The Solutions Effect

Rows of large colorful homes and vacation rental homes span across one of the islands that make up the Outer Banks.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

The Solutions Stories Our Readers Loved in 2025

In 2025, we shared stories about solutions across the globe: repurposing mines in Australia, brewing beer with bread in the United Kingdom, the rise of employee housing in the Outer Banks and many more. Today, we’re revisiting some of the standouts from our solutions journalism series to kick off the new year.

Taylor Haelterman

A person holding a paper cutout of a heart passes it along to along to another person.

TriplePundit’s Guide to Holiday Giving

In the name of creating a space to learn from and support one another, we asked our writers and colleagues about the causes they're supporting this holiday season.

Taylor Haelterman

December 2, 2025

The full upper body of a North Atlantic right whale breaches the surface of grey ocean water.

A Sign of Progress: High Seas Treaty Opens the Door for Global Ocean Conservation

The United Nations High Seas Treaty became law in September, lighting the way for biodiversity conservation projects in international waters. Meanwhile, ocean conservationists are bringing new solutions forward.

Taylor Haelterman

October 2, 2025

Local and federal search and rescue workers ride a small boat through the flooded neighborhoods of New Orleans, looking for residents in need of help after Hurricane Katrina.

JUSTICE + EQUALITY

What We Learned (Or Didn’t) From Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina sounded the alarm that disaster preparedness was vastly inadequate in the U.S. Two decades later, Americans are considering the changes made since and whether they're working.

Taylor Haelterman

September 4, 2025

Abi Daré

Does Climate Fiction Actually Help Us?

The climate fiction genre is gaining momentum across books, films and even video games. As it grabs more of the public’s attention, is it having the desired effect?

Taylor Haelterman

Bikers take to the streets of downtown Mackinac Island

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

More Cities Are Becoming Bike-Friendly: Is That a Good Thing?

Cities are positioning bike-filled streets as a way to meet their sustainability goals, improve public health and reduce traffic congestion. Many are cruising toward a tipping point on bike infrastructure.

Taylor Haelterman

(Image: Naila Conita/Unplash)

Do Sustainability Conversations Have to Be Divisive?

There's been a notable shift in social impact and sustainability communications in the United States, but that doesn't mean the conversation has ceased. Here's how people are opening up new dialogues about the issues we face right now.

Taylor Haelterman

(Image: JSB Co./Unsplash)

How the Nation is Stepping Up to Support U.S. Farmers

As the growing season kicks off, farmers are losing access to funding and data they rely on to run their farms. Amid the chaos, leaders are rising to the occasion to support farmers trying to navigate the situation — and solutions journalists are covering it.

Taylor Haelterman

The Outer Banks vacation rentals business Twiddy & Company restored and relocated the historic Kill Devil Hills Lifesaving Station

For Outer Banks Businesses, Retaining Workers Means Investing in Housing

North Carolina's Outer Banks is struggling to sustain the tourism boom it built off of its long-standing vacation rental home industry amid an affordable housing crisis and other unintended impacts. As the region looks for long-term solutions, local businesses are buying employee housing.

Taylor Haelterman

(Image: Naila Conita/Unsplash)

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Progress Is All Around Us, If You Know Where to Look

For many Americans, the news is feeding fatigue and frustration. But beyond the trending headlines are stories of individuals, communities, cities and states making progress on sustainability and social issues. If you're searching for stories like that, read on.

Taylor Haelterman

February 28, 2025

London's Ultra Low Emission Zone was designed to improve air quality across the city by requiring high-polluting vehicles to pay a daily fee to drive in select areas. Now

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Net-Zero Cities: Local Approaches to a Global Problem

Cities around the world are heading toward net zero. Many plan to reach the milestone between 2030 and 2050. That might seem far away, but the projects that will make it possible are happening now.

Taylor Haelterman

January 31, 2025

Food recovery apps offer new ways to reduce food waste

Solutions That Sparked Your Interest: Our Most-Read Solutions Series Stories of 2024

In our first full year as a solutions journalism publication, we covered apps that reduce food waste, social and environmental protections in the mining industry, organizations empowering immigrant communities for climate justice, and so much more. Let’s wrap up the year with some of the stories you loved the most.

Taylor Haelterman

December 20, 2024

Some of the vehicles in the fleet We Don't Waste uses to pick up and deliver food donations. (Image: Taylor Haelterman)

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

The Denver Nonprofit Tackling Food Waste and Hunger at Once

We Don’t Waste has rescued 220 million servings of food from going to waste, redistributing it to over 100 local hunger relief organizations, and it doesn't plan on slowing down.

Taylor Haelterman

November 26, 2024

(Image: Peter Lawrence/Unsplash)

What News Audiences Really Want

Audiences say the news industry does a good job of updating and educating them, but they want more stories with diverse perspectives, stories they haven’t heard of before and stories that give them hope. The user needs model helps news organizations find and fill these gaps.

Taylor Haelterman

October 31, 2024

(Images: Gayatri Malhotra/Unsplash)

JUSTICE + EQUALITY

How Businesses Can Support Reproductive Rights

Reproductive rights are under the spotlight in U.S. politics. Business leaders have a role to play in supporting these rights, and it includes speaking up, the Leadership Now Project's Michelle Greene told us.

Taylor Haelterman

September 30, 2024

Frankfurt

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Wind Maps and Rice Terraces: How Cities Adapt to Climate Change

Climate change is reducing urban livability, pushing cities around the world to become incubators for innovative solutions. Each one takes a different approach to adaptation.

Taylor Haelterman

August 29, 2024

(Image: Tara Winstead/Pexels)

Let’s Talk About Failure

Stories about failure might be just what news-fatigued audiences need right now — if they're written with useful insights in mind.

Taylor Haelterman

(Image: Yuan Yang/Unsplash)

Solutions Journalists Take On the Energy Transition

Solutions journalists are making the energy transition less daunting by focusing their stories on the governments, communities and companies working to make the shift possible.

Taylor Haelterman

(Image courtesy of Flashfood.)

The Apps Fighting Food Waste

Entrepreneurs are designing mobile apps to reduce the more than a billion tons of food wasted by households, retailers and food service businesses each year. These forward-thinking founders want food waste reduction to be as easy as ordering takeout or curbside grocery pickup.

Taylor Haelterman

(Image: Ono Kosuki/Pexels)

Is Joy Newsworthy?

Adding joy to the criteria journalists use to decide which stories to cover could improve our relationship with the news and our view of the world.

Taylor Haelterman

(Image: Sean Stone/Unsplash)

Solutions Storytelling Isn’t Only For Journalists

Journalism, cookbooks and video games are just some of the ways people are using solutions storytelling to tackle tough problems.

Taylor Haelterman

(Image: Madison Inouye/Pexels)

These Journalists Are Making It Easier to Read About Difficult Things

As news avoidance hovers around an all-time high, some journalists are covering the most pressing societal issues in a way that encourages agency and hope.

Taylor Haelterman

February 29, 2024

Is 2024 the Year of the Train?

It looks like 2024 will be full of new developments in the rail industry. From high-speed passenger trains to battery-powered locomotives, these are the three trending train topics we have our eye on this year.

Taylor Haelterman

January 25, 2024

(Image: Any Lane/Pexels)

Live Christmas Trees Bring More Benefits Than Just Holiday Merriment

Have you driven past a Christmas tree sale and wondered if chopping down, and inevitably disposing of, that many trees has a negative environmental impact? As it turns out, live Christmas trees can help local communities thrive environmentally and economically.

Taylor Haelterman

December 21, 2023

(Image: Jason Krieger/Unsplash)

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

What Should We Do With All of This Empty Office Space?

All year we’ve seen companies take their stance on returning to in-person work. But what if returning to the office doesn't mean working there?

Taylor Haelterman

November 20, 2023