Research reveals health impacts of fracking and natural gas industry  

In 2019, Pennsylvania received approximately $3 million to study health impacts of fracking.

The research included evaluation of leukemia and Ewing sarcoma disease cases in the vicinity of Canon-Millan School District along with cryogenic gas-processing plants and fracking sites.

The cancer of the bone caused by Ewing sarcoma was relatively prevalent in the southwestern portion of the state and relatively common in children aged 10 to 19 years. 

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Investigation reveals extent of radon exposure in PA schools

Some of the nation’s highest concentrations of radioactive gas are found in Pennsylvania, and many school districts fail to test for radon.

The gas, which is radioactive and invisible to the eye, is the second-leading cause of lung cancer behind smoking and can impact 1.7 million students throughout the state.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, radon is hazardous when more than 4.0 picocuries are present per liter of air – and some basement-level measurements in the state reach 8.6 picocuries.

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Pittsburgh landlord-tenant hotline seeks volunteers

Eviction filings are returning to pre-pandemic levels, leading to rapidly growing need for landlord-tenant support services.

A Pittsburgh-based informational hotline relies on a limited number of volunteers to assist anyone meeting certain income guidelines, which largely consist of tenants.

Landlords win approximately 85 percent of their cases, however.

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Transformative schools mix students from different economic classes 

Some schools in Dallas, Texas forego enrollment requirements that rely on geographic boundaries.

Students are instead admitted using a lottery system, with the goal of closing disparity gaps.

Half the students reside in affluent areas and half reside in socioeconomically disadvantaged census blocks.

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Cleaning professionals carve space in the gig economy

With the support of Brooklyn-based Worker’s Justice Project, Liberty Cleaners was founded four years ago by a small group of women.

In July, they celebrated their completion of a first-of-its-kind training program, developed in partnership with the State University of New York’s Harry Van Arsdale Jr. School of Labor Studies, which focuses on green cleaning, technology, and labor empowerment.

The combination of labor education and workforce development helps informal workers use software applications that ensure fair pay and safe conditions.

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Remote work continues to thrive beyond pandemic-induced necessity

Responses to McKinsey’s American Opportunity Survey indicated that 58 percent of employees were offered full-time or part-time remote work in 2022.

The rise of this coveted benefit has prompted communities to reinvent themselves as homes to remote workers.

Some have offered incentives such as housing benefits to attract these workers, who primarily earn over $50,000 annually. 

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