The year 2010 was one of significant chal lenges and accomplishments for the Island Housing Trust. The accomplishments include the successful completion of 12 green affordable homes, and the reassessment and development of governance practices and a strategic business plan. The challenges include clarifying the trust’s value to the community and its role in relation to other housing organizations.

S lavery is an ugly part of our past that we would gladly forget. But what if you were to discover that slavery is not a thing of the past? What if you were to discover that slavery exists today in every part of the world, including our own country? I was stunned a few years ago when I began to understand the magnitude of the global human trafficking issue. Experts say that 90 million people are living as slaves somewhere in the world.

NUCLEAR WARNING

Editors, Vineyard Gazette:

Celestial Lights

From Gazette editions of March, 1986:

Last week I spoke at the renowned South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas. SXSW, as it is usually written, began as a music, and then film, festival and is one of the most “happening” events on the planet. Recently, a third component joined film and music: “Interactives.” This means cyber-stuff and all that 21st-century jazz. Although I have a lifelong terror and ineptness in this arena, I accepted a surprise invitation to speak at an “interactives” panel, and headed for sunny Texas, optimistic I would feel right at home.