FILE PHOTO: Dancers clad in mango-inspired costumes participate in the street dancing competition of the Mango Festival in Zambales to celebrate the province’s bountiful mango harvest. (Allan M. Macatuno) SAN ANTONIO, Zambales — The biggest festival in this province, featuring the world’s sweetest mango, will return on April 21–29 after a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Gov. Hermogenes Ebdane Jr., the provincial government and various community organizations have started preparing for at least 16 major events to highlight a nine-day festival. “We expect more visitors to come to the festival this year because we have activities that would appeal to a wide range of audiences,” Ebdane said in a statement on Wednesday, March 22. Aside from the parades, drum and lyre performances, street dance competitions, various mango-eating challenges and a series of mango-picking activities targeting visitors will take place on five provinces’ farms. Other … [Read more...] about Zambales mango festival to go full blast after pandemic halt
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Baseball’s Most Valuable Teams 2023: Price Tags Are Up 12% Despite Regional TV Woes
Last season’s record revenue for Major League Baseball translates into all-time-high valuations for its teams. By Mike Ozanian and Justin Teitelbaum T he eroding economics of regional sports networks made little difference: Major League Baseball teams are still hot assets. Before Arte Moreno pulled the plug on selling his Los Angeles Angels in January, he would have gotten at least $2.7 billion, or $280 million more than the MLB record $2.42 billion that Steve Cohen paid for the New York Mets in 2020, according to people familiar with the sale process. The average MLB team value is up 12% this year, to $2.32 billion. During the 2022 season, revenue (net of stadium debt service) increased 7.8%, to an all-time high of $10.3 billion. The top-line gain was driven by a 64% increase in ticket revenue (including postseason and spring training), to $2.4 billion (the 2021 season started with nearly all ballparks under capacity restrictions) and a 35% increase in … [Read more...] about Baseball’s Most Valuable Teams 2023: Price Tags Are Up 12% Despite Regional TV Woes
Why the SPLC’s new logo ditched its famous icon
The Southern Poverty Law Center bankrupted the Ku Klux Klan and other hate groups through the power of the legal system—and so it might have come as a surprise when the organization recently unveiled its new logo, it was conspicuously lacking the scales of justice icon that had defined the organization for years. It was a change that no one on the project team took lightly—but the organization was committed to bold moves, and for good reason. “Historically, it’s been a law firm, it’s been a legal service for voting rights and civil rights and advocacy groups, but over time, it’s expanded into something that’s much more than that,” says Chris Mihal, SPLC’s director of creative. In 2022, the organization completed a new strategic framework focused on its four key offerings: law, education, policy, and programming, centered around the critical subjects of hate and extremism, children’s rights, economic justice, immigrant justice, LGBTQ rights, criminal justice reform, … [Read more...] about Why the SPLC’s new logo ditched its famous icon
POV: How work arrangements played a part in the collapse of Credit Suisse and SVB
The world watched in shock as Credit Suisse, one of the most established global banking and financial services institutions, collapsed and was eventually acquired by UBS. I believe a significant factor in Credit Suisse’s downfall was its rigid stance on forcing staff to return to the office. This cautionary tale serves as a reminder for business leaders to adapt to the changing world of work and prioritize their workforce’s needs and preferences. The Iron Fist: Credit Suisse’s return to office policy In stark contrast to the growing trend of many companies embracing a flexible hybrid work approach, Credit Suisse took a more traditional approach, mandating that staff return to the office three days a week. According to one banker there, “they’re removing our flexibility, and it doesn’t feel great.” In May 2022, the bank’s leadership originally supported flexibility and hybrid work as evidenced by then-CEO Thomas Gottstein professing that a return to office was “not … [Read more...] about POV: How work arrangements played a part in the collapse of Credit Suisse and SVB
POV: Tomorrow’s founders can’t code—and that’s OK
A monk, a composer, and an industrial designer walk into a bar. No, I’m not making a joke. I’m simply imagining a hypothetical scenario where the cofounders of Headspace, Pandora, and Airbnb decide to meet up for drinks. You may think these figures represent a lonely cohort within tech entrepreneurship. We’re often confronted with the tired (and, as the data shows, largely inaccurate) stereotype of the algorithm-crunching, code-wrangling, Patagonia-wearing startup founder. These characters —who undeniably exist, but are more marginal than perhaps realized—effortlessly straddle the worlds of engineering and business. They’re the full package. Admittedly, these characters also tend to be the most visible. Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Mark Andreessen all have storied engineering careers—and often complex personal and professional lives that inevitably work their way into popular culture. But when we examine the data, we see a different picture. Rather than … [Read more...] about POV: Tomorrow’s founders can’t code—and that’s OK
Cold shower for Hungary’s famed hot baths
Tourists and guests swim in the water of the Szechenyi Spa in Budapest, Hungary, on February 6, 2023. AFP BUDAPEST — Hungary’s grand thermal baths are struggling to stay afloat, buffeted by rocketing energy bills. For many tourists a highlight of a trip to Budapest is a relaxing soak at one of its many ornate bathhouses. The capital boasts an array of spectacular venues, from neo-baroque pools where bathers can play chess to sumptuous art nouveau confections and exotic Ottoman-era hammams. But running the energy-guzzling baths “costs 170 percent more than last year,” said Edit Reffy of Budapest Spas, which operates the city’s bathhouses. While much of the water is naturally hot, the large historic buildings cost a fortune to run and heat. “It’s a daunting challenge,” she told AFP, saying they have had to up ticket prices, reduce opening hours and cover outdoor pools. Prices at historic Budapest baths like the Gellert have been hiked “by more than 30 percent”, said … [Read more...] about Cold shower for Hungary’s famed hot baths
New ventures drive growth for LG Energy Solution
KooRoo’s battery swapping station [LG ENERGY SOLUTION] LG Energy Solution is pushing ahead with its new businesses and focusing on future growth with in-house ventures KooRoo and AVEL, the battery manufacturing unit of LG Group said. KooRoo, established last year, is seeking to commercialize its battery swapping stations (BSS), which increase the convenience for users of electric motorbikes by allowing them to swap out a used battery for a fully-charged one rather than having to spend time charging the original battery. The service addresses a lot of the issues raised by electric vehicle users, including the long charge time, relatively short distance that can be traveled and high maintenance costs. “If the electric motorbike battery ecosystem grows, it will help delivery services, be eco-friendly, quiet and safe," said Ahn Hong-duk, head of KooRoo. “We are set to initiate developing exclusive BSS battery packs and stations and plan to build up the electric motorcycle … [Read more...] about New ventures drive growth for LG Energy Solution
What Leadership Lessons From Lockdown Still Apply Today?
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Three years ago today, then prime minister Boris Johnson announced the first nationwide lockdown in the U.K., with the aim of curbing the outbreak of Covid-19. Leaders whose lives had previously been defined by the 7am train, takeaway cappuccinos and water cooler chats suddenly found themselves plunged into the world of hybrid working, home schooling and Zoom meetings. For many, this period of upheaval came with both pros and cons. On the one hand, leaders were suddenly handed freedom and flexibility while being simultaneously released from the arduousness of the morning commute. On the other, they battled loneliness and spent increasingly long hours chained to their laptops as work life blurred into home life, with delivery of the odd science lesson thrown in along the way. Overall, the pandemic is an era that most leaders will be glad to have left behind. But what important leadership lessons from that time can we still … [Read more...] about What Leadership Lessons From Lockdown Still Apply Today?
They Turned Their Dream To Create A Show-Stopping Museum Devoted To Broadway Into A Reality
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin In 2018/2019, the last time Broadway had a full 52-week season, more than 14.77 million people attended a Broadway show. According to the Broadway League these productions have drawn more people to its theaters than all New York City sports teams combined. And yet, during its centuries of existence, Broadway never had its own dedicated museum in the heart of the theater district. That is until now. This past November the Museum of Broadway opened its doors on West 45th Street. Spread along four fun-packed floors, the 26,000 square foot space contains a plethora of costumes, original scripts, immersive exhibits and other unique artifacts. There’s everything from the original Ziegfeld Follies costumes from the early 1900s to the actual wig made from 100,000 strands of hair created by wigmaker Paul Huntley for Patti LuPone in the original 1979 Broadway production of Evita to correspondence between Rent … [Read more...] about They Turned Their Dream To Create A Show-Stopping Museum Devoted To Broadway Into A Reality
U.S. Government Sets Bold Goals For The U.S. Bioeconomy – Including A Target For 30% Of Bio-Based Chemicals
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Back in September, President Biden inked a new executive order setting the government on a bold new course for creating a national biostrategy . One of the first tasks assigned to each of the government agencies was to develop goals that outline how they plan to realize the vision of a bio-based economy. Yesterday the White House issued a report highlighting just that. Spearheaded by Georgia Lagoudas, Senior Advisor for Biotechnology and Bioeconomy at the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy who is responsible for implementing the Executive Order , the document contains a number of specific strategies developed by agencies like the USDA, NIH, NSF, DOE, and DOD for introducing climate change solutions, food and agriculture innovation, supply chain resilience, human health, as well as cross-cutting advances that can have an impact across all those sectors. Representatives from those agencies spoke at the … [Read more...] about U.S. Government Sets Bold Goals For The U.S. Bioeconomy – Including A Target For 30% Of Bio-Based Chemicals