Two of the Spanish fighters, who arrived to guard the Bulgarian sky, were alerted yesterday morning. They took off from Graf Ignatievo Air Base and carried out a mission against violators of our airspace in the Black Sea. This was announced by the Chief of Defense Admiral Emil Eftimov and the Spanish Commander Jesus Salazar, quoted by Nova TV. The two spoke after the certification ceremony of the Bulgarian and Spanish crews, which will be on joint duty to protect Bulgarian airspace.
Foreign planes traveling in the eastern zone over the Black Sea were spotted. However, the Spanish pilots were unable to identify them as they withdrew quickly.
Later in the day, the Ministry of Defense clarified that “today there was air activity on the border of our area of responsibility.” This was necessary due to “activity in the international airspace over the Black Sea”.
“Similar actions are performed weekly by the Bulgarian MiG-29 when approaching foreign aircraft to a regulated perimeter near the Bulgarian airspace. We categorically state that there are no grounds for concern because the Bulgarian air borders have not been violated in any way,” reads the position. the ministry.
Four Eurofighter EF-2000 Typhoon II aircraft from the Spanish Air Force landed in Bulgaria on 11 February. 130 Spanish servicemen will perform tasks on enhanced air policing together with their colleagues from the Bulgarian Air Force. The crews arrived from the air base in Albasate. They are the blade of the Strela aerotactic squad. When performing the joint tasks of Air Policing, the Bulgarian fighters on duty will be used as a priority. The mission is implementing measures to ensure the security of NATO member countries on the Eastern Flank, and will be implemented under the plans and procedures of the Alliance’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense System (NATINAMDS).
Romanian Patriarch Daniel has published the report of the Romanian Patriarchate on what has been done in the past 2021 in various areas of church life. Interesting statistics are given in the section on religious education in schools and universities.
In the 2021-2022 school year, 6,220 teachers taught in the schools of Religion in Romanian schools, of which 4,488 were full-time teachers, 173 were teachers in other specialties, had a religion class in addition to the norm, and 1,559 were substitute teachers. 1195 of them are clergy, 4933 have a theological education and 92 have another. In terms of qualifications, 1,339 have a second didactic degree, 2,919 have a first didactic degree, and 213 have a doctorate in theology.
The district school inspectorates employ 42 inspectors of Religion, forty of whom have a theological education and two have another. In order to develop the cooperation for the improvement of the work of the Religion classes, 4822 partnerships have been concluded between parishes and schools throughout the country, in which various school and extracurricular activities are carried out.
The Romanian Patriarchate has (organized and maintained) 26 theological seminaries with different specializations: Orthodox theology, theology of cultural heritage, religious tourism, church music, philology, natural sciences, social sciences, one Orthodox college, nine Orthodox theological high schools and one technological , which also teaches theology.
In the school year 2020-2021, 4361 high school students were enrolled in them. 101 students from abroad are enrolled in pre-university theological education units, including 81 from Moldova, thirteen from Ukraine, four from Serbia, one from Spain and two from Italy.
There are 1,116 teachers in pre-university theological schools. Of these, 684 are full-time, 432 are substitutes and 113 are professors of theology.
In the school year 2020-2021, the funds allocated for these schools amounted to a total of 4,176,568 lei, of which 3,488,668 lei were invested by the Diocesan Centers.
Within the Romanian Patriarchate there are 11 theological faculties (in Bucharest, Iasi, Sibiu, Craiova, Cluj, Constanţa, Targovishte, Pitesti, Alba Iulia, Arad and Oradea) and three theological departments included in other faculties (Timisoara, Bacía) .
In the academic year 2020-2021, 4381 students were enrolled in them. In 2021, 894 students graduated, and in the academic year 2021-2022, 1,310 were enrolled. 3,088 students were enrolled in the specialty of Pastoral Theology, and 555 graduates received a bachelor’s degree.
In the academic year 2020-2021 there are 1826 masters, of which 777 graduated, and in the academic year 2021-2022 973 are enrolled. Doctoral studies are organized in eight university centers, and currently 653 doctoral students are enrolled, of which 104 in the academic year 2021 -2022 (first year). In the academic year 2020-2021, 74 doctoral students received the title of Doctor of Theology.
In the 2020-2021 academic year, 375 teachers worked in higher theological education.
A new accelerator chip called “Hiddenite” that can achieve state-of-the-art accuracy in the calculation of sparse “hidden neural networks” with lower computational burdens has now been developed by Tokyo Tech researchers. By employing the proposed on-chip model construction, which is the combination of weight generation and “supermask” expansion, the Hiddenite chip drastically reduces external memory access for enhanced computational efficiency.
Deep neural networks (DNNs) are a complex piece of machine learning architecture for AI (artificial learning) that require numerous parameters to learn to predict outputs. DNNs can, however, be “pruned,” thereby reducing the computational burden and model size. A few years ago, the “lottery ticket hypothesis” took the machine learning world by storm. The hypothesis stated that a randomly initialized DNN contains subnetworks that achieve accuracy equivalent to the original DNN after training. The larger the network, the more “lottery tickets” for successful optimization. These lottery tickets thus allow “pruned” sparse neural networks to achieve accuracies equivalent to more complex, “dense” networks, thereby reducing overall computational burdens and power consumptions.
Figure 1. HNNs find sparse subnetworks which achieve equivalent accuracy to the original dense trained model. Credit: Masato Motomura from Tokyo Tech
One technique to find such subnetworks is the hidden neural network (HNN) algorithm, which uses AND logic (where the output is only high when all the inputs are high) on the initialized random weights and a “binary mask” called a “supermask” (Fig. 1). The supermask, defined by the top-k% highest scores, denotes the unselected and selected connections as 0 and 1, respectively. The HNN helps reduce computational efficiency from the software side. However, the computation of neural networks also requires improvements in the hardware components.
Traditional DNN accelerators offer high performance, but they do not consider the power consumption caused by external memory access. Now, researchers from Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech), led by Professors Jaehoon Yu and Masato Motomura, have developed a new accelerator chip called “Hiddenite,” which can calculate hidden neural networks with drastically improved power consumption. “Reducing the external memory access is the key to reducing power consumption. Currently, achieving high inference accuracy requires large models. But this increases external memory access to load model parameters. Our main motivation behind the development of Hiddenite was to reduce this external memory access,” explains Prof. Motomura. Their study will feature in the upcoming International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC) 2022, a prestigious international conference showcasing the pinnacles of achievement in integrated circuits.
Figure 2. The new Hiddenite chip offers on-chip weight generation and on-chip “supermask expansion” to reduce external memory access for loading model parameters. Credit: Masato Motomura from Tokyo Tech
“Hiddenite” stands for Hidden Neural Network Inference Tensor Engine and is the first HNN inference chip. The Hiddenite architecture (Fig. 2) offers three-fold benefits to reduce external memory access and achieve high energy efficiency. The first is that it offers the on-chip weight generation for re-generating weights by using a random number generator. This eliminates the need to access the external memory and store the weights. The second benefit is the provision of the “on-chip supermask expansion,” which reduces the number of supermasks that need to be loaded by the accelerator. The third improvement offered by the Hiddenite chip is the high-density four-dimensional (4D) parallel processor that maximizes data re-use during the computational process, thereby improving efficiency.
Figure 3. Fabricated using 40nm technology, the core of the chip area is only 4.36 square millimeters. Credit: Masato Motomura from Tokyo Tech
“The first two factors are what set the Hiddenite chip apart from existing DNN inference accelerators,” reveals Prof. Motomura. “Moreover, we also introduced a new training method for hidden neural networks, called ‘score distillation,’ in which the conventional knowledge distillation weights are distilled into the scores because hidden neural networks never update the weights. The accuracy using score distillation is comparable to the binary model while being half the size of the binary model.”
Based on the hiddenite architecture, the team has designed, fabricated, and measured a prototype chip with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s (TSMC) 40nm process (Fig. 3). The chip is only 3mm x 3mm and handles 4,096 MAC (multiply-and-accumulate) operations at once. It achieves a state-of-the-art level of computational efficiency, up to 34.8 trillion or tera operations per second (TOPS) per Watt of power, while reducing the amount of model transfer to half that of binarized networks.
These findings and their successful exhibition in a real silicon chip are sure to cause another paradigm shift in the world of machine learning, paving the way for faster, more efficient, and ultimately more environment-friendly computing.
Illustration of Artemis astronauts on the Moon. NASA’s new Tipping Point opportunity and Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity seek to mature space technology, including those that could be used for living and working on the Moon for NASA’s Artemis astronauts. Credit: NASA
Companies with technologies that may advance exploration but need a little extra push to finalize development have two new opportunities to partner with NASA to make it over the finish line.
Through Tipping Point, NASA seeks to support space technologies that can foster the growth of commercial space capabilities and benefit future agency missions. NASA is also offering businesses a chance to work with agency experts or use facilities to complete their work through a separate Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity.
“NASA’s investment and support at this pivotal stage in development can be the key to ultimately bringing new technologies to market,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “Public-private partnerships established through these opportunities will combine agency resources with industry contributions, a benefit that will unlock new ideas to advance how we live and work in space while providing greater value to the American people.”
These opportunities focus on technology development for space infrastructure and capabilities for the Moon and near-Earth space. Selected proposals for working on and near the Moon could include infrastructure for power distribution on the lunar surface, solutions for using lunar resources, or autonomous construction – key components for long-term lunar exploration under Artemis. NASA will also consider proposals for infrastructure and capabilities in Earth orbit – which could range from climate research tools to in-space manufacturing and advanced propulsion.
“Forging strong partnerships with the commercial space economy is critical for driving our nation’s space exploration further and faster,” said Jim Reuter, associate administrator for the Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) at NASA’s Headquarters in Washington, which manages the new opportunities. “I look forward to the new slate of public-private partnerships that will come from these new opportunities.”
Under the Tipping Point opportunity, NASA will award a total of up to $200 million to multiple companies using funded Space Act Agreements. The opportunity also includes incentives for small businesses, allowing companies with fewer than 500 employees to contribute less to the cost of the technology development.
“A funded Space Act Agreement provides more flexibility for commercial partners in intellectual property, private sector contribution, and accounting requirements,” said LK Kubendran, STMD lead on Tipping Point and Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity.
More than half a billion dollars have been awarded to 50 projects since NASA announced the first Tipping Point opportunity in 2015. Space technologies advanced through this funding are now part of current and future mission plans. They include:
Maxar’s Space Infrastructure Dexterous Robot aboard NASA’s On-orbit Servicing, Assembly and Manufacturing Mission-1 mission will demonstrate in-space assembly to form a communications antenna following OSAM-1’s launch
Tethers Unlimited’s Hydros thruster flew on NASA’s first Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator CubeSat mission to demonstrate the use of liquid water as fuel in space
Two technologies will be aboard the second Intuitive Machines flight to the Moon under the Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative: Nokia of America Corporation’s lunar LTE/4G communications system and Intuitive Machines’ hopper robot
The Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity allows companies to use NASA facilities and expertise to aid in technology development without a monetary award.
The deadline to submit initial proposals is March 31, 2022. Companies interested in submitting proposals can also attend an industry information session on Feb. 28. Details on the event are available online.
It is my honour to join you at the WORLD EXPO DUBAI and to introduce today’s conference.
First of all, I would like express my warm thanks to my colleague, Commissioner Kyriakides, who kindly agreed to launch this Conference with me, despite the fact that her schedule did not allow her to travel.
I am grateful to be here in person, to exchange directly with my fellow speakers and with you in the audience.
As you know, we are in the middle of the week dedicated to “Agriculture and Livelihoods”.
To me, this is a very fitting title. It reminds us that agriculture supports our livelihoods; not only our farmers and their families, but every one of us across society: our everyday lives rest on a secure supply of safe and nutritious food.
Our food and farming is more than just a sector of the economy; it is a way of life.
If we want to continue this way of life, then we cannot continue with “business as usual”.
The United Nations Food Systems Summit has made it very clear that we need bold actions to transform the ways we produce, process and consume food across the world.
In the European Union, we have developed a clear roadmap with the Farm to Fork Strategy, which is at the heart of our European Green Deal.
From the beginning, let me say that the Farm-to-Fork Strategy is a Strategy of cooperation. The EU stands ready to cooperate with all countries who want to work towards sustainable food systems.
Together, we must work for global food systems that are environmentally sustainable: that have a neutral or positive climate impact; that work with natural resources, not against them; andreverse the loss of biodiversity;
We must work for systems that are socially sustainable: that ensure food security and public health, making sure that everyone has access to sufficient levels of nutrition;
And finally, we must work for food systems that are economically sustainable: that preserve the affordability of food, and also generate rewarding incomes for farmers, foster competitiveness, and promote fair trade.
To achieve each of these goals, research and innovation will be crucial.
That is why I am extremely happy to be here today, to discuss with you how we can use research and innovation to create modern and sustainable food systems together: through Green Alliances and research initiatives at the highest levels, as well as innovative projects and nature-based solutions that we can put in place on the ground.
With this in mind, I thank you for your attention, and I look forward to our discussion.
Let me first thank Ambassador Claes and the Belgian pavilion, for hosting tonight’s dinner.
It is a pleasure to sit down and share food with all of you in person.
The Covid crisis has reminded us about the value of sharing meals together.
The pandemic has also reminded us about the importance of open trade and keeping food supply chains functioning.
As I’m sure many of you know, the EU is one of the major suppliers for agri-food products to the UAE and the Gulf coast region.
Throughout the pandemic, we have worked hard to maintain this supply. As we slowly begin to emerge from the pandemic, we hope to boost this supply, and to share more of our products with this part of the world.
Since 2019, we have been running a promotion campaign in this region using the slogan “More Than Food”.
The “More Than Food” campaign tells the story of what makes our products special.
It is a story of Safety – all EU food products comply with strict standards and controls, and are traceable from farm to fork. Because the EU checks everything, from pesticide use to packaging, consumers can enjoy European-labelled food products with the assurance that they are safe.
It is a story of Quality and Authenticity – as well as upholding modern quality standards and innovation, European foods celebrate traditional methods and flavours. Our products are rich and authentic because they are created among a wide diversity of soils, climates and cultures, following traditions that date back to centuries ago with particular know-how.
Many EU products, including those served tonight, benefit from protected designations of origin or geographical indications. This system helps preserves the link between a product, its territory, and local know-how, ensuring that you, the consumers, benefit from the best, authentic European products.
Finally, it is a story of Sustainability – the EU pushes for more sustainable agricultural practices, with the ambition of becoming a global leader in agro-ecology, as well as innovative agriculture and food science technologies.
For example, some of the products served today are labelled organic. Organic production deliver only a limited environmental impact, while providing consumers with products free from additives, processing aids, GMOs and chemical residues.
With a target of at least 25% of the EU’s agricultural land under organic farming by 2030, more and more products from the EU are certified as organic.
Without further ado, I would like to thank all of you who have gathered for tonight’s dinner.
I hope you enjoy the creations offered by our distinguished chefs coming from the Netherlands, Belgium, and my home country of Poland.
And I hope you enjoy the safe, authentic and sustainable food and beverages, produced by farmers from across the European Union.
Image of a Wolf Rayet star – potentially before collapsing into a black hole. Credit: ESO/L. Calçada
Astronomers are increasingly drawing back the curtains on black holes. In the past few years, we have finally captured actual photos of these fearsome creatures and measured the gravitational waves – ripples in spacetime – that they create when colliding. But there’s still a lot we don’t know about black holes. One of the biggest enigmas is exactly how they form in the first place.
My colleagues and I now believe we have observed this process, providing some of the best indications yet of exactly what happens when a black hole forms. Our results are published in two papers in Nature and the Astrophysical Journal.
Astronomers believe, on both observational and theoretical grounds, that most black holes form when the center of a massive star collapses at the end of its life. The star’s core normally provides pressure, or support, using heat from intense nuclear reactions. But once such a star’s fuel is exhausted and nuclear reactions stop, the inner layers of the star collapse inward under gravity, crushing down to extraordinary densities.
First image of a black hole. Credit: EHT
Most of the time, this catastrophic collapse is halted when the star’s core condenses into a solid sphere of matter, rich in particles called neutrons. This leads to a powerful rebound explosion that destroys the star (a supernova), and leaves behind an exotic object known as a neutron star. But models of dying stars show that if the original star is massive enough (40-50 times the mass of the Sun), the collapse will simply continue unabated until the star is crushed down into a gravitational singularity – a black hole.
Explosive theories
While stars collapsing to form neutron stars are now routinely observed throughout the universe (supernova surveys find dozens of new ones every night), astronomers are not yet entirely sure what happens during the collapse to a black hole. Some pessimistic models suggest the entire star would be swallowed up without much of a trace. Others propose that the collapse to a black hole would produce some other kind of explosion.
For example, if the star is rotating at the time of collapse, some of the infalling material may be focused into jets that escape the star at high velocity. While these jets wouldn’t contain much mass, they’d pack a big punch: if they slammed into something, the effects might be quite dramatic in terms of the energy released.
Up until now, the best candidate for an explosion from the birth of a black hole has been the strange phenomenon known as long-duration gamma-ray bursts. First discovered in the 1960s by military satellites, these events have been hypothesized to result from jets accelerated to mindboggling speeds by newly formed black holes in collapsing stars. However, a longstanding problem with this scenario is that gamma-ray bursts also expel abundant radioactive debris that continues to shine for months. This suggests most of the star exploded outward into space (as in an ordinary supernova), instead of collapsing inward to a black hole.
While this doesn’t mean a black hole can’t have been formed in such an explosion, some have concluded that other models provide a more natural explanation for gamma ray bursts than a black hole forming. For example, a super-magnetized neutron star could form in such an explosion and produce powerful jets of its own.
Mystery solved?
My colleagues and I, however, recently uncovered a new and (in our view) much better candidate event for creating a black hole. On two separate occasions in the past three years – once in 2019 and once in 2021 – we witnessed an exceptionally fast and fleeting type of explosion that, much like in gamma-ray bursts, originated from a small amount of very fast-moving material slamming into gas in its immediate environment.
By using spectroscopy – a technique that breaks down light into different wavelengths – we could infer the composition of the star that exploded for each of these events. We discovered that the spectrum was very similar to so-called “Wolf-Rayet stars” – a very massive and highly-evolved type of star, named after the two astronomers, Charles Wolf and Georges Rayet, that first detected them. Excitingly, we were even able to rule out a “normal” supernova explosion. As soon as the collision between the fast material and its environment ceased, the source practically vanished – rather than glowing for a long time.
This is exactly what you would expect if, during the collapse of its core, the star ejected only a small amount of material with the rest of the object collapsing downward into an enormous black hole.
The new study observed two events that may belong to third type of explosion, lasting only a short time. Credit: Bill Saxton, NRAO/AUI/NSF
While this is our favoured interpretation, it’s not the only possibility. The most prosaic one is that it was a normal supernova explosion, but that a vast shell of dust formed in the collision, concealing the radioactive debris from view. It’s also possible that the explosion is of a new and unfamiliar type, originating from a star we’re not familiar with.
To answer these questions, we will need to search for more such objects. Until now these kinds of explosions have been difficult to study because they are fleeting and hard to find. We had to use several observatories together in quick succession to characterize these explosions: the Zwicky Transient Facility to discover them, the Liverpool Telescope and the Nordic Optical Telescope to confirm their nature, and large high-resolution observatories (the Hubble Space Telescope, Gemini Observatory, and the Very Large Telescope) to analyze their composition.
While we didn’t initially know exactly what we were seeing when we first discovered these events, we now have a clear hypothesis: the birth of a black hole.
More data from similar events may soon be able to help us verify or falsify this hypothesis and establish the link to other types of unusual, fast explosions that our team and others have been finding. Either way, it seems this truly is the decade we crack the mysteries of black holes.
Written by Daniel Perley, Reader of Astrophysics, Liverpool John Moores University.
Scientists point to published medical case reports of young women developing unusual breast cancers located directly underneath the skin –where they placed their cell phones in their bra. A 2020 case control study found cell phone use significantly increased breast cancer risk, particularly in women who used phones close to their breasts.
Devra Davis, Ph. D., president of Environmental Health Trust has been working for decades on the environmental causes of breast cancer. She is an epidemiologist and toxicologist and has presented findings before Congress on the dangers of wireless radiation. Davis was also instrumental in having smoking banned from planes and she was part of a team awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for scientific research on climate change. She now is raising awareness about the health risks of cell phone radiation. Her letters reference the scientific reviews that conclude that cell phone radiation can cause cancer (Carlberg and Hardell, 2017 ; Miller et al., 2018). Senior advisors to the World Health Organization have concluded that if cell phone radiation were evaluated at this time, it would be considered a probable, if not fully confirmed human carcinogen {Directorate-General for Parliamentary Research Services (European Parliament)} and (Belpoggi, 2021; Melnick, 2019; Portier, 2021).
Attorney Courtney Kelley (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4veG7CoPm6o) in Denver, Colorado and Margot Shaw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvFUMicGyi0) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania are two of many women who carried their cell phones in their bras only to develop unusual breast cancers in the areas where the phones were carried. While Kelley wound up having to undergo a double mastectomy, Shaw’s cancer even presented itself in the shape of a phone. Doctors of both women concurred that the cancers were caused by the women having carried their phones in their bras.
Numerous doctors recommend that people keep the phone away from the brain and body, especially the breast.
● EHT organized a conference at the San Francisco Commonwealth Club featuring breast surgeon Dr. Lisa Bailey, former president of the American Cancer Society of California who gave a lecture recommending women keep cell phones out of the bra.
● The Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition created educational curriculum for classrooms to prevent breast cancer. Go to “Let’s Talk Prevention Classroom Module 3 Cell Phone and Wireless to download the curriculum.
● In 2017 the California Department of Health released an advisory on how to reduce cell phone radiation stating, “Carry your cell phone in a backpack, briefcase, or purse; NOT in a pocket, bra or belt holster.”
● The American Academy of Pediatrics and the North Carolina Public Health Department’s Department both state “Avoid carrying your phone against the body like in a pocket, sock, or bra. Cell phone manufacturers cannot guarantee that the amount of radiation you are absorbing will be at a safe level.”
Given the numbers of credible scientific studies on the dangers of carrying phones close to the body, especially near sensitive breast tissue, “the wireless industry will tell you that there’s no harm from wireless but that’s not what the many peer-reviewed scientific studies or a growing group of experts will tell you. The fine print warnings included in wireless technology packaging is clearly warning users to keep the devices away from direct body contact” said Davis,
The fine print warnings exist because cell phones emit radiofrequency (RF) radiation. Manufacturers premarket test phones in positions with a separation distance between the body and phone to ensure the phone RFR emissions are compliant with U.S. limits for human exposure. However, if the phone is used at a closer distance, the body can absorb far more RF radiation than US regulations allow- up to eleven times as much in some models!
EHT has a page of “Fine Print Warnings” on its website. Here are some examples of recommended distances in the devices’ fine print warnings:
● Apple iPhone 13–5mm distance
● Google Pixel 5a (5G) – 1 cm distance
● Samsung Galaxy Z 5G – 1.5 cm distance
The Google Pixel 5a (5G) safety information states, “Keep the phone away from your body to meet the distance requirement.”
These fine print warnings were a key part of a major federal lawsuit EHT recently won. Although EHT has repeatedly requested that the FCC (the U. S. government agency with authority) update its RF rules- unchanged since 1996- so that all wireless devices are tested in body contact positions, rather than with a separation, the FCC made a decision in 2019 that “this is unnecessary” and that it “ ensure[ed] that relevant information is made available to the public.”
EHT argued that most people were fully unaware of these fine print instructions. In fact, studies show that if cell phones and wireless devices are in body contact positions (without a separation distance), the RF exposure can violate U.S. government safety limits. Some phones were found to violate limits up to 11 times the safety limit when the cell phone is pressed to the body.
EHT and over a dozen others then sued the FCC and received a favorable ruling. The Court ordered the FCC to revisit these RF testing procedures as well as the safety limits for wireless RF radiation.
“Most people are not aware of these instructions. Even more importantly, wireless safety limits are now 25 years old. So, we recommend keeping even more distance than the manufacturers’ instructions,” Davis added, “Cell phones transmit radiofrequency radiation all the time, even when you are not talking on the phone.”
For more information on Environmental Health Trust, visit www.ehtrust.org.
Theodora Scarato
Environmental Health Trust
theodora.scarato@ehtrust.og
Attacks on kindergartens and schools have been a sad reality for children in eastern Ukraine over the last eight years, the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, said on Friday. Since the beginning of the conflict, more than 750 schools have been damaged.
On Thursday, according to media reports and the Ukrainian Government, shells fired by separatists in the east, hit and damaged a kindergarten in the Luhansk region. There were no reported casualties.
Attacks on kindergartens and schools have been a sad reality for children in eastern Ukraine over the past eight years. We call on all parties to respect the Safe Schools Declaration and protect children and their families from attacks.
In a statement, the UN agency said that attacks on schools – since fighting began in the eastern region between Government forces and mostly pro-Russian separatists in 2014 – have been disrupting access to education for thousands of children on both sides of the contact line.
Furthermore, the agency said children in eastern Ukraine live in one of the world’s most mine-contaminated stretches of land. “Every day, they live, play, and go to and from school in areas littered with landmines, unexploded ordnances, and other deadly explosive remnants of war”.
Highlighting that the conflict has taken a severe toll on the psychosocial wellbeing of an entire generation of children, UNICEF called on all parties to protect children and their caregivers from attacks.
Safe School Declaration
Calling on all parties to respect the Safe School Declaration, the agency added that protection must be provided to keep children and their caregivers safe, regardless of the circumstances they might find themselves in.
According to recent data, for children living in conflict, education has become even more dangerous. In 2020, there were 535 verified attacks on schools, an increase of 17 per cent compared to 2019.
The Safe Schools Declaration which opened for State endorsement in Oslo, Norway, in May 2015, is a commitment to better protect students, teachers, schools and universities during armed conflict, to support the continuation of education during war, and to put in place concrete measures to deter the military use of schools.
To date, 111 States have endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration. Ukraine did so in November 2019.
“Educational facilities should remain a safe space where children can be protected from threats and crises and a haven where they can learn, play, and grow to their full potential”, the statement reiterated. “A child’s right to education cannot be safeguarded in conflict settings without education itself being protected”, UNICEF underlined.
UNICEF on the ground
Since the onset of the conflict, the UN agency has been on the ground across eastern Ukraine, delivering psychosocial support and mine risk education to over 180,000 children, youth, and caregivers.
UNICEF is also supporting repairs to damaged schools and kindergartens and distributing vital classroom supplies such as educational kits, furniture sets and sports equipment.
Reiterating its commitment to continue to work with conflict-affected communities to provide much needed humanitarian support, UNICEF said that it will continue to address the urgent needs of the most vulnerable children and families.
WALTHAM (CBS) – The battle over books in Waltham continues as LGBT literature comes front and center for those in support and against its messages.
For the second time in two weeks, the “Little Queer Library” in Waltham had all its LGBT literature cleared out, but the curators don’t believe the books are going to their intended readers. READ MORE:Signal At Wilmington Rail Crossing Where Woman Was Killed Failed Again, Town Officials Say Katie Cohen and her partner Krysta Petrie opened the ‘Little Library’ in front of their home on Trapelo Road.
Cohen and Petrie have supplied the library themselves since they created it in 2020. The couple decided to gear their books toward LGBT youth after hearing feedback from the community.
“We realized there was really limited ways to get those books,” said Cohen. “They are hard to find, they are often expensive, and a lot of people are looking for that kind of representation. They are looking for themselves on the pages.”
Little Queer Library on Trapelo Rd in Waltham (WBZ-TV)
“They only pulled the things that were focused on LGBT people or about LGBT people,” Cohen said. “It really does feel like someone is trying to censor what’s out there.”
“You can only read so many books at a time,” said Petrie, who added that there are other ‘Little Libraries’ in the area too. “We have maybe five or six in a one-mile radius and none of them had these kinds of issues.”
On the same day of the second swiping of books, the Waltham School Committee heard a recommendation from their Library Materials Review Committee on whether two LGBT themed books – ‘Gender Queer: A Memoir’ by Maia Kobabe and “This Book is Gay” by Juno Dawson – should be pulled from public school shelves.
That committee voted unanimously to keep the books, which some in the community deemed too sexual or pornographic in nature.
Following the first incident, Cohen and Petrie said they had received nearly 200 book donations from the community for the “Little Queer Library.” MORE NEWS:Boston Lifts Proof Of Vaccine Requirement Effective Immediately The couple told WBZ News they have no plans of scaling back the library.
