All People Making a Difference
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$10M gift to restore slave quarters at Thomas Jefferson estate
A gift from a philanthropist will recreate Mulberry Row, which housed slaves at Monticello, the plantation of the author of the Declaration of Independence and the words 'all men are created equal.'
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Saudi Arabia launches first campaign to stop violence against women
Abuse of women has been a taboo subject, but in a bold first step a new advertising campaign encourages female victims to come out of hiding.
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A different road out of poverty: saving instead of borrowing
Microloans get all the publicity, but the key to upward mobility for the world's poor may be to rely on simple savings plans, which offer a debt-free way to build wealth, make investments, and better one's life.
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Civic Accelerator boosts young businesses who want to do good
The program funds five for-profit and five nonprofit startups, then throws them together to teach each other the best ways to get a social venture to succeed.
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Ben Affleck will live on $1.50 to support charity (+video)
Ben Affleck supports Live Below the Line by taking on the challenge of living on $1.50 per day, just as 1.4 billion people around the world must do every day.
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After Boston Marathon bombing: Faith in Watertown
A pastor at a suburban church in Watertown, Mass., reflects on the Boston Marathon bombing, the pursuit of a terrorist suspect to her town, and how her congregation lived through a nightmare to emerge 'filled with a mighty spirit … a holy one.'
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LeanIn.Org pushes women to stick with career ambitions
LeanIn.Org, founded by Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg, 'plans to focus on very practical and actionable skills that women can use in the workplace and that men and women can use to combat gender biases,' says its president, Rachel Thomas.
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EcoZoom builds a market for clean cookstoves in developing economies
In impoverished areas, people spend $1 to $2 per day to burn charcoal or wood to cook food, a huge expensive for them. A clean-burning cookstove cuts that cost by more than half.
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Copenhagen makes an ambitious push to be carbon neutral by 2025
More bicycle lanes, biomass generation, public transit, cooling buildings with seawater – it's all intended to make Copenhagen the world’s first carbon-neutral capital by 2025.
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Difference Maker: Paul Giniès turned a failing African university into a world-class problem-solver
Today 2iE is recognized as a 'center of excellence' producing top-notch home-grown African engineers ready to address the continent's problems.
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Patrons praise restaurant staff near Boston Marathon blast
Diners at Forum, a restaurant near the two bomb detonations at the Boston Marathon, laud the efforts of staffers who kept them calm and helped them to safety: 'They could have run like the rest of us, but they stayed there and showed us the way out.'
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Circle of Six aims to stop rape
A phone app that quickly alerts six friends if a woman feels threatened is expanding from the US to New Delhi and possibly Mexico City.
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After Boston Marathon blast, many show kindness to runners
Gestures were as small as offering a drink of orange juice or the use of a cell phone or bathroom to taking runners into their homes or businesses.
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Rural electric co-ops go green
Electric cooperatives have served rural Americans for generations. Some are taking advantage of their member-owned status to begin weaning their regions off of fossil fuels.
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Fiji students set to become the world's savviest savers
The project will teach money-management skills to young students in Fiji using innovative techniques, such as games, that engage as well as inform.
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Difference Maker: Claudio Miranda's music is taming a once-violent Brazilian neighborhood
Raised in one of the world's most dangerous neighborhoods in São Paulo, Brazil, he now helps youths reimagine themselves creatively through music, video production, art, performances, and education.
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Girls just want to have fun ... in high-tech careers
Girls Who Code steers young women toward careers in science and technology, fields traditionally dominated by men that face a shortage of workers in the future.
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Start an orphanage in the Philippines at age 80? Of course!
When a man offered to sell Lois Prater his child, her shock turned to action. Refusing to let her age stop her, she founded King's Garden Children's Home.
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In Lebanon, a doctor offers comfort and healing to refugees from neighboring wars
Dr. Irad Beldjebel spends his days not only treating refugees, but serving as an all-round counselor to those fleeing violence – a trusty shoulder to lean on for people who are often traumatized by the past and unsure about the future.
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How to curb invasive species? Eat 'em
Karen Monger says there's a more sustainable alternative to culling, pulling, or poisoning invasive plants: Put them on the dinner table.
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