A social enterprise in Nairobi helps former street girls earn a living by making fashionable clothes for women. One year ago at the age of 17, Monica Nzembi dropped out of high school to marry her slightly older boyfriend.

Woolworths' colourful reusable shopping bags not only help to reduce plastic waste going to landfills but also help a small Cape Town BEE company called Isikhwama to flourish. Isikhwama was started in 2004 to produce bags for Woolworths and to provide employment for some of the people who lost jobs when many of Cape Town's clothing factories closed their doors.

Research in mice suggests that scientists may have a new lead on using gene therapy against the virus that causes AIDS. The researchers tinkered with human stem cells and then inserted them into mice where they multiplied into immune system cells that provided protection against infection with HIV, according to a study released online July 2 in Nature Biotechnology.

National and provincial officials responsible for environmental affairs have signed the Grasslands Declaration, committing the government to the conservation of South Africa's grasslands – the second largest biome in the country, and one of the most threatened.