The Connecticut River, as photographed from the French King Bridge in Gill, Mass. The river and its watershed have been named the first National Blueway, an effort to coordinate the work of nonprofit groups and governments to protect and wisely use the entire 410-mile river and its 7.2 million acre watershed. (John Nordell/The Christian Science Monitor/File)
10:50 am ET -Between 40 and 50 local and state entities, both public and private, from four states will work together to preserve the 410-mile-long Connecticut River and its watershed.
People Making a Difference (View all)
- Difference Maker: Mae Azango exposed a secret ritual in Liberia, putting her life in danger
- First Graduate helps students aim for higher education
- Inshah Malik is trying to rebuild Kashmir with a different weapon – her pen
- Community radio cuts disaster risk in flood-prone Bangladesh
- Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village helps young Rwandans heal
- Samaritan's Purse helps feed those in need worldwide
- Difference Maker: Jean Enock Joseph teaches self-help to lift Haiti
- 'Repair Cafes' reject a 'toss it out' culture
- Mangroves reduce disaster risk, boost incomes in Vietnam
- Diners go 'Halfsies' to fight hunger and obesity
More People Making a Difference
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Change Agent
New ideas reduce waste and spoilage after the harvest
A new kind of bag for cowpeas in western Africa cuts weevil infestations and boosts incomes and productivity. Research on how to better grow crops is now being joined by research on how to reduce waste and spoilage after harvest.
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Change Agent
Green roofs in Nairobi save energy, water
These gardens in the sky sometimes boast trees, as well as grass and other plants, which cool the building while sucking up carbon-dioxide pollution.
- Difference Maker
A little book has a big impact on how to run a charity
Mario Morino wrote a little book that's had a big effect – urging nonprofit groups to prove that they're really doing what they say they're doing.
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Change Agent
Solar-powered phones recharge Kenya's conversations
An inexpensive solar cell phone made of recycled materials opens new opportunities for people in rural Kenya.
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Change Agent
Journalist Kevin Fagan looked for solutions to homelessness
His newspaper series on the homeless in San Francisco emphasized solutions – what really works and what doesn't. The result: constructive changes.
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Change Agent
World Bank unit, MasterCard Foundation boost small loans in Africa
They'll spend $37.4 million over five years to provide microfinancing, which helps people lift themselves out of poverty by starting or expanding small businesses, sending children to school, or improving farms.
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Change Agent
A quirky, tiny grass-roots effort backs only 'Awesome’ projects
The Awesome Foundation is a loose collection of some three-dozen local groups usually made up of 10 volunteers each, who offer $100 a month toward a simple, no-strings-attached grant, or Awesome Fellowship.
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Change Agent
Public-private teamwork helps save Connecticut's threatened alewives
The once-abundant fish have played a big role in Connecticut's development. But now they need help to reach their freshwater spawning grounds.
- Difference Maker
They opened their home – and hearts – to South Africa's abandoned babies
Christo and Lanie de Klerk have founded the Baby Moses sanctuary for abandoned babies in South Africa.
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Change Agent
Greek town creates its own alternative currency
Alternative currencies keep resources and economic systems close to home and have both a trickle-down and a ripple-out effect.
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Change Agent
Farmers' markets go online
Online ordering systems, like Arganica Farm Club in the mid-Atlantic, Green Bean Delivery in the Midwest, and SPUD in the Northwest, deliver fresh local produce to consumers.
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Change Agent
Ethikus offers a service to find ethical, sustainable businesses
New York City startup Ethikus provides vouchers for small businesses whose practices embody principles of sustainability.
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Change Agent
African farmers grow trees as a natural crop fertilizer
In Africa, planting trees along with corn in soil that is low in nitrogen can substantially increase corn production without expensive fertilizers. In a decade, the number of small farmers using Fertilizer Tree Systems has ballooned from a few hundred to more than 250,000.
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Change Agent
Mama Hope uses humor to change the West's view of Africa
Nonprofit Mama Hope has released three videos that employ humor to create new perceptions of Africa and to show that it is full of capable people with the potential to support themselves. The aim is to create a new conversation about the continent and humanize the people who live there.
- Difference Maker
An engineering mom leads effort to save an old-growth Russian forest
Yevgenia Chirikova found out a national forest was quietly being sold off. What she did to try to save it may change Russia forever.
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Change Agent
A Kenyan woman stands up against a massive dam project
Ikal Angelei is helping lead a campaign to stop construction of the Gibe III dam in Ethiopia that threatens the water supply and way of life of tens of thousands of indigenous people.
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Change Agent
Looking for a few good boomers to help others
Retiring baby boomers are proving to be valuable volunteers. 'A part of paying for our spot on earth is to help those who need help,' says one.
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Change Agent
Neighborland taps social media to build better neighborhoods
Neighborland, a New Orleans-based start up focused on citizen participation, hopes that its unique twist on social networking will help bring neighbors back together.
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Change Agent
Transition Towns moves communities beyond sustainability to resiliency
The 320 Transition Town initiatives in 14 countries focus on urban agriculture, crowdfunding, and other social enterprises, using a 12-step model to organize a community toward a sustainable, resilient future.
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Change Agent
Actor-activist Sean Penn says he's in Haiti for the long haul
Sean Penn's role in Haiti has evolved from heading a band of volunteers and serving as unofficial mayor of a homeless camp to becoming ambassador-at-large for President Michel Martelly, the first non-Haitian to receive the designation.








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