What should we believe, and what shouldn’t we, when it comes to information about COVID-19? The World Health Organization (WHO) provides good advice on telling the difference between reliable information and misinformation. It recommends learning about “infodemiology”, the study of the vast amounts of information disseminated on the health crisis, not only from scientific sources […]
Nzambi Matee founded Gjenge Makers in Nairobi, Kenya in 2018, initially to sort and sell plastic waste to other recycling companies. Matee quickly realized that, because her enterprise was collecting waste faster than the recycling companies could use it, she needed to change business models, and fast. She pivoted directly to creating value-added products using […]
Portland, Oregon, on the West Coast of the United States, is powering its electricity grid using … drinking water. Yes, you read that right. The city’s main energy company, Portland General Electric, is partnering with Lucid Energy to generate electricity from the water flowing under its streets and through its pipes. How so? By integrating […]
Yes, you, you and every single other person, can help to fight deforestation. Change the planet for the better and plant a tree with The Nature Conservancy. Join its effort to Plant a Billion Trees. Donate to “turn the tide of deforestation and help protect and expand forests around the globe,” or get involved in […]
Scientists are cloning antibodies taken from coronavirus patients who have recovered from the disease in an attempt to develop a treatment for the virus. The “monoclonal antibodies,” made from identical immune cells, could “provide an instant immunity boost against the virus,” according to an article published in Science. They could both “prevent and treat the […]
A flowering plant in the daisy family, Echinacea has been shown to improve immunity, anxiety, inflammation and skin health and to lower blood sugar levels. It may even have anti-cancer properties. Although human-based research is limited, it is considered safe and well tolerated for short-term use. Why is this plant important? It’s a good reminder […]
After water, tea is the most popular beverage in the world. At 1.93 tons of tea, India produces the most, followed by China (1.2 million) and Kenya (0.44 million). Asia produces the most tea, at around 4 million tons. Bangladesh ranks 10th in the world, accounting for 3% of global tea production and employing more […]
Getting kids out of the mines A model of “radical inclusivity” has been put into action to address household poverty and ensure child protection in artisanal mining communities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Bon Pasteur (Good Shepherd) Kolwezi, the Good Shepherd Sisters’ operation based there, recruits children from the mine sites to attend […]
Some 4.5 billion people worldwide live with unsafely managed sanitation, according to the World Health Organization. And in countries with water stresses, flushing toilets only exacerbates the problem, which means this issue affects nearly the entire planet. Enter the EcoLoo EcoLoo with its waterless and odorless sustainable toilet was founded by Zuraina Zaharin, a Malaysian […]
“What we have done is totally wrong. We think we can use concrete to channelize a river. We think we can use dykes to protect the city from being flooded.” According to Professor Kongjian Yu, a Chinese ecological urbanist, draining all the water away from cities is a bad idea and not effective in containing […]
