The Quest for Control Over Our Own Lives
"The basic nature of life is that it is ever-changing, uncontrollable. When we think we have stability in life, something comes up to remind us that no, we don't. There is no stability, no matter how much we'd like it. And this kinda freaks us out. We don't like this feeling of instability, of loss of control. So we do things to cope, out of love for ourselves. These are strategies for control, se... posted on Mar 10 2016, 15,505 reads

From Child Soldier to Refugee Lawyer
Deng Thiak Adut grew up on his family's farm in South Sudan, where his father grew bananas and other food crops. At just six-years-old, Deng was conscripted by the rebel People's Liberation Army. This video shows Deng's resilience and perseverance, and how he has transformed his life to be of service to others, despite the unimaginable trauma he endured in childhood. Deng now works as a lawyer in... posted on Mar 09 2016, 2,624 reads

Rising Women Rising World
"It is an unusual occurrence when the roll call of achievements of just three women includes several nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize; training roles for UN Development Programmes, and advice-giving to NATO military officers and government officials. That the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela and the Clintons, to name just a few, have sought them out for their input makes the individuals of this tri... posted on Mar 08 2016, 15,384 reads

What Makes A Person?: Identity's 7 Layers
A persons identity, Amin Maalouf wrote as he contemplated what he so poetically called the genes of the soul, is like a pattern drawn on a tightly stretched parchment. Touch just one part of it, just one allegiance, and the whole person will react, the whole drum will sound. And yet we are increasingly pressured to parcel ourselves out in various social contexts, lacerating the parchment of our id... posted on Mar 07 2016, 16,657 reads

Eaternity
"Looking back, Manuel Klarmann reflects that, "As an 8-year-old, when I learned that I was eating food while, on the other half of the planet, people were starving, that completely puzzled me. How could that happen?" It was a critical moment in his life. As a young man nearing eight years into an inspired startup, Klarmann talks about a deceptively simple idea, "What we're doing with Eaternity is ... posted on Mar 06 2016, 5,175 reads

Bhutan's Dark Secret to Happiness
"Citizens of one of the happiest countries on Earth are surprisingly comfortable contemplating a topic many prefer to avoid. Is that the key to joy?...In Bhutanese culture, one is expected to think about death five times a day. That would be remarkable for any nation, but especially for one so closely equated with happiness as Bhutan. Is this secretly a land of darkness and despair? Not necessaril... posted on Mar 05 2016, 25,294 reads

Inspiring Women Speaking Up for Women
In 2014, at the tender age of 17, Malala Yousafzai was named co-recipient of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts in fighting for the rights of all children to an education. Malala's story is just one of 23 that were chosen by Salt -- a magazine devoted to celebrating those who offer authentic leadership -- as women who are making a transformative impact of the lives of other women around th... posted on Mar 04 2016, 17,346 reads

The Art of Sho: A Calligraphers's Pilgrimage
Filmmaker Jerry Hsu spent four months observing Dr. Ronald Nakasone practicing the art of calligraphy, and witnessed how this art requires contemplation, perseverance and single-minded concentration. The art of "sho" or "writing", can be properly called abstract art. It is nonfigurative, nonobjective, and nonrepresentational. The process of the work is one of experimentation and distillation. All ... posted on Mar 03 2016, 3,872 reads

Messy Works: Self-Organized Learning in the Classroom
Sugata Mitra's "Hole in the Wall" experiment in self-organized learning has garnered a lot of attention since it first begun in 1999 and won a TED prize in 2013. It demonstrated that a group of students working together, motivated by a deep question and with access to a computer, could produce amazing results. But few self-organized learning environments exist in traditional education. Maybe it's ... posted on Mar 02 2016, 7,964 reads

Peace Fleece: Spinning A Good Yarn
"Peace Fleece started as an act of protest, a way of challenging the continuation of the Cold War...Founded on the mantra of 'peace through trade,' Pete and Marty combined American and Soviet wool into yarn -- it was detente through domestic art." Read on to learn how Pete used this practice to deal with his psychological wounds from memories of Vietnam and how this project blossomed into a compan... posted on Mar 01 2016, 10,836 reads