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Public consultation on the II National Action Plan 1325/2000 on Women, Peace and Security
On 21 July 2014 a public consultation was initiated about the Ministers' Council draft resolution that approves the II National Action Plan for the implementation of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325/2000 on Women, Peace and Security.
The Observatory on Gender and Armed Violence participated in the consultation submitting its analysis and proposals on the II NAP.
OGAV expressed two main concerns regarding the Portuguese NAP 2015-2019. One concern is tied with its interministerial operationalisation and the sectoral policies involved, while the second is associated with the NAP's absence ambition and policy articulation, failing to contemplate both war and post-war scenarios and formal peace settings, including domestically.
Read OGAV's contribution (in Portuguese)
Publication of the op-ed "A guerra não declarada contra os jovens negros brasileiros"
Recentently the Huffington Post published the op-ed by Tatiana Moura and Gary Barker on the structural, institutional and direct violences endured by young black men in Brazil.
Panel "Resisting global gendered wars", International Conference "Resisting War in the 20th Century", 28 February 2014
The panel, organized by OGAV/CES, focuses on the gendered ideologies and practices of war and on the politics of gendered resistance to war, violence, patriarchy and militarism. By referring to global gendered wars we aim to shed light to the ubiquitous though diversified gendered constructs – gendered discourses of violence justification and its actors, representations of violent strategies and narratives of the "war and homefronts"- that underlie large-scale wars (led by state and non-state actors) as well as "violent peace" scenarios, where high levels of interpersonal and criminal violence coexist with stable political regimes. Specifically, we will examine the variable and contingent ways in which resistance to war and violence is gendered, that is how existing gender relations affect/are acted upon in situations of dissent, and how gender is reflected in resistance (peaceful and violent) and mobilization against violence.
The presentations include: s "Guerillas, gangsters and beyond: gender, violence and resistance in wartime and post-war El Salvador", by Sílvia Roque (OGAV/CES), "Gendered 'gun wars' in Brazil: participation and representation in the gun debates", by Rita Santos (OGAV/CES), "Living Peace: masculinities beyond war", by Tatiana Moura (OGAV/CES) and "Sexual violence and securitization: western media discourses on DRC", by Anastasia Maria Oprea.
Seminar "Youth and affirmation processes in the city of Praia, Cape Verde"
On 25 November, OGAV-CES organises the seminar "Youth and affirmation processes in the city of Praia, Cape Verde", led by Redy Wilson Lima (Instituto Superior de Ciências Jurídicas e Sociais de Cabo Verde).
In Cape Verde, youth represents the majority of the population and thus the country's main driving force. If, on the one hand, they are presented as the main agents of sustainable development in the archipelago, on the other hand, they are portrayed as dangerous, lazy, restless and irresponsable and, thus, in need control, which contributes to emergence of a situation of youth unease or even unrest. This seminar intends to discuss the issues surrounding Cape Verdean youth, especially their forms of social and political contestation and strategies of socio-identity affirmation.
The seminar will take place at 17h, room 2, CES-Coimbra.
Publication of the Special number "Mulheres e Guerras: representações e estratégias" of the Revista Crítica de Ciências Sociais
Tatiana Moura, Júlia Garraio and Sílvia Roque (OGAV/CES) organised the special number of the Revista Crítica de Ciências Sociais entitled "Mulheres e Guerras: representações e estratégias" ["Women and Wars: representations and strategies", in English], now available, in full, on the website Revues.org.
This publication, comprised eight original articles, two book reviews and a virtual space, intends to contribute to broaden the analysis of the representations of violence perpetrated against women and sexualized strategies of control and power used in traditional war contexts as well as scenarios of extreme armed violence.
Read the edition (full access)
Session "O lado masculino do género: masculinidades e (não)violências", 21 March 2013
9 January 2013
Within the Gender Workshop, organised by Júlia Garraio, Catarina Martins, Teresa Cunha (NHUMEP/CES) and Mihaela Mihai (DECIDe), Katia Cardoso (OGAV/CES) will lead a session on "O lado masculino do género: masculinidades e (não)violências" ["The Masculine side of gender: masculinities and (non)violences", in English] on March 21st 2013, at 17h, in CES-Coimbra.
The session aims to discuss the topic of masculinities and insecurity, based on the articles "Young Men and the Construction of Masculinity in Sub-Saharan Africa. Implications for HIV/AIDS, Conflict, and Violence" (Gary Barker and Cristine Ricardo, 2006, In Ian Bannon e Maria C. Correia The other half of gender: World Bank) and "In search of masculinity: violence, respect and sexuality among Puerto Rican crack dealers in East Harlem" (Philippe Bourgois,1996, British Journal of Criminology, Summer: 412).
International seminar "Gender-based violence in armed conflicts", Instituto de Defesa Nacional (IDN), 4 December 2012
4 December 2012
The Instituto da Defesa Nacional organized on December 4th 2012, in Lisbon, an international seminar on "Gender-based violence in armed conflicts", including panels on "The roots and expressions of Gender-based Violence"; "GBV and International Law"; "Fighting Against Gender-based Violence".
Sofia José Santos (OGIVA/CES) presented the communication "UNSCR1325 national implementation - challenges ahead", summarizing the main findings of the OGAV/AJPaz research "Women, Peace and Security and the implementation of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 in Portugal", funded by the Portuguese Commission for Citizenship and Gender Equality (CIG) and assessing the Portuguese Action Plan for the implementation of 1325.
Session "Feminisms and International Relations", School of Economics, University of Coimbra
16 November 2012
On November 16th, Rita Santos (OGAV/CES) lectured on "Feminisms and International Relations", in the discipline of International Relations Theory, School of Economics, University of Coimbra (FEUC/UC). The session aimed to discuss the different feminist perspectives in IR, especially in the field of violence, peace and international security.
Launch of the new number of the Amnesty International-Portugal Magazine
30 June 2012
The June 2012 edition of the mazine of the Amnesty International Portugal was now launched. This number includes a special feature on the Arms Trade Treaty and an interview with Rita Santos (OGAV) on gun violence in Portugal and the future of the ATT. The interview highlights several expressions of gun violence in non war contexts, the Portuguese reality of gun violence and the advantages of a global Arms Trade Treaty, which will be in discussion in the UN during the next month.
Two new OGAV publications
28 May 2012
Recently the working papers "Youth and Urban Violence in San Salvador, Rio de Janeiro and Praia, Public Policies, Community-based responses and Recommendations", by Carla Afonso, Katia Cardoso, Rita Santos, and Sílvia Roque; and "Women and gun violences. The cases of San Salvador, Rio de Janeiro and Maputo", by Rita Santos, Sílvia Roque, Sara Araújo and Tatiana Moura were published. The reports were one of the outcomes of the research project Initiative for Peacebuilding Early Warning (IfP-EW) (http://www.ifp-ew.eu/).
The first report provides an overview of key public security policies and community-based initiatives addressing the issue of youth violence in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), San Salvador (El Salvador) and Praia (Cabo Verde).
Read working paper (in English): http://www.ifp-ew.eu/pdf/201202IfPEWYouthViolenceRioSanPra.pdf
In turn, the second working paper sheds light on two key factors at the heart of gun violence in San Salvador, Rio de Janeiro and Maputo: the dissemination and misuse of small arms, and deep-rooted gender power imbalances.
Read working paper (in English): http://www.ifp-ew.eu/pdf/IfPEW20110501WomenAndGunViolence.pdf
Fall seminar of the Portuguese Observatory on SALW Production, Trade and Proliferation (OPPCPAL), 23 November 2011
25 November 2011
On the 23rd November 2011, OPPCPAL promoted a closed seminar in Lisbon on "Small Arms and Light weapons proliferation – Information, knowledge and action are necessary!", with the objective of understanding the current Portuguese situation of small arms control. José Manuel Pureza and Rita Santos represented OGAV in the debate, with focused on the impacts of the successive changes to the national law on firearms and ammunition, the non functioning of the Online Management System of Weapons and Explosives and its potential uses and applications in connecting the actors that manage small arms in the hands of civilians as well as the role of civil society in promoting public awareness and debate on the importance of arms control as a tool of violence prevention.
In addition to the members of OPPCPAL, the seminar gathered Pedro Clemente, Lusíada University; Maria João Leote de Carvalho, New University of Lisbon; Raul Oliveira, jurist; Eugénio Fonseca, president of Caritas Portugal; and Margarida Saco, vice-president of Pax Christi – Portugal.
Read the main conclusions of the seminar (in Portuguese)
Read background document (in Portuguese)
Publication "Youth, Collective Urban Violence and Security: Key Findings"
1 November 2011
The Peace Studies Group (now Humanities, Migrations and Peace Studies Group) and OGAV/CES have just launched the report "Youth, Collective Urban Violence and Security: Key Findings". The report, only available in English, is one of the main outcomes of the group's participation in the Initiative for Peacebuilding Early Warning (cluster Youth, Identity and Security).
Based on case studies in Rio de Janeiro, San Salvador, Praia and Bissau, this paper discusses three main challenges facing research and policy making regarding collective urban youth violence. It argues for a shift of focus in research from the analysis of "problematic" youth to how violence impregnates daily lives and becomes normalised through specific local, social and political conditions; argues for a change of focus in the analysis of the violent mobilisation of youth, emphasising the need to address the appeal of symbolic revenues permeating the search for valued social status and possibilities in contexts of adversity and violence; supports an urgent shift at global and national policy levels, affirming that repressive policies have hitherto failed to contain youth violence or improve preventive policy design.
Read Youth, Collective Urban Violence and Security: Key Findings
Launch of the report "Why Women? Effective Engagement for Small Arms Control",
by Corey Barr and Sarah Masters, IANSA Women's Network
26 October 2011
The report "Why Women? Effective Engagement for Small Arms Control", by Corey Barr and Sarah Masters, from the IANSA (International Action Network on Small Arms) Women's Network, has just been published. The report, based on 17 interviews with practitionners and experts from around the world, aims to answer to the question raised by one of the delegates during the negotiations on the United Nations General Assembly Resolution "Women, disarmament, non-proliferation and arms control": "Why women?".
The publication, only available in English, includes section on: Recognising existing engagement and leadership; Taking into account the various roles promoting gun violence/undermining peace and security; Better understanding the problem; Making programmes more effective; Democratising peace and security; Challenges; and Areas for action.
Leymah Gbowee, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and Tawakul Karman win the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize
8 October 2011
Leymah Gbowee and Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, both from Liberia, and Tawakul Karman, from Yemen, have just been awarded the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize.
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf was the first women elected president in the African continent. Since her election, in 2006, she has been working for peace and security in Liberia, highlighting the need to guarantee women's rights and ensure the participation of women in the building of the future in the country. Ms. Johnson-Sirleaf has also been active in campaigning for a global Arms Trade Treaty. IANSA Woman Leymah Gbowee mobilised and organised women from different ethnicities and religions to stop war in Liberia, drawing attention to the experiences of women in armed violence situations and their initiatives to prevent and erradicate this and other types of violence. Ms. Gbowee was also involved in the presidential campaign of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. In 2006, Ms. Gbowee co-founded the organisation WIPSEN-Africa, which has played an important role in advancing women's rights in Africa, particularly in war affected West African countries. Tawakkul Karman is one of the pionners of the struggle for women's rights and democracy in Yemen.
Shortly after the death of Wangari Maathai, awarded with the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her work in sustainable development, peace and democracy, several human rights, peace and women's rights organisations, alongside with the Observatory on Gender and Armed Violence, congratulate the decision of the Nobel Comitee and its recognition of the roles of women in promoting peace and security as well the importance of respecting women's rights for the attainance of lasting peace. Until now, only 12 out of 97 Laureates have been women.
Launch of the OGIVA Papers 1 "A proliferação de armas de fogo na Guiné-Bissau e em Cabo Verde: Uma abordagem regional e nacional", by Ana Leão
26 September 2011
The first number of OGiVA Papers entitled "A proliferação de armas de fogo na Guiné-Bissau e em Cabo Verde: Uma abordagem regional e nacional" ["The proliferation of small arms and light weapons in Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde: A regional and national approach"] has just been published. This publication, by Ana Leão, presents a historical perspective on small arms and light weapons proliferation in Western Africa as well as on the international and regional initiatives and instruments aimed at combatting this proliferation. Using the cases of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde, the paper analyses and discusses the national approaches to small arms control and the impact of illegal proliferation on the economic and social development of those countries.
Read "A proliferação de armas de fogo na Guiné-Bissau e em Cabo Verde: Uma abordagem regional e nacional" (in Portuguese)
"Disarm Domestic Violence" Report, WILPF, Sweden
14 September 2011
The report of the conference "Disarm Domestic Violence", organised by the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) in cooperation with the Parliamentary Forum on Small Arms and Light Weapons and IANSA members Amnesty International and the Swedish Fellowship of Reconciliation, on the 31 March 2011 has just been published.
The Report contains highlights from the conference and explores the relationship between small arms and light weapons and violence against women. The gendered aspects of small arms and light weapons demand and impacts are also analysed along with the possibilities of an Arms Trade Treaty in preventing and combating this type of violence.
Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence 2011
9 June 2011
This year, the Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence takes place between 13-19 June 2011. Every year, the WoA gives voice to international initiatives that seek to combat the dissemination and misuse of small arms. In the previous edition, 267 IANSA members from 102 countries took part in the WoA, highligting the high human costs of small arms. Week of Action 2010 activities included the ignature collection campaign in support of an ethically principled Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), the international football stars joining the Gun-Free World Cup campaign and promotion of the Disarm Domestic Violence Campaign.
This year, IANSA proposes three priority themes: the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT); the 10 Years of the United Nation Programme of Action Against Small Arms and Light Weapons; and Survivors of Gun Violence.
This year OGAV decided to associate to the Brazilian NGO Sou da Paz #Desarme cyberaction, whose aim is to sensitize people about the risks of guns. To participate, take a photograph with the message #desarme and send it by email to firstname.lastname@example.com . You can also participate via twitter by twitting #desarme or viaFacebook. For more information on this, visit www.soudapaz.org
For more information on ongoing initiatives worldwide, go to www.iansa.org or Flickr
"Voices of survivors: the different faces of gun violence"
15 May 2011
This publication, written by IANSA woman Laura Lyddon, features 16 testimonies acquired by IANSA of women survivors of gun violence from a number of different countries. The violence mirroed in the survivors accounts occurs in various contexts and situations but the one common denominator in all of these stories is the misuse of guns. The choice of the countries featured is based on responses from IANSA women, and it is striking to see the similarities that exist even though the countries in which the armed violence occurs may be 'worlds apart'. It includes a testimony from a Portuguese woman, victim of armed domestic violence, as well as some information on small arms dissemination in the country.
Although reliable data are not available, more than 1 million people a year are believed to be direct survivors of gun violence – people who have been shot, with potentially disabling results. Many more are affected by gun violence, through the trauma of losing a family member, or of being threatened at gunpoint (including armed domestic violence, and sexual violence against women, men and children).
Read "Voices of survivors: the different faces of gun violence"
Portugal ratifies the UN Firearms Protocol
8 May 2011
On May 6th Portugal made public the ratification of the Protocol against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Their Parts and Components and Ammunition (Resolution nº 104/2011, 18 February). This Protocoal, also known as the Firearms Protocol, is the Additional Protocol to the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime. It was signed in New York, on 31 May 2011 and was signed by Portugal on 3 September 2012. It entered into force in 2005.
Despite having had entered into forced on 3 July 2005, it was ratified only now by Portugal, after a long process of inter-ministry consultation led by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
This legally binding Protocol commits UN Member States to regulate the manufacture, export, import and transit of firearms, aiming at combating the illicit manufacture and trafficking of these weapons. It establishes a set of rules to detect and facilitate the apprehension and final destination of illicit gun manufacture and trafficking, it institutes the marking of guns and it introduces norms regarding record keeping along the life cycle of guns (production, trade and final destination). It determines the establishment of licence granting systems for gun exports, imports and transit and encourages (but does not require) the regulation of arms brokers. Unfortunately the Protocol does not regulate state-to-state gun transfers.
In spite of the fact that some of the Protocol dispositions had already been incorporated into the national arms control legislation (Law nº 5/ 2006, 23 February and its subsequent revisions; Law nº 49/2009, 6 August, which regulates access conditions and the exercise of trading activities and industries of military goods and Technologies), this ratification is very welcome. It enables Portugal to consolidate its position of combat of small arms and light weapons (SALW) dissemination and proliferation in the European Union and United Nations contexts, namely notorious in its support for a strong and principled Arms Trade Treaty.
Tragedy in Realengo, Rio de Janeiro
On the morning of April 7th, thursday, a 23 year old youth, Wellington Menezes de Oliveira, stormed into the Tasso da Silveira school, in Realengo, Rio de Janeiro, and shot several students, aiming specially at girls, using two revolvers. In total, twelve children were killed, ten girls and two boys. The shooter committed suicide after the crimes.
Studies estimate that currently over 16 million firearms circulate in Brazil. 50% of these are illegal as a result of thefts, robbery and diversion from private arsenals, private collectors and private security companies as well as of international gun trafficking. From the 16 million of small arms in circulation, only 2 million are in the hands of state forces (armed forces and police). At least one of the guns used in the tragedy of Realengo was owned by civilians and had been stolen for over a decade from a private household.
Brazil is currently the second largest producer and exporter of small arms in the American continent. It specialized in handguns, the main responsible tools for killing Brazilian people.
Workshop "Youth, gender and security", PUC Sao Paulo (Brazil), 12 April
8 April 2011
On 12 April 2011, OGAV and the research group on Humanities, Migrations and Peace Studies (NHUMEP/CES) will held the seminar "Youth, Gender and Security", at PUC-São Paulo University. This seminar, included in the research project Initiative for Peacebuilding Early Warning (IfP-EW) (http://www.ifp-ew.eu/), aims to present and discuss the main findings of the project, especifically the interactions between violences (authors, victims and strategies), youth and gender in societies living in contexts of war and/or peace, through the case studies of Brasil, Colombia, El Salvador and Portugal.
"Guns, war and the domestic battlefield", Cynthia Cockburn
9 March 2011
As guns proliferate in a worldwide market with few controls, the state and civilian stocks grow as well as the possibility of weapon diversion and misuse. In fact, many get diverted from state and rebel armies to petty criminals and 'the man in the street'. Sexual and domestic violence is becoming more deadly, reports Cynthia Cockburn.
Cynthia Cockburn is a feminist researcher and writer, and visiting Professor in the Department of Sociology at City University London. Her most recent book is From Where We Stand: War, Women's Activism and Feminist Analysis (Zed, 2007).
Seminar "Sangre mía, sangre de todas: femicidio y literatura en la frontera México/EEUU"
9 March 2011
The poet and professor Juan Rojas Joos is the next guest of the PhD program on Feminist Studies, in partnership with the PhD in American Studies.
Born in Ciudad Juárez (Mexico), Juan Rojas Joos lectures at the Ohio Wesleyan University (EUA) and is currently in Portugal in the program of Poets-in-residence, an initiative of the University of Coimbra and the City Hall of Idanha-a-Nova.
The seminar is entitled "Sangre mía, sangre de todas: femicidio y literatura en la frontera México/EEUU" [My blood, female blood: femicide and literature in the border of México/USA"] and will be held at 17h, at the IENA seminar room (Humanities School, 6th floor).
For more information, please see: http://estudosfeministas.wordpress.com/
Portugal: Guns, violences and women
8 March 2011
According to the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development, every year firearms kill 400,000 people. From these, only 25% of these deaths take place in war of armed conflict scenarios, hitting mostly civilians. Firearms are also responsible for the death of 240,000 people every year in peace contexts, as a result of homicides, unintentional deaths and suicides. Most of these weapons (3/4) are in the hands of civilians, surpassing those under the control of military and police forces.
Despite the fact that worldwide most of the direct victims of gun violence are male, women and girls are affected disproportionately by this type of violence.
Photo exhibition: "Sex(ed) Pistols: 16 portraits on violences against women
23 November 2010
Every year, from 25th November to 10th December 2010, is celebrated the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence. This year's campaign theme is "Structures of Violence: Defining the Intersections of Militarism and Violence Against Women!".
The photo exhibition "Sex(ed) pistols: 16 portraits on violences against women", promoted by the Observatory on Gender and Armed Violence (OGiVA/CES), which will be held during the 16 days of activism at the Centre for Social Studies (University of Coimbra), aims to reveal one of the faces of the militarisation of the lives of women and girls. The 16 photos document the insecurities affecting women and girls as a result of small arms and light weapons dissemination worldwide, in particular in Portugal, Brazil and in El Salvador as well as the experiences of anti-violence activism that emerge in these scenarios. Photos by Beto Pego (Brazil), Hélio Gomes (Portugal), Rita Santos (Portugal), Sílvia Roque (El Salvador), Stéphan Laurent.
Seminar "Violence and small arms: the Portuguese case", 20th May 2010
10 May 2010
The Peace Studies Group, based at Centre for Social Studies, University of Coimbra (NEP/CES) will held the seminar "Violence and Small Arms: the Portuguese case".
In this seminar, the team will present and debate the results of the research project (funded by the Science and Technology Foundation, Portugal), specifically regarding the following dimensions: the mapping of legal and illegal supply of firearms in portugal, the identification of its users/bearers and their motivations, the analysis of the differentiated impacts of armed violence and of existing prevention and combat strategies, promoted by both the State and civil society.
The silences of gun violence. Women and guns in Portugal, Mozambique and Brazil, 24th May 2010
22 May 2010
24 May is International Women's Day for Peace and Disarmament. The celebration of this day began in Europe in the early 1980s, when hundreds of thousands of women organised against nuclear weapons and the arms race. To mark this day, and in association with the "All my Independent Women" initiative, a cycle of exhibition and debates promoted by the Casa da Esquina, in Coimbra, the Peace Studies Group and the Observatory on Gender and Armed Violence (OGiVA/CES) and Acção para a Justiça e Paz (AJP) aim to reflect on the forgotten insecurities that affect women and girls as a result of global small arms dissemination, and particularly in Portugal, Brazil and Mozambique, as well as the experiences of female anti-violence activism that emerge in these scenarios.
Public hearing "As armas da violência" ["The weapons of violence"], 24 April 2010
22 April 2010
The Observatório Sobre a Produção, Comércio e Proliferação de Armas Ligeiras [Observatory on the Production, Trade and Proliferation of Light Weapons] of the Justice and Peace National Commission(OPCPAL-CNJP) organises the public hearing "The weapons of violence", held on the 24th of April 2010, from 10am to 5pm, at the Fundação Cidade de Lisboa (Campo Grande, 380).
Recognising the violent expressions that ocurr within the Portuguese society and that cross-cut different social spheres and geographical territories, perpetrated by individuals from different age and sex groups, particularly in urban and sub-urban areas, often with resort to guns, this audition aims to give voice to a group of knowledgeable people on the multiple manifestations of violence, with the purpose of contributing to the diagnosis of these situations as well as the identification of its causes and potential solutions.
See programme
Semana de Acção Global Contra a Violência Armada 2010
Each year activists around the world use the Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence to raise awareness, campaign for better gun laws and push for stronger regulation of the global arms trade. This year the Week of Action is 10-16 May. Last year, IANSA members in more than 90 countries highlighted the human cost of small arms proliferation and misuse; they also demanded that governments enact policies that put their citizens' security first.
The main topics of WoA 2010 include the support to a Arms Trade Trearty (ATT), to the IANSA-sponsored international campaign "Disarm domestic violence" and to the UN small arms process.
For more information, please see http://www.iansa.org/WoA2010.htm
Final seminar of the project "Trajectories of violence dissemination and containment: a comparative study of Bissau (Guinea-Bissau) and Praia (Cape Verde)"
On the 17th of December, NEP/CES organises at CES Lisboa (Picoas Plaza, Rua do Viriato, 13) the seminar "Violence trajectories: an analysis from the youth", whose aim is to present and debate the main findings of the research project "Trajectories of violence dissemination and containment: a comparative study of Bissau and Praia" (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, 2007-2009).
The seminar, supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology and Initiative for Peacebuilding (an initiative funded by the European Union, tem entrada livre. The main goals of the project are the production and systematisation of knowledge and critical analysis of mechanisms of direct violence(s) (collective and interpersonal) dissemination and containment in the cities of Bissau and Praia. Specifically, it aims at assessing the myriad of representations and identity-based construction that intervene as motivation and dissuasion factors for the resort to direct violence mechanisms.
Timetable For Arms Trade Treaty Adopted at UN
1 November 2009
On past October 30, after years of debates, the United Nations agreed a timetable to establish a "strong and robust" Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) to control international transfers of conventional arms.
This agreement means that the ATT will be negotiated in a series of meetings concluding at a UN Conference in 2012. The resulting treaty is expected to require States to strictly regulate international transfers according to principles based on international law, significantly reducing the human cost associated with the proliferation of conventional arms.
Read more
Unanimous approval of United Nations Security Council Resolution on sexual violence against women and girls in armed conflict scenarios
30 Septmber 2009
On 30 September, the United Nations Security Council resolution 1888 on sexual violence against women and girls in armed conflict situations was approved unamnimously. Resolution 1888 follows resolutions 1325 (2000) and 1820 (2008), both aimed at extending women and girls protection in armed violence scenarios as well as ensuring greater female participation in all efforts of conflict prevention, management and post-war reconstruction.
In sum, Resolution 1888 calls for the 1) nomination of a special representative for overseeing the issue of sexual violence against women and girls in armed violence contexts; 2) constitution of a team of experts on this subject, with the purpose of assisting governments in preventing sexual violence in armed conflict situations, reinforcing the systems of military and civil justice, and ensuring greater assistance to victims of sexual violence as well as access to justice; 3) consideration by the United Nation Security Council members of the pattersn of sexual violence during the process of adoption or targetion of sanctions; 4) integration, whenever possible, of experts on women protection in peace missions; 5) submission of annual reports by the UN Secretary General on the implementation of the Resolution; 6) submission of systematic reports on sexual violence by the United Nations peace missions.
"Luto como Mãe" selected to Rio's International Film Festival
5 September 2009
The documentary "Luto como Mãe" ("Right to mourn"), produced by Cinema Nosso, Jabuti Filmes and TVZero, will be exhibited in the 14Th edition of Rio's International Film Festival, in Premiere Brazil. The long-feature on the female face of armed violence in Rio de Janeiro, directed by Luis Carlos Nascimento in partnership with the Observatory on Gender and Armed Violence (University of Coimbra, Portugal) and the Centre for Studies on Public Security and Citizenship (Cândido Mendes University), was premiered past June, in Portugal, for an audience of 300 people present at the Cerca de São Bernardo theatre, in Coimbra.
The premier of "Luto como Mãe" in Rio's Festival will take place on 29 September, in Odeon Petrobras, at 17:00h. The following exhibitions will take place on 30 September, in Est Vivo Gávea 3 (13:30h and 20:00h) and on 1 October, in Odeon Petrobras, at 15:00h.
The documentary was also selected to the Chilean International Film Festival of Viña del Mar, which will be held on 16-21 November 2009.
Photo exhibition "Disarming sight: violence and small arms in Portugal", 12 September
5 September 2009
"Disarming sight: violence and small arms in Portugal" is a photo exhibition by Hélio Gomes which documents part of the fieldwork conducted within the research project "Violence and Small Arms: the Portuguese case", funded by the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation. The exhibition will take place on September 12, in Casa da Esquina.
Photography, as well as other participatory methods, constitutes an alternative means of research making, more accessible than interviews, which offers the interviewees the opportunity to participate and narrate their experiences differrently. It is then a n alternative account, which seeks to capture the reality of small arms dissemination in Portugal giving voice to its actors, spaces and consequences.
Summer course "The sex of violences", 9-12 September 2009
5 September 2009
This four day course aims to bring together researchers, practitioners and activists in the field of armed violence and a) analyse the relations between masculinities, femininities and forms of violence (expressions, actors, strategies and response/prevention policies), which affect countries and societies living in contexts of war and/or peace; b) identify the implications of the segmented hyper-visibility of violence, namely the silencing of other violent expressions and its actors, as well as the absence or inadequacy of response and prevention policies to these forms of violence; and c) promote the interrelationship between research and action and among different publics/agents.
Adoption of the Portuguese National Plan of Action on the UN Security Council Resolution 1325
After its adoption in the Council of Ministers held last thursday, the Portuguese National Plan of Action (NPA) for the implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) on Women, Peace and Security was published today in the Diário da República. Portugal is now the 15th country to adopt a NPA, joining Austria, Belgium, Cote D'Ivoire, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Liberia, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Netherlands, Uganda, and the United Kingdom.
Read OGiVA and IANSA's analysis on the Portuguese NPA
Lançamento do livro "Auto de Resistência. Relatos de familiares de vítimas de violência armada", 24 de Julho de 2009
20 July 2009
On the 24th of July, at the Museu da República, Rio de Janeiro, OGAV, CESeC and the Publisher 7 Letras present the book "Auto de Resistência. Relatos de familiares de vítimas de violência armada", organised by Barbara Musumeci Soares, Tatiana Moura and Carla Afonso. This book, made up of the testimonies of nineteen relatives of victims, tries to tell a part of Rio de Janeiro's history, one that involves massacres, kidnappings, ommission and impunity. It is not a book of denunciation nor a tale of individual tragedies. It tells the history of the strength of those who resist, those who cannot be intimidated and use their own suffering to prevent the suffering of other people. It tells the history of those who have courage and will to learn and to transform.
Documentary premier "Luto como Mãe", 29 June 2009
27 June 2009
The city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is the site of many summary executions perpetrated by State agents. Each death drags in its wake the pain of those who are left behind, specially family and friend, affecting its entire social network.The documentary "Luto como Mãe" [Right to Mourn], by Luís Carlos Nascimento, is based on the stories of the survivors – mothers, sisters and wives – who have lost their relatives in urban armed violence incidents and who now have to cope with family diruption, financial distress and stigma. In 70 min. we will get to know these women of strength, who struggle for justice and recognition, and their routes from mourning to struggle.
Disarm Domestic Violence in the Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence
This is the Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence and events are being held in 85 countries to draw attention to the human toll of small arms proliferation and misuse.
For women, the greatest risk of gun violence is in their own home. The statistics are shocking. Women are three times more likely to die violently if there is a gun in the house. Usually the perpetrator is a spouse or partner, often with a prior record of domestic abuse. For every woman killed or physically injured by firearms, many more are threatened.
Read Advocacy Project's blog "Disarming Domestic Violence in Portugal"
Global movement against gun violence mourns the disappearance of two members
Viva Rio researcher, Pablo Dreyfus, and his wife Ana Carolina Rodrigues, were on the Air France flight that went missing on 1 June while flying from Brazil to France. Pablo was one of the most well known international experts on small arms control. He and his wife were traveling to Switzerland for an annual meeting of the Small Arms Survey.
24 May 2009: International Women's Day for Peace and Disarmament
24 May is International Women's Day for Peace and Disarmament. The celebration of this day began in Europe in the early 1980s, when hundreds of thousands of women organised against nuclear weapons and the arms race.
Members of the IANSA Women's Network (WN) will be marking the day with events such as peace marches, meetings and demonstrations as well as highlighting their achievements over the past 12 months.
IFOR's Women Peacemakers Programme has developed an Action Pack to mark 24 May which highlights challenges that women activists face in both the Balkans and the Caucasus and elaborates on the strategies these women apply to deal with the challenges. It contains reflections on the peace processes and women activism in Kovoso/a, and humanitarian interventions in Georgia and Kosovo/a. The Action Pack is complemented by interviews with Women in Black, Kvinna till Kvinna and the Women's Resource Center in Armenia.


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Crash Between Car and Semi Leaves Three Teenagers Dead.
A South Kendall County intersection on Monday afternoon was the scene of a crash between a car and a semi-tractor trailer that killed three teenagers.
The initial investigation by State Police shows that the driver of the car, Brian Herrera, 19, was at the stop sign heading south on Schlapp Road when he pulled out onto Route 126. A semi truck was heading east on Route 126 and was unable to avoid the car. The truck crashed into the car before rolling on its side.
Plainfield residents Herrera and Tyler Montgomery, 19, were pronounced dead at the site of the accident. A second passenger, Alexis Banuelos, 19, of Naperville, was taken to an area hospital and died there. The 45-year-old driver of the truck, Scott Fernatt, of Hodgkins, was taken to Rush-Copely Medical Center in Aurora with non-life threatening injuries.
Traffic was re-routed from that stretch of Route 126 as police investigated the accident and cleared the wreckage. The truck was hauling sandbags which made clean-up difficult.
An automobile accident doesn't affect just the driver of a car, passengers can be injured or killed as well. If you or a loved one has lost a family member in a motor vehicle accident, call Spiros Law, P.C. at (815) 929-9292 for knowledgeable legal representation.

subset: commoncrawl


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Although many recent news stories that describe child drownings at pools involve those children who wandered in the back yard while no one was around and fell in, there have been drownings that have occurred in front of dozens of people at pool parties, barbecues, and even commercial pool locations at country clubs, hotels, and apartments. Everyone is having a great time, there's music playing, and no one notices a child slip under the water who may not be a swimmer. No one wants this to happen to their children let alone to a friend or family member's child.
As summer rolls around and the pool parties pick up the pace with the rise in temperature, it's important to think about how to ensure safety while still having a great time.
Home Parties
When you are having a pool party, you need to make sure all your guests are safe. Here are some tips to consider:
- Hire a certified lifeguard from the park and recreation department. They can keep an eye on everyone in the pool in case any guest is distracted.
- Insist that each person who has a child in the pool get in the pool with them or be responsible for their own child. Otherwise, do not let them get in the pool. As harsh as this sounds, you are trying to play host, chef, and drinks server. Being a lifeguard on top of that is a tall order.
- Make sure the swimming pool gate and fencing is secure to keep little ones from entering the pool area.
- Stay alert and be smart.
Commercial Pools
When you go use a country club, hotel, or apartment pool, you cannot assume you and your children are safe. Many of these do not have lifeguards on duty so you are still responsible for your children. Just this weekend, we went to an amazing pool at a country club in the mountains.
The massive swimming pool had four lifeguards on duty spaced evenly around the pool. They were completely focused on those in the pool, which gave us parents cause to relax and enjoy our drinks in the sun. The lifeguards blew their whistle at any kid that dared run next to the pool.
However, that did not mean forget them. We were like hawks, continually scanning the pool to see where the little monkeys were at. It only takes a second for everything to go horribly wrong, so don't rely on lifeguards. Keep an eye on your kids and, most importantly, keep them slathered up with sunscreen. Even though it was only in the 70s, sunburns can happen.
Also, be sure to keep your kids away from the spa. At commercial pools, kids under 18 are typically not allowed but that doesn't mean that they won't try. The spa is too hot for young ones so keep them far away.
Many apartments and hotels do not have lifeguards so you must stay on top of what your kids are doing in the pool. Better yet, jump in there with them. That's what we did. Not only is it a blast, but it is also a great way to monitor what they are doing in the pool so they stay safe.
Your Safety Pool Source
Aqueous Pools Inc. has access to many pool safety equipment, fencing, and alarms. Ask us what we can do for you!


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For many small firms or solo practitioners, survival depends on taking a diverse array of cases rather than focusing on one narrow practice area.
Practicing a new area of law, however, not only broadens your experience but can also increase your risk.
Errors and omissions insurance (also called professional liability insurance or malpractice insurance) can help you expand into new areas of practice with confidence.


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With rings on her fingers by Chopard embellished with rubellites, rubies, and tanzanite and cooled down with some high voltage diamond rings, Rihanna was the very picture of a sparkling vie en rose.
We use our own and third party cookies to improve your experience and our services. If you continue, we consider that you accept their use. You can get more information on your website at cookies policy.


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One-fifth of the world's population lives in countries affected by fragility, violence and conflict, impeding long-term economic growth. However, little is known about how firms respond to local changes in security, partly because of the difficulty of measuring firm activity in these settings. ... See More + This paper presents a novel methodology for observing private sector activity using mobile phone metadata. Using Afghanistan as the empirical setting, the analysis combines mobile phone data from over 2,300 firms with data from several other sources to develop and validate measures of firm location, size, and economic activity. Combining these new measures of firm activity with geocoded data on violent events, the paper investigates how the private sector in Afghanistan responds to insecurity. The findings indicate that firms reduce presence in districts following major increases in violence, that these effects persist for up to six months, and that larger firms are more responsive to violence. The paper concludes with a discussion of potential mechanisms, firms' strategic adaptations, and implications for policymakers. See Less -
Policy Research Working Paper WPS8301 JAN 17, 2018
Herskowitz,Sylvan Rene; Scherer,Thomas; Toomet,Ott; Ghani,Tarek F.; Blumenstock,Joshua Evan; Kapstein,Ethan B. Disclosed
|Document Date
|Report No.
|Document Type
|Also available in
|Insecurity and industrial organization : evidence from Afghanistan (English) See More +
|Policy Research Working Paper


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Give your head the luxury it deserves with one of our super soft pillow cases. Available in a range of styles and colours, we're confident you'll find a pillowcase perfect for you. For complete comfort and durability we recommend our Egyptian cotton pillow cases, however we also stock orthopaedic 'v' shaped pillows as well as bolster and European pillows. Whether your looking for neutral coloured pillow cases or bolder colour options, Williamson's has something for everyone.


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Aug. 25, 2004
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
This Week
The season kicks off against 22nd-ranked Cal Poly at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, August 27. Cal Poly, which has won two straight Big West Conference titles and four in the last five years, will host the Broncos at Mustang Stadium. Cal Poly returns 10 starters from a 2003 squad that broke several school records en route to an 18-2-2 mark. The Mustangs opened last season with nine straight wins, a streak the Broncos broke with a 2-0 victory at Buck Shaw Stadium. Santa Clara leads the all-time series 12-1-2.
Live on the Internet
Santa Clara's entire home schedule returns to the Internet, as a live audio broadcast is available for a third season on www.SantaClaraBroncos.com. Additionally, Buck Shaw contests can be followed online with a live statistical tracker, also located on SCU's official athletic website. By logging on, fans can receive real-time updated statistics direct from the official scoring computer, allowing users to listen to the audio broadcast and keep up with the statistics simultaneously.
The Schedule
Santa Clara will aim for its 10th overall appearance in the College Cup with the start of the 2004 season. The Broncos' 20-match schedule features 10 programs that advanced to last year's NCAA Championship, including three of the top eight seeds. The Broncos will host five of those matches at Buck Shaw Stadium.
Osborne on M.A.C. Hermann Trophy Watch List
Senior Leslie Osborne has been named to the "watch list" of players considered among the top candidates for the 2004 Missouri Athletic Club's Hermann Trophy, awarded to the top players in NCAA Division I soccer. The list was compiled by a committee of the NSCAA, the official selection body for the M.A.C.'s Hermann Trophy. Osborne, a native of Menomonee Falls, Wis., has already been named a preseason All-America by Soccer Buzz and Soccer America magazines.
A list of 15 semifinalists will be announced in November, with three finalists selected in early December. The winner will be announced at a dinner at the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis, Mo., on Jan. 8, 2005.
The award is college soccer's version of the Heisman Trophy. Past recipients include former Broncos Mandy Clemens and Aly Wagner. Clemens won both the Hermann Trophy and M.A.C. Player of the Year awards in 1999, while Wagner became the first honoree to have the distinction of receiving the newly-unified award.
In the Rankings
Santa Clara opens the 2003 season ranked in the top five in all four polls. The NSCAA/adidas, Soccer America and Soccer Times polls list the Broncos second, while Soccer Buzz ranks the team third. The Broncos have three of the top 10 teams on the schedule: No. 2 Notre Dame, No. 4 Portland and No. 8 UCLA.
CSTV to Televise Portland Match
College Sports Television, the first 24-hour college sports television network, will televise the Broncos' Sunday, October 24 match against Portland at Buck Shaw Stadium. The broadcast will be tape-delayed to Thursday, October 28 at 5 and 8:30 p.m. Joe Beninati will call all the action on CSTV Soccer, while Tom Stone will provide expert analysis.
College Sports TV, the fastest-growing independent cable network, is available to more than 20 million homes nationally on cable and satellite. The network is available on Comcast, Time Warner and Adelphia cable systems, among others, and is also available on DirecTV (channel 610). For information on CSTV availability in particular markets, consumers can log on to www.collegesports.com/getcstv or call their cable or satellite operator.
Broncos Share Top Spot in WCC Preseason Poll
Santa Clara was selected as the favorite to win the WCC crown in the 2004 preseason poll, as selected by the league coaches. The Broncos, who have captured three straight league titles and seven overall, received six first-place votes in the poll. Portland collected the other two first-place votes, while Pepperdine, the only school other than Santa Clara and Portland to win the WCC title, was selected third. Rounding out this year's poll is San Diego, Saint Mary's, Loyola Marymount, Gonzaga and San Francisco.
Osborne Named Preseason All-America
Senior Leslie Osborne was named a preseason All-American by Soccer America and Soccer Buzz magazines. A returning team captain for the Broncos this season, Osborne earned All-America honors last season from Soccer Buzz and CSTV. Osborne Joins 100-Point Club Senior Leslie Osborne is steadily climbing both the Santa Clara and West Coast Conference recordbooks. The midfielder from Menomonee Falls, Wis., closed last season in fine fashion, and became only the eighth Bronco--and 14th WCC player--to notch 100 points with her first-half score against Portland during the regular season. In SCU record books, that tally moved her into the top eight in goals, at 35, while she is also ranked ninth in assists (33). In the league listings, Osborne is 11th in career assists, 12th in career points and 14th in goals.
A Look Ahead: Tournament Time
Santa Clara will continue its season-opening road trip with six matches at three tournaments. The Broncos will visit South Bend, Ind., and participate in Notre Dame's annual event, taking on SMU and the host Fighting Irish. SCU will travel further east and visit senior Jessica Ballweg's home state of New Jersey to play at a tournament hosted by Rutgers. The Broncos will play the Scarlet Knights and Rhode Island before returning to the West Coast. Although back in the Bay Area, Santa Clara will play road contests at Stanford's tournament, taking on Yale and Cal State Fullerton.
Season/Match Tickets on Sale
Season and individual match tickets for Santa Clara University's nationally-recognized soccer teams are on sale through the Department of Athletics' official website www.SantaClaraBroncos.com, and the athletic ticket office at 408-554-4660, between the hours of 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
In conjunction with its exclusive Internet partner, College Sports Online, the athletic department has developed an online ticket application that provides fans with the ability to purchase season tickets, family plans, individual matches or an all-sports pass via the official athletic website. A men's and women's soccer season ticket package that includes the 17 home matches is available for the adult price of $65 each, while a family plan provides a family of five admission to each game for the low price of $100. Youth (12 and under) and senior (over 65-years-old) season tickets are also available for $30. Single games are priced at $7 for adults, $5 for youths and seniors and $2 for non-Ruff Riders SCU students as well as members of Bronco Kidz. Single match team passes are also available for $35.
Two Former Broncos Represent U.S. in Olympics
Two former Santa Clara standouts are representing the United States at the Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. Brandi Chastain and Aly Wagner are two of the 18 players who opened the Games in mid-August and will battle Brazil for the gold medal on Thursday.
The pair are among 14 current and former West Coast Conference student-athletes that competed in this year's event, and represent five countries. Chastain, who is considered one of the best attacking defenders and most skillful players in the world, is competing in her third Olympics, while Wagner, who is one of the most talented playmakers in the world, is making her Olympic debut.
"I can't stop smiling and I can't stop talking," said Wagner upon her arrival in Greece. "I swear someone is going to tell me to shut up at some point. I see a tree, and I'm like, `Hey guys, look at the Olympic tree!' But seriously, it's amazing. I had no idea how huge the village would be. The dining hall is bigger than my high school."
2003 in Review
Santa Clara advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals for the ninth straight year and finished a successful season ranked third in the country with a 14-4-6 record. Santa Clara fell to eventual champion and top-seeded North Carolina. Santa Clara advanced through the tournament with wins over ranked opponents Stanford (1-0) and Arizona State (1-0), and a third round shoot-out against defending College Cup Champions, and West Coast Conference rivals, Portland (0-0, 4-2 PKs).
The Broncos, the 2001 National Champions and 2002 College Cup finalists, were the tournament's ninth overall seed and were making their 15th straight NCAA postseason appearance. SCU received the WCC's automatic berth into the Tournament after winning its third straight league championship on November 8. The Broncos have advanced to the College Cup on nine occasions.
SCU Named One of Best Values in the West by U.S. News & World Report
For the 15th year in a row, Santa Clara was ranked second among 124 master's universities in the West by the U.S. News and World Report. In an additional ranking listing "great schools at great prices" in four regions across the country, U.S. News ranked SCU second in the West region. To determine which institutions offer the best value, the magazine uses a formula that relates a school's academic quality to the net cost of attendance for a student receiving the average level of financial aid. The Western region includes all colleges and universities from Colorado to the West Coast, including Texas.
Additional highlights from the 2005 U.S. News rankings include:
SCU had the highest average graduation rate -- 82 percent
SCU had the highest average freshman retention rate -- 92 percent
SCU had the second highest peer assessment score -- 4.0
SCU had one of the highest average alumni giving rates -- 24 percent
The magazine's rankings relied on academic reputation, graduation rates, class size, percent of full-time faculty, student/faculty ratios, retention of students, student test scores and grades, student selectivity, financial resources, and alumni giving. Complete rankings are on the U.S. News web site, www.usnews.com.


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Fibonacci Spiral is a magic structure that can surprise anyone who are getting introduced with it first time. It has got special importance as it is very commonly found in the nature and human creation. Let me explain you how fibonacci spiral is formed, following mathematical theories.
A fibonacci spiral is developed through the corners of squares. And the areas of the squares maintain a fibonacci series.In the illustration below, we can see the areas of the first 2 squires are 1, and the area of the second squire is 2, likewise the areas of the squares maintain 1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21.... series, which is cold fibonacci series proposed by a gentle man.
When a new square is added, it creates a rectangle which is called golden rectangle because the length and width of the rectangle are in golden ratio, 1.618. You can read more about golden ratio and golden rectangle here.
Traders over years showed interest on golden spiral because it is very commonly found in nature and human creation, and it closely tied with the fibonacci series and the magic ratio, 1.618. In image below, you can see some example of existence of golden spiral in nature and human creation.
Let me explain how the golden spiral can be used to trade in financial market. So many books of technical analysis explained about trading with golden spiral. To draw a golden spiral on the price chart of financial market, traders need to find an ABC pattern.
A golden spiral generally has a center that is also the starting point. But in technical analysis, the center and starting point of golden spiral are two different points. Among the A,B and C points, if we take one point for center of the spiral then any one out of the rest two will be taken for the starting point of the spiral.And a spiral can be clockwise and anticlockwise. So, the following options are available to draw a golden spiral on the price chart of any financial market (Fibonacci application and strategies for traders-Fischer & Robert).
In the illustration below, a clockwise golden spiral is drawn on a price chart centered at B point and started from A point.
In the following illustration, a anticlockwise golden spiral is drawn centered on B point and started from A point.
It is not necessary to draw the spirals in all possible ways, but two or three spirals can be drawn to find the most effective one. The rings of the spiral represent the combination of both time and price, which is very rarely found with other fibonacci tools. Any ring of the spiral represents support level or resistance level and a time when the market may make a large move.
Golden Spiral is a magic tool that uses the combination of time and price and can be applied to predict the next move of the market. In my next posts,I will come with some case studies to explain the trading techniques with golden spiral. When the market going across a ring, the probability of a larger move is higher, and a ring can function as a support or a resistance level.


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We can't deny that airports are strange places. They are worlds within our world, home to endless amounts of continuous activity. I enjoyed reading a blog post this weekend from Blue Sky which referenced an infographic produced by cheapflights.co.uk on 50 things to do when you're stuck in an airport, and not just because I have a geeky love for infographics, but because people watching, one of my favourite activities, featured on the list.
With some of the busiest airports in the world such as Heathrow seeing an average of 191,200 passengers arrive and depart each day, we are guaranteed to see lots of different types of people from all over the world and many different walks of life passing through. Sometimes I just like to spend a moment taking it all in, looking around and watching the drama unfold. Because yes, with lots of strangers thrown into what can often be a time-pressured, unfamiliar and uncontrollable situation, drama is guaranteed.
Over the past few months I have witnessed husbands and wives having full blown rows, people racing through the airport upon hearing their flight's final call and of course the increasing anxiety as fellow passengers wait for luggage to arrive at the carousel, turning to panic and rage when it failed to show. One of my favourite moments at an airport this year was waiting for a colleague to meet me at Heathrow Terminal 5. Our meeting point was in the arrivals area and whilst waiting I shared some of the beautiful moments that can only be experienced in arrivals – watching exhausted yet excited passengers emerge through the doors to be greeted by loving partners and eager family members…smiles, laughter, hugs and even tears. It was a heart warming 20 minutes and I could definitely see where the inspiration for certain scenes in the film Love Actually came from!
Moments like this have often made me think that working in an airport must be one of the most exciting jobs in the world. Front line staff inside airports must have endless stories to tell about their encounters with passengers, from the awkward and bizarre to the magical and even tear-jerking. Ex TSA agent turned writer Jason E Harrington documents in his blog Taking Sense Away some of the weird and wonderful things he witnessed whilst working at Chicago O'Hare's airport from 2007-2013. My favourite of these is a term he coined the 'baby-shower opt out' which describes when a woman opts out of going through the scanner, 'explaining that she is pregnant to the surprise of the friends she is traveling with, who shriek and yell and have an impromptu celebration.'
I am really looking forward to reading Jason's book when it comes out and to witnessing many more of the unique moments that airport people watching has to offer on my upcoming trips.


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Bourbon Peaches
I've been enjoying weekly visits to my local farmers' market this summer, which seems to be just bursting at the seams with delectable produce and sweet juicy summer fruits. Everything looks so good that I've had to develop a shopping tactic. First I make one complete circuit, stopping here and there for a sample, scouting for the best of all of the farm fresh veggies, fresh picked fruits and baked goods. I make a mental note of what I really, really want to buy (as opposed to just really want to buy), then double back to make those purchases.
Lately the peaches at the market have been catching my eye. I don't think I would rank peaches as one of my favorite fruits. I like them fine, though I don't eat them nearly as often as, say, pineapple. But the peaches at the market were so fragrant and bright they just called to me. So I took them home and gave them a bath in bourbon.
Yeah, you heard me. Bourbon.
I've had a slight obsession with Greek yogurt going on for a while now, so I figured the best way to eat these peaches (aside from the few I ate out of hand) was to cook them down in some bourbon and brown sugar, then top them with Greek yogurt.
All I have to say is wow. Desserts don't have to be smothered in chocolate or contain 3 sticks of butter to be amazing. Try it. You'll see.
Bourbon Peaches
Makes about 2 servings
1 pound (16 ounces) fresh peaches, pitted and quartered*
2 tablespoons bourbon
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons brown sugar
dash of cinnamon
cinnamon sugar pecans, chopped
Non-fat plain Greek yogurt (I use Chobani 0%)
* My peaches were small, so I opted not to peel them. The skin peeled off they cooked, so I just pulled it out with a spoon (not fingers, that sugar mixture is hot!) and discarded before eating. If you have larger peaches and want to peel them first, score the bottom of each peach with an X and blanch them in a pot of boiling water for 30-40 seconds. Drop the peaches in an ice bath and the skins should peel right off.
Combine peaches, bourbon, water and brown sugar in saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Cook until peaches are tender (and skins peel off, if unpeeled), 5-15 minutes, depending on peach size. Remove from heat and stir in cinnamon. Cool.
Serve topped with yogurt and pecans.
July 27, 2010 10:29 pm
I like your healthy take on this fabulous dessert! I'll take any excuse to drink bourbon for breakfast. No judgment :P
July 27, 2010 11:30 pm
Wow. These photos are breath-taking! These are the best photos of peaches I've ever seen.
July 28, 2010 9:12 pm
Totally agree with you. I have thick strained yogurt almost every night with some sort of healthy topping and its dessert to me! Love the idea of these peaches and pretty pictures!
July 31, 2010 4:26 pm
I always seem to sleep too late on Saturdays to make it to the farmer's market, but my grocery store had a section of produce from local farms this week and I bought a bunch of peaches. I may have to get some bourbon just so I can try this. I bet they'd still be good with the brown sugar by itself, though!
Comments are closed.


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2005 is shaping up to be one of the most forgettable years for movies, especially if all you have to choose from are multiplex movies: Batman Begins, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Cinderella Man, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy — and the unremarkanble list goes on and on. So I've decided to jump the gun and pick what I think will be the best movie I'll see this year. (Some 2005 movies I've seen in the theatre that are worth taking a look at: Saint Ralph, Sin City, and House of Flying Daggers. That's it.)
The best movie of the year for me came out six years ago: HIMALAYA. It wasn't released on DVD until 2001, and I didn't get around to seeing it until last night, but I was captivated. Himalaya is a beautiful film and a remarkable cultural document. It tells the compelling story of some Nepalese villagers who have to trek down the mountains to trade their mountain salt for grain while trying not to get killed along the way. The plot is simple but contains all the elements of a great story, and the backdrop provides an epic feel to every single frame of the movie.
I also watched the DVD feature, "Himalaya: The Making Of." When you see what these people went through to make this movie, which was filmed entirely on location, with real Nepalese mountain people who you'd never suspect were non-actors, under environmental conditions that put all their lives at risk, it's incredible the film, one of the best I've seen in years, was ever finished. Anyway, it's my pick for best movie of 2005. I doubt very much I'll see better movie this year.


text: Share: Comments Print January 13, 2014 at 3:37 PM Eastside Catholic: Is gay marriage or Zmuda's firing against church teachings? Posted by Letters Coordinator Zmuda's firing is a travesty on the teachings of Christ I am writing to express my support for reinstating Mark Zmuda as vice principal at Eastside Catholic High School ["Reinstate Mark Zmuda at Eastside Catholic High School, Opinion, Jan. 3"]. Many churches have lost their vision and understanding of Missio Dei (God's Mission). Before Christ's arrest, he prayed to his Father that all believers would be one — in believing in Christ and in God the Father who sent him into this world, not in believing an institutionalized set of rules, canons and doctrine. Churches have made law the religion and not the message of Christ. The only law that matters, theologically and pastorally, is the law now written in the hearts of men and women; the law placed there by God himself. Church is the people guided and led by the Holy Spirit with the assistance and support of the clergy, not the other way around. Zmuda's firing is a travesty on the teachings of Christ (see the Sermon on the Mount) and he deserves reinstatement. Rev. Thomas C. Shortell, Buenavista de Cuellar, Guerrero, Mexico Eastside Catholic obligated to uphold church's teachings I, along with many of my fellow Catholics, am troubled by The Seattle Times' coverage about Vice Principal Mark Zmuda's dismissal from Eastside Catholic High School. Catholic teaching is clear and consistent about marriage being between one man and one woman. It is also consistent about homosexual activity being morally wrong — as differentiated from homosexual orientation, which has no moral judgment attached to it. I have dear friends who are homosexual, and two who are married. In no way do I judge their hearts. I know that on many levels, including their compassionate giving and reaching out to others, these dear friends are holier than I am. But that does not mean that I believe gay marriage is morally right. The administrators at Eastside Catholic are obligated to uphold the clear teaching of the church, though they, along with me, may believe Mark Zmuda is in many ways a holy person. Condoning particular actions or lifestyle choice is not the same as judging the goodness of another's heart. I would so love to see this difference made clear. Peggy Anderson, Kirkland I cannot support a hypocritical church Seeing the unbalanced support for the firing of Mark Zmuda, I couldn't sit by silently. This Christmas, my father asked if I would attend Christmas Eve Mass. For the first time as an adult, I explained to him why I wouldn't attend services at a church that didn't embrace, respect and love every person, as Jesus preached. My brothers and I were raised Catholic. I attended youth groups and received the sacrament of confirmation. Since coming out in 2010, I have not attended religious services because I do not feel as though Catholicism considers me a real, whole person of worth and value. Today, my loved ones and experiences instill my spirituality. I cannot in good faith consider my life to have value and honor from the institutionalized prejudice, hate, bigotry, social irresponsibility and, above all, intrinsic hypocrisy of the Catholic Church — or indeed organized religion in general. I will raise my children with spirituality. But why would I indoctrinate them into religions whose perspectives and actions are so wrong and against the teachings of their central figure? I want no part in this bigotry. Matthew Jackson, Seattle Comments | More in Gay marriage | Topics: Eastside Catholic, Mark Zmuda


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Curtis represents companies in the business of manufacturing and distributing goods with clients ranging from multinational holding companies to subsidiaries of parent companies, portfolio companies and family held businesses. Such clients cover a broad spectrum of businesses including industrial and chemical manufacturing, CNC Machining, CAD/CAM design and manufacture of precision machined parts, precision production of components using semiprecious metals, high-precision quartz pressure transducers, electrostatic chucks, and crowns and closures for the beverage industry. The team also handles matters for numerous companies involved in the physical distribution of power, petrochemicals and chemicals, food, industrial, scientific and consumer products.
The Manufacturing and Distribution practice has represented companies in leveraged buyouts as far back as the late 1940s. The firm utilizes a multidisciplinary approach integrated across offices and practices to ensure a consistently high level of service and the full benefit of the firm's expertise and international reach.
The range of services provided by the group includes:
Members of the group have special expertise in cross-border distribution concerns including customs duty, letters of credit, transfer pricing, antidumping and other compliance issues, as well as cross-border deals for U.S., European and multinational corporations. Curtis also provides regular support to companies in litigation in federal and state courts, as well as domestic and international arbitrations.


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ASCD membership gives more info and concepts about learning and educating than any other single supply. Krashen put his principle into apply with the creation of the pure method and the gradual exit mannequin, that are primarily based on a second tenet of bilingual schooling-the concept of comprehensible enter. It goals to publish empirical studies, essential revisions, and theoretical fashions associated to the components that influence the teaching and studying course of. Taking on the duty of teaching our bilingual college students mustn't solely fall on bilingual teachers, students, and fogeys. There are two several types of bilingual training fashions, subtractive/remedial and additive/enrichment.
Please notice: The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) could change the state licensure and endorsement requirements at any time and with out prior discover. In each case, nevertheless, packages labeled immersion were actually bilingual education, with a considerable part of the day taught in the major language. Bilingual teachers take the Generalist EC-6, Bilingual Supplemental, and the BTLPT (required proficiency check).
Additionally, the theoretical perspective on this analysis relies in the thought of bilingual training is seen as the foremost establishment anticipated to assist people to attain bilingualism (Baker, 2006). EVERY baby has a right to a very good schooling in this nation, and just because someone would not speak English doesn't make them low-class, nor are they ignorant and incapable of learning. Sentences in the language jail: The rhetorical structuring of an American language coverage debate.
After 30 years of the bilingual experiment and billions of dollars spent, reliable analysis shows that these packages fail to teach students the English language and literacy they want for school success. I maintain certifications in elementary and particular education (delivery by means of adult) and have amassed greater than 30 hours of continuing schooling past my bachelor's degrees in English and Speech Pathology. Attention is given to analyzing the traits of effective academics and counselors and to growing fashions for interaction with gifted college students. The Bush administration, he argues, simply took a neutral position on bilingual schooling.
And, as tough as it has been to return by, given the ups and downs of analysis funding and altering fashions of language training, we even have important proof of the advantages of bilingual schooling fashions themselves (Baker, García, García and Baker). Bilingual academics present instruction in the house language for a minimum of five to six years–even when the coed develops primary English language proficiency–to make sure educational success.


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"We agree 700 MHz is valuable 4G spectrum with great propagation characteristics, but the starting price recommended by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) makes it very expensive and totally unaffordable for us, especially at a time when the ecosystem in terms of compatible devices and chipsets is at a very nascent stage," Gopal Vittal, Bharti Airtel's Managing Director & CEO for India & South Asia, said on an earnings call Friday.
Earlier this week, Trai had suggested a starting price of Rs 11,485 crore for a unit of 700 Mhz spectrum, which translates to a whopping Rs 57,425 crore (or $8.5 billion approx) for a pan-India 5 MHz block.
Trai's pricing recommendation on the 700 MHz 4G band has sharply divided analysts and industry experts. Some said that the suggested starting price for a pan-India 5 MHz block, or Rs 11,485 crore a unit, isn't too high, given the easy financing options, the fact that this will be a 20-year asset, the money telcos make currently and the ongoing data growth. But others say given stiff base price, the efficiency gains from deploying 4G on this most cost-efficient band aren't enough to offset the higher upfront investments involved. Both sides though agreed that telcos will be left with higher debt levels.
Vittal, however, welcomed the sector regulator's suggestion to "put all available 3G spectrum in the 2100 MHz band to auction", which he said "would decongest mobile networks, improve voice quality and reduce call drops".
Bharti Airtel's India & South Asia CEO said "voice pricing remained unsustainably low, and the company would shortly explore opportunities to raise voice prices, and hoped others (read: telco rivals) would do the same to bring some sanity on this front, amid rising competition even from smaller players".
Vittal was participating in the earnings call a day after India's leading mobile carrier reported a 22% drop in its third-quarter net profit to Rs 1,117 crore, stung by a mix of spectrum payouts, higher interest costs and competitive pressure on its voice and data businesses.
Bharti Airtel's global Chief Financial Officer Nilanjan Roy, who was present during the call, said "input costs were moving up, and voice prices needed to increase in the medium- and long-term to also fund spectrum-related capex spends".
The company's voice business has continued to reel under pressure despite a reported sequential growth of 3% in total minutes on the network in the fiscal third quarter, with voice ARPU, a key performance metric, falling 2% and average realisation from voice services per minute also slipping 2%.
On the data front, though accelerated rollout of 3G/4G sites has sharply boosted data usage and the data ARPU levels, Vittal said "data penetration still remained very low, and there huge opportunities existed for expanding the company's mobile internet user base, and in turn, boost data usage levels further".
Vittal, however, dismissed analyst concerns about Bharti Airtel facing potential in-building 4G coverage challenges triggered by its lack of sub-1 GHz LTE spectrum, especially at a time when newcomer Reliance Jio Infocomm and Reliance Communications have inked spectrum trading and sharing pacts and plan to shortly offer 4G-LTE services on the efficient 800 Mhz band.
"We have decent 3G spectrum holdings, which can be used to deliver a strong data experience and good in-building coverage, said Vittal, adding that Bharti Airtel had started "refarming" its 900 Mhz spectrum to offer faster 3G services in key markets.
"We've started refarming 900 Mhz spectrum to offer 3G in places like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab," said Bharti Airtel's India chief executive.


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Inbound marketing gets all the glory. As digital marketers, we live and breath by our inbound marketing efforts – creating copious amounts of educational content for our customers and leads, then posting that content to every corner of the Internet – all for that magical click.
That click brings our reader back to our website, where they can bask in the glory of the content they just read, write a riveting comment, and get lost in the abundance of information found on your other pages.
Poor, lonely outbound marketing. Everyone throws it to the side as an outdated practice, but oh how wrong they are.
One of the biggest components of outbound marketing that no B2B marketing strategy can afford to live without is events. Whether attending a webinar or planning your own customer conference, the art of events isn't going anywhere. Plus, you can even use many of your inbound marketing tools, such as marketing automation software, to help in event planning and execution.
B2B marketers have expressed that events like trade shows and webinars bring in 27 percent of their leads. Marketing automation increases that number even more while also increasing customer wins in three ways:
- Marketing automation enables granular tailoring of pre-show and post-show messaging, making it seem like your solution was made for them.
- When integrated with CRM, marketing automation provides sales with insight into who attended the event and the type of communications marketing is sending them.
- Marketing automation provides a 360 degree view of a lead. A prospect that entered your tradeshow booth may have already engaged on your website or with one of your email campaigns, increasing the value of that lead and helps sales to prioritize leads.
Want to learn more about how to plan live events and webinars with marketing automation? Download our B2Best Practice guide here to find out!


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As a linguist, I love languages.
I'm enthralled by the broad nature of language, and how, through its words, an entire people can be reflected. I'm a big believer that language is the first introduction to into the nature of a nation, a culture, a people—and not only by their words, but by how those words are expressed: through pitch and tone, through speed and tenor, through inflection, nuance, and accent. In Haitian Creole, the lively nature of even the most mundane discourse is a reflection of the vibrancy of the people who speak it. In French, the very even rhythm of the language hints at the balanced essence of a people who equally celebrate and lament both the joys and sorrows of life. By contrast, the German language is a structured, tightly woven tongue that mirrors a highly ordered, logical people in thought and deed. In Japanese, inherent to every syllable to be uttered is a note of respect that defines the culture itself: respect for self, respect for others. Even in the dead vernacular of Latin, the language exalts the virtue of man and all things masculine, which is very much evident in the historical accounts of the relationships of men to women.
Yes, languages speak to us about who we are as people, why we believe what we do, why we live as we do.
I find it wholly enchanting.
Even English, with all its variations and dialects, tells the story of the people who speak it. In Britain, English is very refined and clipped, with a strong, almost condescending accent that suggests privilege and high culture (I mean that in the best possible way!). Australian English is to me as feisty and rugged as its speakers. And of course, there's American English—my own native tongue—with its many accents and reincarnations that are a reflection of the varied and diverse of make-up of our citizens (this would be my own personal shout-out to my great country: USA!).
Yes, language is the great bridge that broadens my worldview and acquaints me to people everywhere.
I tend to find that pretty cool.
It is also the great bridge that I use to bring people to my world. Of the languages I know–I speak English fluently, dabble frequently in the Romance languages, flirt sporadically with the German tongue, and dream wistfully of the Cyrillic vernacular–I am also very proficient in one language that is not always so obvious: the language of writing.
Okay, I'll admit it: I've written about this topic before but as a linguaphile, it's a topic that I'm drawn to again and again. The idea that writing itself is a kind of language appeals to me, for various reasons, and because I'm still a couple of hundred words shy of meeting my word count for this post, I'm going to share them with you (oh, no attempt at meeting the word count in that bit of dribble there, no sir…hehehe…)
One reason I'm always fascinated by this is that not everyone is fluent in writing. Oh, sure, anyone can pick up a pen or pencil and scribble words and phrases, but not everyone can write to communicate a clear, concise message or tell a story. If we understand that this is the function of language, than writing itself—in its own unique function as a language as opposed to being a vehicle for language—is no different if it serves the same purpose. It doesn't matter if what we're writing is real or imagined, fact or fiction, speech or story—in order to convey the message, a person needs to be a fluent, coherent writer. If you want to share your tale, even when writing, you have to "speak" the language, and you have to "speak" it well.
And yet, interestingly enough, the great thing about writing is that it's never wrong. The nature of writing is such that though its form may sometimes be incorrect (a clear indication that the writer is not yet "fluent"), its expression is always true. There is never a false aspect to speech or accentuation or tone because when I think of writing as a language, I understand that this particular "language" is an extension of the human experience itself that is so broad—if not infinite—there really is no flaw. I can create characters, scenes, or settings with any breadth of tone or speech I want, and although there may be mistakes in grammar or syntax or punctuation, my story elements are always as real as I imagine them to be, written in a voice that serves to characterize the writing itself.
And like with any other language I've ever spoken or studied, the more I work at it, the better I become. My syntax improves and my vocabulary grows. I gain more and more control of nuance and meaning. My words develop a signature rhythm, a particular style, a certain je ne sais quoi. I manipulate more and more different registers, from humor to prose to verse to essay. The more I write, the more fluent I become.
Because when you love languages as I do, spoken or written, it's all about being fluent.


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Posted: Jan 26, 2018
POTSDAM, N.Y. – SUNY Geneseo sophomore forward Conlan Keenan scored a goal in the final minutes of the first period, but it was host Potsdam notching a short-handed tally with under six minutes left in regulation to earn the 1-1 tie with the No. 8 Knights, Friday, in State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) men's ice hockey play.
- Keenan took a left-wing pass from Romano and scored on a one-timer from the slot inside the right post with 1:23 on the clock to post the visitors to the early lead.
- The Knights held the Bears off the board until Dylan Vander Esch netted a short-handed tally with 5:36 remaining for the equalizer.
- Geneseo out-shot the Bears, 39-27.
- Junior goalie Devin McDonald finished the night with 26 saves.
- Keenan has now scored at least one point in the Knights' last nine games, including five goals and nine assists during the stretch, and has only been held without a point in two of 19 games this winter.
The Knights will take on host Plattsburgh on Saturday (Jan. 27) at 7:00 p.m. in the first of only two regular-season road games remaining on the schedule.


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Hi Guys.
I have been looking around for a parts plan for my FX electric Compressor so I can replace the O-rings in the pump section.
The hand pump almost looks the same as the pump on the electric compressor but a few small changes,
Has any one repaired one of these electric pumps and can help with a parts plan or a list of 0-rings that I need.
Chris Thomas


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Start or End a Self-Running PowerPoint 2007 Presentation
You've designed your PowerPoint slides and set your presentation to be a self-running presentation. Now What? PowerPoint provides these handy techniques for starting a self-running, kiosk-style presentation:
On the Slide Show tab, click the From Beginning button (or press F5).
Click the Slide Show view button.
Self-running presentations loop when they are finished playing. You return to the first slide and start all over. The controls in the lower-left corner aren't there for clicking. The keyboard shortcuts for getting from slide to slide are inoperable.
To end a self-running presentation, press Esc.


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- xosamanthaaa
- 5 years ago
The time has finally come to purchase my engagement ring! I have a few in mind and I simply need to pick. I have my heart set on the tiffany replica moissanite ring. Only problem is, I am concerned with any sizing issuea I may have. I've been reading that people ordered my moissanite co and their ring was anywhere from a 1/2 to 3/4 too big. I want to get the size right the first time. The ring I have now OSA. 6.5 and a little loose than I want it to be so I am thinking about going with a size 6. I plan on going to the jeweler tomorrow to try a size 6 out.
Please share your stories about the size of your ring from moissanite co and if you have a 1.5 mm band, did you go with a smaller size?


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FOGARTY Patrick William , 58, of New Windsor, NY died Sat, July 23, 2011 CELEBRATION OF LIFE: 11am, today, Wed, July 27 at the funeral home. Brooks Funeral Home, 481 Gidney Ave., Newburgh. www.BrooksFH.com or 845-561-8300
SHOLAR,Vannusser of Newburgh, NY died July 19, 2011 SERVICE: 12pm Thur, July 28, Best Temple Church 113 South St. Newburgh. Rhodes Funeral Homes, 259 Walsh Ave., New Windsor 845-569-1233 or www.rhodesfuneralhomes.com
HORNBECK Helen Wilhelm, formerly of Napanoch, NY died January 7, 2011 GRAVESIDE SERVICE & INTERMENT: of Helen's ashes will be held, Fantinekill Cemetery, 4pm July 29. H.B. Humiston Funeral Home, 30 42nd St., Kerhonkson www.humistonfuneralhome.com
GUNN Francis, 91, of Campbell Hall, NY died July 24, 2011 at ORMC-Arden Hill, Goshen, NY SERVICES: will be private. CREMATION: Cedar Hill Crematory, Newburgh. Donovan Funeral Home, Inc., Goshen 845-294-6422


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Napoleon Round Folding Table Trolley
Holds 6 Napoleon Round Folding Trestle Tables and fits through a standard door way. The Napoleon Round Folding Table Trolley also features heavy duty swivels and lockable castors and comes with a five year warranty. If you were to buy multiple Napoleon Round Folding Tables this trolley would be a great option as it would make moving and storage of the tables easy.
- Steel frame, powdercoated black finish
- Fits through standard doorway
- Suitable for 6 – 10 tables (table pending)
- Swivel & lockable heavy duty castors
- Minimises manual handling
- For commercial application
- 5 year structural warranty guaranteed on this product
Need help? Need further information/images? Call us on 1300 559 965


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When I hear Wendell Berry speak I can't help thinking that I'm watching a living example of what the Bible calls wisdom. I'm not going to comment here, I'm just going to listen.
"What I am waiting for is for somebody to come along and say, 'Look, we've got to use less.' This thing that we're calling our standard of living can't be maintained, and so this means that we've all got to make a criticism of our lives and of our standard of living."
"Finally we're coming into a time when the context is beginning to speak back to us very knowledgeably, very loudly. We live in the world, and we've been pretending like we don't. Now we're hearing from the world."
"To assume that all experiences like that [Deepwater Horizon] oil well, it can only be handled by experts at great expense, is a mistake I think. What we need to do is to get it to where we can have a say in it, and we can I think. If we don't then we lose the personal ground of hope. And the next thing is we're all going around saying things like, 'it's inevitable… there's nothing you can do about it.' I'm so tired of that word inevitable – that's part of the vocabulary of very lazy people."


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ImagingCT Centre and Ultrasound
CT Centre Offers Latest Technology
The Surgical Clinic operates its own CT Centre to offer our patients the latest technology in diagnostic testing in a comfortable and convenient setting. Computed Tomography (CT) and computed tomography angiography (CTA) are more commonly referred to as CAT scans. These are digital diagnostic tests that allow your surgeons to see the internal structures of your body. These soft tissue areas and bones are examined using the GE™ Lightspeed 16 Slice Scanner.
The data from this exam will be used to help the Surgeon determine the best treatment plan and surgical approach for you. The goal in the CT Centre is to provide you and your surgeon with the highest quality of images so that you are comfortable in making decisions about next steps.
CT and CTA procedures are done while you are awake. While you may feel that the process is a little bit like an x-ray, there are some things you will may be instructed to do to be ready for your procedure. Since the images are looking at soft tissue, it is sometimes necessary to drink a liquid that will work as a contrast agent about 8 hours before your exam. It helps light up areas of tissue so that abnormalities can be seen. In these cases, it is important to let the CT Centre know about any allergies or kidney problems you may have so that they can insure that the contrast will not be harmful to you. It is also possible that contrast will be added through an IV or an injection while you are in the exam. Regardless of how the contrast may have been added, your body will naturally eliminate it within a day of your exam.
In some cases, no contrasting is needed, but you may be asked not to eat or drink for the 8 hours prior to your appointment. In this case, you need to discuss any daily medication schedules (including for diabetes) that might be impacted by an 8-hour delay. Results from your CT or CTA will be sent to your doctor. You should expect a phone call or a follow up appointment with your Surgeon to discuss your results and to develop your next steps.
Learn more about the CT Centre at the following links:
Computed Tomography (CT) Computed Tomography Angiography (CTA)
Vascular Ultrasound
Vascular ultrasound and physiologic vascular procedures are booked for The Surgical Clinic patients in the Vascular Laboratory. This convenient and comfortable settings allow Registered Vascular Technologists (RVTs) to evaluate the blood supply to and from various parts of the body. This information is obtained without any invasive procedures. After an appointment, you will, therefore, be able to return to your regular schedule of activities. It is important to point out that your care will be delivered by a professional with an RVT certification. The RVT certification, not required in many labs, is the standard at The Surgical Clinic's labs and helps to assure you that your tests are being conducted by people specialized in these diagnostic procedures.
The Surgical Clinic understands that many times patients will want to get things moving as fast as possible. Vascular Labs are part of The Surgical Clinic in the convenient locations of St. Thomas West, Downtown Clinic, Summit, Skyline,and all three of the Vein Centres at Belle Meade, Mt Juliet and Cool Springs. These locations allow you to access advanced laboratory professionals without the congestion of a hospital setting. While appointments are required, it is often possible to make a 'same-day' appointment. Your test results will be sent to your Surgeon to help determine a recommended course of treatment.
The state-of-the-art laboratory is accredited by the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission and each of the RVT's are registered through the American Registry of Diagnostic Medical Sonographers (ARDMS).
Vascular Health Screening
The key to excellent vascular care is proper diagnosis and treatment options. The Surgical Clinic's ICAVL accredited vascular laboratory offers vascular screening services to assure that you receive proper diagnosis and treatment of your vascular condition. The state-of-the-art vascular ultrasound screening services are painless, fast and accurate. A vascular screening will help identify unnoticed vascular conditions. However, these screening do not take the place of a physical exam.
More about Ultrasound
What is Duplex Ultrasound
Duplex Ultrasound: What to Expect
Understanding Thoracic Outlet Syndrome
Treatment for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome
Physiologic (Non-Imaging) Testing
Ankle/Brachial Index
Arterial Doppler with Segmental Pressures Upper and Lower Extremities
Arterial Doppler with Treadmill
Gallbladder Ultrasound
Renal Ultrasound
Thyroid Ultrasound
General Ultrasound
An ultrasound is created when high frequency sound waves are exposed to a body part. These waves are assembled to create a picture of the inside of the body. Sometimes this type of imaging is called ultrasound scanning or sonography.
The risk of exposure by using ultrasounds is very low since unlike an x-ray, there is no ionizing radiation. The technique allows images of the inside of your body to be captured in real time while they are working. This reveals the structure and movement of the internal organs as well as lets doctors watch blood flowing through your vessels.
There are different types of ultrasound images that can be captured. A conventional machine displays images in thin, flat sections. Other technologies allow for a three-dimensional (3-D) image or an image that shows the entire structure to be studied from all angles. A four-dimensional technology (4-D) image can allow the radiologist to put a 3-D image in motion.
You may also be scheduled for a Doppler ultrasound. This is a special technique that examines blood flowing through a vessel. Areas of your body where a Doppler might be used are major arteries (the vessels that carry blood away from the heart) and veins in the abdomen, arms, legs and neck.
By watching the tissues at work, doctors can observe abnormalities, diagnose problems and develop treatment plans. Since the procedure is just tracking sound waves, there is no recovery time for you from this procedure.


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What: Netics BV
Who: Hugo Ekkelenkamp en Eldert Besseling
Where: Alblasserdam
Since: 2013
Source: Netics BV
Building with sludge
As a result of the rising sea level and urbanization of urban areas, globalization is growing the need to build flood controls and houses. However, this is a costly matter. Netics from Alblasserdam has a system to squeeze sludge into building materials. This will upgrade the waste to useful material. The mud can be processed locally to building blocks. These building blocks are used to construct constructions such as weirs, dams and dikes and even buildings.
Mud factory
Rivers in delta's carry sediment that drops in the form of unwanted mud. To prevent floods, dredgers start working in these areas. Poor regions do not dredge too often, causing certain areas to flow faster. In the mud factory the mud is dewatered and stabilized. After that the process in innovative pressed stones takes place. Because this is done locally, there are no drainage and storage costs for the sludge. Because more than 90% of the composition of the blocks consists of free available sludge specimens, the blocks are always cheaper than traditional primary raw materials or, for example, concrete.
In addition, the legoblocks made out of sludge make a significant contribution to reducing CO2. By using at least 90% sludge instead of concrete, nearly 80% less kilogram of CO2 is produced compared to the production of concrete legoblocks.