Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • How a Water Bill Can Help Cities Help Their Most Vulnerable Residents

    A pilot program may be able to alleviate the utility debts incurred by struggling customers who were affected by the pandemic-induced economic slowdown. A pre-pandemic program used missed utility payments as an opportunity to provide people with “financial empowerment services like individualized repayment plans and financial counseling.” The program not only cut down on municipal costs but also benefited residents in all five cities. Participants were less likely to experience water shutoffs and paid significantly fewer late fees.

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  • Meet the TikTok stars using viral videos to save the planet

    The growing account known as “EcoTok” on the social media app TikTok is working to expose more people to data about the climate crisis and tackle scientific misinformation. With more than 80,000 followers and 1.2 million likes, the account features short videos with scientists, students, and activists highlighting ways that young people can be more sustainable. Their ability to engage people in environmental and scientific issues has led to partnerships with TED Countdown and the UN Environment Programme.

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  • Seattle Cut Its Police Budget. Now the Public Will Decide How To Spend the Money.

    Since 2017, Seattle residents have had a direct say in how some city money is spent on neighborhood projects. It's a form of "participatory budgeting" that has been spreading from Brazil through many U.S. cities. After the 2020 racial justice protests, King County Equity Now, Decriminalize Seattle, and other groups spent several months calling for a budget that takes money from policing and invests in "true public health and safety" projects. After eight weeks of hearings, the city agreed to put $30 million – $12 million cut from police – into a citizen-controlled safety budget.

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  • When church goes online: Battle Creek congregation finds opportunity in pandemic imposed alternative

    In Battle Creek, Michigan, a church has turned to holding online Sunday service during the pandemic, and in doing so, has gained a larger congregation. While there are limitations to attending online services, and some don't feel like "Internet-based connections" are real, around 200 people still attend each online service, including some individuals from overseas.

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  • An Oregon city's decades-old alternative to police

    Like many cities, Seattle is looking to Eugene, Oregon, for a model to shift resources from police to unarmed crisis responders handling 911 calls about mental health, addiction, family conflict, and other non-criminal problems. Eugene's CAHOOTS program has been doing such work for half a century, and since 1989 sending medic-and-counselor teams on calls. In 2019 it saved $8 million in police costs and $14 million for ambulances and emergency room visits. But, while taking police out of situations where they might cause more problems than they solve, it's only as good as its region's social services.

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  • Cops, crisis calls and conflict over who should help

    Seattle Police Department's crisis response team answers some of the city's many 911 calls for people in distress, pairing police trained in handling such calls with mental health professionals. The aim is to counter the default policing approach to problems that usually involve mental illness or substance abuse, which is to control people. It doesn't always work, due to the complexity of the calls, the nature of policing, and the department's limited resources devoted to the program. But, when it works, it can help rather than escalate situations, and avoid the ultimate failure, the use of excessive force.

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  • "We're not just relics of the past": How #NativeTikTok is preserving Indigenous cultures and inspiring a younger generation

    Native and Indigenous individuals are using TikTok to share aspects of their traditions, challenge stereotypes, and empower young people to be proud of their culture. The videos range from instructional, teaching people indigenous languages or dance, to putting a "cultural spin" on trending content. The hashtag #NativeTikTok has over 1.3 billion views and users comment that the videos help them feel more connected to and proud of their cultures. The videos follow the tradition of preserving culture through storytelling and offer positive representations of Native and Indigenous people and their cultures.

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  • COVID antibody treatment available and effective but delivery slower than desired in S.D.

    A new therapeutic treatment known as a monoclonal antibody infusion has been made available across the U.S. for Covid-19 patients who are most at-risk of being hospitalized for the virus. In South Dakota, one of the nations largest health systems has developed a computer algorithm and set up infusion centers to better serve patients who this could most help.

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  • West Virginia has a simple system that avoids wasting vaccine doses

    West Virginia has implemented a digital platform that allows residents to sign up for notifications if leftover doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are available for use near them. Although the system is only accessible to those with internet, it has resulted in far fewer people phoning the hotline, which in turn has allowed for greater ease for those without internet access to sign up for appointments.

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  • How reform gave way to ‘Defund the Police' in Seattle

    Seattle spent nearly a decade reforming its police department and branding itself as an example of how to fix a broken system prone to violence and racial bias. Public trust improved and the use of force declined. But the protests of 2020 changed perspectives in Seattle so much that now it is a leader in taking money from the police to fund community-based responses to social problems and low-level crime. The community is divided, largely along racial and ideological lines, over whether to "defund" the police, whether police reform is even possible, and how to reimagine public safety.

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