We aren’t simply living in a new geological age. We’re creating it. It’s called the Anthropocene. The literal meaning of the word would be “the era of man.” That’s our home, and it represents a mere blip of 170,000 years in geological time. Though the word hasn’t been officially accepted into the Geological Time Scale,…Read More
A key passage in a great story about worker well-being and productivity: Employees are vastly more satisfied and productive, it turns out, when four of their core needs are met: physical, through opportunities to regularly renew and recharge at work; emotional, by feeling valued and appreciated for their contributions; mental, when they have the opportunity…Read More
I tend to obsess on the need for ordinary people to step up and do something good for other people, outside the daily routine. I’m often surprised and gratified to discover how many folks are already doing good things above and beyond their work and family lives. I stumbled onto a perfect example of this…Read More
Commencement addresses have a way of becoming classic formulations of what matters most in life. It has something to do with the Polonius/Laertes nature of the occasion: final words of wisdom from someone older to a young person before setting off into a harsh, tricky world. Recently, Kaveh Alizadeh spoke to the graduating class as…Read More
Here are my remarks from the ceremony this evening at St. John’s where I was given the Spirit of the City award: It’s a great honor to be able to speak tonight at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine’s wonderful fund-raising ceremony to honor Xu Bing, the Chinese artist whose creations have been installed inside…Read More