'These are places for us as well': Empowering more Arizonans to claim their spot outdoors

Shanti Lerner

April 14, 2021 |

AZ Central (The Arizona Republic) |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Phoenix, Arizona

Chispa Arizona is working to encourage members of the Latino community to spend time outdoors. The environmental justice organization created “entry points,” or free outdoor activities each month that anyone can attend like hiking, community gardening, and park clean-ups. There has been some hesitation from people attending these events, but one member says these experiences are necessary so they can educate others about the importance of green spaces.

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Co-Governing to Build Back Better

Hollie Russon Gilman Elena Souris Rebecca Rosen

April 09, 2021 |

Next City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United Kingdom, York

The city of York trained volunteers to help identify causes and solutions to loneliness and social isolation, an issue with public health consequences. Volunteers conducted research and spoke to 1,000 fellow residents and 100 other stakeholders to identify community knowledge and priorities. Working closely with local partners, volunteers helped design and implement solutions, including pairing young runners with isolated older citizens to serve as coaches and provide motivation. Participants reported positive outcomes, like feeling less lonely and experiencing improved well-being.

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How Madison County Residents Successfully Lobbied Legislators Over Pollution Concerns

Jared Gilstrap

April 09, 2021 |

Grady Newsource |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Colbert, Georgia

After Georgian residents raised concerns about a pollutant that was being emitted by a nearby biomass plant, they banded together to pass legislation that effectively put an end to the practice. These concerned residents founded the Madison County Clean Power Coalition to raise awareness of the effects of creosote burning, which, when breathed in, has shown to increase the risk of lung and heart disease. Their lobbying efforts resulted in the governor signing into law a ban on burning creosote-treated wood.

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Once jailed, these women now hold courts accountable — with help from students, retirees and Fiona Apple

Katie Mettler

April 09, 2021 |

The Washington Post |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Upper Marlboro, Maryland

Court Watch PG acts as a traditional court watch program for Maryland's Prince George's County, but with a twist: the two formerly incarcerated women running it turned adversity, in the form of the pandemic's shutdown of trials, into opportunity in the form of a nationwide crew of volunteers watching over Zoom. The watchers attend bond hearings, where people jailed on pending charges try to gain pretrial release. After observing thousands of hearings, Court Watch PG has exposed flaws in the system, which it pushes to reform through the more than 100 "accountability letters" it has sent justice officials.

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What Other States Can Learn from Georgia's Historic Elections

Fiza Pirani

April 08, 2021 |

Yes! Magazine |

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Response Location: United States, Georgia

A complex combination of successful fundraising campaigns, engaging with and energizing Black voters, and mobilizing the state’s other ethnic and racial groups helped Democrats flip Georgia blue in 2020. Large financial investments allowed organizers to implement effective voter education and registration campaigns and distribute the resources to areas where the need to mobilize voters was greatest. Organizers tapped into Black culture through food, music, and the Black church to energize voters. They also conducted multiracial, multi-ethnic, and multilingual outreach to engage other marginalized groups.

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Local groups are working to keep 18-year-olds in PA excited about voting after record turnouts in 2021

Roxanne Patel Shepelavy

April 01, 2021 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philly Youth Vote is a nonpartisan effort, organized by a local social studies teacher, to prepare 18-year-olds to vote. In addition to registering about 700 students in the summer of 2020, the group advocates changing social studies curriculum to include more lessons on civic participation. To connect students with on local issues that directly impact them, they brought 27 candidates to speak in 11 virtual classrooms. The students interviewed the candidates and other schools have used the recordings of the interviews as well. 74% of registered 18-year-olds in Philadelphia cast a ballot in 2020.

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A key to bridging the political divide: Sit down and talk?

Glenn Gamboa

March 29, 2021 |

Associated Press |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

One Small Step seeks to decrease toxic polarization by bringing people of differing views and backgrounds together to talk. About 800 people have met in pairs in around 40 cities to talk about commonalities, such as family and spirituality, in addition to other issues facing the country. The conversations, which highlight people’s commonalities and help to humanize one another, are based on research that shows bringing people together face-to-face decreases prejudice and discrimination. Some of the recorded conversations become part of the StoryCorps podcast or were broadcast on NPR.

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Georgia College Political Society Sparks Conversations as Solution to Political Polarization

Shania Shelton

March 25, 2021 |

Grady Newsource |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Milledgeville, Georgia

Georgia College Political Society, a non-partisan debate and discussion organization, hosts events where students from across the political spectrum discuss political issues. Discussion topics have included criminal justice, foreign policy, and the 2020 election. The group currently meets on Zoom and posts livestreams of their debates on Facebook. The environment has been friendly, with some agreement on the structural problems, but different ideas about how to solve them. So far, there have been 10 panels and the College’s political science faculty have provided crash courses on the topics being discussed.

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Unifying America: ‘Braver Angels' Try To Bridge The Political Divide

Natalie Brand

March 18, 2021 |

CBS News |

Multi-Media |

Under 3 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Washington, District of Columbia

Braver Angels works to decrease political polarization by pairing up Republicans and Democrats for one-on-one conversations about each other’s political views and experiences. The goal of the conversations is to encourage understanding through talking and listening, not to change anyone’s views. Participants often find they share similar goals but just have different perspectives on how to achieve them. The group has about 15,000 members representing every state. Membership surged after the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capital, after which around 4,500 Braver Angels gathered virtually to try and heal.

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The 'Army Of Environmental Super Voters' Is Growing, And Marching On City Hall

Alexander Kaufman

March 18, 2021 |

The Huffington Post |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

The Environmental Voter Project has contacted nearly 6.2 million non-voters that care about the environment in 17 states since 2015, estimating that over 733,000 of them now vote regularly. They identify voters using demographic and behavioral data, verify the data using surveys, and apply algorithms to predict “super environmentalists,” focusing on people who don’t vote. They concentrate on local elections, such as mayoral races, and call, text, and knock-on voters’ doors. They also fundraise, increasing donations from about $475,000 in 2017 to nearly $2.7 million in 2020, mostly from small donors.

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