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Door-knocking neighbors help avert home seizures in Detroit

Thomson Reuters Foundation

Carey L. Biron

20 January 2020

Detroit, Michigan, United States

Text

800-1500 Words

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In Detroit, volunteers go door to door to talk with their neighbors who have properties at risk of foreclosure. The initiative has contributed to a 90 percent decrease in foreclosures in the city since 2015.

This Montana Group Has Adventurers Working for Scientists

Bitterroot

Jake Bullinger

HUB MEMBER

10 January 2020

Bozeman, Montana, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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Outdoor enthusiasts make effective citizen scientists. In Montana, Adventure Scientists pairs outdoor adventure-seekers with scientists looking to collect data in remote locations. The volunteers gather data that info...

Volunteers step in to keep asylum seekers healthy on border

Associated Press

Julie Watson

18 December 2019

Tijuana, Mexico

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1500-3000 Words

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In Tijuana, many asylum seekers are left without access to health care while they await a decision on their cases so medical professionals are volunteering their time to try to help those that need it. Although they a...

Strangers, Sidewalks and Folding Chairs Are One Solution for the Loneliness Epidemic

NationSwell

Monica Humphries

HUB MEMBER

6 November 2019

San Francisco, California, United States

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Under 800 Words

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Making personal connections supports mental health and wellbeing. The San Francisco-based nonprofit, Sidewalk Talk, trains volunteers to go out and engage on a personal level with individuals in underserved communitie...

How can children be taught about death and serious illness?

Al Jazeera

Priti Salian

HUB MEMBER

10 October 2019

Arnsberg, Germany

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800-1500 Words

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At a German preschool, an intergenerational mentoring program pairs community members with young children to productively talk about complex life concepts such as illness and death. Studies have shown that such progra...

Colombia's flying doctors

Struggles from Below Magazine

Oliver Gordon

26 September 2019

Colombia

Photojournalism

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Due to rural conditions and political unrest throughout the region, many in Colombia struggle to access health care, but a group of volunteer pilots is tackling this problem by bringing the health care to the communit...

Churches arm, train congregants in wake of mass shootings

Associated Press

Jake Bleiberg

16 August 2019

Haslet, Texas, United States

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800-1500 Words

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With people across the United States living in constant fear of mass shootings, in these despondent times, some churches paying companies to train and arm their members in preparation. While the FBI and other security...

Improving our own environment

The Mercury

Madison Kuklentz

Gabriella DeMelfi

Thomas Garlick

HUB MEMBER

9 August 2019

Schwenksville, Pennsylvania, United States

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800-1500 Words

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Pennsylvania’s Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy has built a grassroots base of volunteers that help clean up the local environment. Through education at schools and summer workshops, outreach projects, and asking volun...

When There's No Doctor Nearby, Volunteers Help Rural Patients Manage Chronic Illness

NPR

Maggie Mullen

HUB MEMBER

20 June 2019

Laramie, Wyoming, United States

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800-1500 Words

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In Wyoming, volunteers are given health care trainings to help them as caregivers to those with chronic illnesses who are too far away from a doctor to receive adequate care. That curriculum, along with support groups...

Eye On the Elderly: Ohio Increasingly Relies on Volunteers to Handle Aging Adult Affairs

Eye On Ohio

Katie Ellington

HUB MEMBER

9 June 2019

Columbus, Ohio, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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Though Ohio has traditionally relied on volunteers to be guardians to elder folks who don't have support of family or loved ones, the court system looks to partnerships with external organizations to give at-risk seni...

New playground at Hope Harbor provides children with a safe space

KHGI (Nebraska TV)

Lauren Kummer

5 June 2019

Grand Island, Nebraska, United States

Broadcast TV News

Under 3 Minutes

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Hope Harbor, an emergency and transitional shelter in Grand Island, Nebraska, is renovating its facilities to include a playground for the shelter’s children. Funded by various grants, the new addition will provide ch...

These Millennials Got New Roommates. They're Nuns.

The New York Times

Nellie Bowles

31 May 2019

Burlingame, California, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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For millennials looking to gain a stronger sense of commitment to social justice and service work, religious traditions can provide a helpful framework. The Nuns and Nones program in Burlingame, California, places you...

Oakland's 'Pothole Vigilantes' Take Street Repairs Into Their Own Hands

KQED

Sonja Hutson

20 May 2019

Oakland, California, United States

Radio

Under 3 Minutes

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In Oakland, CA, two men deemed the Pothole Vigilantes have paired up to fix every pothole in the city. Made possible by crowdfunding the venture, the two have now developed public meetups to teach others how to fix po...

The library of things: could borrowing everything from drills to disco balls cut waste and save money?

The Guardian

Leo Benedictus

24 April 2019

Oxford, England

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From London to Vancouver, across the globe libraries of things are popping up to rent out common, but rare-to-use, household objects. Items include telescopes, lawn mowers, ice cream makers, power drills, you name it....

The grassroots groups helping asylum-seekers on the border

High Country News

Sarah Tory

22 April 2019

Tucson, Arizona, United States

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800-1500 Words

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The Kino Border Initiative is a volunteer binational organization that provides food, aid, and shelter for migrants crossing the border between Mexico and Arizona. The rate of asylum-seekers is steadily rising, and th...

In the Search for Missing Women, Neighbors and Family Members Pair Drones With Indigenous Knowledge

Yes! Magazine

Janice Cantieri

HUB MEMBER

18 April 2019

British Columbia, Canada

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1500-3000 Words

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The Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Drone Search Team is a group of volunteers in British Columbia, Canada that use a combination of indigenous knowledge and drones to search for missing women. Indigenous women ...

Anyone Who Needs Help Seeing Has 2 Million Pairs of Eyes Available With This App

NationSwell

Monica Humphries

HUB MEMBER

17 April 2019

Denmark

Text

Under 800 Words

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Using the camera of a smartphone, individuals who are blind or visually impaired can receive quick and easy help from volunteers. The Danish company, Be My Eyes uses a smartphone application to connect those who are b...

This Castle in the Desert Provides Respite to Asylum-Seekers

Yes! Magazine

Rose Lambert-Sluder

5 April 2019

Tucson, Arizona, United States

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800-1500 Words

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In Tucson, Arizona, a former Benedictine monastery is providing temporary shelter to asylum seekers. The space was temporarily donated to Casa Alitas, a nonprofit, following a sharp increase in asylum-seeker in the pa...

Trout lovers trek down to Río Grande for native cutthroat

The Taos News

Cody Hooks

4 April 2019

Cerro, New Mexico, United States

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800-1500 Words

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On New Mexico's public lands, volunteer effort can go a long way for wildlife restoration. Each year, nearly 200 volunteers hike around 10,000 cutthroat trout to the edge of the Río Grande del Norte National Monument ...

Some Local Police Departments Are Understaffed. These Volunteers Are Helping Fill the Ranks

NationSwell

Joshua O'Connor

2 April 2019

Denver, Colorado, United States

Multi-Media

3-5 Minutes

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Police departments across the country are seeing decreased funding – but an increase in public participation. Volunteers in Public Service, or VIPs, have stepped in to help fill the gaps in staffing left by budget cut...

The woman in search of Indian Country's missing

High Country News

Jessica Lussenhop

25 March 2019

North Dakota, United States

Multi-Media

Over 3000 Words

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Native individuals and members of groups like Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women have taken it into their own hands to find members of their communities who have gone missing. Recognizing that decades-old legislati...

Citizen Science Comes of Age

Hakai Magazine

Alastair Bland

19 February 2019

Tasmania, Australia

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1500-3000 Words

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As climate change accelerates, there is a growing need for scientific data to track and respond to the changes in our environment. Unburdened by the stress of academia or funding, volunteer citizen scientists are step...

Colorado farmers can't get their food to the table. One startup wants to lend hands.

The Colorado Sun

Aisha Down

19 February 2019

Colorado, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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UpRoot, a new Colorado startup, is working to help farmers fill the labor gap and feed the hungry. Farmers across the state face a labor shortage, leaving huge amounts of produce to go to waste – and thus contribute t...

Another Kind of Rescue After the Wildfires

Yes! Magazine

Federica Armstrong

12 February 2019

California, United States

Photojournalism

Under 800 Words

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Wildfires have routines destroyed parts of California and are only becoming more devastating as temperatures rise, taking many lives in their paths of destruction. To bring solace and closure for families, volunteer a...

In West Lebanon, discussion builds a bridge of words

Valley News

Sarah Earle

11 February 2019

Lebanon, New Hampshire, United States

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800-1500 Words

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In West Lebanon, New Hampshire, conversation circles are helping immigrants to the country learn and practice English. Even beyond the practical language skills, the group also fosters a sense of belonging and community.

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Photos Credits

Photos are licensed under Attribution Non Commercial 2.0 Generic Creative Commons license / Desaturated from original, and are credited to the following photographers:

Fondriest Environmental, David De Wit / Community Eye Health, Linda Steil / Herald Post, John Amis / UGA College of Ag & Environmental Sciences – OCCS, Andy B, Peter Garnhum, Thomas Hawk, 7ty9, Isriya Paireepairit, David Berger, UnLtd The Foundation For Social Entrepreneurs, Michael Dunne, Burak Kebapci, and Forrest Berkshire / U.S. Army Cadet Command public affairs

Photos are licensed under Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike 2.0 Generic Creative Commons license, and are credited to the following photographers:

Ra'ed Qutena, 段 文慶, Fabio Campo, City Clock Magazine, Justin Norman, scarlatti2004, Gary Simmons, Kathryn McCallum, and Nearsoft Inc

Photos are licensed under CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication Creative Commons license / Desaturated from original, and are credited to the following photographers:

Burak Kebapci and SCY.

Photos are licensed under Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) and are credited to the US Army Corps of Engineers.

Conference attendee listening to speaker, Jenifer Daniels / Colorstock getcolorstock.com.

Photo Credit: Kevork Djansezian via Getty Images

Photo Credit: Sonia Narang