Urban Farm Shops Combine Dutch Greenhouse Technology and Food-Retail into One
In the city of The Hague, a Dutch agri-tech firm has had the bright idea of combining a greenhouse grow operation with a grocery and delivery business. Called LocalDutch, their idea is that the greenhouse grocers will integrate on-site food production with direct-to-consumer retail and local delivery in a single location, hoping the result will […]
Giant Seed Vault Freezes Beneath Atacama Desert, Preserving Chile’s Floral Diversity For the Ages
Amid the scorching/freezing desert of Atacama in Chile, one of South America’s largest botanical storehouses aims to protect both the wild and cultivated heritage of the country’s plant life. Called the Initihuasi Seed Bank, this genetic mothership is the central node in a nationwide network of institutions that are safeguarding the country’s plant diversity, come […]
Community Rallies to Save Poor Town’s Last Youth Center –And Succeeds with Government Grant
One of England’s poorest coastal towns is filled with “hope and relief” after their last youth center was saved from closure. The nonprofit Pie Factory Music has been based in Ramsgate, on the coast of Kent, for 13 years. It offers counseling, employment advice, life-skills, creative projects, or just a safe supportive space to make […]
Secrets Behind Rome’s Self-Healing Concrete Leads Scientist to Launch Roman-Style Concrete Business
A scientist who figured out the secret behind ancient Rome’s self-repairing concrete has recently confirmed his theory at a Pompeii building site where such concrete was in use. This marriage of theoretical and historical knowledge combined with hard evidence has inspired the very same scientist now 3 years later to open a concrete business selling […]
Over 90 California Fish Stocks Almost Totally Rebuilt Thanks to Trawling Ban, Other Measures
Over the last 25 years, Californian fishing regulations have seen the dramatic recovery of various game fish like sea bass and rockfish to the point where they can be fished sustainably again. Collectively known as groundfish, these stocks were serially depleted in the 1990s and early 2000s. Fish like ocean perch and bocaccio live close […]
Minnesota Tow Truck Driver Returns Abandoned Vehicles to Families After ICE Arrests
It was only a few months ago that Juan Leon became the proud owner of Minnesota’s newest tow truck service. Not long after, he began to get calls about abandoned vehicles and realized there was a pattern. Whether it was parked on the side of the street or in the lot of a business, their […]
Whiskers on Elephant’s Trunk Are Key to its Amazing Sense of Touch
The whiskers on an elephant’s trunk are key to its “amazing” sense of touch, reveals new research. The 1,000 hairs that cover the trunk have unusual properties that highlight where contact happens along each whisker allowing the largest land animal to grab something as small as a peanut, say scientists. The whiskers of elephants and […]
Monks Arrival After 15 Weeks of Walking Fills DC Streets With Peace and Compassion
It was a day that some locals said was unlike any other they had ever seen when the party of Buddhist monks arrived barefoot on the steps of the National Cathedral, as snow still covered the ground. “This is the moment I will remember for the rest of my life,” said the leader of the […]
CA Nonprofit Buys 6,100-acres of Sacred Land, Ending 10-year Battle Over Proposed Sand Mine
One of the largest private land purchases for conservation in California’s Bay Area was just carried out to save a historic ranch from being turned into a sand quarry. Before it was called Sargent Ranch, it was the sacred home of the Amah Mutsun Indian Band, and now it’s going to be protected for what […]
Woman’s Prosthetic Leg Swept Out to Sea Is Thrilled its Been Found 10 Months Later
A woman whose new prosthetic leg was swept out to sea is “over the moon” after she found it 10 months later, it having been swept right back to the beach where she lost it. Last April, 69-year-old Brenda Ogden lost her custom-made titanium blade-style prosthesis moments before a swim in the North Sea. She […]