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There's a Message for City Planners in Cape Town Plumbing Poll

Ann Babe

September 26, 2016 |

Next City |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: South Africa, Cape Town, Western Cape

If you’ve ever been to a music festival, you’ve probably stepped inside a chemical toilet. The blue, plastic toilets, are meant to be temporary. However, in post-Apartheid, Cape Town, they are permanent fixtures for a large population of mostly black, poor residents.

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The City That Unpoisoned Its Pipes

Anna Clark

August 08, 2016 |

Next City |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Lansing, Michigan

The water crisis in Flint, Michigan, has left the city in dire straits without funds or political will to replace its lead pipes. Less than fifty-miles away, the city of Lansing has managed to replace almost all of its pipes, even during the Great Recession. Between Flint and Lansing, divergent approaches to management of utilities, funds, and citizen health provide extraordinary lessons about what worked and what caused the failures.

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How Congress made micro-hydro easier for mountain towns

Allen Best

July 25, 2016 |

Mountain Town News |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Grand Lake, Colorado

Micro-hydro projects in the United States have become much more accessible and more financially viable since Congress passed a law in 2013 making it easier for small hydroelectric projects to get federal approval. Specifically, water treatment plants that can retrofit their systems to generate electricity are an excellent energy opportunity. The plant in Grand Lake now produces more electricity than it consumes.

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How a new source of water is helping reduce conflict in the Middle East

Rowan Jacobson

July 19, 2016 |

Ensia |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Israel, Tel Aviv-Yafo

Israel experienced extreme drought a few years ago and its water supply was very low. National campaigns to install desalination plants have helped Israel turnaround its inadequate water supply into a surplus. The water scientists who have helped make this surplus see an opportunity for water diplomacy and the de-politicization of water in the Middle East so that more of it can be shared with other geographies.

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Large-Scale Rainwater Harvesting Eases Scarcity in Kenya

Justus Wanzala

July 12, 2016 |

Inter Press Service News Agency |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Narok

Harvesting rainwater is a necessary practice throughout Kenya, but is especially important in the areas of the country that are arid or semiarid. The African Water Bank has made this process more accessibly to many in these areas by creating a less expensive and more efficient water conservation system.

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L.A. Offers Free Recycled Water to Residents

Jen Kinney

June 21, 2016 |

Next City |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

California has long struggled with creative solutions to its lack of abundant water. Los Angeles offers its residents free recycled water as a solution to drought and water shortage issues.

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Detroit Is Turning Vacant Lots Into Sponges for Stormwater

Jessica Leigh Hester

June 04, 2016 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Detroit, Michigan

When it comes to green infrastructure, Detroit's got plenty of parcels to work with. A look at their new plans to turn unused land into stormwater sponges.

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Can water ATMs solve India's water crisis?

Fred de Sam Lazaro Judy Woodruff

April 13, 2016 |

PBS NewsHour |

Broadcast TV News |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: India, Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi

In many rural communities in India, access to clean drinking water is still scarce. The cost of bottled water is prohibitive, city pipes are in poor condition, and the municipal tanker trucks that supply some water are haphazard. But a social business called Sarvajal is busy scaling up a solution: a water ATM. These machines allow people to scan a pre-paid card and withdraw purified water from a stable, convenient source within their community when needed.

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Our drinking water systems are a disaster. What can we do?

Erica Gies

April 11, 2016 |

Ensia |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

The water system in the United States is beginning to be in need of replacement. In order to facilitate this infrastructure project and prevent it from becoming overwhelming, technology such as water sensors and software are being used to monitor water usage and replace the pipes that are most dire as they degrade.

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India: Sanitation for Women

Fi Glover Henrietta Moore Martha Lane Fox

March 02, 2016 |

BBC |

Radio |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: India

Improving sanitation isn’t just a matter of building more toilets; it’s also about education and specific solutions that help women and the poor gain access to safe, clean, and convenient facilities. This is a huge topic in India, where local projects and top-down efforts to improve sanitation have mixed results.

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