Grimsby Town fell to their eighth successive away defeat after they lost 1-0 to Wrexham AFC.

The Mariners fell to defeat on the road once again after a first-half strike from Ollie Palmer, which proved the difference.

The former Town striker signed for Wrexham on Monday night for a mega fee of 300K and opened his account on debut.

Grimsby Town rallied and had their best chance when Shaun Pearson's header was somehow cleared away.

It was another evening of possession without penetration, though, as the Mariners struggled to carve any major clear-cut chance from open play.

Here's how Grimsby Live scored the players' performances, with a six representing par for the course.

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Grimsby Town (4-3-3):

Max Crocombe - 6

Was let off in the first half when he came to collect a Ben Tozer throw and got nowhere near it. He did pull off a smart save to deny Paul Mullin a second Wrexham goal.

Andy Smith - 5

Looks increasingly like a centre-back playing at right-back. It's not his natural position but he struggled on the left-hand side against Liam McAllinden.

Luke Waterfall - 6

Won plenty in the air against Palmer. It's two clean sheets in nine games though now.

Shaun Pearson - 6

Was very fortunate to get away with a clear bodycheck on Palmer, who would have been through on goal.

Adam Crookes - 6

Didn't have any real concerns, with most of Wrexham's attacking threat coming down the opposite flank.

Max Crocombe fails to gather a long throw-in from Ben Tozer.

Ben Fox - 7

Started the game very brightly when Grimsby enjoyed their best spell of the game. Replaced after 70 minutes.

Giles Coke - 6

Coke did well the complete 88 minutes after sustaining a knock on Saturday. The captain did well, offering a sense of control when the Mariners had possession.

John McAtee - 7

If anyone was going to create an opening, it was McAtee. He had a free-kick just wide and was the main source of danger throughout.

Tristan Abrahams - 6

Drifted in and out of the game on the right-wing. Doesn't look like a wide man, albeit he has the athleticism. I'd like to see him have a go down the middle on Saturday.

Erico Sousa - 6

Started the first half very brightly but wasn't overly involved after the break.

Ryan Taylor - 6

His least influential match for a number of weeks. Perhaps he could do with a breather...

Arjan Raikhy (Fox, 69') - 6

Arjan Raikhy was named on the bench against Wrexham AFC.
Arjan Raikhy was named on the bench against Wrexham AFC.

Scott Burgess (Sousa, 78') - N/A

John-Lewis (Coke, 88') - N/A


The Best Recruitment Strategies for Nonprofits

The best nonprofit recruitment plans invest in developing people who truly care about nonprofit work. It’s also benefits the organization and the organization’s social impact if talent acquisition and employee engagement processes not only reflect their mission but attract and retain the right professionals for the job.

Hiring the ‘right’ people for nonprofit work has always been the biggest challenge. Overall, nonprofits don’t offer the same compensation packages or salaries that for-profit organizations may offer. But the best nonprofit organizations understand that to achieve their mission and reach their goals, they need the right people on board the ship. Before setting sail, a nonprofit disembarks folks who are not a good fit and onboards key people in the right seats to ensure smooth sailing.

To fulfill their mission for social change, nonprofits need to acquire the right candidates just like any other for-profit organization. The best way to begin is to define and manage recruitment and retention processes. Here are a few strategies that support and create great nonprofit employees.

Create a hiring process that focuses on the candidate.

There’s a lot of competition for top talent. But how you manage the talent acquisition process can be the difference between consistently great hires or a revolving door. Think about the type of work culture great job candidates are attracted to and what strategies keep them loyal to an organization’s mission. What are the stand-out differences or reasons that make them choose your nonprofit over the competition?

When your nonprofit is looking at the candidate pool from a narrow frame of reference, it’s difficult to gain insight. To keep focus, conduct an employee survey to gather information about their experience with the hiring process. Ask what part of the process needs improvement. Ask them what they liked about the job candidate experience. Use the results to improve and strengthen your talent acquisition process and create a better hiring process.

Develop a stronger EVP (employee value proposition).

Employee value propositions characterize the value, rewards, and benefits employees enjoy when they work for your nonprofit. Using your nonprofit’s mission as a guide, create a simple, focused statement summarizing why a potential candidate would want to work with your organization. The ideal EVP not only differentiates your nonprofit from other similar nonprofits but also accurately merges ‘brand’ packaging to the contents inside. Many times, new hires join an organization swayed by an appealing message only to find that the reality of the organization is drastically different.

To find your nonprofit’s EVP, develop surveys from different aspects of the employee lifecycle: interviewing, onboarding, performance management, engagement opportunities, and exit interviews. Ask what benefits they value most, what elements of the workplace culture appeals to them, who or what helped them succeed in their position, and what they like most about working for your organization. From the results, determine key trends and draft an EVP statement that will be the basis of your hiring strategy.

Be strategic when building a consistent talent pipeline.

My Dad, a fishing aficionado, used to say, fishing from the same spot that’s gotten you no bites is like betting you’ll have a spam sandwich for dinner rather than trout.  When looking for talent, stop looking repeatedly at one job board hoping things will pan out, you may be overlooking top talent elsewhere. Only looking for talent in one area can lead you blindingly down the wrong road with little to show for it. To consistently have a larger-than-life talent pool, ensures the nonprofits’ future positions will have candidates ready and waiting.

Compile data from hiring sources to review where your nonprofit is finding the best talent. Review current high-performing employees and their backgrounds to determine other talent sources to use. Engage passive candidates on LinkedIn and other social media sites.

Analyze the workplace culture of your nonprofit.

Has the culture changed? Is it as you envisioned when you first took steps to create it?  Does your nonprofit benefit from tight-knit groups of people working together with a commitment toward a common cause? Is work-life balance now a priority? Are your internal practices consistent with what your nonprofit promotes to the community?

Determine what’s keeping your nonprofit from being the high-performing and effective organization you envisioned. First, build on the elements of the culture that work and get rid of what is holding your nonprofit back. Engage current employees to serve as talent recruitment ambassadors by creating an employee referral program. Nothing says a ‘great culture resides here,” like when it comes from current high-performing employees. It will bring a sense of authenticity when great things are revealed about your non-profit from within.

The LLF team of skilled facilitators, nonprofit experts, senior HR specialists, and legal experts have the know-how you need to help your leadership team develop and implement a strategic hiring process and secure the best talent. Call us today.

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How State Grants Support Broadband Deployment

Most programs emphasize unserved areas, but eligibility, funding requirements, and accountability measures vary

How State Grants Support Broadband Deployment
A tractor is digging a trench in a lightly snow covered field.
A worker on a construction vehicle digs a line to lay in fiber optic cable in Wiggins, Colorado. Many states support the installation of this type of broadband infrastructure through grant programs designed to extend access to communities where the costs of high-speed internet deployment are high.
RJ Sangosti The Denver Post, MediaNews Group via Getty Images

Editor’s note: This brief was updated Dec. 17 and 23, 2021, to provide more information on Massachusetts’ grant programs and to clarify that state programs rather than federal were the focus of certain research.

High-speed internet access is essential to modern life. However, millions of people across the country still lack sufficient access to broadband service, largely because they live in rural communities, which are the most difficult and expensive to serve.1 The challenges of deploying broadband network infrastructure in rural locations, particularly low population density and difficult terrain, create high costs and low returns on investment that discourage providers from expanding into those areas.2

For policymakers seeking to improve the availability of broadband service for their constituents, then, the task is to create a business case that will encourage internet service providers (ISPs) to extend connectivity to areas where the costs of deployment are high. One way states have sought to remedy this availability gap is by establishing grant programs that provide funding to help areas without high-speed internet service build needed infrastructure.3 Congress has also taken action by appropriating federal funds for broadband deployment, including through the American Rescue Plan’s state and local fiscal recovery and capital projects funds and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.4 And research indicates that state programs have been effective in increasing the availability of high-speed internet service.5

As of fall 2021, 44 states had established grant programs to cover the costs of broadband deployment in areas where it would otherwise not be economically feasible.6 Although many of these programs generally share a common focus on increasing availability and subscription rates in communities without sufficient access, they vary across states regarding the amount of funding available, specific goals, speeds standards, eligibility, and required level of community engagement.  Further, while some state programs must adhere to strict requirements for what types of projects or providers can receive funding, others have more flexibility to change and adapt.

The Pew Charitable Trusts examined the various ways states have structured their grant program funding, eligibility, and objectives. This brief summarizes the findings of that review, looks at how different program priorities and requirements affect where and how broadband infrastructure is deployed, and highlights examples from states that are working strategically to make high-speed internet service available to more Americans.

What do state grants pay for?

Broadband grant programs generally fund “last mile” infrastructure—the segment of the network that connects the local ISP to the customer. Some states, including Minnesota and Colorado,7 also allow localities to use grant funds to build “middle mile” infrastructure, which connects last mile infrastructure to the internet backbone—the large fiber optic pipes that cross state and national boundaries and are the main data routes on the internet—but generally only where additional middle-mile development is necessary to make a last mile project viable.

States typically provide broadband grants to multiple types of entities, including private ISPs, electric and telephone cooperatives, tribal and local governments, and public-private partnerships. However, some states have more restrictive eligibility rules than others. Virginia, for instance, offers grants to public-private partnerships only within a specific structure: a government entity applies for the grant, which is cosigned by an ISP that commits to own and operate the completed network.8 Arizona and Indiana require that ISP applicants demonstrate that they have a history of providing service in the target area and the capacity to achieve the project goals.9 And Massachusetts has two programs, each  with targeted but distinct eligibility: The Last Mile Infrastructure Grant program prioritizes a community-based approach by making funds available to help towns build municipally owned networks, and the Flexible Grant program provides grants to private ISPs to operate broadband networks in participating towns in western Massachusetts.10

What locations are eligible for funding?

States prioritize grant applications for projects in “unserved” areas—which in most states means places without access to internet speeds of at least 25 megabits per second (Mbps) for downloads and 3 Mbps for uploads, typically noted at 25/3 Mbps, which is the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) definition of broadband. According to the FCC, 25/3 Mbps is sufficient for light or moderate use in a household with three or fewer users or devices but insufficient for high use.11

But several states use thresholds other than 25/3 Mbps, and their choice of definition is important for determining which areas are eligible to receive funding—and which may be left behind. For example, Missouri, Florida, and Oregon define unserved areas as those without access to speeds of just 10/1 Mbps.12 Defining unserved areas at lower speeds excludes communities where internet service exceeds the definition but is inadequate to meet modern needs and leads to funds being invested in networks that are not scalable to provide the faster speeds that people will need in the future.

Although states prioritize proposals targeting unserved areas, many, including Illinois and Minnesota, also allow funding to go to projects in “underserved” areas—those that do not meet the state’s definition for unserved but have available internet speeds that fall short of the state’s longer-term broadband targets.13 For instance, an underserved area may have available speeds that achieve a state minimum, such as 25/3 Mbps, but are below the state’s goal of 100/20 Mbps. However, limited funding and the emphasis states place on unserved areas mean that grant funding often runs out before underserved areas can be considered.

Further, states often set additional eligibility criteria for proposed projects related to the target area, such as minimum or maximum population size; proportion of residents without internet access; number of providers offering broadband; or unemployment, poverty, or population-loss rates. For example, Alaska restricts funding to communities with populations of less than 20,000, unemployment rates above 19.5%, and broadband speeds below 768/200 Kbps.14 In Colorado, target areas must either be outside municipal boundaries or have fewer than 7,500 people and must not have access to at least one satellite and one nonsatellite broadband provider.15 These criteria are intended to ensure that funding goes to those areas that most need assistance with deployment of broadband infrastructure.

What kind of technology is eligible?

State grant programs also have requirements for the minimum speeds that funded projects must deliver, which in turn dictate the types of technology that can meet program criteria. But when those minimums are set very low, such as 10/1 Mbps or 25/3 Mbps, communities may get outdated technology or be excluded from opportunities to receive upgraded technology, saddling them with slow, unreliable internet service, possibly for years to come.

Outside of those requirements, most state programs are “technology neutral,” meaning they give no explicit preference to one or more technologies and will fund any option that can deliver the minimum speeds. However, they typically do give priority to proposals that promise faster speeds compared with other applications, which can implicitly favor more advanced technologies, such as fiber, and some states exclude technologies that cannot deliver required speeds. For example, Washington omits digital subscriber line service, commonly known as DSL, which typically provides slower speeds, from its list of eligible technologies; in Indiana, to qualify for grants, projects may not incur costs for satellite-based systems, which tend to be slower and offer less reliable and more expensive service.16

Affordability and adoption

Although state programs prioritize projects that can meet the service, speed, and location requirements, they also consider affordability and adoption goals when awarding grants. Several states encourage the inclusion in applications of provisions to ensure that the new service will be affordable for and utilized by lower-income communities and evaluate applicants’ proposed activities, such as special outreach, low-cost subscription plans, and digital literacy programs, when deciding which projects to fund. For example, Michigan requires that applicants demonstrate their ability to offer Lifeline subsidies—a federal program that provides discounts on monthly telephone and broadband service to eligible lowincome households—and gives preference to projects that include an affordable internet service plan for low-income and vulnerable communities.17 In Wisconsin, applicants must provide a proposed schedule of retail prices or describe any planned affordability options for low-income subscribers.18 And Virginia requires applicants to explain how they will promote customer uptake and describe their digital literacy efforts.19

Grant maximums and matching funds

All states set a cap on the amount of funding that can be awarded to a single project. These maximums, which affect the size of eligible projects, range from $1 million in Kansas and Pennsylvania, to $10 million in California.20 This reflects the diverse scale of state grant programs and the amount of funding they have available for broadband expansion: In 2021, state appropriations for high-speed internet deployment ranged from $500,000 in Montana to $100 million in Iowa and Tennessee.21 These totals largely determine how many grants a state can award and the type and reach of the projects that can be funded. Federal funding also enables states to make more funds available for broadband projects.22

Many grant programs also require that a certain percentage of the project cost be paid for with matching funds, that is, money provided by the grant applicant. These matching requirements extend the reach of public funds and help ensure that grant recipients have a financial stake in the project. States may give more weight to grant applications that provide matching funds beyond the minimum requirement. However, when match requirements are exceedingly high, they can be difficult to meet for communities most in need of grant funding, such as those in rural and low-income areas. To address this concern, some states use sliding scales for match percentages to ensure consideration of projects in areas that cannot raise substantial matching funds. For example, California uses a baseline of 60% grant to 40% matching funds, with a sliding scale up to 100% grant funds.23

Other states use sliding scales to incentivize potential applicants to use more advanced technologies. Projects that build out higher speed capacity receive a larger percentage of grant funding. For example, Iowa funds up to 75% of projects that will result in available speeds of 100/100 Mbps or more, up to 50% for speeds from 50/5 Mbps up to 100/100 Mbps, and up to 35% for speeds of 25/3 Mbps up to 50/5 Mbps.24

To ensure that grant money is spent wisely and on needed projects, many states have challenge and accountability procedures. These allow providers to contest a grant application on the grounds that they already provide adequate service in the target area or have explicit plans to do so soon, and they enable state officials to track funded project spending and results, respectively.

In Minnesota, for instance, an ISP serving customers in or near a proposed project area has 30 days to challenge an application. These providers must attest that they either already serve the project area with speeds that meet or exceed the state goal or have begun construction to do so and will be online within 18 months of the grant award announcement. The information in the challenge is then evaluated, and if it is found to be credible, the proposed project will not receive funding. However, if the challenger does not subsequently fulfill its commitment to provide service in the target area, it is barred from submitting challenges for the next two grant cycles, unless the failure is the result of factors beyond its control, such as acts of god.25 These requirements prevent established providers from using the challenge process to prevent new deployment in areas they do not have substantive plans to serve.

Other states have implemented similar procedures, but some allow grant awards to be modified to fund only the parts of a project that do not overlap with a challenging provider.26

States also ensure accountability for use of grant funds by requiring applicants to report on their progress, costs, and number of new locations served throughout the life of the grant, including the preapplication, grant closeout, and post-grant phases, as well as during the grant cycle. For example, California requires grant applicants to file biannual progress reports that include a description of project accomplishments, milestones reached, impending challenges, and subscribership information to date. Grantees must also submit completion reports containing a comparison of approved versus actual costs; description of the project, including any changes; completion dates for each milestone; date of project completion; and speed test data for the census block.27 This ongoing oversight helps states ensure that grantees can meet program requirements, which typically include speed and pricing standards, net neutrality provisions, and mandatory ongoing data collection for a set period after closeout of the grant. For example, Alaska requires that providers offer subscription rates in the target area that are comparable to those available in urban centers for two years after receiving grant funds,28 and Nebraska requires grantees to submit to speed testing on the completed network.29

State broadband deployment grant programs have demonstrated success in increasing high-speed internet access by funding the development of broadband infrastructure in unserved and underserved areas. Although these programs share many similarities, they also differ in key ways that reflect states’ varying policy priorities, funding levels, and local contexts. Which areas or providers are eligible for funding, how the money is allocated, and how states incorporate priorities such as affordability and adoption determine how and where broadband gets deployed. And as policymakers look to design or update their states’ grant programs, they should consider how each of these elements will affect program outcomes and whether and how they will help the state achieve its broadband goals.

  1. D. Dawson, “The Rural Broadband Industry” (CCG Consulting, 2021),
  2. Ibid.
  3. The Pew Charitable Trusts, “How States Are Expanding Broadband Access: New Research Identifies Tactics for Connecting Unserved Communities” (2020),
  4. American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, H.R. 1319, 117th Congress (2021),; K. de Wit, “Infrastructure Bill Passed by Senate Includes Historic, Bipartisan Broadband Provisions,” The Pew Charitable Trusts, accessed Oct. 27, 2021,
  5. B. Whitacre and R. Gallardo, “State Broadband Policy: Impacts on Availability,” Telecommunications Policy (2020),
  6. A. Read and L. Gong, “Which States Have Dedicated Broadband Offices, Task Forces, Agencies, or Funds?,” The Pew Charitable Trusts, June 28, 2021, Since the tracker was updated, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Utah have added broadband funds. See: An Act to Make and Provide Appropriations for the State Fiscal Year, H.B. 81, Georgia General Assembly (2021),; Appropriations Adjustments, S.B. 1001, Utah Senate (2021),; Provides for the Disbursement of Monies Received from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, H.B. 642, Louisiana House of Representatives (2021),; Relating to Broadband Service Infrastructure, H.B. 1191, Hawaii House of Representatives (2021),; An Act Establishing a Broadband Matching Grant Initiative and Fund, S.B. 85, New Hampshire Senate (2021),
  7. Minnesota Office of Broadband Development, “Broadband Grant Program,” accessed Sept. 24, 2021,; Colorado Broadband Office, “Project Eligibility Criteria,” Colorado Governor’s Office of Information Technology, accessed Sept. 24, 2021,
  8. Commonwealth Connect, “Report on Commonwealth Connect 2.0: Governor Northam’s 2020 Plan to Connect Virginia” (2020),
  9. Arizona Commerce Authority, “Arizona Broadband Office Announces Awardees for Rural Broadband Development Grants,” news release, Jan. 10, 2020,; Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs, “Next Level Connections Broadband Program,” accessed Sept. 24, 2021,
  10. Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, “Last Mile Infrastructure Grant,” accessed Oct. 21, 2021,
  11. Federal Communications Commission, “Household Broadband Guide,” accessed Oct. 27, 2021,
  12. Missouri Department of Economic Development, “Missouris Broadband Plan” (2019),; Florida Broadband Deployment Act of 2021, H.B. 1239, Florida House of Representatives (2021),; Modifies Definitions Applicable for Purposes of Universal Service Surcharge, S.B. 1603, Oregon Legislative Assembly (2020),
  13. Illinois Office of Broadband, “Connect Illinois Broadband Strategic Plan” (Illinois Department of Commerce, 2020),; Minnesota Office of Broadband Development, “Broadband Grant Program.”
  14. Regulatory Commission of Alaska, “Rural Alaska Broadband Internet Access Grant Program: Round Five Grant Application Guide” (Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development,
  15. Colorado Broadband Office, “Project Eligibility Criteria.”
  16. Washington State Department of Commerce, “CERB Rural Broadband Program Overview,” accessed Sept. 24, 2021,; Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs, “Next Level Connections.”
  17. Michigan Department of Technology, Management, and Budget, “Connecting Michigan Communities 2.0 Grant Scoring Criteria” (2021),; Federal Communications Commission, “Lifeline Program for Low-Income Consumers,” accessed Oct. 21, 2021,
  18. Public Service Commission of Wisconsin, “Grant Application for American Rescue Plan Act Broadband Access Grants” (2021),
  19. E.C. Johnston and T. Holmes, “2022 Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) Program Guidelines and Criteria” (Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, 2021),
  20. [1]  Kansas Office of Broadband Development, “Broadband Acceleration Grant,” accessed Sept. 24, 2021,; Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, “Unserved High-Speed Broadband Funding Program,” accessed Sept. 24, 2021,; California Public Utilities Commission, “Appendix 1: Broadband Infrastructure Account Requirements, Guidelines and Application Materials” (2018),
  21. An Act Providing for Broadband Infrastructure Deployment Laws, S.B. 297, Montana Senate (2021),; A Bill for an Act Relating to and Making Appropriations and Related Statutory Changes Involving Certain State Departments, Agencies, Funds, and Certain Other Entities, Providing for Regulatory Authority, and Other Properly Related Matters, H.F. 867, Iowa General Assembly (2021),; An Act to Make Appropriations for the Purpose of Defraying the Expenses of the State Government for the Fiscal Years Beginning July 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021, S.B. 912, Tennessee General Assembly (2021),
  22. An Act Relating to Fiscal Matters, Making an Appropriation Therefor, and Declaring an Emergency, H.B. 382, Kentucky General Assembly (2021), This is an example of a state allocating federal funding for broadband projects.
  23. California Public Utilities Commission, “CASF Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account” (2018),
  24. Iowa Office of the Chief Information Officer, “Empower Rural Iowa Broadband Grant Program Notice of Funding Availability #005” (2021),
  25. Minnesota Office of Broadband Development, “2019 Border-to-Border Broadband Grant Challenge Procedure” (2019),
  26. Alabama Broadband Accessibility Act, S.B. 90, Alabama Senate (2019),; “Broadband Accessibility Grant” (Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, 2020),; Johnston and Holmes, “2022 Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) Program Guidelines and Criteria.”
  27. California Public Utilities Commission, “CASF Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account.”
  28. Regulatory Commission of Alaska, “Rural Alaska Broadband Internet Access Grant Program.”
  29. Nebraska Broadband Bridge Act, L.B. 388, Nebraska Legislature (2021),

Agenda for America

Resources for federal, state, and local decision-makers

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State Strategies for Improving Broadband Access

Quick View

States differ in how they manage broadband deployment and which agencies or offices they task with identifying challenges, charting goals, and encouraging investment. Some states have a centralized office responsible for managing or coordinating broadband efforts. In others, multiple agencies have jurisdiction over broadband. More than half of states have established dedicated funds to support deployment of high-speed internet, and many have developed goals, plans, and maps for expansion of access.

How States Are Expanding Broadband Access

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How to Adopt a Roma Child

How to Adopt a Roma Child

As Americans, we may be less familiar with the historical discrimination against the Romani people. This may be because we do not have the same long-standing tension with the Romani people as is seen in many parts of Europe. Often Romani people are referred to as “gypsy,” though this term can be considered derogatory among the Romani community. In the US, the term “gypsy” has become more associated with a lifestyle or profession than the Romani race. The term “gypsy” may conjure up ideas of psychics, fortune-tellers or maybe even the television series “My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding.” In Europe the term “gypsy” may be seen as a derogatory term for Roma people, a people who have been discriminated against for thousands of years. The discrimination remains today, causing the Romani people and especially children to be vulnerable.

The Romani people originally entered Europe from India, so the Roma population often has an olive complexion and darker hair and eyes. The discrimination is pervasive even today and it is estimated that one in three Romani in Europe are unemployed and 90% are living below the poverty line. ¹ Roma people are thought to purposefully live a nomadic life style, and while this may be the case for some, for many others, they simply do not have the means to survive any other way.  In reality, Roma is a race rather than a lifestyle, though this is often confused due to the wide use of the term “gypsy” in discussing the Romani people. Romani people are considered a racial minority in Europe.  The majority of Romani people resides in eastern and southern Europe and are considered the largest minority in Europe.

The Romani people have faced persistent and severe persecution over the years. In the 15th Century they were targeted and enslaved in Romania and Hungary. In Nazi Germany, they were one of the groups targeted for extinction, and estimates indicate Romani Holocaust deaths range from 25% to 70% of the entire Roma population in Europe. Modern day discrimination is still very must apparent throughout Europe.  Many schools are segregated throughout Europe and Romani students may be required to attend schools in inferior facilities with inferior scholastic training.

There are relatively large populations of Romani people in Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Macedonia, Moldova, Serbia, Slovakia and Turkey.  Families interested in international adoption are often drawn to adopting from these countries once they have become educated about the great need for adoption for Roma children.  Due to the poverty, discrimination against Romani people and lack of opportunities for Romani people, there are Romani children who are in need of families. Families who have visited Eastern European orphanages or witnessed the discrimination against Romani people have expressed an interest in adopting these children in need of families because they have witnessed the need first hand.

For families wanting to adopt a Roma child, the family may consider adopting a child from Bulgaria. In 2013, 160 children were adopted from Bulgaria and placed with families in the US. The majority of these children were Romani. Bulgaria is by far the largest sending country in international adoption of the countries with the largest Romani populations. In 2013, there were no adoptions from Greece, Macedonia, Moldova or Slovakia. There were less than 15 adoptions each for Serbia and Hungary in 2013. The low number of adoptions is often an indicator that adoptions are more difficult from those countries. Conversely, for families seeking to adopt a child from this region, Bulgaria is a very good option. Bulgaria is a viable option not only because there are large numbers of Romani children being adopted, but also because the adoption process is stable, predictable and younger children can be matched with families.

*Please note that the race or ethnicity of a child matched from any country cannot be requested or guaranteed.

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Europe and the United States: How Putin rejuvenated NATO and “the West” by giving both a common purpose

Simon ReichProfessor (Division of Global Affairs, Rutgers University, USA) et chercheur associé au CERI

Prior to his appointment as Director of the CIA, William Burns wrote a short piece in which he laid out America’s choices when it came to the Biden administration’s foreign policy. He characterised three options: restoration, retrenchment or reinvention. Restoration entailed trying to buttress the major foundations of the multilateral Liberal international order, with the United States in a familiar role: the unquestioned “first among equals” as the leader of the “free world.” Retrenchment entailed America’s strategic military withdrawal along the lines first mooted by Barack Obama and then emphatically endorsed and pursued by Donald Trump. Burns, however, prescribed reinvention: America should completely rethink its strategic principles, priorities and forms of engagement in a rapidly evolving global environment1.

American choices and European responses

In the first year of his presidency, the Biden administration, in contrast to Burns’ suggestion, chose a combination of restoration and retrenchment.  In practice, this meant an awkward coupling of a reassertion of American global leadership and a recommitment to global institutions and treaties (such as the WHO and COP 21) with a chaotic American withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021 and a signalling that it was far more interested in the Indo-Pacific and China than Europe and Russia.

These choices had major repercussions for Europe. Many Europeans may have been more relieved than enthralled by Biden’s election. Trump’s presidency had presented unprecedented challenges, and Biden offered the prospect of relief from major European states being depicted as rivals and free riders. So, they initially welcomed America’s return to multilateralism. Nonetheless, both the EU’s leadership and those of individual member states worried that their interests would be ignored. Their short-term concerns focused on whether the new administration would treat both the European members of NATO and the EU itself with greater respect, as partners and not subordinates in promoting human rights, free trade and security. The longer-term consideration was whether the Biden administration would simply be an interregnum before the return of Donald Trump or one of his protégés. They therefore were (and today remain) concerned about the reliability of the United States as an ally2

Much of their shorter-term apprehension was justified prior to the outbreak of the Ukraine War. The summits to promote democracy, as part of what Biden characterised as a global conflict between democracy and autocracy, for example, were rhetorically supported by allies. But they resulted in few concrete initiatives. There has been no discernible progress on re-establishing a nuclear agreement with Iran, the unilateral American withdrawal from Afghanistan proved to be an operational nightmare for NATO’s European members, and there was initially some very public transatlantic squabbling over the future of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Then the announcement of the creation of Aukus (the nuclear submarine agreement between Australia, the United Kingdom and the US), and the indelicate notification of the cancellation of the submarine contract with France only two-hours before that announcement, riled French officials. They very publicly expressed their anger. Foreign Minister Le Drian described it as “a stab in the back.” EU Commissioner Thierry Breton (another Frenchman) suggested that trust in the US was eroding and “something is broken in our transatlantic relations… Trust is not a given. And after the latest events, there is, I should say, a strong perception that trust between the EU and United States has been eroded.”3 Gérard Araud, who served as French ambassador to the United States between 2014 and 2019, added that “You don’t do that to an ally,” that French officials should “never underestimate the incompetence of the U.S. administration” and, most tellingly and undiplomatically perhaps, “You know, Obama didn’t care about Europe. Trump was hostile to Europe. And here you have Biden. And Biden, to be frank so far, is a big disappointment all over Europe…. there is no European policy. The administration has no European policy because its strategy is so focused on China.”4 To make matters worse, the Aukus announcement coincided with the EU’s own announcement of its Indo-Pacific strategy, diminishing the latter’s fanfare5.

Together these developments helped strengthen one longstanding European fear: that it was being marginalised in the Indo-Pacific, the world’s most economically dynamic region, despite French assertions that it is a Pacific power because of its overseas territories there. American behaviour, they believed, was consistent with the US’ preference that there be a division of labour—with an American security focus on the Indo-Pacific and a European one eastward towards Russia. Europeans, led by France, disagreed. They want a major role in the Indo-Pacific as well. A subsequent belated diplomatic flurry by the US, principally the much-touted establishment of an EU-US dialogue on the Indo-Pacific, was a seeming balm to reassure Europeans worried about being ignored in the region. But that appeared to do little to calm the concerns about Europe’s leadership.

One effect of all these areas of tension and missteps was to enhance an increasingly jaundiced European view of a prospective return to US global leadership6. Their concerns about whether the Americans were trustworthy, concerns that had carried over from the Trump administration’s policies, spread beyond security to other policy domains. These included trade (where the Biden administration was slow to lift Trump-era tariffs) and the flow of people across the Atlantic (where COVID restrictions on European travellers remained in place even after reciprocal constraints had been rescinded by EU member states).

A second predictable effect was to amplify calls in Brussels and Paris for greater European strategic autonomy, an initiative that would potentially undermine US efforts at re-establishing its global leadership7. By the opening months of 2022, that concern was exacerbated by questioning European reactions to American intelligence estimates about a military build-up on Ukraine’s border. Even American warnings of an impending Russian invasion was not enough to generate an immediate consensus among Europe’s NATO members about a collective response8.  Newly-minted German Chancellor Olaf Scholtz’s refusal to commit to a suspension of the opening of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline should Russia invade, even when standing next to Joe Biden at a White House press conference, epitomised the underlying tension between the United States and many of its major European NATO partners9. Conversely, American frustration at what they considered the usual European incapacity to unite predictably grew.

But then came the Ukraine war. It changed some things, but not all things, in the transatlantic relationship.

The Ukraine war—and its major consequences

Understood from this perspective, Vladimir Putin’s invasion shocked European complacency about the prospects for a large-scale war in Europe. Indeed, Julia Ioffe described it as “Europe’s 9/11 moment.10”  There has subsequently been the inevitable speculation about whether the war signifies a fundamental change in the global system, such as towards US bipolarity with China or a multipolarity that includes Russia and the EU. Plenty of academics, commentators and politicians on both sides of the Atlantic have suggested that it is a watershed or what the Germans have labelled a Zeitenwende (a turning point where everything will change, irreparably), and some have drawn parallels with a prior epoch by labelling it “Cold War 2.0.”11 Others, like former US ambassador to NATO Ivo H. Daalder, have invoked the same logic, calling for a return to the familiar strategy of Containment to quell Russian revanchism12.

That kind of speculation and prescription is understandable. It achieves its goal of attracting widespread attention. But it may be premature. There are, however, at least four consequences that are reasonably evident, even at this early stage of the war. The first is that Putin has single-handedly revived the concept of “the West.” Long since decried as vacuous in the face of transatlantic disagreements and intra-European fissures, many (particularly Asian) observers had proclaimed its demise—both as a meaningful collective concept and as a collective political and economic powerhouse13. But the evident shared declaration of purpose and unity of action, albeit after a hesitant start, suggests that the notion of the West retains some utility. In that vein, so does NATO. An organisation whose mission was mocked by Donald Trump as “obsolete” and which was described by Emmanuel Macron as “brain-dead” has now been invigorated, finding a renewed objective—to defend democracy and European sovereignty. The accelerated recommitment of its members to spend the requisite 2% of GDP on defence budgets faces a series of domestic budgetary and operational complications. But the war has nevertheless given fresh impetus to an organisation feared moribund, with Finland and Sweden now contemplating joining as part of an expanded membership. Furthermore, the West’s operational resuscitation has surely given China’s leadership pause for thought as it contemplates its future strategy in dealing with a transatlantic alliance composed of its two largest trading partners—partners that seemed so divided on the fundamentals until March of 2022.

Of course, these observations must be qualified with a question about how long a consensus will hold. Viktor Orban’s comments in his recent electoral victory speech (in which he decried some member states and the EU’s leadership as “opponents”) is the first sign that there may be some disagreement among Europeans moving forward. The same is possibly true of the disagreement between Macron and Biden about whether Russian behaviour in Ukraine constitutes a “genocide”—should the idea of an international war crimes trial come to fruition. Clearly, any disunity among EU members could test American patience with its European partners and disrupt efforts at sustaining a transatlantic accord. But at the current time, NATO’s consensus regarding sanctions makes Putin’s initial effort to drive a wedge between the US and Europe appear self-defeating.

As a corollary to that first consequence, a second is that Putin has inadvertently done much to rehabilitate Biden’s efforts to restore the United States’ image as the “leader of the free world.” Some trust in Biden has been restored. European doubts about Biden’s possible successor remain, but have been muted by his administration’s willingness to provide over $3 billion in military funding to Ukraine by early April (in comparison to the EU’s EURO 500 military support by that time). To this should be added Biden’s successful efforts, not to be overstated, in helping the EU to establish a consensus about both economic sanctions and the fate of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Certainly, enough loopholes remain in the sanction regime to mitigate their effects on the Russian economy because of Europe’s oil and gas purchases. But it would be churlish not to acknowledge Biden’s personal success in diplomatically coalescing Europe’s leaders towards a position that has, paradoxically, made those leaders themselves look stronger because of their public unity.

The third consequence is that many of the residual questions about German militarisation, if not wholeheartedly addressed, seem to have disappeared from the public agenda. During the Cold War, while it was still divided, François Mauriac famously suggested that “I love Germany so much I’m glad there are two of them.”14 And as Andrei Markovits and I wrote over two decades ago, the Cold War’s conclusion did not resolve the moral and political dilemma other states (and the Germans themselves) faced about the prospect of German rearmament15. It was, of course, largely the Americans who aggressively tried to get the reluctant Germans to spend more on defence. But their efforts to cajole the Germans into spending greater sums—stretching from George W. Bush to Trump—had largely failed. In 2017, then German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel summed up his country’s position in suggesting that “… two percent would mean military expenses of some 70 billion euros. I do not know any German politician who would claim that is reachable nor desirable” … “The U.S. will realise it is better to talk about better spending instead of more spending”16 Even though Germany’s projected defence budget increase in 2021 by 3.2%, to €53 billion, it still only raised spending to 1.57% of GDP, nowhere near the 2% expenditure required of NATO nations. As a result, according to Global Firepower, in 2021 the German military capacity only ranked 15th (below countries such as Egypt and Italy, and just above Indonesia)17. That pacifist posture has now been categorically rejected in Germany, with no complaints (and some wholehearted encouragement) from Germany’s European neighbours. To put that last point in some perspective, there is no time in the last seventy years where support among its neighbours of such a significant increase in Germany’s military budget was conceivable.

Finally, the Ukraine war has put European efforts to pursue strategic autonomy in the security realm in some perspective. Emmanuel Macron’s vision that the EU develop an independent, integrated EU Rapid Deployment force totalling 5,000 troops is attractive to many in Brussels18. But it took an estimated Ukrainian military of 500,000 personnel, a hundred times larger than the proposed EU force, to even confront—and only partially repel—the invading Russian force of over 190,00019. The proposed small EU force might be capable of addressing instability and insurrections on its periphery in South East Europe and North Africa. But it has no significant role to play in the geopolitics of great power competition. Yet, as my current project with Richard Higgott suggests, all is not lost when it comes to the pursuit of European strategic autonomy: there are other valuable policy domains where it is feasible, adding to the security and prosperity of Europeans20.

Concluding thoughts—from the American perspective

The war is a human tragedy of massive proportions. From a strictly American perspective, however, this event has some redeeming features. First, it has awoken many in Europe from their unwarranted belief that the continent is immune from the vagaries of great power politics. With a few notable exceptions, it has reminded many of the more reticent among them that their responsibilities extend beyond Europe’s promotion of itself as a normative or civilian power when it comes to sustaining the so-called Liberal international order. By necessity, those responsibilities include a militarised commitment – primarily to NATO and the European theatre, and nominally (if required) to the US in the Indo-Pacific.

Second, for the United States, America and European collaboration regarding Russia largely serves as a prelude to the larger question about whether they can reach any consensus about how to deal with China. To date, European leaders have hedged between China and the US on several issues including climate change and trade, albeit in large part because of the Trump administration’s overt hostility towards them. But there remain grounds for concern, even from the Biden administration’s perspective: the evidence suggests that it will have a difficult time reaching a policy consensus with Europe about both the EU’s Green New Deal or its linkage between trade and human rights. Furthermore, even if some accord is reached, it will be difficult to sustain if the 2022 US Congressional elections or the 2024 presidential election results in Republican victories. Thus, the big challenge that looms for both sides of the Atlantic is whether they can present a unified Western front to China over a range of issues, or if they are susceptible to a long-term Chinese ‘divide-and-rule’ strategy.

Third, perhaps temporarily, for American’s the war has reminded the EU’s leadership and NATO’s European membership of—hesitatingly invoking Madeleine Albright’s famous term—“the indispensability of American power.”21 European ambivalence towards the United States is understandable. The transatlantic relationship comes with a lot of baggage—about the meaning and functioning of democracy, the character of capitalism, how pragmatic states should be when it comes to addressing concerns about human rights, and the prevailing question of whether the whims of the American electorate can be relied upon as the basis for Europe’s foreign policies. Yet, evidently, no other country could or would have stepped in so readily to bolster Europe’s defences and, at least at this point, so effectively. And no other country outside of Europe would have been so quick to offer refuge to 100,000 fleeing Ukrainians. That transatlantic relationship, Americans believe Europe has been reminded, therefore comes with benefits as well as costs. The abiding question concerns how much Europe’s leaders will be willing to compromise in seeking a united position in the remainder of Biden’s term of office.

Speculation about the outcome of the war abounds. Mine is that it will become a frozen conflict. Russia will control the Donbas and a land bridge to Crimea, although Ukrainian insurrection force will continue to operate in the east and Russian saboteurs, whether paramilitaries or official forces, will operate in the West. If Ukraine is divided, without a negotiated truce or peace agreement, it will likely fall upon the United States and the EU to continue to subsidize the free areas of Ukraine. It is only then, once the immediate crisis has passed, that we will be better able to judge the durability and depth of the newfound unity of the Western alliance.

Photo : President Joe Biden attends the European Union Summit at the European Council in Brussels, Belgium on Tuesday, June 15, 2021 @ Alexandros Michailidis for Shutterstock

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The anatomy of a composite door: explained

18th Nov 2021
Mills Chartwell green composite door

Following on from one of our latest blog on the anatomy of a casement window, for those of you thinking about improving your security this winter, we thought it would be helpful to list the whole anatomy of a composite door.

Composite door terminology explained

The term ‘composite’ means made up of several parts or elements.

ABS skin

Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene, also known as ABS, is a robust thermo-plastic skin used to reinforce timber core composite doors. Used to prevent fading, discolouring and scratches, to understand how tough it is, it is the same material used to make Lego.

Our 48mm timber core composite doors from industry-leaders Solidor incorporate an ultra-strong ABS skin.

LVL engineered timber

Laminated veneer lumber, also known as LVL, offers an alternative to solid timber. Made by bonding multiple layers of veneer together, LVL engineered timber provides unmatched strength and dimensional stability.

Our single rebate 44mm composite doors from the Derwent range incorporate a high-grade LVL engineered timber inner frame.

GRP skin

Glass reinforced plastic, also known as GRP, is a high-impact resistant skin used to strengthen foam filled composite doors. Used to prevent fading, peeling, and warping, lightweight GRP is often used to protect and strengthen the hulls of boats. GRP can also be moulded to replicate authentic woodgrain finishes.

Accommodating a wide range of budgets, these composite door brands feature high density polyurethane foam cores protected by a durable GRP skin:

Composite French Door

CFC-free foam core

Composite doors with foam cores are made from high-density, CFC-free polyurethane foam. CFC-free means it doesn’t contain chloroflurocarbons, which are harmful to the environment. Offering outstanding thermal performance, one drawback is that most foam filled composite doors can’t be fully recycled.

Timber core

Timber core composite doors are thicker than other types of composite doors, making them one of the strongest and secure residential door replacement options available. Sourced from sustainable forests, timber core composites can be fully recycled at the end of their useful life.

Single rebate composite door

A door rebate is the deep groove cut into the door frame that allows the slab to fit tightly against its frame. Single rebated composite doors have one groove and one weather seal.

Double rebate composite door

Double rebated composite doors feature two grooves and two weather seals. Almost twice as thick as single rebate doors, double rebate composites offer extra insulation, security, and unique triple glazed options.

Glazed side panels are positioned on one side or both sides of the door.

A glazed panel positioned above the door.

Black Composite front door with top light

Black Composite door with top light

The opening the door fits into.

A structural horizontal beam over the top of a door, generally used for load-bearing and decorative purposes. Typically found in homes built with brick or masonry blocks, lintels are usually made from concrete, timber, or steel.

Head jamb

The head, or head jamb, is the uppermost horizontal section of the door frame.

The vertical side sections of a door. The hinge side stile is the ‘hinge stile’ and the other side is known as the ‘lock stile’.

A vertical beam that divides the frame and/or smaller glass units. Door mullions can also be used to separate two doors from each other.

Top rail

The horizontal section that sits below the head jamb.

Freeze rail

Also known as a cross rail, the freeze rail sits horizontally across the next divide down underneath the first panels on the door. (not all doors will have one)

Mid rail

The horizontal section that usually sits in line with the door handle.

Bottom rail

The horizontal section that sits above the sill/cill.

Sill / cill

Also known as the threshold, the sill/cill closes the gap between the bottom of the door and the floor.

Weather bar

Also known as a weatherboard, the weather bar is a sloping strip of timber, plastic or metal located at the bottom of an exterior door that ensures rainwater runs away from the panel and the bottom edge of the door.

Door frame

The door frame is a collective term that covers the head jamb, the stiles, and the cill.

Escutcheon plate

A metal plate that surrounds the keyhole for a sleek, decorative finish.

Premium Composite Doors in Surrey

Interested in a new composite door or composite door repairs? Try our interactive Composite Door Builder, get a FREE quote, give us a call on 01932 344 415, or get in touch online to find out more.

Related reads:

Can composite doors reduce your energy bill?

What is the difference between composite and uPVC doors?

Our quick explanation for the different types of external doors


HomeSurgery ArticlesThe 10 Most Common Surgeries in Australia

The 10 Most Common Surgeries in Australia

When you’re in pain or when you’re feeling ill, it’s easy to start thinking that you need surgery. However, not all surgeries are suitable or necessary in every situation, and sometimes alternative treatment like physiotherapy can be more beneficial than going under the knife. Here are some of the most common surgeries in Australia, what they treat, how common they are, and why there might be other options available.

1. General Surgery

General surgery, also known as operative or primary care surgery, is a branch of medicine that involves a variety of surgical procedures aimed at treating injuries and other problems of various parts of the body. General surgeons are responsible for treating patients with all types of injuries and conditions affecting internal organs, but they also deal with all areas of skin and soft tissue. In addition to performing routine check-ups, general surgeons may operate on cancerous tumours and perform reconstructive surgery to repair severe burns or wounds.

Having earned a bachelor’s degree, general surgeons spend four years in medical school, followed by a residency program that can take up to five years to complete.

2. Gut Surgeries

According to a report from The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, bowel surgery is one of the most common surgeries performed in Australia. Of these procedures, endoscopic or minimally invasive surgery has become a popular option. Here are some statistics on gut surgeries – One out of five colonic surgeries conducted each year is an emergency procedure for haemorrhage. – Surgical emergencies account for about 15 per cent of all hospital admissions for children less than four years old. – In adults over 75 years old, colorectal cancer ranks as the third deadliest cancer diagnosis. – Bowel polyps are often precancerous and can be treated with surgical removal if they’re detected early enough.

3. Orthopaedic Surgery

The most common surgery performed in Australia is orthopaedic surgery, a speciality of surgery focused on the correction or restoration of musculoskeletal issues. Orthopaedic surgeons are typically specialists trained to diagnose and treat conditions that affect our bones, joints, ligaments, muscles and tendons. These include conditions such as fractures, joint injuries or pathologies Osteoarthritis that may require surgical intervention.

The most common procedures performed by orthopaedic surgeons include hip and knee replacements, spinal surgery for lower back pain, shoulder surgery such as rotator cuff repairs and elbow surgery for conditions like tennis elbow. Other specialties that fall under orthopaedics include sports medicine and paediatric orthopaedics.

4. Cardiothoracic Surgery

Being ranked fourth in most common surgeries, it accounts for 1.7% of all operations done by cardiothoracic surgeons, which is around 963 operations last year. It includes both simple and complex procedures like coronary artery bypass grafts (84%), congenital heart surgery (4%) and thoracic aortic aneurysm repair (1%). Rheumatology: Rheumatology, or joint diseases and disorders, occupy the first position in terms of most commonly performed surgeries.

This field specializes in treating heart and lung diseases as well as working on heart, lung, throat and thoracic issues. Its commonly performed surgical procedures include coronary artery bypass grafts (84%), congenital heart surgery (4%) and thoracic aortic aneurysm repair (1%). Orthopaedics: Together with rheumatology, orthopaedics accounts for 37% of all surgeries done by surgeons around these parts.

5. Neurosurgery

The most common type of surgery conducted by neurosurgeons is spinal fusion. In a spinal fusion procedure, a neurosurgeon removes bone spurs and/or discs from around a patient’s spinal column to alleviate pain caused by degenerative disc disease. Spinal fusions are typically performed to treat back injuries or scoliosis (curvature of the spine). Due to their high degree of precision, neurosurgeons are typically tasked with performing these procedures.

Epilepsy surgery is another common procedure performed by neurosurgeons. In epilepsy surgery, a surgeon removes the scar tissue or abnormal cells from a patient’s brain that are causing epileptic seizures. There are several different types of epilepsy surgeries, each with its risks and benefits, which make it important for patients to research before making any treatment decisions. Epilepsy can cause seizures lasting anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes, depending on how serious it is.

6. Vascular surgery

Vascular surgery focuses on treating conditions that affect blood vessels. These may include diseases of blood vessels such as atherosclerosis (hardening of arteries), aneurysms, and vascular malformations. It also includes vascular grafting, which is used to correct congenital and acquired arterial abnormalities. The most common reason for these surgeries is high blood pressure, which affects 40 per cent of men and women over 65 years old; kidney failure is another common cause.   Treatments often involve catheterization or surgical procedures, but they are sometimes done laparoscopically or robotically.

7. Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG)

This is one of, if not the most common medical procedures performed on patients who have coronary artery disease. During CABG surgery, your heart surgeon will bypass a blockage or narrowing in one or more of your coronary arteries by creating a new path for blood to flow. The goal is to improve blood flow and decrease your risk of heart attack and stroke.

8. Hip Replacement Surgery

Hip replacement surgery involves removing your damaged hip joint and replacing it with an artificial joint made of metal alloys or high-grade plastics. It’s one of the most common procedures performed on patients with osteoarthritis.

9. Cataract Surgery Cataract surgery

This is one of the most common eye surgeries performed. It’s used to treat patients with cataracts, which are a clouding of your lens that impairs vision. During cataract surgery, your surgeon will remove your cloudy lens and replace it with an artificial intraocular lens (IOL). The goal is to allow you to see again.

10. Appendectomy

Appendicitis is a condition where your appendix becomes inflamed and fills with pus. If left untreated, appendicitis can lead to a ruptured appendix, which will then cause complications throughout your body, such as sepsis or a perforated colon. For that reason, an appendectomy is one of—if not the most common medical procedures performed on children and adults alike.

Surgery Statistics Australia

In 2016, 61% of all medical procedures were general surgeries. This includes breast cancer removals, hernia repairs and tonsillectomies. Nearly 40% of surgeries (39%) were performed on patients over 65 years old. While general surgeries are still very common in 2016, some other surgical procedures have become less popular over time. For example, there has been a steady decline in hysterectomies – both for women’s health issues and benign tumours like fibroids – since 2000.

In 2016, over 5% of people underwent a dental procedure (5,277 total) including oral surgery to remove impacted wisdom teeth or gum disease treatment. While they still make up less than 10% of surgeries performed across all age groups, there has been a steady increase in dental surgeries since 2000.

Cataract removal which removes a clouded lens from an eye and replaces it with an artificial one was performed on 9,777 patients in 2016. The number of surgeries for people over 65 has increased since 2000 as baby boomers age and need to replace their eyes’ natural lenses with artificial ones. Cataract removal surgeries are expected to continue increasing as Australians age through 2020.

Knee surgeries are used to treat arthritis, ligament tears, joint pain and other issues with knees. While many of these surgeries were done on people under 65 years old, over half (52%) were performed on patients over 55 years old. Nearly 1% of all medical procedures (936 total) included knee replacement surgeries – a total that has more than doubled since 2000.

This jump can be attributed to ageing baby boomers who need new knees as they age into their 60s and 70s. Knee replacements should continue increasing as we get older, but surgical rates have also increased significantly over time because surgeons have become better at performing these operations quickly with minimal impact on patients’ lifestyles after recovery.

Australian hospitals employ a diverse workforce, ranging from surgeons to general practitioners to medical assistants. Every medical profession plays an important role in keeping Australians healthy and treating those who are not. Most surgeries performed by Australian doctors fall into three broad categories: surgery, internal medicine and paediatric medicine. We hope you found our guide on medical common Medical Surgeries in Australia helpful.

1. What is medical surgery?

There are several medical surgeries you may need to undergo, and depending on which type of surgery you need, will determine if it is considered an invasive or non-invasive procedure.

2. Which medical surgeries are common in Australia?

The most common medical surgeries done in Australia include cataract surgery, open-heart surgery, knee arthroscopy and angioplasty.

3. Why do I need medical surgeries?

Medical surgeries can help treat or remove some types of diseases, infections, tumours and injuries that can cause serious pain and health issues like blindness for example.

4. Do I have to pay for medical surgeries?

Generally speaking, medical surgeries offered through Medicare are free while private surgeries aren’t subsidized by any government body.

5. How do I book my medical surgery with my doctor?

Your doctor will book your medical consultation after carrying out an examination; you should discuss your symptoms thoroughly with them so they can decide what’s best for your specific case.

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Theorising power shifts

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Power is a central concept in International Relations, but one that is strangely under-theorised. That we don’t really have an agreed, operationalizable concept of power is IR’s dirty theoretical secret.

What does it mean for a country to be powerful? Is it just about the capabilities they have – population, economic size, and military hardware – or should we pay more attention to what they are actually able to achieve in international politics? What’s the impact of the structures and institutions of international order on power relations between states? How do we know if power is shifting – can we measure if a state is in decline, or is power all in the eyes of the beholders?

This project involves theoretical work to understand the nature of contemporary power, with implications for how we understand power shifts in the international system. It also encompasses practical work to support the efforts to assess the balance of strategic advantage between states.


Mum guilt and managing stress

Last week I interviewed Suzy Reading, Psychologist, Author, Business Mentor, Yogi and Self-Care Guru on the topics of Mum guilt, the effects of stress and how to manage it.

Suzy provided practical tips and advice, which she uses in her motherhood (Suzy has two young children) and to give her more energy and “power” in her day, including the importance of posture and what this does to our minds.

Suzy explained that when you are looking down, or are slightly slouched or slumped over, like looking at a mobile phone or a laptop, you are more likely to be thinking negative thoughts. Conversely, if you are sitting or standing tall, with your chest up, then you are more likely to be motivated and thinking positive thoughts.

In the IGTV interview, Suzy also shared several tips on how to cope with everyday stresses throughout your day so that you can improve your resilience and improve your mindset, ability to think clearly and other practices of self-care. To watch the full interview, click here.

Suzy has several books on parenting and self-care, including the ‘Self Care Revolution’, which I recommend.


Project Description

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Heavy is a modular system that adds a significant amount of weight to V.N.E change machines making it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to move or transport them. Easy and quick installation makes it possible to safeguard change machines in places where there is no option to fix the machine to a wall. Two special holes in the base can be used to anchor the machine to the floor. The special structure of the Heavy adaptation weighs the change machine down and removes any possible foothold that would enable easy movement of the machine. The Heavy adaptation is available in various sizes according to the device that needs to be safeguarded.

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Fractal Instrumentalism

When we farm fish, do we think that, perhaps, we’re being farmed as well? If not? Why not?

When we bind life to fulfilling one function: delivering to us what we think we need; do we ponder whether our life also is bound to what someone else desires?

When we subordinate another, do we think that in this same process we are also being subordinated?

These are not idle thoughts, but the fruits of different ontologies. If we believed, for instance, in the Kantian Categorical Imperative – popularized as the ‘do unto others as they would do unto you’ Golden Rule – perhaps more advanced cultures, such as various indigenous peoples and cultures that still venerate wisdom, sophia, might understand it thusly:

It is not just wrong to make another your instrument (your tool) because it takes away their autonomy and agency and cheapens their life and does not develop their capacities not enable the universe to experience more flourishing which could lead to morphic resonance of higher echelons of joy for all – it is because when we involve ourselves in instrumentalism, we become tools.

Hegel basically said as much in his Master-Slave dialectic in Phenomenology of Spirit. When we outsource tasks, we also lose our ability to do things that might again become necessary. By commanding, we also become dependent. It’s like the modern white collar worker who can make you an excel spreadsheet but can’t change his own tires. That’s why when we outsource the growing of our food, we become slaves (or addicted, or susceptible) to the machinations of oligopolists providing our food. They can do anything they want, and unless we’re willing to seriously challenge their power, we’re helpless.

But the thing about instrumentalism which is so rich, is that in a relational ontology/cosmology, you are what you eat eats, to quote Michael Pollan. It’s not just that you do something and get away with it or not according to cosmic laws, but that depending on how you care for and treat yourself and the world, the laws governing reality (for you) themselves change. And when enough people make certain decisions, to enslave and instrumentalize, the planetary oversoul, or noösphere itself reflects the shared practices, calls in attractor energies, and signal boosts them.

This is part of why the relativists and constructivists are on to something. Reality does morph and transform according to how we relate. But that doesn’t mean that you can just do whatever you want with impunity. To the contrary, it becomes very clear that just the opposite conclusion is warranted. The fabric of the responsive universe (Meeting the Universe Halfway, thanks Karen Barad) folds to amplify and feedback our impulse. We have creative direction to alter – but not dominate – the relationship of the circuits of fate and possibility. So, it really matters if our heart is kind, our mind is unperturbed, and our body is feeling at peace, so that we can radiate in our thoughts, emotions, actions, intentions – extensions of these frequencies, rather than ones of rancor, hate, resentment, ressentiment, shame, guilt, regret, not-being-good-enough, imposter syndrome, etc.

In conventional reality, none of this really matters. The rules of the game are given by either nature or culture (natural law or positive law) in a fixed manner. They don’t change. So all you have to do is to learn them and stick with them. And then once you get good and getting consistent results, you can learn where you can cut corners. And as you cut more corners and cheat a little bit, you can notice where in your life the ripple effects of karma from such actions supersede on your mission, or not. Are all cheats just boons, unqualified goods? Or, does such ‘cleverness’ kick you in the but, destroy your sleep, keep nagging worry and anxiety eroding your quality of life? Or worse: do the thinks that you care about start crumbling around you, and you don’t know how to cope, so you just double down on extractive behavior?

These are things we should ponder, and get clear from the outset. This should be the first question we ask of each other before we shake hands.

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Formplus allows you to add unique features to your online tenancy agreement form. With form customization, you can easily personalize your lease agreement form using the different customization options available in the form builder. With this form, you can also collect payments directly using the Flutterwave, Stripe or Payal gateways, and you can also collect digital signatures in your sublease agreement form. The sublease agreement form also contains information pertaining to the description of the property and the duration of the sublease. Panda Tip: Water beds are a familiar hazard to landlords. By making a prohibition in the rental agreement, or ensuring that any damages are covered by the tenant is an important protection for the landlord. It is important for every leasing arrangement to begin with a tenant agreement form as this helps to protect all parties involved in the contract. It is best to lease a car if you want to get behind a new wheel every week. The good news is this: getting a car lease agreement in South Africa is not difficult anymore. What are the steps to getting a car lease agreement? Provide the terms and conditions to the renter by using this Boat Rental Agreement. This document will protect both parties from any liabilities during the rental period. The standard time limits for a car lease agreement is two or three years. It is a good idea to stay within these limits; else, you might be asked to pay for tyre or brake replacements. In trying to protect the rights of every individual involved in rent, it is essential to have a residential lease agreement that spells the limits and freedoms of each party here. Furthermore, many airlines similarly place restrictions on whether or not you can upgrade a codeshare flight, even if you have a lot of operating carriers miles. One of the biggest benefits of booking codeshare flights is the ability to enjoy elite benefits via status on the marketing carrier. For example, if you find yourself on a China Eastern flight marketed by Japan Airlines, youd immediately notice that the 2 airlines arent part of the same alliance agreement. Various electronic sources including Westlaw Classic, WestlawNext, LexisNexis, FastCase, Bloomberg Law, Intelliconnect, ProQuest Legislative Insight, and Practical Law Company are used in this electronic guide. The cost of accessing the documents and treatises through this guide will largely depend on your firm’s negotiated pricing plan. However, if you have access to several options and want to compare prices, or are at a small firm and trying to decide what resource to purchase, see Kendall F (more). Similarly, the subject is the bird in the trees. This is one thing, so the verb will be was, not were. Two singular nouns connected by AND makes a plural subject. 7. The verb is singular if the two subjects separated by „and“ refer to the same person or thing as a whole. The number of the subject can be singular and plural. The verb must be singular if the subject is singular and the verb must be plural if the subject is plural. Everyone refers to every single person. These subjects agree with a verb in the third-person singular form. Some nouns are always singular and indefinite. When these nouns become the subjects, they always take singular verbs (more). So, if you are planning to buy a rental property for your business, then you may be looking for the commercial lease agreement. But you should make sure that you investigate over all the terms and conditions to ensure if the leasing meets your business needs. Check out what you need to consider for your commercial lease agreement. 2.4 The Tenant is required to give the Landlord or his representative access to premises within normal working hours to carry out any remedial work. Commercial leases with a long term contain rent review provisions which set out when each rent review will take place, the method of review, assumptions that are to be made when valuing the premises for the purpose of the rent review, the procedure to be followed and provisions dealing with any disputes commercial premises lease agreement. Use to find the monthly rates of and parking spaces in your area. The next best solution is to use Google Maps and contact the parking garages in your area. Entering such a long-term lease definitely expedites the parking processes. That is because it cuts down the time you would naturally take to park your car. If any party wishes to amend the agreement in the future, the amendment(s) should be recorded in writing and signed by all parties But the confident tone brought no response of agreement from Mary. complete agreement among all the members of a group a business agreement in which people trust each other without a written contract In law, consent is specifically used for the voluntary agreement or acquiescence by a person of age who is not under duress or coercion and usually who has knowledge or understanding. By „of age“ is meant „age of consent,“ which is the age at which a person is deemed competent by law to give consent. Eighteen years old is the standard age of consent in the United States. The CIA has since paid out more than $1 million pursuant to the agreement, the report notes agreement for words. The key objective of the NAECI is to continue to supply a modern, robust and fit for purpose national employment relations structure that: Central to the success of the National Agreement is a highly effective, widely respected procedure for the prevention and resolution of issues at site level. Where, exceptionally, resolution is not achieved at site level, there is swift recourse to national level for a final and binding decision. The NAECI has been in existence for nearly 40 years and details of the current edition for 2019 2020 can be found below. The NAECI 2019 2020 is available as a free PDF (see item below) and in booklet form for purchase. It should be noted that in all instances the current online version of the NAECI 2019 2020 takes precedence over the originally printed hard copy version (more). Administrative services only (ASO) refers to an agreement that companies use when they fund their employee benefit plan but hire an outside vendor to administrate it. For example, an organization may hire an insurance company to evaluate and process claims under its employee health plan while maintaining the responsibility of paying the claims itself. An ASO arrangement contrasts with a company that purchases health insurance for its employees from an external provider. ASO arrangements are common in Canadian health plans. Plan specifics vary depending on the agreement a company establishes with insurance companies and third-party administrators (TPA). In ASO arrangements, the insurance company provides little to no insurance protection, which is in contrast to a fully insured plan sold to the employer.

On 29 July 2013, Russia banned the import of chocolate products made by the Ukrainian company Roshen and asked Belarus and Kazakhstan to follow suit. A Russian sanitary official stated that the company had not met quality and safety standards, but critics alleged that the ban was meant as a warning against Ukraine associating more closely with the EU. At the time, the owner of Roshen (and future president of Ukraine), Petro Poroshenko, was seen as pro-European.[206] On 14 August 2013, Federal Customs Service of Russia officials began conducting more stringent inspections of cargo arriving from Ukraine than would normally be carried out.[207] This lasted until 20 August 2013[208] and was followed by statements from the Russian President’s top economic advisor Sergey Glazyev arguing that the impact of Russia’s response to Ukraine signing the agreement, including tariffs and trade checks, could lead to default, a decline in the standard of living and „political and social unrest“ in Ukraine, and would violate the Russian-Ukrainian strategic partnership and friendship treaty agreement. The Guidelines, while not specifically targeting TSA arrangements, have brought challenges to recent financial services M&A deals, as parties seek to determine applicability to TSAs in general and to each deals unique circumstances. The Guidelines apply to all outsourcings by financial and payment institutions within scope and must be considered whenever a third party performs a service that would otherwise be performed by the financial or payment institution itself transitional services agreement plc. Microsoft concede a la Universidad el derecho, desde la fecha en que Microsoft firme este Contrato Campus (la „Fecha Efectiva“) hasta la fecha de su terminacin de conformidad con la clusula 7 del presente Contrato Campus, a -instalar en todos sus ordenadores (en propiedad o alquilados), ya sean de base Intel, Apple o de otro tipo, copias de cualquier versin de todos aquellos Productos de Software Campus incluidos en un Grupo de Productos que la Universidad haya seleccionado en el Formulario de Inscripcin que se anexa a este Contrato Campus agreement. Once the services are rendered by the guardian ad litem/attorney an invoice will be submitted to the Court. The Court will order payment of the fee by the ward or his/her family. These fees should be paid directly to the attorney. If the entire amount cannot be paid at once, you should contact the attorney to determine if a payment plan can be arranged. In the event the ward or his/her family is financially unable to pay the fees, a financial statement must be completed and the Court will make a determination regarding indigency. Minor Guardianships (or other cases where a guardian ad litem is appointed) – $250: When the Court determines that a guardian ad litem is necessary in minor guardianships or other cases, the guardian ad litem will either make a report to the Court or attend the hearing (determined by the Court at appointment) and a flat fee of $250 will be charged ( This settlement includes many terms and clauses which feature in ordinary agreements and can readily be adapted for your own use in such circumstances. PandaTip: In other words, if needed, the parties will take additional actions in order to ensure that the debt will be settled so long as the terms of this agreement are followed. FULL INTEGRATION. This Settlement agreement supersedes any prior agreements, understandings, or negotiations, whether written or oral. Settlement agreements are fairly common in the workplace, especially when employees have complaints against their employers. Technical quality: in outsourced application development, measurement of technical quality by commercial analysis tools that examine factors such as program size and coding defects. Since late 1980s SLAs have been used by fixed line telecom operators. SLAs are so widely used these days that larger organizations have many different SLAs existing within the company itself. Two different units in an organization script an SLA with one unit being the customer and another being the service provider. This practice helps to maintain the same quality of service amongst different units in the organization and also across multiple locations of the organization. This internal scripting of SLA also helps to compare the quality of service between an in-house department and an external service provider.[4] Security — All security measures that will be taken by the service provider are defined service level agreement program. The partnership books shall be maintained at the principal office of the partnership, and shall fully be available to every partner. The books shall be kept on a fiscal year basis, commencing on the day of February, ending on the day of February, and shall be closed and balanced at the end of each fiscal year. An audit shall be made as of the closing date. The name of the partnership shall be John and John Partners. Every business partnership agreement example that you may come across will be unique in its own way, with its own set of clauses and terms mutually agreed upon by the founding partners. The partnership agreement form sample that we have included below for free download contains a basic form of business agreement. You should download and edit the contents of the general partnership agreement form pdf using PDF Expert the best PDF Editor for Mac ( (i) living accommodation rented under a tenancy agreement that has a term longer than 20 years, (3) If a landlord has failed to comply with a material term of the tenancy agreement and has not corrected the situation within a reasonable period after the tenant gives written notice of the failure, the tenant may end the tenancy effective on a date that is after the date the landlord receives the notice. (7) Neither the director’s decision whether to enter into an agreement under subsection (4), nor the terms and conditions of such an agreement, may be the subject of an application for dispute resolution. Richard Thompson II and Jason Yost are both attorneys with Troutman Sanders LLP. Troutman Sanders LTSA Team has unparalleled experience in structuring, drafting, analyzing, negotiating and implementing long term service agreements for power generation equipment. Collectively, the Team has negotiated and advised upon LTSA transactions for more than 120 gas turbines and 70 steam turbines. These include transactions involving services from all of the major power generation original equipment manufacturers in more than 15 different U.S here. Coney Island enters into a lease agreement for a new ride valued at $2 million. Prior to this agreement, the companys total assets are $25 million and its total liabilities are $15 million. Q: On 30 April 2006, Pinto Products received a cash payment of $30,000 as a deposit on production of a … coney island enters into a lease agreement for a new ride. The lease payments have a present value of $2 million. Prior to this agreement, the companys total assets are $25 million and its total liabilities are $15 million.Required: 1. Calculate total stockholders equity prior to the lease agreement. 2. Prior to the lease being signed, calculate the debt to equity ratio.

Sum certain is a legal phrase referring to a specific amount (usually an amount of money) that is directly stated in a contract or negotiable instrument (such as a mortgage or promissory note) at the time the document is written, and which is not open to interpretation or misinterpretation. Sum certain is thus used for all sorts of contracts including financial instruments, but also employment agreements, contracts for purchase, and contracts for lease. According to Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), In a lump sum contract, the owner has essentially assigned all the risk to the contractor, who in turn can be expected to ask for a higher markup in order to take care of unforeseen contingencies agreement. Proving that a group is a dependable source of revenue can be an effective bargaining tool. Dont start negotiations with a property without knowing the financial value of a group to a hotel. The hotel wont budge on rate? Maybe they can help in other ways. Ask for perks like room upgrades, reduced resort fees, free gym or WiFi access or even complimentary receptions. You wont know what you might get if you never ask (agreement). 1. Overview Having a good start to an employment relationship and making a positive first impression on a new hire is essential to establishing a productive, successful, and professional workplace. An important part of this process is creating an employment agreement. There are many advantages to having a well-crafted employment agreement, the most obvious of which is the legal protection it affords a company or business. A consignment agreement is a contract that places an item the consignor (or owner) owns with the consignee (or seller) for the consignee to sell. The consignee often takes a commission or fee and then the remainder of the sale price is paid to the consignor consignment agreement payment. The terms agreement and contract are used interchangeably, but legally speaking, they are two different things. An agreement is simply an understanding or arrangement between two or more parties. A contract is a specific agreement with terms and conditions that are enforceable court. When statute law has requirements for a type of contract, they’re usually that the agreement is recorded in written form, and signed by the one or both of the parties or their authorised agent The UN Security Council then adopted the above declaration with Resolution 355. When the coup dissolved, the Turkish Armed Forces advanced to capture approximately 37% of the island and met the „Green Line“. The meandering Buffer Zone marks the southernmost points that the Turkish troops occupied during the Turkish Invasion of Cyprus in August 1974, running between the ceasefire lines of the Cypriot National Guard and Turkish army that de facto divides Cyprus into two, cutting through the capital of Nicosia. With the self-proclamation of the internationally unrecognized „Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus“, the Buffer Zone became its de facto southern border.[citation needed] 7.1 ( The Consortium Agreement supplements the Horizon 2020 Grant Agreement. While the Grant Agreement establishes the binding legal relations between the European Commission and the projects partners, the Consortium Agreement establishes and governs the relations between the partners themselves. Unlike the Grant Agreement (which is fixed and cannot be modified), the Horizon 2020 Consortium Agreement is essentially a commercial agreement between the partners. As such, it is flexible and can be adjusted to the specific needs of the project and its partners. Keep in mind once the Horizon 2020 project is funded a consortium partners will be working together for a long period of time. For this reason, it is of great importance to have a binding agreement that takes into account the various expectations, requirements, and circumstances that can arise. A key part of the agency agreement is defining explicitly who the agent is and who the principal is. Note that the agent and or the principal can be an individual or a corporation. So, a corporation can engage in an agency relationship with another corporation, an individual with another individual, a corporation with an individual, and even an individual with a corporation. There are two keywords to understand in creating and reading an agency agreement. The first is the principal. The principal is the individual or corporation that is essentially engaging another person, also known as the agent, to do something on their behalf The IPG is distinct from other deposit administration contracts and attractive to employers because it gives employers more flexibility after an employee retires. The employer has the option to pay retirement benefits directly from the IPG fund rather than locking into an annuity purchased from the insurer. This gives the employer control over the funds for a longer period. The employer can also purchase an annuity for the retired employee. If you are planning to avail a Home Loan, then it is crucial for you to understand under what conditions your bank is sanctioning the loan. You must understand each and every term written on the loan agreement or else you will end up choosing a lender who charges high interest or with tough terms and conditions. Beyond insisting that his government would not resign, and that Mr. Zuma was not automatically entitled to succeed him, Mr. Mbeki also said there was common agreement that Mr. Zuma should stand trial if prosecutors charge him. To cope with the influence from faulty processors, reaching a common agreement at the presence of faults before performing some special tasks is essential. The term, almost a mantra in Russian politics these days, connotes a land in which there is common agreement that everyone has to play by and obey the same rules (more). ASEAN – India dialogue relations have grown rapidly from a sectoral dialogue partnership in 1992 to a full dialogue partnership in December 1995. The relationship was further elevated with the convening of the ASEAN-India Summit in 2002 in Phnom Penh. Since then the ASEAN-India Summit has been held annually. All these took place in a decade, which clearly signifies the importance of the dialogue partnership to ASEAN and India and the progress made in the cooperation. Palit maintains that India needs to start forging bilateral trade deals at the earliest (india’s free trade agreement with vietnam).