The Harlem Children's Zone
Once the center of a renaissance, Harlem, New York, has slowly declined, now symbolizing urban poverty and decay. But today, there's a new renaissance under way in Harlem, with the construction of new buildings, businesses and schools. One leader is Geoffrey Canada, whose vision, quite simply, is to save children, and he has amassed a staggering amount of private money -- more than $100,000,000 --... posted on Jun 22 2008, 2,122 reads

The 12-Year-Old Teacher
At a recent tutoring session, Michael moved between the laptops used by shelter residents Alicia Lewis and Heaven Sanders, both 7. He coached them for 30 minutes on typing their names, then switched to a half hour of vocabulary and math games. "Michael, I'm lost," Heaven said, resting her face on her hands. He quickly went to her computer and punched the "load" button on the keyboard to get the so... posted on Jun 16 2008, 4,096 reads

A Millionaire Still Living in a Hut
When 27-year old Sarathbabu graduated from the prestigious Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad, he created quite a stir by refusing a job that offered him a huge salary. He preferred to start his own enterprise, inspired by his mother who once sold idlis (rice cakes) on the pavements of Chennai, to educate him and his 4 siblings. Brought up in the slums, Sarathbabu knew what it was like to... posted on Jun 10 2008, 5,883 reads

Nine Never Again's
It was his childhood dream, to travel the world. So in 2003, at the age of 25, Ludovic Hubler started. To meet local people, he chose to hitch hike and never spent a cent on traveling. Exactly five years later, he ended his journey after having visited 59 countries, sat in 1300 cars and trucks, given 300 presentations. To end his journey, he writes: "The two words that I most want to say today... posted on Jun 03 2008, 7,868 reads

Science of Subtle Signals
When MIT's Media Lab team studied one of the largest's providers of call center outsourcing, they found something curious that helped them predict the success or failure of almost every call -- within just a few second of the call! And oddly enough, they studied neither the specific words that the operators used nor the logic of their conversations, but only the physical voice signal: the measur... posted on May 31 2008, 3,240 reads

World's Largest Group Hug
Thousands of students from 10 Canadian high schools think they may have squeezed into the Guinness Book of World Records with the world's biggest bear hug. Organizer Peter Lamothe, who works at St. Matthew Catholic High School, estimated that 12,000 students, teachers and parent volunteers took part in a gargantuan group embrace Friday as part of an effort to raise more than $150,000 for local no... posted on May 29 2008, 3,450 reads

7 Year Old Takes Six Bullets to Save Mother's Life
Seliethia Parker always saw her role as protector for her 7-year-old daughter, Alexis Goggins. But it was Alexis who ended up saving her mother's life by using her little body to shield her mom from a fusillade of bullets. Doctors told Parker that her heroic little daughter, who was shot six times, would never walk or talk again. But Alexis has surprised people with her gritty toughness. She's no... posted on May 28 2008, 6,023 reads

Rwanda's Weapon of Mass Construction
The 1994 genocide in Rwanda left the country in tatters, its future fraught with uncertainty. Of the more than 800,000 people killed, most were men and boys. Rwanda's remaining population was 70 percent female. Fast-forward to the present day: The economy has revived and is holding steady. Major road arteries between cities and outlying villages, which were destroyed, have been rebuilt. Today, the... posted on May 23 2008, 3,017 reads

Bicycles in Zambia
World Bicycle Relief is a stunningly simple idea. It delivers tens of thousands of bicycles to the poorest people in the world. Why? Because simple transportation improves people’s lives more than you can imagine. All of a sudden, a child can get to school, a parent can find work, and a rural medical worker can reach eight families with AIDS. A journalist talks here of what the gift of a bicycl... posted on May 22 2008, 2,509 reads

The Security Guard's Idea
"Ten years ago, I was dissatisfied with my job working as a Vice President at a bank. Often, due to my standing as Vice President, I'd watch someone greet me respectfully but then turn around and respond dismissively to a fellow employee. In reaction to this obvious inequity, I made it a point to be even more respectful of individuals who were below me on the corporate ladder. One of these indiv... posted on May 16 2008, 5,345 reads