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The Bitter Side of Cocoa Production

Teresa Carr

February 13, 2020 |

Sapiens |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Dominican Republic

Carla Martin is an anthropologist at Harvard University, who also founded the Nine Cacao and Chocolate Institute — a nonprofit that brings together industry professionals, academics, and producers to share insights and discuss the challenges of producing chocolate. Cocoa production historically has participated in questionable labor practices, unfair wages, and tropical deforestation, so through her workshops, Martin aims to empower the workers along the supply chain to ensure their voices are heard through the process.

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How America's shrinking cities can 'rightsize'

Matt Krupnick

February 13, 2020 |

The Guardian |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

Once-bustling cities contend with population decline by rethinking their use of space for those who remain. Baltimore, New Bedford, and Youngstown have implemented strategies that range from knocking down abandoned houses and factories to developing community gardens and creating public waterfront spaces. Racial and class tensions have arisen when choosing where to spend limited government funding.

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The Green Miles

Gabriel Popkin Jahi Chikwendiu

February 13, 2020 |

The Washington Post |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Kentucky

After strip-mining for coal devastated Kentucky’s forests and planting grass didn’t revive Appalachia’s ecosystems, a federal employee reversed course and spearheaded an ambitious reforestation effort. By planting trees on used mine land, Patrick Angel and his nonprofit Green Forests Work are providing employment for out-of-work miners and are helping prevent frequent flooding. They have planted more than 187 million trees on about 275,000 acres of former min

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PowerCorpsPHL trains Philly youth for careers that have a future

Jessica Blatt Press

February 12, 2020 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A workforce development initiative, PowerCorpsPHL, pays participants to learn skills and gain hands-on experience for jobs that offer long-term career opportunity in the field of environmental sustainability. Participants generally have criminal records or have been in the foster care system. In addition to job training and education, PowerCorpsPHL also provides services such as mental health counseling, securing childcare, navigating SNAP and AmeriCorps tuition benefits and helping with paperwork. The program helps 92 percent of participants secure either a job or post-secondary education.

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2 Years Ago, Kenya Set The World's Strictest Plastic Bag Ban. Did It Work?

Sophie Mbugua

January 23, 2020 |

The Huffington Post |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Kikuyu

In 2017, Kenya implemented a plastic bag ban and to ensure it was followed, set hefty fines and even jail time for those who broke the law. The law has had an impact – streets are cleaner and the use of single-use plastic bags has reduced, but there is still work to be done. The replacement bags, reusable ones made from polypropylene, have come under scrutiny for their lack of quality, and Kenyan residents cite confusion and fear as a result of not knowing which bags are allowed and which are not.

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Making Yellow School Buses a Little More Green

Ellen Rosen

January 22, 2020 |

The New York Times |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

Public school districts are gradually transitioning to electric buses. Electric utilities, concerned about environmental impacts and overloading the grid, are helping to cover the high price tag.

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Mending Coastal Marshes

Kerry Rose Graning

January 20, 2020 |

Hakai Magazine |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Louisiana

Martin Ecosystems uses recycled plastic bottles to manufacture artificial islands and shorelines, allowing native vegetation to grow and preventing land erosion, which has restored Louisiana’s wetlands and barrier islands. Plastic mats are layered, injected with Coast Guard approved foam for buoyancy, and planted with native vegetation. Once anchored in rows of up to 20 or more, they act as breakwaters reducing wave height by up to 80% and minimizing erosion. The mats also provide cover for nesting birds and a complex ecosystem for aquatic life. They have withstood years of hurricanes and tropical storms.

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To safeguard their future, Pacific Islanders look to the past

Maria Gallucci

January 07, 2020 |

Grist |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Micronesia, Yap

Canoes have long been used to navigate the seas, but navigators in the state of Yap in Micronesia are making modifications to the practice to make it more efficient and climate-thinking forward. The canoes, which run on biodiesel produced from coconuts and come equipped with solar panels, are helping to fill a gap for providing resources to isolated communites and also help decrease the complete reliance on trans-ocean freighters.

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Ii: The greenest town in Europe

Erika Benke

December 24, 2019 |

BBC |

Radio |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: Finland, Ii

The town of Ii, in northern Finland, has cut carbon emissions by 80 percent, hitting the European Union's target 30 years before the deadline. Thanks to collective action in the community, businessmen, children, grandparents, and even the mayor has pitched in. In the process, the town of Ii boosted its local economy.

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How Local Trash Disposal Affects Climate Change

Emily Lanoue Jordan Meaker Taylor Morain Tristen Webb

December 18, 2019 |

Grady Newsource |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Athens, Georgia

With Georgia’s Athens-Clarke county landfill nearing its fill limit, residents, organizations, and the city are taking a multi-pronged approach to reducing waste. A key part of this has been the fact that nearly half of what goes into the landfill can be recycled, and Georgia-based industries like aluminum and carpet manufacturing are willing to buy recyclables. In addition, composting supported by the state has grown in popularity, and universities have taken on recycling education and collection programs.

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