Representatives of a number of national Baha’i communities recently gathered at the Baha’i World Center to reflect on the past years of learning experience of participation in societal discourses. The Baha’i World News Service took the opportunity to interview groups of representatives about their experiences and insights into this field of activity. Listen to one of these conversations in this week’s story.

The next report, to be published later this month, will include an interview on a specific discourse that is becoming increasingly prevalent in countries around the world: the role of religion in society.

Podcast: What does participating in societal discourse mean?

In this podcast, Saba Detweiler from Germany, Rachel Bayani from the BIC Brussels office, Vahid Vahdat from Brazil and Karl Wightman from the UK discuss the efforts of regional and national Baha’i communities to participate in societal discourses.

Subscribe to the BWNS podcast for additional audio content.

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BAHA’I WORLD CENTER — In recent years, Baha’i national institutions and regional agencies have systematically engaged in societal discourses, such as migration and integration, social cohesion, racial unity, the role of religion in society and climate change. , to name a few.

The phrase “participation in the discourses of society” is increasingly used to describe the involvement of the Bahá’í community in broad conversations for social betterment.

Discourses take place at different levels. Individuals can contribute to discourses in their professions or fields of study. Many individuals and communities are drawn into discourses on issues vital to their neighborhoods and villages. Non-governmental organizations inspired by Baha’i teachings, for example in the area of ​​social and economic development, contribute discourses related to their efforts. The formal participation of the Bahá’í community in discourses related to the welfare and progress of society is facilitated at the national and international levels by the Offices of External Affairs and the Bahá’í International Community, respectively.

“There are conversations going on all over society that different people are participating in,” Vahid Vahdat, from Brazil, explains in the podcast. “You have government officials, you have the media, you have religious communities, you have local organizations, national organizations, NGOs, and they are all concerned with certain issues. How does our society advance the equality of men and women? How do we deal with prejudice? How to create united societies? So, as a Baha’i community, we participate in those conversations.

Whatever the context, Baha’is learn to contribute ideas and experiences that are relevant to the profound challenges facing humanity today. In doing so, they strive to adopt a posture of humility, engage in genuine conversation, contribute generously to relevant Baha’i principles, and learn with and from other like-minded individuals and groups.

“It’s not just about bringing ideas to the Baha’is; it’s about everyone in society at large trying to push that thinking forward and shift the trajectory of humanity’s ultimate development a bit, incrementally over time,” notes Ida Walker from Australia.

This conception of participation in discourses is about cooperation, collaboration and inclusiveness. “It requires the participation of every member of society,” adds Saba Detweiler from Germany. “And by engaging in conversations with different people, with different organisations, our common understanding will find expression in action. And the action can take different forms.

Bahá’í efforts to contribute to the advancement of thought have their origins in the earliest history of the Faith. Bahá’u’lláh, while a prisoner and exile in Edirne and later in Akka, spoke to the rulers of his time. He put forth far-reaching spiritual principles and wrote on a range of topics, including issues of great concern to world leaders at the time, for example, calling for the establishment of international peace and disarmament and the abolition of slavery, praising the benefits of representative government and challenging leaders to give due consideration to the rights and dignity of the poor. Another example is the penetrating analysis of Persian society by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in a treatise widely circulated to the Iranian people, written in 1875, on the conditions which would lead to the progress and prosperity of the nation.

Since its inception in 1948, the Baha’i International Community (BIC) has consistently sought to contribute constructively to international discourses at the United Nations. From its inception, the BIC has promoted the advancement of women and the education of the girl child, the latter becoming a major subject of discourse in development circles from the 1980s and a strategic focus of development efforts ever since. Global citizenship education is another topic that has been highlighted by the BIC and has also become a widely recognized element in the UN’s efforts to promote education. Today, the BIC participates in many discourses such as equality between women and men, human rights and sustainable development.

In this podcast, Ms. Detweiler from Germany interviews a group of Baha’i representatives on the experience of the Baha’i community contributing to speeches on the national and international stages: Rachel Bayani from the BIC office in Brussels, Mr. Vahdat from the Brazil, and Karl Wightman from the UK.

The REACH-STR (Resilience Against Climate Change-Social Transformation Research and Policy Advocacy) project identified lack of capacity as the main cause of inadequate integration of social transformation analysis into development planning in Ghana.

This stems from a number of sources including; above all, a lack of knowledge in research and scientific literature on methodological approaches to the analysis of social transformation, and weaknesses in the institutional capacity for the analysis of social transformation.

Dr William Quarmine, National Researcher in Monitoring and Evaluation, International Water Management Institute (IWMI), blamed it on insufficient funding for in-depth data collection.

He said the standard national development planning guidelines only required the description and analysis of the existing conditions highlighting the main development problems, their causes and their implications for the planning period.

Dr Quarmine was speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Wa on the sidelines of a learning event with development workers in the Upper West and Savannah regions.

According to him, society was changing and it was up to development planners to understand the changing trend, hence why they developed and tested an analytical framework to help development workers measure how society was changing.

The workshop, he said, was therefore aimed at training development workers on how they could monitor changes in society and respond to them by taking appropriate actions that would bring about transformation.

He said the elaboration of the analytical framework was based on their observation that development workers were mainly focused on delivering results such as roads, schools, hospitals, which created a development gap.

Dr. Quarmine noted that to see how society is changing, they need to focus on other things such as society’s culture, power relations, norms, ideals and value systems.

“Development workers really focus on things that are easy to measure at the expense of the core of society, which is belief systems, values, norms, ideals, power struggles, structures, winners and losers among others,” he said.

“These are missing in development work and in the situations where they are there, development workers lack the capacity and resources to be able to follow them,” he stressed.

He said they expected participants to take some ideas from the training, which they could incorporate into their work to help with planning and be able to bring about social transformation.

“This, if achieved, can improve the worst forms of poverty and improve society,” said the national monitoring and evaluation researcher.

Mr. Michael Safo Ofori, Team Member, REACH-STR/IWMI, said that a review of five district development plans revealed that most deliverables were more observable than latent (beliefs and systems of values).

He said they believe focusing on the latent could easily bring about social transformation rather than the observable, which he said would require high-level scale and persistence before social transformation can be achieved.

He recommended that the profiles and characteristics of the districts should be described in an evolving way and not in their current state, adding that the districts’ medium-term development plans (MTDPs) should not only be a tool to create social transformation, but also a tool to respond to changes. in society.

Mr Ofori said it was important to build capacity to track the latent and when it happened then they could develop plans to help change it and ultimately bring about social transformation.

REACH is a project sponsored by the European Union (EU) and coordinated by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) in partnership with the University of Ghana, University of Development Studies (UDS) and the Center for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

Steve Hayes is working on his new book A liberated mind for 11 years, but he has been working on his content for almost 40 years. Now, only a month after its release, its final chapter has become a book in its own right, Prosocialwritten with Paul Atkins of Australian Catholic University and David Sloan Wilson, a well-known evolutionary biologist from Binghamton University in New York.

A Nevada Foundation Professor in the Department of Psychology’s Behavior Analysis Program, Hayes is the originator and pioneer researcher of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), which is one of the new forms most studied psychological interventions in the world in recent decades. . A liberated mind (from Penguin/Avery) tells his personal story of battling panic disorder nearly 40 years ago, and the scientific story of how ACT and its underlying “psychological flexibility model” were subsequently developed and tested by a global community of scholars and therapists. The book shows readers how to develop their own psychological flexibility skills and apply them to issues based on their behavior, mental health (anxiety, depression, substance abuse, eating disorders, PTSD); physical health (chronic pain, coping with diabetes, coping with cancer); performance (sports, business, diet, exercise); and social processes (relationship issues, prejudice, stigma, domestic violence; social transformation).

The central idea is simple but subtle: we struggle because our problem-solving mind tells us to run away from what scares, hurts or worries us. Not only does this often magnify the impact of difficult thoughts and feelings, it also cuts us off from a key source of human vitality and purpose because we hurt where we care. So, if we are running from a sense of vulnerability, we must also run from what matters most to us. Using psychological flexibility skills, ACT teaches how to tap into a different mode of mind that is more emotionally and cognitively open, then use greater awareness and mindfulness to draw attention to what brings meaning. and purpose in life, instead creating habits around growth. avoidance.

Prosocial scales these ideas in the development of small group cooperation and success, linking psychological flexibility to the late Elinor Ostrom’s Nobel Prize-winning “Basic Design Principles” (CDP). Ostrom won the Nobel Prize in Economics by showing that groups have succeeded for millennia in protecting their common resources (fisheries, forests, rivers, etc.) without government control or private property, but only if they organize way to promote cooperation. . She and Wilson later showed that her eight CDPs that predict success stem from extensive evolutionary synthesis. Wilson and Hayes met with Ostrom shortly before his death to discuss the implications of linking psychological flexibility principles, which were also developed from an evolutionary perspective, and CDPs. Prosocial is the name of an applied method that later emerged based on these two sets of ideas. The last chapter of A liberated mind tells the story of how ACT and CDPs were applied in Sierra Leone to help slow the recent Ebola outbreak and the full story of this method and how to use it is now presented in detail in the new book Prosocial.

The video presented in this article on Prosocial was recently posted on a website for behavior analysts (professionals who use learning principles to modify behavior). The site also posted a similar video featuring Hayes’ book A liberated mind. The Behavior Analysis program is one of three graduate programs in the Department of Psychology, which joined the College of Science this summer. The video shows Hayes explaining why BCBAs (Board Certified Behavior Analysts) should learn the Prosocial Method, but it also provides a quick tutorial in Ostrom’s CDPs.

In 2019, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the scope of corporate social responsibility (CSR) was being expanded to allow companies to support research and innovation through government-funded incubators, or government-funded agencies. central and state governments or state utilities.

In addition, any contribution intended to support public universities such as IITs could also be considered as CSR. This has opened up exciting opportunities for companies to deviate from traditional ways of spending on CSR, such as donating to NGOs and charities, contributing to disaster relief funds or launching campaigns. and short-term CSR projects.

Wouldn’t it be more exciting to create new technologies that change our solution-seeking paradigm than to implement existing technological solutions?

Two factors motivate CSR. First, it is a compliance issue. Most Indian companies are required to spend 2% of their average net profit over the past three years on CSR activities.

Second, it is increasingly being used to create a positive brand identity for companies and contribute to their ESG compliance. Branding has grown in importance as stakeholders have become more aware and involved in social issues. Employees, investors and consumers are now looking to partner with organizations that are just as interested and committed to doing social good as they are. Several European banks’ borrowing rates are linked to a company’s commitment to ESG and social impact.

In response, Indian companies are also trying to present a more holistic brand image to the public. Challenges, despite this growing awareness, remain in identifying the right partners and projects, as well as selecting projects that are long-term impactful, scalable and self-sustaining.

Technology for social good

It is now widely recognized that the key to non-linear scaling of any project lies in leveraging technology. Solving societal problems is no exception. A policy environment that encourages CSR investments in technology-driven solutions has made sustainable and scalable solutions a reality. In addition, collaborations with local organizations and the establishment of governance and community engagement structures can ensure that these projects become self-sufficient in the long term.

The Center announced that January 16 would be celebrated nationwide as Startup Day. There is a vibrant and thriving start-up ecosystem centered around most higher education institutions. These institutions are high-energy centers of innovation and pioneers in the development of technologies and innovations with social impact.

For example, IIT Madras is home to one of the best deep tech startup ecosystems in the country, with a new tech startup incubated every week. Working in sectors such as health, education, agriculture, skills development, housing, energy, clean water, etc., these companies present a huge opportunity for businesses to partner with. and to have a profound social impact.

CSR can be used to significantly support the higher education sector in several ways. Funds may be channeled towards the implementation of socially relevant projects conceptualized by faculty members, or to support scientific research that will uncover answers to key scientific questions underlying social problems.

Additionally, grants can be awarded to government-recognized incubators, establishing new incubators, helping existing incubators hire more people through internships and fellowships, and providing seed funding for start-ups. start-ups. The fact that the government’s CSR policy allows a company to choose to intervene at any point in the process of creating end-to-end technological value is a great catalyst.

Several examples of such projects aimed at solving major social problems in different fields can be presented. Some of the examples include creating sustainable, affordable and recyclable building materials, developing India-centric greening options such as new heat and power management systems, and addressing socio-technical issues. (such as flood management systems) by carrying out a thorough risk analysis. on the relevant parameters.

Projects such as these, made possible by CSR funding and led by higher education institutions, accelerate the transition from lab to actual and serve communities in innovative ways.

Leveraging CSR for innovation through educational institutions such as IITs also presents an opportunity to harness and nurture the potential of students and faculty. These institutions and incubators are hotbeds for creating the next generation of innovators.

Globally, IIT alumni are contributing to the development of sustainable businesses. There is also an increased sensitivity and responsibility among these young people to find innovative solutions to social problems. Indian companies must recognize the dynamic intelligence and talent of these highly motivated individuals and invest in them for socially relevant initiatives aimed at improving society.

Whether it is sanitation, energy, water, agriculture or power, there is a technology solution for every critical need waiting to be researched, developed and implemented. It’s time for companies to leverage their CSR to invest in projects that will create long-term transformative value, drive change, contribute to the research and innovation ecosystem, and nurture future talent by establishing partnerships with educational institutions.

CSR should be invested in creating unimaginable technological solutions to chronic societal problems.

Panchagnula is Dean (Alumni and Corporate Relations) of IIT Madras; and Nair is CEO, Office of Institutional Advancement, IIT Madras

Published on

February 16, 2022

Earlier this month, Concordia announced the launch of its new SHIFT Center for Social Transformation. The first multi-stakeholder collaboration center of its kind was made possible thanks to a recent donation of $10 million from the Mirella & Lino Saputo Foundation and the Amelia & Lino Saputo Jr Foundation.

On November 25, SHIFT welcomes its first Innovator-in-Residence, Jodi Calahoo-Stonehouse, for a series of conversations and workshops. Weaving Our Worldviews: Social Transformation and Indigenous Practices is a one-day event open to the public and taking place at 4^E SPACE from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Calahoo-Stonehouse is founder and co-owner of Miyo-Pimatisiwin Productions and co-producer and host of the award-winning native radio show Acimowin.

Her work focuses on sharing positive stories of Indigenous peoples and improving the realities of marginalized Indigenous youth. Her interests include Indigenous media, Indigenous legal traditions, Indigenous feminism, social innovation and Indigenous futurisms.

The event will be co-hosted by Aleeya Velji, who has extensive experience supporting transformational change in large and small-scale organizations and has worked closely with Calahoo-Stonehouse over the past few years to develop the lab. Edmonton SHIFT.

The two innovators will use a variety of media, including storytelling, interactive activities and a keynote discussion. This is part of a week-long residency at Concordia, where Calahoo-Stonehouse will work with Indigenous students and community members on social innovation challenges.

Social innovation is this wonderful tool where we can start to see the problem from the other’s point of view

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

Jodi Calahoo – Stonehouse: I am Cree and Mohawk from the Michel First Nation.

I like to think of myself as a transmogrifier – a kind of secret agent who specializes in making money. However, lately my profile hasn’t been kept as secret as I had hoped. I love doing my work behind the scenes listening to people and shining a light on Indigenous people who are doing a great job.

How did you start your life’s work of shining a light on the great stories and work coming out of your community?

JSC: There wasn’t really a defining moment, more of a cumulative impact as I got older and witnessed the disparity in resources and quality of life between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in the community. where I grew up.

And as I got older, I spent more time on reservations, studying the education system and water quality between communities. I knew that until Indigenous people lived the same quality of life as non-Indigenous people in this country, I would have a lot of work to do.

And it’s not just my job, but also that of Johnny Calahoo, my great-grandfather, who was the first president of the Indian Association of Alberta. Its mandate was to ensure that Indians – as indigenous peoples were called at the time – had access to education and support for their children.

And, while I love following in my great-grandfather’s footsteps, it also saddens me deeply that we haven’t solved the problems he identified over a hundred years ago.

Who were the mentors who helped you become someone who works to improve conditions for Indigenous peoples and their communities?

JCS: My mother was integral in that she raised me to think very critically about the systems that impact our lives. She is incredibly intelligent and has always questioned authority roles and the influence of politics and legislation. She also made me realize how privileged I was. She planted seeds at a very young age that our family would help ensure a better quality of life for Indigenous people.

And then from there comes a whole list of beautiful, strong indigenous women who mentored and taught me. Although all of my formal teachers have been women, as a little girl my grandfather played a pivotal role in teaching me about relationships, especially relationships with the earth and non-humans.

So my gender balance has been between my grandfather and my mother, who were the main fundamental sculptors of my identity.

How do you see Indigenous worldviews contributing to social transformation?

JCS: As smart as we are as humans, we’ve fundamentally overlooked one thing: we see the world differently. Indigenous peoples do not see the world the way settlers and immigrants see it.

And, within that, there are many ways that settlers, immigrants, and Indigenous people see the world. So we have this layered complexity of how people understand who they are, why they’re here, and the work they’re going to do on the planet. So we have to go back to those very basic things about how we understand what water means, how we understand what wellness means, how we understand what solving a problem means.

Often we come to negotiating tables, laws, policies, and we try to make decisions to help people, but we don’t see the problem the same way. So I see social innovation as this wonderful tool where we can sit together and start seeing the problem from each other’s perspective. We may be able to come up with some prototyping solutions if we can see the problem collectively.

What are your hopes for your week-long residency at Concordia?

JCS: I hope to give hard working people some love. It is not easy trying to solve these complex, difficult, uncomfortable and overwhelming problems that we face in society. And sometimes we forget to do community care. There is a lot of research on self-care and its importance, but Indigenous peoples have a collective identity.

Community care is integral to how we nurture our Indigenous identity, our well-being, so that we can continue to do good work. If I can contribute to this, I will be very happy with my energy to come to this territory.

I am really looking forward to visiting Concordia and its spaces. I’ve heard that some really proactive things happen on the ground at university working directly with people.

There’s one thing about academia: we can write academic papers and produce truly brilliant minds, but it’s another thing to take that brilliance and apply it to everyday life in order to change people’s reality. . That’s what I intend to do at Concordia.

How can the Concordians communicate with you while you are here?

JCS: I suggest you contact the SHIFT Center for Social Transformation!

Meet SHIFT’s first innovator in residence: Jodi Calahoo-Stonehouse is in conversation with SHIFT at Concordia’s 4^E SPACE (1400, boul. De Maisonneuve O.) on November 25.

This socio-cultural objective is proof that the development of the national capital Nusantara is not limited to the development of equipment or infrastructure.

Jakarta (ANTARA) – The development of the national capital is an effort to accelerate social transformation to create an advanced civilization, the head of the State Intelligence Agency (BIN), General Budi Gunawan, noted on Friday. in a press release.

“This socio-cultural objective is proof that the development of the national capital Nusantara is not limited to the development of facilities or infrastructure,” he asserted.

Therefore, Nusantara should mean Indonesia’s vision of human development which leads to the enhancement of absorptive capacity or ability to accept changes, diversity and differences.

At first, grouping based on tribe, race, ethnicity and religion would be inevitable, according to Gunawan.

However, through a process of healthy social interaction, these people, from diverse backgrounds, will integrate into a cohesive and advanced multicultural society, he stressed.

“In its development, the people will be active at every stage of social interaction,” he noted.

Related news: Capital relocation to include local human resources: KSP

He described the stages including social acquisition, assimilation, transformation and synergy or utilization of social benefits in the name of collective prosperity.

“Once we reach the stage of benefit utilization, it signals that the development of the national capital Nusantara is complete,” Gunawan remarked.

BIN’s intelligent community assessment, thus far, has been supported by extensive ethnographic and sociological research into the location of the nation’s capital, he said.

The prospect of this social interaction is also very promising, he said.

This is mainly due to the fact that, demographically and socio-culturally, East Kalimantan is a heterogeneous and multicultural place.

In fact, so far the people of East Kalimantan have openly expressed their support for the development of Nusantara, he noted.

Earlier, Gunawan expressed his belief that relocating the national capital to northern Penajam Paser in East Kalimantan can make Indonesia a strong and advanced nation.

Related news: The relocation of the capital aims to create a new economic center: Bappenas

Kozhikode: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the media plays a vital role in ensuring the active participation of people from all walks of life to ensure large-scale transformation in India.
Inaugurating the one-year centenary celebrations of the online daily Mathrubhumi, Modi said on Friday that the positive impact played by the media could be seen in the implementation of ambitious projects like Swachh Bharat Mission and the popularization of yoga, fitness and the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao program.
“For a nation to grow, making good policies is one aspect; but to enable policies to succeed and ensure that large-scale transformation takes place, the active participation of all walks of society is needed. this, the media plays a vital role,” he said, adding that each media house has taken over the Swachh Bharat mission.
Modi pointed out that Mathrubhumi is a key part of the glorious tradition of newspapers and journals founded across India to unite the people against colonial rule. He said that in our time, the world expects a lot from India. He said that, propelled by talented youth, India was heading towards self-reliance.
Elaborating on the measures taken by the government on this front, he said that unprecedented reforms had been introduced to boost the economic progress of the country and production-related incentives had been introduced in different sectors to encourage local businesses.
He added that India’s startup ecosystem has never been so vibrant in the field of technological advancement. In more than four years, the number of UPI transactions has increased more than 70 times. This shows people’s eagerness to embrace positive change, he said. He added that Rs 110 lakh crore was being spent on a national infrastructure pipeline.

January 10, 2020

ASU Professors on Mindfulness, Heart Health, Quitting Smoking, and More

The hard part of setting goals for the New Year isn’t necessarily deciding which resolutions to make — it’s keeping them. Fortunately, Arizona State University is full of experts in everything from heart health to screen time to mindfulness.

So if you’re in the market to make lifestyle changes in 2020, here are some expert suggestions from ASU’s College of Health Solutions and the Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation, along with helpful tips. to enforce them.

Be more attentive

Before you start getting discouraged or dismissing New Year’s resolutions as a lost cause, ASU Wellness Manager and Edson College professor Teri Pipe advises you to take a moment and consider the self-acceptance as the first step towards personal growth.

“Resolutions often take us to a place of negativity or addressing a perceived weakness,” she said. “Instead, remember that you can accept yourself for who you are and at the same time be inspired to become a better, more generous, or deeper version of yourself. Self-acceptance and becoming a better person are not mutually exclusive; in fact, they go hand in hand.

And as founding director of ASU’s Center for Mindfulness, Compassion and Resilience, Pipe knows that practicing mindfulness has benefits for both mind and body.

Improve your heart health

Short on time but still want to keep your ticker in top condition? Do not be afraid. Assistant Professor Siddhartha Angadi of the College of Health Solutions is conducting research on the effects of high-intensity interval training, or HIIT – characterized by short bursts of intense activity – on cardiovascular and metabolic physiology in severe chronic diseases .

He found that not only can shorter bouts of physical activity produce the same benefits as longer bouts, but if the shorter bouts go from a moderate level (something akin to a brisk walk) to a vigorous level (where you are almost out of breath but not quite) they may even produce more health benefits than longer, moderate bouts.

“Less can be more for a fitter,” Angadi said. “Just 10 minutes of high-intensity interval training three times a week can improve your cardiovascular and metabolic fitness.”

Get more fiber

Although he recently published work outlining a new tool that allows consumers to weigh both the nutritional quality and environmental impact of protein, Chris Wharton, assistant dean of innovation and strategic initiatives at the College of Health Solutions said the average person probably doesn’t need to worry much about their protein intake.

“Chances are you’re doing pretty well getting (more than) enough protein,” he said. Instead, focus on fiber. Adults should get 30-50 grams daily, mostly from vegetables, whole grains, beans/legumes, and fruits for the best health returns.

You may not be the most popular dinner guest, but, he said, “the more gas you have, the healthier your diet.”

Reduce your screen time

If dieting isn’t your speed, Wharton suggests following a screen diet. He and his colleagues are working to develop more accurate ways to measure people’s screen time use, associated health effects and potential interventions.

According to Wharton, the benefits of disconnecting are exponential.

“Reducing the time you spend with screens simultaneously gives you time to plan healthier meals and cook, be active, and spend time with family, friends, and neighbors,” he said. declared. “Because screen time is one of the biggest sources of sedentary time behind sleep and work, it’s actually a gateway behavior. It’s really hard to be healthier in other areas of life if you don’t give yourself the time to pursue healthier habits. Your screens eat up all the time you need to be healthier and happier.

Reduce your carbon footprint and enjoy the health benefits

Apologies to Blue Man Group enthusiasts, but “Blue Zones” are not secretly designated practice spaces for indigo-hued performance artists. A relatively new term, “Blue Zone”, was coined by writer Dan Buettner in his 2005 National Geographic magazine cover story to describe areas of the world where people live longer than the average lifespan – from places like Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; and Loma Linda, California.

Instead, Wharton suggests opting for a diet rich in fibrous plant foods and days grounded in modest, utilitarian physical activity.

“Enjoy your beans, avocados, salads and cereals,” he said. “Take walks for fun or hop on a bike to run errands. You’ll do incredible good for your health (and the environment).

Switch from processed foods to whole foods

More than just a grocery store fad, whole foods are plant foods—such as whole grains, tubers, legumes, fruits, and vegetables—that are unprocessed and unrefined, or processed and refined as little as possible. Carol Johnston, professor of nutrition at the College of Health Solutions and associate dean for faculty success, suggests that transitioning to a whole, plant-based diet is easier than you might think.

Simply start by identifying heavily processed foods in your diet (convenience/quick foods, such as pre-packaged and/or frozen meals) and slowly decrease your reliance on these foods by introducing home food preparation and cooking into your routine. daily.

You can also gradually decrease the amount of animal products in your meals by exploring recipes that use plant proteins such as walnuts, edamame, quinoa, and hemp seeds. In particular, Johnston found mung beans to be an excellent protein supplement.

“The whole plant-based diet is flexible,” she said. “Focus on whole, plant-based foods and eat eggs, poultry, seafood, meat, and dairy sparingly; emphasize local/seasonal foods, meatless meals and colorful vegetables.

Stay hydrated

Most Arizonans know the immediate importance of hydration in the desert, but it turns out that drinking water can also have long-term health effects. Stavros Kavouras, assistant dean of higher education for the College of Health Solutions and professor of nutrition, directs the Hydration Sciences Laboratory at ASU, where he studies the impact of water consumption on health and performance, as well as its effects on chronic disease outcomes.

More recently, Kavouras discovered that drinking more water could improve the quality of life for patients with type 2 diabetes and potentially help prevent the disease in others.

He calls water “the forgotten nutrient” and was quoted in a May 2019 ASU Now article saying, “People forget to drink water, forget to study water, they just forget to… include water in anything. MyPlate, the current USDA nutrition guide, doesn’t even include water because every dietary guideline must be evidence-based and we have little evidence for water.

In order to make sure you’re well hydrated, Kavouras recommends monitoring the number of times you use the toilet throughout the day (if it’s been several hours and you haven’t used the toilet, that’s a indication that you have not drunk enough water), as well as the color of your urine: dark yellow urine indicates dehydration. He also suggests his own personal habit of keeping a tall glass of water in front of him at all times.

Sitting less, standing more

Sitting isn’t the new smoking — Associate Professor Matt Buman of the College of Health Solutions and his colleagues managed to debunk the insidious health myth in a paper published in September 2018 — but it can still harm your health. Sitting too much, Buman said, can lead to health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke and high blood pressure, all of which can be life-threatening.

Since many modern jobs require employees to be sedentary at a desk, Buman’s research focuses on developing interventions for excessive sitting in the workplace.

“While reducing your sitting time at work isn’t a substitute for regular exercise, getting enough sleep, or eating a healthy diet, it’s an important part of a healthy lifestyle,” he said.

Consider wearing comfortable shoes so you’re more likely to want to move throughout the day, breaking up long periods of concentrated work with a short standing or mobile break (as a bonus, the quick break can improve your focus and productivity), using the restroom on a different floor, or getting up to talk to your co-worker face-to-face instead of sending an email.

Get rid of this bad habit

Speaking of smoking… It’s 2020, not 1985. So maybe it’s time to finally say good riddance and dump that pack of Pall Malls (actually, you probably shouldn’t dump them; it could be bad for the environment and your plumbing.)

It’s a notoriously hard habit to kick, so don’t worry if you need a little help.

“Tobacco addiction is a tough addiction to break because even though there are far fewer smokers than before, it’s a legal drug and it’s a very addictive substance,” said Scott Leischow, a professor at the College. of Health Solutions, which runs Arizona Tobacco. Control Program in college and is a former Senior Adviser for Tobacco Policy at the US Department of Health and Human Services.

In a January 2019 opinion piece for JAMA, Leischow argued that varenicline, an anti-smoking drug, should be available over-the-counter because it is the most effective drug for quitting smoking. He is now in the middle of a three-year NIH-funded study to prove that point and hopefully get varenicline approved as an over-the-counter drug. Until then, you can always call the Arizona Smokers’ Helpline at 800-55-66-222.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Tamil director Vetrimaran said here on Tuesday that new wave cinemas in the Tamil industry are political weapons for social upliftment. “Tamil cinema promotes the principles of Dravidian politics and new films reinforce the ideals of Dravidian politics. Social realities and political circumstances provide themes for such films,” Vetrimaran said at a workshop here held as part of IFFK.
In the meantime, the audience survey for the 26th edition of the IFFK will begin on Thursday. Delegates can vote for their favorite films screened in the international competition category by one of three methods: SMS, mobile app and via the IFFK website. To vote by SMS, delegates can use the following format – ‘IFFK MOVIE CODE’ and can be sent to 56070.
The 14 films in the International Competition category are: 1- Anatolian Leopard (film code: IC001), 2- Camila Comes Out Tonight (film code: IC002), 3- Captain Volkonogov Escaped (film code: IC003), 4- Clara Sola (movie code: IC004), 5- Costa Brava, Lebanon (movie code: IC005), 6- Forbidden (movie code: IC006), 7- I’m Not The River Jhelum (movie code: IC007), 8- Let it be Morning (movie code: IC008), 9- Murina (movie code: IC009), 10- Pebbles (movie code: IC010), 11- Sughra and Her Sons (movie code: IC011), 12- The Arbit Documentation of an Amphibian Hunt (movie code: IC012), 13- You Look Like Me (movie code: IC013) and 14- Yuni (movie code: IC014).