Photo: Konrad Nowacki/Unsplash (CC0)
In today’s edition: a growing number of major cities are seeing drops in air pollution across the globe, Oman halves its maternal mortality rate, and child marriages plummet in both India and Nigeria.
A new analysis of nearly 100 cities around the world shows that interventions such as cycle lanes and restrictions on polluting vehicles have driven improvements in air quality since 2010. Beijing and Warsaw cut levels of fine particulate pollution by more than 45%, while Amsterdam and Rotterdam saw cuts of more than 40% in nitrogen dioxide levels. San Francisco was the only US city that cut levels of both pollutants by more than 20%.
Source: The Guardian
The number of cases has fallen by 53% in the space of six years, new data suggest, with a reduction in patient waiting lists across the board seeing drops of up to 50%. Future projects are planned to further lower this number, including new facilities and an expansion of referral programmes.
Source: Oman Observer
According to new data, the state of Assam has recorded a 91% decline in the number of child marriages involving boys below 21 years of age. The region has also seen teenage pregnancies fall by 75%, while authorities have achieved a 95% chargesheet rate in cases related to child marriage.
Source: Sentinel Assam
Nearly 80% of girls in northern Nigeria get married before they turn 18, and most of those who get married are already out of school or stop attending after marriage. A project working with community leaders to encourage girls to stay in school aims to lower this number – and it’s working, with the approach cutting the likelihood of early marriage by 80%.
Source: Nature
Across the Netherlands, the Breakthrough Method is used in around 100 municipalities to ask the question: what are the problems of individual residents, and how can we solve these issues on a case-by-case basis?
Source: Reasons To Be Cheerful
A third of American workers now have access to some form of government-issued paid leave: the biggest share ever. 14 laws now extend coverage to an estimated 46 million people. Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders have especially benefited: 55% have paid leave through state programmes, as do 41% of Latino workers.
Source: 19th News
The LandBack movement brings together tribal communities and activists to reacquire land that was historically and culturally theirs. The movement is spreading across the US, with tribes reclaiming land in California, Nevada, the Dakotas, Arizona and Alaska.
Source: KJZZ
Gang violence has long been a problem across South Africa. In order to challenge this, volunteers are working to carve out safe spaces in townships with initiatives such as football training and dance classes to keep target members off the streets and firmly in the community.
Source: The Guardian
The team behind Austin Mini Art stocks vending machines across the city with miniature prints created by local artists. The idea is to make art affordable to the average Austinite while supporting local artists at the same time.
Source: KUT
Over the past 21 years, Village Ways has been leading low-impact tours of remote communities in the foothills of the Himalayas, supporting traditional ways of life and offering a rare glimpse of pristine landscapes and wildlife. The goal is to help address urban migration and support traditional rural life through low-impact tourism.
Source: The Guardian
