Story Search Results

Advanced Search

There are so many ways to search the solutions journalism stories in this database. Explore our searchable fields:

Search Results

You searched for: -

There are 155 results for your search. View and Refine Your Search Terms

'Uber For Poop' Aims To Break Up Senegal's Toilet Cartel

Robert Smith

July 27, 2018 |

NPR |

Radio |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: Senegal, Dakar

In Senegal, emptying your septic taste is expensive business; the two options, hiring someone to shovel it onto the street or paying a high price to the "cartel of 'toilet suckers,'" are not sustainable for residents or public health. To force members of the raw sewage cartel to compete with each other and lower prices, a new call center "auctions" the service by text to individual sellers instead of forcing people to contend with a banded group, and "prices for toilet suckers have come down an average of 7 percent" since the program began.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Wastewater treatment is a problem in the rural South. Who is working to fix it?

Melissa Brown

July 26, 2018 |

The Montgomery Advertiser |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Haynesville, Alabama

In the South's rural Black Belt, wastewater management is an issue, but local activists, government officials, and civil engineers are working together to create a new type of sanitation system that works for the geography. The approach also includes public information campaigns to educate people about proper maintenance and stop rumors that can prevent that maintenance.

Read More
Go to Original Story
In the Black Belt, a template for fixing failing sewage infrastructure

Melissa Brown

July 25, 2018 |

Southerly |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Alabama

Improving sanitation and hygiene in rural communities requires coordinating experts and policy makers to find solutions that fit. In addition to coordinating research projects on alternative forms of sewage and wastewater management, the Equal Justice Initiative, the Alabama health department, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are working to educate residents about sanitation and public health.

Read More
Go to Original Story
LA Is Doing Water Better Than Your City. Yes, That LA

Matt Simon

June 12, 2018 |

Wired |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

With climate change on the horizon, Los Angeles is rushing to pull water from surprising sources. The goal: aqueous independence.

Read More
Go to Original Story
How do we detoxify California's poison tap water? More democracy

Jacques Leslie

June 08, 2018 |

Los Angeles Times |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Goshen, California

The majority of public water boards in California's San Joaquin Valley have been comprised of the same elected officials year after year. The lack of community representation on the boards as lead to many disadvantages for struggling towns where water pollution has become the norm. As evidenced in West Goshen however, diversifying the boards with local community members can lead to better water management solutions through state-funded grant opportunities.

Read More
Go to Original Story
In Search of Solution to Detroit's Water Shutoffs, Could Philly Hold the Answer?

Jake Neher

June 08, 2018 |

WDET |

Radio |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Detroit has a water affordability problem, with 100,000 water shutoffs for non-payment recorded since 2014. When faced with a similar problem, Philadelphia implemented an income tier-based water affordability program. Despite challenges, some think this is a solution to be tested in Detroit.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Environmental impact bonds can help cities invest in green infrastructure

Laurie Mazur

May 25, 2018 |

Ensia |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Washington, District of Columbia

Environmental impact bonds (EIBs) are a relatively new form of financing that combine private investment with government funding in a “pay for success” model. They are different than municipal bonds in that they are intended as a more experimental approach: for instance, Washington, D.C. started using EIBs to test green infrastructure and evaluate the results. Though all current EIBs are too early-stage to show formal evaluations, they are helping promote sustainability initiatives in D.C., Baltimore, and Atlanta.

Read More
Go to Original Story
What Nairobi hotel businesses can learn from South Africa's water crisis

Graham Kajilwa

May 09, 2018 |

The Standard |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Nairobi

With water scarcity a very real concept in South Africa, the hotels in the country may be able to learn how to survive by looking to Nairobi's various water conservation methods.

Read More
Go to Original Story
How Cape Town was saved from running out of water

Krista Mahr

May 04, 2018 |

The Guardian |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: South Africa, Cape Town

In late 2017, Cape Town announced “day zero,” the projected date when water supplies would be so low that the city would turn off the taps. It was a bold move and people listened. Water use fell.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Where Water is Scarce, Communities Turn to Reusing Wastewater

Jacques Leslie

May 01, 2018 |

Yale Environment 360 |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, California

Water conservation has been a hot topic for the last decade. As nations continue to search for ways to ensure a safe water supply for future generations, some places are looking to history for answers. Taking a page out of the 1970s water shortage era for Orange County in California, these places are finding ways to recycle sewage water into drinkable water.

Read More
Go to Original Story