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While the rest of the world wasn't looking, Mongolia managed to achieve something kind of amazing.

The Overseas Development Institute has released a new report on Mongolia that's pretty incredible.

Even though up to 40% of Mongolia's population is nomadic, the country has found a way to achieve something wealthier nations can only envy: 98% of its girls and 93% of its boys are now getting a secondary education.

Mongolians value the education of their kids above almost everything else, and now their government — flush with money from a mining boom and improved taxation — has taken up the challenge of paying for it. With a completely overhauled modern education policy that's more responsive to families' needs, and with the support of external financing partners, they're actually getting it done.

"Big Brother Walks by His Sister and Mom"

Since his family is nomadic, 14-year-old Munkhin Otgonbayar has gone to schools in Uvs Province, Ulaangom, and Mongolia's capital, Ulaanbaatar.

"A Traditional Yurt, Now With Solar Panels and a Satellite Dish"

Mongolia has worked hard to preserve its cherished traditions in the face of modernization.

"Boys and Their Horses"

For school, Munkhdemberel Munkhbat leaves home and lives in a dormitory. Here he is hanging out with his friends at home — he's the one on the left.

"Doing Homework at Home"

Munkhdemberel hits the books in the family yurt.

"Two Boys Race Their Horses"

It's a traditional Mongolian pastime. These two boys are prepping to race in the Naadam festival of the Three Manly Sports: horse racing, wrestling, and archery.

"A 37-Year-Old Mongolian Mother"

Years ago, Togtokh Buyanjargal had to leave school in first grade to become a herder. She looks to a better future for her kids thanks to education.

"A Little Girl Watches the Big Kids Do Homework"

A girl watches her siblings work on their assignments. She looks a little envious.

"Urangoo Bayartsogt, Proudly at Her School Desk"

15-year-old schoolgirl Urangoo Bayartsogt attends a boarding school. Even though she's a long way from her parents and home, she obviously enjoys being there.

"Urangoo at the School Computers"

“The good thing about [boarding] school is that ... you can ask teachers to explain anything that you don't understand at any time."

"Dorm Life"

Urangoo has lived in a school dormitory since first grade. Her younger brothers, 8 and 9, live there with her.

"Teacher Gantuya Galkhuu"

The 29-year-old math teacher has been teaching at her boarding school for eight years. Mongolia encourages teachers to take jobs in remote areas, offering bonuses as incentives.

"Herder Battulga Dorjpurev"

35-year-old herder Battulga Dorjpurev has two kids at school in Bayankhangai Soum. When he was young, his parents weren't able to provide him an education.

"A Schoolboy and His Parents Shear Sheep During a School Holiday"

When school's in session, Dorjpurev's wife (left) moves to town with the kids so they can attend. “I guess everybody strives to provide their children with education," says Battulga.

Pop Culture

Folks are admitting that Boomers weren’t totally wrong. Here are 19 things they got right.

OK, Boomer, you're right about this one.

via Patrick Lannigan/Flickr

The gaze of the approving Boomer.

Over the past few years, Baby Boomers (1946 to 1964) have been getting a lot of grief from the generations that came after them, Gen X (1965 to 1980), Millenials (1981 to 1996), and now, Gen Z (1997 to 2012). Their grievances include environmental destruction, wealth hoarding, political polarization, and being judgemental when they don’t understand how hard it is for younger people to make it in America these days.

Every Baby Boomer is different, so it's wrong to paint them all with a broad brush. But it’s undeniable that each generation shares common values, and some are bound to come into conflict.

However, life in 2023 isn’t without its annoyances. Many that came about after the technological revolution put a phone in everyone’s hands and brought a whole new host of problems. Add the younger generations' hands-on approach to child rearing and penchant for outrage, and a lot of moden life has become insufferanble.

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baby boomers

Pop Culture

Little boy steals the show at his sister's end-of-year dance school concert

This kid was born to dance.

@kleinkwagga1/TikTok

Klein Kwagga understood the assignment at his sister's concert.

Some kids are too shy to ever want to get on a stage, some will spend most of a performance staring awkwardly at their shoes, and some kids love the opportunity to show off what they've practiced in front of an audience.

And then there are the kids were simply born for the spotlight. You know them when you see them.

When Dirkco Jansen van Nieuwenhuizen hopped on stage with all of the other brothers and sisters of the dance students at René’s Art of Dance in South Africa, no one expected a viral sensation. According to Capetown Etc, it was the school's year-end concert, and siblings were invited to come up and dance to Bernice West’s Lyfie—a popular song in Afrikaans. And Dirkco, who goes by Klein Kwagga, took the assignment and ran with it.

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Community

People share the most practical ways to support new parents after giving birth

Sometimes the best gift is practicality.

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

People share the most practical ways to support new parents

There's a lot of preparation that goes into having a child well before they're even born. First there are the physical changes your body makes to clear up some space for a tiny human roughly the size of a watermelon. Then there's preparing the nursery, buying lots of extremely small clothes, diapers and an expected understanding that while sleep may be your friend, you won't be getting any of it for about a year.

Lots of people give plenty of advice to help you cope in the early days but after the baby arrives, the focus shifts to solely the baby. It's obviously not a deliberate shift. Babies are just more shiny and new that the parents. But not everyone forgets about the parents once baby makes their grand entrance–some go out of their way to make sure the parents feel supported.

Upworthy asked its audience, "what was the best non-baby related gift you received as a new parent," and the answers were a masterclass on how to care for new parents.

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Identity

Formerly enslaved man's response to his 'master' wanting him back is a literary masterpiece

"I would rather stay here and starve — and die, if it come to that — than have my girls brought to shame by the violence and wickedness of their young masters."

GOOD

A photo of Jordan Anderson.

In 1825, at the approximate age of 8, Jordan Anderson (sometimes spelled "Jordon") was sold into slavery and would live as a servant of the Anderson family for 39 years. In 1864, the Union Army camped out on the Anderson plantation and he and his wife, Amanda, were liberated. The couple eventually made it safely to Dayton, Ohio, where, in July 1865, Jordan received a letter from his former owner, Colonel P.H. Anderson. The letter kindly asked Jordan to return to work on the plantation because it had fallen into disarray during the war.

On Aug. 7, 1865, Jordan dictated his response through his new boss, Valentine Winters, and it was published in the Cincinnati Commercial. The letter, entitled "Letter from a Freedman to His Old Master," was not only hilarious, but it showed compassion, defiance, and dignity. That year, the letter would be republished in theNew York Daily Tribune and Lydia Marie Child's "The Freedman's Book."

The letter mentions a "Miss Mary" (Col. Anderson's Wife), "Martha" (Col. Anderson's daughter), Henry (most likely Col. Anderson's son), and George Carter (a local carpenter).

Dayton, Ohio,
August 7, 1865
To My Old Master, Colonel P.H. Anderson, Big Spring, Tennessee

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history

While the rest of the world wasn't looking, Mongolia managed to achieve something kind of amazing.

The Overseas Development Institute has released a new report on Mongolia that's pretty incredible.

OK, Boomer, you're right about this one.

1. App exhaustion​

2. Let kids play

3. Pricey concerts

4. Tip creep

5. Phones at concerts

6. Kids online

7. Lazy tablet parents

8. Bring back knobs

9. Bad customer service

10. Raising entitled kids

11. Emojis in work emails

12. Paper straws

13. Face tattoos

14. Gender reveals

15. People are too sensitive

16. TV sounds terrible

17. Affordable housing

18. Blinded by the lights

19. The people on your lawn

This kid was born to dance.

The 42-year-old optical illusion is still astounding people.

Sometimes the best gift is practicality.

1. Everyone has to eat, especially when you've just birthed a human

2. Cleaning is a gift of love

3. Giving parents a much needed break from their littles to do wild things like nap.

Too many women lose out on much needed support because of unwarranted stigma.

"I would rather stay here and starve — and die, if it come to that — than have my girls brought to shame by the violence and wickedness of their young masters."

1. App exhaustion