All People Making a Difference
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9 ways to kick off a year of sharing in 2013
Leaders of sharing-based groups around the world offer ideas for how to make 2013 a year of sharing with each other, whether it's a car, meal, office space, child care, time, skills, or your home.
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Restoring US native prairies, acre by acre, yard by yard
Across the US Midwest, homeowners are restoring their yards and former farmland to the native prairie that existed in pre-settlement days. The benefits can be substantial — the need for less water and no fertilizer, and an ecosystem that supports wildlife.
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Difference Maker: A grandmother hunts for Argentina's grandchildren 'stolen' decades ago
Estela de Carlotto heads the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo, who seek to reunite children taken from their mothers during Argentina's military dictatorship with their real families.
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13 resolutions to improve the world's food supply in 2013
Nearly 1 billion people are still hungry and more than 1 billion others are overweight or obese. The need is for better access to better quality food.
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Nonprofits' message: Keep firewood close to home
Environmental groups are sending out a warning that transporting firewood across state lines can spread insects and diseases, wiping out swaths of forest and causing economic and environmental damage.
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How renewable energy is rescuing US schools from budget cuts
Educators across the country are finding millions of dollars in savings through cheap and simple forms of renewable energy. Since 2003, one school district has cut more than $7 million in energy costs. That equates to 45 teaching positions.
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FarmVille's game players bring clean water to the real world
Items purchased on Zynga's popular Facebook games FarmVille and Mafia Wars raise money for Water.org, which provides safe water and sanitation for people in the real world.
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Four ways to help 'contract farming' benefit the very poor
Contract farming – an agreement between a farmer and a buyer – offers many benefits to small farmers if they have access to education and legal services.
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Difference Maker: Entrepreneur Joe Edwards helps make St. Louis vibrant again
By restoring buildings and activity to a historic St. Louis neighborhood Joe Edwards has become a powerful force for civic good.
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Number of volunteers in US hits highest level since 2005
More than one-quarter of Americans did volunteer work in 2011, providing 7.9 billion hours of service worth $171 billion. Utah led among states. Iowans responded to their governor's call for volunteers.
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Give to people on the street? In cities, it's a daily dilemma
Whether to give to people on the street who ask for money is a complicated decision, with no easy right or wrong answer. It's a highly personal act that sometimes can be deeply rewarding.
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Mom in Argentina rescues hundreds of sex slaves
What began as a one-woman campaign a decade ago has become a movement, and today Susana Trimarco is a hero to hundreds of women she's rescued from prostitution rings in Argentina.
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Shoppers add charitable giving to their lists
Purchases that give a portion of the sale to a charity make shoppers feel good but may diminish overall giving to that charity, a consultant says.
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Kids Helping Kids is run by kids – and for kids
The Connecticut-based nonprofit youth group of middle schoolers and teens plans and carries out projects that make a positive difference in their community and beyond.
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Difference Maker: Izhar Gafni invents revolutionary cardboard bicycle
His two-wheeled creation, a $20 bike made out of cardboard, could revolutionize bicycling, especially in the developing world.
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Alta Gracia factory produces fair-trade clothing
For years, college student activists have pressured their schools to make sure clothing with college logos is sweatshop-free. Now, they have another choice: fair-trade clothing manufactured in the Dominican Republic by Alta Gracia.
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How one man learned to share – and saved $17,000 in one year
Neal Gorenflo found he could share cars, lodging, office space, even a nanny, saving him money and helping him to live in a more sustainable way.
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Would the lights go out if superstorm Sandy hit the Netherlands? Nope.
The US can learn from the modern, disaster-resistant electric grid in the Netherlands.
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Clean cookstoves in Mozambique lure big investors
CleanStar Mozambique is a combined effort among a mix of institutions centered around replacing traditional charcoal cooking stoves with stoves fueled by sustainably produced bio-ethanol.
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#GivingTuesday sparks a big spike in charitable donations
Gifts to charitable groups shot up 53 percent to $10 million on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, which is being promoted as #GivingTuesday.
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