Why ambassadors are no longer just for nations

Can we improve the methods we use to teach math in schools — so that everyone develops proficiency? A grade-school math program is changing how children learn based on the assumption that all children can achieve a high level of understanding.

One-pill-a-day generic AIDS drugs for poor countries are hard to make because each ingredient is patented by a different pharmaceutical company. The Patent Pool provides a way for companies to donate their intellectual property safely.

Due to recent brain development research, educators are working to add more math education into pre-school and kindergarten classes. Studies show that children of this age are actually extremely receptive to numbers and learning geometry.

Critics in today's world often say that computers and technology are impeding the social skills of the very young. But Zoo U, a computer game for children, helps kids develop the skills they need such as empathy, impulse control, and communication.

Clean water and healthy ecosystems are becoming increasingly difficult to come by. With floating islands and other inventions, eco-entrepreneur Bruce Kania thinks that biomimicry - such as reconstructing wetlands and growing biofilms - can tackle the toughest of water problems.

Concerned with colony collapse syndrome in honey bees worldwide, scientists, farmers and tech companies teamed up in Australia to create a micro-sensor that collects data on the bee's environment.

American humanitarian aid and programs by the United Nations have proved beneficial to equip Middle Eastern refugees with resources for self-settlement outside of camps. The self-settlement model has empowered refugees to become more productive members of society when they return home.

Since 2003, the Dublin Protocol has stopped migrants from traveling through Europe to auspicious countries before claiming asylum. However, many migrants travel by sea—which is more perilous and has led to high rates of death. Germany is the first country European country to break from the Dublin Protocol by letting in Syrian refugees.

Refugee camps typically look like a prison with squalid conditions and barbed wire tops. By contrast, the Kilis refugee camp in Turkey is orderly, secure, and clean; has schools for children; has grocery stores, and is powered with electricity. The camp is not run by the United Nations, but rather it is Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency that oversees every detail and pours billions of dollars into maintaining it every year.

Around the world, a new way of teaching and learning is gaining traction – and seeing results. Rooted in educational theory from the likes of Socrates, Piaget, and Montessori, this method is led by students’ curiosity and ability to learn and grow independently; essentially, the students control their own learning. Such methods make success more attainable in places like Matamoros, Mexico, who has seen exceptional improvement from students who experience learning this way.