students  concluded months of agroecological workshops and farm visits with a field visit to the Articulturae Farmers’ and Artisans’ Market in Manziana as part of their Transversal Skills and Orientation Program The event served as a culmination of their studies allowing them to witness the operational realities of a local ecological food system firsthand and biodiversity conservation function as tangible alternatives to industrial agriculture The farmers’ market exemplified the practical application of agroecological principles they had explored in classrooms and on farms demonstrating how individual and collective choices—such as supporting local producers—can drive systemic change toward food sovereignty emphasizing the link between regenerative practices followed by an agroecology trail focused on wild plant identification and land stewardship These activities reinforced the students’ understanding of how local ecosystems and ethical economies intersect to sustain healthy food systems Ecoculturae – Regenerating Ecological Communities students  concluded months of agroecological workshops and farm visits with.. The Vasundhara Festival recently convened farmers and representatives from India and around the.. Navdanya hosted the Vasundhara Festival at.. join the #BiodiversityInOurHands Social Media Action!.. Navdanya International hosted the webinar,.. Areas of Work Illustrations by Marion Bessol food sovereignty and the rights of small farmers around the world Copyright © 2025. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy Designed by ESC Coca-Cola's television ad featuring the infectious "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke" and considered by many to be "the world's most famous ad," first took America by storm in 1971 it filled American homes once more as the finale scene in AMC's long-running "Mad Men." But "I'd like to buy the world a Coke." When the ad was produced in 1971 making it the world's most expensive commercial at the time Which makes it all the more astounding that Backer came up with the idea while sitting in an airport cafe in Shannon after his plane was forced to land due to a blanket of fog smothering London Backer was the creative director on the Coca-Cola account for McCann Erickson he had been en route to London to meet with the account's music director Billy Davis alongside songwriters Roger Cook and Roger Greengaway were to come up with some radio commercials for Coke Backer found himself among Brits and tourists He was forced to spend the night in Shannon some were even sitting in the airport's cafe and laughing at their shared misfortune between gulps of bubbly Coca-Cola straight from the bottle "In that moment [I] saw a bottle of Coke in a whole new light … [I] began to see a bottle of Coca-Cola as more than a drink that refreshed a hundred million people a day in almost every corner of the globe 'Let's have a Coke,' as more than an invitation to pause for refreshment 'Let's keep each other company for a little while.' And [I] knew they were being said all over the world as [I] sat there in Ireland So that was the basic idea: to see Coke not as it was originally designed to be — a liquid refresher — but as a tiny bit of commonality between all peoples a universally liked formula that would help to keep them company for a few minutes." During an interview with Slate following the "Mad Men" finale Backer remembered watching the laughing imbibers and writing on the back of a napkin I'd like to buy the world a home and furnish it with love" i.e I'd like to buy the world a home and furnish it with love I'd like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony I'd like to buy the world a Coke and keep it company "That's what the product was doing at the time," Backer said "It just felt like I heard a voice from somewhere saying 'I'd like to be able to do this for the whole world.'" DJs immediately began receiving calls asking them to play the jingle as if it were a song by The Doors or the Jackson 5 The Hillside Singers had recorded the original vocals Backer had the New Seekers record a slightly different version of the song titled "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony)," which peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 the company decided to film a commercial using the jingle hiring 500 people from Rome to stand on the hilltop in Manziana and lip-sync the lyrics Rain and other delays kept Backer and his team from hitting their initial budget of $100,000 but the soda company trusted his vision so thoroughly the company and its bottlers received more than 100,000 letters about it "It's generally considered the world's most popular commercial," Backer said one of the musicians who helped write the jingle said he thinks it's popularity came from a feeling of hope during a dark period in the country's history and most of America was tiring of the Vietnam War," Greengaway told the ASCAP delivered a message of peace and camaraderie." That connection was something Backer looked for in his work and I always imagined that I was talking directly to the public," Backer said A lot of people were just trying to please the client I always imagined that I was sitting and talking to you directly." Metrics details Five species of the Phortica genus (Diptera: Drosophilidae) are known in Europe and the Middle East Phortica variegata and Phortica okadai are better known for their role as vectors of the zoonotic eyeworm Thelazia callipaeda such as Phortica semivirgo and Phortica oldenbergi Given the paucity of data about these Phortica spp we explored the population dynamics and ecology of Phortica spp flies were collected over a 3-year period (2018–2020) during their active season (April–October) with a sweep net while hovering around fermenting fruits or a human operator acting as baits Collected flies were morphologically identified and tested for a T callipeada infection and for the presence of Wolbachia Population dynamics of species collected was associated to environmental drivers through generalized additive models variegata scored molecularly infected with T callipeada throughout the 3-year sampling period (1.8%) observed consistently during the entire sampling period exhibited a marked preference for fruit traps contrasting with the lachryphagous activity of P variegata population dynamics indicated temperature Wolbachia pipientis endosymbiont was detected in P this study analysed several ecological aspects of Phortica species coexisting in a T highlighting different behaviors in the same environment and their vectorial role this is also the first report of the presence of P underscoring the importance of extensive sampling for detecting potential vectors and alien species with direct implications for vector-borne disease epidemiology particularly with regard to larval ecology the co-occurrence of four Phortica species detailed data about their ecology and phenology as well as the first record of a stable population of P Data on the potential expansion in the distribution of these Phortica spp are also discussed in light of the risk they may represent as competent vectors of T Longitudinal samplings were performed in the oak forest of Manziana (Rome 42°07′10.8″N—12°06′57.6″E) between the months of April and October from 2018 to 2020 In case of doubtful identification (N = 95) a molecular confirmation was carried out with conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing PCR was performed in a total volume of 25 μl containing 1.5 μl of DNA as a template by mixing: sterile ddH2O (17.00 μl) 0.8 μl of deoxynucleotide triphosphates (dNTPs) [10 μM] PCR was performed in a thermal cycler (Bio-Rad C1000 Touch) using the following cycling protocol: 95 °C for 10 min (polymerase activation) followed by 31 cycles of 95 °C for 1 min (denaturation) The PCR 700 bp long amplified product was visualized in 1.5% agarose gel containing 2 μl of DNA as a template by mixing: sterile ddH2O (14.65 μl) followed by 35 cycles of 95 °C for 1 min (denaturation) The PCR 689 bp long amplified product was visualized in 1.5% agarose gel The three GAMs differ in the response variable while in the other two models (GAM-2 and GAM-3) the response variable was the log-CPUE of P variegata females (from fruit traps) and males (lacryphagous) okadai collected during the whole sampling period these species were excluded from the analysis A selection of the predictors was carried out to avoid multicollinearity In all the GAMs the parametric coefficients were sex while a smooth function was applied to windspeed A smooth function was also estimated for the date of collection (treated as day of the year) with an interaction between the factor variable bait (fruits/net) BLASTn sequence analysis of the cox1 gene (N = 95) confirmed the morphological identification as P variegata (N = 84; 99.7% of nucleotide identity (ni); accession number PP990198) semivirgo (N = 1; 99.1% ni; accession number PP990202) and P oldenbergi (N = 9; accession number PP838740; Supplementary information) showed a similar nucleotide identity with P semivirgo (94.7% ni) as sequences for this species were not available in GenBank okadai) were analyzed for the presence of Wolbachia okadai specimens examined scored positive for a fragment of the expected size whereas P semivirgo were negative (Supplementary information All sequences were identical and were confirmed as belonging to Wolbachia strain A (100% identity with Wolbachia endosymbiont (group A) of Melieria omissa; accession numbers PP930348 and PP930349) Thelazia callipaeda DNA was detected in the P variegata subsample (N = 699) showing different infection rates: 1.26% in 2018 (N = 352) 1% in 2019 (N = 100) and 2.02% in 2020 (N = 247) The sex ratio of both P. variegata and P. oldenbergi collected each year was unbalanced (Tables 1 and 2) The sex ratio of flies collected on human bait substantially differed from those gathered on fruit Phortica oldenbergi females’ population dynamics (GAM-1). Predicted log-CPUE of females collected with fruit bait in relation to the sampled months (a), temperature (b), and wind speed (c) Phortica variegata females’ population dynamics (GAM-2). Predicted log-CPUE of females collected with fruit bait in relation to the sampled months (a), temperature (b), and wind speed (c) Phortica variegata males and females’ population dynamics (GAM-2 and GAM-3). Predicted log-CPUE for P. variegata males (green) collected with human bait and females (red) collected with fruit bait in the sampled months Fruit bait-collected Phortica variegata population dynamics (GAM-4) variegata males (green) and females* (red) in the sampled months This study showed for the first time the occurrence and seasonal dynamics of Phortica species living in sympatry within a forested area of Manziana (Central Italy) variegata was the most abundant species (90% of the collected Phortica flies) semivirgo may exploit upper levels of oak trees as a preferential habitat while being less represented at ground level representing the first record of this species in Europe okadai suggests a possible accidental introduction by fruit trading Further sampling in surrounding areas should be performed to increase information about the possible wider presence of P which would be of paramount relevance for T considering the major role of this vector in its original areal New sampling approaches applied to a different trophic niche could be adopted in the future to further explore the population dynamics of P the models confirmed the negative effect of the wind speed on the mean abundance of collected flies which can be reasonably explained by the higher energy required for flies for dispersal variegata was the only species found infected oldenbergi tested negative for the presence of T it cannot be excluded that they could act as vectors in other areas with different ecological settings in which they may be more abundant which are found infected during clinical screenings (R variegata specimens might have been infected by feeding on neighboring dogs Other information about potential sylvatic hosts is lacking despite it being reasonable to suppose that other mammals This study adds information on the ecological aspects of sympatric Phortica species within a forest of Central Italy The extensive collection and identification of these species underscore their seasonal variation of abundance and potential roles within the ecosystem unravelling the complex interplay between environmental drivers especially regarding the transmission of the eyeworm T oldenbergi in Europe pose intriguing questions about its geographical origin semivirgo and the enigmatic observation of a single specimen of P okadai in the Manziana area highlight the complexities of species establishment in new environments Further studies are imperative to explore the vectorial capacity of these species in natural settings assess the impact of environmental changes on their populations and develop strategies for monitoring and controlling their spread in relation to T callipeada transmission to animals and humans No datasets were generated or analyzed during the current study Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) [Internet]. [cited 2024 Jun 9]. Available from: https://www.gbif.org/ A first report of Thelazia callipaeda infection in Phortica okadai and wildlife in national nature reserves in China Máca J, Otranto D. Drosophilidae feeding on animals and the inherent mystery of their parasitism. 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Available from: https://www.lifewatchitaly.eu/en/initiatives/checklist-fauna-italia-en/checklist/ Survey of Phortica drosophilid flies within and outside of a recently identified transmission area of the eye worm Thelazia callipaeda in Switzerland Bächli G, Schatzmann E, Haring E. On some population parameters of drosophilids in Switzerland (Diptera, Drosophilidae). 2008 [cited 2024 Jan 12]; Available from: https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/14220 Vertical Microdistribution of Drosophilidae (Diptera) within various Forests in Hokkaido.: I First report of human Thelazia callipaeda infection in Portugal Survival and nutritional requirements for overwintering Drosophila suzukii (Diptera: Drosophilidae) in Kentucky Detection of Thelazia callipaeda in Phortica variegata and spread of canine thelaziosis to new areas in Spain Revision of the Nearctic species of the genus Amiota Loew (Diptera: Drosophilidae) Comparative analysis of temperature preference behavior and effects of temperature on daily behavior in 11 Drosophila species Impact of Wolbachia infection on Drosophila female germline stem cells Download references Authors would like to thank Federica Laterza Federica Furzi and Eugenio Gabrieli for the support in sampling collection and laboratory analyses John Jaenike for the insightful discussions about Phortica ecology Ilaria Bernardini and Cristiana Poggi contributed equally to this work Dipartimento di Sanità Pubblica e Malattie Infettive Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences performed laboratory and molecular analyses of the specimens; I.B. and all authors critically contributed to its final version All authors read and approved the final manuscript Marco Pombi is a Subject Editor for Parasites & Vectors The authors declare no competing interests Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data Download citation DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-024-06526-9 Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: a shareable link is not currently available for this article but became one day by day: Rome launches cause for Chiara CorbellaRevista Mision On what would have been her 10th wedding anniversary diocese officially begins to look at possibility of canonizing wife and motherThe Diocese of Rome announced that the cause for the beatification and potential canonization of a young mother Chiara died in 2012 after she postponed medical treatment that would have endangered the health of her unborn child with a ceremony presided over by Archbishop Angelo De Donatis the episcopal see and cathedral of the pope This is the date on which Chiara and her husband Enrico would have celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary Church officials will carefully study the life of Chiara Corbella Petrillo to establish if and how she lived the Christian virtues to a heroic degree taking into account the new criteria used by the Church In light of the Apostolic Letter Motu Propio “Maiorem hac dilectionem,” On the Offer of Life the Congregation for Saints’ Causes has new criteria for establishing the holiness of a person who has offered his or her life for another person out of love They look at how that person lived the Christian virtues in the course of ordinary life and how their heroic virtue was made manifest by offering their own life for another in imitation of the love of Christ who said: “Greater love has no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends” (Jn 15:13) “The cause for Chiara’s beatification could be opened according to the criterion of the ‘offer of life,’ but instead we chose to open it based on evidence of the heroic nature of her exercise of Christian virtues,” said Carmelite Father Romano Gambalunga “This will allow us to better highlight the normal path of growth in faith and in holiness during the different phases of her youthful life in such a way that her whole life can be presented as a model for a life of holiness that is possible for all.”  Chiara was a laywoman and a mother who died at the age of 28 on June 13 she faced the sorrow of the deaths of her first two children this saintly young mother was diagnosed with cancer The most effective treatment would have been dangerous for the child she bore in her womb Although she knew that delaying treatment would reduce its effectiveness she chose to risk her own life and hold off on the treatment until after giving birth “This woman decided to complete her pregnancy [before treatment] Her self-sacrifice remains as a shining light of hope an example of love greater than fear and death,” reads the edict announcing the opening of the cause by the Diocese of Rome the “fame of holiness” or reputation that surrounds the testimony of Chiara’s life was an additional motivation for the ecclesial authorities to initiate the cause of canonization of this woman now known as a “Servant of God.” The Diocesan Court of the Vicariate of Rome (Piazza di S 6-00184 Rome) is available to people who have information useful to the cause be it favorable or contrary to the reputation of holiness of the Servant of God Chiara Corbella Petrillo for a time worshipped alongside other Catholics in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal and after her engagement nurtured her spirituality and lived her Christian life alongside the Franciscan Friars in Assisi she shared some of the difficulties she faced in her life the Lord wanted to give us special children: Maria Grazia Letizia and Davide Giovanni but He asked us to accompany them only until their birth and allowed us to embrace them and then deliver them into the hands of the Father in serenity and joy.”  Then came that most challenging and decisive moment: “Now Francesco (Francis) who will be born in a short while But He has again asked us to continue trusting Him despite a tumor that I discovered a few weeks ago and this tempts us to fear the future; but we still choose to believe that God has great things in store for us.” Chiara met with Pope Benedict XVI in May of 2012 their newborn son who continues to grow healthy and strong pointed out that Chiara’s life was quite normal up until her death at age 28: she wasn’t born a saint she gave evidence of being a person enlightened by the presence of Jesus and Mary – a presence she “sought and loved” and shared with relatives and friends giving testimony of this presence to everyone she encountered this past September 9 the “Francis and Clare” Center for Life Assistance awarded the Third International “A Light for Life” Award to the Servant of God Chiara Corbella Petrillo (in memoriam) at the Domus Pacis of Santa Maria degli Angeli in Assisi Articles like these are sponsored free for every Catholic through the support of generous readers just like you Please make a tax-deductible donation today Help us continue to bring the Gospel to people everywhere through uplifting Catholic news