All of my efforts over the past forty years have been concerned essentially with one central principle - the well-being of the individual. Not the isolated individual. My emphasis has constantly been on the individual within community. People do not thrive without the support of a community so, in my view, if the hope is that people prosper, find happiness and feel that all important sense of satisfaction and belonging, then we have to maintain the fabric of community and not let it become threadbare.
Overfishing, wildlife poaching, climate change etc., are not only causing species extinction, but also bringing human civilization closer to the brink of collapse. Fortunately, there is reason for hope that in the future evolution of man, human love and enlightenment will prevail over the forces of violence and destruction.
Gift giving under these conditions can lead to impulse purchases and last-minute knickknacks that will live in storage. Since it was Dad who taught you to "Waste not, want not," why not make that your Father's Day mantra and avoid the wasteful consumer cycle?
Who says only cats have nine lives? Molly, a yellow Labrador Retriever who has lived through the worst, will tell you otherwise.
Recently, one of my close straight friends messaged me excitedly on Facebook: "I can't wait for NYC Pride! I'm gonna meet sooo many gay guys and make them my BFF." There were so many things wrong with that statement that I had to pause and stop myself from cussing her out.
I don't deny that we need a day to recognize our parents -- maybe even more than one. But in our modern society shouldn't we be able to celebrate a holiday that includes everyone? Families come in all shapes and sizes.
When we talk about natural resources that can drive economic benefit the conversation usually turns to gas and minerals, or sun and wind. What if I were to tell you that the world's most underutilized and highest potential resource is all around us? She may be standing next to you, she may be in a village far away, she may even be you.
If we want our own children to learn to be courageous defenders of rights, we must first engage them in thinking critically about those rights. While adults may feel uncomfortable talking to children about the place of religion in society, we can still teach our children that people whose beliefs and practices differ from their own are deserving of respect and understanding.
The Prince of Wales is not only the heir to the throne of Canada, the U.K. and 14 other countries: he is also one of the world's foremost social entrepreneurs. While the work of the 16 Prince's Charities in the U.K. is relatively well known, Canadians will be pleased to learn more about the Prince's growing body of charitable work here in Canada.
What Angelina Jolie and Michael Douglas have in common is that both are using their celebrity status to bring attention to the very realistic threat of cancer. For now, we must rely on celebrities to get the public's attention about important health threats. Both celebrities have provoked discussion, but where do we go from here?
Ignorance, when it comes to your health, isn't bliss. It's trouble. It's taking unnecessary risks and missing out on less-invasive treatment options that are available only when there's been early detection. While I'm a firm believer that our bodies, if left to their own devices, will try to heal themselves, I also know that stuff like cancer doesn't cure itself.
Being a typical product of the public education system provided in Saudi, I've always dreamt of finding a job in the public sector after graduation. It wasn't until I participated in The U.S.-Saudi Women forum on Social Entrepreneurship, that I realized the importance of entrepreneurship.
As we mark the World Day Against Child Labour, more than 115-million children are forced to work in jobs that are dirty, dangerous and degrading. World Vision is fighting to keep the conversation about child slavery going strong. Wednesday in Toronto and Vancouver, we staged potentially shocking events in store windows to generate discussion about child slavery.
While not exactly a certification, like Fair Trade or the Rainforest Alliance, direct trade is really more of a loose concept: remove as many of the middlemen as possible and make sure the most marginalized and impoverished people in the coffee chain, the coffee farmers themselves, are given a bigger piece of the pie.
We need to start focusing on investing in the education of the next generation of women. Times change and so do behaviours. People from our generation feel as though they have the responsibility to change how opportunities are presented and make sure that fairness is given to all that follow.
Tanzania has all the trappings of a developing nation struggling to achieve developed nation status. There is a local Swahili saying that translates loosely as "the government takes first," essentially leaving the people to fend for themselves. And so it is not totally unexpected that NGOs are perceived as profit-making schemes.