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Markham, Ont., vaccine initiative shows what happens when tech and faith team up

Diane Peters

May 07, 2021 |

Broadview Magazine |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Canada, Markham, Ontario

A community effort spearheaded by a local church and a software company is helping senior citizens in Markham, Ontario secure Covid vaccine appointments. Ahead of the vaccine rollout, a reverend and a parishioner began collecting senior's information via an online form, which allowed them to streamline the signup process. The effort's success has attracted surrounding communities who are now working with the duo to reach their seniors as well.

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The forest sound detectives

Nick Holland

May 04, 2021 |

BBC |

Podcast |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: Papua New Guinea

After remote Indigenous communities in Papau New Guinea set aside some of their land as conservation areas, they wanted to know if it was working. With the help from scientists and The Nature Conservancy, they were able to use bioacoustics or audio recordings of the rainforests to map out the biodiversity. Using 34 recording devices, they were able to record the forest, listen to them, analyze the sounds, and determine that these areas had a healthy biodiversity.

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Africa's Solar Street Lights Offer Glimmer of Potential

Marianne Dhenin

May 04, 2021 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Uganda, Jinja City

Solar-powered street lights have replaced the shoddy conventional lighting in Jinja City, Uganda. Solar-powered panels and batteries power lighting that is not only cheaper but is also more reliable and has resulted in social and economic benefits too. Safer streets, higher business revenue for businesses that can operate at night, and a boost in the tourism industry are just a few of the positive outcomes.

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To Solve 3 Cold Cases, This Small County Got a DNA Crash Course

Virginia Hughes

May 03, 2021 |

The New York Times |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Kentland, Indiana

Genetic genealogy's use in criminal cases has gone mainstream. As the cases of three murder victims in Indiana illustrate, the science of DNA evidence combined with genealogical research and detective work is rapidly ramping up, from a hobby to a curiosity and now to a major commercial and criminal-justice opportunity. Hundreds of missing persons have been identified from decades-old remains, or murder suspects identified from old biological evidence in cold cases. By creating a family tree of the victim or suspect, investigators can zero in on an identity more quickly and inexpensively than ever.

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Indians are crowdsourcing aid as covid surges

Varsha Bansal

April 28, 2021 |

MIT Technology Review |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: India

In India, citizen-led small-scale digital efforts are helping to connect Covid-19 patients with the resources, supplies, and medical equipment they need to survive. The citizen groups are largely using online platforms to crowdsource what they need, with some matching buyers and sellers and others "debunking inaccurate leads."

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Meet the influencers who are fighting the spread of online conspiracy theories

Christianna Silva

April 28, 2021 |

Mashable |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

Social media influencers are using “pre-bunking” -- the practice of exposing people to misinformation and offering expert-backed explanations of why it isn’t true before they see the misinformation in the wild – as a tool to fight its spread and increase media literacy. Hundreds of thousands of people follow accounts on TikTok and Instagram run by influencers whose goals are not to change the minds of staunch conspiracy theorists, but rather to provide tools for those who are either on the fence or want to learn to communicate with people in their lives who subscribe to false information.

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How Kenya turned the tide against ivory poachers

Andres Schipani

April 27, 2021 |

Financial Times |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Nanyuki

More and more park rangers, judges, prosecutors, and wildlife investigators are working together to stop poaching in Kenya. Through training and a new app that allows all parties to track wild animals in a protected conservation area, the number of poaching cases has decreased from 449 creatures killed illegally in 2021 to 93 in 2018. The number of court cases have also decreased in recent years.

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City officials expand free internet access to Philadelphia prekindergarten students

Johann Calhoun

April 26, 2021 |

Chalkbeat Philadelphia |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Families with students in prekindergarten in Philadelphia now are eligible for PHLConnectED, a program that provides students with free internet access during remote learning. The program has already reached out to over 12,000 families.

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CSI Houston: How a Texas lab has remade the science of forensics

Henry Gass

April 23, 2021 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Houston, Texas

One of the first crime-lab scandals gave birth to a better way of ensuring the integrity and accuracy of forensic evidence. The Houston Forensic Science Center operates independently of law enforcement agencies, with a large staff of scientists and a healthy budget to correct some of the resource-related flaws of its police-run predecessor. Perhaps its greatest innovation is a system of regularly running blind tests as a quality check, to make sure the staff stays vigilant. The goal is to avoid the kinds of bad science that often contribute to wrongful convictions and other injustices.

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How WhatsApp became a tool for Indian police to fight harassment

Mahima Jain

April 22, 2021 |

Rest of World |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: India, Hyderabad, Telangana

In India, where women face high rates of harassment by men but rarely report abuse because they view the police as hostile, the Telangana State Police encouraged more reporting by turning WhatsApp into an anti-harassment hotline. By using the country's most popular phone app rather than one of the many safety apps designed for this purpose, the police now get about 40% of their complaints through this channel. Turning complaints into prosecutions remains a challenge. But, when women decline to press charges, the police require alleged harassers to attend counseling.

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