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We've figured out how to solve human-elephant conflict. It takes bees. Lots of bees.

James Gaines

August 09, 2016 |

Upworthy |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Sagalla

Elephants in Africa often eat a farmer’s entire crop, physical barriers don’t work, and fighting the elephants has left both people and elephants dead. After learning from Africans that Elephants don’t like bees, a researcher devised a hanging bee-hive/fence that effectively scares the elephants. The Elephants and Bees Project is helping farmers in Africa and Asia implement this solution.

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'No one leaves anymore'. How Ethiopia's restored drylands offer hope

Cathy Watson

August 03, 2016 |

The Guardian |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Ethiopia, Mekelle

Environmental refugees in Ethiopia flee their country because there are no jobs without healthy land. A group of former refugees have returned to Ethiopia with a business venture in Gergera to improve the land by regreening efforts, foresting, and building water conservation systems. The new businesses demonstrated such positive effects that the region is now on the brink of resettlement due to improved environmental conditions.

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Schools nurture students' agriculture interests

Stephanie Anderson Witmer

July 30, 2016 |

USA Today |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Millersville, Pennsylvania

The Agriculture Education program at Penn Manor High school aims to teach about career paths as a farmer or within the larger agricultural industry. This type of high school education is part of a larger national trend to use agricultural education to teach STEM skills and better equip students to enter a technology- and innovation-based agriculture sector.

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"Carbon farming" good for the climate, farmers, and biodiversity

Erik Hoffner

July 28, 2016 |

Mongabay |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Nairobi

Deforestation, overgrazing, and increased carbon emissions are familiar challenges as climate change continues to threaten our food systems. Author Eric Toensmeier discusses how "carbon farming" - or practices such as agroforestry, improved annual crop rotation, and better grazing practices are not only good for farmers - increasing yields and reducing land degradation - but good for capturing carbon and environmental health overall. Toensmeier also discusses how to get more farmers to practice these methods: improved financial models, government support, and a certification system.

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A Toll-free Number Helps Villagers Live With Animals

Deepa Padmanaban

July 26, 2016 |

IndiaSpend |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: India, Karnataka

By calling a toll-free number, villagers in India can receive help for filing claims after human-animal conflicts like an elephant stomping on their crops or a tiger killing cattle. The service, known as Wild Seve, operates in 284 villages where a field agent arrives to take photos of the damage and file documentation to the government so residents can receive compensation. Field agents have helped file claims for more than 3,000 incidents. The hope is that residents can receive compensation for their losses quickly and, hopefully, are less likely to harm the animals.

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

Rowan Jacobson

July 19, 2016 |

Ensia |

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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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How Vermont changed the national GMO-labeling debate

Lonnie Shekhtman

July 08, 2016 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Albuquerque, Vermont

Vermont's passage of a law requiring food that is genetically modified to be labeled spurred action at the national level to create one standard, rather than a patchwork of state laws, that offers food companies several ways to label foods with GMOs. The national bill did eventually pass, but as this piece illustrates, no one seems very happy about it. Environmentalists feel it leaves large loopholes and while the food industry likes one standard, it does not like the stigma the GMO label confers.

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A 700-year-old West African farming practice could be an answer to climate change

Lily Kuo

June 22, 2016 |

Quartz |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: Ghana

Recycled kitchen waste and charcoal ash makes for healthy soil healthy that is more resilient to climate change. For centuries, women in Ghana and Liberia have used this technique on their farmlands, which are renowned for their fertility. The technique has now attracted the attention of anthropologists and researchers.

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Can Fruit Save Our Food Waste Problem?

Patric Kuh

June 15, 2016 |

Los Angeles Magazine |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles-based nonprofit Food Forward was born out of the observation that many farmers are growing more fruit than they can sell at market. To cut down on food waste and get these viable fruits into the hands of people that are food insecure, Food Forward operates as the "transfer point between donors and receiving agencies," while also coordinating volunteers to forage the local farms and farmers markets.

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Why the Gates Foundation is flooding a new rice variety with funding

Catherine Cheney

June 09, 2016 |

Devex |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: India, Bihar

With climate changes causing extreme fluctuations in the weather, agricultural conditions and small farming operations are suffering around the world. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has funded research and initiatives that reduce poverty in the world and increase agricultural development. The Foundation supports the tools, crops, and partnerships for more robust and resilient crop yields through its Stress Tolerant Rise for Africa and South Asia initiative.

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