Webster University-Vienna Holds Symposium on Human Trafficking

Webster University's Vienna Campus Vienna held a student-initiated symposium on human trafficking October 1, 2009 at the United Nations in Vienna. The students collaborated with the United Nations Information Service and the United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UN.GIFT). The symposium focused on the issues related to the identification and protection of trafficked persons.

More information:

• http://www.webster.ac.at/vienna/w/ca_001_symposium_human_trafficking.html
• http://www.ungift.org/ungift/en/stories/university-students-learn-about-human-trafficking-at-united-nations-in-vienna.html
  

Lonely Planet guides for Vienna and Prague

Dear Students: remember that your Lonely Planet guides have a lot of information about the places we'll visit, as well as our hotel/hostel. The maps include most places we'll see.

Please use them as a resource, especially the maps and pages in 'Vienna' about the 'Innere Stadt' or inner district, p. 52-68
and itinerary builder in 'Prague', p. 60 and following pages about the places we'll visit!
Enjoy reading, I'm looking forward to seeing you

Paula

ZA SVOBODU! / BE FREE! - Národní muzeum

Exhibition at the National Museum in Prague looks at life during the Communist Era 20+ years after the "Velvet Revolution" and the factors that led to the change. The exhibition runs until July 6, 2010.

http://www.nm.cz/vystava-detail.php?f_id=284

2010 Referendum in Vienna

The citizens of Vienna voted a few months ago, (February) on these 5 questions. They were simply asked to vote Yes or No on the issue. It is called a consultative referendum which has not been used for nearly 20 years in the country.

"1. Are you in favour of the possibility to employ new caretakers (with a modern job description) for housing estates in Vienna?

2. Are you in favour of a comprehensive range of all-day schools in Vienna?

3. Should a congestion charge be introduced in Vienna?

4. Are you in favour of underground trains also running at night at weekends?

5. Are you in favour of an obligatory dog owner’s licence for dangerous dog breeds in Vienna?"

http://www.wieninternational.at/en/node/18329

Russian-made Hydrofoil Still in Service Between Vienna & Bratislava

The made for TV movie I Spy Returns (1994) is set mainly in Vienna, Austria. In the movie, a Russian couple come to Vienna from Hungary in a hydrofoil with the markings "SPD-METEOR V-BRATISLAVA." (See photo.) This imprint identifies it as the Russian-made hydrofoil that is owned by a Slovakian shipping company, The Slovak Danube Navigation Company (SPD). This vessel is now operating under SPaP-LOD. See website: http://www.lod.sk

The Meteor is considered a hydrofoil with a radical design. It has global significance because it is used in many countries around
the world. For example, there is

• Meteor service between St. Petersburg, Russia and the Peterhof, a summer palace of Russian tsars.
• Meteor service between St. Petersburg, Russia and the Kronstadt, a strongly fortified Russian seaport town, located on Kotlin Island, near the head of the Gulf of Finland.
  
• Meteor hydrofoils operate all over Volga, Don and Kama Rivers in Russia.
  
• Meteor hydrofoils are operated by a number of tour operators in Croatia, mostly for packaged tours, but there are also some scheduled services to islands in Adriatic.(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrofoil)
• This Meteor hydrofoil runs the Yangtze River in China:
  
  
  (Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:YangtzeMeteor.jpg)

The LOD website includes descriptions, dimensions, and photos of the Meteor hydrofoils in their fleet: See: http://www.lod.sk/en/Default.aspx?CatID=23 and http://www.lod.sk/en/Documents/METEOR_PS.pdf

For schedules, prices and reservation information for 2010 Meteor hydrofoil cruises between Vienna and Bratislava, see: http://www.lod.sk/en/Default.aspx?CatID=39

CLICK HERE for the 2010 information brochure for sightseeing cruises on the Meteor hydrofoil.

For historical information about Meteor V-Bratislava, see: http://www.shipspotting.com/modules/myalbum/photo-240234-Meteor+V.+Bratislava

For more information about the "Globalization themes in the TV-movie I Spy Returns (1994)," see: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Global_Issues:_Austria_%26_Czech_Republic

Map to Vienna Departure point for Cruise to Bratislava:

View Larger Map

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BBC News - Czech Republic voters move to right in general election

The conservative trend in Europe continues after recent elections in The UK and apparent move to the center-right in the Czech Republic. Voter turnout was 62.1% in the Czech election which compares favorably to the US track record. The US has not broken the 60% threshold in a national election since 1968. The Prime Ministers post is still up in the air however most likely will be a coalition form of government.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/europe/10180591.stm

Temelin Nuclear Power Plant Causes Tension between Austria and Czech Republic

The Temelin Nuclear Power Plant was built near the Austrian border. Austria is noted as being "fiercely anti-nuclear." However this power plant supplies nearly all of the power to the country.

According to the plant's Communication Department Head Milan Musak,

"Temelin has still not reached its full production capacity but plans to increase its production to the level of 15 TWh within the next five years. That annual output, the plant says, would cover the yearly consumption of all Czech households. This plan, called "Safely 15TERA", started on 1st July 2007. The plant hopes to maintain this level for at least the following 30 years."

http://www.radio.cz/en/article/95625

Google banned from Austrian roads over WLAN scandal - General News - Austrian Times Online News - English Newspaper

Google caught "accidentally" recording wireless LAN internet connection info in some European countries.

http://www.austriantimes.at/news/General_News/2010-05-27/23765/Google%20banned%20from%20Austrian%20roads%20over%20WLAN%20scandal

Austrian Oil Company Helps Kids Read

OMV has paired up with the Austrian Book Club and UNSECO to help lead efforts to teach kids to read which hampers social development.

EUobserver / Europe lacks resources to tackle cross-border crime, says Eurojust

Treaty of Lisbon may set up the framework for cross border jurisdiction. A European Prosecutors office could be established if the Treaty is ratified by all members of the EU.

http://euobserver.com/9/29703

Vienna tops quality of life survey - Telegraph

Vienna tops quality of life survey - Telegraph

Several European cities do well in the quality of life survey. The survey based its results on housing, the natural environment, political stability, education, and recreational activities. Interestly, the top US city ranked 31 is Honolulu out of 221 cities surveyed.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/austria/7768260/Vienna-tops-quality-of-life-survey.html

Protesters at 2000 Global Summit in Prague

In his book The Practices of Global Citizenship (2008, Published by Rowman & Littlefield), author Hans Schattle discusses his interviews with Americans and Czechs who took part in the Global Economic Summit Protests in Prague (Czech Republic) in September 2000.

Chelsea Mozen, a U.S. citizen from Atlanta, Georgia, was a spokesperson for the Initiative Against Economic Globalization (INPEG), a Czech group that coordinated protesters at the summit. In her high school years, Mozen organized a school fund to help build a Habitat for Humanity house, and was also a volunteer worker for urban Atlanta children. Although, she joined INPEG as a volunteer, she became a familiar face on worldwide television as IMPEG’s English-speaking spokesperson during the protests.

After the September 2000 protests, Mozen stayed in Prague and helped to start Krkova Kolon, a library and café that continued to be a popular meeting place for Czech activists.


CLICK HERE for photos (from The Prague Post) of Chelsea Mozen and others associated with the 2000 Global Summit Protests in Prague.

Schattle also interviewed Evan Henshaw-Plath, an American from Arcata, California, who was co-founder of the website, www.protest.net. Henshaw-Plath discusses how he was arrested in Prague while protesting at the IMF and World Bank meetings, and deported from the Czech Republic.

The Prague Post - Business - EU looks to approve national budgets

The Prague Post - Business - EU looks to approve national budgets

Grasser says Greece rescue was 'worst decision' - General News - Austrian Times Online News - English Newspaper

Grasser says Greece rescue was 'worst decision' - General News - Austrian Times Online News - English Newspaper

Sommernachtskonzert Schönbrunn der Wiener Philharmoniker

Sommernachtskonzert Schönbrunn der Wiener Philharmoniker

Free open air performance by the world famous Vienna Philharmonic on June 8, 2010 at the Schonbrunn Palace @ 9:00pm.

Nigerian Oil Spills Make Exxon Valdez Look Like Drop in the Bucket - AOL News

Nigerian Oil Spills Make Exxon Valdez Look Like Drop in the Bucket - AOL News

Globalization and McDonalds

What better way to capture the sense of Globalization than see a McDonalds on the streets of Vienna.

http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3V3mPH7rwM


In Saint Louis I live in an area that is just full of drive thrus such as McDonalds so I have some comfort now in going abroad that I wont be too far from the Golden Arches.

However the menu provides variations that suit local tastes, but maintains the traditional favorites.

http://www.mcdonalds.at/#

OPEC Opens New Building in Vienna

In March OPEC opened a new building in Vienna's historic 1st district. It has made significant technological upgrades and the increased space will allow for more journalists.

http://www.platts.com/weblog/oilblog/2010/03/17/opec_opens_new.html

UNODC - Human Trafficking

UNODC - Human Trafficking

Time line of events related to human trafficking around the globe.

Crime Commission opens in Vienna with call for better justice delivery

Crime Commission opens in Vienna with call for better justice delivery

Effects of Refining Oil are not limited to the United States:

On October 10, 2008, one of the three refineries in Austria caught fire. The video shows the danger that oil presents to any country, anywhere in the world. No oil was spilled, the thick black smoke still most likely did not help the air and businesses and those living around the refinery.

Click here to view a short video of the event: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgEYvN_zT0s

Human Trafficking/Modern Slavery in the Global Business World

Marion Mansberger, a Senior Associate Faculty at Webster University in Vienna, Austria presented a paper titled "Human Trafficking/Modern Slavery in the Global Business World" at the Global Academic Conference (April 16-17, 2010) at the Webster University--St. Louis, Missouri campus.

• For more details on this Presentation, CLICK HERE
  
• PRESENTATION DOWNLOAD: mansberger_humantrafficking_stl_april2010

Video: "The Abuse of Children is not a Peccadillo"

This video on the trafficking of children was commissioned by the Austrian Ministry of Youth and Family Affairs in co-operation with the Ministry for Economic Affairs, Division for Tourism, and UNICEF. It was featured in Austrian Airlines' In-Flight Video Program to raise awareness of the problem of child sex tourism.


Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSllckryD2U

IOM 2010 Summer School on Migration Studies

The International Organization of Migration (IOM) is sponsoring a Summer School on Migration Studies August 29 - September 4, 2010 in Jindřichův Hradec, Czech Republic (about 150 km south of Prague). The program is appropriate for undergraduates and graduate students. See links below for details.

• Program: http://iom.adeoo.at/files/Draft_2010_PROGRAM3.pdf
• Invitation to non-EU students: http://iom.adeoo.at/files/Invitation_foreign_students1.pdf
  

New START Treaty Between Russia and U.S.A.

May 13 2010--The U.S. Department of State has published the "Joint Statement by the Delegations of the Russian Federation and the U.S. on New Start Treaty," which U.S. Pres. Obama and Russian Pres. Medvedev signed in Prague on April 8, 2010. For the full statement, see: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2010/05/141827.htm

Video & Photos: President Obama in Prague (April 2010)

Pres. Barack Obama (USA) and Pres. Dmitry Medvedev (Russia) met in Prague on April 8, 2010 to sign a "New START" treaty to reduce stockpiles of nuclear weapons and set new verification procedures.



See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvLAtoX5-Ro

CLICK HERE for photos from The Washington Post.

OPEC is Silent on Oil Rig Explosion

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), whose headquarters is in Vienna, Austria, does not mention or comment about the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion off Louisiana coast on its website, http://www.opec.org/ OPEC's mission is described as follows:

... the mission of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is to coordinate and unify the petroleum policies of its Member Countries and ensure the stabilization of oil markets in order to secure an efficient, economic and regular supply of petroleum to consumers, a steady income to producers and a fair return on capital for those investing in the petroleum industry.

Since the U.S. is not a Member of OPEC, the organization may consider the Louisiana oil rig disaster as irrelevant to its concerns and therefore not comment about it. However the impact of the disaster is far-reaching and global -- environmentally, economically, and politically. There are many questions about the risk and effects of similar disasters occurring at other current or future off-shore oil drilling operations in the U.S. and elsewhere. Of course, we are asking what are / should be the roles and responsibilities of BP and other companies associated with Deepwater Horizon, the U.S. Government and its regulatory agencies, etc. But we should also ask:

• What are / should be the roles and responsibilities of organizations like OPEC in this disaster?
• What are / should be the roles and responsibilities of other organizations, governments, and corporations in Europe in a global-impact disaster like this one?
• As "global citizens," what are / should be OUR individual and collective roles and responsibilities in this? Is this an opportunity to rethink our enormous dependence on oil, and seek ways to change that?
  

IOM Project Reunites Human Trafficking Survivor with Her Sons

The International Organization for Migration (IOM), whose headquarters is in Prague, was instrumental in reuniting Flor Molina, a Mexican survivor of human trafficking, with her three teenage sons after an eight-year separation. Molina told her story at last week's US Department of Justice National Conference on Human Trafficking held in Washington, D.C.

The IOM assisted Molina in its ongoing project "Return, Reintegration, and Family Reunification for Victims of Trafficking in the United States."

For details, please see: http://www.iom.int/jahia/Jahia/media/press-briefing-notes/pbnAM/cache/offonce?entryId=27398

40th Anniversary of Earth Day (2010) in Prague

April 22, 2010 marked the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. In Prague, Mayor Pavel Bém marked the occasion by planting a tree in Stromovka’s Royal Park.
A representative of the U.S.A. also planted a White Oak (Illinois' state tree) on behalf of the U.S. and Chicago (Prague's sister city). For more information see http://prague.usembassy.gov/earthday2010.html

Other related Earth Day information and resources are linked on the the Prague embassy Earth Day web page, including:

• President Obama’s Video Message on 40th Anniversary of Earth Day
• Earth Day 2010 - Marine Biodiversity
• About the Earth Day Network with President Kathleen Rogers
• Earth Day Network

Photos: President Obama in Prague (April 2009)

View slides of President and Mrs. Obama's visit to Prague in April 4-5 2009 on the U.S. Embassy--Prague website: http://www.aic.cz/obama-speech/
Click on the image to begin the slide show.
Scenes include the Prague Castle, Hradcany Square, and the Jewish Quarter.

Charlie Rose Interviews Thomas Friedman (May 13, 2010)

Thomas Friedman, of The New York Times, discusses The global interconnectedness of recent events in Europe and elsewhere.

Video available at: http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/11012

President Obama in Prague (April 2009)

President Obama addresses a crowd in Hradcany Square on April 5, 2009, touching on issues from green energy to nuclear treaties. (public domain)

• Available at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/video/The-President-in-Prague
• Transcript available at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-barack-obama-prague-delivered
• BBC Analysis: "Obama promotes nuclear-free world" http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7983963.stm

Global Issues in Cinema: Vienna in "Before Sunrise" (1995)

The popular 1995 movie, Before Sunrise [Available from Amazon.com], was shot on location in Vienna, Austria. CLICK HERE for a map showing descriptions and photos some of the locations used in the movie. Click on each location on the map for the description and photo.

Are there any "global issues" associated with these locations in the movie? Were there any "global issues" depicted in the movie at all?

Global Issues in Cinema & Television: Vienna in "I Spy Returns" (1994)

Global issues are often portrayed vividly in cinema and television. In the made-for-television movie I Spy Returns (Originally aired in 1994; Available from Amazon.com). global issues such as international espionage (post-cold war); the Iraq War; and multinational cooperation are underlying themes. This movie was produced 25 years after original TV weekly series (I Spy) with Bill Cosby as Alexander Scott and Robert Culp as Kelly Robinson.

Click HERE for a detailed map and featured locations used in the movie. Click on each location for a photo and description of how the location applies to the global issue theme in the movie.

Global Issues: Austria & Czech Republic

The course "Global Issues: Austria & Czech Republic" (3 credits) is a combination online + short term international travel course. The course focuses on the historical and contemporary forces that contribute to globalization in Austria and the Czech Republic. Participants explore global issues such as oil, nuclear energy / nuclear weapons, global economics, drugs, human rights, migration, and sustainability. The travel component includes seminars at organizations that shape the global political, economic, social and humanitarian concerns, such as OPEC, OSCE, IAEA, UNODC and UNIDO.

• FOR WHOM: Undergraduate or graduate students, alumni or professionals.
  
• WHEN: Online dates: May 10 – July 9, 2010 / On-Location dates: June 7-11, 2010

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