Ciannait Khan

Irish writer based in Berlin. Contact: ciannaitkhan(at)gmail.com

Biodiversity

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 2nd February 2022

How Collaring Cheetahs Reduced Human-Wildlife Conflict in Namibia

Namibia is home to one of the world's last remaining cheetah populations. But for years, cheetahs have decimated livestock herds, leading to a bloody human-wildlife conflict that further threatened the already vulnerable species. New technology and insights are helping to keep the two sides separated.

Legacy Landscapes Fund • 22nd May 2023

5 Reasons Why Protected Areas Work

This International Day for Biological Diversity (22 May), we’re taking a deep dive into protected areas (PAs). As a conservation strategy, why do managed protected areas – such as national parks – actually work?

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 9th July 2020

In Germany, Technology is Mapping Wolves’ Return from the Dead

Once upon a time, there were no wolves in Germany. For over a century, the species was totally extinct across the country, having been driven out in the 1800s by hunting and the eruption of human civilisation. But since the turn of the millenia, wolves have begun to recolonise Germany’s forested landscape.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 1st July 2021

Protecting Marine Life in the Gulf of Mexico – with Seaweed Farms

Pollution is a severe threat to our coastal ecosystems. Now researchers believe that strategically planting seaweed in the Gulf of Mexico could protect marine life and prevent ocean “dead zones”.

Legacy Landscapes Fund • 24th March 2025

5 Reasons to Protect Biodiversity

For many of us, protecting species from extinction is a non-negotiable moral responsibility. But the reality of today’s rapidly changing world means there are also pragmatic – and urgent – reasons to commit funding and political will to biodiversity protection.

The University Times • 2nd March 2019

The Beauty of the Beast

Through the long grass, I see glints of orange. Slowly and silently, I pick my way over undergrowth, through the trees and across a stream. As I draw closer, I can make out eyes. I try balancing on my haunches, but eventually give in and sit down on the wet ground – I may be in for a long wait. In the air, there’s a familiar pungent scent, the scent of fox.

After a while, he gets up and walks, coat shimmering gold as he passes through shards of sunlight. He eyes me up a couple of times, his poi

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 20th May 2020

Wildlife Insights: A Google-Built AI is Taking Animal Surveillance to New Levels

With global biodiversity in crisis, conservationists around the world are devising more and more innovative ways to curb species loss. One of the latest initiatives is Wildlife Insights: a new tool that harnesses the power of AI to dramatically grow our knowledge about wildlife populations.

Legacy Landscapes Fund • 8th December 2023

5 Ways Protecting Biodiversity Helps the Climate

The natural world faces a dual crisis: climate change and biodiversity loss. Below, we outline five ways that protecting biodiversity also protects the climate.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 27th July 2021

Rrreefs: 3D Printed "Lego-Like" Blocks That May Give Coral a New Artificial Home

Coral reef restoration is a lifeline for marine species under threat. With these rich ecosystems disappearing at truly alarming rates, innovative methods are necessary to protect what’s left.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 6th July 2021

Become a Dolphin and Learn about Our Oceans – In Virtual Reality

Virtual reality (VR) is a blossoming technology that offers untold possibilities. Now, a German social enterprise wants to allow people to virtually explore beneath the waves – and experience life as a dolphin.

Climate

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 29th September 2021

Mapbiomas: The Project Tracking 35 Years of Amazonian Deforestation

By utilising Google's powerful Earth Engine, a Brazilian project is efficiently generating the data needed for policymakers to make better decisions about the environment.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 2nd August 2021

Terraformation: Does Silicon Valley Know-How Hold the Key to Large Scale Reforestation?

"Terraforming" was, until recently, the stuff of sci-fi. Now, a company called Terraformation wants to fight climate change by rapidly restoring forests around the world.

Effective methods of carbon capture are clearly much-needed – and fast – to mitigate climate change. Forests are natural carbon sinks, which makes reforestation a reliable method of carbon sequestration. The question is: can we reforest enough land at sufficient speed to significantly reduce CO2 pollution? Not only are we stil

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 15th June 2021

EPIC Academy: A Free Online Course Diving Deep into Ocean Plastics

A new online curriculum is equipping people of all ages with in-depth knowledge of plastics and their impact on the oceans.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 26th May 2021

Biggest Barriers to Renewable Energies are Political, New Report States

The potential of renewable energies could be far greater than we think.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 4th May 2021

The Global Coal Exit List: The Digital Database Encouraging Impact Divestment

A German NGO is tackling the fossil fuels problem at the source - with the "Global Coal Exit List", an invaluable digital database that encourages influential investors to stop supporting the coal industry.

Politics & Society

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 21st July 2021

Survive the Century: The Web-Browser Game Challenging You to Solve the World's Problems

Survive the Century is a new online game that allows players to save the planet or unleash their inner supervillain. Designed by writers and scientists, speculative fiction is taken to new planes in this playful, comic quest into the future.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 16th July 2021

Off University: The Free Online University Created by Exiled and Blacklisted Academics

When authoritarian regimes clamp down on freedoms, academics are often the first targets. Now, suppressed academics have teamed with international universities to create a platform that allows their voice to continue to be heard.

Digital Freedom Fund • 31st May 2021

Are We Overselling “Smart Cities”?

Headlines can’t get enough of smart cities, but are they worth the enormous trade-offs for our digital rights?

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 23rd November 2020

Reimagining a New Generation of Artificial Intelligence - With Indigenous Worldviews

A recently set up initiative is exploring new conceptual and practical approaches to building ethical AI systems - from indigenous perspectives. The work they’re doing is both fascinating and deeply important, and it’s also asking profound questions about the relationship between humanity, nature and technology.

The University Times • 19th March 2019

The Loneliness Paradox

We live in an ultra-connected world. Why are we so lonely?

The University Times • 12th January 2019

Inside Berlin’s Former Squats

It was years ago when I first visited Liebig 34, a building in Berlin that has been occupied since the Berlin Wall fell in 1989.

The University Times • 12th November 2018

The Government’s Shouting about Gender Equality Feels One-Note

The launch of the government’s plan to tackle gender equality in higher education today has caused a media stir. In particular, the decision by higher education minister Mary Mitchell O’Connor to create 45 women-only professorships – like most proposals that involve affirmative action – was met with controversy.

The University Times • 15th August 2018

It’s Time to Stand up Against Exploitative Internships

A piece recently appeared in the Irish Times about internships in the arts, detailing the exploitation of many young people in stressful, unpaid roles across the sector. The stories featured long hours, exhausting work, no money, little training – and even tearful breakdowns.

The University Times • 26th May 2018

The Day Ireland Surprised the World

We’ve had some shock results in the last few years. Most people are now familiar with that feeling of waking up and not quite believing what’s happened around the world, whether it was Donald Trump’s election or the Brexit referendum. Hearing the exit polls last night for the first time was a similar experience, but incredibly, this time, the overriding feeling was of joy, not fear.

Activism

Digital Freedom Fund • 22nd March 2021

When Workers of the Digital World Unite

One out of 10 workers in the EU is employed by a digital platform such as Deliveroo or Uber. It’s a colossal figure, and one that would’ve been unimaginable only 10 years ago.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 18th December 2020

Digital Advocacy & Dogged Determination - Interview with Indian Activist Abhinav Lohkare

Abhinav Lohkare is a 17 year-old with an unstoppable will. Deeply frustrated by inaction on the climate crisis, he’s making the most of his generation’s proclivity for digital tools to lobby hard for environmental change in Assam, India. Undaunted by government oppression, he’s determined to stand up for the people and animals of Assam.

The University Times • 10th September 2018

Around the Country, Students Get Creative to Fight for Housing

Since the repeal campaign reached its climax back in May, students have turned their attention to the next big issue: accommodation.

Social impact

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 23rd August 2021

Digital Human Rights Lab: Ensuring Everyone Benefits from Increased Digitisation

The digital world throws up a host of serious problems for human rights. The Digital Human Rights Lab, is creating an online space to support and strengthen human rights for all.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 16th August 2021

No Tools Required: Modern Origami-Inspired Emergency Shelters That Can Pop-Up in a Matter of Minutes

Disaster relief often requires a multi-pronged approach covering food, medical services and - importantly - shelter. A New York-based architectural firm now hopes to make the latter easier and more affordable by creating flatpack, origami-inspired emergency shelters.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 7th January 2021

In Ghana, a New App is Striving to Save Fishermen’s Livelihoods

For years, Ghana’s lively fishing culture has been floundering. Nearly 10% of the country depends on the fishing industry, but illegal activity along the coast is ravaging wild fish populations. Now, a new app called DASE is tilting power back in favour of small-scale fishers and their communities by allowing them to easily report infractions at sea.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 18th December 2020

Digital Advocacy & Dogged Determination - Interview with Indian Activist Abhinav Lohkare

Features

The University Times • 19th March 2019

The Loneliness Paradox

We live in an ultra-connected world. Why are we so lonely?

The University Times • 2nd March 2019

The Beauty of the Beast

The University Times • 25th February 2019

Do Confucius Institutes Threaten Academic Freedom?

Around the world, universities are shutting down Confucius Institutes. We investigate whether these controversial organisations are benign promoters of Chinese language and culture – or if they are cause for serious concern.

The University Times • 29th January 2019

Close to the Bone

"Vulture" is the name given to a person who dissects and collects cadavers for fun. Ciannait Khan gets to know the people behind the macabre hobby.

The University Times • 12th January 2019

Inside Berlin’s Former Squats

It was years ago when I first visited Liebig 34, a building in Berlin that has been occupied since the Berlin Wall fell in 1989.

Technology and AI

Digital Freedom Fund • 31st May 2021

Are We Overselling “Smart Cities”?

Headlines can’t get enough of smart cities, but are they worth the enormous trade-offs for our digital rights?

Digital Freedom Fund • 28th May 2020

What is “Biosurveillance”? The COVID-19 Measures Getting Under Our Skin

The current pandemic has shown itself to be a breeding ground for mass surveillance. States and companies around the world now have ample justification for collecting our most intimate personal data: our body temperature, our facial expressions, our movements, even our pulse and breathing.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 23rd November 2020

Reimagining a New Generation of Artificial Intelligence - With Indigenous Worldviews

Digital Freedom Fund • 22nd August 2020

Beyond Bias: Why We Can’t Just “Fix” Facial Recognition

In many cases, the problems at the heart of facial recognition run deeper than bias alone.

Digital Freedom Fund • 22nd March 2021

When Workers of the Digital World Unite

One out of 10 workers in the EU is employed by a digital platform such as Deliveroo or Uber. It’s a colossal figure, and one that would’ve been unimaginable only 10 years ago.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 13th September 2021

Sustainabill: The Cloud Platform Making Supply Chains More Transparent

As international supply chains grow longer, it also becomes harder to identify human rights and environmental abuses. Now, a cloud platform is incentivising transparency by helping companies track their suppliers.

Digital for Good | RESET.ORG • 9th August 2021

Will Small Personal Carbon Scrubbers Prove to be the Holy Grail of Carbon Capture Technology?

As carbon dioxide levels hit record highs, scientists and entrepreneurs around the world are devising new ways to “scrub” the atmosphere of CO2. For its part, California-based startup Holy Grail is developing cost-effective, simple carbon capture devices that can be deployed by small businesses, and maybe – one day – even individual consumers.

Travel

GetYourGuide • 19th June 2025

Visiting China on a Budget

From wild hikes along the Great Wall to stops in Dali Town and beachy Qingdao, here’s how to save money when traveling to China on a budget.

GetYourGuide • 9th June 2025

How to travel Montenegro on a budget

Visiting Montenegro on a budget is easier than you might think. There’s a lively backpacking scene and no shortage of low-cost activities, whether you’re relaxing on Budva’s beaches or hiking scenic trails in Durmitor National Park.

GetYourGuide • 27th May 2025

Best low-cost things to do in Switzerland

Switzerland may be Europe’s priciest country, but there are plenty of affordable things to do.

The University Times • 2nd March 2019