Solving problems by addressing the underlying factors. By digging deep and attacking the root causes of a problem, changemakers are able to treat the disease rather than just the symptoms. These solutions offer help to those in need, employ a comprehensive approach to problem-solving, and address the determinants that keep individuals and communities from succeeding.
Treating underlying poverty-related conditions that cause health or education problems. For example, instead of just treating asthma, helping the child get housing that doesn't make the disease worse.
Help rather than punishmentThinking of behaviors such as addiction as diseases that require treatment.
Using a comprehensive approachProviding people with services that address multiple challenges at once.
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https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2019/02/13/693136117/when-teens-threaten-violence-a-community-responds-with-compassion?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Rhitu Chatterjee
Rebecca Davis
NPR
13 February 2019
Radio / 5-15 Minutes
When a teenager at a high school in Salem, Oregon began expressing threatening sentiments online, the community stepped in to help rather than punish the student. Through assessing the threat and then partnering him with a school counselor, the community was able to successfully create a model for removing kids from potentially violent trajectories.
https://www.abqjournal.com/1279269/program-to-focus-on-treatment-rather-than-jail.html?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Ryan Boetel
Albuquerque Journal
11 February 2019
Text / 800-1500 Words
The Albuquerque Police Department is rolling out a new program that aims to get people the help they need rather than place them in jail where they are likely to relapse. Similar to programs already working in other states such as Colorado and Washington, this Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion program gives the low-level suspects an opportunity to obtain treatment and avoid a criminal record.
https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Africa/2019/0208/Healing-a-generation-wounded-by-Boko-Haram?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Leslie Roberts
The Christian Science Monitor
8 February 2019
Text / Over 3000 Words
The Neem Foundation brings intensive counseling and 1-on-1 therapy to survivors who escaped the horrific violence of Boko Haram, a terrorist group in northeastern Nigeria. With months of aid and tough conversations, the organization attempts to reunite women and children who fled the violence with their families, many of whom shun the Boko Haram escapees.
https://www.fastcompany.com/90299115/these-companies-are-making-sure-more-women-get-promoted-to-management?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Lydia Dishman
FastCompany
6 February 2019
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Companies that value diversity invest in women leaders through comprehensive approaches. Leadership programs that go beyond generic seminars and instead focus on long-term career development strategies can help empower women and increase diversity in management positions. The Femmes Forward initiative at Havas Group pairs career development sessions with group mentorship, while other companies implement coaching and executive shadowing opportunities.
https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2019/0206/Feels-like-home-Israeli-school-for-migrant-kids-wins-by-bridging-worlds?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Dina Kraft
The Christian Science Monitor
6 February 2019
Text / 800-1500 Words
A school in Tel Aviv welcomes immigrant and refugee children with open arms, providing language classes, long school days, extracurricular activities, and more. Members of the community volunteer to tutor and lead after-school courses, allowing children to learn while their parents work late. Now, more schools are popping up in Tel Aviv with similar aspirations.
http://www.govtech.com/health/Closing-the-Connectivity-Gap-for-SFs-Homeless-Youth.html?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Melia Russell
Government Technology
5 February 2019
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Access to a smartphone or Internet services can assist in escaping homelessness. By offering WiFi, San Francisco-based homeless shelters hope not only to bring more individuals in off the street, but also to provide them with tools necessary to plan their daily lives, look for work, and connect with other social services. By providing Internet connectivity to those who often need it the most, Larkin Street Youth Services has turned homeless centers into places where individuals in need can reconnect with society.
https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/02/03/684438571/women-who-dare-to-bicycle-in-pakistan?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Diaa Hadid
NPR
3 February 2019
Text / 800-1500 Words
In Karachi, Pakistan, a group of women gathers every week to bike around the city, an act that works to bring awareness to equal rights between men and women. Despite backlash from men in the community, the bicyclists encourage each other to stand up to societal norms and ask the question, "If they can ride, why can't we?"
https://www.deseretnews.com/article/900053712/overhaul-of-utahs-public-defender-system-a-huge-benefit-for-juab-county.html?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Annie Knox
Deseret News
2 February 2019
Text / 1500-3000 Words
In 2016, the state of Utah took control over the funding model for individual county's legal defenders in order to better use resources. Thanks to the restructuring, in just a year, counties have seen noticeable increases in both manpower and budgets which not only betters the public defenders, but also those they're defending.
https://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/food-for-everyone/this-city-made-access-to-food-a-right-of-citizenship-20190129?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Frances Moore Lappé
Yes! Magazine
29 January 2019
Text / 1500-3000 Words
In 1993, a new administration in Belo Horizonte, Brazil's fourth largest city, declared food access a fundamental citizen right. The city government partnered with rural farmers to bring fresh food into the city limits, make produce more affordable, and ensure healthy options are distributed to all members of the population, regardless of socioeconomic status.
https://www.fastcompany.com/90294418/these-tactile-blocks-teach-blind-kids-to-code?utm_source=Solutions+Story+Tracker
Adele Peters
FastCompany
22 January 2019
Multi-Media / Under 800 Words
Microsoft recently piloted the Code Jumper, a kit that allows children with visual impairments to learn how to code using tactile and auditory responses. The Code Jumper kit features several "pods" that correlate to a line of code; when the pods fit together correctly in a string of code, the Code Jumper creates a funny song or other auditory response.
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