Cricket legends will play a ‘Peace at the Crease’ charity cricket match later this year in Barbados on 17 October.
Proceeds will support activities to promote peace and tolerance in disadvantaged communities across the Commonwealth.
Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland, and Barbados Cricket Association president, Conde Riley, announced the event on Saturday.
The match coincides with the 15th United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) quadrennial meeting taking place in Barbados.
Legends from the game will form Barbados XI and Commonwealth XI teams to play a T20 match at the Kensington Oval in Barbados.
The Secretary-General said: “I am very proud that Peace at the Crease – which draws on the ideals of cricket and the use of sport as a tool for the promotion of Commonwealth values – will soon be coming to the Caribbean.
“We are lighting the flame for peace and tolerance in the Caribbean. We hope it will spread to every region of our Commonwealth. I cannot wait for the game.”
The Secretary-General came up with the ‘Peace at the Crease’ initiative to use Commonwealth cricket connections to promote peace and development.
In 2018, the first match was played between the Popes XI and the Arch Bishop of Canterbury XI. The initiative has since grown into an independent ‘Peace at the Crease’ charity.
President Conde Riley said: “Across the Caribbean, crime is going through the roof. “We hope to use ‘Peace at the Crease’ and the Barbados season to sensitise everyone about where we are and what we need to do [for peacebuilding].”
Association vice-president Calvin Hope said the concept of ‘Peace at the Crease’ fits within the personality of all Barbadian cricket legends. He added: “Cricket touches every household in Barbados. This initiative is a vehicle to renew Barbados’ hope.”
A similar event in Africa is currently being discussed, with Nairobi being considered as a potential venue. The Secretary-General thanked Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for Sports, Heritage and Culture, Amina Mohamed, for her ongoing support for the initiative.
More details about the charity match will be released soon.
LONDON, ENGLAND February, 2020: ‘XXI’, a landmark contemporary art exhibition, will launch at the new, state-of-the-art HOFA Gallery in London’s Mayfair on 20 February 2020. It is set to be the world’s first ever asset-based tokenised contemporary art exhibition, using cutting-edge blockchain technology and cryptography to facilitate access to coveted blue-chip contemporary art.
RETNA
The highly anticipated highlights of ‘XXI’ will be rare and unseen works by established contemporary artists such as Kaws, RETNA and Damian Hirst. These include the Blame Game Portfolio, a set of 10 prints by Kaws which has been shrouded in mystery since its shadow début in 2016. With sprightly colours and a suggestive title, these prints have the intrigue of a jigsaw puzzle or a comic detective game. At once stimulating, playful and yet, somewhat ominous, Blame Game is expected to be a crowd favourite and stands as the most valuable artwork set for display at ‘XXI’.
Damien Hirst
RETNA’s Los Ne El Barrio joins Kaws’ Blame Game on the list of rare features at the upcoming exhibition. This abstract lettered painting, finished with rare blue diamond dust and seemingly laden with hidden meanings, represents a unique style of contemporary abstract art that’s highly sought after by art connoisseurs. Also on the list of exclusive features, is the Heart Spin Painting by Damian Hirst. Hirst’s popular spin paintings achieved international renown when a large reproduction was used to cover the floor of the stadium for the closing ceremony of the London Olympic Games of 2012. Heart Spin Painting is a colourful piece whose piecing and energetic radial symmetry evokes the speaking gaze of a knowing eye.
Kaws
All told, ‘XXI’ will feature a portfolio of carefully sourced artworks collectively worth more than $1M and individually projected to appreciate in value based on current market trends. Other participating artists include Banksy, Jeff Koons, Joseph Klibansky, George Condo, Zhuang Hong Yi and Ilhwa Kim. Indeed, the upcoming ‘XXI’ exhibition is anticipated to a hotspot for investments in high-yield contemporary art.
Commenting on the upcoming exhibition, HOFA co-founder, Elio D’Anna, said “We are proud to unveil this project which has been over 12 months in the making. It’s going to be an extravaganza of contemporary art. We are bringing the crème of contemporary art together for a ground-breaking show which we know viewers will enjoy.”
HOFA’s new gallery is located at 11 Bruton Street in Mayfair, London. ‘XXI’ will run for 2 week from the 20 February to 5 March 2020.
February, 2020; Paris, France – A majority of people across eight large countries say the coronavirus poses a high or very high threat to the world and an additional one in three say the virus is a moderate threat to the world.
More than one in two people in Japan (66%), Australia (61%) and the United States (55%) are concerned about the threat of the outbreak on the world. Canada (42%) and Russia (42%), the United Kingdom (43%), and Germany (47%) have slightly lower levels of high or very high threat.
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos survey conducted online from February 7 to 9, 2020 among 8,001 adults aged 16 (18) -74 in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Less Than One In Five Feel Coronavirus Outbreak Contained
On average, only one in five people (19%) agree the coronavirus outbreak has been contained and will soon be over, while more than twice as many disagree (46%). People in the U.K. (55%), Canada (51%), Australia (50%), and Japan (49%) were most likely to disagree the outbreak has been contained. One in three Russian respondents believe the coronavirus outbreak has been contained (33%).
Added to that, more than four in five (86%) people across these eight countries say they have seen, heard, or read a great deal or fair amount about the outbreak.
Together, this data shows that most people are closely tracking the coronavirus outbreak and are also worried the health epidemic will continue to worsen before it gets better.
In response, there is widespread support for significant actions to control the virus. On average, four in five (85%) people support mandatory screening of those traveling from infected countries, and there is a similar level of strong support for mandatory quarantine of those who could have the infection. Two-thirds (66%) of people agree the government should ban travel to and from impacted countries, and that airlines in their country should be restricted from flying to China.
Topline data follows:
Q. How much, if at all, have you seen, read or heard about the coronavirus outbreak?
US
Canada
France
United Kingdom
Australia
Germany
Japan
Russia
Base: All respondents
1000
1000
1000
1000
1000
1001
1000
1000
A great deal
42%
40%
67%
39%
42%
27%
39%
29%
A fair amount
43%
45%
28%
54%
47%
49%
53%
48%
Not very much
12%
13%
4%
7%
9%
22%
5%
21%
Nothing at all
2%
1%
0%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
Don’t know
1%
1%
1%
0%
1%
1%
2%
1%
Summary
T2B: Great deal/fair amount
85%
86%
95%
92%
88%
76%
92%
77%
B2B: Nothing/Not much
14%
14%
4%
7%
10%
23%
6%
22%
Q. (The world) What level of threat do you think the coronavirus poses to each of the following?
US
Canada
France
United Kingdom
Australia
Germany
Japan
Russia
Base: All respondents
1000
1000
1000
1000
1000
1001
1000
1000
Very high threat
23%
13%
16%
12%
28%
13%
26%
11%
High threat
31%
29%
33%
31%
33%
34%
40%
30%
Moderate threat
32%
38%
34%
42%
27%
35%
27%
36%
Low threat
9%
15%
10%
11%
7%
13%
4%
14%
Very low threat
3%
3%
4%
3%
2%
3%
2%
6%
Don’t know
2%
2%
3%
2%
2%
2%
1%
2%
Summary
T2B: High threat
55%
42%
49%
43%
61%
47%
66%
42%
B3B: Low threat
43%
55%
48%
56%
37%
51%
33%
57%
Q. (The coronavirus outbreak has been contained and will soon be over.) Do you agree or disagree with the following (is that strongly or somewhat?):
US
Canada
France
United Kingdom
Australia
Germany
Japan
Russia
Base: All respondents
1000
1000
1000
1000
1000
1001
1000
1000
Strongly agree
6%
3%
2%
4%
5%
5%
2%
7%
Somewhat agree
15%
13%
14%
12%
15%
16%
13%
26%
Neither agree nor disagree
26%
26%
30%
22%
26%
33%
32%
28%
Somewhat disagree
27%
32%
29%
36%
29%
28%
31%
18%
Strongly disagree
19%
19%
13%
20%
21%
14%
18%
14%
Don’t know
7%
8%
12%
7%
5%
5%
5%
7%
Summary
T2B: Agree
21%
15%
16%
16%
19%
20%
15%
33%
B2B: Disagree
46%
51%
42%
55%
50%
42%
49%
33%
Q. (Total strongly & somewhat agree) To what extent, if at all, would you support or oppose each of the following measures?
US
Canada
France
United Kingdom
Australia
Germany
Japan
Russia
Base: All respondents
1000
1000
1000
1000
1000
1001
1000
1000
Anyone travelling to and from infected countries should undergo mandatory screening
83%
86%
87%
86%
88%
78%
78%
91%
Government should impose mandatory quarantine for those who could have the infection
79%
83%
84%
84%
87%
74%
80%
84%
Airlines from my country should stop flying to China
68%
67%
68%
70%
75%
59%
67%
61%
The government should ban any travel to and from affected countries
70%
66%
68%
66%
73%
50%
71%
64%
Public transit systems in my country, including buses, subways, and trains, should be taking precautions to prevent the further spread of coronavirus
73%
60%
56%
61%
70%
48%
76%
72%
The government should send doctors, materials, supplies abroad to help countries affected by the virus
61%
55%
52%
49%
52%
62%
56%
56%
Airlines from my country should stop flying to other infected countries besides China
62%
54%
59%
57%
59%
44%
46%
54%
About the Study
These are the results of an Ipsos survey conducted February 7-9, 2020 on the Global Advisor online platform among 8,001 adults aged 18-74 in Canada and the United States and 16-74 in Australia, France, Germany, Japan, Russia and the United Kingdom.
The sample consists of approximately 1000+ individuals in each country. The samples in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S. can be taken as representative of these countries’ general adult population under the age of 75. The sample in Russia is more urban, more educated and/or more affluent than the general population and should be viewed as reflecting the views of the more “connected” segment of the population. The data is weighted so that each market’s sample composition best reflects the demographic profile of the adult population according to the most recent census data.
Where results do not sum to 100 or the ‘difference’ appears to be +/-1 more/less than the actual, this may be due to rounding, multiple responses or the exclusion of don’t knows or not stated responses.
The precision of Ipsos online polls are calculated using a credibility interval with a poll of 1,000 accurate to +/- 3.5 percentage points and of 500 accurate to +/- 4.8 percentage points. For more information on the Ipsos use of credibility intervals, please visit the Ipsos website. For the Silo, by Dianne Bankay.
This study did not have any external sponsors or partners. It was initiated and run by Ipsos with the intention to share our understanding about the world we live in and how citizens around the globe think and feel about their world.
About Ipsos
Ipsos is the world’s third largest market research company, present in 90 markets and employing more than 18,000 people.
Our passionately curious research professionals, analysts and scientists have built unique multi-specialist capabilities that provide true understanding and powerful insights into the actions, opinions and motivations of citizens, consumers, patients, customers or employees. We serve more than 5000 clients across the world with 75 business solutions.
Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos is listed on the Euronext Paris since July 1st, 1999. The company is part of the SBF 120 and the Mid-60 index and is eligible for the Deferred Settlement Service (SRD).
Whether you’re a hockey fan or a basketball fan – or even both – the luxuries that every sports aficionado desires to have in their living room are all the same. You want comfortable furniture, a large, high-definition television, good friends, and great snacks – including a refreshing beverage or two!
If you’re like most sports fans that appreciate the luxury of owning a fancy home theatre system so you and your friends can watch every game in style – not to mention the accuracy of high-definition picture and sound – then you’ve probably already invested a significant amount into your electronics. All too often, the living room setup boasts phenomenal devices on which to enjoy the game with very little else left in the room that is even remotely appealing.
Coffee Table
One of the most important parts of your living room is the place where you’re going to set all of your snacks. During play-off season, it isn’t uncommon that the coffee table becomes overflowing with delicious items. When this is the case, you no longer have room for your laptop or your feet. If you’re a sports fan that’s looking for a new coffee table, why not buy an item that can equal the impressive size of your television?
If you’re interested in getting a coffee table upgrade but aren’t sure where to look, you can check out these gorgeous natural wood coffee tables for a few impressive options.
Entertainment Unit
A quality built entertainment cabinet made of solid wood can really separate the men from the boys. A thrilling sporting event may cause you and your crew to occasionally act as rowdy as you did in college, but that doesn’t mean that you should furnish your home like you’re living on student loans. Watch the game like a gentleman and bring some class to your living room with a handcrafted solid wood entertainment unit.
Buffet Table
Even the most impressive coffee table will occasionally overflow. If you want to build the ultimate game-viewing experience, include a piece of furniture that is wholly devoted to presenting your feast. This way, your coffee table won’t be cluttered and can be used as it was meant to be used.
Custom Made Furniture
If you’re really interested in getting stylish, one of the best options you can invest in is to order your living room furniture to be custom made. With a custom made piece of furniture, you get an item that is absolutely unique. You’ll also be able to choose specific design choices, such as:
Type of Stain
Variety of Wood
Live Edge Features
Texturing
The end result will provide you with an option that is perfectly suited to your personality and perfectly suited to your home.
Play-off season may be just around the corner but after that it will be time to start watching a whole other league. You make good use of your living room, so why not invest in one you can be proud of – upgrade your furniture to handcrafted solid wood before the end of the season.
Featured image- Dundas Coffee Table by woodcraft.ca
NEW YORK, February, 2020 – Gucci, one of the world’s leading luxury fashion brands, has joined The Lion’s Share Fund, a unique initiative raising much-needed funds to tackle the crisis in nature, biodiversity and climate across the globe.
Led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and a coalition of businesses and UN partners, the Fund aims to raise over $100 million per year within the next five years for animal conservation, biodiversity and climate by asking brands to contribute 0.5% of their media spend every time an animal is featured in their advertisements.
https://youtu.be/qnT8yDfrP5M
Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator, said: “This partnership with Gucci marks the continuing evolution of this innovative fund, which provides a unique opportunity for brands across all industries to join forces and help preserve and protect biodiversity across the globe. Wildlife populations are half the size they were just 50 years ago, and their habitats and ecosystems are destroyed at an unprecedented rate due to human activity. Lion’s Share is an idea that is as innovative as it is simple – and it makes a real impact on wildlife conservation.”
Achim Steiner
Marco Bizzarri, President and CEO of Gucci, said: “The Lion’s Share Fund is an important addition to our conservation strategy. Nature and wildlife provide Gucci with inspired creation that is an integral part of our narrative through our collections and campaigns. With the increasing threats to the planet’s biodiversity, groundbreaking initiatives like The Lion’s Share Fund have the potential to be transformative by organically connecting the business community with direct action to protect our natural habitats and most threatened species.” Bizzarri continued “In a similar way, since 2018, Gucci has been totally carbon neutral across our supply chain and we offset our remaining emissions every year through REDD+, which protects critical forests and biodiversity around the world.”
Marco Bizzarri
Launched in September 2018, the Fund is already having an impact, providing a grant to improve critical radio systems for law enforcement officers protecting wildlife in Mozambique’s Niassa Nature Reserve and helping reduce the elephant poaching rate to zero, and providing a grant to help secure land for endangered orangutans, elephants and tigers in North Sumatra in Indonesia.
Animals appear in approximately 20 per cent of all advertisements in the world, yet despite this, animals do not always receive the support they deserve.
The Lion’s Share gives brands the opportunity to take urgent and significant action and play their part in protecting our planet.
Founded in Florence in 1921, Gucci is one of the world’s leading luxury fashion brands, with a renowned reputation for creativity, innovation and Italian craftsmanship.
Gucci is part of Kering, a global Luxury group managing the development of a series of renowned Houses in Fashion, Leather Goods, Jewelry and Watches.
For further information about Gucci, visit www.gucci.com
About The Lion’s Share Fund
The Lion’s Share was established in June 2018 by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) with FINCH, Mars, Incorporated, Nielsen and BBDO as founding members. The fund tackles the crisis in biodiversity and climate by asking advertisers worldwide to donate 0.5 percent of their media spend for each advertisement that features an animal. Those funds are pooled and distributed to projects globally that have a significant impact on animal conservation, habitat loss and the climate crisis. The Lion’s Share contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals, the UN’s universal call to action to end poverty and protect the planet.
About the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
UNDP partners with people across societies to help build nations that can withstand crisis, and drive and sustain the kind of growth that improves the quality of life for everyone. On the ground in nearly 170 countries and territories, we offer global perspective and local insight to help empower lives and build resilient nations. For more information on UNDP, visit undp.org.
Everyone has a relationship with money, but for women, it’s much more fraught with emotion, says Meriflor Toneatto.
When we avoid and ignore those emotions, we allow them to quietly guide our decision-making – which inevitably holds us back.
“Understanding our emotions, fears and doubts about money and how they affect our behavior can help us heal them so we can experience financial and personal freedom,” says Toneatto, an entrepreneur, certified business and life coach, and author of “Money, Manifestation & Miracles: 8 Principles for Transforming Women’s Relationship with Money.” For women, money is an emotional currency. It’s tied to our sense of self-worth and self-confidence, and our feelings of safety and security. These feelings often translate into self-limiting decisions.
The effect can be profound. Consider female entrepreneurs:
“The number of women-owned U.S and Canada. businesses is growing 1.5 times faster than the national U.S. average, but a report from 2013 found that they’re still contributing less than 4 percent of overall business revenues, about the same as they were in 2007,” Toneatto says.
“Our businesses are smaller because we’re less likely than men to borrow in order to expand. We’re afraid to take financial risks,” she says citing a U.S. Department of Commerce report..
And in the corporate world:
Women comprise half the workforce, yet hold the majority of lower-wage jobs in the United States, according to the 2014 State of the Union address.
What are the emotions shaping so many of our decisions? Toneatto cites five:
Fear: The most common emotion among women is fear. With money, we fear not having enough of it; that we’ll lose it all and never get it back. Nearly including those according to the 2013 Women, Money and Power Study.
And we fear an abundance of money. We may fail to negotiate a higher salary because we fear we can’t live up to it. Successful women may be reluctant to reach higher because we fear failure — and losing it all.
These fears often have roots in situations we were exposed worth. They send a strong signal that we need to root out their source and heal it.
Guilt: People who say things like, “I feel guilty when I spend instead of save” or “I never buy anything unless it’s on sale” have guilt feelings associated with money. These, too, are often rooted in the fears and messages we saw and heard in childhood about not having enough money. Many of us are natural nurturers who’ve gotten the message that “good” women are selfless, and so we may freely, even recklessly, spend on others while withholding from ourselves.
Shame: This painful emotion cuts whether worthy and deserving. We avoid talking about shame, and so it exerts control over us. With money, shame is commonly connected to amassing a lot of debt and hiding it because we fear being judged, humiliated, and disliked.
Anger: This emotion repels money, opportunities and people because it can leave us closed off emotionally and physically from others. It’s based in a belief in the unfairness of life and/or the unfairness of money. A person who becomes angry about money may be angry at herself for missing an opportunity or for mishandling money in the past. Anger can lead to trust issues and to over-protecting every cent – even hoarding money.
Blame: Anger and blame often go hand in hand. hand in hand. It stems from feeling disappointed or wronged because you believe your life would have been easier and/or better if someone – maybe parents or a spouse — had been able to provide you with more money. Blame can sabotage relationships with both people and money for years.
“At some point in our lives, we all have felt one or more of these emotions,” Toneatto says. “The good thing is, once you begin to recognize them, they’re like a flashing yellow ‘caution!’ light.”
About Meriflor Toneatto
Meriflor Toneatto is the founder and CEO of Power With Soul, a company dedicated to empowering female entrepreneurs and professionals by helping them transform their relationship with money. The author of “Money, Manifestation & Miracles: 8 Principles for Transforming Women’s Relationship with Money.” Toneatto holds a bachelor’s degree in public administration and management and graduate certifications in personal, professional and financial coaching. A former corporate executive, she is a recipient of the Amethyst Award for Excellence and Outstanding Achievement from the government of Ontario, Canada.
Dr. James L. Hardeman – known for busting health and diet myths.
Dr. James L. Hardeman has seen firsthand the consequences of unhealthy lifestyle habits during his 30 years as a practicing physician, and he says they’re just not worth it.
“There are very clear, biological reasons why we are compelled to eat sugary, fatty foods; but if there was ever a case of ‘too much of a good thing,’ it’s a sedentary lifestyle coupled with delicious, readily available food,” says Dr. Hardeman, author of “Appears Younger than Stated Age,” (www.jameslhardeman.com ), a pragmatic guide to looking younger.
As we evolved, sugar, salt and fat were rare yet necessary commodities, and that’s why we enjoy them so much, he says. But there are devastating consequences associated with too much rest, sugar and fat – including heart disease, obesity, diabetes and sleep apnea, he says.
“The ‘easy life’ isn’t so easy in the long term,” he says.
Multiple studies indicate the multidimensional nature of healthy habits, including one recently published by the Lund University Diabetes Centre in Sweden. The study tracked significant improvements in men who changed their lifestyle from inactive to active, and the results were impressive.
Waist circumference and blood pressure drastically improved after six months. But the study also showed that health also improved at the microscopic level, such as the functioning of genes and how they express proteins. Other studies indicate that gene improvement can occur after just one workout.
“Our bodies want to be healthy, and it’s just a matter of getting and staying motivated,” says Dr. Hardeman, who offers tips:
• Don’t fall into the “I don’t have time” trap. Time is arguably the most precious commodity any individual has – and that means life span. Don’t have time to chop veggies before dinner or work out after work? Then make time! You will almost certainly live longer by following a healthier lifestyle. Need more incentive than a vague sense of health? How about avoiding the lifestyle restrictions imposed by diabetes, or the medical interventions necessitated by a heart attack?
• Keep in mind the intake/output principle. Miracle diets don’t exist. While some people can burn calories more easily than others, it ultimately comes down to what you put into your body and what you do with that energy. If you want to lose or maintain weight, think of a 360-calorie muffin as a loan you have to pay back with 35 to 40 minutes worth of jogging, or a 55-minute walk.
• Keep doing fun things! Remember what it was like to be a little kid? Back then, simply running around during a game of tag was a blast! It’s never too late to turn exercise into play. Try snowboarding, dancing at a club, hiking a beautiful landscape or taking a bicycle ride with the family.
• Find the motivator that works for you. Many people find a partner helps them stay motivated to exercise. If you’re not inclined to walk in the morning, but you don’t want to let down your walking partner, then you’re more likely to walk anyway. Same goes for a dog that needs to be walked.
However, the most dependable person to keep you motivated is you. If your routine is getting a dull, mix it up with an mp3 player. Whether it’s Metallica, Manilow or Mozart, you can program a personal adrenalin soundtrack to keep yourself fully amped.
About Dr. James L. Hardeman
Dr. James L. Hardeman has been a physician for 30 years. Triple board certified in Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Diseases, and Critical Care Medicine, Dr. Hardeman works both in a hospital and at his own busy office practice. After graduating Summa Cum Laude from the University of California at Irvine, he attended Baylor College of Medicine where he graduated with honors.
Postgraduate training in Internal Medicine and Pulmonary/Critical Care Medicine took place at USC and UCI.
School has ‘been in’ for awhile now. Does your child’s school lunches sound healthy to you? How do you think it compares to school dinners from around the world? And how much do school meals affect energy levels for post-lunch learning and does that have an impact on PISA test results?
Check out this infographic to discover what the school meals of other countries look like and how each nation scores on the PISA test. For the Silo, Dinah Makani.
