving money, reducing prison overcrowding, and cutting down on prison violence.

Research shows that adolescents' grades are suffering due to lack of sleep and early start times of schools. As a result, the federal Center for Disease Control and Prevention is asking schools to reconsider their schedules.

To address the food insecurity problem among its low-income students, Columbia University launched Swipes, a meal sharing app in which students with a surplus of “meal swipes” could donate them to students in need. But when that app struggled to function and roll out properly, Columbia looked downtown to New York University, where student Jon Chin launched a similarly purposed but more effectively designed app, Share Meals. So far, the app has enabled over a thousand meal donations, and is hoping to work with Columbia to share its code and expand its donor services.

Corruption in Mexico is ingrained in all systems and interactions. President Vicente Fox and his administration are trying to change this. Their mentality is that for corruption to truly be fought the government needs to actively make change and implement rules to counteract it, and some of Fox's changes are now beginning to see improvements.

Two years after the fall of the Rana Plaza killed more than 1,000 garment workers, “More than 200 clothing brands have pledged to make their source factories safer under two international agreements called the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety and the non-binding Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety.” The accident also led to the government employing more safety inspectors, and an increase in unions.

In Mancos, Colorado, the school board voted “no” to arming school staff in the traditionally Western town. Across the United States, the question of arming teachers is being brought up as a response to the increase in school shootings. The policy is highly contested, with some saying it provides students with a feeling of safety, but others saying the risks associated are too high. For the Mancos community, such a vote is a surprise given the town’s gun-friendly history, but is explained by the increase in new residents.

Clarke County School District in Georgia has 21 public schools that all offer free meals to students, regardless of their financial needs. This is facilitated through a federally-funded program, so even though poverty rates are high in the area, local residents are not footing the bill. While there are still some challenges implementing the program, in general it is received well and allows students to focus on their work and well-being instead of being distracted by hunger.

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) protects states from having to fund federal laws. Prior to its passage, Congress passed bills without worrying about how to fund them, leaving states, cities, and counties to pay for federal mandates. Though UMRA has not been foolproof, 185 unfunded mandates were passed in 1993 before the law was passed and only 15 laws that violate UMRA limits were enacted between 1996 and 2018. Congress is not required to fund the whole bill, which means localities can still be required to pay significant amounts for federally mandated laws.

The Hounslow council sent £20 vouchers to every household to help the local economy recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Households had about two months to spend the voucher, which could purchase products or services at a range of businesses from cafes and cinemas to retailers and laundromats. Retailers can use an app to scan the vouchers and eventually redeem them for payments.

Following the overturn of Roe v. Wade, access to safe, legal abortion in the U.S. is scarce. While several states have banned mifepristone and misoprostol — the two drugs that makeup abortion pills — misoprostol, which has been found to be the more effective of the two, can still be accessed at some pharmacies and through nonprofits in the U.S. and overseas like Plan C and Aid Access.