Technology
The Call of Violence
In parts of the world, expanding cell-phone coverage brings with it an increase in violent activity.
Jessica Ruvinsky
Jessica Ruvinsky is a science writer based in Santa Monica, California. She was an editor at Discover magazine in New York and has contributed to The Economist, Science, and U.S. News & World Report. She has a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from Stanford and a bachelor's degree from Yale.
Energy
The Power of Being Seen
People are more apt to behave in socially responsible ways when they think that others might take notice.
Business
Off-the-Shelf or Do-It-Yourself?
How a company supports employee voluntarism depends on whether it participates in certain kinds of external networks.
Scaling
Mapping Word of Mouth
Spreading messages in remote villages is a matter of understanding the patterns by which villagers connect with each other.
Philanthropy & Funding
Sponsoring Hope
A properly designed sponsor-a-child program can have real, long-term impact on the life course of its beneficiaries.
Philanthropy & Funding
Good (and Not-So-Good) Neighbors
Major local events, with some notable exceptions, spur locally based companies to increase charitable giving.
Education
Poverty and Achievement, Revisited
Enrollment in a classroom with a high poverty rate doesn't necessarily affect individual student performance.
Civic Engagement
Markets Versus Morals
In a market context, people are apt to betray their own beliefs about right and wrong.
Business
Making Businesses More Responsible
Corporate sustainability reporting is increasingly mandated by government and the public.
Human Rights
Diversity Opportunities
New research finds that some companies are increasingly pro-diversity and others lag well behind.
Civic Engagement
The Evolution of Membership
Membership in organizations is growing, but not what it used to be.
Civic Engagement
Public Services 2.0
Technology can empower citizens to co-create some government services.
Health
Global Diseases, Local Needs
The diseases that get funded tend to be the ones for which funders can take credit.
Health
Cadaver Commerce
The moral legitimacy of a new market can come as much from how you sell something as from exactly what you’re selling.
Leadership
How Leaders Encourage Innovation
Transformational leaders capitalize on the creativity that employees have.
Advocacy
Undisclosed Pharma Contributions
Most health advocacy organizations do not report industry funding.
Nonprofits & NGOs
Nonprofits Aren’t More Commercial
A new study finds that nonprofits are not becoming more commercialized.
Economic Development
Welfare Works Better than Bootstraps
In Britain, the social safety net allows people who fall into poverty to pull themselves out. Americans who become poor are more likely to stay that way.
Economic Development
Turning a Profit by Helping the Poor
Politically radical social workers didn’t expect to be working in a bank any more than white-collar bankers expected to be holding meetings in a crowded public market.