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.

An Inspiring Look at America's Best Public High Schools

There are 18,000 public high schools in the U.S. and public opinion about how those schools are doing is pretty low. So, we'd like to offer a big pat on the back to U.S. News & World Report for their December 10, 2007 cover story, "America's Best High Schools." The magazine's first ever ranking of high schools is in-depth, solutions-oriented, and provides useful resources for parents.

"The top schools are a diverse bunch," says the report, "and each one has found its unique way to best teach our future leaders." The survey unearthed a lot of surprising, positive news:

Like any good photograph, the details of the data gathered for this project reveal a number of fascinating stories. Most notable is the variety among the schools that have earned the highest honor. Our first-place winner, Thomas Jefferson High School in suburban Washington, D.C., picks its students from the children of the nation's leaders. Yet just 10 slots lower, Hidalgo High School on the border of Texas and Mexico has found success educating a student body comprising the children of challenged immigrants. And in Boston, the nation's oldest school carries on an exemplary tradition while a new charter school explores innovations such as housing tutors in dormitories on the third floor of its building.

The report, with its various rankings (100 Gold Medalists, Silver and Bronze, too) and resources, is another good conversation-inducing story to share with your kids.

To find out how the schools in your state ranked, click here.

Treating Juvenile Offenders Like Kids Pays Off in Missouri

Each year almost 100,000 children are sent to juvenile detention centers across the U.S. "Whether those young offenders are actually 'corrected,' seems to depend a lot on where they’re confined," says Robert Siegel of National Public Radio's All Things Considered.

Recidivism rates vary from facility to facility. Texas, for example, houses kids in adult-style prisons. Their recidivism rate is over 50 percent. California's rate has been in the 70 and 80 percents. Missouri has taken a different approach. At the Northwest Regional Youth Center in Kansas City, young offenders are treated like kids. They're housed in facilities that resemble college dorms; they attend school classes each day, attend group therapy, and receive counseling. The results are impressive—the Missouri facility's recidivism rate is 7.3 percent.

Barry Krisberg, president of the National Council on Crime and Delinquency in Oakland, California, believes other states could learn from Missouri's success. "The basic logic of youth corrections is that if you treat young people like inmates, they'll act like prisoners," Krisberg says. "If you treat them like young people capable of being citizens, they'll much more likely act like citizens" ("Missouri Sees Teen Offenders As Kids, Not Inmates," text and podcast, October 30, 2007).

Missouri's approach illustrates that doing the right thing is also the right thing to do from an economic standpoint. Providing kids who wind up in juvenile facilities with education, therapy, and room to grow costs more money up front. But considering the average prison inmate costs taxpayers a minimum of $23,000 each year, investing up front just makes economic sense.

(The NPR article link above includes a 5-minute podcast. Jason Beaubien reports on Missouri’s success and talks with one of the boys at the center. It's well worth a listen.)

Our expert, Laura Berk,Ph.D., professor of developmental psychology, Illinois State University, weighs in:

Research confirms that the longer youths spend in prison, the more likely they are to strengthen their antisocial identities and peer networks. Keeping young offenders locked up for many months or years disrupts their educational and vocational lives and access to social support during a crucial period of development.

Missouri’s youth centers, in contrast, provide antisocial adolescents with multiple environmental pressures to alter their life course: school classes tailored to their educational and vocational needs, therapy that focuses on their emotional and behavioral problems, and dorm-like living quarters that provide predictable meals, comfortable living quarters, and regular adult supervision—basic needs that often are not met by offenders’ homes and communities.

At the heart of Missouri’s approach is an especially powerful motivating force for change: the opportunity to form bonds with ethical, responsible adults who believe in the young person’s capacity to become a productive citizen. A relationship with a competent, caring adult is one of the most consistent predictors of resilience—the ability to bounce back from adversity. Such adults also serve as sources of positive self-fulfilling prophecies: Their optimistic views of the young person rub off, and soon he or she internalizes those beliefs and starts to live up to them.

Missouri’s program for youth offenders demonstrates the importance of a fresh look at youth corrections and is an inspiring model for the nation.

Click here for a story that reminds us how much power one caring adult has to change the life of a troubled child.