Having more, owning less: how to fight throwaway culture

Aug 03, 2017 16:32 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life

Until the advent of cheap credit and cheaper item costs, for many consumers in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s rental was the most accessible way of obtaining products such as televisions, video recorders and washing machines...

Why Japan’s tsunami survivors risked everything for their belongings

Aug 02, 2017 17:28 pm UTC| Research & Analysis Life

The massive earthquake and subsequent tsunami that hit Japan in March 2011 led to the loss of some 24,000 lives. In the aftermath, there was much finger pointing as authorities tried to figure out why, despite rigorous...

Is there such a thing as a 'true self'?

Jul 31, 2017 09:01 am UTC| Life

To thine own self be true, the saying goes. It is often taken as sage advice, a remnant scrap of Elizabethan life coaching, but Shakespeare may have meant it to be heard as a stale platitude. He puts it in the mouth of...

What influences American giving?

Jul 25, 2017 05:29 am UTC| Insights & Views Economy Life

Several nonprofits, such as the Sierra Club, Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union, have reported a surge in donations as some Americans respond to their political concerns by supporting causes they...

For some kids school holidays mean hunger and isolation

Jul 24, 2017 14:00 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life

The school holidays, the best times of your life, right? Maybe not if youre one of many families struggling to cope with the extra costs of food, activities and childcare. In fact for many families, rather than a summer...

Bleached girls: India and its love for light skin

Jul 22, 2017 07:52 am UTC| Life

Lets scrub out that tan is a common refrain in beauty parlours in India, where girls grow up with constant reminders that only fair skin is beautiful. From Sunday classified ads touting the marriageability of an MBA...

Why the Catholic Church bans gluten-free communion wafers

Jul 22, 2017 07:38 am UTC| Life

A recent letter from the Vatican reminded the worlds Catholic bishops of a rule mandating the use of wheat gluten for the celebration of the Eucharist, a Christian liturgical service called the Mass by...