California air regulators voted to approve changes to a key climate program aimed at reducing planet-warming emissions that has a wide swath of critics and could increase gas prices statewide.

After working at a crowded and dangerous internment camp in Iraq, Air Force Staff Sgt. Heather O'Brien returned to the U.S. with anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.

USA Track and Field is bringing the U.S. Paralympics Track & Field program in-house beginning Jan. 1 as part of a partnership that will unite all of its athletes under one roof.

The second plenary of the Platform met in December 2013 and agreed an ambitious work programme for 2014-2018: Details of the agreed work programme are available in the advanced meeting report of the Plenary.

The IPBES Secretariat have now issued a call for experts to help scope, advise on and deliver the work programme. Governments and relevant stakeholders can put forward nominations, from which the Multidisciplinary Expert Panel of IPBES will select a maximum of 20% of experts from the stakeholder nominations, and the rest from the government nominations.

The UK expects IPBES to make use of the best scientists/experts from all relevant disciplines - natural science, social science, economics, data and modelling and traditional knowledge, and to achieve a geographical and gender balance among those experts in the delivery of the IPBES work programme.

More information of the required topics to be covered by experts, alongside the nomination forms and how to nominate can be found in the attachments below.

The 4th Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO 4) was officially launched on 6 Oct 2014, during the opening day of the Twelfth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 12) in Pyeongchang, Korea. Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO) is the flagship publication of the Convention on Biological Diversity. It is a periodic report that summarizes the latest data on the status and trends of biodiversity and draws conclusions relevant to the further implementation of the Convention.

GBO 4 is a comprehensive report that serves as a mid-term analysis towards the 20 "Aichi Biodiversity Targets". The report states significant progress towards meeting some components of the majority of the Aichi  Biodiversity Targets. Some target components, such as conserving at least 17 per cent of terrestrial and  inland water areas, are on track to be met. However, in most cases this progress is seen as not sufficient to achieve the targets set for 2020, and additional action is required to keep the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011–2020 on course. 

The full report can be accessed here: http://www.cbd.int/gbo4/

An innovative workflow reveals new research potential of the Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD). A recently published article in the Biodiversity Data Journal (BDJ) used specimen records downloaded from BOLD in tabular format and imported these into a human-readable text developed in manuscript within the Pensoft Writting Tool (PWT). Data were used to study the species distributions of ten Nearctic species of braconid wasps from the Microgastrinae subfamily.

BOLD is originally designed to support the generation and application of DNA barcode data. However, the repository also holds unexplored treasures of additional data that provide unique potential for many other research uses.

Currently almost 4 million sequences (over 3.4 million of them DNA barcodes) are stored in BOLD, including coverage for more than 143K animal species, 53K plant species, and 16K fungi and other species, and this impressive storage of information is continuing to grow every day.

A team of researchers, led by Dr Jose Fernandez-Triana from the University of Guelph, Canada, have now explored how the unique amount of data stored on the BOLD platform can be utilised for new research purposes. Choosing tiny parasitic wasps for their case study they selected a sample of 630 specimens and 10 North American species. Data stored on BOLD were then used to uncover a significant number of new records of locality, provinces, territories and states.

The research was then secured a fast publication via BDJ, a community peer-reviewed, open-access, comprehensive online platform, designed to accelerate publishing, dissemination and sharing of biodiversity-related data of any kind.

"Import of structured data into human-readable text is important but it does not represent the whole story. More importantly, the data can be downloaded straight from the article text by anyone for further re-use, or be automatically exported to data aggregators, such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). In this way, data platforms could get more peer-reviewed content from scholarly publications and scientists will be properly credited for their efforts" said Prof. Lyubomir Penev, founder of Pensoft Publishers.

Original Source:

Fernandez-Triana J, Penev L, Ratnasingham S, Smith M, Sones J, Telfer A, deWaard J, Hebert P (2014) Streamlining the use of BOLD specimen data to record species distributions: a case study with ten Nearctic species of Microgastrinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). Biodiversity Data Journal 2: e4153. doi: 10.3897/BDJ.2.e4153

Additional information:

The workflow is part of the Data Publishing Toolkit elaborated within the EU FP7 funded project EU BON (Grant agreement No 308454).

A new EU BON derived open access paper looking into Earth Observations (EO) and the Aichi Targets was recently published  in the journal Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation.

The paper reviews the ABTs and EBVs against direct and indirect, operational and emerging, EO data products. The review was conducted by consulting expert opinion and categorically rating the Targets based on the adequacy of currently available EO technology to build indicators per target. The potential RS-EBVs were also matched with their respective EO data products.

To summarize this information a monitoring framework is proposed where RS-EBVs are used to harmonize observations prior to the indicator stage. Potential obstacles to implementing this framework and challenges to its adoption by the wider science and policy community are discussed. Finally, upcoming satellite missions which could offer potential for assessing global biodiversity status and trends beyond the 2020 timeframe of the CBD's current Strategic Plan for Biodiversity are discussed.

Original Source: 

O'Connor B. et. al. (2015) Earth observation as a tool for tracking progress towards the Aichi Biodiversity Targets. Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation. DOI: 10.1002/rse2.4

The new GEO BON bi-annual report is now published. It provides an overview of the activities developed by our network over the last two years. It starts with a brief presentation of the GEO BON mission and structure.

It also presents the two core activities of GEO BON: the development of the Essential Biodiversity Variables framework and of the Bon-in-a-Box toolkit. The different national, regional and thematic biodiversity observation networks associated with GEO BON are presented. The report highlights the most important activities from each of the nine working groups of GEO BON, where experts around the world work around specific biodiversity monitoring topics. 

For more information, download the report here.

The Distributed European School of Taxonomy (DEST), an initiative under the CETAF umbrella and managed by RBINS, has launched its training programme for 2015-2016.  

Check out the Expert-in-training programme enabling trainees to develop and strengthen their taxonomic research skills through on-the-job-training and the Modern Taxonomy programme offering intensive theoretical courses in various subjects.

The Distributed European School of Taxonomy (DEST) was established within the framework of the EU funded project  European Distributed Institute of Taxonomy (EDIT) and under the umbrella of the Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities (CETAF). The EDIT consortium agreement lasted from March 2006 until March 2011. Since then, the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS) remains responsible for the continued management of DEST, organization of courses and related logistical matters. The DEST currently includes a network of around 100 training providers from 60 institutions.

The "Open Science at the Global Scale: Sharing e-Infrastructures, Sharing Knowledge, Sharing Progress" conference will take place on March 31, 2015 in Brussels, Belgium. The conference is organized under the aegis of the European Commission (DG CONNECT) to bring together policy and research stakeholders from all the regions targeted by the project (Asia, Africa, Arabia, India, Europe and Latin America) to discuss major developments and perspectives in the field of global e-Infrastructures for Research and Education.

The main outcomes of the CHAIN-REDS project will be also presented on this occasion:

• The development of a Distributed Computing Infrastructure interoperation model between Europe and other regions
• The promotion of international standards and technical guidelines for interoperability of cloud services across continents
• One of the largest existing e-Infrastructure-related digital information systems, the CHAIN-REDS Knowledge Base
• A complete methodology for better sharing and using scientific data
• The CHAIN-REDS Science Gateway: a single portal for accessing remote computing and data services anywhere in the world
• The support of the creation of Identity Federations to make Authentification and Authorisation easier for users and service providers worldwide
• The main outcomes of the six awareness-raising workshops organised by CHAIN-REDS in Asia, Africa, Arabia, and Latin America

For Registration and more information, please visit the oficial conference webpage: https://agenda.ct.infn.it/event/1110/

The GEO Work Programme Symposium will take place from 2 to 4 May 2016 in Geneva, Switzerland. The objective of this first Work Programme Symposium is to actively engage the GEO Community in the implementation of the new GEO Strategic Plan 2016-2015: Implementing GEOSS (GEO 2016-2025 SP).

The Symposium will:

• Reflect on the GEO 2016-2025 SP, on its targets, and on activities that GEO should put in place;
• Ensure a common understanding of the new arrangements defined by the Strategic Plan (Programme Board, Monitoring and Evaluation, Implementation Mechanisms, role of the Secretariat, etc.);
• Ensure a common understanding of how GEO works, what are the links among different activities (GEOSS development and operations, users’ needs, knowledge base development, etc.) and how the Community should plan its involvement;
• Strengthen the participation of users in GEO activities;
• Strengthen the involvement of current stakeholders and involve new ones identified in the GEO 2016-2025 SP;
• Review the approach for GEOSS development (requirements, functional performances, architecture) and provide clear inputs for its further implementation;
• Discuss the content of the GEO Work Programme 2017-2019 and provide clear inputs (technical and programmatic) for its further development;
• Provide an opportunity to explore and consolidate GEO activities at the Global and/or  Regional level;
• Explore opportunities with the private sector;
• Foster regional (caucus) interactions and discuss opportunities to strengthen GEO action at the regional level; and
• Explore opportunities for new global/regional initiatives.

For more information about GEO meetings, click here.

Krog is on absolutely top form, while Hallberg sounds just like himself.

Perhaps there’s more money in saving our resources than there is to burn them up recklessly for profit as we have done throughout time.

The value of the FCIA member, FM 4991-approved or UL-ULC qualified firestop contractor comes from the commitment to excellence. These important designations – FM 4991-Approved, UL-Qualified, ULC-Qualified and FCIA Member in Good Standing – are being recognized by 07 84 00 Firestopping specifications in many occupancies around the world.

On Oct. 7, IIBEC sent a letter to the mayor and city council of Wilmington, North Carolina, recommending that they consider establishing a building façade inspection program in light of two recent building failures.

Every day in the United States, more than 10,000 workers are injured on the job with 14 of those injuries resulting in death. While the sheer number of those injuries is staggering, the financial impact to employers is crippling.

Looking for a solution for projects with tight budgets and deadlines that call for rush delivery? We have the answer for you: Rondolo Quick Ship by Decoustics.

The competition for the prestigious 2024 EIFS Excellence Awards is underway. Previously known as the EIFS Hero Awards, this esteemed program highlights outstanding projects within the EIFS industry across various building categories.

Lansing, MI — Michigan OSHA intends to conduct inspections at jobsites where workers are most likely to be exposed to respirable crystalline silica, as part of the agency’s recently launched state emphasis program aimed at reducing exposure to silica and preventing silicosis.

The NCS Trust, the charity set up to operate the scheme, will also be wound down, MPs are told

The Architectural Glass and Metal Certification Council hosted its annual meeting in Salt Lake City on Oct. 23-24. During the meeting, AGMCC announced a new website and continued progress with both the North American Contractor Certification and Architectural Glass and Metal Technician programs, North America’s only third-party credentials for glazing contractors and glaziers.

Bayer MaterialScience LLC now offers its Applicator Fundamentals Program in Spanish.

Washington – State-run OSHA programs face staffing challenges in part because of budget cuts, and federal OSHA should provide better access to training and deadlines for taking over troubled state programs, concludes a new report from the Government Accountability Office.

Washington – Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission Chairman Thomasina Rogers retired on April 27.

Does your workplace lack a safety and health program? If you’re looking to create one, OSHA offers 10 tips to get you going.

Columbus, OH – Ohio has launched a program to help injured workers learn new skills and return to the workforce.

Washington – A pilot program that provides prison workers with pepper spray as a safety measure has been expanded to six additional correctional facilities.

Washington – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on April 19 rejected petitions for review for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s cross-border trucking pilot program.

Washington – The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s cross-border trucking pilot program will continue, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled on July 26.

Washington — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is seeking comment on potentially expanding a program intended to determine to what extent crashes involving commercial trucks and buses are preventable.

Cambridge, MA — Certain programs and policies may help curb the excessive prescribing of opioids and potential misuse, results of a recent study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute suggest.

Washington — The House has passed legislation that would expand the types of medical professionals who can treat injured employees under the Federal Workers’ Compensation Program.

What are the top benefits of an ergonomics program?

Honeywell announced a new training and certification program to help integrators become proficient with the company’s Pro-Watch® Integration Kit, a software development kit designed to create smarter buildings that fold security into building management functions.

Washington — A new resource from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences is intended to help employers identify and implement steps to protect workers from heat stress.

Washington — Proposed legislation that would ease access to health care and other benefits for coal miners who have black lung disease is advancing in the House.

Washington – A new voluntary program from the Environmental Protection Agency aims to protect agricultural workers from pesticide drift.

Kansas City, MO — OSHA has launched a Regional Emphasis Program addressing hazards stemming from exposure to fertilizer-grade ammonium nitrate and agricultural anhydrous ammonia.