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How Colorado became the model for running an election by mail

Bill Theobald

October 20, 2020 |

The Fulcrum |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Colorado

Colorado is a successful model for voting by mail. Anti-hacking security measures, results audits, and frequent updating of the voter database using multiple sources increases confidence in the system. Voting by mail increased turnout, making the state among the top in the country. It also decreased election-related costs by 40%. Ballot rejections remain low (less than 1%) because the state relies on voters’ honesty and does not require a witness’ signature. Voters can also track their ballot and resolve any issues over the phone. Voters can return ballots by mail or at one of the many official drop boxes.

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How MIT, Harvard are managing to keep COVID-19 numbers low

Maya Jones

October 20, 2020 |

Wicked Local Cambridge |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Cambridge, Massachusetts

East Coast universities, MIT and Harvard mitigated the spread of COVID-19 on its campuses during the onset of the fall semester and have been able to maintain low transmission numbers. "Harvard, which invited just 40% of its undergraduates to campus this fall, had a .08% positivity rate." Meanwhile, MIT had students start the first two weeks of school entirely remote and keep quarantine until administrators could determine there were no sick students on campus.

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Citizens' Assemblies let everyday people make important city decisions. Let's bring them to Philly.

Jessica Blatt Press

October 19, 2020 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

Citizens' assemblies, where a randomly selected representative sample of people work together to make decisions and find policy solutions to social issues, is an effective approach to decision-making that bridges polarization. It also minimizes the influence of special interests in decision making. America In One Room gathered 500 people in Texas to address topics such as immigration and healthcare, among others, and it showed that people tend to find common ground after deliberative discussions. Citizens’ assemblies have successfully informed policy decisions in Ireland, the United Kingdom, and France.

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Billions in COVID Relief Has Gone to Farmers. Just Not Black or Family-Owned Farms in Appalachia.

Beth Ward

October 19, 2020 |

100 Days in Appalachia |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Kentucky

Several organizations — including the Kentucky Black Farmer Fund, Community Farm Alliance, and Black Soil: Our Better Nature — are working together to provide disaster relief funds during the COVID-19 pandemic to Black farmers. They’ve been able to award 43 small farms with a one-time payment of up to $750, which was used to purchase equipment or personal protective equipment. That amount can only help them so much, but it’s a step in helping Black farmers receive federal aid, which they historically have been left out of.

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The ambitious effort to piece together America's fragmented health data

Nicole Wetsman

October 19, 2020 |

The Verge |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

The uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 and the health impacts it may have for different people prompted doctors from across the U.S. to create a national patient database to better study and understand how the virus interacts with other underlying conditions. Although the database itself is adaptable and researchers hope it can also be used in the face of future pandemics, they also say "five years from now, the greatest value of this data set won’t be the data. It’ll have been the methods that we learned trying to get it working."

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Why Portugal decriminalised all drugs

Rebecca Kesby

October 19, 2020 |

BBC |

Radio |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: Portugal

When Portugal became the first country to decriminalize personal possession and use of small amounts of drugs, choosing to shift to treating drug abuse as a health rather than a criminal matter, the feared downside of turning the country into a drug-users' paradise did not materialize. Instead, HIV cases and crime dropped. Law enforcement resources could focus on major trafficking, while the health and social problems associated with the country's serious heroin problem could be addressed in a way that could begin to solve the problem. Up till then, arrests and prison had failed to have such effects.

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Firefighters work through PTSD with peer support, counseling

Sierra Poore

October 19, 2020 |

Cronkite News - Arizona PBS |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Glendale, Arizona

A counseling program introduced at Glendale Fire Department has now spread to a handful of other departments across the state after reporting that a significant percentage of firefighters were using the counseling services and had used fewer sick hours. The program offers individual counseling, group support, and training on peer counseling.

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Door-to-door: Advocates canvass neighborhoods, informing tenants and trying to prevent evictions

Conor Morris

October 19, 2020 |

FreshWater Cleveland |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Cleveland, Ohio

Chapters of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are using door-to-door campaigns to inform tenants about their rights if facing an eviction. Although evidence is limited about the success in preventing the evictions, some tenants have expressed that the outreach has helped them feel heard and many are more likely to show up in court.

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Hydroponics farming could help reduce Nigeria's spiraling youth unemployment rate

Justice Nwafor

October 19, 2020 |

Nigerian Tribune |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Nigeria

By using an agricultural technique that doesn’t use soil to grow crops, a farmer is upending the traditional farming practices in Nigeria and offering job opportunities to those who might otherwise be unemployed. Hydroponics farming is a type of horticulture that grows plants without soil by using mineral nutrient solutions. BIC Farms utilizes the method, which can reduce crop water consumption, and has trained more than 12,000 people on the soilless farming technique. Hydroponics can also help farmers reduce food waste and post-harvest losses.

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Rev. Yearwood Unites Hip Hop Culture With Climate Justice

Frank Sesno Dan Reed Eugenia Harvey

October 19, 2020 |

Planet Forward |

Broadcast TV Talk Show |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States

Rev. Lennox Yearwood, founder of the Hip Hop Caucus, is using music and comedy to highlight the intersection of climate change and racial justice. His group released a music video talking about the Flint water crisis and they produced a stand-up comedy special about climate change. By using the power of storytelling, he believes he’s able to bring young people and their stories into the climate movement.

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