All People Making a Difference
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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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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.
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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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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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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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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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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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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.
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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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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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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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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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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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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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Catherine Rohr helps ex-cons return to society by learning to start businesses
Former venture capitalist Catherine Rohr founded the nonprofit Defy Ventures to train ex-prisoners in the ethical and other demands of becoming legitimate entrepreneurs.
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Bakery charity feeds North Korean children
Love North Korean Children has built four community bakeries with the humble intention of providing 5,000-plus youngsters with one steamed bun per day.
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'One Day on Earth' captures the variety of human experience
Kyle Ruddick and Brandon Litman got some 19,000 people to make videos of what they saw on a single day in every country in the world. The film 'One Day on Earth' shows what they found.
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Boom in biking benefits everyone, not just bicyclists
All Americans are better off because biking and walking foster public health, stronger local communities and economies, less traffic congestion, safer streets, lower energy use, and a cleaner environment.
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Karen Armstrong argues for practical compassion
The historian has helped world religions unite behind the idea of a worldwide charter for compassion. Can it become more than just a nice idea?
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Obamas gave 22 percent of their 2011 income to charity
The biggest Obama charitable gift went to the Fisher House Foundation, a group that provides free or low-cost housing to military personnel or their families while they receive medical treatment.
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