Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Attention Staff and Students– Concern needs our help .
Below find an email from Gail Williams CONCERN in Camden Street
Dear Angela, Visit http://www.concern.net to donate now.
I‟m hoping you are the right person to help me.
In response to Tuesday‟s earthquake disaster in Haiti, we at Concern are approaching a number of universities & third level colleges to ask for assistance for Concern‟s emergency response activities on the ground in Port au Prince, Haiti. Details of the disaster and Concern‟s response are contained in the attached Update document and details of how you might be able to help are included in the Emergency Appeal attachment.
If your institute would consider making a charity donation to Concern to support this emergency appeal, we would be most grateful.
I understand that your priority is to raise funds for the college – but given the scale and nature of this particular emergency , we urgently need to raise up to €5 million which we
estimate to be required for immediate response activities, so any help that your students; graduates, staff might generate would be very, very much appreciated. Some other colleges are organising separate fundraising activities for example.
If you – or any of your colleagues - would like to discuss this further or requires further information, please don‟t hesitate to contact me. Thank you and kind regards, Gail Williams, Manager - Major Donor Fundraising, Concern Worldwide, ( +353 1
417 8020, * [email protected]
Haiti Update 19th January 2010
The major earthquake which hit Haiti last Tuesday evening is an enormous catastrophe for Port-au-Prince and the people of Haiti. However, it is still unclear exactly how many people have lost their lives, and it is now estimated that approximately 1,000,000 people are consid-ered to have been severely affected by the earth-quake. The Haitian Government is setting up 14 camps for people who have been left homeless. With our experience in providing shelter and managing camps, as well as our established presence on the ground we are likely to be involved in this work. Based on information gathered from our assessments, our existing programmes in Haiti and the gaps we‟ve identified, we have chosen to concentrate primarily on two of the poorest areas of Port-au-Prince, where we were already in operation when the earthquake struck. This enables us to exploit our good knowledge of the areas and an existing network of contacts, providing easy entry to communities and a strong basis for participation. These areas are: Saint Martin with an estimated population 60-70,000 prior to the earthquake
Martissant, estimated population 200,000 prior to the earthquake
We aim to help at least 100,000 people in the first few months. Concern has been working in Haiti since 1994 and this experience puts us in a position to provide a really effective response. However, our staff are also badly affected many of whom have been traumatised by the loss of relatives, colleagues and homes, and there are still two members unaccounted for. Our approach During the earliest phase of the emergency, Concern aims to cover people‟s basic needs through the provision of essential goods and services. However, at the earliest opportunity, we intend to stimulate economic activity through an injection of cash that will enable people to meet their own needs according to their own priorities. Given the scale of this shock on an already poor and vulnerable urban population, and the recent history of political instability and violence, Concern aims to ensure that our programme is conflict-sensitive and inclusive. We will seek to build on our innovative experience in peace-building in Haiti to introduce conflict management at various levels of the emergency programme. This includes providing training to beneficiaries, using a group of skilled dialogue facilitators, etc. In addition, it will seek to avoid further tension by addressing the trauma suffered by wide sectors of the population by providing psycho-social support to both affected staff and beneficiaries. Proposed projects We are planning a 6 month response starting in mid-January covering the following areas: Prevention and treatment of acute malnutrition,Access to clean water and sanitation, Shelter and non-food items, Cash transfers to facilitate social and economic recovery , Psycho-social support and conflict management , Primary education provision in camps
Children at Place de Paix camp in St. Martin. Photo: Susan Finucane, Concern
Extracts from a Blog by Concern staff member, Susan Finucane on the ground: Sunday 17
th January.
As we drive through the streets there is devasta-tion at every turn, more bodies have been placed on the side of the road in the hope that they are lifted soon. The stench of the deceased lingers on. We arrive at the Salvation Army health centre, where Concern has been working since August 2008; it is now a camp for hundreds of Haitians. While chatting with them I meet Lenor, 26, who yesterday gave birth to a little girl, Celinda - her second child. ‘I live in Saint Martin…. I lived in Saint Martin… my house is gone so I have been here (in the camp) since Tuesday night. I was so worried for my baby but she is fine.‟ Behind Lenor an elderly man is being treated for a leg wound – his hospital bed is a wheelbarrow with his leg propped up on a piece of wood. A small boy cries beside him as iodine is poured on his head where there is a gaping wound. I ask Lenor if I can take a picture of her new arrival, a miracle amidst all this heartache, as the camera appears the children flock around me asking me to take their picture. Their smiles are like rays of sunshine in this makeshift camp and I am made aware, once again, just how resilient the Haitian people are. Through the children I see a man approaching me, he too is a new father, „my wife had him yesterday, and his name is Friendly. I am filled with so many emotions right now. The earthquake destroyed my home and my sister was killed, my daughter was trapped in the rubble for four days but she was pulled free yesterday. She is ok, resting in another camp‟ Pierre tells me. Miracles do happen. This morning a further 3 people were rescued from the rubble at the collapsed super-market. 60 were rescued yesterday, the search continues,
The destruction is profound, you see the devastation every-
where, but you see the depth of this tragedy most in the eyes of the
people you meet as they struggle to sur-vive, to respond and to grieve. The task
ahead is huge.'
C o n c e r t R e v i e w : H a n d e l ’ s M e s s i a h Handel‟s Messiah: Part One was performed by DkIT Music Dept Choir and Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Cairtriona McEniry Roschke in the beautiful St. Joseph‟s Redemptorist Church on December 10th, by kind permission of the Redemptorist Fathers. It was the first Christmas concert to be held outside the Institute and the supporting programme included Handel‟s Water Music and Christmas carols. The choir, which now numbers 120 members including students and faculty, gave a spirited performance of the classic work and director, Siubhán Ó Dubháin, expressed her satisfaction with the efforts of the students, some of whom were experiencing choral singing for the first time. The arias and recitatives were all sung by student soloists. „They all looked splendid and the sound produced was a worthy celebration of the 250th anniversary of Handel‟s death!‟, Siubhan said. The Earl and Countess of Rosse joined the audience for the occasion, driving up from Birr Castle, where the plan to commission the original Messiah was hatched by the Earl‟s ancestor and close friend of Handel, Sir William Parsons. Lord Rosse spoke movingly about his family‟s connection with Handel, and his delight at being present for the occasion. Adele Commins , Head of Music Programmes, who introduced the programme, announced the winner and runner-up of the inaugural Éamonn Ó Gallchobhair Prize for Composition which cele-brates the memory of the Dundalk-born composer who had a seminal influence on music in Ire-land in the twentieth century. Donegal student Róisín Crumlish was presented with her award by the Rev. Clement MacMánuis, author of the first annotated catalogue of Ó Gallchobhair‟s music, and her winning work Alleluia to the King was performed by the choir, with soprano soloist Dearbhail Downey, from Dublin, conducted by Mary McCague. Patrick Connolly was awarded second prize for his choral work. The programme concluded with a selection of carols old and new, which included Dr. Eibhlis Far-rell‟s beautiful Ave Maria and some medieval songs conducted by recent graduate Stephen Murray from Drogheda. Adele expressed her gratitude on behalf of all in the Department of Music and Creative Media to the Redemptorist Fathers for their hospitality. Pictured Right: The Earl and Countess of Rosse along with Fr Richard D e l a h u n t y , C S s R , A d m i n i s t r a t o r , S t Joseph‟s Redemptorist Church Dundalk pictured with Denis Cummins, President DkIT, Dr Gerard Bob McKiernan, Head of School of Informatics, Mu-sic and Creative Media and staff of the Department of Music, DkIT.
Rev Clement MacMánuis pictured with the winners of the Éamonn Ó Gallchobhair Prize for Composition – Roisin
Crumlish and Patrick Connolly
DkIT’s Clean Campus Praised in Litter Report Louth have again figured strongly in the final 2009 survey of 60 towns and cities by business group Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL). Drogheda and Dundalk were all deemed “litter free”, while Drog-heda‟s finished in 12th position. Bray was announced as Ireland‟s cleanest town at a ceremony in the Merrion Hotel, Dublin on the 4th of January. The report for Dundalk spoke of a “good result for Dundalk with over half of the sites surveyed getting the top litter grade. Two of the approach roads were Clean to European Norms – Ardee Approach and Carrickmacross Approach. Dublin Approach and Newry Approach had moderate levels of litter, most of it was food related. Dundalk Railway Station was in very good condition and both Xerox Technology Park and Dundalk Institute of Technology were among the top ranking sites.” 39 out of 60 areas surveyed were placed in the „litter free‟ category this year, compared to only 2 when the survey began 7 years ago. To illustrate the improvement, the points scored by Monaghan in finishing 37th in this year‟s rank-ing would have sufficed to make the town the cleanest in the country in 2002. DkIT president Denis Cummins praised the staff of the Estates Office for maintaining the campus to such a high standard and congratulates them on achieving this result.
Redmond O’Toole Guitar Masterclass Guitarist Redmond O'Toole will give a masterclass this Thursday (21st January 2010) in the Black Box Theatre at 2.30 pm. Redmond has emerged as one of the most innovative and exciting young guitarists in Europe. All welcome. O'Toole was the first to adapt to Paul Galbraith's new groundbreaking technique and instrument; he plays an 8-string 'Brahms guitar' in the cello position connected to a special resonating box. The additional range of the guitar allows an expansion of the repertoire as well as incorporating original music for classical guitar. O'Toole is much in demand as a recitalist in his home Country of Ireland, gives regular concerts a throughout Europe and recently gave a concert tour of Mexico. His Debut Album was released last October on the German label Bornheim Klassik to critical acclaim and he is currently the subject of a TV documentary profiling his unusual move from lead guitarist in Punk band Brinskill Bomb-Beat to classical guitarist. O'Toole's repertoire features many of his own arrangements of Baroque and Classical music previously unknown on guitar. He is also highly interested in new music and has premiered works by major composers including Kevin Volans, John Mc Laughlin and Benjamin Dwyer.
Counselling Service Sets up Working Group on
Mental Health Guidelines The Counselling Service is in the process of setting up a working group to develop Mental Health Guidelines for working with and responding to the needs of our students. Implementing mental health guidelines for DKIT will help ensure that the college provides a coherent institutional approach when responding to students with mental health difficulties as well as promoting the mental well-being of all our students. The health and well-being of all our students must be everyone‟s concern. Over recent years we have seen an increase in the number of people experiencing poor mental well-being. Ireland has the fifth highest rate of suicide among 15 to 24-year-olds in the 26 countries of the EU and Suicide is the leading cause of death in young Irish adults. These alarming statistics are being reflected in the number of students with mental distress entering higher Education. The college has specific legal responsibilities towards students whose mental health difficulties falls within the definition of disability under the law. This requires us to ensure that students with a well-recognised mental illness are not discriminated against and that reasonable adjustments are put in place to support their learning. The aim of the working Group is to have cross institutional representation to include members of the student body, teaching staff, frontline staff such as caretakers and reception staff, student services staff and representation from senior management. The consultation process will also ensure the input of relevant professional expertise. This will include the Counselling service, the disability service, the College GP or a representative from the health unit and ideally representation by, or reference to, mental health personnel from the local community health team. Working with such local external agencies at the early stage of developing the guidelines is likely to be extremely helpful in building effective liaison in the future. The first meeting of the working Group will take place on Wednesday 10 February. If anyone is interested in being a representative on this group please email Roisen Keaveney to [email protected] or Gertie Raftery to [email protected] . Alter-natively you can contact Roisen on ext 1019 or Gertie on ext 2395.
Launch of the National Academy’s Awards for Excellence in Teaching
The National Academy has kick-started the new year with the launch of its 2010 National Awards for Excellence in Teaching. The National Awards programme honours exemplary teachers who are also innovative researchers in higher education in Ireland. The awards are intended to recognise teaching accomplishments and to promote public recognition and celebration of the teaching profession. Five awards of €5,000 each will be made in 2010 and senior man-agers of the 38 HEIs linked to the National Academy are invited to submit up to three nominations in relation to individuals or groups of staff members. All levels or categories of staff (Professor, Sen-ior Lecturer, Lecturer, Assistant Lecturer, full-time, part-time etc) are eligible for nomination and applicants should not self-nominate. Nomination form and full details of the awards programme are available on the National Academy website www.nairtl.ie/awards. The closing date for receipt of nominations is 21
st May 2010.
Right: Picture of the certificate and prizes presented at the National
Academy’s Awards for Excellence in Teaching
Irish Freshwater ForumIrish Freshwater Forum
The Freshwater Forum will be held on 22nd January 2010 at DkIT.The Freshwater Forum will be held on 22nd January 2010 at DkIT.
The Freshwater Forum was established in late December 2008 following a meeting held in TCD, and aims to provide a forum to discuss lake and catchment research in Ireland. It seeks to facilitate the exploration of ideas on the future of freshwater research in an Irish
and European context and to increase communication between researchers.
An informal meeting of the Freshwater Forum will be held on the 22nd of January in DkIT. In addition to presentations by Dr Elvira de Eyto on the on-going monitoring and research of the Marine Institute in the Burrishoole catchment, Mayo, and from a member of the EPA funded Pathways project, break-out groups will initiate discussions on topics which may lead to future joint publications. The aim of these break-out groups is to address the potential objectives for Irish lakes and catchment research through facilitating collabora-tion between different disciplines and research groups with a view to producing synthesis publications for international journals based on Irish data. There is no registration fee associated with this meeting and all are welcome. However, advance notification of attendance is required. Please see the proposed agenda on www.dkit.ie in the news section of the website. For further information please contact: Eleanor Jennings ([email protected]) Val-erie McCarthy ([email protected])
Seminar Series
26th January – 9th March 2010
These seminars are FREE to attend however to register please contact the SRC Sustainability and
Environment Project Team: Carmel Mee or John Russell
Business Support Unit, Newry West Campus, Patrick Street, Newry
Tel 028 3025 9706 Fax 028 3025 9676 Email [email protected] or
[email protected] Web: Southern Regional College www.src.ac.uk Carbon Zero NI www.carbonzeroni.com
Date Seminar Titles Time Venue
26-Jan The Sustainable Town 9-5p.m.
Greenshoots, Greenbank Ind Est.
Newry
28-Jan
Energy From Waste & Waste
Management 9-5p.m.
Greenshoots, Greenbank Ind Est.
Newry
02-Feb Sustainable Building Design 9-5p.m.
Greenshoots, Greenbank Ind Est.
Newry
04-Feb Energy Management 9-5p.m.
Greenshoots, Greenbank Ind Est.
Newry
09-Feb Bio-Energy 9-5p.m. AFBI Hillsborough
11-Feb Solar and Geothermal Energy 9-5p.m.
Greenshoots, Greenbank Ind Est.
Newry
16-Feb Innovation in Energy Provision 9-5p.m.
Greenshoots, Greenbank Ind Est.
Newry
18-Feb Domestic Energy Soiree 1 6.30-9.30p.m. Boardroom SRC Newry West Campus
25-Feb Domestic Energy Soiree 2 6.30-9.30p.m. Boardroom SRC Newry West Campus
23-Feb Wind Energy 9-5p.m. DKIT, Dundalk Co. Louth
26-Feb Tidal and Hydro Energy 9-5p.m.
Greenshoots, Greenbank Ind Est.
Newry &
Openhydro Greenore Co. Louth
09-Mar
Sustainable Dev. & Renewable
Energy 9-5p.m.
Lecture Theatre SRC Newry East
Campus
Get Fit for 2010 at DkIT Yoga classes for Staff and Students will start today
Monday 18th Jan at 5pm in the MPC - and will continue
every Monday during term
Also for anyone interested we will be running a circuits class every Tuesday morning at 8am in the
MPC
You are invited to a Workshop on Community Resilience on Wed 27th January starting at 2.30 pm until 5.00 pm
As part of our Perspectives Series of Talks on aspects of Sustainable Living we are happy to have Davie Philips in DkIT to enable a discussion on Resilience. Often when we think about what is posed to us by changes in climate and the economy we feel overwhelmed. Sometimes we forget that we can also be resilient, that we can create the conditions and the skills we need in new circumstances. Resilience is about this capacity to 'bounce' back, to re-group and adapt. The title of this Workshop is:
Community Resilience - An exploration into how we can adapt and thrive in these challenging times.
The Workshop will be faciliated by Davie Philip. Davie is a founding member of Cultivate and the Cloughjordan Eco-Village, a SEI Board member and the coordinator of Transi-tion Ireland and Northern Ireland. Using clips from Cultivates Powerdown Show and other multimedia he will introduce the Transition model and give an update on the pro-gress of Cloughjordan Ecovillage. This is an innovative development integrating with the town of Cloughjordan in North Tipperary where work has started on over 20 eco-homes and features renewable energy for heating, allotments, a community supported farm and plans for a green enterprise centre. Davie will also host a participatory discussion on community resilience using the world café format. This Workshop is free, and open to all in DkIT and anyone in the locality who is in-tersested or curious about this issue. If you are thinking of coming please contact Stefanie Ratzky in DkIT ([email protected]) The venue is Meeting Room, opposite Presidents Office in the Whitaker Building, DkIT. It'd be great to have you there.
Caption CompetitionCaption Competition
Send your suggestions to [email protected] your suggestions to [email protected]
