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2023

Lake Kerkini a place where small actions have a big impact

24/2/2021

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Mother nature is the reason why we are in this world. Humans depend on nature to live. We could not live without air, water, sun, soil, trees, and so on. All of these resources are the reasons for our existence. It’s something very basic, natural, evident, but then so hard to conceive. The simplicity of it makes it difficult. We are taught since our early ages that we need oxygen to breathe, that oxygen originates in plants, that plants need sunlight and water, that sunlight is what brings everything to life and determines its natural rhythm and water is the main reason why our planet has life. So why are we so detached from la Pacha Mama? 


Some say the pandemic has made us more conscious about protecting the environment. We might be more aware of the consequences of global warming. Not just because we have more knowledge about it, but because we are facing the reality the environmentalists were warning us about years ago. As NASA’S Global Climate Change site asserts the temperature of the planet has risen about 1.18 degrees Celsius since the late 19th century. The Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets have decreased in mass. Glaciers are retreating almost everywhere around the world. The global sea level rose about 20 centimeters in the last century. And when it comes to wetlands, more than 35 percent of the world’s wetlands have been drained for urban development or agriculture, polluted, paved over, or lost to sea-level rise.


Even though these facts are dramatic and we have been hearing them for years, we continue living our comfortable lives. But now, that we are facing the biggest challenge for humans of this century we are beginning to realize that our actions have consequences. Scientists are warning that destroying wildlife habitat could lead to the emergence of more viruses like the one that causes covid-19, and this has made us more aware of the importance of nature. But it was not until we saw ourselves and our comfortable lives threatened. The warnings from the scientists weren’t enough, the simplicity of life wasn’t enough. And now, we find in nature an escape from the suffocating pandemic. 


The question is, can nature support the presence of more humans? Are we educated enough to respect nature as it should be? I don’t have much hope in our species. We have been warned many times of the consequences of living our lifestyles and we weren’t willing to change them. However, sometimes we find some sun rays on a cloudy day and we get our hopes up. A good example of a positive intervention of humans in nature is Lake Kerkini located in the region of Serres in Northern Greece. A wetland which was formed in 1932 when a water dam was built and the area was flooded. 

The unique biodiversity of Kerkini makes it one of the most important wetlands in Europe. Many species of birds choose this beautiful place to breed because of the good conditions and in some cases because of the intervention of humans. There are many programs to protect the biodiversity of the area. For example the Dalmatian Pelican which is an endangered species now breeds at the lake since they constructed wooden platforms so they could nest there without being affected by the fluctuation of the lake. It's the first time in 100 years that Dalmatian Pelicans created a new colony in the whole world. 
Simple actions can make a big difference as Αγγελική Δημάκη (Angeliki Dimaki), an environmentalist who works at Lake Kerkini says. So although it might be too late to stop global warming and its consequences, we might be on time to make some changes in our lifestyles and give back to nature all that it gives us. LIFE. ​
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Lake Kerkini at sunrise 
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Dalmatian Pelicans at Lake Kerkini 
Photo by Mirzana Bexheti 

Lucila Piedra harris

Is a Spanish volunteer in Praxis organisartion involved in the Wetlands Day Campaign.

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A short history of Radio and where it’s headed

23/2/2021

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​     In 1895, a young Italian named Gugliemo Marconi invented what he called “the wireless telegraph” while experimenting in his parents’ attic. He used radio waves to transmit Morse code and the instrument he used became known as the radio. In 1906, Marconi shared the Nobel Prize for physics with Ferdinand Braun, a German, in recognition of their contributions to the development of wireless telegraphy. Radio works by changing sounds or signals into radio waves, which travel through air, space, and solid objects, and the radio receiver changes them back into the sounds, words, and music we hear.  

Common radio formats:
  • News, talk, and sports: These stations feature news and conversation, rather than music. They typically announce local, regional, and national news items along with sports coverage. They also post regular traffic updates, one of the main reasons why audiences tune in. They also might mix local content with popular, syndicated radio shows.
  • Country: Country stations play a mix of recent hits and classic songs in their genre. These stations have broad appeal in age demographics.
  • Contemporary: Contemporary stations usually focus on the top-40 hits of the moment, including pop music, hip-hop, and more. These stations target younger crowds, such as teenagers.
  • Rock and alternative: Classic rock is one of the most popular formats, and metropolitan areas often have multiple classic rock stations. Rock and alternative stations play a mix of modern rock, classic rock, punk, and metal music. 
  • Urban: Urban stations, often referred to as rhythm and blues (R&B) stations, tend to cater to a younger audience. They highlight artists in R&B, soul, hip-hop, and rap. 
  • Classical: Classical music is usually geared towards older audiences and is not as common. They feature works by composers such as Beethoven, Chopin, and Bach. 
  • Religious: Religious programming is popular in certain areas, particularly in southern states. From youth-focused music to talk radio, these stations highlight spiritual content. Stations target different demographics with programming at different times.
  • Nostalgia: Formats that pull content from a specific decade or span of years. For example, oldies stations may focus on the 1950s and '60s; classic hits stations would play the top tracks from the 1970s,'80s, and '90s.
  • College: Many colleges and universities have their own radio stations, featuring music from up-and-coming artists. Run by volunteers, these stations tend to have smaller broadcast ranges. They tend toward niche audiences, such as college students at that particular university.

Radio Fun FactsEvents That Shaped the Media:
1896 Guglielmo Marconi, the father of radio, receives a patent for his “wireless telegraph.”
1919 First radio station in America begins operations in Pittsburgh.
1921 The New York Giants’ World Series win over the New York Yankees is the first sports broadcast on radio. Radio speakers replace headphones, allowing radio broadcasts to be enjoyed by more than one person at a time.
1926 Radio’s first commercial jingle airs for Wheaties.
1933 President Franklin Roosevelt turns to radio to talk with the nation in “fireside chats.”
1939 FM radio makes its first appearance.
1952 First miniature transistor radios sold by Sony—radio headphones again become useful.
1970 FM stations begin to offer stereophonic music.
1971 AM-FM radios become standard in new cars.
1994 Radio broadcasts streamed over the web. First 24-hour Internet-only radio station begins operation.
2001 First satellite radio service begins.
2004 Introduction of digital AM and FM broadcast signals gives consumers more program choices. New term coined for Internet delivery of radio-style content: “Podcasting.”
2007 Internet radio grows in popularity with 57 million weekly listeners.
2012 Four in 10 Americans listen to online radio for nearly 10 hours a week.
Sources: The Media History Project and iBiquity Digital Corporation
By the Numbers241 million American adults listen to radio each week.
70% of Americans tune in to radio for 2 hours and 40 minutes each day.
1 out of every 5 Americans has watched a video podcast.
17% of cell phone owners have listened to online radio from a cell phone connected to a car stereo.
A voice broadcast over the radio travels at 700 miles per hour. It can be heard 13,000 miles away— sooner than it can be heard at the back of the room where it originated.
There are approximately 14,865 radio stations currently operating in the United States.
15% of people in the United States download TV shows from the Internet.
There are approximately 60 different radio station formats.
Sources: Arbitron Ratings; The Media History Project; The Federal Communications Commission; The Infinite Dial 2010, 2011, and 2012, Arbitron Inc./Edison Research; RADAR, March 2012-Spring 2012; and Deloitte’s State of the Media Democracy survey, sixth edition.
 
     The lowdown: what does the future hold for radio?
     Despite the increase in platforms such as Deezer, Apple Music or Spotify, the most popular way to discover new music remains the radio.
 
     Listening online via a computer or smartphone grows in popularity each year and, in turn, allows internet radio stations to expand their audience.
     But how do they match up to DAB, in terms of new supports and ways in which people listen to music?
     Here’s Radio King’s analysis of what the future holds for radio.
 
     Internet radio versus DAB.
     Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) is a ‘multiplexing’ transmission method that allows multiple programs to be broadcast on one frequency, unlike FM technology, which only allows for one program per frequency.
    DAB’s goal is to replace FM broadcasting and become the future of radio.
 
     Some industry experts are wary of this new transmission method.
     Even though it may not affect online radio, it’s receiving a backlash from traditional radio enthusiasts, who aren’t happy to see the end of FM broadcasting.
 
     DAB won’t negatively impact on online radio stations, which are designed for global coverage and not limited to a specific geographical area.
     And this is where the difference between DAB and internet radio stations lies.
     However, this method of transmission could benefit internet radio stations that want to develop local coverage and keep up to speed with FM radio stations.
 
     Will future radio be visual?
     Doesn’t adding visuals to radio make it just like TV?
     Modern society is image-obsessed, so radio can maintain its individuality by not following suit. From the very beginning, the advantage of radio has been its ability to boost the imagination via the content being broadcast. Adding images to its content could make it lose its charm and scar the future identity of radio itself.
 
     Even so, radio can benefit from adopting other ways of communicating and diffusing new content to attract on-air listeners (YouTube videos, website news, podcasts, social networks …).
 
     Car radios in the future.
     Recent studies in the US show a huge growth in online radio listeners.
     This expansion is a direct result of the ongoing evolution of internet radio in the modern world.
     The creation of mobile apps for smartphones and tablets, plus the development and adaptability of web radio across social networks, is turning internet radio into the airwaves of the future.
 
     You may think that listening to internet radio in your car is impossible?
     It was – before the arrival of connected cars, which since 2014 have opened up a field of opportunities for internet radio.
     The future of radio is the connected car and no longer a DAB receiver that you have to install yourself.
 
      As with FM, internet radio stations will be broadcasting to listeners in their cars!
     By simply connecting a smartphone to a CarPlay or Android Auto compatible screen, your listeners can tune in to your station from their car.
     Radio King’s plan is to allow all of its clients access to the connected car applications.
 
 
     In the future, radio will be everywhere.
     The possibilities are endless and will continue to multiply.
     The consoles, connected watches and TV’s that we use every day will be just another way in which radio stations can broadcast and increase their audience numbers.
 
 
     Since its creation, radio has continually evolved with the times.
     From pirate stations during the 1960s to the launch of the first internet radio stations in the 2000s, this is a media that has always kept up to date with advances in technology.
     Whichever way you look at it, radio is and will remain a simple, direct way to capture the hearts of its listeners.

Sources:
​
www.knowitall.org/document/history-radio-kids-work

 www.thebalancecareers.com/what-are-radio-formats-and-why-do-they-matter-2315430

 
​www.stny.info/sbe1/history/radio_fun_facts.htm
​
www.radioking.com/blog/the-lowdown-what-does-the-future-hold-for-radio/

IONUT-MARIAN IONESCU
Marian is a Romanian volunteer in Praxis Organisation involved in the World Radio Day campaign. 
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How the German Right-Wing Scene Benefits from the Pandemic

23/2/2021

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​On February 19th it was the one-year anniversary of the right-wing attack in Hanau where nine people lost their lives. Hanau was not the only right-wing attack that has shaken Germany in the last years, but while the attack in a shopping mall of Munich in 2016 was still discounted as a shooting incident involving a mentally unstable person, Hanau marked a turning point in media coverage. For the first time, the attack was named for what it was: a racist murder. 

The police recently published the crime statistics for 2020. It reported a historic high in right-wing actions. The numbers even surpassed right-wing crimes committed in 2016 when the refugee influx was almost unbearable for the state.

The report reads like a dystopian novel: a right-wing supporter attacks his neighbor with a screwdriver because he reported him to the police for doing the Hitler-salute, an arson attack on a Jewish bar, distributing right-wing leaflets on the respective solidarity rally, immense increase in swastika graffiti, more right-wing supporters asked for gun-permissions than ever before. The AFD, a party that holds seats not only in the national parliament but also in the state parliaments and local councils trivializes the Holocaust on several occasions.

Although police stated that the majority of these racist and anti-Semitic acts can be traced back to single perpetrators, they underline that these numbers represent the ongoing radicalization of the people. 
These numbers say: the pandemic radicalizes.
The intelligence service stated that the significant increase of right-wing supporters during the pandemic is concerning for the national security of Germany. 

What happened in Hanau was a culmination of everyday racism. 
Where racism, antisemitism and xenophobia come from has been the subject of countless studies and while they differ in methodology and outcome they all conclude that fear plays a big factor in the development of discriminatory viewpoints. Renowned Swiss psychologist Verena Kast says that when in a state of fear people tend to turn to authority figures who seem to have a grip on life. They represent a rigid system where everything has a purpose and everything is arranged for the people, which gives them a sense of security in times of uncertainty. 
Instead of turning inwards and coping with the fear they adopt someone else’s ideology. Those systems don’t meet life’s complexity, but they are easy to understand, well organized and provide stability. When combined with aggressive paroles they not only satisfy the people’s longing for security but deliver them a scapegoat, as well.
Fear is a powerful tool to manipulate people and redirect them politically. The feeling of helplessness makes people liable to trust questionable leaders and their ideologies. 

And right now, we live in times of uncertainty. The spread of the virus, insufficient medical care, shutdowns, lockdowns, closed borders, economic instability and the unpredictability of when this will end is a strain on the nerves. 
The right-wing scene knows how to take advantage of this.


The intelligence service observes that just like the rest of us, the right-wing scene uses the world wide web for connecting and staying visible for its supporters.  

Also, part of the radicalization takes place in the numerous protests of Covid deniers. On these protests, the organizers not only spread conspiracies about the virus but about the Jewish community and Migrants as well. 
The boundaries of what is acceptable to say and what is off-limits were shifted, the Holocaust was trivialized and anti-Semitic symbols were held up high. 
Refugees were portrayed as transmitters of the virus and the routes refugees have to undertake to make it to Europe are called the ‘virus routes’. 
Smaller parties like the ‘Der III. Weg’ (translates to ‘the third path’) or ‘Die Rechte’ are represented there as well and use those protests to recruit new members. 

‘Der III. Weg’ is the fastest-growing right-wing-organisation of Germany. It knows exactly how to reach its target group. It aims for districts that are known to be socially weak and feeds into the narrative that migrants and refugees receive the help from the state that was intended for low-income 'German’ families. They provide these families with free soup kitchens, sports facilities, clothing donations, organize hikes and make them feel ‘seen’. Their approach is classic right-wing grass root work and apparently effective.

While right-wing acts increase, so does solidarity. Sprayed swastikas on walls were either quickly reported or removed by the people themselves. Cobblestones commemorating Jewish victims of World War II were repeatedly cleaned, so the names were visible again. The Nazi-bar ‘Zapfhahn 88’ in Berlin was closed on an initiative of the community. Volunteers formed the research organization ‘AFD-Watch’ to keep an eye on what the party says at rallies. 

It remains to be seen if solidarity alone can fend off these recent developments or if Germany needs to issue stricter laws to take away the stage for right-wing voices. This would restrict freedom of expression, a virtue the nation holds in high regard. Not least because of the actions of the right-wing in the first half of the 19th Century.

Mirzana Bexheti

Mirzana is a german volunteer in Praxis organisation involved in the International Holocaust Remembrance day campaign. 

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Can our native language influence our thought process?

21/2/2021

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According to Ethnologue, there are currently a bit over 7000 languages spoken all across the world. Each of them differ from one another, they have different grammatical structures, sounds, vocabulary etc. Many polyglots have even said that with every different language they speak, they feel like they acquire a different personality with it. So do the languages we speak have an effect on the way in which we perceive the world?


Let’s start off with a sentence such as ,,I saw my grandmother reading a book ’’ to examine how one simple phrase can vastly differ from language to language. If you were to say this line in Russian, the verb would change depending if I, who saw the grandmother, am a male or a female. In addition, a different verb is used, depending if the action is completed or not(finished the book from cover to cover or just read a few pages). In Chinese it should be specified if the grandmother is maternal or paternal.

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Lastly, in English, the verb has to be marked for tense (saw instead of see), whereas in Indonesian, it is not required. What is more, studies have shown that after learning a new language, people often change the way they speak their native tongue, based on that other language they learnt. As mentioned before, it is not necessary to use grammatical tenses in Indonesian, it is optional, but in English it is required. Oftentimes, Indonesians, who have learnt English, start putting more information regarding to tense in their language.

Knowing, that one simple sentence can have so many variations, it is not surprising, how many misunderstandings can happen, since some thoughts are bound to get lost in translation.


To continue with something that English lacks, but so many other languages couldn’t exist without - grammatical genders. Can having gendered nouns really affect our thought process? In a study, conducted for Spanish speaking children, they were asked to give voices to everyday objects such as: a door, a fork, a pencil etc. So for example a door, which in Spanish has a feminine gender, would have a girly voice. Even from a very young age, these kids would choose voices depending on the grammatical gender of those objects in their language. It seems as if people, who speak languages, which have grammatical genders, do take meaning from it.


Another example of it would be describing objects. A simple word, such as sun, is feminine in German, but masculine in Greek. If a German speaker were to be asked to describe the sun, most likely, they would choose adjectives, such as: beautiful, magnificent, bright - stereotypically more feminine words and if the same were to be asked a Greek speaker, the answers would probably be: big, calm, strong - stereotypically more masculine words. 


In addition, this noun class is even making its way into the physical world, for example, Statue of Liberty, why is Liberty a lady? Perhaps because it was a gift from France and in French, liberty happens to be a feminine word. These are a few of many examples, that show how grammatical genders affect how people think without even realizing.

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Perhaps languages can vary from each other so vastly because they serve different purposes. A cognitive scientist, Lera Boroditsky has previously mentioned in one of her TED-talks some interesting facts and ideas that support that hypothesis. If you had a room full of highly educated people and would ask them to point where southeast is, most likely, every possible direction would be represented. But there are some places and tribes, Kuuk Thaayorre for example, where asking that same question would result in immediate correct answer from everyone, even very young children. That’s because these cultures do not use words like left and right, they use cardinal directions instead (north, south, east, west). For example ,,I hurt my western leg’’ or ,, my dog is in the northeast of that tree’’  And even the way they say hello would be to ask ,,which way are you going’’ and the answer would be ,,i’m going southwest in the far distance, and you?’’ So in their culture, every passing person you greet, you have to report your direction. It makes sense that Kuuk Thaayorre people are so good with directions, because if they weren't, they literally couldn’t get past hello, if they did not know which way they were headed. It is likely, that in such cultures, survival can depend on being well-oriented so much, that it even made its way into their language.

All in all, it can be said that different languages require different things from their speakers and in many cases, have evolved according to the needs of their culture. Not only that but sometimes speakers thought process can alter depending on the language they speak, resulting in seeing and understanding the world from another perspective.

MARGARITA KEERD

Margarita is an estonian volunteer in Praxis organisation involved in the world mother language day.

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Holocaust memorial : A huge massacre and the creation of crime against humanity

3/2/2021

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"Never again", that's the first thought people had after the end of the Second World war which was a great shock in people's mind. Not only because the amount of civilian's lives lost but also because of the cruelty of treatment in concentration camps and the will to anihilate certain minorities, that the nazies shown.

The more know and documented genocide is the jewish genocide that is more commonly named as the Holocaust : 6 millions of people were killed amongst the jewish community in Europe. The Tziganes were slaughtered : 250 000 persons, 250 000 persons with handicap and hundreds or thousands homosexuals (difficult to get an exact number since they were included in delinquants or unsocial). 

For the map below we interested ourselves in the Holocaust in it's first definition : the genocide of jewish people. These are estimations since many victims remains unidentified and because of the migrations during the period, of civillians fleeing persecutions. 

Marianne YOTIS

Marianne is a french volunteer in Praxis involved in the holocaust memorial day campain

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Informal vs formal learning

1/2/2021

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When it comes to learning new knowledge there are two main ways to do so; either through formal or informal learning. Most of us are rather familiar with formal learning, since this is what we have been taught in schools and the way the school system works. When we look up the definition of “formal learning” this is what we get: The concept of formal learning usually includes three necessary features that, taken together, constitute the formality of the learning situation: 

  1.  A specified curriculum that sets out what needs to be learnt 
  2. Taught by a designated teacher or group of teachers 
  3.  With the learning attainments of individual learners being assessed and certified in some way 

And all three of these features are included in a regular school system. When it comes to the work environment “formal learning” is guided through different trainings, but what puts these under “formal learning” category is the fact that usually these types of trainings are structured, they have deadlines and there is a definitive goal. 

On the other hand, informal learning is totally opposite of what you just read. It is more unstructured, it happens outside of usual learning settings (for example outside of classrooms/online classes, seminars etc) and it doesn’t have an exact goal in mind when it occurs and it is more unplanned so it happens naturally. An example of when informal learning can happen during your work is when you are talking with your coworkers and they give you new information about how to do something more efficiently/faster/better; therefore through that conversation you have learned something new without even realizing it. Things like this happen in our day-to-day lives; in forums, conversations, online communities etc.. 

There are some people, who prefer informal learning to formal learning and vice versa. It all depends on a person’s personal preference and how they adapt in each environment. For example; people who like to have a more flexible schedule, be more independent, like to approach things in a more creative way; like in nature or hands-on skills, then informal learning is more for them. In addition, learning the informal way also takes away getting grades and might lower anxiety for people who have it, because big classrooms and crowds might trigger such things. But at the same time, there are people who benefit more from the formal way of learning, meaning: more structure, more discipline and being graded. Also people who like to perform in front of large audiences might enjoy the opportunities given in the systematic way of learning, doing presentations in classrooms and getting feedback. 

Every human being is different, that’s why it is important to not give up on the first try when trying/learning something new; for example, let’s say you want to learn a new language. If you pick up things faster when learning in a classroom and doing it the more conventional way with the help of an instructor/teacher and for you it is motivating, then formal learning might just be the one for you when it comes to learning languages. At the same time some people prefer to learn a new language by moving to a certain country/or putting themselves in
environments, where that same language is spoken. Therefore they learn more on-the-go and in an unstructured way. Many times they might not even be planning on learning the language, but situations may arise, which can possibly result in learning new words/phrases without even anticipating it. 
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In conclusion, I find both of these ways of learning good and beneficial. It all comes down to each individual and their preferences as well as testing out different variations to find out what suits them best.

​Karolin Käsper

Karolin is an estonian volunteer in Praxis involved in the World Education Day campain.

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