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(Dustin Duong/NBTB) In normal times I would attend the Steinbeis Gemeinschaftschule (Steinbeis Community School) in my hometown but as the situation hasn’t cleared up yet This means that we go to school only for a few hours then work from home again The homeschooling situation during isolation was a bit difficult for me since I had no one to help me out beside my friends who texted with me We didn’t have video chats with our teachers very often We were given homework with only a few instructions My parents weren’t able to help me out since we are foreigners and don’t know the language very well My first language is Macedonian; I came to Germany with my family when I was 13 years old it was really hard for me since I couldn’t speak the language very well Staying in a foreign country and having to learn the language isn’t as easy as it might seem You do have a lot of contact with native speakers so we often found ourselves struggling when trying to explain something Those were difficult times but I’m sure whoever is going through the same understands me There are thousands of people around the world struggling or try and do the work on my own using the books we had been given at the beginning of the year I can’t say that my academic life has gotten better during isolation I’ve had many troubles with my homework and mental health I feel like not being able to go out of the house for more than a week — let alone months — messes with your head all I’ve done was help around the house a bit or stay on my phone watching videos and catching up with friends I hope the situation gets better and we begin again with school as we normally would and rumors of President Macron’s potentially grandiose speech were swarming in all the lycées [high schools] of France as though we all knew what the outcome of his speech would be but were too embarrassed to vocalize our joy Macron announced that evening the closure of all educational facilities And I couldn’t help but feel a guilty smirk spread across my face a slow descent into perennial laziness felt welcome ceding its place to an expression of simple acceptance It wasn’t long until social media was saturated with jubilant posts and stories celebrating the switch to online learning I spent the whole first week of online school euphorically flying through my classes Sitting all day on my chair and jumping from videoconference to videoconference seemed so exciting and easy I slumped back into my chair while listening to introductory lectures and being dismissed to complete assignments The buzzing of the videoconference notification became deeply annoying and I couldn’t help but let out a sigh of frustration every time it peeked out on the side of my screen I directed my frustrations towards the teacher favorite Microsoft OneNote — a digital portfolio for students to organize their work but then it became an exercise in online school tyranny I was keeping up with lessons but forgetting to turn in assignments Schools in France are slowly returning to in-person learning primary students have returned and will be followed by the secondary students There is a rotation for students to go to school on set days — “Group C” goes on Mondays It’s not clear if the students in my year will be able to go to in-person classes or not a feeling of freedom because I can stand up and walk around relief is quickly replaced by annoyance again My family keeps three boxes of masks by the doorway above the dusty shoe cabinet that hasn’t been opened in a while The boxes can be seen in the corners of my Zoom video meetings At the beginning of my school year, wearing masks in groups was banned in my hometown of Hong Kong because of their symbolic roles in the Hong Kong protests it’s grounds for upset stares and finger-pointing with my family when reports of rising fatalities from the coronavirus began appearing in the news Social media buzzed with rumors that schools in Hong Kong would close after the Chinese New Year that began Jan watching my biology teacher flip through slides camera and microphone off — just like everyone else in my class My mother doesn’t believe in studying inside the bedroom Some of my classes have been impressively organized with teachers updating lesson plans and hosting well-attended video meetings rarely assigning material with rushed five-minute Zoom conferences only twice a week Many of the tests I’ve taken have been on simple Google Forms and Schoology and most worksheets have been taken directly from online sources easy to avoid the minimal adult supervision Many teachers have resorted to cutting out large chunks of the curriculum I sometimes feel exhausted by long interactions with my family carry hand sanitizer and stay in groups of four or fewer I’m allowed to see my local friends in person I’ve been surprised — as a person who is naturally private and reserved — by my frustration at not being able to see people every day I look forward to sitting in a class of 20 once again I look forward to hearing my classmates debate controversial topics in my humanities class and sitting with my friends in front of the taco stand in the cafeteria I look forward to when there aren’t three boxes of masks by the doorway In normal times I attend Gaskiya Junior Secondary School in Ajegunle around the time we were going on spring break a community leader who helps five of us with our lessons We are cousins and siblings living in the same compound We are also using a new website called Safleaders It includes the junior and senior secondary curriculum that we have in school — English language arts You can download what you need to read very fast We just pass the phone from student to student The last assignment we got from Miss Shola was to do a personal narrative We looked up what was required and then we talked and Miss Shola broke everything down I would rather be back in my traditional school But there are so many students in my classroom that I can’t count them — it feels like 100 My academic life is better now than before I can focus more on my studies and I have time for my own projects My learning space is my bed and when I am not doing schoolwork The book I am reading now is by Ben Carson Secretary of Housing and Urban Development The title is “Think Big: Unleashing Your Potential for Excellence.” we had been practicing day and night for our school play Then after a particularly grueling 10-hour Saturday practice our director told us that the play was canceled Our cast of 100 people immediately broke down in tears cries echoing in the dark hall as the musicians put down their instruments my skin stinging with the reality of what was happening Since the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed The number of new cases has increased and unemployment has soared and our school switched to online instruction It took me awhile to adjust to the new system but I’ve slowly realized that my learning experience has actually improved Classes have become more efficient; my teachers have spent more time discussing material and are much easier to contact after school hours I can re-watch lectures if I don’t understand something I’ve had enough sleep and a quiet work environment I’ve saved a lot of time by not commuting through three or four hours of traffic every day I’ve also had extra time to work on my history research paper I took the everyday for granted — participating in club activities and being able to have face-to-face conversations I no longer get to see my brother this summer because he’s studying in the United States But I keep looking for blessings in disguise Spending rainy Saturday nights with my parents has brought us closer We’ve recently spent time together building a hydroponic farm and bingeing our favorite Netflix shows over midnight snacks but I see light in the opportunity to reflect on the little things that really matter CHALKBEAT IS A CIVIC NEWS COMPANY NEWSROOM ©2025 The community of Ilsfeld wants to cut its ties to fossil-based sources of energy Local heat from waste water replaces oil and gas Ilsfeld a town in the Heilbronn district of Germany is situated in an idyllic spot surrounded by vineyards and conservation areas it is also a centre of innovation: the community has been working hard to become independent of fossil-based energy sources since 2013 Its efforts focus primarily on a municipal local heat network that aims to tap into a source of energy that remains unused almost the entire world over: waste water "We release at least 5,000 cubic metres of purified waste water into the Schozach River on a daily basis," says Thomas Gessler from the technical construction office which is responsible for the local heat project which is around ten degrees in temperature will be extracted with the help of heat pumps This energy can be used to heat the water in the local heat network to 55 degrees A cogeneration unit run on natural gas then only has to heat the water from 55 to 75 degrees Up to 700 of the 9,000 or so inhabitants in the community are due to be connected to the local heat network by the end of 2018 the exact number depends on whether residents are willing to switch to local heating," says Thomas Gessler who is promoting the project in neighbourhoods where the network lines are laid He explains that there is a great deal of interest and the costs are manageable: the community is paying for the transmission lines which reach a maximum length of 30 metres from the main pipeline The only investment required by home owners is the cost needed to switch their old heating system to a local heat energy delivery station "It won't take long to offset the investment because the switch will get rid of almost all costs related to heating in future – from procurement and maintenance to running costs," explains Mr Gessler Based on the average gas and oil prices for last year he has calculated that a detached house will save up to EUR 400 per year Construction of the local heat network began in 2013 it runs on a gas-fuelled boiler and two cogeneration units with a total thermal output of 2,200 kilowatts This existing network is set to be expanded by autumn 2017 and will also start to run on the waste heat from waste water The overall investment amounts to around EUR 11 million "That is a considerable sum for a small community," says the mayor of Ilsfeld it quickly became clear to us that we will benefit from the project for the long term." In fact the community has ruled out making any profit from the local heat network as part of a voluntary commitment you have the value created for the locals: "Money that currently flows out of the region for oil and gas will remain here in future," says Mayor Knödler Promotional funds are also improving the balance sheet: EUR 3 million stem from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) A total of EUR 1.1 million has been provided by the German Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control on the basis of the Combined Heat and Power Act KfW is also promoting the project: it has granted the community support in the amount of EUR 306,000 under the promotional product Energy-efficient Urban Rehabilitation Grant These funds can be used to finance an integrated neighbourhood concept and a reorganisation manager – so Thomas Gessler's role as well Ilsfeld is covering the remaining EUR 6.5 million from loans KfW has provided around EUR 3.1 million under the promotion product IKK – Energy-efficient Urban Rehabilitation – Energy Supply for Neighbourhoods To become even more independent of the energy market Ilsfeld is currently planning a biomass power plant and solar-powered heating systems "Climate protection is a matter close to our hearts," says Thomas Knödler Close to 80 per cent of the energy produced worldwide still comes from fossil fuel sources Burning fossil fuels also generates costs for the health system due to air pollution and costs for climate-related damages that harm the general public All United Nations member states adopted the 2030 Agenda in 2015 At its heart is a list of 17 goals for sustainable development known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Our world should become a place where people are able to live in peace with each other in ways that are ecologically compatible by the following photographers/photo agencies are used: � Enter the buyers guide Sign up for our daily Newsletter and stay up to date with all the latest news You are receiving this pop-up because this is the first time you are visiting our site You are using software which is blocking our advertisements (adblocker) we are relying on revenues from our banners So please disable your adblocker and reload the page to continue using this site.Thanks on the 7th of March launched a new product line for the To Go market there is now a line of salad mixes in four different variations The expansion of the convenience range goes hand in hand with the growing demand for healthy snacks in appropriate units and packaging There are four different variations of salad cups available High quality packaging design The salad cups are initially available in four different flavors: Chicken To Go The basic ingredients of each blend are fresh endive and radicchio The salad cups are rounded off with a suitable yoghurt dressing (80 ml) the salads are offered in smaller units (245 g) The salads are freshly prepared daily in the production facility of Sapros GmbH in Ilsfeld Further advantages of the product line are the long shelf life and the eye-catching which is rounded off with a banderole made of recycled paper "We believe that our salad cups can be placed on all To Go shelves handmade snack is very exciting and lucrative for all providers in the convenience sector." A look at the convenience assortment of Sapros GmbH Ongoing trend Sapros GmbH has long been exploring the possibilities of the convenience business The existing and proven range has already been extended with antipasti and numerous kitchen-ready products The company will continue to focus on the further development of this modern product segment in the future Berger: "The trend for healthy snacks is unrestrained and will continue to influence consumer behavior we can still respond comprehensively to the increasing quality requirements of our customers