Values and ethical living

Self-knowledge and personal growth Relationships, work and leisure Values and ethical living

Bioethics Civic life Cultural diversity Ethics Fairness and equality Human rights and justice Meaning and the good life Nature and the environment Neurodiversity Progress and the future Race and ethnicity Values and beliefs Virtues and vices Wisdom

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Painting of a forest at night with a small house and dimly lit sky visible through the trees.

Meaning and the good life

idea

Is modern asceticism about conformity or quiet revolution?

From detoxes to slow food, today’s asceticism is often about fitting in. But we can rediscover its transformative power

by Iryna Mykhailova

A surfer riding a wave under a cloudy sky, with another large wave shown behind.

Virtues and vices

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Equanimity is not stillness – it is a mobility of the mind

To grasp the power of this lauded quality, think of it less as a mountain than as a flexible, even playful way of seeing

by Michael Uebel

Ancient mosaic depicting a lounging skeleton with Greek text, an amphora, a loaf of bread and a platter on a dark background.

Death and dying

guide

Reflections on mortality can help you live well now – here’s how

For me and many others, contemplating death has clarified what matters. These curiosity-based exercises will get you started

by Joanna Ebenstein

An elderly woman in a patterned beanie holding a red card with holes punched into it in front of her face.

Artists and art history

film

Circles possess a defiant beauty in the abstract works of Howardena Pindell

Directed by César Martínez Barba

People in hooded jackets standing in a park with grass and trees, a rainbow in the sky and a building in the background.

Neurodiversity

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Why we should think of neurodiversity like we do personality

It’s a mistake to frame autistic and ADHD traits as either deficits or mere differences. There’s another way to see them

by Joshua May

A cocktail in a coupe glass with an orange twist on a wooden table in front of a dark, tufted lounge seating

Addiction

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My great-grandfather poisoned drinkers during Prohibition

In a grim irony, his descendants – my grandmother and mother – struggled with drink. Here’s what I’d tell him about addiction

by Rebecca Lester

A person watering plants in an urban garden with buildings in the background on a cloudy day.

Meaning and the good life

guide

How to make your life feel more meaningful

Existential psychology offers specific ways to find meaning, giving you a buffer against despair in these anxious times

by Steven Heine

Collage featuring a cut-out photo of woman running overlaid on vintage photos.

Parenting and families

film

Prison letters animate Diane’s attempt to understand a distant father

Directed by Diana Cam Van Nguyen

Photo of a person silhouetted against the Milky Way galaxy in a starry night sky, with a faint horizon glow.

Wonder and the sublime

idea

The ‘panzoic effect’: the benefits of thinking about alien life

Reflecting on the potential for extraterrestrial life can inspire awe and have a profound effect on your worldview

by Graham Lau

Painting of a man in British colonial attire with an Indian child attendant holding a sword, by a tree overlooking a river landscape.

Human rights and justice

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True solidarity requires Burke’s ‘sympathetic revenge’

Social media utterances aren’t enough. Burke’s stand against colonial injustice shows we must confront our own complicity

by Jack Jacobs

Photo of a warehouse interior with workers sorting large burlap sacks of goods on the floor and pallets.

Money and economics

guide

How to manage your finances to do good in the world

Whether you have a little or a lot, your money is always at work. Follow these steps to ensure it’s making a positive impact

by Sarah Bengtsson

Painting of a woman in a flowing white dress and a man lying on a black background with ornamental corners.

Love

film

A girl upends her grandparents’ ‘love story’ in this hilarious animation

Directed by Maryam Mohajer