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Pitt State Team Creates Hydroponic System for Haitian Orphanage
A group of Pittsburg State University (PSU) students is making the world a better place
developing a hydroponic system for an orphanage in Haiti. “Overall, in one
word, it has been amazing,” says Dodge Mattingly, a PSU freshman. “Getting
work with different kinds of people on the same project with one goal—I’ve had a
lot of fun.” The group of 20-25 students, makes up the university’s team for Enactus,
a community of student, academic, and business leaders committed to using the
power of entrepreneurial action to create a better world. Mattingly served as the
project’s chief engineer and designer. He researched existing hydroponic systems and
tried to morph design aspects from each of them into one that would serve the Haitian
orphanage. The system for the orphanage, he says, needed to be lightweight and inexpensive.
Because of an unreliable power network in Haiti, the system also needed to be independent of an electric pump system.
by
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—joplinglobe.com
Farmland Could Sustainably
Offset America’s Carbon Footprint
Amid the debate on how to curb climate change in Bonn, Germany, last
year, an impasse was broken on agriculture. Both a cause and casualty
of climate change, our food system accounts for up to 24 per cent
of greenhouse gas emissions. In Bonn at the latest round of climate
talks, a compromise was made to allow two technical bodies to work
together to identify solutions on how the agriculture sector can be a
part of the solution. The question is: Where to begin? One solution
stands out. Eighty-nine per cent of agriculture’s future mitigation
potential could lie in capturing carbon on farmland soils. In other
words, carbon sequestration. Not only does this process suck
carbon out of the atmosphere, it makes soils healthier and more
fertile for future food production. Efforts to capitalize on this
win-win solution need to be stepped up—and now.
—qz.com
Israeli Researchers Create Superfood Powder
from Unwanted Apples
Israeli researchers have found a way to make a nutritious superfood powder
from apples. The discovery was a solution to the 16,500 tons—10 per cent of the
country’s annual yield of fruit—discarded each year due to appearance, size, or
falling to the ground before ripening. The discarded apples were traditionally
sold to the juice industry for a fraction of their value or even just thrown away.
Dr. Ofir Benjamin and Prof. Raffi Stern from Tel Chai Academic College and the
Galilee Development Authority, respectively, created a powder that is first grated
then freeze-dried with the addition of a very small amount of
milk powder to prevent crystallization. With 0.02 ounces
of vitamin C per 3.5 ounces, the powder is intended as a
healthy alternative to sweeten soft drinks and as a natural
nutritional supplement. Researchers say it also
has a high percentage of antioxidants and
nutritional fiber, making it
a superfood.
—freshfruitportal.com
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