Security

Resilience Alliance

Sat, 2012-01-28 13:29 — mdmcdonald

There are many definitions of resilience from simple deterministic views of resilience anchored in Newtonian mechanics to far more dynamic views of resilience from a systems perspective, including insights from quantum mechanics and the sciences of complexity. One baseline perspective of resilience sees it in terms of the viability of socio-ecological systems as the foundation for sustainability. For those that are ready to look beyond resilience as the ability to return to the "normal state" before a disaster, take a look at:

http://www.resalliance.org/

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Close Call for Doc PJ in Sudan

Thu, 2012-01-19 22:01 — Kathy Gilbeaux

By Dr. C. Louis Perrinjaquet - summitdaily.com - January 16, 2012

Dr. Craig Perrinjaquet of Breckenridge examines a gun-toting Honduran villager in 2007. In his most recent international medical aid trip to Sudan, Doc PJ had his camera and other belonging confiscated by rebels. Special to the Daily

Breckenridge doctor returns from war-torn nation

I am a medical doctor based in Breckenridge. I recently returned from a medical mission in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan. I spent the month of October volunteering at the Mother of Mercy Hospital in Gidel near the village of Kauda in South Kordofan, Sudan.

I am about the only U.S. citizen to have been in this area in the past six months and can testify to the fact that the aerial bombings of civilians are real. We cared for many men, women and children who were the victims of these senseless attacks. I feel an obligation to share what I saw and urge everyone in the strongest way possible to use whatever means are available through the U.S. government to pressure the rulers of Sudan to stop terrorizing and killing their own people.

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The Next 5 in 5 - Innovations That Will Change Our Lives in the Next Five Years

Fri, 2011-12-30 21:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Albert Gomez

ibm.com

Science fiction becomes reality. Worlds collide. The future is now...or within five years, at least.

At the end of each year, IBM examines market and societal trends expected to transform our lives, as well as emerging technologies from IBM's global labs, to develop a multi-year forecast called The Next 5 in 5.

IBM predicts that over the next five years technology innovations will change the way we work, live and play in the following ways:

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China 'Ill-Prepared' for Unrest, Says Security Chief

Sun, 2011-12-04 21:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

BBC News - December 4, 2011

There has been a rise in worker protests in recent weeks in different parts of China

China's security chief has warned that the government needs better methods to deal with social unrest due to a slowing economy.

Zhou Yongkang, a member of the politburo, asked provincial officials for improved "social management".

China has seen an increase in labour unrest in recent weeks.

The comments are a sign that the Chinese government is worried that another slowdown could spark public anger.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

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"The Arab Spring: A New Era in a Transforming Globe" -- What is the Catalytic Role of Social Media?

Wed, 2011-11-09 07:56 — mdmcdonald

This article by Alon Ben-Meir at NYU's Center for Global Affairs brings to light a globalizing transformation being driven by youth using social media, which he predicts has long-lasting world-changing implications.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alon-benmeir/the-arab-spring-a-new-era_b_1082577.html

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Vietnam’s Exploding Reefers

Tue, 2011-11-08 22:01 — Kathy Gilbeaux

by Ben Bland - Financial Times - November 7, 2011

It is thanks to the seemingly seamless international shipping network that Americans can buy computers made in China, Europeans can enjoy Argentine steak and people from all over the world can sustain themselves with rice, fish and coffee produced in Vietnam.

But the ease of transporting the humble twenty-foot container around the world means that problematic cargo in one port can swiftly become a global problem, as with a recent spate of exploding refrigerated containers traced to Vietnam.

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Sustainability & equity linked: A better future for all

Sun, 2011-11-06 01:16 — JRees

United Nations Human Development Report 2011

The 2011 Human Development Report argues that the urgent global challenges of sustainability and equity must be addressed together – and identifies policies on the national and global level that could spur mutually reinforcing progress towards these interlinked goals. Bold action is needed on both fronts, the Report contends, if the recent human development progress for most of the world’s poor majority is to be sustained, for the benefit of future generations as well as for those living today. Past Reports have shown that living standards in most countries have been rising - and converging - for several decades now. Yet the 2011 Report projects a disturbing reversal of those trends if environmental deterioration and social inequalities continue to intensify, with the least developed countries diverging downwards from global patterns of progress by 2050.

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Guardian: Maps and Lists of Occupy Everywhere Sites

Mon, 2011-10-24 07:42 — mdmcdonald

The below Guardian article provides a map and lists of where Occupy Everywhere protests are emerging. They are primarily, but not exclusively in the U.S. and Europe, in countries where the economy is in significant decline and inequities are significant. In most of these places, the youth fear that their future will be worse than their parents, due to the greed of a global elite insensitive to the destruction they have caused economically and environmentally.

The list includes 951 cities in 82 countries.

To see the story and full list, go to:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2011/oct/17/occupy-protests-world-list-map

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Guardian: Snapshots of the Occupy Everywhere Protesters Views

Mon, 2011-10-24 07:25 — mdmcdonald

This Guardian photo slideshow depicts how the Occupy Everywhere movement is growing globally. The protesters talk about what is motivating them. In generzl, they are talking about how their governments have failed to provide the fundamentals of resilience to their generation. They intend to take these matters into their own hands.

Occupy protests: Rita Maestre, Madrid