Future Focus: Ideas

Leadership: Handpicking a new generation of African role models

The African Leadership Academy looks for specific traits – such as courage – in picking students who may lead the continent someday.
Leadership: For this non-profit organization, leaving was leading

A non-profit organization founder's maverick leadership move: leaving his vision to fresh faces.
Leadership: At Cheezburger Network, users take the lead

Or, how grammatically challenged cats pull in a seven-figure income.
Leadership: A constructive rebel bucks hierarchy

One leadership style leads a constructive rebel to break rules in diplomacy.
Cover Story Leadership: The myth of the maverick

Does our love affair with mavericks – from Ronald Reagan to Steve Jobs – make sense?
TOMS shoes: Would you go barefoot for a good cause?

TOMS shoes is hosting its annual "One Day Without Shoes," in which people shed their kicks to help raise awareness of shoeless children.
A fragile recovery – and five shocks that threaten it

This recovery isn't nearly as robust as previous upturns. Japan, Libya, and other crises could undercut it.
Somerville, Mass., aims to boost happiness. Can it?

Forget GDP, say a growing number of cities and nations. Instead, they're measuring happiness and hope to increase it.
The peacebuilders: Making conflict resolution permanent

Out of the UN comes a new idea for ending war. Peacebuilders: An intensive process that gives permission for foreign 'interference' in conflict resolution.
Opinion: Cooperation in Congress? It's in our constitutional DNA.

We often assume bipartisanship is about making nice. Actually, it's a political and moral necessity.
When should a hobby become a business?

It may not always be a good idea to turn your hobby into a full-time job, but it might work nicely as a side business.
Loosen the laws, let teens work

When teenagers don't work, they miss out on an important part of growing up
Crazy U: One Dad’s Crash Course on Getting His Kid into College

A father rides out his son’s college admissions process.
If education breaks, progress stops

From unruly classrooms to failure to learn, everybody agrees that public education is in trouble. Turning it around is urgent not just for the present but the future
How to fix America's worst schools

One school in Chicago shows the promise and pitfalls of a federal effort to turn around the nation's bottom-tier schools.
Could 'charter cities' help poor countries blossom?

Even when Hong Kong was under British rule, neighboring China benefited from its economy. Would the same model work in the rest of the developing world?
9 books Bill Gates thinks you should read

Nonprofit group TED asks some of the world's most fascinating thinkers to share both ideas and reading lists. Here's a list of the nine books recommended by Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates.
Tsunami dolphin rescued from rice paddy 1 mile inland

Tsunami dolphin: A baby dolphin was rescued from a rice paddy 1 mile from the sea after being swept inland in the tsunami.
Eight low-tech ways to revive broken gadgets

Mouthwash. Rice. A handful of quarters. What do these household items have in common? They constitute the perfect emergency-repair kit for gadgets. When device disasters strike and warranties turn their backs on you, it's time to get in touch with your inner MacGyver. So, here are eight low-tech solutions to high-tech disasters.
Difference Maker David Shirkey matches the poor and disabled with a free wheelchair or prosthetic limb

A visit to Poland gave David Shirkey an idea to become a one-man charity, giving the poor and disabled a wheelchair or prosthetic limb.
Astronauts observe Japan's tsunami aftermath from space

High-resolution photos taken from the International Space Station show some of the areas hit the hardest by the 9.0-magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck the northeastern coast of Japan.
Teach for America at work in St. Louis

St. Louis schools working with Teach for America see a bump in test scores.
Difference Maker John Alston turns kids in hoodies into a choral band of brothers

An after-school program in Chester, Pa., gives at-risk teenagers a music education – and much more
Japan tsunami: Here's how you can help

Nations are responding to the devastation in Japan, sending aid workers, rescue equipment, and humanitarian supplies. Individuals can help too by donating to legitimate charities.
Gas prices: 10 ways you can save at the pump

Gas prices put extra strain on consumers, but several strategies can help offset the high price at the pump. Some of these tips give you more mileage from each gallon in your tank, while others tactics might help you simply drive fewer miles.