Off-stage stage fright: Here’s what to do about everyday performance anxiety, according to experts
By Sarah Anderson Medill Reports You might have forgotten your lines as Tree No. 3 in the school play ages ago, but your nerves are waiting in the wings for an unwelcome encore. “Performance anxiety is not limited to actually being on stage,” said psychologist Tamar Chansky, founder of the Children’s and Adult Center […]
Holiday season during pandemic increases risk of teen eating disorders, experts say
By Carly Menker Medill Reports A 17-year-old girl diagnosed with anorexia nervosa dreaded holiday meals. So, two years ago, instead of joining Thanksgiving dinner, she faked being sick all day and refused to come downstairs. The plan that fooled her family that day. But in a session with Julie Raymond, director of eating disorder services […]
Nobel Peace Prize nominee fights to help Assyrians in Middle East
By Saeed Abdullah Medill Reports Activist Juliana Taimoorazy, 48, helped so many Christian Assyrians from the Middle East that this year she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Next year the Skokie, Illinois, resident hopes to publish “Daughter of Nineveh” – a memoir about living in Iran before and after the Islamic Revolution, escaping […]
Climate conversations: How to talk with friends who repeat misinformation
By Christian Elliott Medill Reports Human greenhouse gas emissions have heated the Earth 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) since 1900 – a rate unprecedented in the last 2,000 years. In October, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change also announced that over the next 50 to 100 years, climate change will accelerate, with […]
VIDEO: Where are the refugees?
By Ankita Mukhopadhyay Medill Reports Illinois has taken in 500 Afghan refugees since August, when the Taliban took over Afghanistan. However, the lives of Afghan refugees haven’t improved after moving to the U.S. Their work experience and education is of no value in a new country and their immigration status remains uncertain. This video explores […]
Conflict and the camera: National Geographic photographer Ami Vitale captures images of war and wildlife with her Nikon
By Saeed Abdullah Medill Reports Ami Vitale has lived in war zones, endured malaria and traveled to over 100 countries to document the brutality of conflict and the beauty of wildlife. The six-time winner of the World Press Photo award and author of “Panda Love: The Secret Lives of Pandas” (2018) talks about the bamboo-eating […]
The 4 C’s of journalism: Creativity, curiosity, commitment and compassion — Rebecca Aguilar, the first Latina president of the Society of Professional Journalists, shares her story
By Charles Tharpe Medill Reports In the 1960s, Rebecca Aguilar traveled with her parents to Ohio camps for new immigrants and passed out flyers for her dad’s Spanish radio program. She watched her mom use nail polish to mark the spot on families’ radio dials so they could tune in and listen to her father […]
Q&A with Chris Butsch: From being diagnosed with depression to giving lessons on happiness
By Brittany Edelmann Medill Reports In 2012, Chris Butsch graduated from Vanderbilt University a semester early, with a degree in general engineering, and became a traveling consultant for a health care information-technology company. But to his dismay, the job was “a very challenging, mentally stressful existence.” Butsch said he felt “numb and in so much […]
Climate change pushes precipitation — and ability to predict it — to its limits
By Sarah Anderson Medill Reports Primed by a drought that has lasted longer than the 1930s Dust Bowl, wildfires scorched over 5 million acres of land in the western United States this year. The water level of Lake Powell is dipping dangerously low amid the severe dry spell, threatening the hydroelectric power it generates. On […]
‘I’m dreaming of a green Christmas’: Here’s how to reduce plastic consumption over the holidays
By Fiona Skeggs Medill Reports Christmas is a time for family. For gifts. For sweet treats. For plastic waste? People who celebrate a winter holiday generate about 43% more waste, primarily from wrapping paper, gift bags, tissue paper, food waste and packaging, according to a November survey of 2,000 Americans by OnePoll. Hallmark estimates Americans […]