By Nicolle Galteland SEATTLE —Books to Prisoners noticed a new memo on the Washington State Department of Corrections website in March stating that donated used books could no longer be mailed to […]
Battling Bans on Books for Prisoners in Washington State, Around the U.S.
Laughter helps heal traumatized survivors of Cameroon’s simmering conflict
Laughter helps heal traumatized survivors of Cameroon’s simmering conflict.
Malawi: community members, park officials seek to resolve differences
By Chares Pensulo LIWONDE, Machinga, Malawi — Annie Shaibu lives a five-minute walk from southern Malawi’s Liwonde National Park, which teems with wildlife. Her family and others in the community depend on […]
New Yorkers support immigrant “friends” as U.S. policies become stricter
By Emilia Otte NEW YORK—Terry Du Prat stood in a courtroom and witnessed a woman pleading with a federal judge not to send her 27-year-old son back to Honduras, for fear that […]
Young Bosnians use art, activism to address past, try to change the country’s future
The Most Mira program in Prijedor, Bosnia-Herzegovina, brings high school students from different ethnic backgrounds together to grapple with and address societal issues that have plagued the state since Yugoslavia’s collapse in the 90s.
Oral History Makes Its Mark on Brooklyn (and Hopefully Trump)
Students and professors at Brooklyn College are collecting oral histories from immigrants to New York, most often people in their lives. The project is built upon the idea that listening to the stories of those affected by closed borders and deportation can significantly alter the current political and social climates.
Cameroon initiative helps young violent offenders become ‘prisonpreneurs,’ peace builders
The central African nation of Cameroon, like other countries south of the Sahara, is witnessing a steady upsurge in the number of young people in conflict with the law. Some are recruited by criminal gangs or violent extremist groups.
In Harlem, An Effort to End Gun Violence Keeps Hope Alive
All throughout the New York City, across the country and around the world, community organizers are building personal relationships and holding interventions to keep their neighborhoods safe. They are part of a public health initiative called Cure Violence that is changing the way governments and community organizations are dealing with gun violence.
Kenyan Man Breaks Taboo, Builds Pit Latrines for Villagers
From childhood until a few years ago, John Yegon believe that digging a hole in the ground, be it for a latrine or a grave, was taboo. Last year, Yegon learned from a public health officer that most diseases are caused by poor hygiene and sanitation practices and mainly by open defecation. He then embarked on a mission to construct pit latrines from metal sheets and wood for his neighbors at no cost.
Women in Kenya work to keep girls in school by supplying reusable sanitary pads
A women’s organization in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya, called Women Development Centre (WODEC) decided last year to start making reusable sanitary towels from locally available materials. WODEC is one of several non-profit groups that are responding to an issue that marginalizes many women and girls.
CIVIC IDEAS 