JoAnna Haugen

“At first, we didn’t understand the importance of educating girls,” says mother-of-seven Anastacia Mashidana, chairwoman of the Enduet Women Group, which works with Amref. “We never realised it was harmful for girls to marry young, leave their education, give birth at home and get circumcised. It was normal. Now, we think differently.”

"I really do not believe that President Trump believes the press is the enemy of the people. I believe he is softening the target the way battleships blast away before a boots-on-the-ground invasion. I don't like what Trump says about journalists, but I am more concerned about how his toxic statements about journalism are seeping into the mouths of despot leaders globally who really do hate the press. There, when journalists write something unpopular, they die."

I was deeply disturbed by this episode, which touches on a value that is precious to me and to a free society: the freedom to write and to publish views that may be offensive to some readers.

For five years I took courses that would have made my parents’ hair stand on end: comp lit, the art of the dissertation, psychoanalysis 101, structural linguistics, Ancient Greek, Latin, Ancient French…

Ask a woman working in the rare books trade about an underrepresented or unappreciated woman author, and she’ll likely name too many to count. So many writers have been lost to the hetero-masculine flavor that’s been favored by dealers and collectors for decades.

Love this. We could use him in our neighborhoods today.

I strongly believe there will be a large-scale war over water in the not so distant future. This article is a good example of why I believe that.

An in-depth and research-based article about how journalists can ask better questions, but the advice is also applicable to having better everyday conversations too.

Love this rethinking of goals vs habits. I do this in part anyway, but I like the idea of being mindful of it.

With goals, every day you go back to the gym feels harder. With habits, after a while, it feels harder to not go to the gym than it does to go.

Win-win project that encourages healthy lifestyles. I’d love to see more like this.

What a fascinating culture! > "Okubo says that children sometimes bring in ¥1, ¥5 and ¥10 coins they find on the street, or even a little hair band."

"Lucky people have specific behaviors and mindsets which cause them to encounter far more opportunities and advantages than others on average."

Turn on the waterworks. This is a beautiful tribute.

An incredible long read that breaks down the financial inequalities in America.

A promising story of conservation. > “As the situation on the ground continues to improve, tourism will play an increasingly important role in Zakouma’s recovery. “Chad” and “tourism” are not words that usually go together, however.”

“Some women say that non-indigenous designers aren’t just copying their designs, but trying to steal them permanently.”

“Cape Town suggests an opposite possibility. It could be that human beings are just waiting for something that gives them a challenge, a chance to rise above their politics-exhausted cynicisms and prove they can be good neighbors, stand for more than just money and success, and find ingenious tricks, together, to outwit their new tormentors.”

Love this idea! > “Borrowers can also attend practical skill-sharing events including mending meet-ups, repair parties and DIY classes.”

“But reporting isn’t just observing, it’s also understanding. And a reporter’s notebook is a microscope, or magnifying glass, for examining the world.”

I’m a big supporter of Patagonia. Three cheers for a company that takes a stand!

“At the same time, the trade contributes to a larger, paternalist narrative that sees wealthy countries donating clothes, food, and other goods to “helpless” and “starving” Africa.”

At the same time, the trade contributes to a larger, paternalist narrative that sees wealthy countries donating clothes, food, and other goods to “helpless” and “starving” Africa.

31 lovely journal prompts, even for someone who has journaled for decades.

Working toward the root problem of food insecurity. > "What if we taxed food waste rather than gave companies a tax break? What if, at minimum, we limited the tax deduction to only healthy foods, such as produce?"

Required reading for any white women. This was eye-opening and insightful for me to understand my role in helping to create a more just society.

Unfortunately, I agree. While I'd be content to stay in touch through other platforms, too many friends and family are hopelessly devoted so it's the only way to remain in contact.

"Fear is the factor no one wants to address — fear of criminals, fear of terrorists, fear of the government’s turning tyrannical and, perhaps more than anything else, fear of one another. " This. A million times this.

A powerful story about a young man caught between gang life and death as a result of Trump’s policies.

This professor is finally leaving Harvard after years of harassing women, but something should have been done decades ago.

Online, commentary preceded facts. If you were following the shutdown on social networks, you most likely would have seen lots of politicians and pundits taking stock of the deal before seeing details of the actual news.

This should be a must-read for everyone. We need media free from manipulation and a culture built on legitimate information.

Arguably, this sort of erosion of authenticity and the integrity of official statements altogether is the most sinister and worrying of these future threats.

The challenges of being a front-line female journalists can not be understated, yet their voices and perspectives are so incredibly important.

There is room in the wild for everyone ... but not everyone's experience is the same.

When people who handle guns daily say enough is enough, maybe it’s time to listen.

Agree 100%. Today’s YA is so sanitized.

Agree 100%. Alt-weeklies and independent bloggers seem to be the only ones left still willing to speak the truth.

As a writer, author, editor, and journalism professor, I’ve seen first hand what I refer to as The Huffington Post Effect: the free-content model that duped loads of writers into giving their work away for free, driving down the value of journalism across the industry.

As a writer, author, editor, and journalism professor, I’ve seen first hand what I refer to as The Huffington Post Effect: the free-content model that duped loads of writers into giving their work away for free, driving down the value of journalism across the industry.

Put this one on the to-visit list. Has anyone been?

Making friends is hard for me, and this article has some sound advice on how to make it happen - especially as an adult!

Navigating emotions - real emotions - is something many women struggle with, myself included.

In defense of the local newspaper.

The world is a tough place to live today. This article gives me hope that we can talk openly about all those complex issues - even with the youngest members of society.

We are currently in a golden age of picture books, with a tremendous range to choose from. Some of the best are funny. Or silly. Or informative. Or socially aware. Or just plain reassuring. But I’d like to think there’s a place for the emotionally complex picture book, too.

“And that the choice I made in the face of it said so much about me and the culture from which I’d emerged: that I believed I was infallible; that my body was resilient and imminently trustworthy; that my career and ambition couldn’t be slowed for anything.”

And that the choice I made in the face of it said so much about me and the culture from which I’d emerged: that I believed I was infallible; that my body was resilient and imminently trustworthy; that my career and ambition couldn’t be slowed for anything.

Luckily, 2017 wasn’t all bad news. Let’s keep our eyes on positive news in 2018 too.

Interesting case study about how Estonia is doing tech and digitization right.

Oh, how I love well-written obituaries. A lost art.

I have tried to register to vote in Wisconsin and can attest to the difficulty of doing so. In fact, I still haven't succeeded.

Turns out we need people more than we think we do.

"On the outside, I was a bold, overly confident, swaggering success. But the veneer was thin. On the inside, I lived the perpetual trauma of being held down, called misogynist names and ordered to be quiet. "

Kids are being given some really dangerous messages these days about the fact that they can’t handle being triggered, that they shouldn’t have to bear witness to anything that makes them uncomfortable and that their external environments should bend to and accommodate their needs

An absolute must-read. I'd take less physical security over a life lived online any day.