What Will it Take to Get Plastics out of the Ocean?

http://ensia.com/features/what-will-it-take-to-get-plastics-out-of-the-ocean

Anja Krieger

Ensia

1 February 2016

Text / Over 3000 Words

The amount of plastic debris in our oceans and water sources - especially nanoplastics that are increasingly prevalent in our food chain - is so enormous it's often beyond comprehension, and immensely difficult to address. As countries continue to industrialize and single-use products become more commonplace, the flow of harmful plastics into the environment seems insurmountable. But a number of clever inventions and dedicated individuals are working to help get plastics out of our water - and more importantly - encourage practices to reduce, reuse, and recycle.

How Catfish and Algae Are Cleaning Up the Chicago River

http://www.citylab.com/weather/2015/12/how-catfish-and-algae-are-cleaning-up-the-chicago-river/420996

Dawn Reiss

CityLab

22 December 2015

Text / 800-1500 Words

By releasing fish into the Chicago River, the city of Chicago aims to help clean up its ecosystem, as the fish hopefully will eat the river's excess algae.

Scientists are putting seals to work to gather ocean current data

http://www.pri.org/stories/2014-12-10/scientists-are-putting-seals-work-gather-ocean-current-data

Chris Benjamin

Public Radio International (PRI)

10 December 2014

Text / 800-1500 Words

The Seal Mammal Research Unit at the University of St. Andrews is recruiting and tagging pinnipeds to gather details on ocean conductivity, temperature and depth, collectively called “CTD profiles.” When tagged animals surface, the data they’ve collected are relayed to a global satellite system, decoded by computers, and disseminated to researchers.

New York's Big Climate Plan Really Does Include Oysters

http://www.citylab.com/weather/2015/12/new-yorks-big-climate-plan-really-does-include-oysters/419847

Alec Appelbaum

CityLab

15 December 2015

Text / 800-1500 Words

Tottenville, on Staten Island, will get oyster-friendly breakwaters and a dune system as part of post-Sandy rebuilding efforts. The oysters will help revive the ecosystem and sustain the long-term fishing economy.

Coral cultivation offers hope to devastated western Indian Ocean reefs

http://www.trust.org/item/20140328224703-b3pan/?source=dpagehead

Wanjohi Kabukuru

Thomson Reuters Foundation

29 March 2014

Text / 1500-3000 Words

Warming water has led to the collapse of coral reef systems in the western Indian Ocean, essential to fisheries, protecting shorelines, and reducing beach erosion and sea-level rise. Marine scientists from Nature Seychelles, as part of an international project to protect and restore the reefs, are promoting varieties of coral that they have found to be resistant to the rise in temperature.

The Battle to Keep Ho Chi Minh City Above Water

http://wwno.org/post/delta-blues-part-1-battle-keep-ho-chi-minh-city-above-water

Jesse Hardman

New Orleans Public Radio (WWNO)

22 January 2015

Radio / 5-15 Minutes

Geography and climate change challenge the viability of sea-level cities in Vietnam, but architects, researchers, and urban planners work together to find creative solutions. One architect in Ho Chi Minh City designed green roofs to absorb the rainwater that causes floods.

When Life Gives You Rainwater, Make Shrimp Ponds

http://wwno.org/post/delta-blues-part-2-when-life-give-you-saltwater-make-shrimp-ponds

Eve Troeh

New Orleans Public Radio (WWNO)

29 January 2015

Radio / 5-15 Minutes

Farmers in Vietnam face rising sea levels but rejected the city's water engineering projects. They prefer gradual measures to cope with climate change so scientists have allowed the farmers to steer the conversation.

Better Together

http://wwno.org/post/delta-blues-part-3-better-together

Eve Troeh

Jesse Hardman

New Orleans Public Radio (WWNO)

5 February 2015

Radio / 5-15 Minutes

Louisiana and Vietnam both need affordable solutions to rising sea levels. Leaders from Vietnam visited Louisiana to compare ideas.

Harnessing Local Pride for Global Conservation

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/09/harnessing-local-pride-for-global-conservation

David Bornstein

The New York Times

9 February 2012

Text / 1500-3000 Words

The World Conservation Union estimates that 40 percent of the more than 40,000 species it tracks on its Red List are close to extinction and this problem requires humans to change their behavior to fix it. Rare’s the Pride Campaign uses social marketing to attract attention and communicate the conservation message between local communities and government entities. The Pride Campaign has been replicated around the world for different conservation efforts to protect biodiversity.

On Columbia, ‘just add water' seems to be working

http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/on-columbia-lsquojust-add-waterrsquo-seems-to-be-working

Lynda V. Mapes

The Seattle Times

2 August 2014

Text / 800-1500 Words

New water management technology implemented along the Columbia has significantly helped the fish population - specifically salmon - return to healthy numbers and has restored much of the community and industry that revolves around the river, including for native peoples.