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An Abandoned Roman Salami Factory Becomes an Illegal, Inhabited Museum

Lidija Pisker

October 24, 2017 |

Atlas Obscura |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Italy, Rome

About 200 people from around the world, most of whom were homeless, occupied a former meat factory where they cleaned the space and set up homes. An Italian artist worked with residents to create a unique venue that exhibits murals, paintings, and installations of over 300 artists from around the world. The museum does not have a budget, the artists donate their works, and it operates on a democratic concept where artists from different backgrounds and styles work together. Despite not occupying the space legally, residents believe that the value the art offers to society prevented them from being evicted.

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How a Temple professor and a prison inmate started an international movement

Samantha Melamed

October 23, 2017 |

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia Media Network) |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

In the Inside-Out Exchange program half of the students are college students, and the other half are prison inmates. The program has “expanded to about 150 correctional institutions across the globe” but the biggest takeaway is the effect it has on people. Students were “ engaged in a way they never had been in the classroom. For the inmates, suddenly their opinions mattered.”

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Philly activists raising money to bail poor defendants out of jail

Dana Difilippo

October 23, 2017 |

WHYY |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

For many low-income people who are arrested, coming up with even a small amount of bail money is nearly impossible, leaving them to languish for months before their cases are ever adjudicated. That means lost jobs and housing and sometimes custody of their kids. In Philadelphia, a number of groups have banded together and raised funds to bail out inmates, following examples in other cities, as a temporary measure until policymakers can enact long-term bail reform.

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How Chicago Created ‘Community College' for Special Ed Students

Derek Robertson

October 19, 2017 |

Politico |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

After students with intellectual and developmental disabilities from Chicago's West Englewood neighborhood complete four years in traditional high school, they are eligible to attend Southside Occupational Academy for four additional years - the transition center "is not [a] replacement for traditional, integrated high school, it’s a complement to it." Southside provides vocational training and training in basic life skills to students.

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The New Co-op Helping Ex-Inmates Find Work—and Recover

J. Gabriel Ware

October 18, 2017 |

Yes! Magazine |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Washington, District of Columbia

Washington D.C. struggles with the highest incarceration rates in the nation that already imprisons more people than any other country in the world. But a few determined individuals, including ex-offender Juan Reid, are working to break the cycle by empowering former inmates to join their business cooperative, Tightshift, catered specifically to those reentering the system by providing job training and paid work, as well as critical emotional healing and support.

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How Iceland is Fighting the Gender Pay Gap

William Kremer

October 17, 2017 |

BBC |

Radio |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: Iceland, Reykjavík

Iceland may be "the best country in the world for gender equality" but women get paid 30 percent less than men. Trade unions and businesses united to fix the problem. They reevaluated people's salaries through a point system, regardless of their gender. Now, the government has decided all companies in Iceland will have to implement the system, or pay a fine.

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Training For A Better Life

Quinn O'Callaghan

October 11, 2017 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Narbeth, Pennsylvania

Overwhelmingly, individuals who have been incarcerated will spend the rest of their lives dragging in-and-out of prison, with few resources to help break the cycle and get them back on their feet. But one program called "New Leash on Life" stands out for helping dramatically slash recidivism rates for inmates in Pennsylvania prisons by teaching inmates to train and care for formerly "un-adoptable" rescue dogs, building empathy, job skills, and giving both human and dog a second chance at life.

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Hemp Farmers Face Rocky Road in Diversifying Eastern Kentucky's Economy

Rachel Cramer

October 06, 2017 |

West Virginia Public Broadcasting |

Radio |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Pikeville, Kentucky

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.

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Breaking the Cycle of Poverty, Two Generations at a Time

Dwyer Gunn

October 04, 2017 |

Pacific Standard |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Career Advance, and the Warren Village, are two anti-poverty programs built on the “two-generation model,” which “focuses on providing coordinated, high-quality services to both children and their parents under the umbrella of one program.” Prior efforts only focused on children. The approach seems to be a successful study. The Career Advance program found that sixty-one percent of participants earned a post-secondary credential after one year in the program, compared to just 3 percent of those in the control group.”

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From Norway, Pennsylvania's prisons appear cruel and unusual

Samantha Melamed

October 04, 2017 |

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia Media Network) |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Pennsylvania

Thirty years ago, Norway’s recidivism rate was more than 60 percent. Then the country put rehabilitation at the core of its corrections system, training prison guards to act more like social workers than punishers. Recidivism fell dramatically. The country of 5.2 million now has just 3,900 prisoners. Norwegian delegates are meeting with officials in Pennsylvania to share their insights.

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