Photo: Tom Wheatley / Unsplash (CC0)
In today’s Squirrel News, a charity in Wales obtains 480 hectares of land for the country’s biggest rewilding initiative to date, a ban on elephant rides in Indonesian zoos is groundbreaking protection in Southeast Asia, and funding is secured for the first Inuit-led university in Canada.
Charity Tir Natur intends to use wild grazing involving traditional cattle, pony and pig breeds to turn over the soil and kickstart restoration. The natural landscape of rivers, peat bogs and ancient woodland should act as a carbon sink and reduce the risk of flooding downstream.
Source: The Guardian
Riding elephants harms them physically and psychologically. Animal welfare campaigners say Indonesia’s move to ban riding on zoo elephants sends an important message to the tourism industry and is a ‘historic’ first in the region.
Source: Plant Based News
A funding package to address gaps in healthcare and community services for Inuit families will include funding for a long-awaited Inuit-led university, as well as funds for eliminating tuberculosis, combatting food insecurity, and programmes for children and families.
Source: Radio Canada International
In a climate experiment modelled in part on ancient Persian water channels that transported water from deep aquifers, Seville, Spain, has built an underground system of aqueducts to help beat the heat. The pipes of CartujaQanat have run from March to October since 2022, helping keep one of Europe’s hottest cities cool.
Source: Next City
In the first study of the effect of electric vehicles based wholly on actual data versus modelling, University of California researchers show air quality improved across 1,700 zip codes in the state. They found that for every increase of 200 EVs, the health-harming nitrogen dioxide from fossil fuels decreased by 1.1%.
Source: Grist
Over 50% of online clothing purchases are returned, and most of that is for reasons of fit. That costs fashion producers but also the environment in wasted shipping and clothing that doesn’t sell. The first women’s wear tailor on London’s Savile Row has founded Fit Collective, which uses AI to help brands solve the problem of erratic sizing.
Source: BBC
‘A Beautiful Mess’ started with one Amsterdam restaurant providing on-the-job training and language and job-seeking support to refugees. Now with eight restaurants and cafes in three cities, they are placing a little over half the participants in jobs. A giant community table, one kilometre long, in the centre of Amsterdam is planned for May.
Source: Euronews
In the On Your Bike programme, teens learn to fix an old bike and rescue it from the landfill, while chatting with a social worker about their lives at home and at school. It is a chance to learn a practical skill, use tools, get a bike to take home, and a place where it may be easier to open up to a therapist.
Source: BBC
Kenya is making education available to more children, but this change has been much slower for kids with disabilities. The Rare Gem Talent School has grown from 10 students to 210, teaching the country’s core curriculum with great success and a hands-on, multi-sensorial approach.
Source: AP
After success with a smaller programme for juveniles, the city of Fort Murray in Alberta began including adults in their restorative justice system. Those who commit a crime must admit guilt in the presence of, and with the consent of, their victim. Only one of 115 participants in the programme has gone on to reoffend.
Source: CBC
