Most Recent Articles - YES!

YES! has a positive solution-oriented focus. We reframe issues, reflect diverse human-scale stories, and offer tools for people to use and to pass along. Here are our most recent articles and blogs.

Six Ways the US Is Building a People-Powered Economy
by Sarah van Gelder
Jan 27, 2015
Alternative business models such as worker-owned cooperatives are gaining ground, proving that a more just and sustainable future is possible.
Welcome to the New YES! Website
by Rod Arakaki
Jan 23, 2015
We’ve redesigned our site to be mobile-friendly and more enjoyable to read with you, our loyal readers, in mind.
“Selma”: A Beautifully Shot Film Shows How Change Really Happens
by Kate Aronoff
Jan 17, 2015
Neither a “great man” history of Martin Luther King Jr., nor a tale of forgotten underdogs, Selma is about skilled activists building a movement.
A Baltimore Public School Teacher Explains Why It Pays to Put Kids in Control
by Andy Lee Roth
Jan 16, 2015
What do Shakespeare’s plays tell us about how to run classrooms in an unequal society?
How to Hack City Money: Let 16 Year Olds Vote on Budgets, Get Banks to Invest Locally
by Shannan Stoll
Jan 16, 2015
In California and Ohio, two city governments are entrusting their citizens with budgeting and rewarding banks for valuing local communities.
In 10 Years, No One In Helsinki Will Even Want to Own a Car: 3 Simple Ideas That Are Making Cities Sustainable
by Shannan Stoll
Jan 15, 2015
An app that combines the affordability of ride sharing with the reliability of taxis. Playgrounds built as sponges for reusable greywater. From Finland to California, the cities of the future are here.
Video: A Letter from Your 14-Year-Old Self
by Erin Sagen
Jan 15, 2015
Bruce Farrer has been assigning a special project to his students: a 10-page letter handwritten to themselves, which he mails back 20 years later.
Three Ideas for Inclusive Cities: How Raleigh, Seattle, and Others Are Bringing Everyone Into the Fold
by Shannan Stoll
Jan 14, 2015
From city-issued ID cards to open-source data anyone can access, simple urban innovations are creating more transparent and equitable cities.
400,000 Harry Potter Fans—and J.K. Rowling—Just Won a Deal to Get Child Labor Out of Chocolate
by Christopher Zumski Finke
Jan 13, 2015
Harry Potter stood up for his world's most vulnerable people. Now, legions of real-world kids are too—by demanding Fair Trade certification for products sold in their hero's name.
This Rust-Belt Town’s Survival Strategy Is All About Giving Workers Control
by Abby Scher
Jan 13, 2015
Reading is one of Pennsylvania’s poorest cities. Can its residents turn things around by building a more democratic economy?
How #FergusonSyllabus Helps Teachers Discuss Police, Racism, and History
by Liz Pleasant
Jan 12, 2015
“Teachers are better prepared because #FergusonSyllabus created a space for exchange among educators about best practices and materials for illustrating the best and worst of our democracy.”
Can Empathy for Birds Make Us Happier? Ten Breakthroughs in the Science of a Meaningful Life
by Jeremy Adam Smith, Bianca Lorenz, Kira M. Newman, Lauren Klein, Lisa Bennett, Jason Marsh, Jill Suttie
Jan 09, 2015
Last year, scientists found that gratitude makes us financially smarter, mindfulness reduces racism, a little sadness makes for healthier people, and compassion for birds could help tackle climate change.
“They’re driven by love. And they’re fierce.” Naomi Klein on the Climate Heroes Who Inspire Her
by Sarah van Gelder
Jan 07, 2015
From Native activists to urban youth, new leadership finds ways to deal with climate chaos.
Vermonters Lobby for Public Bank—And Win Millions for Local Investment Instead
by Alexis Goldstein
Jan 07, 2015
Advocates didn’t get the public bank they wanted. But the compromise they reached in the end was still a rare and significant win over Wall Street banks.
Laid-Off Baltimore Workers Beat Disney in Court—And Ask All the Right Questions About Urban Development
by Christina Arrison
Jan 06, 2015
By some estimates, the city of Baltimore has sunk more than $1.5 billion into its Inner Harbor. Workers and residents want their share too.