Mainstream News Media Looks to Geri Weis-Corbley To Save the Day

So many TV viewers and radio listeners have been voicing their opinions lately about the lack of good news in the mainstream media, the media is turning to Geri Weis-Corbley for help. Weis-Corbley is the founder and editor of GoodNewsNetwork.org. She and her good news community provide daily news you'll rarely hear in the mainstream media (in other words good news!).

Click here to hear Weis-Corbley's interview with Michele Norrison on NPR's All Things Considered.

We're Never Too Young To Witness Democracy in Action

This election season, record numbers of young people have registered to vote. You can help encourage this trend by involving kids in the political process. When you go to the polls November 4, consider bringing a son or daughter, niece or nephew, grandson or granddaughter. Let him or her in on that solemn, empowering moment, standing in the booth, when as an American citizen you make your voice heard.

In "Growing New Voters" (AARP magazine, October 2008), acclaimed children's author Susan Goodman explains why it's important to get kids interested in politics when they're young.

"Researchers have found that kids don't magically become transformed into model citizens on their 18th birthdays," Goodman says. "Most politically apathetic youngsters grow into apathetic adults." The good news is that nurturing the next generation of voters is easier, and more fun, than you think. Goodman's article and "Voting: A Family Affair" (AARP, October 2008) by Amy Goyer, AARP's family expert, both offer helpful tips and advice.

See you at the polls!

The World's Largest Green Public Building Is Open and Awaiting Your Arrival

The 1.7 million plants spread over 2.5 acres of rooftop are just one sign that the new California Academy of Sciences museum, based in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, is built with the kind of green design that is its goal to promote. Click here to read and take a video tour. It's an amazing look into what's possible.

For more information, or to plan a visit, browse the Academy's website: www.calacademy.org.

And while we're on the topic of California and the environment . . . As the federal goverment has been less than impressive in its environmental leadership, more and more states feel pressed to make their own changes. Once again, California, in another original and bold move, leads the charge. In "Cut the Sprawl, Cut the Warming," The New York Times reports on a new California state bill designed to dramatically cut carbon emissions.

American Girls Make Math Books Bestsellers

A recent study published in Science magazine showed that there's no gender gap in the standardized test math scores of seven million American students. And, two books about math for teenage girls have become bestsellers. Yes, you read that right---"teenage girls," "math" and "bestsellers" all in the same sentence.

Read the Publishers Weekly article "Girls Just Wanna Do Math" for the full (short) story.

The World Is Becoming a Happier Place

From the University of Michigan comes this very encouraging report (thanks to Brent Marchant for pointing it out):

People in most countries around the world are happier these days, according to newly released data from the World Values Survey based at the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research.

Data from representative national surveys conducted from 1981 to 2007 show the happiness index rose in an overwhelming majority of nations studied.

"It's a surprising finding," said U-M political scientist Ronald Inglehart, who directs the World Values Surveys and is the lead author of an article on the topic to be published in the July 2008 issue of the journal Perspectives on Psychological Science. "It's widely believed that it's almost impossible to raise an entire country's happiness level."

The 2007 wave of the surveys also provides a ranking of 97 nations containing 90 percent of the world's population. The results indicate that Denmark is the happiest nation in the world and Zimbabwe the unhappiest. The United States ranks 16th on the list, immediately after New Zealand.

During the past 26 years, the World Values Surveys have asked more than 350,000 people how happy they are, using the same two questions.

"Taking all things together, would you say you are very happy, rather happy, not very happy, not at all happy?" And, "All things considered, how satisfied are you with your life as a whole these days?" Combining responses to these two questions, Inglehart and colleagues constructed an index of subjective well-being that reflects both happiness and general life satisfaction.

In the 52 countries for which a substantial time series is available (covering 17 years on average), this index rose in 40 countries and fell in only 12. The average percentage of people who said they were "very happy" increased by almost seven points.

"Most earlier research has suggested that happiness levels are stable," Inglehart said. Important events like winning the lottery or learning you have cancer can lead to short-term changes, but in the long run most previous research suggests that people and nations are stuck on a 'hedonic treadmill.' The belief has been that no matter what happens or what we do, basic happiness levels are stable and don't really change."

The new findings from the World Values Surveys not only show that during the past 25 years, happiness has in fact risen substantially in most countries. Fully as important as the fact that happiness rose is the reason why. In recent decades, low-income countries such as India and China have experienced unprecedented rates of economic growth, dozens of medium-income countries have democratized and there has been a sharp rise of gender equality and tolerance of ethnic minorities and gays and lesbians in developed societies.

Economic growth, democratization and rising social tolerance have all contributed to rising happiness, with democratization and rising tolerance having even more impact than economic growth. All of these changes have contributed to providing people with a wider range of choice in how to live their lives---which is a key factor in happiness.

The people of rich countries tend to be happier than those of poor countries, but even controlling for economic factors, certain types of societies are much happier than others.

"The results clearly show that the happiest societies are those that allow people the freedom to choose how to live their lives," Inglehart said. As an example, Inglehart points to the tolerant social norms and democratic political systems in Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Canada all of which rank among the 10 happiest countries in the world.

"The events of the past 25 years have brought a growing sense of freedom that seems to be even more important than economic development in contributing to rising happiness," Inglehart said. "Moreover, the most effective way to maximize happiness seems to change with rising levels of economic development. In subsistence-level societies, happiness is closely linked with in-group solidarity, religiosity and national pride. At higher levels of economic security, free choice has the largest impact on happiness."

He also notes that the largest recent increases on the subjective well-being index, measuring both happiness and life-satisfaction, occurred in the Ukraine, followed by Moldova, Slovenia, Nigeria, Turkey and Russia.

"While most ex-communist countries show low levels of happiness, many of them show large recent increases in subjective well-being," Inglehart said. "The collapse of communism was generally followed by a sharp decline in well-being, which tended to rise again with economic recovery."

Comparing World Values Survey data from 1981 to 2007 with earlier data from 1946 from the World Database of Happiness, Inglehart and colleagues found that 19 of 24 countries show rising happiness and several countries---India, Ireland, Mexico, Puerto Rico and South Korea---show steeply rising trends. Only four countries show downward trends---Austria, Belgium, the United Kingdom and West Germany. For more information on happiness trends in more than 20 nations, visit: http://www.worldvaluessurvey.org/happinesstrends

The World Values Surveys in the United States and in several other countries are funded by the National Science Foundation. Additional funding for the surveys comes from a variety of agencies and foundations around the world, including the Swedish and Netherlands Foreign Ministries.

For more information on the World Values Survey: http://www.worldvaluessurvey.org/

News from China's Earthquake Front

Our political-science expert, Patrice McMahon, Ph.D., headed to China earlier this spring for an extended sabbatical. We’re happy to report that Patrice, her husband, Jeff Cole, and their two young daughters, Hanna, 11, and Julia, 8, were north of the earthquake that hit on May 12; all four are safe and sound. What they have witnessed in the Chinese people and government since this disaster, Patrice says, has been surprising and inspiring. She and Jeff submit this story:

TWO SIDES TO A COIN
reported by Patrice McMahon, with Jeff Cole

On the first day of class, a graduate student from Xian’s Jiaotong University reminded me that, especially in China, “there are always two sides to a coin.” Experiencing China’s May 12 earthquake while living in the Xi’an, in the Shaanxi province just north of the earthquake’s epicenter in Sichuan with our two daughters, we have indeed seen both sides of what is beginning to be called China’s 5/ 12 disaster coin.

When the earthquake happened, we quickly compared it to our natural disaster reference point, Hurricane Katrina, but within a day we realized that disaster and the Chinese response was quite unlike anything that we had seen in the U.S. On television, in newspapers, and through the Internet, we’ve learned about the extent of the destruction, and the statistics are horrific: as of this writing, over 69,000 confirmed dead, some 20,000 still missing, over 350,000 injured, and more than 15 million displaced. Given that more than one-third of the country’s population lives on about two dollars a day, responding to this level of death and destruction might seem daunting, if not impossible.

Evidently not for China and certainly not for the Chinese people, who have cultivated a way of life based on overcoming the challenges they have faced over their long history. While not diminishing the human suffering stemming from this epic disaster, we have been impressed by the response of key sectors of the Chinese nation, namely, the central government, the growing nongovernmental organization (NGO) sector, and, most of all, the Chinese public, all are confronting this challenge with an admirable sense of purpose and unity.

We are sure that Western newspapers have covered the destruction in great detail. Hopefully, they have complimented the Chinese government for its rapid, serious response. But the underlying story of the triumph of human character is, as always, more difficult to capture. The story behind the statistics is the impact that this event has had on galvanizing the “Chinese street,” where concern and resolve are palpable. While people are transfixed by images from the disaster area that are broadcast on a variety of media, there seems to be little desperation or hopelessness. Instead, there is a “roll up the sleeves and get to work” determination, and, surprisingly, deep gratitude at the outpouring of outside support.

When we turn off the television and discuss what we as a family have learned from the events of the last two weeks, we find ourselves marveling at how the Chinese are confidently if quietly dealing with this unprecedented tragedy—a disaster that continues with every aftershock, mudslide, and potential flood.

It seems like every school, organization, and business is raising money for Sichuan, and young people all over the country are out in the streets looking for donations or giving blood at the many mobile blood vans that are out in full force. Those who cannot give, like the 75-year-old woman from Sichuan, are volunteering or giving in other ways. A tear-evoking example is in the Sichuan policewoman with a newborn child who was nursing multiple infants whose mothers were either killed in the quake or too traumatized to care for their children. The deeply felt national concern over the fate of affected children has been moving. On May 22, there were 1,697 orphans, but just a day later, the number dropped to 494; and rest assured, despite the country’s developing status, there are more people willing to adopt than there are orphans from Sichuan.

And then there are the heartbreaking, but inspiring stories told by people who have lost the most; a man who lost his wife and daughter but thanked everyone who has helped him deal with his loss; or parents who wrote in the local paper that as sad as they are that their only son was lost, they are grateful that one of his teachers was so devoted to her class that she ran back into the school to save more children. The teacher was found pinned underneath the school holding two of her students. Or, the parents who responded to the death of their only child by expressing gratitude for he six years of joy that they had with him.

Although parents and the country as a whole mourn their losses, life goes on in China at its normal breakneck pace. Children in Sichuan are back in school and high school graduates are taking their college entrance exams in tents. Relief efforts are already transitioning to reconstruction and within a week, there will be temporary shelter for between 50,000–100,000 people. The central government has promised that within three months there will be temporary houses for at least 1 million people. Factories throughout China have been working 24–7 to ensure that food and shelter are provided for the victims. Over 100,000 people in uniform remain deployed throughout the region to move boulders, clear clogged lakes, and carry in food, water, and other emergency supplies, despite the instability caused by aftershocks and flooding in the region.

On the international front, the government’s openness to this scale of this disaster resulted in an unprecedented outpouring of aid, with relief assistance coming from more than 40 countries. China’s 5/12 has also helped bring Taiwan and China closer than they have ever been, with China’s President noting how moved he was by the “brotherly love and care” shown by the Taiwanese. Similarly, relief efforts have also created an opportunity for China and Japan to reexamine their age old conflicts.

Domestically, the earthquake may also prove to be a watershed event for the Chinese government, which has displayed remarkable openness and honesty concerning the events, the extent of devastation, and the difficulties ahead. It has also opened the door to cooperation between the government and nongovernmental relief and aid organizations. China has long hoped to develop this sector more fully and the scope of this disaster seems to have provided the stimulus the government needed to more fully engage this group. If a more robust NGO sector is an eventual outcome of this tragedy, it is quite likely that it will lead to a higher quality of life for all Chinese and even more international engagement.

So, while no country or person ever welcomes tragedy, especially something of this magnitude, the earthquake has taught us a great deal about China’s true character and its people’s resilience. It has also reminded us that the other side of even a dark coin may hold the promise of a brighter future.

Read more of Patrice and Jeff's experiences in China at http://mcmahon-cole.blogspot.com/

More College Students Are Exploring the Big Questions

At City University of New York the number of philosophy majors has increased an amazing 51 percent since 2002. In fact, more colleges nationwide are offering undergraduate philosophy programs, and in those with established programs, like Texas A&M, UMass Amherst, and Notre Dame, enrollment has doubled since the 1990s.

What's up? The New York Times reports, "Once scoffed at as a luxury major, philosophy is being embraced . . . by a new generation of students who are drawing modern-day lessons from the age-old discipline as they try to make sense of their world, from the morality of the war in Iraq to the latest political scandal."

In addition to the growing number of students majoring in philosophy, the number of students minoring in it is also up. So, while Jane and John Student are studying medicine, economics, political science, etc., readying themselves for careers in which they'll have an influence on our overall society, isn't it nice to know they are (voluntarily!) taking philosophy courses to develop their skills in writing, critical thinking, and analyzing the big moral questions.

More People Are Getting on the Bus . . .

. . . and the subway. According to the American Public Transportation Association, the number of people using public transit has risen dramatically—30 percent since 1995. That's more than double the growth rate of the population.

Partly in response to rising gas prices, partly in response to growing consciousness about the environmental impact of automobiles, the change is a good sign.

Which reminds us, as Earth Day approaches (April 22), let's challenge ourselves, shall we? First, let's show the Earth some respect by giving a moment of thanks and committing to becoming more conscious of what we consume day to day. And second, by believing that it is, indeed, possible for human beings to live on this planet in a way that sustains it. After all, what we believe matters!

Seeing Beyond TO DO Lists

We Americans love setting goals. We dream of accomplishing big things. But with our dreams and To Do lists in hand, we tend to forget that, sometimes, so-called average people end up doing extraordinary deeds just by paying attention to what's in front of them.

Such is the case with Detroit native Viola Vaughn. Viola picked herself up after personal tragedy and did what needed to be done, no major, far-reaching goal in mind. The result is something far better than she could ever had imagined for herself.

Read and watch "The Best Job I Ever Had In My Life," for the inspiring story of Viola Vaughn and “10,000 Girls,” a project in which hundreds of “failing” school girls are now teaching each other and becoming entrepreneurs.

Dropping the Cafeteria Tray

InsideHigherEd.com reports that students at Alfred University "ran a test last semester showing that on two days when trays weren’t offered, food and beverage waste dropped between 30 and 50 percent . . . That amounts to about 1,000 pounds of solid waste and 112 gallons of liquid waste saved on a weekly basis, according to the college."

By taking only what they can carry, even though they can go back for seconds if they choose, students are more likely to take less, eat less, and waste less, reducing the school's food-bill bottom line significantly, and probably reducing the bottoms of some students as well.

University officials say student weight control isn't their mission with this effort. It's about reducing waste and consuming less water (those hundreds of trays have to be washed, after all). And, less food wasted means less food shipped, which means fewer trucks on the road, which means lower gas consumption, which means . . . You get the picture.

Other universities also are testing the trayless cafeteria, including the University of Connecticut, which has a three-week trayless trial underway. School officials are prepared for some student complaints. Change, no matter how beneficial, always faces some degree of resistance.

On March 29, Be in the Dark!

Can one grand gesture change the world? Participate in this year's Earth Hour and we'll all find out together. It’s simple. On March 29 at 8 pm, your local time—turn off your lights for one hour. That's it.

Earth Hour started last year, March 31, in Sydney, Australia, when 2.2 million people and 2,100 businesses turned off their lights for one hour in hopes of inspiring the rest of the world to take action on climate change. Sydney icons such as the Harbour Bridge and Opera House turned off their lights, weddings and other events were held in candlelight, and the world took notice.

What was the environmental impact? If the greenhouse reduction achieved in Sydney during Earth Hour 2007 was sustained for a year, it would be equivalent to taking 48,616 cars off the road for a year.

As of today's date, nearly 200,000 individuals and over 13,000 companies have officially signed up on the Earth Hour Web site. Cities around the world have also pledged their participation, too. According to the Earth Hour Site, “Chicago will serve as the U.S. flagship city for Earth Hour in 2008, with Atlanta, Phoenix and San Francisco joining as leading partner cities. But everyone throughout the US and around the world is invited and encouraged to turn off their lights . . . whether at home or at work, with friends and family or solo, in a big city or a small town.”

So, let’s spread the word. Then turn off those lights!

Go, Crimson!

Harvard Law School will waive tuition for third-year students who pledge to spend five years working either for nonprofit organizations or the government. The New York Times reports on Harvard's efforts to encourage students to choose careers in public service.

Word Up

Words are important. When a new one appears in our lexicon it's generally pointing to some new idea or trend that has taken hold in society.

In our Word Up series, we'll be featuring new words that point up—up to positive ideas and trends. As do, for example, these two new words and their variations:

voluntourism (voluntourists, voluntours)
Voluntourism businesses have sprung up to meet the demand of voluntourists, people of all ages and backgrounds who volunteer their time and effort to worthy causes by spending their vacations on voluntours.

ecotourism (ecotourist, ecotours)
Ecotourism is similar to voluntourism in that it involves travel, the difference being that ecotourists prefer ecotours—traveling to destinations that feature exposure to and education about local flora and fauna—and vacationing in a way that respects and conserves natural resources.

Have you heard a positive new word? Please share it with us at share@andnowforthegoodnews.com.

Good News for Employees Everywhere

When you win that lottery tomorrow, you’ll quit your job, right? You might want to revisit that decision. A new study from the American Sociological Association has some good news for worker bees everywhere.

"Although people who work give up some independence, the study found that being employed does lead to better health," says lead study author John Mirowksy, sociology professor with the Population Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin. "One thing that surprised us was that the daily activities of employed persons are more creative than those of non-employed persons of the same sex, age, and level of education."

And why is creativity important? Because, says Mirowsky, "the health advantage of being somewhat above average in creative work [in the 60th percentile] versus being somewhat below average [in the 40th percentile] is equal to being 6.7 years younger."

It is also equal to having two more years of education or 15 times greater household income, Mirowsky adds.

In other words, a little creative employment each day makes you healthier, wealthier, and wiser.

For more on the study, click here. (Thanks to our intern Lindsay Nigro for finding this sociology report.)

For a little further work-related inspiration, read our earlier story, "Daydreaming with Fortune Magazine."

A New San Diego Homebuilder Takes a Chance and Sets a New Standard

In 2001, SheaHomes, a new national homebuilding company, built 306 homes called the Scripps Highlands development in northern San Diego. Not just another neighborhood of McMansions, Scripps Highlands marks the first time in the U.S. that a builder has set out to design and construct a development of highly energy efficient homes, also known as “high performance homes” (HPHs). Now, almost seven years later, the development has proven to be a success both financially and environmentally.

Set on the lots to maximize the position of the sun, the homes include solar technology to generate electricity as well as an energy-saving package with features such as tightly sealed-ducts, solar radiant barriers, and special heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems. The result: a whopping 30­–60% savings in energy costs.

In addition, the Scripps Highland development is also the first in the country to use “net metering,” an electricity policy in which homeowners receive retail credit for at least a portion of the electricity their systems generate. Watching your energy meter spin backward is not only exciting from an environmental standpoint, it puts money in your pocket.

What's perhaps most surprising about the SheaHomes venture is that according to a study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL):

the Scripps Highland homes were profitable for the builders while still being competitively priced with the traditional homes in the area ($602,000 for a Scripps home; $615,000 for a conventional home)

the Scripps Highland homes have appreciated at a higher rate than the comparable conventional homes in the area (55% versus 44% from 2001 to 2005)

homebuyer satisfaction is higher for the Scripps Highland homes than for the comparable conventionally built homes

So, the builders are making a profit, people are buying and loving the homes, which are in turn appreciating nicely, and the environment is benefiting—sounds like SheaHomes has launched a trendsetting idea.

To learn more, read "A New Paradigm for Zero-Energy Homes: A Comparison Case Study" by Barbara Farhar and Timothy Coburn (Environment, Jan/Feb 2008).

When A Pig Gives Us the Finger, We Pay Attention

From the Yikes This Could Change Our Perception About Everything department comes an article from science writer Michael Rosenwald: "A Doctor, a Pig, and a Magical Pixie Dust That Could Regrow Fingers" (Esquire, September 18, 2007). If the report wasn't from a reputable writer, printed in a reputable source, we'd dismiss this as tabloid nonsense. Regrow a finger. Yeah, sure. But read the article and see for yourself. The before and after pictures on page 2 are vivid, to say the least.

We'll be keeping our nose to this story. If any of you run across any follow-up to this one, we'd love to hear from you! Email us at sueandpam@andnowforthegoodnews.com.

In Search of the Emerald (Green) City

In 1900, 10% of the world’s population lived in cities. In 2007, that number was up to 50%. By 2050, experts predict the number will be as high as 75%. There's a benefit to this migration, says Richard Burdett, director of the Urban Age program, organized by the London School of Economics and Deutsche Bank’s Alfred Herrhausen Society. While suburban areas demand larger, less-efficient electrical grids and extended public transportation systems, this is not the case with cities.

“The prospect of such an enormous urban boom in just a few generations offers a critical opportunity: to create cities that will improve, not diminish, the standards of living for millions of new city dwellers,” says Burdett (Foreign Policy, “Beyond City Limits,” Jan/Feb 2008).

The really good news is that many cities across the globe already are working toward sustainability. In fact, it seems that cities in over half a dozen countries are competing to become the first “eco-city.” Two cities, in fact, are being built from scratch. AbuDhabi, for example, has begun construction on Masdar, a 2.5-square mile city that will ban automobiles and rely on a solar-powered driverless taxi system for public transportation. In China, Dontang Eco-City, designed to house 500,000 people, is being built on an island near Shanghai. Sixty percent of the land will be designated green spaces and farmland for local food, most energy will be renewable (sun, wind, and biomass fuels), and the city’s design is planned around pedestrian villages, bicycles, and fuel-cell public transportation.

Other established cities are implementing changes that will alter energy use and lower emissions dramatically, including the use of solar, wind, and even tidal power. “Cities have to be competitive,” says William Cobbett, manager of Cities Alliance an ICLEI, a UN Enviromentment Program. Not only is the environment becoming a major factor in more and more people’s choices of where to live (94% of professionals surveyed in Hong Kong, for example, ranked the environment as the top factor in selecting a place to live), it’s also a major factor when cities look for investment money. Cities, says Cobbett, “operate in a global marketplace, competing with other cities and urban settlements around the world for investment. A city cannot compete, however, if it cannot offer investors security, infrastructure, and efficiency. Hardly any city can offer these elements without incorporating environmental issues into its planning and management strategies” (United Nations Environment Program, “Cities Play the Green Card To Achieve Success,” December 11, 2007).

Many think economic considerations will be the ruin of the environment. The reality is, economic considerations may end up being the very thing that helps heal and sustain this beautiful Earth.

To learn more, read the UN’s “Liveable Cities: The Benefits of Urban Environmental Planning” report. It provides 12 case studies of cities around the world that are making important environment-based changes. We can, of course, learn from their example.

"A Major New Study Concludes . . ."

Isn’t it satisfying when we hear “a major new study concludes” something that we already know. Take love for instance. If you’ve read, watched, or heard, any news this week, you’re probably aware of this breaking news: “Nothing keeps the heart healthy like the feeling of being in love, says a Vanderbilt Heart and Vascular Institute cardiologist.”

Yes, it’s Valentine’s week and news media everywhere are pulling out their annual Love Research, this study and that telling us love is good for our heart health. Which, of course, we all know. Hold a newborn baby, meet someone who makes your heart sing, or look at that person you’ve been with for how-many-years-now and still adore, and you just know it’s good for that muscle in your chest.

Sure, Valentine’s Day, like so many of our holidays, can be cheesy and cliché, over the top and commercial. We can become jaded. But, really, is there a better thing in this world to celebrate than love?

So today, let’s be corny and cheesy and over the top, with people we know and people we don’t. Write that letter, make that call, send that donation, or just smile at the person in the grocery line behind you. Radiate love.

Studies show it’s good for your heart.

Daydreaming with Fortune Magazine

Feeling stifled in your current job? Feel you have talents that aren’t being used? Check out Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies To Work For” (February 4, 2008).

Times they are a changin’, so is the workplace. The innovations some companies are implementing will surprise you. Learn which companies are expanding in leaps and bounds and likely to be looking for fresh staff with leadership qualities (hint: see companies number 4 & 7 for starters). Learn which company offers valuable stock options to 99% of its employees (and is, again, #1 on the list); which company offers doggie daycare and an onsite farmers' market (surprise, it’s a techy company); and which medical employer offers an employee volunteer program called “No One Dies Alone.”

Browse and daydream, you’ll soon remember that your work can and should be a place where you contribute and grow and, yes, even have fun. Who knows, the list may even inspire you to initiate changes in yourself and the workplace you’re already in. Imagine the possibilities.

Corporations Are Hiring a New Kind of Executive

"Once top brass decide to integrate environmental goals into their company's business plan, someone has to be in charge of turning press releases into results," writes Dashka Slater in "Keep Your Eye on the Globe: The New World of Corporate Environmental Officers, (Sierra magazine January/February 2008). "Enter the new kids in the executive suite: corporate sustainability officers."

Sierra interviewed six sustainability officers in six different industries—Nike, Dupont, Dell, Herman Miller, Kraft Foods, and Goldman Sachs. Nike, for example, has switched to digital mock-ups of new designs, reducing waste, since most samples often wind up in landfills; Dell "has committed to recycling or reusing 99 percent of the waste from its manufacturing facilities by 2012 (it has already cut out 93 percent)."

What these companies, and many more, are discovering is that finding environmental solutions adds up to piles of that other kind of green. High-end furniture company Herman Miller, for example, found that reducing their waste saves them "about $50,000 per year, while income from recycling last year topped $1.8 million."

Read the full, solutions-oriented report at Sierra.

20-Somethings Send a Message to the Future

What will the future bring? Who will you be in 25 years? AARP recently asked the 20-somethings of America to speculate, via a one-minute video, what their lives will be like at 50.


Click here for our favorite of the winning videos, "Lost Generation."

Our Expert Dr. Bill Holt Reports:

AARP has opened a window for intergenerational contact and discussion by sponsoring a contest for young adults to glimpse into their own future. Using the medium of YouTube, five college students have won cash prizes for their entries. Three of the prize winners were majoring in film or video; two of them were my students majoring in psychology. Taken together, all five winners mixed video-craft with message to produce short films that exhibit not only cinematic panache but their view of tomorrow as seen today.

Watching these videos is fun but also informative as it allows us baby boomers to see how a younger generation sees us as they portray themselves in middle age. What will be their values, their priorities, their hopes and aspirations? I was excited to incorporate this contest into my class last semester and even more excited to find that two of my students placed in the top five. What I've taken away from watching these videos is an increased confidence that these 20-something college students can and will address the challenge of becoming adults in the 21st century. Where they will be at 50 is not a dream but a commitment. After 36 years in the classroom, I certainly am entitled to be jaundiced about the current generation of college students, but these videos have erased my skepticism.

If you feel distanced from those half or even a third of your age, just watch, marvel, and appreciate these videos. Knowing that the next generation share many of our values and are committed to working hard to achieve their place in our society actually is good news!

UNICEF Reports a 60% Drop in Child Mortality Since 1960

The United Nations Children's Fund, better known as UNICEF, reports that solid progress has been made in saving children's lives around the world. In its annual The State of the World's Children report, UNICEF estimates that there's been a 60% drop in the rate of child mortality since 1960.

There's still much to be done, says UNICEF. By using low-cost tools and involving local communities in providing health-care services to mothers and children, many more lives can be saved.

How can you help? Learn about the various ways in which you can volunteer and donate by visiting The United States Fund for UNICEF. Charity Navigator gives this charity its highest rating (four stars). An impressive 90.8% of money donated goes directly to programs that provide nutrition, education, HIV/AIDS prevention and care, and immunization.

By the way, did you know that the United States Fund for UNICEF is the oldest of 37 national committees for UNICEF worldwide? It's been around since 1947 and supports the work of UNICEF, improving children's day-to-day lives in 155 countries, not only providing food, water, and medicine, but also safety, peace, and hope.

Imagine how the children helped by UNICEF must feel knowing that so many people around the world care about their fate.

American Idol Has America Singing a New Tune

Fess up. Are you one of the millions addicted to American Idol? Doesn’t it just make you want to belt out a song? If so, maybe you should learn how to properly use that beautiful instrument in your throat. (Simon Cowell will thank you.)

Several colleges and universities are starting to train instructors for a new type of music course. This weekend, for instance, the University of Massachusetts is offering an instructor certification course called “Vocal Pedagogy in the New Millennium” (roughly translated, "Teaching Voice for Popular Music").

Rock, pop, rap, country, gospel, jazz, and folk—the predominant popular forms of music in the past 50 years or so—all fall under the tag “Contemporary Commercial Music” or CCM. Until recently, however, if a person wanted to sing professionally in these styles the only real option was classical vocal training. Problem is, the vocal skills and style required to sing a classical piece from, say, the opera La Boheme, are different than those required to sing a CCM—say, a tune from Broadway's Sweeney Todd or a country hit like Get My Drink On.

As we reported earlier in “Dr. Bill's Alzheimer’s Reality Check," activities such as learning to ballroom dance, speak a foreign language, or play a musical instrument all exercise the brain, keep the synapses nimble. Learning to sing is no exception. And, as is true when we submerge ourselves in beautiful art, it brings joy to our lives. Whether we’re singing in the shower, in our local choir, or to an audience of millions, music makes us happy. Learning how to use that built-in instrument—our voice—could very well contribute to our overall physical and mental well-being.

So, did American Idol start this trend? There’s no way of knowing, really, but it doesn’t seem a stretch to think so. After all, TV is always shaping popular culture, influencing us in ways we’re not always paying attention to.

(The UMass music course was brought to our attention by our excellent college intern Chandni Patel. )

Former Taliban Fighter Works Toward a Better Future for All

Just 17 when Taliban recruiters came to his impoverished village in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, Shaukat Ali was trained to be a killer and sent to Afghanistan. "It was there, in Afghanistan, that Ali began to question the Taliban ideology in general and its treatment of women in particular," writes Karin Ronnow (Ode, November 2007).

In another powerful, solutions-oriented article from Ode, we meet Shaukat Ali, who went from Taliban fighter to teacher at the Patika Girls’ School in Kashmir. He's making a difference that will affect us all.

The Taliban preys on the uneducated. "Ali is convinced educating girls in particular is the only way his country will change," writes Rannow. "Female literacy in the villages runs at about 4 percent. But educated girls will become educated mothers, argues Ali, and insist on education for their children, which could set the nation on a new track."

Click here to read Karin Ronnow's excellent "The Transformation of an Extremist."

New Year's Resolution Assessment

So how are they going, those new year's resolutions? Here's one we think you should add to your list. It's guaranteed to improve your general outlook and will spill over into all the other things you're trying to accomplish:

Take the Good News Diet Challenge.

What we focus on matters. Call it positive thinking or the law of attraction or conscious creation, or whatever label you choose—what we think about day to day, what we believe, affects our lives. So make this the year you get positive. Take the Good News Diet Challenge and stay informed with positive, solutions-oriented news. We're here to help you with the And Now for the Good News book, Web site, and Regular Dose newsletter.

Take charge of your mind; take charge of your news. It'll make all the difference.

If you're already taking the challenge, good for you! Let us know how it's going by emailing us as sueandpam@andnowforthegoodnews.com.

Spread the news!

Lighten Your Mail Carrier's Load

Browsing catalogs can be fun, but how many of us are really interested in that regular copy of Necessary Stuff for People Who Love Their Iguana?

There's a free, simple way to get off the mailing list of the catalogs filling up your recycle bin. Visit CatalogChoice.org. After a fast and painless sign-up, you can request which catalogs you'd like canceled.

Add the site to your Favorites list and add catalogs as you receive them. You'll save a tree. You'll save that Iguana supply company some cash. You'll save your mail carrier's back. It's all good.

Plan Ahead, Have the Last Word

This year, rather than the usual Lose 10 Pounds, Save Money, Treat the In-Laws Better kind of resolutions, why not do something that'll shake up your life a little? Like, say, plan your last words.

Really, what would you like to be able to say about yourself when your time is winding down?

For inspiration, we recommend The New York Times' Last Word series. Similar to The Last Lecture series, which we told you about in an earlier report, The Last Word is a series of interviews with famous and influential people about their lives, with the specific purpose of being viewed only upon their deaths.

The first Last Word installment, released in January 2007, was an interview with Pulitzer Prize winning columnist Art Buchwald. The interview took place five months earlier and wasn't made public until the day of Buchwald’s passing. Facing the camera with a smile, “Hi,” he says, “I’m Art Buchwald and I’ve just died.”

It’s an amazing interview with a man full of life and wit right up until his last moments on this good Earth. It inspires us to ask ourselves, “What would I like to be able to say about myself when the time comes? And how do I start being that me today?"

The ABCs of Peace

As we're in the season of peace, the time of year when we collectively turn our attention to the idea, let's focus for a minute on one example of how a growing group of adults and children are applying the idea in a very practical and effective way.

"In a city marked by division," writes Donald Macintyre "the Max Rayne school is unique—the only one in Jerusalem where pupils, principals and teachers are from Jewish and Arab communities" ("Peace Studies: Children of Israel," The Independent, October 18, 2007).

Max Rayne is a Hand in Hand school, designed to promote Jewish-Arab coexistence. It's all about balance. The schools feature co-principals, one Arab and one Jewish; each classroom is taught by co-teachers, one Jewish and one Arab; and the student body is a balance of Arab and Jewish children. All classes are taught in both Hebrew and Arabic.

Let children learn and play and even argue together and the result is, well, not all that surprising considering how kids everywhere take to one another.

Macintyre describes talking to Yazid Ershed, an Arab boy, and Aviv Pek, a Jewish girl, who started kindergarten together. "They completed each other's sentences several times," he says. " 'I like the school and I really like the teachers,' says Aviv. 'I have lots of Arab friends. One of my best friends is an Arab girl and, of course, she comes to my house.' "

"It is hard to overestimate the importance, pioneering rather than merely symbolic, of the school in a city whose religious and ethnic divisions are at the absolute heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," says Macintyre.

Hand in Hand launched in 1998 with 40 students. In the 2006-2007 academic year, there were 751 pupils. Some world-wide media attention will not only cause those numbers to rise, it will show the world that coexistence is an option in the middle east, and around the world.

Click here to read personal stories from Hand in Hand students, teachers, principals, and volunteers.

“Get them while they are young!” says our expert Patrice McMahon, political scientist at the University of Nebraska:

Like the Hand in Hand initiative in Israel, reconciliation experts working in post-conflict environments realize how important it is to target young people. In places like Bosnia, Macedonia, and Latvia, for example, there is a similar emphasis on developing multi-ethnic education as well as extra-curricular activities to promote social tolerance and build peace.

The point is not to focus on differences but to bring out the similarities between groups, the common problems they face, or the interests that unite them. In Mostar, Bosnia, the Pavarotti Center Mortar was established because "music is a part of all of us and it erases all differences." The trendy Center not surprisingly attracts Bosnian, Serb, and Croat young people to listen to music and just hang out.

When I asked the Director of this Center how she knew this was an effective approach to national reconciliation, she told me to walk about and remember that this was one of the few places where young people could gather without concern for ethnicity. They were there because of their love of music; it united them much more than their parents' tragic pasts.

With this said, parental involvement and support from the community is crucial for these schools to have the intended impact on tolerance and ethnic reconciliation. Intolerance and hate is nurtured at home, and what some experts are realizing is that schools and youth initiatives and yes, even concert halls are a way of educating parents through their teenage children.

From all of us here at And Now for the Good News, we wish you and yours a peace-filled holiday season and 2008. Let's imagine the possibilities!

Charity Can Really Make You Rich

When we say giving is its own reward we don’t mean financial reward, but that’s just what research is pointing out.

“Emerging evidence,” says economist Arthur C. Brooks, "crunchy statistics from real data, not the mushy self-help stuff—supports the contention that giving stimulates prosperity, for both individuals and nations. Charity, it appears, can really make you rich.”

In fact, says Brooks, research data shows this: “More giving doesn't just correlate with higher income; it causes higher income.”

If you missed him on this weekend's (excellent) Marketplace report (American Public Media) read Brooks' "Giving Makes You Rich" (Conde Nast Portfolio.com, November 2007).

Food for thought in this season of giving.

Ugly American Tourists No More (Well, Almost)

The votes are in. After surveying over 15,000 hoteliers throughout Europe, Expedia has presented the 2007 Best Tourist League rankings. The good news: we Americans have come a long way in shedding our ugly American tourist label.

That's right, Americans placed second in the Overall Best Tourists category. (The Japanese took first place.) One thing that seems to have helped us rise in the overall rankings: Americans rank first in our willingness to attempt to speak the local language, which is seen as a sign of respect for one’s host country. Not to mention it shows we’re intelligent, curious, and open to other cultures.

According to the rankings, with a little effort in two areas, we can take first place next time: Review those 10 Keys to Civility—and leave the velvet track suits at home!

For the complete rankings, click here.

Turns Out High Fashion and Small Town America Work Well Together

Say the name "Plainville, Kansas" and your mind probably doesn't fly to images of glamour or cutting edge style, but something surprising is going on in Plainville. When Chuck Comeau set up his high-fashion business operation in the rural town, it created hundreds of local jobs and is proving to be a very profitable and positive move. Comeau is now encouraging other small businesses to give rural America a try. For the full article and some tips and resources for small-business owners and entrepreneurs, read business reporter David LaGesse's "How to Make a Killing in Small Town America" (U.S. News & World Report, November 12, 2007).

Feed Your Mind, Feed the World

Thanks to our readers Pierre from Canada and Patrice from Nebraska, we have something for you, oh, literate ones: a free online word game that should come with a warning it's so addictive. But, it's an addiction you can feel good about, because for each word you get correct, you donate 20 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program. Twenty grains of rice—doesn't sound like much, but give it a try. Those grains add up quickly. Who pays for the rice? Advertisers on the site.

Build your vocabulary, exercise your mind, and help feed the world. Simply brilliant. Go to FreeRice.com.

Dr. Bill’s Alzheimer’s Reality Check

For all the times “Alzheimer’s” appears in the news media these days, you’d think we were in the midst of an epidemic. To get a little perspective on the issue, we turned to our expert, psychology professor, William Holt, Ph.D., whose special areas of study includes adulthood and aging.

First of all, Dr. Bill, as we like to call him, points out that there are various forms of dementia, Alzheimer’s being one of them. The good news, he says: “Dementia, or the older term, senility, whether Alzheimer’s or one of the various forms, is not the fate of the vast majority of us.”

In the 65 and older age group, fewer than 7 out of 100 have Alzheimer's disease. Most of the other dementias are either rare—fewer than 1 in 1,000!—or are part of a particular disease such as Parkinson's. Yet there's considerable anxiety among baby boomers approaching 65 that they’re developing Alzheimer's. "Anticipatory Alzheimer's" is the term given to those in their late 50s and early 60s who are convinced that their memories are failing, and that being confined to a nursing home will be their fate.

"We all have what we might call 'senior moments,' " says Dr. Bill, "but just because we can't remember a particular word, who starred in a favorite movie from years ago, or what we were supposed to buy at the hardware store doesn’t mean Alzheimer's is the inevitable result. There are lots of changes in memory function over time which are perfectly normal and do not signal the onset of a debilitating disease such as Alzheimer's."

Sigh of relief, there, huh? In addition, there are things we can do to help keep our minds vigorous and healthy throughout our old age.

Here's Dr. Bill's Prescription for Maintaining Mental Sharpness:

GOOD news! A number of studies show there's a link between what people do and being able to avoid Alzheimer's. These do not provide causal proof, but taken together can provide us with hope and ways that might minimize our risk of developing Alzheimer's. I would put most of these measures under the umbrella of "use it or lose it."

One study concluded that loneliness was a predictive factor in the development of Alzheimer's disease; another found those seniors who played bridge or completed cross-word puzzles had a lesser incidence of Alzheimer's. Add to that studies showing the lesser rate of dementia in those who read, played musical instruments, and even engaged in ballroom dancing! In fact whole Web sites are devoted to getting all of us, regardless of age, to play cognitive games in order to flex our brain muscles.

In other words, we must continue to think, or we’ll lose the ability to think! Which may be the reason grumpy old men (and women) have less Alzheimer's. They work really hard to argue, question, confront, and challenge everyone and everything—their brains never stop working!

I'm not suggesting that we become crabby old people, but I am suggesting that we add mental exercises to our daily routine just as we've been encouraged to exercise physically.

One interesting development along these lines is the “seniors on college campus” trend. Instead of sectioning themselves off in exclusively senior communities in the sunshine states, more and more seniors are opting to live in college-linked retirement communities. Being around physically and mentally active people, of all ages, and having access to lifelong learning and activities—college classes, lectures, and debates, concerts, sports, and more—help keep a mind active and healthy.

So, what are you waiting for? Sign up for those ballroom dancing or piano lessons, learn that foreign language you’ve been talking about, play some of the new games specifically designed to exercise the brain (Nintendo’s Brain Age is one of many in a growing market). You’ll enrich your life and build a stronger brain in the process.

Resources:

PBS has a terrific new 90-minute special, "The Brain Fitness Program."

Computer programs such as MindFit are designed specifically for adults looking to keep their minds agile.

For more about seniors on campus, read “Colleges Offer Retirees Place To Live and Learn,” The Seattle Times and “List of Retirement Communities Affiliated With College Campuses,” AARP.

Meet 100-year-old Harry Shapiro (4-minute video), poster boy for what keeping one's mind active can do! Amazing.