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星期二, 11月 03, 2020

新英格蘭玉山科協2020年會探討融合人機感知

 

新英格蘭玉山科技協會(MJNE)2020 年會。
             (Boston Orange 周菊子波士頓報導) 新英格蘭玉山科技協會(MJNE)今年首度和美西玉山科技協會合作,舉辦年會。1031日以「融合人機感知(Merging Human and Machine Perception)」為主題,探討電腦視覺,虛擬按鈕,增強現實(AR)和虛擬現實(VR)領域的創業機會。

               會議由新英格蘭玉山科技協會(MJNE)現任會長蘇皓瑋,前任會長陳立洋,以及美西玉山科協會長鄭詠升主持,駐波士頓台北經濟文化辦事處處長孫儉元致詞,美西玉山科協理事謝忠高(Peter Hsieh)博士,以及奧創勝(UltraSense System)共同創辦人暨技術長唐浩晏博士,星猿哲科技(XYZ Robotics )聯合創辦人暨技術長俞冠廷(Peter Yu)博士等人分別講述。

駐波士頓台北經濟文化辦事處處長孫儉元。
              孫儉元稱許一眾主持人及講者在各自領域表現傑出,有如台灣大使,讓更多人看見台灣的科技實力有多好。

               唐浩晏是台大電機系畢業的加州柏克萊大學博士,主要研究超音波使用介面,超音波指紋感應器,超音波影像,以及手勢辨識,擁有10項專利,發表過20多篇論文,2016年獲得ISSCC最佳論文獎,也與人合得IEEE MEMS最佳論文獎。

               奧創勝(UltraSense System)今年2月才B輪融資2000萬美元,將量產超音波傳感器。唐浩晏在會中闡述該產品的研發過程概況,功能,解釋已做成的無線虛擬按鈕,甚至可以隨插即用,讓手機用耳塞,蘋果手錶,谷歌眼鏡等都更為方便、好用。

               俞冠廷畢業於交大電腦系畢業,取得台大碩士後,再從麻省理工學院電腦電機系拿到研究機器人領域的博士學位。根據星猿哲科技公司網站,他在2016年獲得IROS這全球最頂尖機器人學會議之一的最佳論文提名獎,也是全球唯一包攬歷屆亞馬遜分檢機器人挑戰賽前三名的得主。

新英格蘭玉山科技協會(MJNE)
現任會長蘇皓瑋
               俞冠廷以「可做快速及靈活檢取和放置的機器人認知及工具(Robot Perception and Tooling for fast and versatile pick and place)」為主題,解釋星猿哲科技解決了機器人看得到,抓不到的痛點,不但靈活,精確抓取,還可以遙控,讓物流等公司營運效率大增。從20185月創立以來,總部在上海的該公司,員工已成長至80餘人,今年8月又融資1700萬元後,總融資額已逾2700萬美元。

               謝忠高是畢業於台灣大學機械工程系的史丹福大學工程博士,早從1997年就已跨入創投界工作,也曾在北京工作10年,目前是橡子園太平洋創投的總合夥人。他已「人機感知(Human Machine Perception)」為主題,從創投角度談人機互動領域的機會與市場。

新英格蘭玉山科技協會(MJNE)
前任會長陳立洋。
               他說,目前世界上人機介面(interface)的世界市場大約是60億美元,每年增長大約8%10%,市場規模有點小。但如果是人機之間的認知與處理,就有很多灰色地帶,市場也大到400億元或500億元。他強調,從創投的角度來說,企業要怎麼經營,市場規模,對客戶的吸引力在哪裏,相關科技和法規,保險,是否保護使用者隱私,經營團隊執行能力,募資能力等等,才是創投業者更關心的層面。 (所有圖片:玉山科協提供)


星期一, 11月 02, 2020

Baker-Polito Administration Announces Comprehensive Measures to Further Promote Diversity in State Contracting

 Baker-Polito Administration Announces Comprehensive Measures to Further Promote Diversity in State Contracting

Proposal would establish the Supplier Diversity Office as its own state agency

BOSTON – The Baker-Polito Administration today announced a series of measures to continue ongoing efforts to ensure equal opportunity and increase access for diverse companies in state contracting. As part of today’s announcement, the Administration is filing legislation entitled, “An Act to Elevate the Supplier Diversity Office to Ensure Equal Opportunity in State Contracting.” The bill would establish the Supplier Diversity Office (SDO) as a separate state agency with tools and resources to ensure accountability and compliance with diversity goals, oversee agency diversity spending, and audit and review spending data.

The Administration also announced it will implement several other improvements in the supplier diversity space. These include a more active role for the SDO in engaging diverse and small businesses in public procurements, expanded reporting for spending between state contractors and their diverse business partners, the publication of minority-business-enterprise spending by race and ethnicity, the expansion of the Small Business Purchasing Program, increased bid evaluation percentages for certain procurements in order to promote more diversity (a component of the “Massport Model”), and the translation of SDO materials into multiple languages.

“Our administration is committed to continuing to promote growth and opportunity and ensure the Commonwealth takes every opportunity to support and benefit from its diverse business community,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “In launching these new initiatives, we have worked closely with leaders in the minority business community, Black and Latino Caucus, and Black Advisory Commission and Latino Advisory Commission. We look forward to continuing our work with these partners to strengthen the state contracting process with greater diversity, transparency and accountability.”

“We are committed to collaborating with diverse companies throughout Massachusetts and ensure equity within the public marketplace,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito. “Increasing economic development – for all businesses and communities – is a critical priority given the COVID-19 pandemic and its related impacts, and we are pleased to continue pursuing improvements that optimize our supplier diversity program.”

Since taking office in 2015, the Baker-Polito Administration has focused on expanding opportunities for diverse business enterprises to work with state government and has increased direct spending on minority-business-enterprises by the Executive Branch by nearly $8 million. The Administration has consistently met and raised annual benchmarks, grown the supplier diversity program, and filed legislation in February 2020 to promote participation by minority and women-owned businesses in state construction projects. The Administration also included $50.8 million in grants in its recently-launched economic recovery plan to support small minority-owned businesses in Massachusetts, which have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Legislation Filed Today:

“An Act to Elevate the Supplier Diversity Office to Ensure Equal Opportunity in State Contracting” would establish the SDO as a separate state agency under the authority of the Executive Office for Administration and Finance. The SDO would oversee monitoring and reporting of agency diverse spending and the development of annual comprehensive diversity spending plans for agencies. The legislation would also create a Supplier Diversity Compliance Unit within the SDO, which will systematically audit and review direct and indirect spending data to ensure compliance and accuracy.

Additional Supplier Diversity Improvements:

Going forward, the SDO annual report will separate indirect spending between state contractors and their diverse business partners by subcontracting and ancillary products and services and itemize minority-business-enterprise spending by race and ethnicity. The Administration will also raise the threshold for the Small Business Purchasing Program from $150,000 for the total value of the contract to $250,000 per year, which will help increase preference and access for minority businesses, as many are small businesses.

The SDO will align its supplier diversity program with a component of the “Massport Model” by expanding the percentage of bid evaluation scores dedicated to the supplier diversity plan from 10% to 25%, for procurements above a certain threshold. Additionally, the SDO will work with state and private sector partners to translate existing materials into foreign languages to further accommodate diverse businesses seeking to do business with the Commonwealth.

“The Baker-Polito Administration continues to implement creative reforms that empower diverse businesses across the Commonwealth,” said Secretary of Administration and Finance Michael J. Heffernan. “We look forward to continuing to work closely with the minority business community, our colleagues in the Legislature, and other key stakeholders to enact and implement these critical measures to support and promote any businesses seeking to work with the Commonwealth.”

“Expanding opportunities for minority-owned businesses working with state government is a crucial way that we can expand economic opportunity for people of color, and I am glad to see the Baker-Polito Administration take further steps to advance that goal,” said Deborah Enos, Chair of the Black Advisory Commission. “The legislation elevating the Supplier Diversity Office and additional steps to strengthen the program will support our shared efforts to enable more diverse businesses to access state contracting opportunities.”

“The Commonwealth benefits from ensuring equal opportunity for diverse companies to participate in state contracting, and the Baker-Polito Administration has done important work to strengthen the Supplier Diversity program in support of that goal,” said Josie Martinez, Chair of the Latino Advisory Commission. “The new initiatives announced today build upon the Administration’s efforts to promote opportunities for minority-owned businesses, and I thank the Governor and Lt. Governor for their focus on these important issues.” 

These new measures build upon the Administration’s previous efforts to optimize the supplier diversity program such as expanding the categories of diverse businesses that participate in the supplier diversity program, streamlining and simplifying the certification process, upgrading systems to allow for electronic applications and to better manage records, entering into multi-year agreements with third party certification organizations to provide free certifications for Massachusetts businesses, increasing compliance with program guidelines, implementing new training, and hiring additional personnel to further improve the program.

CITY OF BOSTON ISSUES REMINDERS AHEAD OF STATE ELECTION TOMORROW

 

CITY OF BOSTON ISSUES REMINDERS AHEAD OF STATE ELECTION TOMORROW

Voter turnout currently at 36.5 percent; all polling locations will operate in accordance with public health guidelines

 

BOSTON - Monday, November 2, 2020 - The City of Boston Election Department is reminding residents that tomorrow, Tuesday, November 3, 2020 is the State Election. Registered voters who haven't cast their ballots are encouraged to make a voting plan now: either return their mail-in ballot as soon as possible or vote in person at their assigned polling location. If voting by mail, ballots must be postmarked by November 3 and arrive by November 6 to be counted. Vote-by-mail ballots can also be returned by being deposited in any of the 17 dropboxes located around the City of Boston.

The City of Boston held a two-week early voting period with 27 polling locations around the City of Boston. During that period, 55,716 votes were cast in person. In addition, 103,268 votes have already been cast by mail. To date, voter turnout among registered Boston voters is at 36.5 percent. By comparison, in 2016 there were 277,366 votes cast, for a turnout of 66.75 percent for the State Election.

The election includes the following races: Senator in Congress, Representative in Congress, Governor's Councillors, Senator in General Court, Representative in General Court, Register of Probate, and Office of the President of the United States. In addition to the races, there are two ballot questions: Law Proposed by Initiative Petition Motor Vehicle Mechanical Data & Law Proposed by Initiative Petition Ranked-Choice Voting, and two public policy questions in State Representative Districts 11, 15, 17 and 18. Voters can view their ballot here.

On Election Day, printed ballots will be available in English and Spanish, English and Chinese, and English and Vietnamese. There are over 566 poll workers who are able to provide assistance across the 255 voting precincts in languages including: English, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Haitian Creole, Cape Verdean, Russian, and Portuguese. All poll workers have been trained on following the COVID-19 safety protocols.

Due to COVID-19, health and safety protocols on Election Day will be implemented at each polling location. All poll workers will receive face shields, face masks, gloves, disinfectant wipes, disinfectant spray and hand sanitizer. Cleaning will take place at each site every two to three hours. Voters waiting in line will be instructed to stand six feet away from others and wear a face covering. 

Voting

There are now two methods of voting available for registered voters: vote by mail or in person on Election Day. Voters who requested vote-by-mail ballots or absentee ballots must have their signed ballot returned to the Boston Election Department by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, November 6, 2020, but postmarked by November 3, 2020 to be counted. Voters can track the status of their vote-by-mail ballots here. Vote-by-mail ballots can also be returned to the Election Department by dropping it off at any of the 17 dropboxes located around the City of Boston. All dropbox locations can be found here. If a voter brings a vote-by-mail ballot to their polling location on Election Day, they will be provided with the opportunity to cast their vote in person instead. A poll worker will assist them in ensuring that their mail-in ballot is discarded before casting the in-person vote. 

On Election Day, polling locations in Boston will be open from 7:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. Voters who have changed their mind about voting by mail and their ballot has not been received by the Election Department, may vote in-person at their designated polling location. Voters can find their polling location for Election Day here.

Voters are reminded there are 20 precinct polling location changes this election cycle, the same as the State Primary election:

WARD/PRECINCT

PREVIOUS LOCATION

NEW LOCATION

Ward 1, Precinct 15 and Ward 13, Precinct 3

Harbor Point Technology Center

15 Harbor Point Blvd

Dorchester, MA 02125

Corcoran Jennison Mullins Community Building

270 Mt Vernon St

Dorchester, MA 02125

Ward 4, Precincts 6 and 7

Morville House 

100 Norway St

Boston, MA 02115

Northeastern University, Matthew's Arena

238 St Botolph St

Boston, MA 02115

Ward 4, Precincts 5 and 8

Symphony Plaza East and West

334 Massachusetts Ave

Boston, MA 02115

Northeastern University, Matthew's Arena

238 St Botolph St

Boston, MA 02115

Ward 7, Precincts 1 and 2

BCYF Curley Recreation Center

1663 Columbia Rd

Boston, MA 02127

Joseph P. Tynan School

650 E 4th St

Boston, MA 02127

Ward 9, Precinct 5

Marcus Garvey Gardens

44 John Eliot Sq

Boston, MA 02119

BCYF Shelburne Center

2730 Washington St

Boston, MA 02119

Ward 11, Precinct 4

Amory Street Apartments

125 Amory St

Boston, MA 02119

Word of Life Tabernacle Church

120 Amory St

Boston, MA 02119

Ward 13, Precincts 1 and 2

Cardinal Medeiros Apartments

11 Woodcliff St

Boston, MA 02125

John Winthrop Street Elementary School

35 Brookford St

Boston, MA 02125

Ward 13, Precincts 7 and 8

Catherine Clark Apartments

915 Dorchester Ave

Dorchester, MA 02125

Saint Pope John Paul II Catholic Academy- Columbia Campus

790 Columbia Rd

Dorchester, MA 02125

Ward 17, Precincts 1 and 3

Roxbury Prep Lucy Stone Campus

22 Regina Rd

Boston, MA 02124

Codman Square Tech Center

450 Washington St

Boston, MA 02124

Ward 18, Precincts 12 and 19

Boston Trinity Academy

17 Hale St

Hyde Park, MA 02136

Hyde Park Municipal Building

1179 River St

Hyde Park, MA 02136

Ward 19, Precincts 10 and 13

BCYF Roslindale Community Center

6 Cummins Hwy

Boston, MA 02131

Washington Irving School

105 Cummins Hwy

Roslindale, MA 02131


Additionally, there are six voter entrance changes to polling locations this cycle, the same as the State Primary election:

WARD/PRECINCT

LOCATION

VOTER ENTRANCE

Ward 5, Precinct 1

41 Berkeley St

Boston, MA 02116

Berkeley Street side of the building

Ward 5, Precinct 3

24 Beacon St

Boston, MA 02133

Bowdoin Street through Ashburton Park

Ward 5, Precincts 7 and 8

700 Boylston St

Boston, MA 02116

Dartmouth Street side of the building

Ward 11, Precinct 2

BCYF Shelburne Center

2730 Washington St

Boston, MA 02119

Moved from the community room to the Gymnasium. Enter through the parking lot on Dale Street

Ward 18, Precinct 3

Mattahunt Elementary School

100 Hebron Street

Mattapan, MA 02126  

Moved from the small gymnasium in the Community Center Building to the Cafeteria in the School 

麻州長宣佈晚上10點宵禁、聚會少於10人新規定


Add caption
       (Boston Orange 周菊子綜合報導) 麻州州長查理貝克(Charlie Baker)(2)日下午1點半宣佈,本週五(116)凌晨零時零分開始,實施勸告式宵禁,晚上10點以後「留在家」,別出門。

             餐廳,酒吧,戲院,賭場,大麻店,博物館,以及各種體育,戶外活動,都必須在晚上9點半關門,以便人們有足夠的時間在10點前回到家,直到凌晨5點以前都留在家中。

             必須上班,看病,或購買生活用品,或散步者,可以豁免於此勸告式規定。

              人們在保持6英尺安全距離之外,沒有例外地在所有公眾場合都必須戴口罩。

             室內聚會人數限於10人以下,戶外聚會限25人。

               查理貝克也勸人們去做病毒檢測,說明麻州有18個地點可做檢測,各地方市鎮也設有各自的病毒檢測站。

             查理貝克不相信「封鎖」是件好事,人們應遵守疫情期間的指導原則,照樣上班、上學。

             麻州州長辦公室指稱,自從勞工節以來,確診個案上升了278%,住院率也增加了145%,訂定新規則是為制止疫情轉趨嚴重,以其麻州能保持正常的經濟活動,教育學習。

             查理貝克也表示,麻州人民大都很能體恤他人,勸告式的指導原則已經足夠。違反聚會人數限制規定者,將由地方政府的公共衛生部門負責處罰,最高可每超出限額一人罰500元。

             麻州健康及人民服務長Marylou Sudder在疫情匯報中表示,即日起麻州的匯報圖表將改為數位式。她指出,由於最近的新增確診個案,有一半以上是39歲以下的年輕人,州政府因此將增加以年齡分的確診個案數及圖表。州政府與各醫療機構合作聘用的接觸追蹤人員也增加300多人,總數超過1000人。(更新版)

Baker-Polito Administration Announces Targeted Measures To Curb Rising COVID-19 Cases, Hospitalizations

Early Business Closures, Revised Gatherings, Mask Orders Announced to Disrupt Growth of COVID-19 Cases

BOSTON – Today, the Baker-Polito Administration announced a series of targeted measures to disrupt the increasing trend of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. Governor Charlie Baker announced these changes at a time where public health data has indicated that cases are rising, with cases up by 278% and hospitalizations up by 145% since Labor Day. These measures are meant to disrupt rising trends now, so the Commonwealth can keep the economy and schools open for residents and to prevent the need to roll back to Phase I or Phase II of the reopening plan.

All orders and advisories will be effective Friday, November 6th at 12:01 AM.

New Orders & Advisories:

Stay At Home Advisory: The Administration issued a revised Stay At Home Advisory to ensure residents avoid unnecessary activities that can lead to increased COVID-19 transmission. The revised Stay At Home Advisory instructs residents to stay home between 10 PM and 5 AM. The Advisory allows for activities such as going to work, running critical errands to get groceries and address health needs, and taking a walk.

Click here to read the revised Stay At Home Advisory: www.mass.gov/stayhome.

Early Closure of Businesses and Activities: Governor Baker issued a new executive order that requires the early closure of certain businesses and activities each night at 9:30 PM. The 9:30 PM closure requirement is aligned with the Stay At Home Advisory and together the two new initiatives are designed to further limit activities that could lead to COVID-19 transmission.

Effective November 6, the following businesses and activities must close to the public each day between the hours of 9:30 PM and 5:00 AM.

  • Restaurants (in-person dining must cease at 9:30 PM, although takeout and delivery may continue for food and non-alcoholic beverages, but not alcohol)
  • Liquor stores and other retail establishments that sell alcohol must cease alcohol sales at 9:30 PM (but may continue to sell other products 
  • Adult-use marijuana sales must cease at 9:30 PM (not including medical marijuana)
  • Indoor & outdoor events
  • Theaters/movie theaters (including drive-in movie theaters), and performance venues (indoor and outdoor)
  • Youth and adult amateur sports activities
  • Golf facilities
  • Recreational boating and boating businesses
  • Outdoor recreational experiences
  • Casinos and horse tracks/simulcast facilities
  • Driving and flight schools
  • Zoos, botanical gardens, wildlife reserves, nature centers
  • Close contact personal services (such as hair and nail salons)
  • Gyms, Fitness Centers and Health Clubs
  • Indoor and outdoor pools
  • Museums/cultural & historical facilities/guided tours

Click here to read the new executive order (including full list of businesses required to close at 9:30 PM).

Face Covering Order: Governor Baker also signed an updated order related to face-coverings. The revised order requires all persons to wear face-coverings in all public places, even where they are able to maintain 6 feet of distance from others. The revised order still allows for an exception for residents who cannot wear a face-covering due to a medical or disabling condition, but it allows employers to require employees to provide proof of such a condition. It also allows schools to require that students participating in in-person learning provide proof of such a medical or disabling condition.

Click here to read the revised face-coverings order.

Gatherings Order: Governor Baker also signed an updated order restricting gatherings. The new gatherings order reduces the gathering size limit for gatherings at private residences: indoor gatherings at private residences are limited to 10 people and outdoor gatherings at private residences are limited to 25 people. The limit on gatherings held in public spaces and at event venues (e.g. wedding venues) remains the same. The new order also requires that all gatherings (regardless of size or location) must end and disperse by 9:30 PM.

The new gatherings order also requires that organizers of gatherings report known positive COVID-19 cases to the local health department in that community and requires organizers to cooperate with contact tracing. The gatherings order authorizes continued enforcement by local health and police departments and specifies that fines for violating the gathering order will be $500 for each person above the limit at a particular gathering.

Click here to read the revised gatherings order.

波士頓市長提醒選民大選日出席投票要戴口罩 等大選結果要平心靜氣

波士頓市長馬丁華殊(Martin Walsh)。(市長辦公室提供)
          (Boston Orange編譯)波士頓市長馬丁華殊(Martin Walsh)今早(112)提醒選民,如果113日大選日這天要親自到投票站投票,記得戴口罩。全國大選結果可能沒那麼快出來,請保持冷靜

馬丁華殊說,明天就是全國大選日了,美國的新冠病毒大流行卻已導致23萬美國人死亡。

馬丁華殊也譴責那些威嚇選民的行為,力促民眾對選舉結果要平和以對。他強調波士頓一向認真對待選舉,今年和以往的每一場選舉一樣,都會派有警察駐守每個投票站。

波士頓警察局局長葛羅斯(William Gross)。(市長辦公室提供)提供)
波士頓警察局局長葛羅斯(William Gross)也表示,警察會到每個鄰里,宗教崇拜場所,學校,醫院等地巡邏。他說,你會看到我們在外面,就只是為了確保每個人能夠自由行使他們的權力。

截至星期一,已有159000名波士頓人投了票,意味著在大選日之前,已有36.5%的選民已經投了票。2016年時,已登記選民有67%出席投票。

馬丁華殊表示,因為很多理由,今年將是場歷史性的選舉。

113日的大選日,波士頓各地投票站將從早上7點開門至晚上8點。有255個投票選區容許選民親自出席投票。

波士頓彈性基金第24輪撥款 華美福利會等6機構分36萬元

 

MAYOR WALSH ANNOUNCES 24TH ROUND OF BOSTON RESILIENCY FUND GRANTS

 

Totalling $360,000, six community organizations will receive funding this round

 

BOSTON - Monday, November 2, 2020 - Mayor Martin J. Walsh, along with the Boston Resiliency Fund Steering Committee, today announced $360,000 in funding to six nonprofit organizations serving the community, as part of the next round of Boston Resiliency Fund grants. Organizations who receive this funding work directly with the Boston community to increase the availability of essential needs. Of grantees awarded this round, 67 percent are led by a person of color and 45 percent are led by women. 

 

"Collaborating with community partners and nonprofits has been fundamental to providing supports to residents as part of our response and recovery from COVID-19," said Mayor Walsh. "I want to thank every organization who has been involved in our efforts to ensure vulnerable residents have the resources they need. When we work together, we are able to help more residents get the vital help they need."

 

"The Black Ministerial Alliance's receipt of this Boston Resiliency Fund Grant is, literally, an answer to prayer. With these funds, the BMA/TenPoint will help our network of churches and community organizations provide resources to the increasing number of families facing food insecurity because of the pandemic," said Reverend David Wright of Black Ministerial Alliance. "This partnership with Mayor Walsh and the City of Boston is proof of why Boston will get through this crisis successfully. We deeply appreciate working with the City to ensure all of Boston's residents have access to healthy food."

 

"We know that many of our businesses, non-profits, and houses of worship are still not officially open to the public, but they are still providing targeted services out of their spaces, such as food pantry, and crisis relief support," said Virginia Morrison, Executive Director of Grove Hall Neighborhood Development Corporation. "The support from the Boston Resiliency Fund allowed us to retain a local, Black-owned business to clean over 40 of these spaces. Thanks to BRF and Rise & Shine Cleaning for making it possible to stay vigilant in our fight to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in our community!"  

 

Since March, the Boston Resiliency Fund has raised $33,300,000 and distributed $28,700,000 to 353 local nonprofit organizations in Boston. Fifty-four percent of organizations to have received funding are led by a person of color, 56 percent are women-led and 27 percent are immigrant-serving. A map and list of every organization that has received funding from the Boston Resiliency Fund can be found here.

 

This round's grantees represent organizations working to expand food and testing access, hygiene products and cleaning supplies for community members and organizations, intentionally focused on supports for organizations serving communities of color in Mattapan, Roxbury and Dorchester.

 

Asian American Civic Association, Inc.: Asian American Civic Association will use these funds to continue serving disabled and elderly residents, as well as households that have experienced job loss due to the pandemic. AACA will support residents by providing local supermarket gift cards, transportation assistance, and support for childcare expenses for families. 

 

Black Ministerial Alliance of Greater Boston, Inc.: The BMA will use funds to provide supports to groups of churches and ministries. The first group are those with regular distribution days that are well-known by our community residents. The BMA will support ongoing efforts and help expand food distribution. The second group comprises smaller churches, organizations, and ministries that have smaller, intimate relationships with the local community. These groups hand-deliver necessary resources to seniors and other abled people who are housebound during the pandemic.

 

Catholic Charitable Bureau of Boston: Catholic Charities will use funding to support the expanded demand and continue to serve approximately 4,000 people each week at their two Boston pantries. Each household receives a bag of 25 to 30 pounds of food, and they are able to visit the pantry once per week. Catholic Charities also will support the Teen Center at St. Peter's and its community partners to provide bags of food for an additional 200 households each week.

 

Charlestown Mothers Association, Inc.: CMA will use this grant to create family support kits for residents in need.  Each support kit will contain items such as grocery store gift cards, health essentials, and activities to engage small children while staying safe at home. Kits will be distributed at partner sites in Charlestown including the Charlestown Boys & Girls Club, the Kennedy Center, and Harvest on the Vine.   

 

Grove Hall Neighborhood Development Corporation: Grove Hall NDC will work with non-profit organizations and churches in the greater Grove Hall area who need support to clean their spaces. They will contract with a local WMBE, who is OSHA- and CDC-certified, to thoroughly clean these community spaces and train existing staff to do follow up cleaning on a regular basis. 

 

Prince Hall Grand Lodge: Prince Hall Grand Lodge will use this grant to support increased COVID-19 testing in the Grove Hall neighborhood to two days a week to increase testing in communities of color. Prince Hall will also use the BRF grant to support their remote learning program, which supports students and their parents to ensure that they receive technical and holistic educational support as needed

 

 

 

2021年北美海產展宣佈延期

 Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing North America

Seafood Expo Global/Seafood Processing Global
2021 Editions Postponed


Portland, Maine (2 November 2020) - Today, Diversified Communications, organizer of Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing North America and Seafood Expo Global/Seafood Processing Global, has determined that the continued magnitude of the public health and safety issues caused by COVID-19 requires the postponement of the spring events to later dates in 2021.

“We have been closely monitoring the world health situation, government regulations and travel restrictions while carefully considering the concerns that have been addressed to us by customers and attendees,” said Liz Plizga, Group Vice-President, Diversified Communications. “It has become evident that it was necessary to reschedule these events.”

Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing North America organizers are working with the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center to find new dates in mid-July 2021 that would keep the same day pattern of Sunday through Tuesday. It is intended that the postponed event will maintain its traditional format with three days featuring a comprehensive exhibit hall alongside a conference program and special events. New dates for the event will be communicated to the seafood community as soon as they are confirmed. In recognition of the seafood community’s need to stay connected and informed, Seafood Expo North America will host its first online conference program during the week of 14 March 2021.

Seafood Expo Global/Seafood Processing Global, originally scheduled in April 2021, will be held 7-9 September 2021 at the Gran Via venue in Barcelona, Spain. The decision to move the event to September 2021 was based on availability Fira de Barcelona was able to provide to accommodate a global event of more than 29,000 seafood professionals. The event will feature a comprehensive exhibit hall with suppliers from around the globe and introduce its first conference program in Barcelona.

As planning for the 2021 events progresses, Diversified Communications continues to closely follow the situation around the pandemic. “Like many event organizers, we are always exploring contingency plans to provide business continuity for our seafood community,” added Plizga. “We are committed to delivering in-person events in 2021 and are working with the venues and the appropriate authorities to ensure the health and safety of our customers, attendees, vendors, employees and local communities.”

The 2022 events are scheduled in the same time frame as in past years— in March 2022 for Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing North America and in April 2022 for Seafood Expo Global/Seafood Processing Global.
2

星期日, 11月 01, 2020

麻州新冠病毒確診人數一連10日逾千

 

          (Boston Orange 編譯) 111日,麻州新增的新冠病毒確診個案,1,139,又破千了。這已經是一連10天確診人數超過1000,累計確診人數已高達155660。新增死亡人數22,累計9,788

             如果把疑似案例也加進去,新冠病毒在麻州已殺了上萬人,大約是10,013人。

             麻州公共衛生廳(DPH)的統計數據顯示,有16,724人心做了分子檢測,累計有2788047人做了6165624次分子檢測。

             7天平均的確診率為1.8%,比早前的1.1%,以及今年9月時的0.8%,高太多了。

              截至1031日,麻州有613人住院,其中113人住在重症病房。整個10月,每天都有500人以上住院。

              在新型冠狀病毒疫情轉趨嚴重下,麻州351個市鎮中,已有120個跨入紅色高危險區。從康州(CT),新澤西州(NJ)進入麻州的旅客,現在都得隔離14天,或是接受病毒篩檢了。美國的50州,現在已有43州列在麻州州長今年8月份開出來的高危險州名單上了。上星期,麻州也被康州和新澤西州列為高危險州。

              星期六時,有800輛車從麻州各地,以及外地開進西春田市,在傳統上支持民主黨的麻州支持川普總統。由於大選日迫在眉睫,川普計劃這幾天舉行數以打計的競選活動,包括在5個競爭激烈州中活動。

              根據約翰霍普金斯大學的統計數據,現在美國已經有9187,062人感染過新型冠狀病毒,至少23865人死亡。全世界有46386,903人確診,1198,942人死亡。

              英國首相Boris Johnson也在週六(1031)時,也因為英國確診人數破100萬,宣佈要重新鎖國一個月。