At The Rachael Ray Foundation (RRF), we’re pretty big animal lovers. As a part of our work, we supply a wide variety of organizations that do good for animals, from rescue to care and more. Get to know a few of them and the work we do together.

Pittsburgh Aviation Animal Rescue Team

RRF helped enable Pittsburgh Aviation Animal Rescue Team (PAART) to purchase a new and bigger plane for its rescue missions which bring animals from danger to safety. Whether it be flying dogs in overcrowded shelters to new homes, saving animals caught in the path of natural disasters, or bringing supplies to shelters in need, the brave PAART pilots are always ready to help.

National Disaster Search Dog Foundation

National Disaster Search Dog Foundation (SDF) works to find and train shelter dogs who have the talent and drive to become search and rescue animals. RRF supports SDF’s efforts to identify and transform rescued dogs into rescuers, to provide lifetime care for these dogs and to find homes for all dogs who enter the SDF training program.

Rachael Ray Save Them All Grants

This is a program administered by Best Friends Animal Society (BFAS) to support Best Friends’ network partners in their lifesaving efforts. The money has been awarded to organizations across the country to fund initiatives such as adoption drives and shelter intake prevention efforts.

North Shore Animal League America Disaster Relief Grants

This program, administered by North Shore Animal League America (NSALA), provides money for animal welfare organizations impacted by disasters. RRF is proud to help NSALA in its efforts to identify needs in disaster situations and provide targeted, effective relief.

It was just after 17:00 on a mid-September evening at a historical Church in Harlem, New York City Mostly the low-income black neighborhood sat at dining tables. In front of them was a menu listing three courses, which they only saw on TV. Each dish was prepared with “leftover” ingredients (食材), offered free of charge and placed alongside a blue card that read “you are loved” in hand-written script.

This is one of 14 community centers created around the world in cities like Milan, Paris, Mérida, Lima, Sydney and now New York through three-Michelin starred chef Massimo Bottura’s Food for Soul project. He started the project in 2016 with his wife, Lara Gilmore, to help fight the global problem of food waste by using ingredients that might otherwise be thrown away by suppliers and to give socially and economically vulnerable people access to high quality meals.

Partnering with architects, artists and community leaders, the project is transforming spaces, which are not fully taken advantage of, such as churches and even a historical home into intentionally designed cultural centers equipped with kitchens, dining rooms and other facilities that help create a sense of well-being, connection and inclusion.

When I asked Bottura why he created such thoughtful meals within beautifully appointed spaces for the low-income, he told me that everyone deserves respect and beauty, and of course, healthy food. “They come in and are completely lost because they’re not used to coming into beautiful places like this. But once they’re here, they realize that this place is their place. It’s not my place,” he said.

Bottura’s philosophy is one that comes from the heart. T-shirts worn by volunteers at his community centers say “cooking is an act of love”, and he approaches the food served there with as much care as he does at his restaurants, probably even more, since the diners are extremely stressed and need healthy food to feel better. Bottura insists that it’s important to change the language around the food served in his community centers.

Proper questioning has become a lost art. The curious four-year-old asks a lot of questions—incessant streams of “Why?” and “Why not?” might sound familiar—but as we grow older, our questioning decreases. In a recent survey of more than 200 of our clients, we found that those with children estimated that 70-80% of their kids’ dialogues with others were comprised of questions. But those same clients said that only 15-25% of their own interactions consisted of questions. Why the drop off?

Think back to your time growing up and in school. Chances are that you received the most recognition or reward when you got the correct answers. Later in life, that motivator continues. At work, we often reward those who answer questions, not those who ask them. Questioning conventional wisdom can even lead to being distanced, or considered a threat.

Because expectations for decision-making have gone from “get it done soon” to “get it done now” to “it should have been done yesterday”, we tend to jump to conclusions instead of asking more questions. And the unfortunate side effect of not asking enough questions is poor decision-making. That’s why it’s vital that we slow down and take the time to ask more and better questions. At best, we’ll arrive at better conclusions. At worst, we’ll avoid a lot of rework later on.

Aside from not speaking up enough, many professionals don’t think about how different types of questions can lead to different outcomes. We should lead a conversation by asking the right kinds of questions, based on the problem we’re trying to solve. In some cases, we’ll want to expand our view of the problem rather than keeping it narrowly focused. In others, we may want to challenge basic assumptions or confirm our understanding in order to feel more confident in our conclusions. Therefore, asking the right kinds of questions is what counts in achieving a goal.

Over 2,000 years ago, Baiae was the most magnificent resort town in Italy. Wealthy statesmen including Cicero and Caesar were once drawn to its natural springs. But over the centuries, volcanic activity submerged this playground of the Roman nobility, leaving half of it beneath the Mediterranean.

Today, Baiae is one of the world’s few underwater archaeological parks open to visitors wanting to explore the remains of the ancient Roman city. A protected marine area, the site needs to be monitored for damage caused by divers and environmental factors. However, explains Davidde, Italy’s national supervisor for underwater cultural heritage, “Communication underwater is challenging.”

Cabled systems are the most reliable, but they are difficult to maintain and cover a limited operational area. And wireless internet doesn’t work well in water, because of the way water interacts with electromagnetic waves.

So Davidde teamed up with a group of engineers led by Chiara Petrioli, a professor at Sapienza University. Petrioli’s team has developed a network of underwater wireless sensors capable of gathering environmental data and transmitting it to land in real time. The system relies on AI algorithms (算法) to constantly change the network protocol (网络协议). As the sea conditions change, the algorithms adjust the information path, allowing the signal to travel up to two kilometers and data to be sent between transmitters one kilometer apart.

At Baiae, underwater internet allows remote, continuous monitoring of environmental conditions. Besides, it allows divers to communicate with one another and with colleagues above the surface, who can also use the technology to locate them with a high degree of accuracy.

Davidde anticipates that the network will be available to tourists visiting the archaeological site in the coming months. As they swim over the ruins, visitors will use waterproof smart tablets to communicate and to view 3D reconstructions of the ruins.

“Underwater internet has made monitoring of the archaeological site simpler and more efficient,” says Davidde, “At the same time, we can offer the public a new, interactive way to explore the underwater park.”