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Centres, education and day services
Housing and individual support
Arts, sport and wellbeing
Holidays, short breaks and activity groups
A gift to Sense, no matter how small, can make a real difference to the lives of people with complex disabilities.
Recognising the outstanding achievements of people living with complex disabilities, as well as the staff, carers, family members, volunteers and fundraisers that support them.
Who's your Sense superstar? The Sense Awards recognise people's fantastic achievements in one of our 16 award categories.
The Sense Awards 2019 were held at our innovative multi-purpose community centre Sense TouchBase Pears, Birmingham, on Thursday 19 September.
Our media partner this year was Able Magazine who kindly gave us 25 subscriptions to give away.
Take a look at who the 2019 Sense Award winners are:
Campaigner of the Year Keith Butler
Carer of the Year Kirsty Davies
Collaboration of the Year Royal Birmingham Society of Artists (RBSA)
Diane Cardwell Award for Professional Excellence Elaine Turner and Hastings Avenue
Individual Fundraiser of the Year Mark Hamsher with Sian McKenzie
Innovation of the Year Wear Works
Media of the Year The Sun
Outstanding Contribution to International Development Geoffrey Atieli
Parliamentarian of the Year Dr Lisa Cameron MP
Person of the Year Martin Solomon
Peggy Freeman Award for Exceptional Contribution Anne Cheesbrough
Quality Award Board Award 53a Shipdham Road in Dereham
Sibling of the Year Nathaniel Greenhouse
Team Fundraiser of the Year Christine Brennan and Lindsay Cornish
Volunteer of the Year Chrissie Blake
Young Person of the Year Saihan Islam
This year's categories
There are 16 categories, including some brand new ones, so have a look below.
Do you know a person who is deafblind, has sensory impairments and/or has complex needs, who is excelling in a particular area? Have they overcome a great challenge, shown incredible passion or been exceptionally creative? Perhaps they have been successful in campaigning, fundraising, awareness-raising or volunteering?
Young Person of the Year
Do you know a person who is deafblind, has sensory impairments and/or complex needs under the age of 25 who has been particularly creative, overcome adversity with courage, or made a positive impact in their community? Perhaps they've learned a new skill and used this to help themselves in their everyday life or to help others?
Sibling of the Year
Do you know someone who's supported their sibling to do something amazing? Have they created social or learning opportunities for their brother or sister? Do you know a child who's taken on extra responsibilities? Perhaps they have shown exceptional compassion or understanding for their age?
Carer of the Year
Do you know a person or family member with caring responsibilities who is remarkable? Have they supported you, or someone you know, to do something new or exciting?
Has a Sense volunteer that you know shown great dedication and support? Have they developed new skills, shown commitment and exceeded expectations resulting in a positive impact on those they support?
Together, we campaign for the rights of people living with complex disabilities to take part in life. Do you know someone who has championed the rights of people living with complex disabilities, at a local and national level? From tackling loneliness of disabled people in the community to engaging with MPs about social care, we'd love to hear about disability campaigners.
Amazing things can happen when two organisations and teams come together with a shared vision in mind. Do you know an organisation or team that collaborated with someone to create something special for people with complex disabilities?
Individual Fundraiser of the Year
Sense's work wouldn't be possible without the support of our fundraisers. Do you know someone who's dedicated their time to fundraise for Sense? Has someone created an exciting event to engage people?
Team Fundraiser of the Year
The support of our fundraisers is vital and team fundraising is always good fun! Perhaps you know a team that have raised an impressive amount of money for Sense and gone out of their way to support our cause?
Parliamentarian of the Year
This award is a closed category and recognises the work of a parliamentarian in promoting positive change for disabled people.
Media of the Year
This award is a closed category and recognised the work of a journalist, media outlet or programme in promoting positive change for disabled people.
Innovation of the Year
Do you know someone who has come up with a new idea, device, method or creative thoughts that supports people with complex disabilities? From finding creative new ways to connect people to supporting new ways of communication, we'd love to hear about any new innovations from across sectors.
Outstanding contribution to International Development
This award recognises outstanding achievements of staff and partners of Sense International. We'd love to hear about strategic and inspiring work that has raised awareness of deafblindness, brought new quality services to people with deafblindness and their families, initiatives that take innovative approaches to improve the lives of people with deafblindness or wins that have changed the national government's approach. We are also keen to celebrate 'unsung heroes' making an exceptional contribution to work on deafblindness.
Diane Cardwell Award for Professional Excellence
Do you know someone who works at Sense that has gone above and beyond their role to achieve excellence? Has a person, team or project made a positive impact on the lives of people who are deafblind, have sensory impairments and/or complex needs?
This award is named after Diane Cardwell, who was a Sense support worker and children's intervenor who won the Award for Professional Excellence in 2013. She sadly passed away in 2018 and we decided to name this award in her honour.
Peggy Freeman Award for Exceptional Contribution
Each year someone at Sense will be honoured with accolade of the Peggy Freeman Exceptional Contribution Award. This is a closed award category.
This award is named after Peggy Freeman, one of the parents who co-founded the National Deafblind and Rubella Association in 1955 (the organisation which later became Sense).
Quality Board Award
This award is a closed category and the winner is chosen by the Independent Sense Quality Board. The panel look for a Sense service which has shown exemplary evidence of good practice and innovation throughout the year.
Safeguarding and keeping safe
Sense is a registered Charity No. 289868. Registered as a Company limited by guarantee in England & Wales No. 01825301. Registered office at 101 Pentonville Road, London N1 9LG.
Copyright © 2019 Sense
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Spending Thanksgiving at Home
Today marks the second anniversary of the day
Stephen Barnes
walked out of a New York courthouse a free man for the first time in two decades. He was able to rejoin his family after spending 20 consecutive Thanksgivings behind bars for a crime he didn't commit.
His mother, Sylvia, told reporters after Stephen's release in 2008 that she had worked for two decades to help overturn the injustice her son had suffered and that his exoneration was "
nothing short of a miracle
." Watch a video interview with Barnes about his case above.
The average DNA exoneree served 13 years in prison before bring freed. In that time, opportunities to start families or to go to school and establish careers come and go. Children grow up, grandchildren are born and relatives and friends pass away. Many exonerees, like Michael A. Green, could not attend the funerals of their parents and relatives because they were in prison for crimes they didn't commit. Others, like Alan Northrop of Washington, went to prison when their children were toddlers and didn't seem them again until they were in their teens.
And while DNA testing has exonerated 261 people in the U.S., there are countless other innocent people spending today behind bars. The list of cases in which there is no evidence to test, or where access to that evidence has been denied, is seemingly endless. It is impossible to exonerate every innocent person in prison – only through
proven reforms
can we prevent wrongful convictions from happening in the first place.
This Thanksgiving, we're thankful for the supporters around the world who help us fight wrongful convictions and for the thousands of advocates fighting injustice in their communities. Please join us today in
to overturn injustice and to fix our criminal justice system to prevent wrongful convictions in the future.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Preventing food waste, promoting Circular Economy
Each year around 20% of food produced in the EU is lost or wasted, causing unacceptable social, environmental and economic harm. EU is committed to solving this problem and putting its food system onto a sustainable path. To be able to take effective action, we need more data on food waste than we currently have.
In order to address this knowledge gap, the Commission has adopted a Delegated Act laying down a common food waste measurement methodology to support Member States in quantifying food waste at each stage of the food supply chain. Based on a common definition of food waste, the methodology will ensure coherent monitoring of food waste levels across the EU.
Preventing food waste was identified as one of priority areas in the Circular Economy Action Plan adopted by the Commission in December 2015. Furthermore, food waste is one of ten major indicators of the Circular Economy Monitoring Framework, telling us how advanced we are in the transition from linear "make-use-dispose" to circularity, where loss of resources is minimised.
Frans Timmermans, First Vice-President, said: "Food waste is unacceptable in a world where millions still suffer from hunger and where our natural resources, which make human life and wellbeing possible, are becoming increasingly scarce. That is why we have defined food waste prevention as a key priority in building a circular economy and a sustainable society. To deliver change, we have to be able to properly measure food waste. I am pleased to see the EU developing the first ever comprehensive food waste measurement methodology and blazing the trail globally."
Jyrki Katainen, Vice-President for Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness, in charge of Health and Food Safety, said today in a keynote address to the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste: "The business case for food waste prevention is convincing. Research shows a 14:1 return on investment for companies which integrated reduction of food loss and waste in their operations. I count on the active participation of food business operators to measure, report and act on food waste levels. In food waste, as in life, what gets measured, gets managed. To be able to implement effective national food waste prevention programmes and promote circularity in the food chain, we need to know where, what, how much and why we are losing food resources. We are making the decisive step to get this knowledge."
Thanks to the revised EU waste legislation, adopted in May 2018 as part of the Circular Economy Action Plan, specific measures on food waste prevention have been introduced which will provide the EU with new and consistent data on food waste levels. The new waste legislation requires Member States to implement national food waste prevention programmes and, importantly to reduce food waste at each stage of the supply chain, monitor and report on food waste levels.
The EU's action plan to fight food waste aims to help achieve the global Sustainable Development Goal Target 12.3 to halve per capita food waste at the retail and consumer level by 2030, and reduce food losses along the food production and supply chain.
While the Delegated Act defines what needs to be measured as food waste at each stage of the food supply chain and how this should be carried out, it provides flexibility as to how data collection should be carried out at national level. With support of the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste and other relevant expert groups, the Commission will closely follow the implementation of the Delegated Act, organizing regular exchanges with Member States in order to facilitate practical implementation and share learning. Based on the methodology, Member States are expected to put in place a monitoring framework with 2020 as the first reporting year in order to provide the first new data on food waste levels to the Commission by mid-2022. The EU reporting framework will help standardize reporting of food waste levels by business and contribute to global monitoring of SDG Target 12.3.
Related Topics:circular economyEuropean Union
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The solution to marine plastic pollution is plural, and plastic offsetting is one of them
Coronavirus response: EU support for regions to work together in innovative pilot projects
The Commission has announced the winners of a new EU-funded initiative for interregional partnerships in four areas: coronavirus-related innovative solutions, circular economy in health, sustainable and digital tourism, and hydrogen technologies in carbon–intensive regions. The aim of this new pilot action, which builds on the successful experience of a similar action on "interregional innovation projects" launched at the end of 2017, is to mobilise regional and national innovation actors to address the impact of coronavirus. This initiative also helps the recovery using the new Commission programmes through scaling up projects in new priority areas, such as health, tourism or hydrogen.
Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, Elisa Ferreira, said: "Interregional partnerships are proof that when we cooperate beyond borders, we are stronger as we come up with smart and useful solutions for all. This new pilot initiative supporting interregional innovative partnerships is especially important in the current coronavirus context, showing how much cohesion policy is committed to contribute to Europe's prompt response and recovery."
Following a Commission's call for expression of interest launched in July 2020, four interregional partnerships were selected, with one or several coordinating regions in the lead:
País Vasco (ES), together with three regions, will focus on the support to an emerging industry sector for prediction and prevention of the coronavirus pandemic;
In the field of Circular Economy in Health, the RegioTex partnership on textile innovation involves 16 regions led by North Portugal (PT);
In the field of Sustainable and Digital Tourism, the partnership coordinated by the Time Machine Organisation, an international cooperation network in technology, science and cultural heritage, involves five regions and Cyprus, led by Thüringen (DE);
In order to enable the development of innovative solutions based on Hydrogen technologies in carbon–intensive regions with a broad geographical coverage, two partnerships will merge: the European Hydrogen Valleys partnership gathering 12 regions led by Aragon (ES), Auvergne Rhône Alpes (FR), Normandie (FR) and Northern Netherlands (NL), and the partnership led by Košice Region (SK) with four other regions.
These partnerships will benefit from the Commission experts' support, providing, among others, advice on how to best combine EU funds to finance projects. In addition to this hands-on support from the Commission, each partnership can benefit from external advisory service of up to €100,000 for scale-up and commercialisation activities. The money comes from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
The work with the partnerships will start in this month and will run for one year.This pilot further stimulates interregional cooperation, with the possibility for the partnerships to apply for support under the new programmes and the "Interregional Innovation Investment" instrument from 2021 onwards.
In recent years, the Commission has called on national and regional authorities to develop smart specialisation strategies aiming at more effective innovation policies and enhanced interregional cooperation in value chains across borders. To date, more than 180 regional smart specialisation strategies have been adopted. Their implementation is supported by €40 billion of EU Cohesion policy funds.
As part of a set of actions presented in 2017 by the Commission to take smart specialisation a step further, a pilot action on "Interregional innovation projects" sought to test new ways to encourage regions and cities to develop new value chains and scale up their good ideas in the EU single market. This pilot action, which involved nine partnerships in high-tech priority sectors, was completed in 2019 and showed significant potential to accelerate the investment readiness of interregional investment projects.
The lessons learned will be integrated in the new "Interregional Innovation Investment" instrument proposed in the framework of the post 2020 Cohesion Policy package.
The new pilot action has similar goals. Moreover, in the context of the crisis, it aims at finding solutions to the coronavirus challenges and accelerating the recovery through the commercialisation and scale-up of innovation investment.
Commission proposes to purchase up to 300 million additional doses of BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine
image: BioNTech
The European Commission today proposed to the EU Member States to purchase an additional 200 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine produced by BioNTech and Pfizer, with the option to acquire another 100 million doses.
This would enable the EU to purchase up to 600 million doses of this vaccine, which is already being used across the EU.
The additional doses will be delivered starting in the second quarter of 2021.
The EU has acquired a broad portfolio of vaccines with different technologies. It has secured up to 2.3 billion doses from the most promising vaccine candidates for Europe and its neighbourhood.
In addition to the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine, a second vaccine, produced by Moderna, was authorised on 6 January 2021. Other vaccines are expected to be approved soon.
This vaccine portfolio would enable the EU not only to cover the needs of its whole population, but also to supply vaccines to neighbouring countries.
EU-UK relations are changing following Brexit and the deal reached at the end of 2020. Find out what this means for you.
The UK left the EU on 31 January 2020. There was a transition period during which the UK remained part of the Single market and Customs Union to allow for negotiations on the future relations. Following intense negotiations, an agreement on future EU-UK relations was concluded end of December 2020. Although it will be provisionally applied, it will still need to be approved by the Parliament before it can formally enter into force. MEPs are currently scrutinising the text in the specialised parliamentary committees before voting on it during a plenary session.
A number of issues were already covered by the withdrawal agreement, which the EU and the UK agreed at the end of 2019. This agreement on the separation issues deals with the protection of the rights of EU citizens in the UK and UK citizens living in other parts of the EU, the UK's financial commitments undertaken as a member state, as well as border issues, especially on the Isle of Ireland.
Living and working in the UK or the EU
EU citizens in the UK or UK citizens in an EU member state who were already living there before January 2021 are allowed to continue living and working where they are now provided they registered and were granted settlement permits by the national authorities of the member states or the UK.
For those UK citizens not already living in the EU, their right to live and work in any EU country apart from the Republic of Ireland (as the UK has a separate agreement with them) is not automatically granted and can be subject to restrictions. Also, they no longer have their qualifications automatically recognised in EU countries, which was previously the case.
For UK citizens wanting to visit or stay in the EU for more than 90 days for any reason need to meet the requirements for entry and stay for people from outside the EU. This also applies to UK citizens with a second home in the EU.
People from the EU wanting to move to the UK for a long-term stay or work – meaning more than six months – will need to meet the migration conditions set out by the UK government, including applying for a visa.
UK citizens can visit the EU for up to 90 days within any 180-day period without needing a visa.
However, UK citizens can no longer make use of the EU's fast track passport controls and customs lanes. They also need to have a return ticket and be able to prove they have enough funds for their stay. They also need to have at least six months left on their passport.
EU citizens can visit the UK for up to six months without needing a visa. EU citizens will need to present a valid passport to visit the UK.
EU citizens temporarily staying in the UK still benefit from emergency healthcare based on the European Health Insurance Card. For stays longer than six months, they need to pay a healthcare surcharge.
Pensioners continue to benefit from healthcare where they live. The country paying for their pension will reimburse the country of residence.
The UK has decided to stop participating in the popular Erasmus+ exchange programme and to create its own exchange programme. Therefore EU students will not be able to participate in exchange programme in the UK anymore. However, people from Northern Ireland can continue to take part.
Trade in goods and services
With the agreement, goods exchanged between the UK and EU countries are not subject to tariffs or quotas. However, there are new procedures for moving goods to and from the UK as border controls on the respect of the internal market rules (sanitary, security, social, environmental standard for example) or applicable UK regulation are in place. This means more red tape and additional costs. For example, all imports into the EU are subject to customs formalities while they must also meet all EU standards so they are subject to regulatory checks and controls. This does not apply to goods being moved between Northern Ireland and the EU.
Regarding services, UK companies no longer have the automatic right to offer services across the EU. If they want to continue operating in the EU, they will need to establish themselves here.
Health experts arrive in Wuhan to investigate COVID-19 origins
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Corona Vaccine: A Diplomatic Tool


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Full Papers
Rapid Communications
Student Game Design Competition
Video Guidelines and Technical Requirements
Masterclasses, Fireside Chats, and Panels
Accessibility FAQ
PACM Statement
CHI PLAY Series
Future Conference Hosts
This guide provides information for preparing video material for submission to CHI PLAY 2021.
All video submissions at CHI PLAY 2021 need to adhere to the following technical requirements. Please note that videos that do not adhere to these guidelines may not be processed, and may not appear in the ACM DL or SIGCHI YouTube channel. It is your responsibility to ensure these requirements are met.
Resolution must be at precisely 1080p (1920 x 1080).
Videos must be in a 16:9 aspect ratio.
All videos must be encoded as an MP4 using the H.264 codec.
Each video needs to be accompanied with by a subtitles file in .srt or .sbv format
File names should have only alphanumeric characters and no spaces or special characters.
All videos (except those submitted to the full paper track) must include the title, author name(s) and affiliations at the beginning of the video, shown for long enough to be read.
Video Length and File Size
Please refer to the respective calls for information on maximum allowed video length and file size.
Encoding to MPEG-4/H.264 (.mp4)
Videos should use MPEG-4 encoding using the H.264 codec (file format .mp4). The open source video transcoder Handbrake provides good compression results and is available for OSX, Windows and Ubuntu.
All pre-recorded videos must be submitted with subtitles. Do not encode captions directly within the video. Submit a separate subtitle file in .srt or .sbv format. Subtitles can be created automatically, for instance, using YouTube which provides free tools for generating subtitles or other AI-based captioning tools such as otter.ai. If you use automatic services please make sure to review the generated subtitles and correct any errors. Please make sure that also any sound essential for following the content of the video is described in the subtitles. Information on how to describe non-speech information can, for example, be found at this website.
If you have questions regarding subtitles, please contact our CHI PLAY 2021 Accessibility and Equity Chairs (inclusion@chiplay.acm.org).
Accessibility Considerations
In addition to providing subtitles, use the tips for creating an accessible presentation in this 5 minute video. Remember that some people will not be able to see your slides, so the presentation should be understandable from the script alone. Make sure that the colors used in videos have sufficient contrast and are easily readable. Do not use colors as the only way to convey information and try to ensure that colors are sufficiently distinguishable. Mind the size of the text in your videos so that they can be read by everyone comfortably.
Please avoid using flickering, flashing, or loud effects in your video. For example, flashing lights can induce seizures for people with photosensitive epilepsy. Avoid using fast-paced animations (simple appear/disappear is ok), unsteady camera work, flashing strobe lights, loud sounds, or repetitive alarms. If you include components, such as police car lights and sirens, consider warning viewers at the start of the video or right before the content so they can look away or mute their computers. The Trace Center offers an analysis tool to help authors assess whether their video is safe for people with photosensitive epilepsy (https://trace.umd.edu/peat/).
For submission to an anonymized venue, all metadata that could identify the authors should be removed. For non-anonymized venues or camera-ready versions, please remember to review the metadata properties of your digital file and insert appropriate identifying comments at the submission time: author name(s), title, and copyright information.
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It is very important that you have the rights to use all the material that is contained in your submission, including music, video, images, etc. Attaining permissions to use video, audio, or pictures of identifiable people or proprietary content rests with the author, not the ACM or the CHI conference. You are encouraged to use Creative Commons content, for example music available at ccMixter or Newgrounds. If you need to use copyrighted protected work, you are required to review and comply with ACM's Copyright and Permission Policy and ACM's Requirements about 3rd party material. In addition, YouTube's copyright education website provides useful information on reusing 3rd party material.
Note: You will be asked to confirm that you agree with these policies on the final submission form.
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Innovation and diversity in the public sector
The public sector has long been plagued by issues like bureaucracy and red tape, which is why, in today's ever-complex world where you have to keep up with a rapid state of change, things like innovation and diversity are crucial.
Why is innovation so difficult?
In a sector defined by strict protocol, high stakes, and, let's face it, a certain level of mundanity, it can be extremely difficult to innovate. Steven Collet, a THNK Class 5 participant who spent several years working in the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, says, "Innovation is very challenging for an institution that is run by political accountability. Innovation means that you stand to fail and failure is very difficult to sell."
Nonetheless, a few initiatives around the world are trying to make innovation happen. Belgium's Innovation Learning Network, for example, aims to coach innovation projects and to create an environment where civil servants can help and learn from each other during the innovation process. The participants – civil servants from different government organizations – learn about the benefits of co-creation and multidisciplinary working, as well as how to follow trends, get things done more efficiently, and recognize restrictive patterns. The network currently operates in 14 government organizations, with 20 projects and about 50 civil servants.
In Korea, the public sector has implemented a Personnel Exchange System, a one-to-one exchange program that moves public servants between administrative agencies and other public organizations for a limited period. Its goals are to improve understanding across different agencies and to enhance the capabilities of the public workforce by providing extensive experience and opportunities for development.
To foster innovation, research from the OECD found that governments need to:
Build the culture, incentives, and norms to facilitate new ways of working
Facilitate the free flow of information, data, and knowledge
Promote new organizational structures and partnerships to improve approaches and tools
Ensure that internal rules and processes both mitigate risks and enable innovation
An analysis of cases around the world revealed that these categories were the most effective ways to enable innovation: awards and recognition (e.g. Australia's Awards for Excellence in Public Sector Management), learning in networks, mobility management, and holistic HRM approaches.
Innovation means that you stand to fail and failure is very difficult to sell. #innovation #creativeleadership #failure #failforward #creativeleader #publicsector Click To Tweet
Innovation demands diversity
One of the public sector's weaknesses is that it's not very diverse. A THNK alumnus working with the Australian government explains, "Groupthink can easily become prevalent. A lack of diversity, a dominant hierarchical structure, and inculcation of a set of values and expected norms from the day you step in the door contribute to groupthink. To move beyond groupthink and homogenous thought can be very challenging, to have individuals and teams think differently can be challenging, and to have those thoughts valued and make meaningful change can, at times, be even more challenging. It requires courageous leadership."
While the number of women in public employment is rising, the extent to which women hold senior positions in central government varies considerably. In most countries, the higher the positions, the fewer women work in them. Very few countries achieve gender parity; in Poland, Greece, Iceland, and Latvia, the share of women in senior positions is highest (50-54%). The smallest shares are found in Japan (3%), Korea (6%), and Turkey (8%).
The public sector workforce across the globe is also aging rapidly. In several OECD member countries, the largest age cohorts in the public sector are made up of people over the age of 40.
Achieving diversity in the public sector can advance its efforts to innovate. A significant amount of research has shown that diversity of people brings diversity of thought which leads to innovation – thus helping to improve decision-making and policy-making.
Diversity may also help to enhance social mobility. Pursuing diversity objectives may contribute to human development by reducing the gender gap in economic and political participation and decision-making, and fostering equality in achievement between men and women.
Diversity of people brings diversity of thought which leads to innovation – thus helping to improve decision-making and policy-making. #innovation #diversity #publicsector #leadership #creativeleadership #work #business Click To Tweet
Leaders: It starts with you
In any company or organization, leaders need to be involved in making equality a part of the daily business. But, in the public sector, especially, leaders play an important role in workplace reform, particularly diversity-aimed reforms as these involve change and people. Building a representative public workforce is about changing people's attitudes and behaviors, and these attitudes and behaviors come from the top.
Strong leadership is critical to develop equality and diversity policies, to motivate and promote institutions to be able to adapt for the sake of public interest, and to make innovation happen.
To champion innovation and diversity in your organization, join the THNK Executive Leadership Program.
Innovation requires vulnerability
Faculty Feature Ideas
Diversity and innovation: How diverse classmates enrich learning and creativity
Why leaders need software upgrades


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A Golden Nosedive (aka Thunder in 5)
May 25, 2016 June 13, 2016 ~ dnathanfati	~ 1 Comment
The collapse of the 73-win, record-breaking Warriors was swift, and total. The setting was an Oklahoma house of horrors, where the defending champs laid down (Harrison Barnes, literally) in a way that seemed unthinkable just a month ago. In two straight high stakes games the MVP and his merry band of ballers were embarrassed, flabbergasted, annihilated.
There's no question at this point that the Thunder are the better team. Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Serge Ibaka and Steven Adams have been the best four players on the court in three of the four games. The series goes back to Oakland at 3-1, but the next time OKC sees its home building will be in the NBA Finals. We've seen this movie before. Just two years ago, a much-ballyhooed superteam in Miami, led by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, were flattened by a Spurs team composing its basketball masterpiece. We are witnessing the Thunder's "5th Symphony."
I'm getting flashbacks of the 2014 Spurs-Heat series. If GSW doesn't come out firing in the third I think this series end in 5
— D. Nathan Fati (@DNFonNBA) May 25, 2016
Improbably, the record-breaking Warriors, who up until last night hadn't lost two games in a row all season, go home with their tails between their legs facing almost certain elimination. How did it go so wrong? Let me count the ways:
Draymond Green completely disappeared. After the "kick to the balls heard 'round the world" Green weirdly self-destructed. The one-time triple-double machine has failed to notched one in his last two games combined (12 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists). He's also a -73 in those disastrous two games. Maybe a suspension would've helped?
Steph Curry reverted to his pre-MVP careless self as he lost his patented quickness due to a knee injury. OKC has done a phenomenal job bodying him up, as the refs are letting plenty of contact go. Westbrook is staying glued to him in 1-on-1 situations and it's obvious Curry has lost a step since the MCL injury. He can't create separation like he's used to, and has become a turnover machine at the worst possible time (six in Game). He also can't make a layup for some reason.
They were murdered on the glass, to the tune of 56-40 (16 of them offensive rebounds) in Game 4. That followed a 52-38 beat down in Game 3. Too many times the Dubs were one-and-done while the Thunder got multiple cracks at a key bucket.
They resorted to non-stop fouling. It seemed every time I looked up Durant, Westbrook or Adams was on the free throw line in Games 3 and 4. The Thunder shot 77 free throws in the last two games.
Defensively they fell apart. This may be the ultimate explanation of their demise. In the regular season, Golden State ranked fifth in defensive rating. They won the title last year largely because it was so hard to score on them for long stretches. Their positional versatility was the trump card when things got tight late in games. Yet the Thunder have obliterated them in both transition and the half court. Their two superstars are getting 55+ points per game and the role players, a question mark all season, have stepped up big. In Games 3 & 4, the 73-win Golden State Warriors gave up 251 total points. That's not a misprint.
Billy Donovan shocked the world (well, NBA Twitter) by outcoaching Steve Kerr. Donovan abandoned the Enes Kanter/Adams combo that was the Spurs' kryptonite early on, favoring a smaller, quicker lineup with Ibaka picking up rim-protecting and switching duties. Meanwhile the Coach of the Year Kerr has thrown way too many guys into his rotations. Anderson Varejao, Brandon Rush and Ian Clark should not be seeing non-garbage time minutes in a conference finals. Festus Ezeli couldn't hit a free throw, yet Kerr kept going to him when it was clear OKC was going to keep putting him on the line. The strategy to turn Andre Roberson into Tony Allen by completely ignoring him defensively backfired when Roberson started hitting threes at will. It just seems like Kerr is getting flustered on the sideline just as much as his team is on the court. Again, unthinkable stuff.
Many of these factors are linked. Teams that are getting manhandled on the boards foul out of frustration. Same goes for a team that's getting out hustled to every loose ball. The 50/50 balls have been more like 90/10 for the Thunder. Coach Kerr is scrambling for solutions as he sees his team give up flurries of points, leading to uncharacteristic coaching blunders. OKC's frantic defense, predicated on switching, closing out hard on shooters and denying everything at the rim, has discombobulated the Warriors into forced and unforced turnovers. The trapping on a less than 100 percent Curry leads to erratic passing, leads to fast breaks, leads to crowd explosions.
A staple in this historic two-year run for Golden State has been their sense of calm under pressure, their uncanny knack for getting hot at the right time. Russ, KD and the awesome Oklahoma City crowd have stolen their resolve. Don't count on them giving it back. Sure, the next game is in Oakland and a Game 7 would be too, if the Earth's rotation reversed and we somehow got to a Game 7. But there's simply no coming back from this type of utter embarrassment in two straight conference finals games. The Warriors are beaten just as absolutely as those 2014 Heat were going into Game 5 in San Antonio.
So, Thunder in 5. Imagine the odds you could have gotten on that bet. Almost as juicy as picking a Thunder-Raptors Finals. Sheesh. The NBA universe is inverted. Pull the wool from over your eyes. Time is a flat circle (maybe this has to do with Matthew McConaughey and his damn Lincoln ads).
Prove me wrong Dubs, please. We've been looking forward to the Western Conference Finals all season. Congrats to OKC and all, but five games is a colossal rip-off for NBA junkies. What a sad ending to this fairy tale.
How the Unanimous MVP Stacks Up Historically (Plus Playoff Rankings)
May 12, 2016 June 13, 2016 ~ dnathanfati	~ Leave a comment
The MVP's ridiculous heat map resembles a sinister smiley face. Coincidence?
Welcome back, Steph. The playoffs missed you.
While the NBA's first unanimous MVP recovered from a sprained MCL, we watched the Cavs throttle the Hawks in four games and a Heat-Raptors death march featuring injured centers, inefficient guards and dubious late-game coaching. The Steph-less Warriors played some entertaining games with Portland, but it was palpable that something was lacking. Meanwhile, Thunder-Spurs is the one second round series that has been good for consistent thrills, but unfortunately they can't play that series every night. This all came after an underwhelming round one, where even the Game 7's were lackluster.
But the Baby-Faced Assassin is back, and he wasted no time reminding us why we fell in love with him to begin with. His 4th quarter and overtime performance in Game 4 was legendary.
Every historically great player is able to quiet a hostile crowd in the playoffs. Steph didn't just quiet the Portland faithful – he ripped their hearts out, poked them in the eyes and slapped their mamas. The man turned billionaire Paul Allen into a damn meme:
As an encore, Curry finished off the Blazers in Game 5 singlehandedly down the stretch. His ability to hit step-back threes over bigger defenders is beyond description at this point. It used to be absurd that he would even take these shots – now you just expect them all to go in. He doesn't even have his feet squared up to the basket on this backbreaking, series-winning dagger on Al-Farouq Aminu:
Aminu, who had a great shooting series in his own right, learned the perils of tugging on Superman's cape. If you recall, Aminu stared down a street-clothes-dressed Curry in Game 3 after draining a corner three.
Yea, not a great move. Curry of course got the last laugh. Don't spit into the wind…and don't mess around with Slim.
Curry's second-straight MVP campaign has been so transcendent, I'm not sure NBA fans could've gotten over it if they were cheated out of watching him do his thing in the playoffs. From Game 1 to Game 82, this Curry season has felt historic. 73 wins. 402 threes. A top-10 all-time PER. 50-45-90 shooting percentages. His value is unique because he can dominate a game while still operating within the confines of the Warriors' offense. The ball doesn't stick in his hands. To wit, per SportVu stats on NBAsavant.com, Curry ranked 69th in average dribbles per touch (3.613) and 73rd in average touch time (3.816 seconds). Remember Curry led the league in scoring yet played under 35 minutes per game. Just how the hell does he pull that off without playing hero ball exclusively? It just doesn't compute.
So let's turn our attention to the historical context of this special MVP season.
I looked at 29 other famous MVP campaigns in an effort to compare where Curry ranks by the numbers. The criteria I chose to consider: PER, counting stats titles, Win Shares, Value Over Replacement Player, Box Plus/Minus and Team Wins. I'm simply adding them up without weighing any value higher than another, because I barely passed College Algebra. I did give a player 5 points for each counting stats title they won during their MVP season. The sum total is what I call the MVP Quotient. *Note: steals, blocks, VORP, BPM are not available for Oscar Robertson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or Wilt Chamberlain. I estimated 11 BPM and 10 VORP for each.
As you can see, Curry grades out at the very top of the list. Above 1971-72 Kareem, 1995-96 Jordan, 1985-86 Bird, 2008-09 & 2012-13 LeBron. I'm always highly cognizant of the perils of recency bias, which is what led me to this exercise in the first place. But the numbers back up Curry's case for the greatest offensive season of all time and, at the very least, a top-5 all-time MVP season. A season for the ages. My grandkids will hear plenty of stories about 2015-16 Steph.
Side note or two: How awesome was LeBron's 2008-09 season? The 4th-best ever PER and it ranks 5th on this list even though he didn't get any 5-point boosts for a counting stats title. It's also cool to see how LBJ and Jordan dominate with seven of the top 12 MVP seasons on this list.
Playoff Power Rankings
Cleveland Cavaliers (Beat Hawks 4-0) – Just rolling through the East, licking their chops at the Heat-Raptors slap fight.
Oklahoma City Thunder (Lead Spurs 3-2) – Amazingly have won 3 of after getting trounced in Game 1. They need to close it out in Game 6, as a third straight victory in San Antonio is highly unlikely.
Golden State Warriors (Beat Blazers 4-1) – Portland was a handful, even for five games, but now they get some rest. We'll see how Andrew Bogut and Draymond Green heal up from minor injuries. The West Finals will be a bloodbath.
San Antonio Spurs (Trail Thunder 3-2) – Reeling and on the ropes. But you can never count out the Spurs until the last buzzer sounds on their elimination. Wouldn't be surprised if they win Games 6 and 7, but their offense needs an injection of life to do so.
Toronto Raptors (Lead Heat 3-2) – They should beat the Heat without Hassan Whiteside. Their prize is the Cleveland slaughter.
Miami Heat (Trail Raptors 3-2) – Terrible luck with Chris Bosh and now Whiteside and Luol Deng banged up. We'll see if vintage Dwyane Wade returns to help force a Game 7.
Portland Trail Blazers (Lost to Warriors 4-1)
Atlanta Hawks (Lost to Cavs 4-0)
Playoff Rankings: Round 2 Rout is On
May 5, 2016 June 13, 2016 ~ dnathanfati	~ Leave a comment
The cream has officially risen to the top. Here I thought Round 2 was going to be all-out war but – though things could change as the four series shift to the lower seed's building – the rout is on. Cleveland has gone to another level. If they can sustain 85% of this 3-point production, they have a shot against Golden State. The Spurs go to Oklahoma tied but look to be in a class above the Thunder. An MVP-less Warriors team is mostly rolling through Portland. We shouldn't be surprised. This entire season there have been three teams at the top, and they're still looking down on the rest of the league. Now, Steph Curry looks to be coming back sooner than expected (hooray for blood spinning!). Here's where we currently stand.
Cleveland Cavaliers (Lead Atlanta 2-0) – Broke the record for made threes in a playoff game last night (25) in a 123-98 rout of the Hawks. After watching Atlanta throttle Boston in Game 5, I tweeted the following:
The Hawks can beat the Cavs
— D. Nathan Fatigato (@DNFonNBA) April 27, 2016
San Antonio Spurs (Tied with OKC 1-1) – The messy ending to Game 2 was glorious and bottom line is the Spurs squandered a great chance to win that game with numbers in transition. Playing in OKC is no picnic. But now the Spurs are mad. You can rely on the following equation: Gregg Popovich>Billy Donovan. Spurs in 7 (if not 6).
Golden State Warriors (Lead Portland 2-0) – An amazing fourth quarter brought them back after trailing by 17 points in Game 2. Draymond Green is vaulting to another level and Klay Thompson is staking his claim to the title of best two-way shooting guard in the league. Look for more Festus Ezeli going forward (finally). The Blazers should win one at home, but this series won't make it past Game 5. Steph should be brought back with discretion, as the Warriors can clearly beat this team without him.
Miami Heat (Lead Toronto 1-0) – Dwyane Wade's renaissance has been a joy to watch. If Kyle Lowry can't magically turn his shot back on, the Raptors are toast. Miami's best player and coach know how to win this time of year. It's worth keeping an eye on Wade's and Hassan Whiteside's knees going forward. Word is both are fine, but a setback could change the series.
Oklahoma City Thunder (Tied with San Antonio 1-1) – To pull out this series over a 67-win Spurs juggernaut, Russell Westbrook will need to impose his will as he did early in Game 2. Tony Parker simply can't keep up with him. The "let LaMarcus get his" strategy is interesting especially since it helps put a clamp on Playoffs Danny Green and Playoffs Patty Mills. Even though the series is tied 1-1, I get the feeling they need to win both these next two games at home. They stole one in San Antonio and I don't think they'll get another in the Alamo.
Toronto Raptors (Trailing Miami 1-0) – Sad Kyle Lowry stayed in the empty arena after Game 1 working on his jumper. Let's hope that helps him turn things around. Jonas Valanciunas was great in Game 1, but how much of that was due to Whiteside not being 100 percent? Norman Powell needs to make an impact in this series, but at the end of the day their fate will be tied to Lowry and DeMar DeRozan.
Atlanta Hawks (Trailing Cleveland 2-0) – I believed. Then Earl Smith III destroyed my faith. The Hawks can't keep Thabo Sefolosha on the floor due to his poor shooting, and unfortunately he's the only Hawk that can even pretend to guard LeBron. I expect Paul Millsap and Al Horford to perform better in Atlanta, but it won't be enough. The Cavs death train rolls on.
Portland Trail Blazers (Trailing GSW 2-0) – The Blazers have already overachieved. They may win a game at home with their great crowd, but Golden State is on a collision course with San Antonio. They always have been. Great job this season by Terry Stotts and Damian Lillard. They have good things ahead, but need to round out their roster in the offseason.


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Home featured Demand for OPEC crude to rise by 1.2m barrels daily in 2016 – Kachikwu
Demand for OPEC crude to rise by 1.2m barrels daily in 2016 – Kachikwu
on: December 05, 2015 In: featured, Oil
05 December 2015, Lagos – Dr Ibe Kachikwu, the President, Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), says the demand for OPEC crude is expected to rise by 1.2 million barrels per day in 2016. This is contained in a statement signed by Ohi Alegbe, NNPC's Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, and released to newsmen in Abuja on Saturday.
*Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu.
The statement quoted Kachikwu, Nigeria's Minister of State for Petroleum as saying this while addressing the 168th (Ordinary) Meeting of the Conference of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) held in Vienna, Austria It said that the expected rise in demand would average 30.8 million barrels per day in 2016, leading to a more balanced market.
It said that in the years ahead a balanced and stable market would be crucial to ensuring continued investment in the industry to meet the world's growing energy needs. According to the statement, the conference is focused on enhancing market stability, which will be of benefit to all stakeholders and contribute to global economic growth.
It said that dialogue and collaboration with consumers, non-OPEC producers, oil companies, and investors are essential to attaining the common goal of a more orderly oil market. "In 2015, we have seen positive examples between OPEC and non-OPEC countries, and the Asian ministerial energy roundtable held in Qatar in November.
"OPEC has also held bilateral dialogues with Russia and China this year, and later this month the OPEC-India energy dialogue would have its first meeting,'' the statement quotes Kachikwu as saying. It said the World oil demand in 2015 grew by 1.5 million barrels per day, up from 1 million barrels per day in 2014.
"Next year, we foresee a growth of 1.3 million barrels per day to average 94.1 million barrels per day, with most of this growth coming from non- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries,'' it said. The statement said that as far as supply was concerned, non-OPEC countries would continue to see significantly reduced production growth as compared to past years.
"In fact, in 2016, we anticipate a contraction in non-OPEC oil supply,'' it said further. The statement said that the downward trend would stem mainly from the impact of investment cutbacks and the drop in U.S. tight oil output, which had been on the decline since May 2015.
It said that was clearly illustrated by the drop in the number of newly drilled wells and the reduction by half of active drilling wells. According to the statement, OPEC is committed to playing its part in protecting the environment and supporting sustainable development.
The statement added that its member countries are taking part in the climate change negotiations in Paris. It said that member countries were committed to the goal of full, effective and sustained implementation of the UN framework convention on climate change.


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What's New in Office 2010?
By NJWest
Now, as I am sure you have heard, Office 2010 has been released to developers as a technical preview. I have managed to secure a copy, so I will review it now for all those who weren't lucky enough to acquire it. So, what can you expect from this revolutionary new software suite, planned to be seamlessly integrated with Microsoft's Web-Apps?
Now web-apps have only been released to a select few, randomly chosen, to have their skydrive upgraded to include web-apps. I was not a member of the lucky few, so I won't be posting screenshots off of the internet on here. If you want these, or you want to read a review of them, you can Google the subject.
Well, I am sure you have seen screenshots online, and I imagine that you would think, like me, that it is very similar to Office 2007. There are no new GUI changes like the Ribbon; no 4-Dimensional, psychic interface. By all standards it looks very similar to its younger sibling, the main difference is that the Ribbon has spread into the previously immune programs, but other than that, it hasn't changed all that much.
All-New Backstage
The main changes happen backstage, a coincidence considering the name of one of the new features in all of the Office suite programs, Backstage. Gone is the old Office Menu, that Start Menu doppelganger, replaced by the new Backstage. When you click on the new button that has replaced the office menu, and it brings up Backstage, a full page menu screen with all the preferences and options that used to be much closer to hand. From here you can: save, print, open, close, start a new document and change your options, the main problem is that it now takes up the entire screen.
Now, I mentioned the Ribbon earlier. Not much has changed in that respect regarding Word, Excel, and several others. But those who were without before now have it, most notably OneNote and Outlook. Now, I am not sure if this is a good move. Personally I like the ribbon, but I know some who have avoided upgrading to 2007 for this very reason, so those who dislike it are likely to be bitterly disappointed.
In Outlook the Ribbon doesn't work very well, as things like sending and receiving are on a different tab to the replying and forwarding, so you tend to swap between them a lot. But, on the other hand, it looks sleeker and more in-keeping with the rest of the suite. It now also cleans up conversations, so it identifies emails with the same subject or by the same sender, and lists all of the emails in that 'conversation' by clicking on an email.
Microsoft OneNote 2010
OneNote is another program to have received the Ribbon treatment, and it definitely works there. It had been skipped out of the previous build because the developers felt that it didn't have enough menu items for it to be worth it, and of course they were lacking resources. Given the choice between having a Ribbon, or some of the great new features we saw in 2007, then I suppose they made the right choice.
But if they didn't have enough menu items for it to be worth it last time, what is the difference now? What has made it worthwhile? Well, as far as I can tell, nothing. It has 6 tabs, none of which comes close to reach right the way across the screen, and I don't have a particularly large resolution. It still remains as useful as ever, but I imagine that the developers felt that they needed to add something, but they didn't have anything revolutionary lined up for this new version like before. Another thing that is relevant is that they will be starting to include this in the Professional Plus package, as one of the main uses is collaboration between professionals.
There isn't much else new for the other apps. This isn't so much a ground-breaking upgrade, as a refinishing of the old software, much in the same vein as with Windows 7. And I don't criticise it for this. Office 2007 was good, and worked completely well, but I wouldn't say there is enough to warrant a hefty price tag like that of 2007. I hope Microsoft will have the decency to lower the price a bit, but I will certainly be upgrading.
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9 thoughts on "What's New in Office 2010?"
RSVR85 says:
I wasn't chosen to have my account upgraded, all i did was upload a .docx file to my public folder and afterwards it asked me in a small toolbar if i'd like to join. Maybe it's still worth a try??
http://www.mydigitallife.info/2009/09/24/get-invite-to-join-and-access-microsoft-office-web-apps-without-invitation-instantly/
(I ommited step 2, it still worked, i live in the UK) :)
Good_Bytes says:
I am sorry but Office 2010 has WAY more than anything that was mentioned.
These are some of the big changes in this new version of Office:
It has Win7 integration, it's in 64-bit flavor, it seams faster to open to me, ribbon bar is pass all over each application of Office, Groove has been renamed to SharePoint, lots of bug fixes, able to save into PDF, ability to customize the ribbon bar as you want (including creating your own tab), ability to have a some sort of multiple computer shared folder with Sharepoint, fast screen shot (shows you instantly all your currently open program in a drop down list with preview perfectly cut out. Click on it and a screen shot of that application is taken and imported in your document for you. Also, custom screen shots can be performed) which is added on almost all Office 2010 software. You also have, more image effects and the ability to remove background of images with greater ease and better results, and more…
http://www.microsoft.com/office/2010/
Also, the ribbon bar in OneNote make it usable for laptops, and not just Tablet PC users. Since I was invited to the technical preview of Office 2010, I can say, that I use One Note to take all my university class notes with great ease and rapidity, something that was nearly impossible with OneNote 2007.
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Nicholas J West says:
I am using a laptop, and I found that OneNote 2007 was perfectly rapid at note taking. The renaming of Groove was not something that I thought was particularly relevant to a user. You can't count bug fixes, as Office 2010 can be rather buggy, you could customise the ribbon, and the screenshot features aren't particularly new. What do you mean about Windows 7 integration? But yes, I should have mentioned about the 64bit flavour.
So do I, but I get an error that I can't edit Word, PowerPoint or OneNote files. Excel works though.
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In Assam, an ongoing effort to detect illegal Bangladeshi migrants
The National Register of Citizens (NRC) is expected to identify those who illegally entered Assam after 1971.
Written by Samudra Gupta Kashyap | Updated: June 17, 2015 8:20:12 am
According to Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, "NRC updating will bring to end issues revolving around the state's biggest problem of infiltration from Bangladesh.
Why is the National Register of Citizens (NRC) being updated?
It is said to be a way of identifying Bangladeshi infiltrators in Assam. The updated NRC is expected to be a reference point against which an individual can check his/her citizenship status. According to Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, "NRC updating will bring to end issues revolving around the state's biggest problem of infiltration from Bangladesh… There are people who believe that infiltration (from Bangladesh) is still going on despite erection of a barbed wire fence and intensified BSF patrolling along the border."
Who is carrying out the exercise?
While policy, guidelines and funds for updating the NRC have been provided by the Centre, the process is being carried out by the state government under the guidance of the Registrar General of India. A State Coordinator, a senior IAS officer, heads the set-up. The state government has set up the timeline for the process, and over 2,500 NRC Seva Kendras where people can search for names of their ancestors in electoral rolls from 1952 to 1971 and download the record, which has been called "Legacy Data".
How many Bangladeshis are there in Assam?
Many, including the ruling Congress and the opposition All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), do not believe that infiltration from Bangladesh is as rampant as the AASU and others claim. But the fact remains that since 1985, Foreigners' Tribunals have declared over 38,000 persons in Assam as illegal migrants. Most of these 38,000 have gone missing, are absconding for fear of being caught, have been detained in camps, or been pushed back across the border. Over 1 lakh are pending in the Tribunals, and a sizeable number are likely to be declared foreigners.
Nearly 1.5 lakh names in Assam's electoral rolls carry the prefix "D" — for "Doubtful" citizenship status — which was inserted by the Election Commission of India. According to the NRC coordination office, "Ds" too may apply for inclusion in the NRC, but would need a final clearance from the Foreigners' Tribunals.
At an NRC Seva Kendra in Guwahati on Tuesday.(Express Photo by: Dasarath Deka)
How is the updation taking place?
All those who have their names — or a family or parental link — in electoral rolls from 1952 to 1971, are believed to be genuine Indian citizens, and not infiltrators from Bangladesh. A person who wants to be included in the updated NRC must have at least one of 14 prescribed documents. These are: (1) Copy of NRC of 1951 showing one's own name or that of an ancestor, (2) Copy of electoral roll up to midnight of March 24, 1971, (3) Land and tenancy record, (4) Citizenship certificate, (5) Permanent Residential Certificate, (6) Refugee Registration Certificate, (7) Passport, (8) LIC document, (9) any licence or certificate issued by the government, (10) government service/employment certificate, (11) bank/post office accounts, (12) birth certificate, (13) Board/University educational certificate, (14) Court records/processes. For a woman migrating after marriage, any document issued by the Circle Officer or gram panchayat secretary, and/or Ration Card is applicable.
Younger people who do not possess any of the above documents are required to produce documents (birth certificate, land document, Board/University certificate, Bank/LIC/Post Office records, Electoral Roll, ration card or any other legally acceptable document) to establish a linkage or relationship to the name of the ancestor whose name appears in any of the first list of documents.
When did the process begin?
The Assam government first announced its decision to update the NRC in 2005, and launched a pilot project covering the assembly constituencies of Barpeta and Chhaygaon in 2010. While the Chhaygaon updating was successfully completed, the one at Barpeta had to be called off following violent protests by the All Assam Minority Students' Union, which believes there has been no Bangladeshi infiltration into Assam. While AASU and other groups pressed for a resumption of the process, the state government allegedly went slow, until the Supreme Court intervened on the basis of some petitions, and fixed a time frame for the process. Based on the SC order, the Assam government fixed October 31, 2015, as the date for publishing the draft NRC, and January 31, 2016 as the deadline for the final NRC.
Will illegal Bangladeshis be really detected?
Yes, says Chief Minister Gogoi. The NRC updation office says it is using the latest IT tools to detect fictitious claims of family linkages. But senior Supreme Court lawyer Upamanyu Hazarika says the NRC update will only legitimize thousands of Bangladeshi immigrants. The AASU does not consider the NRC updation as the ultimate way to detect Bangladeshi infiltrators, and wants constant Supreme Court monitoring.
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About King's
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School reports and reviews play an important role in helping prospective parents and pupils to access an unbiased review and account of a school.
We are delighted to be able to share our latest Independent Schools Inspectorate Report, and also a link to our Good Schools Guide Review in the section below.
Independent Schools Inspectorate
In October 2017, the King's Foundation welcomed an inspection across all three schools from the Independent Schools Inspectorate.
All three schools achieved the highest possible outcome, being described as 'Excellent'. The outcome of the inspection was an endorsement of our education standard and ethos and we were given the highest possible ratings in all areas, which is a testament to the standards and ethos here at King's.
Download a copy of the report.
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The Good Schools Guide includes unbiased and candid school reviews and in-depth articles on education-related issues, helping parents to choose the best possible school for their child.
Read the Good Schools Guide review for King's Worcester.
Pupils achieve highly in both academic and co-curricular areas and especially so in art, drama, music and sport.
Policies at King's Worcester
We have a number of policies and procedures to ensure that we offer the best possible care for all pupils. Each one is regularly reviewed and updated.
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In light of recent changes to the PSHE and RSE government guidelines, you can now view our latest Personal, Social and Health, Economic (PSHE) and Relationship and Sex Education (RSE) Policies here:-
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Full details on the policies, the Scheme of Work and Programme of Study for the next academic year can be found here on FireFly.
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At King's we recognise the challenges that families face in bringing up children. There may be times when you need extra help and support. If this is the case, please come and talk to us. There are many ways in which we can help as outlined in our offer of early help available through the following link.
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Tag: Nibiru
This Ancient Sumerian Cylinder Seal is said to depict 12 planets in our Solar System
Source: Ancient-Code.com
One of the most controversial seals ever discovered and discussed among scholars is dubbed VA/243 and seems to depict –accoridng to many—12 planets within our Solar System with the Sun at its center.
The Seal which dates back –at least- from the third millennium B.C. can be found at the State Museum in Easter Berlin and is cataloged as VA/243.
According to numerous researchers, this ancient Akkadian Cylinder Seal is one of the most ancient cylinder seals ever discovered and appears to be one of the most mysterious as well.
The reason? Well, it allegedly depicts the entire family of our Solar System and a rogue planet identified by authors such as Sitchin as Planet X, or Nibiru, home planet of the Ancient Anunnaki.
Zecharia Sitchin discusses the cylinder seal with great detail in his book the 12th Planet.
According to Sitchin, the cylinder seal undoubtedly depicts our solar system with the numerous heavenly bodies and their relative size.
There are nine planets we know of today, –if of course you still think Pluto should be a planet and not a dwarf planet— our moon, the Sun, and a rogue planet commonly referred to as Nibiru.
This interpretation by Sitchin has led towards a great number of criticism and as Michael S. Heiser indicates, the symbol depicted on the cylinder seal Va/234 is not the sun but a star.
According to Heiser, the alleged planets identified by Sitchin are not planets but other stars.
Heiser further argues that there is no evidence whatsoever to suggest that the Sumerians had knowledge of more than five planets in out solar system.
Heiser indicates three main things in his study:
1) The inscription on the seal says nothing about astronomy, Nibiru, or planets.
2) The alleged "sun" symbol on the seal is not the sun. We know this for sure because it does not conform to the consistent depiction / symbology of the sun on hundreds of other cylinder seals, monuments, and pieces of Summer-Mesopotamian art.
3) There is not a single text in any extant Summer-Mesopotamian text that says the Sumerians or Mesopotamians knew of more than five planets. There are a number of cuneiform tablets that deal with astronomy, all of which have been compiled and published. These sources are accessible to the reader but at varying levels of difficulty.
Now this has made me think about both sides of the story, what Sitchin offers as an explanation and what a scholar like Michael S. Heiser has to say.
First of all, I am not saying that I believe any of them is correct in their interpretations, I am just forming my own little opinion.
The curious depictions on the Sumerian cylinder seal are fascinating. I find it extremely interesting that the creator of the seal decided to place a huge star (which resembles the sun) at the center, surrounded by other celestial bodies.
Even though Heiser argues that the star in the middle inst our star, but another star, I wonder why the creator of the seal did not depict the other stars (according to Heiser) just as he depicted the one in the middle?
Also, I wonder why the size of the star in the middle is represented as a larger body compared to the other celestial bodies.
Also, if all of the celestial bodies are stars as Heiser indicates, then why is the one in the middle depicted differently with characteristics eerily reminiscent of rays coming out of it?
Are these characteristics just another coincidence?
Or is it possible that we are missing something in this story?
However, if the mysterious objects depicted on the cylinder seal are in fact planets, how is it possible that the ancient Sumerians knew about our complete solar system in the 3rd millennium BC?
Not only that but how did they know their approximate size?
This leads to other questions like… where did the Sumerians obtain this knowledge from?
Did they develop it independently?
Or is it possible as many ancient cultures suggest, that some of that knowledge was passed on to them by 'gods' who came down from heaven and brought vast knowledge to man?
Does this ancient Sumerian Cylinder Seal depict the Solar System with all of its planets including Nibiru as Sitchin indicates?
Or is it possible that authors such as Michael S. Heiser are correct, and that the cylinder seal does not have any astronomical value and DOES NOT depict our solar system, planets, the moon, nor the sun?
There are other questions which must be raised when looking at the cylinder seal. For example, would a cylinder seal be the 'appropriate' medium by which someone —4,5000 years ago— would transmit such important astronomical knowledge?
Read More At: Ancient-Code.com
http://www.sitchin.com/teapot.htm
http://www.michaelsheiser.com/va_243%20page.htm
Ivan is a freelance writer, editor-in-chief of ancient-code.com, he also writes for EWAO, Share Knowledge, Svemir Online and Ancient Origins.
History, Archaeology, Space and world's mysteries are some of the topics he writes about.
Posted on August 22, 2016 Categories Ancient Civilizations & Ancient History, News, SpaceTags 12th Planet, Akkadian Cylinder Seal, Ancient Civilizations, Ancient History, Mesopotamia, Nibiru, Planet X, Planets, Solar System, Space, Sumer, Sumerian, Zecharia Sitchin2 Comments on This Ancient Sumerian Cylinder Seal is said to depict 12 planets in our Solar System
Annunaki Structures Before The Flood: The 200,000-Year-Old Ancient City In Africa
Do you believe in the existence of the ancient Anunnaki?
Millions of people around the globe firmly believe that hundreds of thousands of years ago, advanced beings lived on Earth, and many refer to them as the Anunnaki: "those who came down from the heavens."
Supposedly, and according to some authors, the ancient Anunnaki were (still are?) extremely advanced 'alien' civilizations from an elusive planet in our solar system.
These mysterious beings came to Earth over 400,000 years ago and kick-started the human civilization.
But what are/were the Anunnaki? Are they mere mythological inventions from people thousands of years ago? Or is it possible there is evidence to support that they did, in fact, exist on Earth?
Interestingly, if we look back at the countless discoveries that have been made in the last couple of decades, we will understand that history as we know it is completely different from the reality.
In fact, countless archaeological and historical discoveries have been made that firmly contradict and challenged mainstream scholars and their views on human origins and history.
Each and every time we 'touch' the subject of the Anunnaki, we come across mixed feelings from different readers.
Many believe these ancient beings did exist on Earth, while others are firmly convinced that the Anunnaki are nothing more that mythological creatures and the result of ancient man's imagination.
Anyone who wants to find out more about the Anunnaki should read the books written by famous writer Zecharia Sitchin.
In 1976, Sitchin published his personal translations of the Sumerian texts in a series of books called "The Earth Chronicles."
According to Sitchin, the clay tablets describe an alien race known as the Anunnaki, who came to Earth to mine gold.
Sitchin practically suggests that extraterrestrial visited earth in the past because their home-planet needed gold to survive.
But if the ancient Anunnaki did exist, wouldn't there be evidence of their legacy on Earth?
Well, an ancient city discovered in Africa could prove to be the missing link to the Anunnaki.
Located around 150 km west of the port of Maputo, Researcher, and Author Michael Tellinger has found the remains of a vast metropolis that measures, according to initial surveys a staggering 1,500 square kilometers.
This ancient metropolis is, according to many, part of an even larger complex that encompasses an even greater area of 10,000 square kilometers, but the most fascinating detail about it is its age: It is believed to be between 160,000 and 200,000 years old.
When Heine first introduced me to the ancient stone ruins of southern Africa, he had no idea of the incredible discoveries we would achieve in the following years. The photographs, artifacts and evidence we accumulated, points towards a lost civilization that has never before been and precedes all others – not for a hundred years, or a few thousand years…but many thousands of years. – said Tellinger
Curiously, near these ancient metropolises the presence of ancient gold mines indicates the presence of an advanced civilization that was able to extract gold, in 200,000 BC, for a mysterious purpose.
Tellinger explains that this is rather interesting since it shows how a timeworn 'lost' civilization, prospered in the region while being capable of extracting massive amounts of gold at several mines in the region, all of this at a time when mainstream scholars are telling us, humans were not developed in order to undertake such 'sophisticated' projects.
But the question here is… who needed gold in 200,000 BC?
How was it extracted and is it possible that the relative vicinity to the sea was the reason why the giant metropolis was erected in the first place?
Was gold used in trade and sculptures? Or is it possible – as the Ancient Astronaut Theory proposes – that gold was used in a far more 'technological' purpose than what mainstream scholars are willing to accept?
I see myself a fairly open-minded chap, but I will admit that it took me well over a year for the penny to drop, and for me to realize that we are actually dealing with the oldest structures ever built by humans on Earth. – said Tellinger
Interestingly, we find that some 250,000 years ago, according to Sitchin, the ancient Anunnaki merged their Alien genes with that of Homo Erectus and created a species known as Homo Sapiens, obtaining as a result, a genetically bicameral species.
However, humans were a hybrid species and could not procreate.
Since the demand for humans as workers became greater, the ancient Anunnaki once again manipulated ancient mankind so they could reproduce on their own.
Based on The Cosmic Code: The Sixth Book of The Earth Chronicles by Zecharia Sitchin, this is the real historical timeline of our planet:
Events Before the Deluge
450,000 years ago,
On Nibiru, a distant member of our solar system, life faces slow extinction as the planet's atmosphere erodes. Deposed by Anu, the ruler Alalu escapes in a spaceship and finds refuge on Earth. He discovers that Earth has gold that can be used to protect Nibiru's atmosphere.
Led by Enki, a son of Anu, the Anunnaki land on Earth, establish Eridu -Earth Station I – for extracting gold from the waters of the Persian Gulf.
Earth's climate mellows. More Anunnaki arrive on Earth, among them Enki's half-sister Ninhursag, Chief Medical Officer.
As gold production falters, Anu arrives on Earth with Enlil, the heir apparent. It is decided to obtain the vital gold by mining it in southern Africa. Drawing lots, Enlil wins command of Earth Mission; Enki is relegated to Africa. On departing Earth, Anu is challenged by Alalu's grandson.
Seven functional settlements in southern Mesopotamia include a Spaceport (Sippar), Mission Control Center (Nippur), a metallurgical center (Shuruppak). The ores arrive by ships from Africa; the refined metal is sent aloft to orbiters manned by Igigi, then transferred to spaceships arriving periodically from Nibiru.
Gaining the support of the Igigi, Alalu's grandson attempts to seize mastery over Earth. The Enlilites win the War of the Olden Gods.
The Anunnaki toiling in the gold mines mutiny. Enki and Ninhursag create Primitive Workers through genetic manipulation of Ape woman; they take over the manual chores of the Anunnaki. Enlil raids the mines, brings the Primitive Workers to the Edin in Mesopotamia. Given the ability to procreate, Homo Sapiens begins to multiply.
Life on Earth regresses during a new glacial period.
Climate warms again. The Anunnaki (the biblical Nefilim), to Enlil's growing annoyance, marry the daughters of Man.
The "accursation of Earth" – a new Ice Age-begins. Regressive types of Man roam the Earth. Cro-Magnon man survives.
Enki and Ninhursag elevate humans of Anunnaki parentage to rule in Shuruppak. Enlil enraged. Plots Mankind's demise.
Realizing that the passage of Nibiru in Earth's proximity will trigger an immense tidal wave, Enlil makes the Anunnaki swear to keep the impending calamity a secret from Mankind.
According to many people around the globe, the Anunnaki are most definitely the ultimate proof that there are missing links in the origins of the human species.
I believe that it certainly is very interesting to read about findings like that of Mr. Tellinger, and other ancient sites around the globe. While it remains a great enigma whether or not the Ancient Anunnaki existed on Earth, and if they intervened in any way with the evolution of the human species, the truth is that many ancient civilizations around the globe show what appear to be links, or clues that possibly indicate a similar source of their knowledge.
Here are some images of the ancient city Mr. Tellinger talks about:
Posted on July 26, 2016 July 26, 2016 Categories Alternative History, Ancient Civilizations & Ancient History, NewsTags Africa, Ancient Antiquity, Ancient City, Ancient Civilizations, Ancient History, Annunaki, Enki, Gold, Mesopotamia, Michael Tellinger, Nibiru, The Earth Chronicles, Zecharia Sitchin5 Comments on Annunaki Structures Before The Flood: The 200,000-Year-Old Ancient City In Africa


text:
Red Ribbon Report
By: ADVANCE Staff January 1, 1999
PARTNER NOTIFICATION NEWS
After several states passed their own laws regarding partner notification about HIV, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) finished a draft document making recommendations about the issue. The CDC reports that it created the guidelines so that partner notification services will be more than simply a one-time notification. The guidelines also address controversial issues such as confidentiality. Federal laws require states to make an effort to notify people potentially infected with HIV, but a lack of CDC guidelines has hindered efforts, the agency says. The guidelines suggest partner counseling and referral services, a comprehensive program that recommends long-term counseling and support for a lifelong medical condition. Guidelines also suggest client-centered counseling and support for people who want to notify partners themselves. … Meanwhile, the Canadian government has ruled that any person with HIV must notify a partner before unprotected sexual intercourse. The infected person will face jailing if he fails to do so. HIV activists in that country are reluctant of the law because they do not want to see a disease such as HIV criminalized.
HIV-infected prison inmates present unique challenges to clinicians, since the population is closely contained and often includes people at high risk for the disease. Statistics gathered at the end of 1995 show that the AIDS rate among prisoners in the United States was six times higher than that of the rest of the population. The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed legislation requiring that officials administer HIV tests to federal inmates who will serve at least 6 months in prison. Some groups, such as the American Civil Liberties Union, worry that the testing will not be accompanied by treatment. … Perhaps the HIV rate among prisoners will drop considering research revealing that heroin and other injection drug use among suspected offenders may be on the decline. A recent study done by the National Development and Research Institutes in New York City discovered that drug use among arrested subjects in 23 urban areas had declined. Researchers were surprised by the study's findings because other reports say that heroin use is actually on the rise in the population of young drug addicts.
PHARMACEUTICAL NEWS
After discovering that dosing three times per day is better than twice-a-day dosing, Merck announced that it was stopping research on its twice-daily indinavir (Crixivan) drug regimen. The research studied Crixivan dosed twice a day as it works in combination with 3TC and AZT. Merck says patients currently taking that combination should continue taking Crixivan three times a day. The company is going to continue research on twice-daily dosing with other protease inhibitors.
AIDS AROUND THE WORLD
The mainstream media frequently reports on the incidence of HIV in Africa, India and the United States. But officials at the World Health Organization (WHO) predict that by 2000, the Western Pacific region of the world will have 1.5 million cases of HIV. According to the WHO, chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis make up 35 million new STD cases in the Western Pacific each year, and affect approximately 2% to 5% of people who are sexually active. … News reports from China say that the country's first condom vending machine is so successful that more machines will be placed in other cities in the country. Vendors placed the first machine in the town of Shenzhen, where prostitution is widespread. … Physicians in Ireland warn that they are seeing an increase in mothers who contracted HIV through heterosexual sex, and that there will be an increase in babies born with HIV if preventive action is not taken. They report that from 1987 to 1988, 74% of HIV-infected mothers were IV drug users and 26% contracted HIV through heterosexual contact. A decade later, the number of HIV-infected women who were drug users dropped to 30%, while those who contracted HIV through heterosexual contact rose to 70%.
Send your AIDS news to: Christine Leccese, ADVANCE for Nurse Practitioners, 2900 Horizon Drive, King of Prussia, PA 19406-4025; fax: (610) 278-1425; e-mail: cleccese@merion.com


text:
MEET CARLOS
REQUEST CITY SERVICES
Chicago's working families deserve a living wage today
Today, our Aldermen voted to raise the minimum wage to $13 in five years. I was one of many Chicagoans who worked with labor and community groups to raise the minimum wage, and I applaud the City Council for finally taking a step in the right direction, but I believe Chicago's working families deserve more than $13 an hour in five years.
If the minimum wage had kept pace with U.S. productivity it would have reached over $21 an hour today. Our families deserve a living wage of no less than $15 an hour now. By voting yes on amending the minimum wage ordinance, Alderman Rey Colon asked Chicagoans to wait five years for a $13 an hour minimum wage. Five years is too long, and it's made all the more offensive when you consider Alderman Colon will raise his own salary to $115,465 in just 29 days. Big corporations can more than afford to pay their workers a $15 an hour living wage today, but regular Chicagoans cannot afford politicians who don't put our families first.
Today's vote deepened my resolve to win on February 24th and win a $15 an hour minimum wage for Chicago's workers.
This is a political website, for city services visit www.aldermancarlosrosa.org.
Paid for by Carlos for Chicago. A copy of our report filed with the State Board of Elections is (or will be) available on the Board's official website (www.elections.il.gov) or for purchase from the State Board of Elections, Springfield, Illinois.


text:
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Additional Recommended Facebook Marketing Reading
How To Add A Custom Landing Tab To Your Facebook Fan Page
How To Attract and Engage Quality Customers With Social Media
13 Ways to Move Your Facebook Fans to Action
How to Better Engage Facebook Fan Page 'Fans'
21 Creative Ways To Increase Your Facebook Fanbase
How to Create a Facebook Fan Page Editorial Guide
How to Add Google Analytics to Your Facebook Fan Page
10 Tips for Creating Buzz With Facebook Events
If you have any comments, questions, concerns, challenges, (rave reviews!) – anything to do with Facebook Marketing, please do share in the Comments below. We look forward to meeting you in June for the free webinar series!