Stardust of mine
Of lives entwined
The passage of time
Does not diminish.
Yet as we return to the earth
Incorporated into its majestic rhythms
The circle of life
Unassuaged
Continues.
Our energies sublime
Radiant in our spring and summer
Gradually fade
Through autumn and winter.
And our journey
From this life
To the next
Whatever lies beyond the veil…
Our next
Glorious adventure
Awaits!
2021. Ah, This was the year that was… Propaganda over policies Power over principles Pandemic over protection. A Whittling away of democracy Lack of accountability Politicians playacting Where shadowed maestros play the tune That we all dance to. A corrupted system Orchestrated by robber barons of old made new With graft now unashamedly done in public The old boys protected at every turn. Falsehoods and fallacies overtake truth as myth The cult of me over the community of we Avarice prostrated as good Elitism and entitlement rule And we stay in indentured servitude Service industries A so called gig economy A mockery Of what is just and true. With blatant fascism and racism Now proudly on display Drumbeats of war to distract us Talk continues to be cheap Deaths in custody continue unabated A national woman’s movement Decrying subjugation, rape, their hurt Cheerily do-opted and then ignored A web of lies spun from every orifice While men in power positions continue to escape their rightful day in court. The disabled remain invisible A footnote consigned to oblivion Our wealth before their health Swept away A dirty secret ignored. The continual demise of biodiversity A clock ticking down on the climate Code red, klaxons blaring Unheard. What did we learn? For the fires that swept through our nation will surely return And all the co-branding of resilience The isolationism from our global brotherhood Where we ignore wave upon waves of new virulent pandemics That beat incessantly on others shores It will mean nought. For what lies ahead of us? Will we see that the bleakness of 2021 Was but a child's game? And bring to bear a new reality That we can no longer spin away Our truth will be to wish To plead That it was the previous year Where destiny can be prevented Where there is time to change The course of what lies ahead. What did we really learn? Ah, 2021. It was the year that was.
Will the stark reality between Australia’s climate future and the denial, the fudging and blustering for economic and special interests finally come home to roost?
IPCC Sixth Assessment Report will be released at 6pm today.
Will the stark reality between Australia’s climate future and the denial, the fudging and blustering for economic and special interests finally come home to roost?
Will our government finally be dragged kicking and screaming to join the consensus of our nearest neighbors, whose future as proud island nations reach to an inevitable, whimpering conclusion?
Will it acknowledge its contribution to our current, escalating crisis and take appropriate action or will it continue to nibble away, staring blankly ahead, irrespective of the calamities that are increasing befalling our nation?
A gas lead recovery is a fools errand that will be our nations shame and the demise of our nations pride.
#climatechange #ipcc #greeneconomy
WEF carried out a global poll of 11,000 young people on future skills using u-report platform.
I wish life was a game which came with instructions, but unfortunately we don’t have that roadmap that can tell us exactly what we should do to get to where we want to be.
Praise Majwafi, 22, South Africa
Its worth checking out the knowledge graphs – you have to create a WEF account for free, as well as easily accessible ureport
#education #skillsofthefuture # #training
Bottom line, the Vaccine Checker is confusing and I’m sure will discourage completion by those who aren’t Australian
What gobbledygook exists in the Vaccine Eligibility Checker when you don’t have medicare? My interest was sparked when I saw the following ABC article.
Federal Government blasts Campsie GP clinic for charging for Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine ‘consultations’
Bottom line, the Vaccine Checker is confusing and I’m sure will discourage completion by those who aren’t Australian citizens. Surely the outcome has to be to get everyone vaccinated? There’s a lot of room for improvement in its design to successfully reach minority groups and/or those with poor digital literacy – groups that need the vaccine the most.
A woman in her 20s, who did not wished to be named, told the Australian Associated Press (AAP) she paid the $250 fee at the clinic because she didn’t want to risk waiting months for the Pfizer jab.
The Malaysian woman said she was on a bridging visa and did not have Medicare. She said her colleagues, who were on temporary visas, had been vaccinated the same way.
An early question asks you if your are eligible for medicare and you have to press the tiny question mark for more info.
The more info page is dense and doesn’t get to the point that you can get the vaccine for free regardless.
It suggests to follow a further link to get a Individual Healthcare Identified if you aren’t eligible for medicare. If you are eligible regardless, then why ask the question at all?
Perhaps, the form should simply prompt at the end to bring in a Medicare card, IH card or failing that, their residential address? Then again, what happens if you’re homeless… 116,427 people in 2016 census.
So here’s another confusing page that leads to a number of other text filled, confusing pages. No pictures or shortcuts and what looks like endless bureaucracy.
Have you noticed the upturn in the number of of radical channels popping up in Youtube search ranking recently?
I’m not a fan of Sky News due to its incessant propaganda, especially Sky After Dark which has spread disinformation around Covid, vacinnations and many other matters.
However, I’m finding it harder to get ABC and other channels in my Youtube searches. I really don’t want to be fed slanted articles and I fear what this trend does to others. I certainly am wart of what this trend has done to Americans and what it will end up doing to Australians.
The Vaccine Eligibility checker is too complex for many Australians with a level of literacy required that is beyond many.
According to the Info Access Group, 14.1 per cent of our population have very low levels of literacy, and over 40% have literacy levels below what is considered enough to get by in everyday life. So groups that are least most likely to need vaccines are the least likely to be able to complete the checker successfully.
At a time where we have not enough Pfizer in the country and AstraZeneca readily available, more should be done to make the form simpler, more accessible to the point and not confusing for Australians. There’s an understatement to say that there is a lot of streamlining for AZ that could be done, as you’ll be prompted by your doctor or nurse giving the vaccine anyway, helping you make an informed choice.
As one example, its easy to think in the below part that the Yes and No refers to do you need help deciding rather than are you willing to consider AstraZeneca – leading to you ruling yourself out.
https://lnkd.in/gdrs8M4
#covid19vaccines Healthdirect Australia
This recent report by the UN Capital Development Fund looked at underserved communities in 46 of the worlds least developed countries and the opportunities that fit for purpose digital financial services brings.
Don’t be mistaken to think this isnt relevant to developed countries. We have our fair share of marginalised individuals and groups. We can find great examples and insights to create inclusive digital economies that we can apply right here.
#financialinclusion Grameen Australia United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF)
This video highlights the dangers of steamrolling NDIS reforms without involving the community, focusing only on cost cutting rather than much needed performance and productivity improvements or the national building economic benefits and opportunities of the scheme.
So few people outside of those living with disability and their familes understand the hopes and challenges of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
“Robo-planning will blow up the NDIS. And it will also blow up the vision for this scheme to be there for all Australians”
Professor Bruce Bonyhady, former NDIA chair.
This video highlights the dangers of steamrolling NDIS reforms without involving the community, focusing only on cost cutting rather than much needed performance and productivity improvements or the national building economic benefits and opportunities of the scheme.
The video was produced in conjunction with Marie Johnson GAICD Sam Connor – #criprightsNicole Rogerson and the broader community.
Uses footage from the Joint Standing Committee on the NDIS Enquiry Into Independent Assessments Public Hearings.
I decided to create an image that told the story of our beloved Australian animals, the threats to their very survival and try to bring some of the incredible vibrancy of Australian outback colors to a urban city scene lacking a soul and out of touch with nature.
I recently entered a Photoshop competition to overlay a canvas scene of Sydney with another view of the world. Entering competitions are a great way of sharpening discrete skills, in a focused time period, while having some fun!
The source image I selected was one of several available of locations around Asia-pacific.
Sydney Train at Central Station
I decided to create an image that told the story of our beloved Australian animals, the threats to their very survival and try to bring some of the incredible vibrancy of Australian outback colors to a urban city scene lacking a soul and out of touch with nature.
Our Lucky Country was a book by David Horne, published in 1964, was a title dripping in irony, the story of Australia’s luck despite itself and its bumbling populace. Our national anthem waxes lyrical about nature’s gifts and beauties rich and rare, but its riches that we’re continually failing to protect in meaningful ways. It’s incredible to think that Australia has 1,700 threatened species and the highest rate of vertebrate mammal extinction in the world.
If it interests you, here’s a link to an Australian environmental charity that I’m helping to set up with like-minded friends and colleagues – thebeats.org.
Driving in Australia, you often see warning signs of potential wildlife on the road. Here I created images of animals such as Koalas and echidnas reaching hauntingly beyond the signs.
I used images I created in Adobe Fuse, Illustrator and Photoshop to bring this scene to life.
The Spoken Word 