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The 'moss wall' that helps cities breathe

Chris Giles

June 07, 2017 |

CNN |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Germany

Air pollution is a major health risk, and growing in severity as more of the population moves to urban (more polluted) areas. Several university friends from Germany developed a "CityTree," which filters toxic pollutants from the air with moss that can be installed around cities.

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Italy's pollution-eating cement

Gelareh Darabi

May 25, 2017 |

Al Jazeera |

Broadcast TV News |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: Italy, Milan, Lombardy

Respiratory diseases caused by air pollution now account for more premature deaths in people worldwide than malaria and HIV combined. To address increasing contamination levels, particularly in cities, scientists have developed a new kind of cement that absorbs pollutants like CO2. The special cement is being manufactured in Milan, and used around in the world in cities like Paris and Chicago.

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The Big Green Bang: How renewable energy became unstoppable

Pilita Clark

May 18, 2017 |

Financial Times |

Multi-Media |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United Kingdom, London, Greater London

An economic shift to renewable energy could take decades, but thanks to rapidly evolving disruptive technologies, dropping prices of solar and wind power sources, and increasing market demand for green business, the new age of renewable energy could encompass the world economy much more quickly.

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Can plastic roads help save the planet?

Dougal Shaw

April 25, 2017 |

BBC |

Broadcast TV News |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: Scotland, Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway

Even with such increasingly popular trends as reusable grocery bags and biodegradable food containers, 70% of plastic products end up in landfills; but with the help of a local start-up, MacRebur, several townships in Scotland are cutting back on this quantity while simultaneously servicing and improving the quality of their transportation networks.

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A passive house takes an active stand for the environment

Emma Murray

March 22, 2017 |

Boulder Weekly |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder, Colorado

The heating and cooling of homes accounts for some of the greatest energy consumption in the United States, and contributes significantly to the release of CO2 into the atmosphere. A movement of "passive housing" is cropping up in response - the building of small, low-impact houses that are energy efficient and eco-conscious. One in Boulder, CO - built by an amateur architect - has received international certification and may serve as a model for future housing construction.

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Building Better Cities

Russell Beard, Juliana Schatz

March 05, 2017 |

Al Jazeera |

Broadcast TV News |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: Colombia, Cali, Valle del Cauca

By 2050 the percentage of the world's population living in cities will increase to two-thirds with significant environmental strains. In Colombia, a company called Conceptos Plasticos collects recyclable plastic material, melts it down and moulds it into bricks used to build houses for the local community. Singapore too, is on the cutting edge of environmentally sustainable urban solutions including vertical farms and living buildings.

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Essen's award-winning blueprint for greening the postindustrial city

Simone D'Antonio

February 16, 2017 |

Citiscope |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Germany, Essen

Essen has a very industrial past but due to private and public efforts it has become Europe's 2017 "green capital". The city has converted industrial buildings into places for art, wastewater is being diverted from the river, bike mobility has been increased, and trees have been planted.

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The bizarre and inspiring story of Iowa's fish farmers

Maddie Oatman

February 01, 2017 |

Mother Jones |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Webster City, Iowa

A family in Iowa, living 1,000 miles from the Atlantic Ocean and 1,500 miles from the Pacific Ocean, are paving the way for the future of fish farms. By filling their unused barn with fish tanks, this third-generation Webster City farming family found a solution for successfully and sustainably raise up to 10 million pounds of barramundi per year.

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Stockholm's Ingenious Plan to Recycle Old Christmas Trees

Feargus O'Sullivan

December 20, 2016 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Sweden, Stockholm

In Stockholm, old Christmas trees are being converted into biochar. When integrated into the city's highly-efficient power grid, the project has been wildly successful--not only in improving soil, but also in retaining groundwater, greening the city, and lowering carbon emissions. For this reason, officials as far away as California have been eying the plan with interest.

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World's first city to power its water needs with sewage energy

Kata Karáth

December 01, 2016 |

New Scientist |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Denmark, Aarhus

With climate change an ever-increasing threat, one city in Denmark is helping to inspire hope through the successful implementation of a self-sustaining treatment plant that provides fresh water to the local community using only energy produced from the waste and sewage it filters. Other cities are now looking to replicate the model.

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