Category Archives: Progress

Despite recent progress, too many people in Sri Lanka are at risk of being left behind due to a lack of access to water and sanitation.

Thats why the Water Supply and Sanitation Improvement Project (WaSSIP) aims to extend access and improve hygiene behavior for nearly 700,000 people.

Community Based Organizations have been key partners every step of the way.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemichas reinforced the need for safe drinking water, the benefits of sanitation and the importance of good hygiene behaviors at all times. Even in countries that have already made great strides in these areas, providing treated piped water and extending safely managed sanitation to every household is more vital now than ever.

Thats why Sri Lankas Water Supply and Sanitation Improvement Project (WaSSIP) works to extend access to safe drinking water and sanitation, and improved hygiene behavior for nearly 700,000 people in urban, rural and estate areas in seven districts in Sri Lanka. It aims to reach those in danger of being left out of the progress made in recent years and potentially being left even further behind by the pandemics devastating impacts.

WaSSIP is Sri Lankas third project financed by the World Bank since 1998 to provide drinking water and sanitation. It finances new water supply systems, rehabilitation of existing water supply systems, toilets for households and schools, and septage treatment plants.

Community Based Organizations (CBOs) play a key role in delivering this project. In Sri Lanka, the World Bank has worked with CBOs for decades and this experience has shown that when given access to information, and appropriate technical and financial support, CBOs can effectively deliver basic services.

To ensure sustainability, local CBOs are trained to operate and maintain the water supply systems. Each household agrees to pay a tariff that ensures that operation, maintenance and replacement costs can be covered. This allows repairs to be made as soon as something goes wrong.

A database is being developed that shows all the rural water supply systems in the country. This database allows the Department of National Community Water Supply to track the performance of CBOs and provide CBOs with the information and support that they need. A 24-hour call center has been established, where anyone can call or text for advice or to lodge a complaint for CBO-managed water supply systems.

As a trusted part of the social fabric, CBOs are well-equipped to help respond to the COVID-19 pandemic even in remote areas. The residents of Rideepana a small village located in a highland area were under curfew with limited ability to travel. It was a tough situation - financially and practically, with no water to consume on certain days, as one resident put it. However, due to the collaborative work between CBOs, the authorities and a nearby water plant, these villagers can now access clean water with which to wash their hands.

Elsewhere in Sri Lanka, a CBO that oversees a water plant funded through WaSSIP is providing water to households with motors in the areas of Polgahapitiya and Raththandeniya. This was initiated at the request of the District Secretariat for these areas to help minimize the gathering of crowds. Not only has it helped to flatten the potential curve, it has also instilled good sanitary practices amongst the community.

Changing behaviors to encourage improved hygiene practices is a key element of this project. Around 900 hygiene awareness trainings been conducted so far. Over 100,000 people have attended - 64% of them female in rural areas and 80% of them female in estate areas. Messages have been specifically developed and targeted to encourage different types of behaviors. Resources have been provided in local languages to ensure their relevance and effectiveness. And hygiene programs have been rolled out in schools so young people can share what they learned with their friends and families.

Eight schools have also been provided with improved sanitation facilities, including menstrual hygiene facilities the first from a World Bank-funded project in Sri Lanka. Being able to manage their menstruation safely, hygienically, and with confidence and dignity is critical not just for girls health and education, but also for economic development and overall gender equality.

As of June 2020, WaSSIP has:

Completed 42 new rural water supply schemes benefiting 13,538 households (with another 51 under construction)

Completed seven plantation water supply schemes connecting 2493 households (with another seven under construction)

Completed 93 system rehabilitations

Completed 13,362individual toilets (with another 10,119 under construction)

From its inception in 2015 to its closing, WaSSIP will ultimately benefit nearly three-quarters of a million people across the seven districts, including Menaka from Nartakande in the Central Province of Sri Lanka. Menaka is from a family of five, all of whom have suffered from lack of access to clean water. The basic washing and cleaning necessities of her family previously meant an arduous 500-meter walk to collect water. However, thanks a new water plant funded by the World Bank and operated through a CBO - Menaka and her family now have access to clean water to drink, bathe and keep their household clean.

The project demonstrates a successful model of service delivery that can be continued to deliver universal access to water supply and sanitation for Sri Lanka and showcases the importance of partnerships with community organizations.

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Partnerships for Progress: Working with Communities in Sri Lanka to Provide Water and Sanitation - Sri Lanka - ReliefWeb

More than 6 months after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and over 160 days since India reported its first case, the health regulator has approved the first indigenous drug to treat the disease.

Itolizumab is an injectable that can be used only in hospitals and for moderate and severe cases. A single vial costs Rs 8,000 and the treatment will cost Rs 32,000. This is the fifth drug overall to get the green light and the fourth to receive authorisation for emergency use.

So, here is where we stand in treating the disease. Gilead's patented drug Remdesivir is the only drug so far to undergo well designed clinical trials. It is proven to shorten the recovery time but does not cut mortality more data is awaited.

A well-known, inexpensive steroid called Dexamethasone is the only known drug that cuts mortality as per the data currently available. Clinical trials are still ongoing by a study in the UK has shown that it reduces deaths in ICU patients by one-third.

Hydroxychloroquine, which emerged as one of the early drugs to treat the disease, has been hit by one controversy after another. Studies by the WHO have questioned its benefits. The US has revoked its emergency use authorisation and even India has removed the drug from the protocol to treat severe cases. It is currently used as a prophylactic and to treat mild cases.

Excerpt from:

COVID-19 and progress in treatments so far; here's experts view - CNBCTV18

The progress of youth darts has not always been plain sailing. Alchohol and licensing arrangements seem to have been a major stumbling block:

Respected London boss Roger Nickson seems to have been a driving force behind getting an official youth league established. Roger now runs the popular Darts from The Past Facebook group. Perhaps Darts World will seek his views on the progress of those he strongly supported.

The accompanying piece regarding the alteration of formats to give players more time on the oche is another age-old debate. Here it looks well-intentioned in order that young players could gain more experience.

The coverage given here to the A.G.M of the BDO speaks to the importance of the organisation at that time. Sadly, some of the views displayed seem to foreshadow later difficulties.

It should not be overlooked that until very recently the BDO was the driving force behind youth darts, many counties had volunteers who gave time and money to ensure that young players had a way to learn and progress into the other areas of the game. Senior pros from those areas also often helped out. Wiltshires youth was a fine example of this with Steph Venn, Mark Thompson, Dennis Smith, and others, encouraging and developing a fine batch of players. Occasionally they may have even been visited by Bob Anderson.

The Darts World Years continueshereand over in theTwitterverse.

Link:

1983 - Issue 131: Youth League Progress Blocked At AGM. - Andy Till

HOUSTON The Texas Supreme Court on Monday upheld Houston's refusal to allow the state Republican convention to hold in-person events in the city due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The court dismissed an appeal of a state district judges denial of a temporary restraining order sought by the state Republican Party. Shortly after the ruling, GOP leaders said they would call a meeting of the party's executive committee to "finalize our path forward." After the Supreme Court's ruling, a state judge in Harris County separately denied the party's request for an injunction allowing the convention to go forward.

The state GOP convention had been scheduled to begin Thursday at Houstons downtown convention centre and was expected to draw thousands of participants.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, a Democrat, said last week that he had directed city lawyers to terminate the contract because he believed the event could not be held safely. He denied that the convention was cancelled due to political differences and cited the potential risk to service workers and first responders if the virus spread through the convention.

The state party sued a day later, alleging the city illegally breached the contract and accusing Turner of shedding "crocodile tears."

"The Party argues it has constitutional rights to hold a convention and engage in electoral activities, and that is unquestionably true," the Supreme Court wrote in its opinion. "But those rights do not allow it to simply commandeer use of the Center."

State District Judge Larry Weiman last week sided with Turner, citing Houston statistics that show major hospitals exceeding their base intensive-care capacity due to an influx of COVID-19 patients.

Texas has set daily records in recent days for the number of COVID-19 deaths and confirmed cases. Top officials in Houston have called for the city to lock back down as area hospitals strain to accommodate an onslaught of patients.

The Texas Medical Association withdrew its sponsorship of the state GOP convention and asked organizers to cancel in-person gatherings. As the virus has surged throughout the state in June and July, Gov. Greg Abbott, the states top Republican, has reversed some business reopenings and broadly required the use of face masks.

State GOP chair James Dickey had insisted that organizers can hold the event safely. Prior to Turners move to cancel the convention, Dickey said the party had planned to institute daily temperature scans, provide masks, and install hand sanitizer stations.

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Court refuses to order Houston to host Texas GOP gathering - Preeceville Progress

Firefighters expect to continue making progress Friday containing theYMCA fire that has burned nearly 300 acres southwest of Caon City, theBureau of Land Management said.

Firefighters started to take the upper hand Thursday on the lightning-caused fire.

The fire was 30% contained as of 8 p.m. Thursday. Helicopters continued making bucket drops of water through the day to cool off hot spots and hit spots that were inaccessible by ground crews.

Much of the smoke produced on Thursday was from interior fuels, the BLM said, which kept the fire from growing significantly. Overnight, it had grown from about 100 acres to 268 acres. The fire is currently mapped at 293 acres.

Although containment is increasing, smoke and possibly flames will continue to be visible from Caon City and neighboring areas.

The fire was reported about 3:37 p.m. Wednesday on Bureau of Land Management-Royal Gorge Field Office lands. No structures are threatened, no evacuation orders are planned.

According to the Caon City Area Fire Protection District, the fire was in the area of Temple Canyon.

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YMCA fire: Crews making progress on wildfire burning near Caon City - OutThere Colorado

Since Dec. 12, 2016, when the four of five offshore turbines at Block Island Wind started spinning (the fifth briefly malfunctioned and was soon fixed) the 30-megawatt electricity producer has been the only commercial wind farm in operation in the coastal waters of the United States.

But that could change quickly or slowly.

Sixteen projects slated for the Eastern Seaboard from North Carolina to Massachusetts are now on the books at the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management known familiarly as BOEM in various stages of planning and approval.

For many states on the East Coast, offshore wind is integral to plans to achieve carbon neutral energy production.

In the case of Connecticut, in September 2019, Gov. Ned Lamont signed an executive order mandating that the state end its dependence on fossil fuels for its energy supply by 2040. For Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, the goal is 2050. In Virginia, its 2030.

Among several companies working through the lengthy application and permitting process, Vineyard Wind, a renewable energy development partnership with offices in Boston and New Bedford, has already taken a leading role in Connecticuts energy plans.

In a possible breakthrough, on June 12, with the release of a supplement to a draft environmental impact statement, BOEM advanced a $2.8 billion, 800-megawatt, 84-turbine project, known as Vineyard Wind I, into a required 45-day public comment period before federal environmental approval. The process will include five online public meetings.

Developers claim that the wind farm, located in a wind lease area off Marthas Vineyard, will generate cost-competitive energy for more that 400,000 customers across Massachusetts.

That project had been delayed since last August when BOEM withheld a key permit approval, expected last July, citing the need for an additional environmental review. The project was scheduled for completion in 2022.

On Friday, another Vineyard Wind project, the 804-megawatt Park City Wind project based out of Bridgeport, came before the Public Utilities Regulatory Agency, or PURA, for a three-hour public hearing that was continued in executive session during the afternoon.

The project will produce significant economic development benefits to [Bridgeport], including $890 million of project expenditures in Connecticut, almost 3,000 direct jobs and the saving of $2.2 billion to ratepayers over the life of the project, said Alan Hannah, deputy CEO of Vineyard Wind, during the PURA zoom meeting on Friday.

In December 2019, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection selected the Park City Wind project over two other bidders Mayflower Wind and Constitution Wind for the next phase of renewable energy projects for the state. That decision trimmed expectations for a possible wave of economic development for southeast Connecticut from renewable energy.

The turbines will be located in the federally-designated 160,000-acre lease area OCS-A 0501, located on the outer continental shelf south of Marthas Vineyard.

In a 2019 white paper touting offshore wind development, Tony Appleton of Burns McDonnell, an engineering, construction and environmental consulting firm, based in Kansas City, Missouri, divided potential ports vying for slices of wind energy into four types: ports with manufacturing facilities, ports that manage construction, ports where turbine components are assembled and ports for ongoing operations and maintenance.

According to Appleton, Size, location, depth and the ability to handle the weight of equipment are all key considerations as various ports along the Eastern Seaboard compete for more or less lucrative roles in an industry estimated in a 2019 report by University of Delawares Special Initiative on Offshore Wind at 20 gigawatts of energy production worth $70 billion.

Clearance is another key factor. Many ports along the Eastern Seaboard are constrained by bridges with vertical clearances lower than the latest turbine technology that is assembled on land and shipped upright at a height of 850 feet for installation.

With open access to Long Island Sound, Bridgeport will meet many of the criteria for offshore wind once it is redeveloped.

Vineyard Wind plans to locate an operations and maintenance hub at Barnum Landing, an 18.3-acre industrial waterfront parcel in Bridgeport, in partnership with McAllister Towing and Transportation Co., Inc., a company specializing in marine transportation. The property is also expected to be used as a turbine assembly and staging area that will include steel fabrication.

State Pier in New London is similarly unconstrained and could serve as a base for turbine manufacturing or assembly.

In addition to State Pier, rsted and Eversource have a number of other 50/50 ventures in the works, including Revolution Wind that will provide 400 megawatts to Rhode Island and 304 megawatts to Connecticut, and South Fork Wind, a 132-megawatt project, located 35 miles east of Montauk Point on Long Island. Another 50/50 venture is Sunrise Wind, an 880-megawatt project, also located east of Montauk Point, with support from Con Edison and New York Power Authority.

With the support of the Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG), rsted is also developing Ocean Wind, a utility scale 1,100-megawatt project, to be located about 15 miles off the coast of southern New Jersey.

rsted also boasts Skipjack Wind Farm, a 120-megawatt project located 19 miles off the Delaware-Maryland-Virgina coast, coming online at the end of 2023.

rsted is also supporting the engineering procurement and construction of two 6-megawatt wind turbines, part of the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project owned by Dominion Energy.

In development as 50/50 ventures between rsted and Eversource are Bay State Wind, a 2-gigawatt project to be located 25 miles off the south coast of Massachusetts, and Constitution Wind, specified for 65 miles off the coast of New London.

In a joint venture, rsted and PSEG also formed Garden State Offshore Energy, LLC in 2007, which holds the BOEM lease OCS-A0482, a 96,000-acre site.

In Massachusetts, Mayflower Wind Energy LLC, a joint venture of Shell and EDP Renewables, won the rights to the lease area OCS-A 052 in December 2018. The companys bid for a 804-megawatt project was accepted by Massachusetts in a second round of offshore bidding.

Equinor, an energy company headquartered in Norway, is developing Empire Wind, an 816-megawatt project 20 miles south of Long Island, as well as Beacon Wind, a 128,000-acre lease in the federal waters off Massachusetts.

In Maryland, U.S. Wind, which is owned by the Italian firm, Renexia S.p.A., and a subsidiary of Toto Holding Group, is developing Marwind, a 248-megawatt project about 20 miles east of Ocean City.

As these energy projects get underway, various states are competing for opportunities in the offshore wind energy supply chain along the so-called East Coast Wind Belt.

The New Jersey Wind Port, a recently announced state plan for a purpose-built 200+ acre development project aims to position the state as a hub for the US offshore wind industry.

The two-phase project will designate 30 acres on the eastern shore of the Delaware River for a turbine assembly and staging area, with an additional 25-acre component manufacturing site and another 160 acres for marshaling and manufacturing space.

In October 2019, Vineyard Wind announced a partnership with Marmon Utility LLC to create the first Tier 1 offshore wind supplier in the United States. In the agreement, Seymour-based Marmon will invest up to $4 million in equipment upgrades and personnel to manufacture Kerite cables for the Park City Wind project.

Vineyard Wind has committed to selecting the Kerite brand for at least 50 percent of the project.

The partnership between Vineyard Wind and Marmon Utility to establish the first American Tier 1 Offshore Wind Supplier in Connecticut is an incredible opportunity for the state to truly develop a world-class offshore wind industry, boasted Vineyard Wind CEO Lars Thaaning Pedersen, in a release. Todays announcement is an exciting step in the right direction but it is only the beginning. Similar to the aerospace sector, we believe that manufacturers all over the state can be a part of this emerging industry, creating long-term jobs and economic opportunity for Connecticut residents.

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As Offshore Wind Projects Pile Up, Glimmers of Progress on the State and Federal Level - CT Examiner

The Social Butterfly shares her floating and boating weekend getaway

Preparing myself for any overnight stay equals the same as packing for an African safari. I despise packing with a passion!

Ive trained myself to make a list about a week prior and to start placing the items on my spare bed to make it easier. What a joke! I end up overpacking and have to decide which items I can do without. Inadvertently, I seem to always forget at least one thing or I end up sacrificing the wrong thing.

Where was the butterfly headed?

My good buddy Diane Holland provided me with an opportunity to cover an event riding on her son Bryans 28-foot Nordic Heat Powerboat Sweet Emoceans on a Fun Run in a Trumptilla parade at Norfolks Waterside District. I dove all in! Bryans girlfriend Caleigh Atkins of Dinwiddie and neighbor/childhood friend Alex Brown of Chesterfield rode with Bryan, Diane and me also.

When I was just about to arrive at the Hopewell Marina where our journey began, Diane asked me if I packed hair clips to keep my long hair from ending up like a rats nest. Of course...that was the one thing I had not wanted to forget and I did. So...my chauffeur zipped me back home quickly to retrieve one.

It was a perfect boating day in the high 80s. I had gotten scorched recently, so I was diligent about keeping sunscreen on myself. Diane took it upon herself to slather me up when she noticed I was turning beet red. I appreciated her doing so since I was busy snapping parade footage.

I understand why dogs love to hang out car windows so much. Feeling the breeze is soothing. We boated by Dianes boss Jim Daniels Charles City home along the James River and waved to Jim and his guests.

The first song Bryan played was "This is Gods Country" which was the same exact song I heard while riding a motorcycle on a poker run I had covered. Bryan also played a selection of Latin tunes which Diane and I loved.

"This boat parade is in support of President Trump," said Alex. "Were going to have fun enjoying time with our friends and family."

"This is as much a social gathering as it is an opportunity to express ourselves peacefully," said Diane. "The boating community is a loving community. If another boater breaks down, Bryan always waits it out until they fix it or hell escort them back."

"No man or boat left behind," added Alex.

The procession took a short break at the James River Bridge in Newport News to enjoy a snack, take a dip, dance upon their decks, and more. The James River Powerboaters tied their vessels together so they could party together.

The break gave late departures the chance to catch up with the processional. Truckers for Trump crossing the bridge honked their horns showing their support.

The journey from the Hopewell Marina where we to Norfolks Waterside District took approximately 90 minutes not counting the time spent at our pitstop.

I hit the cabin to grab a bottle of pop and some blueberries when all of a sudden my head hit the ceiling. I looked over at Alex seated across from me who was bouncing around like a lead bingo ball.

Alex began whipping packages of crackers at Bryan trying to get his attention, but it didnt work. So, we tossed around like rag dolls for quite some time. It was worse than my craziest horseback riding experience.

Caleigh noticed the flying crackers and shot me a thumbs up to check on me. My inner Warrior Princess of course smiled and gave her a thumbs up back.

When we stopped being blizzard ingredients, the cabin looked like a hurricane had whipped through it! Diane sat in the cabin electric doorway to check on us when it began to shut on her. It was a series of unfortunate events that had me rolling!

"Ive had some rough rides in my life," said Alex. "But, that one takes the cake!"

How many boats participated in the Trumptilla in Norfolk?

The U.S. Coast Guard estimates 800 vessels were in the parade procession on the Elizabeth River. Boats of all types and sizes were all around us. It was quite the sight! As I was standing on the back deck recording on Facebook live, both Diane and Alex grabbed a hold of me to keep me from taking a plunge.

"This is better than I ever imagined. It gives you some sort of Im proud to be an American vibe," said Diane.

"Ive never worn a tutu in my life," shared a Trump fan from Gloucestor while dressed in patriotic attire. "Im doing it for Merica."

"You had to be there to witness the magnitude of the participation that was involved," said Alex. "The photos we took dont do it justice at all."

"Ive been watching all the rallies on TV, and now, I know exactly how they felt," said Diane. "The excitement and enthusiasm...oh my...thats what they were feeling."

After the parade, we traveled to Bennetts Creek Marina in Suffolk where Bryan docked for the night. We discovered Mike and Dana Cole from Prince George lounging in their boat enjoying life.

"We were here last weekend and stayed at one of their awesome cottages," said Dana. "This was a monumental event; it was our first time being in a boat parade showing our patriotism."

"The last time I was with you at an event was at The Highlands," said Mike. "You interviewed Trump, and here we are today."

Mike and Dana took me on a tour of their friend Bob Livengoods 48-foot Sea Ray which was pretty sweet...as it should be for costing over a million smackaroos.

Mike shared a harrowing tale of getting caught in a tropical storm as they sailed back from Daytona after picking up Bobs new ride. "The waves were crashing over the roof when we were near Hilton Head running up the East Coast," said Mike.

What did the post-parade peeps do while parked at the marina?

Some folks stayed on or near their boats and others enjoyed Decoys Seafood Restaurant and the Blind Duck Tiki Bar. Both overlook the marina, and the tiki bar includes the only swim-up pool bar in the Hampton Roads area.

It was hotter than Hades, and my heart went out to the servers who were trying their damndest to comply with Governor Northams face mask policy. The reggae rock country band Show Cause performed.

While waiting for my burger, the voice in a conversation directly behind me sounded mighty familiar. My thought was confirmed when the individual replied to a Show Cause band members question asking if he plays an instrument.

"Im behind the mike...Tony Jackson," said country star Jackson. Yep, my head whipped around, and I became the giddy fan and asked for a photo with him. After seeing him perform at both The Beacon and The National...I felt as if I had earned it.

"Just hanging out with Michelle," said Jackson. "She likes this band." Michelle Peterson of Chesapeake confirmed she is Jacksons girlfriend.

According to Decoys general manager Walter Scott, Fun Runs provide them with a lot of business.

"Something like this...everyones coming," said Scott. "They come out also when we host an event."

How was Virginias Phase 2 Reopening going?

"Were at half occupancy on the inside finally," said Scott. "We have a lot of repeat diners, so we have a lot of happy customers right now.

All of The Progress-Indexs coverage of coronavirus is being provided for free to our readers. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to The Progress-Index at progress-index.com/subscribe.

"Its nice getting the opportunity to get our guests back," added Scott. "We are looking forward to fully opening up the operation to everybody."

Speaking of the pandemic, Im pretty sure most people partaking in the pool area were not concerned a wee bit about contracting COVID-19 which has caused a deadly uproar throughout the world.

Boating is all about friendship and family.

"Were a tight knit group," said Jeremy Collins of Chesterfield at the tiki bar. "We travel together and plan together. Its almost like a little boat culture. When it comes to boating, everyone is like family."

According to Collins, they travel in pairs just in case something happens.

"100 or 200 people...we dont leave anyone behind," added Collins. "We had a boat problem today, and Barry and Cathy Adkins made sure we wouldnt be stranded."

At that precise moment, John Hope the Boat Whisperer walked by. "He fixes everybodys boats," said Collins.

There was a short snippet of time during the adventure that was a wee bit dicey as my son Forrest would say.

Diane and I along with numerous others could not get an Uber to our hotel. The reception was shoddy and/or nothing was available. And, while our phone batteries wore down, we had to endure this not-so-happy couple...well, lets say...not getting along. Thats putting it rather nicely.

Finally, Diane scored a taxi and was going to share it with a oh-so-happy couple, however her son suggested we ride with a local man headed that way. So, we hopped in his mammoth truck and it turns out...Bryan didnt know him at all. Good grief!

One of the three couples was the negative-Nelly pair which ended up right next to me. I admired the restraint the man displayed. My inner Warrior Princess was chomping at the bit to say something in hopes to tame the sparring pair. Dianes ribs are probably still aching from the amount of times I jarred them with my elbow. It was unbelievable!

The kind and generous driver Steven Wright of Suffolk who had ridden in the parade in his Cigarette 38-foot Top Gun boat thought he was only taking one couple. He was a good sport when he realized there were three.

"Ubers just dont come out here much," Wright said. "Im local and try to help out when I can."

Wright dropped the other couples off at their hotel and us at ours. We thanked him immensely, and he headed back to Decoys. Diane and I discovered a sign on the door of The Courtyard by Marriott Suffolk/Chesapeake that instructed us to check-in at the hotel next door since the lobby was closed due to COVID-19. Good heavens!

After a good laugh and showers, we rested up for another day of sun and fun at the Clay Banks located in Surry County.

On the way there, we docked at Captain Chuck a Mucks in Carrollton and had a delicious lunch.

A blond moment took place that Im still laughing at myself about. I had to powder my nose so I hit the lavatory. A rope was attached to the door and a cleat was on the wall. I had no idea how to tie it securely, but I did my best.

While pissing like a racehorse before someone entered, I noticed there actually was a regular door knob lock available. Ha!

At the Clay Banks which is across from where the Chickahominy River meets the James River, we ran into some familiar faces and basked in the sun for a short spell. Diane and I watched fools climbing the cliffs while the others either waded in the water or hopped in friends boats.

On the whole, the weekend was a blast; I for sure would love to go on another pleasantly wild Fun Run ride in the future!

Kristi K. Higgins, aka The Social Butterfly, can be reached at khiggins@progress-index.com. On Twitter: @KristiHigginsPI

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Rollin on the river - Progress Index

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As the national anthem plays inside Saluki Stadium, SIU cheerleaders Alaysia Brandy (from left), Czarina Tinker and Ariahn Hunt kneel outside of the stadium prior to the 2017 Salukis football game against Youngstown State. SIU leadership, including President Dan Mahony and Athletics Director Liz Jarnigan, are pledging action to make SIU more inclusive.

CARBONDALE Southern Illinois University President Dan Mahony is calling for an exhaustive review of policies, practices and curriculum at all three of the system's campuses in an effort to upend systemic racism and identify new ways to bolster diversity and inclusion.

Further, in a recent letter to the SIU community last week, he said that every student who graduates must leave with an understanding of systemic racism and its impact.

Our graduates must be prepared to have a positive impact on our society and that is not possible without this understanding, he wrote.

Working groups either created or refocused in Carbondale, Edwardsville and the School of Medicine, will be tasked with crafting recommendations to achieve this and numerous other goals. Mahony is asking each campus to ensure ongoing conversations on diversity and inclusion that include feedback from any stakeholder that wishes to participate, he said. They will make recommendations to enhance efforts to recruit and retain minority students, faculty and staff. And a system of accountability, with measurable goals, will be established to ensure follow-through.

Mahony said its common in higher education and other arenas to react to incidences of racism and injustice promising to be more accepting and fair and then we just move on and continue to do things the way weve always done them.

Thats not what Im looking for, he said in an interview with The Southern. I want to change the way we do things.

Entering an era of reflection

Lolita L. Mack, president of SIUs Black Alumni Group, who has been asked to serve as a task force member on the Carbondale campus, said this most recent push for change gives me hope that they do hear our voices and different concerns, and they want to address it.

Mack recently penned a letter to SIU Carbondale campus leaders asking a series of pointed questions after a racist video circulated on social media. The video, made by the baseball teams starting pitcher, who graduated in May, was shared with a few others on Snapchat. It was made and shared presumably on or around Martin Luther King Jr. Day, though only recently surfaced publicly. As it circulated on Facebook and Twitter, SIU Carbondale immediately issued a statement condemning the video replete with the n-word. The university also distanced itself from the student, noting he had graduated and is no longer enrolled.

Mack applauded the swift response disavowing the message in the video. But she and other alumni were concerned the university did not go far enough as the now former student was at SIU on scholarship when the video was made and shared on Snapchat. Mack also questioned whether his behavior speaks to a broader need of the university, and athletic department specifically, to foster an anti-racist culture.

How will the university and Athletic Department ensure that racial sensitivity is covered in the learning environment in the future? she wrote in her letter to SIU administrators. What are officials willing to do to show future and current students and athletes that this is unacceptable behavior?

SIU Edwardsville also recently issued a public statement condemning hate speech after facing backlash for how it was monitoring comments on one of its Facebook posts. The original post highlighted the Rock a large rock on campus that students paint as a tradition bearing the message Black Lives Matter. The post, which was supportive of the statement on the rock, generated more than 500 comments.

Controversy erupted after SIU Edwardsville asked a commenter to edit a post in which he called another individual who had made racially charged and racist comments a racist, saying that direct name-calling violated its social media policy. At least some of the offensive comments were allowed to remain.

In a statement that followed, SIU Edwardwville said that the racist comments made on its public post do not reflect our Universitys values and that it encourages all members of our community to denounce racism, but also stood by its selective censorship policy.

Just as the Rock has allowed for free expression, we recognize, as a public university, we are legally required to uphold the First Amendment to the Constitution and free speech. As much as we disagree with the racist sentiments expressed in those posts, they are protected by the First Amendment.

SIUE spokesman Doug McIlhagga told The Southern on Friday that in the days since the original post and statement, campus leadership has decided to further review its social media guidelines. The university is working on a policy that will give more discretion to monitors to remove offensive content, he said. This may signal that the Edwardsville campus is embarking upon a new era of reflection.

Becoming a 'beacon of diversity and inclusion'

On June 12, a week later, Edwarsville announced an Anti-Racism Task Force, coinciding with Mahonys call for a systemwide undertaking on this front. In a statement to the campus, Chancellor Randy Pembrook and other top leaders said they recognize the fierce urgency of now to do this work. We have heard the pain and frustration among our students, staff and faculty. Emails and town halls will not be enough. Action and urgency are essential, their statement said. This approach must be rooted in humility, truth-telling, critical analysis, reflection, and a willingness to confront structural arrangements and institutional policies and practices that reinforce racism. And certainly, we must all do the work of challenging our individual beliefs.

Daniel Mahony, the new president of the Southern Illinois University System, discusses his vision for the future of the university during an interview in March in Carbondale.

Mahony said that an examination of systemic racism casts a broad net. It includes such things as examining hiring and promotion policies and practices, retention efforts, student recruitment and educational approach.

Teaching students about systemic racism can happen in any number of ways, he said. It could be taught as part of an introductory course or weaved throughout subject areas, or both.

At Winthrop University, in Rock Hill, South Carolina where Mahony served as president before coming to SIU in March incoming freshmen and transfer students received a copy of the book Just Mercy: A story of Justice and Redemption. He said they were asked to read it prior to arriving on campus. It was then discussed in their freshman orientation class and in other conversations in their residence halls. The memoir by acclaimed civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson exposes deep inequities in the justice system that oppress minorities and people who are poor.

Mahony said that the campuses are not starting fresh on the topics of diversity, inclusion and anti-racism he acknowledged past efforts and numerous success stories. But he said its time to take this work further, and go deeper. A short-term step hes planning is making the SIU Systems chief diversity officer position full time. The individual serving in that role now does so in addition to his full-time duties within the SIU School of Medicine. But he wants the most significant changes at the campus levels to be driven by the people who make them up, rather than from the top down.

Incoming Carbondale Chancellor Austin Lane said that one thing that struck him about the Carbondale campus during his interviews is that he was asked numerous questions about his commitment to diversity and inclusion. Before all of the things that were seeing, that is one of the things that impressed me about SIU, he said. His campus interview predated the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody, which has prompted a wave of nationwide protests and calls for racial equity. From that tragedy comes an opportunity to seize on the national push for a more just and inclusive society, and act in a more action-oriented manner locally, Lane said.

Lane is still a few weeks from officially assuming the chancellor position on the Carbondale campus; his contract calls for him to start by July 6. But hes already actively engaged in planning with SIUs leadership team and the broader community.

Lane, who is the first Black chancellor of the SIU Carbondale campus, stressed that this initiative is a genuine effort committed to real progress not just offering surface-level platitudes to diversity and inclusion. This is going to become part of the fabric of what were going to be doing within our strategic planning, he said. Lane said his goal is to create a campus culture that makes all feel welcome, regardless of race, national origin, sexual orientation or disability.

SIU, he said, should be seen as a beacon of diversity and inclusion. He also sees this as an enrollment-building exercise, as it equates to more students wanting to become a Saluki and attend SIU.

Athletic Department tackles racism

Mack, president of the Black Alumni Group, said this feels like a moment that could bring about real systemic change. She was encouraged by the fact that she received responses from the SIU president, incoming chancellor, athletic director and baseball coach all within 24 hours upon sending her letter via email expressing concern about the former baseball players video.

She also has since attended a Zoom meeting with Lane and had lunch with Athletic Director Liz Jarnigan. Mack said shes also since learned that the baseball player did face consequences beyond what the universitys statement detailed. Though he had graduated, NCAA rules permitted him to return in 2021 because the COVID-19 pandemic cut this spring's season short.

Mack said she learned that the opportunity was no longer available to him once SIU was made aware of the video. (An SIU spokeswoman said the university could not confirm the circumstances surrounding his exit from the team, citing student confidentiality laws, other than to say he will not play next year).

I hate to say that it took away opportunity, but sometimes we have to be responsible for the actions we have, Mack said. In this case, the responsibility for his actions was that he lost his last year of eligibility and his post-grad scholarship offer he was approved for.

Mack said shes also sought more information about the universitys position on student-athletes who may choose to kneel during the pre-game national anthem in future sporting events, as a form of peaceful protest. In 2017, three Black cheerleaders who chose to kneel during "The Star-Spangled Banner" prior to the start of a football game faced an onslaught of criticism and even threats the university was also criticized for allowing it.

A few weeks after their first demonstration, the then-athletic director abruptly changed pregame protocol to remove cheerleaders from the field until after the start of the game. At the time, the athletic director said it was to allow members of the spirit teams to instead focus on greeting fans at the gates, but the cheerleaders, and others, felt it was driven by a desire to remove them from public view, and quell the backlash the university was facing.

This was during a time that many Black players across the nation were taking a knee during the national anthem at sports games as a form of political protest against systemic racism and police brutality, following in the footsteps of Colin Kaepernick, then-quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, who started the practice in 2016.

Jarnigan, who has been SIUs athletic director since September 2019, said the Athletic Department decided more than a year ago that should someone feel that its important for them to kneel theyre going to kneel, and theyre going to be allowed to kneel. The same goes for student-athletes who feel it is important to stand with their hands over their hearts theyre going to be allowed to do that.

We will honor what any of our student-athletes feel they need to do for the important points theyre trying to make, she said.

While the campus as a whole will be having conversations and making changes, Jarnigan said she wants to see the Athletics Department take a leading role, as it has in the past. Saluki Athletics has a rich history of championing diversity. At the dawn of the civil rights movement, Black student-athletes blazed trails at SIU on the court and field, in the classroom and beyond, benefiting countless students that followed them. But the Athletic Department still has more work to do, she said it is not enough to rest on past breakthroughs.

After the baseball players racist video went public, Jarnigan said she felt called to take broader action. But she also wants to ensure that whatever changes her department ushers in are meaningful, and not knee-jerk or simply intended to check off a box. She said her goal is to spend the summer listening to others, with the goal of implementing a plan at the beginning of the fall semester.

Words are really important but theyre not enough. Actions are really important but theyre not enough, she said. We need to figure out how to reach, educate, touch, whatever it is the hearts and souls of our student-athletes, of each other, when it comes to issues of racial justice and caring and kindness and thats what I want our plan to incorporate.

Is this the moment for real change?

Todd Bryson, interim associate chancellor for diversity at SIU Carbondale, said hes encouraged by the energy that Mahony and Lane are committing to this initiative. SIU has historically been a leader in creating a welcome atmosphere for all students, he said, though has also fallen short. When you talk to students, they want action, he said. Bryson said that he believes Mahony and Lane want to get it right and are committed to doing the hard work thats needed.

This might be the catalyst to push us forward, he said. This is a good time to be at SIU. I think we will look back in a few years and say, Wow, SIU is a different university than it was.

Caleb R. McKinley-Portee, a doctoral student studying Communications, with a specialization in Black performing arts, said he wants to have hope that this initiative will bring about the real changes students desire. That includes a commitment to a diverse faculty, and supporting academic programs that specialize in Black history and culture, such as Africana Studies, which has seen its department diminished to only three professors, he said.

McKinley-Portee, who is also a co-graduate advisor for the undergraduate-run Black Affairs Council, has seen and heard commitments for change from the top on and off for years often proclaiming that this time it will be different. Thats why its hard for him to know what to think about it at this stage. Hes spent a combined 10 years on the SIU campus, earning an undergraduate and masters degree, and now completing his doctorate. Hes served on countless committees and had numerous conversations with administrators.

Its really frustrating and its also exhausting to keep having these conversations and these meetings with administrators, and to keep showing up to the table to fight the good fight and not getting any results, he said. So now is the time, I believe, for SIU to show us what SIU is supposed to be about. Dont tell us, show us.

molly.parker@thesouthern.com

618-351-5079

On Twitter: @MollyParkerSI

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Original post:

SIU leaders pledge action, real progress on diversity, inclusion - The Southern

I've never been a wheeler-dealer on things like buying a car. When it comes time to buy, I'll think about tactics we've perhaps all heard about to broker the best deal.

Don't fall in love with any car. There's always another one.

Be aware of a car's value before you begin negotiations.

Be willing to walk away if the price isn't right.

It's a bit like poker to me, with each player making bets they hope will reflect a high level of confidence, whether it really exists or not. Watching those TV poker shows, I'll sometimes see a winning player who nonetheless had a losing hand show a just-folded opponent his cards -- proving their bluff or just showing they had a much smaller hand than their opponent believed.

It's all negotiation. Sometimes you win. Sometimes you don't.

If any of us can expect the tumult over George Floyd's death to produce anything of lasting significance, we're going to witness a lot of negotiation in the months and years ahead.

Advancing the cause of equality doesn't need to be a game of winners and losers, unless someone involved intends it to be for their own sometimes unjust reasons. It seems to me everything that whittles away at this lingering "us vs. them" divide in the United States is an improvement for all people.

While I know that's true, this is not a time to stubbornly cling to a declaration that "all lives matter." Of course, they do. But our national circumstance has (again) brought into focus the difficult, sometimes deadly, world in which black Americans survive. Black advocates hoping to improve the odds that they and their families can live without the effects of prejudice and injustice would happily join an "all lives matter" chant if they didn't have to devote so much time and energy navigating a discriminatory and unsafe climate.

Maybe this time, these local, regional and national conversations will lead to greater understanding.

Last week included Juneteenth, a cultural and historical holiday in the United States. It grew out of the much-delayed notification and enforcement of President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation in Texas, where more than 2 years after slaves were freed, many had never been informed about it.

As Americans seek a productive response to the unjust death of George Floyd and other tragedies, the negotiations are beginning: revived talks of reparations for the effects of slavery; lobbying to turn Juneteenth into a national or state holiday; removal of monuments and markers that were or are perceived to be rooted in racism; and many other matters.

It's important that America's cultural fabric contains many bright threads related to the culture, experience and history of the nation's population of African American descent. In too many ways, black Americans still carry the burden not just of slavery, but of a national culture that never fully cleared a path forward from 1865 into economic and educational opportunity.

Is it better today than it's ever been? I think that answer has to be yes, if only because the fresh thinking of every new generation somehow manages to clear out some of the lingering cobwebs of racism. But the filters of time are not perfected and will not by themselves eradicate discriminatory thoughts from being passed on like unwanted, unattractive and outdated furniture from an ancestor's estate. It will take work. And negotiation.

I'm a little suspicious about some of the proposals involving holidays or reparations, not out of opposition, but the possibility that some will presume either gesture will equate to a bill "paid in full." That would be a poor outcome to these negotiations.

The nation needs more than gestures. It needs lasting and significant changes to cultural thinking, to attitudes, to strategies for understanding so that skin color no longer exists as a barrier to our common humanity.

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GREG HARTON: Making sure a win really is progress - Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

In the wake of the brutal slaying of George Floyd, protests, which began in Minneapolis, where Floyd was killed, have sprung up across continents. Nearly every large city in America has hosted demonstrations, and some smaller town uprisings have made news too, but there have also been mass gatherings spurred by the Black Lives Matter movement in Australia, Ghana, South Africa, England, France, Belgium and more. The key difference in these uprisings is that people, specifically white people, are listening.

This has led to many athletes Americas most visible entertainers using their platforms to discuss racism and push for genuine, long overdue changes. In this mini-series well look at what some Spirit players are doing and saying during this potentially transformative moment of American history.

Rookie defender Kaiya McCullough, who began kneeling for the anthem in response to police brutality and in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick and Megan Rapinoe, was interviewed about the US Soccer Federations sudden reversal of, and apology for, its policy banning protests during the national anthem.

I think it was a very, for lack of a better word, a horrible rule to begin with. I think it was directly contrary to what Kaepernick and Rapinoe were trying to accomplish with their protests, and I think silencing that had some very seriously questionable motives. Im definitely glad that they repealed that rule because being an athlete, you have a responsibility to speak up about things because of the platform youre given. For them to take that away from athletes I think, really, was just unacceptable. Kaiya McCullough; source: Telegraph Sport

McCullough echoed the sentiment of being motivated by Americas broken promises of liberty and justice, and the conflict of glorifying the country for rights unequally applied to people because of their Black skin.

I was like, I cant pledge my allegiance to a country that doesnt actually stand for liberty and justice for all when it is disproportionately affecting black people and people of [color].

She admits that the reaction was difficult to cope with, and that some fellow students dusted off the useless and tired Go back to Africa barb. However, having been vocal about inequality through her social media channels, she was motivated to do more publicly after seeing the heated aftermath of Kaepernicks protest.

McCullough, who is biracial, has a constant reminder of how the brutal institution of chattel slavery has impacted her life her last name.

I always knew that I was a descendant of slaves.

Theres not really much of an explanation for having a Scottish last name as a black person in America besides that being the plantation owners names. Black people in that time were literally stripped of their identities and forced to take new ones. That is just part of the generational pain that a lot of black people feel.

Coping with generational pain and the burden to lessen it for future generations are weighty burdens that many Black people feel on a frequent basis. Racism, annoyingly, cannot be dismantled through the determination of Black people, and silence is a death warrant. As such, the work of outlining fissures in society scythed by racism falls to millions of Black Americans, no matter our status or occupation. Its both pain response and hopeful plea.

It just gave more of a push to me to really fight for this, because I dont want to sit here when my kids and their kids and their kids after them are still having to deal with the same issues. I cant sit here and know that I didnt do anything in my power to absolutely stop it at its core. Kaiya McCullough; source: Telegraph Sport

In this same vein, McCullough has determined that she will continue to kneel for the anthem ahead of Washington Spirit matches. Spirit majority owner Steve Baldwin says she has the clubs support, telling Washington City Paper, I find her to be extremely intelligent and thoughtful, and I made a commitment to her that I would support her in her pursuit of her interests and what she wants to do.

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Washington Spirit players on racism, #BlackLivesMatter, and progress: Kaiya McCullough on kneeling - Black And Red United