Atlanta Added to International Cities Set to Host the Dow Live Earth Run for Water

Atlanta Added to International Cities Set to Host the Dow Live Earth Run for Water - The Largest Global Water Initiative in History to Help Solve the World Water Crisis

Other International Cities Hosting the Event Include Buenos Aires, Cape Town, Chicago, Hong Kong, Jimbaran, London, Los Angeles, Manchester, Melbourne, Mexico City, Milan, Minneapolis, New York, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Singapore City, Stockholm, Toronto and Washington, D.C. Dow Live Earth Run For Water is Supported by a Coalition of 20 Global Water Non-Governmental Organizations

/PRNewswire/ -- Today, Live Earth announced that Atlanta has been added to the list of cities hosting the largest worldwide water initiative on record to help combat the global water crisis. The Dow Live Earth Run for Water - to take place April 18, 2010 - will consist of a series of 6 km run/walks (the average distance many women and children walk every day to secure water) taking place over the course of 24 hours in countries around the world, featuring concerts and water education activities aimed at igniting a tipping point to help solve the water crisis. Jessica Biel, Alexandra Cousteau, Pete Wentz, Angelique Kidjo and Jenny Fletcher will lend their names and their time in support of this important cause.

Atlanta's Dow Live Earth Run for Water event will take place in downtown Atlanta with the start/finish at the Water Village area located at Pemberton Place, adjacent to the World of Coca-Cola and the Georgia Aquarium. The 6k course will take participants through nearby neighborhoods.

"With the recent drought situation and the questionable future of Lake Lanier as a significant water source for the region, the water crisis is something that really hits home for millions of Atlantans," stated race director Tracey Russell. "The Atlanta Track Club is proud to be partnering with Live Earth in support of the Dow Live Earth Run for Water to help drive awareness of both the global and regional water crisis."

Water scarcity is an issue affecting countries, communities and families all over the world. One in eight people don't have access to safe, clean drinking water. Eighty-eight percent of diarrheal cases worldwide are linked to inadequate and unsafe water. These cases result in 1.5 million deaths each year, mostly among children under five. In these areas, women and children are forced to walk 6 km (3.7 miles) each day to secure water that is likely unsuitable for drinking. The water crisis can be felt in metropolitan Atlanta as well, with the recent ruling from a federal judge that Lake Lanier was not constructed for water supply among the biggest and most imminent economic threats to the region.

Everybody counts in helping to solve the water crisis. The Dow Live Earth Run for Water is a global movement focused on the actions individuals can take to effectively address the issue. People are encouraged to START solving the problem today, RUN in a Dow Live Earth Run for Water run/walk in their community or organize their own run/walk through the Friends of Live Earth program, SAVE water in their home and local community through conservation efforts, GIVE money to support clean, safe water projects and SPEAK UP by signing the Live Earth petition to add water as a basic human right to the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights.

"Water scarcity is an issue that affects all of us and we all have a responsibility to do our part to help solve this global crisis," said actor and Dow Live Earth Run for Water supporter Jessica Biel. "The beauty of the Dow Live Earth Run for Water is that it gives us a platform to encourage others to be part of the solution to help everyone have access to clean, safe drinking water."

The Dow Live Earth Run for Water run/walk registration is now open via The Active Network at http://liveearth.org/run. All participants will receive a free online ActiveTrainer plan to help them prepare for the event. Ten percent of all registration fees for Atlanta will go directly to Global Water Challenge, the NGO beneficiary of all funds raised in the United States.

"The world water crisis is the single greatest avoidable health challenge of our time," said Paul Faeth, president of Global Water Challenge, the lead beneficiary and non-profit partner for the Dow Live Earth Run for Water in the United States. "There is a solution. With appropriate funding and scaling simple technology, we believe we have the ability to ensure universal access to clean and safe drinking water. The Dow Live Earth Run for Water will serve as a catalyst to rally the world community around the critical issue of water scarcity and empower citizens to be part of the solution."

"Dow is proud to be the title sponsor for this groundbreaking event," said Ian Barbour, general manager at Dow Water & Process Solutions, a business unit of Dow. "As part of our 2015 Sustainability Goals, we are committed to leveraging science and technology to help solve some of the world's greatest challenges - like the water crisis. Our partnership with Live Earth is just one of the many ongoing efforts Dow is making to address water scarcity and help millions of people around the world gain access to safe, clean drinking water."

For more information about the Dow Live Earth Run for Water, visit http://liveearth.org/.

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Georgia's 24-hour Mental Health Crisis Line among top 50 government innovations

Harvard University has named Georgia’s Crisis and Access Line (GCAL), a 24-hour help line providing mental health crisis intervention and support, one of the top 50 government innovations in the U.S.

The Georgia Department of Human Resources (DHR) Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Addictive Diseases (MHDDAD), which developed GCAL and debuted the service in July 2006, is among 50 finalists for the coveted Innovations in American Government Award given by the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

GCAL made the pick out of 600 applicants. Georgia will now compete with other finalists to be among six government entities to receive an award. The competition includes other states, federal agencies, municipalities, school districts, a tribal government and a regional authority.

“GCAL has been a powerful resource to Georgians with mental illness and their families,” said B.J. Walker, commissioner of DHR. “We are thrilled to see the program recognized on a national scale.”

GCAL provides callers with behavioral health crisis intervention and access to behavioral health services 24 hours a day, seven days a week. GCAL has been praised for being a cost-effective way of removing barriers to access for mental health and substance abuse services. Once a caller contacts the service, information specialists identify treatment options and contact mental health providers directly.

“GCAL allows mental health consumers to make more informed choices about treatment options and other important issues,” said Gwendolyn B. Skinner, director of MHDDAD. “It truly is an innovation for our mental health system, and we are honored to be considered among the 50 government innovators in America.”

To be considered for an Innovations in American Government Award, government programs must submit to rigorous review by policy experts and practitioners from around the U.S. Award winners are considered models of good government whose case studies are incorporated into government school curricula worldwide.

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IMF advisor to speak at GSU about global financial crisis today

Teresa Ter-Minassian, a special advisor to the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, will speak at Georgia State University at 2:30 p.m. Monday (April 6) in the 7th-floor seminar room of the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies. The former director of the IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department will discuss the “Fiscal Implication of the Current Global Financial Crisis for Major Industrial and Emerging Market Countries” as the keynote speaker of the International Studies Program Lecture Series.

“Ter-Minassian’s presentation will focus in particular on the implications of the crisis for the public finances of the G-20 countries,” said Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, director of the International Studies Program.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced Thursday (April 2) that the leaders of the G-20 nations agreed to supply an additional trillion dollars into the troubled economy by funding groups like IMF. The leaders plan to provide an additional $500 billion for the IMF, $250 billion in IMF Special Drawing Rights and $250 billion to boost trade.

“Ter-Minassian will highlight the challenge of reversing the crisis-related deterioration in the public finances over the medium-term, a task made more compelling by the prospective rising fiscal costs of population aging,” Martinez-Vazquez said.

The IMF is an organization of 185 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world. Among the organizations tasks are to provide policy advice to governments and central banks on analysis of economic trends and providing loans to help countries overcome economic difficulties.

Ter-Minassian has served in various positions at the IMF, including chief of the Southern European Division in the European Department, where she negotiated the 1983 IMF Stand-By Agreement with Portugal. She also served as deputy director of the Western Hemisphere Department, in which she headed the negotiations of the IMF programs with Brazil and Argentina.

Ter-Minassian’s areas of expertise include macroeconomic analysis, fiscal policy, budget management and intergovernmental fiscal relations. She has published several papers in these areas, including the book Fiscal Federalism in Theory and Practice.

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Institute for Advanced Policy Solutions Receives $600,000 Peterson Foundation Grant

Emory University’s Institute for Advanced Policy Solutions (IAPS) has received a $600,000, one-year grant from the Peter G. Peterson Foundation to establish a Center for Entitlement Reform, the Institute announced today.

The new Center for Entitlement Reform is one of only a few university-based research centers in the U.S. focusing on federal health care entitlement reform.

The Center will conduct research and analysis in order to outline the factors responsible for the rise in federal entitlement spending, specifically focused on public health insurance programs; link new approaches in financing, payment, and care delivery for achieving better value (lower costs with the same or better outcomes) based on factors driving higher spending; and present the options to key policymakers in the U.S. Congress and White House, along with state-level governments, business leaders, the public and the media.

Public health policy researcher Kenneth E. Thorpe, PhD, will direct the new Center. Thorpe is also chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, and IAPS executive director. Additional staffing for the Center will include faculty from Emory’s Institute for Health and Productivity Management, as well as a select group of IAPS fellows chosen from some of the nation’s foremost and emerging thought leaders in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors.

“Entitlement programs must be reformed to reflect current economic realities and longer life spans while also making them solvent, sustainable, secure and more savings oriented,” says Thorpe. “Spending cannot continue unabated without imperiling future generations. For far too long, needed health reform has foundered on ideology.

“The moment has come to set aside partisanship and, guided by sound research that explains both the nature and the urgency of the challenge, achieve real results,” says Thorpe. “The Center for Entitlement Reform will help translate research into action to avert the looming crisis.”

The rise in projected federal spending on health care results mostly from increasing costs per beneficiary but also because the aging of the baby boom generation will significantly raise the number of Medicare beneficiaries. According to the Congressional Budget Office, if health care spending grows as projected under current law, future budget deficits will rise to levels that will seriously jeopardize the nation’s long-term economic growth.

“Washington policymakers are continuing to put off tough choices by charging the nation's credit card and expecting our kids and grandkids to pick up the tab,” says Peterson Foundation President and CEO David M. Walker. “Social Security and Medicare must be reformed if we expect to maintain reasonable tax levels, invest in our collective future and deliver on the promises that the government makes. We are thrilled to be investing in Ken and Emory’s thoughtful leadership in this fight.”

The Center is expecting to complete its groundwork research and analysis and develop preliminary policy options—focused on reducing the rising prevalence of diagnosed and treated disease, more effective approaches for managing chronically ill patients and approaches for reducing the wide variation in per capita spending—by the end of calendar year 2008.

“America’s health care crisis was not created overnight, and won’t be solved immediately,” adds Thorpe. “The Center for Entitlement Reform will have a research agenda encompassing for long-horizon views. However, we also recognize the short-term opportunity to impact health care policy of the incoming administration and 111th Congress early in 2009. Our near-term agenda is to complete an analysis of the key drivers of rising Medicare and Medicaid spending.”

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Second Economic Stimulus Package: Emory Economists Weigh In

The American economy may need a second stimulus package, but whatever decision is made about what form it takes had better be made quickly, says Emory global finance expert Jeffrey Rosensweig, director of the Global Perspectives Progam at Goizueta Business School.

Fed chairman Ben Bernanke "is doing all he can, but he's having to overcome the negative economic and financial market news reverberating and building in waves around the globe," says Rosensweig. Making matters worse, he says, are investors, "who are often whipped up by the media's love of 'gloom and doom,' and are self-inflicting even deeper wounds by their fear-induced selling. This panicked selling turns negative forecasts into self-fulfilling prophecies."

Rosensweig thinks that the actions being taken, and likely to be taken, will eventually stabilize the financial markets and thaw what were frozen credit markets. "An easing of the credit crunch is already showing up in analyses of various interest rates," he says. Rosensweig's guarded optimism stems from his belief that that Bernanke has shown his commitment "to do everything it takes to turn this thing around."

Rosensweig continues to assert that: "Fighting the financial crisis will take good coordination globally, and political cooperation both within and across nations is essential. But there is no time to dither."

A former student of Bernanke's at MIT, Rosensweig is associate professor of international business and finance and director of the Global Perspectives Program. A former senior international economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, Rosensweig specializes in global strategy, global economics and international finance.

Stimulus Calls for Government Investment Spending

Any new government stimulus package should be aimed at government investment spending, says Emory economist Hashem Dezhbakhsh. "Two ways to expand spending are through government purchases or through transfers to consumers," he says. But with retail spending already down, and many people worried about jobs, mortgages, debt and the future, consumers are unlikely to start spending more based on a one-time check from the government.

"I honestly think that if government wants to stimulate spending, it should look at the kind of things we did after World War II. Invest in roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects. When you do this kind of construction, it helps create jobs and demands for goods, services and materials that just doesn't happen otherwise."

Unrestrained Regulation Could Stall Economy

Economist Paul Rubin warns that whatever form a stimulus package takes, the federal government may be on track for over-regulating in the wake of recent failures in the economy. "The problem with government regulation is not that clever economists can't draft good regulations; the problem is that what usually gets adopted is more a matter of political expediency than what actually might work," he says.

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Georgia Southern University Hosting Economic Forum on Oct. 22

News in recent weeks has painted a bleak future for the financial stability of the United States. Some analysts suggest that the United States’ economic situation could become the worst in history since the Great Depression. This onslaught of bad news has created many questions in the minds of “Main Street America” about what is going on and how it affects the average person.

Georgia Southern University’s College of Business Administration, along with WTOC-TV (Channel 11, Savannah), will host an Economic Forum on Oct. 22 from 6-8 p.m. in the Nessmith-Lane Continuing Education Assembly Hall to help the public make sense of the current economic situation.

An expert faculty panel will be moderated by Mike Manhatton of WTOC-TV and will include renowned authorities in their respective fields: Ronald Shiffler, Michael Reksulak, William H. Wells and Edward Sibbald. The forum will begin at 6 p.m. and includes a question-and-answer session. The panel will delve into the daily headlines of the current financial crisis: the dissolution of Lehman Brothers; the bailout of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and AIG; the sale of Merrill Lynch; and the latest details of the federal bailout package.

The panel will seek to bring clarity to the reasons for the crisis, the severity of the current situation, how it will affect the local, national and global economies, and perspectives on building a stronger foundation for the future. Audience members will also be encouraged to ask the questions they want answered about the current crisis and future outlook of our nation’s economy.

This event is free and open to the public. Anyone who would like a deeper understanding of the current economic climate is encouraged to attend. For more information or directions to the Nessmith-Lane Building please call the Georgia Southern College of Business Administration at (912) 478-2622.

BACKGROUND ON PANELISTS:

Michael Reksulak is an Assistant Professor of Economics at Georgia Southern University. He earned his Ph.D. (2002) and his M.A. in Economics (1998) from the University of Mississippi. Prior to coming to Georgia Southern, he was a Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Mississippi (2002-03) and a Research Fellow at the Max-Planck-Institute for Research into Economic Systems (1998-99) in Jena, Germany. His current research analyzes the efficiency properties of various cost-sharing mechanisms and the effectiveness of industrial regulation. Capt. Reksulak is also active in the Army Reserves and has completed several tours of duty with the NATO-peacekeeping forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina. In addition to his research he currently writes a bi-weekly column for the Savannah Morning News on economic issues.

William H. Wells is Chair of the Department of Finance and Quantitative Analysis in the College of Business Administration at Georgia Southern University. He earned his Ph.D. in Finance (1999) from the University of Mississippi and was a faculty member at Merrimack College for six years prior to coming to GSU. Wells received the M. Albert Burke Award in 2003 and 2006, and received the Bank of America Faculty Award in 2005. He conducts scholarly research in the areas of Corporate Governance, Real Estate Finance and Financial Institutions. His latest paper is entitled, “Making the Mortgage Insurance Purchase Decision When Premiums Are Tax Deductible.” Dr. Wells teaches in the undergraduate and MBA programs.

Edward H. Sibbald is the BB&T Executive in Residence in Banking in College of Business Administration at Georgia Southern University and he is the Director of the College’s Center for Excellence in Financial Services. He has more than 30 years experience in commercial and community banking and related financial services. Sibbald has more than 20 years as a board member of several community banks, and served as Chief Financial Officer and Division Executive for retail banking of a $2.2 billion community bank in Illinois. He recently completed a three-part series on the “Federal Reserve Policy: Its Impact on Banks and their Customers” for the Savannah Business Report and Journal and his most recent article, "Beyond the Bailout ...What’s Next," was featured in this week's edition.

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Noah's Ark is in Crisis

Editor's Note: Noah's Ark is a tremendous operation just south of Atlanta. Not only do they take in animals, they are also the home of many children who need to learn to trust again. You may remember the last animal Noah's Ark rescued from I-75. It was a young zebra who has since made his home in Georgia. Evidence the zebra has been featured on the Georgia Front Page and our All About Animals blog in the past.

The national financial crisis has hit us hard - our donations have all but stopped coming in -and we still have over 1,200 mouths to feed! We are the only family these animals have - and your support makes what we do possible.

Please, if you can, make a donation today. NO GIFT IS TOO SMALL. Every gift makes a difference, whether it be $5.00 or $500.00!

You've given in the past, and we are grateful - and we hope that we can count on you now.

Please take a moment to give so that we can continue to provide for these wonderful animals!

Bless you and thank you.

Jama Hedgecoth and the
Noah's Ark Family
Noah's Ark
712 LG Griffin Road,
Locust Grove, GA 30248
770-957-0888
www.noahs-ark.org

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Georgia State Panel Discussion to Focus on Economic Crisis October 8

Crisis in the Economy: Multidisciplinary Perspectives
2 to 4 p.m. Wednesday (Oct. 8)
Senate Salon at the Georgia State University Student Center, 44 Courtland St.

With bank bailouts, plunging overseas markets and high unemployment dominating the headlines, Americans have lots of questions about the economy.

To make sense of the current economic landscape, Georgia State University’s College of Arts and Sciences and the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies will hold a panel discussion and Q & A session from 2 to 4 p.m. Wednesday (Oct. 8) in the Senate Salon at the Georgia State University Student Center, 44 Courtland St. Panelists at “Crisis in the Economy: Multidisciplinary Perspectives,” will include assistant professor of economics Carter Doyle, associate chair of history Michelle Brattain and assistant professor of political science Jeff Lazarus.

For more information about the panel, visit www.cas.gsu.edu or call 404-413-5114.

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UGA Terry College of Business Faculty Panel to Offer Opinions on “What Just Happened?” in Oct. 8 Forum on the Financial Crisis

A panel of experts from the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business will analyze the financial crisis at a public forum titled “What Just Happened?” It is set for Wednesday, Oct. 8, at 3:30 p.m. in room 248 of the Miller Learning Center.

Christopher M. Cornwell, who heads Terry’s Economics Department, will serve as moderator. Panelists include James B. Kau, who holds a Terry Chair of Business Administration in real estate; economics professor William D. Lastrapes; and finance professor Christopher Stivers.

The panelists will spend about 30 minutes sharing their views on what precipitated the Wall Street crisis, the congressional response and what the future may hold. The forum will conclude with panelists fielding questions from the audience for 30 minutes.

“This is something historic,” said Cornwell of the recent Wall Street collapse, “and some of Terry’s experts are going to step up and try to explain what is going on here.”

Cornwell first approached Terry College Dean Robert T. Sumichrast about holding a public forum as the financial crisis was unfolding. “If this was just the stock market dropping by 7 percent, we wouldn’t be doing this,” said Cornwell. “But when people read headlines like ‘Liquidity Crisis’ and ‘Credit Crunch,’ it creates fears that there is no money out there for businesses to borrow in order to continue operating. That’s what people are concerned about, and that’s what we need to talk about.”

Each panelist will begin his segment with an explanation of the causes of the financial crisis from his specific area of expertise, followed by a group discussion of the potential effects on the economy. Kau will examine the crisis from the perspective of real estate and mortgage finance. Lastrapes will focus on monetary policy and macroeconomics. Stivers will discuss the impact on financial markets. Their goal is to help the public gain a better understanding of the current economic situation from unbiased perspectives.

Cornwell added that more public discussion is needed right now to help people understand the real concerns and dispel irrational fears that may be spreading.

“We’ve never been down this path before – except in the Great Depression,” he said. “And, of course, to invoke the word ‘depression,’ which many people are doing, is scary. We’re not going to have another depression, but it doesn’t mean there aren’t going to be severe consequences.”

By Matt Waldman
University of Georgia

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Bailout Mess Echoes S&L Crisis of the 1990's

Taxpayers may be howling about the price tag of the $700 billion bailout plan that Congress is considering, but according to Emory University economist Hashem Dezhbakhsh, the current crisis is reminiscent of another huge financial disaster in the not-so-distant past: the savings and loan bailout of the early 1990s.

"Savings and loans took a lot of risks in 1980s, which left a lot of institutions insolvent. Government had to come to rescue." The overall cost to taxpayers then? "Half a trillion," says Dezhbakhsh. "It is, in fact, déjà vu."

The cause of the current bailout is the same now as then, he says. "If you have a financial system with incentives that are not set properly, then the system lends itself to excessive risk taking at the expense of someone else."

The most unfortunate aspect of the current bail out effort is that it is so close to the election, says Dezhbakhsh. "That's why it's really hard to have a real debate about the plan. Both Democrats and Republicans are afraid that if noting were done, there would be a disaster, and they'd be responsible for it--even if they don't believe in bailing out institutions making bad choices."

One other unfortunate aspect is fear. "The public thinks this is subsidy for the rich and Wall Street," says Dezhbakhsh. "That's unfortunate because it shows total lack of trust in what politicians and Fed officials say. There is no doubt that special interests are at work here. One cannot deny that the treasury secretary (Henry M. Paulson Jr.) is a veteran of Wall Street.

"At the same time, no one can deny the psychological impact of a passive approach to the crisis that will be very dangerous," adds Dezhbakhsh. "If there is fear of banks collapsing, then there will be run on banks, you can have a severe credit crunch that spreads from the financial side to the rest of the economy. Then, no one can conduct business. That's the fear."

Dezhbakhsh, a professor of economics, is chair of Emory's Department of Economics. His areas of interest include applied econometrics, the oil market, financial markets and volatility, and economics of crime.

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Isakson: Congress Must Put Aside Partisanship, Work Together to Address High Energy Prices

U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., today (July 15, 2008) urged members of Congress to work together to develop a comprehensive plan to address high energy prices during a speech on the Senate floor. Isakson said solutions that embrace all ideas – from conservation to increased domestic exploration – are at our fingertips if only members of Congress would put aside their partisan differences.

“The Congress of the United States is sitting on a ham sandwich starving to death,” Isakson said. “America has within its reach every resource necessary to be self-sufficient when it comes to energy. All we have to do is have the political will and the common sense to make it happen.”

In his remarks, Isakson outlined a number of initiatives he believes will provide a balanced approach to America’s long-term energy needs, including oil and natural gas exploration on the Outer Continental Shelf, nuclear energy, conservation and renewable resources such as solar and wind energy.

“I call on my colleagues, Republican and Democrat alike, to put their elephants and donkeys in the barn and look at the needs of the American people,” Isakson said. “If we leave this year without a comprehensive policy for energy independence, we have done a disservice to the people of the United States and we will not have fulfilled our Constitutional responsibility.”

Isakson praised the administration for its announcement on Monday that it is lifting the ban on offshore exploration, saying that we cannot decrease our dependence on foreign oil if we fail to explore our potential domestic supply.

“That is absolutely something that we ought to do,” Isakson said of the offshore exploration. “We should be exploring every resource that we have.”

Isakson is a part of a bipartisan group of senators led by Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga. and Kent Conrad, D-N.D., that are committed to working together on legislation to address the nation’s energy crisis.