To build a relationship requires trust and this is much more intense for one in which the two sides most likely have and will never meet. Trust on the Internet is one of paramount importance, especially if that relationship is transactional; where money is involved. Even deeper than that is the fact that Data is the new gold, so almost everything we do on the net needs to be secure.
To build that relationship of trust is not easy, but there has been increasing pressure on website owners to create an environment that allows their users to feel secure. SSL certificates are one key means of doing this, since they assure users that the connection they have to that website is safe.
For the end user, all they need to verify this is a simple icon shown on their browser. For website owners, it’s a little more complicated, but doesn’t have to be.
What is Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
Why do we need a SSL certificate
How SSL works
Types of SSL certificates
How to choose a certificate authority (CA)
List of reputable SSL providers
Free SSL: Where to get them?
How to install a SSL certificate
Common SSL certificate errors and solutions
What is Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)?
SSL is a security protocol that assures users that the connection between their computer and the site they are visiting is secure. During a connection, lots of information passes between two computers, including what may be highly confidential data such as credit card numbers, user identification numbers or even passwords.
Under normal circumstances, this data is sent in plain text, which means that if the connection were to be intercepted by a third party, that data could be stolen. SSL prevents this by mandating an encryption algorithm to be used during the connection on both ends.
The padlock, or green padlock icon has become an assurance indicator to users that the website they are visiting takes their security seriously.
Indication of SSL on different Internet browsers.
Why do we need a SSL Certificate?
Originally the common question to ask was “Do we need a SSL certificate”.
And the typical answer would be ‘it depends’. After all, why would websites that did not need to handle sensitive financial-related data need to be so secure?
Unfortunately, as mentioned earlier, the age of digital has meant that aside of immediate cash, hackers today have increasingly begun to go after personal information.
The Google Factor
Recognizing this, beginning July 2018, Google will be labelling all standard HTTP pages as non-secure. This is important to recognize, because it means that sites recognized as being non-secure by Google might suffer a search ranking penalty. Websites thrive on traffic and if you’re not showing up on Google listings, then you won’t get much in terms of website traffic.
If there was a ranking improvement, it was negligible. Despite this, having SSL was still a smart move.
It’s a trust signal and it avoids the possibility of Chrome displaying ‘not secured’ on your site. And while the direct ranking benefits may be small at the moment, it’s possible that they may be more significant in the future.
I’d initially held off switching to SSL. I’d heard a lot of horror stories of traffic nose diving and not recovering. Fortunately this wasn’t the case. Traffic dipped slightly for around a week, then came back.
– Adam Connell, Blogging Wizard
According to the Google Online Security Blog, as of the beginning of 2018, over 68% of Chrome traffic on both Android and Windows has been protected and 81 of the top 100 sites on the web are already using HTTPS by default.
Percent of page loads over HTTPS in Chrome by platform. 64% of Chrome traffic on Android is now protected. Over 75% of Chrome traffic on both ChromeOS and Mac is now protected. All three figures show significant increment compare to a year ago.
For now, you might not need an SSL Certificate yet, but it might be wise to seriously consider implementing one. Although at this point Google is only issuing warnings and penalizing search rankings, given the state of cybersecurity today, it likely isn’t going to stop there.
How SSL Works
Simplistically speaking, there are three main components in creating a connection;
The Client – This is the computer that is requesting for information.
The Server – The computer which holds the information being requested by the Client.
The Connection – The path along which data travels between the client and server.
HTTP vs HTTPS connection (Source: Sucuri)
To establish a secure connection with SSL, there are a few more terms you need to be aware of.
Certificate Signing Request (CSR) – This creates two keys on the server, one private and one public. The two keys work in tandem to help establish the secure connection.
Certificate Authority (CA) – This is an issuer of SSL certificates. Sort of like a security company that holds a database of trusted websites.
Once a connection is requested, the server will create the CSR. This action then sends data which includes the public key to the CA. The CA then creates a data structure which matches the private key.
The most critical part of the SSL Certificate is that it is digitally signed by the CA. This is vital because browsers only trust SSL Certificates signed by a very specific list of CAs such as VeriSign or DigiCert. The list of CAs are stringently vetted and must comply with security and authentication standards set by the browsers.
Types of SSL Certificates
Browsers identify SSL Certificates (EV Certificate is shown in this image) and activate the browser interface security enhancements.
Although all SSL certificates are designed for the same purpose, not all are equal. Think of it like buying a phone. All phones are basically designed to do the same thing, but there are different companies that manufacture them and produce many different models at varying price points.
To simplify the matters, we break down the SSL Certificate types by level of trust.
1- Domain Validated (DV) Certificate
Among SSL Certificates, the Domain Validated Certificate is the most basic and simply assures users that the site is safe. There is not much detail except for that simple fact and many security organizations do not recommend using Domain Validated Certificates for websites that deal in commercial transactions. The Domain Validated Certificate is the budget smartphone of the SSL world.
2- Organization Validated (OV) Certificate
Organizational Certificates holders are more stringently vetted are by CAs than Domain Validated Certificate holders. In fact, the owners of these certificates are authenticated by dedicated staff who validate them against government-run business registries. OV Certificates contain information about the business holding them and are often used on commercial websites and represent the midrange smartphones of the SSL world.
3- Extended Validation (EV) Certificate
Representing the highest level of trust in SSL rankings, EV Certificates are opted for by the best of the best and extremely stringently vetted. By opting to use EV Certificates, these websites are buying deeply into consumer trust. These are the iPhoneX of the SSL world.
The fact that SSL Certification has become so highly recommended today, many fraud websites have also taken to using SSL. After all, there is little difference to the websites, except for the green certification padlock. This is the key reason more reputable organizations are going for SSL Certification that are more highly vetted.
Since any successful SSL connection causes the padlock icon to appear, users are not likely to be aware of whether the website owner has been validated or not. As a result, fraudsters (including phishing websites) have started to use SSL to add perceived credibility to their websites. – Wikipedia.
How to Choose the Right Certificate Authority
Certificate Authorities are like private security companies. They are the ones who issue digital certificates that facilitate the SSL establishment process. They also belong to a limited list of businesses that meet detailed criteria to maintain their place on that list. CAs who maintain their place on that list can issue SSL Certificates – so the list is exclusive.
The process is not quite as simple as it sounds, since before a certificate can be issued, the CA must check the identity of the website applying for it. The level of detail in those checks depend on what type of SSL is being applied for.
The best CA is one who has been in the business for some time and follows best practices in business, not only for itself but also for any partners associated with the business. Ideally, they should also be able to demonstrate proven expertise in the field.
Look for a CA that stays up to current standards, are actively involved in the security industry and has as many resources as possible that support their customers.
A good CA would also;
Have reasonably short validation times
Be easily accessible to its customers
Have great support
List of Reputable SSL Providers to Consider
* Note: Features are reflective of basic plans offered by the service providers. For detailed plans please visit the individual service providers.
Already providing SSL certificates to major organizations such as Cisco and HP, SSL.com has been in the business for close to 20 years now.
This strong history is backed by a warranty with each certificated issued, the amount of which depends on the certificate you purchase, ranging from $10,000 to $2 million.
99% Browser Compatibility
Unlimited Server Licenses
Unlimited Reissuances and Key Pairs
Activates SSL Secure Site Seal
30 Day Unconditional Refund
90-day Courtesy carryover coverage
Go to SSL.com
NameCheap offers the full gamut of SSL certificates so you’ll find something there no matter what your requirements or budget. Standard Domain Validation certificates start from $8.88 per year, but there are also premium certificates that go for up to $169 per year.
Go to Name Cheap
3. The SSL Store
One o the oldest SSL reseller in market, The SSL Store covers all levels of cyber security solutions for different users – from individuals to large scale enterprises. Some of the well-known SSL certificates you can buy at The SSL Store include Rapid SSL, Positive SSL, Thawte, Sectigo (Comodo), GeoTrust, and so on.
Platinum SSL resellers with world’s leading CA
Best price guarantee – The SSL Store will match lowest price in market
Risk free – 30 day money back guarantee
Compare and shop for SSL/TLS at the same place
Value added service – Get SSL installed at your website at $24.99
Go to TheSSLStore
A name that many website owners already know and trust, GoDaddy has complemented its services with SSL certificates that go for as low as $75.15. As it sells its web hosting packages, there are also opportunities for discounted initial purchases of SSL Certificates which cost more upon renewal. This makes GoDaddy a good one-stop service provider for website owners.
Secures one website
SHA2 & 2048-bit encryption
Available in DV, OV and EV SSL Certificates
EV SSL turns browser bar green
McAfee SECURE trustmark
Go to GoDaddy
One of the oldest and strongest names in SSL, DigiCert is used by most of the top dogs on the Internet including Microsoft, Wikipedia and Amazon.com. They too offer up to 2048-bit encryption and clock in at $175 per annum at the lowest end.
Trusted by over 99.9% of browsers
Highest-rated CA for customer service worldwide
Free reissues and replacements for the lifetime of the certificate
GeoTrust is also an industry stalwart and a good option for those who might balk at DigiCert prices. Basic protection starts from $149, with a $500,000 warranty even with the most basic option. More than 100,000 customers in over 150 countries have committed themselves to GeoTrust protection.
Up to 256-bit Encryption
Alternative Name (SAN) multi-domain support
Fast Domain Validation
99+% browser compatibility
7. Network Solutions
With SSL certificates starting from $59.99 per annum, Network Solutions is impressive because it comes with a warranty of $10,000 even at that price. However, they do enforce a 2-year lock in period, but that shouldn’t be a major problem. The company operates under the web.com group.
Fast certificate validation
Who to buy from?
There are SSL Certificate issues and then there are SSL Certificate experts. Choosing the lowest bidder might be slightly easier on your wallet, but like I’ve mentioned many times over in this article, it’s a matter of trust.
Think of who you would rather buy a product from – for anything else – then consider your options on SSL providers. Also, beyond the price, make sure that the features offered are also compatible with your needs. Aside from the certifications and trust, different providers offer different levels of support. Look beyond the hype and fancy names and go for what you really need.
For those of you who are running personal or hobby sites, or anything that’s non-commercial, there is an out for you that is nonetheless acceptable to Google.
Let’s Encrypt is a trusted CA that is open and free to use (). Unfortunately, it only issues domain- or DNS-validated certificates with no plans to extend this to OV or EV. This means that their certificates can only validate ownership and not the holding company. If you’re a commercial site, that’s the major drawback.
Let’s Encrypt is pre-configured at certain hosting companies (for example- SiteGround and A2 Hosting). If you plan to go with Let’s Encrypt Free SSL, it’s best to host with one of these web hosts.
Standard Let’s Encrypt SSL is free with all hosting accounts and auto-installed to all domains with SiteGround.
Users can switch to HTTPS (using Let’s Encrypt at Siteground) in just a few simple clicks.
To check your free standard Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates at SiteGround, login to cPanel > Security > SSL / TLS Manager > Certificates (CRT).
Starting from March 29, 2018, Let’s Encrypt Wildcard SSL is also included (free) in all SiteGround hosting accounts. This would be a time saver for site owners who are running on multiple sub-domains (mail.domain.com, billing.domain.com, etc). Learn more in my SiteGround review.
How to Install a SSL Certificate
SSL Installation for cPanel
Under ‘Security’ options, click on ‘SSL/TLS Manager’
Under ‘Install and Manage SSL’, select ‘Manage SSL Sites’
Copy your certificate code including —–BEGIN CERTIFICATE—– and —–END CERTIFICATE—– and paste it into the “Certificate: (CRT)” field.
Click ‘Autofill by Certificate’
Copy and paste the chain of intermediate certificates (CA Bundle) into the box under Certificate Authority Bundle (CABUNDLE)
Click ‘Install Certificate’
* Note: If you are not using a dedicated IP address you will have to select one from the IP Address menu.
SSL Installation for Plesk
Go to the Websites & Domains tab and choose which domain you’d like to install the certificate for.
Click ‘Secure Your Sites’
Under the ‘Upload Certificate Files’ segment, click ‘Browse’ and choose the certificate and the CA bundle files necessary.
Click ‘Send Files’
Go back to ‘Websites & Domains’ then click on ‘Hosting settings’ for the domain you’re installing the certificate on.
Under ‘Security’, there should be a drop-down menu for you to select the certificate.
Ensure the ‘SSL Support’ box is checked.
Make sure you click ‘OK’ to save changes
To validate if your installation was successful, you can use this free SSL validation tool.
Update your website’s internal links
If you check your website’s internal links you will notice that they are all using HTTP. Obviously these need to be updated to HTTPS links. Now in a few steps we’ll show you a way to do this globally using a redirection technique.
However, it is best practice to update your internal links from HTTP to HTTPS.
If you’ve got a small website with just a few pages that shouldn’t take too long. However if you have hundreds of pages it would take ages so you’d be better off using a tool to automate this to save time. If your site runs on database, perform database search and replace using this free script.
Update links pointing to your site
Once you switch to HTTPS if you have external websites linking to you they will be pointing to the HTTP version. We’ll be setting up a redirection in a few steps time, but if there are any external websites where you control your profile then you can update the URL to point to the HTTPS version.
Good examples of these would be your social media profiles and any directory listings where you have a profile page that’s under your control.
Setup a 301 Redirect
OK onto the techie bit and if you’re not confident with this type of thing then it’s definitely time to get some expert assistance. It’s pretty straightforward and doesn’t take much time at all in fact, but you just need to know what you’re doing.
With a 301 Redirect what you’re doing is telling Google that a particular page has been permanently moved to another address. In this case you’re going to tell Google that any HTTP pages on your site are now HTTPS so it redirects Google to the correct pages.
For most people who use Linux web hosting this will be done through the .htaccess file (see code below – as per Apache recommendation).
Redirect “/” “https://www.example.com/”
Update Your CDN SSL
This is actually an optional step because not everyone uses a CDN. CDN stands for Content Delivery Network and it’s a geographically distributed set of servers that store copies of your web files and they present them to your visitors from a geographically close server to improve the speed that it loads for them.
As well as performance improvements, a CDN can also offer better security because it’s servers can monitor and identify malicious traffic and stop it reaching your website.
An example of a popular CDN is Cloudflare.
Either way, just ask your hosting company if you are using a CDN. If you aren’t fine, just move on to the next step.
If you are then you need to contact the CDN and ask them for instructions to update your SSL so that their CDN system recognizes it.
Common SSL certificate errors and quick solutions
1- SSL Certificate not trusted
Almost all browsers in widespread use such as Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, and Apple Safari have built in repositories that are used to recognize trusted SSL Certificates.
If you’re getting a message stating that a site has a certificate which is not trusted, exercise caution as that is likely to mean that the certificate present was not signed by a trusted CA.
2- Intermediate SSL Certificate missing
This error is often caused by an incorrectly installed SSL Certificate. Errors during the installation procedure may lead to some SSL connection errors. There should be a ‘chain of trust’ meaning that all necessary components in the signing process should run unbroken.
If you’re a website owner and encountering this error, try referring to the section I’ve covered on ‘SSL Installation’.
3- Problems with Self-Signed Certificates
To circumvent SSL issues, some website owners create their own SSL Certificates. This is possible, but do not make much of a difference since it won’t be signed by a trusted CA. The only time that self-signed certificates are likely used are in test or development environments. Sites with self-signed certificates will not be shown as secure.
4- Mixed Content Errors
This is a configuration problem. For SSL Certificates to work, every single page and file on your site should be HTTPS linked. This includes not only pages, but also images and documents. If a single page is not HTTPS linked, the site will encounter a mixed content error and revert to HTTP.
To avoid these problems, make sure your links are all updated with HTTPS links.
At the end of the day, SSL Certificates are a win-win situation. Yes, it may be forced upon us by big businesses such as Google, but there’s really very little downside.
For a small price, you can assure customers of the security of their data and privacy. Customers on the other hand, can regain faith in digital technology, a field that has increasingly been blighted by Hackers, Spammers and other Cybercriminals.
eCommerce is one of the key pillars towards the digital economy and has helped increase cross-border trade now more than ever before. By keeping data safe and secure, as website owners you can personally contribute to Internet security too.
Lastly, when choosing your SSL, try to avoid just keeping your eye on the price and do your best to always revert to one simple word when you’re feeling lost or confused; Trust.
WHSR receive referral fees from companies mentioned in this page. Our opinions are based on real experience and actual server data. Please read our review policy page to understand how our host review and rating system works.


Piecing the Puzzle
The Genesis of AIDS Research in Africa
In 1979, Dr. Allan Ronald, a specialist in infectious diseases from Canada, and Dr. Herbert Nsanze, head of medical microbiology at University of Nairobi, met through the World Health Organization. Ronald had just completed a successful project that cured a chancroid (genital ulcer) epidemic in Winnipeg and Nsanze asked him to come to Kenya to help with Kenya’s “sexual diseases problem.” That initial invitation led to a groundbreaking international scientific collaboration that would uncover critical pieces in the complex puzzle that became today’s HIV/AIDS pandemic. In Piecing the Puzzle, journalist and documentary filmmaker Larry Krotz chronicles the fascinating history of the pioneering Kenyan, Canadian, Belgian, and American research team that uncovered HIV/AIDS in Kenya, their scientific breakthroughs and setbacks, and their exceptional thirty-year relationship that began a new era of global health collaboration.
Publication Date: May 1st, 2012
220 pages| 6 in x 9 in
LARRY KROTZ has, as writer and filmmaker, explored the ways our actions affect our world. Widely traveled, he is well acquainted with Canada's north, including numerous First Nations communities. He is the author of five books including The Uncertain Business of Doing Good and Piecing the Puzzle.


ち ょ っ と (chotto) - meaning "a little" - is one of the most commonly used words in Japanese. For those who are starting to learn Japanese, let's find out how and when to say "chotto"!
You can use it in situations like saying sorry, telling people something you don't want to or can't do. A very useful expression!
For everyone coming to live, study and work in Japan. So that you can get used to life in Japan faster!


Expert interview with Michael Butts
Finding answers to environmental concerns, such as water scarcity and droughts issues is a complex task. We posed five questions to our drought expert, Michael Butts.
Follow him as he walks us through this vital topic.
- What are the causes of drought? And is there a link between climate change and drought?
Droughts are related to our climate. Or rather, they are extreme variations from normal climate conditions. They are periods of abnormally dry weather that are sufficiently long for the lack of water to become a serious problem. For example, Bolivia suffered a major drought in 2016, reputed to be the worst in the last 25 years. A national state of emergency had to be declared to manage the water shortages. In Sri Lanka, persistent drought conditions in 2016 and early 2017 led to widespread crop failures, particularly rice paddies. In the same year, serious droughts were also reported in Cambodia, China, Haiti, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Paraguay, South Sudan, Swaziland and Timor-Leste. So droughts, like floods, reflect natural but dramatic climate variability and lead to temporary, albeit over many months, reductions in water availability. What climate change science is telling us is that our own activities are affecting our planet’s climate and weather. Work presented by the IPCC concludes that climate change will likely lead to global increases in extreme weather along with heightened risks to livelihoods, human health, and infrastructure, both today and in the future.
|Let’s explore some terms!
Droughts: can be considered as a temporary decrease of the average water availability. Reflect climate variability.
Water scarcity: refers to long-term water imbalances, combining low water availability with a level of water demand exceeding the natural recharge.
Water stress: occurs when the demand for water exceeds the available amount during a certain period or when poor quality restricts its use.
- What are the consequences of drought?
As we saw in the case of Bolivia and Sri Lanka, the most common consequences of drought are shortages of water and in many cases the resulting shortages of food. The severity of these impacts depends on not only the severity of the drought itself but also on our ability to cope or vulnerability. Another important factor that affects our vulnerability to water shortages is the increasing demand for freshwater, for drinking, for washing, for agriculture and for industry. This is driven in part by population growth, which again increases the vulnerability of developing countries.
‘Recent figures indicate that, globally, the use of freshwater is growing at roughly twice the rate of population growth. This may be an even more pressing problem than climate change, affecting both the developed and developing world.’
We speak of water scarcity where we have a long-term imbalance because the level of demands for freshwater exceed the natural replenishment. The high demands for water for agricultural production and periods of minimal precipitation have led to water crises in California, Australia and elsewhere.
- What is the most important thing for organisations, utilities or authorities dealing with drought?
We cannot stop droughts or the rain or, as King Canute – the Viking King of England – demonstrated, the tides. Our only option is to find ways to cope and adapt. We can cope with water shortages in a variety of ways. We can find new sources of water; from groundwater, by increasing storage capacity in reservoirs, transferring water from one river basin to another or even, despite the cost and energy required, desalinate seawater. Alternatively, we can be more efficient in the ways we use water, by water recycling, changing crops and cropping patterns, more efficient irrigation, or by metering and pricing to encourage water conservation.
‘We may need to provide political or economic support or make changes to the local, national or intranational institutions responsible for water governance.’
The most important thing is to bring together the right information to make the most appropriate decisions. Especially drought planning decisions on how to manage and use water resources so that the risk of droughts leading to water shortages are reduced or even eliminated.
- How can we forecast the next drought? (Or: What is drought planning?)
In many areas, if we look at history and climate data we can be sure that droughts will happen at some point. However, forecasting exactly when is more difficult. We have all experienced how difficult it seems to be to forecast the weather reliably just a few days into the future. Water managers and hydrologists have a distinct advantage that by knowing the water stored in mountain snow packs, in reservoirs or the groundwater and understanding how demands for water change, we can forecast the availability of water, even if a drought should occur.
“By carefully monitoring satellite-derived soil water deficits, we can estimate how supply and demand are evolving, provide an early warning of developing drought conditions and plan adaptation measures during the early stages of the drought..”
Preparing for the drought or drought planning is the most reliable way of avoiding the most critical effects of drought such as shortages of food and water. Decision-makers within farming, municipal water supply, hydropower producers, industry, tourism, environmental agencies, local and national government can then use these drought plans to protect themselves.
- How can developing countries get access to information and technology in managing drought?
Fortunately, we can draw from a broad range of technologies for managing and adapting to water scarcity, droughts and water shortages. And they can be applied to find robust solutions to current challenges or in a future of increasing demands and climate change. The choices are as diverse as satellite monitoring and seasonal forecasting for drought early warning, water licensing and permitting, surface water reservoirs, groundwater prospecting, reducing pipe leakage or increasing irrigation efficiency. Collaboration among authorities at the regional, national and local levels is often needed to develop equitable and sustainable solutions.
‘Decision Support Systems can be used both as a common knowledge platform and as operational tool to integrate information about climate and water data, socio-economic variables, management scenarios and climate change impacts to inform decision-making.’
It is not possible for me to cover all these technologies here. For practitioners, I can suggest as a starting point, the recently published guide to adaptation technologies, covering both too much and too little water.
Examples of decision support system and tools for drought planning and monitoring can be found through:
European Drought Observatory: http://edo.jrc.ec.europa.eu/edov2/php/index.php?id=1000
Floods & Drought Portal: http://www.flooddroughtmonitor.com/home and http://www.bom.gov.au/water/ssf/
Seasonal Streamflow Forecasts – Australia: http://www.bom.gov.au/water/ssf/
Nile Basin DSS: http://nbdss.nilebasin.org/support/solutions/articles/4000039715-what-is-the-nile-basin-dss- and https://www.dhigroup.com/global/references/emea/overview/equitably-sharing-the-nile-river
You might also be interested in:
Join the free webinars from the International Water Association (IWA) and learn more in your own pace and time. They are all available for you now – just a click away!
- Drought early warning and assessment, experiences from Africa
- Drought management today – cases from Asia
- Use of satellite data for drought and flood management (Technical presentation)
Get the practitioner’s guide on how to consider climate change when dealing with existing challenges in water resources management. Free download here.
Management of the water resources of the Nile is a transboundary issue that requires collaboration between the riparian countries. How do you share the Nile River? Read case story here.
About the author
- R&D Program Manager in Water Resources with more than 20 years of professional experience in flood & water resources management and hydrology. Michael has worked on projects all over the world: United States, India, China, Central America to name a few. He has also been involved in a number of research projects related to climate change and has worked on climate change projects related to water resources in India, Denmark, Egypt and the Nile Basin.


Creating a flourishing garden or maintaining a colorful lawn on the Front Range of Colorado can be tricky. With specific soil and irrigation needs, growing plants in Colorado takes a little extra effort than other regions. So, we turned to the experts at the Colorado State University Extension and Outdoor Nursery Manager Alex Tisthammer at Fort Collins Nursery to get the inside scoop on landscaping in Colorado.
If the weather is favorable, outdoor planting of trees, shrubs and perennials can begin as soon as mid-April if the plants have been hardened off, or gradually exposed to wind and temperature fluctuations. Planting for frost-tender annuals and garden veggies can begin at the end of May or the first week of June. This is when we’re most likely to be done with spring snowstorms, and the ground is warm enough to help seeds germinate and young seedlings flourish. If you’re antsy to get your fingers into soil, start seeds indoors now, then transplant the seedlings outside when weather reports indicate there’s no longer a danger of an evening frost.
Tips for vegetable gardens
If you dream of tending a backyard veggie patch, the first step is to get your soil quality tested. (The CSU Extension office can do this for you.) This test allows you to see if you need to add any organic supplements such as compost or pea-size gravel to your garden beds.
Many housing divisions in the Front Range have compacted clay soil that’s difficult for roots to penetrate. The way to solve this problem is by opting for a raised garden bed filled with a mixture of soil and pea gravel from a nursery, or by tilling soil into several inches of your ground-level garden beds. Raised beds are also a good option for those who prefer to garden from a standing position or want to keep pets and tiny tots away from fragile seedlings.
Watering in Colorado
To ensure your garden and landscaping features get enough moisture, it’s best to install a drip system or plan a daily hand-watering schedule. As the plants mature, they become more resilient to our climate and need less daily attention.
When adding a new plant to the garden, check it daily for the first week. Place your finger at least two inches into the soil and see if it feels moist. If not, the plant needs water. Note how often the plant seems to need water, then adjust your watering schedule.
Choosing your plants
Once you have ideal soil, drainage and watering in place, it’s time to stock up on seed packets or seedlings from a garden center. On the Colorado Front Range, you want to choose vegetables that take fewer days to mature and harvest.
Tisthammer says greens like spinach and lettuces as well as baby carrots, beets, radishes, baby bell peppers and cherry tomatoes are perfect for Colorado gardens.
Tips for Larimer County landscaping
If you’re hoping to fill decorative pots to flank your front door or update the landscape design around the perimeter of your property to create year-round interest, choose perennials. They will need regular watering for the first season, then Mother Nature can take over. However, some plants positioned close to your home or garage may need additional watering if they’re blocked from the rain. Perennials return to their full beauty after the snow melts and only require pruning and trimming to maintain a coiffed appeal.
Plants for potting
Our planting zone is 5. Keep an eye on the ratings of the plants you’re choosing, or ask a garden nursery attendant for assistance. If you’re planting in containers, go with a colder zone rating, such as 3, for success. Then, choose bigger-than-usual pots filled with warm, insulating soil to keep those roots cozy. A few plants to explore include hens and chicks, columbines, echinacea, succulents and evergreens. Love bulbs like daffodils and tulips? They can be planted in pots, but are better suited for garden beds and ground planting.
Native trees and shrubs
If you’re in building mode or starting with a fresh, open yard, consider adding native and locally popular species to your property. They’re used to our high-pH, clay-rich soil. The following trees do well as long as they are watered regularly for their first season and saplings are fitted with tree wrap to protect them from winter winds from November through late-March.
- Austrian Pine
- Cottonwoods (Lanceleaf, Plains, Narrowleaf) – Check HOA and area ordinances as Cottonwoods are sometimes prohibited.
- Crab Apples
- Mountain Ash
- Ponderosa Pine
- Rocky Mountain Juniper
If you’re looking for shrubs to create a hedge, privacy wall or natural fencing around your land, be sure you have excellent drainage by way of a sand or rock layer in your soil. Some of the best plants to consider in Larimer County include:
- Apache Plume
- Crandall Clove Currant (Yes, they are edible!)
- Fernbush (Desert Sweet)
- Leadplant (This is a great substitution for Russian Sage)
- Mockorange (This has a heavenly orange blossom scent)
- Mountain Mahogany (They have decorative ornamental seed heads)
- Sumac (Tall and short)
- Tall Western Sage (Artemesias)
- Wild Rose (The rose hips can be used medicinally)
Are cacti, grasses and flowers your preference? There are several varieties that flourish on the Front Range. Whether you’re designing your gardens on your own, or working with a landscaper, add these Colorado-loving plants to your consideration list.
- Mammillaria or Nipple Cactus (Yellow and Pink)
- Plains Yucca
- Prickly Pear
- Big Blue-stem
- Blue Grama (Blonde Ambition)
- Mountain Muhly (This is related to Undaunted Ruby Muhly)
- Prairie Dropseed Grass
- Bee Balm
- Blue Flax
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Britain’s colonial past is often whitewashed in the name of progress. But the truth is a lot more dark.
There is a prevalent idea—and not only in the United Kingdom—that the British Empire was a force for good.
Somehow, in stark contrast to the well-known barbarity of the German or Belgian colonial pursuits, Britain gets off the hook as the benevolent empire that paved the way for progress and development of the nations it graced with its patronage.
“What might not be done if the moral authority of England were distributed across the earth,” wrote James Morris in his history of British Empire, “to tackle the evils of slavery, ignorance and paganism at source, to teach the simpler peoples the benefits of Steam, Free Trade and Revealed Religion, and to establish … a Moral Empire of loftier intent?”
Indeed, 59% of Britons are proud of their colonial past. Shashi Tharoor, author of Inglorious Empire, calls this historical amnesia, to be blamed on the lack of in-depth exploration of the nation’s colonial history in British schools.
Praise for efficient management systems, rule of law and infrastructure improvements often overshadows facts such as Britain’s role in the transportation of over 3 million slaves between 1640 and 1807 (when the slave trade was finally made illegal), the brutal suppression of Kenya’s Mau Mau rebellion and the Irish famine.
History is never black and white. But whitewashing over crimes against humanity in the name of progress does a disservice not only to the discipline, but first and foremost to all those who carry the memory of colonialism in their blood and bones, and are still waiting for an apology.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.
Photo Credit: nazlisart


The purpose of this amendment is to extend the meaning of the word ‘useful’, as it is applied in section 18(1)(c) of the Patents Act 1990, which requires that an invention must be ‘useful’ in order to be patentable. (This requirement is also termed ‘utility’.)
The purpose of requiring that an invention be ‘useful’ has traditionally been to prevent the granting of patents that have no practical application, or that do not work. The specific requirements for utility have been developed by the courts, and can broadly be characterised as requiring that the claimed invention must actually achieve what has been promised by the patentee, in the patent specification.
PROBLEMS WITH THE EXISTING UTILITY REQUIREMENTOne problem with the current definition of usefulness is that an inventor is not obliged to promise very much. Some patent attorneys are in the habit of adding stock ‘promises’ to patent specifications, such as that the invention is intended to ‘at least provide a useful alternative’ to existing products or processes.
Additionally, there is rarely any practical harm done by granting a patent for something without any practical application, or which simply does not work. There is generally no commercial value in such things, and thus no reason to infringe a ‘useless’ patent. Even if the patent is somehow infringed, in the absence of some commercial gain through the infringing act, there would seem to be little value in the patentee seeking to enforce the patent.
There would therefore seem to be little harm done by the grant of ‘useless’ patents, in the current sense. Lack of utility is a case often run in oppositions and revocation actions, but which is rarely successful. Generally the argument is that the specification promises more than the claimed invention delivers, or that the claims are so broad that, although they cover things that are useful, they also encompass things that are not. This situation would be better dealt with by a proper ‘enablement’ standard, requiring the scope of the claims to be commensurate with the description. This is another one of IP Australia’s proposed reforms, to which we will return in the next article.
The more serious issues that fall under the general heading of ‘utility’ in many jurisdictions are those relating to speculative claiming of various kinds. The controversy around gene patents illustrates this very well. Opponents often complain that allowing patents over genetic technologies results in private ‘ownership’ of genes. This should not be the case – a patent should only be granted in cases where the specific function of a gene has been identified, and a specific application, such as a test or therapy, developed as a result. Historically, however, there is no doubt that overly-broad patents have been granted on isolated genes based on generic descriptions of the processes used to identify their functions and develop practical applications. Such patents are speculative in the sense that the ‘inventors’ are almost certain that the genes will have some practical use, it is just that it has not been discovered yet!
THE PROPOSED SOLUTIONTo address this issue, and others like it, the draft bill proposes a new section 7A, as follows:
7A Meaning of useful(1) For the purposes of this Act, an invention is taken not to be useful unless a specific, substantial and credible use for the invention (so far as claimed) is disclosed in the complete specification.(2) Subsection (1) does not otherwise affect the meaning of the word useful in this Act.
According to the draft Explanatory Memorandum, subsection (1) is intended to bring the Australian law of utility more into line with the meaning of ‘useful’ in the US patent law, and to implement the recommendations of the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) in its 2004 report Genes and Ingenuity: Gene Patenting and Human Health (at 6.100).
The US utility requirements, as implemented by examiners in the USPTO, are set out in the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP), Section 2107. The relevant definitions are summarised in IP Australia’s Explanatory Memorandum as follows:
- ‘specific’ means a use specific to the subject matter claimed and can provide a well-defined and particular benefit to the public;
- ‘substantial’ means the claimed invention does not require further research to identify or reasonably confirm a real world use; an application must show that an invention is useful to the public as disclosed in its current form, not that it may prove useful at some future date after further research; and
- an asserted use will be ‘credible’ unless there is evidence that the invention is inoperative (i.e. does not operate to produce the results claimed by the patent application) or there is reason to doubt the objective truth of the statements in the specification.
All of these must be assessed from the perspective of the person skilled in the relevant art.
In addition to the specific requirements in subsection 7A(1), subsection (2) is (if we understand it correctly) intended to ensure that the existing case law also continues to apply.
This refinement of the requirements for a claimed invention to be ‘useful’ should go a long way towards addressing some of the perceived problems with patents in fields such as genetic technology, biologics and pharmaceuticals, in which it is not an uncommon strategy to file speculative applications upon the initial discovery of a ‘promising’ molecule or biological material.
For inventions in the vast majority of technical fields, the utility requirement should remain largely irrelevant. The practical application of the claimed invention in most applications filed is clear and uncontroversial. The enhanced utility requirement will only be of concern – as perhaps it rightly should be – to those attempting to ‘push the boundaries’ of patentability in specific technology areas.
We therefore consider that this is generally a good reform.
We are, however, a little concerned about the wording of the section, and particularly subsection (2). The intention appears to be to acknowledge and retain the existing requirement for utility developed by the courts, and add to this a statutory requirement for a specific, substantial and credible utility. This is not, however, what the proposed section says. By referring to the ‘meaning of the word useful in the Act’, subsection (2) appears to confuse, rather than clarify, the intent. It is not at all clear, for example, what ‘otherwise’ means in this context. What ‘meaning’ is being referred to? Is it the existing judicial meaning at the time of commencement of the new section7A, or is it subject to further development by the courts?
The word ‘useful’ appears only in section 18 of the Act. It therefore has only one meaning (whatever that may be). The circumlocution therefore appears unnecessary. We would keep it simple, and include the following stipulation within section18 itself:
For the purposes paragraphs 18(1)(c) and 19(1A)(c), an invention may be useful only if a specific, substantial and credible use for the invention (so far as claimed) is disclosed in the complete specification.
This leave open the possibility (however unlikely) that a claimed invention may pass this statutory test, but nonetheless lack utility, which appears to be the intent.


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Empire of the Romans and Franks
Romanorum sive Francorum imperium (Latin)
The Carolingian Empire at its greatest extent in 814
|Historical era||Middle Ages|
• Coronation of Charlemagne
• Death of Charles the Fat
|800||1,112,000 km2 (429,000 sq mi)|
The Carolingian Empire (800–888) was a large empire in western and central Europe during the early Middle Ages. It was ruled by the Carolingian dynasty, which had ruled as kings of the Franks since 751 and as kings of the Lombards of Italy from 774. In 800, the Frankish king Charlemagne was crowned emperor in Rome by Pope Leo III in an effort to revive the Roman Empire in the west during a vacancy in the throne of the eastern Roman Empire. After a civil war (840–43) following the death of Emperor Louis the Pious, the empire was divided into autonomous kingdoms, with one king still recognised as emperor, but with little authority outside his own kingdom. The unity of the empire and the hereditary right of the Carolingians continued to be acknowledged, preceding the Holy Roman Empire, which lasted until 1806.
In 884, Charles the Fat reunited all the kingdoms of Francia for the last time, but he died in 888 and the empire immediately split up. With the only remaining legitimate male of the dynasty a child, the nobility elected regional kings from outside the dynasty or, in the case of the eastern kingdom, an illegitimate Carolingian. The illegitimate line continued to rule in the east until 911, while in the western kingdom the legitimate Carolingian dynasty was restored in 898 and ruled until 987 with an interruption from 922 to 936.
The size of the empire at its inception was around 1,112,000 square kilometres (429,000 sq mi), with a population of between 10 and 20 million people. To the south it bordered the Emirate of Córdoba and, after 824, the Kingdom of Pamplona; to the north it bordered the kingdom of the Danes; to the west it had a short land border with Brittany, which was later reduced to a tributary; and to the east it had a long border with the Slavs and the Avars, who were defeated and their land incorporated into the empire. In southern Italy, the Carolingians' claims to authority were disputed by the Byzantines (eastern Romans) and the vestiges of the Lombard kingdom in the Principality of Benevento.
Use of the term "Carolingian Empire" is a modern convention. The language of official acts in the empire was Latin. The empire was referred to variously as universum regnum ("the whole kingdom", as opposed to the regional kingdoms), Romanorum sive Francorum imperium[a] ("empire of the Romans and Franks"), Romanum imperium ("Roman empire") or even imperium christianum ("Christian empire").
- 1 History
- 2 Demographics
- 3 Government
- 4 List of emperors
- 5 See also
- 6 Notes
- 7 References
- 8 External links
Rise of the Carolingians (c. 732 – 768)
Though Charles Martel chose not to take the title king (as his son Pepin III would, or emperor, as his grandson Charlemagne) he was absolute ruler of virtually all of today's continental Western Europe north of the Pyrenees. Only the remaining Saxon realms, which he partly conquered, Lombardy, and the Marca Hispanica south of the Pyrenees were significant additions to the Frankish realms after his death.
Martel was also the founder of all the feudal systems and merit system that marked the Carolingian Empire, and Europe in general during the Middle Ages, though his son and grandson would gain credit for his innovations. Further, Martel cemented his place in history with his defense of Christian Europe against a Muslim army at the Battle of Tours in 732. The Iberian Saracens had incorporated Berber light horse cavalry with the heavy Arab cavalry to create a formidable army that had almost never been defeated. Christian European forces, meanwhile, lacked the powerful tool of the stirrup. In this victory, Charles earned the surname Martel ("the Hammer"). Edward Gibbon, the historian of Rome and its aftermath, called Charles Martel "the paramount prince of his age".
Pepin III accepted the nomination as king by Pope Zachary in about 751. Charlemagne's rule began in 768 at Pepin's death. He proceeded to take control of the kingdom following his brother Carloman's death, as the two brothers co-inherited their father's kingdom. Charlemagne was crowned Roman Emperor in the year 800.
During the reign of Charlemagne (768–814)
The Carolingian Empire during the reign of Charlemagne covered most of Western Europe, as the Roman Empire once had. Unlike the Romans, who ventured to Germania beyond the Rhine only for vengeance after the disaster at Teutoburg Forest (9 AD), Charlemagne decisively crushed all Germanic resistance and extended his realm to the Elbe, influencing events almost to the Russian Steppes.
Charlemagne's reign was one of near-constant warfare, personally leading many of his campaigns. He seized the Lombard Kingdom in 774, led a failed campaign into Spain in 778, extended his domain into Bavaria in 788, ordered his son Pepin to campaign against the Avars in 795, and conquered Saxon territories in wars and rebellions fought from 772 to 804.
Prior to the death of Charlemagne, the Empire was divided among various members of the Carolingian dynasty. These included King Charles the Younger, son of Charlemagne, who received Neustria; King Louis the Pious, who received Aquitaine; and King Pepin, who received Italy. Pepin died with an illegitimate son, Bernard, in 810, and Charles died without heirs in 811. Although Bernard succeeded Pepin as King of Italy, Louis was made co-Emperor in 813, and the entire Empire passed to him with Charlemagne's death in the winter of 814.
Reign of Louis the Pious and the civil war (814–843)
Louis the Pious often had to struggle to maintain control of the Empire. King Bernard of Italy died in 818 in imprisonment after rebelling a year earlier, and Italy was brought back into Imperial control. Louis' show of penance for Bernard's death in 822 greatly reduced his prestige as Emperor to the nobility. Meanwhile, in 817 Louis had established three new Carolingian Kingships for his sons from his first marriage: Lothar was made King of Italy and co-Emperor, Pepin was made King of Aquitaine, and Louis the German was made King of Bavaria. His attempts in 823 to bring his fourth son (from his second marriage), Charles the Bald into the will was marked by the resistance of his eldest sons, and the last years of his reign were plagued by civil war.
Lothar was stripped of his co-Emperorship in 829[why?] and was banished to Italy, but the following year his sons attacked Louis' empire and dethroned him in favor of Lothar. The following year Louis attacked his sons' Kingdoms, stripped Lothar of his Imperial title and granted the Kingdom of Italy to Charles. Pepin and Louis the German revolted in 832, followed by Lothar in 833, and together they imprisoned Louis the Pious and Charles. In 835, peace was made within the family, and Louis was restored to the Imperial throne. When Pepin died in 838, Louis crowned Charles king of Aquitaine, whilst the nobility elected Pepin's son Pepin II, a conflict which was not resolved until 860 with Pepin's death. When Louis the Pious finally died in 840, Lothar claimed the entire empire irrespective of the partitions.
As a result, Charles and Louis the German went to war against Lothar. After losing the Battle of Fontenay, Lothar fled to his capital at Aachen and raised a new army, which was inferior to that of the younger brothers. In the Oaths of Strasbourg, in 842, Charles and Louis agreed to declare Lothar unfit for the imperial throne. This marked the East-West division of the Empire between Louis and Charles until the Verdun Treaty. Considered a milestone in European history, the Oaths of Strasbourg symbolize the birth of both France and Germany. The partition of Carolingian Empire was finally settled in 843 by and between Louis the Pious' three sons in the Treaty of Verdun.
After the Treaty of Verdun (843–877)
Lothar received the Imperial title, the Kingship of Italy, and the territory between the Rhine and Rhone Rivers, collectively called the Central Frankish Realm. Louis was guaranteed the Kingship of all lands to the east of the Rhine and to the north and east of Italy, which was called the Eastern Frankish Realm which was the precursor to modern Germany. Charles received all lands west of the Rhone, which was called the Western Frankish Realm.
Lothar retired Italy to his eldest son Louis II in 844, making him co-Emperor in 850. Lothar died in 855, dividing his kingdom into three parts: the territory already held by Louis remained his, the territory of the former Kingdom of Burgundy was granted to his third son Charles of Burgundy, and the remaining territory for which there was no traditional name was granted to his second son Lothar II, whose realm was named Lotharingia.
Louis II, dissatisfied with having received no additional territory upon his father's death, allied with his uncle Louis the German against his brother Lothar and his uncle Charles the Bald in 858. Lothar reconciled with his brother and uncle shortly after. Charles was so unpopular that he could not raise an army to fight the invasion and instead fled to Burgundy. He was only saved when the bishops refused to crown Louis the German King. In 860, Charles the Bald invaded Charles of Burgundy's Kingdom but was repulsed. Lothar II ceded lands to Louis II in 862 for support of a divorce from his wife, which caused repeated conflicts with the Pope and his uncles. Charles of Burgundy died in 863, and his Kingdom was inherited by Louis II.
Lothar II died in 869 with no legitimate heirs, and his Kingdom was divided between Charles the Bald and Louis the German in 870 by the Treaty of Meerssen. Meanwhile, Louis the German was involved in disputes with his three sons. Louis II died in 875, and named Carloman, the eldest son of Louis the German, his heir. Charles the Bald, supported by the Pope, was crowned both King of Italy and Holy Roman Emperor. The following year, Louis the German died. Charles tried to annex his realm too, but was defeated decisively at Andernach, and the Kingdom of the eastern Franks was divided between Louis the Younger, Carloman of Bavaria and Charles the Fat.
The Empire, after the death of Charles the Bald, was under attack in the north and west by the Vikings and was facing internal struggles from Italy to the Baltic, from Hungary in the east to Aquitaine in the west. Charles the Bald died in 877 crossing the Pass of Mont Cenis, and was succeeded by his son, Louis the Stammerer as King of the Western Franks, but the title of Holy Roman Emperor lapsed. Louis the Stammerer was physically weak and died two years later, his realm being divided between his eldest two sons: Louis III gaining Neustria and Francia, and Carloman gaining Aquitaine and Burgundy. The Kingdom of Italy was finally granted to King Carloman of Bavaria, but a stroke forced him to abdicate Italy to his brother Charles the Fat and Bavaria to Louis of Saxony. Also in 879, Boso, Count of Arles founded the Kingdom of Lower Burgundy in Provence.
In 881, Charles the Fat was crowned the Holy Roman Emperor while Louis III of Saxony and Louis III of Francia died the following year. Saxony and Bavaria were united with Charles the Fat's Kingdom, and Francia and Neustria were granted to Carloman of Aquitaine who also conquered Lower Burgundy. Carloman died in a hunting accident in 884 after a tumultuous and ineffective reign, and his lands were inherited by Charles the Fat, effectively recreating the Empire of Charlemagne.
Charles, suffering what is believed to be epilepsy, could not secure the kingdom against Viking raiders, and after buying their withdrawal from Paris in 886 was perceived by the court as being cowardly and incompetent. The following year his nephew Arnulf of Carinthia, the illegitimate son of King Carloman of Bavaria, raised the standard of rebellion. Instead of fighting the insurrection, Charles fled to Neidingen and died the following year in 888, leaving a divided entity and a succession mess.
Divisions in 887–88
The Empire of the Carolingians was divided: Arnulf maintained Carinthia, Bavaria, Lorraine and modern Germany; Count Odo of Paris was elected King of Western Francia (France), Ranulf II became King of Aquitaine, Italy went to Count Berengar of Friuli, Upper Burgundy to Rudolph I, and Lower Burgundy to Louis the Blind, the son of Boso of Arles, King of Lower Burgundy and maternal grandson of Emperor Louis II. The other part of Lotharingia became the duchy of Burgundy.
The largest cities in the Carolingian Empire around the year 800:
Rome 50,000. Paris 25,000. Regensburg 25,000. Metz 25,000. Mainz 20,000. Speyer 20,000. Tours 20,000. Trier 15,000. Cologne 15,000. Lyon 12,000. Worms 10,000. Poitiers 10,000. Provins 10,000. Rennes 10,000. Rouen 10,000.
The government, administration, and organization of the Carolingian Empire were forged in the court of Charlemagne in the decades around the year 800. In this year, Charlemagne was crowned emperor and adapted his existing royal administration to live up to the expectations of his new title. The political reforms wrought in Aachen were to have an immense impact on the political definition of Western Europe for the rest of the Middle Ages. The Carolingian improvements on the old Merovingian mechanisms of governance have been lauded by historians for the increased central control, efficient bureaucracy, accountability, and cultural renaissance.
The Carolingian Empire was the largest western territory since the fall of Rome, but historians have come to suspect the depth of the emperor's influence and control. Legally, the Carolingian emperor exercised the bannum, the right to rule and command, over all of his territories. Also, he had supreme jurisdiction in judicial matters, made legislation, led the army, and protected both the Church and the poor. His administration was an attempt to organize the kingdom, church, and nobility around him, however, its efficacy was directly dependent upon the efficiency, loyalty and support of his subjects.
It has long been held that the dominance of the Carolingian military was based on a "cavalry revolution" led by Charles Martel in 730. However, the stirrup, which made the 'shock cavalry' lance charge possible, was not introduced to the Frankish kingdom until the late eighth century. Instead, the Carolingian military success rested primarily on novel siege technologies and excellent logistics. However, large numbers of horses were used by the Frankish military during the age of Charlemagne. This was because horses provided a quick, long-distance method of transporting troops, which was critical to building and maintaining such a large empire.
No permanent capital city existed in the empire, the itinerant court being a typical characteristic of all Western European kingdoms at this time. Some "main residences" can, however, be distinguished. In the first year of his reign, Charlemagne went to Aachen (French: Aix-la-Chapelle; Italian: Aquisgrana) for the first time. He began to build a palace twenty years later (788). The palace chapel, constructed in 796, later became Aachen Cathedral. Charlemagne spent most winters between 800 and his death (814) at Aachen, which he made the joint capital with Rome, in order to enjoy the hot springs. Charlemagne organized his empire into 350 counties, each led by an appointed count. Counts served as judges, administrators, and enforcers of capitularies. To enforce loyalty, he set up the system of missi dominici, meaning "envoys of the lord". In this system, one representative of the Church and one representative of the Emperor would head to the different counties every year and report back to Charlemagne on their status.
The royal household was an itinerant body (until c. 802) which moved around the kingdom making sure good government was upheld in the localities. The most important positions were the chaplain (who was responsible for all ecclesiastical affairs in the kingdom), and the count of the palace (Count palatine) who had supreme control over the household. It also included more minor officials e.g. chamberlain, seneschal, and marshal. The household sometimes led the army (e.g. Seneschal Andorf against the Bretons in 786).
Possibly associated with the chaplain and the royal chapel was the office of the chancellor, head of the chancery, a non-permanent writing office. The charters produced were rudimentary and mostly to do with land deeds. There are 262 surviving from Charles’ reign as opposed to 40 from Pepin’s and 350 from Louis the Pious.
There are 3 main offices which enforced Carolingian authority in the localities:
The Comes (Latin: count). Appointed by Charles to administer a county. The Carolingian Empire (except Bavaria) was divided up into between 110 and 600 counties, each divided into centenae which were under the control of a vicar. At first, they were royal agents sent out by Charles but after c. 802 they were important local magnates. They were responsible for justice, enforcing capitularies, levying soldiers, receiving tolls and dues and maintaining roads and bridges. They could technically be dismissed by the king but many offices became hereditary. They were also sometimes corrupt although many were exemplary e.g. Count Eric of Friuli. Provincial governors eventually evolved who supervised several counts.
The Missi Dominici (Latin: dominical emissaries). Originally appointed ad hoc, a reform in 802 led to the office of missus dominicus becoming a permanent one. The Missi Dominici were sent out in pairs. One was an ecclesiastic and one secular. Their status as high officials was thought to safeguard them from the temptation of taking bribes. They made four journeys a year in their local missaticum, each lasting a month, and were responsible for making the royal will and capitularies known, judging cases and occasionally raising armies.
The Vassi Dominici. These were the king’s vassals and were usually the sons of powerful men, holding ‘benefices’ and forming a contingent in the royal army. They also went on ad hoc missions.
Around 780 Charlemagne reformed the local system of administering justice and created the scabini, professional experts on the law. Every count had the help of seven of these scabini, who were supposed to know every national law so that all men could be judged according to it.
Judges were also banned from taking bribes and were supposed to use sworn inquests to establish facts.
In 802, all law was written down and amended (the Salic law was also amended in both 798 and 802, although even Einhard admits in section 29 that this was imperfect). Judges were supposed to have a copy of both the Salic law code and the Ripuarian law code.
Coinage had a strong association with the Roman Empire, and Charlemagne took up its regulation with his other imperial duties. The Carolingians exercised controls over the silver coinage of the realm, controlling its composition and value. The name of the emperor, not of the minter, appeared on the coins. Charlemagne worked to suppress mints in northern Germany on the Baltic sea.
The Frankish kingdom was subdivided by Charlemagne into three separate areas to make administration easier. These were the inner "core" of the kingdom (Austrasia, Neustria, and Burgundy) which were supervised directly by the missatica system and the itinerant household. Outside this was the regna where Frankish administration rested upon the counts, and outside this was the marcher areas where ruled powerful governors. These marcher lordships were present in Brittany, Spain, and Bavaria.
Charles also created two sub-kingdoms in Aquitaine and Italy, ruled by his sons Louis and Pepin respectively. Bavaria was also under the command of an autonomous governor, Gerold, until his death in 796. While Charles still had overall authority in these areas they were fairly autonomous with their own chancery and minting facilities.
The annual meeting, the Placitum Generalis or Marchfield, was held every year (between March and May) at a place appointed by the king. It was called for three reasons: to gather the Frankish host to go on a campaign, to discuss political and ecclesiastical matters affecting the kingdom and to legislate for them, and to make judgments. All important men had to go the meeting and so it was an important way for Charles to make his will known. Originally the meeting worked effectively however later it merely became a forum for discussion and for nobles to express their dissatisfaction.
The oath of fidelity was a way for Charles to ensure loyalty from all his subjects. As early as 779 he banned sworn guilds between other men so that everyone took an oath of loyalty only to him. In 789 (in response to the 786 rebellion) he began legislating that everyone should swear fidelity to him as king, however in 802 he expanded the oath greatly and made it so that all men over age 12 swore it to him.
The five greatest capitularies of Charlemagne's reign are:
- The Capitulary of Herstal of 779. This is a short capitulary and launched according to Ganshof in response to a crisis in Aquitaine, Italy, and Spain. It is concerned a lot with ordo, making sure that the church is working correctly, also with reinforcing the wergild and Frankish ideals. Notably forced the usage of tithes.
- Admonitio Generalis of 789. “Blueprint for a new society” mentioning social issues for the first time. The first 58 clauses (of 82) reiterate decisions made by previous church councils and much is also to do with ordo.
- The Capitulary of Frankfurt of 794. This is mainly to do with theology and speaks out against adoptionism and iconoclasm.
- The Programmatic Capitulary of 802. This shows an increasing sense of vision in society.
- The Capitulary for the Jews of 814, delineating the prohibitions of Jews engaging in commerce or money-lending.
List of emperors
|Later image||Name||Imperial coronation||Death||Contemporary coin|
|25 December 800||28 January 814|
(Louis the Pious)
|1st: 11 September 813
2nd: 5 October 816
|20 June 840|
|Lothair I||5 April 823||29 September 855|
|Louis II||1st: Easter 850
2nd: 18 May 872
|12 August 875|
(Charles the Bald)
|29 December 875||6 October 877|
(Charles the Fat)
|12 February 881||13 January 888|
- Carolingian Empire portal
- Carolingian Renaissance
- List of Carolingian monasteries
- Sometimes with Romanum (Roman) replacing Romanorum (of the Romans) and atque (and) replacing sive (or).
- Post-Roman towns, trade and settlement in Europe and Byzantium – Joachim Henning – Google Břger. Books.google.dk. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
The size of the Carolingian empire can be roughly estimated at 1,112,000 km²
- Ildar H. Garipzanov, The Symbolic Language of Authority in the Carolingian World (c.751–877) (Leiden: Brill, 2008).
- Magill, Frank (1998). Dictionary of World Biography: The Middle Ages, Volume 2. Routledge. pp. 228, 243. ISBN 9781579580414.
- Rosamond McKitterick, Charlemagne: The Formation of a European Identity, Cambridge University Press, 2008 ISBN 978-0-521-88672-7
- Davis, Jennifer (2015). Charlemagne's Practice of Empire. Cambridge University Press. p. 25. ISBN 9781316368596.
- Joanna Story, Charlemagne: Empire and Society, Manchester University Press, 2005 ISBN 978-0-7190-7089-1
- "Die Geburt Zweier Staaten – Die Straßburger Eide vom 14. February 842 | Wir Europäer | DW.DE | 21.07.2009". Dw-world.de. 2009-07-21. Retrieved 2013-03-26.
- Eric Joseph Goldberg, Struggle for Empire: Kingship and Conflict Under Louis the German, 817–876, Cornell University Press, 2006 ISBN 978-0-8014-3890-5
- Simon MacLean, Kingship and Politics in the Late Ninth Century: Charles the Fat and the End of the Carolingian Empire, Cambridge University Press, 2003 ISBN 978-0-521-81945-9
- Bachrach, B. (2013). Charlemagne's Early Campaigns (768–777): A Diplomatic and Military Analysis. Brill. p. 67. ISBN 9789004244771. Retrieved 2014-10-06.
- Dudley, L. (2008). Information Revolutions in the History of the West. Edward Elgar. p. 26. ISBN 9781848442801. Retrieved 2014-10-06.
- Claus, Edda (June 1997). "The Rebirth of a Communications Network: Europe at the Time of the Carolingians (thesis)". papyrus.bib.umontreal.ca. Retrieved 2014-10-06.
- Hooper, Nicholas / Bennett, Matthew. The Cambridge Illustrated Atlas of Warfare: the Middle Ages Cambridge University Press, 1996, pp. 12–13 ISBN 0-521-44049-1, ISBN 978-0-521-44049-3
- Bowlus, Charles R. The Battle of Lechfeld and its Aftermath, August 955: The End of the Age of Migrations in the Latin West Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2006, pg. 49 ISBN 0-7546-5470-2, ISBN 978-0-7546-5470-4
- Egon Boshof: Ludwig der Fromme. Darmstadt 1996, p. 89
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An historical background
The New Martyr Elizabeth was born on February 27th 1864. Elizabeth’s grandmother was Queen Victoria as Elizabeth’s mother, Princess Alice, was one of Queen Victoria’s daughters. Princess Alice had married Grand Duke Louis of Hesse. In 1878 diphtheria afflicted the Hesse household and Elizabeth was the only survivor due to not being in Hesse at the time of the outbreak. She was orphaned at the age of fourteen years and partially brought up by Queen Victoria. In June 1884 Elizabeth married Grand Duke Sergei of Russia. After she arrived in Russia Elizabeth studied the national characteristics and especially their Orthodox faith. In 1891, on the Saturday before Palm Sunday (Lazarus Saturday) the Grand Duchess Elizabeth was received into the Orthodox Church.
This was her own choice and Metropolititan Anastassy confirmed this: “The Grand Duchess of her own volition decided to unite herself to the Orthodox Church. When she made her announcement to her husband,according to the account of one of the servants, tears involuntarily poured from his eyes. The Emperor Alexander himself was deeply touched by her decision. Her husband blessed her after Holy Chrismation with a precious icon of the Saviour ‘Not Made by Human Hands’ which she treasured throughout the remaining course of her life. Having been joined to the faith in this manner, and thereby to all that makes up the soul of a Russian, the Grand Duchess could now with every right say to her husband in the words of Moabite Ruth: “Your people have become my people and your God my God.” (Ruth 1.16)
However the Grand Duchess’s conversion to Orthodoxy caused some negative reactions from her family. Elizabeth wrote to them that she was “intensely happy” and that it caused her painto grieve her family and assured them: “that God’s blessing will accompany my act which I do with fervent belief, with the feeling that I may become a better Christian and be one step nearer to God.” She also mentioned that “Above all one’s conscience must be pure and true … many will scream about (it), yet I feel it brings me nearer to od…You tell me that the purer brilliance of the church charmed me … in that you are mistaken – nothing in the outer signs attracted me … the service, the outer signs, are only to remind us of the inner things.” Furthermore Elizabeth explained that she would be “lying before God” to remain “outwardly a Protestant.” It was Queen Victoria who showed the most understanding and provided Elizabeth with moral support for her decision.
The assassination of Elizabeth’s husband
On February 18th 1905, while on duty in the Kremlin, Elizabeth’s husband was assassinated by a bomb thrown by a Social-Revolutionary, Ivan Kalyayev. It is recorded that Grand Duchess Elizabeth heard the explosion and in a shocked state rushed outside, gathered the dismembered body of her husband strewn around the snow covered square and arranged for the Grand Duke’s coachman, who was severely wounded, to be taken to hospital.
She later visited the dying man and enabled him to die peacefully by telling him that the Grand Duke was well and safe. After her time of mourning she also visited her assassin in prison and asked him why he killed her husband. He explained that he did not wish to kill her and even withheld throwing the bomb on several occasions when she was with the Duke. Elizabeth told him: “by killing him (the Duke) you were killing me.” The Grand Duchess left the criminal with a Gospel book and begged him to read it, left the prison and lamented: “My attempt was unsuccessful, but who knows, perhaps at the last minute he will understand and repent.”
Life as a nun devoted to the poor
After her time of mourning for the Grand Duke, Grand Duchess Elizabeth became a nun and gave away her jewellery and sold her luxurious possessions. From the proceeds she opened a Home in Moscow to foster the prayer and charity of devout women. The Home was dedicated to Martha and Mary, and Elizabeth helped the poor and orphans. It was here that seventeen women were dedicated as Sisters of Love and Mercy in April 1909. They also opened a hospital and a variety of other philanthropic ventures as their work started to flourish. Grand Duchess Elizabeth had also envisioned a diaconate for women but due to a misunderstanding with a Bishop she was unable to do this.
The communist government exiled her to Yekaterinburg in 1918 and then she was moved to Alapaesvsk, where she was killed by the local Bolsheviks on July 18th 1918 together with other Dukes, Princes and courtiers and Nun Barbara, a Sister from the Grand Duchess Elizabeth’s Convent. They were all herded into the forest and pushed into an abandoned mineshaft, into which grenades were then hurled. It was reported that an observer heard them singing Church hymns as they were pushed into the mine shaft, and after the Bolsheviks left he could still hear them singing for a while. Elizabeth’s last act as she lay dying in the mineshaft was to bandage the wounds of Prince loann with her handkerchief. The White Army later recaptured this area and Elizabeth’s relics were taken by the Army to Beijing and placed in the Church of St. Seraphim of Sarov. Later they were taken to Jerusalem and placed in the Church of St. Mary Magdalene, which Elizabeth and her husband had helped to build. It was one of Elizabeth’s wishes that she be buried here and today her tomb can be visited.
The Grand Duchess Elizabeth was glorified as the New Martyr Elizabeth by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia in 1981 and then by the Russian Orthodox Church as a whole on 1992. In 1992 a portion of her relics were taken to 61 dioceses of Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. The Saints Martha and Mary Convent was given some of these relics. The New Marty Elizabeth’s statue is to be seen above the Great West Door of Westminster Abbey in London as one of the ten twentieth century martyrs across the world.
Her Feast day is celebrated on July 5th (New Calendar) or July 5th (Old Calendar). She is also commemorated on the feast of the New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia on the Sunday nearest to 25th January.
What we can see in the icons of Elizabeth
Elizabeth is shown as a nun and holds a Russian Cross in her hand.
Hymns for Elizabeth
Hymns reflect both Elizabeth’s care for others and her struggles: “having loved the Creator of the heavens from your youth, you took care to exercise yourself in prayer and contemplation of God even before you came to know the true Orthodox faith. You bedewed your soul with the Word of God and remained utterly faithful to Christ, our God.”
“From your youth, faith in Almighty God, prepared you for the struggle of love and loving kindness. Therefore you forgave the slayer of your husband, and gave yourself over to Monastic life.
Hymns also remember Elizabeth’s companion, Martyr Barbara: “Elizabeth and Barbara, her fellow sufferer, served Christ in this life with ascetic labours and good deeds and shone like the passion-bearers. Behold now they have received crowns of martyrs from the hands of the Saviour.” “You rejected worldly vanity and glory, having chosen the way of the ascetics and you were guided by Saints Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus, how to unite the teachings of Christ with good deeds. Together with Barbara, your fellow struggler, you received a martyr’s death. Wherefore Christ crowned you with a twofold crown, 0 humble and wise Elizabeth.”
“Taking up the Cross of Christ you passed from royal glory to the glory of heaven and prayed for your enemies. 0 holy Martyr Elizabeth, together with the Martyr Barbara, you found everlasting joy. Therefore pray on behalf of our souls.”
Finally the hymns can enable us in desire to emulate Elizabeth’s steadfastness and courage: “We do homage to your struggle and your compassionate loving kindness, 0 divinely wise Elizabeth, praising your courage in the face of torments and your ardent love for your neighbour in the midst of suffering.’…. “In the midst of worldliness your mournful heart dwelt in heaven; in barbaric godlessness your valiant soul was not troubled. You went to meet your Bridegroomas a confessor and he found you with your martyric purpose. 0 Elizabeth with Barbara, your brave companion, pray to the Bridegroom for us.”
“In Russia, 0 venerable martyr Elizabeth, you discovered the priceless pearl of the pure Orthodox Faith which you accepted with all heart and spirit, and now standing before God in the heavens, pray to Him for us, who feel sinful and useless.”
(Some material re-sourced from Orthodoxwiki.org)


A confederation is a union of independent and sovereign states that have come together on common ground to share constitutional powers among themselves and the central government so created.
In a confederation, constitutional powers are shared in a way in which the component units that formed the confederation has more fundamental powers allocated to them while the central government has little or fundamental powers. This makes the central government to be weak while the states are strong and much more powerful than the central government. Whereas in a federation, the central government is more powerful than the component states as the federal government has more constitutional powers than the federating states.
In a federation, the component states has no legal right to secede. In fact the constitution bars the states from withdrawing from the union. Whereas in a confederation, the states that formed the confederation reserve the right to pull out ofthe union.
‘ln a federation, as a result of multilateral sharing or constitutional powers, the constitution is necessarily a written and rigid one to protect the smaller units that formed the federation from arbitrary use of higher constitutional powers given to the central government. Whereas in a confederation, there is a flexible constitution which may be written or unwritten but the stipulations therein are open to alteration at the instance of any of the confederating units that possess the constitutional powers to do so.
In a federation, new states can be created to be added to the already existing ones that formed the federation. Whereas in a confederation, new states cannot be created as member states are independent and autonomous.
The president of a federation is an executive president as he or she is very powerful and is given high constitutional powers. Whereas the president of a confederation is a mere ceremonial president who does not rule but act in ceremonial capacity as he or she has little or no constitutional powers to direct affairs of the confederacy.
These are the differences between a federation and a confederation.


We’ve all been told about the importance of taking your vitamins, eating healthy and exercising regularly. As we age, however, our overall health becomes even more dependent on how often we exercise and the food we consume. As the body grows older it slows down and things that were once routinely produced are produced less often.
A small protein molecule, Glutathione, is one of these substances that slowly starts to diminish as we age. Glutathione is synthesized in the body from three different amino acids, L-cysteine, L-glutamic acid, and glycine. The molecule can be found in every cell throughout the body, but it is mainly found in the liver.
Glutathione has various functions including regulating cell growth, fighting the oxidation of circulating fats in the bloodstream, synthesizing and repairing DNA, and transporting amino acids in and out of cells. Glutathione also has many detoxifying and immune-boosting effects. For example, according to a recent study by The New England Journal of Medicine, researchers discovered that heart disease patients with low blood levels of Glutathione were thirty percent more likely to suffer from a heart attack than those patients with optimal levels.
Unfortunately, Glutathione can plummet to as low as fifty percent of what is needed for optimal health as we grow older. In addition to aging, low glutathione levels can also be a result from overconsumption of heavily-processed foods, environmental toxins, drugs, infections, and stress. Those who suffer from illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome, diabetes, autoimmune diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, arthritis, autism, kidney failure, and liver disease can also have lower levels of Glutathione.
So, what steps can you take to ensure that your Glutathione levels remain at their optimal level? Eating foods rich in Glutathione such as melons, peaches, asparagus, and grapefruit is a great start. However, the fastest and highest dose of this powerful molecule comes from an intravenous injection that can be provided at IV Liquid Assets in Fairhope.
If you would like to learn more about intravenous injections of Glutathione and other beneficial substances, call 855-234-WELL or schedule an appointment for an infusion with us this week.


Drift is the movement of pesticide from the target field onto nearby sensitive plants. Most drift consists of spray droplets moving downwind during an application. This type of drift (referred to as droplet, physical, primary, or particle drift) can be minimized by following the label recommendations for spray equipment, procedures, and weather conditions.
In addition to wind, temperature inversions have a critical effect on drift. Temperature inversions occur commonly during Midwestern summers (Bish 2019), typically forming in the late afternoon or evening and persisting through 1-2 hours after sunrise. Temperature inversions occur most often under light or calm winds, due to a lack of vertical air movement (See Figure 1 below). Since inversions are marked by very little wind, it may seem like a good time to spray. It is not. The lack of vertical air movement means spray droplets can become suspended near the ground surface in colder, denser air. Air can move horizontally, like a fog, onto neighboring fields, carrying these spray droplets along. Morning sunlight or stronger winds usually mix the air layers and bring an end to inversion conditions. But applications made during an inversion late in the day may have several hours to move off target.
Dicamba and 2,4-D can also move off-target as a gas. They are among the relatively small number of pesticides that are highly prone to volatilize (turn into a gas). A spike in air temperature can cause these herbicides to turn into a gas even after they have been successfully applied to target surfaces. As temperature inversions form, pesticide vapors lingering in the atmosphere can be pulled back down to the surface where they can cause damage.
The applicator is legally responsible for checking both current and predicted weather conditions, following all label restrictions, and knowing where neighboring sensitive crops are located.
Off-target plant damage may also result from inadequate cleaning of sprayer equipment, contaminated runoff water, and sometimes from contaminated grass clippings or compost.
Figure 1. In normal daytime conditions (left), warmer air rises from the earth’s surface, while cooler air from higher in the atmosphere sinks, causing a vertical mixing of air. In the absence of substantial horizontal winds, herbicide droplets will hit their target on the ground or vaporize and dissipate into upper air levels.
But during a temperature inversion (right), the air temperature close to the ground is cooler than the air column above it and vertical mixing of air does not occur. In these conditions, small pesticide droplets stay suspended in the denser cold air, settling close to the surface. But the air can still move horizontally, moving these droplets onto neighboring crops.
This publication is a product of the North Central IPM Center working group on Herbicide-Drift Risk Management, with support from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture through agreement 2018-70006-28884.
Reference to any commercial products or trade names implies no discrimination or endorsement by the North Central IPM Center or any of the contributing authors or their universities. Nor does this document constitute legal advice. Always seek legal advice from a professional who is knowledgeable in current agricultural law in your state.
Cassandra Brown, Horticulture and Crop Science, The Ohio State University
Stephen Meyers, Horticulture & Landscape Architecture, Purdue University
Douglas J. Doohan, Horticulture and Crop Science, The Ohio State University
Mary Ann Rose, Pesticide Safety Education Program, The Ohio State University
The following individuals reviewed part or all of this fact sheet: Bill Johnson, Purdue University; Bryan Young, Purdue University; Aaron B. Wilson, Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center; Cathy Herms, The Ohio State University
Behrens R, Lueschen WE (1979) Dicamba volatility. Weed Sci. 27:5, 486-493.
Bish M, Bradley K (2017) Survey of Missouri pesticide applicator practices, knowledge, and perceptions. Weed Technol. 31:2:165-177, doi:10.1017/wet.2016.27
Bish M, Farrell S, Lerch R, Bradley K (2019) Dicamba losses to air following applications to soybean under stable and nonstable atmospheric conditions. J Environ Qual. 48:1675–1682, doi:10.2134/jeq2019.05.0197.
Bradley K. 2017 Oct 30. A Final Report on Dicamba-Injured Soybean Acres. University of Missouri, Integrated Pest Management. https://ipm.missouri.edu/IPCM/2017/10/final_report_dicamba_injured_soybean/
Bradley K. 2018 July 19. Dicamba Injury Update. Different Year, Same Questions. University of Missouri, Integrated Pest Management. https://ipm.missouri.edu/IPCM/2018/7/July-15-Dicamba-injury-update-different-year-same-questions/
Hettinger J. 2019 Aug 27. Despite Federal, State Efforts, Dicamba Complaints Continue. Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting. https://investigatemidwest.org/2019/08/27/despite-federal-state-efforts-dicamba-complaints-continue/
Pesticides: Uses & Misuses. Illinois Department of Agriculture [accessed 2020 Feb 28] https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/agr/Pesticides/Pages/Pesticides-Uses-Misuses.aspx
Nowatzki, J. (2018 Jan) Understanding Air Temperature Inversions Relating to Pesticide Drift North Dakota State University AE1876 https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/publications/crops/understanding-air-temperature-inversions-relating-to-pesticide-drift
Office of Indiana State Chemist and Seed Commissioner. 2019, Nov 13. OISC Announces 2020 Dicamba Restriction. https://www.oisc.purdue.edu/pesticide/pdf/dicamba_24c_press_release_111319.pdf
Thostenson A, Enz JW, Hofman V (2019 Oct) Air Temperature Inversions Causes, Characteristics and Potential Effects on Pesticide Spray Drift. North Dakota State University, AE1705. https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/publications/crops/air-temperature-inversions-causes-characteristics-and-potential-effects-on-pesticide-spray-drift
USDA Economic Research Service. 2019 Sept 18. Recent Trends in GE Adoption. https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/adoption-of-genetically-engineered-crops-in-the-us/recent-trends-in-ge-adoption.aspx
Wechsler SJ, Smith D, McFadden J, Dodson L, Williamson S. 2019 Oct 1. The Use of Genetically Engineered Dicamba-Tolerant Soybean Seeds Has Increased Quickly, Benefiting Adopters but Damaging Crops in Some Fields. USDA Economic Research Service. https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2019/october/the-use-of-genetically-engineered-dicamba-tolerant-soybean-seeds-has-increased-quickly-benefiting-adopters-but-damaging-crops-in-some-fields/


Official United Nations figures claim that 2.5 billion people lack access to adequate sanitation. But new research from the University of North Carolina puts the total at more than 4.1 billion people.
As world leaders and grassroots groups discuss how to reduce poverty and improve lives, debates over precise definitions and accurate measurements are taking on a new urgency. The agenda-setting Millennium Development Goals expire in 2015, but already new definitions for water, sanitation, and hygiene seek to influence the post-MDG global development agenda.
Last month, the Water Institute at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, challenged official statistics from the United Nations on the number of people without proper toilet facilities: UNC put the figure at 4.1 billion people, compared with 2.5 billion claimed by the United Nations. Both figures assessed conditions in 2010.
The discrepancy between the two sets of sanitation figures comes from different accounting methods. The United Nations measures hardware — the toilet, in this case — and how well it protects the user from immediate contact with the waste. The UNC researchers, on the other hand, approached the question from a public health angle: they also considered hardware, but in a broader sense, by asking whether or not the sewage is treated.
“We looked at public health and the environment beyond just the user,” Rachel Baum told Circle of Blue. Baum is a co-author on the paper, which was published online in January in the journal Environmental Science and Technology.
Baum and her colleagues wondered, “Is sanitation protecting the wider community?”
More often than not, they found, the answer is no. In 2010, some 4.1 billion people — six out of every 10 people on the planet — did not use toilet facilities that ultimately treat the sewage before it is returned to the environment. (The researchers pulled sewage treatment data from the United Nations Statistics Division, the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), the European Commission’s Eurostat, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.)
This is the second time in less than a year that the Water Institute has challenged WASH statistics from the United Nations. In March 2012, a study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found that 1.8 billion people drink unsafe water — a figure that is more than double the 780 million people who lack access to an improved water source, according to the United Nations Joint Monitoring Program’s 2012 update.
Again, the discrepancies come from the way in which the data is collected: the United Nations defines access to drinking water in terms of infrastructure — in other words, the taps, pipes, and wells used to deliver water — rather than water quality, as measured by the Water Institute.
Shaping Things To Come
Last year, the United Nations declared that, according to its metrics, the world had achieved the MDG for drinking water in 2010. The sanitation target is not likely to be achieved, according to an August 2012 update. Both goals sought to halve the proportion of people without access to improved drinking water and sanitation from a 1990 baseline.
The definitions — and the discrepancies between the definitions — of access and quality matter. The United Nations is now discussing which items will comprise the global development program after 2015, when the eight Millennium Development Goals expire.
At stake in the next round of goal-setting is a place in the global-aid pecking order and a chance at the rivers of cash that flow toward the top priorities. Development aid for drinking water and sanitation reached $US 7.8 billion in 2010, and loans to the sector added an additional $US 4.4 billion that year, according to the United Nations.
John Oldfield, the CEO of WASH Advocates, said that priorities are already changing, with less money spent on drilling wells and installing pumps; instead, more cash is being allocated to building maintenance and financial skills within the communities that will manage the water and sanitation projects after the donor leaves.
But John Sauer, head of communications for the Denver-based nonprofit Water for People, said he did not know if the UNC study would lead to a big shift in how money is spent. The broader issue, he told Circle of Blue, is that sanitation coverage is expanding much too slowly, and the progress that has been made is not well monitored, to see if it is sustainable.
Better Outcomes This Time Around
Everyone with a stake in the new order is offering recommendations during the run up to 2015.
On February 21, the United Nations and a handful of its partner organizations issued a press release arguing that the new development goals for water and sanitation should focus on people on the margins: children, women, and those who live in slums or with disabilities.
“The post-2015 agenda must not move forward without clear objectives towards the elimination of discrimination and inequalities in access to water, sanitation, and hygiene,” according to the statement.
Yet, it is still early in the negotiations, and the players are jockeying for position.
“We can’t say at this point what the U.N. will recommend,” Pragati Pascale, communications officer for the United Nations, told Circle of Blue. “There are a lot of discussions going on, trying to hear from many voices.”
February 17 marked the wrap-up of a five-week public consultation on water and sanitation goals, an initiative sponsored by the United Nations and civil society groups. And coming up in May, a star-studded panel — chaired by the leaders of Indonesia, Liberia, and the United Kingdom — will present its assessment of the MDG successes, failures, and inadequacies.
Baum said she hopes that last month’s UNC sanitation study brings more attention to what effective sanitation really is. Meanwhile, Oldfield told Circle of Blue that these types of studies can result in stronger definitions of the problem, in addition to better outcomes.
“This paper will enable stronger policies and it will inform the consultative process,” Oldfield said. “Universal coverage for sanitation is the goal, and this will help us define what exactly we mean by ‘universal coverage.’”