Story Search Results

Advanced Search

There are so many ways to search the solutions journalism stories in this database. Explore our searchable fields:

Search Results

You searched for: -

There are 403 results for your search. View and Refine Your Search Terms

Lake Erie's green monster: Climate change adds pressure to prevent toxic algal blooms

Brian Albrecht

November 10, 2019 |

Cleveland.com (The Plain Dealer) |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Ohio

Toxic green algae has become a prominent threat in Lake Erie, but local farmers are trying to reduce their footprint by limiting agricultural nutrient runoff from manure and fertilizer that is spread on their farm fields. From increasing transparency around agriculture practices to altering how fertilizer is distributed, early signs are showing success with these measures despite there still being a long ways to go.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Colorado's newest farmers are YouTube-taught, social justice-minded and preaching the gospel of microgreens

Kevin Simpson

November 07, 2019 |

The Colorado Sun |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Bennett, Colorado

Emerald Garden farm in Colorado is a microgreens hydroponic farming operation that is using a comprehensive approach toward conducting business. From experimenting with new practices to reduce food waste to diversifying partnerships to enhance crop development, the owners have successfully scaled the initial operation and are providing food for fine restaurants as well as grocery stores a local school district and potentially hospitals.

Read More
Go to Original Story
How To Pick A Pepper

Rose Eveleth

November 05, 2019 |

99% Invisible |

Podcast |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, New Mexico

The chili pepper industry is infamous in New Mexico; however many local farmers who rely on this crop for their livelihood are finding it difficult to find field workers. One possible solution is turning to technology and utilizing a machine to pick the crop; and though this shows promise, not all farmers are on board with automation.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Planting Native Prairie Could Be a Secret Weapon for Farmers

Nathan Beacom

October 15, 2019 |

Civil Eats |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Ames, Iowa

Farmers in Iowa have been experimenting with native prairie crops – using native plant species as buffers on farmlands – in an effort to bring more pollination, soil health, water quality preservation, and carbon sequestration to their land. The Iowa State University STRIPS program has been supporting farmers in this effort by connecting them with funding and the information they need to undertake such crops.

Read More
Go to Original Story
5 Decades Later, New Communities Land Trust Still Helps Black Farmers

Debbie Elliott

October 03, 2019 |

NPR |

Radio |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Albany, Georgia

The New Communities Land Trust was created in the 1960s as a way to build power and equity for and among African Americans in Georgia. The Trust works with Black farmers on many different levels, including helping them strengthen their farming practices and businesses. While the Trust was lost in 1985 due to discriminatory bank practices, it was restarted with a $12 million settlement from the federal government.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Mongolian nomads create shared funds and financial security

Sarah Trent Khaliun Bayartsogt

October 02, 2019 |

Devex |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Mongolia, Arvaikheer

Herders in Mongolia have resorted to cooperative shared funds to keep their pastures afloat, a sign of a slow tilt towards greater collaboration and trust in the area. The shared funds act as a way for herders to borrow and lend money among themselves, helping local communities build financial security in a time when climate change is negatively impacting their pasture land.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Farmers of Color Find New Allies

Randy Mueller

October 01, 2019 |

The Innovator |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Petersburg, New York

The online Reparations for Black-Indigenous Farmers map connects farmers across the United States in an effort to support those who have been historically oppressed. Those who participate voluntarily pay reparations to the over 50 Black and Indigenous farmers’ projects that have been listed as a way of (re)building centuries of discrimination.

Read More
Go to Original Story
In wealthy Silicon Valley, a $500 million plan to save threatened farmland

Johnny Magdaleno

August 08, 2019 |

Reuters |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, San Martin, California

In Santa Clara County, California, the Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation program is funding an effort to prevent development and bolster agriculture on local farmland. The County, home to Silicon Valley, purchases land at market prices to protect it from development, incentivize agriculture, and prevent sprawl. While still in the beginning stages, the county looking long-term to see how this program will be financially sustainable.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Cotton For Livelihood In Bidibidi

Christine Kabazira

August 02, 2019 |

Things That Work Uganda |

Multi-Media |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Uganda, Bidibidi

Refugees in Bidibidi Refugee Settlement need a new source of income after relocating, so a program with NGO Mercy Corps has now given a number of farmers seeds for a cash crop: cotton. Farmers received a special modified version of the seeds, allowing them to harvest much earlier, and they sell the cotton to Gulu Agricultural Development Company. One man in particular, Ismail Matata, urges his neighbors to grow it and says that he had recently earned 700,000 UGX (about $189 USD) from his harvest.

Read More
Go to Original Story
How a small Colorado town fought the Japanese beetle and won

Tamara Chuang

July 29, 2019 |

The Colorado Sun |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Palisade, Colorado

Eradicating invasive species requires enrolling a community effort. Although quarantines and chemical treatments have not proven effective in preventing the spread of Popilia japonica, or the Japanese beetle, to farms on the US’s Front Range, the Colorado community of Palisade succeeded in eradicating the species through collective action. By combining pest control methods with a community program of reducing water use, Palisade farmers were able to push the beetles out of their farmland over the course of several years in the early 2000s.

Read More
Go to Original Story