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

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  • Almost a year after opening, Compass House provides direction amid safe surroundings

    Compass House provides safety and support for women, many of them newly released from incarceration, who struggle with substance misuse issues or mental illness. The transitional housing program is the first of its kind in a state that is sorely lacking in such services. Peer support and professional counseling and treatment can last a year or more. The women in the program, who are at high risk of homelessness without a refuge like Compass House, pay 30% of their income for rent, with the rest of the costs covered by a state agency.

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  • Inmates are learning to be their own bosses after they leave jail behind

    Inmates to Entrepreneurs has graduated 1 million people from its eight-week program that teaches incarcerated people how to start their own low-capital businesses. An extension of a free online entrepreneurship course, Starter U, the program offered in-person workshops until COVID forced it to go virtual. One study shows the unemployment rate in December 2020 for formerly incarcerated people was more than 27%, more than four times higher than the general public. Inmates to Entrepreneurs was started 28 years ago in North Carolina's prison system.

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  • How Covid turbocharged the QR revolution

    Quick Response (QR) codes have become a popular way to conduct contactless business, and even contact tracing, during the coronavirus pandemic. Restaurants and retail stores allow customers to order and pay by scanning the codes with their smart devices, which pulls funds from payment accounts like PayPal, or their bank account, debit, or credit card. Public health agencies in the UK display QR codes that people can scan to “check in” and if someone tests positive for Covid-19 at that location people who scanned the code within 21 days are notified. QR codes hold massive amounts of data reliably and cheaply.

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

    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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  • Fighting to open closed doors: how advocates stepped up efforts to help sex trafficking survivors in a world where hiding victims is easier than ever

    Victims of sex trafficking in Ohio have accessed services and resources made available by local advocates. Outreach events, support, and recovery services, trauma counselors, as well as personal care items were all provided.

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  • An Algorithm Is Helping a Community Detect Lead Pipes

    BlueConduit, an analytics startup, applies statistical models to identify neighborhoods and households that might have lead pipes. The models include dozens of factors, such as the age of the home and proximity of other homes where lead has been found, to help predict likely locations of lead pipes and create a ranking by likelihood that cities can use to prioritize which pipes to examine. In Flint, MI, about 70% of the homes identified using the models had lead pipes, compared to about 15% of homes where excavations did not use the model. The company is working with organizations in dozens of other cities.

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  • At Teen Lifeline, teens help in ways only they can

    A hotline staffed by teenagers for teenagers has been providing peer-to-peer support and counseling services in Arizona for years but has played an even bigger role during the coronavirus pandemic. The group quickly pivoted to reduced staffing shifts to limit exposure to the virus and implemented longer hours for texting services. Not only have calls to the hotline increased, so has the number of those who want to volunteer.

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  • ‘Peer Respites' Provide an Alternative to Psychiatric Wards During Pandemic

    As the coronavirus pandemic forces people into isolation and social distancing, places known as "peer respites" are providing a space for those "experiencing or nearing a mental health crisis" to seek help. While the peer respites don't offer clinical care by licensed mental healthcare professionals, they are free for those who stay and "offer people in distress short-term (usually up to two weeks), round-the-clock emotional support from peers."

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  • Black Women Find Healing (But Sometimes Racism, Too) in the Outdoors

    To encourage more Black people to explore outdoors, individuals and organizations in Colorado are working to address underlying barriers such as access to transportation and gear, as well as fear and concerns of safety. Despite the groups still encountering "frustrating" incidents with other outdoor recreationalists, the movement has spread to other states and steadily attracted a growing community of members.

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  • Therapy From the Living Room

    When the coronavirus pandemic made in-person therapy sessions too risky to schedule, therapists in the Czech Republic moved their services online and set up a hotline for patients to call when needed. Although it's yet to be seen if the service will remain financially viable in regards to health insurance reimbursements, it has helped eliminate many barriers including transportation troubles and feelings of stigma.

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