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

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  • In Baltimore, parents owe hundreds of millions in child support. Here's how other states have made changes for the better.

    March 09, 2020 |

    The Baltimore Sun |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Maryland

    Maryland's punitive child-support policies, which have piled $233 million in largely uncollectable debt on the state's poorest residents and destabilized families and neighborhoods, could be improved by adopting reforms other states have used to increase payment compliance. In Colorado, for example, more support payments have meant healthier families and communities, after the state stopped offsetting welfare payments by whatever child support had been paid. Other states have stopped revoking driver's licenses and work permits as a non-payment penalty, in order to make steady employment more attainable.

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  • Energy efficient homes mean less air pollution. But are they affordable?

    March 09, 2020 |

    The Salt Lake Tribune |

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    Response Location: United States, Kearns, Utah

    To reduce greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change and air pollution, Habitat for Humanity Salt Lake Valley is building airtight homes that will also reduce energy costs and be affordable for people experiencing economic hardship. The home are largely being built by volunteers, so the process has been slow and there have been mistakes in building the homes. However, the homes are estimated to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 4.9 tons a year.

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  • How the Knox County Land Bank is affecting local communities

    March 02, 2020 |

    Knox Pages |

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    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, Mount Vernon, Ohio

    The Knox County Land Reutilization Corporation, also known as the Knox County land bank, takes abandoned properties that are vacant and tax delinquent, revitalizes them, and then sells them to new owners. This eliminates blight around the county and encourages economic development. The Land Bank President estimates that for every $1 the land bank spends, they generate $33.82 in redevelopment. Operating in earnest since the fall of 2018, the land bank has brought $3.5 million in reinvestment into the county. They are now looking to acquire even more buildings and financially support individual homeowners.

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  • Jacksonville Organization Attacks Violence, Blight With Holistic Approach

    February 27, 2020 |

    Juvenile Justice Information Exchange |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Jacksonville, Florida

    After the residential real estate market collapsed a decade ago, a developer that had been revitalizing an impoverished Jacksonville neighborhood with single-family homes pivoted to a broader approach to reducing crime and blight. Progress has been difficult, and violence in the neighborhood remains high. But, by building larger complexes and offering an array of services and interventions, Northwest Jacksonville Community Development Corporation is achieving slow but steady social change.

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  • The Runners Helping Each Other Get Back on Track Audio icon

    February 26, 2020 |

    Next City |

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    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States

    In New York and across eleven other cities in the United States, a non-profit organization called Back On My Feet leads early morning runs (starting at 5:30am) with members overcoming homelessness and the volunteers who choose to join them. In the course of twelve years, the organization helped over 7,500 members transition into permanent jobs and homes, with 83 percent of members maintaining employment and 70 percent maintaining housing. There are also physical health benefits including lower blood pressure, less dependence on nicotine, and a reduced BMI and obesity risk.

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  • UnitedHealthcare tackles homelessness as a root cause of poor health, and Philly is a test bed

    February 21, 2020 |

    The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia Media Network) |

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    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    The health insurance company, United Healthcare, has started a program called myConnections that funds housing for Philadelphia citizens experiencing homelessness and chronic illness. United Healthcare will pay for rent as well as wraparound social services like transportation and food stamps. The program, which has spread to a dozen states, recognizes health as a key driver of poverty, and is bound by the idea that addressing housing can shift people out of poverty and poor health, and will save health insurance companies money too.

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  • Our Closet provides clothing—and dignity—to Philadelphians of all walks of life

    February 19, 2020 |

    The Philadelphia Citizen |

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    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    A Philadelphia program called Our Closet offers a judgement-free way for people to access high-quality donated clothes without any barriers to entry—no paperwork, referral, or ID needed. As their services grew, they joined with Jewish Family and Children’s Services (JFCS) to open 18 pop-up retail-style locations around the city. 90% of their donations come from community members, and "in 2019 alone, Our Closet held 85 pop-ups, distributing 33,451 items of clothing, shoes, and accessories via 6,208 shopping experiences and 575 crises and reentry packages with the help of 2,524 volunteers."

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  • Finding patients where they live: Street medicine grows, along with homeless population

    February 16, 2020 |

    Los Angeles Times |

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    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

    Doctors from USC have formed a small street team that travels to homeless communities to treat medical concerns and help provide assistance. Part of a growing trend around the United States, these teams are playing a vital role for the homeless by eliminating barriers such as the need to "schedule an appointment, find transportation to the clinic, pick up prescriptions, or pay for their treatment."

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  • Seattle nonprofits and Zillow launch affordable housing search tool

    February 14, 2020 |

    HousingWire |

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    Under 800 Words

    Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

    The City of Seattle partnered with Zillow to create a searchable database of affordable vacant rental units. Case managers are using the tool to get homeless residents into housing.

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  • Poor credit is a barrier to affordable housing. Lending circles are a tool for those in poverty

    February 14, 2020 |

    Desert Sun |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Coachella Valley, California

    Lift to Rise, a Coachella Valley nonprofit that pushes for housing and poverty policy change, launched a local lending circle program aimed at serving minority residents break the cycle of poverty. Partnered with San Francisco-based Mission Asset Fund, the lending circle helps those with poor credit or no credit at all to build up a spending history, have access to loans, create a savings account, improve their score, and more. Since 2008, Mission Asset Fund has partnered with more than 50 organizations across the U.S. to provide lending circles to more than 9,000 clients.

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