Why Eastern European “Indian hobbyists” are dressing up like Native Americans

BY: JENNIFER OSBORNE From 2011 to 2015 Jennifer Osborne travelled across Eastern Europe documenting “Indian Hobbyists”, a subculture of people who emulate the lifestyle and culture of Native Americans. The community has drawn both controversy and encouragement from North American Indigenous…

These photos are your last chance to see endangered animals before they disappear forever

BY: DANIEL WATERBORNE When nature photographer Joel Sartore’s wife became ill, he was confronted with a stark reality—nothing lasts forever. When his wife received her diagnosis, Sartore gave up traveling to far corners of the world to photograph the world’s…

This DIY mealworm growing kit reduces your carbon footprint while improving your health

BY: ALEX BROWN On the surface mealworms seem like a more appropriate dish for Fear Factor than the family dinner table—most people don’t give it the breadth of thought it deserves. After all, it’s tough to say what arouses more…

Blame your iPhone for your bad mood and back problems, studies say

BY: TREVOR HEWITT It’s a common site on the streetcar – crammed commuters sit hunched over the warm, LED glow of their smartphones, starting their daily pilgrimage. Browsing through BuzzFeed, skimming through Snapchat, they traverse their various digital realities under…

Infamous urban-exploration team shows you how to (illegally) climb Christ the Redeemer (video)

BY: ALEX BROWN Russia produces a strain of urban explorers that North America fails to compete with. They are to urban exploration what Kenya is to distance running. At the forefront of this proud national title stands 21-year-old Vitaliy Raskalov…

After ten years of research, this “storyteller researcher” found the simple cure to depression

BY: DANIEL WATERBORNE Brene Brown is a researcher who has often found herself swimming for answers in the darkest waters of human experience. For ten years Brown conducted thousands of interviews to build a life preserver for times when the…

11 rules of creativity from the man partially responsible for free speech in American art

BY: DANIEL WATERBORNE Henry Miller is a writer who knows that the purpose of language is to liberate us from our own skin. He didn’t believe in writing for readers. He didn’t believe in writing for critics or awards for…

This electrician just turned one of Chevy’s classic trucks into the adventurer’s ultimate camper

BY: TREVOR HEWITT A truck rests in a California backyard, a tree growing out its pale blue back, along decades of rust. That’s what Russ Moen saw when he first found what would become one of the most badass personal camper…

Research proves that getting cancer isn’t just “bad luck”

There’s no more kidding yourself; you can’t hide behind the notion that getting cancer is simply “bad luck”. A study from the Cancer Research Center at Stony Brook University has found evidence proving that extrinsic factors — like smoking, sun…

Florists turned an abandoned house into a beautiful living flower sanctuary

BY: JESSICA BEUKER Photos via FLOWER HOUSE In October of this year, florists from around the U.S. filled an entire abandoned house, wall to wall, ceiling to floor with fresh flowers and living plants. The weekend-long installation in Detroit attracted…

This incredible new form of renewable energy is like your childhood potato-clock on steroids

BY:  ALEX BROWN The old potato-clock trick has more or less become a viable form of renewable energy. A company named Plant-e is heading the initiative, which introduces it as alternative to wind, hydro and solar power. But unlike the…

A woman re-invented her community by building a garden where all the food is free

BY: ALEX BROWN When Lou Risdale implemented her communal front-yard garden, it took nearly a month to attract the interest of her neighbours. At the family level, the dinner table best stands to tighten the roots of our social lives.…

Solar-powered balloons are overcoming the biggest obstacle to a solar energy revolution

BY: SWIKAR OLI A French researcher has a novel idea to improve the efficiency of solar panels by placing them atop hot air balloons and letting them fly. The idea was born because solar power, the probable successor to coal…

Canadians are selling fresh bottled air to China – no it’s not a joke

BY: JESSICA BEUKER A Canadian company has started bottling Rocky Mountain air and selling it to Chinese consumers. The idea started out as a joke, but since then has turned into a hot commodity as the first batch of 500…

Why solitude is a blessing not a curse

BY: SYDNEY MCINNIS We live in a state of relentless connection. When we’re not connecting physically, we connect compulsively through some medium. The concept of solitude is starving. Being completely alone is a form of vulnerability. You’re presented with infinite…

This Muslim council is doing more to prevent poaching than the government

BY: ALEXANDRIA LEE In the state of Terengganu, Malaysia, religion, rather than the government, is heading the fight to prevent poaching. A fatwa is an Islamic legal pronouncement issued by an Islamic scholar (mufti) to resolve a specific issue where…

The 10 best drone photos of 2015 will take you on a virtual tour around the world

BY: JONATHAN MOSS  Why pack your bags when you can travel the world right this second? Dronestagram just posted a collection of drone footage that will take you on a virtual tour across the world, from the blue skies of…

India’s living root bridges are both practical and beautiful (Photos)

BY: JESSICA BEUKER Meghalaya or “the abode of clouds,” in Northeast India is almost entirely covered in a beautiful lush forest that boasts an incredible biodiversity of mammals, birds and plants. Between the tall green mountains and the low tropical…

There’s something to be said about the art of conversation

BY: ADRIAN SMITH I ran into someone I used to work with last night at a bar, while I was out with a couple of new friends from class. I probably hadn’t seen her since last April, but it was…

The Indian temple that is dedicated to a Hindu goddess – and 20,000 rats.

BY: JESSICA BEUKER Deshnoke, a small town in India, is home to a little temple dedicated to Karni Mata, a Hindu goddess. Legend says that Karni Mata’s stepson drowned in a pond while trying to drink from it. Karni Mata…