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When I Grow Up

Rebecca Mead

January 15, 2015 |

The New Yorker |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Mexico

KidZania is a theme park in a dozen countries where kids engage in different types of work, ranging from working on a car assembly line to putting out fake fires with real water and examining a doll’s teeth as a dentist. They earn a paycheck, which they must pay taxes on, and then can spend the money they earn at stores within the park. Although the parks promote free markets and brand loyalty, owners have also worked with local governments to incorporate lessons that promote good citizenship and awareness of civic institutions, health and safety, environmental sustainability, and appreciation of diversity.

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How America's shrinking cities can 'rightsize'

Matt Krupnick

February 13, 2020 |

The Guardian |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

Once-bustling cities contend with population decline by rethinking their use of space for those who remain. Baltimore, New Bedford, and Youngstown have implemented strategies that range from knocking down abandoned houses and factories to developing community gardens and creating public waterfront spaces. Racial and class tensions have arisen when choosing where to spend limited government funding.

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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.

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How a $1.42 billion project failed to bring water to this Tanzanian village

Tom Murphy Jacob Kushner

November 25, 2014 |

Public Radio International (PRI) |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Tanzania

Years after a World Bank pilot program built a system to bring clean water to villages in Tanzania, these communities are finding it difficult to fix and operate these projects. While some villages were able to raise funds to maintain these costly water systems, not every community has been able to repair them.

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Beer and business: the unexpected benefits of water access in Cameroon

Elias Ntungwe Ngalame

July 07, 2015 |

The Guardian |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Cameroon

Cameroon was plagued by droughts, water-related illnesses, and an influx of refugees--all of which required a surplus of clean water. The government devised solar panel water distribution systems, which brought fresh water for irrigation. The surplus also inspired citizens of Cameroon to start small businesses that used the water, including brewing beer.

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Cities are using poop to look for early Covid-19 outbreaks

Katherine Ellen Foley

September 03, 2020 |

Quartz |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Arizona

Wastewater-based epidemiology is helping scientists and public health experts track the prevalence of coronavirus in communities. Although this practice can be complicated by the size of cities and lacks a standardized testing protocol, it has already helped identify outbreaks at two universities.

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How the University of Arizona used No. 2 to solve its No. 1 problem

Denise Chow

August 29, 2020 |

NBC News |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Tucson, Arizona

Amongst other efforts, the University of Arizona has begun analyzing sewage to mitigate the spread of coronavirus as students return to campus for the new school year. The practice is known as wastewater-based epidemiology, and university officials have already been able to diagnose and isolate two asymptomatic cases due to this new initiative.

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When Life Gives You Saltwater, Make Shrimp Ponds

Eve Troeh

February 03, 2015 |

New Orleans Public Radio (WWNO) |

Multi-Media |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: Vietnam, Lang Tram

When the Vietnamese government built a gate in the 1990s to block saltwater from entering a key canal, they hoped it would lead to flourishing, year-round rice crops. Without community buy-in and engagement, the government didn’t have a clear understanding of the needs of local residents. By the time the gate was built, farmers had turned their fields into saltwater ponds to farm shrimp, demonstrating the need for ground-up solutions and deep community listening.

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The Dutch are giving rising rivers more room. Should we follow suit?

Tristan Baurick

March 09, 2020 |

The Times-Picayune |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Netherlands, Noordwaard

The Dutch government bought out and relocated 200 households in high-risk areas as a way to create more space for rising water levels instead of building bigger levees. The program is called Room for the River, and more than 60,000 people now have much lower flood risk. The program also built new roads, bridges, and pumping stations, one of which doubles as a wildlife-watching tower. This, along with the green spaces, bike paths, and plazas, is credited for building public approval for the project.

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The farmers moving their fields indoors

Dina Newman

April 21, 2020 |

BBC |

Podcast |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: France, Paris

The COVID-19 pandemic has illuminated challenges in food supply at an international scale, and one way to make food more accessible is to grow it locally. From hydroponics and aeroponics, where plants are grown in the water and air respectively, to rooftop gardens, farmers have been building up the technology to bring farming closer to home.

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