Boredom is that frustrated sense of having nothing interesting to do. It is the companion to loneliness and depression for when we are bored we no longer feel good about our self.

Here are six steps to get your energy revved up and to recapture a lively sense of yourself.   Read more...

Please take a few minutes to view my website, "Doing Good, While Doing Business." It features businesses that give back to the community in a variety of different ways. You may see it at www.changethemold.com.

Thanks, Myrna   Read more...

This year's edition of Sfinks (festival for world music just outside Antwerp) was number 29, making it one of the oldest of its kind. The program was a mixed bag with quite a few disappointments but also some remarkable highlights.

By far the most surprising of those was a magic performance by Cryptonique, the bellows duo of composer and accordion player Fabian Beghin and diatonic harmonica virtuoso Didier Laloy, both hailing from Wallony, the French speaking part of Belgium. I was already familiar with their repertoire from the excellent CD Cryptonique they released in 2006, but their spectacular live performance rendered that album bleak in comparison.   Read more...

I'd like to share with you Laughter Yoga, as it profoundly uplifts my life. Laughter Yoga has connected me with that inner place of well-being from which springs joy. As a physician/healer I am still blown away by the power of Laughter Yoga to heal, uplift, and create well-being. Everyone can practice it. Besides it's fun!   Read more...

What constitutes pain and confusion in love and physical attraction? Why do we often find ourselves in agonizing situations despite the primary magic of an intimate association?

Emotions are an integral part of our social and civic self, but we are often conditioned to restrict and push it away, and maintain a stoic facade. The words ‘stiff upper lip’ are not conjecture; we often fall prey to it and end up with a stiffer heart and soul.   Read more...

Great Leader seems always to be first defined as what we don’t have at the moment. Descriptions include decisiveness, courage and a fervent wish to serve the definers particular ethnic or economic group. And because everyone wants someone who believes in the same truth they believe, getting at what constitutes true leadership requires some study. I got caught up in this endless circle recently with a couple of friends. Reaching no consensus with them, I decided to do a reality check with Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, one time Roman Emperor.   Read more...

Peace is like a baby we wanted to be born and grow in our lives. It has growth stages nurtured like a child's with love and care, wisdom and faith. This peace process and outcome is what we really need and want in our lives made more meaningful.

Do we look for wisdom to nurture peace by knowledge? We realize it’s not what we know that gives peace. It’s in the wisdom of contradictions when we react to situations in unloving ways, by judgments and preconceived ideas, without seeking the truth that lies behind biases. Wisdom to find peace is in forgiveness, of ourselves for mistakes and not persecute ourselves and others with what we can’t change in the past but in the present with new-found courage.   Read more...

A major new fund has been created at The Pittsburgh Foundation to support The Pittsburgh Promise, a program designed to help students and families of the Pittsburgh Public Schools plan, prepare and pay for education beyond high school at an accredited post-secondary institution within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

The Pittsburgh Promise serves to inspire and motivate Pittsburgh Public Schools students to “Dream Big” and “Work Hard” in order to improve the prospects for their future.   Read more...

The EPA drops the value of human life. Greensburg, Kansas rebuilds into a sustainable emerald green city. Check out the latest news in alt autos: Stella, Tesla, Tata Nano, Prius, and more.   Read more...

An expert in body/mind healing says that the secret to happiness, health and long life is as simple as breathing. It is so simple that anyone can master it with a little practice. There are no gadgets to buy or clubs to join to reap the benefits. You don’t even have to visit your doctor for a prescription. Does this sound too good to be true? Well, for once it isn’t!

According to Zen Yoga master, Aaron Hoopes the art of deep breathing has been called by a variety of names: conscious breathing, abdominal breathing, dynamic breathing and even belly breathing. Mr. Hoopes calls it Smart Breathing in the updated and expanded 2nd Edition of his book Breathe Smart. He calls it smart because it has immediate rewards, costs nothing and is a no-lose endeavor. It makes you feel good while you do it in the short term, and in the long term you will find yourself living a more energized, healthy and peaceful life.   Read more...

In 1991, six Wall Street professionals established Minds Matter in New York City to mentor high-achieving, low-income high school students who had the potential and ambition to pursue a college education, but who lacked the resources to achieve that dream. Since then, Minds Matter has grown into a national organization with chapters across the United States in Boston, Massachusetts; Chicago, Illinois; Denver, Colorado; New York City, New York; and Portland, Oregon. In the 2008-2009 school year, Minds Matter will launch a new Chapter and open its doors to students in Cleveland, Ohio!

The organization's services have also developed into a comprehensive three year curriculum for high school sophomores, juniors and seniors. Each year students are guided through valuable lessons in Academic Preparedness, Writing & Critical Thinking and Test Preparation.   Read more...

Dear EarthTalk: I was intrigued to hear that there were a number of ways one could modify or construct a roof on a house or office facility that would provide great environmental benefit. Can you enlighten? -- Bill Teague, Menlo Park, CA

Most buildings are designed to shed rain, and as such are built with hard, impenetrable roofing surfaces. As a result, rainwater bounces off and collects as runoff, picking up impurities - including infectious bacteria from animal waste as well as harmful pesticides and fertilizers - on the way to municipal storm sewers, which in turn eventually empty out into local bodies of water.   Read more...

More and more we're hearing that would-be vacationers are staying home this year in favor of the "staycation". It's a matter of striking a balance and not going too far off the all-or-nothing vacation deep end. Because in the end whether it's a vacation or a staycation, it's all about living, that rich life experience, that Leafpond Moment. So if you would like a vacation but can't get away, watch our video Leafpond Moment.   Read more...

People suffering anxiety often focus on fearful thoughts of losing control or going crazy. Thoughts can trigger anxiety but it is the body's response to the threat conveyed by our thoughts or our senses that accounts for anxiety. Some of those reactions include: increased heart rate, sweating, choking sensation, tightness in body, nausea, numbness, chills or hot flushes. Fortunately, it is through breath therapy that we have a means to calm our body and relieve the pain.

Breath therapy is a kind of mindful breathing whereby in different ways one focuses on breathing and simply notices it. This kind of breathing connects to chi, the body's powerful healing energy. As this connection happens it can evoke a warm tingling or a subtle vibration that eases pain, calms emotions, invigorates energy, improves digestion, and contributes to restful sleep.   Read more...

I have heard and experienced too, that everything turns rosy when one falls in love. The proverbial rose tinted glasses, rosy dreams, pink roses, and the blush on the lover’s cheeks! I have read many books on relationships, human psychology, have observed people, studied human behavior, have worked with centers that do ‘paid listening’ for the broken hearted and have listened to many stories of love getting bruised, with ennui, neglect and emotional asphyxiation. True, that everything looks pink in its initial stages, but turns blue with carelessness, extra carefulness, neediness, unfair expectations, suffocating possessiveness and at times, just for no reason at all.

I have written some motivating articles on the intricacies of relationships in various journals; perhaps involuntarily taking on the mantle of being a ‘so called expert’ on the subject. Well, even after all this I cannot vouch for being ‘the expert’ in relationships, because the fact is that it is difficult to figure out people and something as fragile as “feelings”. Human mind is a never-ending mystery, and so is the heart.   Read more...

Buying a product can sometimes seem like a self-indulgent process: you purchase it, take it home and that is that. Your wardrobe may become a little more expansive or your living room a little more decorated, but that is about all that will change. Today, however, with increased opportunities and abilities for global collaboration, markets are being created based on the inspiring idea that purchases have the potential to do more than just become something to own. Products now have the capacity to actually do good.   Read more...

Tree growth in the Arctic Tundra increases climate change, rival corporations are lightening the load on the roads by truck sharing deliveries in the UK due to high gas prices, and take a look at some new green gadgets.   Read more...

Scholar, futurist, and activist Riane Eisler explains the potential of an economic system based on caring rather than domination. By giving economic value to life-sustaining activities like parenting, an economics of caring provides a more realistic view of human life and suggests policy that is more coherent with human nature.   Read more...

A trip for those who like to experience culture, adventure and beauty and believe in "responsible tourism".

Embark on a walking camel safari set in the middle of 400 miles of vast mountain ranges in Kenya lead by honorary game wardens and nomadic Samburu warriors. Discover an Africa few encounter. Trek pure unspoiled land. A luxurious camping adventure complete with hot candlelit showers, delicious meals and personally tailored experiences. A once in a lifetime opportunity that will be talked about for years to come. And all this to benefit one of Kenya’s most renowned charity’s, MEAK (Medical and Educational Aid to Kenya).   Read more...

I just read the news about the third doping case at this year's Tour de France: Italian rider Riccardo Ricco has tested positive for the banned blood-booster EPO. And of course, as it happens so often with sportsmen who are associated with artificial performance-enhancing measures, Ricco was "booed by spectators when he was taken off the Saunier-Duval team bus by police Thursday," the AP report said.

Poor Ricco! I don't think using drugs was such a great idea, but I do feel we need to ask ourselves some serious questions before we condemn him. After all, in the rest of society, performance-boosters have become increasingly commonplace.   Read more...

Feeling guilty about the carbon emissions that you caused by attending that London meeting in person rather than by videoconference? Unsure how to make it up to the planet without being taken for a ride by a carbon cowboy?

Part of the trouble with carbon offsets

Hawaii has become the first state in the nation to require that all new homes come equipped with solar water heaters. The new law will apply to homes built after January 1, 2010, and add about $5,000 to a home’s cost. Solar water heaters pay for themselves in a few years because they cut average electricity costs by 30-35%. Israel and Spain also require solar heating in all new homes.

Source: World Business Alliance (www.worldbusiness.org)   Read more...

Another highlight of the Sommelo Festival in Finland was Jouhiorkesteri, otherwise known as the Horse Hair Orchestra.

Thanks to musician, instrument maker and researcher Rauno Nieminen another ancient instrument has been revived from museological hibernation. This time it's not the kantele - a plucked zither which, according to recent theories, has been derived from Celtic lyres - but the jouhikko, a bowed lyre which has been in use around the Baltic Sea until the beginning of the 20th century. Its strings are stopped by simply resting the finger on them instead of pressing them down on a fingerboard.   Read more...

One of the most popular 80’s pop classics, “Every breath you take”...by Sting often made me wonder: Is it really a song of love? Or of resentment and an obsessive need to possess?

If you listen with close attention, “Every smile you fake, every vow you break, I’ll be watching you...” speaks of vicious possessiveness and furious resentment.   Read more...

When it comes to babies, safety is a priority for parents. We make sure the crib is sound, that we use safe mattresses and bedding, that toys are safe... But many of us are overlooking one key danger that lurks in the nursery -- and throughout our homes.

Many household cleaning products contain hazardous ingredients, which, if inhaled, ingested or absorbed through the skin, can cause everything from eye irritation to death. It's important to look at the ingredients on all cleaners used in the nursery (and in the home in general) -- if they are disclosed, because some of the chemicals they contain (and what they can do to you) may surprise you.

Just got back from a wonderful festival called Sommelo, taking place in Finland (Kuhmo) and across the Russian border in Viena Karelia (part of the republic of Karelia).

This annual event, founded in 2006 by singer and song collector Pekka Huttu-Hiltunen, focuses especially on the old Karelian tradition of runo singing, epic songs with a typical meter of eight syllables. The young Finnish artists who are now reviving this ancient art form, study not only field recordings and transcriptions, but also visit the last remaining runolaulaja (female runo singers) still living in remote vilages in Viena Karelia.   Read more...

Between the 10th and 24th of September David and Cinthia, two of the FairMail teenage photographers are coming to the Netherlands for a big promotional campaign. During these two weeks they will be visiting different fairs, festivals and shops to tell the positive story behind FairMail.

Our clients in the Netherlands have the chance to win a private meeting with David and Cinthia! They will be visiting the winner together with the two initiators of FairMail. That can be at home to have breakfast together, or meeting in a nice cafe nearby in the evening. During the 'Meet and Greet' you will have the opportunity to personally get to know David and Cinthia and ask them whatever you want to. Maybe you can even give them tips on what pictures to take in the future!   Read more...

I draw this comic about a fictional couple. They face existential struggle daily! Well, 3 days a week. But, somehow Ellen's optimism always pulls them through.

www.webcomicsnation.com/boxbrown   Read more...

The Aravind Eye Hospitals in south India have contributed significantly to preventing debilitating blindness. Aravind was recently awarded the $1 million Gates Award. It all began with late Dr Govindappa Venkataswamy's dream. Ramesh Menon tracks down the pioneer.

Read full article: www.indiatogether.org/2008/jun/hlt-blindness.htm   Read more...

US driving is declining. Nantucket Sound wind power battle. Prius ads let you get away with murder. And check out the latest in weird stuff.   Read more...

What green-friendly lawn and garden pesticides are available today? I’m particularly interested in options that won’t harm my cats. -- Nancy Blanchard

Pesticides have greatly boosted agricultural yields over the last half century, so it is no wonder, given the commercial availability of many of these synthetic chemicals, that American homeowners apply 100 million pounds of the stuff each year to make their own gardens grow bigger and faster, too.   Read more...

I am excited to share my new website with my fellow Intelligent Optimists. It is called myskinbetter.com and is a source of natural, self care tips and suggestions for improving skin conditions. My goal, which I hope you'll help me achieve, is to share this free information with 10,000 people in 3 months.

The site explains how environment, washing, products, the mind, diet, allergies, and more affect the skin and what simple self-care actions a person can take to improve skin.   Read more...