Heroes

Morgan Freeman needs just 62 seconds to inspire all of us about the future of our planet.

Do you have plans Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2014? Have a minute to chat with global leaders about the environment? You can join me at the the United Nations from your farm/office/bouncy-house/hot tub. (Seriously!) Upworthy will be holding an all-day #UpChat live at the United Nations Climate Summit 2014, where global leaders are convening to make decisions about the future of our planet. (How to join? See below!)Enough from me, I'll let Mr. Freeman take it from here...

Morgan Freeman needs just 62 seconds to inspire all of us about the future of our planet.
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Unilever and the United Nations

Did I mention we are having an #UpChat? Live from the United Nations?! Get excited!


How to join? All you need to do is follow @Upworthy and @Climate2014Live, use the hashtags #UpChat and #Climate2014 in your tweets, and say hello to these awesome orgs (and me!) in the meantime!

As the election approaches and millions of Americans prepare to send in their ballots by mail, people might be worried about how it's going to go. Between the president's constant drum-beating about fraud with mail-in ballots (which experts still say is not the major concern that he claims it is) and the administration's ongoing attacks on the United States Postal Service, it's an understandable concern.

But never fear—America's favorite mail carrier, Newman, is here. And he has an important message for all of us regarding the postal service and the election, and a message for President Trump regarding his tax returns.

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Photo courtesy of Lily Read
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Now more than ever, teachers are America's unsung heroes. They are taking on the overwhelming task of not only educating our children but finding creative and effective ways to do it in an unpredictable virtual learning environment.

Lily Read and Justin Bernard, two Massachusetts educators from one of the most diverse public high schools in the U.S. (over 25 different languages are spoken in the student body!), feel ready to meet the challenges of this unprecedented school year. Their goal: find ways to make virtual education "as joyful as possible" to help support teenagers during quarantine.

"Our school is very economically, racially, and linguistically diverse," said Read, "which means meeting the needs for all those students is incredibly complex." That wide range of diversity means that they spend a lot of time in professional development, preparing to meet students where they are. This summer, educators in their district spent weeks learning everything from how to provide emotional and social support via virtual platforms, to meeting 504 plans and Individual Educational Plans for disabled students virtually, to mastering the various online programs necessary for instruction.

Bernard, now in his fifth year of teaching, also coaches the high school football team. Prior to the pandemic, there were clear expectations for student athletes, with clear goals and incentives to keep their grades up. Now, Bernard is concerned that student athletes will begin to fall through the cracks without the structure of physically going to school each day, and he is on a mission to do everything he can to keep that from happening.

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I saw this poster today and I was going to just let it go, but then I kept feeling tugged to say something.

Melanie Cholish/Facebook

While this poster is great to bring attention to the issue of child trafficking, it is a "shocking" picture of a young girl tied up. It has that dark gritty feeling. I picture her in a basement tied to a dripping pipe.

While that sounds awful, it's important to know that trafficking children in the US is not all of that. I can't say it never is—I don't know. What I do know is most young trafficked children aren't sitting in a basement tied up. They have families, and someone—usually in their family—is trafficking them.

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via Foleyfriends / TikTok

The president's words matter. In what appears to be the waning days of the Trump presidency, they seem to matter less and less but there are still millions of people who mistakenly take his words as gospel.

A poll from last month found that two-thirds of Americans don't trust Trump when it comes to the pandemic. But that still means millions will follow his advice. The frightening thing is that during a pandemic, bad advice can mean the difference between life or death.

On Monday, after returning from Walter Reed Medical Center where he was being treated for COVID-19, President Trump sent out an irresponsible tweet urging Americans to be less concerned with the deadly virus.

A virus that is spreading like wildfire through his administration and their contacts.

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