--- description: Why we need open source tractors, grassroots glimmers of hope in Guatemala, the rise of altruism for secular Americans, and more. title: These Are Today's Best Ideas image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Ideas](/section/ideas/) ## Ideas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Innovation](/tag/innovation/) ## Innovation Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Five Best Ideas of the Day: February 12 by [The Aspen Institute](/author/the-aspen-institute/) ## The Aspen Institute Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 12, 2015 5:01 PM CUT by [The Aspen Institute](/author/the-aspen-institute/) ## The Aspen Institute Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 12, 2015 5:01 PM CUT **1\.** [**Proprietary tech under the hood means farmers can’t service their own equipment. Time for open source tractors.**](http://www.wired.com/2015/02/new-high-tech-farm-equipment-nightmare-farmers/ "undefined") By Kyle Wiens in Wired **2\.** [**These grassroots efforts to improve life are glimmers of hope for Guatemala.**](http://blogs.cfr.org/oneil/2015/02/11/glimpses-of-optimism-in-guatemala/ "undefined") By Shannon K. O’Neill at the Council on Foreign Relations **3\.** [**Secular Americans aren’t morally adrift. For many, altruism is their moral compass.**](http://america.aljazeera.com/opinions/2015/2/tell-david-brooks-the-nones-are-alright.html "undefined") By Nick Street in Al Jazeera America **4\.** [**It takes a package of policies to substantially reduce poverty.**](http://blog.metrotrends.org/2015/02/takes-package-policies-substantially-reduce-poverty/ "undefined") By Linda Giannarelli, Kye Lippold, Sarah Minton and Laura Wheaton in MetroTrends **5\.** [**“Ultimately, the most effective way to create shareholder value is to serve the interests of all stakeholders.”**](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marc-benioff/a-call-for-stakeholder-activists%5Fb%5F6599000.html "undefined") By Marc Benioff in the Huffington Post  [_The Aspen Institute_](http://www.aspeninstitute.org/ "undefined") _is an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, D.C._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3706983/five-best-ideas-of-the-day-february-12/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3706983/five-best-ideas-of-the-day-february-12/"},"headline":"Five Best Ideas of the Day: February 12","datePublished":"2015-02-12T17:01:52.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:05:41.002Z","description":"Why we need open source tractors, grassroots glimmers of hope in Guatemala, the rise of altruism for secular Americans, and more.","url":"https://time.com/3706983/five-best-ideas-of-the-day-february-12/","keywords":["Innovation","women","Children","Education","girls","Technology","Religion","poverty","Farming","Hunger","families","Profits","Guatemala","altruism"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"The Aspen Institute","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/the-aspen-institute/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/innovation/","name":"Innovation"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3706983/five-best-ideas-of-the-day-february-12/","name":"Five Best Ideas of the Day: February 12"}}]}] ```