Environmental, Safety and Health Compliance—More than 40 Years of Progress

Environmental, Safety and Health Compliance—More than 40 Years of Progress

By Allison von Gruenigen, Compliance Solutions Consultant, Skillsoft

Did you know that in 1969 one of America’s rivers was so polluted with oil and trash that it caught fire?  That forty years ago on average, 38 U.S. workers died on the job each day? 
In 1970, Congress passed laws to protect both human health and the environment. These laws have greatly improved our lives and compliance training has played a major role in achieving the goals set by the agencies tasked with defining and upholding the laws. Skillsoft offers over 125 Environmental, Safety and Health (ESH) titles that support the laws and enhance a learner’s ability to help protect their self, their co-workers, the environment and their community.
Occupational safety and health
Congress created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in 1970 to assure safe and healthful conditions for working men and women by setting and enforcing standards and providing training, outreach, education, and compliance assistance.  Under the OSHA law, employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthful workplace for their workers.
In four decades, OSHA and their state partners, coupled with the efforts of employers, safety and health professionals, unions and advocates, have had a dramatic effect on workplace safety.

• Since 1970, workplace fatalities have been reduced by more than 65 percent and occupational injury and illness rates have declined by 67 percent. At the same time, U.S. employment has almost doubled.
• Worker deaths in America are down — from about 38 worker deaths a day in 1970 to 13 a day in 2011.
• Worker injuries and illnesses are down — from 10.9 incidents per 100 workers in 1972 to fewer than 4 per 100 in 2010.

To learn more about OSHA, watch this short video of old and new footage that highlights key moments in the Nation's progress over the past forty years in occupational safety and health protection.
Environmental protection
On April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans [one in every ten Americans at the time] stood up to demand a cleaner and healthier environment. This first Earth Day was one of the largest grassroots demonstrations in our nation’s history and it worked. By the end of the year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was created and tasked with both cleaning up the damage already done to the environment and establishing guidelines to help Americans make a cleaner and safer environment a reality. 
The vast environmental improvements made in the last 40 years have benefitted every single American.
Air quality

• In the 40 years since the Clean Air Act went into effect, America has reduced 60% of the dangerous air pollutants that cause smog, acid rain, lead poisoning and more.
• Today, new cars are 98 percent cleaner than in 1970 in terms of smog-forming pollutants.  This change has made Americans healthier.

Protecting America's water
Forty years ago the Cuyahoga River in Ohio was so filled with oily waste and industrial pollution that it actually caught fire.  Today, the EPA is working to protect the water resources that keep our families healthy, our communities clean, and our country strong.

• Sixty-percent more Americans were served by publicly-owned wastewater treatment facilities from 1968 to 2008.
• In a study of lakes from the 1970s to 2007, water quality improved. Half the lakes saw less nutrient concentrations (forming green sludge) and a quarter saw improved trophic status.
• Today, more than 2,000 water bodies identified as impaired in 2002 now meet water quality standards.
• The number of Americans receiving drinking water that met health standards went from 79 percent, in 1993, to 92 percent, in 2008.

Recycling

• American families and businesses went from recycling about 10 percent of trash in 1980 to more than 33 percent in 2008.  America recycles 83 million tons of trash annually.  That’s like cutting green house gas emissions from more than 33 million automobiles.

EPA @ 40 video
Watch this video montage of archival and contemporary footage that captures some of the most pivotal and memorable events of past 40 years of the environmental protection movement.
Skillsoft’s ESH compliance solutions
Skillsoft offers over 125 ESH courses, with translated courses available in the following languages (not all courses are available in all languages):

• Latin American Spanish
• Chinese Mandarin
• Canadian English and French
• German

ESH compliance courseware can be delivered and tracked through the Skillsoft Academy or Skillport® platforms and has a proven track record with third-party learning management systems. The courseware and technology conform to standards including Section 508, AICC and SCORM. The Skillsoft Academy platform manages blended curricula of elearning compliance courses along with records of other types of training such as classroom, video or on-the-job training, so all training records can be managed in one system.


Contact Information:
TRACK Learning Solution
Sharq, Ahmad Al Jabber Street Kuwait City, Kuwait
T: +965 223 22 591
F: +965 223 22 590
Website : www.trackls.com
Email: Consultant@trackls.com

Seminar4Success "The Role of Technology in Learning and Development"

Track Learning Solutions Successfully Launched Seminar4Success at Marina Hotel Kuwait

Track Learning Solutions Successfully launched Seminar4Success at Marina Hotel Kuwait and Announced Innovative Learning Award 2013, As part of its continues efforts in helping organizations achieve their training and business objectives, Track Learning Solutions held a full day Seminar in Marina hotel Kuwait titled “The Role of Technology in Learning & Development” as part of a series of events that will take place around the MENA region.

The event showcased case studies from Kuwait around the utilization and integration of Technology Based Learning into corporate training initiatives shared by Kuwait Investment Company (KIC)  , Al-Sayer Group (Kuwait) and Guest speaker, Mr. Ammar Safar from Kuwait University and George P. Abbs eLearning Specialist  Dexway.

During the event, TRACK Learning Solutions, the leading provider of e-learning services, announced their strategic partnership with dexway to provide English language learning solution within MENA Region. Mr. George from dexway demonstrated  new tools and services offered by dexway language learning solution that included 24x7 live conversational classes,one2one consultation in virtual classroom, study groups “ unlimited classes to practice with other students”

The event showcased case studies from Kuwait around the utilization and integration of Technology Based Learning into corporate training initiatives shared by Kuwait Investment Company (KIC)  , Al-Sayer Group (Kuwait) and Guest speaker, Mr. Ammar Safar from Kuwait University and George P. Abbs eLearning Specialist  Dexway.

TRACK as part of the “Achievement Recognition Awards program, awarded Innovative learning award to Kuwait Investment Company (KIC), Kuwait Finance House (KFH), Diyar United Co, Al-Sayer Goup, IBS, Heisco & GD and Kharafi National. TLS also awarded appreciation award to the event speakers, Mr. Ammar Safar (Kuwait University), Asmaa Al-Tabtabaee, Rania Chouiery (Al-Sayer Group) and George P. Abbs eLearning Specialist Dexway.

Mr. Fouad Mohsen AGM inaugurated the event by addressing the importance of Technology based Learning and Understanding the Rate of Change, He highlighted how Track can support organizations in building their own learning culture by taking an advantage of technology, empowering employees to take charge of their own learning, and getting the buy in from top managers and leaderships. He further explained how technology based learning can play an important role in keeping professionals updated with accurate information.

About Track learning solutions With more than 10 years’ experience in the e-learning industry, Tack Learning Solution provide the latest Technology Based Learning Solutions in the MENA region, with presence in Kuwait, UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan, Lebanon, Algeria and other countries. Track Learning Solution partners with SkillSoft, Dexway, Jzero and IBTA delivers innovative learning solutions using latest technologies that is re-shaping the Training Delivery which in return has direct impact on development of human resource within organizations.

- See more at: http://www.trackls.com

10x10x10x: A Model for Creating a Nimble, Adaptable Workforce

10x10x10x Frame work A Model for Creating a Nimble, Adaptable Global Workforce Download Whitepaper Now ▼ This paper explores a new framework for delivering information in easily-digestible 10-minute nuggets that satisfy a range of informational needs. The10x10x10 framework supports immediate problem-solving and the ongoing development needs of today’s leaders in a hyper-competitive, ever-changing world, ultimately driving higher levels of organizational performance and agility. Download your Whitepaper Copy Now ▼

The Most Powerful Language Learning Method

Dexway is power With dexway students will feel the power of learning effortlessly

Only when the most advanced technology and the most powerful language learning method are united is it possible for a student to learn a language naturally. Immersion in a sea of new words, absorption of structures and remembering content effortlessly. The dexway courses have been developed for people that want to learn easily and while having fun, almost without realising thanks to the dexway experience. Only the dexway platform and the experience services allow a natural style of learning and give the maximum possible guarantee of success and commitment.

“Dual pronunciation evaluation” “Courses split into levels according to skill” “The most intuitive platform on the market” Explore More ►   > Intuitive and automated platform. > Initial placement test and final certificate. > Course help in mother tongue.(beginner courses) > Grammar help in each unit and course manual > Dual pronunciation evaluation:through software and personally by the tutors > Structured content to learn naturally > Courses split into levels and focusedon obtaining international certificates > Open exercises testing oral and written skills > Practical evaluation of skills

Expert teachers guarantee success

 

According to the main language institutions in Europe, the most important element in language training is “the quality of the training and the educational tools”. Much more than perfect pronunciation that can be solved with multimedia resources.

For that reason, a native tutor doesn’t guarantee success. An expert teacher in language training will be needed to do so.

According to Instituto Cervantes, the main institution that promotes the Spanish language, they don’t ask their teachers to be native. The important thing for them is that their teachers have to be expert. They have to have a degree, all the communicative skills; they have to know about the training process, word’s origin, the grammar and vocabulary. The British Council, the great English institution, agrees with this.

dexway works along this lines. We make every effort to select the best teachers, native and experts in language training and furthermore experts in technology based training. Our teachers are trained to offer the best attention and the best online language training.

Because as Richard Bueno, academic assistant principal of the Instituto Cervantes, says “the most important thing is to emphasis the teacher’s training and to support this with new technologies”, a thing that we do everyday in dexway.
Sam P. is one of our teachers. He has a Postgraduate certificate in Education and Bachelor of Science with honours. He has a lot of experience teaching English since 2006 and he does his best everyday in order that students learn English without any problems everyday.
In dexway we know the power of having expert teacher joining the student and we invest in this everyday to do so.

For More information:   Emailus @: consultant@trackls.com       Call us: +965 223 225 91
Explore us: http://www.trackls.com/LanguageDevelopment.aspx

Skillsoft New IT & Desktop Videos

Skillsoft introduced two new collections of on-demand IT and desktop performance support videos. The Skillsoft IT and Desktop Videos are captivating, 3-5 minutes of targeted learning experiences, covering a variety of desktop and IT topics. The videos, which complement other Skillsoft content and are available on Skillport® Skillsoft's Learning Management System, highlight specific tasks and features, and cover nearly 1,000 topics. In order to support busy professionals, Skillsoft has made the videos so that they are available on mobile devices, including tablets and smartphones.
The Skillsoft IT and Desktop Videos are the latest additions to Skillsoft's dynamic portfolio of video based learning assets. Skillsoft has been incorporating video into its learning solutions since 2006, initially with the introduction of its media-rich Business Impact and Challenge series products, and most recently with the addition of video in hundreds of its Business Skills courses. The Skillsoft Leadership Development Channel™ and 50 Lessons offers over 2000 videos, featuring world renowned business and global thought leaders.
Skillsoft introduced 75 videos in September, which address Microsoft® Office applications and mobile application development. Additional videos will be made available with a total of nearly 1000 videos released by the end of January. Topics will include: desktop applications, design & media applications, programming & web development and other IT topics such as security, virtualization and cloud technology.

View samples
Skillsoft Desktop Video: Click here to Launch Desktop Video

Skillsoft IT Video: Click here to Launch IT Video
Learn more

IT Certification and Training For More Secure Data

By Jim Zimmermann
I was just reading about the theft of the personal medical records of 1.7 million patients from New York City hospitals. In addition to basic contact information, the records contained social security numbers, dates of birth and mothers’ maiden names – all things that can be used to steal identities. To make the theft even more serious, the records contained the full medical records of the individuals.
So what does this have to do with learning? Proper IT certification and training in information  security methods could have mitigated, or virtually eliminated the threat posed by this theft.
The article reported that the data “wasn’t in plain text, so it appears the data is somewhat hard to access … However, the data was not encrypted. The hospital group said it will ‘expedite plans’ to encrypt all future backup tapes.”
The article also reported that “data breaches cost the health care industry $6 billion annually”, according to a study by the Ponemon Institute. Proper training of IT staff on security techniques can dramatically lower the risk for health care institutions, and for your company as well.
SkillSoft offers a number of popular IT certification training solutions that can help your company protect its valuable IT and data assets. Looking at the top 100 SkillSoft IT training courses from 2010, 13 of the top 100 courses were security related:

1. CompTIA Security + 2008: Threat Mitigation
2. Introduction to information security
3. Cisco ICND1 1.0: Switch Optimization, Security, and Troubleshooting
4. CompTIA Security + 2008: Cryptography
5. CISSP Domain: Information Security and Risk Management
6. CompTIA Security + 2008: Wi-Fi and Remote Access
7. Security, Safety, and Communication
8. CompTIA Security + 2008: Messaging, User, and Role Security
9. CompTIA Security + 2008: Authentication Methods
10. CompTIA Security + 2008: Public Key Infrastructure and Access Security
11. CompTIA Security + 2008: Risk Analysis, Vulnerability Testing, IDS, and Forensics
12. CompTIA Security + 2008: Ports, Protocols, and Network Security
13. CompTIA Security + 2008: Auditing, Security Policies, and Disaster Recovery

A review of the SkillSoft Course Catalog identifies at least 150 security-related titles.
On Books24x7 site, seven of the top 100 titles in ITPro for 2010 were security-related:

1. CompTIA Security+ All-In-One Exam Guide. Second Edition by Gregory White; Wm. Arthur Conklin; Dwayne Williams; Roger Davis and Chuck Cothren. © 2009
2. CISA Review Manual 2009 by ISACA. © 2008
3. CompTIA Security+ Study Guide. Fourth Edition by Emmett Dulaney. © 2009
4. Information Security Management Handbook. Sixth Edition by Harold F. Tipton and Micki Krause. © 2007
5. CISSP: All-in-One Exam Guide. Fourth Edition by Shon Harris. © 2008
6. CISSP in 21 Days: Boost Your Confidence and Get a Competitive Edge to Crack the Exam by M. L. Srinivasan. © 2008
7. CISM Review Manual 2009 by ISACA. © 2008

In total, the Books24x7 ITPro collections contain 995 security-related titles in a number of categories (number of titles per category appear in parentheses):

Many new and hot security titles were added to ITPro in 2010 – here are just five of them:
Computer Crime, Investigation, and the Law
Cengage Learning
Offering a broad introduction to the field of computer crime, this book introduces you to the specific techniques of hackers and shows you some of the tricks they use to infiltrate computer systems to help you defend against such attacks.


Principles of Computer Security: CompTIA Security+ and Beyond, Second Edition
McGraw-Hill/Osborne
Discussing communication, infrastructure, operational security, and methods for preventing attacks, this guide teaches the fundamentals of computer and information security while presenting the objectives for the CompTIA Security+ exam.


Hacking Exposed Wireless: Wireless Security Secrets & Solutions, Second Edition
McGraw-Hill/Osborne
Discussing the latest developments in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, ZigBee, and DECT hacking, this guide explains how to perform penetration tests, reinforce WPA protection schemes, mitigate packet injection risk, and lock down Bluetooth and RF devices.


Microsoft ForeFront Threat Management Gateway (TMG) Administrator's Companion
Microsoft Press
Presenting the real-world insights, implementation, configuration and management best practices you need for on-the-job results, this guide will help you get your Web, network perimeter and application layer security gateway up and running.


Information Security Risk Management for ISO27001 /ISO27002
IT Governance
Explaining in practical detail how to carry out an information security risk assessment, this book offers expert guidance on planning and implementing a risk assessment and protecting your business information.






Contact Information:
TRACK Learning Solution
Sharq, Ahmad Al Jabber Street Kuwait City, Kuwait
T: +965 223 22 591
F: +965 223 22 590
Website : www.trackls.com
Email: Consultant@trackls.com