We’re wrapping up the week talking about how the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines purchased an island taken from them as a result of colonialism, a first-of-its-kind agreement to practice tribal cultural burns in California, and how Wimbledon’s 55,000 used tennis balls are finding a second life as mice shelters.
St Vincent and the Grenadines buys island central to Garifuna culture
Members of the Garifuna community are celebrating “a historic and long-awaited victory†after the Caribbean nation of St Vincent and the Grenadines announced the purchase of a privately owned island where thousands of their ancestors perished from disease and starvation. The uninhabited island of Baliceaux has long held great significance for the Garifuna people.
California tribe enters first-of-its-kind agreement to practice cultural burns
The Karuk Tribe of Northern California has faced substantial restrictions on cultural burning, a practice involving the intentional setting of fires to reduce brush and limit the risk of wildfires. New legislation going into effect this week means federally recognised tribes will be able to burn freely for both ceremonial and practical purposes.
Methane detectors are making it easier to track greenhouse gases
Although it has a shorter lifespan in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, methane is better at trapping heat and it accounts for about one-quarter of the rise in global temperature since industrialisation. New tech is making it easier to detect and monitor this gas, as well as introducing alert and response systems.
British parents to gain right to bereavement leave after miscarriage
In a change to the law made via the employment rights bill, mothers and their partners will be given the right to two weeks of bereavement leave if they have suffered a pregnancy loss before 24 weeks’ gestation.
Affordable e-bikes act as a lifeline for delivery workers in Latin America
Riding an e-bike instead of an ordinary bike has a number benefits for delivery drivers: they ride faster, meaning riders can take more orders and earn more money; they produce next to no greenhouse emissions post-manufacturing, and they’re less physically demanding for the driver.
Vending machines are tackling overdoses in homeless shelters
A year ago, San Diego’s Father Joe’s Villages installed a naloxone vending machine for homeless people who are at risk of an overdose. Now a second vending machine includes testing strips for both fentanyl and xylazine, as well as sharps boxes and wound care kits.
How Montana put students at the front of mental health support
A mental health peer mentor programme is present in multiple schools in Great Falls, Montana, but a pilot classroom course is ongoing this spring at Great Falls High School. Since the introduction of the programme, the district has seen a 95% decrease in the number of sixth graders presenting to the emergency room.
Stockholm is sprouting healthy trees from concrete
In 2001, two-thirds of all trees in the city centre of Sweden’s capital were either dead or dying. In response, local authorities created the Stockholm Tree Pit method to help trees thrive in concrete-heavy urban spaces. Now the approach is taking root across Europe.
Wimbledon’s used tennis balls find second life as homes for harvest mice
Each year, over 55,000 tennis balls are used during the world-famous tournament. Instead of throwing them away, Wimbledon has partnered with the Wildlife Trust to repurpose them as weatherproof homes to shelter harvest mice.
Across the globe, energy production and use is responsible for roughly 75% of the world’s carbon emissions. To tackle climate change, we need to get creative – and people are coming up with increasingly unusual ideas to harness clean energy.
