Feminism,
Syria, War
"Even in the relative
normality of life before the war, it was clear that women were suffering from
discrimination. In November 2011 a UNFPA report
(pdf) found that one
in three women in Syria experienced domestic violence. Several Syrian laws
clearly disadvantage women; the penalty for “honour” killing is softer than for
other murders, and there is no legislation that specifically prohibits gender
discrimination. The Syrian family code limits a woman’s financial rights within
marriage if she works outside the home without her husband’s consent. The
Syrian regime has at times been cynical about its engagement with women’s
rights, presenting itself as a safe option compared to the rank misogyny of
extremist groups. This has often been hollow, for instance, using women as
spokespeople while keeping them out of roles of real influence, and failing to
take any action on discriminatory laws. And Yazbek points out that in areas of
Syria held by Isis and other religious factions, the situation for women has
drastically worsened. “We were already fighting against patriarchy and
dictatorship before the war. Now we have to fight not only that, but also
religious extremism.”
Women Now runs seven
centres – two in Lebanon and five within Syria. Starting as a small support
group for a few families in rebel-held territory in Syria, it has expanded to become a major women’s network. In addition
to providing psychosocial support, skills training (in English and IT among
others), and economic empowerment, it has a clear political goal: getting
women’s voices heard – from the family setting to international peace talks.
“We try to educate women about their rights, and spread awareness,” says Ola
El-Jindi, a programme manager at the NGO. “This is the chance the war gave us –
to empower women. If we didn’t use it well, it would be another disaster of
war. We must use this opportunity to do better things.”"
Elections,
Voting
"Denver, Colorado, has spent the last eight years
modernizing its elections, offering a model for how a city and county
successfully maintains voter rolls.
The city began taking steps in 2009 to make it easier for
voters to cast ballots, officials to count them, and administrators to maintain
accurate, clean voter rolls. In the process, they’ve increased voter turnout
and saved taxpayers money.
In the 2016 general election, turnout was at 72 percent —
up six points from the city’s 2008’s turnout, and ten points higher than the
national average in 2016, according to the city's data. The effort has driven
election costs down, from $6.51 per voter to $4.15 per voter.
“In Denver, we’ve said, ‘What do we want our voter
experience to be?’ and worked backwards from there," Amber McReynolds,
director of the Denver Elections Division, told NBC News."
Travel, Solo
How to Make the Best of Solo Travel: Travelogue Podcast (July 21 episode)
“Listen in for tips on
how to temper the awkwardness that sinks in around, say, 8 p.m., when locals
and tourists alike are sitting down to loud, boozy dinners, while you’re
staring into the abyss of the empty seat in front of you (hint: make best
friends with the barman), and why maybe, just maybe, Airbnbs are the right call if you’ve
planned a solo trip by choice.
One theme that we always
return to, though, is the idea that travel—no matter the circumstance—should
always test your comfort zone. Solo travel is the ultimate extension of that
mantra, and though it may not always rock your world for the better, it can
help you to grow just a little bit.”
Economy,
Foreign Aid
“Zambia
recently ran a bold experiment: Instead of giving poor people traditional aid —
seeds, or a cow or job training — officials handed out cash, with no strings
attached.”
What was the
outcome? Click on the title above and listen for the answer.
Exercise,
Health
"To see just how little you can get away
with when it comes to interval training for health purposes, the researchers
brought in 25 less-than-in-shape young men (future studies will focus on
women). They tested their levels of aerobic fitness and their ability to use
insulin in the right way to control blood sugar, and biopsied their muscles to
see how well they functioned on a cellular level.
Then they split them into a control
group, a moderate-intensity-exercise group, and a sprint interval training
(SIT) group.
The control group did nothing differently
at all.
The moderate-intensity group did a
typical I'm-at-the-gym routine of a two-minute warm-up, 45 minutes on the
stationary bike, and a three-minute cool down, three times a week.
The SIT group did the shortest interval
training ever recorded thus far by science. Participants warmed up for two
minutes on a stationary bike, then sprinted full-out for 20 seconds, then rode
for two minutes very slowly. They repeated this twice (for a total of three sets).
The whole workout took 10 minutes, with only one minute being high-intensity.
All of the groups kept at it for 12
weeks, or about twice as long as most previous studies.
The results?"
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