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Up and Out of the Darkness

Ted Alcorn

November 16, 2021 |

Think Global Health |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United Kingdom

Several UK organizations sprang into action to combat COVID-19-related lockdown loneliness and isolation. The Cares Family connected tens of thousands of younger and older neighbors to spend time together, virtually now due to the pandemic, and Linking Lives also connected people through a telephone befriending model that has yielded deep connections. The government used “heat maps” to identify areas of need even before the pandemic and had a national strategy already in place, which facilitated a quick response as the pandemic highlighted the need for social connections.

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As homicides surged, Oakland's premier anti-violence program went quiet

Rachel Swan

September 07, 2021 |

San Francisco Chronicle |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Oakland, California

Oakland Ceasefire's "delicate architecture" balancing law enforcement and community-based responses to gun violence, which seemed to have helped lower the city's gun violence by half since 2012, came crashing down during the pandemic. While arrests continued, the alternative offered to people at high risk of violence – an array of services to turn their lives around – withered with a virtual ban on in-person meetings. Violence in the city surged as years of progress unraveled. The program is working to rebuild, while questioning if it should distance itself more from the police.

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For Navajo, crowded homes have always been a lifeline. The pandemic threatens that.

Hailey Sadler Darian Woehr

August 30, 2021 |

The Washington Post |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Navajo Nation, Utah

Multigenerational homes allowed indigenous families to pass down culture and language for thousands of years but living in crowded homes left them more vulnerable to COVID-19. Navajo teams have built 300 8-by-15-foot “tiny homes” to provide extra space for the most vulnerable or most exposed family member to isolate. Government-sponsored hotel rooms also provide spaces for those with the virus to quarantine safely. An aggressive vaccination campaign also got nearly half of those living within the Navajo Indian Health Service Area fully vaccinated, further reducing risk in crowded households.

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In Vermont, Isolating Inmates Kept Covid at Bay, but at a Price

Danya Issawi Derek M. Norman

April 21, 2021 |

The New York Times |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Vermont

Vermont is the only state where no people incarcerated in prison died of COVID-19 in the first 12 months of the pandemic, and its infection rate is relatively low. The prisons took steps that other prison systems either didn't try or didn't do soon enough, including universal testing at least six times over the year; strict isolation of newly admitted prisoners for 14 days; occasional lockdowns of up to a month; early releases from prison; and keeping corrections officers housed separately from the community. The isolation measures hurt people's mental health, including one suicide and one attempt.

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How Norway's Prisons Have Weathered a Pandemic

Ted Alcorn

March 12, 2021 |

Think Global Health |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Norway

When Covid-19 threatened to disrupt Norway's correctional system, the country's prisons and jails were quick to pivot their practices to protect those who were incarcerated. Although it helped that the country's correctional system was already known for being "small, responsive, and humane," more protocols were put into place to allow some who were incarcerated to complete their sentence at home, while others were provided with iPads to decrease isolation while visits were restricted. So far, only 60 cases of Covid-19 have been reported throughout the entire prison system.

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Opera Singers Help Covid-19 Patients Learn to Breathe Again

Andrew Dickson

February 16, 2021 |

The New York Times |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: England, London

To help patients recovering from COVID regain respiratory and vocal strength, the English National Opera worked with a London hospital to create a program that offers patients clinically proven recovery exercises taught by opera-singing tutors. While some regard the program as "a bit touchy-feely,” participants have expressed that it has helped both with recovery and feelings of isolation, and it is now being expanded to post-Covid clinics throughout England.

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No pew? No problem. Online church is revitalizing congregations.

G. Jeffrey MacDonald

February 09, 2021 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Dallas, Texas

Despite coronavirus restrictions shifting to allow churches to reopen, across the U.S. many religious institutions are continuing their digital video conferencing options as a means of reaching a wider audience. The use of video streaming church services has eliminated the geographical constraints for many, but it has also introduced "challenging questions about what it means to be a church where some people can’t take part in defining activities."

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Video Game-Themed Writing Workshops Draw Homeless Teens Together in a Time of Isolation

Claudia Irizarry Aponte

February 04, 2021 |

The City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

Bronx shelters have teamed up with industry professionals to put together an after-school program offering students an opportunity to receive mentorship. In the program, which is based around video game-themed writing workshops, students are able to practice their writing skills, while being able to manage pandemic-induced isolation by connecting with other students and instructors.

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As Port Angeles reopens its schools, students readjust to routine

Dahlia Bazzaz

February 01, 2021 |

The Seattle Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Port Angeles, Washington

A school in the city of Port Angeles has been reopened since October 2020, it offers valuable pandemic lessons for other schools that are in the process of reopening. Aside from logistical things like temperature checks, there are other things teachers are looking out for in classroom: mental health, energy levels, and teaching kids how to learn again. “Right now, my priority is less about content, and more about executive functioning — reteaching students how to learn."

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When church goes online: Battle Creek congregation finds opportunity in pandemic imposed alternative

Jane Simons

January 28, 2021 |

Second Wave Michigan |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Battle Creek, Michigan

In Battle Creek, Michigan, a church has turned to holding online Sunday service during the pandemic, and in doing so, has gained a larger congregation. While there are limitations to attending online services, and some don't feel like "Internet-based connections" are real, around 200 people still attend each online service, including some individuals from overseas.

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