Welcome to our first installment of #FacultyFriday, where we feature a different faculty member each week. To help our campus get to know them better, our first focus will be on our new faculty members!
Join us in welcoming Dr. Helo Oidjarv to PUC! Dr. Oidjarv is the new program director for social work at the college, and she joins our PUC family most recently from Walla Walla University, where she has spent the past seven years teaching in both the BSW and MSW programs. Previously, she was an instructor at the James Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Chicago for two years.
Dr. Oidjarv brings with her a plethora of research and volunteer experience and has given peer-reviewed presentations at several prestigious conventions, including the American Sociological Association, the Pacific Sociological Association, and the Council of Social Work Education.
I taught for the first time because of the encouragement of my friend and colleague in the Ph.D. program at University of Illinois in Chicago. Ever since, I found teaching to be an excellent fit for my talents, and an opportunity to serve God through loving and inspiring my students.
What is something people might be surprised to know about you?
That I have been married 3 times to the same man: a civil ceremony, church ceremony, and reception with my family and friends in Estonia, and church ceremony and reception with my husband's family and friends around Portland, Ore.
What are you looking forward to the most about teaching at PUC?
Getting to know the students and interacting with them; being a part of the new developments in the social work program.
So far, what's been your favorite thing about PUC?
This is difficult to say. It's a tie between beautiful nature and environment, and incredibly supportive, loving people.
Interested in learning more about PUC's social work program? Visit puc.edu/admissions!
This entry was posted in Faculty Friday and tagged college, Pacific Union College, PUC, PUC social work, social work by pucadmissions. Bookmark the permalink.
Great to see the Social Work program continues to thrive. An Alumni and MSW.


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Young Adult/New Adult/Adult, Lexile Measurements, and Your Book's Sales
Today, we explore an important aspect of both writing and education and that's reading level. Candida Martinelli shares an important measure in determining audience that also factored into her new series, The Violet Strange Mysteries:
It is estimated that one third of sales of Young Adult fiction is for reading by adults. Adults enjoy the well-plotted, optimistic novels that feature young characters. Think of fantastical Harry Potter, for example, who carries his readers, big and small, to the amazing world of Hogwarts; or of the Rosemary Sutcliff Roman Empire novels that bring all her readers, from age nine to ninety, through great adventures in Ancient Britain.
Cataloged as a children's books, these classics are read and re-read by children and adults around the world in their original English and in translation. The language is straightforward, but not simplistic. The plots are well-developed, but not convoluted. The endings can be sad, but they are never nihilistic. I aimed for all those elements when I wrote The Violet Strange Mysteries, a series of nine historical mystery novels for ages 12+.
I aimed to write the series for the girls who enjoy The Nancy Drew Mysteries, so I relied on a tool that rates reading ability and the reading difficulty of texts, a Lexile® measurement, to know if I had succeeded. Many books now include the measurement, a rating between 0L and 1600+L, with the general book information. A writer can pay for an "official" rating, or can submit blocks of texts for free ratings, which can be averaged and then included with the book information as the "estimated" rating. To give you an idea, the first Harry Potter book rates 880L.
Some brick-and-mortar bookstores are following the example of on-line stores and making Young Adult sections in their stores. There are even a few Young Adult bookstores, that carry only books that might interest readers aged 12+, with the books arrayed in a setting that does not feel childish or too grown-up. Graphic novels are included in these stores, next to the coming-of-age novels, the adventure stories, the young romances, and the fantasies that stimulate imaginations of all ages.
Writers are advised to categorize their work as YA/Adult whenever possible, to signal to booksellers and to readers the accessibility of the books. Having a book listed in both categories helps sales, of course, and it helps writers find an audience they might not have even considered before. When a Young Adult label seems too young for your work, consider New Adult, a relatively new label for books aimed at readers aged roughly 18 to 25.
Candida Martinelli is a technical and creative writer, and most-importantly, she is a confirmed Italophile. To share her love of Italian culture, in 2003 she established the Italian culture website Candida Martinelli's Italophile Site. The website has grown into a popular entertainment and reference site.
She is the author of the cozy-murder-mystery An Extra Virgin Pressing Murder, and the young-adult mystery novel series THE VIOLET STRANGE MYSTERIES. The Violet Strange Mysteries are nine Gilded Age detective novels that Candida based on short stories published 1915 by The Mother of Detective Fiction, Anna Katherine Green, in the short story collection The Golden Slipper and Other Problems for Violet Strange. Each of the nine novels is a major case for Violet Strange, a debutante and secret high society-detective.
This entry was posted on January 9, 2014 by kathybryson in Guest Authors and tagged book store display, Candida Martinelli, Lexile® measurement, new adult, Violet Strange mysteries, young adult.
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Citizen Deliberation
Climate targets do not guarantee success on their own. To achieve them, concrete measures and a joint learning process between science, politics, business and society are needed. In the Ariadne project, citizens have therefore been involved in the research processes on policy options for the energy transition through deliberation formats from the very beginning1Deliberation means "consultation", "consideration". A deliberation process is about people coming together under fair conditions, exchanging their different views and arguments, weighing them up and learning from each other. Joint decisions should not be based on majority voting, but on convincing arguments that are discussed together in a process of understanding..
The dialogue between society and science was initiated by the online discussions in which the participants discussed the problems and goals of the energy transition and what is important to citizens in its implementation. The results were incorporated into the Ariadne research and further deepened in co-creation workshops between science and people in order to identify focus areas for further research. In the next step, Ariadne researchers developed policy action packages which were discussed and evaluated at the citizen conferences in November 2022.
The results of the citizen conferences are incorporated into Ariadne's further research work. Participants' assessments of the discussed policy instruments will be integrated into the further development of policy options that aim to maximize societal viability. The policy pathways will be presented at a citizen summit in 2023. They form orientation knowledge for policymakers, combining expertise on the impact of the instruments with the citizens' values and perspectives.
Dialogue formats
In November and December 2020, a total of 88 randomly selected citizens from across the country discussed in nine discussion panels what is particularly important to them for implementing the transformation of transport and electricity. In each session, people from a particular city or region met digitally. The aim of the online discussion rounds was to work out the diverse goals, priorities and needs, but also the challenges, concerns, conflicts and hurdles in shaping a climate-friendly transport and electricity sector. Of particular importance in the conversations were the underlying values and norms of the participants: Why are certain goals or challenges particularly important, and how can we jointly deal with different priorities and needs? The focus was thus on getting to know and understanding each other – between the participating citizens and with the Ariadne researchers.
The online discussions were recorded by the Ariadne team and the citizens' positions were subsequently structured into argumentative maps: Thus, the main points of the discussions were identified, and the corresponding arguments were gathered in the pros and cons. The aim was therefore not to determine the majority positions of the citizens, but to create an orderly overview of the most diverse opinions as possible. The discussions on the transport turnaround were divided into three main areas with a total of 16 topics. In the case of the power transition, there were also three focal points with a total of 20 topic areas. What is particularly important to the citizens was then reflected on with the Ariadne researchers on the basis of these overviews and integrated into the scientific work. The positions of the citizens were summarized in a report (in german only).
Co-creation workshops
The Ariadne research reflected on the positions of the citizens from the online discussion panels in joint conversations and then incorporated them into the different research approaches of the work packages on the transformation of transport and electricity. One-day workshops were then held for both topics in spring 2021, bringing together researchers and people in direct exchange to clarify open questions. For this purpose, participants from the online discussions were invited and assembled into a group of around 20 people per topic, which reflected the diversity of regions and backgrounds of the people from the online discussions as accurately as possible.
During the workshops, the Ariadne researchers introduced their research approach on the objectives and problems from the discussion rounds to the participants from the online discussions, and what answers they are working on. Participants were able to comment and ask questions. But scientists also had the opportunity to ask whether they had understood the positions of the citizens correctly or how, from their point of view, conflicting arguments or conflicting goals could be dealt with. The scientific community calls such a joint working process between researchers and non-scientific participants "co-creation".
Citizen conferences
In two citizen conferences in November 2021, citizens were presented with policy paths for implementing the electricity and mobility transition, which were drawn from the focal points of the online discussions and the research results of Ariadne research. Around 50 people from across Germany came together to reflect in direct and personal exchange which impact the different political measures would have on individual lives but also on the community, and how they evaluate policy options for climate protection. For the group of participants, people from the online discussion rounds were invited again, as well as randomly selected citizens from all over Germany were contacted.
In the framework of the citizen conferences, the main aim was to shed light collectively on the effects of various measures, to record the assessments of civil society and to explore possible areas of agreement on concrete policy options that may exist despite differing values. Exploration modules (in german only) were used to start the discussions. The results of the citizen conferences were summarized in reports (in german only).
Citizen summit
Upon completion of the citizen' conferences, the citizens' evaluations and assessments of the proposed policy alternatives are incorporated into Ariadne's further research work. The advantages and disadvantages of the instruments discussed and identified by the participants will be merged into possible pathways to achieve the goal of climate neutrality in the sectors of transport and electricity. The policy paths will be presented at a citizen summit in 2023. They provide orientation knowledge for political decision-makers combining expert knowledge of the impact of the instruments with the values and perspectives of citizens.
Results and further information
Ressources on the following information are only available in german.
Exploration module "Energy Transition"
The app for the citizen conference on energy transition. Note: Tablet-optimized application – not usable on mobile devices.
Exploration module "Mobility Transition"
The app for the citizen conference on mobility transition. Note: Tablet-optimized application – not usable on mobile devices.
Report: Citizens' views on future energy worlds
Read report in German
Report: Citizens' views on four future paths of the mobility transition
Climate Change is becoming ever more important – despite the energy crisis
The transformation to climate neutrality is more important than ever to the people of Germany, especially against the backdrop of high energy prices. This is shown by the annual representative survey of more than 6,500 people nationwide on topics related to the energy and transport transition, carried out as part of the Ariadne project funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
Participation is more – Carrying the energy transition socially: Guest article in the Tagesspiegel Background
Ariadne researchers Arwen Colell and Brigitte Knopf explain in a standpoint what is needed for true social ownership in the process on the path to climate neutrality in 2045 and how deliberation can be shaped.
Link to the article
Learning module: Energy transition
Information on climate-friendly electricity supply for work within focus groups.
Learning module: Mobility transition
Information on climate-smart mobility for work within focus groups.
Report: What is important to us in the mobility and energy transitions?
From public transportation to grid expansion, from electricity costs to jobs: Across Germany, people have discussed the expansion of renewable energies and the mobility of the future. What moves them and how Ariadne continues to work with these perspectives is shown in the new report.
Social Sustainability Barometer of the Energy and Transport Transition 2021
More than 6,800 people across Germany were surveyed: Almost 80 percent see the transformation as a collective task to which everyone should make a contribution to succeed. However, more than half describe the implementation of the energy transition as expensive or distant from citizens and would like to see more momentum. The first results of the Social Sustainability Barometer 2021 are now online and available to download.
What is "deliberation"?
Deliberation means "consultation", "consideration". A deliberation process is about people coming together under fair conditions, exchanging their different views and arguments, weighing them up and learning from each other. Joint decisions should not be based on majority voting, but on convincing arguments that are discussed together in a process of understanding
What does citizen participation mean in the Ariadne project?
In the Ariadne project, citizens are involved from the very beginning and throughout the entire course of the project on issues related to the energy and mobility transitions. There is a continuous alternation between citizen events, such as the online discussions and the citizen conferences, and Ariadne research phases. The focus is on a common understanding of the challenges and solutions of the energy transition.
Can I register for the events, such as the citizen conference?
Citizens cannot register themselves for one of the participation formats, but are invited on the basis of a lottery procedure. For this purpose, people are randomly selected from the population registers and compiled on the basis of population data in order to obtain a most representative picture of the population as possible. These people are then invited and can register for the various formats. For the citizen conferences and the citizens' summit, participants from the previous participation formats can also register again.
What is special about the Ariadne project?
In the Ariadne project, the citizens' perspective plays an important role from the very beginning, since the results of all participation formats flow directly into the Ariadne research. The overall result is that the project provides policymakers with options for action that both reflect the results of scientific research and are endorsed by society.
My question is not listed here, who can I contact?
Please contact ariadne@ifok.de for questions about the participation formats.
If you have general questions about the Ariadne project and research, please write to ariadne-presse@pik-potsdam.de.
What else is there?
Ariadne's thematic focus: Ariadne explores energy transition strategies across a range of sectors, for example, in addition to electricity and transport transition, heat transition or industrial transition. read more
Copernicus projects: Ariadne is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) with a total of 30 million euros over three years and is part of the Copernicus research initiative. As the fourth Copernicus pillar, Ariadne complements the ENSURE , P2X and SynErgie projects. Together, the Kopernikus projects form one of the largest German research initiatives on the subject of energy transition. read more
CO2-Price calculator (redirection to external website): How to proceed with CO2 pricing and also with offsetting is hotly debated. An interactive "CO2 price calculator", created by Ariadne project partner MCC (Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change), now provides orientation. read more
Follow the Ariadne thread on Twitter @AriadneProjekt and LinkedIn.


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Papillon Contact X-Ray Brachytherapy
for Rectal Cancer
Patient Support Site
Talking about cancer can be difficult, even with friends and family.
Sometimes, it's easier to share your experience with someone you don't know. If you would like to talk to us about your concerns please get in touch !
Papillon Contact X-Ray Brachytherapy for Rectal Cancer
Welcome to our patient-led website for Papillon X-Ray Brachytherapy for Rectal Cancer. The site is run by patients who have undergone Papillon treatment for rectal cancer themselves. We support newly diagnosed patients and those currently being treated as well as those with post-treatment questions and concerns. The menu above and links embedded in the text on these pages will guide you through some of the most commonly asked questions about Papillon.
Talking about cancer can be difficult, even with caring friends and family. Sometimes, it's easier to share your experience with someone you don't know. You may think it's not worthwhile or you may worry about making someone feel uncomfortable but, putting your fears and concerns into words can help you and others make sense of difficult situations.
Don't feel alone........
If you have questions about Papillon or would simply just like some extra support - then we are always here to help.
Please use the contact box at the bottom of this page to get in touch with us.
Take a look at some real life Papillon patient
success stories.
Share your thoughts and fears by sending us your questions.
Keep up-to-date and find out all the latest Papillon news here.
New resource with Bowel Cancer UK: Click anywhere on info box below.
Hospitals treating rectal cancer with Papillon Radiotherapy
Preferred means of contact
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'Good God' - The Dagda, Irish God of Hearth and Home
Let's talk about the Dagda, Irish God of Hearth and Home...
There are many amazing and wondrous things to learn about the Dagda. It can be hard to know where to start. Hopefully we can give some insights on that here.
The record of ancient Ireland's mythology comes from a number of sources, but by far the most common and detailed record we have are the handwritten manuscripts, beautifully crafted by the earliest of the Christian monks who set up on the island. One of the oldest texts dates to the 11th century, and therein records some of the stories of the indigenous people's oral traditions.
The segment we need to look at to find our titular character is known as Lebor Gabála Érenn, which can translate as 'The Book of the Takings of Ireland' or, maybe more aptly, 'The Book of Invasions'. This text is found in both the Book of Leinster and the later Book of Fermoy. It is one of the core sources of the mythological cycle stories in Irish literature, including (in various versions) both the first and second battles of Moytura (Cath Maige Tuired). It also constitutes one of the earliest known histories written by the Irish.
Amongst the Tuatha Dé Danann we first hear of this "good god of druidry and wisdom". When we say 'Good God'; we don't mean morally good. We mean good at everything. We are presented with this powerful figure, a champion and chieftain to his people. Indeed he is one of four entrusted to bring their greatest treasures to Ireland. The Dagda is said to have brought from Murias the Cauldron, an coire ainsic, "from which no company ever left unsatisfied".
According to the stories, many powers does our Dagda possess; from the champion's skills, the king's virtues of right judgment, the builder's craft, to the true harper's skill of the three strains; music that would make the listener joyfully dance and sing, woefully weep and grieve, then restfully sleep and recover. With his harp, an coir cetharchuir, he even had the ability, the authority, to set the seasons in their right order.
When death falls upon one of his many children, we see a grieving character driven beyond his own healing arts, to a quest out of the land of Ireland in search of a method to restore life to that which is dead. The Dagda takes up the power of an Lorg Mór, the great club/staff which *"has a smooth end and a rough end. One end slays the living, and the other end brings the dead to life."
The Irish God secures his command over life and death by giving a guarantee. He offers the powers and knowledge of the land, the sea, and the sky, control over the sun, the moon. The Dagda has power over all of creation. For all of this power and ability though, the Dagda is forever bound to the right words of legal justice, his fair balanced service to his people, and the care and well being of his children.
Often confused with other Celtic Gods like Cernunos or Sucellus, the Dagda Mór is uniquely Irish in origin and is as influential in the Irish pantheon as Odin in the Norse gods or Zeus among the Greek gods. He is the brother of Oghma; the wedded partner of the Mórrígan; and the lover of Bóann, for whom the river Boyne is named.
As we follow the stories of this god, this multi-faceted jewel of deity and indeed allegory, we will begin to understand so much more than first meets the eye of the beholder. Source of practical wisdom, an inspiration of spiritual and creative practices, and maybe even, in some ways, an example to set one's life to.
Want to know more about the Dagda? Take a course HERE at the Irish Pagan School. Check out this BOOK Harp, Club and Cauldron, or follow me on Patreon for monthly Dagda stories.
*Bergin, Osborn. "How the Dagda Got His Magic Staff." Medieval Studies in Memory of Gertrude Schoepperle Loomis. NY: Columbia University Press, 1927.
Back to Celtic Mythology Blog


Str8way Ministries was founded in 2000 and since then we have served both in the United States and abroad. Our desire is to serve the poorest of the poor and at the same time inspire those here in the States to help fulfill the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20) in our lifetimes.
We are committed to making discipleship our main focus and intention!
We intend to challenge our peers of all ages to examine the obstacles that they are confronted with in their walk with the LORD! We feel that by embracing a life of positive growth in Christ we can develop effective leaders for the Kingdom.
Str8way is committed to investing in these areas on a long term basis so that we develop lasting relationships with the people God allows us to encounter.
Content copyright . Greg Johnson. All rights reserved.


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HomePosts Tagged "51yearold"
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Happy Birthday to 51-year-old Shemar Moore and 46-year-old Killer Mike!
Tuesday, April 20 by ABC News
Today, we celebrate the birthdays of two music and entertainment icons, Shemar Moore and Killer Mike. On his 51st birthday, S.W.A.T star Moore reflected on the passing of his mother in a heartfelt message on Instagram. "I miss you mom," he wrote about his mother, Marylin... Read More.
51-year-old woman gives birth to her granddaughter
Tuesday, November 10 by ABC News
By KATIE KINDELAN, ABC News(NEW YORK) -- A 51-year-old woman who served as the gestational carrier for her daughter and son-in-law gave birth to her granddaughter.Julie Loving, 51, delivered a healthy baby girl in an Illinois hospital on... Read More.
What it's like to have your 51-year-old mom carry your baby
Thursday, June 25 by ABC News
By KATIE KINDELAN, ABC News(NEW YORK) -- When Breanna Lockwood's first child, a girl, is born in November, Lockwood and her mom, Julie Loving, plan to tell the girl that she was "wanted so much that we did everything we... Read More.


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[[Image:20110903 Stationsstraat 4 Groningen NL.jpg|thumb|Een door Van der Heide ontworpen herenhuis in neoclassicistische stijl (1882) aan de Stationsstraat in Groningen (2011)<ref name="Stationstraat 4">CWK Gemeente Groningen - obj.nr. 103319 (Stationsstraat 4, Groningen) (gem. monument); zie ook [http://www.stichtingmenm.nl/images/hervondenstad/pdf/HS_2004/HS_2004-03.pdf Stichting Monument en Materiaal - Hervonden Stad, Jaarboek voor archeologie, bouwhistorie en restauratie in de gemeente Groningen, 2004],</ref>]]
Willem van der Heide (Leeuwarden, 6 april 1840 - Rotterdam, 1 januari 1928), in vakliteratuur meestal W. van der Heide genoemd, was een Nederlandse architect, die vooral werkzaam was in het noorden van het land. Enkele door hem ontworpen bouwwerken in de stad Groningen zijn aangewezen als rijks- of gemeentelijk monument.

 Werken (selectie)
 ca. 1880: Herenhuis aan het Hereplein, Groningen
 1881: Dubbel herenhuis aan het Hereplein, Groningen
 1882: Herenhuis aan de Stationsstraat, Groningen
 1882: Hotel aan de Stationsstraat, Groningen
 1882: Herenhuis aan de Stationsstraat, Groningen
 1884: Herenhuis aan de Stationsstraat'', Groningen

Zie ook
 Lijst van Nederlandse architecten

Nederlands architect

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Does Your Office Have These Office Furniture Equipment?
There is nothing that makes you to look professional than having a business. If you own a business, then it is time to make sure that you get an office for it. If you have an office, people can always reach out to you easily. The best thing about having an office is that you will always be considered to be an expert in your business.
By now, you must have seen different offices. When it comes to offices, we have the small ones and the huge ones. It doesn't matter the size of the office, they usually have one thing in common and that is the office equipment. If you want your office to appear presentable, make sure that you get the best office equipment to go with it.
One of the things that are needed in an office is the conference table. This table will always come in handy during the office meetings and any presentation. It is mainly an oval-shaped table that has many chairs around it. Other than the oval shape, we have other shapes and people often customize them to fit their shape.
The benching cubicles are other things that are common in an office. These are mainly used by the employees and they serve as their working station. Always ensure that your office is equipped with these benches if you want your employees to have the best experience. When you have these cubicles in your offices, then the employees will always have the space that they need to work.
If you find that you have a small office, then it would be better if you got an office benching systems. This system is known to reduce the amount of space that is needed and usually serves the purpose. They may not be as big as the benching cubicle, but they do serve their purpose.
The training tables are also very common these days in offices. They are designed for the trainees and they are known to take up small spaces. They are arranged around a U-Shaped table and the presenter or the trainer is usually found in front of them. If you are planning to have a training session in your office, it is better to have these tables.
There are times when you may find yourself with many of these tables and chairs. If this is the case, they usually end up taking more space and may limit your work in the office. Finding a company that handles office furniture buyback is the best solution for you. They will also help to reduce the things that take up much space. Go to this website to get them.


I grew up in Southern California. I love the beach/ocean, I love to dance and go to the movies. Most of all I love and enjoy spending time with my kids. We do a lot of fun things together like water sports, visit the local watering holes (wherever we are), shoot pool, BBQ and just hang out. We also hike and run.
I've done two marathones with my daughter and as a family we do the Wharf to Wharf, etc. I work with my daughter, we have a marketing agency and I am out in the community meeting great people. I also love to laugh. Life is precious so enjoy every minute of it!


MOMA Shoes | Buy MOMA 's Shoes - Free delivery with Spartoo NET !
Among the brands that have dedicated their expertise and know-trend for men and women, there's Moma. The brand stands out thanks to their mastery of materials which are all selected with care, along with the rigour in which they design their contemporary products. At the beginning, the couple Gigio and Daniele Gironacci wanted to redesign fashion by making their company a place devoted to creation and design. Innovation is at the centre of each collection and the manufacturing process respects the pure tradition of traditional Italian expertise.


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Data Classification: The Elephant in the File Server
Posted on May 7, 2014 by Joshua Marpet
You know the common thought process: "Data classification is a planning thing. It's an operations thing. It's a disaster-recovery thing. But it can't be this department's thing. Nope. Not doing it. It's too hard. Takes too long. Wastes manpower. Why is it done, anyway? Nobody cares about it."
The amount of data created and collected every year is huge. Enough of it is generated every day to fill another Library of Congress! From video surveillance footage to TPS reports (with or without a cover sheet) to emails, US-based corporations in 2012 created approximately 2.8 zettabytes of data. And that number is expanding. Classifying all that data is a monstrous task. Why would anyone want to do it?
Simple, really. Data classification must be planned, performed, and perfected to avoid breaches and other losses. There is almost nothing more important than data classification for disaster recovery, data loss prevention, data protection and privacy, and data destruction/lifespan policies. Unfortunately, it's also the most difficult operation for which to plan, design a solution, and implement said solution.
Planning data classification should be simple. There's public data, confidential data, secret data, private data, and mission-critical-top-secret-eyes-only-burn-before-reading data. Roughly four tiers. Oh, and what about employee health plan data? That's ePHI. OK, five tiers. And data needed for audit only once a year? Six tiers. (Not so simple, and this is a small sample.) Every stakeholder in sight is going to want influence on which data is classified, which tier it's classified as, and in some cases, when it gets destroyed. Politics will be involved. Top-down buy-in is essential.
Then there's the design of the solution. All the stakeholder interests must be evaluated. The cost of holding, encrypting, and classifying data must be taken into account. For example, if all emails must be classified, perhaps an Outlook plugin would work. But who is going to administer the plugin, be responsible for it, and who will spot-check the emails to make sure the classification rules are being used appropriately?
Spot-checking actually comes under implementation and maintenance. So assuming the InfoSec budget will pay for deployment of our Outlook plugin, InfoSec security operations center (SOC) personnel will need to perform weekly spot-checks on random emails to make sure they're being classified properly. They should also establish a data loss prevention (DLP) solution to make sure that high-classification emails and documents aren't exfiltrated outside the corporate perimeter. Without data classification, DLP is worthless.
DLP solutions are typically costly and difficult to tune correctly. It is extremely important to get expert advice on which system to purchase and consultant help to install, tune, and maintain it. Many DLP solutions are bought and never turned on, just for lack of this resource. While this may check a box regarding the acquisition of a DLP system, it really doesn't do much for keeping data where it needs to stay.
Disaster recovery becomes much harder without data classification, because if all data is the same importance, all data has to be treated as mission critical. That's a lot more data to worry about, contingency plans to have, hot sites to pay for, and redundant storage across multiple geographic areas to maintain than if data classification were used correctly.
Data classification is hard. It takes planning, clout, stakeholder buy-in, budget, time, and major effort. But the payoffs are multiple, and significantly worth it. It is yet another part of InfoSec life where "failing to plan is planning to fail."
Joshua Marpet


First things first: Hi! Let us introduce ourselves – low rates, freedom of choice, and friendly vibes. We're all about making your life easier. We are all about you. At First Choice Power, we help make electricity affordable and convenient. Your power should be on, but off your mind. We find ways to give you a manageable rate, with a dose of friendly customer care. Our roots in Texas go back: Way back. We've been happily serving Texans for 70 years and counting. We know the Texas electricity market, and we are here to give you the best of what we know. We work here, we live here, and we love our community. Creating change in our neighborhoods is important to us. We support your children's teachers through grants, we send volunteers to work in your communities, and we work with nonprofit organizations to help make the little things better.


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The NIST CSF Framework – What Does it Mean for Healthcare?
NIST, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, is a non-regulatory federal agency of the U.S. Commerce Department. Established in 1901, NIST was designed to promote innovation and competitiveness by advancing standards. And in February 2013, the United States President issued Executive Order 13636, which added a Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) to the mix. But how does the NIST CSF framework apply to modern-day healthcare and the technology that's revolutionized the industry?
Functions of the NIST CSF
The NIST CSF was established for "helping organizations to better understand and improve their management of cybersecurity risk" while providing security controls for federal agencies and critical infrastructure systems. Although only public healthcare organizations are considered critical infrastructure, NIST provides useful tools for private healthcare systems to utilize when implementing and maintaining cybersecurity. There are five functions in the framework's core:
Identify:
Developing an understanding how to discover and manage cybersecurity risks
Protect:
Supporting the ability to limit or contain the impact of cybersecurity events
Detect:
Defining how to identify cybersecurity events
Respond:
Outlining how to take action after a cybersecurity event is detected
Recover:
Identifying how to repair and restore any services that were affected by cybersecurity events
These functions are designed to represent the pillars of a holistic and successful cybersecurity program, helping organizations manage cybersecurity risks.
"The Functions are the highest level of abstraction included in the Framework. They act as the backbone of the Framework Core that all other elements are organized around." – NIST.org
How does the NIST CSF affect healthcare?
From HIPAA to the HITECH act, healthcare is heavily regulated. To remain compliant, it's essential to protect both privacy and security. But even when an organization is compliant, that doesn't necessarily mean PHI is secure. The challenge with implementing information security is that it's a vast undertaking encompassing user access, infrastructure, and physical security – and it's difficult to know where to start. The NIST CSF provides a cohesive framework – even considered a "cheat sheet" by some – to implement a comprehensive security program that will help organizations maintain compliance while protecting the safety of PHI and other sensitive information. The CSF provides a seven-step implementation process that can be used in a continuous cycle:
Prioritize and scope
Create a current profile
Conduct a risk assessment
Create a target profile
Determine, analyze, and prioritize gaps
Implement an action plan
By following this process, organizations can use the NIST CSF to protect themselves from common cybersecurity risks. With threats like ransomware attacks, malware, and malicious insiders, data must always be protected – and to do so, a cybersecurity program is a must. 78% of healthcare organizations experienced a significant cybersecurity incident in the past 12 months, according to the HIMSS 2019 Cybersecurity survey. In light of this, healthcare organizations are adopting the NIST CSF – according to the 2018 HIMSS Cybersecurity Survey, nearly 58% of healthcare organizations already use the framework to strengthen their security posture.
NIST changes and customization
Technology is at the core of the NIST CSF. Because technology is constantly changing, NIST is designed to evolve along with it. In fact, it's designed to be a living document with a deliberate, ongoing process for continued maintenance and innovation. "This will ensure the Framework is meeting the needs of critical infrastructure owners and operators in a dynamic and challenging environment of new threats, risks, and solutions." – Framework for Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity.
Because different organizations have different needs, the NIST CSF can also be customized. If a component doesn't apply, it can be adjusted to suit any facility. According to the NIST Framework for Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity, "To account for the unique cybersecurity needs of organizations, there are a wide variety of ways use the Framework. The decision about how to apply it is left to the implementing organization."
Although optional, implementing the NIST CSF is an excellent way for healthcare organizations to strengthen their security posture. Acting as a living document that changes along with technology and can be customized to suit any unique organization's needs, it can be used as a "cheat sheet" for implementing an effective cybersecurity program that maintains the security of sensitive patient data.
Cloud Security Roundup: Microsoft 365 Phishing Attacks, Washington's Potential Privacy Law, and More
Healthcare Roundup: HIPAA Safe Harbor Bill, HIPAA Penalties Lifted, Takedown of Cyber Threats, and Biden's Cybersecurity Team
Cloud Security Roundup: SolarWinds Breach, Twitter's GDPR Fine, WFH Insider Threats, and More


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Life and Birth: Doctor explains how he operates on babies still in the womb, saving lives before they've even begun
Prof Mark Kilby: 'Some of the tension relates to wanting to do the best for the baby, but also realising you're operating on two people'
By Kasia Delgado
Updated July 13, 2020 9:11 am
Billie-Joe, pictured with her boyfriend Josh, has a rare twin pregnancy, where one of the twins has no formed brain or heartbeat (Photo: Ryan McNamara/Dragonfly)
Billie-Joe is pregnant with twins, and she and her boyfriend Josh are excited about becoming parents – except that having children has become more complicated than the couple imagined it could be.
Billie-Joe has a rare twin pregnancy, where one of the twins has no formed brain or heartbeat, but is taking the nutrients and oxygen from the healthy sibling, which is working so hard to support both of them that it is at risk of having heart failure and dying at 20 to 24 weeks.
i's TV newsletter: what you should watch next
Thanks to medical progress, however, surgeons are able to operate on the unborn babies in the womb to try to change a bleak outcome into a positive one.
The doctor for this highly specialised job is Professor Mark Kilby, a clinical scientist and consultant in foetal medicine at the Birmingham Women's Foundation Trust Hospital.
Saving lives before they've begun
Billie-Joe is pregnant with twins, and she and her boyfriend Josh are excited about becoming parents (Photo: Ryan McNamara/Dragonfly)
"This rare twin condition happens in one in 100,000 pregnancies," he tells i. "It doesn't seem many, and it isn't, but because we get referrals from all over the north of England, the Midlands and the Home Counties, we probably see one of these every two weeks."
With the help of his team, Kilby threads a skinny needle into Billie-Joe's stomach, and into the womb. Ultrasound is the only way he can see his tiny patient in utero. "One of the biggest developments in the last 100 years," he says, "has been the development and refinement of ultrasound."
The needle disperses heat using radio waves, which cuts off the bloody supply from the healthy baby (known as the pump twin) to the parasitic foetus, to let the developed baby grow. The entire procedure takes under an hour and if all goes well, the chances of the healthy baby surviving is eight or nine out of 10.
Kilby's procedure on Billie-Joe is shown as part of the BBC's new fly-on-the-wall series Life and Birth, narrated by Suranne Jones, which looks at life on the labour wards of three Birmingham hospitals.
"I knew things could go wrong in pregnancy, but I didn't know about this," Josh says. "We just have to wrap our heads around it and think of what's best for the baby."
Good outcomes
Professor Mark Kilby says: 'The pressure on medicine is immense at the moment' (Photo: Ryan McNamara/Dragonfly)
After qualifying from Guy's Hospital medical school in London 36 years ago, does Kilby still feel the pressure? "What I find so interesting about this area," he replies, "is that you have two patients, the mum and her unborn baby, and that's extremely unusual."
While his work mostly benefits the baby, there are risks of still-birth, miscarriage, premature birth – and a small chance of infection. "We go to great lengths to stop that happening, but it's at the back of your mind," he says.
"Some of the tension relates to wanting to do the best for the baby, but also realising you're operating on two people. And the mother is more than an innocent bystander in all of this."
Before the first foetal therapy was carried out in the 1960s, no babies or their mothers had the chance of help like this. For Kilby, who was the first person in his family to go to university, it is this fact that propels him through his research.
"Generations of babies were born dead or in a very poor condition," he says, "with physicians and specialists knowing that if they had been able to intervene many weeks before, while the baby was still in womb, the outcome would have been very different. Now, being able to change the course of a disease in utero hopefully leads to a very good outcome for mother and baby."
I'm heavily pregnant and conflicting coronavirus advice is turning my excitement into fear
As well as intervening in complex twin cases like Billie-Joe's, Kilby operates on babies in the womb at risk of heart failure from an abnormal build-up of fluid in their chest, which squashes their lungs.
He does this by threading a catheter into the womb and under the baby's chest to drain the fluid and let the lungs grow. Kilby also performs 40 to 50 blood transfusions a year on anaemic babies before they are born. "The majority of parents have none of these problems," he says. However, he sees the ones who do.
With his own children now grown up, how does he switch off when he gets home? "You don't always. It's incredibly difficult, and I'm not sure I've made a success of being able to do that perfectly. But learning to wind down is part of medical training."
What brings him joy is hearing from the parents he has helped. "It's very nice to hear when kids are growing up and things have gone well. I have to say, though, it's when things don't turn out happily ever after that stick in your mind."
The future looks hopeful for foetal medicine, with UK scientists working with colleagues across the world. "I'm pleased with the way things have been going," Kilby says; "but the challenge is now to perfect non-invasive procedures, to use technology to minimise the impact on the baby and mother – but that's probably a little way off."
For now, the surgeon has to get back to mothers such as Billie-Joe and give their babies the best chance of being born healthy and ready for the world.
Lockdown — 'Work goes on'
Professor Mark Kilby at work in the BBC documentary Life and Birth (Photo: Ryan McNamara/Dragonfly)
With most of the NHS's attention focused on the coronavirus crisis, how is this affecting maternity units and Professor Kilby's delicate work?
"Work is continuing," the surgeon says, "but I wouldn't say it's continuing as normal. We rely on people performing other roles at other hospitals first, and then referring people to us from their centres; so if someone who performs an ultrasound is sick, and staff numbers are reduced, then there is more limited screening of babies with problems.
"The pressure on medicine is immense at the moment. Of course, pregnant women also get Covid-19 – so again, that leads to a change of focus when it comes to the mother.
"However, for the most part, work goes on. There is limited evidence that the virus has a direct effect on babies, but indirectly it can raise risk of complications in pregnancy.
"There are many viruses that can attack a baby in the womb, and so far evidence is that Covid-19 does not. But it is early days."
Life and Birth begins on Tuesday on BBC1 at 8pm


The passport index firm has published a report on passport ranking for varied nations belonging to the world based on its power.
According to Passport index's norm, the nation does get score for nations, where holders of passport can travel without a visa or can get visa on arrival.
The USA and UK have topped the list with 147 visa free nations and India has ranked 59th with 59 nations and it has shared the place with Georgia.
The Indian passport holders are eligible to travel to 58 nations without visa and get visa on arrival except our nation India, itself. The nation's list is based on 193 members of United Nations and other 6 territories which do belong to other nations.
Antarctica, Bolivia, Bhutan, British Virgin Islands, Cambodia, Comoros islands, Cape Verde, Cook Islands, Dijibouti, Dominicia, EI Salvador, Ecuador, Ethiopia, , Gambia, Fiji, FYRO Macedonia, Gambia, Georgia, Grenada, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Iraq, Jamaica, Kenya, Jordan, Laos, Madagascar, Macau, Maldives, Micronesia, Mauritius, Montserrat, Mozambique, Nepal, Nauru, Niue, Nicaragua, Palau, Samoa, Seychelles, Sao Tome & Principe, Seychelles, St. Kitts & Nevis, South Korea, St Lucia, Svalbard, St Vincent & Grenadines, Svalbard, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Timor Leste, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Turks and Caicos Islands, Uganda, Vanuatu.


Brighton United Methodist Church | Serving the Brighton area for over 120 years!
Brighton United Methodist Church Serving the Brighton area for over 120 years!
King Soopers Rewards for Scholarship Fund!
Led by the Holy Spirit, BUMC is committed to ministries that offer hope to encourage others to a stronger relationship with Christ in a Bible-driven community.
Annual VBS in June- Registration now open!
Join us on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month at 6:15 pm for our community Wonderful Wednesday Dinner.
Cost is $5 for adults and children 10 and under are free.
We invite you to join us anytime!
Located at the corner of 8th and Voiles.
Sunday Worship - 9:15 am Sunday School - 10:45 am Please join us for fellowship after worship!


Module 1 - You are required to complete a series of manoeuvres both at slow speeds (e.g. U-turn) and faster speeds (e.g. avoidance manoeuvre at 50km/h), requiring competent handling skills.
This course enables individuals to ride a 125cc motorcycle (power output does not exceeding 14.6bhp) without displaying 'L' plates and to carry a passenger.
Module 2 - This test involves a 40-minute road ride, following a sight test and initial brief from the examiner.
Once you have passed both these modules, you will obtain a full category A1 licence.
Be 17 years of age or above.
Hold either a full car or provisional motorcycle licence.
Hold a valid CBT certificate.
The practical test is in two parts, both of which you have to pass in order to qualify for the licence.
To attend this course you must be at least 16 years of age and ride a moped or scooter of up to 50cc, speed range 25 to 45 km/h.
(click here for details) a theory test and a practical test.


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Brown & Bigelow Share Salary
HQ: St. Paul , MN · https://www.brownandbigelow.com
13 Brown & Bigelow Employee Salaries
Browse Brown & Bigelow Salaries by Job Title →
$36K Customer Service Representative Average Salary at Brown & Bigelow (2 salaries)
+$8K (25%) more than national average Customer Service Representative salary ($28K)
Equal to average Brown & Bigelow salary ($36K)
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-$1K (2%) less than average Brown & Bigelow salary ($36K)
+$1K (2%) more than average Brown & Bigelow salary ($36K)
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$41K Sales Representative ·
+$5K (12%) more than average Brown & Bigelow salary ($36K)
-$6K (18%) less than average Brown & Bigelow salary ($36K)
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+$44K (75%) more than average Brown & Bigelow salary ($36K)
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-$5K (10%) less than national average Buyer salary ($50K)
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Equal to national average Assistant Manager salary ($30K)
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$30K Receptionist ·
Be the first to see new Brown & Bigelow jobs in New Territory, TX


Being a part of unique eco-system, Satpura Tiger Reserve is very rich in bio-diversity. Its fauna comprises Spotted Deer, Indian Bison(Gaur), Tigers, Leopards, Wild boar, Wild dog (locally called Dholes), Sloth bear, Black buck (unique attraction), Porcupine, Sambhar, four Horned antelopes (Chowsingha), Smooth otter, Pangolin, Marsh crocodile, Languars etc. Indian Giant squirrel is the special feature of Satpura Tiger Reserve as it is rare in India now. Sighting of Leopards, Gaurs,Wild Dog, Sloth Bear is good in comparison to other Tiger Reserve of Central India.
List of mammals commonly seen in Satpura reserve during jungle safari.
3. Black Buck Antilope cervicapra Sighting is good if targetted specifically.
4. Indian Wild Dogs (Dholes) Cuon alpinus Sighting is good if targetted specifically.
5. Gaur (Indian Bison) Bos gaurus Good sighting.
6. Sloth Bear Melursus ursinus Good seasonal sighting.
7. Leopard Panthera pardus Moderate sighting. Good in compare to near by tiger reserves.
8. Indian Wild Boar Sus scrofa Good sighting.
9. Spotted Deer (Cheetal) Axis axis Good sighting.
10. Barking Deer (Munjtac) Muntiacus muntjak Moderate sighting.
11. Four-horned Antelope Tetracerus quadricornis Moderate sighting.
12. Sambar Cervus unicolor Good sighting.
13. Tiger Panthera tigris Rare sighting.
14. The Indian giant squirrel Ratufa indica Moderate Sighting.
15. Flying Squirrel Pteromyini Rare sighting.
16. Three Stripped Palm Squirrel Funambulus palmarum Good sighting.
17. Common Mongoose Herpestes edwardsil Good sighting.
18. Indian Pipistrelle Pipistrellus corom andra Moderate sighting.
19. Small Indian Civet Viverricula indica Good sighting in early morning or late evening.
20. Indian Flying Fox Pteropus giganetus Moderate sighting.
21. Rehesus Macaque Macaca mulatta Good sighting.
22. Hanuman Langurs Semnopithecus entellus Good sighting.
23. Golden Jackal Canis aureus Good sighting.
24. Stipped Hyaena Hyaena hyaena Moderate sighting.
25. Asiatic Wildcat Felis silvestris ornata Moderate sighting.
26. Jungle Cat Felis chaus Good sighting.
27. Rusty Spotted Cat Prionailurus rubiginosus Good sighting.
28. Blacknaped Hare Lepus nigricollis Good sighting.
29 Blue Bull (Nilgai) Boselaphus tragocamelus Good sighting.
30. Indian Porcupine Hystrix indica Good sighting.
31. Indian Pipistrelle Pipistrellus corom andra Moderate sighting.


our post today is about something really major - we got chosen to be Luxola's Bloggers of the Month! :) This all happened thanks to my very dear friend, Emily! She introduced me to the founder of Luxola, Alexis, whom so generously offered us this opportunity on the spot!
I was so excited I actually called Ashley up right after we spoke, and both of us just stayed on the phone gushing and screaming for a good 5 minutes, lol we are such girls really. I later got to discuss this collaboration with a few other Luxola ladies - Camille, Shaleniie (who we've been in touch with for quite awhile), and Martha. All of them were very sweet and so efficient, and everything got wrapped up within a few weeks.
If you managed to guess, this was the reason we carried our photo shoot out! We wanted to look good for the banners, and we're so pleased with how everything turned out!
The billboards look gorgeous, with such pretty layouts and fonts (yes graphic designer mode ON) and the colors just look magnificent! :) We feel so honored to be part of this!
If any of you aren't aware of Luxola (AND WHY NOT!?!??!), it's a company started by women for women! Go girl power! They know just what we NEED: affordable alternatives to the very expensive and boring options that Singapore offers. Instead of MAC brushes, I am given a choice to look at Sigma brushes. When I am broke and cannot afford a NARS blush, I can opt for a Sleek one!
On top of that, they do home deliveries and accept Cash on Delivery! Too awesome. I do not have to trouble myself with leaving the house nor meddling with my IBanking device. All I have to do is open my door and wallet. So perfect for a sloth like me.
Though their main focus is largely on Singapore, they do deliveries to many other parts of the world such as Hong Kong, Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines! You can refer to their website for shipping rates.
Ash and I talk about the products we love from Luxola, and we've actually written reviews for some of them like Smith's Rosebud Salve and Rachel K's CC Cream. Others like the Beauty Blender and Silver Powder have made wonderful guest stars in our other posts as well.
If you'd like us to review any other product that we've mentioned, feel free to comment! :) I'm definitely thinking of doing an in-depth post on the beauty product I CANNOT live without, my little Beauty Blender!
Here's a small interview that we both did with Luxola, talking a little about our passions and ideas of beauty.
It has been such a wonderful experience. The people at Luxola are genuinely nice, and we're not saying this for the sake of the article. As you know, we're such a small blog, and yet they put their vote of confidence in us by featuring us on their website and Facebook to their many fans. We're grateful beyond words.
Do check their website out (you can click the advert at the end of our sidebar to redirect) for wonderful skincare and makeup finds such as Mario Badescu, Sigma, Rachel K, Becca, Edward Bess, The Konjac Sponge Company, and many more. I have *guiltily* spent hours poring over their stuff deciding just how many things I could buy without my boyfriend finding out and killing me, haha!
On a side note: we want to thank all our readers for their undying support as well, especially those who have been reading from Day One. All of you give us the strength to work harder and better all the time! So much love for all of you.
You folks are doing beautiful work! Not too long now before the brand reps of the top beauty brands come knocking.
Thanks for your support; yes it's been an amazing journey filled with wondrous opportunities. We've been very lucky all our hard work has paid off.
both of you did well! i love the beauty blender as well!
Lovely blog ladies! I enjoy reading your beauty thoughts and reviews.
Please check out my site www.ShopVenture.com which is home to online shopping reviews on fashion, beauty and lifestyle online stores!


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Over the last almost four years Seattle has been engaged in a deep dive into housing affordability, starting with former-Mayor Ed Murray's appointment of twenty-eight volunteers to the Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda (HALA) Committee in September 2014, charging them to come up with an integrated approach to addressing Seattle's housing affordability crisis. After the release of the visionary HALA Report I was one of 110 citizens chosen to participate in the HALA Focus Groups. The Focus Groups met for ten months, and provided further semi-public input on one of the major recommendations of the Report, Mandatory Housing Affordability (MHA).
In a nutshell, the idea of MHA is to incrementally upzone many of the multifamily areas in Seattle's Urban Villages as well as a tiny percentage of single-family zoned areas within the ten-minute walkshed of Link stations or frequent buses, and then, in return for the theoretical ability of people building housing to make more money with a slightly larger building, have them either provide a percentage of new affordable units within the new buildings, or contribute to a fund used to build affordable units elsewhere, ideally in the same neighborhood. The City has taken the MHA show on the road in a two-year series of public Open Houses and opportunities for public comment. At this point MHA has already been approved for the U-District and for South Lake Union and downtown. The public is now commenting on the City-wide implementation of MHA, which will cover all of the remaining Urban Villages and Urban Centers in Seattle.
Reading through the 368-page MHA Ordinance before Council preparing my public testimony in support of MHA at the District 3 and District 7 meeting last night, I searched for the answer to a question I've been asking since the beginning of the MHA process: How will MHA dovetail with green building incentives?
I am not thrilled with the answer I found. Let's take a look.
For reference, here is a chart of MHA fees, put together by Sightline Institute from City of Seattle documents.
Construction costs per square foot for buildings in low-rise (LR) zones are running about $225/ft2, so MHA fees range from about 3% of the cost of construction for projects in a Low Area with a standard M suffix, to 14% of the cost of construction for projects in a High Area with an M2 suffix.
Table A for Section 23.45.510 of the zoning code, shown below with the old FAR limits struck through, and new ones below. Note that the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) for the zones with an MHA suffix, each zone and type of building is increased from the existing zoning. For example LR1 gets an additional 0.2 FAR, or an additional 2,000 square feet of building for a 10,000 square foot parcel. Other limits come into play though, like the density limits of one unit per 1,350 ft2 of lot area for most building types except apartments, which are one unit for every 800 ft2 of lot area, and setbacks which remain unchanged, such that all of that FAR may not be available for use on a given site. I'll save discussions about the value of that increment and the relation to the MHA fee charged for another time.
Table 23.45.530 below shows the FAR thresholds over which the green building requirements apply. Note that in every case the FAR for each zone is above the FAR threshold for green building. In other words, green building is required for any building that wants to take advantage of the extra FAR granted under MHA. In fact, the green building FAR thresholds are at or just under the existing FAR for the low-rise zones. (I'll leave the mid-rise and high-rise zones to someone else, but the principles at work are the same.)
It's kind of like making green building mandatory.
According to Directors Rule 20-2017, the green building standards a project team can choose from are:
BuiltGreen 4-star (15-25% better energy performance than code, 1-5% extra cost.)
LEED Gold (15-30% better energy performance, 11-13% extra cost.)
Passive House via PHI or PHIUS (60-70% better energy performance, net zero optional, 10% extra cost.)
Living Building Challenge. (60-80% better performance plus net zero required, 20-25% extra cost.)*
Penalties are assessed if the project does not meet the selected certification. This is essentially a reboot of the unsuccessful Deep Green Pilot program I wrote about in 2013, with the penalties (albeit 2% rather than 5%) and without the added incentive of extra floor area and height. (The Deep Green Pilot Program has produced exactly no new deep green buildings since its inception in 2013, during one of the city's most explosive periods of growth.) Every new multifamily building that wants to take advantage of the additional FAR offered under MHA has to participate in this program. So on the plus side, we could be seeing a lot of new deep green buildings. If that is the result I'll be very happy.
For those who would like to use the new FAR available, the effect is to bump up the energy code for all multifamily buildings over the top of the current energy code, and to add a penalty (payable by the owner and the applicant!) of up to 2% of the value of the project for not achieving the stated goal. The core legal principle of inclusionary zoning in Washington State is equal exchange–where the ask for affordable housing is balanced by upzones equal in value to the ask. I'm afraid adding green building requirements to the mix will dampen the creation of new housing, especially when added to MHA fees/performance requirements. With this approach to encouraging green building, the proposal adds a minimum of 1% to a maximum of around 25% of the cost of construction on top of those MHA fees or performance requirements. Anyone planning a new building and on a tight budget may choose to avoid the green building requirement by designing their new building to fall below the threshold over which green building is required, so in those cases smaller buildings, and less housing, will result. The green building thresholds are close to the FAR limits currently in place, and in some cases outside Urban Villages the added square footage possible is not huge, and comes with the added cost of an additional floor with a setback. People developing buildings may not see it as worth the risk, especially for more-challenging and higher-performance approaches like Passive House and Living Building Challenge. All green building adds somewhat to construction cost and some programs add more paperwork overhead to demonstrate compliance than others. At least with the existing setup people get something back (additional height and FAR) for the trouble and expense (and ahem, making the world a better place.)
I want MHA to succeed (to make housing more affordable, and to create affordable housing…) and I want Seattle to meet its carbon neutral goals, ideally ahead of the 2050 deadline. Compared to new sprawl, infill development in already-built up urban areas all on its own reduces carbon emissions by about half. This is the reason California Representative Scott Weiner introduced his controversial SB 827, which allows taller buildings near transit as of right, no matter what the current zoning is, overruling local control.
In the MHA Ordinance's integration of green building I was hoping for something more carrot than stick. I was hoping there might be a provision that maybe exempted projects in the Priority Green program from Design Review, or even something like Brussel's Exemplary Buildings program. Barring something really bold, the next best thing would be for Council to…
Establish two tiers of green building. The lower tier would include BuiltGreen 4-Star and LEED Gold. Remove the penalty for the lower tier.
Establish an upper tier for BuiltGreen Emerald Star, LEED Platinum, Passive House and Living Building Challenge with additional incentives.
A few ideas for additional incentives:
Express administrative Design Review, skipping Early Design Guidance, along with a limit on public Design Review cycles.
Additional height and FAR.
Exemption from modulation requirements and the new upper-story setback requirements (which make meeting energy conservation goals more difficult and add expense.) Perhaps this could be in exchange for neighborhood-specific Design Guidelines-approved exterior materials.
Setbacks measured from structural sheathing rather than siding, which would make up for the 2″ to 6″ of outboard rigid insulation in ultra-low-energy buildings that makes building science sense but is difficult to swallow for people building housing. (The extra thickness of walls now comes out of rentable or salable floor area, a disincentive to high performance buildings on tight or expensive sites, that is, every urban site.)
There is still time for Council to improve the MHA Ordinance. If you are concerned about affordability and carbon emissions reduction, I suggest you contact Council now.
* Summaries of programs from this post on Johnston Architects blog, which jive with my experience also.
About Rob Harrison


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The performance of the istanbul stock exchange during the Russian crisis
Yüksel, A.
Emerging Markets Finance & Trade
This paper uses a unique data set to examine the possibility of a structural change in contemporaneous volume-return relation on the Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) during the Russian crisis in 1998. The comparison of the relationship during the crisis period to those during pre- and post-crisis periods shows that there was a structural change regarding the price impact of trading volume. The evidence indicates that traders needed to give considerably larger price concessions during the crisis period. The structural change was transitory since the cost of getting liquidity is shown to fall back during the post-crisis period. This study also provides the first evidence on univariate and joint characteristics of fifteen-minute common stock trading volume and returns on the ISE. Both average volume and return show significant univariate intraday variations, and there exists a positive contemporaneous relation between these variables. Moreover, there is weak evidence that in a GARCH setting volume has an impact on conditional return volatility.
GARCH
Impact of trading
Structural change
Department of Management 504