Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • The controversial Silicon Valley-funded quest to educate the world's poorest kids

    Founded by Silicon Valley veterans and funders in 2007 to serve the world's poorest students and most under-resourced teachers, Bridge International Academies now operates 600 low-cost private schools in Kenya, Nigeria, Liberia, Uganda, and India. In Bridge's model, teachers read scripted lessons developed abroad directly from their tablets. While supporters say Bridge is delivering an otherwise unavailable service, at scale, and is seeing improved scores and teacher attendance, critics fear Bridge takes the human element out of learning, strips teachers of agency and fails to teach critical thinking skills.

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  • Bioeconomy: A global trend?

    Bioeconomy is the practice of using biological processes and organic materials to reduce waste, and it's gaining traction as a means of business. Finland is home to one of the largest bioproduct mills, where "a whole ecosystem of companies" work together on projects such as converting sustainably logged wood into pulp before selling it to Europe and Asia and producing solid biofuels which will eventually create electricity.

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  • What others can learn from Bonner's success in revitalizing its old mill site

    When the Stimson plywood mill closed in Bonner, Montana in 2008, the city was able to bounce back by converting the old industrial area into a business park that employees hundreds of people. As soon as the site was cleaned up, two local owners bought the property and started encouraging businesses to move in, focusing on the perks: lots of space and available warehouses. Frenchtown, a nearby city that also had a mill close in the last decade, is hoping to overcome environmental hurdles and replicate the success that Bonner has achieved.

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  • Giving Building Materials and Ex-Inmates a Second Chance in Baltimore

    Ex-offenders who get re-entry training and job opportunities are significantly less likely to wind up back in jail. A manufacturer called Brick + Board in east Baltimore hires employees with histories of incarceration. The company helps ex-offenders while also giving construction materials a second life in new projects.

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  • In New York, farms team up to solve the big distribution question that tech can't

    Getting food from farm to table isn't as easy as one may think. This is especially true for smaller farms that have to transport their produce to larger distribution sites to see any sort of profit. One local farmer in the Catksills Mountains of upper New York, recognized this problem and ultimately built an "ad-hoc operation acting as both the marketing and distribution agent" for a multitude of farmers in the region. Despite the many challenges he's faced, he's even been able to charge the wholesale buyer the delivery and administrative costs versus the traditional method of charging the farmer.

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  • Making Gum in the Mayan Rainforest

    Despite the Yucatan Peninsula being known as a hotspot for deforestation, the Tres Garantías cooperative has found a way to source sap from the forest's trees that doesn’t permanently damage the tree. The sap is used to create organic gum – the only of its kind – and is then shipped out around the world. This practice is not only sustainable for the rainforest, but it also sustains the livelihoods of the indigenous communities that are doing the work.

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  • These Girls Are Proof: Investing in Young Feminists Pays Off

    Young women face a unique set of challenges in school and as they transition into adulthood - from underrepresentation in school clubs and STEM subjects, to skewed perceptions on their clothing choices, to fewer business mentorship opportunities. Nonprofit Vital Voices is changing that with their HERLead program, which recruits girls from the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico and provides them with the resources to implement positive community initiatives, learn leadership skills, and pursue their dream careers.

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  • Meet The Disruptors: The One Health Company

    During his tenure in veterinary school at University of Pennsylvania, then-vet student Benjamin Lewis saw a disconnect between animal testing and the animals being tested on. In an attempt to revolutionize this practice, he and his wife and business partner Christina Lopes launched The One Health Company – a new breed of testing facility that aims to bring together sick pets and the new drug that could save them and humans with similar ailments.

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  • Companies Realize Benefits Of Pitching In For Child Care

    For many parents childcare can be very expensive, however, recently employers have started helping employees overcome this barrier. Little Apron Academy is a childcare center that Home Depot is partnered with and allows their employees to have an onsite care center that is also more affordable.

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  • Can an Old Mill Town Become the Silicon Valley of Human Organ Manufacturing?

    Dean Kamen brought the world the Segway scooter, prosthetic arms controlled by the human brain, the first automatic drug pump (used commonly to deliver insulin to diabetic patients), and now he's built the first organ manufacturing plant. Over 120,000 Americans are currently on a waiting list to receive life-saving organ donations that often don't come in time. Kamen is aiming to change this by mass-producing organs and other tissues with technology that already exists and has been tested in labs all over the world.

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