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An Argentine startup that makes shoes from discarded tire scraps and employs single mothers

Lucy Sheriff

December 08, 2017 |

Public Radio International (PRI) |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Argentina

In Argentina, a trio of friends wanted to curb tire pollution, while simultaneously create financial opportunities for single mothers. That’s exactly what they did. Xinca, is a shoe company that uses rubber from old tires. So far 20,000 kilograms of tires have been recycled, and 25 women from rural areas have been hired. “This opportunity is very good because you are not just learning, you are meeting incredible people in the job and earning money at the same time.”

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In Cremona, ideas to make the ‘circular economy' real for cities

Simone D'Antonio

November 29, 2017 |

Citiscope |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Italy, Cremona

Cremona is dedicated to decreasing the amount of waste it produces and educating its residents in the process. It intends on creating a 'circular economy' where products are recycled, waste is costly, training programs educate the public on decreasing waste and other methods that are now also reaching all around Europe as well.

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Public Shaming and Even Prison for Plastic Bag Use in Rwanda

Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura

October 28, 2017 |

The New York Times |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Rwanda, Gisenyi

Plastic bag litter is a serious problem across Africa and around the world, choking waterways, killing livestock and wildlife when ingested, and causing environmental damage. Rwanda is one of the few nations in the world to completely ban single-use plastic bags, but they take enforcement of the ban to a sometimes controversial extreme, with punishments that can even include jail time. The measures do appear to be working, however, where the clean streets and countrysides of Rwanda stand in stark contrast to the heavily-littered land of neighboring countries.

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Abandoned at Burning Man, bicycles now head for Houston and the Caribbean

Jessica Lussenhop

September 25, 2017 |

BBC |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Black Rock City, Nevada

Many argue that the Burning Man festival has become an exclusive and wasteful indulgence for the wealthy - an opinion that was exacerbated this year when thousands of perfectly good bicycles were left among the debris in the desert. But a few enterprising individuals and organizations saw an opportunity to aid the victims of hurricanes Irma and Maria by rescuing, fixing, and transporting the abandoned bikes to communities where many people had lost all other forms of transportation, stifling their recovery efforts. Now hope is being restored for some, two wheels at a time.

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Cameroon cleanup lets flood-hit residents sleep with "both eyes closed"

Amindeh Blaise Atabong

September 06, 2017 |

Thomson Reuters Foundation |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Cameroon, Yaounde

The neighborhood of Nkolbikok in Cameroon was facing a trash collection problem. With garbage accumulating regularly in the streets, water drains were being blocked causing severe flooding when it would rain. To help reduce the likelihood of flooding, community members started Tam Tam Mobile, a resident-run daily trash pickup and removal service.

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Wasted Bread Is Being Brewed Into Craft Beer

Tracy Staedter

August 23, 2017 |

HowStuffWorks |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United Kingdom, London

To the two social entrepreneurs who founded nonprofit Feedback, the massive amounts of food waste being tossed into landfills in the UK and USA each year was a mounting challenge that required a creative solution. So they founded Toast Ale, a craft brewing company that not only reduced food waste by using unwanted bread from bakeries to brew their ales, but helps bring awareness to the issue through the brand, which is growing in popularity.

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This N.H. town couldn't ‘bear' it any longer — so it passed an ordinance

Matt Rocheleau

August 07, 2017 |

The Boston Globe |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Lincoln, New Hampshire

A number of towns across northern New England struggled with furry invaders ripping into trash bins and dumpsters, which not only scattered litter and left a big mess, but increased the risk of dangerous encounters between humans and bears. When educational initiatives and voluntary compliance proved ineffective, Lincoln passed an ordinance requiring residents and businesses to secure their garbage - or face a fine. The bylaws have proven to be the most effective method for deterring the hungry forest critters.

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‘Upcycling' Ocean Plastic Trash Comes into Fashion

Erica Cirino

August 07, 2017 |

News Deeply |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Cape Porpoise, Maine

When global oil prices drop, so do incentives to recycle plastic materials, and even more plastic debris and trash ends up collecting in our oceans and ecosystem. An alternative solution in the form of "up-cycling" is helping to combat plastic pollution, as nonprofits and do-gooders who gather beach and ocean trash partner up with companies and retailers to produce desirable products crafted from materials collected out of the oceans.

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Conservation Meets Corrections

Katie Jewett

July 26, 2017 |

bioGraphic |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Evergreen, Washington

There are currently 2.3 million people incarcerated in the United States. According to rainforest ecologist Nalini Nadkarni, that's a lot of brainpower and potential sitting unused. It was this thought that inspired the start of the Sustainability in Prisons Project (SPP). As a collaboration between the Washington State Department of Corrections and The Evergreen State College, SPP aims to bring science and education within the walls of confinement – all while promoting the conservation of both plant and animal species.

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Ghost Gear Busters: Paying Fishers to Collect Derelict Nets, Traps

Erica Cirino

July 26, 2017 |

News Deeply |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Barnegat Bay, New Jersey

"Ghost gear" describes the nets, lines, and other debris lost off the back of commercial fishing boats in staggering amounts each year, and it spells death for hundreds of thousands of marine animals and birds who get tangled in it. Previously, there was little financial incentive to pull this litter back out of the water, but a new public-private partnership called Fishing For Energy is paying fishers to gather up ghost gear and help recycle it, as well as developing new technologies to prevent bycatch and educating communities about the issue.

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