International Year of Statistics ("Statistics2013")

     The International Year of Statistics ("Statistics2013") is a worldwide celebration and recognition of the contributions of statistical science. Through the combined energies of organizations worldwide, Statistics2013 will promote the importance of Statistics to the broader scientific community, business and government data users, the media, policy makers, employers, students, and the general public.

Welcome to the International Year of Statistics

    2013 is the International Year of Statistics. More than 2,000 organizations—professional statistical societies, colleges and universities, primary and secondary schools, businesses,
government entities, and research institutes are participating in this worldwide event. Why? Because statistics have powerful and far-reaching effects on everyone.


What Is Statistics?

    When many people hear the word “statistics,” they think of either sports-related numbers or the college class they took and barely passed. While statistics can be thought about in these terms, there is more to the relationship between you and statistics than you probably imagine. Several informal definitions are offered in the book A Career in Statistics: Beyond the Numbers by Gerald Hahn and Necip Doganaksoy:

• The science of learning from (or making sense out of ) data
• The theory and methods of extracting information from observational data for solving real-world problems
• The science of uncertainty
• The quintessential interdisciplinary science
• The art of telling a story with [numerical] data

Statistics are produced around the world by governments, political parties, civil servants, financial companies, opinion-polling firms, campaign groups, social-
research entities, scientific groups, news organizations, and so much more

How Does Statistics Affect You?

    You may not be aware of it, but statistics affects nearly every aspect of your life, including:

• Foods you eat
• Weather forecasts
• Emergency preparedness
• Assessing disease risks
• Protecting your pet’s health
• Improving your health care
• Transportation systems you use
• Assessing your credit worthiness
• Pricing your insurance policies
• Ensuring national security
• Examining economic health
• Prosecuting criminals
• Ensuring the safety of medicine
• Rulemaking by governments
• Assessing teacher effectiveness
• Monitoring climate change

Statistics—An Excellent Career Choice

Since our world is becoming more quantitative and data-focused, job opportunities in statistics are plentiful and projected to increase worldwide. Many industries depend on statisticians to analyze data, which helps in making critical decisions.
Statisticians work on important and challenging problems such as:

• Estimating the safety of nuclear power plants and alternative energy sources
• Evaluating the impact of air, water, and soil pollution
• Estimating the unemployment rate of a country
• Analyzing consumer demand for products and services
• Designing studies for and analyzing data from agricultural experiments to increase crop productivity and yields


Statistics Education Resources

Demand for statisticians and data analysts is expected to increase by 4.4 million jobs worldwide in the years ahead. To introduce students to careers in statistics and teach them basic statistics literacy, many statistical organizations have developed primary and secondary school statistics education programs and resources,
most of which are free of charge. An excellent example is the Census at School program, an international classroom statistical literacy project. To access these resources, go to the Primary & Secondary School Teacher Resources section at www.statistics2013.org.

The goals of Statistics2013 include: increasing public awareness of the power and impact of Statistics on all aspects of society; nurturing Statistics as a profession, especially among young people; and promoting creativity and development in the sciences of Probability and Statistics.

Why Statistics is Important to You

 Statistics is more than just a technology for data analysis. Statistics help shape the very world in which we live. Learn more of how SAS can analyze your data with world-class statistics software

• Statisticians in the News
  22 Maps Show How Americans Speak English Differently from Each Other
  
• Quote of the Week
  Some people hate the very name of statistics, but I find them full of beauty and interest. Whenever they are not brutalized, but delicately handled by the higher methods, and are warily interpreted, their power in dealing with complicated phenomena is extraordinary.
  -Sir Francis Galton, English anthropologist, eugenicist, tropical explorer, geographer, inventor, meteorologist, proto-geneticist, psychometrician and statistician.
  
  
  
  

World Day to Combat Desertification 2013, 17 June

Día Mundial de Lucha contra la Desertificación, 17 de junio.
Всемирный день борьбы с опустыниванием и засухой, 17 июня.
Journée mondiale de la lutte contre la désertification et la sécheresse, 17 juin.
World Day to Combat Desertification, 17 June.
 防治荒漠化和干旱世界日, 6月17日.
 اليوم العالمي لمكافحة التصحر والجفاف

" Performance Review and Assessment of Implementation System (PRAIS) " 
United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification

 

The World's Drylands : Desertification is a concept used to grasp the more acute forms of the degradation of land-based ecosystems and the consequences of the loss of their services. Drought is the silent killer—the natural catastrophe that is only too easily forgotten. Experience shows that awareness of the implications of desertification and drought must be expanded and that policy orientation must be backed by robust monitoring systems and related findings.

And the drought is back.... Namibia, the Sahel and United States are facing drought.
Did you know drought affects more people than any other natural disaster?

  Join the Forum : 17 June 2013 is the World Day to Combat Desertification. 

THE FACTS: Since 1979, about when global action on drought began, more than 1.6 billion people have been drought victims. Today, 11.4 million people in the Sahel lack food security due to the current drought.

In 2011, 13 million people in east Africa were affected; most have not recovered. Globally, 1 in 3 people live with the threat of drought. But only 1 COUNTRY has a comprehensive national drought policy? We respond drought with relief; that is reactive. We can do better. Let us change that because drought is predictable, it sets in slowly. If you live in a drought-prone area, here are 2 ways to empower yourself and others:

• Get linked up to your country’s early warning system for advance warnings.
 • Insure all your assets that can be destroyed by drought – crops, home, and so on.
 • Land health is crucial; soil that absorbs lots of water is best. It needs vegetation cover, like trees, to protect the soil from sliding and erosion.
• Share this message with others, so we are all self-empowered.
• Speak up for the setting up of a national drought management system in your country.
• Make your voice count globally. Like and share the online campaign graphic for WDCD urging governments to act.

For twitter: follow @UNCCD and to tweet, use tag #WDCD2013.
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UNCCD.
If you are not directly affected by drought do something in solidarity because drought dehumanizes us all and what comes around goes around.
 • Send this information to at-risk families you know for their self-empowerment.
 • Join local and national campaigns supporting long-term drought resilience measures, not just relief.
 • Make your voice count for action on national drought management policies. Like and share the campaign graphic for World Day to Combat Desertification on twitter – follow @UNCCD, use tag #WDCD2013 – and Facebook via https://www.facebook.com/UNCCD.


This year’s slogan, “Don’t let our future dry up” calls for everyone to take action to promote preparedness and resilience to water scarcity, desertification and drought. The slogan embodies the message that we are all responsible for water and land conservation and sustainable use, and that there are solutions to these serious natural resource challenges. Land degradation does not have to threaten our future.

Please help us spread the message through social media, sharing our graphics and using the hashtag #WDCD2013.

 

 

 United Nations Secretary-General's Message, on the occasion of World Day to Combat Desertification, 17 June 2013

With the rallying call “Don’t let our future dry up”, this year’s World Day to Combat Desertification is dedicated to highlighting the global risks of drought and water scarcity.  The social, political and economic costs of drought are evident from Uzbekistan to Brazil, from the Sahel to Australia.  In May, Namibia declared a national drought emergency, with 14 per cent of the population classified as food insecure.  In 2012, the United States experienced its worst drought since the 1950s, affecting 80 per cent of agricultural land.  In 2011 drought in the Horn of Africa – the worst since the early 1990s – affected nearly 13 million people.
Over the past quarter-century, the world has become more drought-prone, and droughts are projected to become more widespread, intense and frequent as a result of climate change.  The long-term impacts of prolonged drought on ecosystems are profound, accelerating land degradation and desertification.  The consequences include impoverishment and the risk of local conflict over water resources and productive land.
Droughts are hard to avert, but their effects can be mitigated.  Because they rarely observe national borders they demand a collective response.  The price of preparedness is minimal compared to the cost of disaster relief.  Let us therefore shift from managing crises to preparing for droughts and building resilience by fully implementing the outcomes of the High-level Meeting on National Drought Policy held in Geneva last March. 
On this World Day to Combat Desertification, I urge the international community to fulfil the call of last year’s Rio+20 conference on sustainable development to avoid and offset land degradation.  By conserving arid lands we can protect essential water supplies, promote food and nutrition security, and reduce extreme poverty. 

Ban Ki-moon

 

 

Message from Ms Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, on the occasion of World Day to Combat Desertification, 17 June 2013

Don’t let our future dry up

 We estimate between 100 to 200 million people live in arid and semi-arid areas with limited freshwater resources. By 2025, two-thirds of them will experience serious water stress – facing pressure from population growth, agricultural production, as well as rising salinity and pollution. The impact of climate change will increase water scarcity, increasing also the frequency of hydrological extremes. The poorest will be hit hardest, as obstacles to sustainable development harden. On this World Day to Combat Desertification, June 17th, we must renew our commitment to supporting inclusive and sustainable solutions to managing water resources in dryland areas.

Water challenges are complex, so solutions must be equally multi-faceted. This calls for innovative thinking and for cooperation across the board, to preserve our ecosystems, to eradicate poverty and to advance social equity, including gender equality.
This is the core message of the United Nations International Year of Water Cooperation that UNESCO is leading, to promote deeper cooperation to tackle the rising demand for water access, allocation and services.
The Water and Development Information for Arid Lands, a Global Network (G-WADI), led by UNESCO’s International Hydrological Programme, shows our commitment to strengthen global capacity to manage the water resources of dryland areas. This builds on four regional networks in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Arab States, which promote international and regional cooperation in dryland areas, for stronger management of water resources and mitigation of water-related disasters.
In collaboration with Princeton University, UNESCO is leading an experimental drought monitoring and forecasting system for sub-Saharan Africa, to build capacity through technology and knowledge transfer. Given the impact of drought in Africa, largely dependent on rain-fed agriculture, this is a key step to make the most of water as a source of solidarity.
With the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, UNESCO is working in concrete ways to promote sustainable dryland management. This must start on the ground, with the inhabitants of these areas, who often belong to the poorest segments of society. Water is the common denominator of many challenges – in health, in farming and food security and in energy. It can be the common solution also –- but this requires commitment from us all, especially for those most affected by water scarcity. This is UNESCO’s pledge on World Day to Combat Desertification.

Irina Bokova

  

Read the message in / Lire le message en :

 Español /Русский / العربية / 中文

Sustainable Management of Marginal Drylands: Eleventh International Workshop
17-19 June 2013, Ghent, Belgium

World Refugees Day 2013, June 20

Día Mundial de los Refugiados, 20 de junio.
 Всемирный день беженцев, 20 июня.
 Journée mondiale des réfugiés, 20 juin.
 世界难民日, 6月20日.
 ليوم العالمي للاجئين
World Refugee Day, June 20.

World Refugee Day is held every year on June 20. It is a special day when the world takes time to recognize the resilience of forcibly displaced people throughout the world.

On World Refugee Day 2013, we are focussing on the impact of conflict on families through the theme of  
‘1 Family Torn Apart by War is Too Many’.

During the weeks leading up to World Refugee Day 2013 and on the day itself, we are encouraging local, national and international communities to reflect on what we can do in order to help those who are forced to flee to find safety, regain hope and rebuild their lives.

For more information or to let us know your plans for World Refugee Day, email us at aulcapi@unhcr.org.

2013 Theme: Take 1 minute to support a family forced to flee

Resources :

Helping Refugees : 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol
Protecting refugees and the role of UNHCR 

High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR):

• The State of the World's Refugees 2012
• Global Appeal 2012-2013
• Global Trends 2011
• Global Report 2011

World Blood Donor Day 2013, June 14

"Every Blood Donation is a gift for life "

Key messages :

A single unit of donated blood can save up to three lives.

Every year 107 million blood donations are collected worldwide. Approximately half of these are collected in high-income countries, home to only 15% of the world’s population.
Many patients requiring transfusion, particularly in developing countries, do not have timely access to safe blood.
Blood collection from voluntary non-remunerated blood donors is the cornerstone of a safe and sufficient blood supply. Regular voluntary blood donors are the safest source of blood, as there are fewer bloodborne infections among these donors than among people who donate for family members in emergencies or who give blood for payment.
In low- and middle-income countries, the greatest use of donated blood is for pregnancy-related complications and severe childhood anaemia.
In high-income countries, transfusion is most commonly used for supportive care in heart surgery, transplant surgery, massive trauma and cancer therapy.
Providing safe and adequate blood through well-organized, national blood systems should be an integral part of every country’s national health-care policy.
WHO’s goal is for all countries to obtain all their blood supplies from 100% voluntary unpaid donors by 2020.

Mensaje del Dr. Luis Gerardo Castellanos "Día Mundial del Donante de Sangre 2013" 

Mensaje de Matilde Pinto "Día Mundial del Donante de Sangre 2013"  

Mensaje de la Sra. María Lela Cote "Día Mundial del Donante de Sangre 2013"  

WHO provides policy guidance and technical assistance to support countries to ensure that safe blood and blood products are available and used appropriately for all people who need them.

• More on World Blood Donor Day 2013
•  WHO: More voluntary blood donors needed
• Campaign essentials
• Posters: Give the gift of life: donate blood
• Promotional materials: t-shirts, gift tags, caps, mugs
• Web banners
• Photos on blood donation for download
• Note for media: More voluntary blood donors needed
• Feature story: Self-sufficiency in blood supply based on voluntary unpaid donors

World Day Against Child Labour 2013, June 12.

 

No to child labour in domestic work - World Day Against Child Labour, 12 June 2013

Statement by Guy Ryder, ILO Director-General on the occasion of the World Day against Child Labour 2013

Type:	Statement
When:	12 June 2013
Where:	Geneva, Switzerland

Child labour is a fundamental abuse of human rights. It denies girls and boys the right to be a child, to access quality education, and to hope for the future.

In its worst forms it exposes children to slavery, hazardous work and illicit activities, including drug trafficking and prostitution.

While significant progress has been made in reducing the number of child labourers worldwide, 215 million girls and boys remain at work, over half of them in the worst forms of child labour.

Child labour is most difficult to tackle when it takes place behind closed doors away from the public eye. This is frequently the case with child labour in domestic work, with children sometimes working far from their families and communities.

According to new ILO estimates, two out of every three children engaged in domestic work in the home of a third party, are working below the legal minimum age or in hazardous conditions. The majority are girls and some are working as a result of forced labour and trafficking. Stories of abuse are all too common.

On this World Day against Child Labour we make a strong appeal for urgent global action to tackle child labour in domestic work.

In particular we urge ILO member States to ratify and ensure effective implementation of the ILO’s Conventions on child labour and on domestic work. Just two years ago the ILO adopted new standards, Convention No. 189 and Recommendation No. 201, which emphasize that domestic workers, like other workers, have the right to decent work. Convention No. 189 also states that the minimum age for domestic workers should be consistent with the provisions of the ILO’s child labour Conventions. These require that children should not work below the legal minimum age for employment or work, and that young workers above the minimum age should be employed in safe conditions.

In addition to preventing child labour, governments should take measures to protect adolescents of legal working age employed in domestic work. This includes limiting their hours of work, prohibiting night work; restricting work that is excessively demanding, and taking measures to ensure effective protection against all forms of abuse, harassment and violence.

While on this World Day against Child Labour we focus on the problem of child labour in domestic work, we must also restate the imperative of addressing the root causes of all forms of child labour.

We need to ensure that all children have access to a quality basic education and are learning, at least to the minimum age of employment.

We need national social protection floors that enable families, regardless of their circumstances, to send their children to school and to keep them there even in times of hardship.

And in today’s world we need to be more focused than ever on creating decent jobs for adults across as many sectors as possible.

Our message on this World Day is clear: there is no place and no excuse for child labour in domestic or any other form of work.

 Statement :

Joint circular of the World Organization of the Scout Movement and ILO-IPEC

Messages on World Oceans Day 2013, June 8

 

Speakers are: Ms. Annebeth Rosenboom, UN Division for Oceans and the Law of the Sea; Dr. Alex de Voogt, Assistant Curator of African Ethnology Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History; and Dr. Jenny Newell, Assistant Curator of Pacific Ethnology Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History.

World Oceans Day, 8 June,
2013 Theme: Together, we have the power to protect the oceans .
Всемирный день океанов, 8 июня,
 Тема в 2013 году: Вместе — мы можем защитить океаны .
Día Mundial de los Océanos, 8 de junio,
 «Juntos tenemos el poder de proteger el océano. »
 Journée mondiale de l’océan, 8 juin,
Thème 2013 : « Ensemble, nous avons le pouvoir de protéger l'océan. »
世界海洋日, 6月8日,
 2013年主题：团结一致，我们就有能力保护海洋.
 اليوم العالمي للمحيطات


June 8th is World Oceans Day! Oceans are the life support system of our planet. Oceans regulate our climate. They provide the majority of our oxygen. The oceans are a global resource that we all rely upon.

This video was produced by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Information Programs in May 2013. The featured speaker is Philippe Cousteau, president and co-founder of Earthecho International.

United Nations Secretary-General's Message for 2013

From trade to food to climate regulation, the oceans are integral to all of humanity.  This is particularly so for coastal dwellers whose income and culture are irrevocably bound to the sea.  If we are to fully benefit from the oceans, we must reverse the degradation of the marine environment due to pollution, overexploitation and acidification. 

I urge all nations to work to this end, including by joining and implementing the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.  Let us work together to create new waves of action for ocean sustainability – for people and the planet.  

Ban Ki-moon

Message from the Director-General of UNESCO for 2013

The oceans constitute a single great body of interconnected seas that covers 71% of the earth’s surface. Oceans are the source of life and continue to play a crucial role in the lives of seven billion human beings. Several million people depend directly on the oceans for their food, travel and work.

Oceans regulate the climate and provide half of the oxygen that we breathe. Oceans are a resource unlike any other, for they make everything else possible. Their immense biological diversity contributes to the beauty of the world, and we must join forces to preserve it.

With 46 world heritage marine sites, UNESCO supervises a unique world network for the protection and study of oceans. More than one million observation documents and 1,000 new species have been recorded since the first few sites were listed.

Oceans are immense but not infinite: over-exploitation of resources, pollution and acidification as a result of global warming tax ecosystems and compromise human well-being. Rising sea levels threaten the lives of millions of people and can lead to redrawing the map of the world.

To take full advantage of ocean resources, humanity must invest massively in science and research as soon as possible. This effort must be made collectively, for oceans exceed States’ individual capacities – hence the need for better, more inclusive and more tailored governance. In this connection, the Oceans Compact launched in 2012 by Mr Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations, on an idea floated by UNESCO, affords an opportunity that must be seized.

In view of the potential that they hold for cooperation and growth, oceans are central to peace and sustainable development in the twenty-first century. In this critical period, UNESCO will redouble efforts to harness scientific cooperation to ocean issues.

For more than 50 years, UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) has been drawing on science in order to understand oceans and improve ocean management. The coordination of the Global Ocean Observing System has led impressive progress in world scientific cooperation.
The Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS) is a global platform for sharing information and data on marine biodiversity. As a result of the establishment and coordination of tsunami warning systems, ties of solidarity have been woven among States, and people are less vulnerable to ocean hazards.
Despite the challenges, one point is clear – together, we can protect the oceans. World Oceans Day is an opportunity to recognize this and to undertake to protect the oceans, where life began and on which our future depends.

Irina Bokova

 

2013 Theme: Together, we have the power to protect the oceans

World Oceans Day 2013 - Press Conference

By its resolution 63/111 of 5 December 2008, the UN General Assembly designated 8 June as World Oceans Day.

The official designation of World Oceans Day is an opportunity to raise global awareness of the challenges faced by the international community in connection with the oceans.

The lungs of our planet, providing most of the oxygen we breathe, the oceans are also a major source of food and medicines and a critical part of the biosphere.

The General Assembly recognized the important contribution of sustainable development and management of the resources and uses of the oceans and seas to the achievement of international development goals, including those contained in the United Nations Millennium Declaration.

The resolution calls upon user States and States bordering straits used for international navigation to continue to cooperate by agreement on matters relating to navigational safety, including safety aids for navigation, and the prevention, reduction and control of pollution from ships.

Member states are also urged to increase the coverage of hydrographic information on a global basis to enhance capacity-building and technical assistance and to promote safe navigation, especially in areas used for international navigation, in ports and where there are vulnerable or protected marine areas.


 Watch Ocean News

Prices - OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2013-2022

Higher priced agricultural products over the coming ten years, when compared to the pre-2007 decade, remain a distinct feature of this Outlook. The constellation of agricultural products and food prices have been on a higher plateau for several years as highlighted in the previous four Agricultural Outlook reports.

Near term prices adjusting
Commodity prices are currently high by historical levels. In the first years of this Outlook, crop and livestock prices are expected to diverge, reflecting different supply situations. Most crop prices are projected to fall in response to a rebound in production while reduced global livestock inventories allow only a limited supply response keeping meat prices high.

Prices firming over the medium-term
Rising prices for both crop and livestock products are projected over the coming decade due to a combination of slower production growth and stronger demand, including for biofuels, and a supportive macroeconomic environment. Meat, fish and biofuel prices are projected to rise more strongly than primary agricultural products.

Inflation adjusted prices remain high.
Over the next decade, average prices for the crop complex (cereals, oilseeds, sugar and cotton) are expected to be relatively flat in real terms compared with the previous decade which included several years of record high prices since 2007. Average real prices for the 2013-22 period are projected well above the 2003-12 average for most of the other commodities covered in this Outlook.

Lower food price inflationRecent evidence indicates that consumer food price inflation is currently abating in most countries, as lower prices of food grains, oilseeds, sugar and other products are passed through the food chain contributing to lower the “core” inflation. Nevertheless, with food expenditures accounting for 20-50% or more of household budgets in many developing countries, food affordability remains a main concern for food security.