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Floating Garden Cleans As It Grows In One of Most Polluted Waterways In US

gowanus-canal-growonus-Balmori-Associates-released

The Gowanus Canal in New York City is notorious for being one of the most polluted waterways in the U.S. Imagine everyone’s surprise when, three weeks ago, an oasis of pure greenery sprouted atop the surface of the river.

Not only is this improbable garden a breathtaking sight on the brackish water, but it is also cleaning the stream as it blooms.

The project, called GrowOnUs, is an experiment in “floating infrastructure” that utilizes a process called phytoremediation to tidy up the murky canal. Over 30 different kinds of plants act as sponges to purify, desalinate, and mitigate the chemicals affecting the waterway.solar tulip Aora Solar website

When a Solar Plant Becomes a Sculpture Garden, Tulip Power Blooms

The plants are grown inside the very same metal culvert piping used to carry sewage waste into the waterway. These “test tubes” are made buoyant by eco-friendly construction materials like coconut fibers and bamboo.

Balmori Associates, a New York company specializing in creating environmentally sustainable infrastructure since 1995, took action on the GrowOnUs project after receiving a $20,000 grant from the Cornelia & Michael Bessie Foundation.

According to Diana Balmori, three attempts had already been made to produce a sustainable patch of vegetation in the waters, but the pollution had been too much for the plants. Now, since using tougher, more conditioned greenery, the garden has been thriving.

gowanus-canal-canoe-garden-Balmori-Associates-released

Homeless Shelter’s 80-Bed Rooftop Garden Cultivates Fresh Food and Job Skills

GrowOnUs, ideally, will deliver a positive change in shoreline protection, wildlife activity, and financial income for the city. It could also become the next wave in locally-grown food.

“We have pioneered floating landscapes, we now want to learn what can make these floating structures financially sustainable” said Balmori in a press release. “Dr. Michael Balick at the New York Botanical Garden suggested we grow herbs, low maintenance crops.”

See More Positive News Stories About Cutting Pollution

“In a few years NYC restaurants may be serving meals and drinks infused with herbs [and fruits] grown on one of these islands.”

(WATCH the video below to learn more)

Photos by © 2015 Balmori Associates

83-yo Was In Bad Shape on the Street… After Loving Care, He’s a New Man

Homeless man community makeover Provincial Municipality of Ferreñafe Facebook

A local Peruvian man nicknamed “Crazy Chuman” has gotten some crazy love from his neighbors.

Even though Don Luciano Chuman has a family and a home, he often wanders the streets, unbathed and unkempt, for days at a time.

Earlier this month, members of the Peregrin Evangelical Church decided to help him get showered, shaved, and groomed, and to buy him some new clothes.

Homeless Piano Virtuoso Stuns Viewers; Video Lands Him a Gig (WATCH)

Thanks to the attention this act has gotten, he was also treated for various medical conditions at his local hospital, given an I.D. card, and will be provided with free food from social services on an ongoing basis.

MORE Inspiring Stories About Helping the Homeless

“It’s an act of humanity that sets an example to us all. Many others aside from Don Chuman need our help, though unfortunately we are often quite indifferent to them,” the city of Ferrañafe’s Mayor Jacinto Muro Tavara reportedly said.

“I applaud the local community’s initiative in carrying out this act of solidarity.”

(See all the photos from Provincial Municipality of Ferreñafe on Facebook)

Still His First Lady: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Kiss for Baseball Fans (WATCH)

Jimmy Carter Roslyn Screen Shot Atlanta Braves video

Aww cute — while the “Kiss-Cam” scanned the stands at a televised baseball game, causing anonymous lovebirds to kiss, it suddenly locked on a lovely couple of seniors. Wait… that’s a former president and first lady.

Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn have always been big fans of their hometown team, the Atlanta Braves. During a recent Thursday night game, when they spotted themselves on the big screen, they smooched like teens — and got a big cheer from the crowd.

The former president, who turns 91 on Thursday, has been keeping a busy schedule despite being diagnosed with cancer this summer. He and Rosalynn will join 1,500 volunteers in Nepal in November for the 32nd annual Habitat for Humanity project there–focusing this year on rebuilding earthquake damaged homes.

“Since Rosalynn and I first volunteered with Habitat for Humanity in 1984, we’ve never missed a single year,” Carter said in statement released Tuesday.

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(WATCH the video below)

 

Vinyl Record Sales Top Streaming Music Ad Revenue by $60Mil

Vinyl Record CC Knipsermann

Vinyl Record CC Knipsermann

This will be music to the ears of audiophiles — vinyl records are spinning up more profits for the music industry than every ad-supported streaming service combined.

In the first half of this year, vinyl records brought in $60 million more than streaming services like Pandora, Spotify, Vevo, and YouTube. From January through June, vinyl not only accounted for $221.8 million in sales, the revenue was up 52% over the same period from the year before–recording nearly twice the growth of streaming music.Rockin1000-youtube-guitars

Watch What 1000 Passionate Italians Did to Lure a Rockstar to Their Town (MUST SEE)

Vinyl’s rapid growth easily out performed every other segment of the music industry, which, overall, turned a one billion dollar profit in six months for the first time ever.

Permanent downloads through services like iTunes still account for the music industry’s biggest chunk of revenue — about 40%.

Musicians, like Kevin Kadish, have been critical of the business model behind streaming services. He co-wrote the hit “All About the Bass” and last week told the Tennessean that music streamers paid him only about $5,700 even though the song was streamed 178 million times. Apple Music has just launched its streaming service, but the billions of streams will not necessarily equal fair market rates or a fair playing field, according to Recording Industry Association of America.Jack White of the White Stripes

Rocker Jack White Rescues Music Archives of ‘Paramount’ Importance

The triumphant return of vinyl can offer hope to musicians resigned to the fact that online services too often stream–and fans too often download–their tunes without lifting a needle to pay for it.

(Photo: Knipsermann, CC, Story Tip: Chris Smith)

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Amazon Deforestation in Brazil Has Plummeted Almost 90% in Ten Years

amazon rainforest CC Eric Pheterson

Brazil is seeing a whole lot of green these days after slashing its rate of Amazonian deforestation by about 90%.

The happy decline began after Brazil became more aggressive in protecting its Amazon basin by creating protected areas in 2004, designating more than half of that land for use in national parks.

How to Build a Rainforest in Just Eight Years (WATCH)

The country also placed a moratorium on highly sought-after soybeans if they were grown on deforested Amazon land. They used satellites to monitor farming and industrial activity, and got more people on the ground to enforce environmental laws. A blog, Conserve, has collected a lot of the detail about how this was accomplished. For example, some multi-national corporations, under pressure to stop the clear-cutting, agreed to throttle back their operations.

As a result, the number of square miles of rainforest cleared in a single year has been reduced from 10,500 in 2005 to 1,850 in 2014.

RELATED: World’s Five Biggest Palm Oil Growers Agree To Moratorium on Deforestation

Brazil’s impressive performance contributed to a decline in the overall Amazonian deforestation rate so that now the number is one-sixth of what it was in 2004–dropping from its peak of 27,400 square kilometers cleared per year to just 4,800. According to research at Tropical Conservation Science, what has been achieved so far makes it possible to envision the reduction of Amazon deforestation to zero within the next decade.

These stats should help us all breathe easier, since the Amazon rainforest generates about one-fifth of the world’s oxygen.

(READ more in Americas Quarterly — Photo: Eric Pheterson, CC)

Find Out Why A Step-Father’s Photo Got 15 Million Views in 24 Hours

stepdad and dad down aisle copyright Delia D Blackburn Photography

Throughout the wedding planning process, Todd Cendrosky was a good sport.

He had accepted that during his stepdaughter Brittany’s ceremony, her biological father, Todd Blackburn, would be the one to walk her down the aisle while he watched from the sidelines.

But when the music cued up on the big day, a tug on Cendrosky’s jacket indicated that the plan was about to change.

“You worked as hard as I have. You’ll help us walk our daughter down the aisle,” Blackburn told Cendrosky as he took his hand. Flower girl Annabelle screenshot NBC

4 Year-old Advertises to be Flower Girl and Lands a Wedding at Courthouse

Blackburn said that while the past 14 years have not been without their rough patches, this was the best way he could think of to thank Cendrosky for helping to raise their daughter.

After the ceremony in LaGrange, Ohio, Cendrosky said it was “the most impactful moment” in his life.

Clearly, the moment struck a chord with people: the photos were seen over 15 million times in the first 24 hours after being uploaded to Facebook.

(WATCH video below from WKYC) Photo: Delia D Blackburn Photography

New Zealand to Create Massive Ocean Sanctuary the Size of France

South Pacific Sunrise 2 CC TheConduqtor

New Zealand is telling fishing and mining industries to keep their “hands off” a huge part of the South Pacific—one that’s about the size of France.

Prime Minister John Key announced the plan Monday to create a 240,000 square mile marine sanctuary, 600 miles off New Zealand’s northern coast.

The protected zone, which Key called “one of the world’s most geographically and geologically diverse areas,” includes volcanoes and the second deepest ocean trench on record. Some of its sea life is found nowhere else on the planet.

Nations Agree to Slash Bluefin Tuna Catch in Eastern Pacific

Currently, multitudes of sea life ranging from whales to sea turtles thrive in these waters, and migrate on journeys throughout the region. Scientists routinely discover new species there.

The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will be twice the size of New Zealand’s total land area, and will be part of a 1.3 million square mile network of protected areas in the Pacific Ocean. These are all areas where wildlife is protected from fishing and resource extraction operations. The legislation to protect the sanctuary should be in place by October, 2016, according to officials who made the announcement at the United Nations in New York.leopard in The Animal Communicator video

Incredible Animal Communicator Translates Deadly Leopard’s Woes

“This decision puts New Zealand back at the forefront of marine protection on the global stage.” said Chris Howe, the World Wildlife Fund’s New Zealand chief.

(READ more from ABC.auPhoto: The Conduqtor, CC

Love of Books Lifted Homeless Man From Streets, Now He’s Written One

Pavement Bookworm Screen Shot EspressoPartners

pavement bookworm cover jacana mediaExactly one month ago, Good News Network brought you the story of a homeless man who turned his life around by selling books — and giving book reviews — to passing motorists.

Now, Philani Dladla has his very own book to share, a memoir titled “The Pavement Bookworm,” after one of his nicknames.

The story follows the 24-year-old South African’s slide into drug abuse and homelessness and chronicles how his love of reading got him to turn it all around. Instead of begging from the drivers stuck in traffic, he started selling books and giving quick reviews of his favorites. Even though he was still homeless himself at the time, Dladla used the money to care for other homeless people, buying them soup and bread each day.street-store-cape-town-800px

Cape Town’s Pop-up Store for the Homeless Goes Global

He currently spends his days running his Pavement Bookworm reading foundation, which has been recognized by South Africa’s president for putting books into the hands of children. He even presented a talk at a TedX conference.

South African publisher Jacana Media will release the memoir later in October.

(WATCH the Espresso Partners video) – Photos: Espresso video, Pavement Bookworm

Book Lovers May Want to Donate… (Click to Share)

Girl Forfeits Personal Record, and Loses Race, To Help Fellow Runner

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The teenager was on a pace to break her own personal record at a middle school cross-country meet.

Half-way through the two mile run, her coach shouted the good news, but then, with a half-mile to go Makenna Finnegan from Shelby, Ohio saw an opponent grimacing in pain and holding her side.

When she asked what was wrong, the girl said, “Bad cramps.”

Without a second thought to winning the race, Makenna slowed down, grabbed her hand, and they finished out the race together.pole_vaulter_Charlotte_Brown-by-JamieOberg-UILintern

17-Year-Old Blind Pole Vaulter Wins Bronze at State Championship

“Her nature is very caring so I was not surprised at all,” Steve Clark, coach of the Shelby Middle School team told Good News Network.

The teen athlete (pictured top, right) had once asked Clark about this very situation–about what she should do if she saw someone fall, because any physical interaction results in disqualification.

“I told her if ever there was a time when she saw someone get hurt and wanted to help, I’d be okay with that,” the elementary school teacher said by telephone.Lael Wilcox-by-nicholas-carman

Female Cyclist Beats Most of the Men in Grueling Race from Canada to Mexico

“I’ll take this ‘spiritual victory’ over something tangible like a personal record any day,” he added, with pride.

The girl she aided in the September 19 race was Elaine Hohman, whose mother happens to coach the team from Findlay. They were equally proud and moved by the sportsmanship from the teen competitor who forfeited the race, but gained the respect of everyone at the meet that day.

Photo submitted by Steve Clark 

Perk Up on Nat’l Coffee Day: Here’s Where To Get Your Free Cup

barista-coffees-CC-GoToVan

Happy National Coffee Day! We’re so excited! We’ve already had five cups!

We have channeled that energy into finding you the best spots to snag some freebies…

Krispy Kreme: Free iced coffee AND glazed donut.

Dunkin’ Donuts: Most locations will give you a free hot or iced medium sized dark roast coffee. (Fingers crossed you land at a “most” location.)

JetBlue: If you’re flying today, you’re entitled to ask for some Brooklyn Roasting Company espresso.

WaWa: Any size, free, all day.

Whole Foods: Okay, it’s not free, but it’s 25 cents. There is nothing else for 25 cents in a Whole Foods…

Photo: GoToVan, CC

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UN Serves Lunch Made From Food Scraps to 30 World Leaders

Chefs usually fret over what to serve world leaders at the United Nations, but for this group discussing hunger and climate change, a fitting menu was prepared from food scraps, leftovers, and produce that normally end up at the dump–a “Landfill Lunch” that provided food for thought.

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, French President Francois Hollande, and Peruvian President Ollanta Humala were among 30 leaders Sunday who dined on a lunch made entirely from food that would have been thrown away by stores or restaurant.French-cooking-food-market-France-CC-FranzVenhaus-800px

New Law Bans French Grocers From Throwing Out Leftover Food

Former White House Chef Sam Kass and fellow Chef Dan Barber cooked up the vegetarian spread featuring a salad made out of vegetable scraps, veggie burgers made from leftover pulp from juicing, and a “cocoa husk custard” dessert created with parts of cocoa beans usually discarded when making chocolate.

The meal was designed to call attention the problem of food waste as leaders met for the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit, emphasizing importance of agriculture as an often overlooked aspect of climate change.Hainan Airlines first biofuel passenger jet-FB

China Airline Hails First Flight Powered by Discarded Cooking Oil

Roughly a billion tons of edible food waste, about a third of the food produced worldwide every year, is discarded — some of it simply because it doesn’t look good on store shelves or on a restaurant’s plates. That wasted food ends up in landfills where it produces greenhouse gases.

“Food production and agriculture contribute as much to climate change as transportation,” Ban told reporters after the lunch.

He said the dinner conversation revolved around ideas to fix climate change and poverty.RubandStub-restaurant-DeutscheWelleVid

Restaurant Uses Fresh Food That Grocery Stores Throw Out

Ban said the consensus among diners was that the UN must “strengthen resilience to climate impacts, with a focus on the poorest and most vulnerable.”

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Mediterranean Diet and Extra Olive Oil Can Lower Risk of Breast Cancer

olive oil on salad CC CCFoodTravel.com

A spoonful full of sugar may help the medicine go down, but four extra tablespoons of olive oil a day may significantly lower a woman’s risk for breast cancer.

A typical Mediterranean diet is rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts, fish and lots of olive oil–tasty, but will it protect against the second leading cause of cancer death in women?Healthy_Human_T_Cell-CC-NIAID

Blood Cells “Retrained” to Destroy Cancer, Lead Again to Full Remission

Previous studies have found olive oil can fend off memory loss and protect against heart disease, so Spanish researchers decided to add even more oil—four extra tablespoons per day—to see if it would have any beneficial effects toward preventing breast cancer.

The scientists recruited more than 4,000 women, half of whom ate a low-fat diet while the other half ate the Mediterranean diet loaded up with healthy fats.

At the end of the study, the researchers at the University of Navarra found the women who ate the olive oil-heavy meals had a 68% lower risk of developing breast cancer compared to those who ate the low-fat fare.couple-drinking-coffee-cafe-CC-SCA Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget

You May Be Reducing Your Alzheimer’s Risk Already With Everyday Habits

Olive oil is made up of a large number of compounds, which scientists say makes it hard to pinpoint which one–or combination—may be behind the reduced risk.

But writing in the Journal of the American Medical Association: Internal Medicine, lead author Dr. Miguel Martinez-Gonzalez concluded that the diet and the larger amounts of olive oil were directly linked to “the primary prevention of breast cancer” in the study.Doctor-nurse-team-CC-ReSurge_International-640px

Survival Rates for Ovarian Cancer Reach All Time High – Up 50%

“Preventative strategies represent the most sensible approach against cancer,” Matrinez-Gonzalez advised.

(Read more at NPR NewsPhoto by FoodTravel.com, CC)

Our Favorite Yoga Pants From Socially Responsible Companies

National Yoga Month may be coming to a close, but a good pair of leggings are a year-long necessity. These companies also have Om-worthy philosophies that you can definitely get down with. Check them out.

PrAna Yoga Pants: Roxanne Printed Legging prana roxanne printed legging. submitted

PrAna’s philosophy is rooted in the belief that companies should give much more than they take from the world. That notion keeps them focused on making products that are easier on the planet’s resources. Their clothing is made using fewer toxins and chemicals, uses recycled polyesters and wool, and hemp, too. They are mindful of the use of energy and water during the manufacturing process and offer Fair Trade Certified products.

These pants in Blue Santori are pretty snazzy, and will definitely put a pep in your step and make you feel just a bit more energized and ready to take on your practice.

Eddie Bauer yoga pant submittedEddie Bauer: FreeDry Pants

Made with compression polyester and spandex, the company uses something called FreeDry moisture wicking, which helps make it easier for you to go from active posing to relaxing with friends. They feature a shape-flattering wide waistband lined with dense mesh.

Eddie Bauer started a partnership with American Forests, launching an “Add a dollar, plant a tree” initiative called the Global “ReLeaf” Program, which has raised nearly $5 million to date. For every dollar, they plant a tree in an area that has suffered from deforestation–five million, so far.

Titika yoga pants submitted

Titika Pants

Titika uses fabrics that claim to do more than you’d think a simple fabric can do. Polyester made by Celliant, for example, is created using natural minerals that the company claims, through clinical trials, have demonstrated health-boosting properties such as balancing body temperature, increasing oxygen in the blood, and helping relieving minor pain.

They’re also stylish enough–and quick drying enough, in case you work up a sweat— to go from yoga to lunch out with friends. The material dries faster than other normal polyester fabrics and can also retain heat 35% longer when working out in colder temperatures.

Tasc Performance PantsTasc Crop yoga pants submitted

The Tasc Bamboo-based activewear line features a mix of fibers using natural materials like viscose (from bamboo), cotton and merino wool. They boast moisture-wicking and temperature regulation features but also anti-odor properties. They carry a seal of approval from the Organic Crop Improvement Association.

If you’re interested in the science behind it, the soft inner pith is removed from the hard bamboo trunk, and the raw bamboo pulp is mixed with a caustic soda solution, which extracts cellulose from the pulp. The solution is regenerated into viscose, creating a closed loop system that guarantees 99% of the solution is recovered and reused.

Free CountryFree country yoga pants submitted

For the first time in its twenty year history, this outerwear company is introducing yoga pants. They boast a “4-way stretch construction” that increases mobility, and added a tiny hidden pocket at back of waistband to fit an essential or two. Free Country has created a campaign that gives back to individuals across the country who give back to their communities, called Everyday Hero Campaign, where monthly ‘heroes’ across the country are chosen and honored for their continued selfless volunteerism.

Boy Fleeing Syria Makes His Puppy a Passport So They Can Stick Together

Rose is one lucky puppy.

Her owner, Aslan Al Hakim, loves her so much that he absolutely refused to part with her on his 500 kilometer journey out of Damascus, Syria.Aslan Al Hakim with dog drinking UNHCR video screenshot

As he traveled on foot, the 17-year-old carried only a small bag of his own belongings on his back so that he could bring Rose along in her carrier.

“We have everything we need to survive. We have food and water,” Aslan said in a United Nations video. “I love my dog. I need her.”

He even made her a passport when they were refused passage through the Mediterranean.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) posted the video to share a story of humanity in the midst of the refugee crisis.

Their story ended happily in Lesbos, Greece, where the best friends recently arrived safe and sound and were met by refugee aid workers.

(WATCH the video below from UNHCR)

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Historic US-China Ban to End Ivory Trade Ensures Elephant Survival

640px-Tanzanian_Elephant CC Schuyler Shepherd

In a historic accord to save Africa’s elephants from poaching, President Barack Obama and President Xi Jinping agreed Friday to ban ivory sales in the United States and China.

As China is the largest market for legal and illegal ivory in the world, this ban on all exports and imports has the potential to save tens of thousands of elephants from poachers every year.Dr_Dame_Daphne_Sheldrick-elephant-hug-CopyrightTheDavidSheldrickWildlifeTrust

Dame Saves Orphaned Elephants for 50 Years With Own Milk Recipe

“Mr Xi has today delivered a tremendous victory in the battle to save elephants,” said Azzedine Downes, CEO of the International Fund for Animal Welfare. “China has slammed the door in the face of all those who are profiting from the slaughter of elephants.”

China has also vowed to crackdown on ivory trade within its borders, driven by a growing middle class that frequently buys the products as a sign of their wealth. It also promised to eliminate the commercial importation of ivory into the country “in a timely manner.”

In addition to a long-standing commercial ban on ivory, the U.S., last year, banned imports of antique ivory and put limits on hunting trophies.African savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana africana)

China to Phase out Domestic Ivory Market, Crack Down on Illegal Trade Online

Both counties also promised to work together to share information and coordinate efforts to halt the trafficking of other wildlife products.

(READ more at National Geographic) — Photo: Schuyler Shepherd, CC

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This Cop and Daughter’s Sweet Tea Party is Melting Hearts Everywhere

Tea party with cop FB Collier County Sheriff Office

Beyond serving and protecting, police officers have other duties to perform — like attending a tea party when called.

This particular picture of Florida Deputy Adam Dillman joining his daughter for tea before work has been making a lot of peoples’ days.Girl-cops-are-awesome

Little Girl Who Wants to be Cop is Cheered By Ladies With Badges Worldwide

“This photo is a great reminder that deputies are human beings,” the Collier county Sheriff’s Office posted on its Facebook page. “They are fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters….they have families at home that are praying for their safety every day.”

The photo has stirred an outpouring of thanks for police officers in general and Deputy Dillman and his little girl in particular.

“What a special dad and daughter moment!” Cherie Taylor Shannon posted in comments on the photo.Double-Dutch-Cop-screenshot-WUSA

Cop, Skip, and Jump–WATCH This Officer’s Amazing Double Dutch Skills

“I said it before (that) it doesn’t matter how big and bad you are… If you are invited to tea time you go to tea time,” Josch Jurczak posted.

(Photo courtesy of the CCSO Facebook page)

WATCH The Supermoon Lunar Eclipse Unfold in 90 Seconds

Supermoon rises over Cohasset, Massachusetts by Jeff Cutler, CC license

 

If you missed last night’s “Supermoon” lunar eclipse and you don’t want to wait 18 years to see the next one, here you go.

The time-lapse video produced by Danish photographer Thomas H. captures the supermoon’s
rise over the Øresund Bridge in Copenhagen, Denmark, and the total lunar eclipse later in the night.Moon and plane Screen Shot YouTube Thomas H

There are stunning images of the moon climbing over the city, reflecting off the water, and fading into darkness as it passes through the earth’s shadow.

He even caught a commercial airliner skimming the edge of the moon before the celestial event (pictured at left).

(WATCH the video above) — Top Photo: Jeff Cutler, CC license

Volunteers Transform Bleak City Schoolyard Into Breathtaking Cafe (WATCH)

banner painting jordan high school takepart video screenshot

Students at a severely under-performing public high school got a huge morale boost to start the year when they walked into a tsunami of color decorating the once-gray courtyard.

volunteer painting jordan high school takepart video screenshotThe outdoor cafeteria and recreation area at Jordan High School in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles had always been a drab landscape until a group of volunteers converted it into a beautiful plant-lined cafe, buoyed by positive messages in bold splashes of color.

“So much good work is being done inside the building, but when the students come out to eat, the cafeteria literally looked like a prison ground,” said Griffin Matthews, the project’s leader.

two boys jordan high school takepart video screenshot
Photo credits: TakePart video

The school has been talking with the Green Dot initiative, which converts low-achieving public schools into charter schools. Principal Ronnie Cole hopes that the makeover will help keep momentum going.

“A transformation like this takes time, and we need visible signs that change is happening,” she said.

When the kids arrived at school on a Monday in late August, they were definitely surprised and delighted.

“Now, we look like a bright school with bright people,” said one student in a red feathered boa.painted-Mexican-town-GermenCrew-Facebook

Mexico Asked Graffiti Artists To Paint An Entire Town – Joy Was the Result

“They couldn’t believe that there would be outsiders who would come in and care about their school and what they’re doing,” said Flora Gomez, a parent coordinator.

(WATCH the video below from TakePart)

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Homeless Find New Life Working at 22-Acre Organic Farm and Restaurant

verne gardens residents carrots submitted

In the 22 years since the Miami Chamber of Commerce decided to do something about the growing number of homeless individuals in their county, more than 10,000 have been placed into housing, including 145 families in the most unique solution yet– an organic farm and market.

A military base reduced to rubble during Hurricane Andrew became the site for this sustainable community which features LEED-certified townhouses, social services to transition people from the streets, a 22-acre certified organic farm and year-round farmers market with job training for the cultivation of nursery plants.

verne gardens man holding produce submittedMost recently, the Verde Gardens community debuted an open-air restaurant that employs ten residents in the kitchen and cafe. Revenue from all these eco-friendly ventures goes toward paying good wages to the cafe staff and the five resident farmers.

Eventually, the hope is that the staffers, many of whom have little or no prior work experience, will have learned enough through working there to prepare them for “real-world” jobs outside of the Verde community.

Homeless Shelter’s 80-Bed Rooftop Garden Cultivates Fresh Food and Job Skills

“To see our vision for Verde Gardens finally coming to life is very exciting,” said Stephanie Berman, president and CEO of Carrfour Supportive Housing, the nonprofit set up by the Chamber more than 20 years ago to develop and manage communities for low income people in South Florida.

Photos courtesy of Carrfour Supportive Housing

“We have seen the farm encourage self-sufficiency and togetherness among residents for two years now and hope that the restaurant will do the same.”

Resident Alma Santos summed up the residents’ feelings about the Carrfour community. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” Santos said tearfully, standing beside her 14-year-old son at a ceremony marking the opening of Verde Gardens. “You have forever changed our lives and made it possible for us to now help others.”

Like farmers markets nationwide, Verde Market and Café allows food stamp customers (SNAP-eligible) to receive up to $40 worth of fresh produce for $20.

The restaurant offers a true farm-to-table experience, with lunch options including mozzarella margherita thin-crust pizza, fresh-made hummus salad with organic red dragonfruit, and eggplant burgers. A rotating healthy menu was created by Chef Adri Garcia, the owner of a local catering company.smokie-elvis-hug-tiny-house-LA-homeless-submitted

SEE More Inspiring News About the Homeless at Good News Network

The Verde Community Farm, Market and Café is located at 12690 SW 280th Street in Homestead. The Verde Kitchen Café is open for lunch Tuesday-Saturday. Visit them on FB.

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Mind Reading Experiment Lets People Get into Someone Else’s Head

mind-reading-brain experiment-University of Washington-released

At the University of Washington, people have been reading each other’s minds–sort of.

Scientists connected together the brains of two people in a way that let them play a game of 20 Questions, even though they were located a mile apart.

One person, the “respondent,” was shown objects on a computer screen while connected to an EEG machine that measures electrical brain activity.cancer-cells-cervical-Flickr-cc-fotosinteresantes

Scientists Find Way to Turn Cancer Back Into Healthy Tissue in Lab

A second person, the “inquirer,” is shown a list of items the respondent may be looking at — say a dog. The inquirer then clicks on questions to narrow down the object’s identity — such as “Is the object an animal?”

The respondent answers simply by looking at one of two flashing lights on his computer screen — one for “yes” and one for “no.”

The action sends a response from the respondent’s brain activity to a magnetic coil behind the inquirer’s head, but only a “yes” response will generate enough energy to cause the inquirer to believe he’s seen a flash of light.

It’s a phenomenon called a phosphene — seeing light without light actually entering the eye.koko_and_kitten-KokoDotOrg

Apes Appear To Have Potential For Human Speech: Study

Five pairs of people played 20 rounds of the game — ten using an operational brain-to-brain link and ten where the subjects didn’t know the link was turned off.

The scientists found when the link worked, subjects got the answers right 72% of the time compared to just 18% of the time when the link was shut off.

The scientists believe it is the most complex brain-to-brain experiment ever conducted. It was underwritten in part by a one million dollar grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation and their results have been published in the journal PLOS One.ice bucket challenge CC Knox County Government

Ice Bucket Challenge Leads to ALS Breakthrough, Researchers Announce

“What we are doing is…opening up this box and taking signals from the brain and with minimal translation, putting them back in another person’s brain,” lead author Andrea Stocco said.

The researchers say their work could one day in the distant future allow people to “upload” information directly to their brain.

(WATCH the University of Washington video or READ more at NBC News) Photo: University of Washington

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