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

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  • Asher Craig: 'We are walking our talk' in Bristol's experiment in democracy

    A year after Bristol convened a randomly selected 60-person citizens’ assembly, which brought together a representative and diverse group of residents to tackle complex issues facing the city, they have delivered a set of recommendations. The panel produced 17 recommendations, with a total of 82 associated actions on three topics: climate, transport and health. Fourteen recommendations have been fully agreed to and eight have been dismissed. Participants also report positive effects of being able to work together across diverse ideologies and experiences, as well as from the civic participation more broadly.

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  • How India's Farmers Launched a Movement Against Modi's Farm Bills—and Won

    Protests among farmers in India led to the repeal of farm laws – passed in the midst of COVID-19 shutdowns – that privileged corporate interests over the livelihood of farmers. In some states, farm union members blocked railroads, prevented the collection of toll taxes on roads, and blocked gas stations, shopping malls, and warehouses owned by corporations that benefited from the laws. Throughout the protests anywhere from 50,000 to 700,000 farmers camped out blocking strategic infrastructure. The sustained protests, and the widespread support among people, led the government to withdraw the laws.

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  • What our sewage can (and can't) tell us about the spread of Omicron

    Throughout the pandemic, testing for COVID-19 in wastewater has been used to monitor the transmission of the virus. Wastewater testing is a reliable tool that often complements clinical COVID-19 testing and can be used for the early detection of outbreaks and surges. In Ontario, each of the province’s 34 public-health units joined Ontario’s Wastewater Surveillance Initiative, allowing researchers and public-health units to work together on testing water samples.

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  • More voters, less party affiliation 2 years into automatic voter registration

    Nevada’s automatic voter registration (AVR) system has added over 320,000 new voters since its launch in 2020, expanding access to many. Unless they opt out, the AVR system automatically registers eligible voters, or updates their voter information, whenever they complete a transaction with the DMV. Since they are registered as nonpartisan by default, it has diversified the state’s voter pool. Officials still perform checks and balance to keep voter rolls clean, including the Electronic Registration Information Center that compares voter registration data between states to identify out-of-date records.

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  • Door-to-door campaign helps Guadalupe turn the tide against COVID

    After becoming a COVID-19 hotspot, Guadalupe built partnerships and built trust among community members to effectively track cases, dispel misinformation, and increase vaccinations. The Town Council partnered with Pascua Yaqui tribal leaders, the broader Maricopa County, Native Health, and a COVID-19 response team composed of faculty, staff, and students at Arizona State University to lower infection rates. A combination of at-home testing, contact tracing and, eventually, vaccination events helped, as did the use of promotoras – community health workers who talk with residents to help ease anxiety.

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  • Burning Sugar Cane Pollutes Communities of Color in Florida. Brazil Shows There's Another Way.

    In Brazil, the world's largest producer of sugar cane, industry leaders have found a way to harvest the crop without sugar cane burning. Sugar cane burning is harmful to the environment and nearby residents. After complaints and regulations, producers invested in technology that allows them to cut the cane without burning it. This is a contrast to South Florida, despite producing less sugar cane than Brazil, producers in the state continue the practice.

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  • A shellfish company gets into the weeds

    In their fight to protect eelgrass, The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community sued the Army Corps and the National Marine Fisheries Service. The Swinomish Tribe argued that creating wide exemptions to shellfish farming could endanger eelgrass, which they rely on. Their win led to stricter regulations that require individual permits rather than national permits. The tribe also opened its own shellfish operation.

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  • Burlington, Vt., ‘defunded' its police force. Here's what followed.

    In Burlington, a city of progressive politics with a police department long seen as forward-looking, city leaders' decision in June 2020 to respond to social-justice protests by cutting the police force by 30% has backfired in a number of ways. By moving quickly without an analysis of optimal staffing or how to shift duties to other agencies, the "defund police" measure prompted more police resignations than expected. Residents complain about conditions on downtown streets that make them feel unsafe. The city has since restored some of the police positions while moving more deliberately toward alternatives.

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  • Mapping Lead Contamination in the Granite State

    Through education, public policy and grant programs, New Hampshire is working on decreasing the number of children with elevated blood lead levels. In 2016, the state wanted to improve lead-testing rates and over the year, they conducted 25 training sessions reaching more than 300 medical professionals, which led to 2,100 more children being tested than the previous year. Interest in lead-abatement grant programs by landlords and homeowners has also increased.

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  • Nature's air sensors are growing on your street

    Moss get their nutrients from the air, providing a snapshot of the air quality around them. A team of scientists in Portland seized upon this. In 2013 they sampled moss from over 300 trees in the city. It was cheaper than installing air quality monitors. They found a cluster of pollution in one neighborhood near a glass factory. In Seattle, the practice was replicated, but it was done by youth from the community. The sampling confirming high levels of bad air quality in one neighborhood. In both cities, the samples led to higher air quality standards and stricter enforcement.

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