The Conversation

Asexual Latter-day Saints face an added dilemma: Finding their place in a tradition focused on marriage

Written by ben Brandley, Ph.D. Student of Communication, Arizona State University

A pride flag flies in front of the historic temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah.George Frey/Getty Images

It can be difficult to imagine two identities more conflicting than being queer and Mormon.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often called the LDS or Mormon church, teaches that heterose...

Risers, founders, planners and fillers: 4 career paths to get to the top at nonprofits

Written by Christopher Justin Einolf, Associate Professor of Sociology, Northern Illinois University

In most cases, these leaders don't chart their professional trajectories.FG Trade/ E+ via Getty Images

A nonprofit’s executive director has an important job to do. Typically, no one else contributes more to the organization’s success.

Evidence indicates that turnover among these top staffers is high and that nonprofit boards often have...

Cherokee Nation wants to send a delegate to the House – it's an idea older than Congress itself

Written by Julie Reed, Associate Professor in History, Penn State

At the Cherokee Heritage Center in Park Hill, Oklahoma, life-size sculptures depict the walk of the Cherokees along the Trail of Tears.Department of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration

In 1835, the Cherokee Nation was promised a delegate in Congress as part of the same treaty – Treaty of New Echota – that led to the death of...

How to deal with holiday stress, Danish-style

Written by Marie Helweg-Larsen, Professor of Psychology, the Glenn E. & Mary Line Todd Chair in the Social Sciences, Dickinson College

With so many competing demands during the holidays, it's easy to take on more than you can handle.mphillips007/E+ via Getty Images

The holidays often involve jubilant gift exchanges, renewed connections with family and friends, and treasured traditions.

But the love and cheer can also be accompanied by a host of stressors – chaotic travel,...

For Indonesia's transgender community, faith can be a source of discrimination – but also tolerance and solace

Written by Sharyn Graham Davies, Director, Herb Feith Indonesian Engagement Centre, Monash University

Al-Fatah mosque founder Shinta Ratri with other transgender women.Donal Husni/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Shinta Ratri, an Indonesian transgender woman, taught transgender people at the Al-Fatah Islamic boarding school she founded in 2008 that God didn’t care if you were gay or transgender.

Located in Yogyakarta, in southern Java, the school...

Native Hawaiians believe volcanoes are alive and should be treated like people, with distinct rights and responsibilities

Written by Richard W Stoffle, Professor of Anthropology, University of Arizona

Hawaii's Mauna Loa's volcano is erupting for the first time in nearly 40 years.Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Hawaii’s largest and oldest volcano, Mauna Loa, began erupting on Nov. 27, 2022, with lava flowing miles away downhill. The last eruption, which lasted three weeks, was nearly 40 years ago.

It is not clear how long this...

Early and mail-in voting: Research shows they don't always bring in new voters

Written by Jan Leighley, Professor of Government, American University School of Public Affairs

More than 110 million votes were cast in the U.S. midterm elections of November 2022.Hill Street Studios/Digital Vision via Getty Iag

SciLine interviewed Jan Leighley, professor of government in the School of Public Affairs at American University in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 4, 2022. Leighley discussed how early voting affects turnout, how turnout...

What’s really driving ‘climate gentrification’ in Miami? It isn’t fear of sea-level rise

Written by Richard Grant, Professor of Geography and Urban Studies, University of Miami

Residents of Miami’s Little Haiti have been fighting plans for a luxury development for several years.AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Miami’s Little Haiti has been an immigrant community for decades. Its streets are lined with small homes and colorful shops that cater to the neighborhood, a predominantly Afro-Caribbean population with a median...

Supreme Court signals sympathy with web designer opposed to same-sex marriage in free speech case

Written by Mark Satta, Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Wayne State University

Supreme Court case pits LGBTQ rights against right to discriminate.AP Photo/Andrew Harnik

In front of the Supreme Court justices on Dec. 5, 2022 was 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis – a major case regarding LGBTQ rights and free speech.

The petitioner, Colorado-based web designer Lorie Smith, is looking to expand her business, 303 Creative, by...

Georgia runoff elections are exciting, but costly for voters and democracy

Written by John A. Tures, Professor of Political Science, LaGrange College

Sen. Raphael Warnock, the incumbent Democrat, is up against Republican challenger Herschel Walker in a runoff election to choose who will represent Georgia in the U.S. Senate.AP Photo

In Georgia, if no candidate receives 50% of the general election vote for a statewide or congressional district race, there’s a runoff between the top two...