Posts in category: Don Lichterman

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – A Topeka leather shop that has been open for nearly a month officially celebrates its new business with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Mingus Leather Studio and Gifts opened its doors on December 18, but on Tuesday, March 14, the shop owner and lead artisan, Doug Mingus, gets to celebrate his new shop with a ceremony.

The new leather studio sells everything from belts to bags to pouches and wallets.

Mingus started creating leatherwork to destress but ended up loving the task and decided to take a chance and build a shop of his artistry.

“I originally started doing leather work about five years ago or so, and it was to destress,” said Mingus. “It was to take my mind off overworking in ministry. Did this to change my brain and ended up loving it, ended up being good at it, and it grew and grew, and then I had the opportunity to change in life and so ‘hey, maybe I will do what I love, bring some more beauty into the world, and maybe have a little bit of fun connecting with people I didn’t know.’”

Mingus also said he loves the smell and feel of leather; and the longevity of leather, so Mingus saw this as a terrific opportunity to give others more access to long-lasting items that will survive generations.

“I got tired of buying things that wouldn’t last,” said Mingus. “That wouldn’t withstand the use, and so I knew leather would, and so why not bring more of that to the world? Help people invest instead of maybe tossing away some of their funds and get something that can maybe be handed out to their family.”

The shop is located at 929 S Kansas Ave., and it is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Copyright 2023 WIBW. All rights reserved.

The disclosure platform has today (15 March) released its annual report on engagement across the private sector, with a focus on how larger companies are engaging with suppliers to collect better environmental data and reduce their negative environmental impacts across the value chain.

The report shows a major uptick in climate disclosures, with 42% more companies reporting through CDP’s climate platform in 2022 than in 2021. Yet, despite increased reporting on water, biodiversity and forests year-on-year, there is still a stark difference, with climate reporting far more common.

Some 18,600 companies reported on climate change, compared with just 1,000 on forest-related impacts. The number of companies reporting on water security increased 16% year-on-year but still only just exceeds 4,000. This is despite the fact that the three topics are all interconnected.

Disclosures on biodiversity are also far less common than climate-related disclosures. Around 7,700 companies reported via CDP’s biodiversity platform in 2021, just 41% of the number reporting via its climate platform.

CDP is warning that, unless nature-related disclosures become far more common and the quality of disclosures improves steeply, businesses will not be prepared for forthcoming regulatory changes.

The Treaty agreed upon by more than 180 countries at the UN’s 15^th biodiversity COP in December 2022 includes a commitments for nations to mandate nature-related reporting from larger companies by the end of the decade. Such a commitment was advocated for by hundreds of businesses but, as the CDP report proves, a great many thousands more are not ready.

To make nature-related corporate reporting more common ahead of any disclosure mandates, CDP is advocating for businesses to ensure that nature is a board-level priority. Three-quarters of the businesses reporting on climate to CDP said they incentivized their C-suite to take climate action, compared with just one-quarter being incentivized on forests and 6% being incentivized on water stewardship.

CDP is also calling on businesses to begin engaging with their suppliers more deeply on nature. 7,000 companies have told CDP that they work with suppliers on climate to some extent, compared with 915 on water stewardship and 543 on forests. Moreover, only 30% of the companies reporting on biodiversity assess the impact of their entire value chains.

CDP’s global head of value chains and regional director of corporations Sonya Bhonsle said: “COP15 couldn’t have been clearer in the call to action on corporate reporting on nature. If a company is not preparing for future regulations on nature in the supply chain, they are open to a wide range of risks and could also be missing out on the opportunities that safeguarding nature will bring.

“Quite simply, if a company wants to be in business in the future, they need to start embedding nature into the way that they buy and collaborating with suppliers to drive action in the supply chain.”

According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), $44trn – more than half of global GDP – is exposed to risks from nature loss.

Scope 3 in the spotlight

While there has been a sharp uptick in corporate climate-related disclosures, CDP’s report raises concerns about how quickly the quality of the disclosures is improving, with the disclosure of indirect (Scope 3) emissions proving a sticking point.

Almost six in ten of the companies reporting on climate to CDP included no information on supply chain emissions in their 2022 disclosures. There was virtually no increase in supply chain emissions disclosures year-on-year.

For those 41% of businesses who are engaging their suppliers to collect emissions data and drive decarbonisation, the average proportion of suppliers participating was just one-third.

Change could be coming. CDP found that 11% of the businesses include climate-related requirements in supplier contracts and a further 36% plan to do so in the next two years. CDP is urging companies to ensure that requirements are clear and science-based.

CDP is emphasising that Scope 3 emissions disclosure requirements are set to be tightened in several markets, including the UK and the US. On a global scale, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) has confirmed that Scope 3 emissions reporting will be included in its first global standards, due to launch by June this year.

More transparency could soon be coming regarding the Biden family’s dealings with a Chinese energy company. The Treasury is allowing the GOP to review suspicious activity reports.

Various government agencies are now investigating what caused the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, America’s second-largest bank crash.

A former FBI agent joins us to explore the politicization of the agency. He’ll also share his perspective on the events of Jan. 6.

President Joe Biden is rolling out expansive gun control measures while visiting California. What is in his latest executive order, and how are Republicans reacting?

The founder of TruthTells.org joins us to discuss antisemitism in American politics and the education system. He says the issue is a growing concern.

The Environmental Protection Agency wants to set a limit on several dangerous chemicals found in drinking water.

Polkadot is one blockchain that we haven’t recently associated in the entertainment and sports coverage here at Bitcoinist. Blockchains like Polygon, Solana, Tezos and Avalanche (among others) have taken a very culture or creative-first approach in a variety of ways, but Polkadot – despite being a consistent top 20 player – has rarely been in that dialogue recently.

That tide could be in the midst of turning as the chain has announced a new partnership with electronic music powerhouse Beatport this week.

The two parties will be collaborating on a new, on-chain electronic music platform. Let’s take a look at the details we know thus far.

Beatport Meets Polkadot

Beatport and Polkadot are launching Beatport.io, which is currently a landing page directing to a waiting list. As the platform comes to life, it aims to be a platform that will allow “artists, producers, and record labels to enjoy the benefits of Web3, while also giving music fans an opportunity to explore the value of digital collectibles and deepen their connection to their favorite artists and DJs,” according to a byline in a press release provided to Bitcoinist.

In addition to building out this music-based platform, the two partners will also work on congruent live event activations, with a goal of 10 events over the next year and a half; each event will look to celebrate a new NFT collection on the platform.

Beatport has been a staple in the DJ community for nearly two decades, carrying a catalogue of 16M+ tracks and a record label network that spans across nearly 100K labels. Beatport taps into the community through streaming, plugins, sound packs and more – all areas conducive to the web3 landscape today.

Polkadot (DOT) will be working with Beatport to change the game in electronic music. | Source: DOT:USD on TradingView.com

On-Chain: Music, Entertainment, And Culture At Large

Polkadot has had a relatively quiet start to 2023, and this move marks the chain’s first strides into a music and culture vertical at this sort of size and scale. Earlier in the year, we saw Polkadot-based Astar Network host a hackathon that tapped the Japanese Toyota Motor Corporation as a sponsor. Otherwise, it’s been a quiet year for corporate and cultural partners, and this latest story certainly shakes things up for Polkadot.

Elsewhere in crypto and music, we’ve seen web2 music monster Spotify dipping their toes in the sand, Warner Music Group pair with OpenSea, and blockchains have even been aggressive in building in this vertical too: VAULT is a new platform in the works from the co-founders of sports betting platform FanDuel, which is being built on Solana, and Flow-based ChartStars is working with Billboard and Universal Music Group.

Can web3 change the way we interact with music? Plenty of projects on plenty of chains are working towards exactly that.

The team from Sydney Early Education Centres (SEEC) recently shared some hints and tips about progressive meal times, a popular measure in many early childhood education and care (ECEC) services. 

Progressive meal times, in an ECEC context, refers to the practice of allowing children to eat within a longer period of time, and to be guided by their appetites and rhythms, rather than the clock. 

There are a number of different approaches to progressive mealtimes, with some services offering a set morning and afternoon tea time, with a progressive approach to lunch, while others will allow children to graze throughout the day. 

To illustrate the importance of a flexible approach to mealtimes, the team at SEEC offered the following example: 

“Imagine you are working away on an important project for work when your boss interrupts you and tells you to stop what you are doing, pack everything away, and go and have lunch. Not only have you lost track of your creative thoughts, but you are not very hungry, and would prefer to wait until you are ready to eat.” 

In contrast, SEEC chooses to support children’s sense of agency, viewing them as capable citizens with rights, who are active participants in their learning. Rather than restricting children to routine times, SEEC has a ‘rhythm of the day’ rather than a set routine. 

“Our rhythm of the day is flexible and child-centred, our days involve large periods of indoor and outdoor learning and play, often simultaneously, allowing the children choice and to be immersed in more complex learning and social engagement,” a spokesperson said. 

“Rituals such as meals and rest periods have predictable times, however, are progressive and guided by the children’s needs and choices, such as sibling lunches.”

Viewed in this way, meals become an experience, a meaningful ritual which involves care, intention, and a high level of organisation. 

To begin the process, educators involve the children in the preparation of the meal, and/or setting the tables. Each child is then given a choice of where to sit at the table and who to sit next to, how much food they would like to eat or not eat, or if they would like to continue playing and join for the next lunch round. 

Most of the meals provide opportunities for the children to self-serve their food, increasing the children’s capacity for choice and independence.

“Progressive meals allow children the freedom to continuously play and the right to choose when they are hungry. Children are much more likely to eat all their meals and try new foods if their voices are heard and they have more control over when they are feeling hungry,” the SEEC team emphasised.

Overall, the spokesperson continued, the progressive approach to mealtimes allows children’s growing competence to be supported, and gives them increased responsibility and independence. For the youngest children, flexible rituals of eating support their individual sleep routines. 

Educators eat with children, and use meal times to build relationships and role model positive choices with food. 

How do progressive meals work at SEEC? 

• The children help set the table and sometimes help prepare the meal with the chef. 
• The children are invited to come and sit at the table. If they choose to continue to play, they will be invited later. 
• The children are encouraged to self-serve their food and sometimes to serve others.
• The children are given a last call for meals, giving them the last opportunity to eat before it is packed away. This is also when children are invited for more if they would still like some. 
• The older children are encouraged to help clean their plates, utensils and tables.

Learn more about making everyday rituals extraordinary here. Further information about SEEC is available here. 

LAKE ELMO, Minn. — The EPA announced today it wants to lower harmful chemicals in our drinking water, focusing specifically on PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals.” They’re stubborn toxic synthetic chemicals that once in the environment are hard to remove

PFAS are in everything from cosmetics to cookware. The EPA has several steps to take before new limits will go into effect, but several communities in Minnesota are already living with the impact of the forever chemicals. In 2018, the state settled with 3M for $850 million over its alleged damage to drinking water in the east metro.

RELATED: EPA proposes standards to make drinking water safer from PFAS

Jeff Holtz and his family moved to Lake Elmo, and then learned about the PFAS contamination in the drinking water.

“Lake Elmo is the epicenter, but it’s impacting tens of thousands of families through no fault of their own,” Holtz said.

He remembers the initial questions and concerns, and can understand what new communities are going through.

“You have that worry in the back of your mind of what is going on, what are the risks, do we need to do something ourselves,” he said.

Holtz became part of a work group that learned more about the forever chemicals and decided where 3M settlement dollars would go to mitigate the pollution, and to improve the drinking water. He’s now a city council member.

He says that the ways to remedy the situation cost money, and the work includes taking wells offline, installing new pipes to connect to water systems, adding filters, and more. With the water tested every quarter, he says information for communities is paramount.

The state is testing a way to remove and reduce PFAS from the environment at Tablyn Park in Lake Elmo, using a trailer referred to as a “SAFF.” It’s made in Australia, and is one of only a handful in the country, says MPCA hydrogeologist Rebecca Higgins. It uses air, and just air, to remove PFAS from water, pulling in water through exterior pipes into a set of drums inside.

The PFAS starts rising to the top and it starts foaming in the top area. It then gets sucked out and contained.

Engineers are fine tuning the right levels to get the best response.

“We want to protect human health and the environment to the degree we possibly can, to the degree the technology is capable of, to the degree that’s reasonable,” Higgins said.

Holtz says he’s optimistic the steps agencies are taking is protecting people.

“Residents deserve clean water. It is their right and families depend upon it, businesses depend upon it, schools, hospitals,” Holtz said.

While his water is safe now, Holtz knows health guidelines can change based on new information, potentially changing how his community responds and if others will feel the impact of PFAS.

“There’s always the level of concern of what will the science say tomorrow. Where will the plume be moving to tomorrow? It’s a balancing act of vigilance, with trying to stay informed,” he said.

The state’s pollution control agency rolled out a plan to track the chemicals around nearly 400 facilities, and the Minnesota Department of Health has started testing for PFAS in water systems.

Click here to find an interactive dashboard where you can check on your own community.

Jennifer Mayerle

Jennifer Mayerle happily returned to Minnesota and WCCO, where she began her career as an intern. The Emmy and Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist joined WCCO as a reporter in May 2014. She also anchors “WCCO Saturday Morning” from 8-9 a.m.