A few months ago, after I had presented the Dignity Index to a group of people who work with at-risk teenagers, a woman asked to speak to me out in the hallway, away from the group.
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Cadets in the United States Military Academy at West Point are encouraged to live by the motto, “Duty, Honor, Country.” We at the Dignity Index are thrilled that a group of seniors added “Dignity” to the list of values studied this year for a class project that became so much more than academic work – for us and the future Army leaders.
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Most Americans dislike like the culture of contempt. So, why is it growing?
Because we dislike it as individuals, but it grows as a culture.
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Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers, expectant mothers, stepmothers, grandmothers, mother-like aunts, self-mothers (I just learned that term), and everyone who takes the time to be like a mother to anyone who needs a mother.
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When I was in 8th grade, my junior high school librarian invited my class to write a short paper on life goals – basically, what did we want to be when we grew up?
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Pope Francis, who died just hours after he celebrated the great feast of Easter with believers all over the world, was a man who inspired many of us who believe in the power of dignity.
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My work with the Dignity Index keeps me on the road (or in the air) pretty often, and last week found me on a flight to Southern California.
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Last week my brother Mark and I, together with our wives Linda and Jeanne, welcomed our sister Maria back home to Washington for a celebration of her new book, “I Am Maria.”
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“To the world we dream about,
and the one we live in now.”
On Thursday night, I sat in a darkened high school auditorium, expecting to be impressed but not prepared to be awed.
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Last week I returned home from the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Turin Italy. The Opening Ceremonies were held in the Inalpi Arena in Turin on Saturday, March 8th.
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Have you ever asked yourself how many cultures you live in?
As I’m using the term here, a culture is a group of people who share a set of habits, behaviors, traditions and values. A culture is shaped in part by what we encourage and reward.
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Last week I was in Palo Alto wrapping up a yearlong fellowship with the Emerson Collective—an organization working to create “a world of abundance for future generations” by supporting people and projects that strengthen communities.
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Last March, my 88-year-old mother, Marion, moved to a senior living community exactly one mile from us.
It’s been decades since she and I lived this close to one another, and I was realistic enough to think it would be an adjustment.
Much of the growth in our work here at UNITE has been happening in the K-12 education space. Teachers and school leaders across the country are asking how they can uphold and promote the value of dignity within our schools.
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President Lincoln, who we celebrate today, delivered his second inaugural address on March 4, 1865. Speaking to a divided nation in the midst of the bloody civil war, Lincoln famously ended his 7-minute speech by inviting his country to adopt the qualities necessary for healing:
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At this polarized moment in U.S. politics, the University of Utah and Project UNITE have joined forces to make political and public discourse more productive.
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Over the last week, our team at the Dignity Index has been asked one question over and over again: “Is treating someone on the other side with dignity a sign of weakness? Isn’t dignity really an excuse for cowardice?”
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Recent media attention has raised curiosity about the Dignity Index – our eight-point scale that measures how we treat each other when we disagree.
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Did you know that there’s national Quitter’s Day? Observed on the second Friday in January, it marks the point where 80% of people abandon their New Year’s resolutions.
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Last week while meeting with a group of education leaders in Seattle I heard the same questions I’ve come to expect after a workshop on the Dignity Index:
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