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Claire Liu (ur. 25 maja 2000 w Thousand Oaks) – amerykańska tenisistka pochodzenia chińskiego, mistrzyni juniorskiego Wimbledonu 2016 w grze podwójnej dziewcząt i Wimbledonu 2017 w grze pojedynczej dziewcząt.

Kariera tenisowa
W rozgrywkach zawodowych zadebiutowała w październiku 2014 roku, biorąc udział w turnieju rangi ITF we Florence, gdzie odpadła w pierwszej rundzie, przegrywając z Jan Abazą. Na swoim koncie ma wygrane sześć turniejów w grze pojedynczej i jeden w grze podwójnej rangi ITF.

W 2016 roku triumfowała w rozgrywkach deblowych dziewcząt podczas Wimbledonu, gdzie w parze z Usue Maitane Arconada pokonała w finale Mariam Bolkwadze i Catherine McNally.

W maju 2022 roku wygrała turniej cyklu WTA 125 w Paryżu, gdzie zwyciężyła w finale 6:3, 6:4 z Beatriz Haddad Maią. Tydzień później osiągnęła finał zawodów singlowych w Rabacie. Przegrała w nim z Martiną Trevisan 2:6, 1:6. W czerwcu wspólnie z Madison Brengle triumfowały w rozgrywkach deblowych cyklu WTA 125 w Gaibie, gdzie w finale pokonały Witaliję Djaczenko i Oksanę Kalasznikową 6:4, 6:3.

Finały turniejów WTA

Gra pojedyncza 1 (0–1)

Finały turniejów WTA 125

Gra pojedyncza 1 (1–0)

Gra podwójna 1 (1–0)

Wygrane turnieje rangi ITF

Gra pojedyncza

Finały juniorskich turniejów wielkoszlemowych

Gra pojedyncza

Gra podwójna

Przypisy

Bibliografia

Amerykańskie tenisistki
Amerykanie pochodzenia chińskiego
Triumfatorki wielkoszlemowych turniejów juniorskich
Urodzeni w 2000


The Bible calls all Christians to share the good news about Jesus's death and resurrection with those who don't believe in Christ. Yet this task can often seem daunting. This study helps participants have the right perspectives on evangelism and shows them how to share the good news with others.
This series is a series of ten 6–7 week studies covering the nine distinctives of a healthy church as originally laid out in Nine Marks of a Healthy Church by Mark Dever. This series explores the biblical foundations of key aspects of the church, helping Christians to live out those realities as members of a local body. Conveniently packaged and accessibly written, the format of this series is guided, inductive discussion of Scripture passages and is ideal for use in Sunday school, church-wide studies, or small group contexts.


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Douglas C. Loew, CLU, ChFC
doug@loewassoc.com
Mr. Loew has been in the financial services industry since 1971. He graduated from Morehead State University, with a Degree in Business Administration, and then attended Graduate School at Kent State University. Mr. Loew holds two designations from the American College in Bryn Mawr, PA: the Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) designation 1983, and the Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) designation 1986. Mr. Loew is securities registered, having passed exams 6, 63, 7, 24, as well as the Series 65, and the Uniform Investment Advisers exam. Mr. Loew's primary focus is managing other peoples money using a combination of stocks, bonds (Core, Hi-yield, Municipal bonds), mutual funds, and ETF's. Mr. Loew also does comprehensive financial plans for individuals.
Mr. Loew is licensed in life, health and Variable annuities.
Mr. Loew is the owner and President of Douglas C. Loew & Associates Financial Services, which has representatives, located in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, District of Columbia, Virginia, Ohio and Delaware. Earlier in his career, Mr. Loew was a 7-time qualifier of the Million-Dollar Round Table (MDRT).
Mr. Loew has been active in company and business activities. He is or has been:
Member of the Society of Financial Service Professionals (30 + yrs) Active
Million-Dollar Round Table Member (7 yrs) 1973-1979
Financial Management Group, L.L.C., Chairman (15 + yrs) 1995-2010
Mr. Loew lives by the code of offering prompt service, high ethical standards and quality products to his clients. To do for his clients what he would do for himself under similar circumstances.
Douglas C. Loew & Associates
248 East Chestnut Hill Road
Registered Representative offering securities and advisory services through Cetera Advisor Networks LLC, member FINRA/SIPC, a broker/dealer and a Registered Investment Adviser. Cetera is under separate ownership from any other named entity.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Mike Habs (b.1987) is a contemporary visual artist originally from Chicago's south side. Using urban art techniques against design methods, his work interprets punk rock music with vibrant abstraction.
He is a very strong proponent of the Do-It-Yourself mentality and his inspirations derive from the works of Tony Fitzpatrick, Banksy, Moncho 1929, Casper Brindle, and Trey Anastasio.


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Home > Travel > Trip Reports > Diving the Nuclear Fleet at Bikini Atoll with Master Liveaboards
Diving the Nuclear Fleet at Bikini Atoll with Master Liveaboards
By Brandi Mueller, October 12, 2018 @ 04:00 AM (EST)
A CCR diver explores the bow of the USS Carlisle. The underside of the bow and gun are forested with whip coral
Descending from the Truk Master down to the wreck of the USS Saratoga, I can hardly contain my excitement. With the excellent visibility, it doesn't take too long for the shadow of the 888-foot aircraft carrier to form. As the ship's silhouette sharpens, I'm thinking about the history of the Saratoga, but it's not her service in the Pacific theater of World War II that is foremost in my mind. Her most memorable purpose came in "retirement": In 1946, the Saratoga sailed to Bikini Atoll to participate in Operation Crossroads—the first testing of nuclear weapons after the bombing of Nagasaki.
The Saratoga survived the first of two tests (Able) but was sunk after the second (Baker), an underwater blast just 400 yards from the ship. She now rests in the sand at 165 feet, along with three airplanes that were blown off the deck. The depth and remoteness of the wreck made the dive an unfulfilled bucket-list item for decades, but this summer, Master Liveaboards finally made it possible to visit this small coral island atoll in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Underwater photographers with the appropriate technical diving credentials can now access the Saratoga along with a number of other iconic wrecks.
A coral and sponge encrusted propeller of the Japanese battleship Nagato, which was sunk by the second nuclear test at Bikini Atoll in 1946
A wheel on the USS Carlisle is bent but still still stands among debris and wreckage caused by the impact of the first nuclear test at Bikini
Operation Crossroads
Following the conclusion of WWII, the U.S. wanted to determine the impact of nuclear weapons on warships. The military chose Bikini Atoll, one of 29 coral atolls in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, because it was relatively isolated and very sparsely populated.
In total, 95 vessels—aircraft carriers, destroyers, cruisers, submarines, and even one German and two surrendered Japanese ships—were aligned in a bullseye pattern. Each ship contained scientific instruments to capture data from the blast. Utilizing "Fat Man" plutonium implosion-type nuclear weapons of the kind dropped on Nagasaki, the pair of tests left devastation in their wake far beyond the shipwrecks.
The ghostly USS Apagon submarine sits perfectly upright at 180 feet and appears to be in perfect condition with even the conning tower intact
The USS Anderson destroyer is an ideal wreck to set up off-camera lighting. Captain Martin experiments with different lighting inside the wheelhouse and on several of the ship's many guns
Despite promises, Bikini's residents weren't able to return to the islands due to high levels of radiation. The U.S. subsequently decided to resume nuclear testing at the atoll in 1954, with a further 21 detonations conducted over four years. Some attempts were made to resettle the islanders in the 1970s, but research determined radiation levels remained dangerously high, and the population was once again relocated. The U.S. was ultimately forced to provide compensation to local people who suffered radiation injuries as well as undertake a cleanup program.
Today, fewer than 10 people spend short stints on the island doing maintenance work and several employees from the U.S. Department of Energy continue to monitor radiation levels. It has been determined that short stays at Bikini Atoll and diving the shipwrecks expose visitors to such a small amount of radiation that it is essentially negligible.
Some of the guns on the USS Lamson destroyer. One of the most intact, this ship is both littered with war surplus and bristling with marine life
The Nuclear Fleet
In 2010, the United Nations designated the area as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its role in symbolizing the dawn of the Atomic Age. To be able to see firsthand this isolated, historically significant place that's so far off the beaten path is the trip of a lifetime for a tech diver and photographer.
Wreck divers can visit 10 ships and submarines. The USS Saratoga generally steals the show because of how large and interesting the contents of the ship are. Another favorite is the Japanese battleship Nagato: The wreck lies upside down, but its massive pagoda-like superstructure allows for some penetration under the ship with massive guns sticking out from underneath the turtled vessel. You can swim past the bridge where the order was given for the raid on Pearl Harbor.
The stern of the USS Saratoga is collapsing in on itself, causing the sides of the ship to angle upward, like these platforms with guns
Sitting in the sand off the stern of the Saratoga, the cockpit of this Helldiver is still very much intact—even the gunsight is intact in the right corner window
The propeller of another Helldiver airplane in the sand off the bow of the Saratoga
The USS Lamson and USS Anderson were both destroyers and their robust construction has kept them mostly intact—even after being sunk by a nuclear bomb. The Anderson is on its side, but it's largely intact with guns and weaponry everywhere. The props at the stern are encrusted with coral and sponges that came to life with color when my camera strobes fired. The Lamson has plenty of photogenic features, including a massive torpedo launcher with torpedoes loaded.
Maybe it's because she spent so much time working under the surface, but the submarine USS Apogon survived almost entirely intact and is one of the richest in terms of marine life, including schools of fish and plenty of sharks. Meanwhile, the USS Carlisle looks as if someone took a bathtub toy, shook it, and placed it on the bottom of the ocean: The bow with a large mounted gun is intact, but the deck of the ship is strewn with broken objects.
Fish, coral, and other marine life have repopulated the warships, as here on the USS Anderson
Marine life on the stern of the USS Lamson
A ladder leading to an interior space on the USS Lamson
The diving is rich historically and photographically, but the depth of the wrecks makes it a wise choice to take some extra time to off-gas. The crew arranged for us to visit two of the islands, which were truly worthy of a postcard: Vibrant green palm trees peppered a white sand beach lapped gently by multitonal blue water.
One of the Bikini Island employees picked us up in a truck and gave us a tour. Along the way, I spotted parts of a broken plane, abandoned flip flops, and plastic remnants of consumerism washed up on the beach far away from their source. At one end of the small spit of land, we could see the entire lagoon spanning for miles.
We stopped by a bunker built for the nuclear tests, which is now mostly concealed by vines and foliage. Downtown Bikini Atoll is more of a ghost town, but it includes one particularly important institution for travelers—a good bar, though no drinks are served here anymore unless you bring you own. And so, we took in this surreal nuclear atoll from the Bikini Bar while enjoying some delicious BBQ prepared by the Master Crew as the sun set.
The infamous "Bikini Bar" still stands on Bikini Island
On-board the Truk Master
The Truk Master is fully equipped for tech diving. It's fitted with steel and aluminum tanks, manifold twinsets, right-hand and left-hand valves for sidemount divers, rebreather cylinders, and plenty of stage bottles. The crew is very experienced in dealing with tech divers and is happy to blend your gas mix exactly as desired—including helium mixes. There are even scooters available to rent, which makes seeing these massive ships easier in the limited time at depth.
Bikini trips have a slightly different schedule than most other Master Liveaboard itineraries. Dives average about 150 feet (and can be as deep as 170 feet), so there are just two dives a day. Boat capacity for guests is about 40 percent less both to ensure safety and leave plenty of room for tech diving gear—and cameras, of course. Everyone on my trip opted for double tanks or rebreathers. Carrying so much extra gear can be difficult and the crew always seemed to magically appear to make it as easy as possible to get in the water.
The Truk Master with Bikini Island in the background
The fantastic crew of the Truk Master helps divers to carry tanks and put on their fins
In spite of the advanced diving and ultra-remote locale, you will still see the little luxuries of the Master Liveaboard fleet shine through. With on-demand laundry service, there's no need to worry about stinky swimsuits on this expedition. And the satellite Internet makes it possible to immediately share those sensational snaps of historic WWII wrecks with your social media followers.
The eerie desolation in this far-flung corner of the world speaks to the insidious legacy of this dark period in history. Yet, life has taken hold here all the same, and as elsewhere in the patches of ocean where humanity's greatest tragedies are submerged, we have the privilege of bringing special images to the surface that remind us of the magnitude of what happened at Bikini Atoll more than seven decades ago.
A U.S. Navy Mark V diving helmet is one of the highlights inside the USS Saratoga
Planning Your Trip to Bikini Atoll
How to Get There: Trips depart from Majuro (capital of the Marshall Islands) or Kwajalein Atoll. United Airlines has three flights a week from Honolulu or Guam. The crossing to Bikini Atoll takes around 27 hours.
When to Go: May to October.
What You'll See: Wrecks, wrecks, and more wrecks. Depths range from 70 to 170 feet, with most dives averaging 145 to 165 feet.
Who to Dive With: The Truk Master is currently the only operation running consistent liveaboard trips to Bikini Atoll.
Temperature: As the water temperature is around 83°F (28°C), wetsuits are still recommended for wreck penetration.
Currency: US Dollar. Majuro has limited ATMs, but these often are not working. Ebeye, where the ship departs from, has none. The liveaboard accepts cash in several major currencies as well as credit card payments with a fee.
Visa: Nationals of most countries can get a free 90-day tourist visa on arrival.
Special Requirements: The Truk Master's Bikini Atoll itinerary requires all divers to be tech-certified to the equivalent of PADI Tec 50 or higher. There is no medical care available in Bikini and only limited care in Majuro, with no hyperbaric facilities. Divers need to keep in mind the remoteness of the location and the distance they will be from medical care when planning and carrying out dives. Diving conservatively is highly recommended.
A nerve-wracking penetration into the USS Saratoga reveals the scullery, complete with crockery
Famous Places, New Faces: The Wrecks and Caves of Lembeh
Freediving the Wrecks of Truk Lagoon
Truk Lagoon: Bipolar Diving in a Living Museum
Diving in the Land of the Pharaohs with Blue Horizon
An Underwater Photographer's First Trip to Tiger Beach
Thomas Vignaud
I'm most of the time trying to shoot "new" things. that means, things I never shot before, or things I already shot with new angle, composition, lightning... I think most photographers do that. I think the...


Chamomile refers to a range of daisy like plants. These are members of the Asteraceae family. There are actually a number of different species, however the two most commonly known are, Roman chamomile, and German chamomile. Both of these species have been used for their anti-inflammatory and calming properties since ancient times.
It's an age-old herb that has been used for its medicinal purposes in ancient Rome, Greece, and Egypt. It grew in popularity during the middle ages and was frequently used for a number of medical complaints.
It is widely believed to have been the European counterpart of China's ginseng. The common complaints chamomile treated were skin diseases, cancer, nervous complaints, nausea, children's ailments, fevers, inflammations, colic, and asthma.
The healing properties of chamomile come from its flowers, which can easily be mistaken for those of a daisy. They contain oils such as matricin, bisabolol, as well as flavonoids, and other substances of therapeutic value.
We commonly recognize chamomile as a sleep aid, and frequently drink the tea before bed to relax ourselves in order to fall asleep easier.
However, there is more to chamomile than this.
According to Organic Facts chamomile can be used to treat colds, fevers, stomach ailments, as well as serving as an anti-inflammatory.
Scientific research has been done extensively in the last 20 years that has confirmed the established uses, as well as highlighting further healing properties.
Chamomile is antipyretic, antibacterial, antifungal, antiseptic, antispasmodic, and antiallergenic. This means that chamomile can be used as a muscle relaxant, and is actually considered a drug in 26 different country's pharmacopoeia.
It can be used a tea for such issues as rashes, rheumatic problems, and lumbago.
It comes in salve form to use for wounds and hemorrhoids.
Additionally, it can alleviate asthma symptoms and colds as a vapor.
Drinking the tea after a meal can aid digestion, and it can treat ulcerative colitis and gastritis, too.
Additionally, it reduces inflammation to allow the bowels to move without having a laxative effect.
It can also relieve allergies in the same way an antihistamine does.
Because it can promote relaxation and relieve stress, it can have similar effects as anti-anxiety drugs, as well as assisting in controlling insomnia. However, if you have been prescribed medication for this purpose it is important that you consult your doctor before you stop taking it.
In the form of a lotion, it is ideal for sunburn, rashes, eczema, and minor burns. It not only eases the itching, but also reduces the skin inflammation. It speeds up healing and prevents infections.
WebMD suggests caution when using chamomile if you are allergic to ragweed plants. However, this is its only known issue, which makes sense considering how common chamomile tea is.
Chamomile essential oils can be used in Aromatherapy with a diffuser or by simply placing a few drops on your pillow prior to sleep.
To take it orally you must first dilute it in water, and generally, 2 drops would be sufficient.
If you are using it in a bath for whatever reason 10 drops is recommended.
It can also be blended with a carrier oil to use for massage purposes, or with a cream for topical relief. Chamomile essential oil can only be applied topically to the skin when diluted with a carrier oil, like Jojoba.
Chamomile tea is the most widely drank herbal tea. The Herb Research Foundation estimates that more than one million cups of chamomile tea are drank a daily basis worldwide. It seems that all of us can take advantage of the many healing properties that it offers.


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Home › Making Policing History: Studies of Garda Violence and Resources for Police Reform
I still remember my first time
Date: Thu, 2013-07-04 15:45
I still remember my first time. It was a fine sunny morning on the Easter bank holiday weekend in 1991. I had just dropped my girlfriend off at an inter-city coach and was walking back past the bank on College Green when a voice behind me said 'Stop, I want to talk to you for a minute'. Presuming it was someone trying to sell me something, I waved them off, but then the guy in the badly fitting suit walked around in front of me, held out some sort of ID card and announced he was Special Branch.
At the time I wasn't used to the routine but it goes a little bit like this. They demand your name and address. You try and avoid giving it to them by asking what this is in connection with. They tell you 'it's terrorism' (or sometimes drugs) and if you won't hand over the details they will arrest you. Of course most of the time they already know who you are; this is just how the game is played out. This morning, the next step for this secret policeman was to tell me he had been looking at a photograph of me at an anti-war demonstration speaking to a known IRA member and he wanted to know who that person was. Years later I have to admire that particular question, both for the wonderfully open-ended nature of the enquiry and for the absurdity of asking me about someone who had just been described to me as 'known to them'. I told him I didn't have a clue what he was on about and the conversation spun around in those sort of circles before I walked off. Today I'd know not to get drawn in, but as I say this was my first time.
When I got out of sight my imagination was in overdrive; I feared this was the first step of a massive crackdown on the anarchist movement and so rang the five or so members of that movement to warn them what was in progress. Needless to say, no one got raided later in the day, although a couple of people did get questioned on the street in a similar fashion over the next couple of months.
A recent encounter in April 2010 happened after I left a Dublin Shell to Sea meeting and was followed down a narrow city laneway by a carload of burly men. They didn't bother stopping, just pulled past me and then went around the block and passed me again as I strolled along, just in case I'd missed them the first time. Two months later in June I was actually stopped, this time five minutes after cycling away from another Shell to Sea event, this time a picket of Mountjoy prison. That amounted to no more than a conversation where they demanded my date of birth (needed for the PULSE computer system) which I refused to give to them.
Almost 20 years on, I've had encounters of some sort with Branch men (and in one case a woman) and their equivalents in Italy, Spain, Czech Republic, Mexico and Britain. In North America, where they do things a little differently, I've evidence of being on a watch list in the USA and I may even have a file in Canada. In Ireland I've lost track of the times I've been stopped, followed or had a car outside my door. I'd quite like to get the file that must exist, as it surely contains much I've forgotten. This list makes it sound like I should be an international arms dealer but the funny thing is that really I've done little to deserve such loving attention: a couple of hundred articles, organising the odd protest and perhaps a hundred or so speaking engagements. And all this in public, indeed every one of those articles is online in my own name.
Sometime, a little over 150 years ago, the French proto-anarchist Pierre Proudhon wrote that
To be governed is to be watched over, inspected, spied on, directed, legislated at, regulated, docketed, indoctrinated, preached at, controlled, assessed, weighed, censored, ordered about, by men who have neither the right nor the knowledge nor the virtue.
He would never have had the experience of walking down a busy city street to observe every single gardaí CCTV camera on every intersection swivel to follow him, but clearly he understood the concept.
Of course we don't live in a military dictatorship. Our secret police force does not bundle people into the back of vans with their torture marked bodies appearing a week later on the town rubbish dump. From time to time they have bundled people into vans all right, and they have certainly beaten people, but that tends to be the exception rather than the rule. Most often their role is simply to discourage and disrupt, to raise the cost of being active and to reduce its effectiveness.
I figure it's largely about fear and paranoia. That is the purpose of all the time spent watching: it is not for the most part intelligence gathering at all, but instead all about getting you to look over your shoulder and worry about being watched and the repercussions of being watched. As was the case with me back in '91, they target fresh faces with the obvious intention of trying to scare people off. My experience wasn't a big deal because they were obviously not taking the then 5 strong anarchist movement all that seriously! But with the organisations they have gone after hard (eg Sinn Féin in the 1980s) a more extreme version of the same thing had major impact, scaring large numbers of new members away. In some parts of the country SF found it necessary to put new members though a mock interrogation so they were prepared for the inevitable encounter with the branch, and new members stayed in the organisation in much greater numbers as a result.
Apart from intimidating us, this also means that we sometimes needlessly distrust each other. Occasionally, I have had the experience when a new guy, and I say guy deliberately as it's nearly always men that provoke suspicion, who isn't from an existing social scene arrives at a meeting and a string of people tell me they are sure he is a cop. This is liable to happen in particular if you're a little older or more "normally" dressed than the average anti-capitalist activist. It's even happened to me: I remember visiting an anarchist meet-up point during the anti-capitalist protest against the EU in Seville in 2002 only to be confronted by some younger punky types who reckoned I had to be either a cop or a journalist as I was not wearing their 'uniform'.
The secret state, ever-present at our activities, makes us wary of each other. The impact of the secret police can be surprisingly disruptive. It encourages an inward-looking culture that is suspicious of strangers. Someone asking questions becomes someone to suspect rather than someone to welcome. Even under quite mild surveillance, the pressure wears away at the bonds of human solidarity that unite and motivate us in the first place.
How can we resist? Mostly we can understand what it is they are trying to achieve and be careful not to play the game they are trying to push us into. We can refuse to become paranoid and inward-looking. We can refuse to impose a cultural uniform on ourselves under the illusion this will enable us to tell friend from foe. We can expect a certain level of harassment, and although it may quicken our pulses (mine still does when that unmarked car cruises up behind me on a dark city street) we cannot let that affect our activity. We can support friends who are feeling the pressure and we can reach out to strangers who are in danger of being isolated. We can build a movement that is bigger than them.
For ease of reading you can download a PDF of the entire text in A4 format or fold over A5 format.
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‹ From force to fencing: political policing in the Republic of Ireland up The Prisoners' Rights Organisation: a case study in grassroots organising, 'history from below' & police accountability ›
Subject: Secret police
Topics: Repression
Author: Garda Research Institute
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Who throws the best blowouts and how to get in.
Beating security is not easy.
First, a disclaimer. Holiday office festivities are notoriously difficult to enter if you're not supposed to be there. Barring nonemployees (even spouses) is quite common, and firms that throw the most lavish bashes will take extra security steps, like requiring invitations or checking company IDs.
That said, if you possess a steely confidence and a preternatural affinity for adventure and an open bar, it's not impossible to weasel your way into some incredible venues and hobnob with industry titans and minor local celebs. Here's some helpful dirt.
Each year News Corp, Rupert Murdoch's media empire, rents out six floors in the New York Hilton for its 6,000 New York–based employees and their significant others.
Last year Wenner Media spent its yearly party budget celebrating Rolling Stone's 1.000th issue, and by December there was little left over to throw an over-the-top production. This year, there should be a little more green to spare for a typically rollicking Jann Wenner affair.
Some holiday parties are harder to get into than the latest Olson-attended club. The MTV party, held each year in the Hammerstein Ballroom, and the Vogue holiday party require invites as well as company IDs. You pretty much need to be a party-crashing pro to infiltrate these bashes.
Office holiday parties usually convene at two types of locations: trendy of-the-moment lounges and bars or kitschy themed venues.
The Gansevoort Hotel, in the Meatpacking District, falls into the first category. Both the restaurant and bar and the rooftop lounge get booked up pretty quickly.
Meanwhile, Bowlmor Lanes, just south of Union Square, is a veritable holiday-party mill. According to sales reps, about ten holiday parties per week are set through December.
In either case, try hanging out at commonly booked places in advance. If you establish yourself as a regular (even temporarily) and befriend the staff, it could pay off later on.
The most important trick is to look the part. Wearing jeans and a ratty T-shirt to an actuarial firm's after-work open bar won't convince the doorman. If you're trying to sneak into Marc Jacobs's ball, you'd better know the dress code (last year it was Venetian Renaissance wear), and the theme is usually held tightly under wraps.
Most importantly, approach the door with confidence, commit to your story and don't worry about rejection. 'Cause it's gonna happen.


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Hurlingham Racquet Centre's Light Green Roof Features Kerto® LVL Elements
Jan 31, 2017, 08:12 ET
ESPOO, Finland, Jan. 31, 2017 /CNW/ - The Hurlingham project in London involved the construction of a sports complex including four indoor tennis courts and four squash courts. The racquet hall, designed by David Morley Architects, is 35 metres wide and 55 metres long. The main span consists of suspended steel beams. To give the courts space and reduce the costs, the beams are spaced with large gaps of 12.9 metres. To fill these gaps, the architect wanted to see wood.
To view the Multimedia News Release, please click:
http://www.multivu.com/players/uk/8030851-hurlingham-racquet-centre-roof-kerto-lvl
Wooden Kerto LVL elements support the long spans of a steel bowstring truss
The architect and principal engineering office Price & Myers were seeking an effective, lightweight solution for the wide span. Traditional laminated timber combined with a solid wooden panel on top wouldn't work due to its excessive thickness.
The joint design work between the structural engineers and Metsä Wood resulted in a shallower roof construction with Kerto LVL elements, still accommodating the large span and heavy green roof. With any other material, trusses would have had to be more densely spaced.
The Kerto LVL elements constitute the vaulted roof construction are 12.9 metres long and have a total height of 645 mm and a maximum width of 1,200 mm. To accommodate the curve of the structure, four different widths were determined, totalling 140 prefabricated Kerto LVL elements. The roof elements fit flush with the vaulted, spaced, steel bowstring truss.
Smooth cooperation and BIM technology resulted in a perfect match
In order to guarantee an easy installation of the roof, the supports and the installation process were considered at the design stage.
The depth of the Kerto LVL elements determined the depth of the curved steel member, as the steel had to be flush with the elements to accommodate the green roof structure above. The connection detail between the wood and the steel element therefore were very accurately designed. The project team used BIM technology to ensure the steel and the wood elements fitted together "like a hand in a glove".
The Hurlingham Racquet Centre project in a nutshell:
The 35-by-55-metre Racquet Centre includes four tennis courts and four squash courts.
The roof accommodated 140 Kerto® LVL (Laminated Veneer Lumber) elements in four widths (from 550 mm to 1,200 mm).
Kerto LVL SONANS acoustic panels were built permanently into the Kerto LVL elements.
The smooth installation resulted from the carefully designed connections using BIM technology.
The Hurlingham Club is a green oasis of tradition, renowned throughout the world as one of the largest private clubs. The Racquet Centre, designed by David Morley Architects, has a sunken, low-profile shape and a curved green sedum roof to minimise the environmental impact of the building.
Explore the construction of the Hurlingham racquet centre at http://www.metsawood.com/references
Images: http://databank.metsagroup.com/l/wvSdncKTw_Cs
http://www.metsawood.co.uk
Metsä Wood provides competitive and environmentally friendly wood products for construction, industrial customers and distributor partners. We manufacture products from Nordic wood, a sustainable raw material of premium quality. Our sales in 2015 were EUR 0.9 billion, and we employ about 2,000 people. Metsä Wood is part of Metsä Group.
(Photo: http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/463124/Hurlingham_Racquet_Centre.jpg )
Video: http://www.multivu.com/players/uk/8030851-hurlingham-racquet-centre-roof-kerto-lvl
SOURCE Metsa Wood
To view this news release in HTML formatting, please use the following URL: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/January2017/31/c7033.html
For further information: Virpi Koskimies, Communications specialist, Metsä Wood, +358(0)-50-4522203, [email protected]; For press information, please contact: Matt Trace, Director, Defero Communications, tel. +44(0)7828663988, [email protected]
Metsä Wood


Health Secretary, Shona Robison has confirmed that NHS Lanarkshire will receive an additional £55.1 million in 2016-17.
This is an increase of 5.2 per cent on NHS Lanarkshire's budget level in 2015-16, bringing the board's overall funding to £1.1 billion.
NHS Lanarkshire's uplift includes £31.5 million for investment in social care as part of the integration of health and social care – this is part of the £250 million committed by the Deputy First Minister as part of the 2016-17 budget settlement.
Ms Robison said: "The Scottish Government's commitment to increasing NHS Lanarkshire's budget demonstrates our continuing investment in improving care.
"This comes as Scotland's total health spending reaches almost £13 billion for the first time ever.
"We're clear that people in Lanarkshire should have access to the right care, in the right place, at the right time. With this increase in funding, health boards are being given more support to achieve this.
"The integration of health and social care, which comes into full force on April 1, is the most significant reform of our health and social care services since the creation of the NHS and our investment of £31.5 million for Lanarkshire's health and social care partnerships will help improve people's experience of care.


When Moroccans think of liquid gold they aren't thinking about petroleum oil. In the small region of Morocco, the thorny Argania Spinosa tree produces a fruit bearing one of the most lucrative oils in the world – Argan oil. This oil has been known to treat everything from discolored skin to improved elasticity and suppleness in skin.
Argan oil contains Vitamin E, Carotenes, Squalene and essentially fatty acids. These components heal scar tissue (especially acne scars), treat psoriasis, eczema and even helps undo UV damage to the skin. This oil is even used to improve conditioning in the hair.
As this recent article spotlights, the number of cosmetics that advertise the use of Argan oil has skyrocketed. Two in 2007 to 111 in 2011. The reason why I bold that? The amount this rare, exotic oil is used is usually nil. What's more appealing than claiming to use a rare, expensive oil from an exotic location? Especially when they only need to (technically) put a few drops in. This is unlikely to demonstrate any of the real benefits of that Argan oil provides.
If a few drops are unlikely to do the trick pure Argan oil must be best, right? Wrong. The oils need a carrier to penetrate deep in the skin. That is what a proper moisturizer does (a silicone-based moisturizer will block most absorption). Choosing between a pure oil and a moisturizer with only a tiny amount is choosing between the lesser of evils. Carley's Tamanu Cream uses about 5% Argan Oil. And we don't even advertise the oil!
I first heard about Argan oil from a Mroccan friend that happened to import this oil. It took nothing but a quick pitch for me to have product ideas swirling through my head. Moroccans have used the oil for centuries to treat in particular damaged skin – How about a discoloration cream? An acne scarring cream? Maybe a hair product in the future?
In it's purest form, the oil is semi-solid while refrigerated. Many oil importers dilute it with cheaper oils. We don't touch these cheap variations. The Argania Spinosa tree is extracted by native Moroccan women by hand. By peeling the outer layer of the fruit and pounding the the center with a rock, the oil can be extracted from kernels. This is a major source of income for the Berber tribe in Southern Morocco where the income is redistributed – mostly among women. It is estimated that over three million people receive income from Argan oil extraction!
One of the most interesting things about this wonder oil is the tree that bears it's fruit. Grown in the desert, goats are known to "climb" these trees to reach the precious fruit it bears. Don't worry about the environmental footprint of this tree. This tree is farmed locally by villages and constantly regrown. No goats were harmed in the making of this post!
Our men and women in uniform go through a lot. They may be tough but their skin can be just as sensitive as anyone else's – if not more. The locales they are deployed to – such as Afghanistan and Iraq – are often disastrous for their skin.
Reading these really brings a smile to our faces. Not the "crack" comment (though that's hilarious!). The sheer joy that so many brave men and women are getting out of this stuff. Check out this video from Ray, a military Captain who has been with us since the beginning.
Happy Memorial Day! Thank you for everything you men and women do.
One of our customers recently told us, that she would never buy anything from the Amazon Rainforest. She, of course, was afraid we were contributing to the deforestation. The opposite is true. The natives derive valuable income collecting fruit from these ancient Cupuaçu trees. Cupuaçu grows wild in the Amazon Rainforest. I repeat: No clear cut farming, these trees grow wild. Your purchase helps to support these indigenous people.
Same is true for most of the ingredients we use. We pay top price for the best ingredients. Whenever possible our ingredients are of the "raw" variety. This is much closer to the way nature intended it. Most companies turn seemingly exotic ingredients such as Shea butter into industrial paste using chemicals such as hexane. We purchase this same butter directly by indigenous tribes of Africa. You will notice each tribe provides their own signature color and method of extraction. The difference in quality in these types of seemingly common ingredients is striking. This is where environmental responsibility and a better product go hand-in-hand!


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Bluesology: JD Taylor, Bobby Rush, Downchild Blues Band and more
Mike Greenblatt checks out the hottest blues releases as Autumn 2020 kicks in; from JD Taylor's "Coldwater Sessions" to Bobby Rush's "Rawer Than Raw."
Mike Greenblatt
By Mike Greenblatt
I'm starting to think that anything recorded at the now-legendary Zebra Ranch Studio in North Mississippi near the town of Coldwater is must-listening. Sometimes it's a problem when the studio is more famous than the artist, but not this time. JD Taylor is a big deal in Tennessee where he sang lead and blew some mighty blues-harp for over 25 years and five albums for Little Boys Blue. He's the real deal and when you start to grouse over that generation of pioneer bluesmen who done up and gone, you have to realize that ol' JD is here and making the best music of his career.
The Coldwater Sessions (VizzTone Label Group) is up amongst the best of the batch of this year's blues albums. It's JD's first solo album. He sings up a storm. Vocally, he's right up there with the greats. Harmonica-wise, I'd even put him right there with James Cotton and Little Walter. These 11 originals feature his particular brand of Americana Soul (or blues, if you want to get technical) and they rock, stomp, weep and wail with a fervor usually reserved for church. The man roams the landscape from Stax to New Orleans, all sprinkled with a Bill Withers kind of class and compositional prowess.
It takes a lot of perseverance to maintain a good blues band for a half-century. They call themselves The Downchild Blues Band. Their self-released performance Live At The Toronto Jazz Festival is a reunion of members past and present with some very special guests on hand like Dan Aykroyd of Saturday Night Live fame who, by the way, says in no uncertain terms, "There would be no Blues Brothers if it weren't for Downchild." Indeed, the band was the inspiration for that classic 1980 movie with Aykroyd and the late John Belushi, and featured two Downchild songs in its soundtrack.
Now, after 18 albums, they put it all together again for this night, complete with guest appearances from Aykroyd himself on the seminal Sam & Dave anthem "Soul Man" and "I Got Everything I Need (Almost)" which also boasts LateNight With David Lettterman's Paul Schaffer and Downchild alumni Kenny Neal. Big Joe Turner's 1955 "Flip Flop and Fly" has Finland's queen of the slide guitar, Erja Lyytinen. But it's founder Donnie Walsh's night. When he started this thing with his late brother Hock, they were Canadian locals jamming at Grossman's Tavern in Toronto on some Muddy tunes. Then they got serious, naming their little blues band after a Sonny Boy Williamson song, "Mr. Downchild." Now Donnie is known as Mr. Downchild. They ain't little no more. May they play another 50 years.
Renaissance Man Al Basile goes full throttle on a self-produced concept album called Last Hand (Sweetspot Records), the story of an older man meeting a younger woman. The songs segue via plot lines and a theatrical musical is already in the works. Al sings so sweet and soulful that his blues—once front and center—has to take a back seat here. His cornet playing, once a staple, is downsized to but two short solos. His compositions and that stirring, evocative voice of his carry the project throughout all 12 tracks. The midnight-at-the-oasis feel, with but keyboards, bass and drums, accentuates the profundity of this man's yearning for the object of his passion.
Basile is a longtime horn man from Roomful Of Blues and has always been produced by his good friend and musical partner, the legendary Duke Robillard, with whom he can be heard on all 13 of Duke's solo albums. He's also an oft-published poet and an educator for 25 years from the south shore of Boston before he gave up English and Physics for Blues and Poetry.
Mississippi Suitcase (Lightnin Records), by guitarist/singer/songwriter Peter Parcek, his third, is a swampy, bluesy, soulful, funky, rockin' gem with an A-List of incredible musicians like guitarist Luther Dickinson, Willie Nelson's longtime harmonica man Mickey Raphael and keyboardist Spooner Oldham amongst the 11-man cast on his searing originals plus transcendent covers of Bob Dylan, Peter Green, Sonny Boy Williamson, Paul McCartney and Lou Reed. The follow-up to his 2017 Everybody Wants To Go To Heaven, Mississippi Suitcase is a real-life reaction to today with thought-provoking odes like the opening "The World Is Upside Down" and the closing "A Head Full Of Ghosts" yet there's always time for a song in-between the profundities like "She Likes To Boogie Real Low." This one's a keeper, one of the best of the year.
We all owe a big thank-you to Stony Plain Records head Holger Petersen for rescuing the long-lost 2007 tapes that make up this incredible, informal, organic super-session. Volume #1 by the New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers has 10 tracks of earthy bluesy roots-rock as played by masters at the hallowed halls of the Zebra Ranch Recording Studio with no less than Charlie Musselwhite on harmonica, Alvin Youngblood Hart on guitar/mandolin, Squirrel Nut Zipper Jimbo Mathus on guitar, Jim Dickinson on piano plus his two sons Luther and Cody Dickinson from the North Mississippi All Stars as the main components of an octet wherein the participants sit in a circle trading lead vocals and jamming fit to swoon over on the Memphis Jug Band's 1927 "KC Moan," Charlie Patton's 1929 "Pony Blues," Jimi Hendrix's 1966 "Stone Free," Wilbert Harrison's 1970 "Let's Work Together" and some of their own. When the elder Dickinson died in 2009, the tapes sat in a closet collecting dust balls and were only talked about in hushed tones of reverence. Post-production and a new mix came way later. In listening to these tracks, one feels like you're inside the inner sanctum of when working musicians let their hair down and trade licks for but the supreme enjoyment of each other.
In 2007, Blues Hall of Famer Bobby Rush made his Raw album. Now, 13 years later, the 86-year old has made Rawer Than Raw (Deep Rush/Thirty Tigers), spotlighting Mississippi artists like Skip James [1902-1969], Robert Johnson [1911-1938], Howlin' Wolf [1910-1976], Sonny Boy Williamson II [1912-1965] and Muddy Waters [1913-1983], all from the Magnolia State, as well as five originals. (Rush has lived there since the '80s.) It's a stripped-down affair with just his voice, his guitar, his harmonica and his leg pounding out the percussion on the floor. Rush, the living link between the aforementioned artists, and today, is a born entertainer: funny, outrageous, folksy and charming. He's thinking of doing for the other two states he's lived in—Louisiana and Arkansas—what he's now done for Mississippi. This has to be considered in any blues fan's 2020 Top 10.
bluesAlbum Reviewsbobby rushJD TaylorBluesology
All Mike Greenblatt has ever done in his entire life is listen to music and tell people about it, be it as a New York City publicist, editor or freelance journalist. Mike published his first book at 68, Woodstock 50 Anniversary: Back To Yasgur's Farm (sold in the Goldmine Store). The author has long maintained that his state of musical zen is a direct result of his Woodstock experience.


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Andrea Saturno, bakeries, cake, cake mixes, cookie, corn bread, cracker, Demand, Export, flour, food manufacturers, Foreign Agricultural Service, Foreign Market Development, Guatemala, hard red winter, HRW, Idaho, Latin America, Marcelo Mitre, Market Access Program, Montana, Nebraska, Oregon, pancakes, Partnership, Promotion, soft white, supermarket, SW, U.S. wheat, U.S. Wheat Associates, USDA, Washington Grain Commission Hard Red Winter, Soft White
Export Promotion Partnership Helps Expand Demand for U.S. Wheat in Guatemala
The export market development programs administered by USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service are highly successful partnerships with U.S. farmers, ranchers, dairy producers and small food businesses. U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) and the Washington Grain Commission (WGC) are leveraging that partnership to increase demand for soft white wheat in Guatemala.
Over several years, USW and WGC have worked together to educate decision makers at commercial bakeries and food manufacturers in Latin America about the benefits of low protein soft white (SW) wheat. WGC provides direct funding from its checkoff program and USW uses funding from the Market Access Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD) program.
In 2013, USW sent an expert in "premix" consumer bakery products to work with an innovative and growing Guatemalan flour mill and wheat foods company. The consultant helped the company set up a small plant to develop formulations for chocolate and vanilla cake mixes as well as pancake and corn bread mixes using flour from U.S. SW wheat. After extensive quality testing and production refinement, the company has now successfully launched these branded consumer products through a large Guatemalan supermarket chain.
With direct producer funding, USW also worked with WGC to conduct a seminar with the same company designed to show how blending flour from U.S. SW and other wheat classes can improve end-product quality while reducing flour costs compared to competing wheats. Milling consultant Andrea Saturno and USW Technical Specialist Marcelo Mitre demonstrated several different blending proportions and conducted bake tests at the company's own laboratory. The company continued trials on its own and chose a blend of 50 percent SW and 50 percent U.S. hard red winter (HRW) wheat that it successfully markets as an industrial bread flour.
In addition, the company says its two largest flour customers now purchase SW-based flour to manufacture branded cookie and cracker products. One of the customers recently built a new cookie factory that represents an opportunity for USW to expand its technical assistance.
Such end-user success and growth creates an opportunity to continue expanding annual SW exports to Guatemala of almost 130,000 metric tons per year, valued at more than $25 million, making Guatemala the largest SW volume importer in Latin America. Total U.S. wheat commercial sales to Guatemala in marketing year 2017/18 exceeded 527,000 MT.
May 1, 2018 /by Erica Oakley
https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Soft-White-Wheat-Kernals-2008-2-scaled.jpg 957 2560 Erica Oakley https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/USW-Logo-Full-Color.png Erica Oakley2018-05-01 19:55:192018-05-01 19:55:19Export Promotion Partnership Helps Expand Demand for U.S. Wheat in Guatemala
Colorado, Foreign Agricultural Service, Foreign Market Development, free trade agreement, FTA, hard res winter, HRW, Kansas, Market Access Program, Morocco, Nebraska, Oklahoma, tariff rate quota, Texas, trade service, TRQ, U.S. Trade Representative, U.S. wheat, U.S. Wheat Associates, USDA, USTR Hard Red Winter
Trade Service Improves U.S. Wheat Import Opportunity in Morocco
USDA Foreign Agricultural Service cooperator U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) works closely with government agencies, both domestic and foreign, to ensure that free trade agreements (FTA) and tariff rate quotas (TRQ) are carried out and to help maintain a positive trading environment for U.S. wheat producers.
Moroccan wheat imports are subject to a TRQ for hard red winter (HRW), hard red spring (HRS) and durum wheat under a bilateral FTA with the United States. However, its implementation has faced difficulties due a difference in the interpretation of the agreement and corresponding administrative procedures. The TRQ annual amount varies, depending on the size of the local wheat crop. U.S. preference is calculated on a calendar year basis, so Morocco typically tenders for the entire TRQ amount at the beginning of the calendar year when U.S. wheat is usually not price competitive with other sources. This is a problem for U.S. wheat imports, especially when Morocco only typically launches one tender annually. The timing of the tenders often means Morocco meets the basic terms of the FTA but has no or low TRQ utilization for U.S. wheat.
In 2014, Morocco only allocated 9,000 metric tons (MT) of the 400,000 MT TRQ. That was the only year between 2011 and 2015 that our FTA partner purchased U.S. wheat under the TRQ. Morocco's government buying agency did tender three times in 2016, but the 800,000 MT of U.S. HRW it did import was due to crop failure in Morocco rather than any substantial TRQ policy improvements.
USW staff based in Casablanca, Morocco, and Europe worked closely with trade policy staff at its headquarters in Arlington, Va., to collect all relevant information on historical tenders as well as rules and participation in FTA related activities. USW also outlined a detailed comparison between the U.S. FTA with Morocco and the FTA Morocco has with the European Union (EU), which showed unfair advantages to EU-produced wheat.
USW presented this information to the FAS and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representatives (USTR). USW, together with FAS and USTR, convinced Morocco's Cereals Office (ONICL) to issue multiple tenders to fairly evaluate U.S. wheat under the TRQ at different periods during the marketing year.
Because of this trade service activity, funded in part by U.S. wheat farmers and with the Market Access Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD) program, Morocco imported 360,000 MT of HRW during the first half of marketing year 2017/18 under the Morocco FTA, for only the second time in 11 years, representing the entire TRQ allotment for purchases of common wheat. The TRQ imports returned about $70 million to U.S. wheat farmers in the Southern and Central Plains and wheat export supply participants.
https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/MAR18-QSP-at-IFIM-Casablanca-2-Edit.jpg 720 1280 Erica Oakley https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/USW-Logo-Full-Color.png Erica Oakley2018-05-01 19:14:152018-05-01 19:14:15Trade Service Improves U.S. Wheat Import Opportunity in Morocco
baking, Colombia, Colorado, flour, Foreign Agricultural Service, hard red winter, HRW, Kansas, Market Access Program, Nebraska, Oklahoma, technical service, Texas, U.S. wheat, U.S. Wheat Associates, Wheat Hard Red Winter
Baking Workshops Build Demand for U.S. Hard Red Winter Wheat in Colombia
In Colombia, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service cooperator U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) is helping increase demand for flour made from U.S. hard red winter (HRW) wheat by investing in technical support for commercial bakeries using funding from the Market Access Program (MAP).
Demand for better quality baked goods is growing in Colombia, with increasing disposable consumer income in urban areas like the capital Bogota. To offset traditional preferences for Canadian spring wheat as the main source of flour in Colombia, USW is following a strategy to conduct artisan style bread baking seminars. The processes they are teaching produce better quality bread that appeals to consumers and require flour with more HRW, which helps bakeries reduce input costs compared to flour from higher priced Canadian spring wheat flour.
For example, USW contracted with baking consultant Didier Rosada to conduct a full week of baking and technical consulting in August 2017 at a large commercial bakery chain in Bogota that produces over 117 bread varieties, two pastry product lines and more than 60 à la carte dishes in its restaurants. The company found the demonstrations so appealing, it immediately asked suppliers to provide the HRW flour blend that Rosada used in his seminars. As a direct result of this MAP-funded export market development activity, one of the company's flour supplier imported a relatively small volume of HRW in November 2017. Immediate sales of that flour convinced the mill to change its artisan bread flour blend from a base of 80 percent Canadian Western Red Spring wheat to 100% HRW in 2017 and it became the regular supplier to the bakery chain.
In marketing years 2014/15 and 2015/16 (June to May), Colombia imported 430,000 metric tons (MT) of HRW. The technical support strategy there has helped increase HRW commercial sales to 977,000 MT in 2016/17 and 2017/18, supporting U.S. wheat farmers from Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado and Nebraska. These exports represent total revenue of about $217 million.
https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/AUG18-Technical-Service-in-Colombia-Santiago-4.jpg 709 1279 Erica Oakley https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/USW-Logo-Full-Color.png Erica Oakley2018-05-01 16:06:042018-05-01 16:06:04Baking Workshops Build Demand for U.S. Hard Red Winter Wheat in Colombia
2015, Angola, Cameroon, Emerging Market Program, Equatorial Guinea, Foreign Agricultural Service, Gabon, Ghana, hard red winter, Ivory Coast, Kansas Colorado, Nebraska, Nigeria, noodle technology, Oklahoma, Oregon, Senegal, South Dakota, technical service, Texas, U.S. wheat, U.S. Wheat Associates, USDA, Wheat, Wheat Marketing Center Hard Red Winter
Spreading Success through Service: USW Helps Establish Noodle Market in Cameroon
U.S. Wheat Associates (USW), a cooperator with USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) built a large and loyal market for U.S. hard red winter (HRW) wheat in Nigeria through trade service and technical assistance. Success in Nigeria is now a model for nearby markets like Cameroon where a food company is now building demand for instant noodles.
By importing an annual average of 2.36 million metric tons of U.S. HRW the five years between 2009/10 and 2014/15, Nigeria was the leading HRW buyer in the world. While most HRW is milled for bread flour, to reach such levels, USW also helped establish HRW as the preferred wheat for Asian noodle flour in Nigeria.
As it continued to support Nigerian millers and food processors, USW used Emerging Market Program (EMP) funding to invite prospective buyers from neighboring Cameroon and other countries to learn more about the success enjoyed by their Nigerian colleagues. After meeting with Nigerian flour millers at USW's request, a major food manufacturer decided to produce instant noodle products in his country.
To foster that desire, USW brought company representatives to Portland, Ore., to attend Introductory and Advanced Instant Noodle Technology & Processing short courses at the Wheat Marketing Center. USW also provided in-plant technical support and trade service information. The business owner credits each level of support from EMP-funded USW activities for giving the company the opportunity to introduce instant noodles and see rapid growth in demand.
Starting with about 9,000 metric tons of Nigerian-milled HRW flour, the company soon needed a local supplier. The outcome of activities in Cameroon, funded through the EMP, was 55,900 metric tons of new HRW exports over two marketing years. The business owner was so positive about potential growth, he planned to renovate a closed flour mill to import and mill HRW for instant noodle production.
USW continues to promote HRW use in instant noodle production in Nigeria, Cameroon, Angola, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Senegal. It is expected that current and incremental HRW exports will benefit wheat farmers in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska and South Dakota.
December 31, 2015 /by Amanda Spoo
https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/Spreading-Success-through-Service-USW-Helps-Establish-Noodle-Market-in-Cameroon.jpg 483 724 Amanda Spoo https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/USW-Logo-Full-Color.png Amanda Spoo2015-12-31 13:30:152015-12-31 13:30:15Spreading Success through Service: USW Helps Establish Noodle Market in Cameroon
2015, California, Foreign Agricultural Service, Foreign Market Development, hard red spring, hard red winter, Japan, Japan Consumer Affairs Agency, Market Access Program, MATT, Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, Oregon Wheat Growers League, soft white, South Dakota, trade service, U.S. wheat, U.S. Wheat Associates, USDA, Washington, Wheat, Wyoming Hard Red Spring, Hard Red Winter, Soft White
Wheat Exports Hinge on Meeting Japan's Need for Information
The indelible link between the Japanese people and U.S. wheat producers began when the Oregon Wheat Growers League (OWGL) organized a trade delegation visit in 1949. Today, Japan is a mature, but very sophisticated market that must import most of its milling wheat. By providing critical, timely information about U.S. wheat and related market issues, Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) cooperator U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) is helping maintain a majority market share in a critical market with 2014/15 imports equal to more than 10 percent of total U.S. wheat exports.
Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), grain traders, millers and bakers are pressed by consumers to consistently deliver excellent quality, uniformity, variety and safety. They must be prepared to defend their work. That is why USW and its state wheat commission members focus activities there on helping buyers understand the quality of every wheat crop, keeping both Japanese government and millers informed about market and policy developments and collaborating in detail on any food safety related concerns.
For example, according to the Japan Consumer Affairs Agency, buckwheat is among seven potential allergens that can produce severe reactions. USW works with state commissions to provide assurance that imported U.S. wheat meets the market's "no-buckwheat" demand. Together they travel to Japan to fully understand the issue from the customers' point of view. They help farmers adopt practices to keep buckwheat out of wheat crops." And in 2015, they hosted on-farm visits to show Japanese miller why there is a low risk of seeing buckwheat in U.S. wheat shipments.
Another example developed in 2013 following the discovery of wheat plants with an unapproved genetically modified (GM) trait in a single field in Oregon. From the start, FAS, USW, the U.S. commercial grain trade, state wheat organizations and wheat farmers took this unusual situation very seriously. Their work helped identify and share the most accurate information from the ongoing APHIS investigation to buyers, government agencies and end users. While MAFF temporarily suspended new purchases of U.S. Western White, a sub-class of soft white (SW) wheat, the reasoned response to the incident provided the assurance MAFF needed to quickly resume Western White tenders and minimize the market disruption.
This consistent level of service, supported by MAP and FMD funds, helped protect U.S. wheat sales in the face of aggressive competition from Canada and Australia. Income from Japan comes back to wheat farmers and the wheat supply chain in the Pacific Northwest and farmers in Washington, Oregon, California, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.
https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Wheat-Exports-Hinge-on-Meeting-Japans-Need-for-Information-scaled.jpg 1714 2560 Amanda Spoo https://www.uswheat.org/wp-content/uploads/USW-Logo-Full-Color.png Amanda Spoo2015-12-31 12:00:452015-12-31 12:00:45Wheat Exports Hinge on Meeting Japan's Need for Information


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HomeActivitiesEducation & Research
The Auroville Library on the Crown Road
The Auroville Library
The Auroville Library, located on the crown road near the Solar Kitchen, has been in operation for over 25 years now, housing and lending out a wide selection of books. Today it contains some 28,000 volumes in seven languages – English, French, Italian, Spanish, German, Dutch and Russian. All the books are divided up by subject matter into approximately 60 different sections, including a section especially for children. The library is using a professional computer software for cataloging and organizing the books.
The library opens every weekday morning 9 to 12.30, and on Saturday afternoon 4 to 6:30 pm. It is planned to open every afternoon and in the evening. Meanwhile the library meets the needs of some 450 regular and 250 irregular book borrowers within Auroville, plus a number of guests and some Auroville workers. On average, at present around 1,300 books are loaned out each month. In addition to the books, most of which have been donated over the years, or purchased using a relatively small budget which rarely allows for more than 200 new works a year, the Auroville Library also maintains a number of subscriptions to weekly and monthly Indian and international journals. The latter are laid out for reading in a separate area of the library.
http://library.auroville.org.in
2:00-4:30 (except Tuesday)
4:00-6:30 (Tuesday only)
Auroville Library
Crown Road, Near Solar Kitchen
Auroville, Tamil Nadu
Write to Auroville Library
Auroville Library Location
The education of a human being should begin at birth and continue throughout his life.
Education - Words of Wisdom
Yoga of Knowledge - Words of Wisdom
Introduction to the Integral Yoga of Sri Aurobindo
Natural healing therapies at Quiet Healing Centre
Auromode Yoga Space
Savitri Bhavan: Programs June 2022
Vérité Integral Learning & Yoga Centre Activities
Last School - 'Free Progress' Auroville school for middle and ...
Future School for children of 14 - 19 years
Nandanam kindergarten for children between 2.5 to 7 years of age
Thamarai Community Learning Centres
House of Mother's Agenda (H.O.M.A)
Auroville Language Laboratory (ALL)
Udavi School - for children up from 1st to 10th standard
Life Education Centre for underprivileged girls between the ag...
Innovating in a Village School: Udavi, a Case Study
Savitri Bhavan, a centre for spiritual education
New Era Secondary School (NESS) - A CBSE Affiliated School
Vérité Integral Learning & Yoga Center
New Creation Sports
Tamil Ulagam Evening Schools
Arulvazi Education Centre for children aged 3 to 18 years of t...
Aha! Kindergarten for children of 2.5 to 7 years age
Academic Research Papers on Auroville
Deepanam School for children of 6 to 14 years of age
Auroville Child Development and Libre Progrès School (New Crea...
New Colors - a learning and social support centre for underpri...
Auroville Sports Resource Centre
SAIIER - Sri Aurobindo International Institute of Educational ...
Awareness Through the Body (ATB)
Auroville Institute of Applied Technology (AIAT)
ASSET Centre - Auroville Schools Science & Educational Training
Kindergarten for children from 2.5 to 7 years of age
Frequently asked questions on education
University of Human Unity
Transition School photo album
Libraries of Auroville
The Laboratory of Evolution
Auroville's Natural Horsemanship School
Aikiyam School - serving children from nearby villages
The Learning Community (TLC)
Isai Ambalam School for children from Kottakkarai and Alankupp...
Sanskrit Research Institute (SRI)
Transition school for children of 6 - 14 years
A Note on Unending Education in Auroville
'The play of painting" at the Auroville Kindergarten
What is special about the Kindergarten in Auroville ?
Ilaignarkal Education Centre for Auroville workers of all ages...
Education - Introduction
Auroville Learning Exchange (ALE)
Lilaloka - Resource Centre for the Child
Pitanga Cultural Centre
Spirit & Nature
Stewardship for New Emergence
Dehashakti Sports and Physical Education Programme
Aurogames


From Catering Marc Fosh we offer to our customers a table of allergens for our entrees, appetizers and desserts, detailing each dish we offer and marking the product that can cause allergy. In this way, our customers can see the dishes that, if there are guests with allergies, should avoid, or let us know for replacing by others. As always, we work to provide the best service to our customers..


Why the sudden Australian foreign policy shift on the matter of Jerusalem?
Initially PM Scott Morrison's captain's call to move the Australian embassy to Jerusalem was a desperate ploy to garner the Jewish vote in the October Wentworth by-election. The Morrison government was then warned against changes to Australia's status on Jerusalem by its own Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Defence Department and ASIO.
The largest Muslim nation, Indonesia, Australia's neighbour and largest trading partner, expressed its objection indicating the bilateral defence cooperation commitment may be threatened as well as $16.5 billion free trade (trade with Israel is worth $1.5 billion) agreement under negotiation.
At the East Asia Summit in Singapore, Malaysian PM Dr Mahathir's reasonable prediction that an Australian embassy move was "adding to the cause for terrorism" was met by virulent condemnations of antisemitism by Australia's Jewish treasurer, Josh Frydenberg.
On 11 December, PM Morrison announced that Australia intended to formally recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel but, due to a $200 million cost, would delay moving its embassy from Tel Aviv.
On 15 December, at the pro-Israel Sydney Institute, Morrison announced a quasi-compromise; it recognised West Jerusalem as Israel's capital preempting Jerusalem's status as a corpus separatum to be resolved solely between Palestine and Israel.
Repeated slavish adherence to the dead, departed, defunct, belly-up two state solution.
The on-cue regurgitation of Israeli official propaganda that Palestine's resistance movement under Hamas = terror.
He stated, 'the Australian Government has also resolved to acknowledge the aspirations of the Palestinian people for a future state' but to date Australia has not joined the 137 nations that have recognised the State of Palestine and under Morrison's direction Australia abstained on UN Resolutions that condemn Israel.
It appears that Australian securitypressure has watered down Morrison's gung ho recognition to only West Jerusalem. On 14 December, the Department of Foreign Affairs warned Australians going to popular Indonesian holiday destinations to "exercise a high degree of caution" recalling PM Mahathir prediction of possible retaliatory terror attacks against Australians. On the bright side, Morrison's diluted endorsement has unwittingly put his 'great friend' in a bind: – of the 610,000 illegal settlers in the West Bank, 215, 000 live in East Jerusalem which was illegally annexed in 1967.
That said, what could be moving Morrison to doggedly rush Australia to the edge of a political precipice?
A) There is an alarming racist i.e. OK to be whiteJudeo-Christian arrogance underlying the Morrison government that overlooks the religious significance of the Noble Sanctuary in Jerusalem on which stands the third holiest site in Islam where the Prophet Mohammed ascended to heaven for 1.8 billion devoted Muslims, and underestimates their intelligence to see that the Australian ratification of West Jerusalem as Israel's capital is identical to moving its embassy to Jerusalem and is therefore a political and religious threat.
withtheir man, Scott Morrison, who openly identifies as an evangelical and pentecostal member of the The Australian Christian Churches.
Pentecostalism is a charismatic evangelical faith. Evangelical Christians take the authority of the Bible as absolute and believe in the fulfilment of"the "prophecy" of the conversion of the Jews, the second coming of Jesus, the final judgment, and the end of the world — the events referred to as the biblical apocalypse" when only believers would rise in Rapture with Jesus to heaven.
Unconverted Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists Sikhs, Jews, Athiests, Taoists etc etc will perish in hell.
Ideologically, assuming Jesus died to save all humanity, then the essence of Christianity is Agapic equality. So, logically the flaw within the evangelical fulfilment of biblical prophecy is that it is radically exclusive therefore UnChristian. So following on, disrespecting Jerusalem as a Muslim Holy Site and abandoning the political and human rights of Palestinian families to save your own skin is UnChristian, immoral and repugnant (and fantastical).
C) Is Morrison rushing through the controversial recognition of the biblical capital because he may only a small window of opportunity before he is likely defeated in the 2019 May election?
If religious expedience is a factor overriding the serious consequences of the conservatives' recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish state, then Morrison's zealousrapture for Jerusalem is challenging the separation of church and state in the Australian democracy, challenging Australian political and economic relationships with neighbouring Asian partners, challenging world peace and may well shake up an Australia's political apocalypse.


Platforms for applications and the Internet of Things (IoT) are appearing in the solution portfolio of many software and automation suppliers. Each company has its own rationale for offering a platform, but the underlying reason is that these companies need to move to an efficient, modern application development and deployment environment.
There is still quite a bit of confusion in the marketplace about these platforms. Part of the confusion arises because the term, "platform," is frequently applied to a variety of technologies. Computing infrastructure, operating systems, chipsets, smartphones, and a variety of other platforms are commonly encountered in technical discussions.
Most of the confusion has to do with the simultaneous commercial emergence of both the Industrial IoT and these various platforms. IIoT starts with connected physical things or devices. In many cases, a second, different platform is involved in connecting these "things." Unfortunately, it's often difficult to distinguish between IoT device connectivity platforms and cloud application platforms with IoT functionality. This is largely due to the similar-sounding descriptions and attributes often used in marketing materials and on websites. Upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that the former is primarily an edge platform, and the latter primarily a cloud platform. We expect this confusion to continue, because suppliers of both edge and cloud functionality are gradually expanding their capabilities to include both.
This report focuses primarily on the latter; cloud application platforms with IoT functionality. We have identified two main types of these platforms and will examine the strategies behind each. We also examine the relationship of these platforms to edge systems and devices, and to IoT device connectivity platforms.
Among our findings, is the fact that in addition to the move to a modern development and runtime environment, a common driver is the idea that customers will benefit from a broad, interoperable ecosystem of application suppliers and applications. We will consider this as well.
We include continuous process, discrete manufacturing, infrastructure, and smart cities in our discussion.
Greg's team focuses on the digital transformation taking place throughout the industrial space. Known by terms such as Industrial Internet of Things, Industrie 4.0, Information-Driven Manufacturing, Connected Manufacturing, Smart Manufacturing, Industrial Internet, and many others, this transformation is already underway. It is powered by technologies such as machine learning, predictive analytics and Big Data, cloud computing, mobility, low-cost sensors, edge intelligence, network connectivity, and more.
Is the report free? How does one access the report?
The report is free for ARC Advisory Group clients. We are taking up your request to our HQ. In case, we get permission, we would like to know how NASSCOM will use the report? Will this be published on NASSCOM website and become accessible to all members?
If it is free and you want to reach a wide audience, we can make it available to all. If it is not, then we can find other ways.
We are waiting for feedback from our HQ. Pls let us know what do you mean by we can find other ways?
Thanks for the reply. We are in the process of finalising the access. In what format would you need the report, a link or the PDF?
Kindly also send your mail id for sending the report.


Any company operates better when internal communications are well-structured. That is why it is important to improve a human resource management system within the framework of the whole workflow organization. Open HRMS provides core elements for a complete HR Management. Open HRMS Vacation Management is one such core module that takes care of employee well-being, their travel allowances, and other vacation benefits. Its implementation is a necessary step towards a prosperous company with well-automatized processes.
Manage HR department time, more efficiently via the automated reporting system. The bills are attached with employee leaves and invoiced any time necessary.
Helps the organization in taking care of the employee travel expense. Open HRMS Vacation Management facilitates with flight booking for an employee.
The bills are automatically invoiced in Open HRMS Vacation Management module.


Are You The One? is a TV show on American national television from MTV with an average rating of 3.1 stars by WatchTVOnDemand.com's visitors. We have 23 episodes of Are You The One? in our archive. The first episode of Are You The One? was broadcast in August, 2016. Did you miss an episode of Are You The One? but don't you wan't that to happen in the future? Please set an alarm and add Are You The One? to your favorites, so we can remind you by email when there's a new episode available to watch. Completely free: handy!
It's all or nothing as heading into the tenth and final Matchup Ceremony. Strategy leads the group to believe in one set of matches but, Asaf struggles between following his heart and being team player.
Old conflicts boil over to bring the house crumbling down when an epic fight leads to shock and tears. With just two Matchup Ceremonies left, the house desperately tries to strategize a win.
A cringe worthy challenge invites the guys' exes to dish some dirt. Gio and Stephen finally get the truth about Julia.
The guys reveal their soft sides when their moms reveal some embarrassing info. Stephen becomes increasingly paranoid over Gio's interest in Julia. Francesca gets caught in Gio's wolf den.
John goes off when Stephen makes a play for Julia. Tori and Camille set their sights on the same guy. The pressure is on for the "golden couples" heading into the Truth Booth.


Royal Caribbean is currently running an offer for 30% off the standard cruise fare for all guests in a stateroom. The offer period is February 16 – March 16, 2016 and is good for cruises departing on or after March 16, 2016.
Royal Caribbean's recently renovated Liberty of the Seas departs from Galveston weekly on 7-night cruises with ports of call in Falmouth, Jamaica, George Town, Grand Cayman; and Cozumel, Mexico.
See prices and book a Liberty of the Seas cruise at CruiseDirect.
Offer Terms: Savings is automatically reflected in the price of the cruise. Cruise must be booked Feb. 16-Apr. 3, 2016 (the "Offer Period"). Offer applies to sailings departing on or after Mar. 16, 2016. Offer includes 30% off the standard cruise fare for all guests in a stateroom; all stateroom categories. Savings will be applied automatically at time of booking. All other charges, including, but not limited to, taxes, fees and port expenses, are additional and apply to all guests. Offer is combinable with Crown & Anchor discounts, NextCruise offers, and Shareholders benefits. Any dollar off discounts or promotions, such as Crown & Anchor discounts, are applied first, followed by Offer, which is applied to final balance. Offer is not combinable with restricted rates (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military) or any other offer or promotion, including, but not limited to, Standard Group, Interline, Travel Agent, Travel Agent Friends and Family, weekly Sales Events, Net Rates. After the Offer Period, the Offer will be removed from the booking if the guest cancels and reinstates the booking, applies a fare change, or changes the ship or sail date of the booking; certain other changes to the booking may also result in removal of the Offer. Offer excludes all China departures. Offer applies to new, individual and named group bookings confirmed at prevailing rates. Individual reservations can be transferred into an existing group, assuming required criteria are met. Offer available to residents of the United States and Canada. Prices and Offer are subject to availability and change without notice, capacity controlled, and may be withdrawn at any time.


How do managed print services (MPS) help you?
Managed Print Services (MPS) are about taking control of your printing infrastructure. MPS streamlines everything related to printing such as output, supplies delivery, support, repair, and billing. Through MPS you can gain true visibility into the processes and costs associated with printing.
We have a long successful track record helping our clients reduce their print and copy costs while improving their security and processes. Please take a look at our testimonials on the industry pages.
Parmetech provides office technology hardware and software solutions. What makes us different is that we design our solutions to be client centric, not to maximize our revenue.
How does Parmetech reduce cost?
We have a long record of helping clients reduce cost by conducting forensic assessments of our clients' environment. We use a combination of quantitative data from tools and walkthroughs, along with qualitative data (user interviews) to optimize our clients' future state designs.
How long has Parmetech been in business?
Parmetech was founded in January 1991. We celebrated our 25th Anniversary in 2016.
What types of industries does Parmetech work with?
We can service any industry. We focus on higher education, K-12, healthcare and construction.
What are Parmetech's core capabilities?
Parmetechs's core capabilities are Managed Print Services, document management, and digital collaboration.
How do your services differ from a printer/copier dealer?
Some of our competitors focus on selling you expensive equipment that you may not need. We take the time to understand your environment, so that we can design the most optimal solution for your technical and budgetary requirements.
Do you know how much you are spending on office printing?
Parmetech uses a consultative approach to understanding a client's current business environment including key objectives, challenges, technical infrastructure, and costs in an effort to develop a long-term MPS and document management strategy.
Parmetech's key value proposition is our ability to accurately analyze, assess and recommend solutions that are right-sized for our client's current and future needs.
Reduce the number of invoices you process.
All of your managed assets can appear on one invoice. We helped a client reduce from over 500 invoices to 1 invoice per month!
Protect your environment with user authentication at devices, prevent misdirected scans and faxes.
Get a complete view of your managed fleet through one portal.
Reduce the time your team spends ordering supplies.
Apply best practices to optimize and secure your print infrastructure.
Our proven process guarantees that you receive the best service and support.
No solution can be properly designed without a true understanding of the environment. Our forensic print assessment process uses qualitative and quantitative data collection methods to help us understand your needs.
We use of decades of expertise and state-of-the-art technology to design a solution that fits your specific needs.
We will not leave you hanging. We will be with you every step of the way utilizing change management best practices to make sure the transition to your new solution is as seamless as possible.
Once implementation has been completed that is just the beginning. Our team can manage your new environment for you and provide you the tools to make everything as easy for you as possible.
Interested in our services? Let's start a dialog!
Please enter your information below. A service catalogue will be sent to your inbox.
We have a demonstrated track record of helping clients reduce operating costs, improve efficiencies, maximize data security and support sustainability efforts.


Workplace Bully and Corruption Whistleblower: SA Government sold taxpayer-owned city building. No public tender.
SA Government sold taxpayer-owned city building. No public tender.
When I worked in the South Australian Public Service, I and all others had strict Guidelines and Policies to follow whilst going about our duties.
A few years ago, Premier Mike Rann introduced a Code of Conduct with a bottom line. If you screwed the system, the system would screw you. Reprimands, Dismissals, that sort of stuff.
But, I began to notice ways in which my employer, the South Australian Government, was behaving that made me wonder about one-way streets. Surely, rules imposed on one, should equally apply to all others.
The building owned by and housing the Office of the Public Trustee, where I worked in the I.T. Section, was sold to Spanish Media Mogul, Javier Moll. In addition, Javier Moll had previously bought the building next door.
According to the government record, Hansard, the sale was not subject to public tender process, and it was sold for an amount considerably less than a previous property valuation.
So, there I was, sitting on the first floor of 25 Franklin Street, beating my head against a brick wall battling workplace bullying, sexual harassment, and corruption, and my employer does something I thought was suss.
Maybe all public servants should be issued with new uniforms complete with Cordobes style hats!!
Labels: Spain. Rann. SA Government.
But politicians play a very long game.
If they can discredit Public Trustee enough is the long game aim to privatise Public Trustee so the existing lawyers can raise their own incomes? It is something the legal profession has been trying to do for over 100 years.
Even though Public Trustee still has an under-current of bullying against selected staff, it is also true that the staff so achieve some good things that the legal profession would never tackle.
One agency the government should be looking at is the completely ineffectual Housing Trust. A more 'nobbled' agency could not exist. Where once it ran at a profit and built homes for poor working class people - all they do now is slowly sell off their properties. The word is they are losing 50 million $ a year because the management is so completely bent on winding down the housing trust until there is no capital left.
No more stupid action can I think of, than the Rann govt making PT building earthquake proof, at big expense, then get the property valued, then selling it for millions less to a developer, without an auction and without a tender. And without anything but ideology driving the decision. And the yes people managers are going with the flow, that is how they got where they are. Too bad if it is the wrong decision. No analysis of the bad side of selling an appreciating asset and then using the sale proceeds to fund refurbishment of the next place. And then paying top rate for rent in the new places. At least PT staff do not have to walk far to the Market. Try down near to South Terrace. It is the end of nowhere down there And what we are getting will be a noisy chicken coop for people. Sorry chickens, you are given more space than the minimalist desk space allowed per person. All Rann ideology.
Selling your place was mad PT. Who would do that? No longer the clout of owning it, and not receiving the income of own building. So much easier to just sell off the business later, if have no asset to back the business.
And then where will your clients you call Protected clients go? Out on the streets like the people turfed out of Glenside.
PT should plead a special case because your clients are not like you and me (or not like most of us) Your clients need more support.
PT should be exempt from paying the government a dividend until PT has accumulated enough to buy another building. The guidelines on space requirements are just Rann ideology, but not practical. Maybe the first time someone trips on files on the floor and takes departments to court for their injuries will make someone realize that not enough storage is stupid. It is all about froth, bubble and cynical responses assuring us this will all be OK. Is this kindergarten financial management that allows idiot-idiology to drive the way this state is run (down).


text:
As Alberta woos skilled workers, economists say the competition is healthy
By newsknown On Oct 12, 2022
When Zeel Shah's partner left Toronto for a job in Edmonton in 2018, the young couple had to decide which city offered the future they wanted for themselves.
Shah, now 28, says she and Deep Cheema compared the lives they could have in Toronto and Edmonton and concluded their home ownership goals were more achievable out West.
"We wanted to eventually settle down," she said. "As a first house, we didn't want to spend like one million dollars."
A year after Cheema moved, Shah joined him in the much colder and less-populated city. In 2021, the couple bought their first home — a townhouse — together in Edmonton.
Shah says looking back, moving to Alberta was the right decision for their now family of three.
Alberta is currently vying to attract more young people like Shah and Cheema, and economists say it's a good thing for provinces to compete for workers.
The dream of home ownership
With labour shortages prevalent across the country, the western province is targeting residents of Canada's most expensive cities in a campaign to attract workers, making an affordability pitch it's hoping will be too hard to resist.
"What did the Albertan say to the Torontonian? You're hired," reads one of Alberta's ads in a downtown Toronto subway station.
"Find things you'd never expect. Like an affordable house," reads another.
The second phase of the Alberta is Calling campaign is making the case for why Torontonians and Vancouverites might want to relocate to the oil-rich province: cheaper housing, good pay and shorter commutes.
At a campaign launch event in Toronto last month, now former Alberta premier Jason Kenney spoke directly to the city's young people.
"I want to make a special shout-out to younger folks in the GTA and the greater Vancouver region, because they all have a dream, quite rightly, of home ownership," said Kenney.
"That dream is alive and well in Alberta."
Alberta has launched a campaign to bring Vancouver workers to the province, promising affordable living and shorter commutes. (Frederic Demers/CBC News Graphics)
According to the Canadian Real Estate Association, the average home price in Alberta was about $424,000 in August. In comparison, average home prices in Ontario and British Columbia were $830,000 and $911,000 respectively.
In Toronto and Vancouver, prices are well above the provincial averages.
The pitch comes as Ontario experiences the largest exodus of residents in decades. According to Statistics Canada, nearly 50,000 people left the province in the second quarter of this year.
Meanwhile, Alberta saw an influx of people entering the province, with more than 37,000 new residents.
University of Waterloo economics professor Mikal Skuterud says movement between provinces is good if it means workers are going to where they're needed the most.
"We need competition," Skuterud said, adding that employers should be competing for talent across the country, not just in the local communities where they're based.
"We want workers to realize where jobs are plentiful [and] where wages are rising."
Hey #YYZ and #YVR…

Alberta is calling. Will you answer? pic.twitter.com/DmtogKz7Fh
—@jkenney
Mike Moffatt, an assistant professor at Western University's Ivey Business School, said with young people increasingly concerned about housing affordability, "it's really smart for Alberta to sort of tout the benefits of living there."
Moffatt says although Alberta's latest campaign might be more aggressive in its tone, other regions in Ontario have made similar pitches to Toronto residents.
As more Torontonians migrated out of the city over the years and into regions like Kitchener-Waterloo and St. Catharines, prices were driven up in those cities, he said.
"With the increase of work-from-home, there's the potential for that to be turned into a Canadian-wide phenomenon," Moffatt said.
That phenomenon has already played out in the Maritimes as Ontarians headed out East during the COVID-19 pandemic, opting for bigger homes at cheaper prices.
The influx of Ontarians pushed up home prices dramatically in historically inexpensive New Brunswick. Last year, prices went up by more than 30 per cent in the province.
As Canadians continue the search for affordable housing, Moffatt says local communities will have to be mindful of population growth and make sure they have the housing to accommodate it.
Back in Edmonton, Shah says the move to Alberta won't appeal to everyone. Torontonians have to forgo living in the most populous city in Canada and Vancouverites would bid farewell to mild weather.
"If you like fast life and crowded places, Toronto is better than Alberta, obviously," she said.
However, Moffatt said if the message lands with even a small fraction of people, it could mean a lot more new workers for Alberta.
"There's probably enough people out there who are like, 'You know what, I can stand an Edmonton winter if it means I can actually own a home."'
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