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

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  • A key to bridging the political divide: Sit down and talk?

    One Small Step seeks to decrease toxic polarization by bringing people of differing views and backgrounds together to talk. About 800 people have met in pairs in around 40 cities to talk about commonalities, such as family and spirituality, in addition to other issues facing the country. The conversations, which highlight people’s commonalities and help to humanize one another, are based on research that shows bringing people together face-to-face decreases prejudice and discrimination. Some of the recorded conversations become part of the StoryCorps podcast or were broadcast on NPR.

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  • Minneapolis restaurants offer takeout food without a side of guilt for using wasteful containers

    A clean tech startup called Forever Ware created reusable, stainless steel containers for restaurants to use instead of single-use takeout containers. So far, four restaurants in Minneapolis are participating in the program, where customers pay a deposit for the container and can return it to any restaurant in the network. Within two months, the containers were used about 1,400 times, which probably cut back on some plastic waste ending up in landfills.

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  • When ‘om' can help you take care of Mom: Meditation, mindfulness useful tools for many caregivers

    Mindfulness and meditation practices have been shown to reduce stress and neurological biomarkers of aging while also improving an individual's mood, resilience, and cognitive performance. To help connect caregivers to these practices, some programs are now offering classes at community centers.

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  • With Demand For Community Health Workers Rising, So Does Need For Sustainable Funding

    Community health workers are a key part of Connecticut's public health response to COVID-19, particularly in marginalized communities. CHWs connect people to health care and other services, like rental assistance, help with contact tracing, and effectively increased vaccinations by taking the time to answer questions and dispel misinformation. Living in the communities they serve is a critical part of the model’s success and helps clients trust them more readily. The state now offers a CHW certification program, but the largely grant-funded model would be more sustainable with steady funding.

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  • India trashes 100 million tires a year. She turns them into playgrounds.

    Anthill Creations has built 275 "playscapes" across India, mostly using discarded vehicle tires as the affordable raw materials. In many parts of the country, children lack outdoor play spaces and toys to enliven their play. By "upcycling" some of the 100 million discarded tires the country generates annually and painting them bright colors, the 5-year-old project has benefits ranging from the environment to children's safety and happiness.

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  • 'Virtual rangers' help South African reserve keep poachers away

    Over 55,000 people have become “virtual rangers,” helping to protect South Africa’s Balule Nature Reserve from poachers. Officials at the reserve teamed up with Samsung and Africam to increase the ability to keep watch over the park, which is home to some of the most vulnerable animals to poaching, including rhinoceros, leopards, and elephants. Camera phones, held in protective cases, are mounted around the reserve and stream images to “virtual rangers” worldwide who have already reported hearing gunshots, which could indicate the possibility of poachers, and seeing trapped animals needing rescue.

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  • Libraries Are Key Tools For People Getting Out Of Prison, Even During A Pandemic

    When people leave prison, they often gravitate to public libraries as a free place to get computer access and help in looking for work and navigating other aspects of life outside. New Jersey Public Libraries' Fresh Start program adds a layer of help by providing social workers and extra technology resources and training for the formerly incarcerated. Covid disruptions in libraries forced the program to conduct much of its work on the phone or in public, outdoor spaces, but that has posed other problems. Even so, the help some receive has put them on a path toward self-sufficiency.

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  • Teen invents playing cards that are gender-equal -- and diverse

    16-year-old Maayan Segal and her father launched Queeng, a deck of cards that represents gender equality and includes a range of racial and cultural identities. The first iteration sold over 50,000 decks but was re-designed after critics cited the lack of racial diversity. The hand-drawn cards include a range of skin tones and facial features, and king cards are replaced by male and female “Monarch” cards, "Dutchess" or "Duke" cards replace queen cards, and "Prince" or "Princess" cards replace jack cards. There are also female jokers. Five days after its release, Queeng 2.0 already sold over 4,000 decks.

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  • Finding childcare is hard. It's even harder when you don't work 9 to 5.

    More than 50 percent of children from economically-disadvantaged families have at least one parent who works non-traditional schedule, which consists of hours outside of the 9am to 5pm. However, subsidized child care often does not apply to the few childcare facilities that do cater to families with nontraditional schedules. Over-regulation of child care, which makes it illegal for parents to leave children for more than 12 hours, also forces parents into unregulated options which don't qualify for federal subsidies. Expanding access to after-hours childcare is key to upward mobility.

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  • Newark-based violence prevention group seeks to bridge gap between police, social services

    Newark's Community Street Team hires and trains formerly incarcerated people and people who have been victims of violence to mediate disputes before they turn violent. Street outreach interventions have been associated with large declines in homicides and assaults, although the programs can overlap with others seeking the same goal. Newark's team will now serve as the hub for a national effort, the Community Based Public Safety Association, to professionalize such work nationwide. The group will seek more public funding and try to raise the visibility of such policing alternatives.

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