Latest news with #JonathanBoyd
Los Angeles Times
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
The show must sustain: Recycled outfits hit runway at Festival of Arts
The Festival of Arts runway fashion show returned to the grounds on Sunday, showcasing the splendor arts patrons have come to expect. A new batch of unique designs were produced and put on stage for public consumption, the creations brought forth by a group of artists already exhibiting their work in the juried fine art show. The fashion show calls on those artists entering the contest to volunteer their time and talents to come up with outfits furnished from reclaimed, recycled and repurposed materials. Jonathan Boyd and Valerie Killeen, first-time exhibitors from San Clemente, were big winners, claiming multiple awards for their entry, 'Redwood Princess.' Made from California redwood taken from a decommissioned water tank, the dress became a transformational costume for Quinne Boyd, their 6-year-old niece. She relished the opportunity to twirl and wave a wand of turned redwood with a heart-shaped tip in front of an adoring audience. The entry earned recognition as the Most Glamorous 'Red Carpet' Worthy Creation from the judges, and a majority of 230 votes cast favored the 'Redwood Princess' for the People's Choice award. Printmaking artist Anne Moore repeated as winner of the Most Creative Concept category for her dress 'Shout Out to the Cuties of Orange Coast,' modeled by her daughter and fellow artist Allison Adams. Ceramics artist Mark Hendrickson received the Most Innovative Use of Materials award for a red, white and blue vest made from plastic casings. Paula Collins, also a ceramicist, took home the award for Most Exciting Ensemble. The garments required the assistance of two people on stage, her daughter Jana Faro and granddaughter Avery Clear serving as her models. Theatrical designer Brad Elsberry, local writer and podcaster Marrie Stone, and Gerard Stripling, a local sculptor recently named Artist of the Year by the Laguna Beach Arts Alliance, served as the panel of judges. Nelson Coates, an award-winning feature film and television production designer, emceed the event. For the first time, the fashion show featured designs by junior artists, including works by sixth-grade student Quinn Riley, seventh-grader Makanna Johnson, and a collaboration between ninth-grade friends Sofia Guerrero and Lauren Lee. The Fragrance Boutique, a Laguna Beach business, also provided a pop-up experience at the show, giving guests the chance to create their own scent for an additional fee.
The Herald Scotland
12-07-2025
- General
- The Herald Scotland
The importance of getting social security right
The Citizens Advice network has a dedicated Help to Claim service which has already assisted tens of thousands of clients with free independent and confidential advice as they switch to UC. I want to raise awareness of this today as we're seeing a lot of people at the moment who are struggling with the process. This is because the UK Government is currently issuing over 80,000 migration notices per month across the UK to people who need to change their old-style benefit to UC. This can cause a lot of fear and anxiety as clients may be already struggling to make ends meet and any change to their income can have a hugely negative impact. Shockingly, recent figures show that one in every five households who receive a letter about making the switch to UC do not do this, resulting in a significant loss of income as their old benefits were terminated. There could be several reasons for this happening, for example not acting on the migration notice instructions or not understanding the gravity of the notice. Another reason could be that the recipient of the notice simply could not understand English as their first language. Helpfully, in this situation the Help to Claim service has a solution: our Language Line service, which gives access to an interpreter in any language to communicate our advice. I wrote here a few months ago about how Help to Claim also offers a free service for people with hearing loss. We are all about making sure our free, confidential and impartial advice is accessible to everyone. So if you, or someone you know needs help after they have received their 'managed migration' notice, do not become or let someone be one of the 22% to do nothing and have the old benefit terminated without moving to UC, resulting in lost income. Contact us. It's what we're here for. You can get in touch with Help to Claim on 0800 0232581 or Our British Sign Language (BSL) service is at: And of course general advice and support can also be accessed by visiting any one of the 59 local CABs across Scotland. The constant changes to welfare provision are alarming and difficult for too many people. The Citizens Advice network will always have the backs of those people. But we will also continue to press governments to get the system right in the first place so that social security provides what it says on the tin. Jonathan Boyd is a Project Engagement Officer at Citizens Advice Scotland
Global News
10-05-2025
- Climate
- Global News
Low snowpack heading into summer, concerns about drought in Okanagan
Creeks are strong now, but after a warm April, the Okanagan's early snowmelt could lead to problems come summer. Smaller creeks might be at risk of running dry this summer, experts predict. 'Looking at natural systems, smaller creeks, there is going to be the potential that they'll get into the lower flow or lower than the critical environmental flow needs for rivers and even some of the smaller creeks have the potential to run dry,' said Jonathan Boyd, a hydrologist with the River Forecast Centre. According to the May snowpack bulletin, provincially, the snowpack has dropped from 79 per cent to 71 per cent of normal since April, with the Southern Interior seeing the sharpest declines. Snowpack levels in the Okanagan, in particular, have dropped from 82 per cent to just 67 per cent of normal. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy While no major heat waves are expected in the coming weeks, experts are holding out hope that the remaining snow will hold up. Story continues below advertisement 'The ideal situation moving forward is cooler, wetter conditions in May and June,' Boyd said. In Mission Creek, the Casorso Road underpass was closed this week due to high waters, a fairly routine closure caused by the region's fluctuating water levels. 'It's just due to the freeboard available there,' said Brittany Seibert, a regional emergency manager. As water concerns continue, emergency officials are already shifting their focus to the upcoming wildfire season. With the potential for drought, Seibert warns that the region could face another intense fire season. 'It all depends on what happens in the next few weeks with rain, snowpack and prolonged dry periods,' she said. For residents, now is the time to prepare. 'It's important to do FireSmart work in your yard and have emergency plans in place, including a grab-and-go bag,' Seibert advised.
CBC
09-05-2025
- Climate
- CBC
Low snowpack, early snowmelt, warm weather in forecast point to higher B.C. drought risk, says forecaster
Social Sharing The B.C. River Forecast Centre says a combination of a low snowpack, early snowmelt and forecasts of warm weather are pointing toward elevated drought hazards in the province. The province's snowpack sits at 71 per cent of normal levels as of May 1, the centre wrote in its latest monthly report, down from 79 per cent on April 1. The centre notes levels were "extremely low" last May, with the average across B.C. at 66 per cent of normal. Snowmelt is happening earlier than usual, the reports says, with 15 per cent of the peak total snowpack at automated stations melting by May 1. In a typical year, five per cent of the snowpack has melted by early May. Jonathan Boyd, a hydrologist for the river forecast centre, says there are drought concerns due in part to long-term precipitation deficits that date back to 2022. He says spring weather will be a factor in summer drought conditions. "April wasn't great, but more important is what happens in May and June, and it's still a little bit too early to know for sure," he said, adding that seasonal forecasts from Environment Canada indicate warmer-than-normal temperatures from May to July. The snowpack in most regions of B.C. ranges from 60 to 80 per cent of normal, the report says, while a snowpack below 60 per cent was measured for the Upper Fraser West, Lower Thompson, Nicola, Bridge, Skagit, Central Coast, Similkameen, and Skeena-Nass regions. The report noted that temperatures in B.C. ranged from 0.5 C to 2.5 C warmer than usual last month, while precipitation was below normal or slightly below normal. The centre says there isn't an elevated risk of floods given current snowpack levels, but higher flows are possible if there is heavy spring rainfall. The B.C. Wildfire Service's summer forecast expects higher than usual temperatures into spring, with the possibility of above-average precipitation over coastal and central B.C. The service said precipitation in May and June, typically the rainiest months in B.C.'s Interior, "will influence the length and intensity of the core wildfire season." Boyd said that while there are concerns about the amount of snowmelt, it's still early in the season, and conditions can change.
The Guardian
17-03-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Israelis moving to live in Europe ‘rejuvenating' Jewish communities
Israelis making a new home in Europe have become vital to previously declining Jewish communities on the continent, boosting numbers, bringing a range of cultural influences and marking a fundamental change in the relationship between the diaspora and the Jewish state, research has revealed. A report released on Wednesday by the London-based Institute for Jewish Policy Research will detail for the first time a dramatic reversal of decades of net outflow to Israel from Jewish communities in Europe. 'We can say that culturally and demographically there is a real turning point. Possibly the end of an era,' said Dr Daniel Staetsky, the report's author. 'The founders of the state of Israel would never have imagined that it would be Israel that would be rejuvenating European Jewish communities, not the other way around.' Recent Israeli government statistics show accelerating emigration from Israel, driven by factors including political polarisation, the high cost of living, the impact of wars in Gaza and Lebanon, and security concerns after the bloody Hamas raid into Israel of October 2023 and Iranian attacks. The biggest destination remains the US but many of Europe's Jewish communities have also received a significant demographic boost, with some that have been shrinking for decades due to an elderly population and a low birthrate now growing again. Researchers at the IJPR found about 630,000 Jewish people born in Israel or who had lived there for a significant time are now living elsewhere in the world. There are also about 330,000 people born overseas to one or two parents who are Israeli nationals whom the report described as 'Israel-connected'. The researchers used new government statistics to establish a definitive figure for Germany's Israeli and Israeli-connected Jewish population after decades of only rough estimates. At 24,000 this was higher than previously thought, making the Israeli-connected community in Germany the biggest in Europe. Nearly half of the Jewish population in Norway was Israel-connected, the report said, as well as 41% in Finland, and more than 20% of Jewish communities in Bulgaria, Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands and Denmark. Jonathan Boyd, the JPR's director, said the new arrivals were having a big impact. 'In the UK there are about 23,000 Israel-born people. That's close to twice as many as 20 years ago but among a total Jewish population of an estimated 313,000. In the smaller countries such as the Netherlands the influx can have a much bigger impact. In Norway or Finland it only takes a few to settle to make a big difference.' 'Wherever they go Israelis bring something with them. They bring aspects of day-to-day Israeli culture into these countries.' The use of Hebrew and Israeli names for children has become more widespread in many Jewish communities in Europe and cuisine based on eastern European traditions is being replaced by contemporary Israeli cooking in some places. Close to 12,000 people from Israel and their children now live in the Netherlands. 'There are a lot of Israelis here now and that is changing the composition of the Jewish community,' said Asjer Waterman, a strategic adviser at JMW, the national welfare organisation for the Dutch Jewish community. 'Of course they have a different identity and history to Dutch Jews.' Itay Garmy, a councillor in Amsterdam born in the Netherlands whose father was Israeli, said the Israeli community in the city was often more secular than the historic Jewish community, which 'was already pretty secular'. 'Our connection with Israel is more based on culture than faith. It's more about music, food and love of Israel as a second home for Jewish people than religion,' said Garmy, 31. Other Israeli immigrants have found a new interest in religion after moving overseas. 'Until a year ago I regarded myself as Israeli but recently I am feeling more my Jewish identity,' said Avisar Lev, who moved to Berlin from Tel Aviv in 2012. Lev said he had not personally experienced any antisemitism, which EU data suggests has risen sharply in recent years, and is widely reported in Israel. Many of the arrivals from Israel are well educated, relatively young and have children in their new homes. Official statistics in Israel show that emigration from Israel was nearly 83,000 in 2024, more than double the number between 2009 and 2021, and higher than 2022. Population growth was down from 1.6% to 1.1%, even though about 33,000 people arrived from other countries and 23,000 Israelis returned. A parliamentary committee last month attributed the decline to 'a significant increase in negative migration amid the complex security situation', and called for a reform of lengthy and bureaucratic immigration processes. The emigration hasprompted concern in the Israeli media. A recent editorial in the Yedioth Ahronoth daily newspaper was entitled 'It's no wonder people are leaving Israel'. Others have warned of a 'brain drain'. Last year, Prof Aaron Ciechanover, one of Israel's leading scientists, blamed efforts by the current government to introduce controversial judicial changes for the rise in departures. Those leaving 'want to live in a free, liberal-democratic country, and not in a country where the government is forcibly taking power,' Ciechanover said. The IJPR report was about the impact on Jewish communities of the new migration and therefore focused on Jewish Israelis, not Palestinian Israelis.
