UN Prevention Web: Jamaicans need to be more aware of climate change

http://www.preventionweb.net/english/professional/news/v.php?id=34242

Jamaicans need to be more aware of climate change - Minister

• Date:5 Aug 2013
• Source(s):Jamaica Information Service (JIS)

Minister of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change, Hon. Robert Pickersgill, has emphasised the need to increase climate change awareness among Jamaicans, noting that the issue is “everybody’s business. ”

Mr. Pickersgill said tackling the effects of climate change on Jamaica will require a communal approach, “as we will all be affected. ”

The Minister was speaking at the launch of a special video feature entitled: ‘Climate Change and its Impact on Jamaican Farmers’, held at the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), in Kingston, on July 31.

“(This approach) must entail co-operation, communication and consistency of effort from everyone. We cannot allow progress toward the Vision 2030 goals to be derailed by climate change related impacts,” he argued.

The Minister lamented that the impact of climate change on a small island such as Jamaica can have significant repercussions on its economic and social viability. He noted that the weather phenomenon impacts health, natural resources, infrastructure as well as access to water and food security.

“The impacts are likely to continue to greatly hinder Jamaica in its debt repayment efforts, while the economic cost of climate related impacts will continue to increase,” he noted.

Mr. Pickersgill, therefore, commended the PIOJ and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for its work in developing the educational video, which aims to increase public awareness on the topic.

The video, which was produced by the Jamaica Information Service (JIS), will be aired on over seven stations, including TVJ, CVM TV, JNN, PBCJ and Love TV, as well as featured in JIS’ Jamaica Magazine programme.

It shows interviews conducted with farmers in the Bog Hole community of Clarendon, who have been adversely affected by long periods of drought as well as periods of flooding, caused by climate change.

Mr. Pickersgill said the video is a timely reminder that all Jamaicans must find new and innovative ways to lessen the impact of climate change on the environment.

For his part, Pilot Programme for Climate Change Resilience (PPCR) Focal Point Manager, PIOJ, Hopeton Peterson, said the video has been produced within the context of the implementation of the PPCR.

The PPCR is a global project aimed at improving the ability of vulnerable countries like Jamaica to withstand “the shocks and stresses” of climate change.

The programme provides technical assistance and investments to support countries’ efforts to integrate climate risk and resilience into core development planning and implementation. Jamaica is one of six countries in the Caribbean benefiting from the PPCR.

Mr. Peterson informed that so far in Jamaica, the project has supported the development of a strategic programme for climate resilience, which entails three main components.

These include: improving climate data and information management; mainstreaming climate change adaptation in the local sectoral and national plans and implementing integrated adaptation strategies in the Rio Minho basin in Clarendon; and providing financing mechanisms for sustained adaptation initiatives by the public and private sectors and community-based organisations.

CONTACT: ATHALIAH REYNOLDS-BAKER

Dorsainvil Foundation. BEMA support their family legacy of providing healthcare and health services to the region\department of Arcahaie, Haiti.

http://www.dorsainvilfoundation.org/

Dorsainvil Foundation is dedicated to the medical concerns of the Haitian People.

MISSION:

The vision of Dorsainvil Foundation is to expand the medical mission and the small functional health facility, to a fully equipped hospital and outpatient center with a compassionate staff, accepting everyone in need of services, regardless of their social status.

The commitment of Dorsainvil Foundation is to promote healthcare and to encourage health prevention as well as providing treatment to the disenfranchised in the region. The foundation hopes to enrich the people's lives by helping them focus on the importance of proper nutrition, exercise, modified lifestyle and good health. This would be achieve by providing adequate educational tools to the population.

Today's diseases are affecting so many people including babies, children, parents and grandparents. By providing the people with the information they need to make better decisions, the death rate itself could be reduce tremendously. Let's work together for a better tomorrow.

In 1995, Pierre and Josephine Dorsainvil left their home in Long Island, New York to visit their native country of Haiti. Pierre Dorsainvil, 69, and his wife, Josephine, 62, had just finished building a vacation home in the small town of Arcahaie, Haiti, where both were born, raised, met and were married. During their visit four armed individuals entered and ransacked Pierre and Josephine Dorsainvil's home in Arcahaie, Haiti. The New York residents, who were in their homeland for a brief vacation, were shot and killed. Their five children survived them, a son and four daughters.

The Dorsainvil family had become an American success. The oldest son, Pierre had just graduated from medical school, St. George’s University. His younger sisters Edwige and Bobbie were also successful in business and had families of their own. The youngest girls, twins, Cynthia and Dolores, were both attending college and were looking ahead to a bright future.

On the morning of June 30, 1995, exactly one week after Pierre graduated from medical school, everything would change. Although the details have never been clear the local authorities state their house was attacked by a gang of brutal thieves. With robbery as a motive they mercilessly shot Josephine, killing her instantly.  Pierre Sr. suffered a gunshot wound to his leg while the couple’s maid, seventeen year old Elemene was wounded four times. The violence was swift and horrible, especially since the vacationers were unarmed.

Pierre, the son, had to break the devastating news to his sisters.  Numb with grief, they also had to endure the fact that the killers had escaped exact identification.  Although police had an idea of who the suspects were, no one would ever be brought to justice. As a newly credentialed physician, Pierre was aware of an additional irony. Had his father been in virtually any US hospital his non-lethal gunshot wound could have been treated and he would have been saved.  The reality was that for lack of a few dollars worth of a sterile saline IV solution, mostly unavailable in this third world nation, his father simply bled to death.  

In June 2000, while on a visit to Haiti and his parents’ home, Dr. Pierre Dorsainvil had a revelation. He would convert this vacation retreat to a different kind of haven. It would be a freestanding clinic. Now, he just had to make it happen. In June 2001, he established the Dorsainvil Foundation, a private, non-profit organization and opened a free medical clinic for the poor and needy in the Arcahaie home his parents loved. The name of the center, which is the only one of its kind within a 35-mile radius, is Complexe Medical Sainte Philomene De L'Arcahaie.  Currently, Pierre makes several trips a year to administer health care at the facility himself while the remainder of the year he relies on a limited staff who see patients twice a week.

The Dorsainvil Foundation stands as a testament to the good that can come from difficult times. Dr. Pierre Dorsainvil, along with friends, family, pharmaceutical reps, and health care providers have been able to have a significant impact on the people of Haiti. The Foundation hopes to continue this work for years to come.

U.S. National Interest: Water for the Poor Act of 2005

http://www.state.gov/e/oes/water/waterforthepoor/

Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005: Annual Report

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The Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act, which was signed into law by then-President Bush on December 1, 2005, makes access to safe water and sanitation for developing countries a specific policy objective of U.S. foreign assistance. It requires the Secretary of State, in consultation with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and other U.S. government agencies, to develop and implement a strategy “to provide affordable and equitable access to safe water and sanitation in developing countries” within the context of sound water resources management.

The Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act also requires the Secretary of State, in consultation with the USAID Administrator, to submit an annual report to Congress describing changes in the U.S. strategy and progress in achieving the objectives of the Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act. This annual report to Congress is available through the links below and marks the initial progress on a long-term process to develop and implement a strategy to strengthen U.S. efforts on international water issues. 

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Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act: 2013 Report to Congress PDF (July 2013) 
Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act: 2012 Report to Congress PDF (Sept. 2012)
Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act: 2011 Report to Congress PDF (June 21, 2011)
Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act: 2010 Report to Congress PDF (Aug. 13, 2010)
Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act: 2009 Report to Congress PDF (Jun. 26, 2009)
Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act: 2008 Report to Congress PDF (Jun. 4, 2008)
Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act: 2007 Report to Congress PDF (Jun. 5, 2007) 
Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act: 2006 Report to Congress PDF (Jun. 1, 2006)
-- Report Annex A: Summary of U.S. Agency Missions and Capabilities in Water
-- Report Annex B: USAID Funding for Water
-- Report Annex C: Strategic Planning of USAID Water and Sanitation Activities in Africa
-- Report Annex D: Example Strategy -- ECO Asia
-- Report Annex E: Blue Revolution Initiative -- Strategic Framework for Asia and the Near East

Your community Program. Teens prepare for Emergencies

FYI…………Something for your community programs to consider with youth involvement.

Our teens are ready for a change, the responsibility to be placed in an independent leadership role.

We know that teens and young adults with support will accept and move forward with this type of training.

What about the individuals on the street corner with no guidance, will they accept, continue with the training, and become a vital resource for their community?  The added extra incentive for a source of income may help.

Let's give them all the chance to contribute to the resiliency and sustainability of our community.

http://www.army.mil/article/108014/Teenagers_prepare_for_emergencies/

Teenagers prepare for emergencies

July 25, 2013

By Leader staff report 

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·    FORT JACKSON, S.C. -- Ten Fort Jackson teenagers, ages 13-18, participated in a 20-hour Teen Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT, certificate course last week.

CERT was designed to train Americans to help themselves and their communities in the event of a widespread natural disaster. The course teaches basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, search and rescue, team organization and disaster medical operations.

The training prepares teenagers to assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following an event when professional responders are not immediately available to help. Teen CERT members also are encouraged to support emergency response agencies by taking a more active role in emergency preparedness projects in their community.

"The training is important for many reasons," said R.J. Frazier, Fort Jackson's all hazard emergency manager. "The primary concern is for our youth, giving back and providing educational tools for their future. During this session, they earned a training certification on how to support community volunteer efforts during disasters, but more so than anything, a keen insight of self-worth and accomplishment. They departed with a thorough understanding that no matter what profession they choose in life, they can always give back to the community."

Crystle Siegel, 18, said the training achieved that goal. "Many people don't know what to do in the aftermath of a natural disaster. It's great that we -- teens -- are learning how to assist our communities in emergencies," Siegel said.

Tristan Campos, 16, said the training was also fun.

"I didn't really expect to enjoy the training, but, I got a lot of great information, made some new friends, and learned how to help my community in the event of and emergency."

The course was hosted by the Fort Jackson Emergency Management Office, Army Community Services, Operation Military Kids/Clemson University and the American Red Cross.

Campus Security Act of 1990, as amended by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008

Campus Security Act of 1990, as amended by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008

20 U.S.C. § 1092(f)

34 C.F.R. § 668.46 and § 668.41 (latter link is to reporting and disclosure of information)

The Campus Security Act requires colleges to report campus crime statistics and security measures to all students and employees by October 1 of each year. Applicants must receive either a report or a notice of its availability and a brief summary of the report. Timely warnings must go out whenever a threat to students and employees is present for the crimes (listed below) which are reported to local police or campus security authorities. Procedures must be in place on how to issue these notices. Crime statistics must also be given to the U.S. Secretary of Education. Enforcement procedures and policies, as well as crime prevention and education programs must be described in the annual report. The 1992 Higher Education Amendments require a campus sexual assault prevention program. 

NGO Aid Map; International Aid. Sharing data and information

About NGO Aid Map

https://haiti.ngoaidmap.org/

InterAction and its members, as agents of change, believe in empowering ourselves and others with information to deliver better results for global change. We pool and share data about the work of InterAction members around the world through simple maps. NGO Aid Map gives a picture of international aid that would not exist otherwise.

Data is provided by our members on a voluntary basis, so the map is a partial picture of what our community does. Projects are continuously being added, so we encourage you to visit often to learn more about the work of our members.

FOUR PRINCIPLES UNDERPIN EVERYTHING WE DO

• Make it as easy as possible to share data. If it’s not easy, organizations won’t keep providing information, and there’s little value to a map that never gets updated.
  

• Present the data in a way that makes it simple to understand and use. Our site is designed to make it easy to find the information people are looking for, to help them make the decisions they need to make.
  

• Make the data open and accessible. We know there are many ways to slice and dice data. That’s why we’ve made it possible to download the data on every page of the site.

• Collaborate with like-minded organizations also working to make more information available. NGO Aid Map is just one piece of the puzzle. By working with organizations who also see the value in open data, we hope to create a more complete picture of what is happening with foreign aid.

WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH THIS TOOL?

• Explore and learn about NGO projects
• Find new NGO partners
• Download and analyze the data

If you are an InterAction member and would like to contribute data to this map, email us.

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR DONORS AND PARTNERS

   

House Appropriations Subcommittee Approves Key Department of Justice Programs

House Appropriations Subcommittee Approves Key Department of Justice Programs July 12, 2013 – On Wednesday, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce-Justice-Science (CJS) approved the fiscal year 2014 bill that funds Department of Justice (DOJ) programs. The bill funds DOJ at $26.3 billion, a decrease of $720 million (3 percent) from the fiscal year 2013 enacted level. The bill included $55 million for the Second Chance Act, the Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program (created by the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act, or MIOTCRA) received $7.5 million, and the Justice Reinvestment Initiative received $25 million, including funding for a task force on federal corrections spending. The robust funding provided for Justice Reinvestment programs reflects continued congressional support for programs that address rising corrections costs and increasing prison and jail populations. The bill also provides $75 million for a comprehensive school safety initiative to be developed by the National Institute of Justice. Committee approval is only the first step in the appropriations process. The appropriations bills must be passed by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, as well as the full House and Senate.  The Senate plans to release their fiscal year 2014 CJS appropriations bill later this month. A funding summary of key programs:       *Final number after sequestration. For the subcommittee draft text of the legislation, please visit: http://appropriations.house.gov/UploadedFiles/BILLS-113HR-SC-AP-FY2014-CJS-SubcommitteeDraft.pdf