Photo: Courtesy of Mundus Bishop / Scott Dressel-Martin
Local parks in the U.S. just got a record $254 million investment from the Interior Department
Overseen by the Land and Water Conservation Fund and the National Park Service, the Interior Department announced a record $254 million investment into 54 projects in 24 states for the redevelopment or creation of new local parks.
It's the single-largest grant investment made from the department's Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership Program.
A major component of the ORLP is to provide safe outdoor spaces for historically marginalized communities — and it's part of the Biden Administration's Justice40 Initiative, which aims to have 40% of the benefits of all federal funding flow to "disadvantaged communities."
Why is this good news?Neighborhoods where residents predominantly identify as people of color have access to an average of 44% less park acreage than predominantly white neighborhoods — and it's similar for low- vs. high-income neighborhoods. This historic investment aims to change inequity — and is especially good news on National Public Lands Day (today!).
A hospital company in North Carolina forgave the medical debt of 11,500 patients
Following a news report on the nationwide medical debt crisis and a North Carolina hospital system's aggressive pursuit of medical debts — that hospital system reversed course, canceling those debts instead.
With some dating back 20 years or more, Atrium Health would place liens on patients' homes to collect on their overdue bills. That decision impacted around 11,500 patients — all of whom have now had the liens removed and their debt forgiven.
Earlier this year, the state also started a medical debt relief program — which all state hospitals participate in — but some patients who had longtime debts were left out of the program.
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Covering 40,000 square feet, the world's first vertical strawberry farm just opened in Virginia
A startup just opened the world's first scalable, indoor vertical strawberry farm in Richmond, Virginia. The farm is designed to produce over 4 million pounds of strawberries every year.
The strawberries grow in a facility that uses advanced software to control temperature, light, and humidity — creating the ideal growing environment for the planet.
And that's more important than ever, as not only is the agriculture sector a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions that exacerbate the climate crisis (and uses a ton of water) — the climate crisis itself has heavily impacted food systems globally.
Why is this good news? The driving force for recent innovations in farming is directly correlated to the mass crop death and heavy financial losses spurred by climate-related disasters. This solution protects food systems from climate change issues while also protecting the environment from the harmful impacts of mass agriculture.
California just sued ExxonMobil for its alleged role in deceiving the public about the plastic pollution crisis
In a first-of-its-kind lawsuit, California alleges ExxonMobil deceived the public into thinking "that plastic recycling could solve the plastic waste and pollution crisis when they clearly knew this wasn't possible."
CCI's president called California's lawsuit the "most important legal action to date in the global fight against plastic pollution."
Why is this good news? While the lawsuit will still have to play out in court, it's encouraging news that states are working to hold companies like ExxonMobil accountable for their actions in exacerbating public health and environmental crises like plastic pollution and ultimately, climate change.
A needle-free alternative to the shot, the FDA approved a nasal spray vaccine against the flu
Providing an alternative for those who are afraid of needles, the FDA just authorized at-home use of a nasal spray vaccine for the flu. It's been found to be just as effective as the shot.
The first alternative to the annual flu shot, FluMist can be self-administered outside of a healthcare setting, giving people "greater convenience, flexibility, and accessibility."
While it still requires a prescription, the out-of-pocket cost will be about $35 to $45, and potentially less depending on insurance coverage. It's expected to be available next fall.
Why is this good news?From 2010 through 2023, hospitalizations for the flu have ranged from 100,000 to 700,000 each year, and from about 4,900 to 51,000 people have died. Providing greater convenience and access to a safe and effective prevention tool will help save lives.
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