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Can rice husk briquettes stem the tide of mangrove deforestation in Myanmar?

Wudan Yan

April 23, 2019 |

Mongabay |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Myanmar, Kyaiklat

Recycled waste from rice mills offers an alternative to mangrove forests as a fuel source. In the Irrawaddy Delta in Myanmar, rice mills are beginning to use their byproducts to create rice-husk briquettes. The logs, made from byproducts previously discarded by rice mills, provide a fuel source for individuals and other businesses that traditionally rely on charcoal. Using recycled rice husks reduces waste and offers a way to alleviate the exploitation of mangrove forests, which act as a vital natural barrier against cyclones.

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Could Hawaii Be Paradise For Hydrogen-Powered Public Transit?

Laura Bliss

April 22, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Hawaii

Funded by federal grant money, the state, and the Office of Naval Research, Hawaii County public transit has developed its first hydrogen-powered shuttle bus. What’s been called the “fuel of the future,” hydrogen fuel cells create a power source that’s only emissions are clean water vapor. While a seemingly viable and scalable clean-energy source, such development and infrastructure requires large financial investments that many states have yet to prioritize.

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A climate change solution slowly gains ground

Steven Mufson

April 19, 2019 |

The Washington Post |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Huntsville, Alabama

Three major US companies are leading the way in developing the technology to extract carbon dioxide from the air: Global Thermostat, Carbon Engineering, and Climeworks. With federal tax credits per ton of carbon dioxide captured and a prosperous system of injecting the CO2 back into the ground to stimulate crop yield, the companies' three different approaches all offer a way to cut into the massive amount of global emissions, an opportunity to make a lot of money with new technology, and a helping hand for states working on achieving new federal guidelines and restrictions for a green future.

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Citizen engagement is helping Costa Rica fight climate change

Amelia Axelsen

April 11, 2019 |

Apolitical |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Costa Rica

With its pledge to become the first zero-emission country in the world by 2050, Costa Rica's ambitious climate goals cannot be achieved by the government alone. That's why Costa Rica Limpia (Clean Costa Rica) is sparking citizen engagement to help in the fight. Grassroots efforts by the organization has already helped to create new charging infrastructure for electric cars, and citizen review bodies are local communities access important climate data.

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Energy Equity: Bringing Solar Power to Low-Income Communities

Maria Gallucci

April 04, 2019 |

Yale Environment 360 |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Colorado

Dozens of states across the US are adopting programs that offer solar power for low-income communities in order to cut down on their utility costs and provide renewable energy that they previously would not have had access to. Some of these programs also incorporate other social goals into their programs, such as offering job training or developing sites of backup energy should there an outage. Solar development is currently one of the fastest growing industries in the US, and analysts predict that the nation will be able to hold over 2,000 megawatts of solar capacity this year alone.

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Resorts, desperate to stem crushing traffic, bet on a new ridesharing app that splits lifts to the lifts

Jason Blevins

March 27, 2019 |

The Colorado Sun |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Sandy, Utah

RIDE, shorthand for Reduce Individual Driving for the Environment, is an app that incentivizes skiers to carpool. Beyond just the convenience, the easy-to-use phone application provides material incentives such as ski themed water bottles and discounted lift tickets. It also tracks carpool miles and the decrease in carbon dioxide as a result.

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Why Germans Are Buying Batteries With Their Solar Panels

Paul Hockenos

March 26, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Germany, Berlin

Advances in lithium batteries as well as the plunging price of solar energy have spurred an increase in home solar energy batteries across Germany. While it used to be difficult to store solar energy, home solar systems can now save energy for rainy days, reduce the electricity bill, and even earn money for extra energy they feed to the city. Over 120,00 German homes and small businesses have invested in solar batteries in the last 5 years.

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MPHS Entrepreneurship Club tackles energy efficiency with light replacement project at high school

Lance Maggart

March 24, 2019 |

Sky-Hi News |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Grand County, Colorado

The Entrepreneurship Club at a high school in Grand County, Colorado took the initiative— and a $2,000 grant from the Grand Foundation— to replace all of the lights in their school with energy-efficient LED lights. Tristan Schwab initiated the project after learning about the divide in energy efficiency between urban and rural areas. The students reinstalled 200 lights in their building and, once the school has improved its efficiency and saved 40% on electric bills, plan on installing solar panels to further their work.

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Waste to Wealth: How Kenyan farmers are bringing life back to degraded Lake Victoria swamps

Annika McGinnis

March 22, 2019 |

InfoNILE |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Kisumu, Kisumu County

Families living in the wetlands of Lake Victoria in Kisumu, Kenya are working together with a nonprofit called Ecofinder Kenya to protect and conserve the wetlands they live on. The crux of the incentive centers around the Eocfinder toilet, which converts human and animal waste to biogas, but they also work with solar lamps, water pumps, and a "farmer-to-farmer" program in which farmers share environmentally-friendly expertise. The program has been going on for 3 years now, and the wetlands have since seen a return of wildlife and growth, particularly with fish and birds.

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Pittsburgh's ‘living building' focuses on eco-friendly construction

Karen Hao

March 20, 2019 |

Quartz |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Creating sustainable buildings requires rethinking many of the norms in construction and city planning. The Center for Sustainable Landscapes, part of the Phipps Conservatory in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, received the first Living Building Challenge (LBC) certification. To achieve this, CSL advocated for changes to Pittsburgh’s laws on the use of public water utilities. CSL also had to seek out construction materials that avoided the use of harmful chemicals-a task easier said than done.

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