tagged w/ Communication
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The upcoming Rio+20 conference on sustainable development will try to identify solutions to worsening resource scarcity and climate change, but Habiba Rage may already be holding one in the palm of her hand.
The 38-year-old from Alago Alba in Kenya’s North Eastern Region has overcome her village’s lack of connection to the electricity grid with a cell phone that uses solar energy to recharge.
“Our village does not have electricity,” says the mother of four. “It is very difficult to own a mobile phone because of the energy it needs to keep working.”
Habiba needs a phone for her livelihood as a trader including to keep track of stock arriving from Isiolo, the nearest urban center. Attacks by bandits along the 110 km (70 mile) route are not uncommon.
Like many others in this marginalised region, she has long found it hard to stay charged up and in touch.
But communications are now getting faster and more reliable, thanks to Rage’s phone, which takes advantage of the scorching sun.
The phone was invented by telecommunications company Safaricom (owned by the UK’s Vodafone) and Kenya’s Mobitelea Ventures.
It is fitted with a charger that absorbs and stores energy directly from the sun. Users do not need a mains connection to charge their phones, nor do they have to travel long distances to the nearest shopping centre to pay for the same service.
The gadget is not only relatively affordable but environmentally friendly since it is manufactured from recycled electronic waste, officials say.
“It is a brilliant innovation,” said Michael Odera, director of the climate change office in Kenya’s Ministry of Environment and Mineral Resources. “It meets environmental goals and also deals with problems linked to increasing power outages in the country.”
URBAN AND RURAL APPEAL
According to Odera, the phone is particularly useful among rural communities where there is no mains electricity, but it also serves the needs of the urban poor who are faced with electricity rationing. The phone’s price tag of 1,500 Kenyan shillings ($18) is about half the cost of the cheapest conventional cell phones.
It is an innovation that may help to make poor Kenyans like Habiba less marginalised, according to a recent report by Christian Aid.
The international agency estimates that only 5 percent of Kenya’s rural areas and 51 percent of the urban population have access to electricity.
The Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) estimates that current capacity is 1,300 MW, greater than the total demand of 1,100 MW. But industrial growth means that demand threatens to outstrip supply, according to the Kenya Association of Manufacturers.
Meanwhile, many Kenyans cannot afford electricity because the cost of getting a mains connection can be as high as $600.
The Kenyan government is paying increasing attention to the potential of solar power as a renewable energy resource as it seeks to meet its population’s energy needs in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way.
More at the linkThe upcoming Rio+20 conference on sustainable development will try to identify... more
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It is good to see that some Israelis have some sense of humanity left. But both Israelis and Iranians alike should be careful about using Facebook for this kind of thing.
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An online call for peace initiated by an Israeli couple has managed to achieve the support of 1,000 Israelis and Iranians. And it all began with two posters.
Ronny Edry and his wife Michal Tamir uploaded posters to Facebook depicting images of themselves with their children alongside the words, "Iranians, we will never bomb your country, we [heart] you."
Attached to each poster was the caption, "To the Iranian people, To all the fathers, mothers, children, brothers and sisters, For there to be a war between us, first we must be afraid of each other, we must hate. I'm not afraid of you, I don't hate you. I don t even know you. No Iranian ever did me no harm."
In a conversation with Haaretz, Edry explained that he hoped his initiative would reach the Iranian citizens, but admitted that he never believed it would gain so much momentum.
At first, the posters were castigated, said Edry. "After the first poster people started criticizing me, saying I'm an idiot, that I’m naïve. 'Why are you telling them you love them? Why are you giving up before the war has even started?'" But very quickly the posters became a hit: the first image gained hundreds of "Likes" and "Shares," and numerous people asked to join the initiative.It is good to see that some Israelis have some sense of humanity left. But both... more
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You need not travel to the Himalayas or the Arctic to see the effects of climate change and warming.
You can see the effects right here in the US.
On place to see the effects of climate change is Collier Glacier, on Middle Sister, in Three Sisters Wilderness, Oregon.
For over 100 years, photographers have been documenting Collier Glacier from an overlook called Glacier View. The result, as seen in the video, is side by side photographic documentation of the glacier's retreat, which is dramatic.
Ironically, at present rates, within about 20 years, the glacier may not even be visible any longer from Glacier Viewpoint.
http://www.opb.org/programs/ofg/segments/view/1818
Go to the website to view the 6 minute video. (the embed code is not working on this site)You need not travel to the Himalayas or the Arctic to see the effects of climate... more
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Wetdog
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added this
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3 months ago
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Typically in these Date Talk columns, I aim to give advice that applies to both male and female perspectives. But I have to step up as a girl this week and talk about something that really gets my girlfriends and me ticked in dating: men who don’t make plans...Typically in these Date Talk columns, I aim to give advice that applies to both male... more
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To be a Free Spirit there is a noticeable open and accessible energy of life, they are not afraid of change, you will see happiness in their eyes, and warm smiles and gentle nurturing positive connections via communication or emotional attachment. You will feel drawn into a Free Spirit. This is evident that you cant feel the beauty of life or understand it if you are trapped in fear. Fear leads to controlling of ones life.
http://rtruth.blog.com/2011/08/11/%E2%80%9Cprinciples-of-a-free-spirit%E2%80%9D/To be a Free Spirit there is a noticeable open and accessible energy of life, they... more
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mab001
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added this
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8 months ago
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Some years ago, a minor spat ignited a searing flame war that threatened to consume a once placid forum.....
A tribute to a very, very funny site that recently lost its domain name. All images and words appear to be the property of Mike Reed. Give the man a major shout out!!!
A community member, remanns, posted a link to the site many, many moons ago. However, the site is worthy of a second gander. But unfortunately, the only way to do so is through an internet archive.
Here is the thread. I have been posting warriors on it.
http://current.com/entertainment/comedy/92341649_flame-warriors.htm#93439904Some years ago, a minor spat ignited a searing flame war that threatened to consume a... more
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WASHINGTON — The impact of a series of eruptions on the sun began arriving at Earth on Friday and could affect some communications for a day or so.
Operators of electrical grids are working to avoid outages, but the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says some satellite communications and Global Positioning Systems could face problems.
Three solar flares erupted on the sun starting Tuesday, and the strongest electromagnetic shocks were being felt Friday by the ACE spacecraft, a satellite that measures radiation bursts a few minutes before they strike Earth, said Joseph Kunches, a scientist at NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center in Colorado.
Tom Bogdan, director of the center, said the sun is going from a quiet period into a busier cycle for solar flares and an increase in the number of such blasts is expected over the next three to five years.
Solar flares send out bursts of electromagnetic energy that strike the Earth's magnetic field. The most common impacts for the average person are the glowing auroras around the north and south poles, and the researchers said those could be visible this weekend.
The magnetic blasts, which Bogdan likened to a tsunami in space, can also affect electronic communications and electrical systems. A 1989 solar flare knocked out the electrical systems in Quebec, Canada, but the current solar storm is not expected to be that powerful. On a scale of 1 to 5, he said, it is probably a 2 or 3.
But more significant solar storms are expected in the next few years, he said.
The most powerful known solar storm occurred in 1859, Bogdan said. There were not as many vulnerable electrical items then, but it did knock out telegraph services, even burning down some telegraph stations, he said.
Other serious solar blasts occurred in 1921 and 1940, he noted, and Kunches recalled one on Halloween in 2003.
——WASHINGTON — The impact of a series of eruptions on the sun began arriving at... more
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You all know I love cause marketing - a partnership between a nonprofit and for-profit for mutual profit. But I also love iced tea. So it’s no surprise that I love Tēvolution, a delicious new brand of iced tea from Purpose Beverages, Inc., launching right now in in Washington, DC and Los Angeles.
This is purpose-driven entrepreneurship as Tēvolution was created specifically with causes in mind. But their model is also a great example of cause marketing that uses text messaging – SMS – to direct donations and engage consumers.
The company has initially partnered with four nonprofits and contributes 25 cents from every bottle sold to one of these causes.
Those of you who read my post on SMS last week know that I have a renewed interest in SMS because of its ease of use and widespread adoption. In short, just about everyone knows how to text. But not everyone understands QR codes, location-based services and apps.
And that’s just one of the reasons Tēvolution co-founders Ian Simpson and Gerard Artavia chose to go with SMS.
Here’s how Tēvolution works.
Continue reading: http://selfishgiving.com/cause-practices/tevolution-brewing-cause-marketing-success-with-smsYou all know I love cause marketing - a partnership between a nonprofit and for-profit... more
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I’m glad the news is out as I’m no good at keeping secrets!
3BL’s CEO, Greg Schneider, has a powerful entrepreneurial drive to make a commercially successful company in the niche area that CSR is, and hopefully beginning climbing away from into bigger ponds. This to me demonstrates a step change in the maturity of CSR communications specifically in the social media channels, i.e. the first substantial consolidation within a profileration of smaller news / opinion sources and portals.
I was a fan of Justmeans when it launched, and even short time CSR Editor (for a whole month) so it’s personally fulfilling for me to be so involved with the integration and future development of both organisations. The combined strengths and the additional opportunities that this deal creates will be keeping us all busy at 3BL for many months, if not years to come.
Without doubt this move consolidates the clear water lead between 3BL Media and all the other players in the CSR content distribution field. The challenging debate internally is how 3BL strategises the exploitation of the newly gained additional assets into new complimentary and profitable channels. Watch this space!
In addition to the technical assets and new client base Justmeans CEO Martin Smith joins 3BL as Chairman reinforcing the depth of the strategic management team.
The announcement of the deal has already generated a strong positive response from the online and client communities with audiences of both companies very being supportive, if maybe initially a little surprised.
My first task is to take over the reins of Justmeans’ Ethical Sourcing and Certification conference in London on September 16th. Please take a look at the microsite and get signed up for the first public event from the 3BL / Justmeans combined team.
Here’s a link to this mornings press release if you’d like more of the details.
http://davidcoethica.wordpress.com/2011/07/15/3bl-media-steps-it-up-a-gear/I’m glad the news is out as I’m no good at keeping secrets!
3BL’s... more
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World famous broadcaster, DJ Mona-Lisa portrays the sexy persona of the "dumb blonde" as she strives to celebrate America's "Independence" Day.World famous broadcaster, DJ Mona-Lisa portrays the sexy persona of the "dumb... more
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This girl is on to something! At first I thought it was pretty funny, but then I realized that she might be right! Try it.This girl is on to something! At first I thought it was pretty funny, but then I... more
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In business life people usually prefer to use e-mails for communication, despite all newest technologies. Of you read most e-mails, you can find out that sometimes this communication is something terrible, information is difficult to understand. It cases many misunderstandings and problems. CNN offered 10 mistakes everyone should avoid.
First of all you shouldn’t yell. It means writing with CAPITAL LETTERS. It is really very annoying. The second thing is that you avoid typos. It is better to use copy-paste or check everything carefully. Business correspondence won’t forgive this. Never use emoticons, they reached "STD-like proportions since their inception, spreading from one person to another like particularly expressive herpes." When you use them, your letter looks like you understand that your idea is stupid and excuse for this. It is better avoid informal too greetings. Don’t put too much “water” in your business letter, it is better to get to the point at once. Avoid unclear subject lines, you shouldn’t send too many e-mails in a row, and never send business messages using Facebook or other social network.
Read more here: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/TECH/web/05/25/business.email.netiquette/index.html?hpt=SbinIn business life people usually prefer to use e-mails for communication, despite all... more
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In science fiction movies, when robots talk to one another it's not really a "language" as much as a stream of beeps or long strings of binary. Even so, one group of Australian researchers have managed to teach robots to do something that, until now, was the reserve of humans and a few other animals: they've taught them how to invent and use spoken language.
The goal of the research is to understand how language evolves and develops naturally over time. Since it's impossible to find two humans who have no language and experiment with them to see how they invent one, the University of Queensland and the Queensland University of Technology researchers decided to use robots instead. The robots, called LingoDroids, are equipped with microphones, speakers, cameras, range finders, and sonar that they use to map their surroundings and speak to one another. http://www.makeahistory.com/index.php/your-details/42967-lingodroid-project-robots-taught-to-invent-own-languageIn science fiction movies, when robots talk to one another it's not really a... more
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worrg
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added this
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1 year ago
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Text messages, emails, tweets, pokes and Skypes – it seems when we have something to say nowadays, chances are fairly good that we won’t have to actually say it. When we do need to say it, though, there’s a proper time, place and means to do so.
Link ; http://www.phoneservice.org/blog/2011/10-things-you-shouldnt-tell-someone-over-the-phone/Text messages, emails, tweets, pokes and Skypes – it seems when we have... more
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We’ve come so far from the times of the old phones that you had to dial by putting your finger in a hole and pull it around in a circle. Today the cell phone is full of many modern features. It can be interesting to discover some fun facts from the history of this invaluable aid to our modern lives.
http://www.landlinephoneservice.net/blog/2011/10-fun-phone-facts-from-telephone-history/We’ve come so far from the times of the old phones that you had to dial by... more
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eva2
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added this
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1 year ago
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Bestselling author, political adviser and social and ethical prophet Jeremy Rifkin investigates the evolution of empathy and the profound ways that it has shaped our development and our society.Bestselling author, political adviser and social and ethical prophet Jeremy Rifkin... more
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Colleges have fully embraced Facebook as a way to interact with current and prospective students, alumni, and even the general public. It’s a natural fit for finding and communicating with students who are online all the time anyway, and affords colleges a seemingly limitless opportunity for sharing photos, recruiting new students, featuring professors and visiting speakers, and bolstering the image of the institution.
LINK : http://www.onlinecollegecourses.com/2011/04/04/50-great-ways-colleges-are-using-facebook/Colleges have fully embraced Facebook as a way to interact with current and... more
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