Modern humans have roamed the earth for 300,000 years, and since the beginning, there have been communities: people coming together to share resources, compare ideas, and help raise their young. We see this idea in nature as well. Very few animals exist without aid from their herd, pod, flock, etc. Early human civilizations like Mesopotamia, Ancient India, and Ancient Egypt worked together to advance science, literacy, mathematics, astronomy, and law to form civilized and cul

Asian American Adoptees on Identity, Memory, and Belonging Adoption is not what people think it is. I feel like people want it to be simple so badly, like they need it to make sense in a clean, comforting way. A child is “saved,” placed into a better life, and grows up grateful. That’s the version that gets told, repeated, and accepted without much questioning. But that version leaves so much out. It ignores the parts that are harder to explain—the parts that don’t fit into s

When I made the decision to relocate to Indianapolis in the summer of 2021, I arrived with a mix of focused determination and an eager, open curiosity about what the city held for me. It was the quintessential fresh start. Much like countless others who arrive in a new landscape, my immediate, primary focus was directed toward establishing and building my professional career and, perhaps more abstractly, discovering where I truly fit within this new community. I threw myself

Alone means having no one else present. Everyone has felt this feeling at least once in their life—starting a new school, moving out, or launching something brand new. That moment of discomfort, when you don’t know where to begin, is exactly why communities matter. When building community, the questions that you ask yourself are simple but profound: Who? What? Where? How? Networking can be one of the hardest things to do if you don’t know where to start. Create. Connect. C

When I launched Make Your Money Matter – Michigan, I knew I wasn’t just creating a business directory, I was building a love letter to the women and communities who show up, open shop, and do the work that keeps our cities not just running, but thriving. This is for the women who unlock their storefronts before sunrise and flip the sign to open with pride and purpose. It’s for the women who make neighborhoods feel like home, one My aunt was born five years before my father