At twelve years old, most of us were trudging through the awkwardness of adolescence, developing friend groups, and struggling to master pre-algebra. But at that age, Kiran Sridhar, a teenager from California’s Silicon Valley, had larger concerns on his mind.

According to the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, nearly 4 million people in California are “food insecure,” which means they cannot afford to buy enough food to sustain themselves. Southern California is disproportionately ailed by hunger in comparison with the rest of the state, but the Bay Area also contains some of the largest numbers of food insecurity. This may seem counter intuitive, especially considering the ever-growing prosperity of Silicon Valley, in particular, with its booming tech economy. But the reality that Sridhar learned as a middle schooler was that many in his own community were suffering, even in the midst of such prevalent wealth.

Shocked and inspired by this revelation, Sridhar got to work. He founded the non-profit organization, Waste No Food, to connect restaurants and farms to food banks that would distribute their excess and leftover food. According to the organization’s website, a whopping one third of California’s food goes to waste. With so many in the state hungry, such waste is simply unacceptable, and Waste No Food works to get that food to those who desperately need it.

If you’ve ever worked in a restaurant or cafe, then you know how much food gets thrown out at the end of each day. Oftentimes food service workers just feel limited by the effort to transport leftover food, or else the fear of liability. But through the program, all the work is done for them with the click of a button. Farms, restaurants, cafeterias, and grocery stores can sign up on the website to donate their excess food, and Waste No Food then connects them to aid organizations (already vetted for authenticity) who are responsible for all food transportation and handling. It’s a win-win all around!

Now a 10th grader in high school, Sridhar hopes to expand the program to other parts of the Bay Area, and we have no doubt the enterprising teenager will succeed in his aims. As he told CBS San Francisco:

“When you’re hungry, that is your primary focus, figuring out what your next meal is going to be. But when you have your needs for food met, than you can actually be a positive contributor to the community and to the economy.”

It’s inspiring to see not only what such a young person is capable of accomplishing, but also more generally the length a concerned citizen is willing to go to support his community. Over 50 million Americans live in households that quality as “food insecure,” the highest percentages occurring in Texas, Mississippi, and Arkansas. These are our communities, our neighbors, and our families. Let Kiran Sridhar and the Waste No Food program inspire you to make a difference.

Via Intent Blog

Miso is a traditional Japanese seasoning produced by fermenting rice, barley, and/or soybeans with salt and the fungus kōjikin, the most typical miso being made with soy. The aging process may last between two months and three years.

The result is a thick paste used for sauces and spreads, pickling vegetables or meats, and mixing with dashi soup stock to serve as miso soup called misoshiru, a Japanese culinary staple.

Here are ten reasons why you could potentially incorporate Miso into your diet:

1. Contains all essential amino acids, making it a complete protein.

2. Stimulates the secretion of digestive fluids in the stomach.

3. Restores beneficial probiotics to the intestines.

4. Aids in the digestion and assimilation of other foods in the intestines.

5. Is a good vegetable-quality source of B vitamins (especially B12).

6. Strengthens the quality of blood and lymph fluid.

7. Reduces risk for breast, prostate, lung and colon cancers.

8. Protects against radiation due to dipilocolonic acid, an alkaloid that chelates heavy metals and discharges them from the body.

9. Strengthens the immune system and helps to lower LDL cholesterol.

10. High in antioxidants that protects against free radicals.

Sources: Care2

1)      YOU DON’T HAVE TO DRINK PLAIN WATER TO HYDRATE.

Oatmeal is 84% water, low-fat milk is 90 percent water, coffee is 99.5% water, lettuce is 96% water, tomatoes are 95% water, broccoli is 89% water, low fat vanilla yogurt is 79% water, ice cream is 60% water.

2)      Thirst pains are real.

Yes, we have hunger pains, but did you know that we also have thirst pains? Often, we can’t rely on a dry mouth to tell us that we need a little more H2O. Chronic joint pain, headaches and gastric ulcers can often spell d-e-h-y-d-r-a-t-i-o-n. Water is needed to carry acidic waste away from cells, and when we’re dehydrated, these wastes don’t get carried away, leading to our nerves interpreting the acidic waste as pain.

3)      If you are tired, it may be hydration.

One study conducted by Loughborough University found that a mere 5% drop in water levels in the body can cause a 25-30% loss in energy. Even a 3% drop can cause fuzzy thinking, “brain fog” and a slower metabolism. Another study conducted by University of Connecticut’s Human Performance Laboratory found that even a 1.5% water loss led to reduced cognitive function, headaches and fatigue in 25 women and 26 men.

4)      Your body has different water contents.

Water is constantly moving through your cells. About 4% to 10% of your body-water gets replaced everyday with “fresh” water. Blood is approximately 93% water. Muscle is about 73% water. Body fat is about 10% water.

5)      Bottled water is not always better than tap water.

According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, nearly half of bottled waters come from municipal water supplies—not from the mountain streams pictured on the labels. This suggests standard municipal tap water is high quality.

Rather than spend money on bottled water, turn on your tap. This will help stop the flood of 95 million plastic water bottles that get discarded each day, of which only 20 percent get recycled. Drink plenty of water—but think “green.”

Sources: MindBodyGreen and Active.com

Julian Assange hasn’t set foot outside Ecuador’s London embassy in more than a year—avoiding extradition to Sweden, where he faces allegations of sexual assault. But physical confinement seems only to enhance his reach. The WikiLeaks founder has video-addressed the U.N., launched a Senate campaign in absentia in his native Australia, entertained Lady Gaga, and played a key role in the case of N.S.A. leaker Edward Snowden. As several movies depict aspects of Assange’s story, Sarah Ellison focuses on the center of his web.

Check out the profile — here. 

Via Sarah Ellison

When trying to wrap your mind around what Sir Ken Robinson means by “being in your element,” a state he hopes to help people achieve through his workshop How to Find Your Element on Big Think Mentor, it’s helpful to start with a counterexample: middle school in the USA. For those who have experienced this particular circle of hell, its torments are traceable to two basic causes: not wanting to be where you are, and feeling like you’re no good at whatever you’re doing there.

For me, personally, those two factors found their keenest expression at a 7th grade dance. I can’t recall the exact set of circumstances that led to my being at this dance, but it definitely wasn’t by choice. I was fascinated by yet terrified of girls and mortally self-conscious among my classmates. Faced with an impossible situation, I did the only rational thing: make a completely desperate move. I showed up dressed as a character from the early hip-hop movie Beat Street (which few in my Washington, DC prep school had seen or heard of), and started a breakdance circle in the middle of this otherwise sober affair. The thing is, I wasn’t an especially good breakdancer. Also, my approach to breakdancing (by necessity) was more collaborative than competitive.  Almost immediately, a rival breakdancer from another school entered the circle and challenged me to a “break-off.” Horrified, but with nowhere to run, I repeatedly performed my three moves: the Worm, a sort of 180-degree backspin, and a bit of robotic, upper-body “popping.” My rival, however, had the breakdancing zeal in his veins and seemed to have just returned from a 6-month sabbatical in the South Bronx. He mopped the floor with me and I slunk away in ignominy.

For many of us, adult life is an extension of that middle school awkwardness, mitigated only by a cultivated apathy. Sir Ken Robinson says it doesn’t have to be that way. Finding your “element,” he argues, is a matter of systematically identifying your talents and passions, then seeking or creating opportunities where these two factors overlap. “It’s not enough to be good at something to be in your element, says Robinson, “because there are plenty of people who are good at things they don’t really care for.” He cites the example of a talented concert pianist he met who realized mid-career that she was born to be a book editor. One day she closed her piano forever and took a job in publishing. “I’ve never been happier in my life”, she told him; “never poorer, by the way, but never happier.”

Via Big Think