Five million infants and five million mothers in India will receive better access to health, nutrition, water and sanitation service thanks to an $80 million contribution from the IKEA Foundation to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
The contribution will boost health and education programs in marginalized communities in ten states, the United Nations announced this week.
Researchers at the University of Adelaide have found a way to recycle non-biodegradable bags into a material with such tiny particles they can only be seen under a microscope.
Professor Dusan Losic from the School of Chemical Engineering says the carbon nanotubes had valuable properties.
“They are hundreds of times stronger than steel, they have excellent electrical properties,” he said.
(READ the full story from ABC Australia)
New York City’s air quality has reached the cleanest levels in more than 50 years thanks in part to sustainability programs initiated by Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
“New York has the cleanest air now of any major American city,” he announced at a news conference Thursday.
Since 2008, the levels of sulfur dioxide in the air have dropped by 69 percent and since 2007 the level of soot pollution has dropped by 23 percent. The largest contributor to the reductions is the city’s Clean Heat program, which phased out use of the most heavily polluting heating oils in New York City.
President Barack Obama and new Iranian President Hassan Rouhani spoke by telephone on Friday, the highest-level contact between the two countries in three decades and a sign that they are serious about reaching a pact on Tehran’s nuclear program.
The call is the culmination of a dramatic shift in tone between Iran and the United States, which cut diplomatic relations with Iran in 1979.
Meanwhile, Iran’s foreign minister expressed the hope on Wednesday that a meeting with the five permanent U.N. Security Council members and Germany this week will kick-start negotiations to resolve the decade-long dispute over Tehran’s nuclear program. (Read that story from Reuters, here)
(READ the full story from Reuters)
A French climber scaling a glacier off Mont Blanc stumbled across a treasure trove of emeralds, rubies and sapphires that had been buried for decades following a plane crash.
When the honest young hiker realized the jewels — estimated to be worth a quarter million dollars — belonged to someone who died on the glacier, he “turned in the haul to local police.”
(READ the AFP story via NDTV.com)
A Toronto police officer must remember what it’s like being five-years-old because he took the time to tweet a photo of a stuffed toy animal lost at the airport hoping to find the owner.
Known for his social media presence, Staff Sgt. Chris Boddy’s photo of the stuffed dog was re-tweeted hundreds of times.
People used the hashtag #FindMyOwner until it resulted in a happy reunion for the boy.
(WATCH the video from Toronto CityNews below)
Conservation groups announced yesterday a three-year $80 million Clinton Global Initiative Commitment to Action that will bring together NGOs and governments to stop the slaughter of Africa’s elephants, which are being decimated due to poaching for ivory. The new partnerships will advance a three-pronged strategy designed to catalyze a global effort to protect key elephant populations from poaching while reducing trafficking and demand for ivory.
The $80 million will be used to support national governments to scale up anti-poaching enforcement at the 50 priority elephant sites including hiring and supporting an additional 3,100 park guards. In addition, anti-trafficking efforts will be increased by strengthening intelligence networks and penalties for violations and adding training and sniffer dog teams at 10 key transit points. New demand reduction efforts will be implemented in 10 consumer markets over the next three years.
Further, leaders from African nations led a call for other countries to adopt trade moratoria on all commercial ivory imports, exports and domestic sales of ivory products until African elephant populations are no longer threatened by poaching.
The commitment addresses the problem on three fronts: stop the killing; stop the trafficking; and stop the demand.
For instance, the Commitment will scale up “on the ground” anti-poaching enforcement in 50 key African sites that contain two-thirds of all elephants.
(READ more details at IFAW.org)
Clinton Global Initiative photo
The Senate bill to keep the government funded will drop a controversial provision that food safety advocates warn lets agricultural giants avoid judicial oversight.
The provision, dubbed the “Monsanto Protection Act,” was extended under the House’s continuing resolution passed last week. Under the Senate bill, it will expire at the end of the month.
(READ the full story in The Hill)
Photo by K Connors via Morguefile
Some of Europe’s key animals have made a comeback over the past 50 years, a report suggests.
Conservationists say species such as bears, wolves, lynx, eagles and vultures have increased in numbers.
“People have this general picture of Europe that we’ve lost all our nature and our wildlife.”
(READ the story from the BBC)
To help more low-income families build home libraries and to encourage families to read together, Scholastic will donate 1 million books to a nonprofit that gives free books to children living in poverty.
The world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books announced the donation, which includes a large quantity of bilingual Spanish/English books, on Monday.
Reach Out and Read will give away the books to low-income families during office visits with their children’s doctors. Scholastic is a long-time supporter of the organization that distributes free books through pediatric professionals and hospital staff who educate the families about the importance of reading aloud.
The term flash mob generally denotes wildly spontaneous gatherings of people in public places to dance, sing or erupt into some sort of display of artistic behavior.
Yet Dawn Livera came up with the idea of using the pop-culture phenomenon to encourage kids to read books.
This summer in parks near Vancouver, a series of summer reading flash mobs was launched that had all the pizzazz of the real thing.
(READ the story in the Vancouver Sun)
Allyson Ahlstrom, 18, wanted to scrap the idea of struggling teen girls getting only handed-down clothes from the thrift store. She wanted to boost their self esteem by providing two brand-new head-to-toe outfits for any girl in need, so she started Threads for Teens two years ago in Santa Rosa, California.
This year she takes her clothing store on the road bringing hope and pride to girls in need across the country. Can you believe what this young woman has accomplished?
(WATCH the video below from NBC, or READ a GNN story with links to Allyson’s website)
In the past couple weeks, grocery shoppers in an Oregon town have found $100 bills stuffed into everyday food items, like eggs, cookies and candy bars, and inside shopping carts — all for the taking.
Shoppers and employees at the Fred Meyer store in Salem have found a total of $2,000.
Across town at the Wal-Mart, KGW reports that a man named Phil found 2 of the bills, and was especially grateful.
“My girlfriend is in the hospital with renal failure.” Phil said. “I’m driving to OHSU (in Portland) every day. So $20 bucks in gas each way, it’s comes at a very opportune time for me.”
(WATCH the video below, or READ the story from NWCN News)
SHARE the Wealth—Spread the News..
28-year-old Sarah Outen has become the first woman to row a boat solo from Japan to Alaska, arriving at a small town in the Aleutian Islands after an ordeal that included capsizing five times.
After the five month journey, the British adventurer enjoyed a hot bath, home-cooked meal and a “fabulous welcome” from the people of Adak.
“I have had some of the most intense and memorable months of my life out on the Pacific. It has been brilliant and brutal at the same time,” Outen said in a statement.
(READ the AP story in the Guardian)
A Thailand television commercial tells a moving story about a shopkeeper who gives to others without hope of return.
But his good deed is returned after years and saves the man’s life.
The three-minute film was made by TrueMove H, the cellular company.
The YouTube video, which has been viewed more than 11 million times, describes the company as believing “in the power of giving without expecting a return.”
The video starts with a young boy being caught stealing medicine from a shop across the street before a restaurant owner intervenes.
WATCH the inspiring film below…
Last year, while in first grade, Dylan Siegel’s best friend was diagnosed with a rare illness called glycogen storage disease type 1B, a rare liver disorder that doesn’t have a cure.
Dylan, six years old at the time, was determined to do something about that. To the surprise of his parents, he wrote a book.
“Chocolate Bar” the book has since exploded, with t-shirt sales and a website helping to raise money. The book costs $20 with all proceeds going toward finding a cure.
“Chocolate Bar” has now raised an incredible $400,000, to the delight of researchers studying the disease.
“He’s raised more money for this disease than all the medical foundations and all the grants combined,” said Dr. David Weinstein, who studies and treats patients with the disease at the University of Florida. “Ever.”
With the money, Weinstein already has hired new staff.
Donate at the website, www.chocolatebarbook.com.
(READ the story from ABC News or watch a video below, from NBC News in May, 2013)
Michael Trimble was born without arms, but is quite capable and independent. Still, he’s always wanted to own a bicycle since trying one as a child.
About a year ago, Mr. Trimble, 27, ordered online from REI a single-speed bicycle with a coaster brake and began to search for someone to customize it — but “no one wanted to touch it. … They told me that I am either a liability or that what I asked them to do could not be done.”
And then he met Michael Brown, the owner of Maestro Frameworks – maestroframeworks.com – on the North Side.
(WATCH the beautiful video below or READ the story from the Pittsburgh Gazette)
California legislators are working to give kids more control over their digital personas — and real-life futures — with a bill that would allow minors to permanently delete old web postings on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and similar social media networks.
The “eraser button,” or right-to-delete provision, is part of a unanimously-passed Senate Bill 568 that guarantees privacy rights for minors in California.
(READ the story from the CBC – More at NY Times)
What do you do when a wedding you’ve planned for months is suddenly cancelled? The Fowler Family of Atlanta didn’t let the four course meal and reception venue go to waste. They invited 200 of the city’s destitute to join them.
“Hosea Feed the Hungry” charity arranged for the homeless adults and families to dine with Carol and Willie Fowler and their daughter on Sunday at the posh wedding venue, Villa Christina.
The former bride-to-be Tamara Fowler enjoyed the evening and was delighted to see that others had the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful meal.
(READ the story from the NY Daily News – LISTEN to an interview at WBUR)
Just three weeks ago, an 18-year-old girl in Erie, Pennsylvania named Alyssa Josephine O’Neill wanted to go to Starbucks with her mom but she suddenly died from an epileptic seizure.
Alyssa never got to taste her first pumpkin spice latte but, after the deadly seizure, her parents decided to buy 40 of the sweet, warm drinks for strangers, paying it forward in loving memory — with her initials scribbled on the cup, #AJO.
As a result, some Starbucks employees joined in and a campaign was born. Using the same hashtag #AJO, people from as far away as Korea, Iceland and India are buying coffees for strangers, writing #AJO in loving memory.
