Communities & Infrastructure

This category focuses on how communities around the globe are pioneering sustainable and health-focused development. It is dedicated to exploring how collaboration and local initiatives can drive significant changes in infrastructure and urban planning, directly benefiting both the environment and the people who live there.

Libraries as democratic infrastructure for education and public life

Libraries protect equal access to knowledge, digital services and lifelong learning amid widening social and information divides

Editorial Team SDG4

1 day ago7 min read

Grassroots partnerships at the heart of global women's rights

MADRE supports women-led organisations through long-term partnerships that connect human rights, peacebuilding and climate justice

Editorial Team SDG5

3 days ago5 min read

When tourism becomes a local burden

Tourism can support cities, but unmanaged growth can displace residents, strain resources and turn communities into visitor economies

Editorial Team SDG11

5 days ago7 min read

The forgotten right to sanitation

Safe toilets and wastewater systems protect health, education, equality and dignity, yet remain neglected in public policy

Editorial Team SDG6

6 days ago7 min read

Library For All and the case for culturally relevant children's books

Library For All works to expand early literacy by creating books that reflect the languages and lives of underserved children

Editorial Team SDG4

Jul 87 min read

Lake Sevan clean-up pledge draws attention to a wider water crisis

A foundation linked to Cape Town’s WeCare Foundation says it will fund shoreline waste removal in Armenia while urging stronger action on sewage, runoff and water withdrawals.

Editorial Team SDG6

Jul 34 min read

Civic technology only matters when it gives people usable power

Digital tools can support participation and accountability, but only when they solve real civic problems

Editorial Team SDG16

Jul 16 min read

Civic technology only matters when it gives people usable power

Digital tools can support participation and accountability, but only when they solve real civic problems

Editorial Team SDG16

Jun 256 min read

The ageing planet is testing how societies share care, work and security

Longer lives are reshaping pensions, housing, health systems and intergenerational fairness across ageing societies

Editorial Team SDG3

Jun 246 min read

Cities that exclude the poor show how inequality is built into urban life

Housing, transport, green space and services determine who can fully belong in a city

Editorial Team SDG11

Jun 236 min read

Grassroots peacebuilding shows why peace is community work

Local organisations are reducing violence, rebuilding trust and making SDG 16 visible in daily life

Editorial Team SDG16

Jun 226 min read

White House Tarifa Advisory Board established

New advisory board will guide White House Tarifa as GSI’s seat for research, education and global cooperation.

Editorial Team SDG4

Jun 202 min read

SELCO Foundation and the case for energy access as development infrastructure

Sustainable energy is treated not as a stand-alone technology, but as a route to livelihoods, healthcare and education

Editorial Team SDG7

Jun 155 min read

Liter of Light and the practical politics of community-built solar lighting

A low-cost solar lighting model links energy access, local skills and climate resilience in underserved communities

Editorial Team SDG7

Jun 134 min read

Practical Action and the development case for locally maintained technology

The organisation links agriculture, energy, water and climate resilience through technologies communities can sustain

Editorial Team SDG1

Jun 125 min read

Decidim, the living code of democracy

Barcelona's open-source platform Decidim transforms rigid administration into a dynamic, inclusive urban ecosystem

Till Heumann

Jun 96 min read

The power of caring when the world looks away

In Tuvalu, civil society organisations are showing how solidarity, climate action and community responsibility can shape resilience in one of the world’s most vulnerable countries

Editorial

Jun 75 min read

Autism is not a marginal issue. It is a global test of inclusion

Around the world, autism is forcing societies to rethink education, healthcare, employment and the meaning of belonging.

Editorial Team SDG3

Jun 55 min read

Fundació Lluita contra les Infeccions and the clinical fight to make HIV care faster, smarter and more durable

A Barcelona foundation links HIV care, clinical trials and vaccine research in the search for better treatment pathways

Editorial Team SDG3

Jun 36 min read

UNICEF Digital Education, the difficult work of making learning technology serve every child

UNICEF is pushing digital learning beyond access, towards equity, safety and stronger public education systems.

Editorial Team SDG4

Jun 26 min read

Kruger National Park at 100 and the unfinished work of wildlife protection

Kruger’s centenary shows why national parks matter, and why protection must now mean more than lines on a map.

Editorial Team SDG15

Jun 16 min read

Warka Water, weaving water from the sky

From a visionary bamboo tower to a holistic off-grid ecosystem solving the rural water crisis

Till Heumann

May 296 min read

Crop diversification and forgotten seeds emerge as practical answers to fragile food systems

Agricultural biodiversity is gaining attention as hunger, malnutrition and climate stress expose the risks of uniform food systems

Editorial Team SDG2

May 236 min read

Nature finance boom raises questions over conservation, sovereignty and who benefits

Across Africa, ecosystem protection deals are expanding as scrutiny grows over transparency, control and local returns

Editorial Team SDG15

May 226 min read

Menstrual health, sustainability, and the power of grassroots action

A Global Society News conversation with Dr. Aruna Varsani on menstrual dignity and sustainable solutions

Edwin Ochola

May 198 min read

Tackling the ocean plastic crisis through innovation and community action

How Pakistan can combine technology, citizen participation and nature-based solutions to protect its coastline.

Editorial Team SDG9

May 162 min read

IDF Europe and the quiet logistics of diabetes care in crisis

How a European diabetes network helps protect access to insulin, supplies and care during emergencies

Editorial Team SDG3

May 116 min read

The World Food Programme at the centre of a growing hunger hotspot crisis

The UN agency’s food crisis assessments have become an essential warning system as acute food insecurity deepens

Editorial Team SDG2

May 106 min read

Education Cannot Wait and the widening education emergency facing children in crisis

The UN fund tracks and supports education needs as conflict, displacement and climate shocks keep millions from school

Editorial Team SDG4

May 77 min read

TELL Japan, the quiet infrastructure of mental health support

A Tokyo-based non-profit offers confidential counselling and crisis support for people navigating distress in Japan

Editorial Team SDG3

May 55 min read

Climate disasters, conflict and exclusion are making education unstable for millions of children

Schools may still stand, but crisis is making learning less regular, safe and equal for millions of children

Editorial Team SDG4

May 46 min read

Water Stewardship enters the age of shared responsibility

The Alliance for Water Stewardship shows how water risk is becoming a question of trust, governance and collective action

Editorial Team SDG6

May 35 min read

Infrastructure, power, and people: inside Africa’s shift from ambition to execution

Insights from the Africa We Build Summit 2026 on Africa’s infrastructure shift, capital, and regional integration

Edwin Ochola

May 23 min read

The Water Project and the difficult work of keeping rural water systems running

A water charity working in Kenya, Uganda and Sierra Leone highlights the gap between access and reliability

Editorial Team SDG6

Apr 286 min read

Fundación Affinity and the careful case for animal-assisted therapy

A Spanish foundation has helped move human-animal bonds from sentiment into health, care and education practice

Joan Ubide

Apr 265 min read

Community-led conservation initiative focuses on biodiversity and rural livelihoods in Mpem et Djim

In Cameroon, BIOCOM-MDJ aims to involve nearby villages in protecting wildlife, forests and sustainable local livelihoods

Editorial Team SDG15

Apr 203 min read

The World Food Programme at the centre of a growing hunger hotspot crisis

The UN agency’s food crisis assessments have become an essential warning system as acute food insecurity deepens

Editorial Team SDG2

Apr 156 min read

How Europe’s debt architecture is draining public budgets in the global south

Rising repayments to creditors linked to London and other European financial centres are squeezing health, schools and climate action

Editorial Team SDG3

Apr 136 min read

Peace, resources and conflict, how competition over water, land and minerals can turn violent

Recent reporting on Iranian threats around Gulf desalination plants shows how civilian water systems can enter regional coercion

Editorial Team SDG6

Apr 26 min read

StepChange and the growing role of debt advice charities in household crisis

Free debt advice has become a frontline service as UK households struggle with arrears, rising essentials and insecure finances

Editorial Team SDG1

Mar 306 min read

The cost of living far from work, mobility as a driver of poverty

When cheaper housing lies on the urban edge, the daily journey to earn a living can deepen hardship

Editorial Team SDG8

Mar 246 min read

Bond and the struggle to rebuild trust in international development

As aid budgets tighten and scrutiny grows, Bond sits at the centre of debates on safeguarding, partnerships and sector credibility

Editorial Team SDG16

Mar 206 min read

The rural, urban education gap goes far beyond connectivity

Internet access matters, but rural learners are held back by deeper inequalities in teaching, transport, devices and support

Editorial Team SDG4

Mar 196 min read

NGOs working on school dropout in later adolescence are filling gaps that states still leave open

As upper secondary dropout remains high, civil society groups are targeting poverty, gender, conflict and exclusion

Editorial Team SDG4

Mar 146 min read

Telemedicine in rural areas, where it helps and where it does not

Remote care can widen access in rural communities, but it cannot replace clinics, staff, diagnostics, or emergency transport

Editorial Team SDG3

Mar 136 min read

European green capital award sets out blueprint for sustainable city leadership

EU-backed recognition scheme highlights city policies that lift quality of life, and builds networks to spread workable sustainability practice

Editorial Team SDG11

Mar 114 min read

Southeast Asia’s landmine survivors cannot wait for perfect politics

Prosthetics, rehabilitation and long-term support remain the clearest measure of real progress for survivors

Editorial Team SDG16

Mar 108 min read

Energy poverty in tourist areas is hiding in plain sight

Bright resorts, dark homes: how tourism growth can deepen unequal energy access for workers and host communities

Editorial Team SDG10

Mar 88 min read

Energy transition powers top spot in latest global environmental index

Estonia’s 40% emissions cut and tougher protection for forests and wetlands underpin its rise in the 2024-2025 EPI

Editorial Team SDG7

Mar 42 min read

School meal networks, local procurement and traceability, what is changing?

From farm to school to traceability rules, districts want shorter supply chains, but funding and logistics are tightening in USA

Editorial Team SDG3

Mar 37 min read

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Communities & Infrastructure

This category highlights innovative community-driven efforts that transform cities into models of safety and sustainability. From local urban gardens that enhance food security and biodiversity, to community-based renewable energy projects that reduce dependence on non-renewable sources, these stories show the power of localized action. We explore how communities are not only adapting to the challenges of modern living but are also actively reshaping their environments through sustainable practices.

It also focuses on how these collective efforts contribute to building resilient communities that can withstand economic, social, and environmental stresses. It showcases successful examples of neighborhood planning where residents take the lead in making their communities more inclusive, accessible, and environmentally friendly. This category provides a comprehensive look at how empowered communities are essential to driving sustainable development. It encourages readers to see the value of local involvement and collaboration in crafting solutions that have a lasting positive impact on both people and the planet.