Opinion

Opinion articles about good news, making a difference, and filling the world with more hope...

An illustration of people saying hello to each other, planting a tree, and sharing food.

A friendship expert’s advice for building community: 'How can I show up better for you?'

We need to beat social isolation and come together. Danielle Bayard Jackson teaches us how.
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An illustration of Jacob Simon on an iPhone, speaking into a small microphone on his white ear buds. The phone sits atop a bright yellow background with a doodle of the sun. The words "for the first and only time" appear behind him.

Art saved eco-educator Jacob Simon. He thinks it can save our planet, too.

Jacob Simon, an environmentalist, optimist, and educator, explains why he thinks art could have a world-saving impact on the climate crisis.
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The cover of Maia Kobabe's book "Gender Queer" sits atop an illustration of broken chains

'Gender Queer' is the most banned book in America. Here’s how author Maia Kobabe says you can protect it.

Maia Kobabe published a graphic memoir — "Gender Queer" — in 2019. It has since become the most challenged book in the United States.
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On a pink background is a banner reading "Fail-A-Bration" surrounded by colorful streamers and confetti

Brad Montague has failed a lot in life, so now he's inviting everyone else to celebrate their own mistakes

In his newest book, Brad Montague aims to remove the shame from failure and teaches young and old the best way to celebrate their mistakes.
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Barbara Kingsolver smiling for the camera with text behind her

Barbara Kingsolver wrote the new 'pledge' for the American Climate Corps: 'Words are what I have to offer'

Read the pledge for the all-new American Climate Corps. The novelist explains why she wrote it.
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Woman cycling in the middle of a street

Bike-friendly cities should be designed for everyone — not just for wealthy white cyclists. Here's how...

Residents in low-income neighborhoods have been talking about what kinds of bike infrastructure they believe best meet their needs. Some of their preferences were notably different from those of cyclists in wealthier neighborhoods.
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Logging in Yabbra State Forest in northern New South Wales, Australia

Instead of planting new trees, this environmental researcher wants Australia to end native forest logging

Australia contains some of the world’s most biologically diverse and carbon-dense native forests.
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A group of black people pose for the camera in the 1900s

Juneteenth celebrates just one of our 20 emancipation days — and the history of how emancipated people were kept unfree needs to be remembered, too

Emancipation Days — like Juneteenth in Texas — are not what many people think, because emancipation did not do what most of us think it did.
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A group of kids in a classroom looking at their teacher

Here’s what I tell teachers about how to teach young students about slavery

Nervous. Concerned. Worried. Wary. Unprepared. This is how middle and high school teachers have told me they have felt over the past few years when it comes to teaching the troublesome topic of slavery.
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Abstract illustration divided into two halves: the left side depicts a dark, starry night sky with celestial elements like planets and moons, while the right side shows a bright daytime sky with clouds and swirling lines. In the center, a yin-yang symbol and scales of justice represent balance, harmony, and social justice.

The key to ending injustice? Being good at relationships, according to this Harvard-educated psychologist

If we hope to end all injustices — and that should be our goal, lofty as it may seem — we need a foundational shift in how we approach achieving justice. 
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A person holding a "Stop coal now!" sign

My fellow climate activists are celebrating 'the end of coal' in New England — thanks to our 'imaginative' nonviolent direct action

With the last of New England’s coal plants now set to close, the No Coal No Gas campaign is reflecting on the power of fighting together.
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Jane Goodall, speaking in the Turbocharging Science, Culture and Action for Nature and Climate session at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2024

Jane Goodall: 'It will take hope, inspiration, and action to save the earth'

We need a new mindset but to change behaviors, we need to be more persuasive. Storytelling is one way to speak to the heart.
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