Good country

At this time of the year, when we're probably all thinking about how fabulous we're going to be next year and do everything differently: stop smoking, lose weight, become a vegetarian, recycle more, do some English listening every day, do some exercising, stop mugging people and running off with their handbags, etc, etc, etc, perhaps it's the time to think more globally? Just an idea!

Especially those of you who might be dreaming of the possibility of a new country? Maybe it's the time to consider what makes a country a "good" one.

In this TED talk, Simon Anholt talks about the factors that make some countries better than others, and about how what we like about a country may not be what we would have initially imagined.

He also says the name of the country that currently does the most good, and guess what: the country is... SPOILER!!! CENSORED CENSORED CENSORED!!!



(Remember to watch the video without subtitles a couple of times, if you're watching it for listening practice.)


Along the same lines, on this webpage http://www.goodcountry.org/ Anholt promotes the idea of a political party concerned with doing good.

And if you're like me and enjoy lots of statistics in different colours, you should really check out this part, where you'll be able to compare different countries and different aspects: http://www.goodcountry.org/index_intro

And if all that doesn't make you feel like being good in 2015, I give up! :)

Happy new year everyone!

Does Learning a Foreign Language Pay Off?

Is learning a foreign language really worth it?

Here they talk about the pros (and no cons): Does Learning a Foreign Language Pay Off?



In more detail here: http://www.economist.com/blogs/prospero/2014/03/language-study