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"Youth and migration" has become a very relevant topic of research. Scholars from different disciplines and theoretical approaches have studied immigration based on structural and demographic factors; but only a few works focus on the politicization of a whole generation of young immigrants, their contemporary impact on the immigration debate, and their prospective leadership for the entire immigrant minority. This article is framed in the emerging field of youth immigrant studies that has been partially developed through very specific and empirical case studies of Dreamers' organizations, life stories, and narratives.
Why are Dreamers the prospective leaders of the Latino minority in the U.S.? What are their assets and challenges in a country that conceives of politics as negotiation and social change only through organization?
The article is divided into three sections. First, I address how undocumented young immigrants have politicized a considerable sector of U.S. youth through their influence on the migration debate, a central issue on the contemporary U.S. political agenda, and also, in the course of doing that, how they have raised their voices, organized, and participated in politics. In order to explain the origins and emergence of the movement, in the first section I broadly describe the characteristics, demands, and general organization of the Dreamers' movement.
Second, Dreamers are an association movement; their sophisticated structures and the support of other pro-immigrant, ethnic, and advocacy organizations consolidate their groups as part of civil society, despite their mixing "civil disobedience" actions with smart political strategies. To support this idea, I revisit the foundational theories of the U.S. political tradition, maintaining that association and organization are the key pillars for participation and social change.
Third, I analyze Dreamers ́ social capital management to elucidate the current skills, strengths, and opportunities of the movement as a unit. And then, I identify its weaknesses and problems for a better understanding of the Dreamers' possible future and their prospective ethnic leadership.
Who Are the Dreamers? The Will of the American Dream?
Dreamers are named for the DREAM Act, an acronym for the 2001 Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act. The original bill was first introduced into the Senate by Orrin Hatch (R, Utah) and Richard Durbin (D, Illinois). Their early draft proposed the revocation of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, particularly the section that limited federal or in-state tuition and grants for undocumented students. The bill was subsequently re-introduced in 2005, 2007, 2009, and 2011, the best known version being the last. Each time, the bill had bipartisan sponsorship and was even supported by presidential candidate John McCain the first and second time; nonetheless, it never received enough votes to get out of committee.
To be specific, the legislators' failure to approve any immigration reform, coincided with the introduction of the 2005 Sensenbrenner Law, which links immigrants to terrorism, fines border crossers as well as landlords and employers, eliminates the immigration lottery, and projects building a wall along the Mexican-U.S. border. Additionally, in 2006 alone, massive deportations reached 281 000 (USDHS, 2015). All these events together politicized a whole generation of immigrants and resurrected from the ashes citizen association as the primary mechanism for social change.
From Ferguson (1767) to Lipset (1960), different authors at different times have anticipated that when facing adversity, immigrants might achieve group consciousness and constitute civil society for self-preservation. In 2006, they took to the streets to show their capability of mobilizing others and what Putnam (2001) described as their social capital. During this period, Dreamers were still part of student organizations from state universities and community colleges; others were enthusiastic activists embedded in immigrant collectives, but they still remained isolated and unlinked. Dreamers were young activists conducting community outreach, but the movement had not yet developed its own characteristics.
The trigger of the civil movement was documented by Zimmerman (2012): one symbolic October 12, 2011 (Columbus Day/Dia de la Raza), five undocumented students, leaders of civic associations, wearing robes and gowns, bounced into the Los Angeles Immigration and Customs Office to demand the end of deportation of Dreamers. Although the event did not get coverage from more than the local media and press, the effective communication networks already developed on electronic platforms allowed the news to spread among other organized groups of undocumented students. This incident also achieved the identification of more young immigrants living in the same circumstances, and social networks became the main communication strategy that suddenly created a nationwide dissemination network (McDevitt and Sindorf, 2014).
Nevertheless, the movement achieved national status when President Obama said in 2012, "These are young people who study in our schools. They play in our neighborhoods. They're friends with our kids and pledge allegiance to our flag, They are Americans in their hearts, minds - in every single way but one: on paper" (White House, 2012). Formerly, he had announced the executive order, a presidential prerogative traditionally used when Congress does not enact a law for an important issue that requires immediate action. During this campaign, Obama stated,
We've got 11 million people here who we're not all going to deport. Many of them are our neighbors. Many of them are working in our communities. Many of their children are U.S. citizens. And as we saw with the executive action that I took for DREAMers, people who have come here as young children and are American by any other name except for their legal papers, who want to serve this country, often times want to go into the military or start businesses or in other ways contribute - I think the American people overwhelmingly recognize that to pretend like we are going to ship them off is unrealistic and not who we are. (White House, 2015)
The Dreamers are professionals, students, and volunteers in the armed forces who crossed the U.S.-México border when they were still children; some of them were still babies who migrated in their parents' arms, without any will or responsibility. These young immigrants culturally identify themselves as U.S. Americans; some only speak English and do not know their countries of origin beyond their parents' stories (Louie 2002). Dreamers grew up with U.S. American values and discovered their legal status in their late teens when facing bureaucracy and lost opportunities due to the lack of documents.
Regarding official requirements, the Department of Homeland Security established the formal criteria for requesting postponement of deportation under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Migrants can request DACA if they
Were under the age of 31 as of June 15, 2012;
Came to the United States before reaching their sixteenth birthday;
Have continuously resided in the United States since June 15, 2007, up to the present time;
Were physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making their request for consideration of deferred action with USCIS;
Entered without inspection before June 15, 2012, or their lawful immigration status expired as of June 15, 2012;
Are currently in school, have graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, have obtained a general education development (GED) certificate, or are an honorably discharged veteran of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces of the United States; and
Have not been convicted of a felony, significant misdemeanor, three or more other misdemeanors, and do not otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety (US DHS, 2012).
Under these terms, Passel and Lopez (2012) estimated that about 1.7 million immigrants would benefit from DACA; only 55 percent were eligible immediately. Deferred action for deportation was announced on June, 2012 and consists of an executive order for two years (renewable) to protect the migrant from deportation. Later, in 2014 Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) was launched, a three year renewable status to protect U.S. citizens' parents from deportation. Despite the lack of any migration status, and the absence of civil and politic rights, Dreamers view DACA and DAPA as victories of their movement based on civic association, not a merely un-structured or disorganized mass movement (Abraham, 2015).
Through creative and innovative slogans like "Undocumented and Unafraid" and E.N.D. ("Education No Deportation"), Dreamers' organizations caught the attention of the U.S. media and reached out for the empathy of U.S. society. The wise use of social media also connected them to youth in the same circumstances, and together Dreamers associated against discrimination and limitations. It is noteworthy that these young immigrants reject the term "Dreamers"; they say their demands are realistic and that they did not arrive seeking the American Dream; they are the result of U.S. American values, part of society, and the future generation of U.S. Americans. They prefer instead to be called "DACA mented."
Dreamers emerged as a strong interest group that found in civil association the only way to achieve their demands; they formed organizations with formal structures that became civil society. However, their main weakness is the informality and limits of their social capital (Nicholls, 2013). As Cohen and Arato (1994) explained in their work, civil society is made up of spaces for socialization, forums for dialogue, and channels for dissemination. For Dreamers, in addition, association became a convergent space for an already politicized sector of U.S. American youth.
In general, and for analytical purposes, we identify two different kinds of Dreamers. The first involves young immigrants participating in advocacy associations in localities with dense immigrant populations. In most cases, they only have a high school diploma, but they have real experience working with organizations, community engagement, and social activism. They are leaders of groups committed to immigrant rights defense; these Dreamers previously worked with legal assistance and sponsor organizations. On the other hand, we find Dreamers' organizations born inside universities and community colleges that had previously accepted the enrollment of undocumented students. This includes the cases of UC Dreamers, Longhorn Dreamers Project (University of Texas, Austin), and Students Working for Equal Rights in Florida. These groups added sophisticated forms to structured organizations and the broad use of social networks. Both kinds of Dreamers came together in the movement and complemented each other with socio-political leadership skills.
To create a profile of the Dreamers, Patler and Cabrera (2015) designed a study with focus groups in Los Angeles County. They found the following:
This chart expresses how DACA allowed some Dreamers access to education and some economic gains, but the real impact for the beneficiaries, the young generation and the whole country, will be seen in coming years. As Putnam (2001) stated, only education, opportunities, and the right development structures are able to raise social capital, and only high-social-capital civil society is able to promote assertive and durable changes.
Dreamers put forth the phenomena of subsequent generations of immigrants, who have to reconstruct their identities based on differences and renew the identity for the entire peer group (Lesko and Talburt, 2012). According to Louie (2002), the notion of generation is mainly relational since it implies identification with peers, but also differentiation with contemporary, future, and subsequent groups of individuals.
In fact, according to the Migration Policy Institute (2014), Dreamers are 91% Latinos. In general, Latino activism in the United States is characterized by "grassroots political mobilization" (Zlolniski, 2008), which refers to non-electoral activism that occurs when a minority is excluded from the national project designed for the mainstream. These grassroots movements' main goal is to legitimize the sector's economic, political, or social capital to influence decision-making schemes, putting forward minority demands and interests. Nevertheless, an essential issue for understanding the Latino experience is that collective action has been marked by the intermittent formation of political organizations. There are less permanent organizations consolidated as formal interest groups rather than associations with shortand mediumterm goals. The last case, once a reform has been achieved, tend to disappear due to the lack of long-term consensual agendas, or once their leaders become officials, such as in the cases of Latino federal congresspersons Congress (Perez 2011).
These favorable skills and advantages motivate Latinos, as a consolidated ethnic group, to find in young immigrants the heirs of a strong and historical movement founded on civil association. This relationship increases Dreamers' social capital, but first they need to face other weaknesses and challenges on the road to becoming the heirs to the Latino leadership and a social force with real weight in political negotiation in the United States. In this case, Dreamers as one-and-a-half and second generation members develop several functions through their activism, advocacy, and association (Seif 2016). They relate to ethnic groups of immigrants who are their first ambit socialization, starting within their families and communities (Mahatmya and Gring-Pemble, 2014). In addition, they negotiate with the mainstream the recognition of the country's plurality; and also they contest false labels and stereotypes. This social movement marked a key juncture for citizen association, primarily because of the involvement of an entire generation in immigration debates (Mena Robles and Gomberg-Muñoz 2016). The Dreamers formed associations capable of intercommunicating with a well-identified immigrant minority group, and they are also developing increasing long-term social capital inside a social core of U.S. society.
The puzzle that guides this article is the following: Why are Dreamers the prospective leaders of the Latino minority in the U.S.? What are their assets and challenges in a country that conceives of politics as negotiation and social change only through organization?
This article's principal hypothesis is that U.S. political participation is grounded on two foundational pillars: representation by government and organization by society. Following this schema, Dreamers as organized young undocumented immigrants have opportunities and assets for political engagement and prospective immigrant minority leadership. They have developed formal and informal mechanisms of participation based on associative techniques. However, the current strategy, the management of their social capital, and the positioning of long-term goals and future objectives, are, in short, the main challenges.
This article's methodological strategy consists of a first stage that revisits the theoretical foundations for association as the most propitious way forward for social change in the United States. I analyze the classical approaches that explain how civil association has been an intrinsic characteristic of U.S. politics. Moreover, I particularly focus in contemporary work analyzing group consciousness creation and social capital approaches developed by Putnam (2001), Stokes (2003), and Sanchez (2006) to explain how Dreamers have appropriated citizen association mechanisms to become insiders in the contemporary North American political chest and take shape as a capitalized minority.
Later, I use political opportunity structure to analyze Dreamers' opportunities, weaknesses, and challenges in assuming the leadership in immigration debates and creating bridges of communication between the U.S. mainstream and immigrants. Scholars such as Siemiatycki (2011), Nicholls (2013), and Triviño (2014) argue that political opportunity models are viable for explaining the environment of immigrants' political participation, and they have especially focused on representation (agency). Clearly, understanding that the relationship between context and action is critical to tackling the larger theoretical question of the relationship between structure and agency, the political opportunity approach permits the analysis of the institutional gatekeepers who can promote or hinder immigrants from accessing to migration policy-making structures (Triviño 2014).
Political opportunities structures help explain the context in which immigrants have strong associative networks and already shown their organizational capital through active participation. Political opportunity structure promises to predict variance in the periodicity, style, and content of activist efforts and more mainstream institutional responses (Meyer and Minkoff, 2004) and explain how far macro-structural phenomena (the structure) determine agency (Moulaert, Jessop, and Mehmood, 2016), in this case to explain the kind of leadership. Simultaneously, formalistic, and also substantive representation of minorities depends to some degree on the rules that govern the political system (Bird, 2005). The change of governments is measured in terms of "political openness" and, for immigrants, in gains of "organizational and social capital" (Schrover and Vermeulen, 2005; Sanchez, 2006).
Revisiting the Theoretical Foundations of Civil Association in the U.S.
Contemporary governments in general reject the obsolete dogma that nation-states are monolithic entities, cohesive through social homogeneity, whose guidelines exclusively respond to the achievement of "common welfare" perspective promoted from the mainstream. In contrast, the ascent of civil association to the formal and informal political arenas of negotiation, in addition to the adoption -at least in name- of vanguard governance visions that promote the participation of minorities and the rights of difference, have together encouraged a more plural conception of democracy. Precisely, these mechanisms to promote social change have been seized by disadvantaged groups such immigrant associations. Moreover, civil association endorsed processes of globalization from below driven by immigrants (Portes, Guarnizo, and Landot, 2003).
Association and representation principles have been the pillars of U.S. American democracy (Tocqueville, 1985). The U.S. government is based on representation mainly through the legislative branch (Congress); the representatives embody the citizens; and senators represent the states. Furthermore, commoners' main prerogatives are voting and organizing to achieve their minority interests. In this case, organization and formation of interest groups have been primary mechanisms for promoting social change. With organization, individuals' particular interests turn into demands; through organization, local demands link up with collective demands. They become strong, acquire voice and capability; organized minorities find fluid channels either within existing institutional opportunities, or even generating social and political arenas that make their social capital visible.
Locke was among the precursors who explained the causes and consequences of civil association. Due to the impossibility of omnipresent governments and the incomplete schemes of governmental representation, citizens naturally would be aware of their opportunities for building agreements and finding their own ways and solutions for their demands; association is then framed as part of the preservation of their lives, liberties and property (Locke, 1969). Nevertheless, it was Ferguson who fully analyzed the emergence of civil society. He explained that historically humanity constitutes groups for self-preservation and happiness; sometimes based on affinity and at others against opinions, rules, and discord. Ferguson stated that "public good" was individuals' main objective, but "individual good" is the main goal of civil society (Ferguson, 1767).
In modern times, Lipset broadly described how civil society is a fundamental component of democracies, where power is less centralized and a more functional articulation exists between practices and institutions. Taking U.S. politics as his main reference point, he explains in his well-known book Political Man: The Social Bases of Politics how social organization inside institutional channels would pressure policy design (Lipset, 1960). Cohen and Arato (1994), meanwhile, described "civil association" as the space that emerges from social movements, independent of the state, as representative spaces of communication, socialization, organization, and mediation for societies. Citizen associations are then spheres of interaction between economy and polity, which create forms of self-constitution and mobilization in the contemporary world in order to smooth social differences.
Framed under liberal paradigms, classical and contemporary authors help to understand the foundational bases of the political arena and the desirable organized social participation in liberal democracies. Citizens living in liberal democracies discover in civil society the collective potential to influence social, politic, and economic agendas and changes. Due to the diverse intergroup relations converging in collectivities, the scope and attributions of governments are narrow, and some particular issues are neglected or vanish altogether in the face of other priorities. Precisely, minorities have taken most advantage of these circumstances. After identifying their particular ideologies or interests, minorities organize their social capital and through collective action attempt to subjectively influence their socio-political surroundings. Then, civil society relates with the principles of co-responsibility and social inclusion to achieve the co-development of all the agents that make up the socio-political imaginary.
Particularly in the United States, historic experiences such as the pioneers' tradition of assembly have resulted in the conception of association and organization as the fundamental political guidelines for the state project. Moreover, the founding fathers stated this in the early draft of the national project. Even "the father of the Constitution," James Madison, pointed out in The Federalist no. 10, that government of the Union should be instituted on existing civil society mainly developed by interest groups (Hamilton, Madison, and Jay, 1776). But, essentially, it was Tocqueville (1985) who fully described the U.S. as a country founded on civil association:
Of all the countries in the world, America has taken greatest advantage of association and has applied this powerful means of action to the greatest variety of objectives. Apart from permanent associations created by the law… a multitude of others owe their birth and development only to individual wills….The neighbors soon get together as a deliberative body; out of this improvised assembly will come an executive power that will remedy the difficulty….There is nothing that human will despairs of achieving by the free action of the collective power of individuals.
In sum, these interest groups consolidate processes of civil governance, not only through the constitution of factions looking for recognition of their minority interests; in addition, citizens become proactive, proposing agendas and programs through organizations linked with official channels of participation. Under these circumstances, group adhesion contributes to association (Sanchez, 2006), and association has become the legitimate civil road for political and social participation in the United States. As a result, association is derived from the conception of the relative remoteness of governments due to their national focus and the diversity of their functions. Therefore, civil associations respond to immediate and specific demands that differ from the priorities of the collectivity.
This impetus for organization is based on "group consciousness," which implies a conscious identification with a cluster against lack of opportunities or discrimination. The basis of ethnic or cluster civil association and later political participation is group consciousness (Stokes, 2003). In fact, a generation is a cluster sharing common social circumstances and a future; consciousness builds consensus about "who they are" and "what they should do to have a more cohesive society, to be better positioned, and to be sure and their countries are better positioned." Additionally, undocumented youth find in their vulnerabilities a strong motivation to become participatory agents. Using their groups as a starting point, Dreamers develop social and political innovation agendas for the whole immigrant minority, and at the same time they link up with other agents for social change (Masuoka, 2006).
It is noteworthy that this participatory impulse derived from group consciousness is only fruitful when they achieve "social capital." Putnam is another reference for analyzing civil association in the U.S.; he developed the concept of social capital. He describes civil association as the sum of citizen engagement, solidarity, political equality, tolerance, trust, and participation. Putnam based the formation of social capitalized associations on the networks created by a favorable political context, positive perception of the mass media, knowledge of public affairs and effective channels of organization (Putnam, 2001). Putnam agrees with Tocqueville about the importance of organizations in U.S. but, he considers that in the contemporary U.S., the civil association has lost its sense of community and only the revaluation of social capital is reviving this practice (Putnam, 2001).
Precisely, this is the current arena for social and political participation for undocumented young immigrants aim to incorporate to U.S. society. Highlighting the bridges tended with other forms of Latino collective action, the biggest ethnic minority with the highest growth rates in the United States (Passel and Lopez, 2012). Additionally, as mentioned above, Dreamers are mostly Latinos -they even refer to Latino leaders and their mobilizations as examples-, and Latino movements have paved the way for all immigrant organizations, including Dreamers.
In general, Latino activism in the United States is characterized by "grassroots political mobilization" (Zlolniski, 2008); this refers to non-electoral activism that takes place when a minority is excluded from the national project designed for the mainstream. These grassroots movements' main goal is to legitimize the sector's economic, political, or social capital to influence decision-making and to put forward minority demands and interests. Nevertheless, an essential issue for understanding Latino experience is that collective action has been marked by the intermittent formation of political organizations. Less permanent organizations have consolidated as formal interest groups rather than associations with shortand medium-term goals. The latter tend to disappear once a reform is achieved due to the lack of long-term consensual agendas, or once their leaders become officials, such as in the case of Latino legislators in the U.S. Congress (Perez, 2011).
Opportunities and Challenges for Dreamers' Present Association and Prospective Leadership
In his work Strangers among Us: How Latino Immigration Is Transforming America,1 Roberto Suro described the panorama for young immigrants, especially young undocumented Latinos living in U.S. cities:
Dropout rates are only one symptom. This massive generation of young people is adapting to an America characterized by the interaction of plagues. Their new identities are being shaped by the social epidemics of youth homicides, pregnancy, and drug use, the medical epidemic of aids, and a political epidemic of disinvestment in social services. These young Latinos need knowledge to survive in the workforce, but the only education available to them comes from public school systems that are on the brink of collapse. They are learning to become Americans in urban neighborhoods that most Americans see only in their nightmares (Suro, 1998).
Actually, contemporary statistics reinforce this adverse context for young Americans members of vulnerable minorities:
Source: Pew Hispanic Center (2013).
Nevertheless, Dreamers are seen by immigrants and mainstream society as survivors of this hostile context; they embody the good moral character of immigrants in the collective imaginary about the American Dream. They represent stories of selfimprovement and overcoming adversity. This image contributes to the possibility of their becoming ethnic leaders; they are key agents due to their capacity to meld minorities with the mainstream because they represent the validity of an increasingly eroded American Dream. Young immigrants have built a bridge for inter-ethnic communication: on the one hand, for those in the mainstream, they are involuntary border crossers, and at the same time, for immigrants, they represent the brighter future that sparked border-crossing in the first place. These young immigrants grew up with American values regardless of their legal status; they are desirable immigrants educated above the average, and as Huntington (2004) told the Latino community, Dreamers learned to dream in English.
In addition to variables such as density, self-improvement, and a positive perception by the U.S. mainstream; another considerable advantage of Dreamers for gaining Latino leadership is their political experience, a key feature of social capital in a country that conceives of social changes only through organization and thinks of politics as negotiation. Moreover, as Eisema, Fiorito, and Montero-Sieburth explain,
Through their political and civic engagement in the undocumented youth movement, undocumented and educated youth: 1) overcome their fear of migration authorities and feel empowered; 2) enhance their collective status by transforming highly stigmatized youth into successful and legitimate political subjects; 3) acquire a professional activist disposition; and 4) gain access to a large and open network that offers them job, internship, and funding opportunities (2014: 27).
All these features smoothe their incorporation into the society that they already identify as their own. These advantages of civil association also legitimize them as minority leaders able to direct the whole immigrant debate nationwide.
In sum, in today's scenario, Dreamers bring together many skills and opportunities: 1) In the United States civil association is seen as the main channel for promoting social change; 2) The Dreamers' network of organizations is framed in the founding political principles of association and representation; and 3) the social capital they have achieved as a group. In contrast, the main challenge for Dreamers has been the strategy oscillating between formal and informal mechanisms of participation.
Several works show how undocumented youth have entered into public offices, set up roadblocks, interrupted official speeches, self-deported and made undocumented re-entry, among other massive forms of protest (Lisa Martinez, 2014; Milkman, 2014; Nicholls and Fiorito, 2015; Zimmerman, 2011, 2012). The most famous has been "Coming Out of the Shadows," a massive demonstration in Chicago held each year to show the Dreamer's density and social capital. The main problem is that these mechanisms are not seen as viable for pursuing social claims in U.S. politics; what is more, conservative politicians and media have condemned them as "civil disobedience." Numerous Dreamers have been arrested after overwhelming protests in Washington, Los Angeles, Miami, El Paso, actions widely covered by national press (Preston, 2010; Fox News Latino, 2013; Washington Post, 2013).
These events are perceived as inappropriate in a country that in general conceives of socio-political change only through institutional channels. Zimmerman explains:
The civil disobedience reflects how the undocumented youth movement has transitioned and transformed -from a movement that was initially focused on building support for the drEam Act to one that has increasingly used direct action to bring attention to broader issues of immigrant, civil, and human rights as a strategy for social and policy change. The tactical shift has been in response to a changing political context in which the will to pass immigration reform has waned in Washington, deportations are on the rise... and law enforcement is transferred to the local and state level within the context of neoliberal restructuring.
The civil disobedience reflects how the undocumented youth movement has transitioned and transformed-from a movement that was initially focused on building support for the drEam Act to one that has increasingly used direct action to bring attention to broader issues of immigrant, civil, and human rights as a strategy for social and policy change. The tactical shift has been in response to a changing political context in which the will to pass immigration reform has waned in Washington, deportations are on the rise... law and enforcement is transferred to the local and state level within the context of neoliberal restructuring (2012: 14).
In general, the long road to regularization and gaining civil and political rights is taking time; meanwhile, Dreamers have taken action, organizing and associating inside and outside the established institutions, becoming active agents in the process of constructing a more equitable context for the minority and a pluralist future for the generation as a whole (Weber-Shirk, 2015).
Recently, these strategies have become more sophisticated. Dreamers are now received by U.S. officials and representatives; they have properly articulated political discourses that go beyond narratives and have linked with hometown consulates and transnational programs. To mention a few examples, President Obama invited Dreamers as honored guests (White House, 2016) to the 2012 and 2016 State of the Union addresses. On the other side of the border, Mexico's Minister of Foreign Relations invited 40 young immigrant organization leaders to visit the country in 2014; this invitation was repeated in 2015, on that occasion for the "Youth and Migration" forum, where authorities, academics, and young immigrants gathered to exchange experiences and workshops to design programs (SRE, 2015).
In contrast, relations with the U.S. government have fluctuated between agreements and confrontation (Rafael Martinez, 2014). At the 2014 State of the Union address, Dreamer Blanca Hernandez interrupted President Obama, confronting him about his passive stance on immigration reform and the risk of the cancelation of DACA. This action was replicated several times in the offices of Marco Rubio, Hillary Clinton, and Donald Trump, among other politicians and legislators.
Some remarkable groups support the whole network created by the Dreamers; these national-scale organizations are good examples of vanguard civil association. The first case is the National Immigrant Youth Alliance (NIYA), whose slogan is "To empower, educate and escalate." Diana Bryson states,
NIYA is known for its dissident tactics, drawing criticism from other human rights groups, immigration advocates, and even former allies in Congress. Rep. Luis Gutiérrez (D-IL) released a statement in November officially breaking ties with the group and with drEamactivist.org, affiliated with NIYA (Bryson, 2014).
This organization's main actions have been massive attempts of returnees to cross the border, the occupation of ICE offices, and confrontation of legislators (Pallares, 2014).
A contrasting example is United We Dream. In their own words,
United We Dream is the largest immigrant youth-led organization in the nation. Our powerful nonpartisan network is made up of over 100,000 immigrant youth and allies and 55 affiliate organizations in 26 states. We organize and advocate for the dignity and fair treatment of immigrant youth and families, regardless of immigration status (United We Dream, n.d.).
In 2008, the National Immigration Law Center hosted a conference in Washington, D.C., attended by members of the associations; the youth held a workshop and the result was a coalition. They outlined action fields and created a program for each of the following: DACA, Education No Deportation (END), Queer Undocumented Immigrant Project (QUIP), Dreamers Education Empowerment Program (DEEP). They have a Board of Leaders for decision-making, a National Council that determines agenda, and a professional staff for management, communication, operations, advocacy, and policy. All these characteristics reflect the sophistication of social capital that Dreamers associations aim to achieve.
Although by 2015 a Texas federal court blocked the expansion of DACA, it is notable how the outstanding association dynamism grounded in group consciousness and the growth of national-scale organizations based on civil association maintain their presence in the public sphere. Dreamers have already demonstrated their social capital and in some states have earned legitimacy and shifted local migration policy beyond failed legislative debates and the lack of a federal response. WeberShirk explains:
Actions like these are 'immigration reform in practice, taking action to reunite families even as it means defying nation-state borders, asserting communities of belonging even while declaring non-citizen status, and influencing the conversation about citizenship in the process (2015: 583).
Under these circumstances, the main concern for collectives of Dreamers should be replacing "resistance" with "resilience," which means intelligently linking up group consciousness and social capital with smart socio-political strategies.
In this sense, one of their priorities should be the consolidation of proactive leadership in accordance with the real needs and potential of the human capital of all the Latinos in the United States, moving beyond demands merely for regularizing migratory status to the outline of an entire ethnic agenda. They should focus on the decisive transition from being life-storytellers to becoming assertive political actors (Cigarroa, 2013). This shift means basically to project medium and long-term mechanisms to transition from informal civil association networks to a political force that leads minority demands (Wang et al., 2014). They have this opportunity inside a group that conceives of them as the living example of the viability of the American Dream.
These Dreamers with political skills and associative experience are the future leaders of Latino politics, ground previously paved by Latino organizations, the Hispanic Caucus and other consolidated U.S. policy networks that have earned sympathetic support due to the smart use of U.S. American institutional channels for promoting social change and immigrant empowerment (Barero, 2014).
The importance of collective action lead by the undocumented, in all the liberal democracies, is not measured by the same parameters as other social movements. In fact, the collectives of the undocumented struggle to stop being, bad start for the consolidation of an organized social movement (Suárez-Navas et al., 2007).
It is important to point out that "dreamers now talk about the 'intersectional' character of their struggle. They are not only undocumented Americans; they are also Queer, minorities, women, and so on"(Nicholls and Fiorito, 2015). Furthermore, in the most optimistic scenario for the future, this "intersectionality" of the movement gives this youth the future opportunity to become social and political leaders of the whole, increasingly plural U.S. society.
The Dreamer's movement is more properly understood analyzing the group's social and political assets (group consciousness and social capital), but also the complex chessboard for participation in the U.S., based on the foundational pillars of representation and association for political engagement.
The United States is a country that from its founding outlined mechanisms for civil organization in order to protect minorities against the "tyranny of the majority," but only when these associations are capable of self-structuring as interest groups (Hamilton, Madison, and Jay, 1776). Under these circumstances, political change in the U.S. is possible, but only gradually, from grassroots to institutions, and always moving amidst institutional channels. This means that the lack of smart political strategies and a deficient connection with consolidated organizations would only lead to recognition, demands, and pressure, but not to long-term policies and programs to improve the future of young immigrants.
With regard to the social context, this article explained that group consciousness is the mainspring for civic association. Previous literature on group consciousness (Stokes, 2003; Sanchez, 2006) has indicated its multidimensional character, with three distinctive components:
Group identity: I have argued how previous Latino mobilizations are the precedents and roots of contemporary young immigrants' association, with the difference that Dreamers are generational and cross-cutting.
Recognition of disadvantaged status: I have explained that the smart use of social media became the space for socialization and strengthening the network (McDevitt and Sindorf, 2014). Through videos and blogs, Dreamers told their life stories, how they were discriminated against for being undocumented, talked about the deportations of their family members, how they were admitted to universities that allowed undocumented students to enroll, and the lack of tuition monies and grants for not being citizens.
Desire for collective action to overcome that status: after Dreamers realized there were 11 million undocumented immigrants, even before official statistics did, they achieved group consciousness, declared themselves "Undocumented, unafraid and unapologetic" and associated with each other.
The final approach for explaining Dreamers as a civic association movement capable of become the leaders of Latino minority was social capital. The axes of social capital are, in summary, civic engagement, solidarity, political equality, tolerance, trust, and participation (Putnam, 2001). Precisely, Dreamers' social capital increased with the maturation of their association; they created sophisticated solidarity and trust networks. Their previous involvement in immigrant rights advocacy associations or student organizations gave their members strong civic engagement and valuable organizational experience. In the same direction, Putnam (2001) states the need for a favorable context, which includes an encouraging network of an auspicious political context, a positive perception by the mass media, knowledge of public affairs, and effective channels of organization.
In this sense, is the current scenario a favorable political network? The answer is not clear; politicians from different branches of government, opposite political affiliation and from cities and the countryside have recognized the problematic broken migration system and urged a migratory reform. The main problem is that nobody agrees on the direction and the content of such a reform. With regard to the perception by the mass media, bias is a reality, and the reports and news about young immigrants' campaigns conform to the posture adopted by their audience. The Dreamers' main advantage is that they are remaining in the limelight and their actions are noticed nationwide.
About the knowledge of public affairs, Dreamers politicized an entire generation in the U.S. They learned about low politics; they found out about their rights; they partnered with other civil society organizations (labor unions, professors, ethnic groups, etc.); they linked up with legal services to help the community safely apply for DACA. With regard to high politics, they transitioned from only "civil disobedience" to the mixed strategy of radical actions plus smart politics. Dreamers abandoned confrontation discourses for sensitive and valorization discourses; they became expert political speakers in distinguished forums such the U.S. capitol. Finally, about effective channels of organization, Dreamers have sophisticated organizations: in most cases, they have a executive board, plenaries for decision-making, and administrative branches for each of their programs. Organizations such United We Dream and the National Youth Immigrant Alliance have even a yearly national congress for local leaders.
Although Dreamers have developed many skills and have many political opportunities as prospective Latino leaders, what are the current and prospective challenges? The main challenge is balancing pressure tactics (especially "civil disobedience") and smart political strategy. A second key issue broadly explained in this article was the need for medium and long-term goals: immigration reform is obvious; the meaning of such laws and policies are not. Dreamers need to draw prospective scenarios and durable strategies. Third, Dreamers need to maintain and manage the unifying nature of their movement that enables them to mediate between the mainstream and immigrants for the advancement of intercultural relations. And finally, they must link up and forge a win-win relationship with national, consolidated organizations like La Raza and officials inside the Hispanic Caucus, with all these associations' access to high-level politics.
Despite their multiple vulnerabilities (being young, from an ethnic minority and undocumented), Dreamers are currently an important movement in contemporary U.S. politics. They politicized a considerable sector of U.S. youth and divided positions inside the mainstream. Furthermore, they motivate identity debates within a society that increasingly asks, "Who are we?" They also challenge the U.S. mainstream to go further, demanding to know when they will be considered to be "home." What are the real criteria for belonging? When will you notice that despite our complex identities, we are already a considerable part of the new generation of U.S. Americans?
The Dreamers' future is not yet written; their migratory regularization process is still uncertain because DACA and DAPA are far from being permanent solutions. However, they have already opened the field for further research for several topics and disciplines. This article aims to explain Dreamers beyond riots, very specific or limited organizations, and life-story narratives. It uses approaches from political sociology, with frameworks such classical and contemporary theories about association in U.S. politics, and later applies social capital and political opportunity perspectives.
I explained how the Dreamers built an organized cluster through their strong networks with efficient communication strategies and channels for dissemination; how they developed an assertive association with intergroup articulation (across the local and different groups of Dreamers) and intra-group relations (with advocacy and pro-immigrant organizations); and also how they mobilize using informal mechanisms, but especially through formal mechanisms of participation in U.S. politics.
Nevertheless, I found several assets and opportunities to put Dreamers in perspective. Highlighting how they are able to build bridges of communication between immigrant or ethnic minorities and the U.S. mainstream, I also emphasized the key role of their developing political experience and the importance of their originality, identity, and consciousness that enables cohesion, permanence, and consolidation as a minority.
In contrast, many remarkable challenges exist. I explained the lack of long-term goals and future objectives beyond migratory status regularization. I described that the way to become effective political agents is still uncertain, as well, how to channel participation, increase their social capital, and empower their members within an increasingly polarized society. I argued that Dreamers can be the prospective leaders of the immigrant minority -predominantly Latinos-, only if they take advantage of a political scenario where social and political changes are slow but possible, only when the agents understand the rules, if they achieve enough social capital, and when they participate through formal established mechanisms in U.S. politics.


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I can truly say that this Christmas wa our best ever! We had a fantastic time. We had15 people over for Christmas and everyone had a wonderful time. I couldn't help but wonder if this would be the last time everyone would be together for Christmas, it made me sad to think of that as a possibility, but I didn't dwell on it. It was a celebration of note this year, we celebrated surviving the worst year of our lives, on all fronts. I look at everyone and marvel, we are ok, we made it through the tragedy and heartache, we might not be in one piece anymore, but we survived, and that's all that counts.
We can now only look forward, the worst that could happen happened, now I'm looking forward with excitement and a bit of nervousness, but mostly excitement. I have absolutely no expectation for 2010, just a sense of excitement, if that makes any sense at all!
I wish everyone a very happy 2010 and wish you all everything that is beautiful!

subset: commoncrawl


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Did you know that two of our lawyers are involved with the Newcastle Law Society? We are proud to say that James Bartley and Sally Mackay serve on both the Social Sub-committee and the Young Lawyers Sub-committee. James Bartley has also been selected as the Committee's Young Lawyers Delegate.
The Newcastle Law Society represents almost 600 solicitors practising in both the public and private sectors in the Newcastle area. Its objectives are to assist with educational and training opportunities for the local profession, to promote local legal initiatives and to lobby on key issues affecting local practitioners. (www.newcastlelawsociety.com.au)
The Newcastle Law Society provides support to the Newcastle Legal Aid Commission and to the Hunter Community Legal Centre. In a regional area like Newcastle, it is important that the community has access to free legal services such as these.
Congratulations, James and Sally!


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Did my City to Surf on Saturday and ran 14km in just over 73min. Happy to have a day off today and having enjoyed a run yesterday without 70'000 other runners competing for space on the road. http://city2surf.sunherald.com.au/home2.php
My training really suffered a bit lately – less then 40km a week but I have signed up with a new gym near my new work place and from tomorrow onwards it will be back on track – only 6 weeks to go till Fitzroy Falls Marathon and I need to clock up some more km's each week.
Bring it on…


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Questa è la più piccola delle Copiapoa, la si riconsce facilmente per la sua taglia ridotta, i fusti bruni e soffici ricoperti di spine minute e lana bianca. Ha una grossa radice tuberosa.
Family: Cactaceae
Scientific name: Copiapoa laui Diers 1980 Original Description Published in: Kakteen und anderen Sukkulenten, 31(12):362 Forma cristata
NOTE: The species name is frequently misspelled 'lauii' .
Origin: Garden origin (Nursery produced cultivar)
Conservation status: Listed in CITES appendix 2.
Copiapoa lauii FK 439 Esmeralda Guanillos, ChileIt is the smallest of the Copiapoa's and a very attractive clustering variety with lots of small heads when mature. It is easily identified just by its small size, brown soft stems, minute spines, large yellow flower and large tuberous root. It is the only Copiapoa where the side branches form their own roots.
Description: Miniature Copiapoa, clustering, partially underground, single stem circa 1cm (rarely 3 cm) across, 1 to 1.5 cm high clear grey to red-brown-grey, sometimes greenish. Top sunken: covered with whitish wool. Ribs: 15 to 20 with small tubercles in vertical rows. Spines: whitish to yellowish, occasionally 1 central spine; 4 to 7 insignificant radials Flower: yellow with reddish petal tips, short, wide funnel-shaped. Fruit: globular, 3-5 mm across, greenish-brown with shiny black seeds; Roots: large turnip-like.
Cultivation: Need full sun to part sun, should be protected from excessive heat and sun in summer. Needs deeper pot and excellent drainage to accommodate the tap root.
Photo and © copyright by Robert Maijer (Holland) Forma cristata
C. lauii at anthesis This species start flowering when still very small.
Cactus Art di Vallicelli ValentinoPartita IVA 01738531209


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Craft With Conscience: Humayrah Bint Altaf
Sarah Benning
Humayrah Bint Altaf // Embroidery Artist // England
In her two years at The Royal School of Needlework, Humayrah developed her skills in traditional hand embroidery techniques like Goldwork and Silk Shading and it was here that her love and appreciation for exquisite craftsmanship blossomed. Since graduating, Humayrah proceeded to create an Etsy store (The Olde Sewing Room) displaying age old techniques amalgamated with her growing penchant for Entomology and the natural world.
1. I began my #CraftWithConscience series as a way to simultaneously promote the work of other makers and to discuss the complicated issues surrounding creative inspiration and developing ones' own visual vocabulary. The internet is an ever growing fixture in many artist's lives and businesses, could you talk about the role the internet plays in your artistic and professional life?
The internet can be both powerful and pointless. For me, it is not an essential part of finding inspiration, however the internet is the main medium I utilise to promote my work. The world of Instagram is perfect for marketing your business whilst meeting like minded creatives. I think of all the incredibly skillful makers that I'm blessed to know through Instagram and how they pour their soul into creating. The plethora of cat pictures on instagram are also exceedingly inspirational!
I do believe that the internet should be used wisely or it can turn into an addiction. As artists, we aim for our work to be accepted and praised through likes and followers. This can inconspicuously turn into a viscous cycle so I like to have digital detox days where I refrain from using social media. I'm yet to understand the modern phenomena of wanting to record and take pictures of everything for the world to see. I love that my art can be known through the internet whilst keeping my personal life unknown and hidden, allowing the audience to focus on my craft. An air of mystery about the artist enhances their art in my opinion. Banksy being an apt example of this. How cool is Banksy?!
2. Where do you find inspiration for your work? In what ways has the internet and/or social media impacted your design process?
The influence of the natural creation is something that is woven through a lot of my work. I've always loved discovering beautiful things and enjoy wandering through the woods near my home where I gather leaves, twigs, feathers and other ephemera I can find to bring back home and preserve. I like to incorporate the treasures I find into my embroideries and with each piece I feel that a part of me has been embedded into my work.
I strive to create pieces that speak figuratively and literally of the colours and textures of trees, plants, beetles, bees, roots, twigs and other creatures that frequent my world. Light is an integral element of my craft hence the materials I use reflect this. Soft gold leathers, vintage silks, antique gold cords, iridescent metal wires all call out to me. Photography, good lighting and creating a harmonious visual composition is almost as important to me as the embroidery itself. I believe in storytelling through imagery, the comforting effect cloth, fibre or photograph may have on people.
I am a 'word collector'. Unusual words with wondrous meanings fascinate me. My favourite word is Sonder (n.) The realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own—populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness—an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you'll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk. - The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows by John Koenig.
Often, the correlation between embroidery and words is not apparent to anyone but me. I feel there is a spiritual mystery hidden in the folds of language and it's important to hem these extraordinary blessings with thankfulness
3. How have you, as an artist, found your creative voice?
Like the best things in my life, my creative voice flourished unexpectedly. For years I was struggling to find what I was good at. Then I shifted my focus to what I loved to create and thereafter my own artistic expression was born. As a maker, I still have a long road ahead and am excited to encounter many more bursts of unanticipated inspirations
4. Sites like Pinterest and Instagram are popular places for artists' to share their own work. They also act as public visual archives, often leading to creative work by others that walks the line between 'inspiration' and 'infringement.' Have you encountered copies of your work online and how does it affect you? What are your strategies for dealing with it?
I have encountered copies of my work online. Although they were pretty poor attempts at recreating my embroidery, the artist shamelessly denied copying it and said his boss told him to make them. Upon further investigation (stalking) I noticed he was a poor factory worker in a remote village in India where workers are exploited and work in inhumane conditions for very little pay. I felt sorry for him so let him off.
My approach is quite placid and I am happy if people want to recreate my designs. Every artist has a unique style and the way I compose my stitches will be different from the way another person creates. It is common courtesy to credit the artist who you are taking inspiration from but this doesn't always happen. I do get tempted to name and shame online just for a laugh but haven't succumbed to my sinister inclinations just yet.
5. Do you have any advice for aspiring artists or creative business people?
Stop procrastinating and over-analysing. Begin what you love to do now and enjoy the process. I regret not opening an etsy shop earlier and it was unnecessary anxiety that was holding me back. If anyone asks you to work for free, be flexible and say no.
6. Do you have any favorite blogs, artists, or Instagram accounts that you'd like to share?
All images provided by the artist.


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The first meeting of the Russian-Armenian 'Lazarev Club' was held in Yerevan. And despite the fact that it was not honoured with his high attention by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, which caused many pro-Armenian analysts to have a nervous reaction, the event itself was more than saturated.
Even the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan responded, which, as Azeri Daily already reported, released a special statement.
Recall that it notes that one of the main initiators and organisers of the work of this club, which positions itself as a new format of public diplomacy, is Konstantin Zatulin, who in the current, seventh convocation of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, is the first deputy chairman of the CIS, Eurasian integration and relations with compatriots Committee.
'The invitation by the organisers of representatives of the illegal regime created in the territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan occupied by the Republic of Armenia, as well as the statements made by K.Zatulin himself, the former chairman of the Council of Foreign Ministry veterans of Russia, having the rank of Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador Vladimir Kazimirov, and the deputy director headed by K.Zatulin Institute of the CIS countries Vladimir Yevseyev and some other persons, containing open attacks on sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Azerbaijan are aimed at causing damage to the existing high level of cooperation between Azerbaijan and Russia,' said that statement.
Meanwhile, another aspect of the 'Lazarev meeting' remained behind the scenes. According to the Lragir publication, Armenians were allegedly promised Nakhchivan and an audit of the 1921 treaty.
'The Karabakh problem was publicly discussed, but according to rumours, behind the scenes, representatives of the Russian side talked about Nakhchivan and assured that at the upcoming meeting they would turn to the Russian-Turkish Moscow Treaty of 1921, according to which the Armenian lands were transferred to Turkey and Azerbaijan,' Yerevan edition writes.
And it continues: 'If the (Lazarev) Club really set out to strengthen relations and the Armenian-Russian friendship, then it can't do without revising this agreement. Obviously, without solving this task, the Armenian-Russian friendship will remain a thousand-year phantom, a fiction.'
Azerbaijani political scientist Teymur Atayev, who has been studying the events in the region at the beginning of the 20th century for many years, in an interview with Azeri Daily, noted that such attempts by the Armenian side are registered not for the first time.
'But let us first turn to some points of the Moscow Treaty of March 16, 1921. First of all, the government of the RSFSR and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey agreed 'in principle not to recognise any peace treaties or other international acts, which would otherwise be enforced on the parties.'
Article 3 fixed the consent of Moscow and Ankara that 'the Nakhchivan region within the boundaries specified in the annex to this treaty forms an autonomous territory under the auspices of Azerbaijan, provided that Azerbaijan does not cede this protectorate to any third state.'
As was emphasised, 'in the triangle-forming zone of the Nakhchevan territory, included between the thalweg of Araxes (Aras) river, and in the west a line passing through the mountains of Dagna, Veli-Dag, Bagarzik, Komurlu-Dag, the border line of the specified territory, starting from Mount Komurlu-Dag, passing through the mountain Soray-Bulak station Ararat and ending at the crossing of Kara-Su with Araxes will be corrected by the Commission, consisting of delegates from Turkey, Azerbaijan and Armenia,' Teymur Atayev quotes the agreement.
It was recorded that any resident of the territories that constituted part of Russia before 1918, which the RSFSR government 'recognises as being under the sovereignty of Turkey on the basis of this treaty,' was entitled to 'freely leave Turkey,' taking with them 'their property or its value.'
'One remembers that when in 2016 State Duma deputies from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Valery Rashkin and Sergey Obukhov appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin with a proposal to terminate the 1921 agreement, another parliamentarian Oleg Pakholkov (Fair Russia), who generally supported the voiced initiative, in an interview to Azeri Daily emphasised that the denunciation of the Moscow agreements of 1921 'does not have obvious political and legal consequences' and 'all states will remain within the borders, in which they exist today.'
To change the generally recognised borders, 'a new war is needed,' but, as Oleg Pakholkov noted, 'Russia is not going to fight with Turkey.'
It is interesting how sincerely in the current geopolitical conditions, some political forces in Armenia consider the revision of the 1921 Moscow Treaty of Russia with a NATO member to be real? Hasn't the story of the failed attempt by the Stalin regime to voice this question taught anything? With a similar development of events, this will be a direct confrontation of the Russian Federation with the forces of the North Atlantic Alliance,' said Teymur Atayev.


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Thank you to wePoets Show It for shortlisting my poem in their monthly competition; I am very honoured and it's great to get good feedback. If you write and haven't yet checked out their site I would urge you to do so – any interactive writing blog scores highly in my book! 🙂
We were overwhelmed by the talent and outpouring of the submissions for the Poetry Contest. It was really difficult to pick only 3 poems for the finalists. Please know that just because your poem wasn't chosen for this month's finalist doesn't mean it wasn't fantastic or that you can't enter the same poem again next month. This is a monthly contest so feel free to enter one of your poems each month.
Here are the 3 finalists for wePoet's September Poetry Contest. All three poems are listed in this post so please scroll down to read all of them. The voting poll is at the bottom of the post. We will be re-posting this post every morning through Friday so that everyone has a chance to place their vote. Congratulations to the finalists and we hope you enjoy their poems as much as we did.
The Writer
by Elizabeth…
View original post 943 more words


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Harrod Anchor for Curved Premier Team Shelters
Comes complete with bolts and fittings
Product description
The Harrod UK anchor for all Harrod Premier curved team shelters comes complete with:
2 460mm deep sockets
5 100mm square galvanised steel support posts
2 Anchorage arms.
Bolts and fixings.
This set will secure one shelter of any length. An option for pitches where concrete base pad cannot be installed.
Compatible with SHE-010C.
Set - Sold per pair.
Weight: 58.00kg.


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Romania is aiming to adopt the European single currency in 2022, the country's government has said.
The country's foreign minister said the Romania's economy had already met the tests required to join the currency but that it was waiting five years to protect the incomes of pensioners.
Romania would be the first country to join the euro since Lithuania adopted the currency in 2015.
19 of the EU's 28 members currently use the currency, though Montenegro, which is not currently a member state, has also unilaterally adopted it.
"Already today we meet all the formal requirements, we could join the currency union even tomorrow," Teodor Melescanutold told the Polish publication Rzeczpospolita.
"But we're afraid that it will have a negative effect on the poorest, pensioners' incomes."
He added: "I think that we will adopt the euro in five years, in 2022."
Mr Melescanutold's comments come after a run of good economic data from the eurozone, suggesting that the currency area is completing its recovery from the crisis that has dogged it since 2008.
The European Commission and European Central Bank's latest assessment of the Romanian economy, published in June 2016, however said that the country did not meet the criteria for joining the euro.
If Britain were to leave the bloc and Romania were to adopt the euro, 20 of 27 countries in the EU would be using the euro, shifting the balance of power within the bloc significantly towards countries that use it.
Protections within the single market for countries that are not members of the eurozone are a significant matter of debate within the EU.
Under the terms of EU treaties member states are bound to adopt the euro eventually, once their economies have met certain economic criteria.
The United Kingdom and Denmark however both have officially negotiated opt-outs, and in practice there is currently no real compulsion for other abstainers – such as Sweden – to join the currency.
Inspired from: independent.co.uk


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New for 2019! Our new E86M is perfect for shorter or 'quickfire' events where set-up or pack-down time is an issue. This ultra portable stage can be ready to go within an hour and employs its own dedicated sound system, lighting show and independent power supplyEmail Us
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Giant outdoor LED screens are clearly visible even in bright sunshine and can be used in a number of configurationsMore


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Electrical Safety NFPA 70E
On April 4th, York Electricians JATC conducted another NPFA 70E class to update members on the changes to the 2015 Electrical Safety Standards. Safety is a critical part of any job. However, in the electrical industry, the hazards are unique. You cannot see, hear, or smell electricity therefore, safe work practices and habits are critical. One mistake can be deadly. Our electricians are trained on the various risks and how to avoid or minimize them. Our goal is to avoid working on any energized equipment. However, NFPA 70E identifies a few exceptions where energized work is acceptable with a hot work permit. These include situations where turning off the power is more dangerous. An example of this is life-safety systems in hospitals where patients' lives' are dependent upon electricity. Another situation is where testing and troubleshooting are necessary. Procedures such as voltage reading and checking rotation require an energized circuit. IBEW electricians are trained on the proper identification of hazards and the appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for the task. Regular training helps to keep our workers, contractors, and customers safe.
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Get This and
6 Million Other Stock Images
sheltered Chapel
Description : ruined chapel in Spain, sheltered by a metal roof, waiting for repair
Photographer : hospitalera
This image has a Royalty Free license. You can use the images an unlimited amount of times for almost any purpose* without having to pay extra. The rights granted are non-transferable and personal to you or your company. For resale you'll need a Pro Plan.
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Bike Tour
We've taken
the scenic and cultural highlights of this dream destination and put them
together for you in a unique tour program on two wheels.
read more
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Trekking -
Peak climbing -
Expedition -
Tour -
Safari -
Other activities
Nepal Expedition
Oyu From Tibet
From Tibet
Discount Packages
Gokyo Trek
Beneath the southern slopes of
Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) lies the rugged
Mount Kailash Trip
Mountain Tribes has
been led various trip to Mount Kailash,
the holiest of all
New Packages
Overland Tour
This Fly in/ Fly out tour of
the heart of Tibet follows a
circular route from Tsetand
& Events
Nepal has participated in the FITUR-2006
Curfew in Kathmandu and Lalitpur
withdrawn Post Paid
Honorable Assistant Minister for
Industry; Commerce
read more
The Mt. Everest is the
highest peak of the World 29028ft.
through which the climbing toppers feel
them selves as the most proud and
adventurous personal the World. Sir
Edmond Hillary and Late Tenzing Norge
Sherpa first climbed this peak in May
29, 1953, after their long time's
Everest Base camp situated on is of
Khumbu glacier at high of 18000ft. All
the international Mt. Everest climbers
assemble here during the starting and at
the ending time of there climbing.
Normally the climbing duration of this
expedition lasts for 90 days. All the
climbers who mass there at the base camp
seem really busy with excitement for the
preparation of their expedition to reach
on the summit.
Some climbers climb this mountain on
their own risk without any climbing
Sherpa guide; and some climbers go with
their own climbing Sherpa guide. Most of
the teams carry own their on Internet,
Satellite phone, Medical doctor and rest
of the modern requirement.
After the Base camp, we have to cross
crevasses, Sercs and ice black.
Similarly we should face to the way up
having Chunks of ice as large as our
houses where we should used fixed ropes
and aluminum ladders to climb ahead camp
1st 6400m.
Camp 1: 20000ft. (6,400m.)
This camp 1 is situated at the flat area
of snow endless snow deep crevasses and
mountain walls. Because of the Sun's
reflection from this place we get warm
and hitting ambience at this place. In
the night we listen the deep murmuring
cracking sounds of crevasses beneath our
tent. These are the areas where we have
to walk to reach camp 2.
Camp 2. 21000ft. (6,750m.)
This camp 2 is situated at the height of
the 21000ft, which is located at the
foot of the icy Lhotse wall though where
we have to go ahead. Whether is here is
good but bad clouds roll in from the low
range of the Himalayan valleys to the
bottom of our camp two. But wind here
some times seems very violent enough to
destroy our tents. After climbing these
palaces we reach camp 3 .
Camp 3. 22300ft. (7,100m.)
Camp 3 is located at the height of
22300ft, adjoining to Lhotse wall. After
climbing the 4000ft. Lhotse wall by
using fixed rope and with prior
acclimatization it leads us to camp 4.
Also on the way we have to ascend the
steep allow bands (lose, down -slopping
and rotten limestone). From their
crossing short snowfield the route moves
ahead up the Geneva Spur to the east
before finishing the flats of the south
col. (Another wells name meaning Saddle
of pass). Oxygen should probably be use
above base camp 3 incase of needed to
the climbers.
Camp 4. 26000ft. (8,400m.)
Now are on at camp 4 which located
height of 26000ft; it is the last camp
of the Expedition. From here summit is
about 500m, distance far. This is the
final and dangerous part of the
climbing. This place is besieged by
ferocious and violent winds. The normal
best way to reach to summit is via the
narrow South -East Ridge and it precedes
the South Summits 28710ft.
From here the way is easy to reach at
the summit of the Everest 29028ft; and
Sir Edmond Hillary and late Tenzing
Norge Sherpa used this route in 1953
Itinerary of Everest Expedition in
Days 01 :
Arrival Kathmandu , Nepal and transfer to hotel
Days 02 :
Days 03 :
Prepared Expedition & Briefing in Ministry
of Tourism
Days 04 :
Fly to Lukla & trek to Phakding (2640m)
Days 05 :
Phakding - Namche Bazar (3446m)
Days 06 :
Namche (3446m) & Acclimatization
Days 07 :
Namche - Thyanboche Monastry (3867m)
Days 08 :
Thyanboche - Pheriche (4243m)
Days 09 :
Pheriche - Lobuche (4930m) Lodge /camp
Days 10 :
Everest Base Camp (5400m) O/N Camp
Days 11 - 62 :
Climbing period for Mt. Everest
Days 63 :
Base Camp - Thyanboche (3800m)
Days 64 :
Thyanboche - Phakding (2600m)
Days 65 :
Phakding - Lukla (2800m)
Days 66 :
Lukla - Kathmandu
Days 67 :
Final Departure
For Further Information & Booking
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Within the BLOOM® system, the human resource department can assign an employee a primary and a secondary supervisor. Each manager's personal portal gives them access to the employee's information, and each can add notes, enter goals, and contribute to performance reviews.
When the employee logs in and reviews past performance reviews and other items the managers have approved, he or she is able to see the feedback entered by both managers.
This latest update extends the ability for organizations to adapt BLOOM® to meet their needs and to better track and monitor employee performance.
BLOOM® is a web-based, fully-integrated performance management system that supports individuals and working teams. BLOOM® was developed by Insight Strategic Concepts® Inc. For more information contact us, at email@example.com or 866.250.8710.
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Insight Strategic Concepts® Inc. is a strategic growth firm that focuses on building business strategies that are unique to an organization's products, services, customers, employees, systems, and culture. Insight assesses these areas to define the organic construct of an organization. They then develop unique business goals, market strategies, products, services, role structures, and technologies to promote organizational growth. For more information visit www.insightsc.com or www.bloomware.com or email email@example.com.


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Constance L. McBride
Died Nov. 2, 2018
It is with great sorrow that her family announces that Constance "Connie" Lee (Nagy) McBride, 65, of Standish, daughter of the late Art and Mary Jane (Brewer) Nagy, unexpectedly passed away Nov. 2, 2018.
Constance was raised in Melita and lived most of her life in Standish.
She is survived by her beloved husband of 42 years, William (Bill) McBride; loving mother of sons, Benjamin (Kerri) McBride and Jonathan (Shalan) McBride, and daughter, Katie (Michael) Fryske; dear sister of siblings, Peter (Kelly) Nagy, sister Amy (Andrew) Thorner and sister-in-law Pamela Nagy; proud grandmother of grandchildren, Austin, Logan, Karleigh, Makala, Deklin, Hunter, Blake, James and Jenna; and loving aunt to many nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her in-laws, Robert and Irene McBride; her brother, Bryan Nagy; and her little dog, Suggie.
Connie is remembered as a person who took care of others. Many family members and friends frequently called her to ask for advice. She looked forward to relaxing at the cabin and celebrating the holidays. She enjoyed time spent with family and friends and was famous for her cheesy potatoes. She also enjoyed casino trips and shopping, and was a fan of the Detroit Tigers. Her roles as a registered nurse and a mother of three children were the primary focus of her life until she was blessed with nine grandchildren.
The visitation will be at the Lee-Ramsay Funeral Home Standish Chapel on Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2018, from 1-8 p.m., with a vigil service and rosary at 6 p.m. Her funeral services will be held at Resurrection of the Lord Catholic Church in Standish on Thursday, Nov. 8. She will lie in state prior to an 11 a.m. service officiated by Father David. Burial will take place at Clayton Township Cemetery in Sterling, after a luncheon following Mass. Please join us to celebrate her life.
Please review our community guidelines before posting
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My condolences to the family.


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We are pleased to announce that Richard "Dick" Huebner, President of the Houston Minority Supplier Development Council will be our guest speaker.
The topic of this presentation will be - Minority Business Enterprises (MBEs).
The presenter will highlight:
Please make plans to attend this very informative presentation. Bring plenty of business cards to share during the networking portion of the luncheon.
MCHC Members: $20
Non-Members: $30
In order to accurately plan for our lunch, please send your RSVP to Celdie at firstname.lastname@example.com


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Terrain Profile Bronze Necklace
Bronze handcrafted Terrain Profile Pendant on 18 inch oxidized sterling silver chain necklace. Profile charm is 1.5 inches tall by 1.25 inches wide.
The Stories Collection is my "totem of memory" in the form of etched bronze shards. In this collection, male and female silhouettes and other symbols are filled with pattern, maps, webs, and flora that are my visual shorthand for home, family, and the creative process. The Terrain Profile is about mapping ideas; circuits connecting and thought process.
You may also like the Venus Shard Bronze Pendant and the Hera Cameo Bronze Pendant.
Limited Edition. Handcrafted in the USA.


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We are partnering with Cultivate, a Calgary based counselling agency, to bring you a new type of relationship event for all couples. Relationship Goals is an honest, useful and fun look at what makes a relationship strong and what tears it down. Learn to fight better and make your love last.
November 4, 2017 • 11:00am to 2:00pm
Brentview Baptist Church
Cost $40 per person • Lunch is included
Dive into communication, conflict management, and sex and intimacy issues with Joel and Jessy Roos. 11 years, two kids, one business, six moves, countless fights, and hundreds of hours teaching together have equipped them with lots of experience and wisdom to share. Learn the tricks to keeping your relationship running smoothly, because life is better when you and your partner are in sync.
Joel is a Registered Psychologist who specializes in relationship and sexuality issues. He has been working with couples privately and in group settings for more than 7 years. Jessy is the Executive Director of Cultivate and has been teaching alongside Joel since the beginning. They promise to embarrass themselves with lots of stories of their big wins, big failures, and the moments where they just had to laugh, otherwise, they'd cry.


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Instead of just sealing in your lips' moisture, re-hydrate them.
Blistex Complete Moisture was formulated with moisturizing ingredients that do more than just sit on your lips and seal in existing moisture. Complete Moisture actually contains moisture itself which penetrate your dry, thirsty lips to give way for a soothing feeling. Expect to feel results almost immediately! Better yet, Complete Moisture was also formulated with SPF 15 to give your lips a little sun protection on the days you are soaking in the sun on the beach or cruising down ski slopes.
Sun block is a highly underrated feature in lip balms. Whether in the dead of the summer or winter, your lips can still burn and be harmed by the sun's rays. This makes a moisturizing lip balm, formulated with sun block, all that more necessary.
Octinoxate and oxybenzone are the two forces responsible for the SPF 15 protection.
Dimethicone and petrolatum and beeswax provide your lips with the protective seal necessary to lock in moisture while glycerin and jojoba oils moisturize those dry lips.
Pucker up your lips and with your finger or the lip balm case gently run the lip balm across your lips until you have decent coverage.
Inactive Ingredients: Behenoyl Stearic Acid, Butylparaben, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Cholesteryl/Behenyl/Octyldodecyl Lauroyl Glutamate, Diethylhexyl Adipate, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Ethylhexyl Stearate, Ethylparaben, Flavor, Glycerin, Jojoba Esters, Lecithin, Methylparaben, Microcrystalline Wax, Ozokerite, Panthenol, Petrolatum, Propylparaben, Purified Water, Sodium Borate, Sodium Saccharin, Squalane.
Mojito-flavored, natural lip balm. Your significant other...
Instant relief to even the most chap...
Introducing Colgate 360 Optic White, your toothpaste's sidekick...


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CMTA Activities (Overview) 2014-2015
Baroque Dance Workshop for Students
Chair: David McCormick, Date: Saturday, October 11, 2014, 2:00-3:00pm – ages 7-12; 3:15-4:15pm – ages 13-18, Place: Aldersgate United Methodist Church (Fellowship Hall),1500 Rio Road East, Fee/Registration: This event is free and open to all students of CMTA members. Teachers should send name, age, and instrument of students that wish to participate to David McCormick via email by September 29. Space is limited – only the first 30 students in each age category will be able to participate, so register early!
Youth Student Recital
Chair: Marie Powers Ellis, Date/Time: Sunday, November 16, 2014; 1:30 p.m., Place: The Colonnades, 2600 Barracks Rd., Eligibility: Any CMTA member's student, grade 12 or younger, Fee: None, Deadline/Applications: Received by November 1; applications are accepted by email or post office. Applications available in the members area of the CMTA website.
CMTA Festival
Chairs: Barbara Moore, Date: Saturday, January 31, 2015, Place: First Presbyterian Church, Park Street, Postmark Deadline: Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Adult Student Recital
Chair: Beth Cantrell, Date/Time: Friday, February 13, 2015; 7:00 p.m., Place: Aldersgate United Methodist Church Sanctuary, 1500 Rio Road, E., Eligibility: Any adult student(s) of any CMTA member., Fee: None!, Deadline/Applications: Friday, February 6, 2015, 11:59 pm EST. When applying please provide student name and instrument, title and citation of work to be performed, composer's name & dates, & length/time of selection. Submissions go to the Chair via email & USPS.
Theory Festival (combination of two formerly separate events – The Yvaine Duisit Theory Olympics and VMTA Theory & Sightreading Festival.)
Chair: Melody Day, Date: Saturday, March 21, 2015; 9 AM – 12 noon, Place: Aldersgate United Methodist Church, 1500 East Rio Road, Postmark Deadline: Theory Olympics – Wednesday March 18, 2014/Theory Tests - Saturday, February 21, 2015
Piano Concerto and Duo Festival
Chair: Content Sablinsky, Date: Saturday, May 2, 2015; 1:00–4:00 PM, Place: Rotunda Room, Westminster Canterbury of the Blue Ridge, 250 Pantops Mt. Rd., Postmark Deadline: Monday, April 13, 2015


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Sometimes at the NHL Draft, teams will trade two or more lower picks to move up and get their guy. Other times, teams are simply looking to trade down to add more picks. Here are the 12 worst examples of draft pick trades that happened on Draft day (2006-2016). These are only trades that were draft picks for draft picks (two or more lower picks for a higher pick), no player for pick transactions. Some of these trades included picks from future drafts, so not all of them were drafted on the day they were traded.
1) 2008 Nashville: Trades #15 (Erik Karlsson) to Ottawa for #18 (Chet Pickard) and #70 (Taylor Beck). David Poile probably thought he was getting great value adding a 3rd round pick to move down 3 spots in the first round. If he had to do it over again, he probably would have drafted the future Norris winner instead of Chet Pickard.
2) 2008 Phoenix: Trades #38 (Roman Josi) to Nashville for #46 (Colby Roback) #76 (Matt Brodeur). The day after trading down from the Erik Karlsson pick, the Preds turned around and traded two picks to move up in the 2nd round to take Roman Josi, who has developed into a great defenseman himself. It's a bit remarkable that these two extremes of good and bad draft day trades involved the same team at the same draft.
3) 2006 Islanders: Trades #71 (Brad Marchand) to Boston for #98 (James Delroy) and #126 (Shane Sims). In most years draft pick value really starts to level out somewhere in the 3rd round depending on the depth of that year's draft class. Acquiring a 4th and a 5th for a 3rd is not a bad gamble, unless the other team hits a home run in that slot.
4) 2007 St. Louis: Trades #9 (Logan Couture) to San Jose for #13 (Lars Eller), #44 (Aaron Palushaj) and #87 (Ian Schultz). Lars Eller would go on to be a decent 3rd line NHLer with 213 career PTS and counting. But Couture has 424 and that gap isn't going to get any smaller going forward.
5) 2011 Toronto: Trades #30 (Rickard Rakell) and #39 (John Gibson) to Anaheim for #22 (Tyler Biggs). The fact that Biggs was a big strikeout and the Ducks hit a pair of home runs does make this trade look worse now than people probably thought on draft day. The difference in Expected Value between the 22nd pick and the 30th is much smaller than the EV of the 39th, so the Ducks should have been expected to come out ahead, just not to this degree.
6) 2008 LA: Trades #12 (Tyler Myers) to Buffalo for #13 (Colten Teubert) and #74 (Ryan House). Perhaps the worst part of this trade is that both teams passed on Erik Karlsson. The Kings would go on to win 2 Stanley Cups without Tyler Myers, but I'm sure if they could do it over again, they'd rather him than Teubert, who was a complete bust.
7) 2009 Islanders: Trade #16 (Nick Leddy), #77 (Matt Hackett), and #181 (Erik Haula) to Minnesota for #12 (Calvin De Haan). The Islanders got a future NHL player in this trade, but certainly a level or two below Leddy. The fact that Minnesota hit a home run on the 7th round pick does make this trade look worse than it would on draft day. But still, I would generally not recommend trading a 3rd and a 7th to move up 4 spots.
8) 2013 San Jose: Trades #20 (Anthony Mantha) and #58 (Tyler Bertuzzi) to Detroit for #18 (Mirco Mueller). The Sharks did get a player who is currently playing in the NHL, but not at the level where trading a 2nd round pick to move up 2 spots makes sense. Keep the 2nd round pick, draft at 20. Holland did great in this trade, getting two players who are currently in his line-up.
9) 2010 Chicago: Trades #30 (Brock Nelson) to the Islanders for #35 (Ludvig Rensfeldt) and #58 (Kent Simpson). The difference between the 30th and 35th picks is generally less than the value of the 58th pick. That was not the case here, with the Islanders hitting a home run at the 30th slot.
10) 2014 Minnesota: Trades #79 (Brayden Point) to Tampa for #80 (Louis Belpido) and #204 (Jack Sadek). This trade is only bad because Tampa hit a home run on the 3rd round pick, otherwise it was a reasonable exchange of value. I have to assume this trade took place moments before the pick with Tampa specifically targeting Point. Otherwise why trade up one slot in the 3rd round? Did anyone at the Wild draft table say "hey why don't we draft Brayden Point?"


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Let's start by saying there is nothing wrong with wanting to go see Vatican City or the Colosseum (They are, after all, stunning). Plus, you are likely mentally prepared for the lines and getting knocked in the head by selfie sticks.
Although many famous sights are worth visiting, you don't need to get ripped off by paying three-four times the standard rate because you wanted an English-speaking guide, only to find out that it's already included in the general entrance fee. And no one should go home after a trip to Italy saying the food was just "OK" and over-priced because they only ate at restaurants where no self-respecting Italian would step into.
Tourist traps can give a destination a bad rap and leave tourists feeling cheated. Fortunately, you don't need to forego the top sites in Italy to avoid falling into tourist traps.
1. Avoid Menus with Pictures
Although you might think it's hard to find bad food in Italy, it's surprising how many subpar and overpriced restaurants you can find especially near major tourist sites. It's tempting as a tourist to get lured into a restaurant with an English-speaking host and a menu with pictures so you can point. For those wanting to avoid tourist traps, you're going to have to get outside of your comfort zone. To really get the best food in Italy, you need to try local restaurants, and you're not going to get that at a restaurant with pictures on the menu.
Think about restaurants in America with pictures of the food: TGIFridays, Chili's, Outback Steakhouse, McDonalds. Can you imagine traveling all the way to Italy and eating at the Italian version of these restaurants? Especially since while those restaurants are cultural norms in the States, in Italy, they are not. There are very few restaurants where locals would actually eat with pictures on the menu except for places like you guessed it: McDonald's and Burger King.
2. Too many or too vague stars
In Italy, a star next to a menu item generally indicates that one or more ingredients in that dish started off frozen. And, it's illegal for restaurants in Italy to serve frozen food and not report it as such. If a menu has more than five items that started frozen or if it just has a vague caption saying that some ingredients may be frozen without specifying which ones, then pick up and run in the other direction. It's a trap.
3. Watch for Gambero Rosso and Slow Food Stickers
Most countries have some type of guide that serves as a reference point for food lovers and connoisseurs. In Italy, great reviews and ratings from Gambero Rosso are much like those from the esteemed Zagat in the States. Slow Food, on the other hand, is an association that promotes agricultural biodiversity and traditional local cooking. A restaurant or a purveyor featured in one of their guides will have to adhere to those principles. And who doesn't like that when traveling abroad?
The Michelin guide is always an excellent resource for finding a top-notch meal. What you may not know is that in addition to their top-rated "starred" AKA expensive restaurants, they also include reviews for places that won't cost you a fortune.
Gambero Rosso, Slow Food, and the Michelin Guide all provide stickers to their top-rated food establishments. Many restaurants happily stick them on their doors and windows as a testament to a job well done. Just make sure the stickers are recent. If the newest one is from over five years ago, the chef or owners may have changed, and their commitment to excellent food may have left with them.
4. Wander Around
Obviously don't wander around at night by yourself, and always be vigilant about safety but during the light of day, see what you can find just by walking around. If someone tries to push you into their store, politely decline and find those cute boutiques, those local restaurants, and the parks and churches that aren't listed in Frommers or whatever tour book or website you consulted. If you found the sights fast online, then so has all the other travelers searching for things to do in Italy.
5. Read Local Blogs and Ex-Pat Website
When you stumble upon a blog, check out the website to figure out what you're reading. Try to find blogs from people who have traveled extensively or people who are living in a foreign city. There are plenty of wanderers, ex-pats, and locals blogging about their lives and experiences. Be wary of the source of your information. If you find a blog you like, ask questions or make comments. Start a discussion and you can find others who have toured Italy and want to share their experiences. Many of these blogs offer just as many "don'ts" as "dos" so you can learn from other's mistakes.
If you want a genuinely authentic experience in Italy, that's what Doing Italy does best. We guide you to see the best of Italy through the eyes of a local. If you haven't planned a trip yet, check out our page of authentic local tours to Abruzzo and to Milan + Lake Como. If you already have your trip planned, don't hesitate to ask questions in the comment box below!
Photo Credits:
- Pixabay on Pexels.com
- Osteria da Luca, Venice – Tripadvisor


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"Dance is the hidden language of the soul…."
Modern incorporates a variety of different styles, including jazz, lyrical, contemporary, hip-hop and many more! It helps to develop a strong well-limbered body and builds the physical and emotional qualities behind dance.
Modern as a genre has the ability to adapt, develop and evolve with the changing fashion in dance, thus helping us to create versatile and dynamic dancers.
We follow the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dance (ISTD) syllabus which is a worldwide examining board providing a structured foundation for our classes.
ISTD examinations give the children the opportunity to show an examiner what they have been working towards in class, giving them a sense of achievement and pride. The higher grade examinations count towards UCAS points and are recognised as a sign of commitment and dedication. Examinations are not compulsory.
GRADED CLASSES – from School Year 2
Starting at Grade 1 the modern syllabus helps the children to develop their body control, dance quality and musicality. Moving up the grades the children work on versatility of movement and style, whilst developing core strength and flexibility. Modern dance really evokes the passion within the dancer and brings out the performer within.
Vocational classes run for our senior pupils who reach this level with us.


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Christine + Dan | Breckenridge Wedding: Intimate Mountain Ceremony + Dinner in Town/
A look back at a beautiful couple who celebrate their marriage with an intimate wedding in the mountains of Breckenridge, Colorado.Read More
inclusive elopement + intimate wedding packages
A look back at a beautiful couple who celebrate their marriage with an intimate wedding in the mountains of Breckenridge, Colorado.Read More
Callie + Will were all smiles and no stress on the day of their elopement. Despite some chilly temperatures, we headed lakeside for their ceremony and celebrated their new adventure as husband and wife!Read More
A quiet, autumn elopement with the kiddos in Breckenridge, Colorado.Read More
Learn how Summit Mountain Weddings practices being friendly to and conscious about our environment. Colorado elopement planner + photographer.Read More
A little spring weather in the mountains drew the clouds closer to the lake, and snow started to fall during this cozy outdoor winter wedding at Sapphire Point.Read More
A destination wedding in the Colorado Mountains as gorgeous + genuine as the bride + groom themselves. These two not only stole my heart with a stunning wedding but also with their warm friendship. Learn more about their wedding + what makes them excited about married life together. Cheers!Read More
Autumn in the Colorado Rockies can't be beat, and it's a stunning backdrop for an intimate mountain elopement.Read More
Summit Mountain Weddings is based in Summit County, Colorado and is your premier resource for your elopement packages that start with the essentials.
Hi there! We're Dave + Shanna. Husband + wife, parents to three little boys, owners of Summit Mountain Weddings & Basecamp Visual, photographers, filmmakers, and lovers of each other, the mountains and - you guessed it - the rare full night's sleep. This blog showcases all of the beautiful moments + memories that we get to experience in the high country; our clients, our family, our favorite spots, and some helpful tips to round it all out. Thanks for being here.
Summit Mountain Weddings is your stress-free source for all-inclusive elopement packages, vow renewals + engagements in Summit County, Colorado.
Serving mountain towns like Breckenridge, Copper Mountain, Dillon, Frisco, Keystone, Silverthorne, Vail, Beaver Creek + beyond.