Rotary – Dr. J's Education Blog

Meet Nicola Watkinson, Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner

The Rotary Club of New York International Breakfast Meeting

Nikola Watkinson In August 2016 Nicola Watkinson was appointed by Austrade to serve as Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner for North America, responsible for its network of offices covering New York, Boston, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, Washington, as well as Toronto and Vancouver in Canada.
Nicola Watkinson YouTube Introduction
Nicola joined Austrade in 2003 following a career in the private sector in the UK and with the Victorian Government in Melbourne. Nicola’s career in Austrade spans Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner for South Asia, Consul General Frankfurt, Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner, West Europe, Global Head of Investment and Senior Investment Commissioner for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

She has also worked in North Asian markets with a particular focus on Japan, China and Korea. Nicola has sat on the advisory board of groups such as CSIRO (Australia’s premier research organization), Industry Capability Network, Australia China Business Council and Australian Business in Europe.

New York
May 16, 2018 8:30 AM – 10:00 AM
777 United Nations Plaza
New York, NY 10017
United States

Advance reservations required.

EventBrite Ticket reservation

Rotary Project: Hands Across Water

FarmSchool As a participant in this cross-cultural education program, RCNY received an update on the project from the Haifa Rotary Club. Dr. Amnon Shefi of Hi-Teach was a major coordinator for this important program. Hands Across Water educated more than one thousand students of Jews and Arabs to work together in search of advanced water solutions which was the theme of the successful year.

The Rotary Hands Across Water program was run by the Haifa Rotary Club in collaboration RCNY and many other clubs and districts, harnessing the power of our Rotary collective. Together, Rotary’s Hands Across Water cross-cultural water project emerged as an inspired science education program which has been running large water projects. Hands Across Water culminated in a graduation event held in honor of the International Water Day

In 2010, a successful collaboration was established between the Rotary Club of Coral Springs-Parkland, Florida and the Rotary Club of Lod, Israel to utilize principles of water conservation within schools as a platform for promoting social interaction between various ethnic and religious communities in Israel.

Handsacrosswater Beginning with the diverse and underserved City of Lod, a rainwater harvesting system was constructed at two anchoring institutions – the Ha Mapilim School and the Agricultural Learning Center (Farm School) – serving as a joint, demonstrative tool for ten nearby schools (three Arab Israeli/Palestinian and seven Jewish) to utilize for student’s hands-on learning. A third anchor was added with Gany Aviv School for advanced activities. The innovation and excitement generated by these efforts has served as a catalyst for further cross-cultural exchange amongst the schools, resulting in complementary sustainability projects and an adoption of a culture of conservation.

Building the Model – Hi Teach

With continued leadership and support provided by the pilot schools, surrounding community, and Rotary partners, these initial efforts served as a foundation for an expansion of the program.

In 2015, Israel was awarded its largest Global Grant from Rotary International to utilize principles of water conservation as a platform for promoting cross-cultural exchange amongst 10 schools of diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds. The program officially took on the title: Rotary Hands Across Waters (RHAW).

Handsacrosswater2

Initiated by the Rotary Club of Haifa, Israel and the Rotary Club of Coral Springs-Parkland, FL, RHAW is a growing partnership of over 25 leading public, private, and NGO organizations, including Technion University, Ministries of Education and Economy, local water authorities, and NASA’s GLOBE Program. RHAW is transforming the next generation of water leaders to collectively address our most pressing environmental issues.

Hands Across Water Video

United Nations International Breakfast Meeting – Rotary Club of New York

via Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute, Sr. Advisor & Special Rep. to the U.N. for the Permanent Secretariat of the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates speaks at RCNY

Fee $25

Equalizing the Digital Divide: Computers For Schools in Burundi

Cooperation and Collaboration = Transformation

RCNY’s President Dr. Cowin personally supports Computers For Schools Burundi through the RCNY Foundation as she believes that computers and mobile devices have become almost ubiquitous in society. Yet, improving student learning can depend on where you live and access to computers. This gap in equality has generated talk of a new digital divide. “We have moved from the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots.’ says Leslie Wilson, founder and chief executive officer of the nonprofit One-to-One Institute in Michigan.

Emmanuel Ngendakuriyo, Director, Computers For Schools Burundi from Bujumbura-Burundi heads this local non profit organization registered in republic of Burundi. The principal objective is to modernize the Burundi education system through the use of Information and Communications Technologies(ICT) in the Schools, Universities and Community. The organization achieves this by providing computers to schools and train the teachers on how to use the equipment and software,and later,the teachers facilitate the ICT curriculum for students in the classes.

Computers For Schools Burundi is working in partnership with RC Bujumbura,RC Ottawa, and RC West Ottawa for Global Grant project for equipping 5 schools in Burundi with 100 Computers(a computer lab equipped with 20 Computers each school) and training of 100 teachers from those schools. The Beneficial Schools Background, a draft of a Memorandum of Understanding(MOU) between the clubs with short explains the project and budget (French version) ICT LAB 2018 BACKGROUND OF BENEFICIALS SCHOOLS RCB ICT LAB 2 protocole d_accord draft 02 01 2018

Computers For Schools Burundi are happy to partner with the Rotary Club of New York for the successful implementation of these project. Visit the Computers For Schools Burundi website for more information (http://www.cfsbu.org)

Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute, Sr. Advisor & Special Rep. to the U.N. for the Permanent Secretariat of the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates speaks at RCNY

_MG_8496-1-2 (2016_11_28 16_59_16 UTC) Apr 18, 2018 8:30 AM – 10:00 AM at the UN Church Center – 10th floor
at 777 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017 RCNY’s featured speaker will be: Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute, Sr. Advisor & Special Rep. to the U.N. for the Permanent Secretariat of the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates, and Chair of the Task Force on Nuclear Nonproliferation of the International Law Section of the American Bar Association, among other offices.

About Jonathan Granoff

Mr. Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute, Senior Advisor and Special Representative to the United Nations for the Permanent Secretariat of the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates. Chair of the Task Force on Nuclear Nonproliferation of the International Law Section of the American Bar Association, and Ambassador for Peace and Security of the Parliament of the World’s Religions. Focuses advocacy efforts on the legal, moral, political and spiritual dimensions of peace with a particular emphasis on the rule of law and elimination of nuclear weapons. On numerous advisory and governing boards such as Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy, Middle Powers Initiative, Parliamentarians for Nuclear Nonproliferation and Disarmament, and the Jane Goodall Institute. Fellow in the World Academy of Arts and Science and recipient of numerous awards such as the Arthur E. Armitage, Sr. Distinguished Alumni Award of Rutgers University School of Law. Award-winning screenwriter of The Constitution: The Document that Created a Nation, and has articles in more than 50 publications and books including: The Sovereignty Revolution, Toward a Nuclear Weapons Free World, Imagining Tomorrow, Analyzing Moral Issues, Perspectives on 911, Toward a World In Balance, Reverence for Life Revisited, and Hold Hope, Wage Peace. Featured guest and expert commentator on hundreds of radio and television programs, and testified as an expert in the US Congress, Parliaments of the UK and Canada, and at the UN numerous times. Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014.

The Republic of Latvia, Ambassador Jānis Mažeiks at RCNY

On February 21, 2018, the Rotary Club of New York, Host Club #6, hosted the Permanent Representative to the United Nations of the Republic of Latvia, Ambassador Jānis Mažeiks at the United Nations International Breakfast meeting. The honorable Ambassador also spoke about the Security challenges in the Baltic region and answered many questions about the status of Latvia in the region, its economic qualities and challenges with Russia and in general. In addition, the Ambassador spoke about Latvia’s promotion of multicultural educational integration to avoid minority ghettos. Latvia’s government sees language as a central element of identity and 60% of their classroom teaching is bilingual with 8 languages taught in their school system. RCNY’s newest member Laura Cristanelli, who also arranged for the Ambassador to speak at the RCNY meeting, was inducted at the beginning of the meeting.