Newsletter Articles

World Humanitarian Day is one of the 148 international days currently observed by the United Nations. By a coincidence, August 19th is also observed as World Photography Day, because on August 19, 1839, the French Government announced the Invention of Photography as a gift "Free to the World." Since 2009, every year, this day is commemorated on different themes. The theme of 2010 was "We are Humanitarian Workers" which was based on the actual work and achievements of humanitarian workers in the field. Similarly, the 2011 campaign, "People Helping People" was about inspiring the spirit of aid work in everyone. The theme of 2014 was 'The World Needs More' and in 2015, it was about "Inspiring the World's Humanity".

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World Humanitarian Day is a time to recognize those humanitarian personnel who have lost their lives working for humanitarian causes.

The United Nations' (UN) World Humanitarian Day is held on August 19 each year. It is a day dedicated to humanitarians worldwide, as well as to increase public understanding of humanitarian assistance activities. On December 2008, at the 63rd session of the UN General Assembly, it was decided to designate 19 August as World Humanitarian Day and it was first observed on August 2009. Because, 5 years ago, on 19th August, 2003, a brutal terrorist attack on UN headquarters in Baghdad killed 22 people, including UN envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello. Sergio was a Brazilian United Nations diplomat who worked for the UN for more than 34 years. It is a day of global observance and not a public holiday. World Humanitarian Day does not have a logo; neither has it belonged to the UN or any other agency or organization. Notable humanitarians who provide life-saving assistance to millions of people worldwide, often risking their own lives in conflict zones and areas of natural hazards are honored every year on this day for their contribution towards mankind. It is a time when we recognize those heroic aid workers and the millions of people who count on them for their very survival.

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Fernando Rosado Spilki, a virologist and an expert in water quality was commissioned by the Associated Press to test conditions in all the water at Brazilian competition sites. Spilki is an expert on the subject from the Universidade Feevale in Brazil. In last July, he identified virus levels 1.7 million times more than which would be considered highly alarming in the U.S. or Europe. It is basically 'poop water' and the IOC does not care for that. Nobody can deny the facts that raw sewage regularly flows into many of Rio's Olympic venues every day and there is no dilution factor in the bay or lagoon where events will take place and within this polluted environment, the exposure is imminent and the chances of infection are very likely. Officials have already admitted that they would be able to treat maximum 65% of the sewage that flows into the bay, not their earlier target of 80%. Kristina Mena, on examining Spolki's report, has predicted that if any athlete ingests just three teaspoons of water from the bay, will have a 99% chance of infection. Ms. Mena is an expert in risk management for waterborne viruses at the School of Public Health at the University of Texas. Coaches are advising sailors to keep their mouths closed and sanitize themselves once they come into contact with polluted water.

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Here is the Haitian runner Jeffrey Julmis during the first of the 110m hurdle semi-finals at the Olympic games in Rio. He toke a dive but despite being hampered, he managed to finish in a time of 25.56, nearly 12 seconds behind the second-last place runner. In his first series, Jeffrey Julmis finished in 13.66 seconds and ranked 3rd on 9 runners.

Haitian hurdler Jeffrey Julmis fell down after hitting a hurdle in the 110 meter hurdles semi-finals. His falling drew massive cheers from the crowd at the Estadio Olimpico on August 16. Julmis mistimed the first obstacle on the course and jumped straight into the first hurdle during the first of the 110 meter hurdles semi-finals and tumbled head over feet into the second one while taking the first hurdle with him all the way to the second hurdle. But, in true Olympic spirit, he got up again to finish the race to huge cheers from the crowd. Took a deep breath, composed himself and cleared the final eight hurdles in a time of 25.56 seconds, nearly 13 seconds behind race winner Orlando Ortega of Spain (13.32 seconds) and 12 seconds behind the second-last place getter Ronnie Ash of USA (13.36 seconds). Yordan O'Farrill of Cuba came last in the round with 13.70 seconds time. He was later declared disqualified, but no one's run was more memorable than Julmis in Lane 9 who ended up himself doing a somersault, landing close to the second hurdle.

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Buying school supplies at the end of the summer is an unavoidable and costly task unless you know some tricks to save money. Here are 14 great ideas for how to get everything your children need and save a few bucks doing it.

1. Buy in Bulk: Identify the items that your child would need throughout the year. Buy enough to get you through the rest of the year. Try to find a few families to join in the bulk-shopping and save dollars.

2. Check Prices Online: Visit online stores to find the best deal. If you prefer to shop at the brick and mortar stores, before you go out to shop, an online survey will help you to know the best prices and available deals.

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The story behind the Olympic medals goes all the way back to the ancient Olympics, when only the winner of an event would receive a crown of laurel leaves as his prize. Leaves of such crown were taken from a sacred grove, near the temple of Zeus, in Olympia. In 1896, the winners were awarded silver medals and a diploma in addition to the crown. In 1904, for the first time in the Olympic history, the tradition of awarding gold, silver and bronze medals began in St. Louis, Missouri, in the United States.

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Beside the many well-intentioned young children who usually take non profit mission trips to poor countries such as Haiti and others, some college-bound students are engaged in them just to increase their chances in getting into a good university. Frank Bruni who wrote the article: "To Get to Harvard, Go to Haiti?" calls it "drive-by charity work" in a the interest to impress admission staff.

He gave examples where some friends post on Snapchat and Instagram "typically showing one of them "with some poor brown child aged 2 to 6 on their knee" and explained "while many are well-intentioned, some seem not to notice poverty until an exotic trip comes with it."

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According to the Haitian Olympic Committee, 10 Haitian athletes are representing Haiti in Rio 2016 in Brazil from 5 to 21 August 2016. They are: Darrell Wesh (100 and 200 meters), Jeffrey Jilmus (110 meters hurdles), Mulern Jean (100 meters hurdles), Samyr Lain¨¦ (triple jump); Richardson Hitchins (Boxing); Josu¨¦ Deprez (Judo); Edouard Joseph (Weight Lifting); Asnage Castelly (Wrestling); Aniya Necol Louissaint (Taekwondo). Naomy Grand ¡(r)Pierre is a former Whitefield Academy swimmer; her participation has been accepted in the Aquatic Sports by the International Swimming Federation (FINA). Haiti is what is known as a ¡°universality place¡±; the nation can send one male and one female athlete to the world championships. Since Haiti does not have any swimmer to match the Olympic qualifying speeds, Naomy was approached by Haitian authority if she would like to join its national team for this summer¡¯s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Her representation has been accepted under the rule of Universality. She is a current resident of Atlanta, a Major in Economics and International Studies, a regular participator in swimming, track and soccer in high school. So far, Haiti had sent the maximum number of participants (13) in the 1976 Montreal Olympic-- 10 in Athletics events and 3 in Boxing.

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Judge Al Duniel Dimanche who is in the process of investigating possible embezzlement of several million dollars at the National Insurance Office (ONA) has ordered the arrest of former President Rene Preval. The Former Director General of ONA, Sandro Joseph, has been accused of corruption, embezzlement, forgery and conspiracy. After a request to appear was ignored by Rene Preval, now an arrest warrant has been issued.

Other people involved in the criminal investigation include: senators Andris Riche, Senator Jacques Sauveur Jean, Senator Edwin Zeny and the Minister of Education Jean Beauvoir Dorsonne

In another way, Former President Rene Preval can be picked-up anytime and put in jail

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International Youth Day is observed annually on 12 August

International Youth Day (IYD) is an awareness day designated by the United Nations, which is observed every year on August 12, since 2000. It is celebrated all around the world with an objective to raise awareness about issues that affect young people who are aged between 15 and 24 years of old, making up one-sixth of the global human population. Each year the occasion is observed with a specific theme. The theme of 2015 was "Youth Civic Engagement" and the slogan for 2014 was "Youth and Mental Health." The logo of United Nation is often associated with the marketing and promotional material for this event. In the face of hardship, 'International Youth Day' is an effort to make sure that young people have the critical skills, tools, and support that they need to become healthy, productive and engaged members of society and they bring great leadership and resilience.

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