Solar Age: Access to Energy on the Road of Exile
MEETING FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 20, 2023
This Meeting at a Glance:
Program: Solar Age: Access to Energy on the Road of Exile
Speaker: Lucie Gamond Rius
Is this your first time to visit us? If so, welcome to our weekly online meeting! To complete our meeting, please continue reading from here to the bottom of this page. Each Monday our week’s meeting is posted early in the morning, U.S. Pacific Time. These meetings are designed so that you can read and watch what we post anytime during the week. The entire meeting takes about 60 minutes to complete, with the video conference recording of the program being the bulk of the time. Note that you can easily read this meeting with your favorite device, so feel free to take our meeting on the go with you. Please also make sure to complete the attendance form at the bottom and leave a comment. Enjoy!
To properly attend this meeting, please:
Read and watch the content below in its entirety.
Complete the attendance survey.
Everyone is also encouraged to leave a comment in the Disqus section at the bottom of the page.
Message from our President
Dear fellow members,
As we welcome the month of March, we also acknowledge the monthly theme of "Water and Sanitation." Access to clean water and proper sanitation is a basic human right and a crucial factor in promoting good health and preventing the spread of diseases. As Rotarians, we understand the importance of this issue and continue to strive towards ensuring that everyone has access to these basic necessities.
However, we cannot ignore the fact that another crisis is affecting our communities - the mental health crisis. With the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have lost loved ones, had their social networks disrupted, and faced other struggles that have taken a toll on their mental well-being. Unfortunately, the stigma surrounding mental health issues often prevents people from seeking the help they need.
As we move forward with our year's focus on healthcare, let us not forget the importance of promoting awareness in this important area. I was particularly pleased to see that Rotary International President-elect R. Gordon R. McInally will focus on mental health during his term. In alignment with his goals, we can already start addressing mental health by providing resources and information on mental health, hosting programs on mental health, and creating a supportive and inclusive community where members feel comfortable discussing their mental health and seeking support if needed. We as Rotarians can play a crucial role in offering hope to those who are struggling with mental health challenges. We can help break down the barriers that prevent people from seeking help by raising awareness and providing support.
Let us work together to positively impact the lives of those affected by mental health challenges and healthcare issues in general, both within our E-club and beyond.
Yours in Service,
Angelica Marotta, PhD
President 2022-2023 Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley
Rotary International District 5170
WEEKLY FUNNY WITH SHAGS
We believe laughter is an important part of life, and we should all make time to laugh a little. This segment of our meeting is meant to tickle you just enough. These funnies are curated by member Steven "Shags" Shagrin!
Delayed Appointment
Doctor: "I see you're over a month late for your appointment. Don't you know that nervous disorders require prompt and regular attention? What's your excuse?"
Patient: "I was just following your orders, Doc."
Doctor: "Following my orders? What are you talking about? I gave you no such order."
Patient: "You told me to avoid people who irritate me."
INSPIRATION
Every week we share a short video highlighting innovation, education, entrepreneurship, or whatever we think might inspire you to see the world in new ways.
If someone suggested that they could offer up an "exciting new form of storytelling," what comes to mind for you? In this video from DisneyResearchHub called Magic Bench, they look at another way of using AR/VR, but without a headset or similar device.
LEARN SOMETHING NEW
Boomerang - How Do They Do It?
This short video is fascinating! But a disappointment in not seeing it being thrown...
SERVICE REPORT
Tell us about service you’ve done recently in your community.
Click here to fill out The Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley Service Survey
PROJECT OPPORTUNITY
Charter member Keith Marsh is organizing a Rotary project to Project Amigo in October for the “Day of the Dead” (Dia de los Muertos). The week-long trip to Cofradia, Mexico will include Rotary Service in the areas of International Service, Youth Service and Fellowship. It will also include cultural and travel photography of the festivities surrounding Day of the Dead. Space is limited. Click below to download the .pdf for more details and visit the Project Amigo website at: https://www.projectamigo.org/ Contact Keith or leave a comment below if you are interested in attending.
HAPPY DOLLARS: Do Good by Sharing Something Good
Each week we ask our members to share stories with the club and toss in a few dollars to support our efforts. The primary goal of this section is to provide a fun way of getting to know each fellow members and guests, while giving back to a good cause.
Happy dollars is an opportunity to share something positive that has happened in your life whether it is personal or business. Think of it as your opportunity to brag a little, but also put a little bit into a karma jar. The money donated through happy dollars is put to charitable use, and the message that you leave for happy dollars will be posted in our online meeting the following week for the entire week for folks to see! (Pending that it’s appropriate!)
Here are the happy dollars contributions from last week!
This section is usually updated in the early hours of Saturday, so contributions made over the weekend may not be listed here.
Rory Olsen made a $20 donation.
Weather has been up and down most of the week. My cats get really sleepy during rain. When it is sunny, they run around like crazy and then fall into a deep sleep.
PROGRAM: Solar Age: Access to Energy on the Road of Exile
SPEAKER: Lucie Gamond Rius
Every week we bring to you a new program on innovation, entrepreneurship, and education, and how those contribute to service to others.
The Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley seeks to explore perspectives on service from across the world. The views of the speakers in our programs are their own, and unless stated otherwise, are not necessarily reflective of the views of our eClub nor Rotary International.
If you have an idea for a cool speaker, please feel free to reach out to them directly or submit THIS FORM so our Program Committee can contact them!
Imece Initiative is a Turkish NGO based at the sea border of the European Union. After years of supporting refugees in Turkey through distributions and children education programs, Imece created in 2018 the Solar Age program. It is a solar engineering training dedicated to refugee women in Turkey to help them integrate into the labor market. At the end of their training, they are able to install solar panels, do electronic soldering, and to build EFE solar power banks.
EFE, for "Energy For Everyone" (and "Robin Hood" in Turkish), are wooden solar power banks specially designed for displaced persons on the road of exile. It can be charged both by being plugged in and through solar energy, and includes a flashlight and charging cables for all types of phones. In 2022 Imece trained 60 refugee women and distributed 320 EFE for free in Turkey, Bosnia, and Ukraine to displaced persons on the road of exile.
Our speaker, Lucie Gamond Rius, has studied international humanitarian law and worked in humanitarian field missions. In 2016, Lucie joined the Imece movement in Turkey, and since then, she has been working with friends to develop the programs and the Imece movement. In 2019 she created the French branch of Imece, which works to develop the Imece Solidarity Collective in Bretagne, France.
Members and guests, please welcome Lucie Gamond Rius!
To learn more, go to:
https://www.imeceinitiative.com/en/projects
UPCOMING PROGRAM RECORDING SCHEDULE
All of our guest speakers and programs are recorded live online over Zoom video conference. We welcome members and guests to join us in one of these upcoming recordings. Recordings are approximately 30 minutes long and are subject to change without notice.
Our online video conference room link for these recordings is always http://zoom.siliconvalleyrotary.com/. You are welcome to join us! Please note the timezone listed for all recordings is US Pacific Time (San Francisco, California, USA).
If you can’t join the live recording, please send your questions for an upcoming speaker to programs@siliconvalleyrotary.com.
THE ATTENDANCE SURVEY
Thanks for reading and watching this week’s meeting. You have two last things to do before you’re done.
We have a very short attendance survey below for you to fill out to record your attendance.
Visiting Rotarians, this is how you can get an email receipt to pass along to your club’s secretary as proof that you’ve attended our meeting if you need it for makeups.
Non-Rotarian Guests, we would love to see who is dropping by our meetings! This part is optional for you. If you think you may want to join our eClub at some point in the future, we would strongly recommend you fill out the attendance form as it will improve your chances of success for your membership application.
For all members and guests — we strongly recommend and ask that you leave a comment in our comments area below. Tell us how you enjoyed the program. Ask this week’s speaker any questions you might have. Or just stop by and say hello and tell us where you’re from!
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