James Heckman: An Economist's Perspective on Education

From prison populations to dropout rates and college attendance, educational investment can have a dramatic effect on the economic vitality of a nation. Dr. James Heckman speaks to the Chautauqua Institution with an economists perspective on Education.

We invite you to view this one hour lecture and to comment on this blog or the FORA TV Blog.

This link will take you to FORA TV where you can choose a portion of the program - based on topic - to watch or to watch the program in it's entirety.

Indian Moon Mindscape

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Ten Tips for Improving Your Company’s Sustainability Profile

Its all about the triple bottom line. Embracing the bottom line in terms of economics, environmental, and social values. Your Green offices will embrace all of these values and your boss will love you for it because in addition to making the company look good, it will save money too.

1. Work with a certified waste management company and ask them to provide you with advice for minimizing waste, and where possible gleaning some returns for your efforts. Many companies, notably Waste Management, Inc., have created special e-cycling programs for computers and electronic waste as well as

2. Buy post-consumer recycled content paper. Many of the big dogs in office supply are now offering recycled paper as an option including Staples, Office Depot, Quill, Target, as well as some of the specialty companies like Dolphin Blue, Monadnock Paper, The Green Office and others.

3. Use recyclable products in your bathrooms and kitchen areas.

4. Get an energy audit. In many cases the utility company that provides your electricity also provides programs for auditing your energy use. At the very least you can be sure that they can refer you to a professional in your area.

5. Institute programs to encourage carpooling among employees.

6. Institute programs to provide flex-time and telecommuting. Putting your company’s primary databases and working documents on the web using an intranet will allow your workers to work from any locale with broadband access. Several companies now provide low cost web-based intranet, conferencing and meeting software solutions: Webex, GoToMeeting, TalkPoint, Phase2 and others have some very affordable options.

7. Surge protectors do more than just preventing surges. If you have appliances plugged into surge protectors shutting off the surge protector or unplugging it entirely will prevent leakage that can really add up. At the very least, make it company policy to shut down computers, turn off lights and appliances after hours.

8. Look for EnergyStar rated appliances and office equipment.

9. Limit paper products in the kitchen and encourage employees to bring dishware from home.

10. Purchase renewable energy credits for your office, and offset your air travel, gas mileage and more.

Rowboats at Dusk, Newfound Lake, NH

Washday Book Benefits Project Laundry List

There's something warm and comforting about a wash line on a beautiful day. It is a timeless image that speaks to us of days gone by and days to come. It is a metaphor for our connection to the earth and our shared humanity.

"Washday" is a photographic essay that captures those moments and puts them on your coffee table. More than a conversation piece, it is an invitation to engage one another in a dialog about saving the planet and about those rare moments when a small experience - the smell of fresh sheets, the warmth of the sun, the flapping of clothes in the breeze - can serve as a joyous bridge connecting each of us to one another through a shared experience and the hope that connection can inspire.

The Artist behind Washday is Wayne D. King, an accomplished photographer. King's images are a celebration of life, blending the real and the surreal to achieve a sense of place or time that reaches beyond the moment into a dreamlike quintessentialism designed to spark an emotional response. Using digital enhancement, handcrafting, painting, and sometimes even straight photography, King takes the viewer to a place that is beyond simple truth to where truth meets passion, hope and dreams.

King holds a BS Degree in Environmental Conservation and a Masters Degree in Earth Science Education from the University of New Hampshire, Durham.

A three term former State Senator from New Hampshire, Wayne King was the 1994 Democratic nominee for Governor. King is also the founder of The Electronic Community, a group of social entrepreneurs working on social and development issues in Africa under the non-profit umbrella of the MaxImpact Institute.

A Tribute to My Friend, Michael Jackson

A beautiful tribute to a troubled and huge talent, but I can't help but think back on the work that Michael did to alleviate hunger and feel that he must be saying . . . "Hello!!! People???? IRAN needs you NOW. Celebrate Michael's gifts to the world but don't let that celebration give the Mullahs a moment of peace.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Iran Updates (VIDEO): Live-Blogging The Uprising

A Peoples Revolution in Iran Calls for A Peoples Army of Support

Obama should Encourage Citizens of the World to Unite Around Iranian Freedom, creating a movement that draws its moral authority from free people everywhere.

President Obama has taken the right measured approach in this crisis. Not because we shouldn't be speaking out for the rights of Iran's citizens and for the rightness of transparancy and integrity within a system that claims the mantle of democracy, but because in the context of this crisis, governing institutions are irrellevant - even counter-productive to the debate.

The cadre of thugs controlling Iran - by virtue of a blatantly rigged election and the brutal suppression of their own citizens exercising what should be their right to demand redress - have relinquished their moral authority to speak for the people of Iran.

There is nothing to be gained and much to be lost if President Obama gives the Mullahs in Iran a reason to hang the US around the necks of protestors. This is why even those who have cried out for support in Iran have asked for INTERNATIONAL support not US support; and most simply agree that the US government should try not to become entangled in the crisis.

On the other hand, "we the people" are under no such constraints. The people of the world have been speaking out and will continue to so do. "We the People" DO have the moral authority to weigh in, where governments may not tread.

As we weigh in on the side of the people of Iran who yearn for real freedom, let us also not miss the other lessons that we can glean from this crisis:

1. Iran has a deep well of indigenous democratic thought. If thoughtful, honest and independent leaders emerge from this crisis, now or in the near future, Iran can be a central force for good in this troubled region of the world;

2. Democratic nations could be weighing in on the Community of Nations issue. Letting those who are on the fence in Iran know that under the right circumstances Iran could truly become a leader in the struggle for a more peaceful and democratic world.

3. Democracy cannot cohabitate with Theocracy. Any nation that views itself primarily based on a religious identity - Christian, Islamic, Buddhist or otherwise - will see Democratic thought and institutions poisoned by the toxic brew of theocratic intollerance and despotism in the guise of government.
About Iranian Election
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

George Will: Right-Wing Attacks On Obama's Iran Response "Foolish Criticism" (VIDEO)

George Will has always been the "thinking person's conservative" and this commentary demonstrates why. However, for some of the neocons who have taken the position that Obama is not being forceful enough their rhetoric is far more insidious than merely "foolish", as this implies that they do not know what they are doing. I believe they know exactly what they are doing and, given the gravity of the danger to US interests inherent in their approach, it borders on sedition.



Paul Wolfewicz and his ilk are in large part responsible for the tar baby that is Iraq and now they seek to further entangle us in the quagmire of the Middle East.



There is always room for genuine disagreement on these matters, and President Obama has been criticized by those from both the left and the right, most of whom would fall into the "foolish comments" category. Not so the Neocons who once again would endanger the long term interests of the United States in order to advanced their own short term political objectives.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Supreme Leader's Gamble: Iran's Crisis Deepens

There are many lessons to be learned from the events in Iran. But one profound lesson is the toxic brew that results from mixing religion and democracy. It is not a democracy when any one religion holds authority over the government. Any group that views their country as a Christian or Moslem or Hindu or Buddist nation is a danger to the very notion of democratic republic. Iran will not truly be a democracy until the mullahs go back to the mosques.
About Middle East
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Peacock


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