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Implementation of greenhouses by Zef Shala

Mayor Garcetti, City Council President Martinez Nominate Kristin Crowley as L.A.’S Next Fire Chief as Ralph Terrazas Announces Retirement by Los Angeles Fire Department

LOS ANGELES - Mayor Eric Garcetti and City Council President Nury Martinez announced on January 18, 2022 that Fire Chief Ralph Terrazas will retire after nearly 40 years of distinguished service to the Los Angeles Fire Department — and that Kristin Crowley, a top deputy with a stellar 25-year track record at the Department, has been nominated as its next Chief.

If confirmed by the City Council, Crowley, currently Acting Administrative Operations Chief Deputy and Fire Marshal, will be the 19th Fire Chief, and the first woman to ever lead the LAFD.

“We’re living through an unprecedented moment that has called on our Fire Department not just to protect us – but to lead us in the fight to overcome public safety challenges we’ve never faced before. At the same time, the LAFD is leading a transformative national discussion about strengthening equity and inclusion within the firefighting ranks, and we must overcome those internal challenges too,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. “Throughout her distinguished career, Kristin Crowley has proven her brilliance, determination and bravery on the job again and again. She’s also shown this city her heart, with her tireless commitment to helping students access life-changing educational opportunities. There is no one better equipped to lead the LAFD at this moment than Kristin. She’s ready to make history, and I’m proud to nominate her as the Department’s next Chief.”

“Today is a big moment in this City. For the first time in its history the Los Angeles Fire Department will be led by a woman,” said Council President Martinez. “Chief Kristin Crowley is known by her colleagues and by this city as someone who is dedicated, hard working, and goes above and beyond what is expected of her. This announcement is not just important for the City of Los Angeles, but for girls across LA who never imagined they could one day serve as Chief of the Los Angeles Fire Department.”

Crowley is a 22-year veteran of the Fire Department who has moved seamlessly through the ranks, proving her credibility and character along the way. She made history as the Department’s first female Fire Marshal and is the second woman to earn the rank of Chief Deputy.

Chief Deputy Crowley, who serves as program director for the LAFD’s youth development program, has played a key role in ensuring that over 1,000 LAUSD high school students continue in their education.

In her current role, she helped to develop a five-year strategic plan to identify areas of growth within the Department and foster culture more open to change. As Chief, she plans to work to both deepen existing efforts and create new mechanisms to foster equity and inclusion in the Department.

"I am honored and humbled by the opportunity to be the next Fire Chief of the Los Angeles City Fire Department and to lead the Department into the future," Crowley said. "As the Fire Chief, if confirmed, I vow to take a strategic and balanced approach to ensure we meet the needs of the community we serve. We will focus our efforts on increasing our operational effectiveness, enhancing firefighter safety and well-being, and fully commit to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive culture within the LAFD. Thank you, Mayor Garcetti, Council President Martinez, and Chief Terrazas for entrusting me to lead and to work with the dedicated women and men of the finest department in the world."

Chief Terrazas, who was sworn in as L.A.’s Fire Chief in 2014, was the first Latino to serve in that role. A 39-year veteran of the Department, Chief Terrazas helped steer the City through some of its greatest challenges, and brought about meaningful advancements and innovations within the Fire Department.

Under his leadership, LAFD supervised the City’s free public COVID-19 testing and vaccination programs, which has administered nearly 4.86 million tests and approximately 1.43 million vaccinations to date. The City of L.A.’s testing effort was the nation’s largest municipal testing program and tested over 40,000 Angelenos per day at its peak.

“Ralph Terrazas has dedicated his life to keeping the people of Los Angeles safe. For nearly 40 years, he has served our Fire Department with bravery, determination and compassion for the Angelenos he’s sworn to protect,” said Mayor Garcetti. “I couldn’t imagine having anyone else as Fire Chief, through some of the most difficult fire and public safety challenges L.A. has ever faced. And when a once-in-a-century pandemic hit, Ralph’s leadership and bold action helped us save countless lives. I am honored to have served alongside him, and I know the mark he’s left on this city will never be forgotten.”

Early in his time leading LAFD, Chief Terrazas oversaw the rebuilding of the Department, which had stopped hiring new firefighters for five years as a result of the Great Recession. In 2015, he successfully reorganized the Department into four bureaus – the first restructuring of LAFD in 50 years, which helped to enhance accountability and improve service delivery.

Chief Terrazas also launched and implemented a variety of innovative initiatives, including Advanced Provider Response Units, Alternate Destination Response Units, and Fast Response Vehicles, efforts that enable firefighters to go beyond simply bringing patients to emergency rooms. Chief Terrazas has also made diversity a top priority – for the first time in department history, 51.4% firefighters are now people of color. Since 2014, the Department has maintained a steady increase in the number of hired sworn women at LAFD. Of the current sworn force, more than half of those who are currently employed were hired on in the last 8 years, and nearly 10% were brought on in 2021.

"It was a privilege to serve as the Fire Chief of this world-class Department," said Fire Chief Ralph Terrazas. "For nearly eight years, we made considerable strides in technology, implemented innovative ways to respond to emergencies, and became a model for other agencies. Chief Crowley is an exemplary leader and has a broad base of experience that will serve the Department well. She has risen through the ranks over the past 26 years and I proudly promoted her three times during my tenure because she demonstrated a commitment to advancing the Department. Chief Crowley has been successful at every position and I expect her success to continue as the next Fire Chief."

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Implementing the SDGs by World Economic Forum

Participants at World Economic Forum on Latin America 2016 in Medellin, Colombia. Copyright by World Economic Forum / Benedikt von Loebell

Wien, 1. Bezirk (the art of historical buildings of Vienna), il Parlamento Austriaco, le Parlement Autrichien, el Parlamento Austríaco, the Austrian Parliament (Dr.-Karl-Renner-Ring/Schmerlingplatz) by Josef Lex (El buen soldado Švejk)

1 1

Building concept

When originally was planned to construct a building each for both the House of Representatives as well as the House of Lords of the Imperial Council, so it was, for reasons of cost, ultimatively decided for a single construction. The contract for the planning went to the Danish architect Theophil Hansen in the year 1869.

Construction concept

"Because just as the Greeks have realized the largest deployment and highest perfection of art in their temples, the Romans in the forum, the later Christian period in the churches, so in our time a new monument has been added where the attention of the peoples is being concentrated, that is the Parliament." With these words, Hansen honored the institution "Parliament".

The architect also explained that he had for the parliament building chosen the style of Classical Greek because the Greeks were the first people that loved liberty and legality above all. In addition, also important constitutional terms such as "politics" or "democracy" originate from ancient Greek civilization.

Symbolic significance has also the use of materials from nearly all crown lands of the monarchy, which is to represent the interaction of all forces in the Imperial Council.

Autarky in the providing facilites, the latest technology, a well thought out down to the smallest detail magnificent building in which the architecture, fine arts, painting and crafts form a harmonious whole, this is the achievement of the architect of the parliament building.

The parliament building - a Gesamtkunstwerk

The architect put much care to synchronise the exterior and the interior of the Parliament in the sense of a Gesamtkunstwerk with each other. Therefore, he also designed the picturesque and plastic equipment himself and exercised a great influence on the implementation.

Allegories and architectural details

When one looks at the building outside and inside thoroughly it becomes clear how much the idea of a humanistic state in details is echoed.

The sculptural decorations at the facade and inside illustrate the interplay of powers and the basic ideas of democracy.

The Pallas Athena fountain in front of the Parliament refers to the separation of powers as a fundamental principle of the modern constitutional state.

Pallas Athene in the middle of the fountain is to embody the political wisdom. Next to her sit two figures that represent the "legislative" and the "enforcement of laws". The legislation is illustrated by a legislative panel in the hands of the right figure, the enforcement of laws by executioner's sword and scales in the hands of the left figure.

Above the main entrance a glass mosaic frieze can be found which addresses the subject of separation of powers again. Left a female figure is recognizable holding the book of written laws in her hands and right Justitia is depicted. In the center of this frieze Austria is recognizable to whom the Crown Lands and Estates (trade, transport, agriculture and animal husbandry) pay homage.

Another painting frieze by Eduard Lebiedzki can be admired in the portico. It is now only preserved in fragments because of irreparable damage caused by the war. The allegorical representations point to the "most superb ideals and economic tasks of the Parliament".

On the gables of the building edges the administration and the judiciary are indicated.

At the beginning of the ramp leading to the Parliament one finds the "Horse Tamers". The men who tame the horses make an appeal to the MPs. They should curb their political passion.

The Greek and Roman historians claim responsibility of every political action before history.

Bauidee

War ursprünglich geplant, sowohl für das Abgeordnetenhaus als auch für das Herrenhaus des Reichsrates jeweils ein Gebäude zu errichten, so entschied man sich letztendlich aus Kostengründen für ein einziges Bauwerk. Den Auftrag für dessen Planung erhielt der dänische Architekt Theophil Hansen im Jahre 1869.

Schmerlingplatzsseite, Rampe © Gedruckte Ansicht von 1874, Darstellung des Parlaments von der Ringstraßenseite ©

Das Baukonzept

"Denn so wie die Griechen die größte Entfaltung und höchste Vollendung der Kunst in ihren Tempeln verwirklicht haben, die Römer in dem Forum, die spätere christliche Zeit in den Kirchen, so ist in unserer Zeit ein neues Monument hinzu gekommen, wo sich die Aufmerksamkeit der Völker concentrirt, das ist das Parlament." Mit diesen Worten würdigte Hansen die Institution "Parlament".

Der Architekt erklärte weiters, er habe für das Parlamentsgebäude den Stil der griechischen Klassik gewählt, weil die Hellenen das erste Volk waren, welches die Freiheit und die Gesetzmäßigkeit über alles liebte. Zudem stammen auch wichtige staatsrechtliche Begriffe wie z. B. "Politik" oder "Demokratie" aus der griechischen Antike.

Symbolhafte Bedeutung hat auch die Verwendung von Materialien aus fast allen Kronländern der Monarchie, die das Zusammenwirken aller Kräfte im Reichsrat versinnbildlichen soll.

Autarkie in den Versorgungseinrichtungen, modernste Technik, ein bis ins kleinste Detail durchdachtes monumentales Bauwerk, bei dem Architektur, Bildende Kunst, Malerei und Handwerk ein harmonisches Ganzes bilden, darin besteht die Leistung des Architekten des Reichsratsgebäudes.

Das Parlamentsgebäude – ein Gesamtkunstwerk

Der Architekt legte viel Wert darauf, das Äußere und das Innere des Parlaments im Sinne eines Gesamtkunstwerkes aufeinander abzustimmen. Deshalb entwarf er auch die malerischen und plastischen Ausstattungen selbst und nahm auf die Umsetzung großen Einfluss.

Allegorien und architektonische Details

Wenn man das Gebäude außen und innen genau betrachtet wird deutlich, wie sehr sich die Idee eines humanistischen Staates in Details wiederfindet.

Mosaik auf Goldgrund von Eduard Lebiedzky, 1902 fertig gestellt: Huldigung der Austria durch die im Reichsrat vertretenen Kronländer. ©

Der plastische Schmuck an der Fassade und im Inneren verdeutlicht das Zusammenspiel der Gewalten und die Grundideen der Demokratie.

Der Athenebrunnen vor dem Parlamentsgebäude verweist auf die Gewaltentrennung als ein Grundprinzip des modernen Rechtsstaates.

Pallas Athene in der Mitte des Brunnens soll die Staatsweisheit verkörpern. Neben ihr sitzen zwei Figuren, die die "Gesetzgebung" und den "Vollzug der Gesetze" darstellen. Die Gesetzgebung wird durch eine Gesetzestafel in der Hand der rechten Figur verdeutlicht, der Vollzug der Gesetze durch Richtschwert und Waage in den Händen der linken Figur.

Über dem Haupteingang ist ein Glasmosaikfries zu finden, das das Motiv der Gewaltentrennung erneut aufgreift. Links ist eine Frauengestalt zu erkennen, die das Buch der geschriebenen Gesetze in ihren Händen hält und rechts ist Justitia abgebildet. Im Zentrum dieses Frieses ist Austria zu erkennen, der die Kronländer und die Stände (Handel, Verkehr, Ackerbau und Viehzucht) huldigen.

Ein weiteres Gemäldefries von Eduard Lebiedzki ist in der Säulenhalle zu bewundern. Es ist wegen irreparabler Schäden durch den Krieg heute nur noch in Fragmenten erhalten. Die allegorischen Darstellungen weisen auf die "vorzüglichsten Ideale und volkswirtschaftlichen Aufgaben des Parlaments" hin.

Auf den Giebeln der Gebäudeflanken wird auf die Verwaltung und die Justiz hingewiesen.

Am Beginn der Rampe, die zum Parlament führt, findet man die "Rossebändiger". Die Männer, die die Pferde zähmen, stellen einen Appell an die ParlamentarierInnen dar. Sie sollen ihre politische Leidenschaft zügeln.

Die griechischen und römischen Geschichtsschreiber mahnen Verantwortung jedes politischen Handelns vor der Geschichte ein.

www.parlament.gv.at/GEBF/ARGE/Baugeschichte/Bauidee/index...

India - Telangana - Hyderabad - Streetlife - Under Construction Metro Rail - 3 by Manfred Sommer

The Hyderabad Metro is a rapid transit system, serving the city of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It is in Secant Operational model. It is being implemented entirely on public-private partnership (PPP) basis, with the state government holding a minority equity stake. A 30 km stretch from Miyapur to Nagole, having 24 stations was inaugurated on 28 November 2017 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. No other rapid transit metro service in India opened for public operations on such a long stretch of 30 km. As of October 2018, it is the second longest operational metro network in India after the Delhi Metro, after a 16 km stretch between Ameerpet-LB Nagar Metro route was opened on 24 September 2018. It is estimated to cost ₹18,800 crore (US$2.6 billion). As of October 2018, about 200,000 people use the Metro per day. Trains are now crowded during the morning and evening hours, when employees travel to and from work. A ladies only coach was introduced on all the trains from 7 May 2018.

HISTORY

To respond the rising public transport needs and mitigate escalating vehicular traffic in the twin-cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, the State Government and the South Central Railway jointly launched the Multi Modal Transport System (MMTS) in [August] 2003. The increase in population of Hyderabad made MMTS alone insufficient for public transport, which led to Union Ministry of Urban Development giving the nod for the Hyderabad Metro Rail Project and directed the DMRC to conduct a survey on the project.[ this project was seen necessary in view that the population of Hyderabad was forecasted to reach 13.6 million by the year 2021. According to the initial plan, the metro was to be connected with the already existing MMTS to provide commuters with alternate modes of transport. Simultaneously, the proposals for taking up the construction of MMTS Phase-II were also taken forward.

On March 26, 2018, Telangana Govt announced that it would set up a SPV "Hyderabad Airport Metro Limited (HAML)", jointly promoted by HMRL and HMDA, to extend the Blue line from Raidurg to Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Shamshabad.

INITIAL BIDDING

The bidding process was completed by July 2008 and awarded to Maytas which failed to achieve financial closure for the project as per schedule By March 2009. In July 2009, the State Government cancelled the contract and called for fresh bids for the project.

RE-BIDDING

In the July-2010 rebidding process, Larsen & Toubro (L&T) emerged as the lowest bidder for the ₹121.32 billion (US$1.7 billion) project. L&T came forward to take up the work for about ₹14.58 billion (US$200 million) as viability gap funding as against the sanctioned ₹48.53 billion (US$680 million).

MASCOT

The mascot of Hyderabad Metro Rail is Niz. It was derived from the word Nizam, who ruled the princely state of Hyderabad.

AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS

HMR project was showcased as one of the top 100 strategic global infrastructure projects at the Global Infrastructure Leadership Forum held in New York during February–March 2013.

L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited (LTMRHL) has been conferred the SAP ACE Award 2015 in the 'Strategic HR and Talent Management category.

In 2018, Rasoolpura, Paradise and Prakash Nagar metro stations were awarded Indian Green Building Council’s (IGBC) Green MRTS Platinum Award.

CONSTRUCTION HISTORY

Groundbreaking (Bhoomi Puja) for the project was conducted on 26 April 2012 the concessionaire started the pillar erection on the same day for Stage-I and on 6 June 2012 for Stage-II. The work for Corridor 2 has been delayed due to traders in Koti and Sultan Bazar demanding realignment of the route to safeguard traders and old age heritage markets. If the recent bill proposed in Parliament which allows construction within a 100 metre radius of heritage structures and sites of historical or archaeological importance is passed, Metro might receive a chance as it helps to connect the Old city with IT corridor.

The construction of the entire 71.16 km has been split into 6 stages with the first stage originally scheduled to be completed by March 2015.

In November 2013, L&T Hyderabad Metro started laying of rails on the metro viaduct between Nagole and Mettuguda, a stretch of 8 km.

The first highly sophisticated train of the Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) came from Korea during the third week of May 2014. Stringent trial runs commenced from June 2014 till February 2015. The trial runs started on the Miyapur to Sanjeeva Reddy Nagar stretch in October 2015.

CMRS inspection for Stage-II (Miyapur and S.R.Nagar Section) was done on 9, 10 August 2016. Three interchanges are planned at Mahatma Gandhi Bus Terminus, Parade Grounds and Ameerpet.

The steel bridge of the HMR was successfully placed over the Oliphant bridge in August 2017.

In November 2017, Commissioner of Railway Safety (CMRS) granted safety approval for 12 km stretch from Miyapur to SR Nagar, 10 km stretch from SR Nagar to Mettuguda and 8 km stretch from Nagole to Mettuguda.

Ameerpet-LB Nagar Metro stretch is open for commercial operations from 24 September 2018.

CONSTRUCTION PHASES

The construction work was undertaken in two phases. There are six stages of completion in Phase I

PHASE I

The Phase I of the project includes 3 lines covering a distance of around 72 km. The metro rail stretches between Nagole and Secunderabad 11 km originally scheduled to be operational by December 2015, is now partially operational since 29 November 2017. The entire 72 km 57-station first phase is due to be completed by December 2019 with Hitec City - Raidurg line and MGBS - Falaknuma line is scheduled to be completed by December 2019.

Line 1 - Red Line - Miyapur – L B Nagar - 29.2 km

Line 2 - Green Line - JBS - Falaknuma 15 km

Line 3 - Blue Line - Nagole – Raidurg - 28 km

PHASE II

The Government is planning second phase of metro rail extending further. The construction of Phase II will be taken up solely by the state government, instead of public private partnership (PPP) mode in Phase I. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) was entrusted to give a detailed project report (DPR) for Phase II. Metro Rail Phase II expansion plan is for about 60 km, which includes providing link to Shamshabad RGI Airport.

LINES

Since the first version of the plans, the three corridors mostly remained the same, but minor changes were introduced. These include the lack of stop at Lalaguda, or a stop at Lakdikapul instead of Secretariat. Also, the lines have been marked with several different combination of color. Ameerpet- LB Nagar metro stretch opened on 24 September 2018. HiTec City to Raidurg, 1.5-kilometre stretch on Corridor Three - Nagole to Raidurg, is scheduled to be completed in November 2019, as it involves construction of 49 pillars and the Raidurg terminal station. Efforts are being made to complete the 8.5-km stretch from Ameerpet to HiTec City by December 2018.

RECEPTION

The Metro has opened to overwhelming response, with over 200,000 people using it on Day 1. On the first Sunday of operations, the Metro was used by 240,000 people.. As of September 2018, the daily ridership was about 2,00,000.

Trains are initially being operated at a frequency of 3.5 minutes in very peak hours and every 6.5 minutes in peak hours (between Miyapur-Ameerpet) and 6.5 minutes in peak hours (between Ameerpet-Nagole),, though maximum achievable frequency is every 90 seconds. Similarly, three-car trains are being used currently, though it is planned to use six-car trains in the future.

In December 2017, Hyderabad Metro Rail launched its mobile app, TSavaari. Hyderabad Metro timings are available on T-Savari app. Ola Cabs and Uber tied up its services with app.

COST

The initial official estimated cost of the 72 km long Metro project stood at ₹14,132 crore (US$2.0 billion). The Central Government decided to bear 10% of it, while L&T was to bear the remaining 90% of the cost. The construction work which was supposed to commence on 3 March 2011 commenced in 2012. In March 2012, the cost of the project was revised upwards to ₹15,957 crore (US$2.2 billion). This has been further revised upwards to ₹18,800 crore (US$2.6 billion) (as of November 2017).

INFRASTRUCTURE

The 71.3 km standard-gauge network will feature ballastless track throughout and will be electrified at 25kV ac 50 Hz. An operations control centre and depot are constructed at Uppal. At some places, a flyover, underpass and metro has been constructed at the same place, as part of Strategic road development plan (SRDP).

CBTC TECHNOLOGY

At the end of 2012, L&T Metro Rail awarded Thales a Rs 7.4bn ($US 134m) contract to provide CBTC and integrated telecommunications and supervision systems on all three lines. Thales will supply its SelTrac CBTC technology, and trains will initially run in automatic train operation mode with minimum headways of 90 seconds, although the system will support eventual migration to unattended train operation (UTO).

ROLLING STOCK

On 12 September 2012, Larsen and Toubro Metro Rail Hyderabad Ltd (LTMRHL) announced that it has awarded tender for supply of rolling stock to Hyundai Rotem. The ₹18 billion (US$250 million) tender is for 57 trains consisting of 171 cars which will be delivered in phases at least 9 months before the commencement of each stage. On 2 October 2013, LTMRHL unveiled its train car for Hyderabad Metro. A model coach which is half the size of the actual coach, was on public display at Necklace Road on the banks of Hussain Sagar in the heart of Hyderabad. The trains will be 3.2m wide and 4m high. There will be 4 doors on each side of each coach.

On 10 April 2014, the first metro train for HMR rolled out of Hyundai Rotem factory at Changwon in South Korea and reached Hyderabad in May 2014. On 31 December 2014, Hyderabad Metro Rail successfully conducted a training run in Automatic Train Operation (ATO) mode for the first time between Nagole and Mettuguda.

TICKETING

The L&T Hyderabad project will have an automated ticketing system with features such as contactless smart card based ticketing, slim automatic gates, payment by cash and credit/debit card, passenger operated ticket vending machine and provision of common ticketing system. It will also have a provision of NFC-based technology to enable usage of mobile phones as fare media and high performance machine to avoid long queues. Samsung Data Systems India, a subsidiary of South Korean firm Samsung, has been awarded the automatic fare collection system package for the L&T metro rail project. The package involves design, manufacture, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of the system.

Official ticket prices were announced on 25 November 2017. The base fare is ₹10 for up to 2 km and going to slap 10 with ₹60 for more than 26 km.

STATIONS

Hyderabad metro will have 64 stations in phase I. They will be provided with amenities such as escalators and elevators to reach the stations, announcement boards, electronic display systems among others for passengers. Commercial will also be provided on stations. Hyderabad metro stations will also have service roads underneath them to provide last mile connectivity by allowing other public transportation systems use it for dropping/picking passengers right in front of the stations and ensure uninterrupted traffic. Currently the service lane works are currently on at Nagole and Uppal stations. The signboards of Hyderabad Metro are displayed in Telugu, English, Hindi and Urdu at metro stations.

Otis Elevator Company of United States won the contract to supply and maintain 670 elevators.

In May 2018, L&T Metro Rail announced that it had signed a contract with Powergrid Corporation of India to install electric vehicle charging facilities at all metro stations beginning with Miyapur and Dr. B R Ambedkar Balanagar stations. L&THMRL has setup free wifi access units for commuters at Miyapur, Ameerpet and Nagole metro stations, in association with ACT Fibernet, as part of a pilot project.

WIKIPEDIA

fall 2012 hackNY student hackathon by hackNY.org

Photo by @matylda

The fall 2012 hackNY student hackathon brought in hundreds of students to NYU's Courant Institute for 24 hours of creative collaborative hacking on New York City startups' APIs.

NYC Startups, selected by a student organizing committee, presented their technologies at the beginning of the event, after which students formed groups to work through the night implementing their own ideas for fresh hacks built on top of these APIs.

On Sunday afternoon students presented their projects to an audience including a judging panel featuring members of the NYC startup community, which selected the final winning teams.

Since April 2010, hackNY hosts student hackathons one each semester, as well as the hackNY Fellows program, a structured internship which pairs quantitative and computational students with startups which can demonstrate a strong mentoring environment: a problem for a student to work on, a person to mentor them, and a place for them to work. Startups selected to host a student compensate student Fellows. Students enjoy free housing together and a pedagogical lecture series to introduce them to the ins and outs of joining and founding a startup in NYC.

To find out what you missed at the fall 2012 hackNY student hackathon please do see our eventpage at hackerleague.org and the video of the student demos thanks to ISOC-NY.

Special thanks to our fall 2012 hackNY student hackathon judges! And congratulations to the winners of the fall 2012 hackNY student hackathon!

For more information on hackNY's initiatives, please visit hackNY.org and follow us on twitter @hackNY

Grand Canyon: Improved Mather Point 019 by Grand Canyon National Park

Shuttle Bus entering the Mather Point bus loop/ shuttle stop.

The 2010 Mather Point and Grand Canyon Visitor Center improvements created much needed parking at the Grand Canyon Visitor Center, a vehicle-free visitor experience at Mather Point, a new rim-side amphitheater, and many informational and interpretive improvements to the visitor center plaza. 2010 Rehabilitation of the Mather Point overlook area included the development of this mobility impaired access to the overlook, and new railing along the entire rim area at Mather Point.

Implementation of this plan has resulted in a vastly improved and more intuitive visitor experience. NPS photo by Grand Canyon Fire and Aviation.

Alnwick Castle, Northumberland by Glass Angel

The castle has been the seat of the Percy family since Norman times. By 1138 the original motte and bailey castle, with wooden buildings, was replaced with stone buildings and walls. In 1309 the keep and defences were made even stronger by Henry de Percy. The castle then stayed unchanged for 400 years. By the 18th century it had fallen into ruins. The keep however was then turned into a gothic style mansion by Robert Adam. In the 19th century the Duke of Northumberland carried out more restoration of the castle.

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ALNWICK CASTLE, THE CASTLE, STABLE COURT AND COVERED RIDING SCHOOL INCLUDING WEST WALL OF RIDING SCHOOL

Heritage Category: Listed Building

Grade: I

List Entry Number: 1371308

National Grid Reference: NU 18685 13574

Details

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 05/10/2011

NU 1813 NE 2/1 NU 1813 SE 1/1 20.2.52. 5330

Alnwick Castle The Castle, Stable Court and Covered Riding School including West Wall of Riding School

GV I

Alnwick Castle has work of every period on the line of the original motte and bailey plan. By 1138 a strong stone built border castle with a shell keep in place of the motte, formed the nucleus of the present castle with 2 baileys enclosing about 7 acres. The curtain walls and their square towers rest on early foundations and the inner gatehouse has round-headed arches with heavy chevron decoration. The Castle was greatly fortified after its purchase by Henry de Percy 1309 - the Barbican and Gatehouse, the semi-circular towers of the shell keep, the octagonal towers of the inner gateway and the strong towers of the curtain wall date from the early to mid C14. Ruinous by the C18, the 1st Duke had it rehabilitated and extended by James Prince and Robert Adam, the latter being mainly concerned with the interior decoration, very little of which remains except for fireplaces in the Housekeeper's and the Steward's Rooms and for inside the present Estates Office range. Capability Brown landscaped the grounds, filling in the former moat (formed by Bow Burn). The 4th Duke employed Anthony Salvin 1854-65 at the cost of £1/4 million to remove Adam's fanciful Gothic decoration, to restore a serious Gothic air to the exterior and to redesign the state rooms in an imposing grand Italian manner. The Castle is approached from Bailliff gate through the crenellated Barbican and Gatehouse (early C14): lion rampant (replica) over archway, projecting square side towers with corbelled upper parts, fortified passage over dry moat to vaulted gateway flanked by polygonal towers. Stone figures on crenellations here, on Aveners Tower, on Record Tower and on Inner Gateway were carved circa 1750-70 by Johnson of Stamfordham and probably reflect an earlier similar arrangement. In the Outer Bailey to the, north are the West Garrett (partly Norman), the Abbott's Tower (circa 1350) with a rib vaulted basement, and the Falconer's Tower (1856). To the south are the Aveners Tower [C18], the Clock Tower leading into the Stable Yard, the C18 office block, the Auditor's Tower (early Clk) and the Middle Gateway (circa 1309-15) leading to the Middle Bailey. The most prominent feature of the Castle on the west side is the very large Prudhoe Tower by Salvin and the polygonal apse of the chapel near to it. In the Middle Bailey, to the south are the Warders Tower (1856) with the lion gateway leading by a bridge to the grand stairs into the walled garden, the East Garrett and the Record Tower (C14, rebuilt 1885). In the curtain wall to the north are 2 blocked windows probably from an early C17 building now destroyed and the 'Bloody Gap', a piece of later walling possibly replacing a lost truer; next a small C14 watch tower (Hotspur's Seat); next the Constable's Tower, early C14 and unaltered with a gabled staircase turret; close by is the Postern Tower, early C14, also unaltered.'To the north-west of the Postern Tower is a large terrace made in the C18, rebuilt 1864-65, with some old cannon on it. The Keep is entered from the Octagon Towers (circa 1350) which have 13 heraldic shields below the parapet, besides the agotrop3ic figures, and a vaulted passage expanded from the Norman gateway (fragments of chevron on former outer arch are visible inside). The present arrangement of the inner ward is largely Salvin's work with a covered entrance with a projecting storey and lamp-bracket at the rear of the Prudhoe Tower and a corbelled corridor at 1st floor level on the east. Mediaeval draw well on the east wall, next to the original doorway to the keep, now a recess The keep, like the curtain walls, is largely mediaeval except for some C18 work on the interior on the west and for the Prudhoe Tower and the Chapel. The interior contrasts with the rugged mediaeval exterior with its sumptuous Renaissance decoration, largely by Italians - Montiroli, Nucci, Strazza, Mantavani and inspired from Italian sources. The chapel with its family gallery at the east end has 4 short rib vaulted bays and a shallow 3-light apse; side walls have mosaics, covered now with tapestry. The grand staircase With its groin vaulted ceiling leads to the Guard Chamber from which an ante-room leads west into the Library (in the Prudhoe Tower) and east into the Music Room (fireplace with Dacian captives by Nucci). Further on are the Red Drawing Room (caryatid fireplace by Nucci) and the Dining Room (ceiling design copied from St Lorenzo f.l.m. in Rome and fireplace with bacchante by Strazza and faun by Nucci). South of the Middle Gateway are Salvin's impressive Kitchen quarters where the oven was designed to burn a ton of coal per day. West of the Stable Courtyard, with C19 Guest Hall at the south end, is the C19 covered riding school, with stable to north of it, and with its west wall forming the east side of Narrowgate. The corner with Bailliffgate has an obtuse angled tower of 2 storeys, with a depressed ogee headed doorway from the street, and merlons.

Listing NGR: NU1863413479

historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/137130...

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ALNWICK CASTLE

Heritage Category: Park and Garden

Grade: I

List Entry Number: 1001041

National Grid Reference: NU1739315366, NU2254414560

Details

Extensive landscape parks and pleasure grounds developed from a series of medieval deer parks, around Alnwick Castle, the seat of the Percy family since the C14.

Between 1750 and 1786, a picturesque landscape park was developed for Hugh, first Duke of Northumberland, involving work by James Paine, Robert Adam, and the supervision of work by Lancelot Brown (1716-83) and his foremen Cornelius Griffin, Robson, and Biesley in the 1760-80s, working alongside James and Thomas Call, the Duke's gardeners. During the C19 each successive Duke contributed and elaborated on the expansive, planned estate landscape, within which the landscape park was extended. This was accompanied by extensive C19 garden works, including a walled, formal flower garden designed in the early C19 by John Hay (1758-1836), and remodelled mid C19 by William Andrews Nesfield (1793-1881).

NOTE This entry is a summary. Because of the complexity of this site, the standard Register entry format would convey neither an adequate description nor a satisfactory account of the development of the landscape. The user is advised to consult the references given below for more detailed accounts. Many Listed Buildings exist within the site, not all of which have been here referred to. Descriptions of these are to be found in the List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest produced by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.

HISTORIC DEVELOPMENT

In the C13, Hulne Park, West Park, and Cawledge were imparked within the Forest of Alnwick. Hulne Park lay to the north-west of Alnwick Castle and Cawledge to the south and south-east. By the late Middle Ages, Hulne Park extended to 4000 acres (c 1620ha) enclosed by some 13 miles (c 21km) of wall. It was stocked with some 1000 fallow deer and a tower at Hulne Priory served as a hunting lodge. The parks formed the basis of Alnwick Park, landscaped by Sir Hugh Smithson (1714-86) who in 1750 became Earl of Northumberland, inheriting his father-in-law's northern estates. Prior to this, from 1748 he and his wife, Elizabeth Seymour (1716-76), had lived at Stanwick, Yorkshire (qv) and at Syon Park, London (qv), where they had already established a reputation for gardening, attested by Philip Miller's dedication, in 1751, of his Gardener's Dictionary to the Earl.

Together they embarked on an ambitious scheme to restore the Castle, develop the grounds and estate, and restore the Percy family traditions and identity at Alnwick. Those employed at Alnwick were also involved elsewhere on the Northumberland estates: James Paine, architect at Syon House, Daniel Garrett, architect at Northumberland House, the Strand (1750-3), Robert Adam, architect at Syon (1762-9), Lancelot Brown, landscape architect at Syon Park (1754-72).

In 1751, Thomas Call (1717-82), who had been the Earl's gardener at Stanwick, prepared a scheme for the parklands and pleasure grounds, including a plan for Brizlee Hill (the south part of Hulne Park). Call and his relation James, working at Alnwick by 1756, were responsible for the development of Hulne Park over twenty years. The date and extent of Lancelot Brown's involvement at Alnwick is uncertain, although his foremen Griffin, Robson, and Biesley worked at Alnwick with teams of men between 1771and 1781 and records shown that they also worked alongside Call and his men (in 1773 for example, Call had a team of sixty men and Biesley one of seventy-eight).

Hulne Park was developed as a picturesque pleasure ground with extensive rides, follies, and the enhancement of natural features. A characteristic of the Duke's scheme was his recognition of antiquarian sites within the landscape, which were embellished. Thus in 1755, Hulne Priory was purchased to become the focal point of Hulne Park. A garden was made within the cloister walls and, from c 1763, the priory became the gamekeeper's residence, with a menagerie of gold and silver pheasants. Statues of friars cut by the mason Matthew Mills were set in the landscape. In 1774, a medieval commemorative cross to Malcolm Canmore (listed grade II), situated at the northern entrance to the North Demesne, was restored.

Following the Duchess' death in 1776, the Duke decorated all her favourite locations with buildings, some being ideas she had noted in her memoranda. Work also included other notes and ideas the Duchess had had, including the ruin at Ratcheugh Crag and some ninety-eight drives and incidents.

Plans for the parklands at the North Demesne, Denwick, and Ratcheugh Crags were developed in the late 1760s, although in the case of the North Demesne some parkland planting had been undertaken by 1760, and the major work undertaken in the early 1770s is that attributed to Brown, mainly on stylistic grounds.

During the C19, under the second Duke (1742-1817) the parks were extended, this including the purchase of Alnwick Abbey and part of its estate. The complex of drives was also extended and this was accompanied by extensive plantations, including the large Bunker Hill plantation central to the north area of Hulne Park, named to commemorate the Duke's action in 1775 in the War of American Independence. Most significantly, between 1806 and 1811, building centred on construction of a perimeter wall, defining the boundary of Hulne Park, and lodges and gateways at entrances to the parks. The carriage drives were extended, necessitating the construction of bridges over the River Aln. These schemes were implemented by estate workers, local masons, and David Stephenson, the Duke's architect.

As the Castle had no formal flower gardens, John Hay was commissioned between 1808 and 1812 to design pleasure gardens to the south-east of the Castle, linking it with a new walled garden at Barneyside, furnished with a range of hothouses, glasshouses, and pine pits. These were extended in the 1860s when Anthony Salvin, employed in the restoration of the Castle, built a gateway between the inner bailey and the pleasure gardens. Nesfield designed a scheme for the walled gardens to be developed as an ornamental flower and fruit garden, with a large central pool, conservatory, and a series of broad terraces and parterres. The Alnwick scheme can be compared to Nesfield's in the precincts of Arundel Castle, West Sussex (qv), in 1845.

Alnwick Castle, parks and estate remain (2000) in private ownership, the latest significant developments being the replanting and restoration of the North Demesne (1990s) and plans to completely remodel the walled garden.

SUMMARY DESCRIPTION

Alnwick Castle parks cover a tract of countryside encircling Alnwick town on its west, north, north-east, and south sides. The land is a mixture of contrasting landscape types, with high heather moorland and the rough crags of the Northumbrian Sandstone Hills sweeping down to the improved pasture lands along the wooded Aln valley. The parks exploit the boundaries of these distinctive landforms where the rugged moorland gives way to the pastoral, rolling landscape of the Aln, on its route to the sea. In the west parklands the river is confined between hills, and in places has incised deep, narrow valleys while in the east the landscape is more open.

The registered area of 1300ha is bounded on its north-east side by the Hulne Park wall, west of the Bewick to Alnwick Road (B6346). The west side of the area here registered follows field boundaries to the west of Shipley Burn, starting at Shipley Bridge, and then turns south-west at a point c 1km south of the bridge. It then runs for south-west for c 2.3km, to the west of Hulne Park, before crossing the River Aln and running parallel to Moorlaw Dean for c 1.2km, on the west side of the burn. The southern area is defined by Hulne Park wall running around the south point of Brizlee Wood then in a line due east, south of Cloudy Crags drive, to cross the Stocking Burn and reach Forest Lodge. The boundary then defines the north-western extent of Alnwick town and, crossing the Canongate Bridge, the southernmost extent of the Dairy Grounds.

To the east of the Castle the registered area takes in the entire North Demesne bounded on its north by Long Plantation, a perimeter belt which lies on the south side of Smiley Lane and then extends eastwards to meet the junction of the B1340 and A1 trunk road. The A1 has effectively cut through the North Demesne from north to south and, although physically divorcing the two areas, they are still visually conjoined. Defined on its north side within the hamlet of Denwick by tree belts, the park extends eastwards for 1km before cutting across southwards to meet the River Aln at Lough House. This latter stretch is bounded by a perimeter belt. The south boundary of the North Demesne follows the river in part, before meeting the Alnwick to Denwick road (B1340). To the south, the Castle gardens are delimited from the town by property boundaries along Bondgate. An outlying area of designed landscape at Ratcheugh is also included.

A complex series of drives is laid throughout the parks, particularly in Hulne Park. A series of thirty standing stones stand at the beginning of the drives or where they converge. These are inscribed with the names of the drives and act as signposts.

Alnwick Castle (1134 onwards, c 1750-68 by James Paine and Robert Adam, 1854-6 by Anthony Salvin, listed grade I) lies on the high ground on the south side of the Aln valley, commanding views to the north, east, and west. To the south is Alnwick town but the landscape is designed so that the town is not in view of the Castle. The principal views from the Castle lie over the North Demesne.

The North Demesne originally included Denwick Park (they have now been divided by the A1 road), and together these 265ha form the core parkland designed by Brown. Perimeter tree belts define the park, and clumps and scatters of specimen trees ornament the ground plan. The Aln has been dammed to give the appearance of an extensive, natural serpentine lake, with bridges as focal points: the Lion Bridge (John Adam 1773, listed grade I) and Denwick Bridge (1766, probably also by Adam, listed grade I). A programme of replanting and restoration of the North Demesne is under way (late 1990s).

The medieval deer park of Hulne extended to the north of the Shipley Road (outside the area here registered). Hulne Park is now 1020ha and is in agricultural and forestry use. The principal entrance from Alnwick town is Forest Lodge, the only extant part of Alnwick Abbey. Hulne Park is completely enclosed by an early C19 perimeter wall, c 3m high with shaped stone coping and buttresses every 20m. Nearly 5km of wall lies alongside roads, 5km across fields, and 5km defines perimeter woodland and moorland from the enclosed park.

The park design consists of a series of oval-shaped enclosures, defined by tree belts vital for shelter. The highest point is in the west area of the park, from where there are long-distance views east to the sea. The River Aln winds its way through the park via a series of contrasting steep valleys and flatter lands. The valleys are emphasised by planting on the upper slopes, while the lower areas are encircled with designed plantations to emphasise the river's meanders and ox-bow lakes.

Picturesque incidents survive at Nine Year Aud Hole, where the statue of a hermit (late C18, listed grade II) stands at the entrance to a natural cave along Cave Drive, and at Long Stone, a monolith standing high on the west side of Brizlee Hill, with panoramic views over Hulne Park to the north-west. The picturesque highlight is Hulne Priory (original medieval buildings, C18 alterations and enhancements, all listed grade I), which includes a summerhouse designed by Robert Adam (1778-80, listed grade I) and statues of praying friars erected in the Chapter House (late C18). The Priory's picturesque qualities are well appreciated from Brizlee Tower (Robert Adam, listed grade I), built in 1781 to commemorate the creation of the Alnwick parks by the first Duke and Duchess, a Latin inscription stating:

Circumspice! Ego omnia ista sum dimensus; Mei sunt ordines, Mea descriptio Multae etiam istarum arborum Mea manu sunt satae. [Look about you. I have measured all these things; they are my orders; it is my planning; many of these trees have been planted by my own hand.]

Brizlee is sited on a high point which can be seen in views north-west from the Castle, mirroring views north-east to the 'Observatory' on Ratcheugh Crag, a sham ruined castle sited as an eyecatcher on high ground and built by John Bell of Durham in 1784 (plans to further elaborate it were designed by Robert Adam).

Another principal feature of Hulne Park is a series of regular, walled enclosures (the walls set in ditches with banks cast up inside the compounds) which line Farm Drive, the central road through the park, north-westwards from Moor Lodge. This functioned as the third Duke's menagerie, and is still pasture.

The 15ha Dairy Ground links Hulne Park and the North Demesne. It principally consists of the Aln valley north-west of the Castle, stretching between Canongate Bridge and Lion Bridge, laid out as pleasure gardens. Barbara's Bank and the Dark Walk are plantations laid out with walks on the steep slopes with a Curling Pond to the north of the Aln.

The walled garden of 3ha lies to the south-east of the Castle, reached by the remains of C19 pleasure gardens laid out on the slopes above Barneyside. After the Second World War use of the glasshouses ceased, and until recently (late 1990s) the Estate Forestry Department used it. The earthwork terraces and remnants of specimen planting of Nesfield's scheme survive.

REFERENCES

Note: There is a wealth of material about this site. The key references are cited below.

The Garden, 5 (1874), pp 100-1, 188; 20 (1881), pp 155-6 Gardeners' Chronicle, ii (1880), pp 523-4, 587; ii (1902), pp 273-4 J Horticulture and Cottage Gardener 15, (1887), pp 296-8 P Finch, History of Burley on the Hill (1901), p 330 Country Life, 65 (22 June 1929), pp 890-8; 66 (6 July 1929), pp 16-22; 174 (4 August 1983), p 275 D Stroud, Capability Brown (1975), pp 103-4 Garden History 9, (1981), pp 174-7 Capability Brown and the Northern Landscape, (Tyne & Wear County Council Museums 1983), pp 19, 22-3, 27, 42 Restoration Management Plan, Alnwick Castle, (Land Use Consultants 1996) C Shrimpton, Alnwick Castle, guidebook, (1999)

Description written: August 2000 Resgister Inspector: KC Edited: June 2003

historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/100104...

Archive

Hofburg

The imperial crown in the Treasury

Imperial Treasury of Vienna

Insignia of the Austrian Hereditary Homage

Insignia of imperial Austria

Insignia of the Holy Roman Empire

Burgundian Inheritance and the Order of the Golden Fleece

Habsburg-Lorraine Household Treasure

Ecclesiastical Treasury

Schönbrunn Palace

Imperial Carriage Museum Vienna

Armory in Ambras Castle

Ambras Castle

Collections of Ambras Castle

Major exhibits

Among the most important exhibits of the Art Gallery rank inter alia:

Jan van Eyck: Cardinal Niccolò Albergati, 1438

Martin Schongauer: Holy Family, 1475-80

Albrecht Dürer : Trinity Altar, 1509-16

Portrait Johann Kleeberger, 1526

Parmigianino: Self Portrait in Convex Mirror, 1523/24

Giuseppe Arcimboldo: Summer 1563

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio: Madonna of the Rosary 1606/ 07

Caravaggio: Madonna of the Rosary (1606-1607)

Titian: Nymph and Shepherd to 1570-75

Portrait of Jacopo de Strada, 1567/68

Raffaello Santi: Madonna of the Meadow, 1505 /06

Lorenzo Lotto: Portrait of a young man against white curtain, 1508

Peter Paul Rubens: The altar of St. Ildefonso, 1630-32

The Little Fur, about 1638

Jan Vermeer: The Art of Painting, 1665/66

Pieter Bruegel the Elder: Fight between Carnival and Lent, 1559

Kids, 1560

Tower of Babel, 1563

Christ Carrying the Cross, 1564

Gloomy Day (Early Spring), 1565

Return of the Herd (Autumn), 1565

Hunters in the Snow (Winter) 1565

Bauer and bird thief, 1568

Peasant Wedding, 1568/69

Peasant Dance, 1568/69

Paul's conversion (Conversion of St Paul), 1567

Cabinet of Curiosities:

Saliera from Benvenuto Cellini 1539-1543

Egyptian-Oriental Collection:

Mastaba of Ka Ni Nisut

Collection of Classical Antiquities:

Gemma Augustea

Treasure of Nagyszentmiklós

Gallery: Major exhibits

de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunsthistorisches_Museum

Ineke Mushovic by Center for American Progress Action Fund

Understanding and Meeting the Needs of LGBT Elders

April 28, 2010, 12:00pm – 1:30pm

To watch the event, click here: www.americanprogressaction.org/events/2010/04/LGBTElders....

We need to address lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender inequality and implement change to ensure that, "we will all be able to live out our final years surrounded by the people we love in exactly the way we choose," Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) told attendees at a CAP Action event yesterday.

Baldwin was joined at the event, "Understanding and Meeting the Needs of LGBT Elders," by a panel of experts that included Michael Adams, executive director of Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Elders; Ineke Mushovic, executive director of the Movement Advancement Project; and Percil Stanford, chief diversity officer at the American Association of Retired Persons. Director of the Women's Health and Rights Program at CAP Action Jessica Arons gave introductory remarks and CAP Action Senior Vice President for External Affairs Winnie Stachelberg gave introductory remarks and moderated.

The event centered around research and recommendations detailed in a new report, "Improving the Lives of LGBT Older Adults," which was released in March 2010 by SAGE and MAP in partnership with the American Society on Aging, the Center for American Progress, and the National Senior Citizens Law Center.

"The LGBT movement today is focused on our headline issues" such as repealing "Don't Ask Don't Tell," working toward marriage equality, and passing the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, Stachelberg said. But there are many more important issues that need urgent attention, such as LGBT elders. A "lack of full LGBT equality has real impact on real people's lives" and LGBT elders in particular face "challenges and obstacles that their straight peers do not" due to a lack of relationship recognition and employment benefits, she said.

All older adults face challenges as they age, but LGBT elders' lives are made even more difficult due to legal inequalities, as well as "homophobia and a hostile health care system" that amounts to institutional discrimination, Baldwin said.

To paint a clearer picture of "inequality in the eyes of the law," she cited the example of Harold and Clay, an older gay couple who lived in Sonoma County, California together for more than 25 years. They outlined their relationship in their wills and powers of attorney, but when Harold was injured and admitted to a nursing home, Clay was not allowed to visit him or take control of his partner's estate. Local authorities referred to them as roommates instead of partners, auctioned off their belongings, and Clay spent the next four months unable to visit his dying partner.

"The cruelty of these cases is unconscionable...but we can and we must take steps to make sure" this type of injustice does not continue, Baldwin said. The way to bring public attention to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender elders is by "putting a face on the issues we talk about...these are real people," she said. It is important for policymakers to hear these stories and know it is a human injustice.

But real stories are not enough. "We need a voice, and we need visibility to tell our stories. But we also need data," Baldwin said. If you cannot prove inequality or discrimination through statistical data, it is impossible to successfully argue that change is needed and pinpoint the specific fixes that would help the most. Questions about sexual orientation and gender identity must be added to general government health surveys to overcome this problem.

Repealing the Defense of Marriage Act, also known as DOMA, will give equal access to federally provided health and income benefits, Baldwin said. She also wants reforms that will put these Americans on an equal footing with their heterosexual counterparts, stressing that "discrimination will not be tolerated."

Patients in the healthcare system must be treated with dignity and respect. Staff at nursing homes, hospitals, and other health care facilities need to be educated about LGBT issues and trained to provide this population with the same level of care afforded to others.

Short of fully repealing DOMA and enacting marriage rights for gay couples, federal programs such as Medicaid and Social Security could be amended to include same-sex couples. These couples currently receive 24 percent less in annual Social Security benefits than their heterosexual married counterparts, despite the fact that gay couples pay into the system at the same rate as straight couples.

"The time to address these issues is now," Adams said. The Baby Boomer generation is starting to enter their senior years and this is the first generation to have lived openly LGBT lives. They are also two times as likely as their heterosexual counterparts to be single and four times less likely to have children, which reduces the chance that they have someone who can help care for them in their later years. Those who do have close family members are also in a bind, because their families are often not legally recognized. Our current laws do not provide any protections to these families of choice, and are instead based upon the presumption of heterosexual marriage.

Cumulatively, these challenges negatively impact LGBT seniors' financial security, health and wellbeing, and social and community connections.

The report offers a host of recommendations to minimize or eliminate these negative outcomes, Adams said. One approach is to create a legislative model that includes "permanent partner" benefits in Social Security, Medicaid, family medical leave, hospital visitation, inheritance laws and estate taxes, and other policies. Congress should also pass nondiscrimination laws that include public accommodations—which include nursing homes and hospitals—and should work with health care providers on nondiscriminatory policies and cultural competency training.

Making sure that LGBT elders have healthy, secure, and rewarding lives requires reaching out to the mainstream aging community. The AARP has taken in a lead in this area, as Stanford described in his remarks. "What we do, we do for all," he said. He further said that, "as an organization, we're certainly committed to social change" and we "cannot afford to segregate based on color, sexual orientation, gender identity" or anything else.

Keynote speaker:

Rep. Tammy Baldwin, (D-WI)

Featured panelists:

Michael Adams, Executive Director, Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Elders

Ineke Mushovic, Executive Director, Movement Advancement Project

Percil Stanford, Chief Diversity Officer, American Association of Retired Persons

Moderated by:

Winnie Stachelberg, Senior Vice President for External Affairs, Center for American Progress Action Fund

Implementation of EAF management plans for beach seine fisheries in the Gulf of Guinea by EAF-Nansen Programme

The EAF-Nansen Programme fielded a mission to Cote d’Ivoire, Togo and Benin in November 2018 as part of the Programme’s support for the implementation of management plans for beach seine fisheries in the Gulf of Guinea. The team for the mission was made up of Dr Kwame Koranteng, who was the Coordinator of the EAF-Nansen Project until 2017, and Mr Matthieu Bernardon, an independent consultant. The objectives of the mission were:

1.To assess the status of implementation of the beach seine management plan in each country,

2.To understand recent developments in the fisheries sector since 2013 when the plans were completed and approved for implementation and the need for possible updates,

3.To identify other projects and initiatives in place that could be in synergy with or in support of the implementation of the beach seine fisheries management plan, and

4.To prioritize activities from the plan that could be supported by the EAF-Nansen Programme, and to assess the needs for the same.

In each country, the team had initial discussions with the Director of Fisheries, the Focal Point of the Programme and relevant staff of the FAO Representation. A national workshop was then held which was attended by stakeholders (fishers, fisheries managers and researchers, security personnel and environmental protection/management officers, among others). At the workshop, the group reviewed the activities included in the management plan, identified priority actions and agreed on implementation modalities including the role of a national implementation or steering committees. In Cote d’Ivoire, the team also visited a community of beach seine operators in Jacqueville, a coastal town 40 km west of Abidjan.

At Jacqueville, some of the problems that the beach seine fishery is facing, particularly poor catches were evident. The dependence of a large sector of the fishing community on the beach fishery was also obvious as so many women and children were at the beach waiting for the catch from the only unit that operated that day. Interestingly, many of the women were able to take home small portions of the rather poor catch. One of the issues identified in the management plans is the clogging of nets by marine litter and sargasum weeds during fishing operations. On the day of the visit the entire beach was full of the weed which had been washed ashore over days and the bag of the beach seine net was also full of weeds together with the catch.

The mission noted that in all three countries key actions have been taken towards implementation of the management plan. In Togo, the government has provided funds to procure netting materials of the appropriate mesh size to replace the existing bags of the beach seine nets as recommended in the management plan. In Cote d’Ivoire and Benin, new laws have come into force that give legal backing to the implementation of the management plan. Discussions are ongoing in Benin that could lead to a complete ban of the beach seine fishery in the country.

It would be recalled that between 2009 and 2013, the then EAF-Nansen Project provided technical and financial support to a number of partner countries in Africa to develop management plans for selected fisheries using the ecosystem approach to fisheries (EAF) framework. In each country, a multi-stakeholder National Task Group was set up and facilitated by the EAF-Nansen Project to lead the preparation of the management plan. The plans for Cote d’Ivoire, Togo and Benin were among those that were finalised and approved for implementation by the Minister responsible for fisheries in each country. The NTGs of the three countries, as well as Ghana, collaborated in the preparation of the management plans to ensure that the recommended actions and management measures were similar in the region since the fishery is the same. In this phase of the Nansen Programme, support is being provided for the implementation of the plans through the establishment and operationalization of a fisheries management cycle (FMC) in each country.

173-Clean Energy Panel - Moniz, DeLeon, Lee by Dawn Wright

"As United States Secretary of Energy, Dr. ERNEST MONIZ is tasked with implementing critical Department of Energy missions in support of President Obama’s goals of growing the economy, enhancing security and protecting the environment. This encompasses advancing the President’s all-of-the-above energy strategy, maintaining the nuclear deterrent and reducing the nuclear danger, promoting American leadership in science and clean energy technology innovation, cleaning up the legacy of the cold war, and strengthening management and performance.

Prior to his appointment, Dr. Moniz was the Cecil and Ida Green Professor of Physics and Engineering Systems at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he was a faculty member since 1973. At MIT, he headed the Department of Physics and the Bates Linear Accelerator Center. Most recently, Dr. Moniz served as the founding Director of the MIT Energy Initiative and as Director of the MIT Laboratory for Energy and the Environment where he was a leader of multidisciplinary technology and policy studies on the future of nuclear power, coal, nuclear fuel cycles, natural gas and solar energy in a low-carbon world.

From 1997 until January 2001, Dr. Moniz served as Under Secretary of the Department of Energy. He was responsible for overseeing the Department’s science and energy programs, leading a comprehensive review of nuclear weapons stockpile stewardship, and serving as the Secretary’s special negotiator for the disposition of Russian nuclear materials. From 1995 to 1997, he served as Associate Director for Science in the Office of Science and Technology Policy in the Executive Office of the President.

In addition to his work at MIT, the White House and the Department of Energy, Dr. Moniz has served on a number of boards of directors and commissions involving science, energy and security. These include President Obama’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, the Department of Defense Threat Reduction Advisory Committee, and the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future.

A member of the Council on Foreign Relations, Dr. Moniz is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Humboldt Foundation, and the American Physical Society.

Dr. Moniz received a Bachelor of Science degree summa cum laude in Physics from Boston College, a Doctorate in Theoretical Physics from Stanford University, and honorary degrees from the University of Athens, Boston University, the University of Erlangen-Nurenberg, Iowa State University, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Michigan State University and Universidad Pontificia de Comillas.

KEVIN DE LEON serves as President pro Tempore of the California State Senate. As Senate leader, Senator de León (D-Los Angeles) has made fighting climate change and building a clean energy economy a top priority. He has authored numerous measures to bolster clean energy generation, improve air quality, and direct funding to the communities disproportionately affected by air pollution and other environmental hazards.

Most recently, he fought to extend California’s groundbreaking climate law, AB 32, successfully setting new statewide emissions reductions targets of 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030. In 2015, he authored Senate Bill 350, which requires California to generate half of its electricity from renewable sources and double energy efficiency in buildings by 2030, while also dramatically expanding electric vehicle charging infrastructure. He has also championed efforts to make electric vehicles and other forms of clean energy accessible to middle- and low-income families through rebates and tax incentives.

In 2012, he co-chaired the campaign for Proposition 39, which closed a corporate-tax loophole and redirected hundreds of millions of dollars annually to create jobs in energy efficiency and clean energy projects in the state’s K-12 schools.

Senator de León served four years in the Assembly before his Senate election in 2010. In 2014 he became the first Latino elected to lead the Senate in 130 years.

State Representative CHRIS LEE serves as Majority Whip and Chairman of the Energy and Environmental Protection Committee in the Hawaii State Legislature. Elected in 2008 as the legislature's first millennial, he has worked to make Hawaii a world leader on climate policy, successfully authoring laws establishing the Hawaii Climate Adaptation Initiative, making Hawaii the first state to mandate 100% renewable electricity by 2045, and this year, a new law making Hawaii the first state to commit to a zero-emissions clean economy and statewide carbon neutrality by 2045. He authored the nation's first tax breaks for organic and climate-responsible agriculture, laws making utility profits dependent on eliminating fossil fuels, and required all public schools and universities to become net-zero by 2035. He also passed laws protecting transgender individuals, addressing gun violence, protecting workers from exploitation, and fight the influence of money in politics by requiring SuperPACs to disclose secret donors, prohibiting state contractors from making political donations, and raising penalties for elections fraud. He helped lead successful campaigns to pass same-sex marriage, block a $4.5 billion fossil fuel deal, and expand the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument to create the largest protected area in the world. Rep. Lee serves on the boards of several non-profit organizations and volunteers in the community. He graduated from Oregon State University."

Remarks by President Obama to the Uited Nations General Assembly - IMG_4324 by VascoPress Comunicações

United Nations Headquarters

New York, New York

10:18 A.M. EDT

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Mr. President, Mr. Secretary General, fellow delegates, ladies and gentlemen: Seventy years after the founding of the United Nations, it is worth reflecting on what, together, the members of this body have helped to achieve.

Out of the ashes of the Second World War, having witnessed the unthinkable power of the atomic age, the United States has worked with many nations in this Assembly to prevent a third world war -- by forging alliances with old adversaries; by supporting the steady emergence of strong democracies accountable to their people instead of any foreign power; and by building an international system that imposes a cost on those who choose conflict over cooperation, an order that recognizes the dignity and equal worth of all people.

That is the work of seven decades. That is the ideal that this body, at its best, has pursued. Of course, there have been too many times when, collectively, we have fallen short of these ideals. Over seven decades, terrible conflicts have claimed untold victims. But we have pressed forward, slowly, steadily, to make a system of international rules and norms that are better and stronger and more consistent.

It is this international order that has underwritten unparalleled advances in human liberty and prosperity. It is this collective endeavor that’s brought about diplomatic cooperation between the world’s major powers, and buttressed a global economy that has lifted more than a billion people from poverty. It is these international principles that helped constrain bigger countries from imposing our will on smaller ones, and advanced the emergence of democracy and development and individual liberty on every continent.

This progress is real. It can be documented in lives saved, and agreements forged, and diseases conquered, and in mouths fed. And yet, we come together today knowing that the march of human progress never travels in a straight line, that our work is far from complete; that dangerous currents risk pulling us back into a darker, more disordered world.

Today, we see the collapse of strongmen and fragile states breeding conflict, and driving innocent men, women and children across borders on an epic scale. Brutal networks of terror have stepped into the vacuum. Technologies that empower individuals are now also exploited by those who spread disinformation, or suppress dissent, or radicalize our youth. Global capital flows have powered growth and investment, but also increased risk of contagion, weakened the bargaining power of workers, and accelerated inequality.

How should we respond to these trends? There are those who argue that the ideals enshrined in the U.N. charter are unachievable or out of date -- a legacy of a postwar era not suited to our own. Effectively, they argue for a return to the rules that applied for most of human history and that pre-date this institution: the belief that power is a zero-sum game; that might makes right; that strong states must impose their will on weaker ones; that the rights of individuals don’t matter; and that in a time of rapid change, order must be imposed by force.

On this basis, we see some major powers assert themselves in ways that contravene international law. We see an erosion of the democratic principles and human rights that are fundamental to this institution’s mission; information is strictly controlled, the space for civil society restricted. We’re told that such retrenchment is required to beat back disorder; that it’s the only way to stamp out terrorism, or prevent foreign meddling. In accordance with this logic, we should support tyrants like Bashar al-Assad, who drops barrel bombs to massacre innocent children, because the alternative is surely worse.

The increasing skepticism of our international order can also be found in the most advanced democracies. We see greater polarization, more frequent gridlock; movements on the far right, and sometimes the left, that insist on stopping the trade that binds our fates to other nations, calling for the building of walls to keep out immigrants. Most ominously, we see the fears of ordinary people being exploited through appeals to sectarianism, or tribalism, or racism, or anti-Semitism; appeals to a glorious past before the body politic was infected by those who look different, or worship God differently; a politics of us versus them.

The United States is not immune from this. Even as our economy is growing and our troops have largely returned from Iraq and Afghanistan, we see in our debates about America’s role in the world a notion of strength that is defined by opposition to old enemies, perceived adversaries, a rising China, or a resurgent Russia; a revolutionary Iran, or an Islam that is incompatible with peace. We see an argument made that the only strength that matters for the United States is bellicose words and shows of military force; that cooperation and diplomacy will not work.

As President of the United States, I am mindful of the dangers that we face; they cross my desk every morning. I lead the strongest military that the world has ever known, and I will never hesitate to protect my country or our allies, unilaterally and by force where necessary.

But I stand before you today believing in my core that we, the nations of the world, cannot return to the old ways of conflict and coercion. We cannot look backwards. We live in an integrated world -- one in which we all have a stake in each other’s success. We cannot turn those forces of integration. No nation in this Assembly can insulate itself from the threat of terrorism, or the risk of financial contagion; the flow of migrants, or the danger of a warming planet. The disorder we see is not driven solely by competition between nations or any single ideology. And if we cannot work together more effectively, we will all suffer the consequences. That is true for the United States, as well.

No matter how powerful our military, how strong our economy, we understand the United States cannot solve the world’s problems alone. In Iraq, the United States learned the hard lesson that even hundreds of thousands of brave, effective troops, trillions of dollars from our Treasury, cannot by itself impose stability on a foreign land. Unless we work with other nations under the mantle of international norms and principles and law that offer legitimacy to our efforts, we will not succeed. And unless we work together to defeat the ideas that drive different communities in a country like Iraq into conflict, any order that our militaries can impose will be temporary.

Just as force alone cannot impose order internationally, I believe in my core that repression cannot forge the social cohesion for nations to succeed. The history of the last two decades proves that in today’s world, dictatorships are unstable. The strongmen of today become the spark of revolution tomorrow. You can jail your opponents, but you can’t imprison ideas. You can try to control access to information, but you cannot turn a lie into truth. It is not a conspiracy of U.S.-backed NGOs that expose corruption and raise the expectations of people around the globe; it’s technology, social media, and the irreducible desire of people everywhere to make their own choices about how they are governed.

Indeed, I believe that in today’s world, the measure of strength is no longer defined by the control of territory. Lasting prosperity does not come solely from the ability to access and extract raw materials. The strength of nations depends on the success of their people -- their knowledge, their innovation, their imagination, their creativity, their drive, their opportunity -- and that, in turn, depends upon individual rights and good governance and personal security. Internal repression and foreign aggression are both symptoms of the failure to provide this foundation.

A politics and solidarity that depend on demonizing others, that draws on religious sectarianism or narrow tribalism or jingoism may at times look like strength in the moment, but over time its weakness will be exposed. And history tells us that the dark forces unleashed by this type of politics surely makes all of us less secure. Our world has been there before. We gain nothing from going back.

Instead, I believe that we must go forward in pursuit of our ideals, not abandon them at this critical time. We must give expression to our best hopes, not our deepest fears. This institution was founded because men and women who came before us had the foresight to know that our nations are more secure when we uphold basic laws and basic norms, and pursue a path of cooperation over conflict. And strong nations, above all, have a responsibility to uphold this international order.

Let me give you a concrete example. After I took office, I made clear that one of the principal achievements of this body -- the nuclear non-proliferation regime -- was endangered by Iran’s violation of the NPT. On that basis, the Security Council tightened sanctions on the Iranian government, and many nations joined us to enforce them. Together, we showed that laws and agreements mean something.

But we also understood that the goal of sanctions was not simply to punish Iran. Our objective was to test whether Iran could change course, accept constraints, and allow the world to verify that its nuclear program will be peaceful. For two years, the United States and our partners -- including Russia, including China -- stuck together in complex negotiations. The result is a lasting, comprehensive deal that prevents Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, while allowing it to access peaceful energy. And if this deal is fully implemented, the prohibition on nuclear weapons is strengthened, a potential war is averted, our world is safer. That is the strength of the international system when it works the way it should.

That same fidelity to international order guides our responses to other challenges around the world. Consider Russia’s annexation of Crimea and further aggression in eastern Ukraine. America has few economic interests in Ukraine. We recognize the deep and complex history between Russia and Ukraine. But we cannot stand by when the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a nation is flagrantly violated. If that happens without consequence in Ukraine, it could happen to any nation gathered here today. That’s the basis of the sanctions that the United States and our partners impose on Russia. It's not a desire to return to a Cold War.

Now, within Russia, state-controlled media may describe these events as an example of a resurgent Russia -- a view shared, by the way, by a number of U.S. politicians and commentators who have always been deeply skeptical of Russia, and seem to be convinced a new Cold War is, in fact, upon us. And yet, look at the results. The Ukrainian people are more interested than ever in aligning with Europe instead of Russia. Sanctions have led to capital flight, a contracting economy, a fallen ruble, and the emigration of more educated Russians.

Imagine if, instead, Russia had engaged in true diplomacy, and worked with Ukraine and the international community to ensure its interests were protected. That would be better for Ukraine, but also better for Russia, and better for the world -- which is why we continue to press for this crisis to be resolved in a way that allows a sovereign and democratic Ukraine to determine its future and control its territory. Not because we want to isolate Russia -- we don't -- but because we want a strong Russia that’s invested in working with us to strengthen the international system as a whole.

Similarly, in the South China Sea, the United States makes no claim on territory there. We don't adjudicate claims. But like every nation gathered here, we have an interest in upholding the basic principles of freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce, and in resolving disputes through international law, not the law of force. So we will defend these principles, while encouraging China and other claimants to resolve their differences peacefully.

I say this, recognizing that diplomacy is hard; that the outcomes are sometimes unsatisfying; that it's rarely politically popular. But I believe that leaders of large nations, in particular, have an obligation to take these risks -- precisely because we are strong enough to protect our interests if, and when, diplomacy fails.

I also believe that to move forward in this new era, we have to be strong enough to acknowledge when what you’re doing is not working. For 50 years, the United States pursued a Cuba policy that failed to improve the lives of the Cuban people. We changed that. We continue to have differences with the Cuban government. We will continue to stand up for human rights. But we address these issues through diplomatic relations, and increased commerce, and people-to-people ties. As these contacts yield progress, I’m confident that our Congress will inevitably lift an embargo that should not be in place anymore. (Applause.) Change won’t come overnight to Cuba, but I’m confident that openness, not coercion, will support the reforms and better the life the Cuban people deserve, just as I believe that Cuba will find its success if it pursues cooperation with other nations.

Now, if it’s in the interest of major powers to uphold international standards, it is even more true for the rest of the community of nations. Look around the world. From Singapore to Colombia to Senegal, the facts shows that nations succeed when they pursue an inclusive peace and prosperity within their borders, and work cooperatively with countries beyond their borders.

That path is now available to a nation like Iran, which, as of this moment, continues to deploy violent proxies to advance its interests. These efforts may appear to give Iran leverage in disputes with neighbors, but they fuel sectarian conflict that endangers the entire region, and isolates Iran from the promise of trade and commerce. The Iranian people have a proud history, and are filled with extraordinary potential. But chanting “Death to America” does not create jobs, or make Iran more secure. If Iran chose a different path, that would be good for the security of the region, good for the Iranian people, and good for the world.

Of course, around the globe, we will continue to be confronted with nations who reject these lessons of history, places where civil strife, border disputes, and sectarian wars bring about terrorist enclaves and humanitarian disasters. Where order has completely broken down, we must act, but we will be stronger when we act together.

In such efforts, the United States will always do our part. We will do so mindful of the lessons of the past -- not just the lessons of Iraq, but also the example of Libya, where we joined an international coalition under a U.N. mandate to prevent a slaughter. Even as we helped the Libyan people bring an end to the reign of a tyrant, our coalition could have and should have done more to fill a vacuum left behind. We’re grateful to the United Nations for its efforts to forge a unity government. We will help any legitimate Libyan government as it works to bring the country together. But we also have to recognize that we must work more effectively in the future, as an international community, to build capacity for states that are in distress, before they collapse.

And that’s why we should celebrate the fact that later today the United States will join with more than 50 countries to enlist new capabilities -- infantry, intelligence, helicopters, hospitals, and tens of thousands of troops -- to strengthen United Nations peacekeeping. (Applause.) These new capabilities can prevent mass killing, and ensure that peace agreements are more than words on paper. But we have to do it together. Together, we must strengthen our collective capacity to establish security where order has broken down, and to support those who seek a just and lasting peace.

Nowhere is our commitment to international order more tested than in Syria. When a dictator slaughters tens of thousands of his own people, that is not just a matter of one nation’s internal affairs -- it breeds human suffering on an order of magnitude that affects us all. Likewise, when a terrorist group beheads captives, slaughters the innocent and enslaves women, that’s not a single nation’s national security problem -- that is an assault on all humanity.

I’ve said before and I will repeat: There is no room for accommodating an apocalyptic cult like ISIL, and the United States makes no apologies for using our military, as part of a broad coalition, to go after them. We do so with a determination to ensure that there will never be a safe haven for terrorists who carry out these crimes. And we have demonstrated over more than a decade of relentless pursuit of al Qaeda, we will not be outlasted by extremists.

But while military power is necessary, it is not sufficient to resolve the situation in Syria. Lasting stability can only take hold when the people of Syria forge an agreement to live together peacefully. The United States is prepared to work with any nation, including Russia and Iran, to resolve the conflict. But we must recognize that there cannot be, after so much bloodshed, so much carnage, a return to the pre-war status quo.

Let’s remember how this started. Assad reacted to peaceful protests by escalating repression and killing that, in turn, created the environment for the current strife. And so Assad and his allies cannot simply pacify the broad majority of a population who have been brutalized by chemical weapons and indiscriminate bombing. Yes, realism dictates that compromise will be required to end the fighting and ultimately stamp out ISIL. But realism also requires a managed transition away from Assad and to a new leader, and an inclusive government that recognizes there must be an end to this chaos so that the Syrian people can begin to rebuild.

We know that ISIL -- which emerged out of the chaos of Iraq and Syria -- depends on perpetual war to survive. But we also know that they gain adherents because of a poisonous ideology. So part of our job, together, is to work to reject such extremism that infects too many of our young people. Part of that effort must be a continued rejection by Muslims of those who distort Islam to preach intolerance and promote violence, and it must also a rejection by non-Muslims of the ignorance that equates Islam with terror. (Applause.)

This work will take time. There are no easy answers to Syria. And there are no simple answers to the changes that are taking place in much of the Middle East and North Africa. But so many families need help right now; they don’t have time. And that’s why the United States is increasing the number of refugees who we welcome within our borders. That’s why we will continue to be the largest donor of assistance to support those refugees. And today we are launching new efforts to ensure that our people and our businesses, our universities and our NGOs can help as well -- because in the faces of suffering families, our nation of immigrants sees ourselves.

Of course, in the old ways of thinking, the plight of the powerless, the plight of refugees, the plight of the marginalized did not matter. They were on the periphery of the world’s concerns. Today, our concern for them is driven not just by conscience, but should also be drive by self-interest. For helping people who have been pushed to the margins of our world is not mere charity, it is a matter of collective security. And the purpose of this institution is not merely to avoid conflict, it is to galvanize the collective action that makes life better on this planet.

The commitments we’ve made to the Sustainable Development Goals speak to this truth. I believe that capitalism has been the greatest creator of wealth and opportunity that the world has ever known. But from big cities to rural villages around the world, we also know that prosperity is still cruelly out of reach for too many. As His Holiness Pope Francis reminds us, we are stronger when we value the least among these, and see them as equal in dignity to ourselves and our sons and our daughters.

We can roll back preventable disease and end the scourge of HIV/AIDS. We can stamp out pandemics that recognize no borders. That work may not be on television right now, but as we demonstrated in reversing the spread of Ebola, it can save more lives than anything else we can do.

Together, we can eradicate extreme poverty and erase barriers to opportunity. But this requires a sustained commitment to our people -- so farmers can feed more people; so entrepreneurs can start a business without paying a bribe; so young people have the skills they need to succeed in this modern, knowledge-based economy.

We can promote growth through trade that meets a higher standard. And that’s what we’re doing through the Trans-Pacific Partnership -- a trade agreement that encompasses nearly 40 percent of the global economy; an agreement that will open markets, while protecting the rights of workers and protecting the environment that enables development to be sustained.

We can roll back the pollution that we put in our skies, and help economies lift people out of poverty without condemning our children to the ravages of an ever-warming climate. The same ingenuity that produced the Industrial Age and the Computer Age allows us to harness the potential of clean energy. No country can escape the ravages of climate change. And there is no stronger sign of leadership than putting future generations first. The United States will work with every nation that is willing to do its part so that we can come together in Paris to decisively confront this challenge.

And finally, our vision for the future of this Assembly, my belief in moving forward rather than backwards, requires us to defend the democratic principles that allow societies to succeed. Let me start from a simple premise: Catastrophes, like what we are seeing in Syria, do not take place in countries where there is genuine democracy and respect for the universal values this institution is supposed to defend. (Applause.)

I recognize that democracy is going to take different forms in different parts of the world. The very idea of a people governing themselves depends upon government giving expression to their unique culture, their unique history, their unique experiences. But some universal truths are self-evident. No person wants to be imprisoned for peaceful worship. No woman should ever be abused with impunity, or a girl barred from going to school. The freedom to peacefully petition those in power without fear of arbitrary laws -- these are not ideas of one country or one culture. They are fundamental to human progress. They are a cornerstone of this institution.

I realize that in many parts of the world there is a different view -- a belief that strong leadership must tolerate no dissent. I hear it not only from America’s adversaries, but privately at least I also hear it from some of our friends. I disagree. I believe a government that suppresses peaceful dissent is not showing strength; it is showing weakness and it is showing fear. (Applause.) History shows that regimes who fear their own people will eventually crumble, but strong institutions built on the consent of the governed endure long after any one individual is gone.

That's why our strongest leaders -- from George Washington to Nelson Mandela -- have elevated the importance of building strong, democratic institutions over a thirst for perpetual power. Leaders who amend constitutions to stay in office only acknowledge that they failed to build a successful country for their people -- because none of us last forever. It tells us that power is something they cling to for its own sake, rather than for the betterment of those they purport to serve.

I understand democracy is frustrating. Democracy in the United States is certainly imperfect. At times, it can even be dysfunctional. But democracy -- the constant struggle to extend rights to more of our people, to give more people a voice -- is what allowed us to become the most powerful nation in the world. (Applause.)

It's not simply a matter of principle; it's not an abstraction. Democracy -- inclusive democracy -- makes countries stronger. When opposition parties can seek power peacefully through the ballot, a country draws upon new ideas. When a free media can inform the public, corruption and abuse are exposed and can be rooted out. When civil society thrives, communities can solve problems that governments cannot necessarily solve alone. When immigrants are welcomed, countries are more productive and more vibrant. When girls can go to school, and get a job, and pursue unlimited opportunity, that’s when a country realizes its full potential. (Applause.)

That is what I believe is America’s greatest strength. Not everybody in America agrees with me. That's part of democracy. I believe that the fact that you can walk the streets of this city right now and pass churches and synagogues and temples and mosques, where people worship freely; the fact that our nation of immigrants mirrors the diversity of the world -- you can find everybody from everywhere here in New York City -- (applause) -- the fact that, in this country, everybody can contribute, everybody can participate no matter who they are, or what they look like, or who they love -- that's what makes us strong.

And I believe that what is true for America is true for virtually all mature democracies. And that is no accident. We can be proud of our nations without defining ourselves in opposition to some other group. We can be patriotic without demonizing someone else. We can cherish our own identities -- our religion, our ethnicity, our traditions -- without putting others down. Our systems are premised on the notion that absolute power will corrupt, but that people -- ordinary people -- are fundamentally good; that they value family and friendship, faith and the dignity of hard work; and that with appropriate checks and balances, governments can reflect this goodness.

I believe that’s the future we must seek together. To believe in the dignity of every individual, to believe we can bridge our differences, and choose cooperation over conflict -- that is not weakness, that is strength. (Applause.) It is a practical necessity in this interconnected world.

And our people understand this. Think of the Liberian doctor who went door-to-door to search for Ebola cases, and to tell families what to do if they show symptoms. Think of the Iranian shopkeeper who said, after the nuclear deal, “God willing, now we’ll be able to offer many more goods at better prices.” Think of the Americans who lowered the flag over our embassy in Havana in 1961 -- the year I was born -- and returned this summer to raise that flag back up. (Applause.) One of these men said of the Cuban people, “We could do things for them, and they could do things for us. We loved them.” For 50 years, we ignored that fact.

Think of the families leaving everything they’ve known behind, risking barren deserts and stormy waters just to find shelter; just to save their children. One Syrian refugee who was greeted in Hamburg with warm greetings and shelter, said, “We feel there are still some people who love other people.”

The people of our United Nations are not as different as they are told. They can be made to fear; they can be taught to hate -- but they can also respond to hope. History is littered with the failure of false prophets and fallen empires who believed that might always makes right, and that will continue to be the case. You can count on that. But we are called upon to offer a different type of leadership -- leadership strong enough to recognize that nations share common interests and people share a common humanity, and, yes, there are certain ideas and principles that are universal.

That's what those who shaped the United Nations 70 years ago understood. Let us carry forward that faith into the future -- for it is the only way we can assure that future will be brighter for my children, and for yours.

Thank you very much. (Applause.)

END 11:00 A.M. EDT

Changing implements by alo ab

MTA Implements Enhanced Sanitizing Measures by Metropolitan Transportation Authority

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) continues to implement precautions in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). New York City Transit, MTA Bus, Access-A-Ride, Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North are significantly increasing the frequency and intensity of sanitizing procedures at each of its stations and on its full fleet of rolling stock. Trains, cars and buses will experience daily cleanings with the MTA’s full fleet undergoing sanitation every 72 hours. Frequently used surfaces in stations, such as turnstiles, MetroCard and ticket vending machines, and handrails, will be disinfected daily.

Photo: Patrick Cashin / MTA New York City Transit

1:72 SABRA AF-2A Grifo; “(N-30)21", Marinha do Brasil's VF-2 'Arqueiros', São Pedro da Aldeia AB, on board of NAe São Paulo (A 12), 2019 (Whif/Italeri kit conversion) by Dizzyfugu

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

Some background:

NAe São Paulo is a Clemenceau-class aircraft carrier currently in service with the Brazilian Navy. São Paulo was first commissioned in 1963 by the French Navy as Foch and was transferred in 2000 to Brazil, where she became the new flagship of the Brazilian Navy. In December 2014 it was announced that São Paulo will be expected to continue active service until 2039, at which time the vessel will be nearly 80 years old.

From this carrier, the Marinha do Brasil operates its only fixed-wing aircraft, and these were initially A-4 Skyhawks. In 1997 Brazil negotiated a $70 million contract for purchase of 20 A-4KU and three TA-4KU Skyhawks from Kuwait. The Kuwaiti Skyhawks, modified A-4Ms and TA-4Js delivered in 1977, were among the last of those models built by Douglas. The Kuwaiti Skyhawks were selected by Brazil because of low flight time, excellent physical condition, and a favorable price tag. The Brazilian Navy Re-designated AF-1 and AF-1A Falcões (Hawks), the ex-Kuwaiti Skyhawks arrived in Arraial do Cabo on 5 September 1998.

Anyway, the Skyhawks' life span was limited and in 2005 the Brazilian Navy started looking for a potential replacement, while the AF-1s were to kept operational due to limited military budgets. On 14 April 2009, Brazlian aircraft manufacturer EMBRAER signed a contract to modernize 12 Skyhawks, nine AF-1s (single-seat) and three AF-1As (two-seat). This upgrade will restore the operating capacity of the Navy 1st Intercept and Attack Plane Squadron (VF-1). The program includes restoring the aircraft and their current systems, as well as implementing new avionics, radar, power production, and autonomous oxygen generating systems. The first of the 12 modified Skyhawks was delivered on 27 May 2015. EMBRAER stated that the modifications would allow the aircraft to remain operational until 2025, by which time a successor was to be fully operational.

Several replacement candidates were evaluated under Brazil's F-X2 fighter program together with the Air Force which was looking to replace its Northrop F‐5EM and Dassault Mirage 2000C aircraft. In October 2008, Brazil selected three finalists: the Dassault Rafale, the Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet, and the SAAB JAS 39 Gripen. The Brazilian Air Force initially planned to procure at least 36 and possibly up to 120 aircraft later, while the Brazilian Navy was looking for 24 aircraft (20 single seater and 4 two-seaters with dual controls) until 2025.

In February 2009, SAAB submitted a tender, and on 5 January 2010, reports claimed that the final evaluation report placed the Gripen ahead of other contenders; the decisive factor was reportedly lower unit and operational costs, the most compact size and the Swedish manufacturer's willingness to accept EMBRAER as a technological partner for the aircraft's further development, especially for the navalized version.

Amid delays due to financial constraints, President Dilma Rousseff announced in December 2011 the Gripen NG's selection and the start of a joint Swedish-Brazilian joint venture called SABRA. Argentina and Ecuador were interested in procuring Gripens from or through Brazil, and Mexico and Argenitina were potential export targets for SABRA's navalized Gripen derivative that was tailored to the Marinha do Brasil's needs.

The respective SABRA aircraft was appropriately christened "Grifo" and the development of thei 4th generation fighter started immediately after closing the cooperation deal in 2011. While based on the SAAB 39, the Grifo became a very different aircraft, due to several factors. The major influence was the carrier operation capability, which called for major structural modifications and enforcements as well as special equipment like foldable wings, a strengthened landing gear, an arrester hook and a new engine that would better cope with the naval environment than the Swedish RM 12 engine, a derivative of the General Electric F404-400.

Additionally, the mission focus of air superiority with additional attack capabilities was reversed, and the need for excellent low speed handling for carrier approaches was requested.

This led to a complelety different aircraft layout, with the SAAB 39's instable canard design being changed into a conservative aircraft with conventional tailplanes. The nose section was shortened in order to provide the pilot with a better field of view, while the more powerful F414-EPE afterburning turbofan was moved slightly forward due to CG reasons, resulting in a slightly shortened rear fuselage.

A mock-up of the new aircraft for the Brazlian Navy was presented and approved in early 2012, and the government placed an official order for two prototypes. Even though the Grifo appeared like a completely different aircraft, it shared a lot of elements with the SAAB 39, so that development time and costs could be reduced to a minimum - and the first prototype, internally designated EMB 391-001, made its maiden flight in early 2013. The second aircraft followed 3 months later.

The Grifo's equipment includes an AN/APG-79 active electronically scanned array (AESA), capable of executing simultaneous air-to-air and air-to-ground attacks, and providing higher quality high-resolution ground mapping at long standoff ranges. The AESA radar can also detect smaller targets, such as inbound missiles, and can track air targets beyond the range of the aircraft's air-to-air missiles, which include the AIM-9 Sidewinder for close range and the AIM-120 AMRAAM for medium range.

The Grifo features, like the Gripen fighter, an advanced and integrated electronic warfare suite, capable of operating in an undetectable passive mode or to actively jam hostile radar; a missile approach warning system passively detects and tracks incoming missiles.

The Grifo can be tailored to specific missions through external sensor pods, e .g. for reconnaissance and target designation. These include Rafael's LITENING targeting pod, Saab's Modular Reconnaissance Pod System or Thales' Digital Joint Reconnaissance Pod. On the Brazilian Navy's request the Grifo is also designed that it can be equipped with an aerial refueling system (ARS) or "buddy store" for the refueling of other aircraft, filling the tactical airborne tanker role.

The two prototypes completed a thorough test program until summer 2015 and subsequently went on a sales tour in South America and Asia. In the meantime, serial production started at EMBRAER's Gavião Peixoto in November 2015. The first serial machines, now officially designated AF-2A, arrived at the Brazilian Navy's São Pedro da Aldeia air base where a new Intercept and Attack Plane Squadron, VF-2 'Arquieros' (Archers) was founded. The squadron became operational in April 2016 and Grifos embarked on NAe São Paulo for the first time in September 2016, serving alongside the venerable AF-1.

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Payload: 5,300 kg (11,700 lb)

Length: 13,54 m (44 ft 4 in)

Wingspan (incl. wing tip launch rails): 8.32 m (27 ft 2 in)

Height: 4.25 m (13 ft 11 in)

Wing area: 30.0 m² (323 ft²)

Empty weight: 6,800 kg[330] (14,990 lb)

Loaded weight: 8,500 kg (18,700 lb)

Max. takeoff weight: 14,000 kg (31,000 lb)

Wheel track: 2.4 m (7 ft 10 in)

Powerplant:

1 × General Electric F414-EPE afterburning turbofan with

a dry thrust of 54 kN (12,100 lbf) and 85 kN (19,100 lbf) with afterburner

Performance:

Maximum speed: Mach 2 (2,204 km/h (1,190 kn; 1,370 mph) at high altitude

Combat radius: 800 km (497 mi, 432 nmi)

Ferry range: 3,200 km (1,983 mi) with drop tanks

Service ceiling: 15,240 m (50,000 ft)

Wing loading: 283 kg/m² (58 lb/ft²)

Thrust/weight: 0.97

Maximum g-load: +9 g

Armament:

1× 27 mm Mauser BK-27 Revolver cannon with 120 rounds

Eight hardpoints (three on each wing and two under fuselage)

for a wide range of guide and unguided ordnance of up to 14,330 lb (6.5 t)

The kit and its assembly:

The fictional Grifo is the result of a generic idea of converting a canard layout aircraft like the Saab Viggen into a conventional design. The Viggen was actually a serious candidate, but then I found an Italeri Gripen in the stash without a real purpose (it had been cheap, though), and with Brazil's real world procurement as background, the more conservative Grifo was born.

I wanted to use as many OOB Gripen parts as possible, and there are actually only a few external donations involved – with the outlook of converting further Gripens this way. You never know… ;)

Work started with the wings, which were cut off of the fuselage shell. Having the landing gear retract into the fuselage (much like the X-29) is a convenient detail of the Gripen, making the wing transplantation easier than on a Viggen where the wells have to be moved, too.

The original canard attachment points were faired over/hidden. The pointed Gripen nose with its pitot was cut off and replaced by a shorter, more stocky nose tip - from an F-4 Phantom II IIRC. Once the fuselage was completed, the wings were mounted, closer to the air intakes. This went smoothly, only some gaps on the undersides had to be filled.

Once the wings were in place I had to make a decision concerning the stabilizers. Despite the plan to use as many OOB parts as possible I found the OOB canards to be too sharply swept and considered several donation options.

I eventually settled for the most unique option: the stabilizers are actually main wings from a (rather malformed) Italeri/Dragon 1:200 F-117 that comes as a set with the B-2 bomber. A part of the F-117’s fuselage flank was cut off and taken over to the Grifo, too, so that these create ‘muscular’ bulges.

The stabilizers were mounted on scratched consoles/trailing wing root extensions that were somewhat inspired by the F-16’s tail design – putting the stabilizers directly onto the fuselage would have looked awkward, and with this solution I was able to extend the Gripen’s BWB-design all along the fuselage. As a side effect these consoles also offered a plausible place for rearward chaff dispensers.

The rear fuselage was shortened by 3mm, too – through the shorter nose and the wings further forward, the rest of the aircraft looked rather tail-heavy. While 3mm does not sound much, it helped with overall proportions.

The cannon fairing and the OOB pylons were taken over, as well as the cockpit interior. For carrier operations, several details were added, though: folding wing mechanism seams were engraved on the wings and an arrester hook with a fairing added under the tail section, flanked by new stabilizer fins.

The landing gear was basically taken OOB, too, but lengthened with styrene inserts for a higher stance: the main struts are now 2mm longer, while the front strut is 3mm taller. The latter was reversed, so that a catapult hook could be added to the front side, and slightly bigger wheels were mounted, too, so that the Grifo now has a rather stalky stance with a nose-up attitude. Simple, but effective!

The Sidewinders were taken OOB while the pair of AGM-84 Harpoon comes from Italeri’s 1:72 NATO weapons set.

Painting and markings:

I used the contemporary AF-1 paint scheme in three shades of grey as benchmark. These are FS 36187 (RAF Ocean Grey), FS 36307 (Flint Grey) and FS 36515 (Canadian Voodoo Grey) - sourced from a painting guide from Brazilian decal manufacturer FCM and backed by other knowledgeable sources from the region, too. And while the Ocean Grey appears a bit dark, I think that overall the colors are authentic. All paints are Modelmaster enamels.

After basic painting a light black ink wash was applied and panels highlighted through dry-brushing with lighter tones.

The cockpit interior was painted in Neutral Grey (FS 36173), while the landing gear became all-white.

The Brazilian Navy markings had to be improvised - there are 1:72 AF-1 decals available, but either not obtainable or prohibitively expensive - or both. Therefore I rather improvised, with basic Brazilian Navy markings from a vintage FCM Decal sheet for various Brazilian aircraft.

The respective roundels and codes actually belong to helicopters, and I had to wing it somehow. Unfortunately, the old FCM decals turned out to be ...old. Brittle and very delicate, application was already messy and they did not adhere well to the model. To make matters worse the acrylic varnish turned cloudy, so that a lot of paintwork repair had to be done - not helping much with a satisfactory kit finish. :(

Another interesting conversion – I am amazed how purposeful the Grifo looks. It reminds me with its high stance of a modern A-4 Skyhawk (what it somehow is), and there’s also some Super Étendard in it, esp. in the profile? At some point before painting it also had a somewhat Chinese look - maybe because the top view and the wing planform reminds of the classic MiG-21…? The wings might have been placed 3-4mm further backwards, since it is always difficult to judge proportions while work is still, but the Grifo looks convincingly like a real aircraft (model).

Aeronaves bonita! :D

solar cooker-5 by Dr Mihir kumar Panda PhD DLitt Innovator

About Dr.Mihir Kumar Panda, Ph.D,D.Litt,, innovator

World’s only achiever of large number of World Record for 10,000 Teaching Aids & innovations

Founder & Co-ordinator General, ‘SROSTI’ (Social Development research Organisation for Science, technology & Implementation)

Collaborator Vijnana Bana Ashram

Bahanaga, Baleshwar, Odisha, India-756042

Website : simpleinnovationproject.com

E-Mail- : mihirpandasrosti@gmail.com

Face Book link:https://www.facebook.com/mihirpandasrosti

WIKIMAPIA

wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=-6.174348&lon=106.8293...

Contact No. : +91 7008406650

Whatsapp: +91 9438354515

Dr.Mihir Kumar Panda, an Educational, Societal and Scientific Innovator has established an NGO 'SROSTI' at Bahanaga, Balasore,Odisha,India

Dr. panda has innovated/invented more than 10,000 (ten thousand) teaching aids and different innovations and he has more than 30,000 (Thirty thousand) ideas to make scientific and mathematical models.

His creations are very essential guide for school and college science exhibitions, innovative learning and play way method for the teachers and students, science activists, innovators, craftsmen, farmers, masons, physically challenged persons, common men, entrepreneurs and industrialists.

He is popularizing science through song, innovative demonstrations and motivational speech since 1990 in different parts of Odisha state without taking any fees.

Dr. Panda is an extreme motivational speaker in science and possess magical scientific demonstration and a crowd puller.

Innovator Mihir Kumar Panda loves nature and in his agricultural farm he does not uses the chemicals , fertilizers and pesticides. In his farm even the smallest creatures like snakes, caterpillar, white ants, worms ,vermies are in peace and are managed successfully not to do harm.

Dr. Panda is an Educationist, an environmentalist, a poet for science popularization, a good orator, a best resource person to train others in specific field of science and engineering.

The uniqueness of Simple Innovation and scientific activities and achievements ofDr. Panda can not be assessed without visiting his laboratory which is a living wonder in the realm of science.

From a small cake cutter to mechanical scissor, from a play pump to rickshaw operated food grain spreader and from a village refrigerator to a multi-purpose machine, thousands of such inventions and innovations are proof of Dr. Panda's brilliance.

From a tube well operated washing machine to weight sensitive food grain separator, from a password protected wardrobe to automatic screen, from a Dual face fan to electricity producing fan are example of few thousands of innovations and inventions of Mihir Kumar Panda.

Dr.Mihir Kumar Panda though bestowed to a popular name as Einstein of Odisha is obliviously treated as Thomas Alva Edison of India.

Dr. Panda's residential house also resembles a museum with scientific innovations of different shapes and sizes stacked in every nook and cranny which proves his scientific involvement in personal life.

Innovator Panda believes that , the best thing a child can do with a toy to break it. he also believes that by Educating child in his/her choice subject/ passion a progressive nation can be built.

The shelf made scientist Dr. Panda believes that Education is a life long process whose scope is far greater than school curriculum. The moulding of models/ innovations done by hand always better than the things heard and the facts incorporated in the books.

With no agricultural background, Dr. Panda has developed unique natural bonsai in his Vijnana Bana Ashram which also shows path for earning just by uprooting and nurturing the plants which are found to be small and thumb in nature.

Dr. Panda's Scientific Endeavour and research is no doubt praise worthy. One cannot but believe his dedicated effort in simple innovation laboratory.

Social service, innovation/ inventions, writing, free technology to students for preparation of science exhibition projects, free technology to common men for their sustainability, preparation of big natural bonsai, technology for entrepreneurs and industrialists for innovative item are few works of Mihir Kumar Panda after his Government service.

. To overcome the difficulties of science and math, explanation in classes, innovator Panda has created few thousands of educational, societal and scientific innovations which helps teachers and students of the country and abroad.

Dr. Panda believes that though inventions/innovation has reached under thousands and thousands deep in the sea and high up in the space. It has reached on moon and mars, but unfortunately the sustainable inventions/innovation has not properly gone to the tiny tots and common people.

Dr. Panda is amazing and wizard of innovations and works with a principle the real scientist is he, who sees the things simply and works high.

Dr.Mihir Kumar Panda's work can be explained in short

Sports with Science from Dawn to Dusk

Struggle some life- science in words and action

Triumphs of Science - Science at foot path

Hilarious dream in midst scarcity

A life of innovator de-avoided of Advertisement.

FELICITATIONS, AWARDS, HONOURS & RECORDS

* 200+ Felicitation and Awards from different NGOs, Schools & Colleges within the State of Odisha and National level.

* 10 Nos Gold, Silver & Bronze medal from different National & International level.

*Awarded for 10,000 innovations & 30,000 ideas by Indian Science Congress Association, Govt. of India.

* Honorary Ph.D From Nelson Mandela University, United States of America

* Honorary Ph.D From Global Peace University, United States of America& India

* Honorary D.Litt From Global Peace University, United States of America& India

* Title ‘Einstein of Odisha’ by Assam Book of Records, Assam

* Title ‘Thomas Alva Edison of India’ by Anandashree Organisation, Mumbai

* Title ‘ Einstein of Odisha & Thomas Alva Edison of India’ from Bengal Book of World record.

*World Record from OMG Book of Records

*World Record from Assam Book of Records,

* World Record from World Genius Records, Nigeria

* World Record from BengalBook of Records

* National Record from Diamond Book of Records

* World Record from Asian World Records

* World Record from Champians Book of World Records

* World Record from The British World Records

* World Record from Gems Book of World Records

* World Record from India Star World Record

* World Record from Geniuses World Records

* World Record from Royal Success International Book of Records

*World Record from Supreme World Records

* World Record from Uttarpradesh World Records

*World Record from Exclusive World Records

*World Record from international Book of Records

*World Record from Incredible Book of records

* World Record from Cholan Book of World Record

* World Record from Bravo International Book of World Record

* World Record from High Range Book of World Record

* World Record from Kalam’s World Record

* World Record from Hope international World Record

* International Honours from Nigeria

* Indian icon Award from Global Records & Research Foundation (G.R.R.F.)

* International Award from USA for the year’2019 as INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR-2019

* National level Excellence Leadership Award-2020 from Anandashree Organisation, Mumbai

* Best Practical Demonstrator & Theory instructor from Collector & District Magistrate,

Balasore.

* Best Innovator Award by Bengal Book.

* Popular Indian Award by Bengal Book.

* Great man Award by Bengal Book.

* Best Indian Award by Bengal Book.

* The Man of the Era by Bengal Book.

IMPORTANT LINK FILES TO KNOW THE WORK OF

Dr. MIHIR KUMAR PANDA

Dr.Mihir Ku panda awarded at indian science congress Association, Govt. of India for 10000 innovations & 30,000 ideas

youtu.be/MFIh2AoEy_g

Hindi Media report- Simple innovation science show for popularisation of science in free of cost by Dr.Mihir Ku Panda

youtu.be/gPbJyB8aE2s

Simple innovation science show for popularisation of science in free of cost in different parts of India By Dr.Mihirku Panda

www.youtube.com/user/mihirkumarpanda/videos?view=0&so...

Simple innovation laboratory at a Glance

MORE LINK FILES OF Dr MIHIR KUMAR PANDA

www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFIh2AoEy_g

www.youtube.com/channel/UCIksem1pJdDvK87ctJOlN1g

www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHEAPp8V5MI

www.youtube.com/watch?v=W43tAYO7wpQ

www.youtube.com/watch?v=me43aso--Xg

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XEeZjBDnu4

www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPbJyB8aE2s

www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNIIJHdNo6M

www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPBdJpwYINI

www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBR-e-tFVyE

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JjCnF7gqKA

www.youtube.com/watch?v=raq_ZtllYRg

cholanbookofworldrecords.com/dr-mihir-kumar-pandaph-d-lit...

www.linkedin.com/in/dr-mihir-kumar-panda-ph-d-d-litt-inno...

www.bhubaneswarbuzz.com/updates/education/inspiring-odish...

www.millenniumpost.in/features/kiit-hosts-isca-national-s...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFE6c-XZoh0

www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzZ0XaZpJqQ

www.dailymotion.com/video/x2no10i

www.exclusiveworldrecords.com/description.aspx?id=320

omgbooksofrecords.com/

royalsuccessinternationalbookofrecords.com/home.php

british-world-records.business.site/posts/236093666996870...

www.tes.com/lessons/QKpLNO0seGI8Zg/experiments-in-science

dadasahebphalkefilmfoundation.com/2020/02/17/excellent-le...

www.facebook.com/…/a.102622791195…/103547424435915/… yearsP0-IR6tvlSw70ddBY_ySrBDerjoHhG0izBJwIBlqfh7QH9Qdo74EnhihXw35Iz8u-VUEmY&__tn__=EHH-R

wwwchampions-book-of-world-records.business.site/?fbclid=...

www.videomuzik.biz/video/motivational-science-show-ortalk...

lb.vlip.lv/channel/ST3PYAvIAou1RcZ/tTEq34EKxoToRqOK.html

imglade.com/tag/grassrootsinventions

picnano.com/tags/UnstoppableINDIAN

www.viveos.net/rev/mihirs%2Btrue%2Bnature

m.facebook.com/story.php…

www.facebook.com/worldgeniusrec…/…/2631029263841682…

www.upbr.in/record-galle…/upcoming-genius-innovator/…

www.geniusesworldrecordsandaward.com/

www.upbr.in/record-galle…/upcoming-genius-innovator/…

m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=699422677473920&i...

www.facebook.com/internationalbookofrecords/

www.youtube.com/channel/UCBFJGiEx1Noba0x-NCWbwSg

www.youtube.com/watch?v=nL60GRF6avk

www.facebook.com/bengal.book.16/posts/122025902616062

www.facebook.com/bengal.book.16/posts/122877319197587

www.facebook.com/bengal.book.16/posts/119840549501264

supremebookofworldrecords.blogspot.com/…/welcome-to…

www.bravoworldrecords.com/

incrediblebookofrecords.in/index.php

www.highrangeworldrecords.com/

The conference on "SDGs Implementation in Africa - Reflections on a three Year Journey | Kigali, 14 June 2019 by Kigali Today

The conference on "SDGs Implementation in Africa - Reflections on a three Year Journey | Kigali, 14 June 2019

Plastic Laying Machine by Dwight Sipler

2 8

This implement goes on the back of a tractor and lays out a row of plastic. The plastic absorbs sunlight and heats the soil to get things started earlier. It also keeps down the weeds right around the plants, although it's a real pain to weed adjacent to the plastic without cutting holes in the edges.

The machine shapes a bed with furrows on both sides and lays the plastic down on it. The packing wheels press the plastic down into the furrow. The wheels are angled slightly so the plastic is stretched tight across the bed. The covering disks then throw some soil on the plastic in the furrow, locking it down to the ground. A drip tape is also laid down about 2 inches below the surface under the plastic. Rain and overhead irrigation will diffuse in from the side of the plastic, but using the drip line is more efficient and requires much less water. This version does not have the fertilizer attachment which is available on other models.

The concrete block is there to hold the drip line in place while laying the plastic. The plastic and the drip line are under tension to keep them straight and tight, so if the drip line slips out from under the concrete block you could wind up without drip line under the plastic.

The plastic film costs a bit less than 4 cents a foot and the drip line costs a bit more than 2 cents a foot. It took me about 2 hours to lay 1500 ft of plastic. Most of that time is getting set up for a row, making adjustments, and covering the ends of the plastic.

The plastic laying machine doesn't do anything to the ends of the plastic so the shovel is there to cover the ends. If you don't cover the ends, the wind can get under it and rip it all out of the ground.

The rows can be laid down closer than shown here, but I like to have space between my tomatoes. It enables me to get a garden cart between the rows for transporting the picked tomatoes and it allows better air circulation to dry off the plants and reduce fungus problems on the plants.

Also see the video

35th HIGH-LEVEL MEETING OF HEADS OF UN PEACE MISSIONS IN WEST AFRICA by Unowas Scpio

At the invitation of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Mohamed Ibn Chambas, the Heads of the United Nations Missions in West Africa held their 35th High-level Meeting on 04 February 2020 in Dakar, Senegal.

The objective was to strengthen coordination in order to enhance synergies to address common challenges facing the West African and Sahel regions.

In attendance were the Special Representatives of the UN Secretary-General in Mali (MINUSMA), Mahamat Saleh Annadif, in Guinea-Bissau (UNIOGBIS), Rosine Sori-Coulibaly, and for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Mohamed Ibn Chambas. The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Central Africa (UNOCA) François Louncény Fall, the United Nations Resident Coordinators for Côte d’Ivoire, Philippe Poinsot and Liberia, Kingsley Amaning, and the Director for Western Africa Division of the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Operations, Abdel-Fatau Musah also attended.

Discussions focused on the political, socio-economic and security situation and trends in West Africa and the Sahel and their impact on neighboring regions including the Central African region. They expressed their condolences to the families of victims of attacks by violent extremists, both civilian and military, including in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, as well as in the Lake Chad Basin while strongly condemning attacks against civilians and peacekeepers. They underlined the need for a multidimensional and regional approach to address the root causes of insecurity and called for enhanced cooperation amongst all relevant actors and concerned governments.

1. The Special Representatives and Heads of Mission and Resident Coordinators commended efforts to sustain peace and stability in Côte d’Ivoire and welcomed the recent launch by the Government of a new phase of political dialogue on the Electoral Code, ahead of the 2020 presidential election. They expressed concern about the growing crisis of confidence between key actors in the electoral process and encouraged a constructive engagement of all stakeholders in the dialogue, to ensure a broad consensus and inclusivity in the electoral process. The participants welcomed the efforts of the Resident Coordinator and the UN Country Team to implement the recommendations of the United Nations Electoral Needs Assessment Mission, deployed from 11 to 22 November 2019. The participants also welcomed regional and international initiatives to enhance the credibility of the electoral process and urged all political actors to promote peace and stability.

2. The Heads of Mission expressed concerns at the ongoing political tensions and violence as well as human rights violations in Guinea, and called on all actors to exercise restraint and engage in constructive dialogue to resolve their differences ahead of upcoming legislative and presidential elections with utmost respect for democratic principles and the rule of law. They encouraged all actors to take steps to promote social cohesion and avoid the use of incendiary language.

3. The Heads of Mission welcomed the holding of peaceful presidential elections in Guinea-Bissau completed on 29 December 2019; and commended the people of Guinea-Bissau for having actively exercised their civic duty, political actors for resorting to legal means in their dispute of the election results, and national stakeholders and the international partners for the support and collaboration provided. However, they expressed concern that post-electoral stabilization efforts are facing serious challenges owing to persisting distrust and polarization between political actors. The Heads of Mission urged all political stakeholders to put national interests above personal and partisan considerations to build consensus on important national priorities to consolidate peace and stability. They encouraged partners, particularly the Group of Five (AU, CPLP, ECOWAS, EU and UN) to continue to coordinate their efforts and to support and engage the Bissau-Guinean political actors in order to foster genuine dialogue, peace and development in the country.

4. The Heads of Mission took note of the briefing on the current political and economic situation in Liberia, particularly the January 6 protest, and welcomed dialogue by the government, pressure groups and opposition political parties that ensured that the protest was peaceful. They enjoined the people and government of Liberia to sustain efforts to address various political, economic and governance challenges facing Liberia and reiterated the importance of the maintenance of peace and security. The Heads of Mission also urged the National Elections Commission and the government to ensure the timely conduct of the Senatorial elections in October 2020, in conformity with the Constitution. they appealed to all political actors to refrain from using incendiary speech that undermines national reconciliation and social cohesion. They commended the UN Country Team’s coordinated support to Liberia as well as the strong partnership between the UN, ECOWAS and international partners, particularly on conflict prevention and good offices. The Heads of Mission called on the international community to continue its support to Liberia to further enhance peace consolidation and sustainable development.

5. The Heads of Mission noted with satisfaction the holding of the Inclusive National Dialogue in Mali. The resulting resolutions and recommendations testify to the importance and relevance of the debates, which augur an improved political climate. The resumption of the work of the Monitoring Committee for the implementation of the Peace and Reconciliation Agreement in Mali should be seized as an opportunity to accelerate the peace process. At the same time, the Heads of Mission expressed concerns over the deteriorating security situation and deplored the loss of life for both Malian and foreign forces, whose sacrifices they praised. They also encouraged the Government of Mali to continue taking the necessary measures, with the support of MINUSMA, to find lasting political solutions to the worrying situation in the Centre of the country.

6. The Heads of Mission welcomed the ongoing Political Dialogue in Senegal, expressed satisfaction about the important milestones achieved so far, and noted that a consensual agreement on a new electoral code ahead of the local elections will further consolidate Senegal’s track record of democratic governance. They also welcomed the strong political commitment to fully implement all recommendations, as a move to build national cohesion in support of national development.

7. The Heads of Mission equally welcomed the holding of a political dialogue in Benin and encouraged all actors to promote inclusivity in political and electoral processes while highlighting the continued need for dialogue to address political grievances. They urged all actors to collectively work towards creating a peaceful atmosphere for the 2020 local elections.

8. The Heads of Mission welcomed progress being made in the preparations for the presidential election in Togo and encouraged all actors to commit to its peaceful conduct and address any disputes with the utmost respect for the rule of law.

9. The Heads of Mission encouraged the stakeholders in The Gambia to pursue key reforms towards post-transition stabilization with full respect for the rule of law, human rights and in the spirit of dialogue.

10. The Heads of Mission commended the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for its efforts to promote peace and stability in the region, particularly in promoting peaceful electoral processes. They recognized the leadership of ECOWAS in scaling up efforts to address the spread of violent extremism and terrorism and the implementation of decisions taken at the summits in Ouagadougou in September and Abuja in December 2019 in this regard.

11. The Heads of Mission welcomed increased collaboration between the Mano River Union (MRU) and the UN system in the MRU basin during 2019.

12. The Heads of Mission indicated that, although the conduct of elections in the region continues to improve, pre- and post electoral periods continue to be characterized by tensions. In this regard, they called on authorities and national stakeholders to work together to ensure a level playing field and help create an environment that is conducive to the holding of peaceful, inclusive, transparent and credible elections in Guinea, Cote d’Ivoire, Niger, Burkina Faso, Togo and Ghana in 2020.

13. The Heads of Mission welcomed the scaling up of operations of the G5 Sahel Joint Force, in line with recent commitments made in Pau, France on 13 January 2020 by the Heads of State of France and the G5 Sahel countries. They emphasized that a multidimensional approach, notably through the establishment of its police component, and respect for human rights are essential to the success of the Joint Force.

14. The Heads of Mission expressed deep concerns over the violence against the civilian population and security and defense forces, that has skyrocketed in the Sahel region in 2019. They deplored that, in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, terrorist armed groups have expanded their presence, leading to unprecedented numbers of internally displaced persons. They applauded the collective resolve of the seven countries in the region within the Accra Initiative to enhance stronger cross-border partnership.

15. While commending the Multinational Joint Task Force, the G5 Sahel Force and Security and defense Forces of conflict-affected countries, the Heads of Mission expressed grave concerns over a cycle of ethnic violence and revenge targeting of civilians by both state and non-state actors in Burkina Faso and Mali; the continuing deterioration in the security situation in the Lake Chad Basin countries; kidnapping for ransom, bandit and militia attacks and herder-farmer clashes across Nigeria; and the corresponding challenging humanitarian situation across the region. The Heads of Mission stressed the need for a comprehensive approach to addressing the challenges posed by terrorist organizations other violent non-state actors by focusing on security, respect for human rights and the rule of law, governance and development, while encouraging authorities to continue to domesticate the Regional Strategy for the Stabilization, Recovery and resilience of Boko Haram-affected areas of the lake Chad Basin.

16. The Heads of Mission took note of the briefing provided by SRSG Fall on the situation in Central Africa and efforts by member States of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) to promote peace, stability, good governance and socioeconomic development in the sub-region. They commended the ECCAS Heads of State and Government for the adoption of the ECCAS reform instruments on 18 December 2019 and reaffirmed the UN commitment to provide support for the implementation of the reform. They also welcomed UNOCA and UNOWAS determination to continue working closely with ECCAS and ECOWAS in support of the implementation of the Lomé Declaration on Peace, Security, Stability, and the Fight Against Terrorism and Violent Extremism in Central and West Africa, and to operationalize the Interregional Coordination Centre for the Implementation of the Regional Strategy for Maritime Safety and Security in Central and West Africa.

17. The Heads of Mission recognized efforts by national, regional and international partners in the fight against transnational organized crime and trafficking in the region, acknowledging that the scourge of these practices continues to aggravate insecurity and threaten the stability of the region through funding of terrorist organizations and other violent groups and undermining of state authority and the formal economies of the region. The Heads of Mission reiterated the threat posed by the continued presence of perpetrators of transnational organized crime, arms, human and illicit drug traffickers, and the nexus between these activities and terrorist organizations and other violent groups in the region; further highlighting the urgency of the efforts by the United Nations and other international partners to support and help increase the capacity of national institutions to combat these enablers of terrorism and violent extremism.

18. The meeting welcomed regional initiatives aimed at addressing persistent challenges to governance, security, humanitarian needs, and human rights, including sexual and gender-based violence, in West Africa and the Sahel. Heads of Mission urge governments and relevant stakeholders to continue improving the legislative and institutional framework for the respect of fundamental human rights which are key to democratic consolidation. The meeting also recognized efforts to promote gender equality in the region but called for significant progress especially, with regards to women’s participation in political and peacebuilding processes at all levels. Furthermore, the Heads of Mission acknowledged the relevance and potential of a strengthened Civil Society in the region.

19. The Heads of Mission agreed to continue to reinforce their cooperation and exchange on best practices and lessons learnt on transitions within an integrated approach with the UN Country Teams in the spirit of the reform on repositioning the UN Development System.

20. The Heads of Mission agreed to continue to cooperate and to strengthen information-sharing between their missions on key issues affecting the region.

21. Participants expressed their gratitude to SRSG Mohamed Ibn Chambas for hosting the meeting and agreed that the venue of the next meeting will be in Bamako in November 2020.

unowas.unmissions.org/35th-high-level-meeting-heads-un-pe...

35e RÉUNION DE HAUT NIVEAU DES CHEFS DES MISSIONS DE PAIX DES NATIONS UNIES EN AFRIQUE DE L'OUEST

À l'invitation du Représentant spécial du Secrétaire général et Chef du Bureau des Nations Unies pour l'Afrique de l'Ouest et le Sahel (UNOWAS), Mohamed Ibn Chambas, les chefs des missions des Nations Unies en Afrique de l'Ouest ont tenu leur 35eme réunion de haut niveau le 4 février 2020 à Dakar, au Sénégal.

L'objectif était de renforcer la coordination afin d'améliorer les synergies pour relever les défis communs auxquels sont confrontées les régions de l'Afrique de l'Ouest et du Sahel.

Les représentants spéciaux du Secrétaire général des Nations Unies au Mali (MINUSMA), Mahamat Saleh Annadif, en Guinée-Bissau (BINUGBIS), Rosine Sori-Coulibaly, et pour l'Afrique de l'Ouest et le Sahel (UNOWAS), Mohamed Ibn Chambas, étaient présents. Le représentant spécial du Secrétaire général des Nations unies pour l'Afrique centrale (UNOCA), François Louncény Fall, les coordinateurs résidents des Nations unies pour la Côte d'Ivoire, Philippe Poinsot et le Libéria, Kingsley Amaning, et le directeur de la division Afrique de l'Ouest du Département des Affaires Politiques et de la Consolidation de la Paix et des Opérations, Abdel-Fatau Musah, étaient également présents.

Les discussions ont porté sur la situation et les tendances politiques, socio-économiques et sécuritaires en Afrique de l'Ouest et au Sahel, ainsi que sur leur impact sur les régions voisines, notamment la région d'Afrique centrale. Les participants ont exprimé leurs condoléances aux familles des victimes d'attaques d'extrémistes violents, tant civils que militaires, notamment au Mali, au Burkina Faso et au Niger, ainsi que dans le bassin du lac Tchad, tout en condamnant fermement les attaques contre les civils et les casques bleus. Ils ont souligné la nécessité d'une approche multidimensionnelle et régionale pour s'attaquer aux causes profondes de l'insécurité et ont appelé à une coopération renforcée entre tous les acteurs et gouvernements concernés.

1. Les représentants spéciaux, les chefs de mission et les coordinateurs résidents ont salué les efforts déployés pour maintenir la paix et la stabilité en Côte d'Ivoire et se sont félicités du lancement récent par le gouvernement d'une nouvelle phase de dialogue politique sur le code électoral, à l'approche de l'élection présidentielle de 2020. Ils ont exprimé leur préoccupation face à la crise de confiance croissante entre les principaux acteurs du processus électoral et ont encouragé un engagement constructif de toutes les parties prenantes au dialogue, afin de garantir un large consensus et une inclusion de tous dans le processus électoral. Les participants ont salué les efforts du coordinateur résident et de l'équipe pays des Nations unies pour mettre en œuvre les recommandations de la mission d'évaluation des besoins électoraux des Nations unies, déployée du 11 au 22 novembre 2019. Les participants ont également salué les initiatives régionales et internationales visant à renforcer la crédibilité du processus électoral, et ont exhorté tous les acteurs politiques à promouvoir la paix et la stabilité.

2. Les chefs de mission ont exprimé leur inquiétude face aux tensions et à la violence politiques actuelles ainsi qu'aux violations des droits de l'homme en Guinée, et ont appelé tous les acteurs à faire preuve de retenue et à engager un dialogue constructif pour résoudre leurs différends avant les prochaines élections législatives et présidentielles dans le plus grand respect des principes démocratiques et de l'État de droit. Ils ont encouragé tous les acteurs à prendre des mesures pour promouvoir la cohésion sociale et éviter l'utilisation d'un langage incendiaire.

3. Les chefs de mission se sont félicités de la tenue d'élections présidentielles pacifiques en Guinée-Bissau, qui se sont achevées le 29 décembre 2019, et ont félicité le peuple de Guinée-Bissau pour avoir exercé activement son devoir civique, et les acteurs politiques d'avoir eu recours à des moyens juridiques pour contester les résultats des élections, ainsi que les acteurs nationaux et les partenaires internationaux pour le soutien et la collaboration qu'ils ont apporté. Toutefois, ils ont exprimé leur préoccupation quant au fait que les efforts de stabilisation post-électorale sont confrontés à de sérieux défis en raison de la méfiance et de la polarisation persistantes entre les acteurs politiques. Les chefs de mission ont exhorté tous les acteurs politiques à placer les intérêts nationaux au-dessus des considérations personnelles et partisanes afin de parvenir à un consensus sur les priorités nationales importantes pour consolider la paix et la stabilité. Ils ont encouragé les partenaires, en particulier le Groupe des cinq (UA, CPLP, CEDEAO, UE et ONU) à continuer de coordonner leurs efforts et à soutenir les acteurs politiques bissau-guinéens afin de favoriser un véritable dialogue, la paix et le développement dans le pays.

4. Les chefs de mission ont pris note du point fait sur la situation politique et économique actuelle au Liberia, en particulier la manifestation du 6 janvier, et se sont félicités du dialogue engagé par le gouvernement, les groupes de pression et les partis politiques d'opposition, qui a permis de garantir le caractère pacifique de la manifestation. Ils ont exhorté le peuple et le gouvernement du Liberia à poursuivre les efforts visant à relever les divers défis politiques, économiques et de gouvernance auxquels le pays est confronté et ont réitéré l'importance du maintien de la paix et de la sécurité. Les chefs de mission ont également exhorté la Commission électorale nationale et le gouvernement à assurer le bon déroulement des élections sénatoriales d'octobre 2020, conformément à la Constitution. Ils ont appelé tous les acteurs politiques à s'abstenir d'utiliser des discours incendiaires qui compromettent la réconciliation nationale et la cohésion sociale. Ils ont salué le soutien coordonné de l'équipe pays des Nations unies au Liberia ainsi que le partenariat solide entre les Nations unies, la CEDEAO et les partenaires internationaux, notamment en matière de prévention des conflits et de bons offices. Les chefs de mission ont appelé la communauté internationale à poursuivre son soutien au Liberia afin de renforcer encore la consolidation de la paix et le développement durable.

5. Les chefs de mission ont noté avec satisfaction la tenue du Dialogue National Inclusif au Mali. Les résolutions et recommandations qui en ont résulté témoignent de l'importance et de la pertinence des débats, ce qui laisse présager une amélioration du climat politique. La reprise des travaux du Comité de Suivi de la mise en œuvre de l'Accord de Paix et de Réconciliation au Mali doit être saisie comme une opportunité pour accélérer le processus de paix. Les chefs de mission ont exprimé leur préoccupation face à la détérioration de la situation sécuritaire et ont déploré les pertes en vies humaines des forces maliennes et étrangères, dont ils ont salué les sacrifices. Ils ont également encouragé le gouvernement Malien à continuer de prendre les mesures nécessaires, avec l'appui de la MINUSMA, pour trouver des solutions politiques durables à la situation préoccupante dans le centre du pays.

6. Les chefs de mission se sont félicités du dialogue politique en cours au Sénégal, ont exprimé leur satisfaction au sujet des étapes importantes franchies jusqu'à présent et ont noté qu'un accord consensuel sur un nouveau code électoral avant les élections locales consolidera encore le bilan du Sénégal en matière de gouvernance démocratique. Ils se sont également félicités de l'engagement politique ferme de mettre pleinement en œuvre toutes les recommandations, dans le but de renforcer la cohésion nationale qui aidera au développement national.

7. Les chefs de mission ont également salué la tenue d'un dialogue politique au Bénin et ont encouragé tous les acteurs à promouvoir l'inclusion dans les processus politiques et électoraux tout en soulignant la nécessité de poursuivre le dialogue pour répondre aux griefs politiques. Ils ont exhorté tous les acteurs à œuvrer collectivement à la création d'un climat pacifique pour les élections locales de 2020.

8. Les chefs de mission se sont félicités des progrès accomplis dans la préparation de l'élection présidentielle au Togo et ont encouragé tous les acteurs à s'engager à la conduire de manière pacifique et à régler tout différend dans le plus grand respect de l'État de droit.

9. Les chefs de mission ont encouragé les parties prenantes en Gambie à poursuivre les réformes clés en vue de la stabilisation post-transition dans le plein respect de l'État de droit, des droits de l'homme et dans l'esprit du dialogue.

10. Les chefs de mission ont félicité la Communauté économique des États de l'Afrique de l'Ouest (CEDEAO) pour ses efforts visant à promouvoir la paix et la stabilité dans la région, notamment en encourageant des processus électoraux pacifiques. Ils ont salué le leadership de la CEDEAO dans l'intensification des efforts pour faire face à la propagation de l'extrémisme violent et du terrorisme et dans la mise en œuvre des décisions prises à cet égard lors des sommets de Ouagadougou en septembre et d'Abuja en décembre 2019.

11. Les chefs de mission ont salué le renforcement de la collaboration entre l'Union du fleuve Mano (UFM) et le système des Nations unies dans le bassin de l'UFM en 2019.

12. Les chefs de mission ont indiqué que, bien que le déroulement des élections dans la région continue de s'améliorer, les périodes pré et post électorales continuent d'être marquées par des tensions. À cet égard, ils ont appelé les autorités et les acteurs nationaux à travailler ensemble pour garantir des conditions qui contribuent à créer un environnement propice à la tenue d'élections pacifiques, inclusives, transparentes et crédibles en Guinée, en Côte d'Ivoire, au Niger, au Burkina Faso, au Togo et au Ghana en 2020.

13. Les chefs de mission se sont félicités de l'intensification des opérations de la force conjointe du G5 Sahel, conformément aux récents engagements pris à Pau (France) le 13 janvier 2020 par la France et les pays du G5 Sahel. Ils ont souligné qu'une approche multidimensionnelle, notamment par la mise en place de sa composante Police, et le respect des droits de l'homme sont essentiels pour le succès de la Force conjointe.

14. Les chefs de mission ont exprimé leur profonde inquiétude face à la violence contre la population civile et les forces de sécurité et de défense, qui a augmenté dans la région du Sahel en 2019. Ils ont déploré qu'au Mali, au Niger et au Burkina Faso, les groupes armés terroristes ont pu étendre leur présence, entraînant un nombre sans précédent de personnes déplacées à l'intérieur du pays. Ils ont salué la volonté collective des sept pays de la région, dans le cadre de l'initiative d'Accra, de renforcer le partenariat transfrontalier.

15. Tout en félicitant la Force multinationale conjointe, la Force du G5 pour le Sahel et les Forces de sécurité et de défense des pays touchés par les conflits, les chefs de mission ont exprimé leur vive inquiétude face au cycle de violence ethnique et de vengeance qui cible les civils, tant par des acteurs étatiques que non étatiques, au Burkina Faso et au Mali ; à la détérioration continue de la situation sécuritaire dans les pays du bassin du lac Tchad ; aux enlèvements contre rançon, aux attaques de bandits et de milices et aux affrontements entre éleveurs et agriculteurs dans tout le Nigeria ; et à la situation humanitaire difficile qui prévaut dans toute la région. Les chefs de mission ont souligné la nécessité d'adopter une approche globale pour relever les défis posés par les organisations terroristes et les autres acteurs non étatiques violents, en mettant l'accent sur la sécurité, le respect des droits de l'homme et de l'État de droit, la gouvernance et le développement, tout en encourageant les autorités à continuer d'intégrer la stratégie régionale pour la stabilisation, le redressement et la résilience des zones touchées par le Boko Haram dans le bassin du lac Tchad.

16. Les chefs de mission ont pris note de l'exposé du RSSG Fall sur la situation en Afrique centrale et sur les efforts déployés par les États membres de la Communauté Économique des États de l'Afrique Centrale (CEEAC) pour promouvoir la paix, la stabilité, la bonne gouvernance et le développement socio-économique dans la sous-région. Ils ont félicité les chefs d'État et de gouvernement de la CEEAC pour l'adoption des instruments de réforme de la CEEAC le 18 décembre 2019 et ont réaffirmé l'engagement des Nations unies à apporter leur soutien à la mise en œuvre de la réforme. Ils ont également salué la détermination de l'UNOCA et de l'UNOWAS à continuer de travailler en étroite collaboration avec la CEEAC et la CEDEAO pour soutenir la mise en œuvre de la Déclaration de Lomé sur la paix, la sécurité, la stabilité et la lutte contre le terrorisme et l'extrémisme violent en Afrique centrale et occidentale, et à rendre opérationnel le Centre interrégional de coordination pour la mise en œuvre de la Stratégie régionale pour la sécurité et la sûreté maritimes en Afrique centrale et occidentale.

17. Les chefs de mission ont salué les efforts déployés par les partenaires nationaux, régionaux et internationaux dans la lutte contre la criminalité transnationale organisée et le trafic dans la région, en reconnaissant que le fléau de ces pratiques continue d'aggraver l'insécurité et de menacer la stabilité de la région en finançant des organisations terroristes et d'autres groupes violents et en sapant l'autorité de l'État et les économies officielles de la région. Les chefs de mission ont réitéré la menace que représente la criminalité transnationale organisée, des trafiquants d'armes, d'êtres humains et de drogues illicites, ainsi que le lien entre ces activités et les organisations terroristes et autres groupes violents de la région ; ils ont également souligné l'urgence des efforts déployés par les Nations Unies et d'autres partenaires internationaux pour soutenir et aider à renforcer la capacité des institutions nationales à lutter contre ces facteurs de terrorisme et d'extrémisme violent.

18. La réunion a salué les initiatives régionales visant à relever les défis persistants en matière de gouvernance, de sécurité, de besoins humanitaires et de droits de l'homme, y compris la violence sexuelle et celle basée sur le Genre, en Afrique de l'Ouest et au Sahel. Les chefs de mission demandent instamment aux gouvernements et aux parties prenantes concernées de continuer à améliorer le cadre législatif et institutionnel pour le respect des droits de l'homme fondamentaux, qui sont essentiels à la consolidation de la démocratie. La réunion a également reconnu les efforts déployés pour promouvoir l'égalité des sexes dans la région, mais a appelé à des progrès significatifs, notamment en ce qui concerne la participation des femmes aux processus politiques et de consolidation de la paix à tous les niveaux. En outre, les chefs de mission ont reconnu la pertinence et le potentiel d'une société civile renforcée dans la région.

19. Les chefs de mission ont convenu de continuer à renforcer leur coopération et à échanger sur les meilleures pratiques et les enseignements tirés des transitions dans le cadre d'une approche intégrée avec les équipes pays des Nations unies, dans l'esprit de la réforme sur le repositionnement du système de développement des Nations unies.

20. Les chefs de mission ont convenu de continuer à coopérer et à renforcer l'échange d'informations entre leurs missions sur les questions clés touchant à la région.

21. Les participants ont exprimé leur gratitude au RSSG Mohamed Ibn Chambas pour avoir accueilli la réunion et ont convenu que la prochaine réunion se tiendra à Bamako en novembre 2020.

unowas.unmissions.org/fr/35e-r%C3%A9union-de-haut-niveau-...

DSC_1014 by Quantum Stalker

So back in 2009, there was brief interlude in Power Rangers programming. Rather than bringing in a new series, Disney opted to broadcast a touched up version of the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers.

There were of course toy releases from this line. The Megazord, relabeled the Dino Megazord, was released. The toy was of course not as complex as the original figure, but was being sold at MSRP that reflected this.

Somewhere in the middle of this season, Saban retook the license from Disney, and basically implemented the Legacy series, which took these redesigned toys and blinged them out with better, more screen accurate paint applications and die cast metal parts.

The Legacy Dragonzord, released in Summer of 2014, can combine with both the Legacy Megazord and the Dino Megazord (which makes sense, as they are the same toy). Generous paint applications all around, though kind of expected given the $80 price tag.

I do miss that chrome on the original toy, though.

Die cast content is limited to the feet of the toy.

Long story short, the figure no longer features the lights and sound of the original. However, it does improve upon the original by having greater articulation in the arms and legs, a longer and more articulated tail, and a sleeker overall look.

The Dragonzord combines with the Megazord in two ways - it takes over the arms and legs to form the Dragonzord Battle Mode, and combines with the entire Megazord to form the Mega Dragonzord.

Combining the toys is very similiar to back in the 90's, though combing the Mega Dragonzord is a bit more annoying, as you need to take off the Pterodactyl as well as lower the chest piece on the Tyranosaurus. Also, the shoulder clips aren't as easy to put on.

Iron garden implements by Steven Thompson

Iron garden implements throne at About Thyme

Official-Implements P1310731 by Pasadena Senior Games

Intergovernemental Working Group on the Implementation of the Durban Declaration by UN Geneva

Wilfried Lemke, United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace and Michel Platini, President of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) during the Intergovernemental Working Group on the Implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action 11th Session, Palais des Nations, Geneva. Monday 7 October 2013. Photo by Violaine Martin

Virginia Council on Human Relations Exhibit by W&M Libraries

Shown here is an image from the Virginia Council on Human Relations, on display in the Nancy Marshall Gallery, located just outside the Special Collections Research Center on the first floor of Swem Library at the College of William & Mary. This exhibit is part of "From Fights to Rights: The Long Road to a More Perfect Union," Swem Library's project to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War and the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Movement. The exhibit is on display from October 17, 2011 through April 15, 2012.

The following are transcriptions of the label text presented in this case:

The Virginia Council of Human Relations (VCHR) was a bi-racial organization that worked to foster communication and improve relations between blacks and whites. It worked through a state-wide organization and established local groups to support educational programs, school desegregation, fair employment practices, and other issues of the day. The VCHR was an affiliate of the Atlanta-based Southern Regional Council, which began forming state and local Human Relations Councils to bring together black and white citizens as it worked for the implementation of the Brown v. Board of Education decision. The VCHR was active from the mid-1950s through the mid-1960s.

Local Councils

The Virginia Council on Human Relations' (VCHR) local organizations played an important role in the group's operations. Local councils from Northern Virginia to Tidewater to Charlottesville and beyond provided communities with channels for discussion and action and thus helped to increase the overall membership of the VCHR. Local councils also hosted prominent speakers and social events, as well as more informal gatherings for individuals to share experiences and strategies on matters such as integrating workplaces.

Excerpt from Deborah Straszheim, “City Girl Wary Of Dark Woods In Small Town,” Daily Press 29 April 1999

Rubye DeWitt was a city girl; she certainly wasn't wise to the ways of a place like Williamsburg in 1953. The woods were so dark she was afraid to stay home alone.

[Rubye DeWitt’s] husband, Dee, had just landed a job with Colonial Williamsburg as assistant

director of employment. He was one of the first blacks to hold an administrative job there, and Rubye knew CW was more enlightened than most

employers. That was another thing about moving that scared her; the further south you went, the worse it was for blacks.

[…]

Meanwhile, Rubye DeWitt's husband made strides at Colonial Williamsburg. Harold DeWitt was hired before integration, but he was able to get Colonial Williamsburg to hire black employees as bus drivers and as projectionists in the information center, his wife said. In many ways, Colonial Williamsburg and the College of William and Mary attracted a more cosmopolitan group to Williamsburg than most cities had at that time, she said. By the time DeWitt retired, he was director of employment.

Then there were the shops that began to serve blacks. Rubye DeWitt remembers Mr. Hickman, the man who bought Binn's clothing store from two old ladies. When he bought the store, there was a clause in the contract that blacks were not to be served there, DeWitt said. Mr. Hickman took it to court.

"And once the thing cleared the court, he sent us letters. Inviting us, personally, you know, to come and shop. And we did."

"He made it into a very stylish, fashionable type store. ... It was a wonderful store. He treated all of his customers the same way, and he treated all of his customers like he was really, really happy to have them as customer."

Portrait of Harold O. DeWitt, former Director of Personnel for Colonial Williamsburg

Image # 1965-GR-0520

Courtesy of Colonial Williamsburg Foundation

Obituary, Daily Press, 28 September 1990

Harold O. DeWitt, 78, a retired Colonial Williamsburg executive, died Wednesday, Sept. 26, in a Medical College of Virginia Hospital in Richmond.

Mr. DeWitt retired from Colonial Williamsburg Foundation as director of employment in 1978 after 26 years of service. He was a member of the Equal

Employment Opportunity Commission under Govs. Robb and Baliles. In 1950, as a member of the Urban

League, he made a study of black firefighters in the South, which was published in The New York Times, resulting in Richmond's first hiring of black firefighters.

In the early 1960s, Mr. DeWitt was instrumental in persuading the Rockefeller family to donate land

what would become Quarterpath Park to provide a

safe place for black children to swim. He also

initiated project Shoe Bank which served the needs

of indigent children in Williamsburg, James City and York Schools.Mr. DeWitt also served as a

Williamsburg representative on the Williamsburg- James City County School Board.

A native of New York City, he had been a Peninsula resident since 1953. Mr. DeWitt was a member of St. Martin's Episcopal Church, where he served in the vestry, on the Usher Board, and as a Sunday school teacher. He was a life member of the Capitol

District Foundation of Kiwanis International and

past club director of Williamsburg Kiwanis. He was

a member of American Rose Society and the Peninsula Rose Society, a United Way officer. He was also

Omega Man of the Year for the Phi Phi Chapter of

Omega Psi Phi Fraternity. Mr. DeWitt graduated from Virginia State University, and attended Hope College in Michigan. He also attended Columbia University.

Survivors include his wife, Rubye M. DeWitt; and a sister, Katherine McDermott of Coram, N.Y.

Williamsburg Local Chapter

The Williamsburg chapter of the Virginia Council on Human Relations joined the state-wide group in 1962 and grew out of the Williamsburg Area Interracial Study Group, which was founded in the late 1950s. A number of William & Mary faculty were members, including historian Richard Sherman and his wife Hanni, historian Thad Tate, and architect Robert Ames. Members of the Williamsburg council included Colonial Williamsburg director of employment Harold O. DeWitt and his wife Rubye, Clara Byrd Baker and Dr. James Blaine Blayton, for whom two of Williamsburg-James City County's elementary schools are named, and others.

The Special Collections Research Center would welcome more material and information about the Williamsburg Area Interracial Study Group and the Williamsburg local council of the VCHR. Visit or contact us for more information.

Richard B. Sherman

Professor Richard B. Sherman was a professor in the Department of History at the College of William & Mary from 1960-1994. In the memoir he wrote for his family, Learning from the Past: Memoirs of a Would-Be Historian, Sherman relates his memories of race

relations upon arriving in Williamsburg in 1960 and of the formation of the Williamsburg chapter of the Virginia Council on Human Relations (VCHR).

A letter in response to questions from a member of the VCHR provides another window into race relations in Williamsburg in the early 1960s.

Colonial Echo

The College of William & Mary yearbook, the Colonial Echo, has been digitized by Swem Library and all volumes from 1899-1995 are available from the W&M Digital Archive at digitalarchive.wm.edu/colonialecho/.

Searching for a copy of the yearbook from your William & Mary years? Contact University Archivist Amy Schindler at acschi@wm.edu or 757-221-3090 to inquire if copies are available.

Unless otherwise indicated, all material is from the Virginia Council of Human Relations Records, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library.

From the Special Collections Research Center, Earl Gregg Swem Library at the College of William and Mary. See swem.wm.edu/scrc/ for further information and assistance

Valle del Cauca implementa programa de rehabilitación integral para personas en condición de discapacidad visual. by Dirección para la Acción Integral contra Minas Antipersonal

Valle del Cauca implementa programa de rehabilitación integral para personas en condición de discapacidad visual. Foto: Deywis Ayure Casas

_DSC5391 by Paul Pagé

4 2

rusting farm implement on abandoned farm south of Orléans, Ontario

Official launch event of the countdown to the implementation of IHealth by Island Health

Staff and physicians at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital and Dufferin Place celebrated the official launch of the countdown to the implementation of IHealth, a new electronic system that will be up and running at NRGH and Dufferin Place by summer 2015.

The new IHealth electronic tool will track patient health information in a single health record across Island Health facilities, programs and services throughout a patient’s entire life. NRGH and Dufferin Place residential care facility will be the first Island Health locations to receive IHealth.

Farm Planting Implement? by Franks Photos!

2 7

I'm open to suggestions to anyone who can give me a clue what this is. See it on the concrete slab in the other photos. I've seen it sitting there for about 20 years now.

Signing Ceremony for Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent BEPS by OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

7 June 2017 - Signing Ceremony for Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent BEPS; 67 countries and jurisdictions signed at the OECD. Paris, France.

Photo:OECD

Implementing Stakeholder Capitalism 1 by World Economic Forum

Sarah Kirby, Group Head, Organization Design and Human Resource Strategy, Zurich Insurance Group, Switzerland speaking during the Session "Implementing Stakeholder Capitalism 1" at the World Economic Forum, Annual Meeting of the Global Future Councils 2019. Copyright by World Economic Forum / Benedikt von Loebell

"Show Me City" Continues Strong Growth and Progress by City of Missouri City, Texas missouricitytx.gov

Photos courtesy of Missouri City

From Parks' projects to public safety initiatives, the "Show Me City" has implemented many successful citizen programs in 2011. At left, the Edible Arbor Trail is a site for nature lovers to see and at right, thousands of residents participated in this year's National Night Out.

"Show Me City" Continues Strong Growth and Progress

Missouri City has achieved significant successes in 2011 by continuing strong collaborations with citizens, gaining new business partnerships, earning local, state and national distinction for excellence and battling against record breaking drought conditions that brought many challenges to our parks. City Council's continued policy direction has allowed the momentum begun in 2010 to continue.

Building on Missouri City's national recognition as one of America's best places to live, according to Money magazine, and one of the country's safest communities, 5th safest in Texas, the "Show Me" City continues to garner awards. Missouri City has earned further honors for its excellent fiscal practices and policies. The prestigious gold Leadership Circle Award from the Texas State Comptroller's Office salutes the City's transparency in financial, audit and budget reporting to residents. This expansive information is available on the City's website homepage under Hot Topics.

And for more than 20 years the City Budget and the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report continue to be recognized annually by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada for their detail on City services and programs and the City's financial condition.

A strong community connection is vital to the area's dynamic growth. Citizens played a major role in the decision to purchase the Quail Valley golf property in 2008. And more recently they weighed in on what they wanted for the new Community Center and Golf Pro Shop under construction there. This facility will offer another option for Fort Bend County residents and businesses to host their special occasions. The second floor ballroom will seat 300 and overlook the 18th holes of both the El Dorado and La Quinta golf courses. There also will be smaller rooms available for use. A restaurant will be fully staffed but plans are to have a select list of catering companies for individuals and groups planning large events.

In the past 12 months, the two courses have logged almost 54,000 rounds of golf, and close to 100 golf tournaments. We thank all of our residents for their support as well as the many others who have enjoyed the two 18-hole courses here. Citizens also shared their opinion on activities they wanted at the new the Tennis and Recreation Center currently being built on Cypress Point Drive. Residents will be pleased with the recreational amenities that will be offered. The new City facilities are scheduled to open in the spring 2012.

On the business front, the City continues to expand its commercial square footage to not only diversify the property tax base but to provide jobs for our citizens.

The Lakeview Business Park and the Beltway Crossing Complex, both off the Sam Houston Tollway, are attractive locations for nationally- and internationally-respected companies. Coupled with business growth elsewhere in the City, 800 new jobs were created in the past four years and new companies coming to Missouri City will add almost 1,000 more positions when they are fully staffed.

In the past 6 years, our commercial tax base has grown from 15 percent to 24 percent. Contributing to that expansion is Global Geophysical Services on South Gessner Road-the international firm recently celebrated a milestone when company officials rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange in New York City. Another major contributor is Ben E. Keith, one of the largest food purveyors in the nation. Their half-million-square-foot distribution facility currently is under construction on its 82-acre site, with the future opportunity to expand to more than 1 million square feet. Warren Alloy will also move to Lakeview Business Park, joining a respected list of companies already based in the center. State Highway 6 continues to be a popular destination for many shoppers who now can enjoy a new type of movie experience with the Star Cinema Grill. The City's first hotel, La Quinta Inns & Suites is set to open in early 2012.

The planned expansion of the Fort Bend Toll Road across the city's eastern boundary to Sienna Plantation should encourage further commercial development. Missouri City has leveraged its capital project dollars through partnerships with other government entities, resulting in improved safety and mobility for motorists:

*The revitalization of two gateways-South Gessner Road and Texas Parkway-increases motorist and pedestrian safety and encourages continued development. South Gessner from Beltway 8 to Cravens Road was fully replaced, mosaic-tiled City monuments were strategically placed along the roadway and sidewalks were added. Upgrades to Texas Parkway feature a prominent City monument at the intersection of US90A, drainage improvements and the addition of sidewalks. Phase Two on this thoroughfare will add landscape and signage.

*Construction of raised medians on Highway 6 caused initial resident concern but feedback now is that they are pleased with the added safety factor. In addition, six new Dynamic Message Signs along Highway 6 alert motorists to important traffic information and emergency messages.

*The largest project the City has ever undertaken will be operational early in 2012. The surface water treatment plant project, a partnership among 40 government and private sector groups, who are paying for the facility through user fees, will initially serve Sienna Plantation outside of the city limits of Missouri City. The project meets a mandate for water users to move from ground to surface water incrementally over the next 15 years.

Aerial view of the new Surface Water Treatment Plant

Missouri City reaches out to meet the needs of residents through a strong homeowner's association liaison program.

The Show Me City also uses a variety of communications tools to keep the community informed, anchored by the website, www.missouricitytx.gov, Missouri City television, the quarterly citizen newsletter, news releases and the new radio station, 1690 AM.

Key to residents is the City's ongoing proactive community-based public safety programs. National Night Out each fall allows residents to meet their neighbors, discuss crime prevention measures and talk with their City Council members, the officers who patrol and the firefighters who also protect their neighborhoods. We can credit our low crime rate to police working so closely with citizens to prevent crime. In the past year, the Police Department also won a competitive federal grant for $893,000 that funded four new positions during fiscal year 2011.

In other proactive steps to curb crime in Missouri City, the Police Department is utilizing the newly-formed Burglary and Auto Theft or "BAT" Team that focuses on those crimes.

Since the formation of the BAT Team, auto thefts have decreased 20 percent over the previous year, and auto break-ins have declined 20 percent, with 11 stolen vehicles recovered, 10 auto theft suspects arrested and more than $113,000 in stolen property recovered.

Residents are pleased with the Route 170 direct transit service to The Medical Center, with connections to METRO's transit system network downtown. In a service survey, 98 percent of riders said they were satisfied with service.

The year also saw the start of METRO Park & Ride bus service for area residents with 98 percent of riders satisfied with the commuting option. Residents are overwhelmingly supportive of the rides that give them access to jobs in the Medical Center and Houston downtown transit points. Plans are under way for the permanent Park and Ride site to be located behind the Fort Bend Town Center located on Highway 6 at the Fort Bend Toll Road.

After years of planning and preparation, the City officially celebrated the grand opening of the Edible Arbor Trail, the first of its kind in the region. Visitors to the trail, just west of Murphy Road, can sample treats created by Mother Nature including Mexican Persimmon, pomegranates and kumquats.

The second phase of Oyster Creek Trail, which will be completed soon, offers a bike/pedestrian trail along Oyster Creek Bayou between Dulles Avenue and Cartwright Road that will allow residents to travel on foot or on bicycle from Mosley Park on Murphy Road to Oyster Creek Park in Sugar Land.

Another major milestone for citizens was the grand opening of an historic landmark - the Dew House and DeWalt Heritage Center in Fort Bend County's Kitty Hollow Park on Highway 6 South. The treasured house ended the year with an old-fashioned Holiday Wassail Program in December.

And Missouri City celebrated the year's end with the annual Snowfest Festival and the Snowfest Parade. Main attractions were the lighting of a 26-foot tree, the popular Snow Hill, fireworks and a special appearance from Santa.

In 2012, citizens are welcoming a new City Manager, Edward Broussard. He has been city manager since 2005 for Hutto in the Austin area and brings 16 years' experience in Texas municipal government. Former City Manager Frank Simpson accepted a position in College Station in May.

Also in the New Year, the economy will continue to control the pace of growth. Missouri City's physical location in the Houston area coupled with a developer-friendly environment and its growing reputation as a great place to live, should offer continued opportunities for the "Show Me City".

Expert Group Meeting on Gender-Responsive Implementation of Agenda 2030 - June 2017 by UN Women

Expert Group Meeting on Strategies to Achieve Gender Equality and Empower all Women and Girls through the Gender-responsive Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development held at UN Headquarters on 30 May 2017.

Presenters included: E. Courtenay Rattray, Permanent Representative of Jamaica to the United Nations; Jan Kickert, Permanent Representative of Austria to the United Nations; Lakshmi Puri, Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of UN Women; Juwang Zhu, Director, Division for Sustainable Development, UN DESA;

Photo: UN Women/Ryan Brown

CBP, DOT, AND MAJOR AIRLINES TO ANNOUNCE IMPLEMENTATION OF PARTNERSHIPS TO COMBAT HUMAN TRAFFICKING by U.S. Customs and Border Protection

WASHINGTON - On Wednesday, June 6, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood (L), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Deputy Commissioner Kevin McAleenan (C), Delta Chief Executive Officer Richard Anderson (R) and JetBlue Airways Senior Vice President for Government Affairs and Associate General Counsel Robert Land announced the implementation of new partnerships to combat human trafficking as part of the Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign, CBP and the Department of Transportation. Photo by James Tourtellotte

Firmly implement and carry out the spirit of the "Three-on-the-spot" decision of the Central Committee of the CCP concerning workers coming from elsewhere by chineseposters.net

Designer: Zhu Xiaoying (朱晓莹)

2003

Firmly implement and carry out the spirit of the "Three-on-the-spot" decision of the Central Committee of the CCP concerning workers coming from elsewhere

Jianjue guanche luoshi Zhongyang guanyu wailai min'gong "san jiu di" zhishi jingshen (坚决贯彻落实中央关于外来民工“三就地”指示精神)

Call nr.: BG E15/814 (Landsberger collection)

More? See: chineseposters.net

Estação Ferroviária da Vila de Paranapiacaba na Serra do Mar - SP - Brasil by Flávio Jota de Paula

Paranapiacaba: Origem: Wikipédia, a enciclopédia livre.

Por concessão, um grupo inglês explorou o sistema ferroviário na Serra do Mar. E o primeiro sistema implementado foi o sistema funicular: com cabos e máquinas fixas. A primeira linha, com onze quilômetros de extensão, foi inaugurada em 1867 pelo grupo São Paulo Railway. Ela começou a ser construída em 1862 e teve como um dos maiores acionistas e idealizadores o lendário Barão de Mauá. Em 1859, ele chamou o engenheiro ferroviário britânico James Brunlees, que veio ao Brasil e deu viabilidade ao projeto. A execução de tal projeto foi de responsabilidade de outro engenheiro inglês, Daniel Makinson Fox. Um ponto curioso é que pela instabilidade do terreno, a construção da estrada de ferro foi quase artesanal. Não se utilizou explosivos por medo de desmoronamento. As rochas foram cortadas com talhadeiras e pequenas ferramentas manuais. Paredões de até 3 metros e 20 centímetros de altura foram construídos ao logo do traçado da estrada de ferro. A segunda linha começou a funcionar em 1900. Além de dar mais força ao sistema, os cabos e as máquinas fixas economizam energia para a operação dos trens. No entanto, vários acidentes eram registrados, principalmente pelo rompimento dos cabos. Havia uma espécie de freio, a tenaz, que agarrava os cabos para evitar a saída dos trens dos trilhos. Nem sempre o sistema, no entanto, funcionava de maneira satisfatória. Em 1956, um grande acidente foi evitado pelo maquinista na época, Romão Justo Filho, nascido em Paranapiacaba no mês de março de 1911, filho de maquinista também. Se a composição descarrilasse, cerca de 150 pessoas poderiam perder a vida. Através da utilização correta do sistema da tenaz, Romão foi “agarrando” aos poucos o cabo até que o trem parasse.

Os cabos do locobreque levavam desenvolvimento e riqueza para a região do ABC Paulista e de Santos. Tanto é que a companhia inglesa criou em 1896 uma vila essencialmente de ferroviários, com construções de madeira no estilo inglês. Em 1907, a Vila foi chamada de Paranapiacapa, mas até 1945 a estação continuou a ser chamada de Alto da Serra. A Vila possuía todos os recursos da época para os maquinistas, fiscais e “foguistas” – responsáveis pela alimentação da fornalha da máquina fixa e da máquina dos trens. Além de um mercado, de um posto de saúde, de um vagão-ambulância e até um vagão funerário, onde o velório era feito dentro da composição entre Santos e Paranapiacaba, os funcionários possuíam um centro de recreação, o União Lira Serrano, e um Campo de Futebol. No União Lira Serrano eram exibidos filmes, shows musicais e realizados bailes temáticos. A concessão da linha da Serra do Mar não foi apenas glórias e desenvolvimento. Fatos até hoje não explicados satisfatoriamente marcaram a história dos trilhos por onde circularam os Locobreques. Exemplos são os incêndios da Estação da Luz, dois dias antes da primeira etapa da concessão dos ingleses terminar, em 1946, e na velha estação de Paranapiacaba, em 1981. Antes mesmo do incêndio, a estação já havia sido desativada em 1977 e substituída pelo prédio atual. O relógio estilo inglês foi poupado no incêndio e deslocado para uma torre mais alta que a anterior. Nos dois incêndios, tanto na Estação da Luz quanto em Paranapiacaba, a suspeita principal é de motivação criminosa. Milhões de reais foram gastos para a reconstrução da Estação da Luz, que passou por décadas ainda sentido os efeitos do incêndio. Tanto é que ela teve de ser restaurada. A obra de restauração completa foi entregue somente em 2004, data dos 450 anos da cidade de São Paulo. A Estação da Luz teve três etapas fundamentais: Ela foi inaugurada em 1867, num pequeno prédio na região central da capital paulista. A demanda de passageiros foi aumentando aos poucos, e cerca de 15 anos depois o pequeno prédio foi demolido e um outro maior foi construído. A cidade crescia muito rapidamente e a estação teve de aumentar ainda mais. Em 1890 começaram as obras da estação na configuração atual. Em 1900, o segundo prédio antigo foi demolido e em 1901, a nova estação foi inaugurada. Obras constantes de modificações e ampliações foram realizadas ao longo das décadas na Estação da Luz, já que além da demanda de passageiros ser maior, o número de linhas férreas urbanas também cresceu. Antes mesmo do Locobreque, na Serra do Mar, uma primitiva máquina de madeira, também tracionada por cabos fazia o transporte entre os cinco patamares. Era a Serrabreque. Durante a operação da Serrabreque, Barão de Mauá era um dos administradores. Posteriormente, na vila de Paranapiacaba, os ingleses, no alto de uma subida, construíram uma mansão, que servia de centro de controle operacional. Apelidada pelos ferroviários de "Castelinho", a posição do local proporcionava uma privilegiada visão do sistema e de toda a estrutura da vila de Paranapiacaba. O sistema ferroviário da Serra do Mar era composto por diversos túneis, que eram alvos de lendas e histórias assombradas disseminadas pelos próprios ferroviários. Algumas dessas lendas tiveram origem no fato de muitos operários terem morrido na construção desses túneis.

Pátio ferroviário, estações e relógio:

A São Paulo Railway inaugurou sua linha férrea em 16 de fevereiro de 1867. Servia como transporte de passageiros e meio de localizada na então freguesia de São Bernardo. No ano de 1898, foi erguida uma nova estação com madeira, ferro e telhas francesas trazidos da Inglaterra. Esta estação tinha, como característica principal, o grande relógio fabricado pela Johnny Walker Benson, de Londres, que se destacava no meio da neblina muito comum naquela região. Com o aumento do volume e peso da carga transportada, foi iniciada em 1896 a duplicação da linha férrea, paralela à primeira, a fim de atender à crescente demanda. Essa nova linha, também denominada de Serra Nova, era formada por 5 planos inclinados e 5 patamares, criando um novo sistema funicular. Os assim chamados novos planos inclinados atravessavam 11 túneis em plena rocha, enfrentando o desnível de 796 metros que se iniciava no sopé da serra, em Piaçagüera, no município de Cubatão. O traçado da ferrovia foi retificado e suavizado e ampliaram-se os edifícios operacionais. A inauguração deu-se em 28 de dezembro de 1901. A primeira estação foi desativada e reutilizada, posteriormente, como cooperativa dos planos inclinados. A 15 de julho de 1945, a "Estação do Alto da Serra" passa a se denominar "Estação de Paranapiacaba". A 13 de outubro de 1946, a São Paulo Railway foi encampada pela União, criando-se a "Estrada de Ferro Santos-Jundiaí". Somente em 1950 a rede passa a unir-se à Rede Ferroviária Federal. Em 1974, é inaugurada o sistema de cremalheira aderência. No ano de 1977, a segunda estação foi desativada, dando lugar à atual estação. O relógio foi transferido do alto da estação anterior para a base de tijolo de barro atual. A 14 de janeiro de 1981, ocorreu um incêndio na antiga estação, destruindo-a completamente. O sistema funicular foi desativado em 1982. Em 2010, o Correio fez lançamento de selo postal ostentando o patrimônio ferroviário de Paranapiacaba.

Museu do funicular:

Trata-se da exibição das máquinas fixas do quinto patamar da segunda linha e a do quarto patamar da primeira linha, que transportavam o trem por meio do sistema funicular.

No museu, há, também, a exposição de diversos objetos de uso ferroviário, fotos e fichas funcionais de muitos ex-funcionários da ferrovia.

O locobreque:

O "locobreque" tinha a função de frear a composição na descida da serra e simultaneamente empurrava outra composição que subia. O cabo entre as duas máquinas passava por uma grande roda volante, chamada de "máquina-fixa" que ficava em cada um dos cinco patamares. Do nome inglês original, loco-brake, a máquina funcionava pela queima de carvão ou madeira numa fornalha, abastecida pelo foguista, que trabalhava ao lado do maquinista. As máquinas "locobreque" foram construídas em 1901 por Robert Stephenson & Co. Ltd. O sistema funicular proporcionava maior economia de energia gasta pelo "locobreque" e possibilitava o desempenho do trem nos aclives e declives. Havia uma inclinação de 8 graus entre cada um dos cinco patamares. Quando subia a Serra do Mar, o "locobreque" empurrava os vagões, que ficavam na frente da máquina. Quando descia, ele segurava os vagões, que ficavam atrás da máquina. Como o trem não tinha marcha-ré, havia um sistema chamado popularmente de "viradouro", através do qual os funcionários invertiam o sentido da locomotiva, girando a máquina em torno de si mesma. Antes do "locobreque" havia uma primitiva máquina de madeira, também tracionada por cabos, que fazia o transporte entre os cinco patamares. Era o "serrabreque". Durante a operação do "serrabreque", o Barão de Mauá ainda era um dos financistas da companhia. Até a metade do século XX, o transporte ferroviário era sinônimo de luxo. E um dos marcos foi o trem Cometa, que fazia a linha Santos – São Paulo. O trem possuía serviço de bordo e poltronas leito, como as de ônibus. Além dele, também havia os trens Estrela, Planeta e Litorina (Semi-luxo).

Museu do castelo:

Essa residência, também denominada de "Castelinho", situa-se entre a Vila Velha e a Vila Martin Smith. Localizada no alto de uma colina, com uma excelente vista privilegiada para toda a vila ferroviária, foi construída por volta de 1897 para ser a residência do engenheiro-chefe, que gerenciava o tráfego de trens na subida e descida da Serra do Mar, o pátio de manobras, as oficinas e os funcionários residentes na vila. Sua imponência simbolizava a liderança e a hierarquia que os ingleses impuseram a toda a vila; ela é avistada de qualquer ponto de Paranapiacaba. Dizia-se que de suas janelas voltadas para todos os lados de Paranapiacaba, o engenheiro-chefe fiscalizava a vida de seus subordinados, não hesitando em demitir qualquer solteiro que estivesse nas imediações das casas dos funcionários casados. No decorrer de mais de um século de uso, foram feitas várias reformas e tentativas de recuperação de seu aspecto original; as maiores reformulações foram realizadas nas décadas de 1950 e 1960. Foi restaurado pela prefeitura de Santo André em parceria com a World Monuments Fund.

Casas dos engenheiros:

Característica da arquitetura hierarquizada de Paranapiacaba, as casas habitadas pelos engenheiros e suas famílias eram de alto padrão. Grandes e avarandadas, foram construídas em madeira nos tempos da São Paulo Railway, com plantas baixas individualizadas; depois, em alvenaria nos tempos da Rede Ferroviária Federal, com mesmo padrão de plantas. Muitas sofreram reformas em vários momentos, principalmente com a chegada da RFFSA. Uma das caracteríticas que chama a atenção é a cobertura do imóvel, pois somente com estudos elaborados pelos conselhos de reconhecimento, concluiu-se que o material das telhas não era ardósia, e sim fibrocimento, introduzidos provavelmente a partir da década de 50 entre alguma das reformas que sofreram.

Casas de solteiros:

Características da arquitetura hierarquizada de Paranapiacaba, as casas de solteiros eram conhecidas como barracos. Foram construídas em madeira, exceto duas em alvenaria. Essa tipologia foi criada pela São Paulo Railway, e a Rede Ferroviária Federal deu continuidade, construindo-as em alvenaria. A planta dessas casas possui

dormitórios, sanitários e cozinha para pequenas refeições, serviam para alojar o grande fluxo de homens solteiros, que preenchiam as vagas de ferroviários. Havia poucos sanitários e chuveiros, já que os trabalhadores se revezavam em turnos.

Cove Bay - Aberdeen Scotland - 27th August 2019 by DanoAberdeen

A beautiful historic Scottish Fishing bay dating back to the 1700's, under duress due to problems between the "Owner" and local fishermen who have utilised this historic harbour as they and their fore fathers have done for hundreds of years .

I revisited today Tuesday 27th August 2019 , I was disappointed to see concrete barriers blocking access to cars and fishing boats , sad circumstances indeed , though I still managed to capture as much of the bays charm a I could , its ongoing battle and new concrete blocks preventing access made me feel unhappy and sad, any ways I have pasted some of my previous comments and news items reference this pathetic situation below for your perusal, I am on the side of the fishermen , its a sad tale indeed.

Check my previous posts in my Cove Bay folder for photos of the harbour in its glory days that I have taken over the years before this nonsense raised its ugly head.

I love this bay, its a beautiful tranquil place, however after reading news reports on a court judgement 13/7/2018 forcing the fisher men to remove their boats within 28 days it saddened me, hence I made a trip today Friday 13th July 2018 to capture the views and scenery before this unpopular ruling is implemented, what a sad situation indeed, I have included the news report on the legal wrangle at the end of this description.

Cove is a 20 minute drive from my home in Aberdeen Scotland, it was a pleasure to visit today and capture the tranquility that it presented.

Scattered across the harbour are stones with various sealife characters carved into them.

Cove Bay is a suburb on the south-east edge of Aberdeen, Scotland.

Today Cove is home to over 7000 people. It is a popular residential location owing to its extremely village-like status.

It is a quiet suburb just at the edge of the City and in 2015 won the Silver award for Scotland in bloom. Nearby Altens and Tullos Industrial Estates, affording ample employment opportunities.

History

Cove Bay is situated to the east of the ancient Causey Mounth, which road was built on high ground to make passable this only available medieval route from coastal points south from Stonehaven to Aberdeen.

This ancient trackway specifically connected the River Dee crossing (where the Bridge of Dee is located) via Portlethen Moss, Muchalls Castle and Stonehaven to the south.

The route was that taken by William Keith, 7th Earl Marischal and the Marquess of Montrose, who led a Covenanter army of 9000 men in the battle of the Civil War in 1639.

Cove Bay was a village in the extreme north-east corner of Kincardine, governed from Stonehaven, until 1975, when it was added to the City of Aberdeen. Though simply referred to as Cove, in the 19th and early 20th centuries it was known as The Cove, becoming Cove Bay around 1912.

Industry

Cove has been noted for industries such as granite, which was quarried in several locations to the south of the village. Owing to its close-grained texture, Cove granite was one of the hardest in north-east Scotland and proved highly resistant to frost, making it ideal for causeway stones used in the construction of roads. It was widely exported to cities in England, including Billingsgate Market in London.

Fishing

The village itself sprung up around the fishing industry, with the boats berthed on a shingle beach, a gap in the rocks that afforded a natural harbour. During this time, it is estimated that approximately 300 people lived in the area. In the mid 19th century the fishing was at its height, which, over years, has included cod, haddock, salmon, herring and shellfish. The piers and breakwater were constructed in 1878. At the end of World War I the fishing began to decline. At present only a couple of boats pursue shellfish on a part-time basis.

Between 1894 and 1937, Cove also housed a fishmeal factory, the Aberdeen Fish Meal Factory, which was located at the edge of the cliffs. It produced quality manure which was exported to both Europe and America. It became locally known as "the stinker" because of the processing odour, which was highlighted by the Aberdeen entertainer Harry Gordon in a parody entitled A Song of Cove.

Amenities

Retail

Cove has just had a brand new Co-operative built just off of Earnshugh Circle.

To the west of Loirston Road is the Cove Shopping Centre, which overlooks Loirston Primary School. This houses a pharmacist, the Wee China Chinese takeaway/Chip shop, Ruby Tuesdays beauty salon and the Harr Rock cafe (Cove's second).

Within the new development of cove a local Sainsbury's has opened. There is also the Harr Rock Cafe (the first one), a hairdressers and a gift shop within the new development.

There are also 2 RS McColl newsagents. One located at Bervie Brow in Altens, and a second located on the corner of Loirston Road and Cove Road which also houses a Post Office.

Hospitality

The Cove Bay hotel is located on Colsea Road. There is also The Aberdeen Altens Hotel in Altens, which has 216 bedrooms, making it the largest of the three Thistle Hotels in Aberdeen.

There is also a pub, the Langdykes which now has an Indian restaurant situated inside called The Curry lounge which you can sit in or take away.

Transport

Bus services to and from Cove and the wider area of Aberdeen are available. These are run by First Aberdeen with the numbers 3 (to Mastrick) and the 18 to Dyce, via Kincorth. Stagecoach also cover cove partially, with numbers 7A & 8 (Both to the City Centre).

Healthcare

Cove Bay has its own medical centre, the Cove Bay Medical Centre. It was originally located on Catto Walk, but moved to a new facility off Earns Hugh Road. Cove Dental Care has since moved into the old surgery building.

Sport

Cove is currently home to two football teams: Cove Rangers, who currently play in the Highland Football League, they temporarily play in Harlow Park, Inverurie, as their old home Allan park was demolished to make way for housing. Cove Thistle, who hold amateur status. Sunday amateur team Cove Revolution folded in 2010.

There are also many youth teams in the area that are run by Cove Youth FC. The Cove Youth FC area SFA credited community club, organizing players from 6 years old up to 19 years old. They also have a girls section. The Cove Community Football Trust is run by Cove Rangers FC, Cove Thistle FC and Cove Youth FC.

Other Amenities

A state-of-the-art library was recently built between Loirston Primary School and the Cove Shopping Centre. There are blueprints for a local sports centre to also be built in the near future.

Education

Cove has two primary schools, Charleston Primary School and Loirston Primary School. Most secondary pupils attend the nearby Kincorth Academy, but some choose to go to Portlethen Academy.

Future Developments

Aberdeen Gateway[edit]

Construction on a new Aberdeen Gateway industrial development began in 2008. It will see new offices and industrial units built to the south of the village. Current tenants at the site include National Oilwell Varco (NOV), Driving Standards Agency and Hydrasun. A Community football pitch is also inlcluded within the development.

Cove Academy

Plans for a secondary school in Cove have now been approved and will be situated alongside Wellington Road. It is thought that once this is built pupils from Cove, Torry as well as Kincorth will attend this school.

The Legal Wrangle - Landowner V Fishermen - Judgement 13/7/18

Fishermen told to move boats from Cove Bay after legal dispute

Fishermen have been told to move their boats from an Aberdeen bay after a long-running dispute.

Several fishermen were fighting an eviction order on behalf of landowner Pralhad Kolhe at Cove Bay, where they had been fishing for many years.

In a written judgement, a sheriff has given them 28 days to move their boats and equipment from Mr Kolhe's land.

However, Sheriff Andrew Miller also ordered the removal of obstructions to vehicular access onto the pier.

The case was heard at Aberdeen Sheriff Court earlier this year.

One of the fisherman, Jim Adam, told a court he was "stunned" to receive a legal letter telling him to remove his boat.

He had been fishing from Cove Bay since 1966.

'We were hopeful'

The first day of the hearing heard the letter said the landowner, who lives in a house overlooking the harbour, was unable to make use of his land for amenity purposes and that he did not wish Mr Adam's vessel, or any other vessel, on his land.

In the ruling, Sheriff Miller also gave Mr Kolhe 28 days to remove the obstructions to vehicle access to the pier.

Mr Adam told BBC Scotland: "We are disappointed, we were hopeful.

"The good news is at least for the recreational folks they have got vehicle access."

News Report From P&J Aberdeen

A campaign group could use new powers to try to buy the land at the centre of a long-running dispute over access to Cove Harbour.

Councillors in Aberdeen agreed yesterday to investigate using the purchase powers contained in the Community Empowerment Scotland Act 2015 to finally resolve the stand-off.

The proposal was backed after Jim Adam, chairman of the Cove Fishermen Association, delivered an emotional plea to Aberdeen City Council’s petitions committee yesterday.

He outlined the group’s ongoing disagreement with the landowner, Pralhad Kohle, over vehicle access to the harbour-side.

Mr Adam highlighted the historical use of the harbour since the 1700s for fishing boats and recreational users, showing members photographs as evidence.

He also said the denial of emergency access to the harbour would create safety issues, and spoke of a strong community spirit in the village.

Cove Councillor Neil Cooney stated: “Boats have been fishing out of Cove since mediaeval times; we need to retain that heritage.”

Committee convener Alan Donnelly said: “You would think, with 11,000 signatures, that the owner would take it seriously and come along.”

He added: “We are moving today that the council refers the petition to the landowner, with the hope that they can come to an amicable solution.

“And request a report to the communities, housing and infrastructure committee to investigate the viability of the community to use the new Community Empowerment Scotland Act 2015 to purchase the land.”

Speaking afterwards Mr Adam said: “We are very encouraged by the support from the council. It’s very positive and has opened up a number of avenues, but we would like there to be an amicable solution.

“The Community Empowerment Act is a very useful tool, but it would be a last resort.”

Mr Kohle, who was not in attendance, owns a house overlooking the bay and some of the land at the harbour below.

Scotland’s First Minister has pledged to investigate the “suffering” faced by the Cove Harbour fishing community as a result of a devastating fire and a dispute with the landlord.

The first minister promised action after being warned the Scottish Government risked ignoring a group whose livelihoods had been threatened by recent events.

Ms Sturgeon said the government wanted “to do everything we possibly can” to help communities faced with difficulties after the Cove Harbour situation was raised with her.

In January, thousands of pounds worth of damage was caused when a fire, thought to be deliberate, destroyed five vessels, boating equipment, a shed and fishing gear.

The community has also been involved in a long-running battle with landowner Pralhad Kolhe, a plastic surgeon who had sought to evict the fishermen’s fleet of traditional vessels from the part of the harbour he owns.

The Cove Fisherman’s Association had a four-year legal battle with Mr Kolhe, and lost their fight to dock their small fleet of traditional vessels at a particular part of Cove Harbour last year.

Last August the remaining vessels at the site were finally moved from Mr Kolhe’s land to a small corner of the harbour. The judgement said access to the pier for walkers and vehicles should be maintained.

After January’s fire, North East MSP Liam Kerr wrote to Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing asking for support for the fishermen.

Mr Ewing replied say he was “very saddened” by the disaster but financial support would be “limited”.

Yesterday Mr Kerr raised Cove Harbour with Ms Sturgeon in the Scottish Parliament.

Mr Kerr told the first minister the Cove Harbour fishing community was “suffering” and faced “significant” legal costs.

The Tory MSP said the fishermen had requested a meeting with Mr Ewing “but to no avail”.

And he asked Ms Sturgeon to persuade Mr Ewing to meet the community and “not risk ignoring a community facing the loss of their livelihoods”.

The First Minister said: “Of course we want to do everything we possibly can to help any community experiencing difficulties.

“I am not aware beyond what the member has just said of the content of the correspondence to Fergus Ewing.

“But I am happy to give an undertaking to look into that and if Fergus Ewing thinks there is help the Scottish Government can offer – certainly to meet with those affected.”

A group of Aberdeen fishermen who lost a court case last year have been hit with a legal fee bill of around £45,000 – just days after their cherished vessels were destroyed in a malicious fire.

The Cove Fishermen’s Association was forced to move its boats at Cove Harbour last year after a court ruled in favour of landowner Pralhad Kolhe – who owns sections of the historic bay.

Mr Kolhe has been seeking to remove the small fleet of boats from his land, but in the months since the court’s decision, the fishermen have continued their activities by keeping their remaining vessels in a much smaller pocket of the harbour not under the landowner’s control, further away from the shoreline

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