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

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  • Waste Land, Promised Land

    Plant It Forward, a nonprofit in Houston, is leveraging the skills of refugees to set up urban farm plots. By providing training and start-up support, the organization helps these farmers not only to earn a decent income, but to integrate into (and nourish) the community.

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  • Years of eavesdropping on insect sex talk is starting to pay off for grape growers

    Leafhoppers may sound like a harmless term to the untrained ear, but vineyard owners will quickly disagree. These insects have a history of invading and devastating vineyards across the U.S. and Europe. Entomologists may have uncovered a solution however, via studying how the leafhoppers mate. By replicating their vibrational mating calls, so to speak, they are able to hinder the species ability to mate, thus slowing down their reproduction rates.

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  • Solar Power Bridging the Electricity Gap in Rural Malawi

    Solar power has long been thought of as the way to go to provide long-term environmentally friendly energy needs; however, the cost can deter those living in more remote areas. Cognizant of this, the firm Powered By Nature has begun investing in affordable solar powered torches, with products made for both business and individuals. Many locals in Malawi are finding that the benefits outweigh the cost, and they are in fact saving money by switching to solar powered lighting.

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  • Taking Aim at Gun Violence, With Personal Deterrence

    To decrease the amount of gun-related fatalities, cities are focusing on joint efforts with their communities and police departments to target those most at risk for shooting or being shot on the streets. Known nationally as Ceasefire, this initiative aims to identify the individuals from this selected target group - and open a dialogue about their options and the consequences of gun-related retaliation. Nationally, the program has had some trouble sustaining when the cities rely too much on the police department, but when it works, shooting have decreased dramatically.

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  • Providing youth-friendly health services key in fighting teenage pregnancies

    Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) Clinic is taking a youth centered approach towards teaching reproductive health. Their methods, which include having youth days, hiring youth peer counselors, and providing private rooms for youth to discuss their sexual health, allow them to reach teenagers. “As a result, their uptake of contraception has increased.”

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  • 'It's been my compass': helping the homeless failed by the government

    Two social enterprises in London are making significant strides in helping out the homeless and rough sleepers. One, named Beam, uses a crowdfunding platform to help finance training and qualifications for work for a variety of professions, from beauticians to electricians. The other, named Overstream Clean, hires the homeless to perform cleaning and gardening work, and they advertise themselves as a cleaning company rather than a social enterprise. Those who have gone through the programs say that they feel empowered and motivated by the help offered by their community.

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  • As opioids land more women in prison, Ohio finds alternative treatments

    The Ohio Reformatory for Women is a prison that offers inmates a chance to enroll in Tapestry, an inpatient drug treatment program that tries to delve into the deeper causes women turn to drugs. It also believes in connecting women who are addicts with one another because “on the outside there’s not enough support.” The 18 month program is “about healing mind, body and spirit.”

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  • An International Final Four: Which Country Handles Student Debt Best?

    In a March Madness bracket style competition between Sweden, the United States, Australia, and Britain, experts choose Australia as the country with the most effective student loan repayment system. Judges cite automatic collection of income-based payments as Australia's best feature and discuss what the U.S. can learn by "acknowledging that possible ideas for improvement don't stop at the border."

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  • The Opposite of Gentrification

    A new program in a Philadelphia neighborhood is offering opportunities for locals to curb gentrification. Gentrification occurs when outside developers come to an area and change it without leaving room for locals to remain. The nonprofit Jumpstart Germantown provides training, mentoring, and loans to community members who want to learn to develop their own neighborhoods in an inclusive and sustainable way. So far, 235 people have graduated from the program, and the model has inspired other Philadelphia neighborhoods to start similar programs.

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  • Could venomous snails be part of the solution to the opioid epidemic?

    Patients who experience chronic pain are commonly prescribed opiates. Over time, their tolerance to the medication builds up and they must increase their dose to maintain the positive effects of opiates, often leading to addiction problems. A neurotoxin found in a venomous sea snail is proving to be more effective in relieving chronic pain because it works better over time and it is non-addictive.

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