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Green women

The Green Party is the only major British political party to be led by a woman, and the only party that at many levels has rules to ensure gender balance is maintained in officials and candidates. But why does that matter? Green councillors and candidates identify three main issues: equity, ability and electability. Angela Thomson, an Eastern region European election candidate puts the first issue simply and clearly: “About 52% of the UK population is female, so 52% of the candidates ought to be female too.” Cllr Amy Kennedy from Brighton notes that fewer than 20% of MPs in Westminster are female. She says: “We need more women to stand for local government to ensure fair representation for women at a local level, with the ultimate aim of boosting female representation nationally, and to torpedo the notion that women are in some way less suited to politics and public life.” The second is the skills, experience, abilities and interests that women can bring to elected positions. You don’t have to believe in any sort of biological determinism to see that. Shan Oakes, second on the list for Yorks & the Humber Euro Elections 2009, explains that in her view: “In general, women and children are marginalised from the establishment and so are not distorted by the establishment culture, with its focus on capitalism and growth.” Cllr Maya de Souza from Camden, who is also the Green Party’s equality and diversity coordinator and a member of the government’s Black Asian and Minority Ethnic Women Councillors’ Taskforce, says: “Gender is still one of the primary determinants of social roles and experiences in our society. Women are vastly more likely to have spent time in caring roles; they have experience of discrimination; and simply they share experiences with half of the electorate that men have not had.” Cllr Sue Luxton from Lewisham adds that the chance to approach a female representative is terribly important to some constituents. “I’ve had domestic abuse cases where women from other wards have approached me rather than the male councillors in their own ward, presumably because they felt more comfortable talking to a woman.” Women too often take up issues and actions to help other women. Responding to an initiative from Cllr Kennedy, Brighton and Hove council this year became one of the first local authorities in the country to sign up to the Fawcett Society Charter, which committed it to reviewing its internal procedures to ensure they adequately address situations that may lead to women being viewed as ‘objects’ and auditing employee expenses to ensure its cash is not being spent in lap dancing clubs. Cllr Luxton adds: “ I’ve also been supporting the Object/Fawcett Society campaign re licensing laws for lapdancing, which other councillors seemed to ignore until an application locally caused uproar.” The Green Party leader, Caroline Lucas, has focused attention on the issue of teenage pregnancy in the constituency, Brighton and Hove, where she is the parliamentary candidate. She has noted that while issues of sex education and access to contraception, efforts must also consider the wider issue of the sexualisation of childhood in the media, “with ‘Playboy’ branded school equipment a top seller and adverts seeking to persuade girls that being sexually active is a mark of success in today’s society”. And finally, but far from unimportantly, electorates like to vote for female candidates, and particularly female Greens. Thomson says: “I’ve seen a three-seat ward where three women from three different parties have been chosen by voters.” The conclusion that women candidates can produce new enthusiasm among all voters, not just women voters, is backed by research into Westminster elections, where in seats where a female MP was elected, turnout among female voters was 9 percentage points higher than in seats where a man was elected. Turnout among male voters also rose by 5 percentage points in seats which elected a female MP. So why is even the Green Party still having to work hard to get gender balance among candidates? Discussion of this issue at gatherings of Green women often note that women are less likely to volunteer to stand for elected office, waiting until they are asked and sometimes lacking the confidence to push themselves forward. That’s not unique to the Green Party: academic research among female parliamentary candidates for other parties has found that they are more likely to say that they are “pushed” or “persuaded” to stand than male candidates. There are also the practical problems of women’s load of caring, work and other responsibilities. A survey of female councillors from all parties in 2000 found that the difficulty of balancing the responsibilities of home life with council work was the most reported barrier to women’s progression in local politics, cited by 74% of respondents. These are issues that the Green Party has for some time been looking to address, ensuring that selection procedures are open and welcoming and that female candidates are encouraged, says Cllr de Souza. “But we still hope to do more, and are now conducting research into ways that we can approach gender equality in all of our candidate groups.”

Green Economics: An Introduction to Theory, Policy and Practice

Even those who promote environmentally sound solutions to today’s issues often reduce the crisis to little more than an exercise of carbon accountancy, an approach that can leave the reader cold. Molly Scott Cato’s book is different. Expertly revealed through its chapters is an altogether more human approach to economics and the environment, one which is both scientifically literate and philosophically grounded. We are first introduced to the early pioneers of green economics; the contributions of well known figures such as James Robertson, Ernst Schumacher and Hazel Henderson are discussed, as well as those of some surprising figures from the 19th Century and before (whom Cato refers to as the proto-greens). Once the scene is set, issues such as work, money and business are discussed from a green perspective, which she notes as distinct from either environmentalism or radical socialism. Finally the book deals with the policy context, giving practical green solutions to problems concerning taxation, welfare, land and of course - globalisation. What is particularly refreshing in this account of a sustainable economy is the author’s positive language and practical thinking. She clearly believes that green politics is achievable, perhaps even inevitable, and her confidence is infectious. Nowhere is this enthusiasm better expressed than in the wonderful phrase ‘more fun; less stuff’, a prerequisite for a sustainable society and a powerful retort to those who believe ‘going green’ would mean a life of drudgery. However, Green Economics is more than the usual textbook on localism and sustainability; it is a direct challenge to an academic discipline that has lost its way. For a generation, economists have searched for scientific certainty and concentrated on complex mathematical models, neglecting important issues such as morality and spiritual fulfilment. The so-called ‘physics envy’ of a social science. Could this blinkered view be the reason their theories have failed so spectacularly? As the author herself acknowledges this is by no means an original work but a collection of ideas and examples of ‘right living’ from all around the world, including her own community in Stroud, Gloucestershire. Some topics do feel as if they have been covered a little too briefly. It would have been good to see more discussion of the diversity and resilience of a localised economy and how this would shield us from the chaotic world economy. But as an attempt to bring together the often disjointed works of green economists, and in the process establish a new academic discipline, Green Economics is a valuable contribution. Just one year ago the tenets laid out in this book would have been considered radical. Now, with the collapse of markets all around the world, they represent a modest, common sense approach towards a sustainable future. At last, here is a serious book on economics which has a clear narrative and is enjoyable to read.

An emphasis on crime prevention

Part of the way we would achieve the emphasis on crime prevention is to create a new government ministry/department of crime prevention. New Labour has belatedly seen the problems of the old structure but has gone for different reassembling which mirrors our call for a ministry of justice, but not for crime prevention. This is sad because it is the latter that would be more effective in reducing crime and the fear of crime. What is important therefore about our policies is that we would actually re-orientate policing away from solely being about justice and order, the status quo, towards preventing crime in the first place. This would have enormous knock-on benefits for the police culturally. It is vital that police recognise that the citizens they police are the citizens they serve, and this will ultimately only be achieved by a cultural shift. The Green Party shares the traditional principles of what policing should be - stopping crime happening in the first place, being accountable to local people, having good relations with the public. We have the relevant policies to achieve it - focus on crime prevention, not just detection; and, above all, recognition that the police and the public are not two opposing sides in conflict. Matt Follett is Policy Co-ordinator (which he shares with Brian Heatley) on GPEx. He is also a university lecturer in criminology and Leader of the Green Party on Leicester City Council.

Green Changing

If we are to reconnect people and politics, a new type of politics is needed – one in which major issues are seriously debated, in which all parts of society are represented and in which politicians are accountable to those who elected them. But we cannot get it with ‘old’ style elections and all their empty confrontation and silenced voices. It’s patently obvious we need to change the way we elect our MPs, but are politicians best placed to set the rules for their own game? Ken Ritchie looks at the case for proportional representation Never has the case for electoral reform been stronger. We face the most serious economic recession for decades, and yet we are being led through it by a Government that was supported by just 35% of the voters – only 21% of electors when turnout is taken into account. This surely is a time that requires strong government, but strong in the sense that it has a strong mandate from the electorate. In the coming months we need a new campaign to change these rules through a referendum on our voting system. Labour promised such a referendum in 1997 but, while it did much to reform our constitution, electoral reform for the Commons was a step too far for a government with a comfortable majority. In 2001 and 2005 Labour manifestos made the point that the right way to change the voting system would be through a referendum, but at no time has a referendum featured seriously on Labour’s agenda. Labour has now left it too late. Even if it wanted to change the voting system before the next general election, there is not enough time to complete the process. As a result, in 2010, if not earlier, we will face another election in which most votes don’t count, which will be decided in a small number of marginal constituencies, and which is likely to be ‘won’ by a party with far from a majority of the votes. But there is still one option open to Labour: a referendum on election day. It would not make the next election any better, but it would give us a chance to vote to make it the last election under our hopelessly dysfunctional system. Even in the safest of seats people would have an incentive to turn out to vote for change, and it would ensure that electoral reform is not an issue candidates can duck in the heat of the campaign. In 2001 and 2005, Labour’s excuse for not holding a referendum was that the Government was reviewing Britain’s experience of the new electoral systems used in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and in London and European elections. The review was strung out for seven years, but the eventual report was quite a fair assessment. Proportional representation, it noted, changed the way governments are formed and the way executives and parliaments relate; PR gave smaller parties representation; and with PR (and in particular with STV), “voters have a greater degree of choice in elections and a greater chance of their vote counting in terms of who gets elected”. So, if our experience of electoral reform is generally good, why are we not getting a referendum? Here we come up against the old problem of major parties hoping, often against the odds, that they can seize power on a minority of the votes, and many politicians are happier with a system that gives them safe seats rather than one that might make them uncomfortably accountable. MPs might be mildly tolerant of electoral reform in devolved institutions, but it is another matter if it affects their own jobs. If we are to have a referendum on election day, we need to act fast in generating a powerful campaign to persuade the Government to go for it. Here are just some of the things we can do: • Let’s make sure every MP knows there is a demand for an referendum, and that support at the election may depend on how they respond to that demand. The more letters MPs receive the better (or emails, but always remember to add your address to demonstrate you are a constituent), and better still is a visit to an MP’s surgery. • Labour MPs need to be reminded that a referendum is something their party has promised, and we don’t want politicians who break their promises. • Letters in local papers can also add to the pressure on MPs, particularly if they result in others joining the campaign. • Let’s get our friends in on the action through the internet: Facebook and Youtube make it easy for us to contact hundreds of people – it worked for Obama and it can work for us. • Environmental organisations need to use their muscle. RSPB alone has more members that all of the parties combined. Of course there are constraints on what charities can do, but they can publicise the need for change (e.g. “Wouldn’t it be good if a referendum led to a government that had to pay more attention to us!”). • If you are a student, get your student union or youth organisation to add to the demand for a referendum – younger people don’t want tired, old politics – and make sure MPs know about it. If you want more ideas or material to support your arguments - or if have ideas that could help the campaign - contact referendum@electoral-reform.org.uk. We want to hear from you because we need your support. The campaign for a referendum is undoubtedly ambitious, but if won the prize could be the transformation of British politics.

Young Greens - the future of the Party

The Young Greens mission is to convince a disillusioned youth that the Greens are more than a single-issue party.

Given its relatively young age, the prominence of the Young Greens has grown rapidly. In schools, universities and local communities, the youth wing of the Green Party has united youth activists across the country. This success is partly due to an increasing environmental consciousness amongst the population at large; however, the success is also due to the enthusiasm and determination of the Young Greens. It has been up to us to convince a disillusioned youth that we are not just a single issue party, but that we offer a radical alternative to the monotonous social polices that the mainstream parties churn out. Alternatives such as equal access to education, consistent opposition to war in Iraq and, unlike Cameron and Blair, we have been warning of the effects of climate change for decades, not weeks. All around the country vibrant groups of Young Greens are spreading this message. For example, in East London Young Greens have been campaigning for several years to prevent the closure of Queens Market, perhaps Europe’s most ethnically diverse market, that provides fresh food to thousands of working class people in the East End. At the London School of Economics, Greens have been campaigning for a ‘Living Wage’ for their cleaners, against their university’s investment in the arms trade and against the appointment of Peter Sutherland, the current Chair of BP, as the Chair-Elect of the School’s Governing Body. Such enthusiastic and principled activism is being mirrored at more and more campuses every year as Young Green groups are founded and continue to prosper. Nationally, Young Greens have campaigned against tuition fees at national marches and are this year focussing on issues regarding xenophobia and against Trident, a policy which has clear ramifications for generations to come. We have also canvassed (successfully) for local parties such as Oxford, Norwich and Islington, gaining valuable experience and providing a valuable resource for the wider Party. Ironically, even this New Labour government recognises the campaigning work of Young Greens. Last year, Young Green Sofia Zabolotskih was named as one of the Government’s Climate Change Champions after a competition was organised to encourage young people to warn of the effects of climate change. But offering a viable alternative is not just about protesting against polices we disagree with, but about implementing those that will make our society more socially just and environmentally sustainable. Young Greens are being elected across the country and are a growing force in the student movement. Last year saw the first ever Young Green, Joe Rooney, elected to the National Union of Students (NUS) National Executive. Around the country Greens are being elected in their universities’ own campus elections; in Nottingham, Chloe Cheeseman was elected as one of the University’s NUS delegates with more first preferences than nearly all of the other candidates put together.

NO MORE OIL, TIGERS EXTINCT AND CLIMATE CHANGE HITTING HARD - HOW YOUNG PEOPLE SEE THE WORLD IN 25 YEARS In 25 years the oil will run out and tigers will be extinct in the wild, according to a uniquely wide-ranging survey of young people’s expectations of the future by the sustainable-development charity Forum for the Future and the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). Those surveyed believe lifestyles will need to change radically if human civilisation is to survive into the next century. And they see themselves becoming much more environmentally active in the next decade to help do their bit towards achieving this. The Future Leaders Survey 2006-2007, a major report published on 24 January, provides a fascinating insight into the hopes, fears and expectations of 54,240 of the UK’s brightest young people - respondents to a questionnaire sent to all university and college applicants aged 17-21 for the academic year 2006-2007. The findings suggest a widespread sense that today’s business and political leaders are failing us on climate change but provide a powerful mandate from young people to take radical action. Young women are shown to be significantly more concerned about the future than men - and more environmentally active. Asked to consider what the world will be like in 25 years, a narrow majority of people expect quality of life in the UK to have improved but 91% think climate change will be hitting hard and 80% think inequality between rich and poor countries will grow. Two thirds believe global oil reserves will have run out, 74% expect to be talking to their computers instead of using a keyboard and 70% think tigers will be extinct in the wild. Most are optimistic that human civilisation will survive into the next century, but 76% believe lifestyles need to change radically across the board or in many areas for this to be achieve. Source: Forum for the Future / UCAS

Agitate, educate and organise Perhaps the most meteoric rise has been that of the LSE Green Party where the Greens are the largest political party with around 30 per cent of the Students’ Union Executive. As more and more of Britain’s population is educated at university, the Young Greens will play an increasingly important role in enabling people to make the connection between voting Green and getting the effective and necessary change required to achieve economic and ecological justice, both locally and globally. It is therefore essential that the Young Greens are given the support and resources to continue to ‘agitate, educate and organise’ amongst the youth of today, if we are to ever achieve the better tomorrow that we all want to see.

Green View

As a member of the Metropolitan Police Authority for the last nine years, and a protester for more than 40 years, I have been a critical friend of the police, defending them when I see the coverage is unfair, but making it clear when I think they have got it wrong, on many occasions. On 1 April, they got it disastrously wrong. At the G20 demo they took away the liberty, the civil liberties and the human rights of hundreds of people who were protesting peacefully, who had every right to protest and who needed the police’s support. What the police did to the fluffy, happy, musical, picnicking Climate Camp part of the protest was violent and unprovoked. Who gave the order to go in and hit and kick and trample people who had their hands raised in the air? Who amongst those police thought it was the right thing to do? As more footage and more complaints come to light, I am starting to doubt that the police can clean up this mess inside themselves and make middle Britain believe in them again. Most of us think that the majority of police officers probably behaved well, in the face of the violent minority who joined the demo of innocent, peace loving protesters, but they are let down by those officers who behaved badly. In order to challenge a culture of policing which sees hiding your numbers or hitting passive people with the edge of your shield as acceptable, the police are, at the very least, going to have to overhaul their public order tactics and their training. It has been said that this is a pivotal point for the police and they probably won’t be able to ever police in the same way again - let’s make that true so that we get a police force that isn’t trying to repress free speech or take away tourists’ cameras, and instead is actually upholding the law, including the right to peaceful protest.

POLICE

The recent policing of protests and use of terrorism powers have called into question just how measured the UK government’s use of the police force is. But it doesn’t have to be this way, says Matt Follett: the Green Party has policies that will return the police to the purpose for which they were intended Given the media controversy over the policing of the G20 protests one would be forgiven for thinking that policing has changed little since the bad old days of the 1980s. In terms of what criminologists call ‘public order policing’ of protests one would probably be right. It seems increasingly clear that whatever improvements have been made over the last 20 years in terms of ‘community policing’ (and there is certainly evidence that improvements have occurred), there is some way to go before citizens who engage in political activism can feel 100% certain that they will be treated fairly by our boys in blue. Sir Robert Peel established the first real police force in the UK in 1829. His basic tenets of policing remain as relevant today as they ever did (see box, right). From these we can see a) that recent events did not subscribe to this approach, and b) the Green Party stance is very near to these original principles. Currently Green Party policy on policing does not necessarily go into great detail, but the principles are clear. The one I wish to focus on is the following:

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[Quote Trubus Article: NO. 360 EDITIONS November 1999 - TH. XXX] Sudirman eventually yield to the claim divorce his wife. What can be made, for 5 years the boat house he could not provide "support" esoteric. Impotensi attack in the first week of marriage. Later he married again following a suggestion sister drink powder L. Amara. Was Sudirman (fictitious name) is almost desperate. How not, when the court's beloved children crave the very dicintainya. Tahunya, Isn'T descent, the days full of intimacy even as it were so hell. Fortunate brothers and sisters always menasehati and encouraging support, including funding for treatment where he is wanted. His men original Bone Sulalwesi South is only working as civil servants. Ranging from medical specialist to traditional nun far there were no terlewatkan. But businesses do not produce results until the divorce decision is taken. The way-there are only. A farmer in the village Sanrego Bone regency, South Sulawesi mengembalakan middle horse. This area is noted as the center horse. Horses horses to spur the most datangkan from here. Not so surprising in pengembalaan have dozens of horses that must be monitored. Male and female mixed, because if there birahi not marry each other and harm each other. However, nearly a dozen years of experience not found in the horse kawin penggembalaan. So when there are visible stallion aggressive, chase and a mare, a question arises in the mind of the herd. Oh ...., that have large leaves, the length about 30 cm and 15 cm wide, eaten horse before. Leaved plants, which is similar to pierce the heart of the thicket. Si pengembala the more curious, stallion was not satisfied with just one female. Some of the tails into pemuas appetite birahinya. In fact, in each run aksinya female climbed many times. Itung - itung as a rabbit experiment pengembala trying to poach the stem wood. Of course after the first cut piece. Then water rebusannya drink. Extraordinary, lust and power of the herd there is no difference with the horse. Usually not as strong. This is valuable information that later proved by Sudirman. Only drink with seduhan L. Amara 5 glasses of occasions, the child was already Sudirman's new wife. Impotensinya recover total. The same experienced Asmuddin of the Bone impotensi because like "jajan". Impotensinya cured with water stew L. Amara. Been called that L. Amara potential substitute viagra the drug had a strong scandalize. Viagra is actually something to people with high blood pressure, side effects associated ereksi only so much longer. Viagra when consumed by normal people is very dangerous to health because the blood pressure becomes normal so it does not. Effect of Temporal viagra also just so that eventually lead to dependence. Unlike the plant with the name of viagra scientific / latin L. Amara is a natural, so safe, cheap and does not cause dependence. L. Amara has been scientifically examined and raised to manhood khasiatnya men have been recognized and many people get respect from the dr. Boyke which is a well-seksolog. In addition as the "spirit" plant L. Amara is also traditionally used as a diabetes drug, antidiare, bidder toxic food, malaria, skin and drugs aberration snakebite. Story turns magical L. Amara is not only known by Sudirman and his family but has become a prescription medicine herb / herbal medicine secret power - male masculinity / men - men. Interested in the story of L. Amara is not only common people. Prof. Dr. H. Muhsin Darise, M. Sc, Teachers of Pharmacy UNHAS to sacrifice cost for menelitinya. Some scientists are also researching L. Amara are: Ludvina S. De Padua from the Philippines, Linda S and Mimi D. proselytizer of UNHAS, Nurbita and researchers from the University of Pancasakti. Saking yakinnya Prof. Dr. H. Muhsin Darise, M. Sc is a graduate of the 1974 ITB S1, S2 and S3 Hirosima University Japan in the field of pharmacy in 1981 and 1985 said "I guarantee severeness wood Amara L. passion to improve men's sex." From research on wood L. Amara starting from 1994 - 1997 in the Laboratory of Pharmacy Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences by Prof. UNHAS. Dr. H. Muhsin Darise, M. Sc, and colleagues - colleagues next produced Jamu L. Wood Amara with herbal medicine in powder form of aluminum foil packaging that obtained permission MOH TR: 993 298 161 producers with a single CV. FITO PERKASA MANDIRI. Pemakaiannya very easy. Wood powder L. Amara is a white brown diseduh with 1 cup hot water. 1 tablespoon dose for a glass of water. Seduhan poke and didiamkan stirred for about 5 minutes. Akan appear sediment / pulp powder in the bottom of glass. Pour another glass to be strained while that endapannya not. For the usual wet a little bitter-bitter can meminumnya. If not, can be mixed first with the yolk and honey. It is recommended to drink it 3x a day. Not wasteful because the remaining grounds can still be used for pahitnya not feel lost (about 3x). Jamu wood L. Amara drink 1 hour before the deal. Jamu wood L. Amara than therapy or treatment for sexual problems is also very good for normal men who want to maintain or increase passion sexualnya so that it can provide "services" on a prime partner because as dimaklumi with padatnya activity / occupation, fatigue and stress experienced by the many most people at this time is often with a sexual passion. You need that and want to savor L. Amara or Amara or full Lunasia also called Sanrego because khasiatnya found by residents of the Village Sanrego does not need to worry because it costs only 120 thousand rupiah to 36x seduh including shipping charges, much cheaper than viagra. You need not trouble to come to Bone in South Sulawesi please message L. Amara in the original, 081 320 321 322 via SMS or phone directly. Payment is via bank transfer and the product is sent via TIKI / JNE. L. Amara is suitable if combined with the product oles "SA'ADAH".

Vitamins May Help Fight Hair Los

SG;SAGO TEAM Vitamins May Help Fight Hair Los Loss of hair or baldness is often referred to as alopecia. Alopecia total’s means loss of all the scalp hair, while alopecia universals means loss of all body hair, including eyebrows and eyelashes. If hair falls out in patches, it is termed alopecia aerate. This condition is temporary and does not usually lead to baldness. Heredity, hormones, and aging are all factors that are involved in hair loss. Researchers have not yet determined the exact cause of hair loss, but some scientists believe the body’s immune system mistakes hair follicles for foreign tissue and attacks them. On the other hand, many suspect that hair loss is simply a genetic component. A less dramatic, but much more prevalent type of hair loss is androgenic alopecia (AGA), which is also known as male pattern baldness. AGA is extremely common in men. As the name implies, a genetic or hereditary predisposition to the disorder and the presence of androgens, which are male sex hormones, are involved in this condition. Research has shown that the hair follicles of individuals who are susceptible to AGA may have receptors that are programmed to slow down or shut off hair production once they are influenced by androgens. Women can also experience the same type of hair loss. However, it is usually not as extensive and most often does not occur until after menopause. All women experience some form of hair thinning as they grow older, especially after menopause. With some, it begins as early as puberty. Additionally, most women lose some hair two or three months after having a baby since hormonal changes prevent normal hair loss during pregnancy. Demodex follicularum, a species of tiny mite, may be the cause of, or at least a contributing factor, to balding. These mites are present in almost all hair follicles by the time a person reaches middle age. In most cases, these mites cause no harm. Researchers believe that the difference between people who lose their hair and those who do not may be in how the scalp reacts to the presence of these mites. If the body initiates the inflammatory response as it tries to reject the mites, this can close down the hair follicles, which in turn, kill the mites and also kill the hair. Additionally, hereditary factors that promote hair loss include poor circulation, acute illness, surgery, radiation exposure, skin disease, sudden weight loss, high fever, iron deficiency, diabetes, thyroid disease, drugs such as those used in chemotherapy, stress, poor diet, ringworm and other fungal infections, stress, chemicals such as hair dyes, and vitamin deficiencies. The following nutrients are considered to be very important for dealing with and preventing hair loss: essential fatty acids, raw thymus glandular, vitamin B complex, vitamin C with bioflavonoids, vitamin E, zinc, coenzyme Q10, DMG, and kelp. Additionally, the following nutrients are helpful in dealing with hair loss: copper, grape seed extract, l-cysteine, MSM, and silica. The following herbs can also help prevent and deal with hair loss: apple cider vinegar, sage tea, ginkgo biloba, horsetail, green tea, pygeum, saw palmetto, and tea tree oil. With proper diet, nutrition, and dietary supplements, one can rule out whether hair loss is dietary verses hormonal or fungal. Some supplements like evening primrose and omega-3 can help regulate inflammation hormones and hormones that can affect the immune system and hair follicles. Your local or internet health food store can better help you select the right products for each persons hair needs. Fublisher by sago team Released from www.thehealthyvillage.com

Vitamins May Help Fight Hair Los

SG;SAGO TEAM Vitamins May Help Fight Hair Los Loss of hair or baldness is often referred to as alopecia. Alopecia total’s means loss of all the scalp hair, while alopecia universals means loss of all body hair, including eyebrows and eyelashes. If hair falls out in patches, it is termed alopecia aerate. This condition is temporary and does not usually lead to baldness. Heredity, hormones, and aging are all factors that are involved in hair loss. Researchers have not yet determined the exact cause of hair loss, but some scientists believe the body’s immune system mistakes hair follicles for foreign tissue and attacks them. On the other hand, many suspect that hair loss is simply a genetic component. A less dramatic, but much more prevalent type of hair loss is androgenic alopecia (AGA), which is also known as male pattern baldness. AGA is extremely common in men. As the name implies, a genetic or hereditary predisposition to the disorder and the presence of androgens, which are male sex hormones, are involved in this condition. Research has shown that the hair follicles of individuals who are susceptible to AGA may have receptors that are programmed to slow down or shut off hair production once they are influenced by androgens. Women can also experience the same type of hair loss. However, it is usually not as extensive and most often does not occur until after menopause. All women experience some form of hair thinning as they grow older, especially after menopause. With some, it begins as early as puberty. Additionally, most women lose some hair two or three months after having a baby since hormonal changes prevent normal hair loss during pregnancy. Demodex follicularum, a species of tiny mite, may be the cause of, or at least a contributing factor, to balding. These mites are present in almost all hair follicles by the time a person reaches middle age. In most cases, these mites cause no harm. Researchers believe that the difference between people who lose their hair and those who do not may be in how the scalp reacts to the presence of these mites. If the body initiates the inflammatory response as it tries to reject the mites, this can close down the hair follicles, which in turn, kill the mites and also kill the hair. Additionally, hereditary factors that promote hair loss include poor circulation, acute illness, surgery, radiation exposure, skin disease, sudden weight loss, high fever, iron deficiency, diabetes, thyroid disease, drugs such as those used in chemotherapy, stress, poor diet, ringworm and other fungal infections, stress, chemicals such as hair dyes, and vitamin deficiencies. The following nutrients are considered to be very important for dealing with and preventing hair loss: essential fatty acids, raw thymus glandular, vitamin B complex, vitamin C with bioflavonoids, vitamin E, zinc, coenzyme Q10, DMG, and kelp. Additionally, the following nutrients are helpful in dealing with hair loss: copper, grape seed extract, l-cysteine, MSM, and silica. The following herbs can also help prevent and deal with hair loss: apple cider vinegar, sage tea, ginkgo biloba, horsetail, green tea, pygeum, saw palmetto, and tea tree oil. With proper diet, nutrition, and dietary supplements, one can rule out whether hair loss is dietary verses hormonal or fungal. Some supplements like evening primrose and omega-3 can help regulate inflammation hormones and hormones that can affect the immune system and hair follicles. Your local or internet health food store can better help you select the right products for each persons hair needs. Fublisher by sago team Released from www.thehealthyvillage.com

The Real Dangers of Air Pollution

By Adam Voiland

Sago pos team,... It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that there are better things you could do for your health than take deep breaths on a smoggy day. A growing pile of research suggests that even relatively low levels of air pollution may be more harmful than previously realized, to both heart and lungs. The latest salvo from researchers, published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine, focuses on how particulate matter from air pollution affects lung function. The new research buttresses studies (here and here) published earlier this year by the same journal showing that air pollution contributes to heart problems. How much should you worry? U.S. News asked leading experts to put this latest news in context. Some key questions and answers: What is particulate pollution? According to an American Lung Association report, particulate pollution refers to the mix of solid and liquid particles in the air that can come from natural sources, such as dust storms or wildfires, or from such human activity as the burning of fossil fuels in factories or the use of diesel engines. Other particulates are produced when certain chemicals and substances react with one another in the atmosphere.

What is the danger to my heart and lungs? The effect of low levels of particulate pollution found in many urban areas is not unlike secondhand smoke, experts say. Studies show that short-term adverse effects from particulates include diminished lung function, coughing, wheezing, cardiac arrhythmias, and heart attacks. Long-term exposure can also worsen asthma, slow normal lung growth, damage lung airways, and increase the risk of dying from lung cancer and cardiovascular disease.

How big is the risk to me? Certain populations, such as the very old and the very young, are the most vulnerable to air pollution. However, even the most alarming studies conducted in the most polluted areas suggest that the average person's individual risk from exposure is very slight. Relative risk numbers often seem more frightening than they actually are, says Erik Rifkin, an environmental scientist and the coauthor of a book about assessing health risks titled The Illusion of Certainty: Health Benefits and Risks. For example, an earlier study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that short-term exposure to traffic fumes tripled the risk of heart attacks in heart-attack survivors. What's easily forgotten, says Rifkin, is that the risk was extremely small to start with. Jogging or having sex, for example, could elevate the risk of a heart attack by a similar amount, says Robert Brook, a cardiac physician at the University of Michigan.

What's the big deal if the risk to an individual is small? From a public health perspective, even a tiny increase in risk multiplied by millions of people translates into tens of thousands of unnecessary illnesses, hospitalizations, and premature deaths, experts say. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that each year some 65,000 Americans have cardiac events associated with uncontrolled air pollution levels.

How can I protect myself? Short of moving to the countryside or at least away from busy roads, shielding yourself from the effects of air pollution is not easy. Masks won't work, as many particles can slip right through. At the very least, suggests Murray Mittleman, a cardiologist at Harvard University, people who regularly exercise outdoors near highways may want to consider remapping their route.

How can I find out about the quality of the air in my local area? The American Lung Association has a Web tool that allows you to type in your ZIP code and get a detailed report on the air quality in your area. You'll find everything from grades for particulate and ozone pollution (Chicago gets an F for particulates, for example, while Cheyenne gets an A) plus a breakdown that shows how many unsafe pollution days the region has had and how many people in the area are at high risk.

Air Of Danger

Sago team Post

Robert Macfarlane revels in Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's writing about flight

The Doldrums, the strip-zones of low pressure which roam equatorial seas, are notorious for their punishing tranquillity. Silver water basking under blue skies; painted ship, painted ocean. As sailors have long known, though, the Doldrums are also given to violence. Squall lines sweep suddenly across them. Hot water makes hot, wet air, which rises in fierce up-draughts, before thickening and braiding into typhoons and tornadoes.

In his aeronautical masterpiece, Wind, Sand and Stars (1939), Antoine Saint-Exupéry describes the first seaplane crossing of the South Atlantic, made by his friend Jean Mermoz in May 1930. When Mermoz reached the Doldrums, they were in a turbulent mood:

"Waterspouts stood in apparently motionless ranks like the pillars of a temple. On their swollen capitals rested the dark and lowering arch of the storm, but blades of light sliced down through cracks in the arch, and between the pillars the full moon gleamed on the cold stone tiles of the sea. Mermoz made his way through those empty ruins, banking for four hours from one channel of light to another, circling round those giant pillars with the sea surging up inside them, following those flows of moonlight towards the exit from the temple."

Saint-Exupéry's writings, the finest in aerology - among the finest in all exploration - are full of moments such as these: moments when, aloft, one suddenly "passes beyond the borders of the real world", and into a realm so elemental that it seems otherworldly.

In Night Flight (1931), Southern Mail (1929), and Flight to Arras (1942), he writes of crash-landings in the "mineral country" of the desert, of long journeys in darkness over sea and sand, of crossing high mountain passes while "sprays of lightning" illuminate the peaks. He writes, too, of miracles; of how, on a night-flight south, a pilot will move through seasons in a matter of hours, "leaving behind the rains and snows of the North, repudiating winter, he throttles back his engine and begins his descent through a midsummer sky into the dazzling sunlight of Alicante".

No one has written about air like Saint-Exupéry. Air was a substance whose beauty so astonished him that he often lapsed into dream-like states while at the controls: the aeroplanes he was flying did not have autopilot. "I live", he once wrote, "in the realm of flight".

Saint-Exupéry, or Saint-Ex as he was widely known, learnt his trade as a pilot while working for Latécoère, the company which in the late 1910s opened up the first air routes into Africa and South America. The Latécoère pilots were not today's stern men of gold braid and flight-bag, shuttling between the duty-free zones of the world's cities. They were a clerisy of risk-takers, a young aerial aristocracy. Men like Mermoz pushed their planes far above their operational ceilings. When they returned, "it was only to set out again". Saint-Ex began by venerating these men, then he became one of them.

With Latécoère, Saint-Ex flew some of the most hazardous early mail routes over the Mediterranean, the Sahara and the Andes. During these years, he encountered the two elemental trinities - "wind, sand and stars", "mountain, sea and storm" - which he would worship for the rest of his life. And he came to understand that he was a man who found himself by getting lost. Flying, radioless, with limited fuel, above desert or ocean expanses, was his preferred state. He felt most at home in "a remoteness beyond possibility of homecoming".

It is extraordinary that Saint-Ex lived as long as he did. He describes once piloting over the lightless Libyan desert for hours on a clouded night. Glimpsing "the gleam of water at the bottom of a crevasse in the fog", he realises that he has been flying mistakenly over open sea - a navigational error which almost kills him. On another occasion, he and a navigator crash-land in the Libyan desert and, against all odds, walk to safety. They pass on foot through a vast area of dunes which are covered "with a single layer of shining black pebbles". "It is", wrote Saint-Ex, "as if we are walking on scales of metal, and all the domes around us shine like armour. We have fallen into a metallic world. We are locked in an iron landscape."

On another occasion, piloting a seaplane through stormy air far above water, he notices the "great white palm leaves which seem to cover the sea's surface, marked with veins and flaws and petrified in a kind of frost". It is an exquisite sight, but Saint-Ex knows that this is "no place to put down," for the frost is in fact the sign of turbulent water seen from altitude: not "beautiful palm leaves" at all, but "poisonous flowers".

In Saint-Ex's writing, we are always seeing down on to the world, and reinterpreting it as a consequence. "A person taking off from the ground," he once remarked, "elevates himself above the trivialities of life into a new understanding." The Greeks had a name for the person who saw from above. They called him the katascopos - a word which later came to mean spy, or explorer - and for them, the sight gained from height was close to god-like. Saint-Ex was a katascopos in every sense of the word, and to read his prose - terse, epigrammatic, visionary - is to share in some part that salutary aerial view, that fresh cosmic perspective.

"We are living on a wandering planet", he beautifully observed. "From time to time, thanks to the aeroplane, it reveals to us its origin: a lake connected with the moon unveils hidden kinships. I have seen other signs of this." This idea of connection - an idea that was both environmentalist and humanist in its implications - joins all of Saint-Ex's writing, right through to his mystical work, Citadelle, unfinished at the time of his death (he died as he dreamed, disappearing in July 1944 during a reconnaissance flight over the Mediterranean). Up in his sky-lab, Saint-Ex developed a socialist version of heroism: a belief - in the words of his best English translator - William Rees, that "human solidarity was the only true wealth in life, mutual responsibility the only ethic".

This ideal was deeply involved, for Saint-Ex, with the view from above - the aeronaut's vision. In the short, exquisite prologue to Wind, Sand and Stars, he described his first night flight in Argentina:

"It was a dark night, with only occasional scattered lights glittering like stars on the plain. Each one, in that ocean of shadows, was a sign of the miracle of consciousness. In one home, people were reading, or thinking, or sharing confidences. In another, perhaps, they were searching through space, wearying themselves with the mathematics of the Andromeda nebula. In another they were making love. These small flames shone far apart in the landscape, demanding their fuel. Each one, in that ocean of shadows, was a sign of the miracle of consciousness ... the flame of the poet, the teacher, or the carpenter. But among these living stars, how many closed windows, how many extinct stars, how many sleeping men ..."

"We must", Saint-Ex concluded, "surely seek unity. We must surely seek to communicate with some of those fires burning far apart in the landscape."

Dangerous world

Sago post Team,Michelet Etienne was kicking a soccer ball around the warren of cinderblock hovels where he lives when a U.N. patrol thundered by and gunmen leaped from their hiding places to spray it with bullets. When the shooting was over, the 12-year-old lay bleeding and unconscious amid piles of garbage and potholes filled with fetid water. A stray bullet had blown out part of his skull and severed his spinal cord, rendering his skinny legs useless. "I can't bring my feet together," the listless child whimpered in the crowded recovery ward of St. Joseph's Hospital a week later. "I can't move my feet." Like hundreds of other hapless bystanders over the last year, Michelet was caught in the crossfire between gunmen and besieged peacekeepers, an increasingly dangerous fact of life for the 2.5 million Haitians doomed to the teeming slums of this capital. With the approach of Tuesday's elections, the first since President Jean-Bertrand Aristide fled an armed rebellion two years ago, pressure has mounted on U.N. forces to break the gangs' stranglehold on the city. The crackdown has accelerated the deaths and injuries. Aristide loyalists claim that some of the casualties are victims of trigger-happy peacekeepers in league with corrupt Haitian police. Diplomats call the gunmen common criminals who are trying to protect their drug- and gun-running operations from the United Nations force, which is made up of more than 9,000 soldiers and police from three dozen countries, mostly in Latin America and Asia. It used to be that most of the shooting victims came from a couple of trouble spots, slums such as Cite Soleil and Bel Air, said Ali Besnaci, a French physician who heads the trauma clinic run by Doctors Without Borders at St. Joseph's. "Now the problem has spread all over," he said. Of the more than 300 gunshot victims treated at St. Joseph's in the last six weeks, at least half were women, children and elderly, clearly not combatants in the city's street-by-street clashes, Besnaci said. In December, Doctors Without Borders' two downtown emergency units treated 220 people with bullet wounds, 26 of those in a single, violent day after Christmas. Among the victims were a 15-month-old and a 77-year-old. Since the aid group arrived here 13 months ago, its volunteer surgeons have treated nearly 2,500 people. "It's terrible. It's simply unacceptable," Besnaci said as he visited the bedsides of the maimed, laid out in rows of gurneys and covered with stained sheets.

An Amuzing World II

Greenpeace is a non-profit organisation with a presence in 40 countries across Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific. As a global organisation, Greenpeace focuses on the most crucial worldwide threats to our planet’s biodiversity and environment. They campaign to: Stop climate change Protect ancient forests Save the oceans Stop whaling Say no to genetic engineering Stop the nuclear threat Eliminate toxic chemicals Encourage sustainable trade “Greenpeace has been campaigning against environmental degradation since 1971 when a small boat of volunteers and journalists sailed into Amchitka, an area north of Alaska where the US Government was conducting underground nuclear tests. “To maintain its independence, Greenpeace does not accept donations from governments or corporations but relies on contributions from individual supporters and foundation grants.” What you can do..... Make a donation: Since Greenpeace does not accept donations from governments or corporations; and relies on contributions from individuals and foundation grants, your donation will make a difference. Become an online activist: The community activists hail from 125 countries and territories. Sign up and you get a monthly e-zine and action alerts full of ways to be a one - minute activist. It’s all free. Volunteer: From envelope- stuffing to Amazon surival training, many working in Greenpeace offices today started out as volunteers. Some countries provide action and non-violence training to those willing to become activists. Talk to your local Greenpeace office or contact the international office in Amsterdam. Join one of the Green peace ships: Like Isha has shown, sailing aboard a Greenpeace ship can be the experience of a lifetime. Many ask; few are chosen. To apply, send your CV to: Greenpeace Marine Services, Ottho Heldringstraat 5, 1066 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands. They value maritime experience, safety training, and a wide range of skills in their professional crew. You can help save the world, every day. Visit Greenpeace to see how you can make changes.

An Amuzing World

A Green World - Article on Isha Anand for mE magazine 24 Sept Isha Anand is just one of the many people trying to make the world a greener place. Peacefully Once upon a time, there was a girl. Like most people of her ilk that do not fit a precise mould, she was labelled many things. After years of a bohemian lifestyle, she stunned everyone by opting for an interesting career. Isha Anand found her calling as a cook with Greenpeace. While the rest of the world plans to do something to save the world, she actually goes out and does it! In 2004, Greenpeace’s flagship, the Rainbow Warrior, visited the tropical forests of Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea and the nearby archipelagos to document what is being lost, support the people working to protect it, and hold accountable those responsible for the destruction. The crew page of the web log has her introduction, where she mentions, “I hope I can make a difference, somehow!” She certainly gave it her best. By January 28 that year, Isha was immersed in the hard work it takes to save the world. On the web log, she talks about working hard in sauna-like conditions in the ship’s hold on a rainy day. By the end of that voyage, the better part of which she spent cooking because the cook was ill, Isha had found her calling. She returned to Mumbai to sort out some paperwork. In June 2005, she was back on ship. This time as a cook, sailing into the Arctic with the thin ice project, to fight global warming. Her shipmate Melanie remarks on the voyage’s web log: “This is Isha’s first time above the Arctic Circle, in sea ice, and seeing whales and seals. She is positively awestruck and describes feeling ‘numb with delight’. That kind of excitement doesn’t wane… I feel the same kind of excitement and awe that she does.” Isha underlines that she is a cook and not a chef “purely to avoid getting beaten up by other chefs who are trained professionals, egoistical and fussy… I learnt to cook watching the women in my family and my uncle. For them, it was a party in the kitchen and the philosophy was love, a magic ingredient! Cooking is a way to share love. That’s my basis as well.” Isha eloquently articulates her feelings when asked what it feels like to be so far north on the planet. “Being an Indian, it’s hard to explain but I will try. Home is the tropics, and the North was always the Himalayas. The roof of the world was Tibet. What a tiny picture of the world, eh? One e-mail and it is split wide open. An offer to travel to Greenland with the Arctic Sunrise, I would never see the world in the same way again. How can you? “How can anyone who has seen life above the Arctic Circle? Heavenly it is, white clouds blanket you and blue skies peek through, promising a boundless outer world even higher… “I had heard of global warming and climate change. They sounded like a real threat, but never did I REALISE it… It’s been dawning on me… Looking out here is like looking into our past. “I see it now. Ice is life. It gives life little by little, and no one understands it better than the people who have lived here for thousands of years… It’s a hard life but it’s also free… “We must protect our home, it is the only one we have, without bombarding it with things we create because, honestly, we might be mighty but not mightier than Mother Nature. Here, Nature humbles me, shows me how puny we are and it’s beautiful to feel that way. It is the truth. The Arctic is a birthplace of life pure and painful. I shall always revere it and respect it…” On January 18, 2006, Isha sailed on a project that linked three continents. Isha’s post on the ship’s log is as stirring as always, “Life is magic and dreams, reality. Everything here is beyond understanding, comprehension… what are we going to leave behind? Surely we must protect it. None of us can create anything as splendid. This is my deepest desire and I hadn’t known it ‘till I was on board the Rainbow Warrior the first time that I will dedicate my life to this planet, to explore it, understand it, love it, protect it like it were my most precious belonging… It’s hard, hard work… trying to protect the oceans and its creatures. It is a choice we all make in our hearts, and nothing else makes sense. I am so grateful, so humbled to be able in this lifetime to do a little bit and will strive every day to do more, so that our planet can grow. And grow!” Isha has a job of immense responsibility. Her duties as a cook involve provisioning of the ship, prior to a voyage, an immense task because “at sea, there are no food shops to visit in case I run out of butter or salt. That’s a huge responsibility. Then, managing the stores, maintaining general cleanliness of the fridges and galley and catering two warm meals a day for 15-30 pax (people).” Her favourite part? “I have access to ingredients from all over the world… it’s divine, like a fantasy playground or experimental lab. And I love birthdays. A cake is traditional on board and I enjoy baking them. It’s my attempt at making the ship a better place, a happier one.” Isha also participates in other aspects of the ship’s missions. Like the ones to record the shipment of illegal timber from national parks in Kalimantan, Indonesia; recording climate change research in the Arctic. “But the most harrowing of all was the anti whaling campaign in the southern ocean. I have been so lucky and humbled to be part of this movement... (I spent) Sleepless nights of heartache and tears when we couldn’t save the whale we had been trying for four hours in the cold... well, you take the good with the bad. And, after a while, it’s all good. It is hard to describe what it’s like, every moment for me at sea is memorable." Isha’s philosophy of food preparation has changed after working with Greenpeace. She uses organic ingredients wherever possible, keep things as close to raw as possible, and uses a minimum of ingredients. Check out the delicious meal she cooked up for some of us recently Isha’s definition of Greenpeace, “An environmental organisation that works toward spreading awareness about the condition of the planet. By bearing witness, peacefully and non - violently observing what is being done to the planet and bringing what we see to the world so they can open their eyes and work toward saving what they love.” — As told to Rushina Munshaw-Ghildiyal

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