text:
OSA Publishing > Photonics Research > Volume 5 > Issue 5 > Page 461
Lan Yang, Editor-in-Chief
High-power passively Q-switched 2 μm all-solid-state laser based on a Bi2Te3 saturable absorber
X. Liu, K. Yang, S. Zhao, T. Li, W. Qiao, H. Zhang, B. Zhang, J. He, J. Bian, L. Zheng, L. Su, and J. Xu
X. Liu,1 K. Yang,1,2,3,* S. Zhao,1 T. Li,1 W. Qiao,1 H. Zhang,2 B. Zhang,2 J. He,2 J. Bian,3 L. Zheng,4 L. Su,4 and J. Xu5
1School of Information Science and Engineering, and Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Application, Shandong University, Jinan 250100, China
2State Key Laboratory of Crystal Material, Shandong University, Jinan 250100, China
3State Key Laboratory of Pulsed Power Laser Technology, Hefei 230031, China
4Key Laboratory of Transparent and Opto-functional Inorganic Materials, Artificial Crystal Research Center, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201899, China
5School of Physics Science and Engineering, Institute for Advanced Study, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China
*Corresponding author: k.j.yang@sdu.edu.cn
K Yang
S Zhao
T Li
W Qiao
H Zhang
B Zhang
J He
J Bian
L Zheng
L Su
J Xu
•https://doi.org/10.1364/PRJ.5.000461
X. Liu, K. Yang, S. Zhao, T. Li, W. Qiao, H. Zhang, B. Zhang, J. He, J. Bian, L. Zheng, L. Su, and J. Xu, "High-power passively Q-switched 2 μm all-solid-state laser based on a Bi2Te3 saturable absorber," Photon. Res. 5, 461-466 (2017)
High power lasers
Laser modes
Laser operation
Q switched lasers
Infrared and far-infrared lasers (140.3070)
Lasers, Q-switched (140.3540)
Lasers, solid-state (140.3580)
Nonlinear optical materials (160.4330)
Nanomaterials (160.4236)
Original Manuscript: July 13, 2017
Revised Manuscript: August 8, 2017
By using the ultrasound-assisted liquid phase exfoliation method, Bi2Te3 nanosheets are synthesized and deposited onto a quartz plate to form a kind of saturable absorber (SA), in which nonlinear absorption properties around 2 μm are analyzed with a home-made mode-locked laser. With the as-prepared Bi2Te3 SA employed, a stable passively Q-switched all-solid-state 2 μm laser is successfully realized. Q-switched pulses with a maximum average output power of 2.03 W are generated under an output coupling of 5%, corresponding to the maximum single-pulse energy of 18.4 μJ and peak power of 23 W. The delivered shortest pulse duration and maximum repetition rate are 620 ns and 118 kHz under an output coupling of 2%, respectively. It is the first presentation of such Bi2Te3 SA employed in a solid-state Q-switched crystalline laser at 2 μm, to the best of our knowledge. In comparison with other 2D materials suitable for pulsed 2 μm lasers, the saturable absorption performance of Bi2Te3 SA is proved to be promising in generating high power and high-repetition-rate 2 μm laser pulses.
© 2017 Chinese Laser Press
Passively Q-switched solid-state Tm:YAG laser using topological insulator Bi2Te3 as a saturable absorber
Pan Gao, Haizhou Huang, Xihu Wang, Huagang Liu, Jianhong Huang, Wen Weng, Shutao Dai, Jinhui Li, and Wenxiong Lin
Passively Q-switched tri-wavelength Yb3+:GdAl3(BO3)4 solid-state laser with topological insulator Bi2Te3 as saturable absorber
Yi-Jian Sun, Chao-Kuei Lee, Jin-Long Xu, Zhao-Jie Zhu, Ye-Qing Wang, Shu-Fang Gao, Hou-Ping Xia, Zhen-Yu You, and Chao-Yang Tu
Photon. Res. 3(3) A97-A101 (2015)
High-power passively Q-switched 2.0 μm all-solid-state laser based on a MoTe2 saturable absorber
Bingzheng Yan, Baitao Zhang, Hongkun Nie, Haoyuan Wang, Guoru Li, Xiaoli Sun, Ruihua Wang, Na Lin, and Jingliang He
Few-layer Bi2Te3: an effective 2D saturable absorber for passive Q-switching of compact solid-state lasers in the 1-μm region
Jingnan Yang, Kan Tian, Yuhang Li, Xiaodan Dou, Yanjun Ma, Wenjuan Han, Honghao Xu, and Junhai Liu
High-quality 2-μm Q-switched pulsed solid-state lasers using spin-coating-coreduction approach synthesized Bi2Te3 topological insulators
Junpeng Qiao, Shengzhi Zhao, Kejian Yang, Wei-Heng Song, Wenchao Qiao, Chung-Lung Wu, Jia Zhao, Guiqiu Li, Dechun Li, Tao Li, Hong Liu, and Chao-Kuei Lee
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Ahmad, F.
Apandi, N. H. M.
Bao, Q.
Bernard, F.
Bruns, D. L.
Chamorovskiy, A. Y.
Chang, Y. M.
Cheng, C.-H.
Cheng, Y.
Chi, C.
Chi, J.
Chi, Y.-C.
Chou, C.-M.
Chou, M. M. C.
Chu, H.
Debnath, P.
Emplit, P.
Fried, N. M.
Fuerbach, A.
Fuhrberg, P.
Gao, S.-F.
Gorza, S.
Gross, S.
Guo, Z.
Hale, C. P.
Han, K.
Hannon, S. M.
Hao, X.-P.
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He, J.
He, J.-H.
He, J.-L.
Henderson, S. W.
Hou, J.
Hu, H.
Huang, B.
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ACS Photon. (1)
Adv. Funct. Mater. (1)
Annalen der Physik (1)
IEEE J. Sel. Top. Quantum Electron. (1)
IEEE Photon. J. (3)
IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. (1)
J. Endourol. (1)
Laser Photon. Rev. (1)
Laser Phys. (1)
Laser Phys. Lett. (1)
Opt. Laser Technol. (1)
Opt. Mater. Express (1)
Photon. Lett. Poland (1)
Photon. Res. (3)
Fig. 1. (a) Surface topography of three typical Bi 2 Te 3 nanosheets. (b) Height profiles of selected nanosheets.
Fig. 2. Measured Raman spectrum of bulk Bi 2 Te 3 and Bi 2 Te 3 nanosheets.
Fig. 3. Nonlinear optical properties of the as-prepared Bi 2 Te 3 SA.
Fig. 4. Optical transmission spectrum of Bi 2 Te 3 nanosheets.
Fig. 5. Schematic setup of diode-pumped Bi 2 Te 3 Q -switched Tm:LuAG laser.
Fig. 6. Average output powers versus incident pump powers for the Bi 2 Te 3 SA Q -switched Tm:LuAG laser (a) in CW regime and (b) Q -switching regime.
Fig. 7. Output spectra for Tm:LuAG lasers in CW regime and Q -switching regime.
Fig. 8. (a) Pulse durations, (b) repetition rates, (c) single pulse energies, and (d) peak powers as function of incident pump powers.
Fig. 9. Temporal profiles of typical pulse trains at different repetition rates and the shortest pulse shape with duration of 620 ns.
Fig. 10. M 2 factors from the Bi 2 Te 3 SA Q -switched Tm:LuAG laser at the highest output power.


Fr Antonio was born in the Philippines but grew up in London. He gained his first degree in business and management studies at the University of Salford and earned a masters degree in digital media in London Metropolitan University. His employment history includes working as a personnel assistant for the London Borough of Newham, a communications officer for Caritas Manila and the Royal College of Nursing, and a web editor for Brunel University.
He thought that his MA in digital media would be his final dabble in education but God had other ideas. He was accepted for priestly training in 2011 when Cardinal Vincent Nichols sent him to Rome for seven years of formation at the Venerable English College.
He studied Philosophy at the Pontifical University of St Thomas Aquinas (aka the Angelicum) and Theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University. In 2016, he went back to the Angelicum to study for his Licentiate in Spiritual Theology.
Fr Antonio was ordained to the priesthood on 28 July 2018 at his home parish in St George's, Sudbury.


text:
module Awspec::Generator
  module Doc
    module Type
      class TransferServer < Base
        def initialize
          super
          @type_name = 'TransferServer'
          @type = Awspec::Type::TransferServer.new('s-4dc0a424f0154fa89')
          @ret = @type.resource_via_client
          @matchers = [
            Awspec::Type::TransferServer::STATES.map { |state| "be_#{state.downcase.tr('-', '_')}" }.join(', ')
          ]
          @ignore_matchers = Awspec::Type::TransferServer::STATES.map { |state| "be_#{state.downcase.tr('-', '_')}" }
          @describes = []
        end
      end
    end
  end
end

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
> parse scene release names

Examples and conventions based on:
- Collection of scene rulesets: http://scenerules.irc.gs/
- Very brief Wikipedia description of scene naming schemes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_(warez)#Naming
- Release examples from any predb:
  - [orlydb](http://orlydb.com/)
  - [PreDB.me](http://predb.me/)

## Install

```sh
$ npm install --save scene-release
```

## Usage

```js
var sceneRelease = require('scene-release');

sceneRelease('Citizenfour.2014.720p.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-NOGRP')
// => { "year": "2014",
//      "resolution": "720p",
//      ... }
```

## CLI

```sh
$ npm install --global scene-release
```

```sh
$ scene-release --help

  parse scene release names

  Example
    scene-release Citizenfour.2014.720p.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-NOGRP

    => { "year": "2014",
         "resolution": "720p",
         ... }
```

## Similar projects
- [peterhellberg/release](https://github.com/peterhellberg/release) (Go)
- [danielhusar/movie-title](https://github.com/danielhusar/movie-title) (JavaScript)
- [majestixx/scene-release-parser-php-lib](https://github.com/majestixx/scene-release-parser-php-lib) (PHP)

## License

MIT © [Matias Singers](http://mts.io)


text:
1. KEY PROJECT INFORMATION
Implementing partner (IFRC/ National Society/ies):
Geographical coverage:
Type of intervention (sector/area):
BDRCS
Jamalpur District
Multi-sector (DRR, Health and WASH, Livelihoods, NSD)
Expected start date:
Expected duration:
Number of people to be reached:
8000 community members (estimated 400 households, 2000 people per community in 4 communities; approximately 48% female and 52% male)
50 members of District DMC
50 members of Upazila DMC
50 members of Union DMC
50 BDRCS Staff, UDRT, RCY, EC
The Project Funded by:
SRC (Swedish Red Cross)
Key outcomes of the project (goal and outcomes):
Goal: Strengthen resilience of women and men in vulnerable communities against the impact of hazards and climate change
Key Outcomes:
Men and women of different ages and backgrounds have increased capacities to anticipate, prepare for, and reduce impact of hazards in an integrated and inclusive manner;
Key institutional stakeholders, including BDRCS and relevant local government units, have increased capacity to support men and women in building community resilience; and,
Linkage and coordination strengthened between communities and key institutions to support in implementation and contribute to sustainability of community resilience
This project aims to support men and women of different ages and backgrounds in the communities in enhancing their resilience against the impact of hazards through an integrated and inclusive resilience approach. This comes from the recognition and key learnings from other RCRC resilience projects that attaining resilience necessitates people-centeredness but at the same time have a holistic take with the involvement of different levels of society. (See Annex 2, Logical Framework)
The project aims to adopt an integrated and inclusive approach where 'integrated' refers to the effective integration among and within basic sectors where highest vulnerabilities are identified such as livelihoods, health and WASH, and how these relates to overall reduction of disaster risks as well as the ability to withstand, prepare, and cope against the impact of hazards.
This project, having an integrated approach, also refers to acknowledging that resilience can only be attained through concerted efforts. This means that the project design should not solely focus on community groups and structures, but also support and connect local institutions such as the DMCs from district, upazila, union and ward levels, the BDRCS branch, and other key institutional stakeholders (NGOs, private organizations, academic institutes). These institutions which will be able to augment support and facilitate sustainability of resilience initiatives.
The project will maintain a certain degree of flexibility in defining activities as it will use the results of the participatory VCA and sector-specific assessments to define the priorities of each community. Specific activities and targets will be updated and validated after the assessments are conducted.
Considering that the scoping study emphasized how women are one of the most vulnerable particularly during disasters and taking into account lessons from ongoing Resilience Programs as well as the momentum built on the BDRCS Gender and Diversity Project, this project adopts a stronger focus on gender and diversity as a condition for community resilience. This will be incorporated through a better understanding and mainstreaming of an 'inclusive' approach - defined as "acknowledging diversity in society, upholding equality of rights and opportunities, ensuring dignity of individual or group, and not excluding community members due to age, gender, disability or other characteristics."
Project activities will be designed in a manner where women of all ages and backgrounds can take on a more proactive role in resilience work with the aim of:
Challenging mindsets, norms and traditions that restrict women's rights, security, roles, and influence in disasters;
Contributing to increased action at local level to act before, during and after a disaster. By forming 'Women's Squads' within the micro-groups, CDMCs and CDRTs, a women's choir in the district, conditions are created to give women equal opportunities to take a leading role in how disasters are managed, thus utilizing how women want to address problems that a disaster entails; and,
Helping more women reach other women with life-saving help and be more involved in resilience work.
3. BACKGROUND
3.1 OVERVIEW OF BDRCS
Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) is one of the largest humanitarian organizations working in Bangladesh constituted in 31 March 1973. It has a country-wide presence with 68 branches located across all 64 districts and four (4) metropolitan cities of the country. BDRCS has more than 780,000 Red Crescent Youth (RCY) members, 55,260 Cyclone Preparedness Programme (CPP) volunteers, a pool of 80,165 life members, and 492 experienced officers and staff working at the national headquarters and branches.
As an auxiliary to the Government of Bangladesh (GoB), BDRCS works towards providing humanitarian assistance and increasing community resilience of the most vulnerable. While earlier, its focus was on post-disaster relief and response, later BDRCS incorporated Community-based DRR (CBDRR) approach into their projects. The idea of moving from Disaster Management (DM) to DRR was conceived in BDRCS after the 1970's cyclone that killed over 500,000 people in Bangladesh. Its operation started with the formation of CPP with 20,000 volunteers in 1973.
Considering changing nature of disasters and climate, BDRCS has adopted a multi-hazard and holistic approach. In line with the BCCSAP and Standing Order on Disasters (SoD), the IFRC Strategy 2020, and the Sendai Framework for Action, BDRCS has been implementing projects focusing enhancing community resilience. In addition, Bangladesh is among the selected countries where the IFRC Framework for Community Resilience (FCR) Roadmap to Resilience (R2R) tool is being piloted starting 2017.
Over the last 41 years, BDRCS has undertaken a wide range of activities in DRR, Health, Capacity building, and in promoting Red Cross Red Crescent (RCRC) ideals and principles. In spite of various challenges faced, BDRCS continues to make steady progress towards realizing its vision and achieving its mission of providing vital services to the most vulnerable in an effective, transparent and self-sustainable manner.
In terms of BDRCS' capacity on Gender and Diversity, a baseline study was conducted by IFRC with the support of Swedish Red Cross (SRC) last 2015. The study found a sound understanding of the term 'Gender Equality' among staff and volunteers, whereas 'Gender Mainstreaming' seems to be a new concept. BDRCS has shown commitment towards prioritizing Gender and Diversity through the formulation of a Gender Policy in 2005 and the establishment of a Gender Working Committee (GWC) in 2012. However, the study also found limited knowledge on related policies and the roles and responsibilities of the GWC in terms of mainstreaming gender and diversity in the organization and in its emergency response operations and long-term programs.
3.2 OVERVIEW OF BDRCS-SRC PARTNERSHIP
Swedish Red Cross (SRC) has been a long-standing partner of BDRCS in addressing humanitarian needs of vulnerable communities in Bangladesh. SRC is known for its support in the establishment of CPP. With in-country presence established in 2014 to date, SRC continues to be one of the main Partner National Societies (PNS) supporting long-term resilience projects, National Society Development (NSD) projects on Gender and Diversity and Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting (PMER), and emergency response operations.
During the Partnership Review Talks (PRT) in November 2014, BDRCS and SRC senior management agreed to explore options of a new Resilience Project through a bilateral mode of partnership. This takes into consideration both development and humanitarian needs in Bangladesh and lessons learnt from previous and ongoing Resilience Projects, as well as its alignment to the BDRCS Strategic Plan 2017 – 2020 and Humanitarian Strategy of the SRC 2016-2019. Hence, this project proposal for the new BDRCS-SRC Integrated Resilience Project (IRP) is developed through a scoping process undertaken in 2017.
SRC supported several programs on enhancing community resilience in Bangladesh. IRP takes into consideration the lessons learned from the implementation of these programs 3, which mainly includes:
Including local government institutions in the resilience equation not just a stakeholder to be consulted from time to time but to be actively engaged and involved in implementation of activities. While previous and ongoing programs (e.g. CBDRR and V2R) included local government stakeholders in activities, these were done on a needs-basis and limited to providing technical support (e.g. Agricultural Extension Office for livelihood activities).
Strengthening the linkage of community-based groups with existing government Disaster Management Committees in terms of risk assessment, risk reduction and resilience action planning, advocacy, and implementation. This is one of the strategies of IRP to facilitate sustainability of outputs beyond the life of the project.
Improving approach from product-based to process-based. Previous and ongoing programs (e.g. CBDRR and V2R) had been designed to provide solutions already pre-defined in the project proposal and logical framework. This entailed less degree of flexibility to address needs based on the results of the participatory Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment (VCA). This also led to communities receiving the same type of intervention (e.g. similar quantities of latrines, same length of drainage canals) even if the needs are different.
Strengthening Gender and Diversity and the inclusion approach in activities. This is further defined in the following sections of this proposal.
Strengthening the Health component of the project linking it with BDRCS Maternal and Child Health Center (MCH) as previous programs did not fully incorporate Health in their respective design due to various reasons.
Through the implementation of the SRC-supported Gender and Diversity Project in 2017, a series of trainings and orientations were conducted to increase awareness and understanding on concepts, policy frameworks, and the IFRC Minimum Standard Commitments on Gender and Diversity for the BDRCS staff and volunteers in the National headquarters and selected district branches. It is also expected that by the end of March 2018, a Child Protection Policy is finalized and a draft updated Gender Policy will be completed.
In order to continue the momentum and sustain the SRC-supported initiatives on Gender and Diversity and PMER, the IRP aims to roll-out activities of both focus areas in the selected district as it relates to programming and NSD. In addition to this and outside of the scope of IRP, SRC will continue to support, provide technical guidance, and advocate for the effective mainstreaming of Gender and Diversity in BDRCS emergency response operations, and the Resilience Programs supported by IFRC and PNSs (e.g. Vulnerability to Resilience Barisal by the British Red Cross, NSD Project of the German Red Cross).
4. CONTEXT ANALYSIS
The needs for this project have been assessed through a scoping study led by a team from BDRCS and SRC (See Annex 1. BDRCS-SRC Scoping Study Report, November 2017). The study is divided into phases where Phase 0 (May) involved an internal assessment of BDRCS capacity in finance, logistics, and human resource (HR); Phase 1 (June-Sept) involved collection of qualitative and quantitative analysis of hazard, vulnerability and capacity indicators from secondary data sources for all 64 districts of Bangladesh to rank them according to vulnerabilities rate; Phase 2 (Sept-Oct) involved the detailed assessment of sample districts with the highest vulnerability ranking from Phase 1, and represent the major hazards and regions in the country; and the Phase 3 (Oct-Dec) focusing on developing this project proposal.
Country Level
Bangladesh, officially known as the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is one of the most densely populated countries in the world with a population of approximately 162 million people and nearly 30% living in poverty. Due to is geographic location in South Asia, the country is highly vulnerable to man-made and natural disasters such as fires, structure collapse, cyclones, floods and earthquakes, as well as climate change. Bangladesh is ranked fifth in the disaster risk among the world. 4 The most vulnerable population being women, small marginal farmers, sharecroppers, laborers, urban slum dwellers, indigenous and minority groups, and other marginalized groups, such as the Persons with Disabilities (PWD).
The country is prone to flooding due to its location on the Ganges Delta and the many tributaries flowing into the Bay of Bengal. The strong monsoon rains, coupled Bangladesh's location in the delta of the world's second largest river basin, makes it extremely vulnerable to recurring floods. Furthermore, 75% of Bangladesh is less than 10 meters above sea level and 80% of its land areas are considered flood plains.
Over the last 30 years, Bangladesh has experienced nearly 200 hydro-meteorological related disasters, of which have killed thousands of people, destroyed homes and livelihoods and cost the nation around $16 billion in damage and economic losses. Given Bangladesh's natural geography of rivers and tributaries, floods affect Bangladeshis more than any other disaster. Around 30-50% of the country experience floods annually. Major floods in 2017 have affected more than 7.4 million people in over 50% of the country's 64 districts.
Because of these, the Government of Bangladesh (GoB) has made progress in Disaster Preparedness through plans and policies. The country is gradually shifting its DM approach to a comprehensive DRR approach based on experiences, lessons learned, and the aim to reduce future adverse impacts. Disaster Management Committees (DMCs) have been established at different administrative levels. As a result, Bangladesh exceeded the regional averages for the Asia-Pacific in the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) Progress Report (2013) and scored a higher than the average score in every category including early warning systems, risk assessment, DRR policy, and preparedness for effective response. Bangladesh earned these scores by tirelessly implementing various national plans supporting DRR and Climate Change Adaptation (CCA).
In terms of gender-related issues, Bangladesh is a highly patriarchal society as gender is a main factor in defining social roles, responsibilities, and power relationships in the family and workplace. The country ranks relatively low on the 2010 Gender Inequality Index 5. In 2014, 43.1% females and 80.9% males were recorded as working for cash income. 6 More than three-quarters of the female labour force works in agriculture. However, women do not experience similar working conditions, wages and benefits as men. They are disproportionately affected by un-/under-employment and vulnerable employment. This and stereotype gender roles related to low literacy, limited mobility, restricted access to public sphere and role as caregivers, make women more vulnerable in disasters. In 1991 Cyclone Sidr, the death rate was 71 per 1000 women aged 20-44 compared to 15 per 1000 men 7. Moreover, sexual- and gender based violence (SGBV) is a serious issue, including sexual, domestic, and dowry-related violence, early marriages, acid attacks, kidnapping and trafficking. In the 2011 Violence Against Women Survey, 65% of married women experienced physical violence committed by their husband. During 2015 BDRCS and IFRC conducted a SGBV case study as part of the global study Unseen, Unheard: Gender- based violence in disasters. The study conclude that SGBV tend to increase during natural disasters, not at least when people are displaced. Key findings from the Bangladesh case study were:
Low awareness of rights in relation to GBV amongst affected population;
Lack of available data on prevalence and patterns of GBV;
Variation across different administrative levels regarding availability and access to GBV response services;
Variation of level of awareness among internal staff.
D istrict Level
As a result of the scoping process, BDRCS and SRC selected Jamalpur as the target district for the implementation of this project. Jamalpur is situated on the northwest region and part of Mymensingh Division. It has a total area of 2031.98 sq.km with a population of 1 075 694 and an average population density of 1 037 per square kilometre. The town (Jamalpur sadar) has a population of 116 754 with 51.06% male and 48.94% female.
The area occupies a major flood plain along the Jamuna River which is the main reason for recurring floods. Some other rivers in the area include Old Brahmaputra and Banar. In addition to riverine flooding, Jamalpur is also exposed to other hazards such as rapid onset (flash) floods, river bank erosion, and siltation. The average rainfall is 2 041 millimetres; average temperature in summer is 28.40 centigrade; and, the average temperature in winter is 10.10 centigrade.
The vulnerability of Jamalpur to multiple hazards was highlighted this year being one of the districts hardest hit by the monsoon floods which affected 50% of Bangladesh and over 8 million people. This is confirmed through the scoping study where around 88% of the respondents identified flood as the most common hazard. During monsoon season, the water overflows and inundates the land. Increased rainfall is cited by 84% of the respondents as one of the major causes of flood. The next reason identified is unplanned land use with 57% agreeing to this. Other causes are siltation of river beds (31%) and breaching of the embankments (17%). In addition, 96% of the respondents feels that river erosion has increased significantly during the last 12 years.
In terms of needs, the scoping process looked into major sectors such as livelihoods, health and WASH, and DRR. On livelihood, Jamalpur is highly dependent on agriculture which is most vulnerable from the impacts of hydro-meteorological hazards and climate change. Most of the people are farmers and their livelihood largely depends on agricultural production. When a hazard occurs, it either destroys the whole agricultural land or standing crops and seed beds. Across the whole country, a total of 1.07 lakh hectares have been inundated by floodwaters last year according to Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE). From the scoping study analysis on the economic and asset ownership, it has been noted that a small minority can be grouped as middle-income (5%) and lower-middle income (25%). On land ownership, 30% people have 01-05 bigha of land while 40% are landless and working as day labourers. They are the extreme poor and become the most vulnerable segment of the population.
The vast majority of the people are economically poor (approximately 25-40% are considered extreme poor living on $1.25/day) and have low understanding of the causes of underlying vulnerabilities. Due to lack of awareness and economic hardships, the overall health and WASH condition needs significant improvements. The main health risks reported are pneumonia with children, fever, skin diseases, and post-partum gynaecological complications on women and girls. There is no specialist doctor in Upazila health complex to address complicated cases. Around 65% of the respondents indicate that they have latrines. From this, 40% consider their latrines hygienic. Majority of the respondents (95%) said they use safe drinking water but have to collect it from other people's houses. Usually, disease outbreaks occur in the months of rainy season and winter, although there has been no diarrhoea outbreak for the past years that the respondents can recall. In a separate study undertaken by UNICEF in Jamalpur, it revealed around 8.37% incidence rate of open defecation.
On DRR, unlike the coastal region of the country where the CPP is established, the area has no local Flood Early Warning System (EWS). While Bangladesh has the Flood Forecasting and Warning Center (FFWC), it is not helping Jamalpur area to disseminate flood information at community level. Some communities, where the BDRCS and other NGOs work, have community-based groups (e.g. CDMCs). However, efforts need to be done to connect this existing groups with each other and with the local government DMCs as well.
The scoping study consulted vulnerable groups include women and Persons with Disabilities (PWD) to find out specific vulnerabilities they face. The project will ensure that the different needs of these groups to include men, women, ethnic groups, PWD, children and elderly people are analysed starting with the VCA process. A community can only be safe if all its members are able to cope better against the impact of hazards. When it comes to disasters, all individuals and groups are entitled to the right to protection and safety. However, there will always be some people who are left out because of inherent characteristics such as sex, disability, age, religion or any others, and as a result are more vulnerable to disasters.
In general, issues highlighted by these groups revolve around collection of drinking water, childcare facilities, discrimination of women in labour practices, physical and mental healthcare, being overburdened with household activities, and involvement in Disaster Preparedness and Response. Particularly for women, when a disaster occurs, women's vulnerability increases.
In temporary shelters, women are more often exposed to SGBV. When families affected by a disaster can no longer afford to send all their children to school, it is most likely that the daughters are the ones who drop out of school first. Many families may feel forced to marry their teenage daughters for economic reasons or because a husband can offer the role of male protector. These has been one of the findings in the mid-term evaluation of the V2R program in Barisal.
5. CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES
5.1 GENDER AND DIVERSITY
With Gender and Diversity being the core focus of an inclusive approach, the project will ensure that implementation strategies and activities will be designed and assessed on the following aspects:
How community members, especially vulnerable groups, are participating in the resilience-building process and decision-making; can be actively involved; can raise their voice; and hold institutions accountable. From the 2011 census of Bangladesh, Jamalpur population is composed of 52% men and 48% women. The project will strive for 50-50% target for participation ratio of men and women. But this will be discussed further and agreed on amongst the Project Team in consultation with communities, BDRCS Branch, GWC and the SRC Technical Adviser. Adequate participation of children, elderly, PWD, and other identified vulnerable and marginalized groups of the communities will also be taken into account. Quantitative targets for these will be determined by BDRCS and SRC.
Recognition of diversity
Diversity of people with different needs and capacities as well as diversity of risks, barriers, institutions and levels. These groups will be involved in project activities recognizing that they are not only vulnerable but they also have capacities to contribute to building community resilience. Diversity will take into account the following, but not limited to, age (considering different needs and capacities of children, youth, adults, elderly), capabilities (considering Persons with Disabilities), religious diversity (considering religious minorities).
Tailoring of approaches
The project should maintain flexibility in ensuring that implementation approaches are suitable for the context and not just a 'copy paste' of previous resilience projects. The project will therefore look into whether activities are suitable for the community members especially the most vulnerable; if are they context-sensitive and in line with 'Do No Harm' principles; and if they are flexible to changing circumstances. These will be further defined during the VCA process which will provide an in-depth understanding of community risks.
Removal of barriers
Activities should address the causes of exclusion, help change power dynamics, and facilitate sustainability overtime. Project activities will strive to ensure that risk factors and barriers for the different groups are identified and actions will be prioritized to mitigating these. Particularly for women, assessments will include determining root causes of pre-existing gender inequalities and developing plans of action incorporates measures to address these such as promoting women leadership in the CDMCs and CDRTs with the Women squads, and prioritizing ultra-poor women and women headed households in livelihood support to increase economic independence.
Existing tools will be used as guidance and particularly in the implementation of NSD activities at the branch level, such as the updated BDRCS Gender and Diversity Policy, BDRCS Child Protection Policy, IFRC Minimum Standard Commitments on Gender and Diversity in Emergency Programming, IFRC Seven (7) Moves Training, IFRC Gender-sensitive Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment (VCA), and other external resources, among others.
5.2 COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Communities are the main force of project implementation because without their active involvement, the project cannot achieve its desired results. For this, existing guidelines and tools of IFRC and BDRCS on Community Engagement and Accountability (CEA) will be used enabling the project to integrate minimum actions including involving consultation of communities and other key stakeholders before (scoping study process) and during assessments (such as VCA and other sector-specific assessments); understanding the local information system and community structures; engaging community groups primarily through the micro-groups, CDMCs, CDRTs and Women squads and institutional stakeholders in planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation; institute/support information channels where communities and key stakeholders can engage in providing feedback and 2-way communication; and ensure that mechanisms are in place to act on community feedback and incorporate into the improvement of project design, approach and activities. Accountability should be ensured so that the appropriate people are chosen as beneficiaries and no resources are misused.
5.3 CONFLICT SENSITIVITY
The project will generate benefits and incentives to communities and key stakeholders involved that may contribute to tensions or conflicts if not designed and implemented properly. In line with the fundamental principles of the RCRC Movement, this project will ensure that the implementation team are fully aware of existing conflict dynamics in the communities as well as at the household level (through the VCA). CEA mechanisms are put in place to avoid contributing to increasing conflicts/tensions or address any arising tensions from the project in a systematic and transparent manner. As part of the assessments, monitoring and evaluation (including the risk register), conflict sensitive indicators will be included whenever applicable and formulated. Sensitization and awareness-raising sessions will be conducted to minimize tensions which may arise from activities related to promotion of leadership and participation of women and other vulnerable groups.
BDRCS maintains one of the principles where all the project assistance will contribute towards strengthening the social fabric of people living together in communal harmony. The "Do No Harm" principle is taken into account to retain social coherence among households and will be included in capacity building sessions both for project team and target beneficiaries.
5.4 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The project will strive to minimize any negative impact its activities may have on the environment. To facilitate this, an environmental analysis for identifying the potential environmental impacts of project activities and process will be done to assess activity specific baseline conditions, including applicable environmental requirements; identify potential adverse environmental effects associated with planned activities and processes as well as identifying possible positive impacts and synergies. For example, some projects require construction of Community Information Center (CIC). In that case, CIC should be built in way that would not contribute to deforestation or erosion. In constructing latrines, necessary steps should be taken to ensure proper disposal of waste is in place. While considering this process, the local government environment officers will be consulted since they have better understanding of the context and can contribute in proposing environment-friendly solutions.
6. ACTIVITY HIGHLIGHTS
Community Group Formation
Target communities will be organized into micro-groups according to geographical proximity. These micro-groups will then elect their leaders to become CDMC members. CDMCs will be the core group in the community responsible for leading and managing program activities (from assessment, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation) as well as response operations should disasters strike. Within the CDMC umbrella, sub-groups will be organized to take on sector-specific issues like CDRTs on DRR and Response, Health and WASH-sub-committees, and Livelihood support groups. Particularly for the CDRTs, they will be organized and tasked to perform key roles on Early Warning, First Aid and Psychosocial Support, and Search and Rescue. Leadership and participation of women and participation of other vulnerable groups (e.g. elderly, PWD) across all these tasks will be promoted through providing guidelines on representation and involvement. Women leaders and members will be known as women squads giving a stronger voice in resilience-building process and taking on active roles in reducing disaster risks and managing disasters. 8
Capacity building activities on the sectors of DRR, Health and WASH, Livelihoods, Climate Change, Gender and Diversity, CEA, Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting (PMER) and other cross-cutting issues will be implemented. These involve trainings and orientations for men and women in the communities, BDRCS including relevant NHQ and Unit staff, Unit Disaster Response Team (UDRT), Executive Committee members and volunteers, and key institutional stakeholders at the local level such as the DMCs. Cascade model for capacity building will be adopted as much as possible, entailing trainer of trainers, primarily from key institutional stakeholders, to transfer knowledge and skills to communities. This not only enables capacity building at different levels but also facilitates linkages.
Awareness-Raising
Awareness-raising at community level will be done through various activities such as the use of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials, courtyard sessions, community dramas, and simulation exercises among others. These can focus on different topics such as flood disaster preparedness, proper hygiene including menstrual hygiene, climate change, Gender and Diversity including GBV prevention, and disease prevention. It will be a strong emphasis to ensure that both women, men, boys and girls and elderly, including PWD will have the possibility to participate in awareness-raising sessions.
Support for Livelihood
A livelihood assessment will be carried out to identify the appropriate needs of men and women in the specific community to be complemented by a market assessment to better understand how the market functions and link it with the livelihood support provided to the communities. Selection criteria will be developed to identify and prioritize target beneficiaries, ensuring the gender and diversity specific needs have been taken into consideration. Support for livelihoods should be geared towards ensuring that options are resilient to the hazards that the community face including adaptation measures on the impact of climate change.
Support for Health and WASH
Sector-specific assessments on health and WASH needs will be undertaken to identify needs, vulnerabilities and capacities of women, men of different ages and backgrounds in the communities, health facilities, human resources, and structures in place, as well as prioritize actions on health risk prevention, first aid, safety practices and proper hygiene practices. The project will adopt existing approaches like the IFRC Community-based Health and First Aid (CBHFA) approach and the Participatory Hygiene and Sanitation Transformation (PHAST) approach. Depending on the results of the VCA and sector-specific assessments, activities may include delivery of key health and hygiene promotion messages, trainings on first aid, psychological first aid and psychosocial support, simple health interventions (e.g. diarrhoea treatment), providing support to refer women to health clinics for reproductive health, ante-natal, postnatal care, nutrition and family planning, linkages to BDRCS Maternal and Child Health center, and support for improving/constructing facilities on WASH and Health.
Support for DRR and Climate Change Adaptation (CCA)
After disaster, men and women in the community needs some support to cope up with the adverse situation. In addition to capacity building on search and rescue, early warning, and Participatory Safe Shelter Awareness (PASSA) and awareness raising such as simulation exercises, activities may involve contingency planning for floods as the priority hazard, support for localized EWS and small scale mitigation measures. Capacity building and awareness raising activities will also include specific topics on CCA – the concept of climate change which is easily understood at community level, impacts of climate change at the community level in terms of daily life, health, water resources, frequency and severity of disasters, as well as adaptation measures which can be done by communities themselves.
Coordination and Collaboration
To strengthen the coordination and networking among communities, local government institutions, and BDRCS, mechanisms will be incorporated to establish and maintain coordination, as well as facilitate collaboration. The project also aims to support collaboration within the RCRC Movement, particularly those which are also implementing Resilience projects. These can be done through experience sharing workshops and the formulation of the common BDRCS Resilience Framework in line with the BDRCS Strategic Plan and the IFRC Framework for Community Resilience. (See Annex 3, Activity Schedule)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Up, at the office all the morning, and at noon home to dinner, where I find my cabinet come home, and paid for it, and it pleases me and my wife well. So after dinner busy late at the office, and so home and to bed.
"Your?...I thought this was my New Year's gift. The first you've ever gotten me, by the way."
"Bess...In the marital sense...As in what's yours in mine, what's mine is yours...You know, dearest."
"Really...Then I think I'll be taking my coach, my horses...Out. By the by...Meet my new driver and footman..."
"What can I say...The dancing game's not what it used to be." Pembleton notes, shrugging... "Where to, ma'am?"
You have to hand it to Sam he had a good work ethic, he worked hard to obtain his wealth, he ate and drank moderatly and maintained pretty good health, his only vice was in wanting to roger the freckle off everything in a skirt.
I wonder if Elizabeth's cabinet is among the many in Pepys Library in Cambridge?


Open from 7am to 9pm, 7 days a week!
If you are wondering whether vaccinations are still important to your pet, the answer is an unequivocal yes! Like people, pets need the protection that vaccines provide against contagious diseases. At Friendly Animal Hospital in Huntington Beach, we offer both core and non-core vaccines for dogs and cats. Here is why vaccinations are essential to the health of your pet.
Vaccinations are your pet's first line of defense against harmful diseases like Rabies, Distemper and others. Vaccines trigger your pet's immune system to produce antibodies against diseases that can threaten its life. If exposed to these diseases, your pet system will be able to fight against them, keeping your pet safe from harm. At the very least, vaccines save your pet from the pain and suffering these diseases can cause.
By protecting your pet against from these life threatening illnesses, you do not have to worry about the expense of paying for costly treatments if your pet were to get a certain disease. Pet vaccinations also protects you and other animals from getting the same illness. Most states require that pets have rabies vaccinations.
Core vaccinations are those that protect your pet from common diseases that can pose a greater threat to its health.
Non-core vaccinations are given according to your pet individual needs, such as being outdoors for most of the time. Environmental factors can play a role and can expose your pet to diseases that are not usually common like Parainfluenza and Lyme disease. If you live in an area where certain diseases are more common or if your pet has a certain lifestyle that puts him at risk of certain diseases, it would be wise to have your pet vaccinated for these diseases.
In our veterinary, we can make sure that your pet can get the proper vaccines based on its lifestyle and health.
In order to get optimal protection for your pet, your pet should have a vaccination schedule. As no two pets are exactly the same in the protection they need, our veterinarian will customize a vaccination schedule to meet your pet's unique healthcare needs.
Puppies and Kittens need a series of vaccines to protect them from diseases as their immune systems are still developing. Our veterinarian can vaccinate your pet when there are 6 weeks old and can continue until it is 12 weeks old. The vaccines will be given between 3-4 week intervals to give your pet's immune system time to process.
Does your pet need vaccinations? See your Huntington Beach veterinary to schedule an appointment. Contact Friendly Animal Hospital at 714-845-5722.


Dressing up in a group costume as a family is one of the most fun parts of Halloween after having kids. Rather than popping your kids into costumes and calling it a day as they trick-or-treat with you by their sides in plain clothes, get in on the fun with some costume ideas that are too good not to replicate.
13 Family Halloween Costumes That Will Make You Say, "Dang, I Wish I'd Thought of That!"


Just as we know that healthy food, sleep, exercise and vitamins are important, so are brain engaging activities! Get creative and colorful with these downloadable activity sheets! Be featured on our Facebook! Snap a photo of your completed work and Tag PNKids young role model for a shout out!


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The Associated Students of Madison held a vote of no confidence in the UWPD
Photo by Morgan Winston | The Daily Cardinal
ASM votes no confidence in UWPD
By Jackson Mozena
September 30, 2020 | 3:20pm CDT
Tuesday night, the Associated Students of Madison (ASM) passed a vote of no confidence in the University of Wisconsin Police Department in a 9-5 vote.
The vote, which is largely symbolic, comes in the wake of an ASM meeting last week when members criticized the UWPD's presence at protests this summer, in addition to the department's failure to fully adopt a list of reforms--including those outlined by #8cantwaitstandards.
In response, Grant Allocation Chair Samuel Jorudd and several other members of ASM — including Chairman Mathew Mitnick — organized a vote of no confidence to communicate the organization's disapproval of the UWPD's policy decisions.
Following the meeting, Chairman Mitnick congratulated his fellow council members for their decision to publicly voice their distrust of the UWPD.
"I am so proud to see my colleagues on the student council stand up for justice with the outcome of this vote," Mitnick said in a press release. "No longer will student voices be silenced."
Prior to the vote, several dozen members of the public voiced their opinion on the vote of no confidence, with a majority, including City Council Alderman Max Prestigacomo, speaking in favor of the action.
"I think it's shameful that I hear privileged people here tonight defending an institution they are the least affected by," Prestigacomo said." I'd ask those [who oppose the vote] to ask themselves if they have ever been impacted by police. A no confidence vote tonight is neither disrespectful nor radical, what's radical is for police departments like the UWPD to continue to ignore the demands of black and brown community members."
Tarah Stangler, a member of the UW's Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) coalition, who have previously organized several student protests, also spoke in favor of the vote of no confidence.
"This is not the first time community members have talked with the UWPD about adopting reforms. A vote of no confidence is the only viable way we as students can force the department to make change. We cannot wait for someone to get killed by the UWPD before we see change," Stangler said.
UWPD Police Chief Kristen Roman was barred from participating in debate with members during the meeting, despite having met with ASM previously and committing to continued cooperation with the organization in a Sept. 22 blog post.
Roman stated her disapproval with the organization's decision to prevent her from speaking with members during the meeting.
"I am disappointed. Not in the questions themselves, or the specific requests for change, but for not being given the opportunity to engage in a full process prior to this vote. A process in which we work together in constructive and meaningful ways. A vote that cuts to the chase and bypasses any opportunity to engage — to share information — to listen, to learn, to clarify, to contextualize — undermines trust-building. I believe my demonstrated willingness to engage openly and honestly and UWPD's overall service record has, at a minimum, earned us that opportunity," Roman said in a statement after the vote.
This sentiment was echoed earlier in the night by former chairperson Laura Downer who similarly voiced her displeasure with the exclusion of Roman from debate
"I think this is a rash decision to take this vote tonight," Downer said. "If we want more communication with UWPD, why would we not let them speak? I'm dismayed by how this has happened so far."
Members also voiced concerns that a vote of no confidence would erode the relationship the council presently has with the UWPD and counterintuitively hinder future attempts to implement change within the department.
"We will go so many steps backwards with our relationship with the UWPD should this council make a vote of no confidence" said former ASM member Amol Goyal. "This vote of no confidence paints a false image of the UWPD as a whole. You as ASM leaders have numerous opportunities to work with UWPD and I think you would value those changes brought about by continued cooperation."
Prior to the meeting, Chancellor Rebecca Blank spoke in defense of the UWPD's attention to recent concerns about policing.
"Our community has a wide range of public safety needs that need to be and are met by UWPD," she said in a statement. "I recognize and support community efforts to protest long-standing injustices within law enforcement and the legal system, especially as it relates to the Black community. But I believe UWPD has been responsive to this moment."


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Trudeau confirms support for Maley Drive extension
In his first trip to Greater Sudbury as prime minister, Justin Trudeau announced funding for the Maley Drive extension, meaning the project the city has tried to finance for three decades will become a reality.
Apr 7, 2016 11:26 PM by: Darren MacDonald
"I am pleased to announce that the Government of Canada will invest $26.7 million in the Sudbury Maley Drive extension project," Trudeau told a crowded atrium at Tom Davies Square on Thursday. "My government is proud to invest in Sudbury, and the people who call it home."
Flanked by city council, three federal MPs and Sudbury MPP Glenn Thibeault, Trudeau reminded the crowd his government has pledged $120 billion for infrastructure over the next 10 years.
He said his government is backing Maley because that's what municipal leaders have picked as their priority.
"This important initiative will reduce traffic congestion, improve commuter safety and get people home on time," Trudeau said. "And take ore trucks off Lasalle."
Sudbury MP Paul Lefebvre said Trudeau has likely already visited the city more often than any other federal leader, but this visit was special.
"This is truly an historic day for Sudbury," Lefebvre said.
Mayor Brian Bigger and Trudeau shared a light-hearted moment when the prime minister lowered the mayor's microphone as he took the podium
"I'm much shorter than you," Bigger quipped.
He thanked Trudeau for the funding, saying it will help economic growth as well as providing 780 jobs during construction.
"This project is critical to the economy of Greater Sudbury," Bigger said. "(So) we're all very thrilled and honoured to host you here at Tom Davies Square."
The mayor said city council is determined to make more investments in other projects.
"We need to invest in our community to grow," he said. "As a council, we're looking at other projects that will do just that, as well. So you'll be hearing from us in the near future on a number of other items.
"This is just the beginning."
Thibeault, who recently had major knee surgery, took to the stage in crutches.
"This is what happens when you mess with security," he said, prompting Trudeau to reply, "Not my security. My guys are nice. Sunny ways, my friends."
Thibeault said between the provincial and federal governments, infrastructure spending will create 110,000 jobs a year in Ontario in the next decade.
"And as a lifelong resident of Sudbury, I know how important the Maley Drive extension is to our city," he said. "We've heard about this project for the last 30 years, and now finally, it's becoming a reality. I really can't wait to see the shovels in the ground on Maley Drive."
In response to a question from the media, Trudeau said more funding could flow to the city for other projects.
"I had an excellent conversation with the council today on issues from wastewater to roads to seniors housing and we're certainly going to continue to be a strong and active partner in the coming months and years to the community of Sudbury," he said.
"It's not up to us to pick and choose what projects communities like Sudbury want and need. It's up to us to work in partnership with the province, with the municipality to fund the projects that you've prioritized."
Trudeau hinted that support in some form could be announced soon related to the Ring of Fire.
"We know that the Ring of Fire means good jobs, means continuing development of the North in ways that hopefully will build the kind of sustained partnerships with indigenous communities that have been too long absent from the economic growth landscape."
He also responded to a question about the Panama Papers controversy, which has snared politicians from across the globe in a major tax avoidance scandal.
"No I do not," Trudeau said, when asked if he had any investments linked to the scandal. "I have been entirely and completely transparent about my and my family's finances.
"Obviously the Panama Papers are highlighting some very real concerns that people around the world have about the fact extremely wealthy people have been very effective in avoiding paying their fair share of taxes. That's why, in this budget ... we allocated an extra $440 million to the Canada Revenue Agency to ensure they are empowered to go after tax avoidance and tax evasion."
In a release after the news conference, the city said the total budgeted cost of Phase 1 of Maley is $80.1 million. The province announced its $26.7 million share in 2014. Based on the 2016 budget, the City has reserved $15.4 million for the project, to ensure its shovel-ready status, with money designated in future budget years to fund the remainder of the project.
The Maley Drive Extension will be built in two phases. Phase 1 will connect LaSalle Boulevard West with Falconbridge Highway, while Phase 2 will extend the Maley Drive Extension to Elm Street West. Once construction has started, Phase 1 of the project is expected to take three years.
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About the Author: Darren MacDonald


Today Katie finished up for the school year. The last book report is finally complete. Ryan spent the morning studying for his religion final exam and Erin caught up some coloring. Some of which we emailed to Dad at the office.


text:
Board index ‹ The Halls of Fiction ‹ Yesteryear's Archives ‹ Competitions and Challenges ‹ Read in a Rush
Voting Thread for October RIAR - Space Hulk 1
The Bolthole's monthly 1,000 word story competition.
by Squiggle » Tue Nov 04, 2014 12:08 am
All the stories and comments can be found here viewtopic.php?f=36&t=3179
The stories are as follows (in no particular order)
Memory and Vengeance by Mossy Toes
Hope is Waiting by Hillock
Night Cycle by Rusk
Remember the Fires by Ye Olde Grandma
The Mortal Priest by VictorK
Please nominate your top three.
Votes must be in by Friday 14th November
I will announce a new RIAR after that. Please let me know if you have any topics you think would make for a good competition.
If my mind's the weapon, my heart's the extra clip
@sqyiggle
Re: Voting Thread for October RIAR - Space Hulk 1
by The Hillock » Tue Nov 04, 2014 3:28 pm
I'll go first:
1st - Night Cycle by Rusk
2nd - Memory and Vengeance by Mossy Toes
3rd - The Mortal Priest by VictorK
I guess you'd like some reasoning. Rusk's won because I love humour in otherwise grim situations and he (or possibly she, I dunno) did it very well. Mossy second because it's good and I liked it, and because it's a better take on a similar idea to mine (yes, he wrote his first and no, I didn't copy - pure coincidence).
I'll be honest, neither Victor nor Grandma's stories grabbed me - although both are well written, I tend to struggle with the less narrative, more... oh god, I don't even know the right words. Suffice to say I was left mildly baffled by both, but Victor's seemed to fit the brief better to me so I gave it the nod.
Squig, as for the next RIAR - given that this was called Space Hulk I, and I've already got another story written that didn't fit this brief, I'd appreciate a Space Hulk II
Probably the worst WH40k player in the world...
Hillock's terrain thread
Hillock's Flesh Tearers thread
The Hillock
by Squiggle » Sat Nov 08, 2014 2:57 am
im sure we can consider that
by schaferwhat‽ » Tue Nov 11, 2014 12:56 pm
1)Hope is Waiting by Hillock
It has its issues but then I sort of admire that you forced yourself into a corner by having to put him in the chair at the end and I reward effort.
2)Night Cycle by Rusk
Was the most entertaining read of the lot, but I'm not a fan of servitors expressing that sort of level of self awareness generally so it jarred with my take on the universe so I can't give it first.
3)Memory and Vengeance by Mossy Toes
The folly of angry Astartes leading to the birth of a Space Hulk. Is a really nice concept but the others got the guy in the chair which is a very arbitrary way to determine ranking between three stories I quite enjoyed.
The others were pretty great as well, nothing really wrong with them I just liked these more.
Two Wizards Fighting [WHFB]
schaferwhat‽
Location: Behind your eyes looking out in terror.
by The Hillock » Thu Nov 13, 2014 4:19 pm
Cheers shafe.
Only one more day for votes. Thread has 88 views, so people are looking. Get voting people!
by YeOldeGrandma » Thu Nov 13, 2014 8:11 pm
First of all - crit:
Memory and Vengeance, by Mossy Toes
This piece has a good flow and I think you've portrayed all the bitter hatred felt by loyalist Astartes very well. Seriously, this is essentially how I imagine all Space Marines to feel, even if they don't go into Black Rage mode - very nice character portrayal, and dialogue. And language, the whole shebang etc etc.
Things that bother me are these: first of all, the name of the ship is supposed to be Wrath of Baal. I've only read the book that came in the Space Hulk box, but I assume that's the fluff we're going with? Also, Wrath of Baal set out shortly after the Siege of Terra, in the 31st millenium. While the memory of Mackan is a nicely executed motivator in your story, it doesn't fit the time frame.
Hope is Waiting, by The Hillock
Same as with Mossy's story: you've got the name of the ship wrong. Furthermore, the book has the corpse of the Sanguinary Priest sitting in a chapel, not on the bridge (hey, maybe one of Rusk's servitors moved him - though with blast doors thick as titan armour I have trouble seeing how).
You've had the same idea as Mossy basically, and it makes it easy for me to compare between the two (which I hope you don't mind). In short, I think yours a good enough story, though there are some minor things. For starters, I find less character depth in your story - your characters are just Black Rage-marine and Calmer Priest-marine, and while it's essentially the same with Mossy's story, his has more interplay between the two in the dialogue which lets us get to know them better, as well as a clearer motivator for his Black Rage-marine (I suppose any self-respecting Blood Angel would feel hatred against Orks in general, but you could have won much by fleshing it out a bit). The same can be said of Calmer Priest-marine (who is your main character) - a little more insight into his thoughts as he's killing his crazy brother would've been nice.
There is a lot of potential for some great drama in your story, and you have some nice bits. I liked the part about sergeant Lenneaus - he seemed to represent the hopes of the captain, and hearing how the sergeant Black Raged all over the ship was a delicious way to shatter that. The captain executing his crew, the priest stopping him, fighting and killing him, and sacrificing himself for the crew... all good stuff, but as I said I'd have liked to have seen it elaborated upon.
Some writing was a bit clunky as well, most notably this passage.
"Captain, what are you doing? Release him!" Dinillius either didn't notice or didn't care, and continue to throttle the now unconscious officer. Acacius walked toward the captain, the servos in his abused armour whining as he moved. Placing his hand on the Captain's wrist he forced his arm to lower, the strength of the terminator armour overcoming Dinillius' resistance. The officer collapsed to the floor, and Acacius gestured for the crew to carry him away.
Having a sentence say "Acacius walked toward..." really doesn't inspire much feeling of action or haste, which jars with what's otherwise a rather intense scene.
Night Cycle, by Rusk
As ship names go, yours is closer to the mark - but Sin of Damnation was not the name of the Blood Angels ship, but the name the Blood Angels gave the entire space hulk. Bonus for putting the Priest in the chapel though.
I like the original concept, and there's just something delightfully grimdark about cleaning servitors still going about their tasks in a dead, derelict space hulk.
Your main character is developed well enough, just about as much as you can do with a servitor. The dreaming is an easy way for you to add more character, and I suppose it's the latent psyker stuff that allows her to see the Space Marine's death. All in all, nothing groundbreaking for a 40k story, but none the less cool.
some bright spark had rewired its systems to spout obscenities and crude remarks about whatever action it was undertaking.
English isn't my first language, so I'm confused whether you mean that some spark in the machinery is the cause of the anomaly or "some bright spark" of a tech-priest purposefully rewiring the servitor. The second option is as techno-heretical as it is hilarious (though it leaves one to wonder at the sense of humour of the Adeptus Mechanicus). Personally I have never been as fond of Laughhammer 40k as of Grimhammer 40k, but that's only my taste. You manage to write a piece with some comedy elements well enough.
The Mortal Priest, by VictorK
an Imperial freighter whose void shields had failed en route to a world with ten billion souls
No, a Blood Angels Battle Barge, according to the book.
With that out of the way:
It's always nice to see this type of story - one with a more vague, epic scope instead of the usual narration (I think that was what you meant, Hillock, wasn't it? Sort of, at least), and it suits 40k very well. However, while your story portrays some pretty cool stuff, it also just... well, like Hillock I have to say that it doesn't grab me as much. You're an accomplished writer so there's nothing jarring with the actual writing - you have beautiful language in most places (and I will say nothing more about your writing because there's really nothing more to add to that statement). I guess it's just that the "tempted by Chaos"-thing has been done so many times that it becomes too much of a run-of-the-mill thing for me. Even with that self-sacrifice in the ending (which I am a sucker for).
The Blood Angel never felt ashamed of his previous ignorance; he learned its purpose and thanked the men he formerly called gods for making him who he was.
Kudos for summarizing the relationship between Astartes and low-tech mortals (from which they often seem to draw their recruits) in one sentence.
1. Memory and Vengeance, by Mossy Toes.
2. The Mortal Priest, by VictorK
3. Night Cycle, by Rusk
The reasoning behind my voting being the use of language, and how I felt the story to be "flowing".
YeOldeGrandma
Location: Malmö, Sweden
by Mossy Toes » Thu Nov 13, 2014 9:42 pm
YeOldeGrandma wrote: Things that bother me are these: first of all, the name of the ship is supposed to be Wrath of Baal. I've only read the book that came in the Space Hulk box, but I assume that's the fluff we're going with? Also, Wrath of Baal set out shortly after the Siege of Terra, in the 31st millenium. While the memory of Mackan is a nicely executed motivator in your story, it doesn't fit the time frame.
Ah, not having access to the Space Hulk fluff booklet or any stories (and finding nothing to this effect on Lexicanum or 40kWiki, or anything) the fault is mine. Sorry.
Have fallen a bit behind on voting--meant to do it a while back. I'll jump to it.
What sphinx of plascrete and adamantium bashed open their skulls and ate up their brains and imagination? Imperator!
Mossy Toes
1st - "Hope is Waiting," by The Hillock
2nd - "The Mortal Priest," by VictorK
3rd - "Remember the fires," by YeOldeGrandma
by Rusk » Thu Nov 13, 2014 10:19 pm
Sorry for late votes/crit, but better late than never.
1st - The Mortal Priest by VictorK
Stood out the most of all the stories for me - probably due to the lack of focus upon spaceships, but hey ho - and I'm ignorant enough to not recognise the inspiration, so I was impressed with the creativity, and being able to link it back to the theme. Flowed well and was very well written, kudos.
Nice little tale. The descent into the black rage (or blood thirst or whatever its called) was well handled. Personally I preferred Victor's piece, and felt this was a tad predictable, but you can't often do a lot with the RiaR format. Thumbs up from me.
3rd - Hope is Waiting by The Hillock
Very similar to Mossy's story, which is unfortunate really as the two are always going to be compared together. Solid enough, but I felt it didn't flow as well as Mossy's, and a few sections were a bit jarring. e.g.
When he had chosen to engage the Ork armada rather than withdraw they had exchanged worried looks, and these had become hushed whispers when their two escorting Cobra-class destroyers had been turned into the drifting, flaming hulks he could now see alongside.
Some bits didn't run together awfully well in my uneducated opinion, but by and large I enjoyed it.
Grandma's story was a bit overly vague for me. Not a bad story, but it just didn't stand out to me as much as the others. There were bits that I didn't really understand, but I suspect that's probably due to me not being familiar with/not being able to recall the source material.
brb next month's contest
My Fabulous Works:
First Contact - RiaR Savage
Pynewood -2.25k
Desecration - RiaR Desecration
Name - RiaR Pressure
by VictorK » Fri Nov 14, 2014 3:57 am
I'm going to admit I'm the same boat as Mossy: I know nothing about Space Hulk and the online sources didn't tell me much. Honestly, I probably wouldn't have cared. I made Arias die where he did because that's where I wanted him to be. I wanted him to die on a civilian ship, drifting for eons, until he became part of the hulk and was later found. If canon doesn't work for my story, well...
That's also why I'm going to vote against Space Hulk 2. Don't get me wrong, I really do believe that creativity flourishes best when it's under constraint, and there's nothing wrong with making writers look for a story in the nooks and crannies. Of all of us, I think Rusk really rose to the task. I'm not saying we should go back to the vague one word RiaR prompts of old. It could be a song, or a poem, a piece of concept art, or even something like Space Hulk where you say 'this person ends up here, and this is in his hand. GO.' I just don't want someone like YeOldeGrandma to think we're slacking or not enjoy the stories as much because we honestly don't know the canon. If I disregard canon, I want to do it consciously, because I have a story purpose. I don't want to just be a schmuck.
On to the critiques! Those of you who have RiaR'd with me in the past, and I think that's everyone, you know I tend to give long winded and rambling critiques. I sometimes go in depth. I just want to say that everything is meant to be respectful and good natured, even if I do poke a bit of fun. If you think I've said something unfair or mean spirited, please let me know so I can apologize and adjust for the future. Thank you all for participating and putting yourselves out there. This is my hobby, and it's more enjoyable when you've got good folks to do it with.
Memory and Vengeance-M. Toesy
Wow, this guy is a dick. Threatening the humans with a powerfist? WHO'S THE REAL MONSTER?
I'm not ashamed to admit I have no idea what an equerry is.
I think what saves this piece for me is the frightful energy you muster towards the end when Aliandro is consumed by the Black Rage. That alone makes the story worth the price of admission. Otherwise, it seemed a little heavy handed but you didn't have much room to work with so that's to be forgiven. I can't quite place my finger on it but something felt flat for me, like the rest of the story was lacking the really potent energy of Aliandro's madness. Of course, you have to contrast that madness against something. The narrative is well constructed and everything makes sense. I'm just missing some zazz.
Hope is Waiting-Hillsock
I feel like I'm in a South Park episode. Lorde, Lorde, Lorde, Lorde…
the Blood Angel rapped out.
I think one of the best, and easiest, pieces of writing advice is to ditch all the synonymous for 'say'. 'Rapped out' isn't terribly evocative and seems out of place to me. Granted, they also say to use adverbs sparingly, so whereas I might have written 'said sharply', some might disagree.
What the hell is with Space Marines just killing humans? That's two stories now! Does this really happen in 40k fiction? This is Darth Vader stuff.
Hmm. Do we need to spend precious words describing the Blood Angels? Everyone knows their armor is red. I grapple with this myself, because I generally believe anyone should be able to approach a story, but it's kind of like a speed bump here: we're in the middle of this tense scene where the /good guys/ are killing one of their own, and suddenly we have to take a break to describe this guy. I would try and work the description in more organically. Also you use the word 'scene' twice in this paragraph in a way that is jarring, but I chock that up to being written in a rush, you'd definitely catch that in editing.
I really am shocked that these Space Marines are just mowing people down. Am I really that out of touch?
A very similar story to Mossy's, really. I would give his the edge because of that scene of madness that I think he pulled off very well. If I was thinking of rewriting this piece, I would want to decide whose story it is. Is this Dinillius' story, or is it Acacius'? Focusing on one would, I think, let you figure out what this story is about. Is it a story like Mossy's, where vengeance and rage overcomes good sense? Or is it about being responsible, like Acacius? What are you trying to tell me? Devoting the narrative to one marine's perspective and inner thoughts over the other's might be a more effective strategy.
Night Cycle-Rust Kohl
KH had traversed this section of the ship barely three months earlier, and the cleaning servitor had left the area perfectly clean, devoid of any deceased super-humans.
This line. This is a good line.
Katia should've known better than to try her little mind tricks on one of the followers of the Machine God, but she hadn't, and here she was. With vacuum cleaners instead of hands. Nice work, Katia.
As someone else observed, it really is the mix of light tone and really depressing subject matter that makes this story work.
I like that the ogryn servitor has a suggestion of humanity in the way it speaks, but it's more robotic than our heroine. This story has a nice bounce, and it's by far the most creative way that any of us figured to get the sanguinary priest to his final resting place. Often times the best stories are where you'd least expect to look.
I am a little uncertain at the effectiveness of our little detour into Katia's past. But, given the constraints and the way it was executed, I think you pulled it off. The action in the present was very limited, and knowing where Katia came from makes things that much more harrowing. This is a really dark piece when you stop and think about it, and I like that kind of fridge logic.
Remember the Fires-NotYourGrandma
There are wolves ahead, disguised in the form of sons.
I'm not sure I get this. I see what you're doing: Lunar Wolves, Sons of Horus. But it seems to me if you're going to go with this much symbolism you might as well commit to it. How is wolf disguised as a son? We're in stream of consciousness land so I can accept a little slippage, but by this point in the story the illusion is starting to wear thin. I had guessed we were Sanguinius a little before you tipped your hand with 'wings', and it's certainly ok to reward your reader with a confirmation. I just think we're losing some of that energy you're trying to capture when you end up reaching for symbols.
I'm not sure that we ever get to the prompt but I don't really care. This story is poetry more than prose; you'd have to analyze it the same way because there's no narrative and only a shadow of a character to latch onto. The meat is in the rhythm and the images and the way the piece is constructed. I'm not sure I'm up to analyzing it. But, for what it is, I was able to follow it and I admit to being swept up in its energy and language every now and then. It's just not something that I'm equipped to really comment on, I couldn't write a story like this, those tools aren't in my toolbox.
Comments on my own story: I'm pretty shamelessly stealing from A Wizard of Earthsea, by Ursula K. LeGuin, which I had just read prior to writing this entry. I was trying to ape her style because she's so, so good. Right on the first page she says 'this guy is going to be the greatest wizard ever, so pay attention' and then the story is so much more. The story has the main character being chased by a shadow, which I felt was appropriate within the 40k/Chaos framework. Normally I write scenes for these RiaRs, so I tried to tell one marine's life story in one go, mimicking LeGuin's style. From the comments it seems I did all right, though yes, it's a bit cliched.
The voting:
1. Night Cycle, by Rusk. Like I said, this story blows us all out of the water in terms of its creativity. It deserves to win on that alone.
2. Memory and Vengeance, by Mossy Toes. I think this is the stronger of the two Darth Vader Blood Angels/Vengeful Space Pursuit stories. The main thing that grabbed me was the perfectly executed descent into madness.
3. Remember the Fires, by YeOldeGrandma. It's hard to figure out who to give this spot to, but I gave the nod to Grandma for taking a chance with a more experimental piece and there were times when the energy really worked.
See you all next month.
"The gods are not all powerful, they cannot erase the past." -Agathon
VictorK
by YeOldeGrandma » Fri Nov 14, 2014 8:52 am
For me personally it doesn't matter if we continue on the Space Hulk theme or not, but I want to make something clear: if we continue with Space Hulk, I will keep in mind that others might not have access to the background, and I won't comment on things that deviate from the canon (and, it goes without saying, I won't let it affect my voting - luckily my voting for this month wasn't based on canon accuracy either). I don't want to make anyone feel pressured to not participate in a theme just because I happened to buy the game and they did not. Don't let me spoil anyone's fun, because that was never my intent.
by YeOldeGrandma » Fri Nov 14, 2014 10:14 am
VictorK wrote: I feel like I'm in a South Park episode. Lorde, Lorde, Lorde, Lorde…
And we'll never be mortals (mortals).
It don't run in our blood,
No sign of weakness at our core .
We wage a different kind of war.
by Squiggle » Sat Nov 15, 2014 10:52 am
voting is closed.... i now have to try and count... where's a lex-mechanic when you need one?!
er....
so... 3 pts for first, 2 for second and 1 for third....
this is very close.
the winner is Mossy with 10 points, closely followed by Rusk with 9, Victor with 8 and Hillock with 7.
Congratulations to Mossy, and well done to everyone for writing such excellent stories. I shall have the next topic up in a couple of days. I am intending to move away from Space Hulk this month, but I think I will be coming back to it.
Thanks to everyone for writing, commenting and voting. It really does make it work.
by The Hillock » Sun Nov 16, 2014 2:20 am
Well done all (but mostly Mossy). Thanks all for the crit.
Squig, I gotta ask, why didn't you vote? Is it something to do with you being the organiser of RIAR and therefore having to stay impartial? Because I'm pretty sure no-one will object if you do, and the more voters the better...
by YeOldeGrandma » Sun Nov 16, 2014 9:00 pm
Yes, good show everyone, and congratulations to Mossy for a well-deserved win.
VictorK wrote: I'm not sure I'm up to analyzing it. But, for what it is, I was able to follow it and I admit to being swept up in its energy and language every now and then. It's just not something that I'm equipped to really comment on, I couldn't write a story like this, those tools aren't in my toolbox.
Oh, come now, there wasn't any more thought behind my story than behind any of the others I have written in RiaR. I just went with whatever image popped into my head based on how cool I thought it'd be. There's nothing fancy to it.
But it's become clear that my story was a bit overly vague in ways it needn't necessarily have been. I thought I'd try to explain what I was trying to do.
The Space Marine in the throne is supposed to be a dead Sanguinary Priest from the Blood Angels Legion/Chapter, who set out on a space trip shortly after the Siege of Terra. From this I derived three things:
1. The Horus Heresy (and the death of Sanguinius) would still be a fresh wound. Hence the"I remember the fires"-bit.
2. The chalice carried by a Sanguinary Priest holds blood of Sanguinius (http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Blood_Chalice). This, I decided, would also lead to a psychic connection between the blood and the spirit of the priest, which keeps one small shred of the priest's psyche "alive" and protected in the warp and throughout the time-span. When others (daemons) come to sup from the chalice they can't, because of the strong psychic imprint made by the primarch's blood.
The Space Hulk book mentions the Blood Angel Librarian sensing a psychic signal, which is how they find the chalice later on.
3. Black Rage and Red Thirst would totally be a thing, even more so because Sanguinius just died and because the priest is so closely connected to the psychich imprint of Sanguinius through the chalice. Again, "remembering the fires" means not only the battle for Terra, but also the last battle of Sanguinius. I also tried to sprinkle some suitable anger and rage from the character here and there.
My story is the story of the ghost of the priest. He remains semi-conscious for ten thousand years as the space hulk drifts through the warp ("adrift, caught upon the eight winds", and if you know your WHFB, you know that the eight winds are essentially the warp), though arguably with a shattered psyche.
"They howl with mirth as I scream, my mind fraying, scattering like leaves to the eight winds. I shatter, but I cannot die. My pitiful spectre remains leashed. I am the Chalice. I..."
I shifted between "I" and "we" because of the close ties between the chalice (ie Sanguinius) and the priest. I deliberately repeated myself and made each part "stand alone" so to speak, because the priest would have no true idea of what was happening around him, he'd only see the present. Warp-stuff, time and space doesn't matter etc etc.
I tried to use symbolism to describe what he experienced (much as I imagine the warp would be experienced), and in places things had double meanings. The "wolves" were of course Luna Wolves, but also represented agents of Chaos as a whole (daemons etc). A wolf hunting you through a winter forest is one of the oldest predatory archetypes of mankind, so I decided to have that passage to represent the daemons of the warp assailing him. "Sons" was another - it was Sons of Horus, but also humans as a species. "Son of Sol" = human. "Wolf disguised as son" = agent of Chaos looking like humans (which you could say the Chaos Marines are).
I had to have the visions of Sanguinius's death of course, and I suppose that was rather easy to spot when I wrote of wings that burned. I just hope the double meaning of the word "father" was evident - both as the priest cried for Sanguinius, his father, and as Sanguinius cried for the Emperor, his father.
"The sea casts me away and I wash up on foreign strands, coughing. The sky is dark and void. I cry out but there is nothing and no one to hear. My voice is hoarse and the tide comes back in and carries me out again."
The warp often became a sea. This was meant to be the space hulk returning to real space, and the priest's cries were the psychic "cry" of... well, mostly the chalice I guess, but he is the chalice and the chalice is him and, you know...
Likewise, Chaos as a faction (ie enemy of humanity - so not the warp creatures, the "wolves", but the intelligent force that plots to destroy the galaxy) was consistently represented by fires.
Light glimmers here and there before guttering out and everywhere dark clouds roll in, thunder cracks and lightning strikes, kindling fires. We remember. Black rage fills us but they only laugh.
Where the firestorm has passed, nothing but ash and death remains. We see clearly now: it is a corpse burning, and the flames are racing up its neck. Afterwards, nothing remains but the blackened bones, the bones of the galaxy, drifting silently in the void.
There was other stuff as well, like the descriptions of Necrons, Slaneesh and Tyranids respectively:
A silver tombstone shifts, giving way to ancient hate. A son of lust is born, ripping his mother apart as he spills forth. A shadow prowls the voids, unseen in the depths but surfacing now to take a first bite.
"What is it?" There are lamps spearing through the dust. Hulking shapes have entered, have unlocked the door.
"A relic of Sanguinius. His blood was once held in this vessel." Bright star, brother-star. Son of Sol. "I can feel it, the provider of our gene-seed indelibly marked on the goblet."
These lines are directly copied from the Space Hulk Mission fluff. It is when the Blood Angels find the chalice (symbolised first as starlight finding him lying on the strand, before I cut to a more literal view of the scene). In hindsight I should have stressed this fact more - these aren't famous words that are instantly recognized after all, and I should never have assumed that people knew where they were from, and thus what was happening. But my story ends when the Blood Angels recover their relic.
by Mossy Toes » Mon Nov 17, 2014 9:51 pm
Thanks for the votes, all!
I look forward to seeing what next month's theme is...
by YeOldeGrandma » Thu Dec 04, 2014 12:31 pm
Is there going to be another competition?
by VictorK » Wed Jan 07, 2015 2:38 am
This is ridiculous. I can't make stickies or anything, but it's not like there's a lot of traffic...so if there's no objection, hell, I'll just post the RiaR threads.
by Mossy Toes » Wed Jan 07, 2015 6:10 am
VictorK wrote: This is ridiculous. I can't make stickies or anything, but it's not like there's a lot of traffic...so if there's no objection, hell, I'll just post the RiaR threads.
All in favor don't say nay...
*crickets chirp*
All right! Looks like it's a plan!
by YeOldeGrandma » Wed Jan 07, 2015 10:54 am
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No need to research beauty therapists prior to your holiday… Suffolk Secrets are delighted to introduce My Personal Sanctuary!
My Personal Sanctuary is a service providing a range of luxurious beauty therapies for you at your holiday cottage. Designed for all ages and offering a wealth of treatments available, this is a fantastic addition to any Suffolk holiday.
So if you're having a weekend break with friends, quality time with the family, taking a break from everyday life or a romantic getaway, why not treat yourselves to a bit of pampering? Using Neal's Yard Remedies organic products the therapists will bring heated beds and all the other necessities for your chosen treatments. All you need to do is kick back and relax!
For a romantic break or a honeymoon getaway The Stables at Ufford would be ideal combined with the Rest and Unwind package. With this package you can mix and match treatments to suit you and your loved one. The Stables is set in beautiful, peaceful surroundings with an abundance of wildlife. The accommodation itself oozes in elegance with a cosy woodburner.
For a holiday break with the family we think Lodge Farm is the perfect choice. Set in beautiful countryside it is the ideal property for families to enjoy time together away from school and work. It has a wealth of accommodation and many social areas. We suggest a Rest and Unwind package which can be shared between the adults and so the children don't feel left out My Personal Sanctuary offer treatments called 'Teen Treats' and 'Mini Nail Paint' for the younger members of the family!
For a group of friends holidaying together Seacroft is perfectly situated overlooking the sea in Southwold. The ballroom can be used as the treatment area so you can lay back, relax, and listen to the sound of the waves crashing against the shore. The team at My Personal Sanctuary recommend any of the massage packages to truly unwind and take in the serene atmosphere, and with the Sole Bay Inn just around the corner for those not wishing to join in, everyone should be very happy!


This workshop focuses on the skills you need to develop an understanding of "you" as an effective leader. You will explore the role of a leader and the differences between leadership and management.
You'll identify attributes of an effective leader, plus you will learn how to use reflective practice to maximise your self-awareness.
This workshop is ideal for the new manager or leader who wants to get a thorough understanding of the role that self-awareness plays in supporting leadership capabilities.