The approach of summer in the U.S. means that it’s time to be ready for hurricanes and wildfires. The incidence of weather and climate disasters is increasing in the U.S., a trend due partly to climate change but also to human decisions. Since the 1950s, population growth has increased significantly in Sun Belt states. Millions of people have moved to coastlines, from Texas to the Carolinas, putting more lives and property in harm’s way during hurricanes. Florida, the hurricane capital of the United States, now is the third-most-populous state in the nation. Recognizing that Americans are increasingly vulnerable to extreme weather, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Weather-Ready Nation initiative is helping communities plan for events like violent tornadoes, destructive hurricanes, and widespread flooding. As a meteorologist and supporter of this effort, I believe that everyone should understand what kinds of severe weather hazards could affect their family and home and be ready for them. Here are some ways to do it. What to do instead of taping windows The U.S. experienced a record 22 billion-dollar weather and climate disasters in 2020 that wreaked about US$95 billion in total damage. This included a historic hurricane season, with 30 named storms and seven billion-dollar tropical cyclones – the most in one year since NOAA started keeping track of billion-dollar disasters in 1980. For Atlantic and Gulf coast residents, hurricane preparedness has to be a way of life. It means knowing whether you live in a designated evacuation zone. That’s key in the event of storm surge – when a hurricane pushes seawater up onto local beaches and inland areas. Readiness also means having a family and business disaster plan that details preparations, and maintaining a hurricane survival kit. Another priority is knowing how to protect your home and business from damaging winds. Conducting a home insurance review with your agent and scheduling a wind mitigation inspection will identify what you can do to strengthen and protect vulnerable parts of the building such as windows, entry doors, garage doors, and roofs. Adding metal hurricane shutters or hurricane-resistant windows can help. So can retrofitting the attic or eaves with metal hurricane straps, which connect the rafters to the walls to prevent the roof from blowing off. The owner of a Mexico Beach, Florida, house that survived Hurricane Michael, a Category 5 storm in 2018, describes his home’s stormproofing features. Here’s one step to skip: Putting tape onto windows for wind protection from a hurricane. Tape does nothing to reduce wind damage, so this is a waste of time. Consumers also need to rethink how they shop for a new home in storm-prone areas. It’s OK to want granite countertops, walk-in closets, and a safe neighborhood near schools and parks. But buyers should also consider how well a house is built, its age, the materials it contains, the shape and condition of the roof, and building code requirements at the time it was constructed. And they should ask whether the house is located in a flood-prone area, has wind-resistant features, or has been retrofitted against hurricanes. Even residents who don’t live in a zone where it is required should consider taking out flood insurance. Storm-testing buildings Florida International University’s International Hurricane Research Center, which is part of our Extreme Events Institute, was designated NOAA’s first Weather-Ready Nation ambassador in South Florida. Our Wall of Wind facility is capable of creating Category 5 hurricane conditions – winds with speeds over 157 mph. Like crash testing for vehicles, wind testing can help ensure that structures, traffic signals, and building components can hold up under stress. The Wall of Wind is part of the National Science Foundation’s Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure program. A Wall of Wind demonstration shows how inexpensive building reinforcements can prevent costly hurricane damage. For educational outreach, we host the yearly Wall of Wind Mitigation Challenge, in which teams of local high school students develop innovative wind mitigation concepts and solutions. And the Extreme Events Institute uses a risk equation to help the public understand and support measures to confront the “risk drivers” that lead to major losses. For more about hurricane mitigation and preparedness, watch our 12-episode “Eye of the Storm” video series, or visit our Spanish-language hurricane website. Wildfires, tornadoes, and floods NOAA’s National Weather Service is also investing in new forecasting tools and linking its forecasts to lifesaving decisions made in every state and county. The goal is to provide timely forecasts that emergency managers, first responders, government officials, businesses, and the public can act on. Across the United States, Weather-Ready Nation ambassadors are preparing for many types of extreme weather events. Another extreme wildfire season is expected in many Western states. The Oregon Office of Emergency Management is asking residents to have a bag packed and to prepare an evacuation plan. Flooding can occur almost anywhere across the country, and hazards can develop quickly. In mid-May 2021, over 12 inches of rain fell on the Lake Charles, Louisiana, area in a single day, triggering flash flooding that completely submerged parked cars. Flooded roadways can be deadly, so take heed of NOAA’s “Turn Around Don’t Drown” message and avoid walking or driving in flooded areas – it could save your life. Tornado safety is critical: So far in 2021, twisters have killed a dozen people, in Alabama, Louisiana, Texas and North Carolina. Tornado readiness includes knowing the safest room in your home – usually a windowless interior room on the lowest floor – and tuning in to NOAA Weather Radio, which will provide severe-weather information directly from your local National Weather Service office. During any severe weather event, such as the February 2021 deep freeze in Texas, the power may go out, so everyone should have flashlights and batteries on hand. Portable generators can be useful during extended outages, but always operate them outdoors to avoid the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. Apathy and complacency can also be dangerous when it comes to weather-driven disasters. In my view, weather readiness has to become a way of life – something that all Americans see as their responsibility. The best forecasts in the world may be useless if the public doesn’t respond or hasn’t taken the needed actions to protect themselves when extreme weather threatens. Most importantly, remember to help your neighbors when needed, especially if they are elderly and can’t help themselves. In addition, consider supporting local nonprofits or churches that help residents in your community who have financial or transportation needs to be ready and safe. We are all in this together. By Erik Salna Director of Education and Outreach, Extreme Events Institute, Florida International University. Special thanks to The Conversation

The oceans are rising at an accelerating rate, and millions of people are in the way. Rising tides are already affecting cities along low-lying shorelines, such as the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf coasts, where sunny-day flooding has become common during high tides. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, whose mission includes maintaining waterways and reducing disaster risks, has recently proposed building large and expensive seawalls to protect a number of U.S. cities, neighborhoods, and shorelines from coastal storms and rising seas. Charleston, New York City, and the Houston-Galveston metro area are currently considering proposals to build barriers in response to hurricane surges and sea level rise, and the Corps recently published a draft proposal for a seawall for Miami. As a scientist who studies the evolution and development of coastlines and the impacts of sea level rise, I believe that large-scale seawall proposals raise important long-term questions that residents, urban leaders, and elected officials at all levels of government need to consider carefully before they invest billions of dollars. In my view, this approach is almost certainly a short-term strategy that will protect only a few cities and will protect only selected portions of those cities effectively. Cities like Charleston, South Carolina, that are experiencing increasingly frequent tidal flooding need strategies for adapting to rising seas. Coastal flooding is here The extent of high tide flooding in low-elevation Atlantic coastal cities is well documented, and so are future trends. In a 2017 study, the Union of Concerned Scientists assessed chronic flooding risks in 52 large coastal cities and found that by 2030, the 30 cities most at risk can expect at least two dozen tidal floods yearly on average. The study defined tidal flooding as seawater encroaching into at least 10% of a city. These cities include New Haven, Connecticut; Boston; Philadelphia;, Washington, D.C.; Baltimore; Wilmington, Delaware; Norfolk, Virginia; Charleston, South Carolina; Savannah, Georgia; Jacksonville, Florida; and Miami. Cumulatively, they are home to about 6 million people. The study projected that by 2045, most of them will experience over 100 days of flooding annually. This flooding won’t just become more frequent – it also will become deeper, extend farther inland, and last longer as sea levels continue to rise. Greater encroachment will cause increasing harm to infrastructure, development, and property. The Army Corps of Engineers’ recent proposals include building an 8-mile (12.8-kilometer) seawall around Charleston at a cost of nearly US$2 billion; a 1-mile (1.6-kilometer) wall for Miami-Dade, with a price tag of nearly $4.6 billion; and a 6-mile (9.6-kilometer) barrier to shield portions of New York City and New Jersey, at an estimated cost of $119 billion. None of these investments would protect other Atlantic coastal cities already experiencing high tide flooding. While these proposed projects differ slightly, they each involve major barriers or seawalls along the shoreline, or just offshore in the case of New York and New Jersey. The structures are intended to protect these areas from hurricanes and storm surges, and from some uncertain level of future sea level rise. The proposed ‘Ike Dike’ to protect Galveston Bay and the Houston ship channel from flooding includes storm surge gates, seawalls along the shore and dunes and beaches engineered to absorb floodwaters. USACE Coverage and costs There are a number of key issues that I believe any city considering a major seawall proposal should consider. Here are some of the most critical questions: – Who, and what will be protected by these large walls, and at what cost? With so many U.S. cities already experiencing coastal flooding, and current proposals focusing on very large metropolitan areas, there are important questions about which portions of cities would be surrounded by walls and how much to spend. For example, New York City has a 520-mile coastline, but seawall proposals there focus only on protecting lower Manhattan. – How many years of protection might these barriers provide, and are they just short-term solutions? Flooding can result from short-term extreme events, such as hurricanes, and also from long-term sea level rise. What time frame should these projects be designed to address? – Who selects which cities or areas to protect? To date, proposals have come from the Army Corps of Engineers. Which officials and local, state or federal agencies should be involved in making these decisions and establishing policies that will guide responses to future sea level rise? – Do people really want to live behind walls? In New York, Miami and elsewhere, residents have objected to flood walls that would block views. – Who will pay for the walls? Proposing multibillion-dollar walls is one thing, but where will the funds come from to actually construct and maintain these massive structures? In Texas, where the proposed “Ike Dike” across Galveston Bay is projected to cost some $26 billion, the Legislature is considering creating a special flood-control district with the power to levy property taxes within its boundaries to raise the state’s share. – Would these structures encourage additional development behind the walls? Typically, providing flood control encourages new construction in the now-protected area, which increases future liabilities and losses when walls are overtopped or fail. – What other long-term options should be considered? Boston recently considered flood barriers for either its outer or inner harbor, but rejected these options in favor of softer options like climate-resilient zoning with special requirements for new projects in flood-prone areas. – Can cities that reject seawalls agree on thresholds or trigger points for taking other steps, such as using some combination of incentives and mandates to move people out of high-risk areas? Norfolk, one of the most flood-prone cities on the Atlantic coast, has developed a plan that prioritizes development in less-vulnerable zones, which it calls “neighborhoods of the future.” Such decisions will affect coastal communities, infrastructure, and residents for decades into the future, and I believe it is time to meet this crisis head-on. Sea level rise is a complex problem with no easy or inexpensive solution, but the sooner the science is understood and accepted, and everyone who is affected has an opportunity to get involved, the sooner cities can make plans. In the long run, there is no way to hold back the Atlantic Ocean. By Gary Griggs Director, Institute of Marine Sciences and Distinguished Professor of Earth & Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz. Special thanks to The Conversation

My State MLS, the first nationwide Multiple Listing Service of its kind with agents in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, is hosting free webinars in July, August and September for real estate professionals looking to grow their career and market their listings with an MLS that caters to their specific needs. The webinars will introduce real estate professionals to My State MLS’s new features, including MLS Affiliate and MH Authority. It will also show attendees how to create video content with Facebook Live. The September webinars will give the audience a refresher on real estate basics, including how to market themselves and how to expand their business. All webinars take place on Thursdays from 2-3 p.m. ET. Please see the webinar schedule and registration details below: What is MH Authority? – July 22, 2-3 p.m. ET Among a shortage of affordable housing options, buyers are increasingly turning to mobile and manufactured homes. However, most consumer real estate websites treat manufactured housing as an afterthought, and sites that are built for mobile/manufactured listings are outdated and riddled with inaccurate listings. That’s why My State MLS created MH Authority, the ultimate consumer-facing source for mobile/manufactured listings. It’s time to make the manufactured housing process easier for buyers, sellers, and professionals. David Mink, operations manager and national trainer for My State MLS, will be the moderator. Going Live – Introduction to Facebook Live for Real Estate – Aug. 5, 2-3 p.m. ET Creating video content is no longer an optional boost to a marketing strategy - it’s critical for success. Videos receive better social media engagement, increase email open rates, and can even improve SEO. With live streaming services like Facebook Live, real estate professionals don’t even need fancy gear or a lengthy script to get started. David Mink, operations manager and national trainer for My State MLS, will be the moderator. Dear Dave – Advice for Your (Customer) Relationships – Aug. 19, 2-3 p.m. ET Join My State MLS for sizzling tips on how to keep cool while trying to win new listings, ride the wave of showings and buyer inquiries and heat up your marketing strategy for the best summer yet. David Mink, operations manager and national trainer for My State MLS, will be the moderator. Back to School Series – 2-3 p.m. ET This September, it’s time to go back to school. Join My State MLS live every Thursday at 2 p.m. ET to brush up on the basics. Attendees will learn how to take their real estate career to the next level. Sept. 2 – Continuing Education (CE) and Beyond: David Mink, operations manager and national trainer for My State MLS, will be the moderator. Sept. 9 – Becoming A Broker: David Mink, operations manager and national trainer for My State MLS, will be the moderator. Sept. 16 – Marketing Yourself: Amanda Sternklar, marketing director for My State MLS, will be the moderator. Sept. 23 – Expanding Your Business: David Mink, operations manager and national trainer for My State MLS, will be the moderator. To register, real estate and aspiring real estate professionals can visit: www.mystatemls.com/webinar_schedule When: 2–3 p.m. ET Thursday, July 22 Thursday, Aug. 5 Thursday, Aug. 19 Thursday, Sept. 2 Thursday, Sept. 9 Thursday, Sept. 16 Thursday, Sept. 23 Where: Online. Participants will receive online directions with next steps after registering here. Cost: FREE How: Visit www.mystatemls.com/webinar_schedule to register. By ML Staff. Images courtesy of Unsplash

Feeding South Florida, the leading domestic hunger-relief organization in South Florida, is pleased to launch its Mobile FARMacy. This one-aisle, air-conditioned mobile grocery store is a hybrid of donated items, farmers’ market for-sale items, an educational unit, and food FARMacy that operates under the idea that food is medicine, providing prescription produce and other healthy food options. With the support of Humana Inc., Aetna, and Quantum Foundation, the FARMacy’s goal is to improve health outcomes of at-risk populations. In addition to partnering with clinics and healthcare partners, the Mobile FARMacycan also travel to community events, health fairs, senior sites, and other locations. The Mobile FARMacy makes access to fresh produce, protein, dairy, and healthy staple items a reality for food insecure individuals by: Providing donated and free food through the support of sponsors. Bringing low-cost, food bank-purchased items into communities. This option allows the use of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) EBT dollars, debit cards, or cash. It also is a Fresh Access Bucks site, which means it can provide 2 for 1 produce items. After years of research with health care partners such as Humana Inc., community needs assessments, Feeding South Florida program analysis, and evidence-based feedback from Feeding South Florida’s client services team, Feeding South Florida developed the Mobile FARMacy to address the largest barriers to accessing fresh and healthy food: transportation, food deserts, and food swamps. The Mobile FARMacy program areas of focus include: Accessibility + Affordability: Farmer’s Market + Food Store ― The Mobile FARMacy brings farm-stand quality produce and other healthy foods at affordable price points to food deserts and low-income areas. It eliminates the issue of transportation. By using “purchasing power” and accepting SNAP benefits, it makes healthy food affordable. Health + Wellness: Food is Medicine ― Chefs and program staff demonstrate how to make tasty meals with healthy ingredients found on the truck. They offer samples and provide nutrition education, including medically-tailored recipes. Health care providers and other health organizations prescribe nutritious food as medicine. Feeding South Florida’s Client Services team take a case management approach, and assess individuals’ household financial and health needs. All food on board meets MyPlate standards and is considered “Foods to Encourage.” Cultural Diversity ― The Mobile FARMacy provides food selections and cooking demonstrations that speak to the history, experiences and traditions that comprise the cultural melting pot of South Florida. Social Isolation ― Seniors are often socially isolated, which further contributes to health complications. The FARMacy can travel to senior center and healthcare clinics where seniors are provided with transportation and have a sense of community through food, education and social interaction. Benefits of the program include: Increased Dignity ― As opposed to having people stand in long lines at food distributions, the Mobile FARMacy provides an air-conditioned shopping environment that mirrors a grocery store experience with guided support, choices and variety. Wellness Support ― Program staff helps curate and guide the shopping experience, with a focus on healthy meal planning and good dietary choices. Collaboration ― Feeding South Florida is happy to work with other nonprofit partners so they can teach classes and provide food demonstrations. Local Focus ― Feeding South Florida is committed to working with local and state agriculture partners to provide locally sourced healthy food options. “We are thankful and excited for the support of Humana Inc, Aetna and Quantum Foundation as we take this next innovative step toward ensuring improved health outcomes and meeting people where they are and providing a dignified,” said Sari Vatske, executive vice president of Feeding South Florida. “This project has been a true collaborative effort backed by research that supports the idea that food is medicine.” Under COVID-19 protocols, the FARMacy is scheduled at clinical sites. To learn more about sponsoring a Mobile FARMacy location near you, email contact@feedingsouthflorida.org. For more information, visit www.feedingsouthflorida.org. By ML Staff. Images courtesy of Feeding South Florida

Plastic is the most common type of debris floating in the world’s oceans. Waves and sunlight break much of it down into smaller particles called microplastics – fragments less than 5 millimeters across, roughly the size of a sesame seed. To understand how microplastic pollution is affecting the ocean, scientists need to know how much is there and where it is accumulating. Most data on microplastic concentrations comes from commercial and research ships that tow plankton nets – long, cone-shaped nets with very fine mesh designed for collecting marine microorganisms. But net trawling can sample only small areas and may be underestimating true plastic concentrations. Except in the North Atlantic and North Pacific gyres – large zones where ocean currents rotate, collecting floating debris – scientists have done very little sampling for microplastics. And there is scant information about how these particles’ concentrations vary over time. Researchers deploy plankton sampling nets in Lake Michigan.NOAA, CC BY-SA To address these questions, University of Michigan research assistant Madeline Evans and I developed a new way to detect microplastic concentrations from space using NASA’s Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System. CYGNSS is a network of eight microsatellites that was launched in 2016 to help scientists predict hurricanes by analyzing tropical wind speeds. They measure how wind roughens the ocean’s surface – an indicator that we realized could also be used to detect and track large quantities of microplastics. Looking for smooth zones Annual global production of plastic has increased every year since the 1950s, reaching 359 million metric tons in 2018. Much of it ends up in open, uncontrolled landfills, where it can wash into river drainage zones and ultimately into the world’s oceans. Researchers first documented plastic debris in the oceans in the 1970s. Today, it accounts for an estimated 80% to 85% of marine litter. The radars on CYGNSS satellites are designed to measure winds over the ocean indirectly by measuring how they roughen the water’s surface. We knew that when there is a lot of material floating in the water, winds don’t roughen it as much. So we tried computing how much smoother measurements indicated the surface was than it should have been if winds of the same speed were blowing across clear water. This anomaly – the “missing roughness” – turns out to be highly correlated with the concentration of microplastics near the ocean surface. Put another way, areas where surface waters appear to be unusually smooth frequently contain high concentrations of microplastics. The smoothness could be caused by the microplastics themselves, or possibly by something else that’s associated with them. By combining all the measurements made by CYGNSS satellites as they orbit around the world, we can create global time-lapse images of ocean microplastic concentrations. Our images readily identify the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and secondary regions of high microplastic concentration in the North Atlantic and the southern oceans. Tracking microplastic flows over time Since CYGNSS tracks wind speeds constantly, it lets us see how microplastic concentrations change over time. By animating a year’s worth of images, we revealed seasonal variations that were not previously known. This animation shows how satellite data can be used to track where microplastics enter the water, how they move, and where they tend to collect. We found that global microplastic concentrations tend to peak in the North Atlantic and Pacific during the Northern Hemisphere’s summer months. June and July, for example, are the peak months for the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Concentrations in the Southern Hemisphere peak during the summer months of January and February. Lower concentrations during the winter in both hemispheres are likely due to a combination of stronger currents that break up microplastic plumes and increased vertical mixing – the exchange between surface and deeper water – that transports some of the microplastic down below the surface. This approach can also target smaller regions over shorter periods of time. For example, we examined episodic outflow events from the mouths of the China’s Yangtze and Qiantang rivers where they empty into the East China Sea. These events may have been associated with increases in industrial production activity, or with increases in the rate at which managers allowed the rivers to flow through dams. These images show microplastic concentrations (number of particles per square kilometer) at the mouths of the Yangtze and Qiantang rivers where they empty in to the East China Sea. (A) Average density year-round; (B) short-lived burst of particles from the Qiantang River; (C and D) short-lived bursts from the Yangtze River.Evans and Ruf, 2021., CC BY Better targeting for cleanups Our research has several potential uses. Private organizations, such as The Ocean Cleanup, a nonprofit in The Netherlands, and Clewat, a Finnish company specializing in clean technology, use specially outfitted ships to collect, recycle and dispose of marine litter and debris. We have begun conversations with both groups and hope eventually to help them deploy their fleets more effectively. Our spaceborne imagery may also be used to validate and improve numerical prediction models that attempt to track how microplastics move through the oceans using ocean circulation patterns. Scholars are developing several such models. A solar-powered barge that filters plastic out of water, designed by Dutch NGO The Ocean Cleanup, deployed in the Rio Ozama, Dominican Republic, in 2020.The Ocean Cleanup, CC BY While the ocean roughness anomalies that we observed correlate strongly with microplastic concentrations, our estimates of concentration are based on the correlations that we observed, not on a known physical relationship between floating microplastics and ocean roughness. It could be that the roughness anomalies are caused by something else that is also correlated with the presence of microplastics. One possibility is surfactants on the ocean surface. These liquid chemical compounds, which are widely used in detergents and other products, move through the oceans in ways similar to microplastics, and they also have a damping effect on wind-driven ocean roughening. Further study is needed to identify how the smooth areas that we identified occur, and if they are caused indirectly by surfactants, to better understand exactly how their transport mechanisms are related to those of microplastics. But I hope this research can be part of a fundamental change in tracking and managing microplastic pollution. By Christopher Ruf Professor of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering, University of Michigan. Special thanks to The Conversation. Top image by Unsplash

Palm oil is everywhere today: in food, soap, lipstick, even newspaper ink. It’s been called the world’s most hated crop because of its association with deforestation in Southeast Asia. But despite boycott campaigns, the world uses more palm oil than any other vegetable oil – over 73 million tons in 2020. That’s because palm oil is cheap. The plant that makes it, the African oil palm, can produce up to 10 times more oil per hectare than soybeans. But as my new book on palm oil’s history shows, this controversial commodity hasn’t always been cheap. It became that way thanks to legacies of colonialism and exploitation that still shape today’s industry and that make it challenging to shift palm oil onto a more sustainable path. Palm oil and its derivatives are ubiquitous in consumer products but can appear under hundreds of names, such as glyceryl and sodium lauryl sulfate. From slavery to skin care Palm oil has long been a staple food in a region stretching from Senegal to Angola along Africa’s western coast. It entered the global economy in the 1500s aboard ships engaged in the transatlantic slave trade. During the deadly “middle passage” across the Atlantic, palm oil was a valued food that kept captives alive. As the author of a 1711 book noted, traders also smeared captives’ skin with palm oil to make them “look smooth, sleek, and young” before sending them to the auction block. By the mid-1600s, Europeans were rubbing palm oil on their own skin, too. European writers, learning from African medicinal practices, claimed that palm oil “does the greatest cures upon such, as have bruises or strains on their bodies.” By the 1790s, British entrepreneurs were adding palm oil to soap for its reddish-orange color and violet-like scent. Lever’s Sunlight Soap, introduced in the 1880s, got its tint from palm oil.SSPL via Getty Images After Britain abolished the slave trade in 1807, traders sought out legal products. In the following decades, Britain slashed tariffs on palm oil and encouraged African states to focus on producing it. By 1840, palm oil was cheap enough to completely replace tallow or whale oil in such products as soap and candles. As palm oil became increasingly common, it lost its reputation as a luxurious good. Exporters made it even cheaper with labor-saving methods that allowed palm fruit to ferment and soften, though the results were rancid. European buyers, in turn, applied new chemical processes to strip away foul odors and colors. The result was a bland substance that could be freely substituted for more expensive fats and oils. ‘The Production of Palm Oil,’ by Édouard Auguste Nousveaux, 1844. Metropolitan Museum of Art Palm oil colonialism By 1900, a new industry was gobbling up all kinds of oils: Margarine was invented in 1869 by the French chemist Hippolyte Mège-Mouriès as a cheap alternative to butter. It soon became a mainstay of working-class diets in Europe and North America. Palm oil was first used to dye margarine yellow, but it turned out to be a perfect main ingredient because it stayed firm at room temperature and melted in the mouth, just like butter. Margarine and soap magnates like Britain’s William Lever looked to Europe’s colonies in Africa for larger quantities of fresher, edible palm oil. However, African communities often refused to provide land for foreign companies because making oil by hand was still profitable for them. Colonial oil producers resorted to government coercion and outright violence to find labor. They had more success in Southeast Asia, where they created a new oil palm plantation industry. Colonial rulers there gave plantation companies nearly unlimited access to land. The companies hired “coolies” – a derogatory European term for migrant workers from southern India, Indonesia, and China, based on the Hindi word Kuli, an aboriginal tribal name, or the Tamil word kuli, for “wages.” These laborers toiled under coercive, low-paying contracts and discriminatory laws. Two workers carry a large bunch of oil palm fruit on a Sumatran plantation around 1922.J.W. Meijster, Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies, CC BY The oil palm itself also adapted to its new locale. While scattered palms grew to towering heights on African farms, in Asia they remained short in tight, orderly plantations that were easier to harvest efficiently. By 1940, plantations in Indonesia and Malaysia were exporting more palm oil than all of Africa. A golden gift? When Indonesia and Malaysia gained independence after World War II, plantation companies retained their access to cheap land. Indonesian authorities dubbed palm oil from their fast-growing plantation industry a “golden gift to the world.” Palm oil consumption grew as competitors dropped away: first whale oil in the 1960s, then fats like tallow and lard. In the 1970s and 1980s, health concerns about tropical oils such as coconut and palm undercut demand in Europe and North America. But developing countries snapped up palm oil for frying and baking. Plantations expanded to meet the demand. They kept costs down by recruiting poorly paid and often undocumented migrant workers from Indonesia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Nepal, reproducing some of the abusive practices of the colonial era. In the 1990s, U.S. and EU regulators moved to ban unhealthy trans fat, a type of fat found in partially hydrogenated oils, from foods. Manufacturers turned to palm oil as a cheap and effective substitute. From 2000 through 2020, EU palm oil imports more than doubled, while U.S. imports shot up almost tenfold. Many consumers didn’t even notice the switch. Because palm oil was so inexpensive, manufacturers found new uses for it, such as replacing petroleum-based chemicals in soaps and cosmetics. It also became a biodiesel feedstock in Asia, although research suggests that making biodiesel from palms grown on newly cleared land increases greenhouse gas emissions instead of reducing them. The EU is phasing out palm oil biofuels because of concerns over deforestation. Undeterred, Indonesia is working to increase the palm component in its biodiesel, which it markets as “Green Diesel,” and to develop other palm-based biofuels. Boycott or reform? Today there are enough oil palm plantations worldwide to cover an area larger than the state of Kansas, and the industry is still growing. It is concentrated in Asia, but plantations are spreading in Africa and Latin America. A 2019 investigation of one company in the Democratic Republic of Congo found dangerous conditions and abusive labor practices that echoed colonial-era palm oil projects. Endangered animals have received more press. According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, tropical forest clearing for oil palm plantations threatens nearly 200 at-risk species, including orangutans, tigers, and African forest elephants. However, the IUCN and many other advocates argue that shifting away from palm oil is not the answer. Since oil palm is so productive, they contend, switching to other oil crops could cause even more harm because it would require more land to cultivate substitutes. There are more just and sustainable ways to make palm oil. Studies show that small-scale agroforestry techniques, like those historically practiced in Africa and among Afro-descendant communities in South America, offer cost-effective ways to produce palm oil while protecting the environment. The question is whether enough consumers care. Over 20% of palm oil produced in 2020 received certification from the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil, a nonprofit that includes oil palm producers and processors, consumer goods manufacturers, retailers, banks, and advocacy groups. But barely half of it found buyers willing to pay a premium for sustainability. Until this changes, vulnerable communities and ecosystems will continue to bear the costs of cheap palm oil. By Jonathan E. Robins Associate Professor of Global History, Michigan Technological University. Special thanks to The Conversation

Tara Reid burst onto the scene as the flawless blue-eyed babe of the iconic 1999 camp comedy American Pie, a Fast Times at Ridgemont High for twenty-something Gen-Xers and precocious Millennials. Her flawless all-American looks led to films from cult favorite The Big Lebowski, to Urban Legend, Van Wilder, Josie, and the Pussycats, Dr. T & the Women, and My Boss’s Daughter. She starred and held her own alongside Ryan Reynolds, Ashton Kutcher, Rosario Dawson, Kate Hudson, Richard Gere, and other movie heavyweights. And then, something happened. Reid was young, stunning, and famous; and the media began taking more of an interest in her after-hours role as Hollywood’s resident party girl; largely ignoring her talent and her work ethic. Unlike most of us, Reid’s young adult days and nights were captured by paparazzi for the world to see. During our interview, she is quick to point out that, at the very least, mercifully, social media had not yet been invented. Thank God for small favors. A painful public breakup with then-fiancé Carson Daly and about with botched plastic surgery further spun Reid’s public narrative out of control. She recently told E! News, “They almost make a cartoon character out of you, and they keep going with it," referring to the rampant tabloid journalism of the 2000s. The experience sent Reid reeling, and into a self-imposed media exile where she learned to reflect, regroup, and re-emerge focused on her craft, and with a healthy sense of humor as she displays in her willingness to embrace the camp genre with the Sharknado film series. In addition to working in front of the camera, she’s added film producer to her resume, with an upcoming slate of releases under her production banner, Hi Happy Films. As women in our forties, Tara Reid and I discuss the power of knowing oneself and becoming unflappable in the face of life’s inevitable ebbs and flows. Smart, soulful, and creative, Tara Reid has reclaimed her power and found her most valuable commodity: peace of mind. Allison Kugel: You were just working on a film with DMX before he passed. Tara Reid: Yeah, a movie called Doggmen. It’s his last film and it was really interesting because he didn’t get to finish the whole film. They had to do what they did with Paul Walker (in his last Fast & Furious role). They make these facial sculptures and they put it on a face, and it looks exactly like [DMX]. It’s crazy. Allison Kugel: Like CGI? Tara Reid: No, it’s literally a face they make and put on. The last couple of scenes that he has to film, will be what they are doing. It’s incredible and it looks so real. It looks just like him. So, that is how they are going to film his last scenes, and I’ll be in those scenes with him. Allison Kugel: What is that going to feel like for you, to do that? Tara Reid: I think everyone was absolutely broken by DMX’s [death]. He wasn’t just a great rapper, but he was a poet. I think he was one of the best rappers of our time, and this movie explains that. The last person that really did that was Tupac. I think it will be a great film. He’s a great actor, he’s a voice, and that mattered a lot to him. I think he will be really happy about how this movie comes out and looks. It’s DMX, and just to be a part of that history with him is pretty much incredible. Allison Kugel: When he was on set, did he seem healthy? Did he seem happy? Tara Reid: I never saw him on set. The movie started before I started working. I was due [on set]at the end of the movie. Then, unfortunately, that is when he passed. I actually never got to do the real scenes with him. Allison Kugel: Oh man! Tara Reid: I’m in the other scenes with the “not real” version of DMX. It’s going to be really interesting, and we are shooting that down in Florida. Allison Kugel: Oh, wow. I’ll definitely look forward to seeing how they manage to do that when it comes out. Tara Reid: I’ll let you come down to the set and you can see how they do it. Allison Kugel: What three events in your life, if you had to narrow it down to three, shaped who you are today? Tara Reid: Wow, that is a great question! Well, I guess one of them would be my parents making me, otherwise, I wouldn’t be here, so congratulations on that one (laughs)! I think another one would be feeling the force of getting into Hollywood, which is the hardest thing to do, becoming a working actor. Allison Kugel: What do you mean by “the force?” Tara Reid: It’s so hard to make it in Hollywood, to begin with. It’s like winning a lottery ticket. To be lucky and fortunate enough to get there was incredible, and then seeing the aftereffects, and everything like that. The third and most painful one was having my parents pass away. That gave me a whole different look at everything. Allison Kugel: Did it make you think about where they went when they passed? When my grandfather passed away when I was 32, the question that kept going through my mind was, “Where is he?” It started me on this journey of looking into life after death. Did you go through anything like that? Tara Reid: I would talk about that with my sister, about where we go after this. Honestly, the hardest part, you’re going to make me cry now… Allison Kugel: No, no, no... Tara Reid: It’s okay. The hardest part is not being able to call your parents up and ask, “Hey, how do I make this lasagna?” or “How do I make this or that?” They were such good cooks. There are so many things I wish they wrote down, like their recipes, or even just to call them on the phone. I feel like I see signs a lot. I definitely feel their energy around me, and it’s healing for me. Allison Kugel: What was your biggest takeaway from 2020? Tara Reid: COVID was something that, obviously, we never expected, like the Black Plague. Allison Kugel: Yes, in our lifetime… Tara Reid: Never. From everyone staying home and not being able to go out or travel, to movies being canceled, and even people being afraid of other people. A lot of fear was going on. But when I was in my house, I said, “You know what? I’m going to be proactive. I’m not going to sit here and just wait for COVID to come over, or for my industry to come back.” I started developing and producing projects for myself. We (Tara’s production company, Hi Happy Films) got in touch with a lot of amazing and creative people and got to put a lot of different projects together, from comedy to drama. We’ve got a pretty good slate coming up. Allison Kugel: What do you have coming up? Tara Reid: We are doing this one movie called Masha’s Mushroom (starring Reid, Vivica A. Fox, Beverly D’Angelo). The director, White Cross, she’s also my partner in that particular film, and she is absolutely brilliant. We got connected with such valuable people from financing to distribution, and I learned aspects of the business that I never knew before. I realized how hard it is to make a film come together and it gave me a completely different appreciation for the film business as a whole. Allison Kugel: You’re also working on a vegan handbag line… Tara Reid: I can’t say too much about it just yet, but it’s being done with a great handbag maker named Michael Kuluva. As far as the handbags, I can tell you they are not made of leather, and they might be made out of vegetables and fruit, believe it or not. I know it sounds crazy. You would be shocked at how it’s made. Then, during this whole process, my boyfriend and I went down to Sedona, Arizona. My father told me, before he died, that he went there with his brother and it is very healing; it’s where the vortex (swirling centers of healing energy, where the earth is said to be “most alive”) is, and it’s very hippie and spiritual. We were supposed to stay four days and we wound up staying for four weeks. Allison Kugel: And that helped set the vibe for the bag designs… Tara Reid: You get it. The process is pretty incredible, and it’s not just us that’s doing it. I think Hermès is coming out with a bag made from mushroom “leather.” We are going to debut our line next year during Fashion Week, and there will be a lot of Arizona-inspired spiritual stuff on the bags. Allison Kugel: Speaking of that, do you pray? If so, who or what do you pray to? Tara Reid: I do pray, and who I pray to depends on what situation I am in. I pray to Jesus, but I also pray to my parents all the time. They are probably my number one. And I pray to my guardian angels; I pray to St. Jude, St. John, or St. Christopher. They have different meanings depending upon what you are in need of. I also listen to tapes by Deepak Chopra which has helped me tremendously. His tapes help you break down, “Who am I close to? Who am I? What do I want? What do I not want?” And you really have to write it out in a diary form. My life started changing. A lot of us don’t know how to direct that positive energy, and I think that he is someone that really knows how to give that to you. Allison Kugel: I’ve interviewed Deepak Chopra twice, and he was the first person who ever explained to me that there is no such thing as time. I was younger at that time, and I didn’t really get it, so he said, “Well, think about it. If you are in a rush or on a deadline, you feel like you’re running out of time. If you are bored or anxiously awaiting something, time feels like it is taking forever.” Then he said, “Time is really nothing more than the movement of thought.” It makes so much sense to realize that we are trapped in space and time, but you can step out of time and be completely in the moment. It is the most freeing and beautiful feeling there is. Tara Reid: I agree with you a billion percent. It really is like, “I’m running late for this meeting,” or, “I’m going crazy from this deadline.” Then you’re like, “Wait, I don’t have to get this or do this right now. I can wait half an hour and the world is not going to end.” Time is relevant in a situation like we’re in right now, how we have decided to meet at a certain time. But when it comes to yourself, you can create how you exist in time. When you put out a manifestation and put something great out there, you have to close a lot of doors to open up new ones. That is one of the things that Deepak Chopra teaches. I believe that is what you probably got out of it too. Allison Kugel: What was your favorite film role, and why? Tara Reid: This is actually a really good story. Last night I was with my boyfriend watching TV and as we were going through the channels, HBO came up and my boyfriend says, “Oh My God, this is crazy, you’re on TV.” I looked and it was Josie and The Pussycats. That has always been my favorite movie that I’ve ever done. It was so much fun. Rachael Leigh Cook is amazing. Rosario Dawson was amazing. We were shooting up in Canada, having fun doing a girl’s movie, and the whole movie was the best experience. I played Melody, and she was always happy, a little bit ditsy, but kind of psychic. It was great waking up every day, playing a happy girl. Allison Kugel: Have you forgiven the media for the way that they treated you years back, or do you still struggle with that? Tara Reid: That is a really good question. I didn’t, and I was upset about it when I was younger, but I realized the only way I was going to grow and get out of that situation was to grow as a woman. So, therefore, I do forgive them now. I have moved on, and my press has changed. I’m not angry about it anymore. When you finally let something go, it goes. It’s like taking a balloon and putting it up in the air, and it’s gone. I’m 45 years old and I’m not a child anymore. I’m not the little girl from American Pie. A lot of things have changed in my life, and I wouldn’t take back anything, because again, it put me where I’m at right now. I probably would not be talking to you right this second if everything was different. You’re a positive person I feel like you’ve gone through a lot of what I have, and I really feel like I can relate to you. Would you change anything? Allison Kugel: I would not change anything. I really am at a place of peace in my life right now. There has been a lot of bumps in the road and twists and turns but I really would not change anything. Tara Reid: Of course, there are going to be bumps in the road. That’s life. No one ever said it was going to be perfect, but if we didn’t go through these bumps in the road, it would not define us as who we are. Allison Kugel: I find that my compassion and empathy muscles have grown, exponentially. Tara Reid: I think COVID really helped a lot of people with that. People had no choice, they had to be inside. So, what do you do? Call your best friends, call people you haven’t talked to in a while, forgive yourself for a lot of things, talk to yourself a lot, and make sense of some of the things that didn’t make sense. I think that is where you and I are. I am completely comfortable in my own skin right now, and I’m happy with where my life is going. Allison Kugel: Have any journalists ever apologized to you, whether it was a gossip columnist or tabloid reporter? Tara Reid: To be honest, not really (laughs). If that day ever comes, you are going to be the first person I call and say, “Guess who called me to apologize?” (laughs) But no, not yet. Allison Kugel: Is there a hobby or another profession that you would like to attempt? Tara Reid: I think I’m doing that now, expanding beyond being an actress and producing and creating my own films with the roles that I’ve wanted. I also love arts and crafts. I’ve been beading my whole life. And I’m really into rose quartz for love, for example. Every bracelet or piece of jewelry that I make with crystals has a huge meaning behind it. I’m an artist and I feel like I’m covering a lot of different areas in that, and I’m definitely satisfied with it. Allison Kugel: What do you think you came into this life as Tara Reid, to learn and what do think you came here to teach? Tara Reid: I think I came into this life to teach people to feel good. I think I have a gift. It just seems like everywhere I go, among my friends, if there is something happening in their life, they talk to me, and I talk to them and I get them out of situations. What I’m here to learn is almost the opposite of that. I’ve had to learn to be progressive, humble and to keep myself open to learning information that I can use to help others and help myself. Allison Kugel: Were there times in your life when you were not as humble as you could have been, and you look back on it and think, “Man, I should have been a little more humble, down to earth, appreciative,” and all of that? Tara Reid: Yes, I think when I first got famous, I didn’t really know what fame was. It is not something that is so easy to get thrown into, and it’s a bit shocking. The beginning of my fame almost scared me, and then I realized how to eventually deal with it. I learned how people are, and that not everyone’s going to love you. Social media can be terrible, and you cannot protect yourself on it. It was a growing process. Allison Kugel: When you were on that first American Pie set, did all of you have a feeling like, “Wow! This is going to blow up and make us all famous,” or did it just feel like… a job? Tara Reid: I think I felt like, “Oh, this is just a job.” Everyone in the cast was so new. The actors were mostly very green. It was the first movie for most of them, so we had a bond that was really close. When it blew up, you know, we still have that bond every time we see each other. The first people that you make it with, that never go away. The movie I was most excited about but didn’t do well as Josie and The Pussycats. You never know what is going to work and what is not. Allison Kugel: If you could travel back in time and alter one historical event, where would you go and what would you attempt to change? Tara Reid: I wouldn’t want to change anything, but if I were to go back in time to a historical event that was fun, I would have loved to have been Marilyn Monroe singing “Happy Birthday” to the president [John F. Kennedy] (laugh). It was such a legendary moment. Allison Kugel: Would you like to become a mom at some point in your life, or are you good as you are? Tara Reid: Well, I feel like I’m a mom already. I have two dogs that I’m so attached to. I take them everywhere I go. These dogs have probably been to eight different countries! Right now, that is where I’m at. Will I have kids? Let’s see what is in store for me. It’s not a no, and it’s not a yes. I have gotten my eggs frozen so there is definitely the potential of that. If it is meant to be, it will happen. If not, I’m very comfortable where I’m at. Allison Kugel: Where do you see yourself in five years if you had to visualize it? Tara Reid: I definitely see myself being in a place where I’m excited and happy about producing and acting, and maybe married. I have great friends, so just to keep my friends close. I don’t have many friends, just ones that are my favorite and best, and we would do anything for each other. Allison Kugel: That’s all you need. Tara Reid: I just see myself going on the road that I’m on right now and feeling content. I have a great boyfriend, I have amazing dogs, good friend. Hopefully, we can start traveling a lot again, because that is one of my favorite things. I kind of see myself moving along like The Little Engine That Could: I think I can, I think I can. Follow Tara Reid on Instagram and Twitter @TaraReid Allison Kugel is a syndicated entertainment and pop culture columnist and author of the book, Journaling Fame: A memoir of a life unhinged and on the record. Follow on Instagram @theallisonkugel and AllisonKugel.com. By Allison Kugel. Images courtesy of Brooker Mason Photography

Sports Illustrated celebrated the kick-off of Swim Week at the Legends Lounge at the W Hotel South Beach. VIP guests included top Sports Illustrated models Olivia Culpo, Anne de Paula, Kate Bock, and Haley Kalil. Attendees enjoyed cocktails by Duke Bourbon and La Adelita Tequila throughout the night. Click below to launch slideshow > By ML Staff. Images courtesy of Sports Illustrated

Being able to socialize again may bring enthusiasm and a sense of normalcy – but it may also increase anxiety over how your body might have changed. I am a psychologist who has studied body image for over 20 years, and I’ve seen how the COVID-19 pandemic could affect health and well-being in numerous ways, including body image. Gyms were closed. Self-care rituals may have fallen by the wayside as stress and hardships like homeschooling and strained finances piled up. The pandemic also took away a major way people cope: Social support through physical contact. Pandemic stress has led many people to turn to other coping mechanisms, with some harmful to both physical and mental health. In one study of 5,469 adults in Australia, 35% reported increased binge eating, or eating large amounts of food in a short amount of time, due to pandemic life. In another study of 365 adults in Italy, 25.7% reported increased emotional eating over the course of lockdown. And in a survey of 3,000 adults in the U.S., 61% experienced undesired weight changes since the start of the pandemic. It’s no wonder that people may feel anxiety over what others think about their changed appearance. What is body image? Body image is a person’s “inside view” – or feelings, perceptions, thoughts, and beliefs – of their body. Body image can be positive, neutral, or negative, and it can fluctuate. Situations that provoke negative body image – like not fitting into formerly comfortable clothes, noticing age-related changes in appearance, seeing an unflattering picture of yourself, and comparing your body to a social media influencer – are called body image threats. Former bikini model Mary Jelkovsky talks about viewing your body as an experience. Body image threats have been part of the COVID-19 experience for many people. The pandemic has also seen an increase in struggles with eating too much or too little, preoccupation with food, and anxiety about weight and body shape. Fortunately, there are healthy ways to manage body anxiety and cultivate a positive body image while reemerging from the pandemic. 1. Focus on what you appreciate about your body Rather than focusing on what has changed or what you don’t like about your body, focus on what your body does for you. This is different for everyone. For example, my arms allow me to hug my dogs, my legs allow me to take them for walks, my stomach allows me to digest food, so I have energy and my brain helped me write this article. Your body is much more than its appearance. Appreciating your body and what it does for you is central to cultivating positive body image. 2. Engage with others who accept and appreciate all bodies Be selective with who you want to spend time with after the pandemic. Start with people who are “body accepting,” meaning they don’t talk badly about your body, their body, or anyone else’s body – they may not even focus on appearance at all. Positive body image increases when people engage with others who are body accepting. You can also practice being a person who shows body acceptance to others and pay it forward. 3. Practice self-compassion People’s bodies have helped them survive the trauma of a global pandemic. It’s important to be kind to yourself and your body if your appearance has changed. Self-compassion is being as kind to yourself as you would to a loved one going through a hard situation. Many studies have found that self-compassion is linked to higher positive body image, and self-judgment is linked to a higher negative body image. Try to be mindful, or aware, of your experiences without judging them, and understand that others are in these difficult experiences with you. 4. Engage in mindful movement If you are able, move your body in ways that bring you joy and rejuvenation and help you connect with and listen to your body. Bodies and abilities are different, and what is mindful movement for someone else may not be for you. Some activities, such as yoga, have been shown to promote positive body image as long as they don’t focus on appearance. Move in ways that help you focus on how much you enjoy moving rather than how you look while moving. 5. Practice self-care Ask your body what it needs every day. Bodies need a regular supply of fuel, hydration, relaxation, stimulation, and sleep. Self-care can be hard to fit into a schedule, but it is very important to plan actions and activities that restore you to your best self. Physical activity that focuses on how your body moves can help you connect with your body. Luis Alvarez/DigitalVision via Getty Images 6. Engage with nature Interacting with nature is associated with a variety of health benefits, including higher positive body image. Activities that engage with nature, like hiking, may help you focus less on your appearance and more on how your body functions. Experiencing the beauty of nature can also help create opportunities for self-care, such as through rejuvenation and mindful movement. 7. Refrain from body comparison It’s common for people to compare themselves to others. However, when they frequently compare their appearance to others perceived as more attractive, their body image becomes more negative. Body comparison can occur in many settings, and not just through social media – it can also happen in commonplace settings such as the beach, supermarket and school. When you find yourself comparing your body to others and start to feel negatively about your body, try one of the strategies above to restore a positive body image. 8. Avoid the diet hype Studies show that dieting does not work: It is not associated with long-term weight loss and often decreases overall well-being. Instead, focus on fueling your body when you are hungry with foods that provide your body with lasting energy. Eating intuitively – using your natural hunger, appetite, and satiety cues to determine when what and how much to eat – is linked to health and well-being. Reemerging from the pandemic with confidence There are many strategies to help build a positive body image, and resources are available to help you find one that works best for you. For those struggling with an eating disorder or severe negative body image, professional help is the best path forward. Positive body image isn’t just about feeling good about your appearance – it’s also accepting and loving your body regardless of how it looks and engaging in self-care to attend to its needs. Practice these strategies regularly to promote and maintain a positive body image as you safely and confidently reenter your social world. By Tracy Tylka Professor of Psychology, The Ohio State University. Special thanks to The Conversation

With frozen peaches and mangos, these quick and easy smoothies taste like something from a tropical vacation. To me, these smoothies taste like something you’d have on a tropical vacation. They’re perfect for breakfast to start the day — they also make a refreshing afternoon snack or even a healthy dessert. To make life easy, I use frozen peaches and mangoes, which don’t require any washing, peeling, or slicing. That means you’ll be sipping these smoothies, dreaming of white sand and palm trees, in under five minutes. Can’t beat that! WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO MAKE PEACH MANGO SMOOTHIES HOW TO MAKE PEACH MANGO SMOOTHIES Simply place the fruit, mango nectar, a touch of sugar or honey, and 2 ice cubes into the blender. Liquify until smooth. Pour into glasses and enjoy. Note: Mango nectar is sold in the Latin section of most large supermarkets. Peach Mango Smoothies By Jennifer Segal With frozen peaches and mangos, these quick and easy smoothies taste like something from a tropical vacation. Servings: 1 smoothie (recipe may easily be doubled) Prep Time: 5 Minutes Total Time: 5 Minutes INGREDIENTS 1 cup peeled and sliced peaches, cold (frozen peaches should be thawed) 1/2 cup chopped mangoes, cold (frozen mangoes should be thawed) 1/4 cup mango nectar, cold 1/2 of a banana 2 teaspoons sugar or honey (optional) 2 ice cubes INSTRUCTIONS Combine all of the ingredients in a blender and purée until completely smooth. Pour into a tall glass and enjoy cold. NUTRITION INFO Serving size:1 smoothie Calories:192 Fat:1g Carbohydrates:48g Sugar:39g Fiber:5g Protein:3g Sodium:5 mg Cholesterol:0 mg Special thanks to Jennifer Segal, for the recipe and images. You can support Jennifer by purchasing her cookbook, "Once Upon a Chef, the Cookbook," featuring over 100 delightful recipes.

Internationally recognized and celebrity-favored women's luxury swim and resort wear brand, Luli Fama, will return to the in-person swim week experience to showcase the best in swimwear and resort with a beach party-themed runway show “Revel in the Sun” at PARAISO Miami Swim Week 2021. Guests will be treated to the hottest beach blowout celebration on the runway this year on July 10th at 8 p.m. at the PARAISO Runway Tent at The Collins Park. Inspired by extravagant seaside beach parties in Mykonos and the confident, empowered, bold, and sophisticated Luli Babes, the anticipated 2022 collection includes an assortment of colors ranging from bright and bold neons to elegant, subtle pastels, textured material, embellished suits, and eye-catching sophisticated resort wear. Miami-based founders Lourdes "Luli" Hanimian and Augusto Hanimian are aiming to captivate the city’s culturally rich and energetic nature while drawing inspiration from the Mediterranean, making the collection an homage to the brand's contemporary designs rooted in the beach life mindset. For more information, visit lulifama.com. By ML Staff. Photo Credit: Luli Fama

“I can’t wait to come to Miami again as soon as possible,” says the founder of Mallet London, Tommy Mallet who is currently at home in London due to the extended lockdown there. “I am so excited that Mallet's first foray into American is in one of my favourite cities in the world,” he says of the fact that Mallet is available exclusively at Saks Fifth Avenue’s Bal Harbour location as well as Beverly Hills and saks.com. The straight talking Brit, who is a household name in his native land, first found fame on a hugely popular British reality television show called ‘The Only Way is Essex’. However, since 2015 he has been working non-stop to build his eponymous sneaker brand, Mallet London. Always a lover of shoes, Tommy was constantly trying to keep up with the latest styles. He couldn’t afford the expensive designer sneakers that were flooding the market, so one day he decided to design his own. He sketched a sneaker and asked good friend Evren Ozkarakasli to manufacture the first prototype through his access to factories. His intent was to make his own custom shoes, but when he saw the finished product with his name on it, he knew it had to be something bigger. Fast forward six years, Mallet London, is now stocked at over 150 stores worldwide including Harrods and Selfridges in London and as far reaching as Level Shoes and Harvey Nichols in Dubai. Saks launched the brand at the beginning of June. The opportunity to expand into the US has been years in the making, and after a successful year during the pandemic as the world took a more casual turn and sought leisure and athletic wear, 2021 was the perfect time. “We are so honored to be part of iconic retailer Saks,” said Tommy of the opportunity. ‘It's been a dream of ours to be a part of the North American fashion landscape and to have the chance to introduce our high-quality footwear to such discerning consumers is a dream come true.” The retailer received the worldwide exclusive launch of 7 men’s styles. Mallet London is known for its bold, yet minimalistic silhouettes with sleek soles fabricated from smooth, supple leather. The brand launches new styles each season but also maintains a core essentials collection that has developed a cult-like following. The brand has been worn by the likes of will.i.am, Todd Gurley, Connor Mcgregor, and Drake to name a few. Signature details synonymous with the brand include a statement metal heel clip and trademark “M” monogram. So what's next for Mallet London? The entrepreneur, who was just named a Forbes 30 Under 30, said “we have a busy few months ahead of us - we are about to launch in Canada with both our men’s and women’s collections and in Australia with our men’s. But I won’t stop there. I want to see Mallet shoes walking down the streets of every major city in the world”. Mallet London is available at mallet.com, Saks.com, and Saks Bal Harbour, and Beverly Hills. Prices start from $245. By ML Staff. Images courtesy of Mallet London