Civics

Heat From Paris Metro and its Travelers Will Warm Housing Project Above

Tue, 07 Sep 2010 11:57:28 GMT

Heat from trains moving along tracks in the Parisian metro combined with the warmth generated by human bodies will help heat a public housing project in the city center.

The project, which is based on geothermal technology, aims to draw heat from subterranean passages and move it to heat exchangers before supplying heating pipes.

Carbon dioxide emissions should be slashed by

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Ghana’s Incredible Path Out of Hunger and Poverty

Sun, 05 Sep 2010 16:10:27 GMT

Ghana is on track to be the first country in Africa to achieve the Millennium Development Goals for halving poverty and hunger by 2015.

Between 1990 and 2004, Ghana outperformed all other countries worldwide, reducing hunger by 75 percent.

"Ghana’s progress has been remarkable," says Melinda Gates, of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, "especially when you consider the devastating drought, dwindling
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Green Revolution Comes to Low-Income Neighborhoods

Sun, 05 Sep 2010 15:48:10 GMT

Kendrick Harris, a high school dropout who has been homeless and jobless, has had more pressing things to worry about than the environment.

But in the last year the 22-year-old South Los Angeles resident has planted community gardens, cleaned up abandoned industrial sites and learned how to install solar panels.

Harris is one of 200 local residents taking part in an innovative program, called
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Basque Separatists Announce Cease-Fire

Sun, 05 Sep 2010 06:25:57 GMT
The Basque separatist militant group ETA declared a cease-fire in a video statement issued on Sunday, suggesting it might turn to a political process in its quest for independence.

"ETA makes it known that as of some months ago it took the decision to no longer employ offensive armed actions," the statement said, suggesting it is ready to pursue a "democratic process," in trying to achieve
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200,000 U.S. Homes Weatherized to Save Energy and Money

Fri, 03 Sep 2010 22:14:53 GMT

Every year, hundreds of millions of dollars in energy seep through poorly insulated walls, doors and windows in American homes. So in 2009, as the U.S. Congress crafted its economic stimulus bill, lawmakers set aside a record $5 billion to weatherize the nation’s leaky homes.

The purpose was twofold: to help low-income Americans save money on home heating and cooling bills and to boost
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Jubilant Kenyans Usher in New Constitution

Fri, 03 Sep 2010 14:39:51 GMT

Cheered by hundreds of thousands of jubilant Kenyans waving national flags, President Mwai Kibaki signed a new constitution last week that curbs his sweeping powers and strengthens civic rights.

In a ceremony full of military pomp and traditional dance, Kenyans packed Nairobi's Uhuru Park—or Freedom Park—to see their leaders take fresh oaths under the first overhaul of the charter since 1963.

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Student Army Updates Oregon, One City at a Time

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 21:51:23 GMT

The University of Oregon is marshaling a veritable army of faculty and students in architecture, law, business, and other fields to help Oregon's capital transition to a more sustainable and accessible future.

Short on tax dollars, Salem, a city of 150,000 people, will be the academic sandbox for roughly 600 University students in 25 classes who will devote 80,000 hours during the
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US Aid Worker Released After 105 Days in Darfur

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:15:51 GMT

A Christian relief organization says its aid worker kidnapped in May in Sudan's Darfur region was freed Monday.

Samaritan’s Purse relief worker Flavia Wagner was held hostage for 105 days by kidnappers but now is doing well and looking forward to being reunited with her family in the United States.

“We thank God that Flavia is safe and free,” said Franklin Graham, president
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Jimmy Carter Wins Release of American from North Korea

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:07:31 GMT

Former President Jimmy Carter left North Korea this morning having secured the release of Mr. Aijalon Mahli Gomes. Mr. Gomes was imprisoned by Pyongyang officials in January and later sentenced to eight years of hard labor with a fine of about $600,000 for the crime of illegal entry into North Korea.

At the request of President Carter, and for humanitarian purposes, Mr. Gomes
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Transforming Villages One Bridge at a Time

Thu, 26 Aug 2010 14:27:50 GMT

More than 13 years after his parents drowned in a flash flood, David Kakuko is at the Moruny River, building a bridge that might have prevented their deaths.

The hanging footbridge will provide safe passage over the frequently flooded waterway.

"Before the bridge, there [were] so many people who lost their lives," said Kakuko, 32. "I know, because I have no parents."

He and
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City Water Works to Turn Toxic Sludge Into Green Profit

Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:05:22 GMT

During the last two years, Natchez Water Works has hauled 3,300 tons of toxic sludge to a special-permitted dump site, incurring transportation costs of $400,000 every year.

Now, with a grant of federal stimulus money, Natchez Water Works Wastewater Treatment Plant in New Hampshire is investing in a green makeover that will eliminate those costs and cut the carbon footprint of the city.

The upgrade, partly
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Marines, Sailor Save Severely Burned Afghan Boy

Sat, 21 Aug 2010 12:46:01 GMT

An Afghan gentleman begged a squad of Marines, out on a routine visit to a village in southern Afghanistan, to come to his nephew's rescue. They entered the man's compound and found a 10-year-old boy curled up in pain from severe burns over his back.

This group of Marines normally spend their days training Afghanistan security forces, but had witnessed many injuries to
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U.S. To Host Israeli-Palestinian Peace Talks In D.C.

Fri, 20 Aug 2010 07:47:33 GMT

Israeli and Palestinian leaders will tackle their toughest disputes in direct talks beginning early next month in Washington, U.S. officials announced Friday.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton issued the invitation to the two sides, asking Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Abbas to launch the talks in Washington on Sept. 2.

Clinton conceded that there would be
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Final U.S. Combat Brigade Leaves Iraq

Fri, 20 Aug 2010 06:13:17 GMT

The last U.S. combat brigade rolled out of Iraq August 19 ending a seven-year military operation that toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein.

The focus of the U.S. mission now has shifted, and by the end of August the remaining 50,000 U.S. military personnel left in Iraq will train and support Iraqi security forces, senior U.S. defense officials say.

In June 2009, U.S.
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First Community Owned Solar Garden Opens in US

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 06:48:35 GMT
A day for the solar history books.

The country’s first community-owned solar installation began delivering clean, renewable electricity to the grid in El Jebel, Colorado. The 340-panel solar installation is unique because it is owned by an array of local residents rather than any single person, utility, developer or corporation. The El Jebel “solar garden” represents a budding trend, pioneered in Colorado, toward community
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Afghanistan Finds 1.8 Billion Barrel Oilfield

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 11:12:57 GMT
Afghanistan said on Sunday it had discovered an oilfield with an estimated 1.8 billion barrels in the north of the war-ravaged country, after a survey conducted by Afghan and international geologists.

Vast tracts of mineral deposits also have been discovered recently. Afghanistan hopes that untapped mineral deposits valued at $3 trillion could help reduce the need to rely on Western cash for bankrolling its impoverished
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Come Swimming, Fishing in the Gulf, Says First Family

Tue, 17 Aug 2010 23:40:17 GMT

Last month, First Lady Michelle Obama told residents of Florida that she was bringing her family on a summer vacation to Maine. They suggested, 'Why not vacation here on the white sand beaches of the Gulf coast where businesses are suffering with the BP oil spill having scared away tourists?'

Well, on Saturday, the First Family did just that, traveling to Panama City Beach, where, besides swimming in
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Pakistan Flood Aid Response 'Overwhelming' in Wales

Mon, 16 Aug 2010 10:14:29 GMT
Aid organizations say there has been an "overwhelming" response from people in Wales to the floods in Pakistan, which have affected 20 million citizens there.

There is an estimated 16,000 people of Pakistani descent living in Wales.

People in Wales have donated well over £250,000 (almost a half million dollars) via its website while individuals and groups were organizing ongoing fundraising activities.

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US Aid Winning Friends in Flood-ravaged Pakistan

Sun, 15 Aug 2010 16:18:23 GMT

U.S. Army choppers carrying emergency food and water buzzed over the swollen river and washed-out bridges, landing in the valley once controlled by the Taliban.

They returned laden with grateful Pakistani flood survivors newly won friends in a country where many regard America as the enemy.

"We have been waiting for this day for so long," said Habib-ur-Rehman. "Thank you, America."
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Once War-Ravaged, Sierra Leone Opens its Breathtaking Beaches to Eco-tourism

Fri, 13 Aug 2010 12:28:35 GMT

Sierra Leone, a country once synonymous with child soldiers and blood diamonds, is now at peace. Communities forced to start over and create jobs for unemployed youth while halting the rampant poverty, are turning their hopes toward the coastline, one of the most beautiful in Africa, for help in rejuvenating the country.

“Tourism," Daniel Macauley of Sierra Leone says, “can be
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