Did you know that 60% of people still believe that individuals with intellectual disabilities should be segregated in schools and in the workplace? The problem is that not everyone knows or has met someone with an intellectual disability. The Schriver Report Snapshot conducted by  Harris Poll for The Special Olympic International World Games and Shriver Media found that:

• the 56% of Americans who know someone with ID are twice as likely to understand the facts behind it

• and Americans who’ve never met someone with ID are three times less likely to find the R-word offensive in any context

It seems that the best way to promote empathy and understanding is making sure that people of all abilities are welcome and supported in our public spaces, schools, and places of work. We were moved by this testimony from Best Buddies Global Ambassador Paul Brooks, calling on us all to make everyone feel included, regardless of ability:

“Together we can make a difference and to influence our culture for people with disabilities, if we spread the word for inclusion! We have the power to use language that invites people in and encourages them to be themselves”

Read Brooks’ full story at www.medium.com, and make your pledge for inclusion today.

Amazing photography by Christopher Payne taking an inside look at The Times’s printing plant in Queens, NY. Not only is it fascinating to see how vast and complicated the plant is, the portraits Payne takes of its workers are stunning. Take a look at the nytimes.com.

Photographer Robert Frank prefers to stay out of the limelight and let his work be his greatest legacy - and for good reason. His photographic survey, “The Americans”, portrays the vast array of experiences of American life… “how it felt to be wealthy, to be poor, to be in love, to be alone, to be young or old, to be black or white, to live along a country road or to walk a crowded sidewalk, to be overworked or sleeping in parks, to be a swaggering Southern couple or to be young and gay in New York, to be politicking or at prayer.” Needless to say, we’re big fans. Learn more about his work at nytimes.com.

Having access to affordable, safe housing is a basic need of any young family. Not only does it give children a physical space to grow-up, it provides the emotional stability for a family that helps children thrive emotionally. Learn more about the important work being done to provide housing to families around the world at www.habitat.org.

Did you know that around 60% of workers in the private sector are contractually forbidden from discussing their salary? Tackling the issue of the gender pay gap is a complicated problem, but there are concrete steps that can be taken to make advances for equal pay for everyone- people of all genders, races, and backgrounds. Learn more about how the Paycheck Fairness Act aims to do just that at www.aclu.org.

This photo essay by Christopher Payne beautifully captures the process of making pencils. Of course, making something so simple is anything but. We love the detail that these photographs capture, and learning about the story behind this Jersey City pencil factory. Check it out for yourself at nytimes.com.

Most people are familiar with the drug problem with professional athletes, but the problem extends to animals participating in sports too. Drugs that mask injuries or push horses to race even when injured are common, and put the horses at risk along with their riders. Learn more at www.humanesociety.org.

We’re big fans of Radiolab, and love this short film “Moments” by Will Hoffman. Hoffman effortlessly captures the essence of what makes life meaningful - in all the moments in between. Granted, our personal “moments” reel might feature a few more cups of coffee, but this comes pretty close. See for yourself at www.youtube.com.

Inspiring story of international support coming together to rebuild this wrestling club’s gym after it was devasted in a bombing by the Islamic State in September. In the attack, 26 of their wrestlers were killed and 91 were wounded. The head coach said of the wrestlers: “They all believe we need to show the terrorists that they can kill us, but they can’t stop us.” Read the full story at nytimes.com.

Betts’ story of how he went from a convict to an attorney is deeply personal, captivating, and moving. He recalls apologizing to the man he robbed and his family in court, but struggling to fully give words to his experience: “so afraid of what might happen, I could barely articulate my regret. I couldn’t explain how a confluence of bad decisions and opportunity led me to become the caricature of a black boy in America.” Read the full story at nytimes.com.

Sometimes you can’t decide which image is best to feature, so you settle on an image carousel to satisfy all stake-holders. The only problem is, a constantly changing image carousel can be distracting, and might be drawing attention away from the important content on your webpage. Learn more about the dangers of image carousels on hubspot.com.

This is a great idea. As public spaces, libraries should strive to serve all of their patrons, homeless or not. The more we use public spaces to lift each other up and support one another, the better. Learn more about how this library is doing just that at www.durangoherald.com.

The conditions in these prisons are horrific, and solitary confinement is often used to isolate inmates who are in need of medical attention. Just another example of how badly our country is in need of prison reform. Read more at www.newyorker.com.

Some people start working in renewables out of moral convictions. For others, it’s just the smart thing to do. We really enjoyed getting the perspective from these coal families who have turned to professions in wind or solar because there was more opportunity. Learn more about their stories at nytimes.com.

When designing a website, it’s imperative to make sure that the first page your audience sees is compelling, clear, and tells them right away how to engage with your website. Hubspot has put together this great list of examples showcasing websites that do just this. Take a look and get inspired at www.hubspot.com.

It’s so exciting to see Hollywood slowly catch up with the times. It’s amazing to see actresses like Lupita Nyong’o unapologetically carve out a space for themselves in film without compromise, and to find success doing so. To read more about her career, read the full article on nytimes.com.

This month, the Abel Prize was awarded to Karen Uhlenbeck, who is the first woman to receive the award. Uhlenbeck pioneered the field of geometric analysis, and developed techniques now commonly used by many mathematicians. “She did things nobody thought about doing,” said Sun-Yung Alice Chang, a mathematician at Princeton University who served on the five-member prize committee, “and after she did, she laid the foundations of a branch of mathematics.” Learn more about Uhlenbeck and her work at nytimes.com.

The beloved chocolatier missed the mark with a marketing campaign that equated “digging in” to a box of chocolates with digging up artifacts at heritage sites. The campaign encouraged consumers to “grab your metal detector and go hunting for Roman riches” and other artifacts at specific sites around Britain and Ireland. It’s a fun idea at first, but if you consider the reality of the suggestion - going out and destroying “ancient treasure” is just a bad idea. Read the full story at nytimes.com.

So excited to hear about this project working to expand access to realistic depictions of women in photography. It’s so important to make space for women to tell their own stories, on their own terms. Read the full story at adweek.com.

Facing an outbreak of car thefts committed by teens, police chiefs and prosecutors are pushing a bill that would send more young people into adult courts. Connecticut’s recent experience with juvenile justice reform shows why it’s the wrong choice. Learn more about the issue and how you can take action at www.sentencingproject.org.