Seaweed farming as an eco-friendly alternative for Tanzanian fishing communities

Communities in the Sundarbans have adopted shrimp farming as a sustainable livelihood strategy; the approach has proven successful, with environmental benefits and many farmers earning a good income.

Appalachia, a region put on the map due to coal mining, is now facing a time of declining coal mining jobs. As this persists, however, there is slowly growing movement to turn to hemp farming as a way to bring both jobs and money back into Eastern Kentucky. Although much is still unknown about the future of this crop, it's still standing as a beacon of hope for the community as a means to helping both the people and the region in their fight for increased economic stability.

The rapid development of emerging economies across Asia and Africa is lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty - but there is much debate as to how to best structure this growth. If these economies evolve in the same way as in the West - with unchecked, excessive resource consumption and heavy pollution - the planet may be on the fast track to disaster. Earthrise explores how these nations can grow sustainably using improved, eco-conscious technologies like renewable energy and eco-friendly farming practices.

Women crab farmers in coastal Maharashtra are earning substantial incomes by raising crabs in mangrove forests, creating a financial incentive that protects these critical ecosystems while building climate resilience and women's economic independence.

Twenty women in Kaduna, Nigeria formed a cooperative in 2015 that pooled their farm labor earnings to collectively purchase land, transforming them from hired laborers earning ₦2,000-₦10,000 per day into independent landowners who now harvest enough to support their families' education and healthcare while contributing food to their community.

The nonprofit Group to Promote Education and Sustainable Development teaches women in drought-ridden Indigenous communities across Mexico to use ancestral methods of irrigation and grow drought-resilient medicinal plants. The four-year training program also aims to address gender disparity through empowerment. Participants are encouraged to set up savings funds to increase their financial independence and attend group therapy sessions, among other activities.

With the help of funding from foundations and charities, Indian women’s groups such as the Dooni dairy cooperative are leveraging solar power to simplify their work and help their businesses grow. Since purchasing solar-powered fridges to store extra milk, most women in the dairy cooperative have seen their profits double.

La Cosmopolitana Foundation in Colombia offers courses that teach people to live in harmony with each other and nature. The classes focus on sustainability and helping rural communities to work together to create circular economies. Small fees make the classes largely accessible.

Algaculture offers a sustainable and empowering alternative to rice farming in coastal areas of India threatened by sea level rise. With the assistance of The Asia Pacific Network for Global Change Research and the South Asian Forum for Environment, women engage in algae farming training workshops. Harvesting algae like a crop provides a vital source of additional income to women, who are often the caretakers of their family.

Solar-powered irrigation allows women in Gella to farm during the dry season, enabling multiple harvests per year that provide food security, income, and social connection while increasing women's economic agency in a post-conflict community.