Debby Kittredge Irving has worked since the 1980s to foster diversity, inclusiveness, and community-building. In her book, Waking Up White and Finding Myself in the Story of Race, Irving uses her experience of being a white woman coming to terms with the complexity of racism in the United States and her own perceptions as a lens to explore the role white allies can play in racial justice work. Irving notes that she wishes someone had handed her a book like her own decades ago, as it would have helped her examine and change her own cultural, racial, and class assumptions.

Richard “Rick” Van Wickler has been the Superintendent of the Cheshire County Department of Corrections since June of 1993. His career in corrections began in 1987 at the Merrimack County New Hampshire Department of Corrections. Superintendent Van Wickler was appointed by the Cheshire County Board of Commissioners in 1993 to assume responsibility for the Cheshire County Jail, which faced significant litigation in Federal Court, and to revitalize an agency that was in need of training, structure, and professionalism.

From 1968 to 1998, in a period of time euphemistically known as “The Troubles,” violence ruled Northern Ireland.  Today, 50 years since The Troubles began and 20 years after they “ended,” what is the state of contemporary Northern Ireland? Are the sociopolitical vulnerabilities exposed by the prolonged x-ray of The Troubles still present?  Or has Northern Ireland rebuilt differently enough to ensure non-recurrence of violent conflict? Has the conflict been transformed into a win-win situation for both sides?

When the civil war in Somalia began, Abdi Nor Iftin was five. He and his brother became the sole providers for the family and were forced to attend a madrassa run by a man they called the “Angel of Punishment.” Amidst the bullets and the beatings, Iftin had one escape: American movies and music. At neighborhood showings of Rambo, Commando, and The Terminator, Iftin learned of America, taught himself English, and began to dream of a life in the United States.

When attending a chamber music concert, you are no doubt transported by what you hear. It is an artistic experience. But you are also witnessing interpersonal exchange, teamwork, and connection. That is one of the beauties of chamber music: a small group working together as a unit, without barriers and walls, to reach a goal.

Constitutional attorney Jeff Clements is a founder and current President of American Promise, the national organization leading the cross-partisan campaign for the 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The organization has thousands of members in every state, including New Hampshire. 

Unitarian Universalist minister Rev. Kate Braestrup is the long-serving Chaplain to the Maine Warden Service.  In this role, she joins wardens as they search the wild lands and fresh waters of Maine for those who lost their way or disappeared, offering comfort to those who wait for their loved ones to be found and providing support for the wardens. 

Contrary to what the history books tell us, the Plimoth colonists or “Pilgrims” were a highly diverse, sometimes fractious group of Separatists and Anglicans, religious zealots and irreverent opportunists ---   many of whom lived in the Netherlands prior to emigrating, and some of whom were Dutch. They brought with them experiences of music as varied as their reasons for coming to the New World.

The future of our civilization will be determined by the technologies we invent and the wisdom with which we deploy them. Because the future is so immense, the moral imperative to nudge it in a positive direction dwarfs all other concerns.

Now is the best time to be alive. Do most people, or even most scientists and technologists, recognize this? Is the current research enterprise well-suited to dealing with this awesome responsibility by drawing on the collective wisdom of humanity?

Drawing on their years of experience among animals around the world, best friends and coauthors Elizabeth Marshall Thomas and Sy Montgomery explore the minds, lives, intelligences, and mysteries of creatures domestic and wild—and the human connection with the rest of animate creation. Citing the latest scientific research and sharing their personal observations of lions, octopuses, dogs, rats, slugs, sharks, and others, these two nationally bestselling authors challenge the notion of human superiority.