Brent Green: LOHAS Forum: Where Generations Convene to Create a Healthier Future
Posted: June 18, 2012 at 5:16 pm
LOHAS is an acronym for Lifestyles of Health & Sustainability, a values-driven consumer cohort identified in the late 1990s. Consumers described as LOHAS are passionate about sustainability, health and wellness, personal development, resource conservation, corporate responsibility, social justice, and natural and organic products. They annually purchase $350 billion in goods and services worldwide.
Early adopters by nature, LOHAS consumers shop for energy-efficient electronics, green household products, natural personal products, organic foods, hybrid automobiles, green building products, socially responsible investments, and alternative health care services.
According to the Natural Marketing Institute (NMI), a Pennsylvania-based company that annually conducts original research examining this segment, LOHAS consumers comprise 18 percent of the U.S. population. The boomer generation over-represents this segment: 21 percent of Boomers are also LOHAS consumers.
Steve French, executive vice president and managing partner of NMI, emphasizes a significant correlation between LOHAS and post-50 consumers:
LOHAS leaders, natural products entrepreneurs and corporate executives gather every June in Boulder, Colo., for an intense three-day Forum. This intimate conference blends presentations from personal development educators, academicians exploring the edges of sustainable technologies, corporate pioneers who have embraced LOHAS values, and inspirational entertainers.
Representing widely diverse industries and age groups, attendees nevertheless share a passion for creating a healthier, more sustainable future. For example, one post-50 speaker at the 2012 Forum is busy teaching new conceptions of corporate leadership, insights he achieved through much personal distress and soul-searching.
In 1987, at age 26, Chip Conley started Joie de Vivre (JDV), a hospitality company based in San Francisco. He began by transforming a squalid 1950's Tenderloin District dive into Phoenix Hotel, a celebrated rock 'n' roll destination catering to celebrities such as David Bowie, Linda Ronstadt and Nirvana.
JDV then expanded into a collection of more than 35 award-winning hotels, restaurants and spas, with more than 3,000 employees -- with each property conveying a unique persona often influenced thematically by a popular magazine.
Author of several best-selling business books, his most recent The New York Times best-seller is titled Emotional Equations: Simple Truths for Creating Happiness + Success.
Bounding onto a general session stage, he announced: "What I've learned in 25 years of being a CEO, from a startup to growing into a big company, is that we as leaders are the emotional thermostats of the groups that we lead."
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Brent Green: LOHAS Forum: Where Generations Convene to Create a Healthier Future
Learn English Online (LEO) – Video
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A Better Way To Learn Online – Video
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Your Online Classroom – Video
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Online driver’s training gets OK
Posted: at 5:15 pm
Courtney Hergesheimer | Dispatch
Dana Goodwin, director of Advantage Driver Training in Columbus, teaches a class. He says online drivers education is no substitute for instructor and student interaction.
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Monday June 18, 2012 8:19 AM
Ohio teens soon will be able to opt to learn the rules of the road on the information superhighway.
Ohio will offer online drivers education starting in mid-September; it was one of several provisions of legislation signed by Gov. John Kasich last week.
Ohio teens younger than 18 currently must complete 24 hours of classroom instruction and eight hours behind the wheel with an instructor to obtain a drivers license. Under the new law, online courses can replace the 24 in-class hours, but behind-the-wheel training wont be affected. Online courses need the approval of the Ohio Department of Public Safety.
The change worries owners of Ohio driving schools, who say that jobs and youths will be in jeopardy.
This is a disservice to citizens of Ohio, said Dana Goodwin, director of Advantage Driver Training of Columbus. Theres no substitute for instructor and student interaction. They cant even make certain the student is the person sitting in front of the computer completing the work.
Ohio has 773 driving schools. Critics of the new law say as many as half of those schools could close because of online competition, usually from out-of-state operators.
Backers of the change say online options will offer families cheaper, more-flexible alternatives to traditional drivers education. And because students still need in-car training, the supporters downplay the threat to Ohio driving schools.
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Economic Impact Analysis Highlights Bridgepoint Education's Contribution to the San Diego Region
Posted: at 5:15 pm
SAN DIEGO, June 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- According to an independent study released today by the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation (EDC), Bridgepoint Education, Inc. (BPI) had an estimated economic impact of more than $1 billion in business outputon the San Diego region in 2011.
Bridgepoint Education is the ninth-largest employer in San Diego and the parent company of Ashford University and University of the Rockies, as well as the force behind Waypoint Outcomes and the Thuze and Constellation online etextbook platforms. As outlined in the 2012 Economic Impact Analysis report, in addition to the dollar amount of Bridgepoint's business output to the San Diego region, another $449 million in employee earnings and $579 million in estimated total value was added to the region's gross domestic product (GDP).
"Bridgepoint Education is proud to be a part of the San Diego community," stated Andrew Clark, chief executive officer of Bridgepoint Education. "The EDC's 2012 Economic Impact Analysis highlights our contribution to the region as a whole, both as the ninth-largest employer and as a thriving educational innovator."
The company also contributes significantly to regional tax coffers. Bridgepoint Education's state and local tax impact in 2011 added up to almost $44 million and its federal contribution totaled more than $120 million.
The report, commissioned by the EDC and prepared by The London Group, further explores Bridgepoint Education's estimated quantitative benefit to the San Diego region by not only looking at its business activity and its employee presence, but also at its philanthropic endeavors. In 2011, Bridgepoint Education contributed nearly $1.5 million to San Diego non-profit organizations.
"It is critical for us to understand the companies and industries that are driving economic growth within our region," said Mark Cafferty, president and CEO of San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation. "As one of the region's largest employers, Bridgepoint is a strong example of how a small business can transform into a broader, regional economic force."
About Bridgepoint EducationBridgepoint Education, Inc. (BPI) improves the way individuals learn. By harnessing creativity, knowledge and proprietary technologies, such as Constellation, Thuze and Waypoint Outcomes, Bridgepoint Education has re-engineered the modern student experience with innovative solutions that advance learning. Its accredited institutions Ashford University and University of the Rockies embody the contemporary college experience. Ashford University offers associate's, bachelor's and master's degree programs while University of the Rockies offers master's and doctoral degree programs. Both provide progressive online platforms, as well as traditional campuses located in Clinton, Iowa (Ashford University), and Colorado Springs, Colorado (University of the Rockies). For more information about Bridgepoint Education, visit http://www.bridgepointeducation.com or call Shari Rodriguez, associate vice president of Public Relations, at 858.668.2580.
About Ashford UniversityAshford University is defining the modern college experience by combining the heritage of a traditional campus with the flexibility and effectiveness of online learning. The University provides a vibrant learning community where high-quality programs and leading-edge technology create a dynamic, immersive and stimulating learning experience. Ashford University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission and a member of the North Central Association (www.ncahlc.org). The University offers practical and progressive associate's, bachelor's and master's degree programs online, as well as bachelor's degree programs at its Clinton, Iowa, campus. Ashford University where heritage meets innovation. For more information, please visit http://www.ashford.edu or call Shari Rodriguez, associate vice president of Public Relations, at 858.513.9240 x2513.
About University of the RockiesUniversity of the Rockies is an advanced graduate institution for tomorrow's thought leaders. The University provides an intimate and dynamic learning environment, offering highly specialized master's and doctoral degree programs in the social and behavioral sciences, access to industry experts, campus clinical programs for practical experience, and research and publishing opportunities. University of the Rockies is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission and a member of the North Central Association (www.ncahlc.org). Small by design, University of the Rockies classes are presented in a progressive online format and at its Colorado Springs, Colorado, campus. For more information, please visit http://www.rockies.edu or call Shari Rodriguez, associate vice president of Public Relations, at 866.621.0124 x2513.
About the San Diego Regional Economic Development CorporationEDC's mission is to attract high-wage technology-driven companies to the region from around the world, to assist companies in San Diego with expansion plans, and to advocate and champion foundational efforts to improve the region's competitiveness.
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Economic Impact Analysis Highlights Bridgepoint Education's Contribution to the San Diego Region
Celcom unveils Educube
Posted: at 5:15 pm
CELCOM Axiata Bhd yesterday launched Educube, the 3-in-1 online education service where primary and secondary school students can participate in online exams.
Celcom, which has over 12 million subscribers, partnered solutions provider Orenda Sdn Bhd to provide the service.
"We are investing a significant amount of money in this service and for RM4.99 a month, we are confident that most of our customers will find this a value for money proposition," said Celcom advanced data chief operations Afizulazha Abdullah.
The service will also available for non-Celcom customers by early July, he told reporters after the launch here yesterday.
The plan is to increase the questions by 10,000 every year for all school levels while access via smart mobile phones will be available in the third quarter of this year, said Afizulazha.
The service contents are developed by a team of accredited academicians, while all assessment material is reviewed according to the country's national education syllabus.
It has also been endorsed by the National Parent Teacher Association.
Celcom is inviting schools from all around the country to participate in an online national exam and trials for UPSR, PMR and SPM before sitting for the actual national examinations.
"Through the online exams, students will be able to gauge their standing in the academic arena, in comparison with their team mates before the real exams and this increases healthy competition among them," he said.
To subscribe to the service, Celcom customers only need to send a text to Celcom, while subscribers of other telcos can buy subscription cards at selected Blue Cube and authorised dealers starting from next month.
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Diane Mastrull: A Pilates business pregnant with possibility
Posted: at 11:23 am
Already in a position that seemed far too much to ask of a woman six months' pregnant, Liz Cahill maneuvered from her upside down "V" pose to another ridiculously tough configuration known as an extended fire hydrant.
While still face down and gripping a bar in front of her, Cahill turned her belly to the right and thrust her right leg up and out to resemble a dog doing its business. A very pregnant dog.
Perhaps crazier still, Cahill, 30, and her also-pregnant sister, Carrie Rorer, 34, who was similarly contorted alongside her, were each paying for this hour of sweating, panting and manipulation $400 for a 10-session package.
That doesn't surprise Kelly McBride. She was confident a niche market existed when she formed Belly Pilates in Bryn Mawr in 2006. Then again, she was working off what she considered solid research: three pregnancies of her own.
Not that running a business focused on pre- and postnatal mothers' fitness was her original career plan.
"This is Kelly 3.0," McBride, who lives in Wayne, joked last week.
The Brookhaven native had been an advertising major at Temple University. With training in computer graphic arts, she wound up teaching multimedia presentation at Moore College of Art and Design in the early 1990s. She also went into business preparing multimedia presentations for corporate clients, which lasted about five years.
"Then I entered into my second career: mommy," McBride said.
After her first two children were born, in 1997 and 2000, "I realized I needed to prioritize, and my children were my first priority," she said. She also realized something generations before her had already discovered: "Motherhood could be very challenging."
That got McBride thinking about how it could be made easier with fitness.
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“As Excercise in Anger Management (COD)” – Video
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