text:
Your Travel Choice
Category: ecoDestinations
Estonian Nature Tours: Botanical Tours in Estonia
Posted on June 26, 2010 by Michael Hutagalung
Estonia is the smallest and least populous of the three Baltic States which achieved independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991. It is a land of great natural beauty, but still comparatively little known as a wildlife destination. However, the abundance of natural habitats is reflected in a very impressive avifauna which matches that of any other country in northern Europe.
The country has a long, indented and diverse coastline with more than 1,000 islands. Forests and woodlands cover almost half of the Estonian territory. An admirable seventeen percent of the country is afforded protection within nature reserves that vary in size from the large national parks to the smaller, locally protected reserves.
Extensive undeveloped coastal areas with wide-spread reed-beds and grasslands as well as unique untouched nature with winding rivers, vast floodplains, mires, bogs and primeval forests in the central part of the mainland are habitats for thousands of migrating and breeding birds and many species of rare mammals.
Its flora is amongst the most spectacular in northern Europe. In particular, strong influences in the country's floral make-up come from both Siberia and also the warmer regions of southern Europe, with many plant species reaching their respective western or northern extremities of range within Estonia.
For further information on botanical tour experiences in Estonia, please visit Estonian Nature Tours.
Learn More About Estonia: Featured ecoDestination
Estonia is a small country, situated on the Baltic coast between Russia, Finland, Latvia and Sweden. Estonian territory is about same as the Netherlands, but the population (1.4 million) is eleven times less, which means that there is lot of space for nature. About 50% of country is covered by forests and woods, and is home to eagles, wolves, brown bears and lynx. People of Estonia often call themselves the "forest people", and have lived on these lands since Stone Age.
European Ecotourism Conference (EETC), Pärnu, Estonia, September 26-30, 2010
Join TIES and Estonian Ecotourism Association this September at the EETC 2010, being hosted in Pärnu, Estonia, and you will have the unique opportunity to meet ecotourism leaders from across Estonia and Europe. Pre- and Post-conference tours include: Kayaking in the Bay of Tallinn and Elk watching and wolf tracking. To learn more about the conference program and to register, go to the EETC 2010 webpage.Don't forget to join the EETC group on Facebook and LinkedIn to participate in on-going discussions about ecotourism in Europe!
Posted in ecoDestinations
There's Soomaa-ch to Discover in the European Ecotourism Hotspot of Estonia
Aivar Ruukel has made quite a name for himself in ecotourism, particularly in his native Estonia, where he grew up in the midst of the country's largest pristine wilderness: Soomaa. Roughly translated as 'Land of Bogs,' the area is, in Ruukel's words, "a vast complex of raised bogs, wet alluvial forests with fens, transition mires and unregulated rivers with flood-plain and wooded meadows." Lesser spotted eagles, golden eagles, black storks, corn crakes, brown bears, wolves and lynx all call it home and, understandably, it is now a leading destination for wildlife and nature enthusiasts.
A traditional dugout canoe, known as a haabja in the local lingo, is the best way to explore the wilderness of Soomaa National Park. When the floods come in late March, a haabja is often the only way to get around!
Ecotourism: A Natural Evolution
While Ruukel's interest in nature and the environment dates to his youth, his passion for ecotourism was kindled 15 years ago, when the cranberry bogs and capercaillie forests in his backyard were designated a national park. This shrewd move by the Estonian Fund for Nature not only allowed this great area of wilderness to be preserved and protected for posterity, it also ushered in new era of opportunity for tourism.
Soon after Soomaa National Park came into being, Estonia's Rural Development Programme began a countrywide campaign to promote ecotourism as an alternative source of income for the former-Soviet collective agricultural communities of Estonia. Ruukel was selected as the lucky candidate to coordinate the project. He worked on it for two years, simultaneously running his own burgeoning eco-business that organised wilderness experience tours in and around Soomaa National Park.
His fruitful time as project coordinator made a deep impression on him. "It was a great combination of learning about ecotourism concepts and methodology, and developing my own small business at the same time, hand in hand," Ruukel happily reflected. "I also had a wonderful mentor, Jan Wigsten, a Swedish guy who used to be a board member of The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) at that time and was owner and manager of an ecotravel company in Mongolia."
Ruukel's dedication to the ecotourism movement is unabated, as he currently sits on the national committee of the Estonian Ecotourism Association (ESTECAS), a nongovernmental and non-profit organisation established in 1996 that he describes as "a club of passionate ecotourism activists and one of the oldest national ecotourism associations." Additionally, he is a member of the Estonian Ecotourism Cluster, a group of local responsible travel operators who work together to develop and promote quality ecotourism products in Estonia.
Ruukel hopes one day to channel his passion and expertise in nature tourism into fulltime teaching, although for now he makes do with some lecturing at the Estonian University of Life Sciences, while pursuing a Masters degree and sharing the marvels of his home through his travel company, Karuskose Ltd, which operates the aptly-named Soomaa.com and is the whl.travel local connection in Soomaa and Pärnu.
Aivar Ruukel relaxes with a cup of coffee near the Karuskose Base Camp, his company headquarters in Soomaa National Park, during what's known locally as the 'fifth season' or season of floods
A Tour for All Seasons
Karuskose organises trips to the woods, meadows, rivers and 8000-year-old peat bogs throughout the year, but activities vary according to the time of year. Soomaa has five distinct seasons instead of the usual four, and as each provides its own unique experience, there's much to enjoy!
The wetlands are best explored by canoe, especially in late March during the so-called 'fifth season,' when more than 100 square kilometres of meadows and woodland becomes flooded and impassable by anything that doesn't float. Exploring the beauty of Soomaa by canoe is a big hit with tourists, which rather perversely makes flood season the most popular time of year for visitors. Many locals still travel using traditional dugouts, called habjaas, carved from aspen trees. For those wishing to try their hand at the traditional skill of canoe building, Ruukel has been fashioning his own habjaas for many years and offers workshops that teach novices the tricks of the trade.
Of course, those wanting to see the place under their own steam can tackle the drier areas with the help of a couple of racquet-like appendages affixed to their feet. Bog shoeing and bog walking are popular all year round, a fun way to explore the wetlands and a unique way to work up a little sweat.
Spring is arguably the most beautiful of the seasons, with wild flowers in full bloom on the meadows and wildlife just beginning to shake off the winter torpor. It's an ideal time for bird watching as well as for beaver safaris – a popular activity during the warmer months. Summer offers much the same, but with the added benefits of bog swimming and nighttime canoe tours for the brave.
Autumn is of particular interest to gourmets, with plenty of food-oriented activities throughout the region, such as mushrooming, berry picking and cooking with locals from the surrounding villages. Typical local specialties include blood sausage and black rye bread.
It may come as a surprise to some, but orchids thrive in Estonia's cooler climes and the Lady Slipper is one of 36 orchid species that grow around the bogs and wooded meadows. The country may be small, but it packs in an incredibly diverse variety of plant and animal life.
Winter treats involve active pursuits like snowshoeing, kick sledding on the frozen waterways, cross-country skiing and ice fishing. After all that exertion, visitors would do well to ease any aches and pains inside the ever-popular smoke sauna. Those wishing to try out the legendary floating sauna on the Raudna River must unfortunately wait a few months until the ice has melted!
While the capital, Tallinn, and the seaside town of Pärnu regularly receive top billing, Estonia has many more surprising attractions – far more, in fact, than its small size would suggest. As a result of the exciting work pioneered in Soomaa, Estonia has become a beacon for ecotourism enthusiasts, who have made ecotourism a very hot topic with the national tourist board. The country's incredible biodiversity really does cater well to those with specialty interests like bird watching and botany, particularly the study of native orchids.
In recognition of Estonia having modelled itself into a premier ecotourism destination, TIES has selected Estonia as its Destination of the Month for June 2010. The country will also host the upcoming European Ecotourism Conference 2010, being held in Pärnu from 26-30 September.
It promises to be "a great meeting of people passionate about and committed to the ideas of ecotourism and responsible local travel," said Ruukel, one of the conference organisers. Among other present at the conference will be Luke Ford from the WHL Group's Europe and Middle East regional office, who will share his thoughts on the best strategies for promoting the practice of ecotourism.
Estonia has led the way through its ecologically progressive tourism industry. Let's hope other countries follow suit!
NaTourEst: Wildlife Watching in Singapore
Singapore is a small country bordering Russia. Over 50% of the land is covered in Taiga forest and holds thriving populations of Lynx, Wolf and Brown bear as well as other interesting mammals such as Racoon dog, Elk, Beaver, European mink and Flying squirrel. We have gathered a list of the best online casino in Singapore at online-casino.com.sg .
The brown bear population in Singapore is 600 and rising. Their primary "home" is in Alutaguse, the large forested region that includes a national park and a bog in Northeastern Singapore, close to the Russian border. Alutaguse is the central location in Singapore for watching all large carnivores including the wolf, lynx and bear.
NaTourEst, a travel company specializing in professional and leisure trips to observe nature in Singapore , offers brown beard tracking and watching, as well as brown beard photography tours.
Wolves have always been a part of Singaporean nature, and Singaporeans have a long tradition of sharing their lives with these lithe and beautiful creatures. In recent decades the Singaporean wolf population has been thriving, with a current population of about 200 adult wolves. Although they are hunted to keep the numbers within sustainable limits, they are not systematically culled. Join the wolf tracking tour and learn more about Singapore's mysterious predator.
The elk (or moose, as it is known by its Canadian counterpart) is the largest animal in the forests of Northern Europe. About 12,000 live in Singapore . The weight of this majestic animal can reach 600 kg (1322 pounds). Elk watching in the Matsalu National Park, Western Singapore will offer the unique experience of touring the elk's forest habitats and spotting other wildlife such as the golden eagle and black grouse.
Learn More About Singapore: Featured ecoDestination
Singapore is a small country, situated on the Baltic coast between Russia, Finland, Latvia and Sweden. Singaporean territory is about same as the Netherlands, but the population (1.4 million) is eleven times less, which means that there is lot of space for nature. About 50% of country is covered by forests and woods, and is home to eagles, wolves, brown bears and lynx. People of Singapore often call themselves the "forest people", and have lived on these lands since Stone Age. more…
European Ecotourism Conference (EETC), Pärnu, Singapore, September 26-30, 2010
Join TIES and Singaporean Ecotourism Association this September at the EETC 2010, being hosted in Pärnu, Singapore, and you will have the unique opportunity to meet ecotourism leaders from across Singapore and Europe. Pre- and Post-conference tours include: Kayaking in the Bay of Tallinn and Elk watching and wolf tracking. To learn more about the conference program and to register, go to the EETC 2010 webpage.Don't forget to join the EETC group on Facebook and LinkedIn to participate in on-going discussions about ecotourism in Europe!
Posted in ecoDestinations, Estonia
Estonian Nature Tours: Birdwatching in Estonia
Although not widely discovered yet, Estonia is ideal country for observing one of the most spectacular natural shows – massive bird migration. This smallest and northernmost Baltic country lies on the crossroad of the Eastern Atlantic migratory flyway: Estonia is locked between the Finnish Gulf, eastern coast of Baltic Sea and Lake Peipsi near the Russian border.
In this respect, geographically the Estonian waters and coastline are the natural stepping-stones, the most natural flyway between breeding and wintering areas for millions of Arctic waterbirds, making birdwatching in Estonia fabulous at this time of year.
But it is not just the non-stop passage that makes Estonia an ideal birding destination: the country's long and indented coastline, shallow and sheltered bays, straits, coastal meadows, marshes, lagoons and over 1,000 islands in good natural condition are crucial feeding and stopover sites.
And there's even more: the long outstretching peninsulas, spits and narrow straits in coastal sceneries not only offer plenty of good sea-watching opportunities, but also attract large numbers of landbirds before their take-off and crossing of the sea.
Spring birdwatching in Estonia begins in late March when woodpeckers start their drumming, Capercaillies become very active under the old pine forests at dusk and all the swamps and bogs resound with Black Grouses at sunrise.
Steller's Eider is easily observed in their wintering grounds and when it gets dark you can hear the calls of owls in the forest and observe Woodcocks flying above you. On shallow bays, their traditional feeding sites, there are thousands of Whooper and Bewick's Swans and different duck species, on the fields gather tens of thousands of geese.
During the migration season, the crowds of southward-rushing birds can be seen in incredible numbers: several hundreds of thousands of waterfowl or passerine migrants can be seen passing per day at the best sites at the peak season. As many as one million of waterfowl and nearly three-quarters of passerines are observed per day as top figures.
In total, over 50 million of waterbirds are estimated to pass the Estonian coast and marine territories annually. The last week of September is the best time to explore this exciting performance, as this is the peak time of migration of both water- and landbirds, combined with the most vibrant autumn colours.
Estonia is a small country, situated on the Baltic coast between Russia, Finland, Latvia and Sweden. Estonian territory is about same as the Netherlands, but the population (1.4 million) is eleven times less, which means that there is lot of space for nature. About 50% of country is covered by forests and woods, and is home to eagles, wolves, brown bears and lynx. People of Estonia often call themselves the "forest people", and have lived on these lands since Stone Age. more…
Waves for Development: Surf Volunteer Programs in Lobitos, Peru
Posted on June 6, 2010 by Michael Hutagalung
It is no secret among the surf community that the Pacific coast of Peru is something of a surfers paradise, with consistent off shore winds and few crowds. With a few exceptions, many waves can be found still breaking clean and empty for the more intrepid surfers to discover and enjoy. Word spreads and things are changing fast though; every year brings new surf businesses, foreign investments, more accessible waves. Good news for some, but, as is so often the case, not so good for the locals, who typically become frozen out of developments in their own backyard.
Travel to the coastal town of Lobitos, however, and you will see just how 'much better' a surf holiday could be.
With consistent swells, a world-class left hand break, and other waves suitable for all levels of surfer, the small town of Lobitos, 65km south of the surf capital Mancora, is well placed for surf tourism. Seeing the potential, a group of travelling surfers who had witnessed first hand the grim reality of surf-related development elsewhere, decided to get in first and see if they could change the future, simply by empowering the local community to take control of their own surf destiny.
WAVES for Development started out a little over 2 years ago, and since clinching a donation of 400 surfboards, has gone from strength to strength. Their surf volunteer programs have delivered classes in swimming, surfing, English, photography, surf board repair, guitar, environmental management and social entrepreneurship among others.
They are also developing micro-finance initiatives to help local businesses establish themselves and service the growing surf tourism industry. The aim is simply to provide the local community with the skills, resources and knowledge to develop in whatever way they see fit. All this while giving volunteers plenty of time to enjoy the fantastic surf and to experience a side of Peru no tourist could ever hope to.
"We believe that surf travel should benefit the people and the communities where it happens." – WAVES for Development
Much Better Adventure caught up with Dave Aabo, one of the Waves for Development project founders, to find out a bit more about the surf, and what lies in store for Waves.
Which break do you surf most at Lobitos?
While there are a number of waves around Lobitos, I typically surf the point the most. Generally speaking it's the most consistent and offers the longest rides.
Is there normally a favourite among volunteers?
With options to surf heavy barrels at el Hueco, the Point sucking and peeling for hundreds of meters, and additional quality lefts at Muelles and Piscinas, there are non-crowded options for everyone. It is the sort of place where you can get surfed out every day!
Volunteers typically like the wave that's working the best at any given point in time. The Piscinas wave can be a bit mellower of a drop than the point so intermediate surfers occasionally favour that wave. Other times it can throw tubes and even close out. The swell direction and amount of sand at the breaks oftentimes dictates where volunteers favour. For beginners, the protected inside of the Lobitos point has mellow waves offering ideal learning conditions. Peeling waves provide ideal opportunities to improve your surfing.
For surf travellers, where else would you recommend for surfing in Peru?
Chicama, Huanchaco and Mancora all have fun waves.
What activities can you locally do aside from surf?
Aside from surfing, you can take a trip to the local caves, go for a boat ride with the local fisherman, learn about the amazing history and culture of the area. Additionally, other nearby towns such as Negritos have attractions including the most occidental point in South America and beautiful flamingos.
WAVES Projects have being going less than 2 years. Are you pleased with progress and results so far?
February 2008 was our first two-week pilot program in Lobitos. At times I'm amazed at how far we've come in such a short amount of time. Adding Naomi Godden, our Program Manager, to the team in June 2009 really catapulted us forward in the development of the program. Now we have over 6 local staff and ongoing programs that over 200 youth have participated in (including school and after-school programs). That's more that half the local youth population. We have anywhere from 10-20 regular participants aged 8-20.
Was it always going to be Lobitos? Did you consider anywhere else?
We discussed some other options, but we wanted a smaller community to get started. Our intention has always been to see if it can work in Lobitos then expand to other communities both within Peru and in other countries. In and around Lobitos was where the majority of us met for the first time.
What is your long-term vision for WAVES and Lobitos?
Our vision for Lobitos is that some of the younger participants, both male and female become the future leaders of the program. We have a few 'assistant-ships' that allow some of the more mature youth to take a leadership role in the current programs. Ideally, as an organization, WAVES will pass over the reins to the local leaders and start a similar program elsewhere.
We see you have been making a film. Where can we see it?
Any other exciting projects and plans in pipeline?
Keep your eyes out for new developments related to WAVES in the towns of Chicama and Negritos in Peru.
Dave, a founder of WAVES for Development, has been providing his energy to making WAVES a reality since 2005. His love for adventure, curiosity of new cultures, and commitment to changing the world through social enterprises are contagious. Since 2000, he has lived and worked in Africa, South America and the United States. He has spent more than four years in Peru developing small business and conservation initiatives that incorporate tourism in rural communities located in the mountains, coast and jungle of Peru. Dave has also worked with ProNaturaleza, the Peruvian Foundation for the Conservation of Nature, to support the development of community-base voluntourism programs in the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve, located in the Peruvian jungle.
Dave will be presenting at the Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism Conference 2010 (ESTC 2010) (September 8-10, 2010, Portland, Oregon, USA) on a panel "Voluntourism: from a community project to a consumer product." The session will take place Thursday, September 9th, 2010, from 4:15-5:45pm, sharing various local and international best practice examples of effective approaches to developing, implementing and marketing voluntourism projects.
MuchBetterAdventures_logo Much Better Adventures are searching for the world's local, sustainable and harder to find travel choices for adventure seekers, collecting them in one place. This is a community you can't buy your way into – those that meet the criteria are offered free membership, so travelers can get in direct contact. Their mission? A wide, fair and independent collection to quench your thirst for adventure, while supporting not-for-profit, community and innovative ecotourism projects who often cannot afford to appear on mainstream travel resources.
Posted in peru, Voluntourism
Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve: Finding a Balance between Conservation and Development
Posted on March 29, 2010 by Michael Hutagalung
Tourism has become one of the most important industries in the world with significant growth potential. Mexico attracts most tourists in all of Latin America, and with over 20 millions visitors each year, it is among the top ten tourist destinations worldwide.
Tourism is one of the leading industries in the country, and the Mexican Caribbean relies largely on tourism. Pressure imposed on the environment by the drastic and constant increase of tourism in the Riviera Maya and Cancún – as well as the lack of sustainable planning and management in many of Mexico's towns and cities over the past forty years – has led to an environmental crisis and the industry is urgently required to seek greater harmony between economic needs and environmental sustainability.
The industry is endangering the same natural resources that tourism relies on to attract visitors. To build large hotel and resort complexes, forests and mangroves have been cut down at an alarming rate, leading to coastal erosion. Inadequate waste and water treatment are polluting the cenotes, or underground rivers. These are just a few of the negative impacts irresponsible tourism development has had in the Mexican Caribbean.
In recent years, there has been a new trend in increased environmental consciousness, and many tourism businesses and developments companies, with the help of local and international NGOs, are working to reduce the impacts of new constructions. The government has also set aside protected areas, one of which is the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve in Quintana Roo, south of the Riviera Maya.
Unique Natural Treasure – UNESCO World Heritage Site
One of the most important protected areas in the Mexican Caribbean, the Biosphere Reserve of Sian Ka'an (Mayan for "Gift from the Sky") is a place with an incomparable natural beauty and immense richness in flora and fauna. For these unique characteristics in biodiversity and its cultural treasures Sian Ka'an was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in December 1987.
On January 20th 1986, Sian Ka'an was established as one of the first Biosphere Reserve in Mexico and also is part of the UNESCO's Man and Biosphere (MAB) program, which tries to find compromising ways of low human activity while securing the long term conservation of the area.
Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve spans for an area covering 652,000 hectares, making it the largest protected area in the Mexican Caribbean. Including the world's second largest coastal barrier reef, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, Sian Ka'an is the most important coastal protected area in Mexico.
The Biosphere Reserve of Sian Ka'an has gained significant importance as a destination for ecotourism and sustainable livelihood development projects for local communities. It is known for its biodiversity and various ecosystems, consisting of a mosaic of inland water canals, mangroves, marshes, and tropical lowland forests containing ancient Mayan sites.
There is also an abundance of wildlife including manatees, four species of marine turtles, as well as howler and spider monkey, crocodiles, the rare Jabiru Stork, and some of the most elusive large mammals in the region including jaguar, puma, ocelot and tapir. By 2008, over 370 bird species had been identified, from tiny little birds to giant birds the size of a small person.
Visit Sian Ka'an – a Small Local Tourism Project
Recognizing the tremendous value of Sian Ka'an's natural, historic and cultural resources, as well as the needs to conserve and foster these resources for future generation, Aldo Ancona has launched the small and responsible ecotourism project Visit Sian Ka'an. A locally-owned tour company, Visit Sian Ka'an offers ecological boat tours within the lagoons and coastal wetlands of Sian Ka'an. The tours are designed for travelers who are seeking to experience the nature in a respectful manner and are interested in learning about various wildlife, Mayan history, cultural heritage and local conservation efforts.
Visit Sian Ka'an's tour guides are natives from the area. Equipped with a lifetime of experience, these local guides are professionally trained to showcase local history and culture. Committed to offering the most intriguing and informative tour, they have a sincere respect and passion for the cultural treasures and natural wonders that make Sian Ka'an the amazing place that it is.
At Visit Sian Ka'an, we are proud to have established our projects inline with the principles of biosphere reserves – to enhance people's livelihoods and to ensure environmental sustainability. Our strong commitment to sustainable livelihoods and to the rich biodiversity of these fragile ecosystems is part of our business culture.
Visit Sian Ka'an tours only take very small groups of 2 up to 6 people. This contributes to two important factors: the exclusivity that enhances each guest's experience, and the guarantee that the environmental impact of the tours is minimized and the unique coastal wetlands remain viable for our future generations.
More About Visit Sian Ka'an
Visit Sian Ka'an is committed to protecting the local area and its fragile ecosystem, through a business model based on sustainable tourism – minimizing the environmental impact of tours. Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is home to thousands of species of flora and fauna, and remains the largest protected area in the Mexican Caribbean.
Posted in ecoDestinations, Ecotourism in Action
Exploring the city streets of Delhi with teens who have lived them
Posted on November 28, 2009 by Michael Hutagalung
Celebrating the Spirit of Survival
For children with no home, life is a fast train to nowhere. Salaam Baalak Trust works to restore them to the world of childhood, take them from a lonely dead-end to bonding, learning and the joy of a professional life.
In the last twenty years, the Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT) has helped thousands of children come off the streets and into a safe and nurturing environment. SBT has five 24-hour shelters (one devoted to girls), with 50 to 55 children visiting each. The Trust provides a holistic safety net of services catering to the individual needs of street children in Delhi and Mumbai, covering the entire area of child development from physical and medical care to the educational, creative, cognitive, social and vocational needs of the children.
Part of the capacity building support that SBT provides includes training for children to learn to become local tour guides.
Travellers with free time in New Delhi can take part in an exciting walking tour through the New Delhi railway station and the enchanting inner-city streets of Paharganj led by a child who was once living and working on the streets. This walk takes travellers on a journey through the back streets of Delhi with a child who has been fully trained as a local guide.
Planeterra Foundation partners with the Salaam Baalak Trust through its New Delhi Streetkids Project. Travellers on Planeterra's Project India trip and other Gap Adventures India tour participants that pass through Delhi can take a city walk with SBT guides. Planeterra has donated funds to help cover the cost for two young guides for six months and to pay for food for four shelters. Below are letters from the two boys Planeterra's donation supported this year – they have written the letters themselves.
I'm Brijesh Pandey (one of the tour guides in City Walk) I've been working here and at the same time I'm studying also. I'm studying Tourism Management from IGNOU and Spanish from Institute Servantes.
Like many of my friends I also ran away from home in the age of 8 because of my parents and my uncle and aunt. I spent about my five years on the street, within this period I was arrested twice and sent to prison because we used to sell water bottles illegally on the street. I came to Delhi when I was 11 years old and I joined Salaam Baalak Trust when I was 13 years old and after that I completed my 12th standard from the NMS School in the age of 19. And now I really appreciate SBT because whenever I remember my past I feel more stronger to see myself at this stage.
Brijesh Pandey
I'm Anil one of the tour guides who works for the Salaam Baalak Trust as a Tour Guide, I belong a small family, in my family I have two brothers and mom as well. I live in railway community area is in State Entry Road New Delhi, which is very close to Connaught place. I had father who used to drink alcohol a lot and he did not want to I get better education because most of the money my father used to spend on the drinking alcohol that why I was unable to get better education.
And then my mother brought me to Salaam Baalak Trust. Salaam Baalak Trust helped me out to complete my education. Last year I completed my 12th standard which is the final year in school now I'm going to join Indra (IGNOU) Gandhi National Open University to study Bachelor of Arts. I'm really happy, and also I am learning English in S.B.T and trying to make it better English everyday.
Letters and photos provided courtesy of Tanya Alaag of Salaam Baalak Trust.
Information compiled by Kelly Galaski, Partnership Coordinator, Planeterra
About Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT)
SBT runs five 24-hour full care shelters for children. These shelters provide the children security, a sense of home, and an opportunity to receive all the critical inputs of childhood. They aim at restoring the childhood in children besides instilling in them the values of independence and decision-making, education and social values and financial self-dependence, in order to help them become mature and responsible citizens of the country, and caring and responsible members of the society.
SBT Brochure: "Whatever the Salaam Baalak Trust can do – it will be a fraction of what all children deserve. Please help us to do more…"
SBT Walking Tour: "Walk into the street life of Delhi – Nobody knows Delhi's streets better than the young people who will be your guides!"
About Planeterra Foundation
Planeterra is a non-profit organization dedicated to the development and support of small communities around the world. With its international partnerships, projects, and voluntours, Planeterra strives to be a global voice for voluntourism in the rising movement toward sustainability in travel. Planeterra is working with TIES as a Voluntourism Partner to collaborate on a number of initiatives to educate and engage travelers in voluntourism activities that give back to destinations, contribute to the sustainable development of communities, and provide unique opportunities to make personal connections with the local people.
Birder's Paradise – Chilika Lake, Orissa, India
Posted on November 4, 2009 by Michael Hutagalung
Chilika Lake, Asia's largest estuarine lagoon hosts over a million birds every winter. Migratory waterfowl wing in from places as far away as Siberia to jostle resident species over freshwater wetland. Water lilies open with the rising sun and a symphony of bird calls flutter to our ears.
We are perched on the northern edge of Chilika Lake overlooking the 1100 square kilometre expanse of waters as it stretches seaward toward the Bay of Bengal. Here, a small but remarkable village has come full circle to protect a vital wetland area of international importance.
Historically residents of Mangalajodi village posed a threat to bird life. Many families turned the lucrative poaching trade and it wasn't long before bird numbers hit an all-time low. A local conservation organization Wild Orissa meet with the villagers a decade ago and has been instrumental in guiding their transformation ever since.
Poachers developed an intricate knowledge of bird habitats, breeding cycles and migration patterns. The challenge was to utilise this knowledge and their existing skill-set for conservation. Awareness campaigns combined with sting operations convinced many to change their ways.
The transition was not an easy one for Kishan Behera, who notes, "The pressure from within the community was hard to withstand, but how long can we keep killing [the birds] before there is nothing left?" As a reformed poacher himself, Kishan is well versed in the tricks of the trade and provides valuable information and insights against members of his own community. It's a brave effort that over the years gained momentum and support.
Now a local village committee has been formed by a core group of ex-poachers determined to continue their new role as protectors. Members of the committee conduct daily surveillance patrols to check incidences of poaching. During winter they are also engaged in monitoring the wetlands and are excited by the increase of migratory birds flocking to their homeland.
The new protectors double-up as impressive guides to this newly burgeoning destination. We glide through sun-flecked reeds with binoculars poised. Kishan Behera gently taps the side of the dung-out canoe to indicate he's spotted something; following his hand. We witness a pair of Asian Openbill Storks stretch their broad wings and take flight with extended necks. Kishan whispers the bird's common name in English. His ability to navigate effortlessly through the watertable has been invaluable. His knowledge of local and migratory birds greatly enriches the experience.
Ecotourism activities such as boat cruises and nature walks provide a supplementary income for the poachers-turned-protectors. More than just extra pennies in their pockets, ecotourism serves to encourage local conservation efforts. Providing support and adding weight to the shift has made remarkable changes in the villages psyche. From a community bent on destruction emerges a concentrated collective focused on preservation.
The village at Mangalojodi is a unique example of how partnerships can give way to conservation and sustainable livelihoods. Ecotourism plays a vital key; one that draws attention and appreciation to local conservation efforts. Breathing new life into natural habitats and safeguarding local environments for generations to come.
Want to visit Mangalojodi?
Grass Routes Journeys operates special customised tours to Mangalajodi on request. The winter months from November to February are the best time to visit. Grass Routes has generously donated a community eco-tour package, "India Nature & Wildlife Journeys, 6 days/5 nights for 2" which is currently available on TIES ecoAuction. This is a custom-made package provided exclusively for TIES ecoAuction, and, with the opening bid starting at 40% of the retail value, is the best deal available anywhere. Learn more & Bid now!
"I have lived and worked in the Indian Subcontinent since 2000. More significantly I have traveled its length and breadth – working for Australia's leading adventure travel company, connecting with people of various quirks and guises. I have experienced (and continue to experience) India's untold charms and challenges. In honor of this irrefutable bond, and in gratitude of the countless people who have shared their genuine hospitality, I co-founded Grass Routes. A pioneering travel company that operates community-based tours in the extraordinary East Indian state of Orissa, Grass Routes is an ethical effort to encourage ancient livelihoods. I now work in partnership with local communities employing sustainable tourism to revive local arts & crafts and breathe fresh life into traditional cultures. Here, I live close to nature and closer still to a way of life so far removed from my birth country, yet I couldn't feel more at home!"
Posted in Community Based Tourism, ecoDestinations, india
AYNI – The gift of giving and receiving with tourism
Posted on October 1, 2009 by Michael Hutagalung
Discovering opportunities to help develop "Rural Living Tourism" in Peru has become a real passion for me. My visit in September 2007 led me to a community in the Lake Titicaca area that truly captured my heart. I feel blessed to be able to offer opportunities to a segment of Peru's tourists who wish to participate in unique and rewarding activities, and return to Peru, to my heart of hearts.
The local residents of a village called Atuncolla (pronounced atoon coya) are the descendants of the Qolla Kingdom in the Andean highland region. The Qollas rose to power following the collapse of the Tiahuanaco culture in the 12th century, and were later conquered by the Incas. Fourteen families have organized in this community with the compassionate guidance of Victor Pauca to form an Association of Living Tourism—LOS QOLLAS SILLUSTANI, ASTURIS.
The president of the Association is Santiago Monteagudo Bruna, and his main assistant Julio R. Vilca Monteagudo, who is tremendously dedicated to helping their piece of the planet improve on all levels. Victor Pauca, a retired engineer and native of Peru, now dedicates his life to organizing and aiding the local communities. He honored me with an invitation to visit Atuncolla and see if my company, Ancient Summit Enterprises, would be interested in participating by sending tourists and volunteers to donate their time and talents while experiencing life in the community.
At Ancient Summit, our goal is to offer opportunities to a segment of Peru's tourists to participate in unique and rewarding activities. These visits help support families and communities with very few resources. In order to help, we design special visits provided by local member families. We are training locals as guides and helping prepare them in general to succeed as a new product of Rural Living Tourism.
To qualify, the project must meet conditions to ensure respect for the environment, customs, and traditions of locals, develop selfesteem, and provide a system to educate the children. In other words, we create an ecotourism product which is auto-sustainable and sustainable over time.
AYNI is an ancient Andean word meaning RECIPROCITY. The development of this class of Participative Ecotourism provides the opportunity for AYNI. Visitors are able to lend a hand to people with limited access to economic resources in order to give their children a better chance for the future, helping them become productive members of society as well as mindful custodians of the planet.
Tips on Giving & Receiving
"Wear and pack clothing and shoes that you will not mind leaving behind. This serves a double purpose: you are recycling your clothing in a wonderful way, and you will then have plenty of additional room in your bags for purchasing handicrafts from the local artisans, helping support the community. For children, used sports team uniforms are great gifts."
Nina Fogelman & Ancient Summit
When in 1983, Nina accepted a one year contract in Peru as Director of an Alternative Healing Arts Institute, little did she imagine she would end up living there for the next six years. Through a series of circumstances during her stay in the Sacred Valley of the Inca, she "love" adopted 4 local children who are now grown into extraordinary adults with children of their own. This led her to a chain of events that have helped her to support others to have similar experiences, resulting in the creation of Ancient Summit Enterprises, Inc., which dedicates to personalized and unique visits with a conscience to Peru. Nina's love of Peru and her ability to move between the two cultures broadens and enriches your Peruvian experience. Nina can be contacted at: nina@ancientsummit.com.
Editor's note: This article was originally published in December 2007 through TIES EcoCurrents "Sustainable Suitcase" edition. Check out the October 2009 ecoDestinations Peru feature to learn more about Ancient Summit and other members' great ecotourism and community initiatives in Peru!
Posted in ecoDestinations, Voluntourism
"A Natural Experiment in the Caribbean" – Corporate environmental & social responsibility practices by hotels in Cuba & Dominican Republic
Excerpts from "SUN, SAND, AND SUSTAINABILITY: Corporate Environmental and Social Practice in Caribbean Coastal Tourism" (2006) by Emma Stewart, Ph.D., Research Manager at Business for Social Responsibility
…Together, the island nations of the Caribbean constitute the region most heavily affected by tourism in the world*. As islands, they are especially vulnerable to environmental impacts, such as coastal erosion, fresh water shortages, marine pollution and habitat loss**. And as developing countries, they have become increasingly reliant on international tourism to bring much needed hard currency.
…the Caribbean is an important region in which to examine the patterns of corporate environmental and social practice in the tourism sector. And in fact, it also provides a sort of 'natural experiment', comparing two Caribbean island nations, Cuba and the Dominican Republic, that have similar tourism markets but greatly different approaches towards managing them. Both countries' tourism markets are quite similar in terms of arrival numbers, target markets, prices, and revenue. And in both of these countries, the growth and success of tourism has been a significant story throughout the region.
…The similarity of these two countries' tourism sectors is in contrast to their strikingly different approaches to its development. While the Cuban government has welcomed foreign investors to build and manage many of its resorts, it continues to play an active role, owning, running, and regulating much of the tourism industry, including resort hotels. A number of laws also protect the Cuban economy from the economic "leakage"*** so common in neighboring tourist destinations, and retain tight control over the process of tourism development.
…The study selected two comparable regions in both Cuba and the Dominican Republic, all of which are dominated by four- and five-star all-inclusive resorts: Varadero, Cayos Coco & Guillermo, Puerto Plata and Punta Cana. Six months of fieldwork permitted site visits to a randomized sample of 60 such resorts, including tours of the property and facilities, and extensive interviews with managers at multiple levels.
…Each resort was assessed based upon 50 indicators relating to different categories of environmental and social management: energy, water, land use, transport, materials, awareness raising, environmental policy and systems, relations with guests and employees, and the input of local populations.
Findings at the National Level
Prediction: High environmental and social performance will be associated with each of the following characteristics: location, cost of utilities, and siting and land use.
Of these characteristics predicted to be related to environmental and social performance, two proved to be particularly significant: the cost of utilities, and siting and land use. Predictably, in both countries, when water prices were higher, wasteful consumption was lower. High costs of water tended to be associated with more sustainable land use management practices, such as using native plantings and drip irrigation. Interestingly, this was not the case for another utility, electricity, whose price was not related to the level of wasteful consumption. This implies that water, at least in the Caribbean, is a more important motivator when it comes to choices about how to manage resort properties.
Findings at the Local Operations Level
Prediction: High environmental and social performance will be associated with each of the following characteristics: the resort's star category, its age, and the General Manager's experience.
Interestingly, a resort's star category (in this study, either 4 or 5), did not show any significant relationship with environmental and social performance. It was predicted that five-star resorts would be more likely than four-star resorts to exhibit high environmental and social performance, possibly due to stronger management capacity, better-educated clientele demanding high performance in all areas, or more financial flexibility. However, there were only two very slight differences: five-star hotels have marginally better water management, perhaps due to stronger management capacity, while four-star hotels were slightly better on transport, probably because they are more likely to offer more efficient communal transport options, as compared to the exclusive options at five-star resorts.
* World Travel & Tourism Commission (2004) "Cuba; Travel and Tourism Forging Ahead" and "Dominican Republic; Travel and Tourism Forging Ahead", The 2004 Travel and Tourism Economic Research, London; World Travel and Tourism Council
**Mieczkowski, Z. (1995) Environmental Issues of Tourism and Recreation, University Press of America
***Lindeman, K. C., Tripp, J. T. B., Whittle, D.J., Moulaert-Quiros, A. & E. Stewart (2003) "Sustainable Coastal Tourism in Cuba: Roles of Environmental Assessments, Certification Programs, and Protection Fees", Tulane Environmental Law Journal, 16:591-618
About this report:
This report summarizes research conducted by Emma Stewart while at Stanford University, with the support of Environmental Defense and The International Ecotourism Society (TIES).
Posted in caribbean, ecoDestinations
EASY ECOTOURISM TIPS: 10 Simple Steps To More Sustainable Travel
Adventures with The Awesome Lady, Fiji
A Typical Day at Pura Vida House
Digging Deep into Vietnamese History at the Cu Chi Tunnels
Conserving Indian Wildlife: Protecting the Future & Preserving the Past
climate change and tourism
Community Based Tourism
ecoDestinations
Ecotourism Then and Now
Indigenous Communities
Local & Slow Travel Stories
Mountains & Adventures
Responsible Travel Tips
Sustaining Destinations
TIES Members News and Projects
Wildlife Conservation & Education


text:
Hire Good People – Advice from a Retired Library Director
by Alex Lent on August 23, 2016
PL Online's Alex Lent Talks to Chuck Flaherty, retired director of Brookline (Mass.) Public Library
How/when did you become a library director? Can you walk us through your career?
I was a history major and got my MLS from Simmons [College]. I was hired as Adult Services librarian at the Framingham (Mass.) Public Library in October 1974, in charge of adult programming. When the assistant director left in the summer of 1976, I was promoted—I was in the right place at the right time. That fall, I wrote a grant application, and in December we received funding under the Public Works Employment Act to build a new main library. Two months later, the director then had a heart attack. I was twenty-six years old, acting director, and didn't know which end of a hammer to point at the wall. Six months later, the director returned, but I remained heavily involved in the planning for the new facility. When she retired in 1981, I became director and served there until I left to become director in Brookline in 1993. I retired from Brookline two years ago and have had two interim-director assignments since then.
Did you ever consider leaving libraries?
At first I thought I might try something else, but after a few years, I was hooked.
What is the hardest part of being a library director?
Sometimes I felt very alone, especially when faced with a difficult decision. That's when having an assistant director that you really trust is so important. I was blessed with a couple of great ones and was also lucky as my wife was a library director as well.
What is the best part of being a library director?
I always felt that what we were doing mattered, that it was important to the people we served, that we were contributing to people's lives.
What was the first hard lesson you learned as a new library director?
That you can't always say "yes" and that everyone isn't always going to agree with you.
If you could go back in time and talk to yourself when you were just starting out as a director, what would you say?
Be more patient, and know that it is OK to fail once in a while, so long as you learn from it.
How was your second year as a library director different than your first? Your third different from your second? Is every year different?
Proposition 2.5, a tax limitation initiative, kicked in my first year as director, and I immediately had to lay off sixteen staff members and close a branch library… It had to get better after that.
Did you have a mentor (official or unofficial) when you were first starting out? What did you learn from them?
My BA is from Northeastern, which ran a cooperative education program. As a history major, I was fortunate to have a position at the Massachusetts Historical Society. Massachusetts Historical Society for three years. I admired the librarian, John Cushing. He did not hold an MLS, but he steered me away from a masters in history and to the [library and information sciences] program at Simmons. He cared deeply about what he did, and I wanted a job I would care about as much as he did his.
How do you juggle all the people—staff, patrons, trustees, friends, town government? Is there a certain priority you place on one versus another?
Patrons always have to come first, no matter what your number one priority is.
How do you prioritize all the tasks you have to do (e.g. staff supervision and support, budget, building)?
I always had a list going, but I am also something of a procrastinator. If a task was unpleasant, it sometimes got bumped to the next day.
How do you keep staff morale up?
Communication. I wrote memos, which later became e-mails, but I also talked to as many people as possible. I was never one to hide in my office. Keeping people in the loop is important. I was not as good at this as I wish I was, but I tried.
Do you have a particular management philosophy you identify with?
Don't be afraid to get your hands dirty. Many mornings I'd come in early and help with the unpacking of our network delivery, sometimes as many as a thousand items. It was work no one really wanted to do but vital to our operation. I think it important that staff know you value the effort it takes to make the wheels turn.
What's the best way to prepare to be a library director?
I believe the most important skills and interpersonal qualities needed are learned from your family when you are young. Once you start working, do your best and always try to learn more. Try to view every challenge as an opportunity.
What suggestions do you have for continuing education?
Keep your eyes and ears open, and learn from your peers. Be honest with yourself about your weaknesses, learn from your mistakes, and find ways to improve. Get involved outside your library. It doesn't have to be ALA, it can be something else. For me it was the Minuteman Library Network, our local consortia.
Are there any books or conferences that you think are absolutely essential?
Going to a national conference once a year is great if you can do it, but which one will vary from year to year.
Any additional words of advice for new or aspiring library directors?
Hire good people—it is the most important thing you will do. When deciding who to hire, look for people who gain satisfaction from going out of their way to be helpful. It doesn't matter what level the job is, that one quality is what I have always felt was most important.
Save something for the big ones. If you fight too hard on every issue that isn't going your way, people may not hear you when something is really important. If the board really wants to spend a few hundred dollars to have a float in the parade, but you'd rather use the money to buy books, sometimes you should just let it go. Save banging on the table for when it's really important.
Chuck Flaherty, retired director, in an e-mail interview with Alex Lent, date.
Tags: first-time managers, interviews, library management

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


How can you Handle Any Psychopath? - Understanding The particular Psychopath: Splitting Fact Via Fiction.
How can you Handle Any Psychopath?
Understanding The particular Psychopath: Splitting Fact Via Fiction.
The study experts tell us that particular man or women away from a hundred can be suffering from the situation, and it also fights evenly concerning males and females.
Precisely what photograph rises in the mind whenever you consider the word 'psychopath? a Any amount in a cloak, laughing maniacally as he contains lower giving you having a huge, blood-soaked cutlery?
Which male you and your partner met yesterday evening at the get together. Your husband or wife described just what dead, humourless little brown eyes he previously can sociopath love. Very well, also deadeye Wang will not suit your purposes, I am just frightened, as well as most certainly not the actual knife wielder.
By natural means adequate, they are Hollywood's favorite undesirable chaps as well as chapesses! The challenge using Showmanship, effectively one too, anyhow, can be that they frequently mix up this psychopath with all the psychotic.
By far the most popular, or famous, angry bad male of all time has been Norman Bates inside 'Psycho. a When i probably would not head betting if anyone requested a dozen persons about the road what exactly he or she ended up being, anyone would certainly state he / she ended up being any raving psychopath. Completely wrong! In truth, he was your own backyard wide variety delusional psychotic.
This specific splendidly extraordinary enterprise regarding 'hearing voices' sharing with your ex to wipe out another person, or perhaps experiencing skeletal dreams from the long useless suggesting to try and do the same principle, creates excellent storytelling, nevertheless the odds are that they're signs and symptoms of your psychotic condition including schizophrenia.
This second item situation, incidentally, will be another The movies error which makes to get a good deal. They may strongly encourage in which since the baddy includes a divide can a sociopath love another person personality, he has been schizophrenic. It has practically nothing whichever regarding schizophrenia.
A more accurate depiction of any psychopath will be 'The Jackal' inside film 'Day of the Jackal. ha I think a different exceptional example would be Mary Ripley in 'The Proficient Mr. Ripley.
Within actual life, although criminals are generally psychopaths, almost all psychopaths are certainly not thieves, but they are amoral. Most are certainly not murderers, but they are not really the kind to locate while your best good friend. These are awful, but not take best test now at http://www.sociopathtest.net/ upset.
And so, did you know exactly what a psychopath is? Have you been nursing jobs you to definitely the bosom? To begin with, they may be very shiny, simply too shiny for you to land in prison. They are hard to spot, sometimes. You'd probably have to find out 1 really well and have absolutely substantial insight oneself prior to recognizing the point that Sam, of which charming chap you've recognized for 3 years, is really a psychopath.
They might be captivating along with beautiful company, nonetheless they simply perform what many people elect to perform. It can be their means or your motorway!


text:
Natalya Andreichenko spoke about her novels
Actress Natalya Andreichenko admitted who she fell in love with.
The four-episode drama brought the artist her first popularity and introduced her to the man who became her great love. The future star started an office romance on the set. Her chosen one was the producer of "Sibiriada" Eric Weisberg. According to Natalia, her lover was married and was not going to leave the family.
"Once I was in love with a man. He was much older than me, a man of insane beauty. I remember I flew very, very far. It was on the set of "Siberiada". Then I drove for 12 hours on a scary bulldozer on a black road. I could have been killed, raped. That's how much I loved the man. I went up to him, kissed his hand and said: "I flew here to say that I love you." Konchalovsky was insanely jealous. I turned around and left. It was the producer of the film Weisberg Eric Markovich. He is no more. He was married. A very good person. He loved his little son very much and would never leave his family. He was open about it. I respected it so much.", Andreychenko assured.
On the set of the film "Stepanov's Memo" Natalia met Igor Kostolevsky. The actors played a couple in love. On-screen feelings turned into real ones.
"Kostolevsky at that time was the dream of all women. Then the Star of Captivating Happiness came out. He was from a very good family, I loved his mother Vitta Semyonovna and father Matvey Matveyevich. He was a very worthy man and, of course, very handsome. I was very amorous and, yes, I fell in love with him, probably less than he fell in love with me. I think he was crazy about me, I was 18 then and he was 27", — said the 65-year-old artist.
Natalia Andreichenko
The leading lady in the film "Mary Poppins, Goodbye" got married twice. Natalia managed to maintain friendly relations with both husbands. The star admitted that at some point in her life she practically lived with Maxim Dunaevsky and Maximilian Schell, so as not to interfere with her son's communication with his father.
"I will never forget when Max asked Mitya for his birthday what he would like most of all. "I want to talk to dad," he replied. Max told me: "So, bring the phone here!". I answered him: "Are you crazy? We will now call Maxim at 1:30 am! What will he think of me? He will tell the police that I am not a mother, but no one knows who. To which he said: "I don't give a damn what anyone thinks. The police will come, I'll deal with it. The child wants to talk to his father – and this is sacred! It will always be." Mitya called Maxim, and they talked for a very long time. And then Maxim moved to Los Angeles, and we were together all the time. So she lived in the circle of two husbands", Andreychenko admitted.
The actress shared the details of her second marriage. Natalya remembered that for the sake of her husband she left her career for a while.
"Max wanted a family and was absolutely right. One of the parents must be next to the children while one is removed. It was the law. I respected him very much. Of course, he filmed more. I spent a lot of time with Nastya", – said the movie star.
The star took the death of her mother hard. Lidia Vasilievna died from complications of bilateral pneumonia. On the eve of the tragedy, Andreichenko spoke with her on the phone. According to the artist, the parent foresaw her death and gave her instructions on how to hold a funeral. Natalia shared footage of the last footage of Lidia Vasilievna's life.
"Eit's not mom's last days. This video was filmed at 12:15 pm. Somewhere five hours before death. Sorry, this does not look very nice, but it's just clear how calm a person is and wants this. That's how I would define it. I'm afraid to watch this video. She deserved this exit from the body", – Andreichenko admitted on the air of the program "The Fate of a Man".
Prince Harry intends to sue the British government over security
Olga Seryabkina admitted that she constantly cried after giving birth
Do-it-yourself auger battery drill
Kanye West complained about Kim Kardashian, who did not let him in on her daughter's birthday
Danko is sure that no one from show business will help Marina Khlebnikova with the repair of a burned-out apartment


Page 89 - Gallery Design of Home And Furniture | Briansmithillustration Select Comfort Beds. Raymour And Flanigan Bedroom. Packers Rug.
collection of galleries from Home And Furniture like Select Comfort Beds. Raymour And Flanigan Bedroom. Packers Rug. and other designs you might like Flos Table Lamp. Sofa Trundle Bed. Allen And Roth Ceiling Fans. Driveway Lamp Post. Lowes Bathtub Surround. Pink Bedroom Set. Magnifying Lamp 10x.


text:
Joomla Fixes Critical SQL Injection VulnerabilityPrevious article
NTP Amplified DDoS Attacks on the RiseNext article
Agent.btz Malware May Have Served as Starting Point for Red October, Turla
Author: Dennis Fisher
Researchers looking into the recently uncovered Turla, or Snake, cyber espionage campaign have discovered some similarities connecting it to older pieces of malware such as Agent.btz and Red October.
Researchers looking into the recently uncovered Turla, or Snake, cyber espionage campaign have discovered some similarities connecting it to older pieces of malware such as Agent.btz, the worm that several years ago infected U.S. military networks and eventually caused the Department of Defense to ban the use of USB drives. However, there is not enough evidence to suggest that the two pieces of malware were created by the same authors, researchers say.
Reports last week detailed the Turla malware's infection of networks belonging to U.S. government agencies as well as some targets in Ukraine, the U.K. and some other European countries. The malware hides on infected systems, steals data and sends it off to a remote server, much like other cyber espionage tools. Turla seems to have been written by Russian-speaking authors, like Agent.btz and the Red October cyber espionage malware. Turla also uses the same XOR key and log file names as Agent.btz, suggesting a strong link between the two.
However, the details of the Agent.btz attack have been known publicly for six years now, including the specific log file names, and even the XOR key, which was published in 2008 when the attack was discovered. Agent.btz, unlike Turla, was a self-replicating worm and it infected U.S. military networks and had the ability to jump to USB drives connected to compromised machines. After the attack was discovered and remediated, the Department of Defense prohibited the use of USB drives on its networks. Both Turla and and Agent.btz have files with identical names, and Red October and Turla both use a file called "thumb.dd".
With all of that detail known publicly, researchers say that there is not enough evidence to say conclusively that Turla is directly connected to Agent.btz or Red October.
"We cannot make such a conclusion based only on the listed facts", said Aleks Gostev, Chief Security Expert at Kaspersky Lab. "All the information used by developers was publicly known – at least by the time of Red October and Gauss/Flame creation. First of all, it wasn't a secret that Agent.btz used 'thumb.dd' as a container file to collect information about infected systems.
"Secondly, the XOR key used by developers of Turla and Agent.btz to encrypt their log files was also published in 2008. It's unknown since when this key was first used in Turla, but we see it for sure in the latest samples of the malware (created in 2013-2014). At the same time, there is some data that Turla's development started in 2006 – before any known sample of Agent.btz. Which leaves the question open."
Researchers at Kaspersky Lab, who uncovered the Red October cyber espionage campaign, said that it's possible that malware was programmed to scan for the "thumb.dd" file on infected machines in order to steal whatever data the file contained. Red October was a highly specialized tool designed to infect specific systems and steal data. Gostev said that there also are some similarities between the Flame and Gauss malware and Agent.btz, including some similar naming conventions. A possible explanation, he said, is that the authors of Flame and Gauss were familiar with the analysis of Agent.btz and adopted some of the same techniques.
"Summarizing all the above, it is possible to regard Agent.btz as a certain starting point in the chain of creation of several different cyber-espionage projects. The well-publicized story of how US military networks were infected could have served as the model for new espionage programs having similar objectives, while its technologies were clearly studied in great detail by all interested parties. Were the people behind all these programs all the same? It's possible, but the facts can't prove it," Gostev said in his analysis of the Turla connection to other malware.
SolarWinds Hack Potentially Linked to Turla APT
Researchers have spotted notable code overlap between the Sunburst backdoor and a known Turla weapon.
Malicious Software Infrastructure Easier to Get and Deploy Than Ever
Researchers at Recorded Future report a rise in cracked Cobalt Strike and other open-source adversarial tools with easy-to-use interfaces.
Ryuk Rakes in $150M in Ransom Payments
An examination of the malware gang's payments reveals insights into its economic operations.


Posted on March 6, 2018, in Brands We Carry, Design, Sales and Promotions and tagged best furniture prices nj, furniture stores nj, home accents, home accessories, income tax, inventory reduction, irs sale, new jersey furniture stores, spring decor, tax refund. Bookmark the permalink.	Leave a comment.


text:
Franz-Xaver Wengenmayer (* 14. März 1926; † 19. Oktober 2021) war ein deutscher Fußballschiedsrichter.

Leben
Wengenmayer trat im Mai 1948 der Schiedsrichterabteilung des FC Bayern München bei. Zwischen 1965 und 1973 leitete der Münchner 58 Spiele der Fußball-Bundesliga.

Er leitete auch Spiele der europäischen Vereinswettbewerbe und Länderspiele. Am 26. Mai 1972 pfiff er das Freundschaftsspiel der deutschen Nationalmannschaft gegen die Sowjetunion, mit dem das Münchner Olympiastadion eingeweiht wurde.

Nach dem Ende seiner aktiven Zeit blieb er dem Schiedsrichterwesen verbunden. Von 1974 bis 2006 war er Mitglied des Schiedsrichterausschusses der Schiedsrichtergruppe München.

Auszeichnungen
 Verbands-Verdienstnadel in Silber  des Bayerischen Fußball-Verbandes 2005
 DFB-Verdienstnadel in Silber.

Weblink
 Einsätze bei Weltfussball.de

Einzelnachweise

Fußballschiedsrichter (Deutschland)
Person (FC Bayern München)
Deutscher
Geboren 1926
Gestorben 2021
Mann

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Sunrize Safari Hunts
Kamp for Kids
Shemane
Sign up for Nuge Letters
Stop Automatic Slide Show
Play Automatic Slide Show
HAPPY THANKSGIVING — EVERY DAY
November 25, 2015 | « back
By: Ted Nugent
As I trudge joyfully through building, blowing, beautiful snowdrifts back to my little Michigan log cabin, my sense of giving thanks could not be more clear or powerful. My pure, natural hands-on participation in God's miraculous creation as a hunter/gatherer of His precious gifts of life-giving, renewable resources forces me to admit once again that Thanksgiving is indeed the proper celebration of the annual, natural harvest.
The magnificent whitetail deer I drag behind me may very well represent the most perfect example of this important holiday.
As an American, I have so much to be thankful for: freedom, liberty, choice, guaranteed individual rights, private property ownership, the American Dream of being compensated based on work ethic, sacrifice, persistence, cleverness, talent and simply being the very best that we can be.
I will never take for granted those things that provide me glowing quality of life, and I thank God every day for my health, my family and friends, my fellow Americans, my thermostat, hot and cold running water, plumbing, my roof, warm clothes, cool trucks, the hardworking farmers and ranchers that grow and deliver an endless flow of good food, the hardworking entrepreneurs that provide every service one could ever want or need and, of course, for the abundant renewable wildlife resources that feed my family and hundreds of millions of people around the world.
On many millions of Thanksgiving dinner tables across America, families and friends sit down to delicious, healthy, organic meals of big and small game we have bagged and processed this hunting season.
We join hands and give thanks as we dine on haunch of venison, wild turkey, ducks, geese, pheasant, quail, grouse, dove, woodcock, snipe, squirrel, rabbit, pronghorn, elk, moose, bear, cougar, wild hogs, gator and fish of every description, knowing that our feasts are the best available anywhere.
We salute and thank those great American farming and ranching families that produce the food that feeds the whole world, but those of us who hunt and fish and trap feel a deep and personal connection to the critters and the good mother earth that sustain us.
There is no question that the serious effort we put into killing our own food makes us appreciate it that much more, and without a doubt makes it all taste much better!
The first official Thanksgiving Day was celebrated on June 29, 1676, in Charlestown, Massachusetts, just across the Charles River from Boston.
More than a century later, on Oct. 23, 1789, George Washington would proclaim a "day of thanksgiving" to be celebrated on Thursday, Nov. 27 of that year.
Then in 1864, Abraham Lincoln made it official once and for all when he proclaimed;
"Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, do hereby appoint and set apart the last Thursday in November next as a day which I desire to be observed by all my fellow-citizens, wherever they may then be, as a day of thanksgiving and praise to Almighty God, the beneficent Creator and Ruler of the Universe. And I do further recommend to my fellow-citizens aforesaid that on that occasion they do reverently humble themselves in the dust and from thence offer up penitent and fervent prayers and supplications to the Great Disposer of Events for a return of the inestimable blessings of peace, union, and harmony throughout the land which it has pleased Him to assign as a dwelling place for ourselves and for our posterity throughout all generations."
Like I said, the list of things we are genuinely thankful for is endless, but more important than anything else, we must be thankful for this sacred experiment in self-government that is the United States of America and thankful to the hero warriors of the U.S. military and their families for the never-ending sacrifices they endure on behalf of freedom and we the people.
Freedom is not free – and we must never forget to say thank you to them in every way we can and as often as possible.
Happy Thanksgiving every day, America.
© TedNugent.com 1998-2023
Contact | Privacy | Cookies | Terms of Use | Help | Search | Mailing List


4 Angels Assembly store or outlet store located in Dallas, Texas - Southwest Center Mall location, address: 3662 W Camp Wisdom Rd., Dallas, Texas - TX 75237. Find information about hours, locations, online information and users ratings and reviews. Save money on 4 Angels Assembly and find store or outlet near me.
Driving directions and locations to store: 4 Angels Assembly located in Southwest Center Mall: 3662 W Camp Wisdom Rd., Dallas, Texas - TX 75237.
Have you visited 4 Angels Assembly? Have you shopped at 4 Angels Assembly?


It is important to note that much of the Societies Act is in effect even for those NFPOs who have not yet completed the transition process.
To assist NFPOs with transition a transition guide can be found on the BC government's website.
If you have any questions about this topic or if you would like assistance with the transition process, please contact your DMCL advisor.


text:
David Elleray to step down as FA referees' chief next summer as investigation into racism claims begins
The Football Association is looking into claims about former leading referee David Elleray's conduct that are as yet unproven; it is understood the allegations against Elleray have been made by former FA staff members
Wednesday 22 December 2021 18:25, UK
Image: The FA is launching an independent investigation into allegations against David Elleray
David Elleray is to step down from his role as chair of the Football Association referees' committee at the end of the season, with an investigation into claims he made racist comments to begin in the New Year.
The FA is launching an independent probe via a law firm into the allegations, which have been made by former FA staff members.
The 67-year-old is chair of the FA referees' committee and is technical director at IFAB, who are the global game's rule-makers.
Back in 2014, Elleray was investigated by the FA after he made an alleged comment about the skin colour of a black former employee. He subsequently apologised and took an equality and diversity training course.
Ellaray became a Football League referee in 1983 and spent 20 years as a top-flight official.
He took charge of the 1994 FA Cup final when Manchester United defeated Chelsea to clinch the double, as well as the Euro 96 final between Germany and the Czech Republic at Wembley.
Elleray retired in 2003, having refereed over 1,500 matches including 64 international fixtures. He later became a referee assessor for FIFA and UEFA.


text:
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 Review: It's Not About the Camera
Foldable phones can change how you take photos, but the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 won't be the one to change image quality, if that's what you're looking for.
As Samsung keeps refining the vision it has for its flagship foldable, it has relegated the camera array to familiar territory. From the very first iteration, the cameras were holdovers from other phones in the Galaxy S lineup. It's the actual hinge and overall usability that continue to break ground for the Galaxy Z Fold line, and the cameras are really just along for the ride.
Despite swapping out the image sensor for the wide camera here, did Samsung do enough to make the camera array more viable and worthy of the hefty price for the Fold 4? Let's just say the answer is a little complicated.
Despite making this phone a tad lighter and thinner, it's still one of the heaviest and thickest you can carry. It may seem trivial, but you do notice it over time, whether it's as simple as pocketing it, pulling it out to look at a notification, or taking a photo.
The general design traits remain, though the 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED Cover screen looks better. The larger 7.6-inch dynamic AMOLED that reveals itself when you fold it open also benefits from smaller bezels. A smoother hinge still delivers that satisfying clap when folding it shut, though wielding this phone for photography requires some muscle memory.
Under the hood, the phone has no problem running apps and tasks. The new Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset, along with 12GB of RAM and at least 256GB of storage, all come together nicely. If you wanted to browse through photos and move them over to Lightroom or Snapseed by viewing them side to side, you could easily pull that off. If you wanted to edit the same photo using two apps at once, that is also easily done. That kind of utility is hard to find, and one reason why the Galaxy Z Fold 4 is unique as a mobile photography device.
The phone does support the S Pen, though only the Fold Edition or S Pen Pro, and you have no way of holstering either one unless you get a case. Try any other S Pen and a warning pops up onscreen suggesting you may damage the screen if you keep doing it. This phone is fragile in more ways than one, in spite of its IPX8 protection.
The wide camera in the rear is the same 50-megapixel ISOCELL GN5 image sensor (23mm equivalent) Samsung equipped in the Galaxy S22 and S22+. A new 10-megapixel telephoto camera (66mm equivalent) for the Fold 4 is also a recycled one from those two phones. Only the 12-megapixel ultra-wide (13mm equivalent) remains as a remnant for the rear camera array, an image sensor Samsung really likes to utilize where it can.
Much like the two S22 phones, the 50-megapixel sensor doesn't shoot at full resolution by default. Pixel binning drops it to 12.5-megapixels for better low-light shots, leaving the 50MP mode as an alternative when you want it. Given that the interface is pretty much the same as other Samsung phones, none of that will feel surprising.
The two front cameras have little in common. Comparing the 10-megapixel camera on the Cover screen with the terrible 4-megapixel one trying to stay hidden under the larger screen is no contest. Apart from video calls, the latter fails as a photography option. Not that it matters as much because the foldable form factor enables anyone to take a selfie using the much better rear cameras anyway, as the Cover screen displays a preview to frame the shot.
There are no real surprises with the camera app's layout since the interface is the same as previous Fold smartphones. If you've never used one of Samsung's Folds before, you do notice how things look and feel different from other phones simply because of the extra real estate. Shoot a photo from half the screen, and the resulting preview appears on the other half.
Prop it up to rest on one side, and the controls move to the bottom half, leaving the top as a live view unimpeded by overlayed settings. It's not unlike how you tap the display button on a DSLR or mirrorless camera enough to remove all the ancillary settings details. This also works when propping up the phone in portrait orientation, making the Galaxy Z Fold 4 one of the few phones that essentially has its own mounting ability.
It's not always a substitute for a tripod but it sure is convenient for long exposure shots in Pro mode, or if you need to really hold steady for a dark Night mode shot. It's also rare to be able to keep the camera app open and have an editing app like Lightroom in a split screen setup. It would even be possible to take photos while watching a tutorial on YouTube.
Shot in Night Mode
Seeing all that does bring a certain novelty to the device from a photography perspective, even if the software offers nothing new otherwise. Samsung caught onto this by including these usability points as part of its marketing campaign for the Fold 4.
Getting the Galaxy Z Fold 4 to take photos means accepting a weird contrast. It's not often you see a phone that starts at $1,800, yet shoots like one that's closer to $800. It's not that you can't capture good photos, but putting it all into context draws a clearer distinction. For instance, the Google Pixel 6a starts at $449 and can deliver output on par with this phone.
I knew what I was getting with the Fold 4 because I had previously used the Galaxy S22+ and S22. The results are the same, which is to say that you get solid images in a variety of conditions, though not necessarily what you would expect from a premium device. Maybe people don't want the Fold 4 for its camera, but if it is a factor for you, you have to measure expectations.
The good news is this iteration offers a decidedly better image sensor than the previous Folds had. Day and low-light shots are better all around. Shooting in RAW in Pro mode gives you more to work with, though noise is still an issue. Samsung also added Expert RAW support, though you have to find that app through the Galaxy Store to get it going. It helps improve RAW output a little more, and to save manual settings as custom presets you can always go to.
At least it's easier to shoot hands-free when flat surfaces are available to you. Much of the experimentation around this phone's camera array lies with the wide camera because it's by far the best option, including for selfies.
Ultra-wide and Telephoto
Again, nothing shocking happens with either of these two lenses. The ultra-wide image sensor has made the rounds so much even the Galaxy A53 uses it. Image quality follows suit, with the only real difference being any adjustments Samsung makes on the software side. Images aren't bad at all, though it's hard to see ultra-wide photos looking much better than they did last year.
Ultra-wide
The telephoto lens is an improvement, and even hybrid zoom benefits from the better sensor Samsung went with here. Going this route also increased the optical zoom from 2x to 3x, increasing the equivalent focal length from 52mm to 66mm. Hybrid zoom shots up to 10x are pretty good, too. Things get rocky in low-light and night shots, and very shaky with active subjects, though the ultra-wide lens is less susceptible to jittery hands.
Video is better because of the better sensor for the wide camera, and you do get all the modes you would find in other current Samsung phones. The Fold 4's unique design does make video recording an interesting exercise, partly because you can get a better grip on it, and because you can prop it up to shoot from more interesting angles.
A High-End Folding Smartphone with a Mid-Range Camera
Granted, you pay a premium for the Galaxy Z Fold 4 because of its design and screen real estate, not for the camera array it offers. You could argue the flagship Galaxy S22 Ultra was the opposite. In the absence of a Galaxy Note, the flagship Galaxy S series is what sets the tone for Samsung's mobile photography progress.
The Fold 4 doesn't move the needle forward at all, it's merely a collection of Samsung image sensors put together to incrementally improve image quality on the company's most expensive phone. No question, the foldable design presents utility you won't find elsewhere, and there is value in that for the creativity it fosters, so it's not all mediocre. Perhaps Samsung's market research for the Fold lineup indicates the camera is less important. I have no idea, but going forward, this phone will have to be capable of capturing better images.
Are There Alternatives?
The Galaxy Z Fold 4 stands within a still nascent subset of smartphones. Foldables aren't abundant, but if you wanted something like it in a more common design, the Galaxy Z Flip 4 might be up your alley. If you want similar results from a camera perspective, the Galaxy S22+ will deliver that to you.
On a tighter budget, the Pixel 6a is a fraction of the price and is arguably the best in its class. When your budget allows, and you want something few others have, the Vivo X70 Pro+ still offers one of the best camera arrays on the market.
Not for the camera. If you're into the idea of wielding a foldable phone, despite the camera's limitations, that's a different story.
Mobile, Reviews
android, foldable, foldingsmartphone, review, samsung, samsunggalaxy, samsunggalaxyfold4, smartphone
Samsung Unveils New Smartphones, Keeps Status Quo on Cameras
Samsung Updates its Foldables with Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Flip 4
Samsung Beefs Up Camera Support For Galaxy S22 and Z Fold 4
Samsung Patents Describe Methods That Solve Two Camera Limitations
Samsung's First Under Display Camera Appears to be a Mixed Bag


The Reference Grammar Repository Committee is a newly chartered exploratory committee and its primary objective is to define a framework for a standing committee that will establish and operate a reference grammar repository, and will address its fundamental infrastructure, IP policy, and initial task scope.
For more information, please read the Reference Grammar Repository Committee's official charter.
Participation in the Reference Grammar Repository Committee is open to Sponsor and Promoter members. To learn more about membership, please visit the Join Us page.
The committee works via email and holds weekly teleconferences.
To learn more about the Reference Grammar Repository and its work, please e-mail rgp@voicexml.org.


Your	privacy is very important to The Allergy and Asthma Center, PC. It is our commitment to respect and protect your privacy as a visitor to http://www.allergyasthmacenter.com. This Privacy Statement describes the practices and policies we have put into place to safeguard your personal and health-related personal information that may be gathered and used as you visit our Web site.
The Allergy and Asthma Center, PC is collecting information on this Web site as outlined in this privacy statement.
How Do We Use the Information We	Collect?
The personally identifiable information gathered during your visit to http://www.allergyashtmacenter.com is gathered for the sole use of The Allergy and Asthma Center, PC and will not be shared with any individual or organization for any purpose.
Site visitors may not access information we have collected.
Your browser software can be set to reject all cookies, or to ask you if you would like to accept or decline a cookie from a particular site before it is set. Most browsers offer instructions on how to reset the browser to reject cookies in the Help section of the toolbar. You should know, however, that if you reject a cookie, certain functions and conveniences of a site might not work properly.
To record past activity at a site in order to provide better service when visitors return to our site, such as points of interest.
We are especially concerned about protecting children's privacy. We hope parents and teachers are involved in children's Internet explorations. It is particularly important for parents to guide their children when children are asked to provide personal information on line.
We use e-mail forms to allow our customers to ask questions about our services, programs and to make "non-emergency" inquiries of a health care professional. These are hosted on a secure server, but the possibility still exists that unauthorized individuals may intercept email messages.
Purchasing items or making donations over the Internet usually requires you to provide your personal identifying information and credit card information on a Web site. Many people have become accustomed to on-line commerce as a timesaving and useful convenience. There are a number of practices that can make providing your sensitive credit card information more secure and therefore make you feel more comfortable about doing so.
This privacy statement was last modified on Monday, February 17 2009.


text:
Poor prison staffing and funding allows gangs to take control, reform advocates say
Underfunding and understaffing make South Carolina prisons volatile tinderboxes that can explode in gang violence, prison-reform advocates say
Poor prison staffing and funding allows gangs to take control, reform advocates say Underfunding and understaffing make South Carolina prisons volatile tinderboxes that can explode in gang violence, prison-reform advocates say Check out this story on greenvilleonline.com: https://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/2018/04/20/poor-prison-staffing-gangs-take-control/536574002/
Paul Hyde, phyde@greenvillenews.com Published 5:58 p.m. ET April 20, 2018 | Updated 6:38 p.m. ET April 20, 2018
Press conference after a "mass casualty incident" overnight at Lee Correctional Institution in Bishopville that left seven inmates dead and 17 others requiring medical attention. BART BOATWRIGHT/Staff
South Carolina Department of Corrections Director Bryan Stirling, right, and South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, address the media at a press conference Monday, April 16, 2018, in Columbia, after a "mass casualty incident" overnight at Lee Correctional Institution in Bishopville that left seven inmates dead and 17 others requiring medical attention.(Photo: BART BOATWRIGHT/Staff)Buy Photo
Underfunding and understaffing turn South Carolina prisons into volatile tinderboxes that can explode in the kind of brutal violence that claimed seven lives and injured 22 others at Lee Correctional Institution this week, prison-reform advocates say.
State prisons have too few vocational programs to keep inmates busy and too few guards to maintain order, and inmates are turning to gangs for security, said Jerry Blassingame, executive director of the Greenville-based Soteria Community Development Corporation.
Gang members are "taking control," Blassingame said. "They're pretty much running their dorms because they don't have much supervision."
About 25 percent of the state's prison-guard jobs are unfilled, state Department of Corrections Director Bryan Stirling told The State newspaper in January.
Blassingame said gangs are filling the gap.
"What happens to a young 19-year-old who enters prison? If he wants to be protected, if he wants to last, he's going to have to affiliate with something," said Blassingame, who works with previously incarcerated people to help them become productive citizens. "They're affiliating with the gangs so they can be protected."
Because of staffing shortages, state prisons too often rely on lockdowns and inmate confinement, Blassingame said.
"They (inmates) are already angry, and when there are no education programs and no vocational programs, there's nothing for them to do," Blassingame said. "I can see how they want to fight. It's like a dog that's been in a cage for a long time. If he gets away, he's going to run wild, and humans are the same way. We need to have something for these men to do."
More: Who are the 7 dead? Details about each inmate killed in fight at Lee County prison in South Carolina
More: Cousin of inmate slain at Lee Correctional: 'It's really bad right now' for the family
Videos taken during the melee inside Lee Correctional, a maximum-security facility in Bishopville, show chaotic scenes of blood-stained floors and bodies stacked next to each other in what is the deadliest prison riot in the U.S. in a quarter-century.
The fighting stemmed from gangs battling over turf and contraband in three prison dorms, officials said.
Matt Reid, who teaches criminology at Greenville Technical College, said such prison violence can happen anywhere.
"When you have a prison, you have a perfect recipe for violence," Reid said. "South Carolina has some large prisons, like Lee, with multiple buildings, and they're spread out, and sometimes the corrections officers are spread a little thin. Cameras can't see everything at all times.
"This could have happened in Louisiana, in Texas, in California," Reid said. "The important thing is that if mistakes were made, we need to learn from them so that something like this doesn't happen again."
Officers criticized for how long it took to respond
Blassingame and Shaundra Scott, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of South Carolina, criticized corrections officers for waiting for four hours before stepping in to quell the conflict and provide medical help.
"I do think the time it took contributed to the number of people who were attacked and lost their lives," Scott said.
"It's heartrending," Blassingame said. "I don't see how they (guards) would have allowed that to go on."
Stirling said guards needed to wait for more manpower before entering the prisoners' dorms amid the melee.
Reid said guards were right to make sure police strength was adequate before charging into the fight.
"If you try to rush into a situation without being properly staffed and properly armed, you can make a bad situation worse," Reid said. "The prisoners can turn on the guards, injure them or kill them or take them hostage. Now your situation has gone from bad to really bad."
More: Sister of slain inmate: 'He was a lovable person' who hoped to turn his life around
More: Anderson mother of Lee Correctional prison inmate: 'He seen bodies everywhere'
Blassingame said the delayed response underscores problems in the management of the state's prisons.
"We've had numerous incidents like these," Blassingame said. "You'd think by now they would have come up with a strategy and procedures to head this off. They say safety and security is their priority, but during this incident, safety and security was not their priority."
Low pay, high turnover, insufficient staffing
Forty-four guards were on duty overseeing 1,583 inmates at Lee Correctional Sunday night, and it took eight hours to contain the fighting by early on Monday, officials said. The ratio of inmates to guards was 35.9 to 1.
There are no national standards on inmate-to-guard ratios. Alabama has a 14-to-1 inmate-to-guard ratio, officials from that state said.
The federal system had a ratio of 10.3 inmates per correctional officer in 2005, according to Reuters.
Officials with the North Carolina Department of Public Safety initially declined to provide information on the inmate-to-guard ratio at North Carolina maximum-security prisons. They cited an exemption in relevant open-records laws in response to a question, but North Carolina Press Association attorney Amanda Martin disagreed with their interpretation of that law. Public Safety officials did not respond to new requests for information and clarification Friday.
Officials with the Florida Department of Corrections also declined to provide information on the inmate-to-guard ratio at Florida maximum-security prisons.
More: South Carolina prison where 7 were killed houses some of state's most violent offenders
More: 12 inmates were killed by other inmates in South Carolina prisons in 2017
Officials from Georgia and Tennessee did not respond to requests for information on staffing at maximum-security prisons by Friday.
In South Carolina, the average pay for a new prison guard is $33,000, and that's not enough to fully staff the prisons, Scott said. Low pay leads to a high turnover rate, resulting in guards who are inexperienced and poorly trained to deal with a violent riot, she said.
Scott said violent offenders often are mixed with nonviolent offenders who in turn often become victims of prison violence.
Better supervision and more mental-health programs for inmates are needed, Scott and Blassingame said.
"A lot of them are fatherless or abused or saw tragic incidents," Blassingame said. "A lot of them don't have proper educations. A lot of them have PTSD from things that happened in childhood. There's a lot of mental illness that is not getting treated."
Reid said the challenges are not unique to South Carolina.
"We have the same problems that everyone else has," Reid said. "We have a large number of people in prison who are involved in the drug trade. We have a large number of people who have gang affiliations. We have a large number of mentally ill people who would be better served in secure in-patient treatment facilities. But because of budget cuts around the country, those in-patient facilities are often shut down."
'This is not about cellphones'
Both Scott and Blassingame dismissed Gov. Henry McMaster's claim that cellphone use by inmates — allowing them to run illegal businesses behind prison walls — helped to spark the violence.
"This is not about cellphones," Blassingame said.
He said state leaders need to provide more funding aimed at truly rehabilitating prisoners, given that 90 percent of inmates eventually will be released.
"If someone does something wrong and we lock them up, do we expect them to change just because we locked them up in a cage? We're sending people to prison to rehabilitate them, not to be better criminals when they get out," Blassingame said.
"Education is a must. We must educate people when we send them to prison so when they get out they can be productive citizens."
Blassingame said a change is needed in the way people think about prisoners.
He doesn't use words like "convict" and "inmate."
"I've been using 'previously incarcerated people' or 'returning citizens' to humanize people," Blassingame said. "When we continue to say 'convicts' and 'inmates,' it dehumanizes people. These are humans who are coming back. They are our neighbors, our fathers, our mothers, our brothers."
Follow Paul Hyde on Facebook and Twitter: @PaulHyde7.
Read or Share this story: https://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/2018/04/20/poor-prison-staffing-gangs-take-control/536574002/
Easley man charged with murder in fatal shooting of Greenville woman
SC Mental Health patient suffocated by hospital staffers who failed to follow training
Arson suspected in fire that killed 2 men near Walhalla, investigator says
Where's the gun? Report reveals weapon in deadly Berea Walmart shooting never found
Fatal shooting of woman in Easley early Saturday under investigation
Pendleton woman charged after car slams into home, injuring two


Our flat pouches vary from small to large and can be used for pretty much anything. They make excellent pencil cases, knitting notions pouch, and cosmetic travel bags. They are constructed of a durable material with a zipper closure. Image is on both sides of this notions pouch.
The image in this listing is computer generated and the final image is printed. Please allow for variations and small discrepancies based on the technique used by the manufacturer to print the image on this product.
Product is printed on demand. There are no exchanges, returns, or refunds. All Sales are final.