He takes materials others might overlook or discard from cardboard tubes to beer crates, styrofoam to shipping containers and subjects them to a kind of alchemy, refining rough edges and transforming fragility into sturdiness. The outcome is a perpetually ingenious and curiously poetic scavenger architecture that finds beauty and purpose in the everyday. From high-end boutiques to housing for refugees, Ban's buildings blur the lines between eastern and western design traditions, between the luxurious and the ordinary.
Within hours of the Bondi beach terror attack, the money had already begun to pour in. As images of the tragedy flooded social media, people from around the world donated tens of thousands of dollars to the victims, their families and first responders. Passing the hat around the neighbourhood or the local pub has always been a staple response in times of crisis. But today, that instinct to open your wallet has been exponentially supercharged via a digital simulacrum: online crowdfunding platforms.
On December 6, 1917, in the harbor of Halifax, Nova Scotia, a Norwegian freighter called the Imo collided with a French cargo ship called the Mont Blanc. It happened that the Mont Blanc was headed for a military convoy loaded with some 2,300 tons of picric acid, 200 tons of TNT, 35 tons of benzol, and 10 tons of gun cotton, all destined for the battlefields in France. The collision shoved the Mont Blanc, now on fire, toward the shoreline.
"This dollar total will likely be reported in the news, but any dollar amount is a vanishingly tiny fraction of the personal expressions of care being shared into communities this year," Scott wrote in an essay published Tuesday. "To use just one year in the United States as an example, the total donated to US charities of all kinds in 2020 was $471 billion, nearly a third of it in increments of less than $5,000."
The Sri Lankan government deployed police and military personnel to aid rescue and search efforts as strong rain and damaging winds crossed Sri Lanka on Friday, with the death toll having risen to 69 by the evening. Officials say that the toll could rise even higher, as the country still expects more flooding from the cyclone Ditwah in the next 12 hours.
Military helicopters dropped equipment to residents gathered on rooftops, while other aircraft flew in key materials like generators, oxygen tanks and drinking water. The country's aircraft carrier, Chakri Narubet, set out from its home port on Tuesday to join the relief efforts, the navy said. The government also appealed to the public for the donation of useful relief equipment such as boats or Jet Skis.
Mookie Betts was named the 2025 recipient of Major League Baseball's most prestigious individual player honor, the Roberto Clemente Award, which is annual recognition of an MLB player who best represents the game through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy, and positive contributions, both on and off the field. Betts was nominated by the Los Angeles Dodgers for his many extraordinary efforts, including supporting young people in a variety of ways and helping victims of the L.A. fires.
Guy Fieri has always been larger than life. With his spiky blonde hair, bold catchphrases, and love for taking diners on unforgettable journeys, he's become one of the most recognizable food personalities in the world. But beyond the flames of the grill and the neon lights of Flavortown, there's another side of Guy that many fans are only beginning to see: the philanthropist dedicated to serving communities in crisis, honoring everyday heroes, and inspiring the next generation.
Here's the thing about PVC pipe that most of us forget. It can be cut with simple tools, and once softened with heat, it can be reshaped easily. Marx took this basic property and turned it into an entire assembly system for emergency housing. Instead of hunting down T-joints, elbows, and corner pieces, you just heat up the pipe itself and bend it into whatever shape you need.
The investigation will explore how the California Volunteer Fund spent a $500,000 grant it received from the disaster-relief charity FireAid. Two House Republicans launched an investigation on Wednesday that will, in part, examine how a California charitable organization used a $500,000 grant that was meant to support victims of the deadly Palisades and Eaton fires, a move that is expanding congressional scrutiny over the response to the disaster.
Mr. Sertich knows CalHFA and, even more importantly, knows the state's housing finance ecosystem from nearly every perspective, CalHFA Board Chair Jim Cervantes said in a statement. With CalHFA and its sister agencies moving into a new era under the umbrella of the California Housing and Homelessness Agency, Mr. Sertich's experience and expertise will be invaluable. Per a release from the agency, CalHFA helped 7,000 first-time and first-generation homebuyers in the last fiscal year.
Who would have imagined an enormous barbecue pit rolling around on 18 wheels? The mystery doubles when realizing those wheels are attached to a traditional, bright-red Peterbilt truck - though there's nothing traditional about its current use. In the trucks' current incarnation as the "Undisputable Cuz" barbecue pit, it travels, aided by highway escorts, when duty calls for charity functions, disaster relief, or holiday events. It's considered the world's largest mobile BBQ smoker, according to the rig's owner, Terry Folsom, who hails from Brenham, Texas.
In a powerful demonstration of the food and beverage industry's commitment to giving back, the Guy Fieri Foundation has announced its highly anticipated Chefs for Heroes Fundraiser, set to take place on Saturday, October 11, 2025, in the heart of Sonoma County, California. This extraordinary culinary celebration promises to unite 15 of America's most talented chefs, world-class entertainment, and passionate community supporters for a mission that goes far beyond exceptional food and drink.
The loss of life and devastation caused by the floods in Texas this past weekend are difficult to fathom. Our hearts break for the families who are grieving such sudden and unexpected loss, Marc Wood, Fairway's regional senior vice president, said in a statement.
Listen, this is one of the more devastating stories that I think we've had to cover. As a mother of two daughters that are going to go to camp at some point, I cannot even imagine what that feels like.
From the first call, there was a sense of alignment - both in purpose and pace. Tamara and her team had been working tirelessly with local networks to coordinate donations, and I was mobilizing my contacts in the design world to gather furnishings and essentials.
