MS Maze

Do you support corporate responsibility for climate? If you’re still working on your back-to-school shopping list, you can plan that shopping with climate change in mind.

Before you spend another dime, there are a few things you should know. The back-to-school shopping season is second only to the holiday shopping season in generating revenue. In 2008 the top 100 brands spent over $100 billion dollars on advertising in the United States. All that requires energy, packaging, and transportation — all contributing factors in climate change.

Back-to-Cool: Shopping with Climate Change in Mind

photo: climatecounts.org

FarmVille players, hang on to your green hats because FarmVille is about to go organic.

If you are not familiar with the game, FarmVille is a real-time farm simulation game in which players plant, grow, and harvest crops on expanding farms while interacting with other players they “friend” as neighbors. Millions of players are enjoying the experience of virtual farm life, tending their farms and learning as they go.

Cascadian Farm, a leading brand of organic foods, is partnering with FarmVille to increase awareness and support for organic farming and organic lifestyle, breathing virtual life into organic farming within the online agricultural space.

Read this post and get FarmVille player tips:

FarmVille Goes Organic

By Jim Pietrangelo

What would make you mad enough to pick up and throw a metal patio table at a woman? Acceptable answers might be:

• ‘She was threatening me with a gun.’

• ‘I caught her trying to abduct my child.’

• perhaps even ‘She was a zombie and was trying to eat me.’

One answer not making the list: ‘She was a census worker and wanted to talk with me.’

Read this post in its entirety:

Census Worker Violence: Going Census is the New Going Postal

Photo Credit: 2010 Census

Remember the joy of being a child and the simple pleasure of rolling around in the grass, discovering flowers, and climbing trees?

A child growing up in the big city might not, but you can help a city child experience the power and the beauty of nature this summer… and it will only take a moment of your time…

Read this post in its entirety:

Help a City Child Experience Nature

Photo: photoxpress.com

A streak of vanity? Guilty as charged. Foolishly attempting to live up to the narrow standard of beauty set by our culture? Not on your life. Not when I was 20 years old, and certainly not now that I am 50.

Do you ever get the feeling that somewhere out there is a mold of what a woman should look like… and that what you see in the mirror bears no resemblance to that mold? However our standards of beauty have come together, I’m not falling for it.

Read this post in its entirety:

Are you worshiping at the altar of physical beauty?

Photo: copyright PhotoXpress.com

“Our intention was to give you lots of granular controls; but that may not have been what many of you wanted. We just missed the mark.” — Mark Zuckerberg

Internet privacy in general is of great concern, but Facebook is definitely in the hot seat. The latest wave of protest comes following the instant personalization pilot program that “helps you connect more easily with your friends on select partner sites. These sites personalize your experience using your public Facebook information.”

Lots of people love the feature — the problem stems from the fact that users are opted-in by default and must choose to opt-out.

Facebook has many privacy options and, for the most part, they work well. Unfortunately, the number of options has grown to an almost unmanageable amount. Users are often unaware or just plain confused about what they are sharing.

Read: Zuckerberg Admits Facebook Missed the Mark on Privacy

Photo: Facebook.com

My friend and fellow Care2 writer, Steve Williams, chose to share a very personal story as we approach the International Day Against Homophobia.

Whether it is homophobia or something else that has come between you and a loved one, please take the time to read this. If you have a heart, you can’t help but be deeply moved.

Thank you, Steve, for your raw honesty.

Read: We Didn’t Speak, and Now We Can’t

Photo used under the Creative Commons Attribution License, with thanks to Batega.

Perennial high school student Archie has spent decades trying to decide between Betty and Veronica. Some things never change in Riverdale. But some things do.

In a press release issued a few days ago, Archie Comics announced the introduction of the first openly gay character to join the student body of Riverdale High School. Archie, Betty, Veronica, Reggie, and Jughead are about to meet the new kid in town, Kevin Keller.

Jon Goldwater, CEO of Archie Comics put it this way, “The introduction of Kevin is just about keeping the world of Archie Comics current and inclusive. Archie’s hometown of Riverdale has always been a safe world for everyone. It just makes sense to have an openly gay character in Archie comic books.”

Read this post in its entirety:

Archie, Betty, Veronica… and Kevin: The New Kid in School is Gay

Photo: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1193101

In 2009, The Fresh Air Fund‘s Volunteer Host Family program, called Friendly Town, gave close to 5,000 New York City boys and girls, ages six to 18, free summer experiences in the country and the suburbs. Volunteer host families shared their friendship and homes up to two weeks or more in 13 Northeastern states from Virginia to Maine and Canada.

The Fresh Air Fund relies on donations to provide memorable summers to NYC children. The Fresh Air Fund needs hosts for the summer of 2010.

More than 65% of all Fresh Air children are reinvited to stay with their host family, year after year. Thanks to host families who open up their homes for a few weeks each summer, children growing up in New York City’s toughest neighborhoods have experienced the joys of Fresh Air experiences.

Fresh Air Fund Host Families

“It is rewarding to see the smile on our Fresh Air child’s face as she enjoys the simple things we take for granted…”

Friendly Town host families are volunteers who live in the suburbs or small town communities. Host families range in size, ethnicity and background, but share the desire to open their hearts and homes to give city children an experience they will never forget. Hosts say the Fresh Air experience is as enriching for their own families, as it is for the inner-city children. There are no financial requirements for hosting a child. Volunteers may request the age-group and gender of the Fresh Air youngster they would like to host. Stories about real Fresh Air host families and their New York City visitors are just a click away! Click here to learn more about becoming a host or call (800) 367-0003!

Fresh Air Children

“We made s’mores and hot dogs over the fire. I’ve never cooked outside before!”

Fresh Air children are boys and girls, six to 18 years old, who live in New York City. Children on first-time visits are six to 12 years old and stay for either one or two weeks. Youngsters who are re-invited by the same family may continue with The Fund through age 18, and many enjoy longer summertime visits, year after year. A visit to the home of a warm and loving volunteer host family can make all the difference in the world to an inner-city child. All it takes to create lifelong memories is laughing in the sunshine and making new friends.

The majority of Fresh Air children are from low-income communities. These are often families without the resources to send their children on summer vacations. Most inner-city youngsters grow up in towering apartment buildings without large, open outdoor play spaces. Concrete playgrounds cannot replace the freedom of running barefoot through the grass or riding bikes down country lanes.

Fresh Air children are registered by more than 90 participating social service and community organizations located in disadvantaged neighborhoods in the five boroughs of New York City. These community-based agencies are in close contact with children in need of summer experiences in rural and suburban areas. Each agency is responsible for registering children for the program.

You can give a child the experience of a lifetime with your gift to The Fresh Air Fund!

Every year, The Fresh Air Fund gives thousands of inner-city children the priceless gift of fun – and opens the door to a lifetime of opportunities.

Whether it’s a two-week trip to visit a volunteer host family, or a fun-filled and educational stay at one of our camps, our programs make for unforgettable memories – and open a world of new friendships and fresh possibilities.

We are a not-for-profit agency and depend on tax-deductible donations from people like you to keep our vital programs flourishing. Donate online now

On March 21st, the Fresh Air Fund-Racers will take to the streets at the NYC Half-Marathon! Thank you to the Fresh Air Fund-Racers and their supporters for participating in this world class event. You are making a huge difference in the lives of thousands of Fresh Air children!

We have limited availability for this amazing race. If you would like to run, please register here right away.

Submitted by the Fresh Air Fund

Mary and Jenny, of the blog Writing Without Periods, bestowed upon me the title of this week’s “Sensational Woman.” Thank you, ladies.

Mary and Jenny are multi-published authors and observers of their own crazy lives. Life after 40 is another story!

Defense of Marriage Act. Even as a heterosexual married woman, I am offended by the phrase.

The name itself is disrespectful and suggests that homosexual unions cause harm to heterosexual marriage… that people like me have a need to defend our marriages against outside forces — other couples — and I must confess that I just don’t get that.

Respect for Marriage Act. Now that has a much nicer ring to it.

You don’t have to approve of my marriage and I need not approve yours, but we should all have the same rights under the law. It’s been my experience that many heterosexuals feel the same way… we just haven’t been very vocal about it. So comfortable and secure are we in our marital rights that we give little thought to those who only wish for that same comfort and security. Shame on us.

Respect is a two way street.

Photo: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/829079

Read this post in its entirety and answer the poll — Do you support the Respect for Marriage Act?: R-E-S-P-E-C-T my marriage