No jail time for misdemeanours, flooded coal mines heat homes, beavers to flush deserts
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Photo: Tim Umphreys / Unsplash (CC0)
In today’s edition of Squirrel News, we’re talking about a reduction in violent crimes after Suffolk County’s decision to not imprison people for misdemeanours, how former and now flooded coal mines are used for carbon-reduced heating, and beavers replenishing ecosystems and rivers in deserts.
Reducing incarceration decreases number of violent crimes in the US
Nonviolent crimes – such as drug possession and disorderly conduct – are no longer punished with jail time in Suffolk County. The rate of violent offences has since dropped by 64%.
Source:
Reasons To Be Cheerful
Flooded former coal mines could heat homes in the UK
Abandoned and flooded coal mines can be found in 25% of the country’s underground. They could now replace gas heating through geothermal engineering, reducing carbon emissions by approximately two thirds.
Source:
BBC Future
Milan to plant 3 million trees in green pledge alongside 31 major cities
Mayors all over the world have agreed on the C40 goal to have 30-40% of built-up spaces turned into green areas.
Source:
Euronews
Cruise ships banned from Venice
In order to protect the city’s ecosystem, Italy has banned large cruise ships and plans to redirect them to a different harbour.
Source:
Reuters
Printable blood sugar saliva test for diabetics developed in Australia
In an attempt to replace the sometimes painful needle-based test, Australian scientists have developed a low-cost alternative, which can be produced with a regular printer.
Source:
Al Jazeera
Open source voice recording software helps digitise native African languages
Often neglected by well-known voice recording softwares, Mozilla’s open source software Common Voice allows languages such as Rwandan Kinyarwanda to be recorded and verified by its users.
Source:
Reasons To Be Cheerful
Fact-checking organisation debunks fake news throughout 12 African countries
20 fact-checkers across 12 African countries at PesaCheck are working together to address vaccination myths circulating on social media – in French, Swahili, Amharic and English.
Source:
Global Citizen
“We can do anything”: the Indian girls’ movement fighting child marriage
At 17, Priyanka Bairwa refused her arranged marriage. Instead, she started Rajasthan Rising to help thousands of others and call for free education.
Source:
The Guardian
Writing workshop offers mental health support in Canada
The writers at InkWell Workshops offer insights to their own suffering from mental health issues and drug abuse, in addition to providing mentoring services in a safe haven for Toronto’s writers.
Source:
The Star
Beavers replenish rivers and ecosystems in US deserts
The industrious rodents and their pond-building skills help to restore wetlands, prevent floods, and even cause an increase in local fish populations.