When the Covid-19 epidemic got hold in Europe and vaccines were rapidly invented to counteract it, the European Commission told the individual countries of the European Union that they needn’t buy vaccines because the European Commission would buy and distribute all the vaccines.
The result has been an almighty mess up. While an individual, fairly independent country such as the UK has been able to buy and vaccinate millions, the individual countries of the European Union have had to sit and wait, vaccinating very slowly.
This is no surprise to those who can see clearly the reality of the European Union project today. The reality of the European Union today is as follows: A small group of a few thousand civil servants joined together with some mainly liberal left national politicians who call themselves the European Commission are attempting to run the whole of Europe from the little town of Brussels which is less than a fiftieth of the size of London.
This small group of people respond only to the pressure of Germany and Big Business. Like the Labour Party in the UK, they long ago ceased to represent ordinary citizens or working people, believing that from their lofty, privileged position they know best what should happen in each of the individual countries. For that reason they ignore referendums in individual countries and seek that the vote is taken again until they get the ‘correct’ result (Ireland, France, Denmark etc. had to vote again). Moreover, such is the certainty of this small number of people in little Brussels that they know best that these days they increasingly impose their diktats by fines and/or withholding funds.
Let’s not waste time here pretending that the European Union is in some way democratic because it holds elections and votes, has elected bodies, and has at least four chauffeur driven ‘Presidents’. These elected bodies are talking shops which provide the false facade of democracy where little really exists… the real power lies with the unelected European Commission in Brussels which is the only body which can initiate legislation. The rest is an empty, sterile facade.
There have been several attempts to control part or all of the vast, diverse European continent. The Italians (Romans) had a go over 2000 years ago, and the Germans had a couple of military attempts in the last 100 years. In the end they failed due to overstretching themselves and the resistance of individual countries.
The European Union liberal left political project to control all of Europe will fail for the same reasons and in due course will inevitably pass out of existence. It should have remained a straightforward and friendly free trade no tariff zone just like other free trade zones throughout the world.
The truth is that the liberal left political project to control all of the vast and varied continent of Europe from a little town in Belgium is a clapped out idea from the 1950s. The only certainty in Europe these days is that when there’s a penalty shootout on the football pitch, the Germans will always win!
Regards Brian
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With an atmosphere any fantasy lover can get lost in, the “Six of Crows” series gives readers intricate world building in a limited number of books.
In the fantasy genre, Leigh Bardugo’s duology not only is able to set up clear surroundings for the plot in both books, but is able to do so while cycling between the points of view from six main characters.
With each separate character we learn a piece of the plot, all while getting a taste of the character’s personality, thoughts and impressions on what is going on. Being able to experience this with six characters at a time, and make all of them vary from one another, is a feat.
One of the six point of views the reader sees is Kaz Brekker, a complex character if there ever was one.
While the plot of the books focuses on the characters needing to complete a heist for a massive reward in return, it shows the different motivations they have and what completing this job means to each one.
The “Six of Crows” characters are not only so diverse in personality that makes each chapter from a different perspective vary from the one before it, but Bardugo has received praise in the diversity and representation written into her books.
This is not Bardugo’s only fantasy work, as she has another series “Shadow and Bone”. This series is held in the same world as “Six of Crows” called the “Grishaverse”. Characters of both book series will be featured in the upcoming Netflix show “Shadow and Bone”.
Seeing the world created within the “Grishaverse” on screen will be exciting as the trailers and sneak peeks already look promising to do the books justice.
To go through reading these books, especially if you are doing so to prepare for the upcoming show, there is a lot of hints to backstory that can’t be skimmed or skipped when trying to grasp the overarching plot.
In this world Bardugo builds, we learn about “Grisha,” which are people with powers or abilities, conflict between fantasy countries, as well as the power dynamics of characters in gangs and monopolies in the book’s main setting “The Barrel”.
With each little detail, the author helps paint the picture for each reader and truly immerse us into the world created.
Typically, fantasy readers see book series that consists of four or more books to cover all of the world building details, plot and character development, but Bardugo is able to do this all in the “Six of Crows” duology and do it well.
Organic food is “healthier” than its chemically produced counterparts, EU Agricultural Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski told journalists at an event to mark the launch of the EU’s long-awaited organic action plan on Thursday (25 March).
The Commissioner said that though all food on the European market is safe and subject to “strict control of the highest safety standards,” organic production is on balance the healthier option.
“Our consumers can be sure that the food which we have in our market produced in Europe, also the imported [food], is controlled and is safe. But of course, the organic products, the methods of production, they should guarantee higher standards of health,” he said, adding that, in an ideal world, he would like to see all agriculture in Europe farmed organically.
“Products produced without chemical intervention are healthier,” he continued, stressing that this is especially the case with locally produced food.
Organic agriculture has a lower environmental impact than conventional production and there is a growing demand for organic food both in Europe and globally as more people seek out healthy food, Wojciechowski said as he presented the long-awaited EU plan.
The plan aims at incentivising both the production and consumption of organic produce across the bloc in line with the ambitious target included in the EU’s flagship Farm to Fork food policy to see 25% of agricultural land farmed organically by 2030.
“I’m convinced that with this plan, we will increase the area of organic farming and organic food production to the benefit of human health, the environment, the climate and animal welfare,” Wojciechowski said.
On the back of growing concern over the target for 25% of EU farmland to be farmed organically by 2030, EU Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski has lent the plan his support and stressed it is achievable. But farmers are still concerned that, as it stands, supply may well outstrip demand, which they say could “kill” the sector.
The action plan aims to provide a clear road map to achieving this target, although it does not feature new legislative initiatives from the Commission’s side.
Using a push-pull approach, the plan outlines a three-pronged approach to meeting the goal. Both demand and production should be increased and the contribution of organic farming to sustainability improved.
The plan’s stated aim is to “encourage a marked increase of the share of organic farming in the EU, through encouraging farmers to convert to organic farming and to expand the accessibility of organic food to close the gap between a business-as-usual growth curve and the ‘extra effort’ necessary to reach a 25% target by 2030.”
This involves measures such as promoting the EU organics logo, increasing the share of organic food in public procurement, such as in school and public canteens, and investments in research and innovation.
Jan Plagge, president of EU organics association IFOAM Organics Europe, welcomed the plan, which, alongside the F2F strategy, will mark a “new era for the transformation of our food systems towards organic and agroecology”.
“The Commission has put forward concrete steps to boost organic demand,” he said, citing the €49 million budget for organic within the promotion policies framework and the integration of organic products into the minimum mandatory criteria for sustainable public procurement.
Furthermore, Plagge greeted as “timely steps forward” the move to allocate at least 30% of the Horizon Europe funding for agriculture, forestry, and rural areas to topics relevant for the organic sector, as well as carrying out a study on the real price of food and the role of taxation.
The EU umbrella organisation for the pesticides and biopesticides industries, CropLife Europe, also welcomed the action plan as an “important piece of the Farm to Fork equation.”
“Whilst there are important trade-offs to be considered through the increase of organic farming in the EU, we recognise the importance of stimulating sustainability through the increased diversity of agricultural practices. Our industry will continue innovating to support the needs of organic farmers,” a spokesperson told EURACTIV.
Europe has one of world’s largest shares of organic farmland, and was home to close to 14 million of the 70 million hectares of organically cultivated agricultural land worldwide in 2018.
Although they are far from dominating the sector, organically cultivated land made up around 8% of total EU agricultural land in 2018, compared to just over 1.5% of land cultivated organically worldwide.
The Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) and the Pontifical Council for Culture are pleased to invite you to join a webinar on the New European Bauhaus initiative of the European Commission. The event will take place in a digital format on Thursday 15 April 2021, from 17:00 to 19:10 (CEST).
In the context of the recent launch of the New European Bauhaus initiative, COMECE and the Pontifical Council for Culture will organize a joint webinar event and dialogue session to offer a key of interpretation on the topics of sustainability, aesthetics and inclusion in light of Pope Francis’ Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’.
The event will see the participation of H. Em. Card. Jean-Claude Hollerich and H. E. Mgr. Paul Tighe, respectively President of COMECE and Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Culture, who, together with architects, policymakers and theologians, will discuss the links between beauty, social inclusion, sustainability and spirituality in urban and living spaces.
Wine importer Laine Boswell at one of her client wineries in France, Grande Boise.
Ruggero Ughetti
Speaking about influences on her career in the wine industry, wine importer Laine Boswell points to the two women who had the strongest effect: a great aunt who lived in Paris and a classmate who hired Boswell to work for her family’s business after graduation. Based in Seattle and Switzerland, Laine Boswell Selections specializes in importing wine from notable but off-the-beaten-track regions around the world to the United States. She works with small, family-owned producers who grow native varieties and make wines utilizing organic or biodynamic practices. A graduate of the master’s degree program in Wine Science and Management through the OIV (Organisation International de la Vigne et du Vin),Boswell has deep connections in Europe and is passionate about telling the story of these family wineries.
Boswell seeks out wineries helmed by second or third generation family members who are looking to the future while remaining committed to the values of their parents and grandparents. She believes in the “slow and steady” method to building strong and long-lasting relationships with all of her partners on both sides of the Atlantic. She has two part time people working with her in the US, one who manages state-side logistics when Boswell is in Europe and another who works as a sales manager and coordinator.
Boswell is currently working with twelve brands from Switzerland, France, Spain, Italy, and Oregon, and is looking to add three to four new winery partners and two to three new distribution partners in the coming year. LBS imports approximately 140,000 bottles annually, and the wines are available in eight states, mostly on the coasts.
Two of the wine brands available in the US via Laine Boswell Selections.
Alycia Lovell
As we continue to shine a light on women in wine during Women’s Month, we spoke with Laine Boswell about her mentors and her journey into wine, the difficult task of running a small import business during Covid-19, and how she and her husband worked together to create two new wine brands for the American Market.
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World Wine Guys: What was your journey towards working in the wine industry and starting your own import company?
Laine Boswell: While studying in France during college and then living and teaching there for a couple of years afterward, I spent most of my free time visiting European wine regions, learning more about wine, and, of course, tasting a lot. I had an influential great aunt who was an expat living in Paris and very involved in the French food scene. She helped me to cultivate an already significant love of the table and all that it represented. Being able to connect with people and learn more about their lives, culture and passions over a long meal with a great glass or multiple glasses of wine became one of my greatest pleasures. I knew after spending this time in Europe during my most formative years that being able to share the stories and traditions of amazing family vignerons through their wines was what I wanted to do. As soon as I returned to the U.S., I set out to find a job in the wine industry. As an eager and passionate young woman in her mid- twenties with little work experience, I was met with quite a few raised eyebrows, but I was eventually able to land a job working at a winery in Washington State as the marketing and communications manager. From there, I met many people in the northwest wine industry and subsequently jumped into a sales position in Seattle with a cool distribution company that worked mainly with European imports. I continued to take wine education classes, read a lot, and, of course, tasted as much as possible. I learned about the master’s degree program in Wine Science and Management through the OIV and immediately applied. I was accepted and became one of twenty students from twelve different countries to enroll that year. We spent the next two years studying at affiliated French universities as well as traveling to over 22 countries around the world to study wine. It is still, to this day, the single most influential career and personal experience of my life, not only because of what I learned, but also because of the remarkable network of people in the wine industry around the world that I met and continue to interact with today.
Wine importer Laine Boswell and her winemaker husband, Olivier Roten, in his vineyard in Valais, … [+] Switzerland.
Ruggero Ughetti
WWG: How easy or difficult is it to set up your own wine importation company?
LB: The initial process of setting up my import company was more about paperwork than anything else. I had moved to Italy after the O.I.V. master’s program to learn more about Italian wines and identify a few key producers I wanted to represent. I spent about two years primarily building relationships across the country while also working on various wine events, developing my business plan, and submitting all the necessary paperwork to obtain a U.S. import license. The paperwork was tedious, but the process of relationship building and homing in on how I wanted to set my venture apart as a female-owned importing company was pure joy. I loved the crafting of it and likened it to piecing together a patchwork quilt of the best wines that represented colorful people and untold stories. Once I had the framework laid out, the challenge of finding and cultivating customers in the U.S. then began.
WWG: How did you and your husband come up with the idea for your new brands, Avalanche and Alpine Roots?
LB: My husband, Olivier Roten, is the third generation to manage his family’s vineyard land and winery, which is located in the Valais, Switzerland’s largest grape-growing region in the heart of the Alps.
We met through the O.I.V. master’s program, although we completed the degree at different times. We were introduced at a friend’s winery in Oregon while he and his class were visiting the Willamette Valley. As an O.I.V. alumnae and NW native, I helped to meet and greet visiting students and organize certain logistics and presentations for their local classes. It was more or less love at first sight or, rather, first discussion. I was based in my hometown of Seattle at that time and facing some crucial decisions for my business, and he was returning to Switzerland and officially taking over his family’s winery, but we managed to find ways to cross the ocean to see each other.
Not long after we decided to marry, we began to dream up ways we could work together, while still keeping focused on our respective businesses. We decided to create a label that honored both our love story as well as the roots and heart of Swiss wine from the Alps.
We started with two of our favorite Swiss varieties; Pinot Noir and Fendant, which is also called Chasselas. They both are particularly celebrated in my husband’s native Valais region, which also boasts the Matterhorn peak and Edelweiss, the Swiss national flower. We based the label on an old Swiss postage stamp and had it hand-drawn and re-crafted by my talented designer cousin (@castandcompany). The Avalanche wines represent the style of wines that we like to drink on a regular basis as well as the essence of my husband’s Alpine roots and what we love together in life. It says it all on our back label: Travel, Climb Mountains, Be Inspired, Drink Good Wine, Drink Swiss Wine. Fall in Love.
We also wanted people to identify with those most important, classic elements of Swiss culture and tradition, which include wine, perhaps more than anything else. Most recently we have also created an exclusive retail line of my husband’s wines called Alpine Roots. These wines include a few of our absolute favorite indigenous Swiss varieties, such as Petite Arvine and Humagne Rouge. On this label we chose a hand-drawn sketch of the Alpine valley where my husband’s vineyard lands are located. Look for those in the U.S. market now.
Bottles of Avalanche, a Swiss wine brand created for the US market by winemaker Olivier Roten and … [+] his wife Laine Boswell.
Ruggero Ughetti
WWG: Can you tell us about a female mentor who had an impact on your career?
LB: Without a doubt, the most influential woman along my journey and career path is Raquel Perez Cuevas, who is a fourth-generation owner of Bodegas Ontañon based in Rioja, Spain. Alongside her sisters and brother she manages the family winery and the extensive vineyard lands they own on the high-elevation slopes of the Rioja Oriental region. Raquel trusted me to bring her family’s wines to the American market for the first time over 11 years ago and then to manage their U.S. presence. Not only did she believe in me and my abilities in the very early stages of creating my company, but she taught me by example important qualities that have helped me to meet the challenges of a sometimes ruthless, male-dominated professional world and to maintain my focus on the importance of personal relationships. She manages her team and varied business clients around the world with integrity, empathy and respect, and most importantly with an authentic, direct, fair and incredibly intelligent professional manner. She has earned respect in return and has helped her family to build the largest single holding of vineyard land in Spain. The care, passion and effort she puts into everything she does is immediately recognizable in the quality of wines the family produces.
WWG: What were the effects of Covid-19 and wine tariffs on your brand-new business?
LB: Both have had substantial effects. The wine tariffs have made it extremely difficult for companies (especially small- to medium-sized ones) to import wines from France, Spain and Germany in any quantity that makes shipping costs reasonable, as we are responsible for paying the 25% increase in cost (that the tariffs have added) up front, before the wine lands at port. This cost increase is crippling for a sector of the industry that already works on slim margins, and the money is taken out of the company many, many months before there is any return. The tariffs are detrimental to our industry and especially to smaller importing businesses like mine trying to bring hidden gems from less well-known European wine-growing regions to the U.S. for reasonable and fair prices. This is the basis of my business, and it feels as though an arm has been cut off when Covid also continues to threaten our existence on so many levels, especially with the near absence of restaurant sales for more than a year. We have faith that the new United States Trade Representative will soon be officially appointed and will swiftly reverse these tariffs that have nothing to do with the wine industry.
Chateau Plaisance owner Marc Penavayre with importer Laine Boswell in his Languedoc-Rousillon … [+] vineyard.
Ruggero Ughetti
WWG: What would you like to tell wine drinkers about Swiss wine?
LB: Go try Swiss wines! The Swiss have a history of grape growing for wine production that dates back to Roman times. Swiss wines are beautiful, refined and diverse. At the moment less than two percent of Swiss wine is exported, but that is slowly changing as the new generation of vignerons are more curious and motivated to explore the export market. Most of the vineyard land in Switzerland is planted on steep slopes, whether above Lake Geneva or in the foothills of the Alps, which means that all vineyard work, including harvest, is done by hand. Given its vast span of mountainous terrain, Switzerland boasts the highest altitude vineyard (1150 meters) in all of Europe and in certain of its wine-growing regions, like the Valais where I spend a fair amount of time, the Alpine influence is notable in the character of the wines. They are fresh, pure, delineated, elegant and tend to have a notable backbone of acidity.
The Swiss, like the French, classify their wines by AOC (appellation d’origine contrôlée),which defines wines by their geographical area, characterized by particular growing conditions called terroir.While the Swiss cultivate over 200 different grape varieties, the most popular wines are made from Pinot Noir and Chasselas) and together represent approximately 60% of their production. Wine is a major part of Swiss culture and is widely celebrated, particularly in the main wine-growing regions like Valais, Vaud, Grison and Ticino. Many families still take great pride in tending their own small parcels of vineyard land which have been handed down and split up between family members over the generations.
It’s hardly possible to find someone whose life has not been changed in one way or another because of COVID-19. In this photo story young people from Uzbekistan share their experiences of living through a pandemic and how it has transformed their lives. Such personal experiences reflect on the impact that COVID-19 has had on physical and mental health, relationships, values and priorities for young people facing the future.
Challenges and restrictions posed by the pandemic have been especially difficult for young people, considering the rapid lifestyle changes brought about by the need to follow protective measures and self-isolate. “The pandemic has taught its lesson to almost everyone, including those who didn’t get sick and didn’t lose their loved ones,” notes Ms Lianne Kuppens, WHO Representative and Head of the WHO Country Office in Uzbekistan. “It made them learn something important about themselves, their families, and people around them. I would say that everyone had a unique experience likely to bring a long-lasting impact.”
Here we publish highlights from a photo exhibition run by the WHO Country Office in Uzbekistan in January–February 2021 with the support of the UN Information Centre. Supporting young people to cope with the pandemic and become more resilient for the future remains a priority for WHO.
Sri Lanka promoted as destination for Buddhist studies
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By — Shyamal Sinha
Sri Lanka is being promoted as an international hub for Buddhist education by the Export Development Board.
Facilities currently exist for foreign students to be boarded in Sri Lanka during their studies.
Export Development Board (EDB) Chairman Suresh de Mel noted that Sri Lanka was the leading English proficient country amongst Buddhist nations. De Mel said addressing a webinar on March 24 organised jointly by the EDB and the Sri Lankan embassy in Vietnam to promote Sri Lankan Buddhist education.
Buddhism was introduced into the island in the third century BCE after the Third Buddhist council by the elder Mahinda and by the elder nun Sangamitta. According to the Sinhala chronicles, both were children of the emperor Ashoka.
Buddhism has been given the foremost place under Article 9 of the Sri Lankan Constitution which can be traced back to an attempt to bring the status of Buddhism back to the status it enjoyed prior to being destroyed by colonialists. However, by virtue of Article 10 of the Sri Lankan constitution, religious rights of all communities are preserved. Sri Lanka is one of the oldest traditionally Buddhist countries.
The island has been a center of Buddhist scholarship and practice since the introduction of Buddhism in the third century BCE producing eminent scholars such as Buddhaghosa and preserving the vast Pāli Canon. Throughout most of its history, Sri Lankan kings have played a major role in the maintenance and revival of the Buddhist institutions of the island. During the 19th century, a modern Buddhist revival took place on the island which promoted Buddhist education.
The EDB is working to bring down Japanese students to Sri Lanka with conversations in Tokyo being at a very advanced stage. Sri Lankan ambassador to Vietnam Prasanna Gamage said that Sri Lanka has a high-quality Buddhist education infrastructure. Currently, an estimated 80 monks from Vietnam are studying in Sri Lanka.
Gamage in his conversations with past students in Vietnam notes that they were all greatly appreciative of their time in Sri Lanka. To be eligible to study in Sri Lanka most courses require a grasp of the English language. Gamage noted that institutions were not willing to lower the standard of English so as to maintain standards for local students.
Gamage added that there was a comprehensive compilation of the educational offering of Sri Lanka as an education destination that could be communicated to interested foreign parties.
According to the Mahavamsa, they arrived in Sri Lanka during the reign of Devanampiya Tissa of Anuradhapura (307–267 BCE) who converted to Buddhism and helped build the first Buddhist stupas and communities. Tissa donated a royal park in the city to the Buddhist community, which was the beginning of the Mahāvihāra tradition. Mahinda is associated with the site of Mihintale, one of the oldest Buddhist site in Sri Lanka. Mihintale includes numerous caves which may have been used by the early Sri Lankan sangha.
Increased deployment of EASO personnel in Greece matched by new training plan aimed at supporting the Greek authorities in sustaining long-term quality and efficiency in the national asylum system.
The European Asylum Support Office (EASO) has begun implementing a new joint Training Plan together with the Greek Asylum Service (GAS) under the Agency’s 2021 Greece Operating Plan.
Since 2011, EASO has trained more than 450 Greek officials as trainers who are now qualified to instruct colleagues in line with EU asylum and fundamental rights standards, while tailoring said training to the national context. In the same period, the Agency’s national training sessions have seen 3,457 Greek participants, while EASO’s operational training, targeting Member State experts deployed in Greece, has recorded 3,735 participations.
Through the new Training Plan, in 2021 EASO is not only increasing the number and specialised areas of training it is delivering to its Greek counterparts, but is importantly also ensuring that the Plan is implemented jointly. Notably, some activities are targeted at both Greek as well as EASO’s own personnel in the country, as both work together within the national system.
Such a collaborative approach is essential in building on the unique experience which Greek asylum officials have gained due to the national experience in the past few years. At the same time, it ensures that this experience is combined with increasingly specialised EU-level training on the legal and procedural requirements of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS).
The 2021 Training Plan includes the following notable elements:
a series of National Train-the-Trainer sessions, aimed at supporting GAS in strengthening its national pool of trainers;
support in the roll-out of a national training planbased on EASO modules;
on-the-job coaching sessions which are being delivered throughout the year and are aimed at supporting more than 600 GAS and EASO caseworkers in the country; and
thematic training sessions for GAS Quality Focal Points and EASO Team Leaders
The same process is currently under development with the Greek Reception and Identification Service (RIS). The aim of the joint training plan with RIS is to strengthen the overall capacity of existing and new reception staff in both first-line and second-line reception facilities, as well as central services.
EASO is grateful for the strong collaboration of the Greek authorities, which have demonstrated a continued commitment to strengthen the national asylum system. The results of this are increasingly evident as the backlog in the country continues to be reduced whilst investment in quality processes continue to be made in parallel.
Any further information may be obtained from the European Asylum Support Office on the following email address: [email protected]
/https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/605d2e273d17d9ced117b834/0x0.jpg?w=696&resize=696,0&ssl=1 "Importer Laine Boswell Owes Her Career In Wine To Inspirational Women")
