Some people give back to their community. Then there’s Fresno County School Superintendent Larry Powell, who’s giving up $800,000 — his own salary for the next three years — in hopes his act of generosity will help restore faith in the government he once taught students to respect.
He started his career as a high school civics teacher and has made anti-bullying his mission. He oversees 195,000 students in 325 California schools.
(READ the AP story at MSNBC)
On the streets, ‘it is virtually impossible’ for patients to manage wounds and medications. Recuperative centers are on the rise, thanks to healthcare reform and new procedures spurred by a dumping scandal.
Opened 10 months ago by the nonprofit Illumination Foundation, the Recuperative Care Center has 20 motel beds where homeless patients with acute illnesses or injuries recover after being released from local hospitals. Nurses help homeless patients change bandages, take medication and recover from surgeries.
When one of China’s most popular Internet portals started offering Open University–style lectures in English last October, eager Chinese netizens flocked to subjects that surprised most observers.
Instead of marketing, computer or robotics courses, two contemplative courses — one on happiness, the other on justice — trumped all others.
“The generation that came of age during China’s economic miracle now wants to engage with big questions — about moral responsibility, about justice and injustice, about the meaning of the good life.”
(READ the story from Time magazine)
Coastal areas in the path of Hurricane Irene were mostly spared from major damage overnight and many residents awoke to catch glimpses of blue skies.
New York City averted hurricane force winds when Irene made landfall early Sunday in Coney Island and Brooklyn, and was downgraded to a Tropical Storm. The storm’s movement sped up during the night and did not cause the widespread damage in major population areas that was feared.
Here’s a roundup of some of the good news:
Coastal areas in the path of Hurricane Irene were mostly spared from major damage overnight and many residents awoke to catch glimpses of blue skies.
New York City averted hurricane force winds when Irene made landfall early Sunday in Coney Island and Brooklyn, and was downgraded to a Tropical Storm. The storm’s movement sped up during the night and did not cause the widespread damage in major population areas that was feared.
Here’s a roundup of some of the good news:
While everyone watches Hurricane Irene’s next move along the eastern seaboard, hundreds of people from around the US are organizing relief efforts.
Toledo-area volunteers, including Gary Betway, “one of the most experienced disaster responders in the nation,” packed up Friday and headed to areas that are expected to be hardest hit. Gary will stay in New York City for at least three weeks, says the Red Cross.
The help is arriving not only from geographically diverse regions, but also from diverse religious communities. A Muslim relief agency now stands ready to deploy in the emergency response.
Days ahead of the storm, Islamic Relief USA set up a training for its many volunteers supervised by certified staffers from the Red Cross at its offices in Alexandria, Virginia.
The agency’s new Disaster Assistance Response Team, launched in May, has already deployed to American catastrophes. Last spring, dozens of Islamic Relief USA volunteers joined the cleanup effort following devastating tornadoes which leveled whole neighborhoods in Alabama.
“We always receive an overwhelming response from the community in times like these,” said Adnan Ansari, Vice President of Programs. “People want to help in any way, whether by volunteering to provide crisis care, conduct damage assessment or serve the residents in shelters, or through their checkbooks.”
Red Cross volunteer, Deb Lancaster, of Las Vegas, left for Cape Cod Friday morning.
“We’re making sure emergency shelters are prepped and fully staffed, and are fully equipped with generators and supplies,” she told TV station KTNV.
Dozens of shelters are being prepared all along the path of the hurricane. People can find open Red Cross shelters by viewing an interactive Google map at www.redcross.org
“The Red Cross is moving volunteers, vehicles and supplies, getting ready for a response effort that spans nearly the entire East Coast,” said Gail McGovern, president and CEO of the American Red Cross.
“While we’re getting ready at the Red Cross, we want everyone in the storm’s path to get ready as well by getting a disaster kit, making a family emergency plan, and listening to local officials regarding evacuations.”
While everyone watches Hurricane Irene’s next move along the eastern seaboard, hundreds of people from around the US are helping organize relief efforts.
Toledo-area volunteers, including Gary Betway, “one of the most experienced disaster responders in the nation,” packed up Friday and headed to areas that are expected to be hardest hit. Gary will stay in New York City for at least three weeks, says the Red Cross.
The help is arriving not only from geographically diverse regions, but also from diverse religious communities. A Muslim relief agency now stands ready to deploy in the emergency response.
After a deadly cancer diagnosis, he dedicated his life to helping hundreds of kids from Haiti’s slums.
Five years ago, Patrice Millet learned he was in the advanced stages of a rare bone cancer. A stem cell transplant was his only hope for survival.
After nine months of treatment and recovery, the businessman from Haiti was told his cancer was in remission. Millet returned home determined to start living the life he’d always wanted: helping children from Haiti’s poorest slums have a brighter future.
Millet sold his construction supply business and started a program that uses soccer to help children stay out of trouble and learn valuable life skills.
(WATCH the video below, or read the story at CNN Heroes)
Evan Williams and Biz Stone recently left Twitter recently to work with their old buddy Jason Goldman at The Obvious Corporation, a startup incubator that “makes systems that help people work together to improve the world.”
Stone announced its first project on Tuesday: “an interesting new application for unlocking human potential through positive reinforcement” called Lift — a social network based on encouragement.
Canadians of every political stripe continue to show their love and admiration for a national leader, Jack Layton, days after his death.
Layton, the leader of the opposition New Democratic party, passed away four days ago from cancer.
He became known as Smilin’ Jack, a hard worker in Parliament, a real ‘people person’, and that rarest of rare, an honest politician. But it was his final public act that has everyone talking.
Just before he died, he wrote a letter to the Canadian people expressing his hopes for the future and showing optimism even in face of death. His last words have resonated throughout the nation.
“My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world.”
Read the partial letter below:
Dear Friends,
Tens of thousands of Canadians have written to me in recent weeks to wish me well. I want to thank each and every one of you for your thoughtful, inspiring and often beautiful notes, cards and gifts. Your spirit and love have lit up my home, my spirit, and my determination.
Unfortunately my treatment has not worked out as I hoped. So I am giving this letter to my partner Olivia to share with you in the circumstance in which I cannot continue…
To other Canadians who are on journeys to defeat cancer and to live their lives, I say this: please don’t be discouraged that my own journey hasn’t gone as well as I had hoped. You must not lose your own hope. Treatments and therapies have never been better in the face of this disease. You have every reason to be optimistic, determined, and focused on the future. My only other advice is to cherish every moment with those you love at every stage of your journey, as I have done this summer.
To the members of my party: we’ve done remarkable things together in the past eight years. It has been a privilege to lead the New Democratic Party and I am most grateful for your confidence, your support, and the endless hours of volunteer commitment you have devoted to our cause. There will be those who will try to persuade you to give up our cause. But that cause is much bigger than any one leader. Answer them by recommitting with energy and determination to our work. Remember our proud history of social justice, universal health care, public pensions and making sure no one is left behind. Let’s continue to move forward. Let’s demonstrate in everything we do in the four years before us that we are ready to serve our beloved Canada as its next government.
To young Canadians: All my life I have worked to make things better. Hope and optimism have defined my political career, and I continue to be hopeful and optimistic about Canada. Young people have been a great source of inspiration for me. I have met and talked with so many of you about your dreams, your frustrations, and your ideas for change. More and more, you are engaging in politics because you want to change things for the better. Many of you have placed your trust in our party. As my time in political life draws to a close I want to share with you my belief in your power to change this country and this world. There are great challenges before you, from the overwhelming nature of climate change to the unfairness of an economy that excludes so many from our collective wealth, and the changes necessary to build a more inclusive and generous Canada. I believe in you. Your energy, your vision, your passion for justice are exactly what this country needs today. You need to be at the heart of our economy, our political life, and our plans for the present and the future.
And finally, to all Canadians: Canada is a great country, one of the hopes of the world. We can be a better one – a country of greater equality, justice, and opportunity. We can build a prosperous economy and a society that shares its benefits more fairly. We can look after our seniors. We can offer better futures for our children. We can do our part to save the world’s environment. We can restore our good name in the world. We can do all of these things because we finally have a party system at the national level where there are real choices; where your vote matters; where working for change can actually bring about change. In the months and years to come, New Democrats will put a compelling new alternative to you. My colleagues in our party are an impressive, committed team. Give them a careful hearing; consider the alternatives; and consider that we can be a better, fairer, more equal country by working together. Don’t let them tell you it can’t be done.
My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world.
All my very best,
Jack Layton
Canadians of every political stripe continue to show their love and admiration for a national leader, Jack Layton, days after his death.
Layton, the leader of the opposition New Democratic party, passed away four days ago from cancer.
He became known as Smilin’ Jack, a hard worker in Parliament, a real ‘people person’, and that rarest of rare, an honest politician. But it was his final public act that has everyone talking.
Just before he died, he wrote a letter to the Canadian people expressing his hopes for the future and showing optimism even in face of death. His last words have resonated throughout the nation.
A billboard erected in the middle of the square in Benghazi gives thanks to the “Fantastic 4” — Obama, Sarkozy, Cameron, and UN Ambassador Susan Rice — the NATO and UN leaders who vowed to keep the Libyan people safe during government attacks.
But the sign-makers need to add another name. It was revealed this week that one NATO country’s foreign minister personally traveled to Libya delivering piles of cash to the National Transitional Council for use in paying salaries and providing basic services during these weeks leading up to the historic ouster of Muammar Gaddafi.
Bypassing any bureaucracy, the country of Turkey delivered cash to the Libyan rebel leadership just when they needed it most — $100 million in currency and another $100 million as “a gift,” for humanitarian projects, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Also notable this week was the story of a surprising “hero” for many Libyans who backed the overthrow of the military dictatorship: The Governor in charge of the notorious Boslin prison in Tripoli suddenly surprised his captives with their release.
A billboard erected in the middle of the square in Benghazi gives thanks to the “Fantastic 4” — Obama, Sarkozy, Cameron, and UN Ambassador Susan Rice — the NATO and UN leaders who vowed to keep the Libyan people safe during government attacks.
But the sign-makers need to add another name. It was revealed this week that one NATO country’s foreign minister personally traveled to Libya delivering piles of cash to the National Transitional Council for use in paying salaries and providing basic services during these weeks leading up to the historic ouster of Muammar Gaddafi.
Bypassing any bureaucracy, the country of Turkey delivered cash to the Libyan rebel leadership just when they needed it most — $100 million in currency and another $100 million as “a gift,” for humanitarian projects, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Also notable this week was the story of a surprising “hero” for many Libyans who backed the overthrow of the military dictatorship: The Governor in charge of the notorious Boslin prison in Tripoli suddenly surprised his captives with their release.
The last surviving Ellis Island Ferry is now a beautiful residence for one New York couple.
Christened the Yankee Ferry, it was used to transport immigrants from their incoming ships to Ellis Island, giving many their first sight of the new world.
Registered as an historical vessel with the National Register of Historical Places, the Yankee is a truly special piece of New York history that we are incredibly grateful to still have, and to see in good hands.
Delta Air Lines on Thursday confirmed its plan to buy 100 Boeing 737 jets that not only offer perks for travelers including a roomier cabin, less engine noise and more room in overhead bins, but also offer more fuel-efficiency, requiring less maintenance and less fuel.
A rise in orders for long-lasting goods like cars and aircraft in July eased fears that the U.S. was headed for another recession.
US stocks rose for a third straight day, up 1.3%.
Overall orders for durable goods rose 4% last month, biggest increase since March, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. Demand for autos and auto parts jumped 11.5%, the most in eight years.
The Afghanistan Minister of Education, Dr. Farooq Wardak, has been very busy since taking office three years ago.
More than 8,000 school buildings have been constructed in the country since the end of the Taliban regime in 2001. And, contracts were signed this week, for constructing 13 more schools in eight different provinces over the next six months.
The new classrooms will help nearly 8,500 students, many of whom study in the open air or under tents. Funding for the $1.6 million will come from the education ministry, the World Bank and Denmark.
The Afghanistan Minister of Education, Dr. Farooq Wardak, has been very busy since taking office three years ago.
More than 8,000 school buildings have been constructed in the country since the end of the Taliban regime in 2001. And, contracts were signed this week, for constructing 13 more schools in eight different provinces over the next six months.
The new classrooms will help nearly 8,500 students, many of whom study in the open air or under tents. Funding for the $1.6 million will come from the education ministry, the World Bank and Denmark.
Pans sizzling, steam rising and the tantalizing smells of foreign delicacies will delight the public during food demonstrations and gala dinners provided by 250 chefs from 44 countries, in Cape Town this week for a 10-day culinary tour to aid hungry children.
700 local chefs also plan to participate in the World Chefs Tour Against Hunger, sponsored by the largest foodservice business outside North America, Bidvest.
At 20, Maria Toorpakai is the best female squash player in Pakistan. But she can’t play there.
Her family began receiving death threats from the Taliban, a group that equates a woman wearing shorts as an obscenity, an offense to Islam.
Since March, she has been living in Toronto, training with Canada’s own squash legend, Jonathon Power. He says Toorpakai will soon be the best in the world.
