Cape Town - South Africa under-23 coach Owen da Gama has backed young Maritzburg United prodigy Deolin Mekoa to be a star player in the Premiership next season.
The 22-year-old defender has made his mark with Bafana Bafana in the ongoing COSAFA Cup in Namibia, helping South Africa to the semi-final where they take on Swaziland on Wednesday.
Mekoa calmly converted the winning penalty against Lesotho in the quarter-final over the weekend Saturday.
"You can never judge a player about the performance of his team but you judge him by his performance," Da Gama told KickOff.
"As you know we cannot just change the whole team but you got to have continuity and we just had to strengthen him. He's the player that has done very well at U-23 level and he took his performance to his club.
"I've always said that he can play for any PSL team and there is no doubt about it, any PSL team."
The Bafana team at the competition comprises of under-23 player as preparation for the Rio Olympic Games in August.


Time to Talk: Money concerns can affect your mental health
In the UK, money is still something of a taboo subject. We rarely discuss our financial health and concerns, yet it’s a topic that affects us all. An open conversation about money can mean more than simply improving your financial health, it can support mental wellbeing too.
Time to Talk Day, which was on 4th February 2021 is a national campaign that aims to get more people talking about their mental health problems and help change the way we think about them. Mental health covers a broad range of areas, and around one in four people will experience a mental health problem this year. A huge range of factors influence mental health, and money and our relationship with it is one of them.
Financial impact of Covid-19 affecting the mental health of a third of Brits
Covid-19 has had a far-reaching impact on our lives. Social distancing restrictions mean it’s affecting social lives, but for many it’s also affected the way they work in some way, leading to a rise in financial concerns.
More than half (55%) of adults aged between 45 and 54 are more worried about their financial situation now than they were before lockdown, according to research from Aviva. With redundancies rising and unemployment expected to reach 7.5% in the coming quarter, according to Chancellor Rishi Sunak, it’s not surprising thousands of people are worried about their financial situation.
Understandably, this is also affecting mental health. Almost two in five have said they are having trouble sleeping and 30% said it is causing mental health problems, like stress and anxiety. Some 19% said they are also experiencing physical health problems, such as not exercising or over-eating, as a result of the worry.
It’s not just this age bracket that’s affected either. One in six middle-aged Brits said their adult children have become more financially dependent on them because of Covid-19. This is placing pressure on both generations.
Even if you feel financially comfortable now, it doesn’t mean you’re immune to financial concerns and the impact it can have on your mental wellbeing. You may worry about whether you’ve saved ‘enough’ for retirement. Or you have concerns about the financial health of loved ones and want to lend support, but worry it could affect own financial stability, for example.
Poor mental health can have a significant and, in some cases, long-lasting impact. But even small steps can help feel more in control and confident about your situation.
Discussing financial concerns can improve your mental health
If you’re worried about money, being open about your concerns with those you trust can be the first step to feeling better.
Six in ten mid-life adults who discussed their finances with a family member or close friend felt better for having discussed it. Sometimes simply getting it off your chest and knowing that other people have similar concerns can improve your outlook. However, it comes with other benefits too. Almost half (49%) said they felt less embarrassed when talking about money and 48% said they had learnt about new options for their finances having had a conversation.
Making money less of a taboo subject can help us all feel more in control of our finances and future, whether it’s day-to-day expenses or pensions you’re concerned about.
Arranging a meeting with a financial adviser
While talking to loved ones more openly about money is a positive first step, at times seeking advice from a financial professional makes sense.
Speaking to a financial adviser is often associated with going through your assets and understanding their value. But this is only a very small part of the financial planning process. The beginning of the process starts with understanding what you want to achieve and what your concerns are. Rather than looking at assets as a purely monetary value, this helps you understand how your finances can help you secure the life you want and provide peace of mind. Some of the questions the financial planning process can help with include:
- Do I have enough in my pension to last through retirement?
- Can I afford to help children or grandchildren financially?
- What should I do with my savings to help me achieve my goals?
- What steps can I take to ensure financial security if something unexpected were to happen?
As financial advisers, our goal is to help you have confidence in your finances and the decisions you need to make. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, which is why talking about money and how it relates to your goals and worries, including the impact on your mental health, is so important.
Please get in touch if you’d like to discuss your financial plan with one of our advisers.


JAY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Larry Shackelford, Superintendent
Message from the Superintendent
To the patrons of Jay School District;
As you can imagine I am very disappointed in the results of the bond issue. However, I am also encouraged by the passion and support of our community. The majority of the voters voted in favor of this bond issue. At the end of the day those most affected are our students. We will move forward with a plan to unite our community which will address the many issues facing our school district. Our community must realize that by defeating bond issues this continues to put us even farther behind. Eventually there will be a point of no return with our facilities. My plan as I meet with the board is to move forward as soon as possible to the next bond issue. Our problems with deteriorating facilities are not going away. The children in our school district deserve better than what they are getting. I hope everyone can have an open mind in the future and the debate will be cordial and respectful. My goal, which has not changed, is to provide the best for our children in this school district. Continue to believe and pray for our children.
Sincerely and respectfully,
HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!
Check your child’s state test scores here!
Please read the following document...
Your child’s state ID can be found on their
Wengage Student Portal.
Jay Public Schools will once again provide free breakfast and lunch to all students this school year. Encourage your child to take part in this daily!
Athletic Season Passes Now On Sale!!
Season passes are now on sale and may be purchased at the administration building.
Thank you for supporting the Bulldogs!!!
Senior Citizens (65+): $30
Click this link for the full:


text:
Art Director John D. Jeffries, Sr. (b.1935) died on March 25. Jeffries served as a set designer for the original Star Trek. His brother, Matt Jeffries, was the inspiration for the name “Jeffries Tubes.” Jeffries went on to work as a set designer for the films Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and Black Knight and as a productin designer on the television shows The Greatest American Hero and Misfits of Science.
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domain: entertainment


State should encourage more charter schools
Published 6:00 pm, Friday, March 5, 2010
Lawmakers right to rethink rules on nontraditional classes
Texas' entry into the world of school choice has been slow — much too slow for most people who don't benefit from the public school system, such as teachers' unions and school boards and administrators whose funding increases with enrollment.
Fortunately, some state officials are warming up to the idea, and are looking into allowing such schools for cases where they might do the most good: teaching schools with special physical and developmental needs.
State senators have been given a special charge to study the idea of allowing special charter schools to open up for these students.
Legislators approved charter schools in Texas years after the first such schools opened in Minnesota in 1992, and only 215 were allowed in this state. The maximum number of schools was reached years ago, but efforts to convince lawmakers to allow more charters have failed in recent legislative sessions. Hundreds of thousands of children, whose families want to opt out of the cookie-cutter world of public education, have spent years on waiting lists; most of them will never make it into a charter school.
The schools are popular for obvious reasons. Many students who struggled in traditional public schools have thrived in charter schools. Restrictions that govern most public schools are lifted, enabling charter schools to try different methods that have shown promise elsewhere. …
It's no secret, however, that even at traditional schools many students are kept apart from the general student population, usually in the name of ensuring the safety of both the special-needs students and those in the mainstream.
Such issues should be addressed by experts who have studied the pros and cons of mainstreaming. We trust the senators addressing this issue will call in the experts and consider all possibilities, including allowing students to spend half a day at a traditional school and the other half at a specially designed charter school. Such arrangements already exist with vocational education programs at many public school districts.
The first step, of course, is to allow more charter schools to operate in Texas. Their success could lead to a general revolution toward smaller schools built with private money that have the freedom to adopt new methods, and the knowledge that those who don't adequately teach their students will be shut down rather than rewarded with new infusions of cash. In short, these schools would offer the very features that education experts say provide better education.
We hope lawmakers see the sense in allowing more liberal use of school charters. Students who might benefit most from what these schools offer should not be excluded from having access to them.
-The Brownsville Herald


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Rational Design and Evaluation of a Branched-Chain-Containing Glycolipid Antigen That Binds to CD1d (pages 1560–1564)
Dong Jae Baek, Yoon-Sook Lee, Chaemin Lim, Doohyun Lee, Taeho Lee, Jae-Young Lee, Kyoo-A Lee, Won-Jea Cho, Chang-Yuil Kang and Sanghee Kim
Version of Record online: 21 APR 2010 | DOI: 10.1002/asia.201000120
Circumnavigating or clamping: CD1 molecules recognize glycolipid antigens with a straight alkyl chain moiety. Owing to the presence of the central pole in the A′ pocket of the CD1 binding groove, the straight alkyl chain of antigens circles around the pole like a hook. To determine whether CD1 molecules are capable of recognizing structurally dissimilar ligands, we have designed and evaluated branched-chain-containing glycolipid derivatives of the prototypical CD1d ligand α-GalCer.

domain: chemistry


text:
Hearts announce £2m kit deal
Last updated at 10:21 28 February 2007
The deal, with Umbro, will see the Bank of Scotland Premier League club receive an annual "seven-figure" sum and starts in the summer.
Hearts chairman Roman Romanov said: "This deal will allow us to take our retail operations on to the next level."
Former Hearts chairman Leslie Deans believes the kit deal demonstrates the club's progress under majority shareholder Vladimir Romanov.
Celtic and Rangers continue to set the pace from a commercial aspect in the SPL, but the new deal reflects what Deans believes is the growing stature of Hearts.
"If this is a deal which is going to give Hearts in excess of £1million per annum, it's a fantastic deal for the club," Deans told BBC Radio Scotland.
"It is demonstrably in advance of what Hearts have previously achieved and it's a tribute to Hearts' standing in the game."
Many Hearts supporters left yesterday's annual general meeting with mixed emotions after being reassured the club's growing debt was not a major concern, but after being told that Romanov will always demand a say in team affairs.
Deans has urged disgruntled Hearts supporters to recall the state of the club - describing them as "the bad old days" - before Romanov took charge two years ago.
However he admits it would be satisfying for all parties if the playing and coaching side of the club became less of a controversial topic.
"I would like to see stability on that side," said Deans.
"Let's be quite blunt about it, there has been under-performance on the park and we've not done as well as we should have, and I believe Vladimir Romanov wants that rectified and I would like to see it rectified as well."
Romanov will continue to have input into team selection and tactics, and Deans has defended his right to do so.
Deans said: "When you have put as much money into a club as he has into Hearts, and is set to continue to do, there is a very strong argument that you're entitled to have your say.
"Let's remember too that other chairmen and other chairmen of football clubs have had their say - maybe not quite as openly and demonstrably as Vladimir Romanov has done - but I believe that is the reality involved and you've just
got to get on with it and accept that is what's going to happen."
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domain: sports


text:
Leadership and Advocacy for Women in Africa – LAWA Fellowship 2010
Leadership and Advocacy for Women in Africa (LAWA) Fellowship Program.
Application for 2010-2011 Fellowship Year.
Application Deadline: Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Goals of the Leadership and Advocacy for Women in Africa (LAWA) Fellowship Program:
- Provide a unique opportunity for African lawyers to learn about legal, public policy, and human rights issues affecting women
- Expose African lawyers to different legal, leadership and advocacy skills that may be implemented or adapted for use in their home countries to advance women’s human rights
- Expand the pool of lawyers in Africa who are concerned with laws and public policies affecting African women, and whose skills enable them to advocate more effectively for women’s human rights in their home countries
- Forge new links between those working on the similar women’s human rights issues in Africa and Washington, DC, consciously coordinating efforts and sharing information
- Enable African lawyers to perform meaningful work during the Fellowship with public interest organizations in Washington, DC
- Demonstrate to women’s rights lawyers the intimate connection between policy-making and lawyering
- Contribute to the crucial work being done in African countries to improve the status of women
- Increase the understanding of women’s rights as legal and public policy issues of equal importance to women and men
- Spark effective research, writing and advocacy initiatives to improve enforcement of laws and regulations designed to improve the status of African women; and develop a forum for leaders and other prominent policy makers in Washington, DC, to address legal, public policy, and human rights issues relating to African women.

domain: sociology


text:
Brandon Reid [photo credit: Kevin Cruz] holds a B.Ed. from UBC, with a specialization in Indigenous education, and a journalism diploma from Langara College. His work has been published in the Barely South Review, The Richmond Review and The Province. He is a member of the Heiltsuk First Nation, with a mix of Indigenous and English ancestry. He resides in Richmond, BC, where he works as a TTOC. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking, playing music and listening to comedy podcasts.
1 - How did your first book change your life? How does your most recent work compare to your previous? How does it feel different?
I stopped worrying about what happened to me, as I no longer had to protect myself to finish the book; I don’t sleep as much, now. I still take care of myself, of course (from time to time), but I no longer feel I have a duty to fulfill. The book also gave me confidence I didn’t have before. I would be hesitant to call myself a writer, but now I’m proud to do so. I have a published book out, that’s quite the accomplishment.
Beautiful Beautiful is my debut novel, although I self-published a book called Angel Hair Pasta on Amazon before. It was about a female chef working in LA and Seattle. It almost made me a toonie. I still enjoy that book—it has satisfying sections of modernist first-person writing—but Beautiful Beautiful is a much more thorough, meaningful work.
2 - How did you come to fiction first, as opposed to, say, poetry or non-fiction?
When I was six or so, my friend and I had a competition who could make the better character/fighter. I came up with a multi-headed dragon that could only be staggered by firing a fireball from the sun into its chest—wasn’t clear how it could ever be defeated. We drew our characters, and then created backstories for them. I continued creating characters, and I’d usually act out their stories by myself in the park or living room. Then one day, a relative bought me a journal, so I tried writing down these oral stories I was telling myself. They hardly went anywhere, but that was the genesis. I drew and wrote a lot in school, too, during lessons, to keep myself occupied. I’d burn through several drawing books a year, as most teachers were kind and encouraging enough to bestow as many as I requested.
3 - How long does it take to start any particular writing project? Does your writing initially come quickly, or is it a slow process? Do first drafts appear looking close to their final shape, or does your work come out of copious notes?
It really depends. Generally, I try and let ideas blossom for a few weeks before starting, even if I’m eager to use new premises. Words flow easily while I’m inspired, and incubation can generate inspiration. It’s not like an ice-cream cone, where you have to lick it all at once. I force myself to meet a word count, once I’ve begun writing a manuscript. I write at least 2,000 words a day, which takes approximately 2 to 3 hours. Some manuscripts require more research or thought, like I wrote a lot of sci-fi, which involved constant googling and conversing with ChatGPT about existentialism, aliens or space technology. Sci-fi requires lots of details.
My first drafts are usually completely different than the finished works. My words aren’t precious to me, so I like sacrificing them for something better. To be honest, I don’t think the manuscripts always get better; the first drafts are like sketches, which have their appeal, opposed to the meticulous final-drafts. It’s like Bob Dylan versus the Beatles: the former preferred minimal takes, usually, while the latter would sometimes perform dozens of takes, especially in the later years. Beautiful Beautiful was linear in the beginning, then I utilized in medias res later, shifting parts around. Stephen King said try and write the first draft in three months, so I aim for that, then lend myself as much time required in the editing process.
4 - Where does a work of prose usually begin for you? Are you an author of short pieces that end up combining into a larger project, or are you working on a "book" from the very beginning?
I’m only concerned with writing books at this point, so that’s my initial intention. I think of certain scenes, like a storyboard, and then I work from the beginning until the end in one constant flow. I don’t plan a lot of it, I just add scenes that make sense—one after the other, shifting from positive to negative—progressing until the end. I may have a clear idea of where I’d like to end up, but I usually can’t predict the result. It’s like decoding a movie in my head: I’ll write a scene, then the fog will clear, and the best way forward is revealed.
5 - Are public readings part of or counter to your creative process? Are you the sort of writer who enjoys doing readings?
I think they aid the creative process in the same way teaching does, in that I gauge the reactions of the audience, and realize what works and what doesn’t. That being said, I recognize reading aloud is different than reading quietly. I enjoy sharing pieces intentionally crafted to be spoken, but I don’t necessarily desire to read my books to people—it’s a different experience, auditory instead of visual, that sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t.
6 - Do you have any theoretical concerns behind your writing? What kinds of questions are you trying to answer with your work? What do you even think the current questions are?
Wow, those are great questions, I’ll do my best to answer them. I would say I’m equally concerned with the theoretical as I am the plot. This is evidenced by the title Beautiful Beautiful itself, as I strive to uncover the aesthetics of words and literature. I’m constantly thinking about why I write, the higher meaning. To me, Redbird is a songbird, singing the words. You can read into the differences between Indigenous and Western storytelling with Beautiful Beautiful. You may also apply a feminist reading using the internal logic of the tarot, that water and earth represent femininity. Or perhaps one may enjoy reading Raven as the archetypal raven. There were many lenses I applied to the book. Of course, there’s plenty of cheese, as well.
There are so many questions I try answering through writing: what’s the difference between depicting dialogue and communing with spirits? How can I better articulate the thought chains of my mind? Does this work better to reach into the reader? Stuff like that. My writing is me capturing epiphanies I have along the way—about myself, about others, about life. I hope that makes it exciting for the reader.
One current question I’m fascinated with, is what can a human do that an AI won’t be able to? I heard AI will develop to the point it will be able to produce literature of any kind upon request. “I want a sequel to The Return of the King,” you’ll say, and your wish will be granted. What, then, will set humans apart from AI? It’s something I’m constantly thinking about, how to stay ahead of the robot, basically.
7 – What do you see the current role of the writer being in larger culture? Do they even have one? What do you think the role of the writer should be?
To bring book clubs together. I think most popular books help establish a community or tackle pressing issues. I don’t read many contemporary books. They’re often too focused on plot for my liking. I enjoy reading books I either hardly comprehend or that are inventive with language. It’s a viable function, for a writer to appeal to the masses, but I realize most of my literary influences died penniless or lacked popularity in their times.
I think it’s fair some writers excel at marketing and business, but I’m interested in writers who convey a mind-set not yet found in literature, above all else. The writer is one who documents their experience reaching into the realm of spirit so all may behold a glimpse, because even that is insufficient to describe the vision I have of what writing is. Sometimes it’s easy to explain what is seen, other times, simplicity only mars the glory of that sight unfolding. Writers fall somewhere along that gradient, and they’re all equally writers.
8 - Do you find the process of working with an outside editor difficult or essential (or both)?
It’s a difficult question. As I said earlier, some of my first drafts are interesting and enjoyable. The editor is someone who hones the work so it’s accessible for readers. In that sense, they’re essential; I wouldn’t expect Angel Hair Pasta to be found on bookshelves. I view working with an editor as a collaboration, and I really enjoy that element of the process. If it’s difficult, it’s only difficult because we both set a standard that I ultimately have to reach, so I have to push myself which I wouldn’t say is easy or lovely, it’s hard work that requires dedication and focus. I feel all the better for it, however.
9 - What is the best piece of advice you've heard (not necessarily given to you directly)?
A teacher gave me an appropriate grade for a mediocre piece of writing I submitted, then at the end of their comments, they wrote, “Keep writing!” That’s all it took to encourage me to keep at it.
10 - How easy has it been for you to move between genres (fiction to journalism)? What do you see as the appeal?
Writing for journalism was easy, it was interviewing people while seeming credible that was difficult. Journalism is a fantastic foundation for writers, as it teaches you to make a word count, respect deadlines, write concisely, edit thoroughly, handle information accurately, format well, and accurately record dialogue. There’s a rich tradition of journalists who learned the essentials then branched out creatively. Hunter S. Thompson is a classic example; he really blurred the line between each. The appeal for me is, there’s only so many ways I can objectively write about a situation before getting bored and seeking the alternative means of expression fiction offers.
11 - What kind of writing routine do you tend to keep, or do you even have one? How does a typical day (for you) begin?
I wake up, put on headphones, listen to Spotify for an hour or two, get up, make my bed, adore the sun, brush my teeth, get an espresso, check the web, pray, meditate, exercise, stretch, adore the sun for noon, make myself a cappuccino, hopefully sit down to some fresh fruit and madeleines supplemented with vitamins, then, generally speaking, I’m in peak writing-form. That all goes out the window if I must head out to work.
12 - When your writing gets stalled, where do you turn or return for (for lack of a better word) inspiration?
Usually, music or reading other books. Inspiration can come from anywhere, though. Could be something I read online, something someone said to me—usually comes out of thin air. I force myself to meet my word-count, regardless, otherwise I don’t bother. Sometimes it’s good to sit around, waiting for inspiration, but if I’m immersed in writing, I trudge on, even while uninspired by what I’m writing, as I know I can improve it in the edit. Craft endures while inspiration falters.
13 - What fragrance reminds you of home?
Smoldering sage smoke.
14 - David W. McFadden once said that books come from books, but are there any other forms that influence your work, whether nature, music, science or visual art?
As a polymath, I’m a strong believer all my experiences affect my writing. Cooking allows me to better capture the senses affected while cooking, which helps me translate them to the page. It’s true, reading books helps writers learn the craft, but you get to a certain point—where you develop your voice, your ability and your style—that you don’t necessarily need to be an avid reader. John Lennon said something similar, in that he didn’t listen to popular music, as it was all variations of music he heard growing up.
15 - What other writers or writings are important for your work, or simply your life outside of your work?
I don’t know if I’d consider them important to me, more so integrated into my consciousness—probably the same thing. You know, James Joyce is my biggest influence. Aleister Crowley restored my faith. Moby Dick was a profound novel for me. Most writers that influenced me have passed.
16 - What would you like to do that you haven't yet done?
I’d like to travel across Canada, perhaps by train. I feel that’s a true Canadian experience.
17 - If you could pick any other occupation to attempt, what would it be? Or, alternately, what do you think you would have ended up doing had you not been a writer?
I’d try being a musician. I’ve played various instruments throughout my life: guitar, piano, drums, saxophone. I wrote many songs in my 20s, and performed them with a friend, but I didn’t really desire to play for anyone but us.
I promised myself, in high school, that if I was still single and had nothing going on by 23, I’d drop everything and join the army. I wound up quitting my job, at 23, to write over 3,000 words a day by hand, every day, for a year. I suppose I fatigued myself manifesting various partners through writing, instead.
18 - What made you write, as opposed to doing something else?
I just found myself alone, a lot, so I manifested my own worlds of companions. Writing is the ultimate solitary act, after all. Perhaps I made a shell of sorts. Writing got me through many troubling times, as did playing music. Writing satisfies me more than anything else, so I keep doing it. It sort of avoids definition beyond that.
19 - What was the last great book you read? What was the last great film?
I recently finished Dante’s Paradiso, of all things. It was fun, following the rhythm, but it was an archaic version that was difficult to comprehend, which I state too often I enjoy.
I don’t watch many films. I used to. I watched Titanic a few months back. Go ahead and laugh if you want. I’m pretty sappy.
20 - What are you currently working on?
currently working on a novel about Raven, from Beautiful Beautiful, utilizing
my experience in the culinary industry.
12 or 20 (second series) questions;

domain: artistic


Up to 3/4 acre ponds, 32″ minimum pond depth required
This DA-20 moves 400 gallons of water per minute in a cascading, trumpet-shaped spray pattern, approximately 6.5 feet tall by 22 feet wide. This flow rate does a perfect job moving algae off of the surface, maintaining clean and clear water, all while adding a large amount of oxygen to the pond. Adding oxygen does wonders for your fish, and is the key component in rapidly breaking down decaying matter at the bottom of your pond.
Featuring a stainless-steel, oil-free, submersible motor, making it the most environmentally friendly water aerator on the market. With no oil to add or change and no control box required, it's maintenance-free! Super easy to install, requiring just two anchoring ropes and weights or tethers. Perhaps best of all, it's engineered to be left in the water year-round. You'll never need to remove it in fall or re-install in the spring.
Contact us for additional power cable length


text:
Morning Routines Blog
How to wake up on time
The eternal struggle of waking up continues in homes across the world. The snooze button becomes a never ending weapon fighting against the day. Millions struggle to simply get up and brush their teeth, let alone to use the morning for something productive. Does this sound like you? It doesn’t have to be this way anymore.
First, you really need to get it together the night before. Stop staying up late watching Netflix. Stop scrolling through social media as you’re trying to go to bed. Stop drinking caffeine late into the day. You must get a good night’s sleep if you want to wake up easily. Sleep is the most important part of your health - nurture it.
Do you grab your phone first thing upon waking up? Well, stop that too. I know, you just want to check a couple messages but next thing you know, you’ve been laying in bed for the last hour mindlessly scrolling through Instagram. Now you don’t have time to do anything productive. Your entire morning routine is shot. Don’t grab your phone. Instead, get out of bed and do something productive (“Mornings Shouldn’t Suck” is an entire book literally filled with productive things you can do in the morning if you need some ideas).
You need to train your brain to wake up when you want to wake up. As I mention in my book, you should wake up at the same time every single day. Do this consistently, and you’ll find yourself waking up at that time without even needing an alarm clock. Another way to train your brain is to use your senses. Play music as soon as you get out of bed. In fact, start with the same song every morning; this will train your brain to recognize that it’s time to get moving when it hears that song.
After you start the music, use another sense like smell to train your brain. Essential oils are a great way to do this. Specifically, peppermint, lemon, spearmint, orange and rosemary oils are known to be energizing. Peppermint is my favorite.
One final trick, that I learned from Tim Ferriss, is to eat a spoonful of almond, or peanut, butter immediately before bed. This helps keep your blood sugar at a more stable level throughout the night so that you don’t wake up feeling terrible with low energy. This is the same reason you should have some quality protein and fat for dinner, a few hours before bedtime.
Waking up does not have to suck. It can be easy and something you look forward to. I have a whole chapter dedicated to making waking up easier in “Mornings Shouldn’t Suck”. Check it out to learn some tricks and how to set your circadian rhythm so that you never have to use an alarm clock again. You’ll wake up full of energy and ready to go every morning.

domain: health


A multi-vehicle crash injured two people and caused thousands of dollars in damages last week in west suburban La Grange Park.
Officials responded to the 400 block of Homestead Road about 4:57 p.m. June 1 and found a car crashed into a garage, according to the La Grange Park Fire Department. Two people were in the car, and both were freed by 5:25 p.m.
Three people total were evaluated, and two of them were hospitalized with minor injuries, the fire department said.
Damages to the garage structure are an estimated $30,000, the fire department said.


text:
Pioneer Expands Audio America Territiory
Pioneer Mobile Electronics has appointed Audio America as their exclusive distributor for the states of Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Eastern Tennessee and Florida effective April 1st, 2013. These states represent an expansion of Audio America's longstanding position as Pioneer's exclusive distributor for the state of Florida. Audio America will be offering very aggressive promotions to their new Pioneer dealers to help make the transition as enjoyable as possible.
"At Audio America we view Pioneer as the most powerful brand of car audio. We welcome this opportunity to distribute the Pioneer brand

domain: geography


WTS: SCW Mauser Gew 98M, Dreyse 1907, and CZ82 Rig
After a fall purge of the safe I have a few pieces that didn’t quite make the cut to stay. Please read the descriptions, refer to the photos of each, and ask all questions prior to purchase. I may consider trades but cash is king.
All prices are OBO so don’t be shy
-Shipping: Actual price
-Payment: Paypal plus the fee
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SCW 1917 Amberg Mauser G98M
This is a very nice looking G98m with all of the hallmarks of having gone through rebuild / refit in the 1930s. The rear sight base is S/42G marked as most updated G98s were and also bears K167 inspector markings. It has obviously been re-blued but it was done extremely well. Serial numbers are mixed but all finish hues match each other. The bore is in nice shape but does show signs of wear / use. The rear of the stock bears a nice and sharp “MP8” flaming bomb stamp typical of rifles that went to Spain during the civil war. I have not fired this rifle and as such would recommend getting it checked out by a competent gunsmith prior to use.
This is an extremely clean example of a 1908. The finish is a conservative 95% with a nice bore and unbroken grips. All in all a great example of a slightly less common WW1 German pistol.
This one is fairly straight forward. The pistol appears to be a police trade in with light holster wear. The bore is nice and finish wear is very light. A quality thumb break holster and a single magazine are included.


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11 May 2021
YAHOO! NEWS (REUTERS) — The World Health Organization said on Tuesday it was reviewing coronavirus data from Seychelles after the health ministry said more than a third of people who tested positive for COVID-19 in the past week had been fully vaccinated.
Both the ministry and the WHO stressed that the majority of those who tested positive had not been vaccinated or had only received one dose, that no one who had died had been fully vaccinated and that nearly all of those needing treatment for severe or critical cases were unvaccinated.
But the WHO said it was closely following the situation in the Indian Ocean nation, which has a population of less than 100,000 and daily cases numbers in the low hundreds.
“Our teams continue to review the data, assess progress and understand the trends,” a spokeswoman said by email.
The seven day rolling average of positive cases increased from 120 on April 30 to 314 on May 8, the ministry said in a statement late on Monday, with almost two thirds of the positive cases being close contacts of another person testing positive.
Some 37% of those testing positive had received both doses of a vaccine, it said. […]

domain: medical


text:
HP is not just a member of the OpenStack Foundation — it’s also a really big contributor. According to Bill Veghte, executive vice president and general manager of HP’s Enterprise Group, the company boasts the most code contributions and the greatest number of project leads for the upcoming Juneau release of the open source cloud computing software.
That might be an important distinction in a foundation that also includes large vendors — and HP (s HPQ) competitors — such as Cisco and IBM, and that is, Veghte claims, “the fast growing open source project in the history of open source.” HP believes that what enterprise tech buyers really want is a cloud experience that’s more hybrid in nature than what VMware or Microsoft want to provide, and that’s based much more in software rather than being tied to a specific vendor’s hardware (which is how Veghte characterized fellow OpenStack member Cisco’s cloud strategy).
And if these companies are about to engage in an enterprise cloud land-grab, there’s a lot of it available. “The percentage of apps or data that’s in the cloud in the enterprise is in the low single digits,” Veghte said at the Gigaom Structure conference on Wednesday.
If OpenStack is the ticket for HP delivering on that hybrid experience, then the deeper it knows the underlying technology, the better products and the better reputation it can build as the go-to OpenStack company. Ultimately, Veghte said, the market will only support a few OpenStack distributions, and companies that stray too far from the open source trunk will spend a lot of resources supporting the delta between where it ends and their software starts.
There is, however, one potentially very big downer to the OpenStack story: NSA spying. Both domestically and globally, the Edward Snowden disclosures about government surveillance have people more leery than ever about deploying cloud infrastructure or really putting anything outside their firewalls. China, Veghte noted, is building out infrastructure at unprecedented rates, and vendors like HP are now having to address spying concerns as a part of their engagements with potential customer.
“It’s just a bummer,” he said.
Photo by Jakub Mosur

domain: news


A pain-free prosthetics for amputees pitch had wowed judges at New Zealand’s Techweek 2019, which resulted with winning the ultimate start-up prize pack worth NZ$ 60,000.
According to a recent press release, a pair of engineering students from the University of Auckland won for their prosthetic limb solution that uses a 3D printing process and recyclable material.
Benefits of the 3D printed prosthetics
The prosthetic that they will produce is predicted to reduce the pain points for amputees, while being 58% cheaper and 67% faster to make.
The majority of amputees suffer pain, discomfort, and frustration caused by their prosthetic socket, where the prosthetic connects to the limb.
The reason behind this pain is poor fit. The current process creates sockets that are hard and inflexible.
The Prosthetex founders saw the problem and developed an idea for a solution with the use of the 3D printing framework.
Their ProstheteX sockets are designed to be flexible on the inside, which will better fit the amputee’s limb.
Starting a prosthetics revolution
While 3D printed sockets are already in existence, the students believe there is room for huge improvements as new materials and processes such as 3D printing, or additive manufacturing (AM), are being rapidly developed.
The University of Auckland’s Creative Design and Additive Manufacturing Laboratory is already at the forefront of this technology.
Professor Olaf Diegel, the academic supervisor of both, also leads the Laboratory.
Their concept was also supported by the University’s innovation community including UniServices and the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’s Founders Hatchery.
The founders believe that they are starting a prosthetics revolution and would greatly help the amputee community.
Their ambitions are eventually global. However, in New Zealand alone, there is already a community of around 4,400 amputees, with around 500 new referrals each year.
A bit of history
Inspiration for this prosthetic prototype came from the experience of one of the students as a part-time farm animal assistant.
He shared that seeing many injured animals got him thinking about how he could help through prosthetics.
Challenged with the difficulty of getting feedback from animals and knowing whether the solutions is actually helping them, he and his co-founder moved to human prosthetics.
Hopefully, they might be able to transfer their new knowledge and designs to animal prosthetics again in the future.
ProstheteX was named the ultimate start-up during the ON: Pitch event held during TechWeek 2019, New Zealand’s nationwide festival of technology and innovation.
The winner was decided upon by both the judges and the audience, awarding them more than NZ$60,000 worth of business necessities to make their pitch a reality.
An office space is included in their prize as well.


Two councils in Somerset are to merge management to save money.
At separate meetings tonight, West Somerset District Council based in Williton and Taunton Deane Borough Council voted in favour of the deal which will see savings of almost £2m a year.
Opponents fear it'll mean dozens of job cuts.
More top news
Large barriers have been installed in Bath for the first time, ahead of the Christmas Market because of the increased terror threat
Campaigners are angry at claims by Avon and Somerset Police that spitting puts officers at risk from HIV, hepatitis and tuberculosis
Five men who burgled a Co-op and tried to evade police by reaching speeds of 120mph in a getaway have been jailed for a total of 23.5 years.


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Fandom: BBC Merlin
Disclaimer: Merlin and all its characters belong to Shine and BBC. The situations herein do not depict any sort of reality, and no harm has been intended in the creation of this piece. This work is purely fictional and done strictly for entertainment purposes. No profit is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: For drawmelot's Creature Project. Mithian as a diwata, the Filipino equivalent of a fairy.


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The Kremlin announced today that it will be sending a humanitarian relief convoy into the eastern Ukraine with cooperation from the International Red Cross. The announcement was made in spite of opposition from the West and the Ukraine regarding Russian aid to the eastern provinces. The West fears that Moscow’s interest in humanitarian missions will serve as a precursor to sending Russian military forces into rebel held territory. The timing of the announcement is certainly suspect. In the past ten days, the Ukrainian military has made significant inroads against rebel strongholds around Donetsk and in other parts of the Eastern Ukraine.
Donetsk is the key to the conflict for the moment. Whoever controls the city will ultimately control the region. As the rebel grip on Donetsk loosens, so does their grip on the rest of the eastern provinces. Kiev realizes this, hence the increased military pressure. The Ukrainian goal is to encircle Donetsk and cut it off from rebel held towns and positions closer to the Russian border. Moscow realizes this as well. Only Russian support of some kind will be able to reverse the rebel’s fortunes.


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An anime Blu-Ray box of the Hunter Exam Arc and the Zoldyck Family Arc of Hunter x Hunter 2011 will be available on March 22, 2023. These arcs are the first two in the series, and cover episodes 1 through 26. Other than the Blu-Ray discs, the box will come with extras like a radio CD. [Thanks, Dengeki Online!]
Technically speaking, there will only be 25 episodes in the Blu-Ray box. This is because episode 13 was a recap episode. For exclusive goodies with the Hunter x Hunter Blu-Ray box, there will be the “Han Megumi and Ise Mariya’s Hunter x Hunter Hunter Studio Returns” CD. This was the radio show that aired during the show’s original run. There will also be a 20-page booklet. Finally, everything will come in a box that has art from the character designer Takahiro Yoshimatsu.
Han and Ise, who voice Gon and Killua, respectively, also left comments about what they remember from the initial Hunter x Hunter anime voice-acting sessions. Both of them stated that they felt like it was a dream come true to voice for Hunter x Hunter, and that they did their best to stay grounded and focused in the studio. For Han in particular, as Gon was one of her very first television series roles, she said that she started her voice acting journey from an environment she is thankful of.
The Hunter x Hunter Hunter Exam Arc and Zoldyck Family Arc Blu-Ray box will be available on March 22, 2023. It will cost 33,000 JPY, or $249.30. The Hunter x Hunter manga briefly returned on October 2022 but it is on hiatus again.


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Located adjacent to the site of an ancestral kāinga (village) and repo (wetland) where Māori life flourished alongside Te Wai Horotiu (the river that flowed down the contemporary Queen Street valley), Pā Rongorongo provides a new approach to sharing information with residents and visitors about our place and the changes that are occuring across the city centre.
Pā Rongorongo provides a safe and welcoming space within the heart of the city, underpinned by our reo matua (our founding tongue). Most importantly, the Hub is manned by our kaimanaaki (host) who plays a crucial role in establishing manaakitanga (hospitality) to whoever visits the space.
Our Year in Review
Since opening in March the Pā has hosted 23 events and its peak activty month was October (Artweek month) with 594 visitors in and around its events. A variety of community groups deliver free meals on the site weekly. At the Best Design Awards Pā Rongorongo was awarded Bronze in the Ngā Aho section and silver in the Portable Buildings & Exhibtions section.
Opening Tautoko and Karakia
Pā Rongorongo was officially opened to the public on Februrary 15th, 2019 with support from Viv Beck Chief Executive, Heart of the City, Mayor Phil Goff, Liz Allen Project Lead Auckland Design Office and Otene Reweti Māori Relationships and Governance. The event featured karakia, opening ceremonies and a group performance from the Auckland Street Choir Pitt St. Methodist Church.
Since its opening the hub has facilitated a broad range of collaborations, community building exercises, educational workshops, artistic practices and conversations about our city centre. Many of the events and conversations anchored by Pā Rongorongo have been fully initiated by community groups and members of the public such as; free haircuts for the homeless, free food initiatives and a volunteer programme supporting the Griffith's Gardens Community Fridge.
The objective of Pā Rongorongo is to create a place:
• Where people can get information about the city centre and its transformation
• Where Te Reo is celebrated and spoken
• That is engaging for people in a way that is meaningful and useful to them
• Where people can give feedback and have conversation s with well-informed staff
• That it acts as a conduit for information back into council to establish exactly what information people want to know
• That is flexible and able to evolve as feedback is received
• To provide a platform to tell city centre stories and host community events/exhibitions/discussions.
• Pride Festival featuring FAFSWAG artists: Sione Monu, Pati Solomona, Tyrell and Jermaine Deane
• Auckland Festival of Photography exhibition of some of the best works from recent years and the digital event trail map
• 125 Years of Womens Suffrage exhibition organised by Auckland City Library
• Matariki artist: Kereama Taepa on digital wall
• City Centre Residents Group fundraiser on-site for the Griffiths Garden's Community Fridge raised $915.00. Initiative of Albert St resident Kathy Ross
• Artweek: Māori artists Charlotte Graham, Kauri dieback and Natasha Keating, indigenous women's rights. Artworks, talks and digital wall activated
• Novembre Numerique - Exhibition of works made in NZ and digital wall by French artist Tony Regazzoni, plus talks in Central City Library and Ellen Melvile Centre. Partner - The French Embassy, Wellington
• Fresh Flower Christmas Cards - Workshop for children with Sione Monu
• City Rail Link Construction, host Carol Greensmith Communications representative - 9 tours
• Sense Walks hosted by Splice AKL - 8 tours
• Te Ao Tangata Universal Design Tour hosted by Darren Davis and Elise Copeland, Auckland Design Office as part of the 3rd Universal Design Conference
• Walk the Walk : A History of Fashion in the City host Doris De Pont NZ Fashion Museum, 3 tours
• Raymond Sagapolutele - Through the Lens at Night 2 guided photography tours, Artweek
Features of Pā Rongorongo
Emerging Auckland - Pā Rongorongo is the first site to feature Emerging Auckland, a digital mapping portal that features information on the city centre and tracks a variety of developments. The application is hosted on a 55 inch touch screen and Microsoft Tablets and features data on the City Rail Link, cycleways, walking routes, public facilities, community spaces, public art, Māori sites of significance and much more.
Kaimanaaki - Pā Rongorongo's most crucial asset is manaakitanga. Jen Fuemana is the kaimanaaki (host) of the space, providing information and ensures visitors get the information they need.
LED Digital Wall - Pā Rongorongo's exterior wall features a unique, LED lighting installation designed by Angus Muir that can be activated by visual artists who take up residency in the Pā.
3D Model of City Rail Link Development - Pā Rongorongo hosted a 1-1000 3D printed model that details Albert Street and the future sites for train stations including Aotea Station.
For the Love of Bees Heritage Seed Bank - Pā Rongorongo hosts the FTLOB Heritage Seed Bank and provides free heritage seeds to members of the public.
Brochures - A range of informational material.
Project Lead: Activate Auckland
Project Funder: City Centre Targeted Rate, Auckland Transport
Auckland City Library
Auckland Festival of Photography
Auckland Street Choir
Auckland Transport Walking and Cycling
Awhina Mai Tatou Katoa
Creative Services Limited (Anya Vitali)
Griffith’s Gardens Community Fridge Volunteers
Guru Nanak’s Free Kitchen
Heart of the City
He Wiki Kiriata Maori – Maori Film Week
Love Food Hate Waste
New Zealand Fashion Museum
New Zealand’s French Embassy
Sarah Smuts-Kennedy, For the Love of Bees
The City Rail Link Limited
University of Auckland Alumni
Pati Solomona Tyrell
Māori Responsiveness 2018
Te Paparahi Toi Maori booklet and the digital App, is a collaborative project that reveals and makes visible the elements of Maori culture, the inspiration handed down from ngā tupuna that belong to this beautiful land.
Here in Auckland city centre we have magical collection of Māori art and design elements embedded into the fabric of our city. All of these works reveal Māori and shared histories beneath the modern façade of the city. They offer clues and insights into the rich indigenous culture, maori values, knowledge and ways of being. They help make our place.
Often what is not known is the journey behind the works, the intention of Paparahi Toi is to give thanks, acknowledgement and to attribute the Iwi, Hapu , and Whanau who have played a significant part of the inspiration and processes behind these works.
“Māori artists will again arise, who will not merely imitate the achievement of their ancestors, but, inheriting their inspiration, will adapt their genius to the demands and opportunities of the day.” - Apirana Ngata 1928
Ngā Pae o Hine
To celebrate Women’s Suffrage and Matariki, painter Natasha Keating and weaver Bethany Matai Edmunds created an installation at the Central City Libray. This looked deeply into Hine Te Iwaiwa and her relationship to the moon. It provided a space to reflect and revisit these ancient connections we have to our environment, our cosmologies and our genealogies through Marama and her many faces. A night of waiata, Pō Whakaari, with bi-lingual singer and artist Whirimako Black was was held within the exhibition.
Te Paparahi Toi Māori - Walks in the City
This project consists of three tools; a phone APP, a map APP and a 48 page booklet. It was curated by Māori designer Olivia Haddon, Ngāti Manuhiri, Auckland Council Design Office. The book was published by Artweek Auckland with support from Auckland Council, ATEED and Auckland Transport Walking and Cycling.
The eight walks mapped showcase sixty sites comprising private and public art, urban and architectural design and sites of significance which celebrate Māori identity, history, knowledge and contemporary presence in the City Centre.
10,000 print copies are available free and 7,000 were distributed in the first three months. The map APP is based in Pa Rongorongo but will be in satellite sites with the first being the Central City Library.
"Te Paparahi, Toi Māori looks wonderful, congratulations. Thank you so much for sending me a copy of the book we are delighted to be included and will walk them over the summer. Ngā mihi nui,
- Andrew for Patterson Associates Limited.
Te Wiki O Te Reo Hikoi Māori
Thousands of people, including hundreds of children from schools across the city marched through central Auckland for a hīkoi supporting Te wiki o te reo Māori. It ended with activities with Mayor Phil Goff on Aotea Square. The theme was 'Kia Kaha te Reo Māori’ which means ‘Let’s make the Māori language strong'. “Strength for an endangered language comes from its status, people being aware of how to support revitalisation, people acquiring and using it and from the language having the right words and terms to be used well for any purpose." A partnership with: ADO Māori Design Team, Te Waka Anga Mua ki Uta and Auckland Transport Walking and Cycling.
Pā Rongoa Garden
Ko te tohu o te "Te Puawai o te Kakano" e tohu ana i te tirohanga a Te Awhina Mai Tatou me te Aroha o te Pi. Ko tenei mahere he hononga ora me Mana Whenua o Taamaki Makaurau Iwi-Ngāti Whātua ki Orakei. Ko nga tikanga kaitiakitanga Māori o Rongoā kei te whakatu ano i te pokapū o te taone nui. This metaphor of a “Blossoming Seed” represents the shared vision of Te Awhina Mai Tatou and the Love of Bees to establish a place for the sharing of Rongoa knowledge.
This garden is a living partnership with Mana Whenua o Tamāki Makaurau Iwi - Ngāti Whātua ki Orakei, Awhina Mai Tatou Kātoa. Here Māori kaitiakitanga practices of Rongoā have been established. The launch in February featured the blessing and installation of three pou in the gardens carved by Awhina Mai Tatou Kātoa, a recently housed group. A key outcome from the Rongoa Garden was a new community group led by the people of the street and Awhina Mai Tatou Kātoa.
Adjacent to the site of an ancestral kainga and repo where Māori life flourished alongside Te Wai Horotiu, Pā Rongorongo provides a new approach to sharing information about our place and the changes that are occurring across the City Centre. This year at the 2018 Best Design Awards the Pā received Bronze in the Ngā Aho section.
Since opening in March, Pā Rongorongo has become a site for collaboration, community building and artistic expression. The Pā has hosted Māori artists including: Charlotte Graham and Natasha Keating Artweek 2018; Jermaine Deez Pride 2018; and Kereama Taepa He Wiki Kiriata Māori 2018. Māori carvers have worked on-site and free community-led Te Reo classes, Rongoa garden workshops and Māori art tours have been held. More information on page 15.
He Wiki Kiriata Māori - Māori Film Week
Auckland is New Zealand’s largest and most diverse city, but has not had an annual festival of Māori film. Māori Film Week was proposed by Wairoa Māori Film Festival director Leo Koziol as an annual festival that also looks at art, design, food, fashion, literature, pop culture and music and their connection to film.
The event was part of Matariki Festival and promoted as “Wairoa Māori Film Festival presents He Wiki Kiriata Māori – Māori Film Week”, a celebration of Māori and Pasifika and international guests showcasing indigenous cinema and multimedia. The theme was Māori Futurism and was 9 days in 7 venues (four in the city centre), with over 50 short films, feature dramas and documentaries.
Karangasem Cultural Festival
Through Barbara Holloway’s Indonesian contacts, she received an offer to send five Aotearoa Māori artists, fully funded by the Indonesian government, to the First Karangasem Indigenous Festival in Bali.
Phil Wihongi Auckland Council's Maori Designer and Barbara nominated Amiria Puia-Taylor, artist and people-weaver, as the curator. Amiria, Dena Jacobs Council’s Poukokiri Rangahau Maori librarian researcher and DJ; musician, artist, carver, tattooist James Webster; and artists Bobby McDonald and Natasha Keating formed a Roopu, Te Taura Toi Aotearoa. They collaborated with indigenous groups including Khmu Laos, Aborigine Australia, Mentawi Java, Sumbanese Sumba, Tenganan Bali, Dayak Borneo, Ciptagelar Java and Baduy Java.
The Festival aimed to reinforce the role of cultural heritage. It was in accordance with the UNESCO initiative summoning the world community to promote connections intergenerationally between cultures through indigenous art.
Tautoko from Amiria Puia-Taylor
"As a community stakeholder and a People Weaver, my core role is to weave 'hard to reach' communities into spaces and organisations that promote arts and culture within and Tāmaki Makaurau and beyond. My relationship with Activate Auckland has been a true and meaningful reflection of what Te Tiriti ō Waitangi means in practice and ā-kōrero. Barbara and her team have supported my work in creating ways that allow wider communities to engage with Māori arts that spark discussion for indigenous methodologies and practices within (un)conventional spaces.
This includes helping with public programming of Ngā Pae ō Hina at Auckland Libraries, Pō Whakaari featuring local and internationally recognised artists of Māori descent and most recently, an opportunity for a delegation of Māori artists (Te Taura Toi) who work in contemporary & traditional arts practices to travel on behalf of Aotearoa to the Karangasem Worlds Indigenous Cultures Festival at Junguntan Village, Bali Indonesia. Our partnership is important, fruitful and necessary for arts and culture and for Māori Arts to thrive in Aotearoa and to the world.
- Amiria Puia-Taylor, The 312 Hub."
Celebrating Māori Modernism
Māori modernists and their legacy in the city centre at Ellen Melville Centre was part of Auckland Heritage Festival and extended into Artweek. It comprised a large-scale photo and text display accompanied by a talk and a guided tour. The Māori modernist movement emerged in 1960s, with Māori artists forging a new national identity of fresh art forms imbued with indigeneity.
The Auckland Council public art collection has a significant group of works by five Māori artists at the forefront of this movement. This exhibition celebrated those artists: Ralph Hotere, Fred Graham, Selwyn Muru, Paratene Matchitt and Arnold Manaaki Wilson.
Po | Beautiful Darkness
A video has been produced to showcase one of the highlights of Late Night Art at Artweek 2017. This large scale performance in St Matthews In the City heralded a new generation of influencers from Media Design School and Mika Haka Foundation. Mika brought performance and art together with musical arranger Penny Dodd and orchestra. It showcased young Māori artists, queer performance and was an interactive immersive experience with costume, moving image, live music, performance and installation. Two back to back shows were required to accommodate the over 1200 people who attended.
Tamaki Herenga Waka Festival
An inaugural event to showcase art, moving image, craft, jewellery and fashion by Toi Māori artists. 46 artists participated and over the 3 days approximately 3000 visitors came through. Live music and interactive workshops /talks and a heritage display were included. A partnership with ATEED and Auckland Art Gallery.
Christmas in the City
Activate Auckland provided a Māori advisor and funding to Heart of the City for their event to embed traditional and contemporary Maori cultural acts into the schedule.
Matiu Bartlett played over 12 different traditional instruments that he has made. Some re-create sounds such as tui calls and are used in ceremonies to Karanga people onto Marae atea. Bartlett also loops sounds electronically over his recordings to create his blend of traditional and modern music.
Majic Paora is a young wahine reggae-roots artist. Paora has had many successes both here and overseas. For her, reggae is an way of life, one that deals with issues of inequality and disparity. In one year Majic and her team did over 80 gigs, travelling to small settlements that rarely get the chance to see any live music.
Development Response 2018
Development Response is the coordinated planning and implementation of tools to mitigate the impacts of large scale development and cumulative impact of construction activity on people. It is also the pathway to a legacy of long-term change in travel mode behavior; and change in approaches to economic, social, ecological and cultural behaviors.
Auckland’s City Centre is experiencing an unprecedented level of development activity with 14NZD billion of public and private works planned for the next decade. For the duration of the works these projects bring challenges to local business, residents and visitors. There is increased pressure to maintain access, remain a viable business centre, a comfortable home and a vibrant destination.
Development Response Action Plan
In 2017 Activate Auckland established the Development Response Working Group. The outcome is the City Centre Development Response Action Plan. This plan identifies nine priorities (diagram page opposite) which when integrated deliver a best practice programme and are the platform for a legacy of long term change. Local Action Plans have been created for: Albert Street, K Road, The Downtown Programme, Federal St South and a draft for Aotea Quarter.
Code of Practice
Activate Auckland with partners from the Council family and the Business Associations is creating a Code of Practice for project managers to embed the principles of Development Response into all projects. It is vital in the early scoping phase of projects to identify opportunities to offset impacts of construction. A critical factor is ensuring the precincts between projects are are supported through the changes as the cumulative impacts of construction are not restricted to project boundaries.
Suite of Tools in the Code
•Standardized temporary way-finding signage and guidelines for its use and placement in a consistent manner
• Guidelines for the post- construction permanent way-finding signage
• Tactical urbanism solutions
• Hoardings exemplars guidelines
• Business Ready Kits
• Code of Conduct, site specific management
• Travel demand management programme
• Action Plan template
• Programme planner
• Monitoring and evaluation with standardized
Artweek Auckland 2018
Audiences for Late Night Art across the City Centre were diverse in age, culture and ethnicity. Many people visited the activities as a group or in pairs.
Auckland Art Gallery recorded over 2700 people entering their doors between 5pm and 9pm and an estimated audience of 4000 engaged with the moving image work by Good Company Arts and Daniel Belton “Theatre of Light” which screened from 7pm to 10pm. Statistics were provided by Artweek Auckland.
Key Auckland Art Gallery highlights included free-entry to the Gordon Walters: New Vision exhibition, Walter’s Prize 2018 exhibition as well as the new gallery shows on the ground floor of the Auckland Art Gallery.
For the Love of Bees - 1 Million Flowers
For the Love of Bees (FTLOB) collaborated with artists and communities to produce a series of posters to brighten up the city and share facts on pollinators and the environment. For Late Night Art the team hosted a free, community poster making workshop.
The poster making workshop, held in the Mojo coffee shop in Bledisloe Lane, was highly popular. The artwork created in the workshops has since been featured in FTLOB campaigns on Phantom Billsticker locations across the greater Auckland region. This project was enabled by Kirsty Cameron, Phil Kelly and sponsored by Phantom.
Robert George - Bledisloe Lane Lightboxes
Robert George is of Ngāti Kuki Airani (Rarotonga and Atiu) and Te Arawa heritage. Robert was one of three artists nominated for the 2018 Auckland Festival of Photography Annual Commission. In 2016 Robert won the Emerging Māori Director award for his short film Smiths Ave at the Wairoa Māori Film Festival. To celebrate Robert's work, Artweek curated a series of sixteen images in eight lightboxes in Bledisloe Lane.
Theatre of Light at Auckland Art Gallery
For Late Night Art Auckland Art gallery extended opening hours from 5pm to 9pm and hosted the projection of Good Company Art and Daniel Belton’s Art Work “Theatre of Lights” on the gallery forecourt wall to 10pm. More info page 18, opposite.
Projected on the exterior of the Gallery for Late Night Art, 'Theatre of Light' featured recent works from the Good Company Arts' internationally acclaimed repertoire of dance films.
“Good Company Arts aims to create a “stage” that can be explored by other domains of knowledge complementary to dance, as well as architecture, anthropology, computer programming, etc. In these terms, Daniel Belton’s work is able to enlarge the understanding of the human being in movement” - Letizia Gioia Monda, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
The Little Theatre
The tradition known as “Punch & Judy” puppet theatre shows were performed from small portable theatre-like constructions. Artist and lecturer Paul Woodruffe and students of Unitec's Creative Industries course co-created a modern, digital rendition of an old-school puppet theatre. The theatre, installed outside the Central City Libary, was adorned with a cluster of ipods. These showed footage of inner city experiences compiled by Shadow, a member of Auckland's ex-rough sleeping community.
Sione Monu Kahoa Workshop
Artist Sione Monu hosted workshops to teach his version of the traditional Tongan Kahoa or garlands using the art of flower design. The workshops at the Central City Library were booked out to people from all walks of life.
Raymond Sagapolutele - Through the Lens at Night
For Artweek 2018 Pacific photographer and artist, Raymond Sagapolutele hosted two separate, night time photography walks across the central city. Entitled, "Through the lens at night" Raymond took attendees across the city centre to photograph some of Aucklands most significant landmarks and lesser noticed gems.
Te Paparahi, Toi Māori
Te Paparahi, Toi Māori, Walks in the City was officially launched at the 2018 Artweek opening at Auckland Art Gallery and two guided walking tours were held during Artweek. (Note: Within the first 3 months 7000 books had been distributed.)
Te Paparahi, Toi Māori, Walks in the City project consists of three tools; a phone APP, a map APP and the 48 page booklet. It showcases sixty Māori sites of significance and there are eight walks around the city centre that feature private and public art, urban and architectural design. They celebrate Māori identity, history, knowledge and contemporary presence.
The material was curated by Māori designer Olivia Haddon, Ngāti Manuhiri, of the Auckland Council Design Office and published by Artweek Auckland with support from Auckland Council, ATEED and Auckland Transport.
Ellen Melville Community Centre hosted a photographic exhibition of the public works in the City Centre by renowned artists Selwyn Muru, Ralph Hotere, Fred Graham, Paratene Matchitt and Arnold Manaaki Wilson.
Dr. Linda Tyler gave a talk on the artists; their histories and their contribution to Auckland's social and physical landscape. She then led a free guided tour of the works.
The project, visited by 2000 people on late Night Art alone, was curated by Olivia Haddon, Specialist Māori Design, Auckland Design Office assisted by Māori art curator Anya Vitali.
Project Leads: Activate Auckland, Artweek Auckland
Project Funder: City Centre Targeted Rate
Auckland Central City Library
For the Love of Bees
Auckland Design Office
Ellen Melville Community Centre
Good Company Art
Auckland Art Gallery
Aotea Quarter 2018
Following the release of the “Centre Stage: Contextual Strategy” that Jillian de Beer authored in 2017, Activate Auckland partnered with many of the venues in the Aotea Quarter in 2018 to continue facilitating collaboration between them and reinforcing connections that reflect Outcome 1 of the Aotea Quarter Framework – A Civic and Cultural Heart.
From Vogue Balls and interactive documentaries, to digital exhibitions and sensory explorations, Activate Auckland funded a wide range of creative community-led activities in Aotea Quarter’s public realm.
Pride Festival at Auckland Art Gallery
The FAFSWAG Vogue Ball was the first collaboration between Auckland Council, Auckland Pride Festival and Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki. FAFSWAG arts collective celebrated the launch of their interactive documentary with a live vogue battle and outdoor screening.
Audiences for event were diverse in age, culture and ethnicity. The event was at capacity very early after opening and when the maximum allowable audience was reached, people spilled over into Albert Park to view the ball from the park opposite the Auckland Art Gallery East Terrace. Approximately 500 people attended the event onsite, with another 250 spectators in Albert Park.
• Auckland Art Gallery engagement was enhanced with participation from local communities, in particular the Pasifika LGBTQ+ communities from Auckland’s suburban regions
• Pasifika and Māori artists were supported to create a unique event for communities to engage with the Auckland Art Gallery Toi O Tamaki and the Auckland PRIDE Festival 2018
• Visibility for the Pasifika and Māori LGBTQ+ community and growing Vogue youth communities during the Auckland PRIDE Festival
“This work was only possible through the foresight and vision of Barbara Holloway and the structural and organisational support of professionally experienced event specialist like Rose Jackson. In this way Activate Auckland plays a pivotal role in building the capacity for artists to present new and innovative work to eager and willing communities.” Tanu Gago, Founder of FAF SWAG
“From the perspective of the gallery, all partners, especially the artists FAF SWAG, worked earnestly to deliver a compelling and engaging experience for Auckland Pride.” - Johnny Hui, Public Programmes Manager at Auckland Art Gallery
Activate Auckland hosted French artist, Tony Regazzoni, in Pa Rongorongo during November as part of a cross-cultural digital exchange with the French Embassy, ‘Novembre Numerique’ - an annual French celebration hosted across multiple global platforms.
Tony worked with local Māori carvers, artists, lighting specialists and photographers to create a number of works that launched in Pa Rongorongo in November for a month long exhibition. Tony also partnered with Auckland Art Gallery, Splice, Auckland Central Library and other Aotea Quarter organisations to explore their collections and present talks.
• Strengthened collaboration between Aotea Quarter venues
• Strengthened collaboration between Aotea Quarter venues
• Facilitated cross-cultural collaboration between artists and sharing knowledge
Projects in the Aotea Quarter in 2018
• Korero Bike development – in partnership with Auckland Central Library
• Graduation activities at Pā Rongorongo and lightbox dispalys in Aotea Square. Partnership with the University of Auckland
• Sense Walks – in partnership with Splice
• Doc Edge Festival – in partnership with Q Theatre and the Doc Edge Trust
• Suffrage 125 – in partnership with the Central Auckland Library
• For the Love of Bees. More information page 25
• Art Speaks – in Partnership with Splice
Broadway Lights at Q Theatre
As part of Activate Auckland’s support of the Aotea Quarter area, Q Theatre requested funding to go towards an upgrade of the external Queen Street frontage of their building. They wished to create a restful, welcoming space for everyone to enjoy. An oasis of calm on a busy street to watch the 'Theatre of Life' go by and to better connect the external public realm activity on the theatre's doorstep to the interior of the venue.
• Activated the public realm and encouraged fresh engagement with a cultural venue in Aotea Quarter
• Provided connection between the internal and external realms of the building and increased perceived safety due to increased illumination of the space at night
• Trialled an activated zone on Queen St to support economic development in the city centre
“Thanks so much for the support and vision to make this happen - we’re very lucky to have Rose, Barbara and the team making our city more exciting!” - James Wilson, Director Q Theatre
Project Leads: Activate Auckland
Project Funder: City Centre Targeted Rate
Auckland Art Gallery
Auckland Pride Festival
The French Embassy of New Zealand
Auckland Central Library
Auckland Town Hall
Tactical Urbanism 2018
The Tactical Urban Interventions programme, (TUI) delivered by Auckland Council and funded by the City Centre Targeted Rate seeks to provide temporary, low-cost, people-centred interventions through a mix of collaborative activations, pilots and trials in the public realm.
Public space or public realm is the glue that holds the city centre together; the canvas for public life. A better connected public realm supports business, visitor and resident's activities alongside inviting the use of walking and cycling.
The Laneways Circuit was first identified as an opportunity in the City Centre Masterplan. It is a network of secondary streets and lanes that have the potential to create a more intimate pedestrian experience through the city centre.
The TUI programme seeks to define and support the Laneways Circuit by delivering short-term projects that enhance the public realm, increase safety and amenity and activate the Circuit until such time that permanent works can be implemented.
Federal Street Shared Space Traffic Calming Trials
Worked with Sky City and Auckland Transport (AT)to address traffic speed and behaviour on Federal Street shared space. The space, constructed in 2014, currently lacks activation at its southern end, encouraging traffic to gather speed. The first stage was to place ten pohutukawa planter boxes along the street, narrowing the linear traffic route physically and visually. Unfortunately speed counts showed negligible difference so a further stage of the trial was implemented.
The second stage of works built on the first stage and included PlaceKit street furniture configurations across the street, creating pinch points and chicanes to slow speeds. Initial feedback and observations on site suggest that this is much more effective; however, speed count data is yet to be received to confirm this.
Interestingly, there has been no incidence of the furniture being damaged by vehicles; something observed at other sites, suggesting that traffic is moving cautiously. An additional benefit of the furniture is its popularity with pedestrians for seating, more so than the permanent seating in the street.
Federal Street Walking and Cycling Improvements
Further north on the Laneway Circuit, an interim contraflow cycleway and pedestrian improvements are being tested. Federal St is scheduled for permanent upgrade but given the current challenges and route restrictions presented by City Rail Link (CRL) construction on the adjacent street, a safer, more efficient alternative route is needed.
• This part of Federal Street has always been car-dominated. This project seeks to move to a more pedestrian and place-focused environment. Through
a simple palette of materials – paint, planter boxes, armadillos and speed humps – the road was narrowed and a separated cycleway created. This is the first contra-flow cycleway in Auckland. Crossing distances at intersections were shortened via painted ‘kerb build outs’ and a polka dot pattern was applied to slow down traffic. A zebra crossing with separate bike lane crossing was installed over Wyndham Street. Key findings from the evaluation:
• Daily cyclist counts near Kingston Street up by 80%
• Pedestrian volume outside 61 Federal Street has more than doubled since 2017
• Low vehicle speeds support a change to 30kmph
St Paul Street Improvements and Place Making
This project sought to improve pedestrian movements, facilitating better connections between key spaces, and provide pedestrian amenity around key buildings frontages including the new engineering building. This project was completed in collaboration with AUT and AT.
An opportunity was identified to permanently widen the footpath outside the new engineering building. The area was still under construction, behind hoardings. So with a contract variation and car parking removal, the footpath was widened rather than reinstated to original upon building completion.
After this success, further car parking was removed along the southern, sunny side of the street and the space converted into parklets and populated with informal seating, planters and trees boxes on a strip of artificial turf. More bike parking was installed
AT then extended the one-way designation to Governor Fitzroy Place which simplified traffic movement and ended turning manoeuvres. Polka dots were painted across the street at the two main crossing areas in colours that complemented the buildings.
Eastern Viaduct Planting Trial
In collaboration with Panuku Development Auckland, PlaceKit was installed in Eastern Viaduct as part of a coastal planting trial testing the success of native species in planter boxes in this waterfront location. The trial sought to inform species selection for future coastal landscape projects. PlaceKit also provided seating to complement Panuku's picnic tables.
Alfred Street Parking Removal and Traffic Calming
Alfred Street was declared a Pedestrian Mall in 2007 to encourage a low traffic area focusing on pedestrians and cyclists. More recently the number of vehicles using and parking on Alfred Street, whilst prohibited, has increased to a point of saturation.
As part of an interim solution it was decided to add PlaceKit to existing parking bays, in colourful, playful configurations that would block parking while providing pedestrian amenity. The traffic lane was also narrowed by a row of PlaceKit planters to slow speeds of traffic.
The University of Auckland confirmed the street has been transformed and now feels much more like a space for people. The University organised a planting morning, funded by AT, where students planted the units as part of a campus eco event.
Downtown Development Response 2018
The Downtown Programme will create a generous and welcoming destination along the water’s edge that is recognisably Tāmaki Makaurau. It will become a space that strengthens people’s connection with the Waitematā Harbour – a vibrant, transformed environment for all to enjoy.
The Council family are accelerating key projects, which subject to resource consents being obtained, will be in place for the 36th America’s Cup, Asia-Pacific Economic Forum (APEC), and Te Matatini in 2021. In just three years Auckland’s waterfront will look dramatically different.
These projects have a combined investment value of up to $225 million and therefore involve a considerable level of construction activity in one of the city centre’s most dynamic areas. Downtown is home to three major transport hubs, Auckland’s cruise terminal, major event facilities, a vibrant hospitality offering, two large hotels, significant commercial properties and businesses, 679 residents and Auckland’s busiest cycle-way. It is also located adjacent to CRL and Commercial Bay’s active construction site.
• Ensure Downtown remained a great place to live, work, visit and do business during construction
• Provide additional resource for the programme delivery team to support local stakeholders
• Contribute to removing risks to the programme through the resource consenting and engagement processes.
• Challenge Business As Usual project delivery methods ensuring the delivery team thinks ‘Outside the hoarding line’ when making decisions
Over the next ten years, the Downtown programme will be creating a generous and welcoming destination along the water’s edge that is recognisably Tāmaki Makaurau.
The Downtown Development Response team was bought on board as part of the programme delivery team by Auckland Transport in May 2018 and allocated a budget based on 1% of the total programme total cost.
• Delivered by Auckland Transport
• Project Value, $225 Million
• Average 215,000 cruise visitors to area per year
Year in Review
The Downtown Development Response Team consisting of Catherine Edmeades, Development Response Manager and Liz Allen, Street Response Manager undertook the following activities in 2018.
Development Response Strategy and Action Plan
• This strategy and its accompanying action plan were developed to outline programme objectives, highlight issues which could arise and best practice tools to implement the development response programme
Developed a Code of Conduct which embeds high expectations of behaviour and site operations into the construction contract.
Includes: Overall site appearance, site fencing, contractor parking and onsite behavior, after-hours / event mode, waste management, noise management and universal access.
• Developed and implemented a Site Audit Checklist to ensure requirements stipulated in the Code of Conduct are being met
• Worked with contractors to install temporary site fences which are appropriate for the context
• Commissioned temporary site fencing artwork and project information boards
• Implemented temporary wayfinding signage on site so people can easily and safely navigate to and through downtown
• Established a downtown events calendar which informs contractor activities to reduce potential impact on events
Communication and Engagement
• Supported the Communication and Engagement team in the development of key messages, stakeholder engagement strategy and engagement collateral
• Set up operational working groups with key stakeholders
• Delivered 12 stakeholder engagement events with 550 people in total attending
• 192 pieces of feedback were received
Temporary public space was installed in the Plaza of 1 Queen Street during Auckland Anniversary weekend and from 1-15 February to provide people a nice place to sit and meet
• Begun developing business support and activation plan alongside key stakeholders
Monitoring and Evaluation
• To ensure Coucil family have a clear understanding of how construction activity is affecting the community two quarterly data scorecards were produced. These reported on: Pedestrian Movement, Retail / hospitality spend, Events, Property, Demographics. (See monitoring indicators diagram page 11)
For the Love of Bees & The Griffith's Gardens 2018
For The Love of Bees is a living social sculpture that began in 2016 in the heart of Auckland city in collaboration with Auckland Council and Activate Auckland.
Its regenerative learning adventures and projects share the most fruitful, holistic ways to indulge in a love for bees, leaving people inspired and capable of contributing to their whole ecosystem's wellbeing.
The project offers opportunities for businesses, students, individuals, schools, community gardens, brand partners and beekeepers to collaborate and produce a vision that will live on through the City of Auckland for years to come.
Over the period 1 June 2017 - 31 July 2018, For the Love of Bees facilitated 114 public events including two free biking bee events that traversed the inner city with support from Auckland Transport. FTLOB also facilitated over 30 workshops within schools and other community groups, including St Heliers school, Herne Bay Playcentre, The Chinese Presbyterian Church, Auckland Girls Grammar, Kelmarna Gardens, and Ecomatters.
• Delivered a weekly 2-hour drop-in biological gardening workshop and a monthly 5 hour drop-in workshop geared around quality compost making.
• Delivered workshops for a number of groups including AUT’s Design for Sustainability class who FTLOB approached and encouraged to design for bees, the MIT Horticultural Beekeeping group, the Chinese Presbyterian Church group, St Matthews Church Community Garden, the 2018 Auckland Climate Challenge Conference for youth, Enviroschools teachers, Live Lightly, Balmoral School, East Tamaki School and St Annes Manurewa
• Delivered school holiday workshops with Andrea Reid of Pollinator Paths and Bees Up Top.
• Established a Rongoā Garden (traditional Maori medicinal garden) in collaboration with Ngāti Whātua, Awatea Hawke, Awhina Mai Tatou Katoa and Rob Smith. The garden is a living partnership with Mana Whenua o Tamāki Makaurau Iwi, Ngāti Whātua ki Orakei. Three pou carved by Tom Ropata and his crew were erected by Awhina Mai Tatou Katoa to watch over the garden.
• Hosted artworks and accompanying workshops by artists Levi Brinsdon-Hall, Amanda Yates and Monique Jansen. This included the ‘Carbon Cycle,’ a planter and mobile kitchen installation by AUT’s Puna Waipapaora, a Low-Carbon Urban Activation Lab, which functioned as a focal point for numerous workshops and conversations around climate change.
• Hosted teachers including Judy Keats of The Compost Collective, Richard Main from Gardens4Health, Blue Borage, and Cam smith, a biochar expert.
• Held activations for the ‘Hour of Lockout’ for Mental Health Day and World Peace Day
• Opened an Organic Seed Saving Bank to the public in Pā Rongorongo
Native Bee Awareness
Collaborated with native bee expert Dr Ngaire Hart to present two public talks that were very well attended and organised an interview on RNZ with Jesse Mulligan, where Ngaire was able to discuss her thesis. The talks were held at at Owairoa Marae in Mellons Bay and Ellen Melville Centre. Ngaire spoke about how to identify native bees using microscopes, the korero of insects, in terms of whakapapa and Rongoā and the healing aspects relating to bees.
Capacity Building and Meaningful Opportunities
• Levi Brinsdon-Hall began as a student at Elam, using For the Love of Bees for his living artwork. Since becoming a facilitator, his teaching and growing skills have truly flourished over the life of the project. Levi has a wonderful way with children, who soak up his animated enthusiasm for nature and its systems.
• Gabrielle Message began as a sustainable business student at AUT, using For the Love of Bees to fulfill part of her coursework. She then chose For the Love of Bees as her co-operative education placement, contributing design, writing and ideation skills to help the project tell its story.
• Paora is a long time collaborator and a member of the homeless community. Last year he planted, managed and harvested kumara at Griffith’s Gardens and is now an official waterer. He contributes extensive organic growing knowledge.
Further Highlights and Recognition
Recognition - For the Love of Bees received two nominations for the International Award for Public Art (IAPA) by Leon Tan and Kelly Carmichael, which will be announced March 2019 in Singapore.
Presence at events - For the Love of Bees were represented at Summer in the Square, The Myers Park Medley, "Village of Flowers" at Queens Wharf, Parnell Festival of Roses, NZ Flower and Garden Show and Auckland Anniversary Weekend at Silo Park.
Presentations - Talks were delivered in front of Soil and Health NZ, New Zealand Tree Crops Association, Parnell Rotary, the Permaculture Hui 2018, and at The New Zealand Association for Environmental Education conference (NZAEE) - where the team shared teaching tools with Enviroschools teachers and other environmental educators. Presentations to council were done for both the Regenerative Parks project and for the Waste Management and Minimization Plan.
Social media - For the Love of Bees gained 1,875 Facebook page likes and 264 newsletter subscribers in the period 1 June 2017 - 31 July 2018.
Teaching tools - For the Love of Bees creates and hosts free online teaching tools and modes of action that help communities take regenerative actions. These are being embraced by a number of groups.
Karangahape Road Development Response 2018
In November 2017, the Karangahape Road Development Response Plan was drafted to address the potential impact of the upcoming Karangahape Road Streetscape Enhancement Project.
A key Development Response action is to ensure the programme is up and running in communities well in advance of projects starting so that residents, businesses and visitors are given enough time to prepare for the changes that construction will bring.
Activate Auckland and Auckland Transport were part of the pre-works project team which piloted a Development Response led approach. Activate Auckland also partnered with the K Road Business Association to develop a Business Support programme that was funded by the City Centre targeted rate.
Auckland Council and Auckland Transport are cognisant of the unique mix of retail, hospitality, creative and commercial businesses in the Karangahape Road area. To prepare for the changes and opportunities that the K Road Enhancement Project will bring: Auckland Council, Business Mentors NZ, the Auckland Business Chamber, Easy Social Media and the K Road Business Association (KBA) worked together to offer Business Pac; a package of services free to businesses.
Business Pac includes:
• Free personal business mentor for 12 months from Business Mentors NZ
• Free membership to the Auckland Business Chamber giving access to business advice, tools and networking
• Free one-on-one social media training and Facebook ad credits with Easy Social Media
• Resilience training with the Restaurant Association and other workshops
Over 50 businesses have taken up the Social Media training and over 20 businesses had taken up the Mentors NZ offer in the first six months of the offer. After the first round, Activate Auckland worked with the KBA and Mentors NZ to reformat the programme to ensure it was tailored to the specific needs of the K Road business community and the updated offer released in November. This is a model that Business Mentors NZ has developed working in unique business communities
Code of Conduct: Auckland Council, through its Development Response programme, seeks to improve on the current 'business as usual' practices during construction and elevate the current behaviour/ environment/ response.
As part of the delivery team for the K Road Streetscape Enhancement Project, the main contractor was invited to be part of creating this legacy that will then inform the way future projects are shaped and delivered.
The Council family aims to leave the K Road community - its residents, businesses and visitors - in a better state than before changes commenced. As part of the K Road Project all contractors are required to adhere to a Construction Code of Conduct including:
• Overall site appearance
• Fencing/ Hoardings/ Scrim
• Site personnel
• Stakeholder management
• Site access and maintenance
• After hours and event mode
Neighbourhood Welcome Booklet: Activate Auckland and the KBA want to create a welcoming environment for work-site personnel coming into the precinct. The Neighbourhood Welcome booklet will be supplied to all construction staff offering lunchtime discounts, neighbourhood dos and dont's and other relevant information. This has a dual function of setting behavioural expectations of construction crews and supporting the local economy by encouraging purchasing from local businesses.
Business Ready Kit: Activate Auckland and the KBA are preparing the Business Ready Kit to provide businesses with everything they need to know about the construction works, parking changes, loading and delivery sites, contact numbers, business support tools and more. This was developed in late 2018 for an early 2019 release.
Activate Auckland will be working closely with the K Road Business Association to ensure that businesses, residents and visitors are well supported.
A programme of activities to keep K Road vibrant, accessible, clean and safe during construction was funded by the Targeted Rate and is supporting the following activities:
• Supplementary funding for Artweek, First Thursdays, Lightpath Festival
• Marketing & PR
• K Road Connect meetings
• K Road Conversations
• Monthly walking tours
• Sunday Trading promotion
Comms and Engagement
Direct communication and engagement with the community is vitally important to a Development Response led project as it informs the decisions the project team make and it ensures these are representative of the K Road community’s desires.
Feedback from the community at the Auckland Transport Pop Up Project Hub asked the community what they wanted to see on Karangahape Road during the transformation. There were over 300 responses and the community were most responsive to creative hoardings, temporary installations, pop up parks and on-street activities.
In response to this feedback, the project team will work with local creatives and the K Road Business Association to develop these ideas and create a set of engaging tools and activities that will help to keep the precinct thriving throughout the transformation and provide opportunities to keep communication lines open with the community about their needs during construction.
Project Lead: Activate Auckland, Auckland Transport
Project Funder: City Centre Targeted Rate, Auckland Transport
Karangahape Road Business Association
Karangahape Road Businesses