Why AI Governance Is Becoming A Board-Level Business Issue

NY Weekly Staff on October 21, 2026

Artificial intelligence is moving from isolated experiments into business processes that influence customers, employees and financial decisions. As its reach expands, responsibility for how AI is selected, deployed and monitored can no longer sit solely with technology teams. Boards increasingly need to understand where AI is being used, what value it is expected to create and what happens when a system produces an unreliable or harmful result.

AI governance is the framework of accountability, policies, controls and oversight used to direct and monitor an organization’s use of artificial intelligence. It is becoming a board-level business issue because decisions about AI now affect enterprise risk, investment priorities, regulatory exposure and stakeholder trust. The central question is not whether directors need to understand every model. It is whether they have enough visibility to challenge management’s decisions and assess the risks attached to adoption.

AI risk extends beyond the technology function

Traditional technology oversight often concentrates on budgets, implementation schedules and cybersecurity. AI introduces additional questions about data quality, fairness, transparency, intellectual property and the reliability of generated outputs. A system can function as designed yet still produce information that is inappropriate for a particular business decision.

Consider an AI tool used to support recruitment screening, customer communications or financial analysis. The immediate owner may be a human resources, marketing or finance team. Yet the consequences of errors can extend into legal, compliance and reputational areas. Governance must therefore connect business owners with technology specialists and control functions instead of treating AI as a separate technical category.

Third-party tools complicate this picture. Employees may use AI features embedded in software already approved for other purposes. Organizations need a practical way to identify these applications, classify their uses and determine where human review is necessary. An inventory organized by business purpose and risk can be more useful to directors than a list of technology vendors alone.

Regulatory expectations are changing the oversight conversation

In the European Union, the AI Act establishes a risk-based regulatory framework. Its provisions have different application dates and obligations vary according to factors such as the type of system, its intended use and whether an organization acts as a provider or deployer. This distinction matters for companies operating in Ireland or serving European markets.

The AI Act entered into force in August 2024, with its requirements applying in stages. Prohibitions on certain AI practices and AI literacy provisions began applying in February 2025. Transparency requirements for certain systems began applying in August 2026, while other requirements have later application dates. Organizations should assess the rules relevant to their specific activities rather than assuming every AI application has the same compliance obligations.

Regulation is only one part of the governance case. Existing requirements concerning personal data, consumer protection, sector regulation and contractual responsibilities may also apply to AI-enabled operations. For boards, the useful question is how management identifies overlapping obligations, assigns ownership and records the reasoning behind higher-risk deployments.

A policy document alone offers limited assurance. Directors need evidence that governance expectations have been translated into decisions, testing procedures, staff guidance and escalation routes that operate in practice.

Accountability needs to be clear from design to deployment

One weakness in enterprise AI programs is uncertain ownership. Data teams may develop tools, external vendors may supply models and business units may decide how outputs are used. When accountability is fragmented, important questions can remain unanswered until a problem occurs.

A workable operating model should clarify several responsibilities:

  • Business owners should define the intended use, expected benefits and acceptable limits of an AI application.
  • Technology and data teams should assess technical performance, security, data suitability and operational dependencies.
  • Risk, legal and compliance functions should review relevant controls and escalate material concerns.
  • Senior management should approve significant deployments within an agreed framework and report material exposures to the board.

These responsibilities should be proportionate to the potential impact of an application. A tool that summarizes internal meeting notes does not necessarily warrant the same oversight as one used in decisions affecting people’s access to employment or financial services.

Governance should also cover changes after deployment. Model behavior, supporting data and user practices may evolve. Monitoring, incident reporting and periodic reassessment help management identify when a previously acceptable use requires additional controls or reconsideration.

Boards should connect AI investment with measurable value

AI governance is sometimes presented as a brake on innovation. In practice, clearer decision rights can help organizations distinguish viable applications from experiments that lack a defined business case. Risk management and commercial discipline should inform the same investment conversation.

Before approving a significant program, boards can ask what process is changing, how outcomes will be measured and what assumptions support the projected benefits. Productivity gains, for example, may depend on redesigning workflows, training employees and maintaining human review. A model’s technical performance does not, by itself, demonstrate business value.

Management reporting should address both performance and exposure. Useful indicators may include adoption in approved use cases, quality testing results, incidents, control exceptions, staff readiness and evidence of benefits realized. The precise measures should reflect the application rather than relying on a single enterprise-wide success metric.

For organizations considering a coordinated approach, KPMG in Ireland’s perspective on enterprise AI governance places governance alongside organizational clarity, data, cybersecurity, workforce capability and the move from pilots toward scalable business applications. The wider lesson is that AI adoption requires operating decisions across the business, not simply procurement of new tools.

Making AI oversight a continuing board responsibility

Boards do not need to approve every use of artificial intelligence. They do need an agreed threshold for escalation, reliable management information and clarity about who can stop or modify a deployment when concerns emerge. These arrangements are especially important as AI capabilities become embedded in everyday systems and processes.

A useful starting point is to ask management for a current view of material AI uses, the risks associated with them and the controls already operating. Directors can then test whether the organization has appropriate skills, independent challenge and procedures for responding to failures. Governance can mature as experience grows, but it needs to begin before adoption becomes too diffuse to oversee effectively.

The board-level significance of AI is ultimately about accountability. Technology may change quickly, but directors still need to scrutinize strategy, risk and organizational performance. Treating AI governance as part of those established responsibilities can support more disciplined investment and a clearer basis for trust.

Meet the ‘Queenager’: Felicia Madison Turns Aging and Reinvention Into Her Next Big Comedy Chapter

NY Weekly Staff on October 21, 2026

By Jay KT

Felicia Madison is onstage talking about getting older, and the joke is that she is not slowing down.

She calls her newest project “Queenager,” a collection of material about aging, marriage, motherhood, menopause, empty nesting, and trying to figure out what the hell comes next. On November 12, she will perform it at West Side Comedy Club during the New York Comedy Festival.

It is a fitting title for a comedian whose career began in March 2015, long after the age when most people are told they should have everything figured out.

Madison jokes that she has reached the age where no one asks her for a “fun fact” about herself anymore. But becoming a stand-up comedian later in life is certainly one. Another? She was an All-State softball player in high school.

Comedy, however, was never part of the original plan.

Looking for Something That’s Truly Hers

Madison graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Biological Basis of Behavior and a minor in Marketing. Then came marriage, raising children, and all the things we’re “supposed” to do.

“I was looking for a creative outlet and a way to rediscover a part of myself outside of being a wife and mother.”

Her father had shown her that reinvention could happen at any age. He did not graduate from high school, served in the Navy, worked incredibly hard to build a life for himself and his family, and later found a passion of his own.

“Watching him taught me both that hard work matters and that there’s no expiration date on discovering what you love.”

For Madison, that discovery was comedy.

Making Every Lived Experience a Material

What began as a creative outlet quickly became a career. Madison fell in love with performing, writing, producing, and helping other comedians develop their voices.

Today, she is the Creative Director of West Side Comedy Club in New York City, where she runs and teaches comedy classes and develops talent. She has also released her first comedy special, “Better Than Sex,” available on Apple TV, Amazon, and YouTube.

She has performed alongside Jessica Kirson, Rachel Feinstein, Zarna Garg, T.J. Miller, and Jordan Carlos.

But Madison’s work is not only about getting older. It is about what can happen when a person stops treating age as a deadline.

“Funny doesn’t have an expiration date.”

The “Queenager” Has More to Say

Madison’s comedy draws directly from the life she has lived.

Her ideal audience includes women navigating marriage, motherhood, aging, menopause, empty nesting, and figuring out what comes next. Yet the more specific she becomes, the more universal the material becomes.

“I don’t want to tell people how to age gracefully. I want to laugh about how ridiculous the whole thing can be.”

That approach is at the center of “Queenager.” Rather than treating later life as a closing chapter, Madison finds comedy in the uncertainty of what comes after the roles that once defined you.

“We’re still working, dating, having sex, reinventing ourselves, making mistakes, and figuring out what we want to be when we grow up.”

She Is Still Getting Started

Madison knows what it means to enter an industry where age can feel like a barrier.

“Everyone seems to be looking for the next young, hot thing, and they’re definitely not talking about temperature.”

Instead of seeing her late start as something to overcome, she has made it part of her voice. She has decades of life experience to write about, knows who she is, and has the grit to keep going.

Her philosophy of life is straightforward as well: “Stay on your own mat.”

For Madison, that means concentrating on her own work, getting better, and moving forward instead of measuring her career against someone else’s opportunities or followers.

She is continuing to perform, produce her own work, expand her comedy school, develop television projects, and look toward a larger tour for “Queenager.”

“In five years, I hope to be doing exactly what I’m doing now, just on a much bigger scale.”

For someone who started comedy over a decade ago, Madison has no interest in slowing down.

“I feel like I’m finally hitting my stride.”

To know more about Felicia Madison and her work, visit https://www.feliciamadison.com/ or follow her socials on Instagram and Facebook.

Meet the ‘Queenager’: Felicia Madison Turns Aging and Reinvention Into Her Next Big Comedy Chapter

NY Weekly Staff on October 21, 2026

By Jay KT

Felicia Madison is onstage talking about getting older, and the joke is that she is not slowing down.

She calls her newest project “Queenager,” a collection of material about aging, marriage, motherhood, menopause, empty nesting, and trying to figure out what the hell comes next. On November 12, she will perform it at West Side Comedy Club during the New York Comedy Festival.

It is a fitting title for a comedian whose career began in March 2015, long after the age when most people are told they should have everything figured out.

Madison jokes that she has reached the age where no one asks her for a “fun fact” about herself anymore. But becoming a stand-up comedian later in life is certainly one. Another? She was an All-State softball player in high school.

Comedy, however, was never part of the original plan.

Looking for Something That’s Truly Hers

Madison graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Biological Basis of Behavior and a minor in Marketing. Then came marriage, raising children, and all the things we’re “supposed” to do.

“I was looking for a creative outlet and a way to rediscover a part of myself outside of being a wife and mother.”

Her father had shown her that reinvention could happen at any age. He did not graduate from high school, served in the Navy, worked incredibly hard to build a life for himself and his family, and later found a passion of his own.

“Watching him taught me both that hard work matters and that there’s no expiration date on discovering what you love.”

For Madison, that discovery was comedy.

Making Every Lived Experience a Material

What began as a creative outlet quickly became a career. Madison fell in love with performing, writing, producing, and helping other comedians develop their voices.

Today, she is the Creative Director of West Side Comedy Club in New York City, where she runs and teaches comedy classes and develops talent. She has also released her first comedy special, “Better Than Sex,” available on Apple TV, Amazon, and YouTube.

She has performed alongside Jessica Kirson, Rachel Feinstein, Zarna Garg, T.J. Miller, and Jordan Carlos.

But Madison’s work is not only about getting older. It is about what can happen when a person stops treating age as a deadline.

“Funny doesn’t have an expiration date.”

The “Queenager” Has More to Say

Madison’s comedy draws directly from the life she has lived.

Her ideal audience includes women navigating marriage, motherhood, aging, menopause, empty nesting, and figuring out what comes next. Yet the more specific she becomes, the more universal the material becomes.

“I don’t want to tell people how to age gracefully. I want to laugh about how ridiculous the whole thing can be.”

That approach is at the center of “Queenager.” Rather than treating later life as a closing chapter, Madison finds comedy in the uncertainty of what comes after the roles that once defined you.

“We’re still working, dating, having sex, reinventing ourselves, making mistakes, and figuring out what we want to be when we grow up.”

She Is Still Getting Started

Madison knows what it means to enter an industry where age can feel like a barrier.

“Everyone seems to be looking for the next young, hot thing, and they’re definitely not talking about temperature.”

Instead of seeing her late start as something to overcome, she has made it part of her voice. She has decades of life experience to write about, knows who she is, and has the grit to keep going.

Her philosophy of life is straightforward as well: “Stay on your own mat.”

For Madison, that means concentrating on her own work, getting better, and moving forward instead of measuring her career against someone else’s opportunities or followers.

She is continuing to perform, produce her own work, expand her comedy school, develop television projects, and look toward a larger tour for “Queenager.”

“In five years, I hope to be doing exactly what I’m doing now, just on a much bigger scale.”

For someone who started comedy over a decade ago, Madison has no interest in slowing down.

“I feel like I’m finally hitting my stride.”

To know more about Felicia Madison and her work, visit https://www.feliciamadison.com/ or follow her socials on Instagram and Facebook.

New York App Week Puts Shippies Winners On Times Square Billboards Ahead Of Free Public Demo Day

NY Weekly Staff 2 on October 21, 2026

New York App Week 2026 named seven Shippies winners on October 20 at the Intrepid Museum, sending each winning app to a Times Square billboard. The week closes Thursday, October 22, with Shipaton Demo Day in Times Square, a free event open to the public with no registration required.

Key Takeaways

  • New York App Week runs October 19–22, 2026, with more than 30 community-hosted events across Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens.
  • Seven apps won Golden Shippy awards at the Intrepid Museum on October 20, and each earned a Times Square billboard spot.
  • App Growth Annual runs October 21 at The Glasshouse on 12th Avenue with five keynotes and 36 workshops.
  • The AI For NYC Hackathon in Long Island City challenged participants to build solutions for New York City using open data and APIs.
  • Shipaton Demo Day runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on October 22 in Times Square, with no registration required.

New York App Week Turns One Conference Into A Citywide Calendar

New York App Week runs on a simple organizing rule: anyone can host an event, and anyone can take part. RevenueCat, the subscription software company behind the week, anchors the schedule with two events of its own, App Growth Annual and the Shippies award show. The community fills in the rest, with more than 30 sessions spread across four days and three boroughs.

The format says something about how the app business works in New York. Instead of concentrating everything inside one convention hall, the week moves from a Long Island City hackathon to a Chelsea fitness studio, a DUMBO padel court, and the deck of a former aircraft carrier on the Hudson. Each event sets its own RSVP rules, so a founder without a conference badge can still build a full week of meetings.

That loose structure suits a startup economy already moving quickly. New York App Week adds an in-person layer to a city where capital keeps flowing into young companies, as shown by a single week of New York startup deals that topped $400 million.

Seven Apps Take Home Golden Shippies At The Intrepid Museum

The Shippies award show took over the Intrepid Museum on the evening of October 20, with a red carpet and the museum’s retired space shuttle as a backdrop. The awards recognize apps shaping the subscription economy. Each winner received a Golden Shippy along with a Times Square billboard spot. The 2026 winners are:

  • Runna, recognized for growth
  • Audiomack, recognized for monetization
  • Structured, recognized for simplicity
  • Reading.com, recognized for learning
  • Suno, recognized for AI experience
  • Fitbod, recognized for ongoing value
  • CardPointers, recognized in the indie developer category

The spread of categories is telling. Alongside growth and monetization, the awards recognized simplicity, learning, and ongoing value, which suggests the subscription app market is rewarding products people keep using, not just products that win the first download. CardPointers’ win in the indie developer category shows that a small team can still share a stage with venture-scale apps.

AI For NYC Hackathon Points App Builders At City Problems

The clearest civic thread of New York App Week came on Monday, October 19, when the AI For NYC Hackathon gathered builders at Pursuit, 47-10 Austell Place in Long Island City. Participants used open data and APIs to build practical solutions for New York City, then pitched their projects for prizes.

The hackathon stood apart from the rest of the schedule. Most App Week sessions focus on paywalls, retention, and paid acquisition, the mechanics of turning downloads into revenue. The Long Island City event asked a different question: what could those same skills do for the city hosting the week? For New York’s tech community, that kind of programming connects a growth-focused industry with the public data the city already publishes.

App Growth Annual Anchors The Week At The Glasshouse

App Growth Annual 2026 runs from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. on October 21 at The Glasshouse, 660 12th Avenue, with a livestream for online attendees. The program includes five keynotes and 36 workshops covering paid user acquisition, monetization, retention, and AI economics. RevenueCat also uses the day to preview its 2027 product roadmap.

The agenda leans toward operating questions rather than trend talk. Sessions on AI economics and retention address what it costs to run AI features inside an app and how to keep subscribers past their first month, issues that shape whether a subscription app can sustain itself.

Smaller Rooms Shape New York’s App Founder Community

Much of New York App Week happens in rooms built for small groups. On October 19, iOSoho hosted IndieDev Talks at 307 West 38th Street, offering practical growth talks for independent iOS developers both in person and online. The next day, the Women in Apps brunch brought together women building, designing, and marketing apps, followed by a Women in Apps art cafe where attendees painted ceramics with their phones put away.

New York App Week Puts Shippies Winners On Times Square Billboards Ahead Of Free Public Demo Day

Photo Credit: Unsplash.com

Thursday, October 22, opens with a 5K along the Hudson River that starts and finishes at Chelsea Piers, and closes with founder dinners and community meetups in Manhattan and Brooklyn. The pattern repeats across the week: small, topic-specific gatherings where founders compare notes on what worked and what failed.

Shipaton Demo Day Brings App Builders To Times Square

New York App Week ends its public-facing program on October 22 with Shipaton Demo Day in Times Square, running from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Winners of Shipaton, RevenueCat’s app-building challenge, will staff demo pods, show their apps to passersby, and collect feedback throughout the day. The event is open to the public, and no registration is required.

Moving app demos onto the street turns a week built for industry insiders into something any New Yorker can walk into. For the founders behind those pods, an afternoon of unfiltered feedback from strangers can be as valuable as a day of workshops.

FAQs

What Event Is In NYC This Week?

New York App Week runs October 19–22, 2026, with more than 30 events for app founders, developers, and growth teams across the city. Its final public event is Shipaton Demo Day in Times Square on October 22.

What Is App Growth Annual?

App Growth Annual is RevenueCat’s yearly app growth conference, held October 21, 2026, at The Glasshouse in Manhattan and streamed online. The 2026 program includes five keynotes and 36 workshops on acquisition, monetization, retention, and AI economics.

What Is RevenueCat?

RevenueCat is a software company that provides subscription management and revenue tools for mobile and web apps. Founded in 2017, it organizes New York App Week’s two anchor events, App Growth Annual and the Shippies.

Who Won The 2026 Shippies?

The 2026 Shippies winners are Runna, Audiomack, Structured, Reading.com, Suno, Fitbod, and CardPointers. Each received a Golden Shippy and a Times Square billboard spot.

Is Shipaton Demo Day Free To Attend?

Yes. Shipaton Demo Day is open to the public in Times Square from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on October 22, 2026, and no registration is required.

Meet 10-Year-Old Bright Bankole, Who Writes First and Plans Later

NY Weekly Staff on October 21, 2026

By: Alex Zams

Finishing a 184-page novel is a long project for anyone, and Bright Bankole did it at the young age of 10. Ask him how, and his answer is practical. Nothing mysterious there. He was, and is, an avid reader. And when he reads, he notices how the books he read were put together, and he did not wait for a perfect plan before he started typing.

Bright was 10 and in sixth grade when he released his debut novel, Adventure in Magicland, the first book in a planned fantasy series called “Realms.” It is the story of a reluctant hero, a portal, and a war between light and shadow, written around themes of faith and courage. What makes it worth a closer look is how it was built. Bright plays soccer and American football, likes working with technology, and counts reading class among his favorite parts of the school day. His mother, Dola, says he began writing the book at 8, and that around age 10 he came to her and said he was typing a book and wanted it published.

His method starts with a habit most writers would recognize. Bright does not outline. He might already be drafting on paper, he says, when midway through the first chapter a whole new idea shows up.

“And then I rush to my computer and start typing,” he says. “And then more ideas just come as I’m writing.” When the ideas slow down, he goes back to reading, sometimes his own pages and sometimes other people’s books, and “ideas just come rushing back.”

Reading is also where he learned how a story is built.

“In every book I’ve read, there’s gonna be at least one problem for the main character,” he says.

Some of those books were about middle school, he explains, and others were about families that moved. A fantasy from Priscilla Shirer’s “Prince Warriors” series showed him another model. As Bright describes it, a group of kids travels to another world to defeat a villain who wants to take over the real one. That convinced him his own story needed a main villain and someone to help the hero.

The borrowing is easy to spot in the opening chapters. Chris, the book’s hero, loves soccer and has already moved once. His parents announce a month-long trip to California, and he wants to know what will happen to his team and to his best friend, Jake. Within a chapter, the trip turns out to be a permanent move, and Chris storms off to his room and locks the door. Bright says he worked in some of the “moving challenges from the books I read.”

Then the fantasy begins. Chris walks into the woods behind the mountain cabin where his family is staying, angry and unsure, and asks God to “show up.” A portal opens. He lands first in Hell, where demons chase him, and then in Magicland, where a fairy named Alastor tells him he has been chosen as the Lightbringer. Chris objects that he is just a kid who plays soccer. “God does not choose the perfect,” Alastor answers. “He chooses the willing.” With Alastor and an elf named Valtor beside him, Chris travels through a series of realms, among them the Realm of Courage, on his way to face the Shadow King. The book has the main villain and the helpers Bright describes, and when the first demons arrive, Alastor quotes Ephesians 6, the passage Shirer’s series is built on.

The scale of the world was not part of the first plan. Bright meant to send Chris through five realms in a single book. Then he decided, “Why not just make a series?” and gave each realm a book of its own.

His mother’s role, by her account, was to support the project while he made the creative decisions. Dola says she has published books on parenting, and that Bright told her that her writing was part of what motivated him.

“Bright edited the whole thing by himself,” she says.

She found a publisher by searching online and helped with production. When it came to the illustrations, she recalls, Bright had his own idea of what the pictures should be, and the two talked it through until they agreed.

Faith is central to the book, and Bright says where that comes from. In the author’s note, he describes a dream from around age 8, in which a shining cross seemed to call him. He stepped through it and saw gold streets and a gate. The dream, he writes, made him want to write a story about faith and courage. Those themes also appear in small details. Chris keeps a Psalm 23 poster that his grandmother taped to his wall years ago, not because he is especially religious, the narration says, but because it reminds him of her.

Asked what he would tell other young people who have story ideas but have not started writing them, Bright talked about time rather than talent.

“If you know you can complete something in one day, don’t procrastinate to wait till the other day to finish the thing,” he says. School fills people’s days, he explains, and a book that keeps getting postponed ends up forgotten.

The moving problem from the first chapter does not stay behind in the real world. In the Realm of Courage, Chris must cross a bridge of light and mist alone. Shadows in the mist take the shape of his parents arguing, Jake walking away, and his little sister, Ava, crying. “I am scared,” he says. “But I’m still walking.”

The book ends with Chris back in his bedroom, twenty minutes after he left, the house quiet and the world outside unchanged. After a war that spans several realms, the story returns to the small, ordinary place where it began.

It is a fitting place for a first book to end. It suggests a writer who knows where his stories come from: the ordinary problems of a boy’s life, taken seriously and given room to grow. Bright is still near the start of that work. He has one finished novel and a series to continue. If he keeps reading widely, following new ideas as they arrive and finishing what he starts, readers may well have a good deal more from him to look forward to.

Words That Warn, Comfort, and Call for Change, Yvette Lamare’s Prevention! Have I Got Your Attention?

NY Weekly Staff on October 21, 2026

Some poems begin with a loss that refuses to remain private. In Prevention! Have I Got Your Attention?, Yvette Lamare uses poetry as a public appeal. A way to warn young people about dangerous choices, speak plainly about grief, and ask communities to treat one another with greater care.

The collection ranges across addiction, road safety, bullying, family life, war, prejudice, technology, and peace, with a recurring concern for the human cost of decisions made without thought for others.

Personal Loss Becomes a Purpose

The collection’s emotional centre lies in Lamare’s account of her younger sister, Bronwyn, who died in a drink-driving accident in 1992. Yvettehad survived a similar accident in 1982. The contrast between survival and bereavement gave her a reason to speak openly about alcohol and the consequences that can follow a single reckless moment.

Her poem Alcohol emerged in 1994, carrying sorrow and a plea for change. In the preface, Lamare explains how reciting the piece to her daughter’s primary-school teacher encouraged her to write more. What began as an outlet for grief grew into an effort to reach readers, especially young people, before preventable harm enters their lives.

Plain Language, Urgent Subjects

Yvettedoes not treat poetry as something reserved for private reflection. Her verses address drink-driving, vaping, drug use, addiction, cyberbullying, domestic violence, depression, suicide, and peer pressure with the directness of a speaker who wants the message understood.

Rhyme, repetition, wordplay, and conversational phrasing give many poems the sound of spoken advice rather than distant commentary.

That direct approach is part of the book’s character. Yvettenames everyday situations, messages sent online, pressure from friends, a driver reaching for a phone, and asks readers to consider the consequences. Her concern is not limited to individual conduct.

Poems about poverty, children, food, money, politicians, and war widen the frame to include the social conditions that shape people’s lives and the responsibilities shared by families, institutions, and leaders.

Memory, Heritage, and Peace

The book also makes room for tenderness and reflection. Poems about babies, childhood, funerals, grief, and forgiveness sit beside sharper warnings, reminding readers that life holds ordinary joys and losses that can change a family forever. For Bronwyn remembers a beloved sister as a daughter, mother, and lively presence, keeping her more than the circumstances of her death.

Yvette’s Māori whakapapa adds another strand to the collection. In her preface, she writes of her descent from Ngā Puhi and Eruera Maihi Patuone, a Māori leader known for advocating peace and coexistence. The closing piece on Patuone connects family history with the hope that people can choose diplomacy over conflict. This emphasis gives the collection a sense of responsibility that extends to future generations.

Words With a Purpose

Prevention! Have I Got Your Attention? is a varied, outspoken collection shaped by the belief that language can prompt reflection before a crisis arrives. Its poems do not hide their intentions: they seek to inform, caution, remember, and encourage. At their most personal, they preserve the memory of a sister. At their broadest, they ask readers to consider what kind of world their choices help create.

What the Collection Asks of Readers

Those readers who value poetry with a clear social purpose, Yvette Lamare’s collection offers a candid invitation to pause, think, and act with greater care. Read Prevention! Have I Got Your Attention? and hear the message behind the verses. One thoughtful choice can help protect a life.

What Women Were Never Taught About Their Bodies: Lana Kerr on HERgevity™, the Missing Science of Female Longevity

NY Weekly Staff on October 21, 2026

By: Aleksey Ermachkov

Launching October 22, 2026, Lana Kerr’s new book challenges the gaps in women’s health education and explores why understanding the female body may be one of a woman’s most important investments in her future.

A woman can spend decades learning how to build a career, manage a household, raise a family, and care for everyone around her, yet reach midlife with surprisingly little understanding of her own body.

She may know the importance of exercise and nutrition but struggle to explain changes in her hormones, intimate health, sleep, or sexual response. She may sense that something feels different but lack the language to describe it, and when those changes affect her confidence or quality of life, she may assume they are simply part of getting older.

Lana Kerr wants women to stop accepting that silence.

On October 22, 2026, the entrepreneur, women’s wellness advocate, and founder of CO2Lift® will release HERgevity™: The Missing Science of Female Longevity – Skin, Sex & Strength, a book that explores a fundamental gap in women’s health: the difference between living in a body and truly understanding it.

For Kerr, the subject is personal. Now 55 and navigating menopause herself, she has become increasingly interested in the questions women are never encouraged to ask.

Her work in regenerative skincare and intimate wellness introduced her to the relationship between tissue health, circulation, and the physical changes of aging. It also exposed a broader problem. Women were investing in their health without the foundational knowledge to understand what was happening inside their bodies.

The book is her response. Rather than offering another anti-aging formula, HERgevity™ brings together personal reflection, scientific perspectives, and practical questions that encourage women to become more informed participants in their well-being. At its center is a principle Kerr believes should guide the future of women’s longevity: body literacy must come before optimization.

We spoke with Kerr about the ideas behind the book and the conversations she hopes it will inspire.

New York Weekly: Your book opens with a powerful observation: women are taught about reproduction, but rarely about how their bodies evolve across a lifetime. Why begin there?

Lana Kerr: It’s one of the most important gaps in women’s education, and we don’t talk about it enough.

Most women remember learning about periods, pregnancy, and contraception. But what happened after that? Who taught us about pelvic health, circulation, sexual response, tissue changes, or what hormones do to our bodies over a lifetime?

For many of us, those conversations never happened. We become adults, mothers, professionals, and partners, and we’re expected to understand our bodies simply because we’ve lived in them for years. But experience isn’t the same as education.

One of the questions that stayed with me was, how can I be a grown woman and still know so little about certain parts of my own body?

That’s where the book begins. Before we talk about longevity, we need to talk about literacy. Women deserve to understand their anatomy, recognize changes, and have the language to ask informed questions. You cannot advocate for something you haven’t been taught to understand.

New York Weekly: You write that women often normalize changes they don’t fully understand. How can that affect their health?

Lana Kerr: We have to distinguish between something being common and something being acceptable to live with without answers.

Women are often told that certain changes are just part of aging. Sometimes they are natural transitions. But that doesn’t mean a woman shouldn’t understand what’s happening or discuss symptoms affecting her life.

Take intimate discomfort. A woman may notice changes in vaginal dryness or sexual comfort and feel too embarrassed to bring them up, assuming everyone goes through it and nothing can be done. But there may be ways to manage those symptoms, and the first step is being willing to have the conversation with a qualified healthcare professional.

The same applies to sleep, energy, physical strength, and emotional well-being. I want women to be curious about what their bodies are telling them. Not every change is a crisis, but not every concern should be dismissed either.

New York Weekly: Your book is organized around skin, sex, and strength. Why did you choose those three pillars?

Lana Kerr: Because they are deeply connected to how we experience aging, yet we usually discuss them separately.

Skin is the part of aging we can see. We notice changes in texture, elasticity, and appearance, and we spend enormous time talking about them. Sex has historically received far less open discussion. Intimate health, desire, comfort, and sexual well-being shape quality of life, yet many women struggle to talk about them. Strength is our ability to stay physically capable, resilient, and independent as we get older.

They share a common message: we need to understand our bodies as they change. Longevity isn’t just about looking younger or reaching a certain age. It’s about being able to participate in your own life in the ways that matter to you.

New York Weekly: The book also explores strength and physical resilience. Why does that matter in a conversation about longevity?

Lana Kerr: Because independence is one of the most valuable things we can protect as we age.

When we talk about longevity, we focus on how many years someone might live. But I want women to think about what they want to do during those years. Can you move comfortably? Can you maintain your balance? Can you continue doing the activities you love?

Strength isn’t only about appearance or fitness goals. Maintaining muscle, mobility, and function becomes increasingly important as we get older, and women deserve to understand why. I want readers to recognize that the habits they build today shape how they experience the decades ahead.

New York Weekly: Each chapter of HERgevity™ ends with a reflection. Why did you want readers to pause and examine their own experiences?

Lana Kerr: Because information is only valuable when we connect it to our own lives. I didn’t want women to read the book, absorb a few interesting facts, and put it away without thinking about what it meant for them.

At the end of each chapter, I encourage readers to reflect on what they’re noticing in their bodies, what beliefs they may have carried for years, and what conversations they want to begin. Sometimes the most important realization isn’t learning something new. It’s recognizing that something familiar deserves more attention.

I also wanted the book to feel relevant across decades. A woman reading it at 25 may connect with something completely different from a woman reading it at 55 or 75. That’s intentional. Women’s health education shouldn’t begin only when a problem appears. It should evolve with us.

New York Weekly: How did building CO2Lift® influence your decision to write this book?

Lana Kerr: Building CO2Lift® taught me how important education is when you’re introducing people to something unfamiliar. With a technology like topical carboxytherapy, you can’t expect people to understand the science. You have to explain what it is, what the research supports, and where its limitations are.

That experience showed me how much people value information they can actually understand. As our work expanded into intimate wellness, I became aware of how many conversations women weren’t having. Creating products was only one part of what I wanted to accomplish.

I wanted to create more opportunities for women to learn, ask questions, and understand their health beyond any particular brand or treatment. HERgevity™ grew out of that realization.

Photo Courtesy: LUMISQUE Inc.

New York Weekly: The book includes perspectives from physicians alongside your own experiences. How important was that?

Lana Kerr: Extremely important. I am an entrepreneur and an advocate, and also a woman learning about my own body, like so many of the women I hope will read this book. I don’t believe one person has every answer.

Science provides the foundation, but personal experience reveals the questions people are asking and where education is missing. I wanted the book to bring those perspectives together without pretending every issue in women’s health has a simple solution. There are things we understand well, things we’re still researching, and areas where women need better information.

New York Weekly: What change do you hope a woman makes after reading HERgevity™?

Lana Kerr: I hope she starts asking better questions. That’s it.

Maybe she schedules an appointment she’s been putting off, or finally asks her physician about a symptom she’s been embarrassed to mention. Maybe she begins learning about strength training or looks more closely at how her body is changing. Or maybe she has a conversation with her daughter, her mother, or a friend about something they were never taught.

Those moments matter. I don’t expect one book to answer every question about women’s longevity. But if it helps a woman feel more informed, less embarrassed, and more confident advocating for herself, then it’s doing what I hoped it would do.

New York Weekly: HERgevity™ is developing into a larger movement. What do you want it to become?

Lana Kerr: A conversation that continues long after someone finishes reading the book. I want women to share what they’re learning, question assumptions, and help normalize conversations about subjects that have been ignored for too long. And I want younger women to benefit from knowledge that previous generations had to discover on their own.

That’s how we create meaningful change. Not by telling women how they should age, but by giving them the knowledge and confidence to make their own decisions. HERgevity™ is about understanding the body you’ll live in for the rest of your life, and that’s something every woman deserves.

Kerr’s message arrives as more women question traditional definitions of health, aging, and personal fulfillment.

What distinguishes HERgevity™ from a conventional wellness book is its starting point. It doesn’t begin by telling women what they need to fix. It begins by asking what they were never taught. Through discussions of anatomy, intimate health, physical resilience, and self-advocacy, Kerr invites readers to reconsider how they approach their bodies at every stage of life.

The book also carries a broader entrepreneurial lesson. Meaningful innovation often begins by identifying a question an industry has failed to answer. For Kerr, that question has moved from how science can support healthier skin to how women can become better informed about their health as a whole. With HERgevity™, she is inviting readers to help answer it.

HERgevity™: The Missing Science of Female Longevity – Skin, Sex & Strength launches October 22, 2026, on Amazon.

Readers can follow Lana Kerr’s ongoing conversations about women’s health, intimacy, aging, and confidence. To celebrate the launch, Kerr is preparing a complimentary gift for her community, with details to be announced through her website and social media channels.

Pre-order or purchase HERgevity™ on Amazon beginning October 22, and visit www.lanakerr.com for release updates, book information, and details on joining the movement.

Because understanding your body shouldn’t be something you discover by accident. It should be knowledge you carry with you for life.

Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice, nor does it replace professional medical expertise or treatment. If you have any concerns or questions about your health, always consult with a physician or other healthcare professional.

Choosing Southern Utah Accommodations That Match Your Itinerary and Travel Style

NY Weekly Staff on October 21, 2026

A Southern Utah trip can include red-rock hikes, scenic drives, national parks, family activities, and quiet evenings under wide-open skies. The right place to stay should support those plans rather than create extra driving, packing, or scheduling stress.

Accommodation decisions affect more than comfort. A poorly located property can add hours behind the wheel during a short weekend. A room without a kitchen may increase meal costs for a family. A secluded retreat may be ideal for couples but less practical for travelers planning early morning hikes or several park visits. Matching the stay to the itinerary helps travelers use their time and budget more effectively.

Start With the Trip You Are Actually Planning

Southern Utah covers a broad area, so travelers should identify their primary activities before comparing properties. Someone visiting Zion National Park will have different needs from someone exploring Snow Canyon State Park, Bryce Canyon, or the recreational areas around St. George.

For National Park-Focused Trips

If the itinerary centers on Zion, proximity to trail access and shuttle routes may be more valuable than extra room size. Early starts are common during warmer months, when parking fills quickly and midday temperatures can make exposed trails less comfortable. Staying within a manageable distance of the park entrance or shuttle service can reduce morning delays.

Travelers planning to visit multiple parks should consider whether one central location truly saves time. A single base may simplify reservations, but long drives can reduce the hours available for hiking and sightseeing. For an itinerary that includes Zion, Bryce Canyon, and Capitol Reef, splitting the stay between two areas may be more efficient than returning to one property every night.

For St. George and Red-Cliff Recreation

St. George works well for visitors combining outdoor activities with restaurants, shopping, golf, cultural attractions, or family entertainment. Accommodations near the city may suit travelers who want easy access to dining and supplies after a day outdoors.

Those planning hikes at Snow Canyon, biking near Ivins, or exploring nearby state parks may prefer a quieter property closer to the red-rock landscape. This can provide a more relaxed evening setting while keeping scenic areas within a short drive.

Match Amenities to Your Travel Style

Location is only part of the decision. The property itself should fit how travelers expect to spend their downtime.

Families and Longer Stays

Families often benefit from multiple bedrooms, laundry access, a full kitchen, outdoor space, and convenient parking. These features can reduce restaurant spending and make it easier to manage children’s schedules after a hot or active day. A washer and dryer can also be useful when hiking, swimming, or traveling for a week or longer.

Before booking, check whether the sleeping arrangement works for the entire group. A property advertised for six guests may rely on sofa beds or shared spaces that are less comfortable for extended stays.

Couples and Quiet Getaways

Couples may place greater value on privacy, views, a comfortable outdoor area, and a calm setting than on proximity to a large commercial district. A private patio or well-designed living space can turn the accommodation into part of the experience, especially when the itinerary includes slower mornings and sunset drives.

However, seclusion should be weighed against convenience. If the property is far from groceries, restaurants, and fuel, travelers should plan those stops before arriving.

Groups Seeking Outdoor Access

Groups of friends or multigenerational travelers should look for enough common space, bathrooms, parking, and storage for outdoor equipment. A spacious rental can be more practical than several separate hotel rooms, but only if the layout supports shared meals and personal privacy.

Travelers comparing upscale properties can use Southern Utah Luxury as a reference point when evaluating the level of design, setting, and amenities available in the region.

Consider Season, Timing, and Total Cost

Southern Utah accommodations can feel very different depending on the season. Summer brings long daylight hours but also intense heat, making air conditioning, shaded outdoor areas, and access to a pool more valuable. Spring and fall may offer better hiking conditions, but popular weekends can fill quickly. Winter generally brings lower demand in some areas, although shorter daylight and occasional weather changes can affect driving plans.

The nightly rate is not the complete cost. Travelers should account for cleaning fees, resort charges, parking, food, fuel, and the cost of changing locations. A slightly more expensive property near the itinerary may cost less overall if it eliminates unnecessary driving and restaurant meals.

The best accommodation is the one that supports the trip’s actual priorities. By comparing location, layout, amenities, season, and total expense, visitors can choose a Southern Utah stay that makes the itinerary easier to enjoy rather than harder to manage.

Atreyu Amis Is Building Clipstar Around Where Video Views Come From and Whether They Are Real

NY Weekly Staff on October 21, 2026

A large video audience can leave an important question unanswered when a campaign is aimed at a particular city. How much of that attention came from the intended location? Atreyu Amis has made that question central to the way he describes Clipstar, the organic video distribution company he runs at 18.

The company has developed geo-targeting software and a system for detecting fake views, purchased views, and bots. Amis identifies the combination as a distinguishing part of the service. One capability concerns where a campaign reaches people; the other concerns whether its reported attention comes from genuine viewers.

Those requirements sit behind a business that reports more than a billion organic views. Clipstar distributes short-form videos across TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts through a network of more than 15,000 digital clippers. Its work includes campaigns for shows on Amazon Prime and messaging for members of Canada’s Parliament.

Matching Distribution to a Geographic Audience

Amis says Clipstar’s software allows campaigns to focus on specific cities or countries. That gives geography a role in how the company approaches distribution, rather than leaving the location of a video’s audience as an afterthought.

He points to local businesses and brands as examples of clients for whom that capability matters. In a campaign built around a location, the relevant measure of reach depends partly on whether the viewers are in that place. A larger total from elsewhere does not answer the same communication need.

Clipstar’s work with Canadian parliamentarians makes that distinction particularly concrete. Amis describes helping members of Parliament spread their messaging. That gives the distribution work a clear purpose: putting the member’s content in front of an audience relevant to the message and its geographic focus.

His business model is performance-based, with payment tied to verified views. The targeting capability is part of the offer he presents to clients who want an organic campaign directed toward a defined geographic audience.

Addressing the Quality of Reported Attention

The second system deals with views that may have been bought or generated by bots. Amis describes software intended to detect that activity so clients can have more confidence in the views they pay for. His claim concerns the reliability of the audience measurement as well as its scale.

Amis frames the two systems as complementary. A view can come from the right location and still warrant examination for artificial activity. Equally, a genuine viewer may be outside the area a campaign is trying to reach. Addressing both questions is part of the service he wants Clipstar to deliver.

That distinction also helps explain what the company is selling. Clipstar’s service includes the work of distributing content, with controls intended to make the resulting audience more relevant to the campaign. The reported total is one part of that offer.

Clipstar’s case studies include a campaign for the Amazon Original series Invincible that generated millions of views. That entertainment campaign gave the company an opportunity to deploy its distribution model at scale. The broader work combines that ability to circulate clips with software intended to help clients understand the resulting audience.

Bringing Campaign Requirements to the Clipping Model

Amis’s starting observation was that creators and influencers were using short-form clips while larger organizations had room to make greater use of them. His early challenge was to show that organic distribution could be organized at scale while meeting a brand’s targeting requirements.

Clipstar’s network can create short-form content for companies without existing material or repurpose footage they already have, including longer videos and individual clips. Building software around that process connects content creation and distribution with a client’s campaign requirements. Whether newly produced or repurposed, the content needs to reach an audience relevant to the client.

Amis wants the service to reach organizations beyond the creator economy. He sees room for businesses of different kinds to use clipping and paid organic distribution. He describes paid organic distribution as an alternative to traditional paid advertising.

“Social media is not just for creators and influencers. The biggest companies in the world, including those that are even B to be, can benefit tremendously from clipping and organic content distribution. Replace your paid ads with paid organic content!” Amis says.

The question guiding his product development is more specific than whether a clip can attract views. It is whether Clipstar can deliver attention in the places a client wants to reach, with detection systems intended to distinguish genuine viewers from artificial activity.

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