Are You Okay?: The Power of a Caring Question
When we intentionally slow ourselves down, we open ourselves up to a new world where calm has special powers and its magic is contagious. One day Aryae Coopersmith found himself rushing home, not noticing what was going on around him. He thought to himself, "'This isn't much fun! What if I just slow down? What if I can just be present and start noticing what's going on around me?' So I did that. I... posted on Jul 03 2017, 10,178 reads

Spotlight on Finding Common Ground
Tensions run high. Sides are polarized. Even attempts at neutral, innocuous conversations seem stymied and fraught. How can we reestablish connection in our fractured communities? How can we reengage in conversation? How can we move forward together into our shared future? In this Spotlight on Finding Common Ground, we take a look back into past DailyGood features offering advice on how to come to... posted on Jul 02 2017, 9,514 reads

Sister Lucy: The Mother Teresa of Pune
Sister Lucy Kurien founded Maher in 1997, one small home in a village outside of Pune. This humble beginning has blossomed into over 30 homes in over 85 rural communities around Pune, India as well as locations in Ratnagiri, Kerala and Jharkhan and has served over 4,000 women, men and children. Maher means mother's home in Marathi. Sister Lucy has created the warmth and love of a mother's home for... posted on Jul 01 2017, 12,061 reads

Dr. Toni Frohoff: Life Among Dolphins
Dr. Toni Frohoff, Ph.D., who has dedicated her life to studying marine mammal behavior and communication, argues that humans can learn a lot from the wild animals with whom we share the planet, particularly dolphins. Dolphins show a remarkable capacity for experiencing and expressing a range of emotions, and communicate with other members of the species in ways that often defy human capabilities a... posted on Jun 30 2017, 13,768 reads

Start Now, Start Small: Daily Ways to Build Resilience
Amy Cuddy of TED Talk fame and Bonnie St. John, who skied in the Olympics, are well known for their accomplishments, but they've also had setbacks. The most obvious -- St. John's leg amputation at age 5, and Cuddy's traumatic brain injury as a teenager. However, they credit their success not to the lessons learned in dealing with major challenges, but rather the small ones. In this interview, we l... posted on Jun 29 2017, 12,075 reads

OptOutside: REI's Audacious Experiment in Integrity
For the last two Black Fridays, REI has done a remarkable thing. It closed the doors of all 143 of its retail stores, its headquarters and its two distribution centres and paid every one of its over 12,000 employees to enjoy the great outdoors with friends and family. Here's how Jerry Stritzke, REI's president and CEO, explained the decision: "As a member-owned co-op, our definition of success goe... posted on Jun 28 2017, 16,049 reads

Ursula Le Guin: Inner Preacher vs Inner Teacher
"Art transforms us not with what it contains but with what it creates in us". Author Ursula La Guin challenges the notion of imbuing her work with meaning, and instead suggests that meaning is created by the reader. Instead of trying to convey a certain message or truth, La Guin argues that such messages are revealed to her only as she writes, but do not drive her to write in the first place. A pi... posted on Jun 27 2017, 8,392 reads

In Praise of Melancholia
The science of behavioral epigenetic explores how melancholy can be passed down through the generations at the level of our DNA. Long seen as a key element in artistic inspiration, melancholia often helps turn pain and sorrow into healing, ultimately leading to an acceptance of life's inescapable emotional sufferings and wounds. Indigenous and shamanic cultures such as that of Aboriginal Australia... posted on Jun 26 2017, 12,717 reads

How to Kick Your Digital Addiction
Technology can bring happiness. Anyone who's found the perfect meditation app or downloaded a grandchild's photo won't doubt that.But technology can also bring anxiety, stress, and frustration. And that seems to be a given, too, making us throw our hands in the air. Amy Blankson, author of the new book "The Future of Happiness: 5 Modern Strategies for Balancing Productivity and Well-Being in the D... posted on Jun 25 2017, 12,710 reads

The Women in Spiti Valley who are Saving the Snow Leopard
In the Spitian language, "shen" means snow leopard. Located in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, Spiti Valley is one of the few remaining places on earth where snow leopards can be found. Since 2013, women from two of the region's villages have been working with the Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF) to help protect this endangered species. Known as Project SHEN, the women engage in communit... posted on Jun 24 2017, 14,606 reads