Daily Archives: March 17, 2022

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Western sanctions have wiped out "30 years of economic progress" in Russia in just a few weeks, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday.

Western countries and trade blocs imposed heavy financial sanctions on Russia after President Vladimir Putin sent troops to attack Ukraine in late February. The measures include banning transactions with Russia's central bank, cutting off some Russian banks' access to the SWIFT international-payments system, banning Russian oil imports into the US, andblocking the trade of luxury goods.

The measures have helped send the ruble to a record low and triggered soaring inflation in Russia.

"The unprecedented costs we've imposed with allies and partners have reversed 30 years of economic progress, something President Putin himself pushed for, and that has happened in less than a month," Psaki said at a press briefing Tuesday.

Russia holds around $640 billion in foreign reserves, which were targeted by Western sanctions so that the country couldn't use them to prop up its economy. Russia's finance minister told Interfax that this had frozen around $300 billion of reserves.

"He can't use these rainy day funds to support his war in Ukraine," Psaki said.

She added that inflation in Russia has been "rampant."

"The ruble is less than a penny," she said. "It's the worst-performing emerging market currency."

Nathanael Tilahun, an assistant professor and sanctions expert at Coventry University's Research Centre for Financial & Corporate Integrity, previously told Insider that the sanctions so far would "basically bring Russia's economy to its knees overnight, completely," and that over the next few months their effects"would trickle down to every single individual Russian."

The West has also targeted sanctions at some Russian individuals and has frozen the foreign-held assets of Putin, other Kremlin leaders, andseveral high-profile oligarchs. Psaki said that Europe had seized at least five yachts owned by Russian oligarchs.

"Our actions have hit hard at the things President Putin cares about the most: degrading his military, [the country's] access to cutting-edge technology, and [its] ability to project power and influence," Psaki said.

Butsome critics say the sanctions haven't gone far enough, in that they have yet to persuade Putin to call off the invasion. Exiled Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky told CNN that blocking all Putin's bankers and sanctioning every oligarch was the "only thing" that would stop Russia'scontinued assault on Ukraine.

Link:

Western sanctions reversed 30 years of Russian economic progress: Psaki - Business Insider

BYU senior Teagan Graham celebrates a good play during the WCC game against Gonzaga at the Marriott Center in Provo on Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022. (Jaren Wilkey, BYU Photo)

BYU senior forward Teagan Graham plays basketball with a lot of passion and heart, often showing her emotions on the court.

But if you really want to see her fired up, ask her about efforts to level the playing field between mens and womens college basketball, particularly as part of the NCAA tournaments.

Im really excited about that, Graham said Sunday after the Cougars earned the No. 6 seed for the Big Dance. I think big things are coming in that area.

The fact the BYUs matchup was shown on Selection Sunday, just after the bracket was revealed for the mens tournament was announced, was an example of the drive for change. The womens tournament also is also titled March Madness, just like the mens event.

Grahams efforts to help people understand what female college athletes go through go beyond just her experiences as a player.

I just finished my masters thesis on it and I did a podcast called Second Class citizens, which is on Spotify and on Apple Podcasts now that looks at gender equity in Division I sports, Graham said. I think theres going to be big changes, especially this tournament.

She believes that the need to demonstrate that female athletes deserve the same respect as their male counterparts is becoming much more clear.

I think theres a lot of pressure on the NCAA to drastically improve from last years tournament, Graham said. Obviously everyone knows about the weight rooms and all the disparities from last year. Its also about having the bigger conversation about promotion and womens coverage and investment. Its asking all the big questions about why women dont get more or whats happening with TV coverage and things like that.

She knows that change like this wont happen overnight but shes optimistic about the possibilities moving forward.

I think theres a long way to go, Graham said. But its vital that this conversation is held right now around this time to make sure that it is still being had with people who have power and influence to make change.

BYU head coach Jeff Judkins has coached the Cougar womens team since 2001 and thus has seen things evolving over the last two decades. He also likes the direction things are going for women athletes right now.

I think its a big plus, Judkins said. I just think its so exciting to be able to have a lot of the same things that the men have. I think these these ladies deserve it. They work hard. They do whatever it takes. Basketball is becoming way more popular in the female game with more crowds, more support, better coaches, the players are getting a lot better TV exposure. All those things are coming into place and its exciting to be part of it. Twenty years ago when I started it wasnt like what it is right now and I think its just going to keep growing.

Judkins, Graham and the rest of the BYU squad are currently getting ready for their first-round matchup in the NCAA tournament.

The Cougars earned a No. 6-seed and will play No. 11-seed Villanova on Saturday in Ann Arbor, Michigan at 1 p.m. EDT. That game will be broadcast on ESPNEWS.

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BYU women's basketball thrilled by progress towards leveling the playing field - Daily Herald

The Logan County Coalition on Aging is getting ready to unveil its Age Friendly Survey Thermometer Monday.

LCCOA wants to know how to make the county a better age-friendly community and, to that end, is circulating surveys throughout Logan County to gather data that will help create a plan for making Logan County more age-friendly.

Peggy Stoltenberg, Partnership and Project Development Manager for Colorado State Universitys Northeast Regional Engagement Center in Sterling said, the survey is part of a two-year project. The surveys have been circulating for several weeks and they hope to have that part of the project finished by the end of March.

The unveiling will occur on the Logan County Courthouse Square at 12:30 p.m. City and county leaders and community champions will be on hand, and a reception will follow at the CSU Engagement Center across the street.

In 2020, the Engagement Center, Logan County and Logan County Economic Development Corp. applied for an age friendly designation from the American Association of Retired Persons. An age-friendly designation means that a community has pledged to come together to plan how it can improve the lives of residents of all ages.

AARP declared Logan County an age friendly community in January 2021, expecting a plan to be developed by January of 2023. The first step in creating that plan is a 45-question survey that asks about all aspects of life in Logan County.

The data derived from the surveys will be valuable for other purposes as well.

A lot of times, we apply for grants for things we know we need because people have told us (we need them) but the people with the grants ask for data to show the need, Stoltenberg said. This will give us raw data we can use to show the need.

The surveys are available online in both English and in Spanish, and at the following locations: Jackson Insurance Agency, Family Resource Center, Salud, Sterling Public Library, Dr. Charles Gerks office, the Engagement Centers Facebook page and Logan Countys Facebook page.

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Coalition on Aging to unveil survey progress thermometer Monday - Journal Advocate

WhatsUp Gold 2022 leverages the powerful capabilities of Progress Flowmon to help organizations improve the visibility, security and reliability of their infrastructure

BEDFORD, Mass., March 16, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Progress (Nasdaq: PRGS), the trusted provider ofinfrastructure software, today announced the latest release of Progress WhatsUp Gold, its award-winning IT infrastructure monitoring software. With todays WhatsUp Gold release, less than six months after Progress acquisition of Kemp, Progress introduces integration with the comprehensive network traffic performance monitoring and diagnostics capabilities of Progress Flowmon along with the monitoring of Progress LoadMaster. Progress now offers organizations a comprehensive and easy-to-understand view of their networks performance from a single pane of glass.

With hybrid and remote work environments, system administrators are increasingly facing the challenge of effectively managing complex, multi-vendor, hybrid environments that span beyond their network edge. Powerful, vendor-agnostic visibility is required in order to accomplish this pivotal, ever-present task while minimizing business impact from service issues and downtime. Now more than ever, the ability to synthesize insights from multiple infrastructure vantage points is critical.

WhatsUp Gold 2022 builds on its interactive mapping interface and total ecosystem visibility through integration with Flowmon that surfaces deep network performance insights in a single dashboard. IT operations teams can now simplify troubleshooting with consolidated access to WhatsUp Gold native infrastructure monitoring view combined with advanced network telemetry. When an organization deploys WhatsUp Gold 2022, when network issues occur, time to resolution is optimized which reduces impact on the business. Joint deployments of WhatsUp Gold and Flowmon also mean that customers can benefit from anomaly detection capabilities that help to improve their overall security posture, reducing the risk of threat actors and infrastructure compromise.

To manage all aspects of hybrid infrastructure monitoring, organizations often end up with dozens of independent tools that dont natively work together and may be collecting the same data leading to significant levels of inefficiency, said Jason Dover, VP, Product Strategy, Enterprise Application Experience, Progress. To reduce complexity and increase efficiency, a unified approach to network infrastructure and security visibility is required. By integrating WhatsUp Gold with Flowmon, Progress enables customers with the right information in context, to identify the leading indicators of infrastructure performance and network issues in order to prevent them from happening in the first place.

In addition to Flowmon integration, this release of WhatsUp Gold introduces native monitoring of LoadMaster ADCs and Microsoft Teams alert group notifications.

WhatsUp Gold IT infrastructure monitoring solution empowers operations teams to monitor and manage their business applications and the resources that support them to ensure high levels of performance and availability. WhatsUp Gold was named a 2021 Network Monitoring Emotional Footprint Champion by SoftwareReviews, a division of IT research and advisory firm Info-Tech Research Group, and regularly receives high marks from peer-to-peer review sites such as G2.

The latest release of WhatsUp Gold is available today. For more information, visit https://www.whatsupgold.com.

About ProgressDedicated to propelling business forward in a technology-driven world, Progress (Nasdaq: PRGS) helps businesses drive faster cycles of innovation, fuel momentum and accelerate their path to success. As the trusted provider ofthe bestproducts to develop, deploy and manage high-impact applications, Progress enables customers to build the applications and experiences they need, deploy where and how they want andmanage it all safely and securely.Hundreds of thousands of enterprises, including 1,700 software companies and 3.5 milliondevelopers, depend on Progress to achieve their goalswith confidence.Learn more atwww.progress.com, and follow us on LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Progress, WhatsUp, Kemp, LoadMaster and Flowmon are trademarks or registered trademarks of Progress Software Corporation and/or one of its subsidiaries or affiliates in the US and other countries. Any other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

Press Contacts:Kim Baker Progress +1-781-280-4000 pr@progress.com

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Progress Introduces Enhanced IT Infrastructure Observability and Security with Latest Release of WhatsUp Gold - GlobeNewswire

Treatment resistance to cancer therapy can be a major stumbling block in a patients clinical journey, but it can be addressed with combination therapy or personalized medicine.

Personalized medicine uses patient-specific information to tailor treatment strategies to each individual, reducing the likelihood of treatment resistance occurring. OncoHost uses proteomic analyses and AI-driven technology to give insights into how a patient will respond to treatment, equipping the patient with the information to put them in the drivers seat of their care journey.

Technology Networks spoke with the CEO of OncoHost, Dr. Ofer Sharon, to find out more about how OncoHost enables patient-specific treatment plans based on personalized medicine approaches.

Katie Brighton (KB): Can you tell us about how personalized oncology treatments have developed over the last decade? How has this changed the patient experience?

Ofer Sharon (OS): Over the years, drug-based anti-cancer treatment has evolved from a non-specific carpet bombing approach to targeted therapies biologic therapies that target specific cancer cells that harbor driver mutations. In addition, over the last decade there has been a rise in immunotherapies used in the clinic.

Immunotherapy is a new type of anti-cancer treatment that activates the patients immune response towards the cancer. Targeted therapies offer improved response rates with a different profile of adverse events, in that patients respond to treatment for longer, and are more likely to respond well. While this approach to cancer management improves the outcome of survival, immunotherapy also greatly improves clinical outcomes.

One issue with targeted therapies is that they are only relevant for a minority of patients for whom driver mutations can be identified. At some point during treatment, the patients may experience cancer resistance breakthrough and they eventually stop responding to their given treatment. With immunotherapy, a certain percentage of patients respond until they eventually experience this resistance breakthrough. This issue stems from the inability to pre-emptively determine which patient will respond and benefit from the course of treatment and which will not. This inability to predict patient response results in wasted time, unnecessary adverse events, frustration, despair and uncertainty.

KB: How does treatment resistance occur in cancer patients? Are there particular cancer types that are more likely to become treatment-resistant? How can we combat this?

OS: Resistance to treatment is a multifactorial process. Resistance occurs when cancer cells have a certain molecular trait that causes them to be resistant to a specific drug because of biological mechanisms related to the bodys response to the anti-cancer treatment. This phenomenon, known as host response, is one of the major reasons for treatment resistance today.

Resistance mechanisms are generally diverse and non-specific to certain cancer types and may present themselves as primary resistance, intrinsic resistance or acquired resistance. Combating resistance requires several strategies. Combination therapies, along with therapies that have different mechanisms of action, are well-known approaches used to mitigate treatment resistance. Another approach is personalized medicine. Personalized medicine is a specific approach that involves adapting the treatment plan to fit the patients specific needs rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all treatment protocol.

KB: What benefits do proteomics analyses and artificial intelligence (AI) bring to understanding which treatment is best for the patient?

OS: Proteins are the building blocks and drivers of biological processes in our body. Analyzing proteins allows us to gain insight into the complex interplay of the tumor, the therapy and the host (patient). This complex biological interaction involves intrinsic cancer cell characteristics with the bodys host response to treatment and is the underlying reason for treatment resistance.

There are thousands of proteins in the body and making clinical sense of these protein levels and dynamics requires sophisticated mathematical and bioinformatic tools. Combining plasma protein analysis with machine learning tools enables us to answer three clinical questions:

1. Will the patient respond?

2. Why does resistance occur?

3. What may be the next line of therapy?

The key factor of this combination analysis is that it is all completely personalized, specific and relevant to each individual patient.

KB: How does OncoHost help patients make decisions on their treatment plan?

OS: We provide oncologists with insight on the response probability for individual patients for the first year of treatment, analysis of the biological pathways involved in resistance and identification of potential resistance-associated proteins. We also provide analysis on the drugs that are targeting those resistance-associated proteins. This analysis allows us to intervene early and support the clinical decision-making process with a significantly improved level of insight.

KB: As personalized treatments are coming closer to being widely used in the clinic, are there any considerations that need to be taken into account regarding handling patient data?

OS: As with any other type of personal health information, we need to operate within the boundaries set by legislation and patient privacy standards and best practices. HIPAA and GDPR are good examples of those measures.

KB: Where can you see personalized therapy heading in the future?

OS: In the future, diagnostics is going to be based on several assessments across the continuum of the disease. Early detection, treatment guidance, identification of intrinsic resistance, acquired resistance and different treatment strategies are all examples of the future course of diagnostics. I believe that the data to identify these factors and guide clinical decisions will be based on multiomic analysis at different points in time. This will allow for the guidance of clinical decisions that are specifically matched for each individual patient.

Dr. Ofer Sharon was speaking to Katie Brighton, Scientific Copywriter for Technology Networks.

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Driving Progress in Personalized Cancer Therapy - Technology Networks

Linda Leuzzi

Twelve months after its official ribbon-cutting launch in Patchogue, GiGis Playhouse Long Island Down Syndrome Achievement Center has expanded its programs, increased its volunteer and participating family numbers, and has a glam fundraiser coming up on March 19 at the Southward Ho Country Club in Bay Shore.

Not bad for a not-for-profit that doesnt charge for programs offered to Down syndrome prenatal, toddlers, adults, and also parents.

Of the programs that emerged since last years three offerings, weve added a bunch, said Mike Cirigliano, board president.

We now have Fantastic Friends, interjected board member and program chair Elizabeth Rahne. Its a socialization program for adults. They do different types of activities like karaoke, role playing, and games like Minute to Win. Theres also Leaps and Bounds for children 3 to 6, designed to help with sensory and motor capability.

A We Dance program is instructed by a Stage Door School of Dance Studio teacher once a month. Its designed for children with special needs, Rahne added. Weve had little ones and teens. Its a beloved program. Theres also Movement to Music and Art Expression for 5 year olds and up.

A call from Kilwins Patchogue owner John Murray came in for Cirigliano during the Advance interview. Murray had been asked if he would participate in a Fantastic Friends visit with GiGis participants on March 28. Murray called to say yes.

We want to travel with them and bring them to businesses that support us, Cirigliano said. Well start here in Patchogue and expand to other places.

Im looking forward to it, joked Rahne of the anticipated ice cream visit.

Its really simple, said Murray when contacted. They are doing great work there. I have a cousin with Down syndrome and its an easy way to support the organization. Its got to be great for these families to bring their kids there and interact through their programs.

Cirigliano said the group will meet at the popular ice cream store on Main Street.

John will introduce himself, talk about what he offers, and give a tour of his business, he said. Then hell have them make one of his products, which theyll sit and eat afterwards.

The Southward Ho gala is a big deal. How did they pull that off?

Its due to the volunteers who want to see it through, said Rahne, admitting to nail biting along the way. We already have 170 seats sold so far.

This place is definitely inhabited by grace.

Vivid donated Sherwin Williams paint hues of deep purple, tropical blues, warm corals, which radiate from the walls, including an emerging Patchogue Arts Council mural in the Sensory Room. Best of All Walls recognition celebrating participants milestones are scattered throughout. There are Thank You plaques to sponsors like PeraBell Food Bar, Dublin Deck and Donatina. Rudys Bar & Grill is also a biggie. But perhaps the most relevant ambiance tap is the large GiGis Playhouse logo: Be Accepting, Be Generous, Be Kind, with a heart imbedded with a G in the Innovation Board Room in the Open Play Area.

Theres no dearth of volunteers who sign up for one project or another. Griffin Jacobs, 18, an artist from The Summit School in Queens, for example, drives from his home in Glen Cove to help out via an internship program. Hes great, said Cirigliano, as Jacobs turned from his project in the volunteer room to say hello. Hes working on our annual sponsorships and created a gorgeous chalkboard for us.

Cirigliano, president and Cirigliano Agency owner, has been dogged in his commitment to establish the Patchogue headquarters with his board members for several years.

(He even tapped the Islip Bulletin Inspiration Award winner Keith Caputo from Center Moriches last year for a comedy show fundraiser. Caputo will attend the gala as a table captain.)

Cirigliano is godfather to his brother and sister-in-laws twins, nephew Louis and niece Bella. Bella has Down syndrome; Cirigliano spends a lot of time with the family.

The Patchogue headquarters, with a parking lot and entrance located off Austin Street (the location spans to Jayne Avenue), is the only GiGis Playhouse Down Syndrome Achievement Center on Long Island, with coverage to the east end and to western Nassau. Currently, over 50 GiGis Playhouse locations operate across the country.

Cirigliano keeps careful track of progress from their startup and can quickly get numbers of families registered with them from a database as well as other numbers. In 2018, we had 279 families, he said. In 2021, its 1,427. Our volunteer numbers started [in] 2018 with 10; in 2021, its up to 153. Its 99 percent volunteer-run and 100 percent funded by donations.

Their goal was to raise $200,000 to cover operating expenses for the first year. Their budget this year is $215,000.

Our big event was cancelled last year, Cirigliano said. But this year, Nancy Gianni, founder and chief belief officer of GiGis Playhouse, and her daughter, GiGi, are the special guests at the gala. (Gianni has been recognized as a CNN Hero among other recognitions.) They are flying in from South Barrington, Ill., and will attend a brunch the next day for those families who cant make the gala.

True to form, were already thinking about expansion, Cirigliano said. We want to start a Hugs and Mugs, a nonprofit caf, and a GiGis University.

Read more:

Progress with life possibilities and a gala, one year later: GiGi's Playhouse LI to celebrate at Southward Ho - Long Island Advance

By: Matt Rothman

The Coral Springs Charter boys and girls tennis teams are young but compete extremely hard, winning several matches this year.

The boys team is currently 3-4 through their first seven matches and has several individual players performing exceptionally well.

Despite being a young group competing in one of the toughest divisions in South Florida, the Panthers have been competitive, most noticeably in their win over NSU University School.

Leading the way is seventh-grader Gautum Arun, who is 5-2 this year and number three singles. Santiago Garcia and Justin Humphrey have combined to win four singles matches, while Christian Silva picked up one victory.

Baylee Effendi and Anish Kommera picked up two of the six wins in doubles. Garcia is 2-3, while Silva and Arun had the other two.

What I have liked so far about this season is getting back to some normalcy with my players and routines, said Head Coach Melissa Shank. It is great seeing how these young players can work together and cheer each other on.

After several players graduated from the Panthers back-to-back run to regionals and states, the girls team is also turning to some younger players.

Madisen Clark has been outstanding, helping the Panthers to a 3-4 record. She is also in singles and doubles, while Juhnyee See has three wins in both.

Brooke Clarke has five total wins this year, while Ashley Geary, Brianna Geary, Aviya Danon, Marilynn Ghantous, Chloe Caires, and Brooke Caires had wins in singles.

Moving forward, Coach Shank would like to see her team be more consistent and remind themselves of the little things that make a huge impact in matches.

I cannot express how much these students mean to me and the kindness they show to me as a coach and to others, adding, I enjoy how they are always cheering each other on and reminding me of why I love being their coach.

Coral Springs Charter Tennis Team. {Courtesy}

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Coral Springs Charter Boys and Girls Tennis Show Progress Early in Season Coral Springs Talk - Coral Springs Talk

Dr. Meika Neblett, Chief Medical Officer and Chief Academic Officer, Community Medical Center presented a Press Ganey session on March 15, Ending Racism Together: The Strategy and Tactics of Progress. Dr. Nebletts presentation included a discussion on her leadership of Goal #1 of Ending Racism Together, the system-wide effort to address health equity and end systemic racism throughout the RWJBarnabas Health enterprise, with a review of the Systems organizational goals and major milestones achieved. She also shared insights on sequencing cultural change, the primary elements of Ending Racism Together, transparency, implicit bias training, initial feedback and outcomes and lessons learned. The session allowed participants to understand that efforts in the areas of diversity, health equity, inclusion, and antiracism requires strategic, intentional efforts and tactical actions to achieve success.

Learn more about Ending Racism Together at RWJBarnabas Health.

Excerpt from:

Mar 16, 2022 Ending Racism Together: The Strategy and Tactics of Progress Presented at Press Ganey Conference - RWJBarnabas Health

CHICAGO The city on Tuesday marked the two-year anniversary of its first known COVID-19 loss: Patricia Frieson, a 61-year-old woman from Auburn Gresham.

Frieson was the first known Chicagoan to die from COVID-19 on March 16, 2020; days later, her sister also died from the virus. Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Dr. Allison Arwady, head of the Chicago Department of Public Health, honored the women during a news conference Tuesday and noted that while Chicago has made strides in fighting COVID-19 in the past two years, there is still a ways to go.

In particular, more needs to be done to ensure all Chicagoans have equitable access to health care and are getting vaccinated against COVID-19, officials said.

Arwady and Lightfoot said officials feared what impact the pandemic would have on Chicagos communities of color even during the early days of COVID-19, as they knew those communities struggled more with issues like unequal access to healthy foods and health care.

Their fears were realized when data about the virus began to pour in, showing Black and Latino Chicagoans were seeing disproportionately high numbers of cases and deaths, Lightfoot said.

That gap has lessened with time, but concerns remain namely, that vaccinations continue to lag among Black Chicagoans, especially those living on the South Side.

About 71 percent of white Chicagoans are fully vaccinated, but that number dips to 67.3 percent among Latino Chicagoans and 55.4 percent for Black Chicagoans.

We cannot stop working until vaccination percentages for every demographic in our city are as close to 100 percent as possible, Lightfoot said. At another point, she said, We do have more work to be done. The pandemic is not over.

The city partnered with community organizations who shared accurate information about COVID-19 residents and recruited ambassadors who went door to door in some neighborhoods to talk to people about getting vaccinated. The earliest vaccines were also prioritized for communities of color hit hard by the virus.

But some residents have hesitated to get the shots, citing concerns about misinformation or needing more time to think about and research the vaccines.

Lightfoot said the city is now looking at other strategies it can use to build trust and vaccinate more Chicagoans.

We have literally tried every kind of strategy, from working with our partners in communities, offering various financial incentives, using national influencers, using local influencers, going door to door, vaccinating at home , Lightfoot said. So, were looking at other ways in which we can really focus on those ZIP codes, in particular, that are under-vaccinated .

Officials will work with stakeholders in less-vaccinated communities to drive home the realities of the virus and how it disproportionately killed and sickened Black Chicagoans, especially during the recent Omicron wave.

I dont believe scare tactics work, but I do believe youve gotta tell people the truth and equip them with the data so you can make educated choices, Lightfoot said.

But data shows many people arent saying theyll never get vaccinated most of them are still just saying they want to think about the shots and get educated, Lightfoot said.

Arwady said the city will also keep up its at-home vaccination program and is working on how it can ensure every resident is connected to a trusted health care provider who can provide them with accurate information about getting vaccinated.

You start getting into those conversations, building some of those relationships. I do think thats going to be a place to then sort of bring vaccinations into that conversation, Arwady said. We are not done.

Similarly, the city isnt done with its work to make all of health care more equitable in Chicago, the officials said.

Even before the pandemic, Black Chicagoans live nine years less than white residents, on average, Arwady said.

With that in mind, officials worked to create more equitable health care programs and strategies that targeted COVID-19 but will last beyond the pandemic, so they can be used to target other aspects of residents care.

Vaccinations:

In Illinois, about 8.1 million people or 64.1 percent of the states 12.7 million people are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to state data.

Across the state, 8,554 vaccine doses are being administered per day, based on a seven-day rolling average.

Illinois and Chicago have administered at least 21,248,434 vaccine doses of the 25,620,845 provided to them.

City data shows more than 1.8 million Chicagoans or 69.7 percent of all residents are fully vaccinated, and 77 percent of all Chicagoans have gotten at least one shot.

Everyone 5 and older is eligible to get vaccinated in Chicago.

COVID-19 vaccinations are free and do not require insurance. Anyone can call the citys coronavirus hotline at 312-746-4835 to get more information on how and where to get vaccinated in their community.

The numbers:

Since Monday, 32 Illinoisans were reported dead from COVID-19.

At least 33,139 people have died from COVID-19 in Illinois, and another 4,253 deaths are probably related to the virus, according to the state.

The state reported 1,574 cases since Monday. That brings the total number of confirmed cases in Illinois up to 3,049,616.

Since Monday, 56,744 tests were reported statewide. In all, 56,009,446 tests have been reported in Illinois.

Illinois seven-day case positivity rate was at 1.4 percent. The figure represents the percentage of people testing positive among recent tests. It was at 1.3 percent Monday.

Illinois seven-day test positivity rate, which measures the percentage of tests that were positive, was at 1.4 percent. It was at 1.4 percent Monday.

As of Monday night, 94 people with COVID-19 were in the ICU and 47 people with COVID-19 were using ventilators in Illinois.

In Chicago, nine deaths were reported since Monday. There have been at least 7,312 deaths from COVID-19 in Chicago. The city is seeing an average of more than one person dying per day, down 50 percent from a week ago.

Chicago has had 321 confirmed cases reported since Monday. Its had a total of 561,992 confirmed cases. An average of 132 confirmed cases are being reported per day, down 15 percent from a week ago.

Testing in Chicago is down 8 percent from a week ago.

Chicagos positivity rate was at .7 percent, down from .8 percent a week ago.

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Chicago's First COVID Victim Died 2 Years Ago. The City's Made Progress Since Then, But 'We Are Not Done,' Officials Say - Block Club Chicago

The need to do something impactful about the climate crisis is well known and widely discussed. At COP26 last year, businesses and governments came together to pledge their commitment to net-zero and most organizations recognize that having sustainability policies in place is almost non-negotiable. Increasingly, customers, suppliers and investors are focusing on green targets and plans, so not only are these policies important morally, but also commercially. However, without considerable intervention net-zero policies could fail.

Unfortunately, exaggerated climate claims and fears of greenwashing breed mistrust, but as we charge towards the complete climate crisis threshold, it should be expected that those in power are doing everything they can to mitigate the impending disaster.

Unfortunately, a report published by Carbon Market Watch and NewClimate Institute, a German science think tank, has revealed that this is far from the case among some of the worlds most polluting companies. Many of these businesses do not have realistic sustainability goals and policies, which is a clear indicator that net-zero policies need to change if theres any chance of preventing climate disaster.

It is important to emphasize here that the lack of a realistic net-zero plan is not always a result of laziness or lack of care. Decarbonizing a world that has been built on burning fossil fuels is not easy and unrealistic goals are often the result of the complex nature of the task.

We have seen this as a city council currently modelling its citys net-zero roadmap using IESs Digital Twin software mapped the national climate action plan, set out by central government across their city using the Digital Twin technology. By using the Digital Twin to assess the impact of the interventions to be taken as set out by the national guidelines, it was revealed that the city would be falling short of its targets by 20%, indicating that those savings had to be made elsewhere and the actions needed to be more dramatic than the guidance set out by the government.

Climate change poses an urgent threat demanding decisive action. Communities around the world are already experiencing increased climate impacts, from droughts to floods to rising seas. The World Economic Forum's Global Risks Report continues to rank these environmental threats at the top of the list.

To limit global temperature rise to well below 2C and as close as possible to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, it is essential that businesses, policy-makers, and civil society advance comprehensive near- and long-term climate actions in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change.

The World Economic Forum's Climate Initiative supports the scaling and acceleration of global climate action through public and private-sector collaboration. The Initiative works across several workstreams to develop and implement inclusive and ambitious solutions.

This includes the Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, a global network of business leaders from various industries developing cost-effective solutions to transitioning to a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy. CEOs use their position and influence with policy-makers and corporate partners to accelerate the transition and realize the economic benefits of delivering a safer climate.

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Net-zero plans cannot be dates, strategies and numbers pulled from thin air; it is far too late for vague promises now. It is a problem rooted in science, and therefore solutions must also be science-led. The good news is, technology is rapidly evolving in response to the issue, and there are tools available now that can ensure net-zero plans are realistic and impactful, rather than a box-check exercise to keep customers and stakeholders pacified.

Decarbonizing the built environment would be a true game changer in the climate change battle, although its enormous carbon footprint, which accounts for up to 42% of UK carbon emissions, is frequently overlooked. Technology is the key to unlocking this as the worlds building stock is far too vast for a human brain and spreadsheet to realistically work through.

While the digital twin has been instrumental in helping the city council see that national guidance will not get them where they need to be to achieve their net-zero target, this same digital twin model, which reflects the real-life energy use of the city, can now be used to test solutions that will recoup those shortfalls.

For example, what if their retrofitting programme for public buildings was brought forward by half a decade, or if investment in renewable installations, such as solar PV, was accelerated? Using technology in this way means that a roadmap informed by science and evidence can be crafted, rather than relying on guesswork and assumptions. If all cities in the world were to use this technology to see where they truly are on their decarbonization journey, and how they can accelerate and improve current net-zero plans, hope for future generations would be much higher.

Digital twin technology allows for clusters of buildings to be grouped together, tested and optimized to minimize carbon emissions.

Digital twin technology allows for clusters of buildings to be grouped together, tested and optimized to minimize carbon emissions before connecting up with other clusters to ensure they are interacting efficiently. This can start with one street of houses and then be scaled up to entire neighbourhoods, cities, counties, countries and continents.

On smaller scales, corporations can map out their building premises and supply chains to ensure they are running as efficiently as possible. This brings the secondary benefit of keeping energy costs down, something that is desirable as the price of energy continues to skyrocket. They can also use the technology to assess other socioeconomic factors alongside energy, carbon and cost metrics for example, the comfort, health and wellbeing of their building occupants and employees to deliver on a broad range of ESG KPIs.

Without science and tech-led solutions which give definitive data, net-zero is little more than a vanity statement.

When the shortcomings of the worlds largest carbon emitters are revealed and just three out of 25 carbon-hungry corporations display legitimate decarbonization dedication, it can be easy to feel pessimistic about the possibility of a net-zero future.

The challenge now is to bring to light that it is possible, but it needs to start with well thought out, data-driven net-zero policies, or else we will reach the point of irreversible damage, gifting future generations the existential problems runaway climate change will bring.

Written by

Don McLean, Founder & CEO, Integrated Environmental Solutions

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

Read more:

Could cities hold the key to accelerating net-zero progress? - World Economic Forum