Category Archives: Personal Empowerment

Its no secret that money and stress go hand in hand. Mo money, mo problems, might hold true, but a lack of money, especially when it comes to retirement savings, is a problem like no other.

According to AARP reports, just 35% of African Americans feel theyre doing a good job of saving, and a third admit to having less than one month of funds to rely on in a crisis. This is despite the fact that money management 101 dictates at least six months worth if you want to stay afloat. For women, this represents a particular challenge because when you operate at a gender-and-race-based earnings disadvantage (never forget: black women currently earn 61 cents for every dollar earned by white menand thats 18 cents less than white women), savings are hard to come by.

Given the prevalence of women-led households, the wage gap, and wealth of financial pressures black women are balancing across generations, AARP and the Ad Council have stepped in to help sheroes shore up their savings and build long-term wealth.

Their joint Tribute to Our Sheroes retirement savings campaign, launched today, is specifically tailored to black women, their unique questions, needs, and concerns. The goal, according to the campaigns designers, is to create some much-needed #blackgirlmoneymagic.

We believe in supporting black women as they plan for the next phase of their lives, says Edna Kane Williams, AARPs senior vice president, Multicultural Leadership. They are so often taking care of others and deserve to have access to all the necessary tools needed to live comfortably in retirement.

Part of the campaigns own magic is its simplicity. A visit to the site opens with a three-minute virtual chat with Avo, a digital retirement coach, regarding your current retirement savings efforts and status. Based on these results, you are provided with personalized tips relevant to your specific income, obligations, and goals. Ultimately, you receive a doable, semi-customized retirement savings action plan for yourselffor free.

All of this is about uplift and empowerment, says Shani Hosten, vice president of Multicultural Leadership, African American/Black Audience Strategy, AARP. Its about reducing the shame, blame, and sense of discouragement around retirement savings.

Black women are at the helm of creating Tribute to Our Sheroes. From campaign strategy to production to publicity, this for us by us public service campaign was designed by black women who feel a deep personal attachment to its mission.

I hear my friends expressing regret and blaming themselves for not doing a better job of saving, says Hosten. We have to start putting actual tools in place earlier to empower African American women. This does that, and meets you where you are.

See original here:

New Site Sets Black Women Up as the Sheroes of Their Own Retirement Savings - Black Enterprise

Cara Santana in Apt 9 x Kohl's with Nancy Santana: Lawyer & Proud Mom, Elle Valera: Opera Singer, ... [+] Model, & Influencer, Amanda Gullickson: Model & Influencer, Najwa Zebian: Activist, Author, Speaker, Steph Shepherd: Entrepreneur & Activist, Lily Oakes: Singer/Songwriter, Victoria Villarroel: Influencer & Model, Candice Nikeia: Content Creator.

Actress, influencer, philanthropist and global engagement officer at Glamsquad, Cara Santana, recently launched a collection with Apt 9 for Kohls. Santana spent almost a year designing this collection alongside Reunited Clothing. In addition to designing the collection, she directed the marketing campaign for the Apt 9 x Kohls collection. Instead of using standard models for the photoshoot, Santana did something unique and different. She used real women from all different types of backgrounds to model the clothes. It may seem like common sense to have real women model clothes that real women would wear, but that rarely is the case in mainstream fashion.

Santanaand the women featured in this campaign represent that diversity and message of empowerment, as behind each woman featured is a unique story. The cast in the marketing campaign surrounding this collaboration include actresses, models, singers, activists, lawyers, and creators, showcasing diversity across body types, sexual orientation, ethnic backgrounds, religions, and lifestyles.The inspiration behind this collaboration stems fromSantanas desire to allow every woman, everywhere the opportunity to look and feel their best by designing a collection for dynamic and multifaceted women.Santanas collection, stands for style and empowerment for every woman, regardless of size, age, background and lifestyle.

Cara Santana in Cara Santana for Apt 9 x Kohl's.

Santana shared why she decided to bring diversity into mainstream fashion through her Apt 9 x Kohls collection.

Yola Robert: Why did you decide to choose real women from diverse backgrounds for your Apt 9 x Kohls campaign?

Cara Santana: Growing up there werent a lot of women that look like me in magazines or in advertising campaigns. The older Ive become the more I hear that from other women that I am friends with and so I wanted to create a campaign that represented the country in a more inclusive and diverse way. We all have to get dressed and why should we not be able to see ourselves when we look at a fashion magazine or campaign?

Robert: Why is prompting diversity important as a creative?

Santana: Representation is something that I am passionate about. I feel as though I have a responsibility to include women from as many backgrounds as possible to give young women the ability to not compare themselves to what they see but instead identify with what they see.

Robert: How did you design the line for all types of women in mind?

Santana: I looked at the staples in my wardrobe and then I thought about how I could make it so that my designs translated to a broader audience whether it be size, shape, age, or lifestyle. Then I worked with the design team to incorporate all of those ideas to create a line that would reflect the needs of the general consumer.

Robert: Why did you want to partner with Apt 9 and Kohls for this collaboration?

Santana: As a little girl the only outlet I had for self expression was through my local Kohls. It is where my mom would take me to shop, and its also where I learned many fashion tips and tricks that I still live by today. Naturally, I wanted to partner with them on my collection because it felt very organic being the place where I loved to shop growing up.

Robert: Where did you pull inspiration from for the collection?

Santana: I pulled my inspiration from women that I know and from the inspiring women I see out in the world everyday. I find women to be multifaceted and layered, and I want my clothes to reflect that. Growing up, for instance, I always watched my mom get ready for work and she would put on her suit and even though she was dressed with a much more masculine flare than I saw on some of the other women in the carpool line, she still retained a sense of femininity with her wardrobe. Thats something that I have adopted into my own personal style. I look at young women who are entering the job force, I look at stay at home mothers, and I look at all of the women around me and thats really what inspires me.

Robert: Tell me more about the women you chose to be in the campaign?

Santana: First off I had to have my mother by my side. She is a 60 something-year-old attorney who lives in Houston Texas. Shes a modern working woman who likes her style to be effortless,no fuss and comfortable.

Lily Oakes is an incredible musician and fashion model who lives a bicoastal lifestyle with her partner between London and LA.

Najwa Zabian is a Lebanese Muslim author and poet with 3 number 1 best sellers (Mind Platter)who up until a year ago dressed in full hijab.

Amanda Gullickson is a successful LA based commercial model with campaigns like Sketchers and Reebok under her belt and a Masters degree in business, who is now focusing on entrepreneurial endeavors.

Stephanie Shepherd is a Japanese American entrepreneur and environmental and human rights a activist, who within 5 years went from personal assistant to COO of one of the Worlds largest branding empires and is now focusing on her work with The Environmental Working Group, while also advocating for gender equality in Uganda with Khana Panties.

Candice Nikeia is an outspoken advocate for diversity in the digital influencer space and active philanthropistwho started an organization bringing beauty products for women in need.

Victoria Villarroel immigrated to the US from Venezuela, received her degree from FIDM and is pursuing a career in creative direction after helping support one of the most successful influencers build their cosmetic company to over a $1B valuation.

Elle Valera is abody positivity model as well as a classically trained opera singer who lives in LA and advocates for the empowerment and inclusion of body positivity and diversity.

More here:

Cara Santana Is Bringing Diversity To Mainstream Fashion With Her Apt 9 x Kohls Collection - Forbes

The U.S. Department of Education published a letter on Sept. 22 threatening to revoke funding for the Duke University and University of North Carolina (UNC) Consortium for Middle East Studies. The letter criticized the program for sponsoring an outdoor concert by rapper Marco Pav, described as a Millennial Muslim from Memphis who conducts hip-hop and social justice workshops. The Department of Education leveled the charge that by hiring Pav, the Duke-UNC program had failed to use their funding to ensure the security, stability and economic vitality of the United States.

Now, Pav, born Tauheed Rahim II, is Georgetowns first hip-hop artist-in-residence. Since his inaugural Sept. 6 discussion in McNeir Hall, Pav has worked with the departments of Performing Arts and African American Studies to organize Critical Frequencies: Live from the Southern Hip-Hop Stage, a series of discussions designed to explore hip-hops influence on entrepreneurship, culture, fashion, politics, social justice, and the music industry. Some Critical Frequencies events include an Oct. 4 discussion on sneaker art and its ability to critique societal injustices, as well as an upcoming Nov. 15 panel exploring African American entrepreneurship within the art industry.

Being an artist-in-residence allows Pav to focus on producing new music from his office in New North while receiving financial backing from the university. Im just free to learn and explore all types of musical capabilities that I have, that I havent tapped into, he said. During his residency, Pav hopes to work directly with students on their music and have them engage with the rich history and legacy of hip-hop.

Im planning and building a ton of events on campus that really explore hip-hop culture and really explore critical things that people can dive into and put their teeth into and understand more about this country, but through a hip-hop lens, Pav said. When asked what he hopes students will learn from Critical Frequencies, Pav said, I want people to understand where [hip-hop] comes from and not only be consumers, but be students of it.

For Pav, hip-hop has played an essential role in the creation of modern American life. He believes hip-hop has moved beyond simply being a music genre and into the realm of a cultural force. Without hip-hop, everybodys lives would be boring, he explained. The way we dress, the way we talk, the way we communicate with our friends is all through hip-hop. Because of this, Pav not only aims to produce music for people to enjoy, but also to learn from.

Issues of equality and identity are prominent themes in Pavs work. He expresses his background as an African American, Muslim, and millenial through his music, which he views as a platform to discuss social justice and empower young people to share stories about their own lives. Prior to becoming artist-in-residence, Pav worked as a Memphis Music Initiative teaching fellow to educate middle and high school students about hip-hop music, culture, and activism. He has released several singles, a 2015 EP called Perception, and a 2017 album titled Welcome to Grc Lnd (pronounced Graceland).

Pavs path to Georgetown did not come without obstacles. He admitted that the consequences of speaking up for social justice, especially as a Muslim, can be daunting. But despite being scrutinized by the Department of Education, Pav has not been deterred from his mission. It makes you be fearful of what the repercussions can be for just speaking out, but thats all we can do, he said of the executive letter. My life is basically to always show people that we have to push back.

Long before he was performing at universities or drawing the ire of the Trump administration, however, Pav discovered hip-hop during his childhood in Tennessee. He described how, in the sixth and seventh grade, he would listen to artists like Lil Wayne and Missy Elliot, wanting to follow in their footsteps and learn from their musical styles.

Pav frequently cites his upbringing in Memphis as a major influence on his approach to music and perspective on society. His early life shaped a major theme of his work: transforming a negative situation into a positive outcome. Growing up in Memphis was definitely one of the most difficult things Ive done because I didnt want to go the traditional route of gang culture, he said. I had already done that by 15 years old. For me, I was trying to get away from that.

He described how escaping the cycle of violence and focusing on his music career was especially challenging for him. If youre trying to branch out and do something completely different without any support systems, then its going to be totally difficult, Pav explained. The way I built my platform as an artist basically was to challenge the system.

In addition to his own personal history, Pav uses music to explore Memphis public history. If you look at people of color in any city, most likely theyll have a similar story, but Memphis definitely has its own specific style of racism, he said.

He recounted the citys historical associations with slavery, Jim Crow, and the Civil Rights Movement. Located on the banks of the Mississippi River, Memphis, according to Pav, is a city founded on the profits of companies that sold cotton and transported slaves downriver to plantations in the Deep South. After the Civil War, the city was subject to a century of Jim Crow laws and the oppression of African Americans. In 1968, just three years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act, Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in the city, dashing many Americans hopes of racial progress and societal reform.

Through his work, Pav contextualizes Memphiss place in the history of the struggle for racial justice, discussing how the citys past connects with the experiences of Americans today. Thats the shadow we live in, and thats the reality we live in, because 50 years after MLK, not a lot has changed, Pav said.

The music video for Black Tux, the lead single from Perception, epitomizes his focus on using his lifes experiences to create socially conscious hip-hop. In the video, Pav delivers his rhymes inside a crumbling factory in Memphis, symbolizing the structural inequities people of color face in the post-Jim Crow South. The video is interspersed with black-and-white flashbacks that show some of the difficult decisions Pav had to make on the way to fulfill his dream of becoming a hip-hop artist, including forgoing job opportunities in order to focus on making music. Dressed in the titular black tuxedo, Pav stands in stark contrast to the decay around him, representing how he has sought to escape the challenging circumstances of his childhood and build his own legacy.

Through his music, Pav says he wants to give a voice to young people across the country who seek to challenge and overcome issues of systemic inequality and injustice, all while trying to stay afloat and pursue their dreams. Thats the point of the music. Its to show people that miracles can happen, show people that the impossible can happen if you just put your mind to doing something thats outside of what your circumstances are.

Despite the initial obstacles, Pav is grateful for what he has been able to accomplish in his career as a hip-hop artist. I come from a very negative situation from the socioeconomic standpoint, but also from the interpersonal family standpoint, from abuse, he said. And Im sitting here at Georgetown University as an artist-in-residence today.

Image Credits: Marco Pav

See the original post:

Marco Pav, Georgetown's First Hip-Hop Artist-In-Residence: A Conversation on Rap, Social Justice, and Self-Empowerment - The Georgetown Voice

Here at The 405, were always amazed by artists who fixate on the evolution of their craft. New York-based pop singer, VRIT (aka Kelsey Byrne) has done this with her music well before the release of her debut album (Somewhere In Between) back in 2017 and that fascination has continued to develop with her upcoming sophomore album, New Skin (out today). Delving deeper into her personal experiences, the songs weve heard so far from New Skin show a more candid and resilient side of VRIT. There are moments of confusion, curiosity, resiliency and empowerment throughout these songs, but most importantly theres a complex human being at the center of it all. On this episode of the podcast, Ken Grand-Pierre catches up with VRIT to discuss new music, evolving her craft, and what we can expect from her next.

You can subscribe to the 405 Exchange podcast on iTunes, Spotify, TuneIn, Stitcher, Google Play, and Overcast. You can also listen to the podcast over at Anchor.

Continued here:

The 405 Exchange: VRIT on the artistic growth of New Skin - The 405

SIOUX CITY (KTIV) Briar Cliff hosted a Womens Leadership Summit on Thursday and Friday.

The event was called 1930 in honor of Briar Cliffs founding in 1930.

Organizers said the university was founded by women for women and that is one of the main reasons they wanted to start something like this.

Students and other members of the Briar Cliff and Sioux City community were invited to attend and learn from several different speakers about female empowerment.

The summit included motivational speakers and activities to inspire personal growth, collaboration, community response during a crisis, and key leadership lessons that are critical for the modern-day.

Organizers said they wanted to honor the 30th anniversary of the crash of United Airlines Flight 232 and use themes from that day, like collaboration, community response during a crisis, and key leadership lessons.

This idea was actually a spark of an idea that I brought to life very early on in my presidency. Because the university was founded by women for women, I just really thought it was important to honor our roots, said Rachelle Karstens, Briar Cliff University President. Its really about uplifting women and helping them to network and find sponsors and mentors to help them achieve their dreams.

Speakers at the event included the International President of the Association of Flight Attendants, Sara Nelson, and CEO of UnityPoint Health System Fort Dodge, Leah Glasgo.

More:

Briar Cliff University hosts their first Women's Leadership Summit - KTIV

Food insecurity is an issue close to the heart of UC San Diego student Tyler Sepulveda.

Growing up there were days where he might not have eaten if he hadnt had food at school. At home there were times when his mom would have to stretch to make sure he and his brother had a meal, sometimes taking a rice or pasta box labeled for three servings and having to portion it out to last several days.

That story is not just me; 1 in 5 kids experience food insecurity here in San Diego, Sepulveda told a room full of people from various government, nonprofit and business sectors Saturday. For an area that is one of the largest economic hubs here in California, I dont think that is how the world should be.

Sepulvedas personal experience was among many stories young people from throughout San Diego County shared to highlight issues of importance to their generation Saturday.

The conference in Logan Heights hosted by Youth Will, a youth empowerment nonprofit, drew more than 70 people a diverse group of young San Diegans joining community members from other nonprofits, government agencies and local businesses.

They came together to discuss how issues like transportation, housing, access to health care and restorative justice are impacting young people in the region. They also discussed what possible long-term solutions could look like and what role various groups can play in helping develop a Regional Child and Youth Development Master Plan.

Local young people began drafting the countys first youth master plan in collaboration with local leaders and Youth Will. Here, Shadia Omer talks with Janet Ruiz of the San Diego American Indian Health Center and Maddy Moritsch of the Alliance for a Healthier Generation.

(Nancee E. Lewis)

Earlier this year Youth Will and young people from throughout the county created a Youth Bill of Rights and set their sights on developing a plan with long term strategies for the entire region to support and ensure the success of young people.

When we believe in young people, when we give them the opportunity to prove themselves, they will, said Sean Elo, executive director of Youth Will. What we are trying to do here is work toward that vision our young people have created... and if we work with them I know we can actually be the San Diego we envision where every young person has what they need to be happy, healthy and reach their potential.

Although the conference didnt provide long-term solutions to every issue young people are hoping to address in the ultimate regional plan, Saturdays event served as a starting point by bringing together various stakeholders in the community and reflecting who still needs to come to the table.

Attendees broke into 11 small groups to focus on the 11 issues outlined in the Youth Bill of Rights.

Some of the groups, such as the one focused on transportation, had few community member volunteers.

Cassidy Jacquez, a Fallbrook resident who is a third-year student at Cal State San Marcos, emphasized the need to engage young people around the topic of transportation, especially since many young people and students like herself are commuters who would benefit from having a solid public transportation system that is affordable and widely accessible.

We need to incorporate a better transportation system so that people like me... can actually get to school without having to spend money I dont have on gas, she said.

Other groups saw more immediate community engagement.

For instance, a group focusing on justice and safety included individuals from a variety of entities including the county probation department, the county public safety department, the San Diego American Indian Health Center and Youth Empowerment, a community group focused on helping at-risk youths.

That groups discussion focused heavily on how it could help connect youth, community organizations, and government entities to share and learn new information about various accountability practices through alternate means like education and therapy. Members of the group also discussed the need to get more feedback from young people, as well as various ways to create points of access with government entities that are less intimidating and more widely known for members of the community.

The engagement from so many different community members at the event Saturday including county Supervisor Greg Cox and Assemblymember Todd Gloria was a positive sign, according to Youth Will leadership. But still much work needs to be done.

We can put a Bill of Rights together, we can put words on paper, but unless we act on it, its not really going to be anything, said Warsan Artan, who leads operations and youth organizing at Youth Will.

Excerpt from:

From hunger to transportation, San Diego youth work on their own Bill of Rights - The San Diego Union-Tribune

This year is a milestone year for the organizers behind the Tapestry of Womens annual conference.

The event is celebrating their 25th anniversary and this years instalment will be like no other.

The theme this year is Reflections: Unity in Diversity. Attendees can expect a hot nutritious breakfast, lunch, snacks and prizes. The Morley Pow Wow Academy and Thunderstone Drummers will open the conference and four speakers will engage attendees with thoughtful discussion on topics including empowerment and reconciliation with women. The day will end with a traditional friendship round.

Its an amazing energy, said Cindy Murray, a co-organizer of the event.

Its just women supporting women. Were all there for each other. You get the camaraderie that women get when were together.

The Tapestry of Women Society - Bow Valley is a non-profit society that hosts the annual conference. The conference began in response to the 1995 United Nations World Conference of Women in Beijing. The conference in Beijing focused on Indigenous women facing barriers to full equality because of their race, age, language, ethnicity, culture and religion.

The local society felt the message around barriers applied to their home. The society has worked on bridging the gap between women in Rocky View Country and women in the Stoney Nakoda nation.

The conference works to provide information and education on issues of importance and relevance to women in Cochrane and the surrounding area. The intimate gathering strives to provide an opportunity for women to feel enlightened, reduce their stress, and potentially learn about themselves. The forum will also help women connect, share common concerns, build upon personal strengths and support one another.

We firmly believe that healthy women help build healthy families and communities, the society wrote on their website.

One of their inspirational speakers includes Chantal StormSong Chagnon. Chagnon is local activist, singer, drummer and storyteller.

The conference will also feature entrepreneurial women from around the province selling their handmade art.

Women can move mountains, Murray said.

When you put women together theres something about the energy.

The conference is also looking for sponsorship as not every woman can afford to attend. Potential donors or sponsors can contact the organization on Facebook by searching Tapestry of Women Cochrane AB.

More here:

Milestone year for Tapestry of Women's annual conference - Cochrane Today

It has been a trying, unrelenting week for the 19 Labour MPs who voted for Boris Johnsons Brexit bill on Tuesday. Since the vote, they have been accused of facilitating Brexit, handing the Tories a boost before a potential election and driving Remain voters into the arms of the Liberal Democrats. Some have faced open hostility from members of their own party. One MP had to break off an interview as tears filled their eyes when describing the pressure placed on them and their families.

Interviews with the MPs reveal a group desperately battling to find a route through the Brexit impasse, having found themselves at the sharp end of the most fraught political debate since the second world war.

Some of the stuff that some colleagues have had has been just horrendous, says Jim Fitzpatrick, the veteran London MP who voted for the bill. There were people in the chamber last Saturday in tears because of the dilemma between what they were being asked to do by the party, the whips, their constituents and what they believed in. Everybody feels it, and we dont expect any sympathy because its the job.

It is a sign of the pressures that some of the MPs did not wish to speak, while others asked not to be named. What united most was the conclusion that, despite the costs involved, their constituents remained clear that they wanted them to honour the referendum result and they had to find a compromise.

I campaigned door to door during the referendum, trying to convince them to vote Remain, says Ruth Smeeth, the Stoke-on-Trent North MP. I did that, which is really important to me. I went and made the argument. There is a hilarious video on the Guardian website of me going door to door, begging people to vote Remain. I chose my safest ward, hoping that would be helpful. It was not. I had every local employer, MPs, unions everyone was on the same page. We couldnt convince people.

Its about understanding who you represent and why. I stood on a manifesto to respect the result. I said I would deliver Brexit in a way that protects my constituency as much as possible.

Melanie Onn, the Great Grimsby MP, reached a similar conclusion that people know the risks of Brexit. In 2016, part of the Labour Remain campaign did set these things out, she says. I know I shared that information with people. They plumped for something else. People are telling me that it is a trade-off they are prepared to risk in order to get a sense of self-determination and empowerment.

Gloria De Piero, the MP for Ashfield, says she was taking a commonsense position that followed the Labour policy of battling for an acceptable deal. I had incredibly high Leave votes in my council estates. I remember one man very clearly, about 65, saying: Ive never, ever voted in my life. I think he was a telephone engineer, from memory. Now, Im sorry, but these are the people I came into politics to represent. They are the people who Labour exists for.

Fitzpatrick is in a different situation. He is in the heavily pro-Remain Poplar and Limehouse constituency and would have faced little criticism for opposing Brexit altogether. However, he says he had reached the view that a no-deal Brexit was not going to happen and that the referendum result could not be ignored. I wouldnt have the grief Im getting from constituency members, delegates, family, friends [if he had opposed the deal]. All of my main supporters in my constituency are very committed Remainers. They got me elected several times. They are appalled by my voting and there is nothing I can do to assuage them, other than to explain my position. I can live with myself and I think its the right thing to do. In that sense, I can defend it.

The decision clearly weighs heavily on all. This is not about sending people off to war, so lets keep it in proportion, says Onn. But yes, for me, this is a conflict between my personal opinion and those expressed strongly by my constituents. So there is always going to be that conflict. There is a conscience, constituents and country perspective on all of this. Its fair to say Ive had sleepless nights. I didnt want to be the person just saying No. If you think its the right thing to do, then you just have to do it.

The reaction to their decision, both from within Labour and more widely among disappointed Remain supporters, has been mixed though several of the MPs talked of hostility. Stephanie Peacock, the Barnsley East MP, says: Everyone feels passionately and sincerely in this debate. One of my frustrations is some of the personal and political attacks, questioning our Labour values and socialism. The idea that we couldnt possibly be Labour thats quite difficult to deal with.

Smeeth says: The way in which some people have decided to speak to us, at us or about us has been neither comradely nor a way to engage with people. It is grim to be on the other side of the debate to people who Im very close to on every other issue. There have been some horrible moments and some horrible things said by both colleagues and political commentators about our motives. Onn has had similar treatment. Ive had people saying: Youve just done that to save your job. Well, no, because I could have had the whip removed and not been a Labour candidate.

Some of the MPs say they end up under fire from all sides. I go to my constituency and they think, because Im a Labour MP, Im like [Lib Dem MPs] Jo Swinson or Chuka Umunna, says De Piero. Then I come to Westminster and some of my colleagues think Im like Nigel Farage. That is the gulf I understand the pressures on colleagues who take a different view to me and respect them for it but Id like them to respect my way.

Most of the group are still reserving judgment on how they would vote should Johnsons Brexit bill return to the Commons unchanged. De Piero says: I have respect for my colleagues whatever they decide to do on the bill. I would say that youre not going to get more than half voting for the final deal.

Others appear to have decided to back the Johnson deal to the end. Im reconciled to it, says Fitzpatrick. I dont like it. It has caused me a lot of grief. I get a lot of, This is what youll be remembered for, you traitor. I said, Im surprised, because I didnt think Id be remembered for anything.

Originally posted here:

Labour MPs on why they backed Boris Johnsons Brexit bill - The Guardian

Shanghai Oct 26, 2019 (Thomson StreetEvents) -- Edited Transcript of Bank of Communications Co Ltd earnings conference call or presentation Friday, October 25, 2019 at 9:00:00am GMT

(technical difficulty) 2019. I am Guo Mang, EVP of Bank of Communications. It gives me great pleasure to communicate with you.

First, on behalf of Bank of Communications, please let me give our sincere gratitude to your support we [hold on] for a long time. We have attached great importance to the market communications. And our concern -- we need your concern to help us to improve our management and the business operations.

Today, what -- also have the following participants. so Mr. Gu Sheng, Chair -- Corporate Secretary; Mr. Xu Han, Chief Director of the (inaudible); Mr. Tu Hong, the Chief Investment Officer; and also the representatives from ALCO finance department, the corporate department, institution department, risk management department, credit department, the IT department, credit card center, global marketing centers, and BOCOM Wealth Management (inaudible).

This morning, BoCom's Board has approved the third quarter report of 2019. On the whole, the -- in the third straight quarter, BoCom has maintained prudent and stable development. The key financial indicators of the bank has improved. The net operating income, net interest income has both grow by double-digit growth. And as so, the cost-to-income ratio has been reduced. NPL provision coverage ratio has improved.

Although we still have some shortcomings, but just cost speaking, we think that our share is undervalued on the market, and it still has great value for investment. And as the senior manager of finance department, Mr. (inaudible) will introduce to you the financial performance with BoCom in the third quarter, then we will take your questions. This announcement will take around 1 hour. (inaudible)

Good afternoon. I'm (inaudible) from the finance department with Bank of Communications. First, let me introduce to you our development in the third quarter. And my introduction will include 4 parts: First is a section of our business operations. We can have the review of business development set, right, the risk management and last, the outlook.

In terms of our operations. In the first 3 quarters, we have implemented the "186" Strategic footprint. And we -- under the new strategy, our initial indicators has achieved prudent and stable growth. So we have focused on the value creation. So our net profit reached CNY 60 billion, up by 4.69%. As our site, as we -- the net operating income is CNY 176 billion, up 11.6% or CNY 10.65 billion. Net interest income is CNY 106 billion, up by 11.72% or CNY 8.8 billion. The main reason for this is the improved NIM. Our NIM is 1.57%, up by 10 bps. And while will we follow -- the fee and commission income, it's up by 9.76%. And we have controlled the cost effectively. The cost income ratio is 13.15% (sic) [30.15%], which is down by 1.34 percentage points.

With the optimized business structure and the quarter (inaudible). And we have restructured our business by the end of September. Our pre position then is up by 7.26%. On a yearly basis, our key growth rate is 1.36 percentage points higher than the same period last year.

And of the -- and in terms of our long allocation, we have increased the support to private sector and increased the finance. We have achieved target of (inaudible) increase and (inaudible) control by end of September. The small and micro enterprise system is up by 41.26% on a yearly basis. The number of this, as one of our group enterprise, has also achieved growth. The loan to product sector is up by 9.39%, higher than the average loan growth. And in terms of the regional allocation, we have increased the support to the Yangtze River Delta and to the Guangdong Bay Area. And we have optimized the credit procedure, sped up the financial ramp and also give more support to the Yangtze River Delta and the Guangdong Area. The percentage of the loans to these 2 areas is [30.76%] and [13.63%], respectively.

We also use technology to empower our transformation. And we continue to carry out the group's strategy. The overseas branches and the subsidiaries' net profit is about 25.9%, while the total asset is up by 9.65%, which -- and it now stands at RMB 1.2 trillion. The 12th branch has been opened, and we are also in preparation of opening Toronto branch and Johannesburg branch. The subsidiaries' net profit attributable to the parent company is up by 15.3%. The total asset is up by 15.8%. Local investment debt equity swap program posted number, which is 37. And we have used CNY 22.6 billion we -- which is relatively high compared with the other commercial banks.

BOCOM Wealth Management has also issued its (inaudible) WMP and is the first product issued under the new regulation from the [PMC] under our banking group. And we have also issued (inaudible) products afterwards, and we help our clients to increase the value. We have sold -- or the fee and commission from the associative insurance, treasury bonds and (inaudible) is up 17.78%, while the management fees for trust, funds management and WMP are 18.19%. (inaudible) which is RMB 3.37 trillion, up by 10.35%.

And our -- and in terms of the technology empowerment, the New 531 project has continued being carried out. And we will issue the 4.0 version of our mobile app in the mid-October. And we have 3 projects, fintech [MT], the 10,000 people for fintech program and also the empowerment for existing talent. And we also use technology to deduct the big data risk control model.

We continue our risk appetite so that -- while we might (inaudible). And as the quality indicators remain stable, our NPL overdue loan and -- has been reduced. The NPL ratio and overdue loan ratio has been helped by 0 pricing, down by 0.2 percentage points 0.18 percentage points comparing with the end of 2018. So provision coverage ratio is up by 1.797 percentage points. And the -- our CET1 -- our Tier 1 capital ratio and total capital adequacy ratio has both grown, and we have used a number of measures to improve our asset quality. We have addressed CNY 43 billion NPL and also (inaudible) CNY 14 billion.

In terms of our market risk and liquidity risk, it was all controllable, and we have viewed a matrix of risk in prevention and to the comprehensive risk management and provision. And we have this [5 plus 30 prevention] program.

So just the financial statement, the balance sheet, the income statement. So you can see somewhat high gross of net interest income here. And so for the fee and commission income, up by 9.76%. And in terms of the structure, our agent structure, agency and the management fee has increased. And then our business cost is up by 6.41%. Most of our cost -- increased cost is in technology empowerment and employee program.

In terms of -- and we have increased the provision, 6.5% or 22.78%. We have increased our provision to some our high-risk portfolio. So here are the main financial indicators. So this is the instruction of our firm in the third quarter.

And now for the business development. In terms of our corporate finance, we have restructure of the business. We have increased the support to certain business lines and so as to support this economy. The corporate -- the profit is CNY 4.02 billion end of September, up by 2.13%; the corporate loan, 3.5%, up by 8.81%. So we have increased the loan.

In terms of the highlight, the industrial chain finance has been important to highlight. We have built an online/off-line business structure, and we have 30 -- 3,800 qualified industrial chain clients, while the key project financing volume is more than RMB 200 billion.

In terms of investment banking, we have underlied the balance, excluding ABS and the risk [coupon]. And the fiscal number is 309, while the volume has been up by 5.3%. For the asset custody business, the total assets -- or the total -- the size of that reached CNY 9.3 billion, up by 5.22%.

In terms of offering electronics channels, we have -- the number of corporate client is up by 2 -- 340,000. As for the personal finance, we continue to focus on the clients and build quality brands, improve the client experience. The outstanding personal deposit is RMB 1.9 trillion, up by 9.12%. The personal loan is CNY 1.7 billion, up by [4.21%]. The mortgage is up by 9.3%.

In terms of wealth management, we have combined technology with our product capacity. The qualified (inaudible) client and (inaudible) client is up by 11.9% and 15.2%.

The client choice will actively participate in the launch and promoting of the [ETC] product. The new version of the mobile banking won't be released very soon.

In terms of the bank card -- the debit card, we have proactively promoting the application and its usage areas, the credit card issued by more than CNY 71 million. The total consumption of the first 3 quarters was RMB 2.1 trillion. The Pacific debit card issued by a total number of 1.4 trillion, up by 7.3 million and the total consumption of the 3 quarters was RMB 1.6 trillion.

And in terms of the interbank and the global markets businesses, we have integrated our asset management, wealth management and global market clearing and settlement product to further promote the development of the capital markets and the financial institutions. In terms of the market businesses, the financial investment was RMB 3 trillion, up by 6.35%. The asset investment yield was rosy, and we have increased our net worth high wealth management product. And the off-balance sheet wealth management grew by 27.6%.

The off-balance sheet net worth products, the balance grew by RMB 122 billion. And in terms of the financial institutions, the bank-to-bank -- our cooperating platform, the total clients in this platform was 1,087, up by 203 financial institutions. And in terms of the precious metals, the agency transaction volume for precious metal was RMB 120 billion. The physical precious metal sold by RMB 918 million. And in the Shanghai Gold Exchange, we ranked the first 3 places in the exchange.

So this is the outline and briefing of the sector-to-sector business performances. And next, I will talk about the risk management. For the first 3 quarters, we have maintained a stabilized asset quality, and we have been more capable in resisting to those adverse risks. The nonperforming loan balance was RMB 76.6 billion and down by 5.676%. Among these, the NPL in the corporate sector was RMB 58.2 billion, and the retail NPL was RMB 18.4 billion. And the nonperforming ratio now is standing at 1.47%. The special-mention loan decreased by RMB 5.2 billion or down by 0.26 basis -- percentage points.

And finally, we will talk about the outlook. Compressed it with the complex situations. We will follow closely about the developments in the market and also the trending of the market -- the regulatory policies, and we will strive to lay a solid foundation for fulfilling the whole year target.

And next, we'll have several priorities. One is, we will better serve the -- increase our capacity to serve the real economy, and we will focus the national initiatives and strategies and better upgrade our loan portfolio, and we will also further promote our "186" Strategic outline to accelerate our transformation and development. And we will further promote our innovation of the financial technologies and integrate our onshore and offshore platforms for us to ensure a quality development of the whole group. We will also encourage the application of defensing tech for us to be more tech empowered and to better serve our integration of the online/off-line platforms.

The fourth point is that we still need to stick to the principle of prudential operations and prevent major financial risks. We will have more refined and targeted management of certain areas of high risk, and we will further reform our risk management framework to prevent the risks exposure in certain areas.

So this is the briefing of -- and a review of the first 3 quarters. So that is all my introduction. Thank you.

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Guo Mang, [3]

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Thank you for the introduction. Now we're happy to take your questions. The floor is open.

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Questions and Answers

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Guo Mang, [1]

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So the first one is from Huatai Securities, Mr. [Jan Jao Kwang].

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Unidentified Analyst, [2]

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So my question is twofold. One is about the NIM performance. We have noticed that in the first 3 quarters, the NIM has decreased by 1 bp. So in the downward trending of the pricing, what do you think will be the impact on the NIM in the future? The second is a new notice issued by your bank is the Social Security council did not decrease its shareholding of Bank of Communications. And it hasn't issued the further plan of reducing its shareholdings. So according to your knowledge, what is their plans in terms of the shareholding in your bank?

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Guo Mang, [3]

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So thank you for your question. We will have the -- [Mr. Chen], general manager from the financial investment department to answer your questions.

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Unidentified Company Representative, [4]

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Thank you for your attention to the NIM. Actually, NIM has been a major factor in influencing the performance and the indicators of the commercial bank. It is a major metric. In terms of our NIM performance of the first 3 quarters, we see a stabilized trend. At the end of the first 3 quarters, we grew year-on-year by 10 basis points and -- or 6 basis points compared to the end of last year. Looking ahead, LPR repricing, the new policy, we think will weigh down on the yield on the incremental loans. But from our perspective, judging from our current -- this year's performance, we are now optimizing the liability mix. For example, we further expand our customer base and upgrade our financial technology system. We have been increasing our cost for their liabilities. And at the same time, we are now grasping the good timing to replace those previously high cost liabilities. Through these measures -- or our anticipation is that the whole year NIM will be maintained at 1.57%. So this is a general outlook.

We believe that the NIM will be stabilized, but this will face some pressure. It's also true in some other big state-owned banks. They share this belief and expectation with the introduction of the new policy on the pricing. But with our adjustment on the pricing our assets and also reducing the liability costs, we are confident to maintain a stabilized NIM level in the next year.

And the second question about the reduction of the shareholding of the Social Security council. In the past 6 years, the Social Security council did not reduce its shareholding in our bank. And it hasn't we -- haven't received any notice and plan from the council to reduce their shareholding. They are a large shareholder, and they are also our institutional client.

You have also noticed that the Ministry of Finance has allocated or transferred part of its shares into this council. So we will maintain a close cooperation and ties for this institution.

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Guo Mang, [5]

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Now we will have the analyst from UBS.

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Unidentified Analyst, [6]

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I have 2 questions to ask: One, about deepening the reform. What is the progress in this area? And also, when we were at the press result, the result of the beginning of this year, there was a owners share -- staff ownership holding scheme. So well, this can be expanded to more staff.

And the second question is on asset quality. We have seen is an optimistic trend of the asset quality. Can you share with us your -- the major points of risk in the corporate and the retail sector and also the asset quality at the end of the third quarter of the credit card. Also, do you think -- the trade dispute between China and the United States has been lasting for more than 1 year. Do you think this will weigh down on the asset quality of your good bank?

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Unidentified Company Representative, [7]

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I and my other colleagues will answer your questions one by one. The first question about deepening the reform. As you have noticed, we have further launched our deepening -- our reform work. We have the "186" Strategic outlook to further implement our BoCom strategy. And also at the same time, we have to deepen our reform. By deepening reform, we had 3 or 4 priorities set in the beginning of this year. So these 4 areas is the remuneration reform, technological empowerment and the credit risk. And the third is the restructuring of the channels and, it's upgrading. So these are the 4 areas for our deepening reform.

At present, we have seen this progress as follows: In terms of the remuneration, where there's several things. One is that we had an investigation or examination or a survey on those excellent staff who were born after 1980 to let them be the managers at the branch level. And also, we have some adjustment to the salary of the staff. We further increased our resources to those front-desk employees who are performing well.

And the third work is that the professional manager reform in the 37 provincial branches, those leaders with front desk or professional managers. So this will be a very market reform -- market-based reform. And the last measure is that we continued our incentive mechanism for the middle-level leaders.

And second area so far where deepening reform is, is technological empowerment. One point is we initiated the 10,000 talent for the financial technology upgrading. Within first year, we hope that we can cultivate a total number of 10,000 fintech talent. And in this year, we have already recruited 200 FinTech staff. And also, we will recruit the FinTech management trainee to further enhance our capacity in terms of the FinTech. In particular, to ensure our smart transformation and upgrading of our IT system.

We are implementing this upgrading, and we have seen some preliminary successes. For example, the advances in the biological screening and identification, big data, block chain, all this technology have been applied in promoting sales, risk management, et cetera.

In promoting the security of the infrastructure, we expedited the IT systems transformation from the centralized system to a distributed system. And we have made great breakthrough in this area.

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Unidentified Company Representative, [8]

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They have to reverse different services which -- these are very different scenarios for our users. In the past (inaudible) the management separated. The new mobile app can (inaudible) financial and life coverage. By the end of September, the DAU [of the DAA] is around -- the monthly active user is up by [33%]. While our credit card mobile active users was around 24 billion. (inaudible) project. And the third project is the risk management and the credit management. For our provisional branches, they have established the risk monitoring system and the client unified map has been ready for search, for all of our employees. And we have also our risk management procedure over the (inaudible) procedure. We now have mobile in the [pre-close coverage] approval procedure. In some of our branches, they have begun the green channels for credit approvals, which has shortened the time and improved -- enhanced the customer experience.

The fourth project is channel transformation. The transformation, we have these comprehensive market intelligence outlets, the corporate and profit client service capacity also and (inaudible) increased.

Our branches -- our process gets deployed in the [increase of] finance business. And also, we have transformed the service with the client with -- most forecast in the much for the tellers than for the client managers. And we have also tried to make our branches more smart. And our product make the client -- make it more convenient for clients to do the business by themselves. And our -- and we have handheld equipment to help our client managers with marketing, and these projects are still underway.

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Guo Mang, [9]

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And we also have a question for share holding off our -- the management. The question will be taken by (inaudible).

So the risk management will be taken by Mr. (inaudible) from the risk management and also Mr. (inaudible) from credit card center.

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Unidentified Company Representative, [10]

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For the risk factor deal for our corporate business, there are a lot of factors. The external economic environment will have a big impact on the risk. We finished the (inaudible) slowing GDP growth, and this will have impact on the corporate risk.

The second, the policies registry, it will structurally, especially the government liability, even the corporate (inaudible), and all of this will have an impact on (inaudible) corporate portfolio.

The third factor would be industry. (inaudible) for the commercial plans, for the manufacturing industry, the forestry, agriculture, fishery, (inaudible).

The fourth factor will be the cost themselves. We have similar measures to help -- to address the risks such as the monitoring prevention of risk, and we use Big Data to see that smart choice control system can help us to address the risk on the way for the corporate business. And so we have optimized our risk address mechanism and accelerate the -- address significant risk so that we can control the corporates business risk at a stable level.

The second question is about the trade friction and its impact on our asset quality. So the trade friction, it's related to the China-U. S. relation, and also, the world economy as a whole. And as we are in the cyclical industry, and of course, we are on this impact. And we have done a number of [infections] on our portfolio. The risks are controllable for most of our clients. The most impact is on -- for tax clients. That's the manufacturing industry with export to U.S. And also -- second, C-corporate reliance on the imports from U.S. That's the corporate with pressure on ForEx liability. And the fourth culprit is corporate-related to the trade between the 2 countries. We have taken some measures to address the potential risks.

In the future, we've taken number of measures. We will optimize our client structure, support the clients. And for the clients with temporary difficulties, we'll continue to give them support so that we can cope with the impact together for the clients with major risk. And we will try to reduce our exposure.

And for the credit card risk as well, the question will be taken by Mr. [Wang], the head of the credit card center.

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Unidentified Company Representative, [11]

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Thank you for your support to our credit card business. In 2018 in terms of the card issuance, monitoring and the traction, we have taken a number of risk management measures. We have enhanced our tenders for the high-risk clients in regions. So we use third-party database and increased our client entry standard.

Up to now, the key risk indicator has all improved. By the end of September, the newly-added clients -- or the newly-added monthly NPL ratio has been dropped by 3 continuous months. And also the (inaudible) clients is the lowest in the recent 2 years. The NPL ratio and overdue ratio has been up by -- has been down comparing with the beginning of this year. With effective control of the risks (inaudible) financial credit card business started to recover its growth rate.

The rest is here:

Edited Transcript of 601328.SS earnings conference call or presentation 25-Oct-19 9:00am GMT - Yahoo Finance

I was dreading the tutorial. It was my second semester of English Literature, and after a first semester of coasting around the literary world, we were now working chronologically, which meant that I had just been thrown into the medieval period. I hated it.

Furthermore, it was January, typically freezing, and I got lost. My tutorial was in one of the many buildings that makes up the row of Buccleuch Place, up a musty spiral staircase, and through a door that was easy to miss. I was slightly late, there was chaos regarding who was actually meant to be at that tutorial.

I began to think that I would rather be anywhere else. That was until my tutor began the icebreakers. At that time, I hated icebreakers hated the feeling of anticipation as we moved around the circle to me. I hated the pressure to say something smart.

Literature tutors often ask for a favourite author. While others name Tolstoy and Austen, the closest I can come to naming a favourite author is Rainbow Rowell.

I hated the fact that I never managed to introduce myself in the way that I wanted to. But as my tutor rattled through the list of what she wanted us to say about ourselves, she asked if we would introduce our personal pronouns.

The first time I was asked for my preferred pronouns by another student was the first day of freshers week. A whole semester would pass before I would be asked by a tutor.

For the entirety of the first semester, I had been squirming with the anticipation of being misgendered in every tutorial. If someone referred to me, were they going to use she? Was somebody going to call me a girl, grouping me where I didnt really belong?

I wore pronoun badges to tutorials as often as I could remember, but badges are small, and people dont often stop to read them. My cisgender friends told me that I should correct people in tutorials, but Im chronically shy and the idea of interrupting somebody to correct them on my pronouns just felt wrong. I considered emailing tutors, but the anxiety gnawed at me until I didnt say anything at all. I just had to smile and cope every time somebody called me she.

Its not that I blame anybody for the mistake. Its just hard to navigate a world where you dont fit into the traditional binaries.

By the time I entered university, I had something of a handle on my own personal identity. I was settled and assured with neutral pronouns, gave up on the idea of changing my name (nothing ever feels as right as Jasna).

I felt I was at a fairly reasonable state with my presentation, though dysphoria for me waxes and wanes. Having to enter my gender as female on my personal details for MyEd was like a kick in the teeth. It felt like a constant reminder that, as much as the university paraded itself as LGBT-champion, the actual reality of this was that support was scarce.

My first year was consistently traumatic. Not just in terms of my gender identity but for me, as a person. I was completely torn apart. University was supposed to fix me, to be the best thing that ever happened to me and yet I hated it, never wanted to go, was constantly stressed, and was having panic attacks. They were so bad I sometimes thought I was going to have to go to the hospital.

My hands would shake over my keyboard as I tried to force myself through essays I didnt know how Id write. I wrote one through tears. Other students threw me lifebuoys, helping me proofread and restructure essays and breaking down concepts I struggled with into pieces that I could understand.

As my world fell apart around me, it felt like the university was attacking me. My first year was plagued by a campaign of transphobic stickers that I did my best to scrape from lampposts and buildings. But as fast as I (and others) could remove them, they would reappear.

Despite attending a liberal university it felt like my existence as a trans person was under attack. I didnt know, and still dont, who was putting up the stickers.

I didnt know who in my classes might turn out to not believe in my identity. Sometimes, when I mentioned that I was non-binary in passing, I felt a vice grip of fear in my chest about outing myself. What did the others at the table think?

But my first year of university was also the first year of my life that I started following online activism. I followed outspoken trans and non-binary people and shared their posts on my Instagram stories. I worried about how other people would react and was grilled by people over whether transphobia still existed in Britain, and if anti-trans violence did. My friends were constantly supportive and, with their advice, I blocked those whose constant questioning was uneducated and harmful.

It was a slow and rocky road, but I began to cut transphobia out of my life and surround myself with positive people. People who accepted my identity, supported me, and were willing to stick up for me. The friends that I made in my first year have been my greatest support, and Im so grateful to have met them.

Though I almost never actually attended any PrideSoc events as they clashed with something else, their presence as a society on social media and following members also made me feel incredibly supported.Even though we were often having to fight against transphobia, it felt good knowing that I was surrounded by other people who were willing to fight. It also felt good knowing that there were others like me out there, on campus. PrideSoc has always felt supportive and reminds me that we are a community, one that looks out for each other.

I also bought my first chest binder in first year. Though wearing it was often panic-inducing for me, I was afraid of getting stuck in it. The act of owning it and having the option to wear it was empowering.Through the universitys gender empowerment fund, I was later able to get a better fitting binder that is much more comfortable to wear. Though I dont often wear it as my dysphoria is starting to fade, knowing that its there is a great comfort. The university funding it was hugely helpful for me, as binders are expensive and I had been unsurprisingly terrible with my money during first year.

For me, being non-binary at university is a life full of ups and downs. University has been difficult both academically, and trying to navigate my identity in this new sphere where I dont know how and when to mention that I use they/them pronouns.

In having had to fight against university events that hosted speakers that were widely-known to be transphobic, I have often felt attacked by the same institution that I am a part of. But equally, the experience of being in university has brought me closer to friends and a community that has been hugely supportive and a deep source of comfort. It is hard to summarise my feelings on the way that my experience has been so far as there is so much to say.

But, if Im being truly honest, Im glad to be here, and the moment I was first asked for my pronouns in a tutorial reminded me that, even when everything felt overwhelmingly negative, there shone a light in the dark.

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See original here:

The struggles of being non-binary at university - The Student