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Portland Is Trying To Help People Return To Gentrified Areas. Austin Has Similar Plans.

Audrey McGlinchy

November 16, 2018 |

KUT |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Portland, Oregon

By giving housing preferences to local families, cities like Portland hope to stem gentrification and preserve the historic diversity of their communities. Portland’s “Right to Return” program aims to resettle families displaced by gentrification through an investment in affordable housing and by giving preference to those families who have a generational connection to the city. The program could inform similar efforts in cities like Austin, Texas.

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Can we design neighborhoods to survive wildfires?

Adele Peters

November 14, 2018 |

FastCompany |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, California

Wildfires are inevitable, especially as forests become drier due to climate change, but it is possible to design the built environment so that fires don’t destroy as much property or as many lives. Architects now can choose different materials that resist ignition from wind-borne embers and can put more distance between homes. Spacing homes farther apart and burying power lines can help, but the changing climate is also making some places unsuitable for rebuilding destroyed communities.

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California Wildfires Destroy Homes and Lives. Why Do Regulators Encourage Building in Fire Zones?

Christian Britschgi

November 14, 2018 |

Reason |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, California

In California, Proposition 103 – a decades-old ballot initiative – disincentivizes homeowners affected by wildfires to rebuild in less fire-prone zones. The proposition – which can only be reversed through another ballot initiative – bars insurers from raising their rates based on future risks, meaning people who live in fire zones are not paying a higher rate. Furthermore, because of these regulations and the lack of response to the problem, insurance agencies often err on the side of caution and won’t sell policies at all, leaving some people uninsured entirely.

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So many innovations, little uptake to boost health

Aggrey Omboki

November 13, 2018 |

Nation Africa |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Kenya

Medical innovations in maternal and child health could save thousands of lives in Africa if more governments adopted them. A Kenyan doctor with an international nonprofit that works to transform global health through innovation offers key examples such as oxytocin tablets that don't need refrigeration and can stop women bleeding to death after birth, dipsticks to detect pre-eclampsia and skilled birth attendants. These solutions can stop women and children dying from preventable causes.

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The Wheels on These Buses Go Round and Round With Zero Emissions

Brad Plumer

November 12, 2018 |

The New York Times |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, White Plains, New York

Electric cars have already made their entrance into American society, but now school buses are also joining the ranks of energy efficient vehicles. From New York to California, school systems are actively finding ways to implement the buses into their rotations in order to cut down on the carbon footprint of school transportation and reduce the cost of fuel.

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These Bridges And Tunnels Save Wild Animals' Lives — And Prevent Car Wrecks, Too

Courtney Flatt

November 09, 2018 |

Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) |

Multi-Media |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Washington

U.S. Highway 97 is one of the highest travelled roads through Washington, but it is also one of the most dangerous due to wildlife crossings. Taking note of successful initiatives in other states and countries, Washington is making moves to implement underpasses which will reduce the rate of accidents and cut down on medical and vehicular collision costs.

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Emergency Preparedness for Prisons Isn't Just Sandbags and Non-perishables

Emma Coleman

November 02, 2018 |

New America Weekly |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New Orleans, Louisiana

After Hurricane Katrina in 2005 stranded people incarcerated in the New Orleans jail without food or water, the city used the experience not to question its disaster preparedness but instead to rethink who needs to be incarcerated in the first place. By easing policies in cash bail and arrests for petty offenses, the city cut its jail population by two-thirds and replaced its flooded jail with one less than one-quarter the original size. The new policies helped inspire Louisiana to revise its sentencing standards in an effort to end its distinction for having the world's highest incarceration rate.

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After decades of silence, L.A.'s Triforium becomes the 'pipe organ of light' its creator meant it to be — for three nights

Doug Smith

November 02, 2018 |

Los Angeles Times |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

In Los Angeles, three young creatives tried to bring a renewal to the public art building the Triforium, aiming to “signal the flickering of a new movement.” They were met with limited success, in the form of a grant that sustained their project for just three nights. Though the project was not sustainable, the young idealists jump-started a project in an area of town that many had forgotten. The progress they made may inspire others to pick up where they left off.

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100 Years After New York's Deadliest Subway Crash

Sam Roberts

November 01, 2018 |

The New York Times |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

A deadly subway crash in New York in 1918 killed an estimated 100 people and prompted major changes in public transportation because the crash was so preventable. Thanks to lessons from the tragedy, subways banned wooden cars and now have timed signals, headlights, speedometers and brakes that engage automatically if a driver runs a red light. It also prompted major changes in oversight and ownership of the transportation systems, moving away from profit-driven private ventures.

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This smart outlet uses AI to help you lower your electric bill

Adele Peters

November 01, 2018 |

FastCompany |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Palo Alto, California

Households across the United States are using (and paying) for energy that they're not actively consuming. A new invention that connects to an app helps identify the how much energy is being expended by various appliances so people can actively cut down on their electric utilities.

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