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The gun solution we're not talking about

Madeline Marshall

September 11, 2019 |

Vox |

Multi-Media |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Massachusetts

While most Americans and politicians from across the partisan aisle support universal background checks for firearm purchases, that system has shown to not be as effective as many think. Instead, states are implementing licensing systems that require individuals wanting to buy a gun to take safety courses, apply with local law enforcement, provide references, and have their background checked. States that have such systems in place have seen a steady decline in gun homicides and suicides.

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Lacking Sexual Assault Nurses, Some Ky. Hospitals Illegally Turn Victims Away

Eleanor Klibanoff

September 03, 2019 |

Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Louisville, Kentucky

In Kentucky, sexual assault nurse examiners (SANE) are often the frontline responders for survivors of a sexual assault, but have yet to be available in every hospital. Too often, women are turned away because of an absence of SANE nurses, which tend to be in more metro areas. Communities that do have access to the specialized services see an increase in rape prosecutions and a decrease in long term health concerns for these women, but making sure such services are statewide has proved economically challenging.

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How small businesses in Salt Lake City are helping to clear the air

Heather May

August 28, 2019 |

The Salt Lake Tribune |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Logan, Utah

VOCs, or volatile organic compounds, are a type of pollutant that can be found even in homes and small businesses, but across Utah, small businesses are finding creative ways to reduce their emissions. A mix of mandatory rules at the state level as well as supplementary grants to pay for the cost to switch to more environmentally-friendly machinery and materials has fueled this shift. Businesses including coffee shops, lawn care companies, and furniture stores are stepping up.

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Do plastic bag taxes or bans curb waste? 400 cities and states tried it out.

Matthew Zeitlin

August 27, 2019 |

Vox |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

Across the world, countries are reckoning with its astounding single-use plastic bag waste by instituting legislation that taxes or all-out bans them. Research has shown that taxing the bags has been a more effective strategy with less unintended consequences, as banning often leads to a sharp increase in thicker plastics or paper bags. In places that have instituted the tax, they’ve seen a 40 percent decrease in usage, and arguably more importantly, a cultural shift away from single-use plastics.

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Can Flexible Pricing be Fair?

Nate Berg

August 24, 2019 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

San Francisco is using technology to calculate the cost of parking throughout the city, depending on the demand in specific neighborhoods at any given time. While critics were wary of the effect flexible pricing would have on lower-income residents, the pilot program resulted in lower parking costs on average and demonstrated that flexible pricing could promote equity. In other cities around the world, flexible pricing systems implemented through the use of technology have been effective in raising revenue from higher-income people and neighborhoods to reduce prices and reinvest in equitable solutions.

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San Diego Is Showing California How to Use Its Red Flag Law

Alain Stephens

August 21, 2019 |

The Trace |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, San Diego, California

In San Diego, California, more than three Gun Violence Restraining Orders, or “red flag laws,” have been used to prevent gun violence. These laws have gained in popularity across the country, and allow courts to temporarily take away firearms from individuals who pose a danger to themselves or others. With such success in San Diego, their attorney’s office is now training law enforcement and government agencies across the state on how to use such orders.

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Reimagining New York Jails Without Solitary Confinement

Reuven Blau Rosa Goldensohn

August 19, 2019 |

The City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

Solitary confinement was once thought of as one of the only effective punishments for violent prison inmates. As more research surfaces showing the severe damage it does to mental health, the racial bias of those placed in solitary, and its relative ineffectiveness, more cities, like New York City, are exploring alternatives to the practice. In places such as Denver, Chicago, and San Francisco, rather than invoking a punitive approach, city officials are offering positive reinforcement – and seeing positive results.

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Watershed moment: How Chesapeake Bay turned its H2O around

David Karas

August 15, 2019 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Annapolis, Maryland

After decades of conservation and cleanup, the 42% of the entire Chesapeake Bay meets water quality standards. The Chesapeake Bay Program organized a regional collaboration between nonprofits, the government, and educational institutions, worked together to protect and clean the Bay, which is home to fishing, tourism, and agriculture. While much progress has been made, the group recognizes the amount of work left if they are to ever see a majority clean watershed.

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Gun owners in New Zealand voluntarily surrender more than 10,000 firearms

Julia Hollingsworth

August 12, 2019 |

CNN |

Multi-Media |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: New Zealand, Wellington

Since July 2019, New Zealand has held gun buybacks across the country and collected over 10,000 firearms. After a mass shooting at Christchurch mosque, the government rushed through legislation to ban semi-automatic and automatic firearms, offering owners of such weapons cash and a no-questions-asked policy. Such legislation has been implemented in other countries as well, including Australia, who in 1996 collected over 600,000 weapons.

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New Zealand gun buyback: 10,000 firearms returned after Christchurch attack

Eleanor Ainge Roy

August 11, 2019 |

The Guardian |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: New Zealand

A month after a mass shooting at New Zealand’s Christchurch mosque, New Zealand’s government has bought back over 10,000 firearms. The country passed legislation banning automatic and semi-automatic weapons a month after the event, setting aside $150 million New Zealand dollars for the buyback, and offering a no-questions-asked policy for those that do turn them in.

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