VICTORIA, Seychelles, September 02, 2022–(BUSINESS WIRE)–KuCoin, a leading global cryptocurrency trading platform, has officially announced the launch of a series of ETH Merge-related events, allowing its users to learn more about this significant update of Ethereum with ease and find potential investment opportunities. This milestone marks KuCoin becoming the first CEX to launch ETH Merge-related Events to support the development of the Ethereum ecosystem. The series of events include the ongoing ETH Merge Gold Rush and ETH Merge Prophet, and others in the series that are expected to be announced throughout September.
“Triple First” — KuCoin Becomes First CEX to Launch ETH Merge-Related Events (Photo: Business Wire)
ETH Merge Gold Rush is the first event launched by KuCoin for the Ethereum Merge, allowing users to know more about the latest Merge-related updates and offering convenient Spot/Futures trading services for assets associated with the Merge, such as ETH, ETC, Matic, Op, etc. Furthermore, it encourages users to participate in ETH PoS mining with just one click.
KuCoin’s ETH Merge Prophet campaign, launched on September 1st, is another first ETH Price Gain Prediction event meant to celebrate major events in the crypto world. Global users with specific trading volumes on KuCoin are qualified to make predictions on which coin will experience the highest daily price gains and share up to $50,000 in prizes. The event will last seven days up to September 7th.
In addition, KuCoin currently provides a series of USDC campaigns, including a USDC pop quiz, net deposit campaign, trading tournaments, trading bots’ campaigns, and fixed promotion with APY up to 16%, the highest in the world. Click here for more details.
About KuCoin
Launched in September 2017, KuCoin is a global cryptocurrency exchange with its operational headquarters in Seychelles. As a user-oriented platform focused on inclusiveness and community action reach, it offers over 700 digital assets. Currently, it provides spot trading, margin trading, P2P fiat trading, futures trading, staking, and lending to its 20 million users in 207 countries and regions.
In 2022, KuCoin raised over $150 million in investments through a pre-Series B round, bringing total investments to $170 million with Round A combined, at a total valuation of $10 billion. KuCoin is currently one of the top 5 crypto exchanges, according to CoinMarketCap. KuCoin was named one of the Best Crypto Exchanges by Forbes in 2021 and the Best Crypto App for enthusiasts in 2022 by Ascent.
And that, as they say, is that. With OnePlus wrapping up its 10T presentation, you can now find out just what we think of these features in our OnePlus 10T review.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
Finally, some OnePlus 10T pricing, and it was worth the wait. The OnePlus 10T costs $649, which is $250 cheaper than the OnePlus 10 Pro’s starting price. That gets you the 8GB/128GB version. You can get the phone with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage for $749.
In Europe, OnePlus 10T pricing starts at €699, with our U.K. friends paying £629.
Europe gets the phone first — the OnePlus 10T goes on sale August 25 there. Preorders in the U.S. don’t start until Sept. 1, with the phone going on sale Sept. 29.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
OxygenOS 13 is coming to the OnePlus 10 Pro first, interestingly enough.
OnePlus says it’s working closely with Google — “especially the Android team” — to provide the best experience for OnePlus users.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
Some of the highlights for OxygenOS 13 — besides that aquamorphic design — includes a personalized smart launcher, new always-on-displays layouts and spatial audio. A lot of the features also draw on what Google’s adding to Android 13.
OxygenOS is an appropriate name, by the way, because this segment has gone on so long, I feel like all the oxygen has been sucked out of the room.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
OxygenOS 13 is built on Android 13, by the way, and with that software update not coming until September, I’d imagine that this new version of OxygenOS is coming later, too.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
We’re getting a look at OxygenOS 13, with OnePlus’ goals touching on smoothness and consistency of experience. the new OS features an Aquamorphic design, a new visual language which OnePlus says is inspired by nature. From a video that OnePlus aired showcasing OxygenOS 13, I take it to mean that’s a new color scheme with icon shapes that are reminiscent of droplets.
OxygenOS 13 is all about nature with the Klein Blue-Warm Orange color combo driving the visual experience #oxygenos13 #OnePlus10TAugust 3, 2022
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(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
There’s some design talk about the look and feel of the OnePlus 10T, which to my untrained eye, looks a lot like the OnePlus 10 Pro. The phone features a unibody design so that the camera array is a part of the phone, not just a bump jutting out. Your color options are Jade Green and Moonstone Black.
pretty amazing production going on at Gotham Hall #OnePlus10T @oneplus pic.twitter.com/nzuROSFXZnAugust 3, 2022
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Some behind the scenes details from the OnePlus 10T launch event.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
OnePlus hasn’t forgotten about the cameras on the 10T, which features a 50MP wide angle camera, augmented by an 8MP ultrawide angle lens with a 120-degree field of view. There’s a 2MP macro sensor on the back of the phone, too.
You won’t see a telephoto lens like you did on the OnePlus 10 Pro apparently.
The camera presentation was very brief, in case you were unclear as to where OnePlus is putting its focus with this phone.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
It’s time to talk the display, which is a 6.7-inch screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. The refresh rate can adjust between 60Hz, 90Hz and 120Hz, though it’s not an LTPO screen so you won’t see the refresh rate scale down like it does on the OnePlus 10 Pro.
(Image credit: Tom’s Guide)
There’s also a Battery Health Engine on the OnePlus 10T, meant to extend the life of the battery. Among its features is the ability to charge even in extreme cold. OnePlus says the battery is good for 1,600 charging cycles, which should minimize degradation over several years.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
As OnePlus promised, the 10T will feature 150W charging (at least outside of North America). That should be a new speed record that places the OnePlus 10T among the fastest charging phones.
Specifically, those charging speeds can deliver a full day charge in about 10 minutes, according to the 10T presentation.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
There’s a new version of the Hyperboost gaming engine on the OnePlus 10T, with an emphasis on increasing frame stability and touch responsiveness. In an hour-long session of PUBG Mobile, for example, the frame rate only drops slightly.
Meanwhile, a 1000Hz touch response via OnePlus’ LSTouch technology, you’ve got a phone that won’t falter when you’re rapidly tapping the phone’s screen.
full look at the OnePlus 10T specs #OnePlus10T @oneplus @OnePlus_USA pic.twitter.com/jrVAagbLr9August 3, 2022
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Some OnePlus 10T specs that may be relevant to your interests…
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
Turning to multitasking, we’re keeping more apps open and those apps are taking up more memory. In response, OnePlus is going to make a 16GB RAM option available with the 10T. There’s an Always Alive feature for the phone that works with the 16GB of memory, which can keep nearly three dozen apps running in the background at the same time.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
With great performance comes great overheating, and OnePlus says it’s going to fight that with its new 3D Cooling system.
OnePlus says the cooling area is 64% larger than what the OnePlus 10 Pro offered, with the 10T featuring advanced vapor cooling technology. The upshot is that the cooling system in the OnePlus 10T has been optimized to handle heat dissipation quickly. After an hour of gaming, the OnePlus 10T runs several degrees cooler than competing flagship phones.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
And after a lot of preamble, we’re diving into the OnePlus 10T. Qualcomm’s Chris Patrick is out to discuss the chip maker’s relationship with OnePlus. In the case of the 10T, that means the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1.
The focus of this presentation is on the performance boost the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 provides — 10% CPU boost and 30% faster graphics over the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 that came out at the start of the year. So we’re really seeing an emphasis on how the 10T will perform.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
We’re getting a recap of OnePlus’ Burdenless philosophy, which covers the way OnePlus designs and evolves its products. And that leads us into a video on Oxygen OS, which Anderson says will remain the software for OnePlus devices. (There had been some concerns that new owner Oppo was going to impose its software on OnePlus instead.)
A little nod to @tomsguide and @techradar for our reviews of the OnePlus 10 Pro! #OnePlus10T @oneplus pic.twitter.com/k36GCzHlyZAugust 3, 2022
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Trust the experts.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
Christian Anderson, VP of sales for OnePlus North America, kicks things off with a recap of OnePlus’ year so far. The upshot: The OnePlus 10 Pro has been a very popular device, helping the phone maker’s sales grow. And OnePlus has released a lot of phones in the last seven months.
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
And we’re underway, with OnePlus’ Robin Liu welcoming us to the OnePlus 10T launch event.
the history of @oneplus phones on display, with a glimpse at what’s next 👀 #OnePlus10T pic.twitter.com/Xwtj612iR7August 3, 2022
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A pre-launch event history lesson from OnePlus, courtesy of Kate Kozuch in New York.
(Image credit: Tom’s Guide)
With the OnePlus 10T launching in less than 10 minutes, we’re going to spend a lot of time talking about the features included with the phone. But let’s spend a moment reflecting on a long-time OnePlus feature you won’t find on the 10T — the phone’s alert slider.
The alert slider has been MIA from cheaper OnePlus phones, but the OnePlus 10T is the first flagship from the company to ship without it. The slider is quite a popular feature with users, setting OnePlus phones apart from their Android counterpart.
The reason for the omission? The big battery, a new antenna, and the fast-charging technology included in the phone took up a lot of room and sacrifices had to be made. So au revoir, alert slider, we’ll think of you every time we go to silence our phone at the movie theater.
(Image credit: Tom’s Guide)
My colleague Kate Kozuch is one hand at Gotham Hall where OnePlus is holding its 10T launch event and sends some photos of the atmosphere inside the event. This is OnePlus’ first in-person launch event in two years.
Ladies, gentlemen and nonbinary personages of all ages, I give you … the @oneplus 10T pic.twitter.com/LnCYRpDNVuAugust 3, 2022
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That OnePlus 10T packaging seems a bit bulky.
We’re kidding, we’re kidding…
(Image credit: OnePlus/YouTube)
The OnePlus 10T event live stream is now live on YouTube (opens in new tab)… sort of. It’s in countdown mode at the moment as we get closer to the 10 a.m. ET kickoff time. But you’ve got a page to bookmark now. We’ve also updated this live blog with an embedded feed.
(Image credit: OnePlus)
Since OnePlus is anything but reticent when it comes to discussing new phones — including phones whose launch event is less than an hour away still — you can find a lot of detail about the OnePlus 10T, pre-launch. In fact, the launch event page at OnePlus’ website (opens in new tab) touts a smattering of features, many of which we’ve talked about.
But there’s one we haven’t discussed — the phone’s cooling system. On its website, OnePlus touts the 10T’s “3D Cooling System 2.0” and what a bonus it will be for mobile gamers. Keeping phones from overheating certainly would appeal to gamers, as a hotter phone can see performance degradation. That OnePlus would include the cooling system in its promotion efforts suggests that the 10T may be positioned as a gaming phone — or at least a phone built with gamers in mind.
(Image credit: OnePlus)
We’ve got some last-minute info on the OnePlus 10T, and as you might expect, it comes straight from OnePlus. The company has posted another deep dive about OnePlus 10T specs (opens in new tab), and this time, the focus is on charging speeds.
Specifically, OnePlus says its new phone will support 150W Supervooc Endurance Edition, the company’s fastest charging technology ever. According to OnePlus, the 4,800 mAh battery in the OnePlus 10T can be fully charged in 19 minutes thanks to the 150W charging. (Oh, looks like OnePlus also revealed the 10T’s battery size — and it’s slightly smaller than what the OnePlus 10 Pro offers.)
Of course, in North America, our 110- and 120-volt outlets are no match for 150W Supervooc charging, so the OnePlus 10T will charge at “only” 125W. That means it will take 20 minutes to fully charge the phone, or 1 minute longer than what our European cousins will enjoy.
You’ll get a 150W Supervooc charger and USB cable with your OnePlus 10T purchase, OnePlus says.
(Image credit: OnePlus)
Hasselblad has been a big part of the last couple OnePlus flagship launches, with the Swedish lens specialist fine-tuning the lenses on the OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 10, and improving some of the phones’ photo processing. Those specific devices didn’t unseat Apple or Google from the top of the best camera phones list, but they certainly held their own against the top picture takers.
So it’s curious that Hasselblad apparently won’t be involved with the OnePlus 10T, based on OnePlus’ comments to The Verge. “[OnePlus] wanted to offer an ultimate performance flagship smartphone at the device’s chosen price point,” chief designer Hope Liu told The Verge.
That could mean anything, but it sounds like OnePlus is putting a premium on boosting the phone’s performance and is less concerned about the camera. If that is the case, it’s an odd choice, given how important digital photography is to smartphone shoppers.
(Image credit: Future)
If the OnePlus 10T launch today seems like the latest in a series of OnePlus phone launches, you aren’t imagining things. There have been a lot of OnePlus handsets rolled out in 2022, as OnePlus has expanded its product portfolio to include budget models as well as flagship challengers.
Compared to the days when OnePlus was rolling out one, maybe two phones at most, it’s quite a change. And it puts me in mind of an editorial my colleague Jordan Palmer wrote a while back wondering if OnePlus is losing its magic with all these phone releases.
(Image credit: OnePlus)
The big question heading into today’s OnePlus 10T launch is what OnePlus is going to charge for the phone — an especially relevant piece of information in these, our times of rising costs. For the record, the OnePlus 10 Pro debuted with an $899 price tag — less than comparable flagships, but still pretty pricey so far as OnePlus devices go.
The 10T is supposed to have a better chipset in the form of the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1, but without the Hasselblad branding for its cameras, it’s possible the 10T could come in at less than the OnePlus 10 Pro. We certainly would hope for a phone that’s no more than the one OnePlus introduced earlier in the year.
(Image credit: Qualcomm)
Let’s talk about the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 that OnePlus has confirmed will be powering the OnePlus 10T. It’s a step up in performance from the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 which you’ll find in the OnePlus 10 Pro, as well as the entire Galaxy S22 lineup. But more importantly, it’s also better at power management than that earlier Qualcomm silicon, not that the long-lasting OnePlus 10 Pro really had a problem with battery life in our testing.
We’ve tested a couple of Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1-powered phones already — the Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro and the Zenfone 9. Both got excellent marks for performance, if you’d like an idea of what we’re expecting from the OnePlus 10T.
(Image credit: Tom’s Guide)
One area that’s worth paying attention to during today’s OnePlus 10T launch involves any battery and charging details the phone maker announces for the new device — and not just because that’s info OnePlus hasn’t revealed in advance of the event. OnePlus’ power management features are always of interest.
We’re expecting the OnePlus 10T to retain the 5,000 mAh battery found in the OnePlus 10 Pro — why fix what isn’t broken, after all. On our demanding battery test, the 10 Pro turned in a time of 11 hours, 52 minutes with its adaptive display feature turned on. Adaptive displays can put a hit on battery life, but the OnePlus 10 still earned a spot on the list of best phone battery life that we track.
As for charging speed, remember that the OnePlus 10 Pro used 80W charging, but because that feature didn’t meet U.S. charging standards, users in the States had to make do with a 65W charger. We’re curious to see if that persists with the new phone.
Good morning and welcome to Tom’s Guide’s OnePlus 10T launch live blog. We’ll be bringing you all the last-minute rumors in the run-up to the event, then giving you full details on the phone itself as it’s revealed. So bookmark this page and check back regularly for the latest.
The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted nearly all countries’ health systems and diminished their capability to provide safe health care, specifically due to errors, harm and delays in diagnosis, treatment and care management. “Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for patient safety: a rapid review” emphasizes the high risk of avoidable harm to patients, health workers, and the general public, and exposes a range of safety gaps across all core components of health systems at all levels. The disruptive and transformative impacts of the pandemic have confirmed patient safety as a critical health system issue and a global public health concern.
The objectives of the event are :
•provide an overview of implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for patients, health workers, and the general public
•highlight importance of managing risks and addressing avoidable harm in a pandemic situation
•discuss implications of the pandemic for patient safety within broader context of preparedness, response and recovery
•lay the foundation for follow-up work around generating more robust evidence and supporting countries in their efforts to build resilient and safer health care systems.
The session will be available in English, French and Spanish.
With an eye toward increasing participation in Austin, organizers for the Albert Lea/Austin Walk to End Alzheimer’s are expanding some of the summer events in Austin this year.
Taking a cue from Paint the Town Pink, the week of June 20-25 has been designated Paint the Town Purple in honor of the walk and will feature events in both communities.
It will also serve as a precursor to the walk itself, which will be held on Sept. 17, at Frank Hall Park in Albert Lea.
“This year, more than ever, we have a lot more events in Austin, which can get more people involved,” said Walk chair Jaclyn Bird.
Several events will be held throughout that week that haven’t been in Austin before in the hopes that the walk can make full use of the two communities who are so close to one another.
The goal is simple: get people involved.
“We just kind of wanted to get the word out that there are some of these events happening and obviously, our walk is in September,” Bird said. “This is our big push to get the word out.”
Organizers are hoping for over 200 participants this year for the walk, which takes place in September. They are hoping that next week’s events will help generate excite in Austin to take part in the Albert Lea walk. Photo provided
Bird, who has been involved with the walk since 2019, first as a member of the committee and then as walk chair for the last two years, has a vested interest in being so closely connected to the walk.
The company of which she is a part of, Edward Jones, is a presenting sponsor and through her clients she sees the effects Alzheimer’s has on families.
On a personal level, her grandfather grappled with Alzheimer’s disease for the last eight years and finally succumbed earlier this year.
All of these things have contributed to Bird pushing for more Austin participation in the walk. In just two short years, Bird has seen the results of the push.
“It was just far enough away for the businesses … They want to make sure it’s going for a good cause and get a little bit of publicity for it and that’s understandable,” Bird said. “We’re seeing a transition now and we’re getting more support.”
“A lot more sponsorships for sure,” Bird continued. “Businesses are taking the time, volunteers too. We’ve had businesses say we can’t necessarily sponsor, especially coming out of COVID-19, it’s been tough for sponsorship dollars, but they say ‘we’ve got 10 employees, what do we need to volunteer?’”
In the past, the walk has been averaging just under 200 participants, which breaks down to around 23 teams. This year’s goal has organizers hoping for over 200 participants.
For Bird, the hope remains that more events can find their way over to Austin.
“I would eventually like to see if we could get more events at least,” Bird said. “Not the full walk, because I don’t want to take that away from Albert Lea either, because they’ve done an amazing job over the last couple years. Just more walkers. The businesses have been amazing so far. If we can keep that momentum and get more walkers in Austin, that would be ideal.”
Schedule of events
• June 20: Stop by Ignite Nutrition in Albert Lea (701) Marshall Street and Rave Nutrition in Austin (310 Main Street North). A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the walk.
• June 21: Austin Kick-off Party hosted by Edward Jones, 4-6 p.m. at 1405 15th Avenue NW. Sunny’s Ice Cream, face painting by Matchbox Children’s Theatre and all the answers to walk questions.
• June 22: Albert Lea Kickoff Party — Wind Down Wednesday, 5-7 p.m. in Historic Downtown. Get information for and register for the 2022 walk. Stop by Mocha and Mini LLC (1317 SE Broadway Avenue). A portion of all proceeds for the day will be donated to the walk.
• June 23: Purple Hat Lunch at the Mower County Senior Center. Show up in a purple hat between 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and receive a free lunch courtesy of the Cedars of Austin. Treat yourself to Papa Murphy’s pizza in Albert Lea. A portion of all proceeds from 3-7 p.m. will be donated to the walk.
• June 24: Get your boost at The Coffee House on Main (329 Main Street North, Austin). A portion of all proceeds from 9 a.m. to noon will be donated to the walk.
• June 25: Sweet Reads Books and Candy (407 Main Street North, Austin). Enjoy readings from local authors starting at 11 a.m.
Look for donation boxes while you dine at Bleachers, Pizza Ranch and Trumble’s 2.0H.
ST. LOUIS, May 24, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Ungerboeck, the global leader in event management software, announced today that it has acquired the products developed by risk management agency Reliance Risk and will be debuting an industry-first application for mitigating risk to events and venues.
Risk management is an essential part of venue management and event planning. As the industry continues to be impacted by major shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic, terrorism, accidents, and severe weather incidents, Ungerboeck is committed to helping its customers better manage risks of all kinds.
The acquisition of both Reliance Risk products, RiskSense101 and VRM360, gives Ungerboeck the power to offer a valuable new solution: Risk Manager by Ungerboeck. The new application is specifically designed to give venue and event organizers a better understanding of threats and help them be proactive instead of reactive in the face of potential issues.
“The unique nature of events dictates the need for a customized, simple, but powerful technology solution to help mitigate and monitor risk,” said Wayne Middleton, founder of Risk Sense Technologies and co-developer of the new application. “We have built this into Risk Manager by Ungerboeck and are grateful for the shared vision, passion, and global reach that Ungerboeck brings to help our industry manage risk.”
Steve Mackenzie, Executive Vice President of Ungerboeck, said the new application fills a void in the market.
“Over the past few years, several events have become major headlines for all the wrong reasons,” he said. “Think of the Manchester Arena bombing, the shooting in Las Vegas, or the Astroworld crowd incident. By offering this tool, we are ensuring venue and event operators are equipped to identify potential risks and produce the necessary tasks and reports to back up the process.”
Before joining the Ungerboeck family, Middleton’s risk management software was already used in venues across the Asia Pacific Region. Now thanks to Ungerboeck’s global reach, thousands of additional organizations will benefit.
“Qudos Bank Arena, along with the larger ASM Global operated venues throughout Australia, have held a license to the software for over seven years. It has been an important tool in helping us understand the risks that our venues encounter and ensure that we have taken appropriate measures to mitigate them,” said Steve Hevern CVE, General Manager of Qudos Band Arena. “We congratulate Wayne and Ungerboeck on this global partnership and look forward to more innovative technology that will help us continue to host safe and successful events.”
Middleton will continue in his role as Managing Director of Reliance Risk, and as a risk management consultant, setting the benchmark for best practices across the industry.
“We’ll build on the unique system that Wayne, a world-renowned risk management expert, has developed over the past decade,” Mackenzie said. “This is incredibly exciting for the market to finally have access to a dedicated risk management software.”
About Ungerboeck
Ungerboeck provides industry-leading event and venue management software to over 50,000 users in more than 50 countries, empowering the people that bring people together. Its comprehensive platform offers event professionals powerful Software as a Service (SaaS) technology that provides a 360-view of their business, allowing them to cut costs, save time, and increase revenue. Founded in 1985, Ungerboeck is headquartered in the United States, with regional presence in Germany, France, Mexico, England, Australia, Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Singapore. ungerboeck.com
About Reliance Risk
Reliance Risk is a risk management consultancy established to provide quality risk management and safety support. We offer services across the risk spectrum with expertise in health and safety, business risk, business continuity and resilience, security, and emergency management. Many of our consultants have international risk management experience working across a range of industry sectors and we draw upon our network of technical experts to provide the right solution for client needs.
Health, nutrition and environmental sustainability need to be core, cross-cutting foundations of food systems transformation. During the United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS) of 2021 the call for action to deliver healthy diets from sustainable food
systems echoed through dialogues, social movements and national pathways. Formed as an outcome of the UNFSS, the Coalition of Action for Healthy Diets from Sustainable Food Systems (HDSFS) brings Member States, UN Agencies, Civil Society Organizations,
Academic Institutions and social movements together to deliver on this call.
The Coalition will strive to act as a mechanism for coordinated action on healthy diets from sustainable food systems that provides countries the opportunity to share, learn and inform. It will foster, maintain and gain momentum from multiple stakeholders
on the issue, and allow for all to inspire and be inspired.
The workplan of the Coalition revolves around three key functions.
Mobilise and coordinate existing expertise and stakeholders to align action across food systems for collective impact at the country-level.
Facilitate peer-to-peer learning among countries.
Manage special projects on integrating nutrition, health and sustainability through food, determined by country priorities
This official launch event aims to celebrate the formation of the Coalition and provide an update on its progress and future activities, inspire current and new members of the Coalition and catalyze supportive action towards its vision.
Objectives
To share the vision, collective expertise and actions of the HDSFS Coalition and thereby establish the Coalition as an impactful mechanism for coordinated action on healthy diets from sustainable food systems;
To launch the Coalition’s 2022 work plan and present the progress on different functions, added value and
modalities of collaboration;
To gauge interest of new Member States and others to engage with the HDSFS Coalition; and,
To inspire supportive action towards the vision of the HDSFS Coalition at the country, regional and global level.
Agenda
Moderator – Abigail Perry, Director Nutrition, WFP
14:00
Opening remarks, Beth Bechdol, DDG, FAO
14:10
Opening remarks, Zsuzsanna Jakab, Deputy Director-General, WHO
Corinna Hawkes, Centre for Food Policy, City, University of London, representing the core team. Remarks highlighting the work plan and what the coalition will accomplish in the short and long term
14:31 – 14:45
Remarks from 3 Front runner countries highlighting action for 2022, interest, and expected impact of the Coalition (4 minutes each)
14:45 – 14:48
Remarks from youth representative, Lana Weidgenant
14:48 – 14:52
Remarks from Coordinator Hub,Stefanos Fotiou
14:52 – 15:00
Next steps and closing – Brent Loken, Global Food Lead Scientist, WWF
Caribbean destinations and tourism stakeholders are joyfully welcoming the return of a multitude of buoyant cultural festivals, each focused on the distinctive music, cuisine, dance and arts attached to the panoply of regional nations.
Largely freed from bans on large outdoor gatherings driven by two years of pandemic-imposed restrictions, several countries are preparing for the resumption of events, from the Anguilla Culinary Experience to Barbados’ Crop Over, the British Virgin Islands’ Food Fete, Grenada’s Chocolate Festival, Nevis’ Mango and Food Festival, the Saint Kitts Music Festival, regattas in Carriacou and Saint Barth, Saint Lucia’s long-running Jazz and Arts Festival, plus New Year’s and Carnival celebrations in the Bahamas and Saint Lucia.
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Their return follows the launch of the first comprehensive, centralized resource for information on the region’s numerous events. Veteran Caribbean tourism and travel marketer Nerdin St. Rose first launched Caribbean Events in 2018 and has fully resumed the site as nations and suppliers resume tourism activity in the outbreak’s wake. We spoke recently with Nerdin to learn how she created a timely resource for diverse events across the region.
“We’re promoting the site as a place people can find easily as soon as they search for Caribbean events.” – Nerdin St. Rose. (Photo courtesy of Nerdin St. Rose)
TP: What led you to create the website?
NS: I’m so passionate about Caribbean events because my background comes from events. I worked with great event productions; I was involved with the Jazz Festival in the 1990’s so you know I love events. I’ve created a platform where people can [access] all of the events taking place in the Caribbean. We sort of want them to stop thinking only about sun sand and sea but also about the other things they can enjoy and experience.
TP: You launched your company just before the pandemic outbreak. How did you deal with the impact?
NS: Yes, you know for me like for all of us it was hard to deal with. But it gave me time to reflect as well. I kind of got my life back because when COVID happened I was in hospital undergoing major surgery.
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TP: What did you do during and in the aftermath of your treatment?
NS: I used that time to think about it what I wanted to do. Events had shut down, but by August of 2020 I was thinking ‘OK, well maybe we could start planning for events in 2021.’ It was a lot of ‘let’s wait and see.’
TP: How do you describe the site?
[The site] features all of the key Caribbean events with information, dates, descriptions and photos. We [publicize] the events through our own social channels as well, promoting the site as a place people can find easily as soon as they do a search for Caribbean events. I’ve been reaching out to the different destinations to ensure they keep us in the loop when they’re getting ready to announce events.
I’m also reaching out to some regional airlines to promote Caribbean Events [including] links on their websites. We’re looking at [event] ticketing and adding accommodation options highlighting hotels in and around events. The site is going to get better later in the year as we add more events.
TP: What are your short-term initiatives?
NS: We’re adding events now and I’m reaching out to all of the islands as they release the information, which we added to the website. I continue to do work we’re ramping up through 2022. Suppliers don’t have to pay for their events to be listed on our site; we’re sort of an aggregator. We were picking up just prior to the pandemic and actually started getting a lot more momentum and interest. We were promoting and have over 200 events on the site.
TP: It had to be difficult to deal with the dual challenges of personal health concerns and the pandemic, which impacted everyone. How has your experience affected your business outlook?
NS: Hey [those things] happened. During the pandemic, events were not happening, but we tried to keep people thinking about events although there wasn’t a whole lot of content. It’s just so good to see events coming back. It makes you feel even more positive and more encouraged and I’m excited about that.
A Montreal-based startup is developing a mobile event platform where users can post their own events and find things to do in their area.
Thrills, launching at the end of May, will let people discover or post all kinds of events and activities for anyone to enjoy.
The pandemic temporarily stopped group events and gatherings, and as restrictions loosen and pre-pandemic activities resume, people are on the hunt for fun things to do.
“We spent two years behind walls and no one’s going out anymore. So how about we create something that would allow people to enjoy life again,” Clarence-Hugues Domond, a fourth year computer science student at Cal Poly Pomona, and co-founder and chief technology officer, said while explaining the idea behind Thrills.
Here’s how the app works:
Thrills app
When a user first opens the app, the first screen they will see is a list of all the events available within a certain radius of their location.
Users can filter by the kinds of event they are interested in, as well as by the start time and date and the time at which the event was posted. Users can also search for specific events.
Examples of events include birthday parties, meetups at bars, or even more low-key events like hiking a specific trail with a smaller group of people.
Once they find an event of interest, users can join group chats for all the participants of that event.
“That’s a very cool feature, where once you join an event, you’re able to break the ice with the people that are going there, you’re able to make friends before the event and make the experience a bit more personal,” Domond said.
Thrills users can create their own profiles where their current and past events will be displayed.
Because of this feature, Domond describes the app as a “crossroads” between a social media and event platform.
Securing Thrills
For privacy reasons, users can choose to make their event public, private, or exclusive.
“If you don’t want everybody to try and join your venue, you’d make it private and so nobody would be able to see it except you and the people you invited. Exclusive means that people can see it, but they have to request to join so you’re able to filter this flow of people in and out your event,” he said.
In addition to the event settings, Thrills also ensures that accounts are verified and linked to real emails for security purposes. As of now, only people above the age of 16 will be allowed to use the app.
The app will only disclose the location of the event once a user joins.
Thrills has been designed to be compatible with both iOS and Android.
What’s next?
The team is now working on adding a feature that allows users to post content from the events they attend on the app, similar to what they’d create for an Instagram reel or TikTok video.
“This platform allows you to just go on there and create anything on the spot, or join anything on the spot. That’s where the beauty of Thrills really is,” Domond said.
With five of 27 events sold out, and tickets for large evening public tastings selling fast, the Vancouver International Wine Festival is readying to launch its 43rd incarnation starting May 16.
The seven-day extravaganza will be the city’s largest food and wine event to take place since the COVID-19 pandemic descended in spring 2020.
Organizers expect representatives from 100 wineries, based in 14 countries, to travel to Vancouver to pour at least four wines each. Most wineries will pour five wines, the festival’s executive director, Harry Hertscheg, told BIV.
Tickets will not be available for purchase at the events, and sales are likely to be cut off on May 13, he added.
The sold-out events this year include dinners at restaurants such as Five Sails Restaurant, Vij’s, Glowbal Restaurant and Cin Cin. A lunch at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts has also sold out.
The festival’s marquee event is the May 17 Bacchanalia Gala at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, where tickets are priced at $575 each. In addition to a silent auction at the gala, there will be an online auction leading up to the dinner.
All proceeds from this event and the rest of the festival go to the William Shakespeare festival Bard on the Beach, which is set to launch its 2022 season on June 8.
Capacity for the main public tastings at the Vancouver Convention Centre May 19, 20, and 21 has been chopped to between 1,000 and 1,250 people per night to allow more social distancing. Pre-pandemic, those events were usually capped at 2,500 people per night.
“Just having the festival is a great thing to bring back to the community,” Hertscheg said.
He explained that he and his team decided to move the wine festival’s regular February timetable to May this year in part because of his hope that spring weather would help reduce COVID-19’s spread, leading to a more likely chance that governments would lift pandemic restrictions.
Dates for next year’s festival are similarly to be in the spring – April 24 through 30.
“We’re not quite ready to dive back into the wintertime,” Hertscheg said.
“Pandemic conditions tend to be more acute in the wintertime than in the spring.”
He added that supply-chain constraints that have arisen during the pandemic are more acute in the winter.
Wineries around the world earmark as much of their supplies as they can for lucrative holiday-season sales, and owners can find it a challenge to also ship sufficient product in the December-January time period to be set aside for a February wine festival, Hertscheg said.
There is no theme region this year, but the country with the most wineries is Canada. That includes a strong contingent of B.C. wineries.
The theme region next year is likely to be Argentina and Chile, Hertscheg said.
