Sunday Pick: 2025 Staff Picks - Best of How to Be a Better Human

Remember those fun high school superlatives like the “Class Clown” or the “Biggest Flirt”? In this special How to Be a Better Human season finale, you will be hearing from our previous guest Dallas Youth Poet Laureate Naisha Randhar and our team of editors, marketers, producers, fact-checkers and more on their favorite episodes this year. How to Be a Better Human 2025 SuperlativesMost Likely to Make You Rethink Your Place in the WorldMost Inspiring StoryMost Likely to Make You Feel Your FeelsBest Motivator Most Likely to Improve Your Life TomorrowBiggest Perspective ShifterMost Shared Tidbit Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Regret is one of our most powerful emotions -- and also one of the most misunderstood. Over the past two years, author Daniel H. Pink has collected a trove of more than 16,000 regrets from people in 105 countries in an effort to better understand this mysterious emotion. He shares the key patterns that emerged (it all boils down to the same four core regrets, he says) and explains how to transform your own regrets in order to create the life you've always wanted to live. (This talk and conversation, hosted by TED current affairs curator Whitney Pennington Rodgers, was part of an exclusive TED Membership event. Visit ted.com/membership to become a TED Member.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

To truly savor life, pursue "powerful first experiences," says storyteller and nonprofit founder Kenneth Chabert. Learn more about how to create these meaningful moments, where mundane routine is broken by novel experiences in small but significant ways -- no matter how old you are. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As cascading climate challenges reshape our world, the most resilient systems are ones we often overlook. Ecological futurist Tariq Al-Olaimy has seen this firsthand in disaster-stricken communities, where church basements, mosque yards and temple networks form a "spiritual infrastructure" that sustains people long before formal aid arrives. Drawing on a decade of work with global faith coalitions, Al-Olaimy explores why spiritual traditions are uniquely equipped to navigate moments of collapse — and how aligning our inner values, economies and ecosystems may be essential to restoring life on a changing planet. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Studies show that women negotiate just as frequently as men — so why do they succeed half as often? With wit and humor, business consultant Kathryn Valentine unpacks the gender expectations of workplace negotiations, offering a clear equation for anyone to make a successful ask and get what they want.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With a billion mobile phone users and a median population age of 19, Africa isn't catching up to the AI revolution — it's writing an entirely different playbook, says business leader Hardy Pemhiwa. He shows how a generation of entrepreneurs is using AI to teach classes, triage patients and boost farm yields through the power of local compute, local data and local languages. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As AI races into classrooms, we risk confusing quick and easy answers with true learning, says AI education entrepreneur Priya Lakhani. She explains why being challenged is essential for making knowledge stick — and how AI can be designed to strengthen (not weaken) learning, teaching and thinking. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What do foot massage parties, otters, and AI robot tutors have in common? To find out, tune into our special end-of-year conversation featuring the hosts from TED Talks Daily, TED Radio Hour, TED Business, and TED Tech! Elise Hu, Manoush Zomorodi, Modupe Akinola and Sherrell Dorsey got together to share the biggest ideas dominating their industry and the lesser-known insights they wished garnered more attention. From pushing back against AI advances to sharing the TED Talks that inspired them, Elise, Manoush, Modupe, and Sherrell reflect on 2025 and look ahead to 2026.Conversations MentionedTED Radio HourRay Kurzweil, "Could AI extend your life indefinitely? Futurist Ray Kurzweil thinks so" Victor Riparbelli, “Will AI avatars eventually teach our kids?” Philip Johns, “Singapore's otters are butting heads with their human neighbors. Can they coexist?” Restoring trust in government, "Move fast...and fix democracy?" TED TalksSitoyo Lopokoiyit in conversation with Jacqueline Novogratz "A story of moral imagination and bold entrepreneurship" Sarah Beery, "How AI is unearthing hidden scientific knowledge" Scott Loarie (of iNaturalist), "The surprising power of your nature photos" Daniel Zavala-Araiza, "The best way to lower Earth’s temperature — fast" Jennifer Pahlka, "Coding a better government" Pinky Cole (Slutty Vegan), "How I make vegan food sexy" Jason Huang, "The high-wire act of unlocking clean energy" Jennifer Doudna, "CRISPR's next advance is bigger than you think"Jonny Sun, "You are not alone in your loneliness"  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a time when loneliness is becoming a public health crisis, author Rhaina Cohen says friendships aren't just nice to have — they’re essential to your health and happiness. She challenges the assumption that biological and romantic relationships matter most, exploring how close platonic bonds (when given real intention and commitment) can profoundly strengthen your life. (This conversation, hosted by TED's Whitney Pennington Rodgers, was part of an exclusive TED Membership event. TED Membership is the best way to support and engage with the big ideas you love from TED. To learn more, visit ted.com/membership.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a now-famous Go match against a human in 2016, AI made Move 37 — a seemingly nonsensical play that baffled every expert but ultimately won it the match. Amen Ra Mashariki, director of AI at the Bezos Earth Fund, thinks we need AI to make that same kind of creative leap for climate solutions. In conversation with TED Radio Hour host Manoush Zomorodi, he shares a vision for new AI solutions to environmental problems that human experts haven't yet dreamed up. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.