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Queens Prosecutors Long Overlooked Misconduct. Can a New D.A. Do Better?

Troy Closson

January 27, 2021 |

The New York Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

On her first day as district attorney of Queens, Melinda Katz created a unit to review potential wrongful convictions that in its first year has exonerated four men and has 80 more cases under review. The Queens DA's office long resisted the national trend toward such "conviction integrity" units, based on its contention that all prosecutors should be open to fixing their mistakes. The office, however, showed little inclination to do so systematically. Katz put the new unit under the control of a former lawyer with the Innocence Project and showed a resolve to take claimed injustices more seriously.

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‘You are not alone': How the Akron-Canton Foodbank is tackling food insecurity during COVID-19

H.L. Comeriato

January 27, 2021 |

The Devil Strip |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Akron, Ohio

Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank battled food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic by distributing groceries directly to consumers rather than its previous role of supplying other charities. Ohio National Guard members helped distribute food using a contactless pickup line where they put bags of food in the trunks of cars. Hundreds, sometimes over 1,000 cars were served a day.

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Tiny House ‘Villages' for People Experiencing Homelessness Spreading Across the Country

Jared Brey

January 26, 2021 |

Next City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Wilmington, North Carolina

A successful tiny home community in Missouri is inspiring a doctor-nurse duo to establish one in Wilmington, North Carolina. The idea took hold after they realized that chronic homelessness had a huge impact on health which led to frequent, preventable ER visits. Eden Village is supportive, permanent housing that residents can stay in forever as long as they abide by some rules.

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The new use for abandoned oil rigs

Isabelle Gerretsen

January 26, 2021 |

BBC |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Santa Barbara, California

As oil rigs stop producing fossil fuels and become decommissioned, many are being repurposed into artificial reefs that support populations of marine wildlife with food and shelter. In the United States, more than 500 oil and gas rigs have been converted into artificial reefs. The California-based company Blue Latitudes has worked to raise awareness about this solution throughout the world, though has struggled to make traction with the Golden State’s oil platforms. Yet, reefing a platform is less expensive than completely removing it.

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Handling the herd: how Boston built its massive covid testing apparatus

Jordan Frias

January 25, 2021 |

DigBoston |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Boston, Massachusetts

Using data to determine which neighborhoods would likely be disproportionately at risk for COVID-19, the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center has been moving their pop-up testing site to a new area every two weeks and has been able to conduct nearly 5,000 tests per week across the city as a result. Once the vaccine becomes available in the city, officials plan to replicate this testing model.

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Pakistan pins big hopes on small dams to help farmers beat drought

Imran Mukhtar

January 25, 2021 |

Thomson Reuters Foundation |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Pakistan, Nagarparkar, Sindh

A government scheme in Pakistan involves the construction of water-harvesting dams in areas that experience droughts, which allows farmers in the region to use the irrigation water from the dams for their crops. One farmer is growing onions and wheat and because of the access to water, his income has increased more than 60 percent. There are concerns about how helpful the water from the dams will ultimately be in the arid region, but there are plans to build more dams in the next few years.

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In pursuit of self-determined development, Borneo's indigenous tribes turn to homegrown renewables

Tim Ha

January 21, 2021 |

Eco-Business |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Malaysia, Kampung Buayan, Borneo

An indigenous-led nonprofit group called Tonibung installed a micro-hydro electrical system for a village deep in Borneo’s rainforests. The project not only supplied much-needed energy for the villagers of Kampung Buayan, but it is also protecting the surrounding ecosystems, creating jobs for people, and encouraging youth to get involved. “We want to advocate for native rights to self-determination and empower indigenous groups to choose the kind of development that meets the aspirations of their people,” says the founder of the organization.

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After shootings hit new high, Durham to spend $935,000 on an alternative to police

Charlie Innis

January 20, 2021 |

The News & Observer |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Durham, North Carolina

Because two Durham neighborhoods using the Cure Violence method of "violence interruption" bucked the citywide trend toward higher gun violence, the city will expand its Bull City United violence-prevention program to four more neighborhoods. The additional $935,488 cost will pay for 16 employees, many of them formerly incarcerated, who will mediate disputes after a shooting, to prevent retaliation, and who will conduct outreach to people at risk of gun violence.

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A Tale of Two Karens

Cecily Sailer Jim Tuttle

January 20, 2021 |

Yes! Magazine |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Pennsylvania

Braver Angels formed after the 2016 election to depolarize politics. The group’s Red / Blue Workshops bring together equal numbers of liberals and conservatives for structured conversations to help people build trust, understand one another, find commonalities, and learn lessons to bring back to their communities. It is rooted in couples and family therapy, with an emphasis on active listening and reflecting back what you hear. Instructions for organizing a workshop are on the group’s website and they have about 11,000 members, with a recent online event, Hold America Together, attracting 4,500 viewers.

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Plotting the future: the ‘seed guardians' bringing variety to UK gardens

Alexander Turner

January 19, 2021 |

The Guardian |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United Kingdom

Hundreds of seed-saving initiatives across the UK support the cultivation of “open pollinated seeds” in small plots and gardens to preserve future seed diversity. In contrast to static seeds in a bank, these seed-saving efforts focus on actually growing and sustaining seeds to provide security and more resilient crops. Open pollinated seeds reliably produce viable, true-to-type plants year after year so new seeds do not have to be purchased every season. Many “seed-savers” participate in seed circles where they exchange surplus seeds among small groups, enhancing the security and diversity of seeds.

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