It may not sound pretty, but looking into sewage sludge disposal practices can be a story that helps your community's health. "There was a time when the Environmental Protection Agency renamed toxic sludge as 'biosolids,' and journalists went along with it . . . "
In a novel approach to stemming agriculture's contribution to climate change, researchers are altering bacterial DNA, so that corn seeds require less chemical fertilizer to thrive.
Hard work, generosity and 'extreme networking,' are a few of the reasons the Amish community in Holmes County, Ohio, is thriving. The group's unique ways of supporting new businesses can serve as a model for other places looking to bolster economic mobility.
The loss of independent pharmacies across the country has been a concern for rural residents, but who are the fabled PBMs, or pharmacy benefit managers, how do they operate and what do they gain when they force smaller pharmacies to close, ask Reed Abelson and Rebecca Robbins of The New York Times.
Over the past decade, rural, independent pharmacies faced shrinking profits and many closed. But now, even big chains are struggling to keep the current drugstore model profitable.
The New York Times editorial board offers a compelling piece on the importance of a reporter's shield law and why its protections need to be extended to the federal level. "Safeguarding the anonymity of reporters’ sources is essential . . . .
Over the past two decades, rural Main Street rehabs have proved challenging to create and sustain, but some entrepreneurs have seen "the blight as an enticement — not a deterrent. . . . Here is a look at three entrepreneurs who challenged the odds on Main Street, and how they fared."
Quick hits are intriguing stories for everyone.
The population of some bigger U.S. cities is shrinking as younger residents move to smaller towns and cities even as Covid-era worries wither, reports Paul Davidson of USA Today. "Since the pandemic, cities with more than 1 million residents have lost adults ages 25 to 44 while towns with smaller populations have gained young people.