Fired for Commuting to Work on a Segway? No Way!

from TreeHugger.com
by Christine Lepisto, Berlin

Could you get fired for riding your Segway to work? What if it needs a charge to get you back home again so you plug it in to your employer's socket?

Of course, you cannot answer such a question without a little bit of context. Maybe the guy parked his Segway in the boss' office. Maybe it was just the last in a long line of provocations.

But in this case, the context allows no such conclusion. The employee in question is a 41-year old computer technician, with 19 years of blemish-free performance. He rented a Segway to give it a try. So, could he be fired for that?

The answer is "yes". And "no". Yes, a German computer technician was fired for "stealing" 1.8 Euro cents worth of electricity to recharge his Segway. Without even a warning: the employee removed the vehicle immediately when his boss made the request/demand (hence the calculated 1.8 cents for time on the charger).

And no, the employer did not get away with it. The final appeal has been decided, common sense reigns once again. Although the court did not dismiss the potential illegality of the petty offense, it voided the employer's decision as disproportionate to the value of the "stolen" goods and the length of the employee's service to the company.

Such cases cause great indignation in the general public, spurring lots of discussion. But we feel the media coverage overlooks an important issue...one that perhaps should even be considered under the relevant points of law, and which is the reason the word stolen appears in quotations in this commentary: Employees who drive to work frequently benefit from a free parking spot. Bicyclists are granted a place to safely lock and store their bike. This is even required under building codes that demand a certain number of spaces be available for cars and bikes. What does it cost a company in working capitol costs and maintenance to provide these perks?

In this case, all's well that ends well. The employee plans to continue working in the company, and has been elected by his peers in his absence to the worker's council, where he can represent the case for including alternative transportation solutions in the company's social policies. We encourage progressive companies everywhere to consider this case, and set up policies so that employees on the front line of change for the better can stay on the right side of ethical and legal lines... read more story at TreeHugger.com

The Public Education System in Ontario is World Class

TORONTO, September 10, 2010 /Canada NewsWire/ - On February 1, 1990, ABC World News Tonight aired a five-minute newscast on "The Best School System in the World" which featured Ontario and was viewed by 20 million viewers all over North America.

Bill Blakemore, a reporter for ABC News, said that, "In Toronto, Ontario, the school system is remarkable because schools where the kids are intent, engrossed in learning all day are not the exception but the rule." It made good sense in 1990 for ABC News to visit Ontario and report on the public education system. It makes even more sense for ABC News to re-visit our province to report on the current system.

On Saturday, the documentary Waiting for Superman will be released at the Toronto International Film Festival. The Premier's Education Summit will begin on Monday with keynote speakers such as President Obama's Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan. The conjunction of these two events may shine a spotlight on public education in Ontario and give us an opportunity to celebrate its successes.

To that end, the Ontario Public School Boards' Association would like to highlight at least three good reasons why the citizens of Ontario should be proud of their public education system - Academic Standing Worldwide, the Equity and Inclusion Strategy, Caring Citizens.

Academic Standing

Ontario students consistently place at or near the top in reading, math and science when compared to other jurisdictions in Canada and worldwide.

Ontario Grade 4 student reading abilities are among the best in the world. In the most recent Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) assessment taken by students in 45 countries and provinces around the world, only students in the Russian Federation and Hong Kong performed better than those in Ontario. There were 8 other jurisdictions in the same performance range as Ontario.

Ontario's Grade 8 students ranked among the top 14 of 52 countries and provinces in science on the most recent Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) assessment.

And finally, 91% of Ontario Grade 10 students met or exceeded the critical science benchmark in the most recent Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) study. What's interesting about that study is the achievement gap between rich and poor students in Ontario was among the lowest in the world - making Ontario's one of the few education systems in the world that can boast both excellence and equity.

Equity and Inclusion Education Strategy

One of Ontario's greatest strengths is its diversity. There are more than 200 languages spoken as a mother tongue in our province. People who identify themselves as people of colour account for nearly a quarter of Ontario's population.

We envision an inclusive education system in Ontario in which all students, parents, and other members of the school community are welcomed and respected. We also want every student to be supported and inspired to succeed in a culture of high expectations for learning.

The Equity and Inclusive Education Strategy helps us move closer to achieving that vision.

We want to remove all barriers that impede student success. This includes discrimination, low self-confidence and lack of respect. Research tells us - and so do our hearts - that students who feel welcome and accepted in their schools are more likely to excel academically.

Learning to welcome, accept and respect people's differences and work together to find common ground will not be forgotten after graduation. These are lessons that will last a lifetime.

Caring Citizens

We believe that the vast majority of Ontarians support honesty, truth, civility, social justice, and co-operation; and a determination to combat racism, gender inequality, and environment degradation, as values necessary for any kind of equitable, caring and civil society. And we believe all schools in Ontario are committed to transmitting these values to their students.

I love the United Church of Canada

posted to Wondercafe - Religion and Faith
by Shaaron
September 6, 2010

I love the United Church of Canada. I love our people. I love the singing and I love singing along. I love the old stuff and I love the new stuff. I love listening to a minister who knows so much more than I do and I love learning from him/her. I love that we include everyone. I love that I can say, "I'm United. We love everybody!" and I love saying it with pride.

I love the smell of a well-used sanctuary. I love the old photos of people from way before me. I love our coat of arms plaque. I love the Alpha Omega letters on the pulpit cloth. I love to watch baptisms. I love to see everyone come together to put on a play or to serve delicious food. I love staying around after the service to have a glass of juice and a cookie or two even though I'm rarely spoken to.

I love to see the young with the old together. I love to see traditional families and gay families there all under the same roof, worshipping the same God, who loves us all.

Crowdsourcing History with Historypin

September 1, 2010 News - Canadian Heritage History Network website

Historypin is a digital time machine that uses crowdsourcing to create a new way for the world to see and share history.

The site allows people to upload their old photos, and the stories behind them, and “pin” them onto the Historypin map.

You can search Historypin by place, and also by time. And, best of all, you can compare the old photo to how the same place looks today, using Google Streetview.

Historypin’s goal is to become the world’s largest crowdsourced archive of historical images, in the hope of getting generations talking more, sharing more, and coming together more often.

Historypin is the product of collaboration between We Are What We Do, a global movement that inspires people to use their everyday behaviour to affect big environmental and social issues, and Google.

Check out Historypin today—and start sharing!

Tapping the Energy Below the Earth's Surface

from TreeHugger.com
by Lester Brown, Washington, D.C

The heat in the upper six miles of the earth's crust contains 50,000 times as much energy as found in all the world's oil and gas reserves combined. Despite this abundance, only 10,700 megawatts of geothermal electricity generating capacity have been harnessed worldwide.

Partly because of the dominance of the oil, gas, and coal industries, which have been providing cheap fuel by omitting the costs of climate change and air pollution from fuel prices, relatively little has been invested in developing the earth's geothermal heat resources. Over the last decade, geothermal energy has been growing at scarcely 3 percent a year.

Roughly half the world's existing generating capacity is in the United States and the Philippines. Indonesia, Mexico, Italy, and Japan account for most of the remainder. Altogether some 24 countries now convert geothermal energy into electricity. El Salvador, Iceland, and the Philippines respectively get 26, 25, and 18 percent of their electricity from geothermal power plants.

The potential of geothermal energy to provide electricity, to heat homes, and to supply process heat for industry is vast. Among the countries rich in geothermal energy are those bordering the Pacific in the so-called Ring of Fire, including Chile, Peru, Colombia, Mexico, the United States, Canada, Russia, China, Japan, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Australia. Other geothermally rich countries include those along the Great Rift Valley of Africa, such as Kenya and Ethiopia, and those around the Eastern Mediterranean.

Beyond geothermal electrical generation, an estimated 100,000 thermal megawatts of geothermal energy are used directly—without conversion into electricity—to heat homes and greenhouses and as process heat in industry. This includes, for example, the energy used in hot baths in Japan and to heat homes in Iceland and greenhouses in Russia.

An interdisciplinary team of 13 scientists and engineers assembled by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2006 assessed U.S. geothermal electrical generating potential. Drawing on the latest technologies, including those used by oil and gas companies in drilling and in enhanced oil recovery, the team estimated that enhanced geothermal systems could be used to massively develop geothermal energy. This technology involves drilling down to the hot rock layer, fracturing the rock and pumping water into the cracked rock, then extracting the superheated water to drive a steam turbine. The MIT team notes that with this technology the United States has enough geothermal energy to meet its energy needs 2,000 times over... read more story at TreeHugger.com

Second Harvest Delivers Six Millionth Pound of Food

Food rescue organization helps rebuild communities after recession

TORONTO, August 26, /Canada NewsWire/ - Today Second Harvest, a charitable organization that rescues and delivers perishable food items to social service agencies in Toronto, delivered its six millionth pound of food for this year. This is the first time in the organization's twenty-five year history that such a high volume of food has been recovered in a single fiscal year.

In 2009 the social service agencies that receive food from Second Harvest reported a 20-30 per cent increase in people coming through their doors requiring assistance. Agencies specifically saw a large increase in those who are considered 'working poor' - people affected by job loss or reduced work hours.

Melissa Dedic, Foodraiser at Second Harvest says, "we are committed to feeding Toronto's hungry, especially during difficult times. This year we responded to the dramatic increase in the demand for food by growing our food donations significantly. The food we recover and donate helps those most affected by the recession start rebuilding their lives."

One of Second Harvest's food recipients, the Salvation Army on River Street, operates a food bank and a café that serves 100 meals a day. According to Wayne Rumsby, a community pastor at the Salvation Army, the past two years have been a challenge for the organization.

"We are very thankful to be on the receiving end of Second Harvest's work. Good food should not end up in landfill when people in our community are hungry," says Rumsby.

All food items distributed by Second Harvest are perishable goods that would otherwise go to waste. Donations are supplied by community-minded restaurants, grocery stores, food manufacturers and distributors. Second Harvest is grateful for the generosity of all their food partners.

In addition to feeding hungry Torontonians, Second Harvest also prevented over one million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions from entering the atmosphere this year by diverting excess food from landfills. To learn more about Second Harvest or to make a donation, please visit secondharvest.ca.

About Second Harvest

Second Harvest is a charitable organization that takes a common-sense approach to hunger. For the past twenty-five years Second Harvest has been picking up donated, perishable food, which would otherwise go to waste, and delivering that food to over 200 social service agencies in Toronto. Recognized for efficiency and impact of services, independent research group Charity Intelligence Canada named Second Harvest a Ci Recommended Charity in 2009. The organization recently received a 'Grade A' from MoneySense magazine.

Forced suspension of World Vision leaves thousands of lives in jeopardy in Somalia

TORONTO, August 16, 2010 /Canada NewsWire/ - Last week's suspension of World Vision programs in south central Somalia will mean almost certain starvation for thousands of children, the aid agency said today.

More than 3,400 children were receiving vital nutritional feeding from the organization before it was forced to suspend its operations last week by militant group Al-Shabaab.

World Vision says that last week alone, they had 51 severely malnourished children admitted to their stabilization centres and they are now concerned about the fate of these children.

A quarter of a million women and newborn children are also facing an uncertain future with the closure of nine mother and child healthcare centres and 162 health posts across the affected regions, leaving them with no access to vital, primary healthcare.

Hundreds of patients (227) were being treated for TB in another program and World Vision says interrupting their treatment at this critical time in their recovery puts them at high risk of the disease gathering strength, in a drug-resistant form.

Suspension of livelihood programs will further exacerbate the vulnerability of more than one million people who were dependent on ongoing World Vision projects for their economic survival.

Ongoing conflict in Somalia has heavily restricted humanitarian space for aid agencies over the past few years, and this latest closure is a further blow to those already suffering the most.

World Vision says that there is no unilateral solution to the problems in Somalia and lasting development and peace building will only be viable if leadership for them comes from indigenous and acceptable Somali process.

"In a country where one out of every seven children dies before their fifth birthday, and one mother in every hundred dies during pregnancy or childbirth, the situation is a big blow to the vulnerable. Given the humanitarian cost of our programs being suspended, we want to get back in and to work as soon as possible"

"All those involved in this conflict must observe international humanitarian law, and ensure protection and care for the vulnerable. The children of Somalia deserve nothing less than a peaceful environment" - Chris Smoot, Program Director, World Vision Somalia

Facts:

- World Vision has been working in Somalia since 1992.
- World Vision is a Christian relief, development and advocacy organization dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome extreme poverty and injustice, regardless of race, religion, ethnicity or gender.