Before the Flood: Leonardo DiCaprio's Exploration of Our Planet'
"Before the Flood," captures a three-year personal journey alongside Academy Award-winning actor and U.N. Messenger of Peace Leonardo DiCaprio as he interviews individuals from every facet of society in both developing and developed nations who provide unique, impassioned and pragmatic views on what must be done today and in the future to prevent catastrophic disruption of life on our planet. Watc... posted on Nov 5, 5237 reads

How to Find the Good in a Nasty Election Cycle
"Of course, you dont need me to tell you that this is a stressful election. According to a Harris poll conducted for the American Psychological Association, 52 percent of American adults say that the presidential election is a very or somewhat significant source of stress. For registered voters, that number is even higher 55 percent of registered Democrats and 59 percent of Republicans. No demogra... posted on Nov 6, 38737 reads

Why We Love Our Own Creations
In this article, behavioral economist Dan Ariely explains why we feel joy and engagement when we make things ourselves. He discusses "The Ikea Effect" and how even small contributions to an item's creation can lead to more affection and attachment to that item. He shares: "The lesson here is that a little sweat equity pays us back in meaning -- and that is a high return."... posted on Dec 26, 15923 reads

Singer Loses Voice and Finds Her Song
One day in 2011, singer-songwriter Crystal Goh woke up with no voice. She was diagnosed with a rare neurological condition called Spasmodic Dysphonia, with no known cause or cure. Two years went by as Goh struggled with this disease. In the midst of her isolation and depression, she wrote a song to remind herself about the importance of hope. And as she began to share this song with others, her vo... posted on Nov 28, 4029 reads

Mark Nepo: On Taking the Exquisite Risk
"Mark Nepo is a poet, philosopher, and spiritual teacher who is the author of numerous books and audio projects, including the New York Times bestseller The Book of Awakening. In this transcript of an episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon has an intimate conversation with Mark about the two most important lessons he has learned from his journey with cancer, the role of effort and grace in ou... posted on Dec 10, 26943 reads

Remote Wonders: A Conversation with Elaine Ling
"Ling was petite. That didn't stop her from lugging her 4x5 view camera to the most remote places in the world. And she was a doctor. "I love photography and medicine. Doing my Mongolian book, my guide was a Mongolian doctor. He took me around and everywhere we went we connected with doctors in the field. Often they would come with me, so we bombed along the steppes in a jeep full of singing docto... posted on Dec 14, 3074 reads

What Will The Theme Of Your Life Be In 2017?
"As we ponder resolutions for the coming year, New Year's can also be a time to reflect on our life story -- and to figure out how everything fits together. Incorporating our goals into the larger narrative of our life can give us more energy to pursue them, and to become the person we want to be...Studying stories is not easy, since every person's life is so unique. In their quest to categorize a... posted on Jan 1, 20982 reads

Kindful Kids: Top 10 of 2016
"The beginning of another new year is the perfect time to reflect, as a family, on memorable moments of togetherness and inspiration from the year gone by and to express gratitude for all that it offered. It is also an opportunity to plant seeds for the intentions you want to cultivate at both a personal level with your families and, more broadly, to plant seeds of goodness for the change you wish... posted on Jan 10, 10708 reads

Fritjof Capra: We're All In This Together
"At the forefront of contemporary science, the universe is no longer seen as a machine composed of elementary building blocks. We have discovered that the material world is a network of inseparable patterns of relationships; that the planet as a whole is a living, self-regulating system." In this article from Resurgence & Ecologist magazine, Fritjof Capra gives an overview of "systemic thinking," ... posted on Jan 31, 19014 reads

Rise and Shine: A Morning Pep Talk from Marcus Aurelius
Some days we are full of inspiration and energy to spring out of bed and into the day. Other times, our motivation may be a little more stifled. Where can we turn on those days when we are less than excited about work? Perhaps to the words of the ancient Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, who offered up this advice: "At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: "I have to go to wo... posted on Jan 15, 17370 reads

The Robin Hood Army
The Robin Hood Army wields a double edged sword fighting food wastage and hunger with one mighty strike. The initiative in Pakistan began in 2015 with volunteer Robin Hoods filling 100 empty tummies in a week. One year later, the army has mobilized and they plan on reaching 500,000 individuals across seven different countries. This is a simple and truly inspiring concept that is confronting two ma... posted on Jan 17, 2926 reads

Quiet Justice & the Mindful Lawyer
"When I tell people that I teach a class in law and meditation at UC Berkeleys law school, I often hear snorts of disbelief. "It's easier to imagine a kindergarten class sitting in silence for half an hour," a friend said to me, than two lawyers sitting together in silence for five minutes." But the class is no joke. In fact, it's part of a ground-breaking movement that has quietly been taking hol... posted on Jan 27, 12721 reads

When Cancer Calls Everything Into Question
"Most of us walk through our lives feeling so certain of what we hold to be true; then along comes a crisis -- like cancer -- and sud?denly all bets are off. As humans, we crave certainty. Se?curity. We want to know, Why did this happen? Will I be OK? What if there are no answers and no certainty to be found? What if we can't know? Does that mean peace of mind and heart are no longer possible?" In... posted on Feb 15, 13906 reads

Welcome to Canada: A Refugee's Story
"I think that facing death changes people. Which is what happened with me." Mohammed Alsaleh was a young medical student in Syria, dreaming of one day treating patients with cancer. Under the Assad regime he was arrested three times, held in 5 different detention centers, and tortured for 120 days before being released. In 2014 he was granted asylum in Canada where he began to rebuild his life. No... posted on Feb 9, 3284 reads

The Evolution of Gratitude
Malini Suchak, assistant professor of animal behavior, ecology, and conservation at Canisius College, researches gratitude, discovering that "Gratitude is one of the fundamentally important parts of human life." But why is it "as much a part of our social relationships as gossip?" Darwin himself suggested that humans and other animals share the "same emotions, even the more complex ones such as je... posted on Mar 24, 11262 reads

A Spotlight on Love
Love is in the air! When we hear that phrase, we might picture, perhaps, a young giddy couple freshly struck by Cupid's arrow or maybe an older couple holding hands as they stroll quietly along a boardwalk awash in a sunset glow. Perhaps the phrase conjures images of roses, chocolates, and candlelit dinners. But love is so much broader an emotion and action than romance. In this Daily Good Spotlig... posted on Feb 14, 16558 reads

Blueberries and the Art of Being Present
Plucking a juicy, vibrant ripe blueberry from its tree is a blissful moment for Alanda Greene. Drinking in the aroma of the fruit as she harvests the bright blue bunches, she feels moments of timelessness, completely absorbed in her work. It's not however, always 'smooth picking'. She admits to feeling a sense of urgency when contemplating the sheer amount of picking to be done -- the mind rushes,... posted on Apr 2, 11887 reads

Do Not Lose Heart: We Were Made For These Times
There are times when living for today is exactly what we need to do, and there other times when we will only prevail if we take the long view of life on this Earth and stop measuring our success by the problems we solve each day. For this reason, Clarissa Pinkola Estes exhorts us to embrace the moment we are in with all of its fear, uncertainty, and turmoil. She says, "I too have felt despair many... posted on Mar 13, 0 reads

Getting Out of the Way: How a Doctor Learned to Heal
Healing comes from within. This is the conclusion of Dr. Steven Weiss who has practiced osteopathic medicine for the past 30 years. Using a wide range of modalities and traditions, Dr. Weiss has made it his aim to help people access the energies within to find their way to healing. By "Getting out of the way" he allows the healing energy to become accessible through him to those hidden places wher... posted on Apr 10, 20720 reads

He Showed Us The Way: A Speech by Cesar Chavez on MLK
"The burdens of generations of poverty and powerlessness lie heavy in the fields of America,"said Cesar Chavez in April 1978, rallying farm workers and praising Martin Luther King's use of non-violence "as a truly powerful weapon to achieve equality and liberation." Chavez' view of non-violence was practical. Like King he lived what he believed, and we can apply to him his own words in praise of K... posted on Mar 31, 18351 reads

Meredith's Joy Jars
"While having trouble transitioning to high school in 2011, my mom placed a big bowl of quotes on my desk to pick from every morning. I grudgingly agreed, but as time went on I realized what a gift this tool truly was. Taping the words of wisdom across my walls and carrying my favorites inside my phone case, I truly believed that each quote I picked was something that I was meant to hear. Later, w... posted on Mar 20, 5189 reads

Teen Activist Works to Save the Earth
Kelsey Juliana is proof that you're never too young or too busy to save the planet. Since the tender age of 15, when most of her peers were busy with soccer practice and reading the Hunger Games, Kelsey has been delving into legal briefs as a co-plaintiff for Oregon TRUST (a nonprofit fighting climate change for future generations), which is suing the state of Oregon "to take a more aggressive sta... posted on May 1, 16641 reads

Yoga Shala West: Moving From Transaction to Trust
Pranidhi Varshney founded Yoga Shala West (YSW) "to create an environment for practice that was inclusive to all people, regardless of financial barriers." She aimed to move away from the transactional and image-driven nature of contemporary yoga, opting instead for an alternative fee structure and community-based social enterprise model. At YSW, "each student is not paying for his or her own pr... posted on Apr 21, 10121 reads

Why We Need a Secular Sabbath
According to acclaimed writer Pico Iyer, interruptions come every eleven minutes, leaving us with the feeling that we are never caught up on our lives. The constant interruptions from technology make us feel fractured and frustrated with life. When we are overly focused on technology, what is most important to us escapes us both in work and at home. Iyer suggests dedicating one day a week to a "Se... posted on Apr 30, 17672 reads

What Activists Can Learn From Grace Lee Boggs
With the need for social change in countries all around the world, it is easy to understand how "protest fatigue" can set in. However, veteran activists can offer some advice on how to stay in it for the long haul of bringing about a better world. Grace Lee Boggs was one such lifelong activist until she passed away in 2015 at the age of 100. She lived and breathed her truth and believed that tendi... posted on Jun 23, 10122 reads

Peak Performance: Lessons in Leadership from Mountain Guides
Leadership is needed in times of upheaval and transition -- but what are the qualities it takes to be an effective leader and a positive influence? Christopher I. Maxwell of the Wharton Center for Leadership delves into this question in an interview. In it he discusses his book, "Lead Like a Guide: How World Class Mountain Guides Inspire Us to Be Better Leaders." Maxwell interviewed mountain guid... posted on May 5, 13011 reads

Turning Waste Streams Into Value Streams
The vision of Sustainability 3.0 is a circular economy that mimics our natural ecosystem: the "waste" from products that have outlived their usefulness becomes "nutrients" for further production. This foundational shift away from the linear business model of "take, make, and dispose" could be a huge boon for the sustainability movement and could provide great opportunities for businesses. However,... posted on Jul 18, 7039 reads

For the Love of Bees: A Conversation with Meredith May
"(My grandfather) instilled in me a love of bees and their gentle nature, but I think what I absorbed from it-- without even realizing it -- is how his relationship with the bees gave him a relationship with everybody up and down (Big Sur)." Award winning journalist, writer, and beekeeper, Meredith May talks about family, beekeeping, and storytelling. ... posted on Apr 13, 3429 reads

A Weaver of Kind Voices
Ironically, in an age where we seem to be more connected than ever, research shows that we are lonelier than ever. Inspired by the writings of Thoreau, Steinbeck, and the teamwork of his community garden, David Levins decided to break down the barriers of isolation, one conversation at a time. In 2012, he initiated A Kind Voice, a nationwide, volunteer-run phone line where people call in anytime f... posted on Aug 7, 9657 reads

A Vision for the World
Brother David Steindl-Rast has a vision for the world. One where people's attitude is changed by whatever is given, and whatever the circumstance, whatever is given is seen as a gift. And then of course, the appropriate response to a gift is gratitude. The gift hidden in our unprecedented world crisis is an equally unprecedented opportunity. The opportunity to wake up to the madness of violence. T... posted on Aug 9, 11007 reads

Why Stories Matter
"Storytelling, recognised in every society as a way of making sense of cultural roots or social reality, is an elaborate form of metaphor, and memoir is its masterpiece: life stories enable us to share insights and enhance mutual understanding in a social, political, psychological and spiritual sense. Memoir is revolutionary precisely because, when shared, it's a way towards the truth." In this es... posted on May 20, 0 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, 8392 reads

How to Be a Lifelong Learner
Barbara Oakley has spent much of her life discovering her hidden potential. Her newest book, Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential debunks myths and exposes artificial obstacles that get in the way of learning and discovering your hidden potential. She also provides tips on learning how to learn, including focusing (or not), practicing efficiently, and e... posted on Jul 4, 16095 reads

How Do We Respond? A Question to Artists
To some, the creative process needs no justification or rationale; yet there are times of upheaval in history that seem to ask the artist: Why are you creating this? What is your purpose? What social change do you hope to achieve with your art? Mirka Knaster is one such artist who has explored the question of how artists use their work to address political concerns. In this post Knaster discusses ... posted on Mar 16, 7960 reads

Why Are We Here?: Lessons Gleaned on Life's Meaning
Perhaps one of the most asked and elusive questions since the dawn of human curiosity is 'what is the meaning of life?' What would you answer? Is there even an answer? In this inspired social project, Aljoscha Dreisorner asked people from all walks of life, from friends to strangers to children and the elderly, what they believe their meaning to be. The answers are as enlightening as they are vari... posted on Jul 6, 15510 reads

How to Age Gracefully
What would you say to your seven-year-old self? Play more? Don't yell so loud? How about 'stay weird'... as one nine year old puts it. As we move through our lives, our many experiences, mistakes and accomplishments shape how we live in the world. Hindsight is an amazing thing, and the ability to look back and consider what we could have done is a bitter-sweet feeling, as there's no reliving the p... posted on Jun 20, 14369 reads

Graduation: A Song & Speech for the Ages
Just in time for the millions of students around the world preparing for the milestone of graduation, comes this powerful music video! Written by be-the-change rapper Nimo Patel in India and animated by the French animators 'Superfruit Collective', it features a chorus of students from the Philippines, and excerpts from a graduation speech in America by ServiceSpace founder Nipun Mehta -- a true g... posted on May 4, 27730 reads

Rebecca Solnit: On Breaking Silence
Human beings have a tendency to remain silent regardless of whether they need to utilize their voices. Rebecca Solnit sees how that tendency has harmed the women's movement. She quotes poets, inspirations, authors and more, including Ella Wheeler Wilcox, Audre Lorde, Elie Wiesel, Hannah Arendt and Laura Jackson. Rebecca believes and acknowledges that the quickest fix is to use our voices, noting t... posted on Aug 27, 10340 reads

Slow Down, Slow Food, Slow Science
Human beings move too fast. In 2008, a grassroots community-builder, best-known simply as, "Pancho" penned an essay detailing his reasons for leaving his graduate program, in part because of realities at the university that he perceived to be misaligned with the principles of non-violence. Pancho believes that when we slow down our processes and practice mindfulness our lives, and the lives of tho... posted on Jul 10, 6653 reads

Thomas Ponce: On Behalf of All Living Beings
Thomas Ponce is a 16-year-old animal rights advocate and a citizen lobbyist from Casselberry, Florida. He is the founder of Lobby For Animals, the Coordinator for Fin Free FL, and founder of Harley's Home, which is used as his school-based animal rights club. A vegetarian at age of 4, he began writing about animal rights at the age of 5. Soon after, Thomas's parents realized that his advocacy for... posted on May 22, 18795 reads

The Vibrations of Conflict
"Cole Porter clearly got it right. But what exactly is it that changes from major to minor when we say goodbye? What permits music to express and stimulate our moods so precisely? How does it ignite or dampen our spirits, make us feel romantic or cynical, lighthearted or blue? Why do simple sequences of musical notes or complex symphonic strains cause us to weep with sorrow, waltz with elegance, m... posted on May 24, 8852 reads

Marie Howe: The Power of Words to Save Us
In this edition of On Being, poet Marie Howe shares how poetry allows us to connect with others, through the words we find and the spaces between them. A former Poet Laureate of New York, Howe did not begin writing poetry until she was a young adult, as she transitioned from her career as a teacher. Influenced by her Catholic upbringing in a large family of 9, Howe reflects on the meaning of ordin... posted on Jul 23, 9095 reads

Recovering the Diamonds
What unfolds when you listen and see without the distortion of judgment? What diamonds are hidden an inch beyond one's judgment? Here, you see the first impressions of Juan Carlos, Director of Rehabilitation in the Guatemalan Prison System, of seemingly hardened incarcerated prisoners, faces tattooed with symbols and words, insignia of dangerous gang affiliations -- Juan Carlos feels fear, uncert... posted on Dec 25, 2933 reads

The Power of Dabbling: How Hobbies Make Us More Creative
Productivity expert James Clear uses behavioral science to help nearly half a million newsletter subscribers optimize their habits. Here is his recent filmed conversation with bestselling author Steven Johnson (author of ten books, including Where Good Ideas Come From and, most recently Wonderland, highlighting the influence of wonder and delight on the movements that shape history). This conversa... posted on Sep 24, 9344 reads

The Solace of Wild Places in Nature and Ourselves
Most of us live far from truly wild places that could give us comfort from the troubles of this world, yet we badly need this healing found in nature. The Japanese recognize this need for connection to nature and have a custom they call "shinrin-yoku," which means forest bathing. In this piece, Lucia Bettler recommends that we each take time to rest our minds and hearts in the quiet greenness of M... posted on Aug 12, 16530 reads

How To Give Away A Billion -- Or Not
Best-selling author David Brooks was asked what he would do if he had a billion dollars to give. In his recent NY Times op-ed piece, he answers: "Only loving relationships transform lives, and such relationships can be formed only in small groups. I'd seed 25-person collectives, a group of people who meet once a week to share...Each collective would have a curriculum, a set of biographical and ref... posted on Jul 28, 10167 reads

Garden Gloves
What can a simple pair of garden gloves teach us? In delving deep into her gardening practice, Alanda Greene found a profound insight in her experience of being pulled between the need to wear them for protection, and the desire to feel all the sensations of the earth. Gloves give us protection and safety. Much like when we choose to wear mental gloves to protect ourselves in life from overwhelmin... posted on Sep 27, 8489 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 2, 9515 reads

It Was About Friendship, Not The Home
Author Colin Beavan discusses a memoir by Drew Philip called "A $500 House In Detroit" in which the author meets and befriends his new neighbors. The article chronicles Drew's journey, revealing that in his quest to do the right thing, he focused on friendship and worked to transcend and accept differences between him and others.
... posted on Nov 4, 8503 reads

The Science on the Benefits of Nostalgia
It's natural to reflect on the past with a sense of longing - a desire to return to the way things used to be. In fact, our memories of positive events tend to be more crystallized in our minds than those of negative or neutral ones. But does nostalgia come at a cost? While some research suggests that nostalgia can interfere with one's attempts to cope with the present, it has also been found to p... posted on Oct 30, 7710 reads