Latest news with #plantation
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Planting Hope for a Greener Tomorrow: World Environment Day Event at Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram Rooted for Environmental Awareness & Action
BANGALORE, India, June 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- On the occasion of World Environment Day, 5th June 2025, Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram hosted a meaningful event titled 'Let's root for the future – literally!' that brought together school students, community members, dignitaries, and healthcare experts to promote environmental awareness and action. The event was graced by Mr. N. Ravindrakumar, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Bengaluru Urban Division, as the Chief Guest, and Mr. Abdul Hafeez, Hospital Director, Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram, who joined hands with students, neighbourhood residents, and hospital staff to plant saplings and share the message of environmental sustainability. The event was also attended by eminent health experts, including Dr. G. K. Prakash, Consultant - Nephrology, and Transplant Physician, Dr. Vikas G. K., Consultant - Emergency Medicine, and Dr. Puneeth B. S., Consultant - Medical Gastroenterology, who aimed to bring sustainable change for a greener tomorrow. The day began with a plantation drive at Jagadguru Sri Adi Shankaracharya Udyanavana, a BBMP park maintained by the hospital. Students from Hymamshu Jyothi Kala Peetha School and Cluny Convent High School, accompanied by their teachers, along with the chief guest, community members, consultants, and senior citizens, took part in the activity. As part of a learning experience, a guided tour of the park was organized, where students could explore posters that explained the ecological significance of various trees. This was followed by engaging activities such as an Essay Competition on the theme 'Ending Plastic Pollution Globally' and Handprint Tree Board as a pledge towards protecting the environment. A special highlight of the event involved students getting a closer look inside the MARS Ambulance (Manipal Ambulance Response Service), learning about its services, and how it connects to community well-being during emergencies. Mr. N. Ravindrakumar, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Bengaluru Urban Division, stated, "On this World Environment Day, it's encouraging for the hospital to invite students to participate in the sapling plantation drive. Children are the future stewards of our planet, and it is crucial to instill in them a sense of responsibility towards environmental conservation. Educating them about the impact of environmental pollution, like air and water contamination, is equally important. Initiatives like this plantation drive serve as powerful, experiences that nurture awareness and action in the young minds of tomorrow." Ms Rajani, Subject Teacher, Hymamshu Jyothi Kala Peetha School, said, "Today, as we have gathered to attend the World Environment Day celebration by Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram, I would like to thank the team for the opportunity offered to our students. It's such an amazing program to participate and create awareness to protect our environment. We should definitely inculcate these good habits to save our surroundings and work towards a better and greener future." Ms. Chetana, Computer Science Teacher, Cluny Convent High School, noted, "We were delighted to take part in the sapling plantation drive. The students also enthusiastically participated in the essay writing and quiz competitions. I had always associated Manipal Hospital primarily with patient care, but today I witnessed their admirable commitment to promoting environmental awareness and sustainability. Their initiative to engage young minds in such meaningful activities is truly commendable." Through this initiative, Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram inspired kids to be the Environmental Ambassadors of Tomorrow, where they gain environmental awareness to bring positive change for a greener urban ecosystem. For more information, please visit: Photo: View original content to download multimedia: Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Planting Hope for a Greener Tomorrow: World Environment Day Event at Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram Rooted for Environmental Awareness & Action
BANGALORE, India, June 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- On the occasion of World Environment Day, 5th June 2025, Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram hosted a meaningful event titled 'Let's root for the future – literally!' that brought together school students, community members, dignitaries, and healthcare experts to promote environmental awareness and action. The event was graced by Mr. N. Ravindrakumar, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Bengaluru Urban Division, as the Chief Guest, and Mr. Abdul Hafeez, Hospital Director, Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram, who joined hands with students, neighbourhood residents, and hospital staff to plant saplings and share the message of environmental sustainability. The event was also attended by eminent health experts, including Dr. G. K. Prakash, Consultant - Nephrology, and Transplant Physician, Dr. Vikas G. K., Consultant - Emergency Medicine, and Dr. Puneeth B. S., Consultant - Medical Gastroenterology, who aimed to bring sustainable change for a greener tomorrow. The day began with a plantation drive at Jagadguru Sri Adi Shankaracharya Udyanavana, a BBMP park maintained by the hospital. Students from Hymamshu Jyothi Kala Peetha School and Cluny Convent High School, accompanied by their teachers, along with the chief guest, community members, consultants, and senior citizens, took part in the activity. As part of a learning experience, a guided tour of the park was organized, where students could explore posters that explained the ecological significance of various trees. This was followed by engaging activities such as an Essay Competition on the theme 'Ending Plastic Pollution Globally' and Handprint Tree Board as a pledge towards protecting the environment. A special highlight of the event involved students getting a closer look inside the MARS Ambulance (Manipal Ambulance Response Service), learning about its services, and how it connects to community well-being during emergencies. Mr. N. Ravindrakumar, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Bengaluru Urban Division, stated, "On this World Environment Day, it's encouraging for the hospital to invite students to participate in the sapling plantation drive. Children are the future stewards of our planet, and it is crucial to instill in them a sense of responsibility towards environmental conservation. Educating them about the impact of environmental pollution, like air and water contamination, is equally important. Initiatives like this plantation drive serve as powerful, experiences that nurture awareness and action in the young minds of tomorrow." Ms Rajani, Subject Teacher, Hymamshu Jyothi Kala Peetha School, said, "Today, as we have gathered to attend the World Environment Day celebration by Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram, I would like to thank the team for the opportunity offered to our students. It's such an amazing program to participate and create awareness to protect our environment. We should definitely inculcate these good habits to save our surroundings and work towards a better and greener future." Ms. Chetana, Computer Science Teacher, Cluny Convent High School, noted, "We were delighted to take part in the sapling plantation drive. The students also enthusiastically participated in the essay writing and quiz competitions. I had always associated Manipal Hospital primarily with patient care, but today I witnessed their admirable commitment to promoting environmental awareness and sustainability. Their initiative to engage young minds in such meaningful activities is truly commendable." Through this initiative, Manipal Hospital Malleshwaram inspired kids to be the Environmental Ambassadors of Tomorrow, where they gain environmental awareness to bring positive change for a greener urban ecosystem. For more information, please visit: Photo: View original content to download multimedia: Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Geek Vibes Nation
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Geek Vibes Nation
‘Bird In Hand' Review - An Honest Look At Family And The Struggle To Embrace Your Identity
Identity feels like something that should be simple. It is just who you are, right? Well, yes and no. It is that, but definitions are difficult and involve complex levels of context provided by life experience, racial history, familial history, and a certain amount of unknowable information that we only sometimes have awareness of at different points in our lives. The gaps in our identities are likely the most interesting; otherwise, what is the living of our moment-to-moment experience even for? The living, no matter how messy, will help inform where we go next and how we deal with it. Bird in Hand, from first-time director Melody C. Roscher, explores this, and much more, under the guise of a familial dramedy. Bird (Alisha Wainwright), a biracial woman, has returned to her family's home in the country, ostensibly because she is engaged to be married to her boyfriend, Frank. This leads her to her mother, Carlotta (Christine Lahti), with whom she has a strained relationship, and her stepfather, Dale (Jeffrey Nordling). As their relationship is explored, they also make connections with their neighbors Dennis (James Le Gros) and Leigh (Annabelle Dexter-Jones), a white married couple who have purchased a plantation home, but don't worry, they are 'updating the narrative.' Wainwright has easily the most difficult task in the film. Roscher, also the screenwriter, is much more consumed with making Bird a real person rather than focusing on pure likability. This is not to say that she is unlikable per se, simply that she is an actual human being with flaws, some of her own making and some due to family history. Even through her issues, Bird's ache for care, consideration, and answers to the questions that she is afraid to ask all comes through clearly and in a manner that makes us root for her. Her search for a possible meeting with her birth father, Bower (K. Todd Freeman), with the excuse of hiring him as musical entertainment for her wedding, offers her the challenge of acting with nothing but her talent and a screen featuring an advertisement for his band. The fact that Wainwright manages a gamut of emotions, including longing, worry, desperation, and frustration, all in the space of a few moments, is a testament to both her obvious talent and Roscher's well-placed trust in her abilities. From the beginning, which features a fight between Bird and Frank in which she is dressed as a bleeding bride for a Halloween party, Roscher handles difficult themes with aplomb. Bird's reaction when being pseudo-proposed to (shock, confusion) may seem odd at this moment, but the script allows this moment to come full circle without ever holding your hand. When Carlotta is dismissive about her upcoming nuptials, we quickly find out that marriage, along with most expected life events, are frowned upon, both due to her 'woo-woo' ideals and her difficult history with Bower leaving her after she became pregnant with Bird. Although there is a massive amount of drama involved, the dark comedy that comes to the forefront almost immediately makes Bird in Hand a mostly easy watch. Yes, families are difficult and emotions are complex. But when you have Christine Lahti almost stealing a horse and white people asking a biracial young woman to pose for pictures in front of a plantation, there are plenty of opportunities for moments of levity that are taken advantage of by Roscher. Some moments feel a bit too much on the side of comedy, but these are brief before we return to Alisha Wainwright's astounding performance of a complex woman. But, like everything in life, nothing is truly simple. Is Bower cruel? Is Carlotta willfully misleading her daughter? Is Bird selfish? Are Carlotta and Dale a loving couple? Are Dennis and Leigh well-meaning white folks? These are all questions that have answers. The problem is that this all depends, not only on who you ask, but when you ask, as the answers, like identity, are constantly in a state of flux. We are all simply doing our best and reacting to the latest information we have. As we age, it becomes important to see our parents as real human beings, but there is maybe nothing harder to achieve. As sons and daughters, we want to be taken care of one moment, and we want a strong reaction the next. When Bird screams at her mother to 'stop being comfortable,' it rocks you to your core. If we are going through emotional trauma, what could be more difficult than a calm person who we know is imperfect and roiling with emotions under the surface? That is, until those emotions come and we have to deal with them. Roscher bravely denies us any easy answers and lays a real, difficult, fractured relationship at our feet, daring us to pick up the pieces. Bird In Hand held its World Premiere as a part of the U.S. Narrative Competition section of the 2025 Tribeca Festival. Director: Melody C. Roscher Screenwriter: Melody C. Roscher Rated: NR Runtime: 87m
Washington Post
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
Video of the Nottoway Plantation fire sparks jubilation. It's about anger and pain over slavery, too
After a fire engulfed a mansion at Louisiana's Nottoway Plantation , one of the largest remaining pre-Civil War houses in the Deep South where scores of enslaved Africans labored, video footage of the combusted landmark lit the internet ablaze with mass jubilation and consternation over the weekend. For some, it was a moment to celebrate what they saw as centuries-deferred vengeance for enslaved ancestors. There was no shortage of memes and humorous social media posts to ignite the celebrations: from video of the plantation's burning mansion set to the R&B hit song 'Let It Burn' by Usher to other footage with the volume of burning wood cranked all the way up to trigger a cozy autonomous sensory meridian response .
SBS Australia
17-05-2025
- Business
- SBS Australia
Inside the move to shake up Australia's $2.5 billion coffee industry
Tibor Pinci with his homegrown coffee beans. Source: SBS / Allan Lee Tibor Pinci is holding a flamethrower at the rotating barrel of a repurposed cement mixer where green coffee beans are slowly turning brown. "We call this an open roaster," Pinci said with a wide grin. "It involves a lot of precision because in just seconds the beans can be overdone." Pinci knows from experience by the sound of the beans popping exactly when to stop. "The coffee it makes will have an incredible full aroma, without the bitterness," he said. Born in then-Yugoslavia, Pinci migrated to Australia in 1981. Initially, he lived in Sydney and worked as a baker among other roles, finally moving north and starting his coffee plantation 18 years ago in the hills above Coffs Harbour. "I bought a nice little place here. It's only one hectare, but I have planted around 3,000 trees now," said Pinci, who is now in his 70s. "I handpick all my cherries when they're beautifully ripe. "The coffee we sell here is completely different to the usual big roasters." Small plantations like Pinci's are multiplying in Australia, as global coffee prices soar. Yet locally grown coffee beans make up just a fraction of Australia's US$1.64 billion ($2.5 billion) coffee market. And that figure is expected to reach US$2.17 billion ($3.35 billion) by 2030. Tobias Kretzschmar, a professor of plant breeding and genetics at the Southern Cross University, said: "We are looking at around 500 tonnes of [Australian coffee bean] production at the moment compared with around 100,000 tonnes of imported green beans." As a result, most of the coffee sold in Australia is brewed from imported beans, mainly Arabica sourced from Brazil. On 22 April, Rabobank predicted a 13.6 per cent drop in Brazil's 2025-2026 coffee crop to 38.1 million bags, citing dry weather in key Arabica-growing areas that significantly reduced flowering. At the same time, rising global financial market volatility — partly fuelled by trade tensions between the United States and China and fears of an economic slowdown — is adding to price instability, compounding the impact of supply-side pressures. Paul Joules, an agriculture research analyst from Rabobank, said: "In April, we did see Arabica prices ease slightly but, nonetheless, on a year-on-year basis, we're still seeing prices around 100 per cent higher." The surge in global coffee prices also adds an incentive for Australian growers to experiment with local production. Scientists at Southern Cross University are trialling a range of coffee trees to determine which varieties have the potential for large-scale local production. "We are part of a big project with World Coffee Research, which is trialling 20 to 30 coffee varieties all around the globe," Kretzschmar said. "So, we piggybacked that global project and we have 25 varieties in Australia so far, coming from around 11 countries: Some are Asian, some African and some South American." To succeed here, coffee trees must be able to thrive to local conditions. "Our aim for Australia is to find new varieties that are better suited for this environment and better suited for the mechanised conditions of coffee farming in Australia," Kretzschmar said. Most coffee crops are grown in Queensland or northern NSW, where warm weather and rain create challenges. "Growers put their money on a variety that's much too vigorous for this environment; it just keeps growing," he said. "Regular pruning means a lot of work. And if the tree is stressed, it won't produce [a coffee crop] the next year. "So, that means the old varieties require a lot of work and suffer yield losses." Could smaller trees be the answer? After five years of trials, Kretzschmar thinks so. "We are looking at semi-dwarf varieties that are more easily machine harvested," he said. "The next stage is to take two or three promising varieties that we believe can outcompete the current varieties and trial them at scale." Scientists are also experimenting with coffee styles to find flavours with mass appeal. For clues, Ben Liu, a researcher from Southern Cross University, turned to a unique taste wheel. "Our coffee character wheel basically helps our panel members describe the taste, the flavour, or mouthfeel," Liu said. "We run a very large coffee panel multiple times. We collect around 6,000 different coffee descriptors from these panel members. "For example, the acidity, the body, the aftertaste. "Based on those characters of the coffee, we can get a better understanding when we're actually tasting coffee." Locally grown coffee offers additional benefits — importing beans from Brazil contributes significantly to the industry's carbon footprint. "You can get your zero-mile coffee in Byron Bay from someone that grows it, ferments it, roasts it and produces it," Kretzschmar said. "This gives you a cup of coffee that was produced within sight of where you're sitting." Coffs Harbour cafe owner Kim Towner uses locally grown produce at her business, Happy Frog Cafe. "I wanted to buy as close to home as I could, and it's just a win-win all around for everybody," she said. "It has been a real passion of mine since I first went into the cafe business. "Growers get paid fairly for it. We know that it hasn't had to travel across the ocean. "And if we can source from our local area, we can make a big difference to how we look after the planet." Pinci is proud to supply to local outlets. "Australian coffee tastes completely different, probably because of the climate which creates a beautiful bean. "And the coffee does not have any bitterness, which is why my customers love it. "That, and of course, the precision roasting with the little flamethrower," he said. Watch now Follow Small Business Secrets Share this with family and friends
