HORIZON SOLUTIONS SITE | Working to find and advance solutions to environment, health, poverty, and development problems


Actions Combating Drug Resistance	“The emergence of AMR [antimicrobial resistance] is a complex problem driven by many interconnected factors; single, isolated interventions have little impact. A global and national multi-sectoral response is urgently needed to combat the growing threat of AMR.” (WHO)
Millennium Development Goal Drinking Water Target Met in Advance of Deadline	The world has met the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target of halving the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water, well in advance of the MDG 2015 deadline, according to a report issued on March 6, 2012 by UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO). Between 1990 and 2010, over two billion people gained access to improved drinking water sources, such as piped supplies and protected wells.
Learning from Earth’s History about Changing the Chemistry of the Atmosphere and Oceans	The oceans may be acidifying faster today than they did in the last 300 million years, according to scientists who published a paper in the March 2, 2012 issue of the journal Science. "These scientists have synthesized and evaluated evidence far back in Earth's history," said Candace Major, program officer in the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Division of Ocean Sciences, which funded the research. "The ocean acidification we're seeing today is unprecedented…a result of the very fast rates at which we're changing the chemistry of the atmosphere and oceans."
National Renewable Energy Laboratory Aims to Slash Cost of Solar Cells	Solar-powered electricity prices could soon approach those of power from coal or natural gas thanks to collaborative research with solar start-up Ampulse Corporation at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) ) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
Food Force: The First Humanitarian Video Game Updated and Free to Download	The World Food Program’s (WPG’s) video game Food Force invites children, and people of all ages, to complete six virtual missions that reflect real-life obstacles faced by WFP in its emergency responses both to the tsunami and other hunger crises around the world.
Protection for Bermuda's 'Golden Rainforest of the Sea'	The Pew Environment Group’s Global Ocean Legacy Program is working with the government of Bermuda, nongovernmental organizations, and scientists to establish the ‘Bermuda Blue Halo,’ a very large, no-take marine reserve to protect the Sargasso Sea within Bermuda's waters.
Denmark Success With Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Commended by The International Energy Agency (IEA)	Denmark is a leader in implementing well-designed policies for renewable energy, energy efficiency and global climate change, according to a review of Danish energy policies published on 21 February 2012 by the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Denmark Announces Energy Consumption Down By 2.4% in Third Quarter 2011	Lower energy consumption for the first nine months of 2011 was reported on 16 February 2012 by the Danish Energy Agency.
Time of Year Important in Projections of Climate Change Effects on Ecosystems	Results of study on prairie grasslands show differences across the months. Does it matter whether long periods of hot weather, such as last year's heat wave that gripped the U.S. Midwest, happen in June or July, August or September? Scientists studying the subtle effects of heat waves and droughts say that when such weather events happen makes a big difference.
World’s First Look at the Myanmar Snub-Nosed Monkey	Researchers working in Northern Myanmar captured the first photographs of the recently discovered Myanmar snub-nosed monkey, Rhinopithecus strykeri. The images were reported by Fauna & Flora International (FFI) on 10 January 2012. A joint team from Fauna & Flora International (FFI), Biodiversity and Nature Conservation Association (BANCA) and People Resources and Conservation Foundation (PRCF), caught pictures of the monkey on camera traps placed in the high, forested mountains of Kachin state, bordering China.