The Persistent (Page 3)

A painting of a stylish woman walking in a city street with the moon rising. She is looking around her.

Design

Yes, Cities Can Be Sexist. Here’s How to Fix Them.

The idea that urban design can be discriminatory has become more established in recent years. Some city planners are making changes accordingly.

An illustration of a woman working at her laptop; behind her is cross-section of a house; overlaid are pictures of birds and flowers.

Worklife

When Your Boss Tells You to Come In 5 Days a Week, Here’s What You Can Say

After five years of work from home, return-to-office mandates are everywhere. But research shows that nobody really benefits—not even businesses.

Collage illustration: a black-and-white photo of a woman is reflected in a mirror, with blue, orange and green adornments.

Technology

AI Skews Beautiful. What Is That Doing to Us?

Images of people generated by AI tend to be gorgeous, even when creators ask them to be ugly. That could have a profound effect on our emotional wellbeing.

We see the back of Dağdeviren at a piano on a pile of rubble, the shell of a building in front of her.

Turkey

‘A Scar That Stays With Us’—Two Years After a Devastating Earthquake, a Refusal to Be Forgotten

Two years after a 2023 earthquake devastated swaths of Syria and Turkey, lives are still being rebuilt. Women bear the brunt of it.

An illustration of a woman in a power pose looking into a safe full of gold coins!

Money

Trillions of Dollars Are About to Flow Into the Hands of (Mostly) Women. It’s As Big a Deal As It Sounds.

Women are set to be the primary inheritors of around $80 trillion—an enormous wealth transfer which has the potential to change our economic and social landscape.

A stylized illustration of three test tubes. There is also a tampon drawn to look like a test tube.

Science

Menstrual Blood Is Having a Moment

Watercolor of Payal Kapadia, smiling. Her hair is up, she wears a black jacket.

Movies

‘Everybody Should Be a Feminist Filmmaker’

The unassuming story of three working-class Indian women has captured the world’s attention. Here’s why.

An illustration of a conference badge with a photo of a stressed speaker. Underneath it says "volunteer.".

Unpaid labor

I Thought My Year of Yes Would Lead to More Paid Work. How Wrong I Was.

Organizations only truly value what they pay for. The rest they dispose of easily and forget. Don’t let that be you.

An artist's rendering of Angela Merkel. She is shown against a blue patterned background and wears a blue blazer.

History Lessons

My Reluctant Feminist Hero

In a world in which wealth and opulence seem to beget political power, I long for a leader with un-showy discipline. I can’t help thinking of Angela Merkel.

A watercolor painting of Jana Smith. She has a big smile and is wearing a scarf around her neck.

Culture

Some Love Stories Start with a Glance. This One Starts with a Movement.

A love story doesn’t just have to be between two people, says Jana Naomi Smith, the creator of Red for Revolution.

A grainy black and white photo of a veiled Afghan woman is covered with brightly-colored Post-It notes.

Mental Health

When Dreams Are Put On Hold

In Afghanistan, women's blocked opportunities to have a career, contribute to society and earn a living are creating a mental health crisis.

History Lessons

Henrietta Lacks: A Moral Wrong That May Never Be Righted

Her name may not be a household name, but ‘HeLa cells’ from Henrietta Lacks's cervix changed the world.

Books

I Never Saw Myself in Romance Novels. Then, One Day, I Did.

Enthusiastic readers of romance novels would very much like to see themselves reflected on the page. When will the industry fully catch on?

Ideas

Coming to a Theatre Near You

Is Hollywood finally catching up with the real world? Maybe, sort of, yes.

Black and white image of Lily Collins in a sparkly dress and her husband Charlie McDowell in a three-piece suit.

Infertility

Everyone Has Their View on Surrogacy. Few Actually Understand It.

When Lily Collins announced her child had been born via surrogate, the judgments and criticisms were swift and brutal. Many were just plain wrong.