Wednesday, September 7, 2011

FYI: Youth Opportunity ! State Farm Youth Advisory Board Opportunity

http://statefarmyab.com/apply/the-board/


Become a Board Member

Become a Board Member From this page you can apply to be a part of the State Farm Youth Advisory Board. The YAB is one of the nation’s most exciting opportunities for youth empowerment and development. The board is comprised of 30 youth from around the country who serve as equal members on the board. The board is given responsibility over the resources of $5 million dollars to grant signature service-learning projects that seek to solve important domestic issues. Please read all of the information carefully.



Commitment expected of the Board Members

The Board’s work is handled through four in-person meetings at State Farm’s Corporate headquarters in Bloomington, Illinois or at other locations within the U.S. Primary commitment to the board and time working is through electronic communications between meetings. The expectation is that all associate and board members will commit 15 hours per month to board activities.

All Youth Advisory Board meetings are mandatory for all board and associate board members.

Previous boards felt that the first board meeting is critical to understanding the mission, helping develop processes and to get to know fellow board members before working online to develop the grant proposals.

The funding meeting is where the board makes all its decisions on grants to be funded.

IF you cannot make these meetings, your candidacy as an applicant will be affected. Extenuating circumstances will be taken into account.

Youth Advisory Board meetings beginning with the term that begins January 4, 2012 and ends January 2, 2013 will take place on:
  • January 4-8, 2012 - Bloomington, IL
    • Key Events
      • Orientation of associate board members
      • Associate board members move to board status
      • Board members rotate to alumni status
      • Development of new board’s mission, goals and issue areas
  • April 10-14, 2012 – at the National Service-Learning Conference – Minneapolis, MN
    • Key Events
      • Presentations at conference
      • Board meeting
  • August 2-7, 2012 - Bloomington, IL
    • Key Events
      • Funding meeting for grants
  • January 2-6, 2013 – Bloomington, IL
    • Key Events
      • Orientation of associate board members
      • Associate board members move to board status
      • Board members rotate to alumni status
      • Development of new board’s mission, goals and issue areas

Youth Advisory Board Members’ Expenses

All travel, lodging and meal expenses of Board and Associate Board members are covered for all meetings initiated by State Farm relative to Board activities. Board and Associate Board members will not be compensated for their time other than through expense reimbursement.

There is no personal financial cost associated with board and associate board membership.

All applications must be submitted online by October 3, 2011 or they will not be considered. There are no exceptions.

FYI: Cairn Energy's Respone Plan it own disaster

Op-Ed: Cairn Energy’s Arctic oil spill response plan its own disaster
Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/311179#ixzz1XGiOWRvW

Edinburgh - As the oil and gas industry plows into the Arctic's frigid and inhospitable waters, a member's oil spill response plan has found the light of day, despite best efforts to keep it secret, and gives credence to concerns over the next great catastrophe.
With ExxonMobile and Russia’s Rosneft reaching a multi-billion dollar oil and gas deal over Arctic Ocean hydrocarbon reserves, the industry has been able to throw words around in attempts to assure the general public another BP Gulf disaster is not likely, but Cairn Energy’s recently published oil spill response plan (pdf), thanks to Greenpeace, shows how ill-equipped the industry is in dealing with such a disaster.


Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/311179#ixzz1XGjLdECA


Despite oil and gas propaganda claiming oil dispersed “naturally” in Shell’s recent North Sea spill and the determination a tar sands oil pipeline poses “no significant impacts” to one of the world’s largest aquifers, Cairn “dramatically understates the potential size and impacts of a blow out ... and dramatically overstates the potential effectiveness of any spill response,” said Richard Steiner, a professor formerly at the University of Alaska, the Guardian reports.
For instance, on page 78 of the plan , anyone with an operational brain can see Shell spokeswoman Kelly op de Weegh hasn’t got a clue when she claims in the Wall Street Journal, “We could respond to any incident within an hour.” Maybe she could share her company’s expertise with Cairn, because the Scottish company notes
Even in the most ideal conditions recovery rates will never be 100% and are actually more likely to be around 10 - 20 percent.
In a duh moment, Cairn notes the faster a response time, the better chance there is for recovery, as the oil will have had less time “to spread and fragment." However, the dismal nature of the report doesn’t stop there, as Cairn also notes if ice is present (think Arctic) on the water’s surface
it is likely that oil will become remobilised once there is a thaw.
Each line of the report gets better than the one before.
Operations are unlikely to be possible in wave heights exceeding 2m (failure of boom with oil being washed over) or in winds of more than 35 km/hr.
Maybe someone could send a video of Discovery Channel’s Deadliest Catch to Cairn executives. Just sayin’.
Page 70 of the oil spill response plan is a lulu as well, with Cairn stating if ice is “entrained within the oil,” a secondary response would occur upon thaw. One can easily imagine an oil spill heading into the winter months. But don’t fear, Cairn has an answer for any problems associated with ice over.
Ice can be located by augering and recovered using ice slots. Sections of oiled ice can be cut out and allow the ice to thaw in a heated warehouse and then separating the oil from the water.
Okay, let’s just transport ice cubes, or ice blocks, contaminated with oil, to the nearest warehouse, if we can just get through the ice. Except winter’s coming on, and the Arctic is known for its darkness at that time of year. So, also on page 70, Cairn states
During the winter months there are very few hours of daylight which can cause serious operational complications.
Cairn’s answer is “limited portable lights.” Want more of this? How about the stresses associated with metal in extreme cold conditions? Or how about massive ice floes and ice chunks and ice bergs hitting oil platforms. Then there’s the matter of Greenland’s geography, with Cairn admitting on page 89
the coastal environment in Greenland does not facilitate containment, recover or protection due to the uneven rocky substrate that prevails in the region.
Sadly, or would that be honestly, Cairn adds on page 90
in some circumstances oiled shorelines are best left to recover naturally.
There’s that word again. Sorry about that, Greenland. Naturally.
One could go on, summarizing Cairn just thinks we’re all stupid, that no one will say anything, that no one will question this, that we need oil.
The fact Cairn’s oil spill response plan even surfaced is a story in itself. Increasing its pressure on the oil company, in July, around 60 Greenpeace activists entered Cairn’s offices near Scotland’s Edinburgh Castle, dressed in polar bear suits and searching for the oil spill response plan.
“More than 50,000 people have written to Cairn bosses demanding that they come clean over their oil spill response plan and our volunteers braved freezing Arctic seas to board Cairn's rig and look for these secret documents,” said Paul Morrozzo, a Greenpeace campaigner, according to the Guardian.
“In response, the rig master told the volunteers that if they wanted the plans they should go to Cairn's HQ. That's why today we've come to look inside their international headquarters and we won't leave until these oil spill papers are in the public domain,” Morrozzo added.
Long story short, Greenpeace didn’t publish the documents. Greenland’s government did, saying it “decided to publish the oil spill contingency plan in Greenland after having heard the wish of the public for such publication,” Greenpeace UK reports.
A Cairn spokeswoman told the Guardian its oil spill response plan “is robust and appropriately designed to deal with an incident in this area.”
Still, it would be wise to heed the words of Greenpeace on this issue. Campaigner Vicky Wyatt said: “It's no wonder Cairn Energy didn't want the public to see their secret spill plan. The company offers only giant assumptions and pie-in-the-sky solutions. This cowboy company are playing roulette with one of the most important and fragile environments on the planet, and must be stopped,” the Guardian notes.
This opinion article was written by an independent writer. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not necessarily intended to reflect those of DigitalJournal.com


Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/311179#ixzz1XGjBpudR

FYI: National Child Traumatic Stress Network.

http://learn.nctsn.org/

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Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Training: UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction. Game Theory

http://www.stopdisastersgame.org/en/playgame.html

The United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction has created an online game focusing on natural disasters that effect communities throughout the world.

Tsunami’s, hurricanes, wild fires, earthquakes, and flooding are scenarios included within the game with the major goal to save lives, and reduce destruction to key infrastructures within the game.

Have fun.

Charles D. Sharp
Emergency Manager
Senior Advisor
BEMA

Training: Become A Red Cross Instructor



    New Benefits for Red Cross Instructors in 2011

     

    More Value

    • Offer your students a two-year certification for first aid and CPR with free digital refreshers.
    • Choose between free digital or affordable print materials for most courses.
     

    Greater Convenience

    • Manage your course records and print certificates through our new web-based training management system.
    • Order training materials and products online and download tools from our dedicated instructor website.
     

    Highest Quality

    • Teach an interactive, learner-centered course design that emphasizes hands-on skills.
    • Enjoy comprehensive, easy-to-use instructor resources, including manuals, multimedia course presentations, skill posters and DVDs or streaming video segments.
     

    More Training Options

    • Choose from flexible course options and additional modules to tailor your training to participant needs.
    • Access web-based learning options for First Aid/CPR/AED, Administering Emergency Oxygen and Bloodborne Pathogens training.
    • Become certified to teach a wide range of Red Cross courses, including Wilderness and Remote First Aid and Babysitter's Training.
     

     

    New Programs for 2011

    All programs will meet the new science guidelines.
    First Aid/CPR/AED for Workplaces and Communities
    Now Available
    Now featuring a two-year certification, this OSHA-compliant course trains workplace responders, childcare providers, secondary school students and others to respond to breathing and cardiac emergencies, injuries and sudden illness until advanced medical personnel takes over. A choice of first aid; adult, child and infant CPR; and AED course options allows for tailored training. Updated blended learning and Spanish versions of the course are also being revised.
    Emergency Medical Response
    Now Available
    This new course exceeds EMS Educational Standards and is designed for those with a duty to act, such as EMS personnel, firefighters, athletic trainers, lifeguards and medical professionals. It provides comprehensive training that gives participants the knowledge and skills necessary to work as an emergency medical responder to help sustain life, reduce pain and minimize the consequences of injury or sudden illness until more advanced medical personnel take over. Optional enrichment topics and skills on anaphylaxis, Sellick's maneuver, and C-collar and backboarding are also available.
     
     
    CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and Health Care Providers Now Available
    This concise, learner-centered course trains individuals with a duty to act – EMS personnel, firefighters, athletic trainers, lifeguards and medical professionals – to respond to breathing and cardiac emergencies in adults, children and infants until more advanced medical personnel takes over. Topics include performing a primary assessment, giving ventilations (includes BVM), choking (conscious and unconscious), CPR (one- and two-rescuer) and AED.
    Lifeguarding
    Releasing Fall 2011
    This course provides participants age 15 or older with the skills needed to be a professional lifeguard, including preventing and responding quickly and effectively to aquatic emergencies. Enhanced aquatic facility on-site evaluation services will also be available.
     

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