News in Brief
NCBI and Social Media
NCBI has taken the first steps into social media and we want you to join us. Social media means using the web or mobile technologies to create engagement and interactive dialogue. It’s a two-way system between NCBI and our supporters so we need you to join our online communities on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
If you’re on Facebook please become a fan of the page to keep up to date with events, news and articles of interest. If you’re concerned about privacy, don’t worry, becoming a fan of a page does not mean that your personal information is accessible to the administrator of that page or to any other fans. It is a great way for us to spread the word on NCBI’s activities and campaigns and the benefit of Facebook is that if you ‘like’ a post written by NCBI, or comment on it, then all of your friends see that comment and our message is spread even further. So come on over to www.faceboook.com/ncbiworkingforpeoplewithsightloss.
NCBI also has a Twitter account for those of you using Twitter. It’s very new but there will be regular and relevant updates on what’s going on in NCBI and what we’re working on. Again, it’s a great way to increase our audience and to spread the word as people re-tweet information they see on our feed. So if you’re on Twitter please follow NCBI. www.twitter.com/ncbi_sightloss. This article carries the logos for Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Letters to Santa
Boys and girls it’s that time of year again. The excitement is building rapidly in NCBI as we once again help Santa out with the massive task of replying to all the letters from boys and girls around the world. So if you’d like Santa to reply to you in Braille, audio or large print then let us know and we’ll pass the message on to the man himself.
Children will receive a beautiful card with large print and a lovely decoration to be cut out, coloured in and placed on the Christmas tree. A Braille insert will be sent to children who are Braille readers, with a CD for those who prefer to listen to Santa’s response, along with an embossed image of the Christmas tree decoration.
Children should send their letters in the post to Santa Claus, NCBI Library and Media Centre, Unit 29 Finglas Business Centre, Jamestown Road, Finglas, Dublin 11 or by email at santa@ncbi.ie by Monday 12th December. This article carries a picture of Santa Claus arriving at a hall door with a sack of presents.
Internet Radio Directory
Two directories of internet radio stations are now available online. As well as www.blindradio.com , which lists internet radio stations worldwide, www.blindradio.co.uk has been set up as a directory solely for the UK and Ireland. Established by Gerry McGoldrick, an Irish UK-based engineer, in 2003, the directories are designed to be completely accessible to people who are blind or vision impaired. As well as listening live, you can download a file and save it for later. The sites have thousands of users daily, according to creator Gerry.
“I have recently done interviews for talking newspapers in Sweden and India so that shows the appeal that the sites have. Internet radio usage is very high in the US, has medium usage in the UK and it’s currently quite low in Europe and probably quite low in Ireland too.”
Pre-Budget Submission
NCBI’s submission to Budget 2012 calls on the Government to honour the commitments set out in the Programme for Government by protecting payments for people who are blind or vision impaired and the services provided to them by organisations like NCBI.
People who are blind or vision impaired were singled out for a cut of €8 per week to the individual rate of Blind Pension in the last budget and a total reduction of 8% in the last two years. There were also cuts to Blind Welfare Allowance (€2.50 per week for an individual).
This vulnerable group cannot sustain further reductions, and we argue that the cuts of last year should be reversed.
The savings made by these cuts from 2009 to 2010 amounted to a relatively small saving for the State at a huge price for individuals with sight loss who are struggling to pay for essential items like low vision aids, the technology which allows them to lead independent lives and the increased heating and travel costs (in areas where public transport is not available) they face due to their disability. NCBI therefore urges the Minister to refrain from imposing further cuts on this vulnerable group in 2012 and to consider reversing the cuts of 2011.
In addition to these direct cuts, the essential services provided by NCBI to people with sight loss are also under threat.
At the time of going to press the outcome of Budget 2012 was not known but we will have details on our website in December. In the meantime, the pre-budget submission can be viewed online at
http://www.ncbi.ie/news/public-policy-and-campaigns.
Albert Niland’s all audio guitar course proving popular
Galway Singer/songwriter Albert Niland’s all-audio guitar course for people who are blind or vision impaired is proving to be popular. The 35-lesson course is designed for complete beginners. Participants rely solely on the audio so no other aids are needed. This course is available on CD and is free of charge to people who are blind or vision impaired. For more information email nilandmusic@yahoo.com.
Albert who is playing to rave reviews on the continent is hoping to do some one-on-one workshops in 2012 with vision impaired guitarists who are undertaking the course. Those who might like to try the course can contact the Editor on omegapub@eircom.net for a copy of the audio files. Try it today, it’s a great way to learn guitar.