In Squirrel News today, a ‘forest city’ in England would repurpose out-of-use farmland as affordable, green housing connecting forest reserves; a successful free bus rides programme in Iowa City gets the green light to go on; and a man inspired by a poetry book in prison goes on to found a nonprofit building prison libraries.
A plan for an ecological, affordable city to be built east of Cambridge, UK, has the support of a cross-party coalition. The ‘forest city’ could house one million on re-greened former farmland connecting 12,000 acres of forest reserve. Tram lines, green buildings, and preservation of wildlife corridors are part of the plan.
Hoping to lower auto emissions and attract riders, Iowa City did away with bus fares in August 2023. Not only did more people ride the bus, streets got less congested and CO2 emissions dropped sharply. This year the city voted to continue the programme, funding it with higher inner-city parking fees.
The move to treat date rape drugs as a weapon in prosecutions is one of a number of measures to pursue justice for survivors following last year’s record highs in domestic violence and an increase in sexual assault. The government is also funding an app in which women can secretly document domestic abuse.
With Charlotte now a target for ICE, 30,000 high schoolers protested last week with absence from school. Parents carpooling and guarding school entrances, trainings in churches on how to alert and protect immigrant neighbours, and free food deliveries are some ways Charlotte residents are protecting their own.
New England relies heavily on fossil fuels to heat buildings through frigid, sometimes bitter winter temperatures. With federal incentives for heat pumps expiring this year, five states are collaborating to carry on. The programme will incentivise distributors and contractors, as well as substantially reduce prices for customers.
Organisers from community land trusts in Philadelphia talk to Next City journalists about removing housing from the speculative market, creating affordability intergenerationally, and supporting residents to stay in their homes and shape their neighbourhoods. They offer a successful model to other cities.
Students at King’s College London created 3-D digital models from patient scans and highly realistic organs made from materials that mimic human tissue. Their use would mean not having to risk patients or animals in the training of new surgeons.
Low-cost climate sensors along with AI biodiversity data can guide conservation efforts and land use, while drone surveys can monitor formerly inaccessible areas and use AI data to determine the most effective methods and use of funds. New technologies like these can help Brazil’s new TFFF fund go the furthest.
A partnership between zoos, scientists, schools, and trained aquarium owners, Citizen Conservation sprang from a storytelling project, Frogs & Friends. A network of 250 volunteers provide daily care for 35 endangered amphibians, reptiles, and fish. With 30,000 home aquariums existing in Germany alone, the project has enormous potential.
One book, sent to him against the rules, was a life changer for Reginald Dwayne Betts, a teen incarcerated for carjacking. He started writing poetry and, when out, got accepted to Yale, became a lawyer, and founded the nonprofit Freedom Reads, which has built 500 prison libraries so far.
