The Last Newspaper Hawker in Paris

Ali Akbar, the voice of Paris’ 6th arrondissement, is believed to be the last newspaper hawker in Paris. For more than 50 years, he has made the rounds on his secondhand bicycle. Last month, an old customer — French President Emmanuel Macron — named him a knight in the National Order of Merit, one of France’s highest honors. At 73, Akbar still works seven days a week, 10 hours a day, although now he’s lucky to make about 60 euros – about $70 – a day. Born in Pakistan, the oldest of 10 children, he grew up in poverty but dreamed of building his mom a house. After he wound up in Paris in 1973, an Argentinian friend suggested selling newspapers in the Latin Quarter. Eventually he built his mother her house, and he and his wife, Aziza, raised five sons in Paris. In his neighborhood, people say Akbar has given them something priceless — a chance for daily human connection. “He’s interested in you, and then you’re interested in him,” says a longtime customer. “And this is very rare now in the big cities.”

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Brooklyn’s Bridgekeeper: the Trash Crusader

The Brooklyn Bridge is an iconic landmark in New York City that attracts millions of visitors. “Recently, the landmark has been repeatedly defaced with trash, hair ties, receipts, napkins, and locks attached to its fences.” Ellen Baum grew tired of seeing it so defaced, and devotes a few hours each day to removing the trash. When asked why people trash it, Ellen believes it is a trend among tourists. “…they don’t live here, so for them it only means doing it once for the likes” then they leave. For Ellen, “It’s an extension of my home. I’m on it every day. I don’t own a fence, but if I were living in the suburbs, I wouldn’t allow someone to put trash like that on my own fence.” She posts her efforts on social media, and has plans to host a monthly volunteer meet-up to help keep it beautiful.

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Realize your role as co-creator and co-owner in efforts to keep your community clean and beautiful.

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When the Farm Becomes the Town Square

Imagine inverting the medieval village: instead of fields radiating outward from a walled center, homes encircle a working farm. These “agrihoods” are sprouting across California, placing food production — not parking lots — at the heart of community life. They promise resilience in a warming world: capturing rainwater, cooling scorching pavement, feeding neighbors with arugula harvested within the month. As one designer notes, agrihoods offer “active open space that actually generates commerce” — bridging the developer’s need to build and the community’s hunger for green. Yet the vision requires more than romance. Water systems, crop selection, storage, staffing — all must be resolved before the first seed goes in the ground. When done well, though, these farms don’t just grow tomatoes. They cultivate a different way of living together.

Be The Change

Find a community garden or urban farm near you and spend an hour there this week — not just observing, but asking what it needs. Water? Weeding? An extra pair of hands at harvest? Notice how the act of tending shared ground shifts something in you.

Reviving the Art of Research

While Duke University professor Aaron Dinin is teaching entrepreneurship, he actually teaches young people to have a healthier relationship with failure through various oddball challenges— from solving a 1000-piece puzzle in six minutes to trying to beat a nine-year-old at selling cookies. Dinin’s students recently were tasked with answering as many obscure questions as possible using nothing but the books in their library. Students were given a printed-out catalog of books to help them find the answers to questions like “When was Kentucky founded?” and “What makes Pickett’s Charge important?” Many admitted this was the first time they had ever looked something like this up in a book. Dinin pointed out that as anyone these days would almost certainly just Google this kind of information, “being able to answer questions isn’t nearly as valuable in the modern world as knowing which questions are worth chasing in the first place.” Dinin’s inspiration to create learning such opportunities was “watching brilliant students sabotage their futures because they were scared to be wrong.” To combat that, he decided to design classes that “make failure survivable (and maybe even a little bit fun).”

Be The Change

Organize a phone-free day with friends or family and dive into a local library, discovering answers the old-fashioned way.

Pursuing Physics Beyond Talent: Wisdom From a Self-Taught 17-Year-Old

At age three, Prosper Chanda was solving simple algebraic equations. At age ten, he questioned major physics theories and tested methods. “If nothing worked, I closed the book and went for a walk. I kept thinking as I walked. Then I slept. Often I woke with a clearer solution. The mind needs space before it recognizes structure.” Because of his youth, Prosper was not taken seriously, and that led to isolation. He does not believe he is more talented than others. He believes in persistence and consistency. “Passion is not something you wait for. It is something you pursue the moment you recognize it.” He founded Genius Hub, a global research initiative for young people around the world because, “Research should not be limited by age.”

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What is it that brings out the genius in you? Pay attention to it, follow it, and see it blossom.

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Beavers Return to Scotland’s Glen Affric After 400 Years

Scotland’s Glen Affric National Nature Reserve, home to ancient Caledonian pine trees, gorgeous lochs, and magnificent hiking trails, is now home to seven beavers, a homecoming for a species that disappeared four centuries ago. Forestry and Land Scotland, working alongside the charity Trees for Life, released a family of five and a breeding pair of beavers at two sites in October, 2025. Apart from their work as ecosystem “engineers”, the beavers are drawing visitors and boosting local economies. “Beaver safaris” in places like Perthshire are often booked to capacity. A single reintroduction site could eventually inject an estimated £2 million—roughly $2.7 million—into the local economy each year. In a world where we often hear about what we’re losing, the return of the beaver after 400 years is a powerful reminder of what we can regain.

Be The Change

Learn about a native species that has disappeared from your local area and discover if there are restoration efforts underway. Consider volunteering with a local wildlife reintroduction project. If you’re inspired by ecosystem restoration, explore how you can create wildlife-friendly spaces in your own backyard — even small ponds or native plantings can make a difference for local species.