Hortas Cariocas, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Long-term collaboration to support Hortas Cariocas, a directive of Rio de Janeiro’s Municipal Secretary for the Environment, co-producing organic food gardens in urban favelas. The program has established 40 gardens in 28 favelas and has been integrated into the education curriculum as a hands-on learning experience in numerous municipal schools. Favela residents are trained in… Continue reading
Amphawa Floating Markets, Thailand
This site report was conducted in collaboration with local-level government officials, residents, NGOs and conservation foundations to evaluate the social impact of a waterfront architecture restoration project in the Amphawa region of Thailand. The model has stimulated the economy, revived market culture and attracts tourism. It now serves as a replicable template for at least… Continue reading
Bheri Culture, East Kolkata Wetlands
The city of Kolkata, home to twelve million people, has no conventional sewage treatment facility. Instead, this function is undertaken by communities of fishers who farm the East Kolkata Wetlands via a traditional method of pisciculture that utilizes the city’s sewerage discharge. The bioremediation and reuse of sewage to support pisciculture and agriculture has long… Continue reading
Favela Agriculture, Rio de Janeiro
The rapid urbanization policies that recrafted Rio de Janeiro as a world mega-event venue in the years 2012-2016 dramatically altered the socio-economic and security landscape of the city, and in particular, its favela communities. These changes focused on economic expansion and dispossession, were driven by public-private investment partnerships, supported through governmental policy, and facilitated by… Continue reading
Terminal Landscape
The Terminal Landscape project worked in consultation with the Center for Land Use Interpretation, West Desert HEAL, Families Against Incinerator Risk and Citizens Against Chlorine Contamination to identify, map and analyze areas that pose environmental health risks around the Great Basin region of Utah. It documents hazardous waste disposal, chemical weapons incineration, nuclear waste storage… Continue reading
Lewa Downs and Northern Rangelands Trust, Kenya
Kenya’s public parks and private tourist reserves have been established on and around the lands of local peoples, yet few communities benefit from wildlife conservation. There is little incentive to help protect animal migrations, prevent poaching, or cease traditional hunting. Human settlements and traditional activities on lands adjoining reserves often suffer or are infringed upon… Continue reading
Water Access in Nairobi Slums, Kenya
This site study examines how existing, low-cost and accessible Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) are being built into new water supply and distribution pilot programs in informal urban communities in Nairobi, Kenya. It details the role ICTs play in water access in these communities, how they are framed by Public Private Partnerships, and assesses the trade-offs… Continue reading
Yamuna River Project, India
The Yamuna River runs through the city of New Delhi. It serves 20 million inhabitants and is one of the most polluted rivers in the world. Along its banks live thousands of urban farmers. They are among the most vulnerable in Delhi. Despite having no access to government services or official identification, living under constant… Continue reading
Waste Picker Organizing, Delhi
In most Indian cities about one percent of the population recycles waste for a living. With 20 million inhabitants, Delhi produces 8,000 tonnes of waste per day. 40,000 waste pickers and 150,000 recyclers, all from the poorest sectors, keep the city clean and livable, saving almost a million tons of CO2 annually. Safai Sena is… Continue reading
Community Garden, Ambedkar Nagar, Mumbai
Mumbai’s Ambedkar Nagar slum is a successful example of a community converting an enormous dump site and breeding ground for vermin and disease into a recreational community garden. In 2009, a women’s self-help group from the slum began to mobilize residents, educate families, conduct workshops, segregate and recycle garbage, and manage composting. Biodiversity has since… Continue reading
Solar Energy, Bangalore
Many of India’s slums have no access to the local energy grid, which forces residents to rely on kerosene. The results of this dependency perpetuate poverty and ill-health. Family income is eaten up by the cost of kerosene, and children cannot do their homework after the sun sets. The Pollinate Group provides training to local… Continue reading
Eco Cabs, Chandigarh
The Eco Cabs project is a privately-owned, non-motorised transport program that helps commuters hail a non-motorized rickshaw with a phone call. Established in Fazilka, Punjab, rickshaws now ferry 6 million people daily, compared to 350,000 to 400,000 by car. In 2013, Eco Cabs launched the service in Chandigarh, servicing residents inf 30 of Chandigarh’s 56… Continue reading
Reforesting, Bangalore & Karachi
This mid-scale private company, Afforestt grows native, self-sustaining forests. The company has planted 43,000 trees for 33 clients. They also plant forests specifically to conserve groundwater tables. An online system provides a crowdsourced database of native species. Online training in forestscaping and workshops are also offered. Though not specifically targeting the Base of the Pyramid,… Continue reading
Micro-Loan Program for Women, Bangladesh
This case study examines the impact of The Shakti Foundation Microcredit Program for poor urban women in Dhaka. The program has been in place for twenty years and has been replicated in eleven secondary cities involving 140,000 households. The increase in women’s income has enabled borrowers to participate in the household decision-making process and have… Continue reading
Poverty Reduction Strategy, Phnom Penh
Governance and public institutions in Cambodia had to be reestablished at the end of the Khmer Rouge period with very few resources. Due to employing strategies of good governance, the city is able to respond to an enormous demand for public services with very limited capital. Strategic city planning is conducted through public participation and… Continue reading
Woodlands Consumption by Elephant Herds in Botswana
This study of savanna ecology examined differences in diet and patch choices of African elephants (Loxodonta Africana) according to sex and herd structure. The study took place during the dry season in a savanna-woodland ecosystem in the Chobe National Park of northern Botswana. The evidence documented where high elephant densities in the nature reserve caused… Continue reading
Native Wildlife Rehabilitation
This residency at a native animal hospital in Florida focused on learning how research, educational, and veterinary teams worked together at a large teaching hospital and visitor education center located in Southwest Florida. The facility is dedicated to saving native wildlife through state-of-the-art veterinary care and conservation medicine. The report included detailing how a visitor education… Continue reading
Coral Health, Great Barrier Reef
Determining health of coral habitats by monitoring bleaching through citizen science initiative. Integrating global coral health monitoring with education and public outreach using simple and engaging tools. This initiative provides people with accessible information about coral reefs and climate change, and hands-on experience collecting scientific data on coral bleaching using a color chart to identify… Continue reading
Pacific Whale Foundation, Hervey Bay, Queensland
Pacific Whale Foundation, monitoring humpback whale behaviors before during and after human interactions; photographing individual humpback whale adult and calf flukes to identify family relationships over time through maternal lines; learning how pigmentation and scarring patterns on the tail flukes provide ways of identifying individuals; and developed understanding of the Hervey Bay region as a… Continue reading