Category Archives: Intentional Communities

UW and the community | UW Notebook

September 15, 2022

The New Directions in Public Gardens speaker series started in May and will conclude with the final speaker on Sept. 20.University of Washington

Botanical gardens historically are exclusive spaces, but the University of Washington is working to change that.

Many gardens originated as private spaces for predominantly white and wealthy individuals, said UW Botanic Gardens director Christina Owen. The collections were often curated through a process of stealing and renaming before the gardens were gifted as land to cities and universities.

Theres a history of colonialism in many botanic gardens, said Owen. That is the bedrock on which were standing. Plants and collections that exist throughout the world were collected in ways that did not honor the people and did not honor the plants themselves. Theyre driven by the colonial age. Thats a history that all gardens must grapple with.

Thats the challenge for the UW Botanic Gardens, which includes both the Washington Park Arboretum and the Center for Urban Horticulture. When Owen was hired in July 2021, UWBG already had an Equity and Justice Committee and was organizing an ongoing speaker series, New Directions in Public Gardens, which explores how public gardens can evolve to meet the needs of local communities.

Owen is shifting the focus from bottom-up initiatives to work that is supported with and through leadership.

Part of what were looking at is having regular updates with our leadership team, Owen said, and having the leadership team get more engaged in equity and social justice work and developing better onboarding. One of my big long-term goals is to see an increase in the diversity of staff. I think that starts with us and making sure that our culture is supportive for candidates of color and for employees of color.

That is a major barrier for public gardens, according to a national needs assessment recently published by the IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility) Center for Public Gardens, an initiative housed at Denver Botanic Gardens that helps public gardens become more accessible spaces. The upcoming report found that lack of institutional diversification could be addressed through adjustments to hiring processes and procedures.

The other piece is the need for training and professional development, said Mae Lin Plummer, director of the IDEA Center and a speaker in UWBGs New Directions series. The way to support intuitional diversification is through training. The other part is organizational culture and leadership the awareness that there needs to be an internal culture shift as a key step.

Theres a lot of fear, a lack of buy-in or resistance to change. You can do all the training and all the changes you want, but its basically superficial unless theres a culture change.

A new direction

The New Directions speaker series started in May, with past guests addressing topics like engaging with local Indigenous populations, youth leadership development, job training programs and opportunities for public land to support urban food systems and engage with BIPOC communities.

Sean M. Watts, principal of SM Watts Consulting and co-founder of Community Land Conservancy, will give the final talk on Sept. 20. Watts lecture will explore how public gardens can support the work to drive environmental and land use policy and help white-led organizations act on diversity, equity and inclusion.

I think were learning a lot about the priorities of the communities that we want to connect with, said Jessica Farmer adult education supervisor for UWBG. Im realizing that if were going to build relationships, we need to be addressing the priorities of those communities.

Plummer suggested ending the speaker series with a town hall, which is now scheduled for Sept. 21. The half-day, co-creative workshop will help create an action plan to address community challenges.

We invite people from within the region, said Plummer, who plans to use the town hall as a prototype, and we start by saying, What were some of the big things that really resonated from the lecture series? What do we want to change? Can we set some actions?

UWBGs outreach will continue on October with the Urban Forest Symposium. This years event will focus on bridging the gap between tribal practices and local government. The Coast Salish people have been included in the planning.

Were going to be looking at Indigenous peoples access to and role in the management of the local urban forests, Farmer said. Were looking at an identity shift for our organization, but we need to hear from others in the community and not have it be an insular conversation.

Growing gardens

UWBG has collections from around the world. In the Pacific Connections Garden alone, visitors can view plants from Cascadia, Australia, China, Chile and New Zealand.

Its important to be intentional and thoughtful about these plants and places, how theyre collected and grown and the meaning to the people that are from there, Owen said.

The history of how corrected were curated has factored into the explicit and implicit exclusion from botanical gardens, said Farmer. UWBG is working to undo a perception of exclusivity by hosting programs like the speaker series and holding a summer camp that offers scholarships and is otherwise filled through a lottery system.

UWBG also launched Conversations with Staff. Each meeting is centered around a single topic examples include the colonial past of botanical gardens, segregation in Seattle and problematic plant names and Equity and Justice Committee members distribute resources and materials for staff to view before attending the discussion.

Its really helped establish some common goals and common identity around this work, Farmer said. Previously, some on our staff felt like diversity, equity and inclusion work was the role of our education and outreach team but didnt see how it fit into their work with facilities or horticulture. Its really helped the gardeners see how much of an ambassador they are to the public when theyre out on the grounds.

For more information, contact Owen at crowen@uw.edu or Farmer at jsfarmer@uw.edu.

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New direction for UW Botanic Gardens focuses on diversity, equity and inclusion - University of Washington

The Chicago Jazz Philharmonic returns to the Kehrein Center for the Arts this Saturday at 7 p.m. Tickets will again be just $1.

The Philharmonic will be performing Havana Blue, an ensemble created by co-founder Orbert Davis that highlights the similarities between African and Cuban cultures. It is inspired by a decade-long relationship between the Philharmonic and Cuban music students. Four Cuban alumni will be performing at the show.

When I work with them, it blows my mind because there is such a high level of virtuosity. Its absolutely stunning, Davis said.

Their first performance in June drew over 300 attendees. Once again, there will be an intermission discussion between Davis, Vee Stokes and Reesheda Graham-Washington.

Students from Austins Circle Rock Charter School will be performing with the Philharmonics Jazz Academy in the lobby before the show.

The Circle Rock Charter School students participate in the Sistema Ravinia program, which has a strong connection to the Kehrein Center. The students practice every day after school there, said Isaac Sinnett, senior associate director of Ravinias education programs.

These programs are designed to go into spaces that dont have resources or access and help provide that bridge, Sinnett said.

The program led to the hiring of a full-time music teacher at Circle Rock Charter School.

The Sistema Ravinia program is also available at Austins George Rogers Clark Elementary School.

Having students from different backgrounds collaborate together is an intentional action, said Elena Petrovich, Chicago Philharmonic communications coordinator.

So many of those themes and experiences along the lines of Cuba: the idea of reciprocity and relationships and art transcending prejudice in connection with people that literally dont speak the same language but are able to through art, Petrovich said.

Davis said the presentation of Havana Blue in Austin is meant to be symbolic and bring communities together.

We have to put aside what we think we know about ourselves and give ourselves the chance to grow, the chance to change, and then let that happen in the moment, Davis said. Thats really what jazz is all about.

This show is the second of three the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic will have at the Kehrein Center. The third will be held in February during Black History Month.

People should bring their dancing shoes, Davis said.

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West Siders invited to nearly free concert in Austin - AustinTalks

Since its completion in fall 2020, the tall, grassy landscaping at Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences has drawn a few critics for its prairie-like aesthetic. Some, including a few local radio stations, have evoked the city's tall weeds ordinance in criticizing the landscaping.

With the landscaping often mistaken for overgrown weeds, the leaders of the project want it known that this appearance was very much intentional.

"Really, this landscape was a really unique opportunity, because the vision for the Buddy Holly Hall was that it was going to celebrate everything about who we are as Texans on the High Plains," said Chad Davis, the landscape architect who led the project outside what's become one of Lubbock's most prominent buildings.

Davis said the hall had hoped to represent the communities in which it receives its greatest supporters.

Made up of more than 11,000 plants, seeded wildflowers and grasses, the landscaping consists of only plants that are native to the High Plains, Trans-Pecos and Rolling Plains, Davis said.

"Culturally, we really wanted to celebrate who we were," Davis said. "We felt like this celebrated the landscapes where visitors would be coming from."

Additionally, a product of the xeriscaping concept the name coined for the form of landscaping that reduces natural resources Davis noted that it was intentional to use hardy, drought-tolerant plants, because they save on irrigation and can better withstand Lubbock's unpredictable climate.

During the harsh winter storm in February 2021, Davis said the hall only lost about 5% of its plants when others with non-native plants lost between 50% and 80% of their landscaping.

"We were nervous, but the beauty of our natives is that the natives can withstand the highs up to 105 and withstand lows to minus-5 for several days at a time," Davis noted.

"Not to mention, right in the middle of an asphalt jungle, we're already seeing songbirds populate the site; migrating hummingbirds are visiting; bees are there; and the butterflies are there on their migration," he added.

Texas Tech Greenhouse and Horticulture Garden Manager Vikram Baliga known on social media as the Plant Prof said there's a "certain charm" to the landscaping at Buddy Holly Hall.

"I think their hearts were in the right place," Baliga said. "(When implementing xeriscaping), there's got to be the balance of using native plants, but using them in a way that people want to look at them and it's especially challenging in such a high-profile place. "

While he doesn't criticize it in the same way that some Lubbock residents have, he said he personally would've created a really dense, lush landscape that incorporated more trees, such as desert willows and crepe myrtles.

Plus, xeriscaping takes time to establish, he said, so it's important to recognize that it's not yet in its final phase.

"I see what they're going for, and I think long-term, it'll turn into a really nice landscape," Baliga said.

The rest is here:

Why the landscaping at Buddy Holly Hall looks like that - LubbockOnline.com

Monday, Sept. 19, at 5:00 p.m., members of Sunrise Corvallis, a youth-led hub of organizers committed to fighting for climate justice at the city level, along with other environmental activists, protested in front of the downtown Corvallis Fire Department to demand rapid action from the Corvallis City Council to address the compounding climate and housing crises.

Among these demands were for the city to pass the Corvallis Green New Deal for Climate and Housing Justice (CGND), a resolution which identifies ongoing camp sweeps; lack of accessible, affordable, and emergency housing; and the criminalization of houselessness, mental illness, poverty, and addiction as urgent climate-related injustices.

People in our community are being treated with an incredible amount of indignity and cruelty, said Carly Werdel, an organizer with Sunrise Corvallis. When we talk about sweeps, this is not a nice little broom clean-up. Were talking about bulldozers bulldozers that are coming through and destroying the tents and the things that people are using to stay alive. So what we mean when we say Stop the Sweeps, is we mean stop the criminalization of homelessness, because housing is a human right, and to have our local or state governments unjustly denying people the right to take actions that they need to take to survive in a capitalist world where people are not able to access the housing that they need is inhumane.

Sunrise Corvallis members have stated that when it comes to concern about the local impacts of climate change, historically marginalized communities including and especially those facing constant displacement and dispossession as a result of the sweeps who are at higher risk of exposure to and being harmed by these impacts must be centered in any decision-making.

We need to make sure that we are prioritizing those who are most vulnerable in our community, and people without housing are extremely vulnerable to the climate crisis, said Werdel. At the same time, the climate crisis is making all of us vulnerable to being without housing, because a wildfire or a flood could wipe out any of our houses in a day.

A lot of people are under the assumption that it can never be you, said Adrian Cercy, a queer, disabled community member and activist. And a lot of us working-class folks are just one really crummy year or situation from being in those tents, and not having a reliable source of income or a place to stay. It can be you, and we need to stand up for our unhoused neighbors, because a lot of times theyre busy working on how to survive and not how to [testify before] government officials.

City Council was originally supposed to vote on whether to pass the CGND at yesterdays meeting, but have pushed this out to their Oct. 3 meeting.

Connect with Pride and SOL: This week, the Oregon State University Pride Center, in collaboration with the SOL LGBTQ+ Multicultural Support Network, an organization that focuses on providing support to Queer, Trans, and Intersex Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (QTIBIPOC), will be hosting two welcome week events: LGBTQIA2S+ Connect, and Sol & Pride Open House. The former will be a small tabling event with information and resources to introduce incoming OSU students to the Pride Center and SOL, as well as ways to get involved.

We try to table with resources when possible, because a lot of the time students dont even know that we exist, and thats especially the case with SOL LGBTQIA2S+ Multicultural Support Network, wrote Kailea Warouw, a student employee of SOL, in an email. More often than not, many Queer and Trans BIPOC didnt even know there was a space for them. The Connect event is a chance for them to meet some of our staff, use our resources, and ultimately decide whether or not they would like to be in community with us in the future.

For the Connect event, Warouw said the title was very much intentional.

Were always striving to uplift identities in our community that are often overlooked or forgotten in conversations, she wrote. Here at SOL, we value intersectionality and acknowledge that many people in our community may identify with more than one label. We use LGBTQIA2S+ in hopes of not only uplifting asexual-spec, intersex, and Two-Spirit folks, but also letting them know that they belong here in our spaces.

While the Pride Center building will be undergoing renovations during the academic year, Warouw said that staff have been working very hard over the summer to make the centers new, temporary space feel welcoming and comfortable for the communities they serve.

Being in a more accessible part of campus will only benefit us right now especially since its around where a lot of peoples classes are, wrote Warouw. SOLs goal right now is to create a comforting place for QTIBIPOC while the new Pride Center undergoes renovation The old Pride Center made it really hard for us to hold large gatherings because of how small it was, but now that were in a bigger space weve been planning to have more events in-center!

The LGBTQIA2S+ Connect event will take place on Thursday, Sept. 22, from 1:00 4:00 p.m. at the Memorial Union (MU) Brick Mall; the SOL & Pride Open House event will take place on Friday, Sept. 23, from 1:00 5:00 p.m. in room 112 of the Student Experience Center (SEC). Accommodation requests related to a disability can be made to Pride Center Director Cindy Konrad by sending an email to konrad@oregonstate.edu or by calling 541-737-9969.

Black Womens Equal Pay Day Trivia: On Wednesday, Sept. 21, the Center Against Rape and Domest Violence (CARDV) and the Linn-Benton NAACP branch are co-hosting Black Womens Equal Pay Day Trivia, an event intended to untangle the concept of pay equity and increase local awareness of wage gaps experienced by Black women.

Equal Pay Day, which was observed this year on March 15, originated in 1996 as a national public awareness event to highlight the gender wage gap however, it has historically been an acknowledgement of the gaps experienced by cisgender white women, not recognizing that women of color, disabled women, and queer and trans women are paid even less. Because of the various pay disparities that exist between Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian and Pacific Islander women in the U.S., Equal Pay Days are observed annually for each demographic; this year, Black Womens Pay Day is Sept. 21.

It is imperative we demand pay equity for Black women, reads a statement from the Equal Pay Today project, many of whom are leading their communities in organizing against police violence and systemic anti-Black racism including where it shows up in the workplace.

Food will be provided by Terras Tastee Treats, a local, Black woman-owned homestyle southern desserts, soul food, and BBQ food truck. Registration and attendance is free, though a $5 donation is suggested per person. All proceeds from the event will go toward CARDV and the Linn-Benton NAACP, which will provide prizes for the winning teams of each round of trivia.

The event will take place at Beer Place, located on 401 SW Jefferson Ave., from 6:30 8:00 p.m. To register and learn more, click here.

Put It on The Tab: Kinetic Bagel Institute, located on 250 NW 1st St., recently launched The Tab, a program that allows people who are low on funds to have a free bagel with a spread of their choice and/or a cup of coffee when they place an order.

Weve always had an unspoken policy that if someone asked, we would give them food and coffee, said Greg Alpert, the owner of Kinetic Bagel.

As for the inspiration behind The Tab, Alpert said that one of the shops customers had recently traveled to Missouri, where they encountered a bagel shop in the city of Columbia Goldies Bagels that offered free bagels and coffee to anyone who couldnt afford it by charging the orders to the restaurants Neighbors Account.

The idea was that someone could come to the counter and say, Id like a bagel with cream cheese; my neighbor is going to pick it up, or Its on my neighbor, he said. I think part of the problem is people have a hard time asking; so even saying, My neighbor is going to pay for it, I felt might still have been hard for some people. So we came up with The Tab, and someone can come in and just say, Id like a bagel with cream cheese or spread and/or a cup of coffee please put it on the tab.

Alpert believes having this language available will help relieve some of the social as well as personal shame and stigma experienced by those in poverty which may otherwise prevent folks from asking for a free meal when they need one.

I dont think anyone really wants to be in a position where they have to rely financially on other people, let alone verbalize it, he said. So if we can take that out of the equation entirely with a term like The Tab, I think that will encourage more people to want to use it. On top of that, if people want to pay it forward by putting money into the tab fund, its kind of a twofold win in that people who need a meal can get it pretty simply, and the community can also contribute in a way that they know where their support is directly going.

Thus far, Alpert said there has been a large outpouring of support including financially from the Corvallis community for the concept, and that the shop is now waiting for more people to use it. Employees have been distributing flyers in places around Corvallis they believe would be helpful, including Room at the Inn, an emergency shelter for women, and the South Corvallis Food Bank.

Were trying to get the word out now to people who need it, he said. We have enough flyers right now to the point where if someone wanted to take one and put it up somewhere, they could do that. I dont doubt that almost everyone thats commented on [this project] has someplace in mind that they would like to see targeted, and thats great; thats the whole idea. Ultimately, I would love to see this getting to anyone who needs it, but families in particular would really be ideal in my mind.

Kinetic Bagel is open Wednesdays through Sundays from 8:00 a.m. 2:00 p.m. For those interested in contributing to The Tab, let staff know with your next order; theyll pay down the balance with any amount youd like to give.

By Emilie Ratcliff

Link:

Corvallis Social Justice: Rallying for Housing & Climate Justice, Connect with Pride & SOL, Black Women's Equal Pay Day Trivia, Kinetic...

A new estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau asserts Hispanics make up a larger segment of the Texas population than any other groupa demographic reality particularly significant to Texas Baptists.

The Texas Tribune reported new population figures, based on the American Community Survey, revealing Hispanics made up 40.2 percent of the Texas population in 2021, while Anglos made up 39.4 percent.

Abe Jaquez, president of Baptist University of the Amricas, compares the exponential growth of Hispanics to a tsunami.

Tsunamis literally transform the landscape that they affect. With the winds of a continued population shift, organizations will need to consider how they will address the coming tsunami that is the growing Hispanic/Latino population, Jaquez said.

Those organizations include Baptist churches, as well as the educational institutions they support. Currently, of the 5,302 churches affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas, 1,06620 percentare Hispanic-majority congregations.

Membership figures are more difficult to obtain, since not all churches complete the Annual Church Profile. However, the total membership of Hispanic Texas Baptist churches is estimated at about 135,0007 percent of the 1.9 million in all BGCT-affiliated churches.

Historically, BUA and its predecessor institutions have trained 7 out of 10 pastors who served Hispanic Texas Baptist congregations.

BUA is not the only solution, but it is a big part of the equation in responding to the tsunami that already has arrived, Jaquez said.

One piece of the puzzle is representation. Currently, 14 Hispanic individuals serve on the BGCT Executive Board, and 16 percent of the staff employed by the BGCT is Hispanic. The newly elected Executive Board chair for 2023 is Bobby Contreras from Alamo Heights Baptist Church in San Antonio, and Julio Guarneri from Calvary Baptist Church in McAllen is first vice president of the BGCT.

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The BGCT reports more than 200 Hispanic churches have affiliated with Texas Baptists in the past 10 years. Since 2011, Texas Baptists have helped start 185 Hispanic churches and 237 multi-cultural congregations.

Josue Valerio, director of Texas Baptists Center for Missional Engagement, noted the census estimates indicate Texas may have passed a long-awaited milestone.

These new estimates are the first to reflect the foreseeable culmination of decades of demographic shifts steadily transforming the state, Valerio said.

Texas Baptists Center for Missional Engagement seeks to develop programs, initiatives and ministries to help churches reach newly arrived Spanish-speaking immigrants, as well as first-, second- and third-generation Hispanics, Valerio said.

That reflects a change in approach from earlier decades, since Baptists in Texas historically focused on starting churches to reach first-generation Spanish-speaking Hispanics, said Jesse Rincones, executive director of the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas.

These churches were never taught, trained or exhorted to minister to, retain and incorporate the second- and third-generation English-speaking Hispanics, Rincones said.

Ive seen this scenario play out in rural communities and evolving urban areas. The predominantly Anglo First Baptist Church has the language, staff and other resources to minister to second generations. However, they havent historically made intentional efforts to reach them and continue to have a cultural disconnect with the group.

The Hispanic congregation on the other side of townalmost always literallyhas the cultural connection but has not developed ministries in English that minister to and retain the English-speaking children and grandchildren. They also dont often incorporate the next generation into service or leadership positions.

When that happens, English-speaking Hispanics who are assimilated into what has been the dominant culture in Texas fall through the cracks of Baptist outreach, he observed.

Victor Rodriguez, Texas Baptists Hispanic evangelism director and discipleship specialist, said the BGCT is seeking to make an impact through Hispanic churches by emphasizing local, strategic evangelism and discipleship training.

Since many of these Hispanic churches are surrounded by different communities, this yearlong training approach comes with a demographic study, selecting the best outreach effort, developing an evangelism community event and monthly coaching, Rodriguez said.

From the Convencin perspective, Rincones points to strategies he considers effective in reaching Texas Hispanics with the gospel.

Onestrategy that seems to be effective is the shift from having Hispanic churches isolated as mission churches to becoming holistically integrated ministries of the English-speaking church, he said. These en Espaol models put the Spanish pastor on par with the rest of the church staff. The Spanish ministry is in the general budget and shares all the support systems in the church.

The first-generation Spanish speakers have a ministry 100 percent in their language, while their children and grandchildren can be ministered to by the existing nursery, childrens and youth ministries of the congregation.

A similar effective strategy is for Hispanic congregations to offer both Spanish and English services and ministries. These are less common but can be equally effective.

New approaches for the BGCT Texas Baptists en Espaol initiative include regional training centers, developing a personal growth plan for pastors and helping the 200-plus Hispanic churches that are without pastors to move through the search process.

Rincones believes church health among Hispanic congregations is crucial for Baptists in Texas to respond to demographic changes.

Ive always told our Hispanic congregations that I dont get that excited about Hispanics becoming the majority in Texas. Sure, we bring our culture, food and many strengths. And we also bring our challenges. That requires, more than ever, for Hispanic congregations to be healthy and vibrant, he said.

Whether you are collecting taxes or tithes in Texas, we need the Hispanic majority in Texas to know Jesus and to be educated. Baptists in Texas are capable of meeting that challenge.

Texas Baptists launched a Hispanic Education Initiative about a dozen years ago to reduce the Hispanic high school dropout rate and make higher education more accessible to Hispanic students.

Next year, Texas Baptists are planning a church revitalization training event in Spanish that not only will involve Spanish-speaking pastors from across Texas, but also pastors of churches in Latin American countries where the BGCT works. Its stated purpose is to train pastors in principles and strategies of church health, so that they may return to their communities, implement those concepts and train other local pastors in their local context.

Valerio believes Texas Baptists should view demographic change as a prime opportunity to influence the states future.

We, as Texas Baptists, have a unique opportunity to shape what the future of Texas and the U.S. will look like, Valerio said. We need to continue to practice the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. We need to continue to do a better job in the development of missional leaders who will multiply and start new churches and new ministries.

We are currently working with college students, their parents and other workers who are Hispanic immigrants and are serving God in missions and church planting in every major city in Texas.

Immigrants that we are reaching today will come to know Christ, and their children will attend our universities and respond to the Great Commission by going to serve in missions in our state, the U.S. and the world.

Original post:

Hispanics believed to be largest group in Texas now - Baptist Standard

Not everyone is sold on the idea that virtual reality technology could or should bring higher education into a future of avatars and holograms.

But separate from that hype, virtual reality is already being used at colleges in ways that seem more mainstream, as a tool that has the potential to enhance teaching and learning. For example, at Columbia University, professors are creating and using virtual reality tools to help students gain empathy across racial lines, learn dentistry techniques and examine molecules in 3D.

Virtual reality could also create new career opportunities for students. As the industry that develops VR grows, it will need workers who are trained in how to build and apply this technology. A few institutions have degree programs dedicated to that kind of training, such as Husson University in Maine, which integrates classes in coding, design, math and communications.

But what will ensure that these opportunities for making the most of virtual reality arent limited to a select few educational institutionsor to the same groups of people who have made out best during past cycles of technology development?

Thats the question a team of researchers at the think tank Brookings Institution are asking, through a new project that will probe the opportunities and barriers virtual reality offers in higher education. For their first installment, the group published a report based on a roundtable discussion held with leaders from community colleges, Hispanic-Serving Institutions and historically Black colleges and universities.

Concerns about equity in virtual reality are especially salient now that corporations and colleges are racing to stake claims in the so-called metaversean interconnected virtual space where some digital prospectors believe they will strike it rich.

The universities that get on board with this quickest are going to have some of the biggest payoffs, says Rashawn Ray, a professor at the University of Maryland and a senior fellow at Brookings who is co-leading the research project.

A virtual reality headset costs hundreds of dollars. Thats a big price tag for the many students who already cant afford up-to-date computers or internet connections adequate for completing their college coursework. If the use of virtual reality in higher education grows without careful planning, it could make this digital divide even more severe.

Additionally, the same types of students who find themselves on the wrong side of the digital divide enroll disproportionately at colleges that tend to have fewer financial resources, like community colleges, historically Black universities and other minority-serving institutions. And these colleges have been slower to adopt virtual reality technology because of the high upfront costs of investing in it, according to the Brookings report.

However, although virtual reality and simulation tools can indeed be costly, they also have the potential to be especially useful at the very same institutions that lack resources for traditional teaching equipment that is even more expensive, like advanced science labs or workforce-training technology.

Virtual reality tools also hypothetically could increase access to higher education by making it more possible to teach students who cant necessarily make it to a college classroom. For example, Finger Lakes Community College in New York offers an advanced manufacturing class that uses virtual reality welding tools, which enables students in rural areas to participate without having to travel to the main campus, as Open Campus recently reported.

So whether the spread of virtual reality edtech worsens or alleviates inequities depends on whether it followsor breaks withhistorical patterns. Because the technology is in its early stages, Ray argues its not too late to disrupt old habits.

We have a chance to correct it, he says.

Doing so could give a boost to Black, Latino and women students, groups who havent benefited as much from previous waves of tech evolution, Ray adds. And that could help employers hungry for more workers who have the advanced tech skills needed to build and use virtual reality tools.

You have to build a pipeline, a labor force, that has the skill set to be able to do this, Ray says. Community colleges are central to this.

At the University of Maryland, Ray runs the Lab for Applied Social Science Research, which uses virtual reality simulations to train police officers how to handle tough situations. The room has VR goggles, a large TV screen, a VR camera, enough open space for someone to walk around in while participating in an immersive experience, and what Ray calls suped-up computers that can handle advanced software.

Its the kind of setupworth many thousands of dollarsthat not every college can afford.

Thats why Ray believes universities that have the capacity for high-tech research should share their resources with other collegesalthough he adds that this kind of cross-institutional partnership is unlikely to emerge without intentional effort. So Ray argues that science grant-makers could create more incentives for well-resourced colleges to build authentic relationships with community colleges and minority-serving institutions that support joint research programs using immersive technology. As a model for how this might look, he points to the MPower program, which supports collaborations between two different branches of the University of Maryland system, as well as the social justice alliance that the University of Maryland has established with Bowie State University, a nearby HBCU.

Ray also would like to see more research incentives nudging colleges to invite members of local communities to engage with the virtual reality studies happening on campus. He says that might mean setting up summer programs for youthand getting someone with strong local ties to administer the program.

Or it might mean taking research off campus. Members of Rays lab take mobile VR tech tools into K-12 schools, where students and police participate together in simulations and conversations about how law enforcement officers interact with the public. Even students accustomed to using smartphones are often surprised and excited to try the immersive technology, Ray says.

That encounter just might be the spark that sets a student on a path toward a technology career.

To expose them to this, Ray adds, is a huge win for what were doing.

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Is There Still Time to Build Equity into Virtual Reality Edtech? - EdSurge

City Hall, NY Today, Speaker Adrienne Adams and the Councils Black, Latino and Asian Caucus (BLAC) announced a package of bills to improve the diversity, equity and inclusion practices at the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY). The bills seek to address the historic lack of racial and gender diversity in the FDNY and were heard at an oversight hearing of the Councils Committee on Fire and Emergency Management. The legislation addresses the recruitment and retention of diverse firefighters, confronts exclusionary practices that undermine diversity, and increases transparency about FDNYs efforts. The legislation would require FDNY to develop a concrete plan to diversify, survey firehouses and ensure they are equipped to serve a mixed gender workforce, increase transparency on the demographics of members in a firehouse through public reporting; require ongoing training on harassment, diversity and inclusion for all FDNY staff and members; and submit a public report on complaints filed with the Departments Equal Employment Opportunities Office. There have been longstanding issues with the FDNYs lack of gender and racial diversity that the bills aim to confront. along with requiring the department to come up with a plan when it comes to outreach of potential FDNY recruits, retention of diverse firefighters and provide more transparency in its efforts and any issues that may arise.

No one can doubt the incredible work that New York City firefighters undertake every day. In addition to fires, our heroic FDNY firefighters respond to vehicle collisions, downed wires and floods, said Speaker Adrienne Adams. Unfortunately, the makeup of the FDNY is still not representative of our great city. This Council remains committed to efforts that ensure we make progress towards a diverse and representative FDNY. Despite previous efforts to boost diversity amongst firefighters, there is clearly much more work to do.

True equity in our Citys agencies extends further than the diversity and representation of its staff and leadership. We build trust and strengthen relationships when the entire New York City community can see themselves in those who serve and protect them daily, said Council Member Kevin C. Riley, Co-Chair of the Councils Black, Latino and Asian Caucus. However, it is equally important that infrastructure, resources, and work culture promote a safe and supportive work environment for all New Yorkers. This is why we, the New York City Council, are pushing a package of legislation that seeks to advance gender and racial equality within the FDNY. We appreciate the hard work of our heroes at the FDNY who sacrifice and put their lives on the line to keep our families safe, but this does not take away from the need for reform and oversight over an outdated system that clearly does not serve all. As it stands now, the Departments demographics, practices, and facilities systemically do not uplift our Black and brown communities nor does it support gender equality for all. Planning and partnership is the only way to produce outcomes that diversify the workplace. I am proud to lead with my colleagues and to partner with all stakeholders in a movement that requires a sustainable plan for enveloping equality for all FDNY members and expand opportunities that include underrepresented communities in our City.

Diversity in the FDNY has been an increasing concern. We have heard multiple complaints from minority groups stating that they have been overlooked for promotions and leadership positions. As well as being routinely discriminated against. Im proud to have introduced a bill included in this package that would require the FDNY to annually report on equal employment opportunity complaints. This will ensure that we are holding the FDNY accountable, and expect the department to take these concerns seriously, said Council Member Nantasha Williams, Treasurer of the Councils Black, Latino and Asian Caucus. I would like to thank Fire and Emergency Management Committee Chair Ariola for holding this important hearing as well as Speaker Adams for her leadership.

Theres importance in having our city agencies reflect the diversity of our city, said Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson. Intro 552 and 553 help to promote and protect this ideal in an agency so specific in its mission, which is responding to life-threatening fire emergencies citywide regardless of a persons race or gender. The New York City Fire Department provides a vital service to New Yorkers that must both be protected, while reflecting the many communities it serves. As a supporter of the bills in the City Council and now as Borough President, I am proud to join Council Member Riley in pushing this initiative forward. It is our hope that in reviewing the data and bringing firehouses often built in the early 1900s into the 21st Century, we can remove systematic barriers. I want to thank Speaker Adrienne Adams, Council Member Riley, and Council Member Williams for their advocacy and commitment to equity and to ensuring our agencies properly reflect the people of our City.

The FDNY has historically lacked gender and racial diversity among its firefighters. Though the department has taken some steps to address the problem, uniformed firefighters and officers are still predominantly white men. According to the Councils Committee on Fire and Emergency Management committee report, currently 76% of the departments firefighters are white, whereas 8% are Black, 13% are Hispanic, 2% are Asian, and 0.8% identify as another ethnicity. Less than 1% of the departments firefighters are women, amounting to only 137 of the FDNYs 11,000 firefighting force. FDNYs leadership is also predominantly made up of white men.

People of color have been firefighters since the early 1920s, though they have been forced to endure segregationist and discriminatory practices. These practices were experienced for decades, and a 1973 federal court decision ruled that the FDNY discriminated against racial minorities in its written test though 32% of New York Citys population was Black or Latino in that year, they were only 5% of the FDNY. A 2007 U.S. Department of Justice and Vulcan Society lawsuit against New York City contended the FDNYs administration of the firefighter exam discriminated against Black and Latino applicants, which the court concluded constituted intentional discrimination. The court appointed a monitor that oversees remedies to this problem to this day, and it wasnt until 2014 that FDNY settled the lawsuit for $98 million and agreed to make changes to its hiring practices, per the Councils committee report.

In addition, per the report, up until 50 years ago, only men were permitted to take the FDNY firefighter examination, a practice only changed due to a federal mandate. In the subsequent years, women faced continuing hardships in becoming firefighters, including the discriminatory impact of the firefighter exam. It was not until 1982 that a federal court ruled the exam discriminated against female applicants on the basis of sex.

The proposed legislation is as follows:

Introduction 516, sponsored by Speaker Adams, would require the Fire Department to develop and implement a plan for ensuring that the racial, ethnic and gender demographics of the Departments firefighters reflect that of the Citys population as a whole. The plan would include identifying and remedying existing obstacles in the recruitment and retention of firefighters from underrepresented backgrounds, targeted recruitment campaigns, and the employment of full-time outreach office to assist with the recruitment and retention of underrepresented firefighters. Additionally, the Fire Department would be required to publicly report each year on its efforts to recruit and retain female firefighters, and firefighters of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

Introduction 519, sponsored by Council Member Ariola, would require FDNY to survey all firehouses to determine the permanent facility upgrades necessary to ensure a safe working environment for a mixed gender workforce. After issuing a public report on the findings, the department would be required to complete the necessary upgrades.

Introduction 552, sponsored by Council Member Riley (by request of the Bronx Borough President), would require the Fire Department to annually report on the gender and racial or ethnic demographic breakdown of the uniformed force at firehouses, and as well as the number of individuals who reside within the geographic area that each firehouse covers.

Introduction 553, sponsored by Council Member Riley (by request of the Bronx Borough President), would require the Fire Department to provide training and education to all members and staff regarding harassment, diversity and inclusion.

Introduction 560, sponsored by Council Member Williams, will require the Fire Department to annually report on complaints about equal employment opportunity.

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Speaker Adams, Black, Latino and Asian Caucus Announce Legislation to Improve Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in FDNY As Council Holds Hearing on...

We want our services to be a place where people can express themselves freely and safely around the world. This is especially true in situations where social media can be used to spread hate, fuel tension and incite violence on the ground. Thats why we have clear rules against terrorism, hate speechand incitement to violence, and subject matter experts who help develop and enforce those rules. We also have a corporate Human Rights policy and a dedicated Human Rights team who help us manage human rights risks and better understand how our products and technologies impact different countries and communities.

As part of our commitment to help create an environment where people can express themselves freely and safely, and following a recommendation from the Oversight Board in September 2021, we asked Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) an independent organization with expertise in human rights to conduct a due diligence exercise into the impact of our policies and processes in Israel and Palestine during the May 2021 escalation, including an examination of whether these policies and processes were applied without bias. Over the course of the last year, BSR conducted a detailed analysis, including engaging with groups and rights holders in Israel, Palestine, and globally, to inform its report. Today, were publishing these findings and our response.

As BSR recognized in their report, the events of May 2021 surfaced industry-wide, long-standing challenges around content moderation in conflict-affected regions, and the need to protect freedom of expression while reducing the risk of online services being used to spread hate or incite violence. The report also highlighted how managing these issues was made more difficult by the complex conditions that surround the conflict, including its social and historical dynamics, various fast-moving violent events, and the actions and activities of terrorist organizations.

Despite these complications, BSR identified a number of areas of good practice in our response. These included our efforts to prioritize measures to reduce the risk of the platform being used to encourage violence or harm, including quickly establishing a dedicated Special Operations Center to respond to activity across our apps in real time. This center was staffed with expert teams, including regional experts and native speakers of Arabic and Hebrew, who worked to remove content that violated our policies, while also making sure we addressed errors in our enforcement as soon as we became aware of them. It also included our efforts to remove content that was proportionate and in line with global human rights standards.

As well as these areas of good practice, BSR concluded that different viewpoints, nationalities, ethnicities and religions were well represented in the teams working on this at Meta. They found no evidence of intentional bias on any of these grounds among any of these employees. They also found no evidence that in developing or implementing any of our policies we sought to benefit or harm any particular community.

That said, BSR did raise important concerns around under-enforcement of content, including inciting violence against Israelis and Jews on our platforms, and specific instances where they considered our policies and processes had an unintentional impact on Palestinian and Arab communities primarily on their freedom of expression. BSR made 21 specific recommendations as a result of its due diligence, covering areas related to our policies, how those policies are enforced, and our efforts to provide transparency to our users.

Since we received the final report, weve carefully reviewed these recommendations to help us learn where and how we can improve. Our response details our commitment to implementing 10 of the recommendations, partly implementing four, and were assessing the feasibility of another six. We will take no further action on one recommendation.

There are no quick, overnight fixes to many of these recommendations, as BSR makes clear. While we have made significant changes as a result of this exercise already, this process will take time including time to understand how some of these recommendations can best be addressed, and whether they are technically feasible.

Heres an update on our work to address some of the key areas identified in the report:

BSR recommended that we review our policies on incitement to violence and Dangerous Individuals and Organisations (DOI) rules we have in place that prohibit groups like terrorists, hate and criminal organizations, as defined by our policies, that proclaim a violent mission or are engaged in violence from having a presence on Facebook or Instagram. We assess these entities based on their behavior both online and offline most significantly, their ties to violence. We have committed to implementing these recommendations, including launching a review of both these policy areas to examine how we approach political discussion of banned groups, and how we can do more to tackle content glorifying violence. As part of this comprehensive review, we will consult extensively with a broad spectrum of experts, academics, and stakeholders not just in the region, but across the globe.

BSR also recommended that we tier the system of strikes and penalties we apply when people violate our DOI policy. We have committed to assessing the feasibility of this particular recommendation, but have already begun work to make this system simpler, more transparent, and more proportionate.

In addition, BSR encouraged us to conduct stakeholder engagement around and ensure transparency on our US legal obligations in this area. We have committed to partly implement this recommendation. While we regularly carry out broad stakeholder engagement on these policies and how they are enforced, we rely on legal counsel and relevant sanctions authorities to understand our specific compliance obligations in this area. We agree that transparency is critically important here and through our Community Standards, we provide details of how we define terrorist groups, how we tier them, and how these tierings impact the penalties we apply to people who break our rules.

BSR made a number of recommendations focused on our approach to reviewing content in Hebrew and Arabic.

BSR recommended that we continue work developing and deploying functioning machine learning classifiers in Hebrew. Weve committed to implementing this recommendation, and since May 2021 have launched a Hebrew hostile speech classifier to help us proactively detect more violating Hebrew content. We believe this will significantly improve our capacity to handle situations like this, where we see major spikes in violating content.

BSR also recommended that we continue work to establish processes to better route potentially violating Arabic content by dialect for content review. Were assessing the feasibility of this recommendation. We have large and diverse teams to review Arabic content, with native language skills and an understanding of the local cultural context across the region including in Palestine. We also have systems in place which use technology to help determine what language content is in, so we can ensure it is reviewed by relevant content reviewers. Were exploring a range of options to see how we can improve this process. This includes reviewing hiring more content reviewers with diverse dialect and language capabilities, and work to understand whether we can train our systems to better distinguish between different Arabic dialects to help route and review Arabic content.

BSRs analysis notes that Facebook and Instagram prohibit antisemitic content as part of its hate speech policy, which doesnt allow attacks against anyone based on their religion, or any other protected characteristic. BSR also notes that, because we dont currently track the targets of hate speech, were not able to measure the prevalence of antisemitic content, and theyve recommended that we develop a mechanism to allow us to do this. We agree it would be worthwhile to better understand the prevalence of specific types of hate speech, and weve committed to assessing the feasibility of this.

In addition, BSR recommended that we adjust the processes we have in place for updating and maintaining keywords associated with designated dangerous organizations, to help prevent hashtags being blocked in error such as the error in May 2021 that temporarily restricted peoples ability to see content on the al-Aqsa hashtag page. While we quickly fixed this issue, it never should have happened in the first place. We have already implemented this recommendation, and have established a process to ensure expert teams at Meta are now responsible for vetting and approving these keywords.

Underpinning all of this, BSR made a series of recommendations centered on helping people better understand our policies and processes.

BSR recommended that we provide specific and granular information to people when we remove violating content and apply strikes. We are implementing this recommendation in part, because some people violate multiple policies at the same time creating challenges to how specific we can be at scale. We do already provide this specific and granular information in the majority of cases, and we have started to provide it in more cases, where it is possible to do so.

BSR also recommended that we disclose the number of formal reports received from government entities to remove content that doesnt violate local law, but which potentially violates our Community Standards. We have committed to implementing this recommendation. We already publish a biannual report detailing how many pieces of content, by country, we restrict for violating local law as a result of a valid legal request. We are now working to expand the metrics we provide as part of this report to also include details on content removed for violating our policies following a government request.

BSRs report is a critically important step forward for us and our work on human rights. Global events are dynamic, and so the ways in which we address safety, security and freedom of expression need to be dynamic too. Human rights assessments like these are an important way we can continue to improve our products, policies and processes.

For more information about additional steps we have taken, you can read our response to BSRs assessment in full here. We will continue to keep people updated on our progress in our annual Human Rights report.

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An Independent Due Diligence Exercise into Metas Human Rights Impact in Israel and Palestine During the May 2021 Escalation - Facebook

Epidemiologists around the world have sounded the alarm about the health risks of rising noise pollution, and called out cars as one of the largest sources of the crisis. In our quest to make cities quieter, though, noise researcher Dr. Erica Walker says were missing a critical conversation about how unique communities experience their local soundscapes, both in the streets and beyond and who we harm when we police decibel levels without listening to marginalized people first.

In this episode of The Brake, we sit down with Walker to explore not just why ultra-quiet electric cars wontactually turn down the volume on our neighborhoods much, but who gets to decide what our cities should sound like, how we enforce arbitrary auditory standards, and why a peaceful, walkable street is often the opposite of silent.

Tune in below, on Apple podcasts, or anywhere else you listen, and learn more about Dr. Erica Walker and the Community Noise Lab here.

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Thefollowing excerpt has been edited for clarity and length.

Kea Wilson:The primary way your work intersects with the Streetsblog conversation, is that a lot of noise in our cities, frankly, comes from cars, and thats a really common talking point, among folks who want to see American cities become less car dependent. Tell me a little bit about your perspective on regulating road noise through the lens of your work.

Erica Walker:So road noise issort of how I cut my teeth in this in this field. Id initially wanted to start out by creating a map of transportation sounds in the city of Boston, where I did my graduate work.

[So I went around measuring] sound levels with my sound level meter and in that process people would come up to me and to ask me what Im doing and share their experiences with me. So as I traveled throughout the different neighborhoods that varied in terms of racial makeup, level of infrastructure repair, socio-economic status, all these things, it made me realize that we tend to only take a very superficial cut and when it comes to sound and a very punitive cut.

So yes, if you live near a major source of transportation noise, its definitely louder. But when you talk to people, some people are like, Hey, couldnt sleep if this I didnt have the highway sound to put me to sleep, or I cant function in a place where there isnt this background sound. Some found road noise very therapeutic; Others found it extremely bothersome.

So just in having those conversation with people and getting these sorts of different ideas about what transportation noise meant to people, I realized that, well, its important for me to understand the physical aspects of sound, but its also important for me to interview people and talk about how things like road traffic noise made people feel. Its one thing to understand the sound, but another to understand the community expectations.

I did see that poor communities were traditionally those that were zoned to be in places with major transportation networks. They were usually the ones that were closer to highways, or right off of very busy bus lines. There were some cultural practices where people like to drive to really loud cars with the mufflers or screeching their tires; there were some cultural aspects to that.

So there are some [problems with] urban planning and design where we do not consider the acoustical soundscape especially from transportation when were deciding where to put people. Or maybe we do [consider the soundscape,] and its intentional when we put people who probably arent able to stand up for themselves when it comes to these environmental injustice issues like inequitable distribution of sound.

But then there are these cultural, community expectationsfor sound that shouldnt be ignored. So if someone tells me that the most important sound in their community is transportation noise, or noise from a busy park, or noise from an industrial activity for me, thats where Im going to lead in. And Im not going to lead in that traditionally or overwhelmingly dont impact a neighborhood.

I find that a lot of these punitive measures [around sound] dont take those sorts of things into consideration.Somebody somewhere has this measuring stick for what its acceptable for a community that they may or may not live in [to sound like], and I think thats completely insane.

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Would a Car-Light City Really Be Quiet? - Streetsblog

Author Jennie Lopez teaches readers to discover their superpowers and authentic selves in her new book Intentional Unicorn: Bring your authentic self to thrive in life and career."

INDIANAPOLIS (PRWEB) September 21, 2022

Attending senior training leadership events was second nature for Jennie Lopez, an associate vice president for global talent acquisition for a major pharmaceutical manufacturing company and professional dancer. What made one training particularly memorable was an icebreaker exercise that led her draw a caricature of herself denoting her conservative corporate side and her colorful dancer persona with a high ponytail.

Looking at the ponytail, she thought of it as a unicorns horn. That was the catalyst and it opened the door to her delivering a motivating company speech, which eventually led to creating her own personal brand and messaging, and finally to becoming an author celebrating the launch of her new book called Intentional Unicorn: Bring your authentic self to thrive in life and career" published by Fig Factor Media.

The reality is that for the longest time I really thought I was that unicorn that was sticking out for the wrong reasons, explained Lopez, originally from Puerto Rico and has lived in Indianapolis since 2000. I tried to hide the horn, minimize it, and knock it down. However, once I realized that the horn was my superpower, what made me ME, it was my personal competitive advantage. I realized that the magic of meaningful success relies on embracing and leading with your authenticity. We must do this to build a fruitful and diverse reality everywhere we go instead of building the same type of professionals and leaders. All of us are unicornsWe must be intentional with it!

Through humor, honesty, and love, Lopez shares with readers her journey from living in Puerto Rico, attending grad school in the US, growing as an associate vice president in the corporate world, and starting her own business. In parallel, she developed a dancing and fitness career that includes NFL cheerleading and being a Zumba international presenter.

In addition, she also shares tools and best intentional practices such as maximizing time, protecting and nurturing mindset, discouraging impostor syndrome, and understanding success and how to drive it.

One of the topicsunderstanding superpowersis important because knowing them allows people to identify, develop and grow them as beneficial tools for life.

"When you lead with your superpowers, you lead with authenticity, confidence, and purpose, Lopez said. You may have many strengths and skills, but what are your top one or two skills? That one that is so powerful becomes the reason people want you to work with them. When you are aware and confident of your superpowers, then you can draft your journey with meaning where you can serve and lead at your best.

Lopez offers distinct and specific action steps for people to activate their objectives.

The book uses a framework that I have learned for any goals we set for ourselves, she said. We start with a DECISION, then we COMMIT, TAKE ACTION, ADAPT, INVEST, CREATE, AMPLIFY, so we can SHOW THE WORLD.

Intentional Unicorn is available on Amazon.

About Jennie Lopez:Jennie Lopez embodies "Bring Yourself to Work" in everything she does. She empowers diversity and engages employees and organizations to achieve new highs.

Her superpower? Her authenticity! She realized that her strengths are a combination of her Latinx heritage, passions, and learnings from being a mom. Intentionally using her strengths has been the secret towards her personal and professional successful growth journey.

An Associate VP of Global Talent Acquisition, Jennie is originally from Puerto Rico and moved to the US to complete her Master's Degree in Chemical Engineering. Her engineering career includes roles in both Manufacturing & Quality (including Site Head roles) and the business side (Sr. Leader & Chief Operating Officer). Jennie is also an executive board member for the Organization of Latinx at her company focusing on developing and accelerating Latinx talent.

In parallel, she has also found success in her dancing and fitness careers. Her experiences include: Back up dancer for artists like Julio Iglesias and Ednita Nazario, TV shows, Superbowl Winning NFL Cheerleader/Captain, Fitness Instructor, Presenter, and Zumba Master Trainer.

Jennie is frequently invited as a guest speaker at many local and national organizations and was awarded the 2020 Working Mother of the Year. She enjoys making intentional fun memories with her family: Brad, Izzie, & Ethan. They are the WHY and fuel for everything she does. For more information, visit https://www.intentionalunicorn.com/.

About Fig Factor Media:Fig Factor Media Publishing is an international publishing company with a "beeping" heart. Fig Factor Media has helped many authors achieve and support their dream of impacting their communities in the United States, Mexico, and Europe. Fig Factor Media is the official publisher of Today's Inspired Latina. For information, visithttp://www.figfactormedia.com. ###

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Energetic Author Encourages Readers To Discover and Unleash Their Superpowers, Step into Authentic Selves In New Book - PR Web