The 19th Eco Expo Asia opened today and will run until November 2.
Themed “Fostering Green Innovations for Carbon Neutrality”, some 190 officials from around 40 official delegations from various cities and provinces in Mainland China, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Belt & Road countries have been invited to showcase cutting-edge green solutions, exchange views and share experiences.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Secretary for Environment & Ecology Tse Chin-wan said: “Eco Expo Asia is a golden opportunity for us to discuss and advance our shared commitments to a sustainable future.
“Green innovation solutions are of paramount importance in our decarbonisation journey. During the expo, we will see the latest innovations and technologies around the world in new energy, climate adaptation and other environmental areas.”
Mr Tse also stressed that although Hong Kong’s carbon emissions peaked in 2014, achieving carbon neutrality in Hong Kong by 2050 is still a significant challenge. As such, he said the Government is boosting the promotion of green low-carbon transformation as well as the development of new energy, new productive forces and green scientific research industries through multiple measures, with a view to leading the city towards carbon neutrality.
The Environment & Ecology Bureau, which continues to participate in the expo this year, has set up four exhibition zones: Smart Technology, Energy-saving & Green Buildings, Community Waste Reduction, and Green Transportation, to highlight the Government’s measures and achievements in decarbonisation.
Additionally, to tie in with the Strategy of Hydrogen Development in Hong Kong announced by the bureau this year, visitors can ride on the hydrogen fuel cell double-deckers on October 31 and November 2 during the expo.
The expo will be open to the public for free on its final day, to encourage citizens to participate in environmental protection and promote green living, the bureau noted.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
The Commissioner of Customs and Excise, Ms Louise Ho, today (October 30) met with the Director General in Shenzhen Customs District, Mr Zheng Jugang, in the Customs Headquarters Building (CHB) to exchange views on further deepening co-operation between the two Customs administrations.
Ms Ho welcomed Mr Zheng’s visit to Hong Kong Customs with his delegation and chaired a meeting with the delegation. During the meeting, the two Customs administrations discussed multiple issues, including refining the point-to-point express co-operation and liaison between Shenzhen and Hong Kong Land Boundary Control Points, strengthening information exchange and mutual assistance in law enforcement amongst boundary control points, combating smuggling activities of parallel traders, mounting joint operations in fighting against cross-boundary crimes, improving the prevention and control of risks, and promoting the Single E-lock Scheme.
Ms Ho said that Hong Kong Customs will continue to promote and deepen high-level collaboration with the Shenzhen Customs District in different areas, thereby enhancing the enforcement capabilities of both administrations and contributing to the developments of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the country.
The delegation today also toured the CHB Exhibition Gallery and Customs Computer Forensic Laboratory to learn about the department’s historical developments, key functions and work on tackling advanced technology crimes.
Gov. Doug Burgum and First Lady Kathryn Burgum will welcome Halloween trick-or-treaters on Thursday, Oct. 31, at the Governor’s Residence, continuing a long-standing tradition.
Children and accompanying adults are invited to come to the east entrance of the residence between 4:30 and 6:30 p.m. Thursday. Parking is available in the Capitol mall loop. The residence is in the southwest corner of the Capitol grounds, 600 E. Boulevard Ave., Bismarck.
This year’s theme for Halloween at the Governor’s Residence is tourism. Displays featuring North Dakota destinations will provide an interactive experience for children.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, Oct. 30 — China released a plan on Wednesday for the establishment of a big-data center system for new materials, with a projected date of 2035 for completion and steady operation.
The country aims to build a system consisting of one major platform and multiple data-resource nodes by 2027, according to the plan jointly released by three government authorities including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
The new-material big-data center is a new type of research and development infrastructure to promote the innovation and development of the new-materials industry.
The plan details tasks for constructing the center, which include establishing the data circulation application system and optimizing the application ecology of new-material big-data technology.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Government Skills announces programme of events to mark Parliament Week.
Daniel Wood, Parliamentary Capability lead
First Parliamentary Counsel Jessica de Mounteney will kick off a programme of events open to all civil servants to mark Parliament Week later this month.
The programme has been devised by Government Skills’ Parliamentary Capability Team and is designed to promote the work that takes place in Parliament and its relevance to civil servants’ day-to-day roles.
At the inaugural event, Jessica will discuss her work leading the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel, a group of government lawyers specialising in drafting legislation and working with departments to turn policy ideas into clear and readable laws.
Other events include archivist Dr Mari Takayanagi from the UK Parliament’s Archives telling the untold history of women in Parliament, and the leader of the House of Commons, Rt Hon Lucy Powell MP, and the Leader of the House of Lords, Rt Hon Baroness Smith of Basildon discussing their roles in government and Parliament, and the importance of Parliament to civil servants.
Join us on Wednesday 20 November between 9.30am and 11.00am, as we are joined by
“Whatever your role, your work as a civil servant is directly affected by what goes on in Parliament,” said Parliamentary Capability lead, Daniel Wood (pictured).
“That’s why we run a raft of parliamentary courses to help civil servants get the knowledge and insight they need about different aspects of Parliament to do their jobs.
“The programme we’ve put together for Parliament Week will have something for everyone who wants to join with us, get involved and mark this special event.”
Parliament Week gets underway on Monday, 18 November, and anyone with a gov.uk email address can book events here.
One of the perplexing aspects of the surge in witch trials that took place in Europe between the 15th and the 18th centuries is the question of how much the personal experiences of that era’s legal personnel influenced the practice of criminal justice throughout the period. In a previous post on this blog, we saw that the political philosopher and witchcraft theorist Jean Bodin cited the existence of a (mostly) invisible guiding spirit that helped to steel his resolve against demonic foes. In this post, we will take a look at Joost de Damhouder, the author of an important 16th century handbook on criminal law, who described an anomalous experience involving an amulet that shaped his views on the use of torture, a story that seems actually to have taken place.
In the first half of the 16th century, the legal field underwent a process of professionalization throughout much of Western Europe. This was driven in part by the expansion of the use of the printing press, which gave legal practitioners access to a much wider body of legal texts and information than was possible before the age of printing. That change also triggered new demand for small-format general practice guides that could put immediate and practical knowledge in the hands of the lawyers, magistrates and lower officials that managed the daily business of the law in Renaissance Europe.
Within a couple decades, the market for subject-specific practice books and treatises began to expand as well. On the subject of criminal procedure, two important examples of this literature appeared in Venice, Italy to solid commercial success, Practica causarum criminalis of Hippolytus de Marsiliis [Venice, 1529] and Practica Nova Causarum Criminalium of Lodovico Carerio (Venice, 1546). These were joined by others in short order. For example, Joost de Damhouder (1507-1581), a lawyer from Bruges who had worked in criminal law and who was a member of the fiscal council of the Netherlands in Brussels (which is now in Belgium), seized the opportunity to capitalize on this trend. He published in 1554 a work that captured the current state of criminal practice law in his home region of Flanders. (Dauchy et. al., ch. , 3sect. 26.) That work was Praxis rerum criminalium (Criminal Matters Practice).
Damhouder’s book contains images of various categories of crime, one of which, depicted here in this full-page woodcut illustration from Damhouder’s 1554 Enchiridion rerum criminalium, is the crime of parricide. Photo by Nathan Dorn.
Damhouder first published Praxis rerum criminalium under the title Enchiridion rerum criminalium (Guidebook of Criminal Matters) in Leuven in 1554 and changed the title in subsequent editions. It went on to be printed many times and became over a handful of years perhaps the most influential short handbook on the subject of criminal law in Europe. (Dauchy et al., ch. 3, sect. 26.) In some respects, this was because of the qualities of the text, which presented succinct and clear statements on a number of areas within the subject of criminal law, including rules governing accusation, investigation of crime, torture, incarceration, and various categories of criminal activity. Some of these categories are very familiar: theft, fraud, assault and battery, murder, rape, arson, and more. Others sound antiquated: throwing waste out of a window, adultery, banditry, and grave robbery, for instance. (Dauchy et al., ch. 3, sect. 26.) Some belong to a world that is distinctly alien to most of the audience of this post: blasphemy, sacrilege, treason against God, and witchcraft. Categories along these lines sufficed, apparently, to make the book widely useful.
A large measure of its success, however, must also be due to the 57 wood engravings that Damhouder commissioned for the book’s publication. Unlike many books of that format and price point, Praxis rerum ciminialium was more-or-less festooned with images. These depicted crimes, tribunals, and penalties suffered by the convicted. Illustrations of this or any quality were more typically found in books that sold at luxury prices. This title, however, was both offered in a less expensive format and illustrated with fascinating images of the world of crime and punishment. (Dauchy et. al., ch. 3, sect. 26.)
This image from Damhouder’s 1554 Enchiridion rerum criminalium depicts the crime of harming passersby through carelessly hurling waste out of the windows of city houses. Photo by Nathan Dorn.
An interesting point about Damhouder’s book is that it is, almost in its entirety, a Latin translation of a pre-existing manuscript that was written by another author. The original that stands behind Praxis rerum criminalium, was a Flemish work by Philips Wielant (1441 or 1442-1520), a magistrate who served on the Council of Flanders. That book was called Corte instructie in materie criminele. (Dauchy et al., ch. 3, sect. 26.) Wielant prepared a first version of the text in 1510 and a second, augmented version, in 1515. A French version dating to 1519 also exists. (Monballyu, p. 293.) Wielant, who was a couple generations older than Damhouder, never had the book printed, and it did not appear in print until an edition of Wielant’s works was made from existing manuscripts in 1872. That publication led to the discovery that Damhouder’s book cannibalized Wielant’s text. (Dauchy et al., ch. 3, sect. 26.)
The originality of Damhouder’s work has to do first with its publication in the Latin language, which made it far more accessible to the overall European community than the Dutch original, and secondly with the images that he added, which had something like the same effect. But we do see a flash of independence in another area, in a place in which Damhouder deviates from Wielant’s text. That is regarding the crime of witchcraft. (Monballyu, p. 299 and following.)
Damhouder places witchcraft in the category of lèse-majesté divine, treason against God. This image from Damhouder’s 1554 Enchiridion rerum criminalium depicts blasphemous acts. Photo by Nathan Dorn.
Where Damhouder provides a bit of original material is in his chapters on torture. (Monballyu, p. 293.) Of interest to him is that people who practice magic sometimes use magical means to avoid suffering the pain of torture. And if the torture victim suffers no pain from the ordeal, then she will not be compelled to answer the investigator’s questions. This renders the magistrates helpless to produce a confession. If this is allowed to take place, many accused will escape punishment. To avoid this, Damhouder makes a particular plea that investigators should never neglect to shave the entire body of a person accused of witchcraft. The purpose of this surprising measure is simple: one must expose to sight any place on the body of the accused where she might hide a talisman or a charm, since magical objects were often used to nullify the pain that the investigators were trying to inflict. Damhouder is especially insistent that shame and embarrassment should not prevent investigators from shaving the accused entirely. (Monballyu, p. 293.) In the French version of the book, Pratique judiciaire des causes criminelles, published in Anvers in 1564, Damhouder relates an experience he claims to have had that convinced him of the need for this precaution. The story appears in chapter 37 of the 1564 work, from paragraph 19 onward (ff. 38v.-41r.).
This image from Damhouder’s 1554 Enchiridion rerum criminalium depicts a tribunal attempting to extract a confession from the accused by torture. Photo by Nathan Dorn.
The story he tells took place when Damhouder resided in Bruges, a period between 1537 and 1550, during which time he was a city alderman. There was an old woman living in town who was said to be able to effect miraculous cures for people who had injuries or illnesses. In general, she was highly regarded by the public, which valued her healing skills and tended to think of her as a quite devout, even saintly, Christian, “an apostle of Christ,” in Damhouder’s telling. This reputation did not impress certain aldermen of Bruges who sought to have her investigated on grounds she might be using illicit magic to work her cures. In consequence of this, she was apprehended in the middle of the night and incarcerated with a view to questioning her. The interrogation was, at first, entirely useless, despite the investigators’ use of torture. The old woman insisted throughout that she was doing nothing at all out of line and that she was a devout Christian. In a strange episode, the mayor of Bruges, who was present, gasped several times on account of suffering a severe case of arthritis. When the woman commented on it, he offered her payment to cure him. She agreed, and when one of the men present asked what means she would use, she assured the mayor that he needed to do nothing but believe that she could heal him. These were fateful words. Upon hearing them, the men who were present warned the mayor that her answer revealed that she was not relying on God, but on some other power to effect her cures and that he should have nothing to do with it. Apostles of Christ, they said, always mention God’s name.
What followed was a series of fruitless interrogations assisted by torture. In the third session, Damhouder tells us, she mocked her captors and even fell asleep during the questioning. At length, it was noticed that while her hair was shaved in preparation for the fourth round of questioning, that the interrogators had neglected to shave all of her body hair before continuing. When they finally did so, they discovered, hidden on her person, a small parchment on which was written strange writing and the symbol of the cross. Once it was removed from her body, she was returned to be tortured again. During that session, she confessed to relying on the aid of the devil to perform her cures. In view of her age and gender, the authorities agreed to subject her to a brief public humiliation and then to banish her from the city rather than to execute her. In time, she was arrested again, this time by magistrates in Middlebourg, a town in
Tokyo (Agenzia Fides) – The government of Japan, whatever it may be, “should be the first to approve the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons”, says the Archbishop of Tokyo, Isao Kikuchi (SVD), recently appointed Cardinal by Pope Francis, while his country is going through a period of political uncertainty.In the elections held in Japan on Sunday 27 October, the coalition that had previously ruled, made up of the Liberal Democratic Party and the small Buddhist Komeito Party, lost its majority in Parliament, which it had held continuously since 2012. According to analysts, a period of uncertainty is now beginning for Japanese politics, normally characterized by great stability. The Archbishop points out some points that, in his opinion, should guide the policy of the Japanese government, regardless of which party or politician is in power now or in the future: “We hope that the Japanese government will continue the discussion on how to build trust among nations to abolish nuclear weapons, drawing inspiration from the recent award of the Nobel Peace Prize to the Nihon Hidankyo organization, which brings together the survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and advocates for a world free of nuclear weapons. “As a Catholic Church, we actively call for the abolition of nuclear weapons, especially during the annual Ten Days of Prayer for Peace in August. The Ten Days of Prayer begin with the commemoration of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, August 5, and continue until August 15, the commemoration of the end of the war in the Pacific in 1945,” stresses the Archbishop.This prayer goes hand in hand with a commitment to peace. The Archbishop of Tokyo notes: “Pope John Paul II made a historic visit to Hiroshima in 1981, which sent a strong message of peace. The Japanese bishops were encouraged by this message from the Pope and therefore launched the Ten Days of Prayer for Peace”. Pope Francis’ visit in 2019 confirmed and renewed this approach: the Pope called for “never again war, never again the noise of weapons, never again so much suffering” and reiterated during his trip to Hiroshima and Nagasaki: “The use of nuclear energy for war purposes is immoral, just as the possession of nuclear weapons is immoral”. “Today”, continued the Archbishop of Tokyo, “the Diocese of Hiroshima and the Diocese of Nagasaki, and with them the entire Catholic community of Japan, call together for the abolition of nuclear weapons and the establishment of peace, also involving the Bishops of the United States in a step of great symbolic value”. He concludes: “The Church in Japan will continue to work with all men and women of good will who seek peace, to call on world leaders to abolish nuclear weapons and thus create lasting peace.” (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 30/10/2024)
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Dar es Salaam (Agenzia Fides) – “They will not silence us, Tanzania belongs to all of us and we will fight for our right to be heard,” said opposition politician John Mnyika, referring to the current government led by Samia Suluhu Hassan, the country’s first female head of government.Tanzania is at a dangerous crossroads on the eve of the 2025 parliamentary elections. The electoral campaign is marked by political unrest. According to local press reports, last year’s political violence raised fears that the country could fall back into authoritarianism. Samia Suluhu Hassan, who took over the presidency after the death of John Magufuli (2015 March 2021) and once presented herself as a reformer, is now facing accusations of using the same repressive methods as her predecessor.With her appointment, the country had begun to raise hopes of a rebirth. Suluhu had, among other things, promised a new era of democratic reforms and in the meantime lifted the ban on political demonstrations and allowed the media to reopen, demonstrating her commitment to freedom of expression. For a brief moment, it seemed as if Tanzania was emerging from the shadow of autocracy. Opposition parties, long suppressed under Magufuli, were allowed to hold demonstrations again. Political debate resumed, and for the first time in years, the country seemed to be moving toward genuine democracy. But now, as local elections in November 2024 approach, those hopes are beginning to fade. Promises of government reforms have given way to a resurgence of authoritarian tactics. The optimism that had accompanied Samias Suluhu’s rise to power has gradually been replaced by fear and uncertainty. Political violence is on the rise, opposition leaders have been silenced, and dissent is once again brutally repressed.For many Tanzanians, the future looks bleak, local media report. The escalation of political violence has created an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty. And as the nation awaits the upcoming elections, one thing is clear: the stakes have never been higher. For opposition leaders like John Mnyika and Tundu Lissu, the fight for democracy has never been more dangerous. But despite the risks, they remain determined. (AP) (Agenzia Fides, 30/10/2024)
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Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – “The problem is how to ensure that the Sacrament of Confirmation is not reduced, in practice, to “last rites”, that is the Sacrament of “departure” from the Church, but is rather the Sacrament of participation, of active participation in the life of the Church”. This is what Pope Francis said at today’s general audience in St. Peter’s Square, continuing his catechesis on the Holy Spirit and today reflecting on the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church through the Sacraments.Last week the Pope spoke about the action of the Holy Spirit in marriage, today he reflected on Confirmation, which “par excellence, according to Pope Francis, is the sacrament of the Holy Spirit”. The Pope recalls that in the New Testament, in addition to baptism with water, “another rite is mentioned, that of the imposition of hands, which has the purpose of communicating the Holy Spirit visibly and in a charismatic way, with effects analogous to those produced by the Apostles at Pentecost”.With the passing of time, “the rite of anointing took shape as a Sacrament in itself, assuming diverse forms and content in the various ages and different rites of the Church”. To better suggest what this sacrament represents, the Pope quotes the Catechism of adults of the Italian Episcopal Conference. It states: “Confirmation is for all the faithful what Pentecost was for the entire Church. … It reinforces the baptismal incorporation into Christ and the Church and the consecration to the prophetic, royal and priestly mission. It communicates the abundance of the gifts of the Spirit. … If, therefore, Baptism is the Sacrament of birth, Confirmation is the Sacrament of growth. For this very reason it is also the Sacrament of witness, because this is closely linked to the maturity of Christian existence”.”The problem,” said the Bishop of Rome, “is how to ensure that the Sacrament of Confirmation is not reduced, in practice, to “last rites”, that is the Sacrament of “departure” from the Church.” “It is said that it is the farewell Sacrament, ” cintinued the Pope, “because once young people do it they go away and then return for marriage. This is what people say”. On the contrary, Confirmation is “the Sacrament of participation, of active participation in the life of the Church”. The Bishop of Rome continued: “It is a milestone that can seem impossible, given the current situation throughout the Church, but this does not mean that we should stop pursuing it. It will not be so for all Confirmands, children or adults, but it is important that it is at least for some who will then go on to be the animators of the community”, continues the Pope who proposes that it can be useful, for this purpose “to be helped in preparing for the Sacrament by lay faithful who have had a personal encounter with Christ and have had a true experience of the Spirit. Some people say that they have experienced it as a blossoming of the Sacrament of Confirmation received as children”.But this, he stresses, “does not relate only to future Confirmands; it relates to all of us and at any time. Together with Confirmation and anointing, we have received” what Saint Paul calls “the first fruits of the Spirit”.”We must “spend” this bond, savour these first fruits, not bury underground the charisms and talents received. Here is a good goal for the Jubilee year! To remove the ashes of habit and disengagement, to become, like the torchbearers at the Olympics, bearers of the flame of the Spirit. May the Spirit help us to take a few steps in this direction!”, the Pope concluded.Before the final blessing, Pope Francis once again recalled the countries at war and asked for constant prayers for peace: “War is increasing, let us think of the countries that are suffering so much, such as the tormented Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Myanmar, North Kivu. Let us pray for peace. Peace is a gift of the Spirit, war is always a defeat. In war, no one wins, everyone loses”.”Yesterday,” the Pope added referring to the recent massacre in the Gaza Strip, “I saw 150 innocent people shot with machine guns. What do children and families have to do with it? They are the first victims of war, let us pray for peace,” the Pope concluded. (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 30/10/2024)
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N’Djamena (Agenzia Fides) – Three days of national mourning in Chad in memory of the victims of the jihadist attack on a military base near Lake Chad were declared by Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Déby, who personally traveled to the site of the attack on October 28 and announced the start of a counter-offensive, called “Haskanite”, to find the perpetrators of the massacre.On the night of October 27-28, an armed group attacked the Chadian army garrison on the island of Barkaram, on the border with Nigeria. Of the 200 soldiers present, 40 were killed, including their commander. The attackers occupied the base until dawn and left with a large amount of weapons and ammunition. Chadian authorities claim that the attack was carried out by the Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram, which has long experienced several splits, the most important of which led to the creation of ISWAP (Islamic State in West Africa Province). Following the death of Boko Haram’s historic leader Abubakar Shekau in 2021, who reportedly committed suicide to avoid falling into the hands of ISWAP’s rivals, the leadership was taken over by Bakura Modu. The group he led continues to lose fighters who join ISWAP and others who join the Nigerian army’s demobilization and reintegration program for jihadists and lay down their arms. If the Barkaram attack was indeed carried out by militiamen led by Bakura Modu, it is seen as an attempt by this militia to assert its leadership role and show the outside world that it is alive and capable of carrying out wide-ranging actions. The Chadian President, in turn, must show determination in the face of the challenge that faces him, as his predecessor Idriss Déby did after the massacre of about 100 soldiers in March 2020 at the Bohama base, also in the Lake Chad region, by Boko Haram (see Fides, 28/3/2020). The father of the current president had gone to the site of the massacre and launched Operation Wrath of Bohama to pursue the perpetrators. Chad is today the only country in the Sahel where Western troops, especially French and American, are stationed. The three countries where military juntas came to power through coups (Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger), grouped in the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), have expelled foreign military missions from their territories (except for the Italian contingent still stationed in Niger). All these countries are facing offensives by various jihadist groups. Chad is trying to maintain good relations both with the West and with countries such as Russia and China, as well as with its AES neighbors. Today it was announced that an important Chadian delegation is visiting Niger. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 30/10/2024)
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Manila (Agenzia Fides) – In October, the month dedicated to the protection of indigenous peoples in the Philippines, the Catholic Church organized various events, meetings and local celebrations aimed at calling institutions to address the problems faced by these peoples in continuing their lives on their ancestral lands, a life threatened above all by mining exploitation.The Philippines has emerged on the international scene as a major supplier of raw materials for the global energy transition, with reserves of minerals such as nickel, a key material for electric car batteries. However, this boom and the mining concessions granted by the government in Manila to multinational companies are leading to displacement and habitat destruction among indigenous peoples, who are being deprived of their ancestral lands and their livelihoods. According to the 2023 State of Indigenous Peoples Address report published by the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Centre (LRC), land and environmental conflicts have increased by 6% in one year, with more than 70,000 additional hectares of land affected. Resource conflicts, especially those related to mining, “have a direct impact on the lives of indigenous peoples themselves. Their lives are truly at stake,” the LRC notes, explaining that between 2022 and 2023, over 45,000 indigenous people were victims of land theft in areas such as the islands of Palawan or Mindoro. Another example concerns the mountainous Cordillera region (north of Luzon island), where the Philippine government has approved 99 hydroelectric projects that are part of a broader plan to develop renewable energy sources. The projects have divided rural communities into those who believe that the dams will bring jobs and money and those who fear damage to water sources and cultural sites.The Philippines is estimated to be home to between 14 and 17 million indigenous people belonging to 110 ethnic-linguistic groups. In the various regions where they are located – such as the Cordillera (in Luzon, in the North), the Visayas (in the center of the archipelago), the Bagsamoro region (in Mindanao, in the South) – these peoples are subject to social discrimination, economic marginalization and political deprivation, phenomena that are exacerbated by mining, which deprives them of their land rights. Over the last hundred years, the Philippine government has increasingly taken away land from indigenous peoples precisely because it is rich in natural resources. The country has begun to promote the dignity and rights of these peoples, thanks in part to the educational work carried out by the Catholic Church and missionaries. Under the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act (IPRA), passed in 1997, indigenous peoples have ownership rights to their ancestral lands if they receive a Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title. The holder of this certificate has the power to approve or reject projects that affect the land, such as in the mining sector. However, obtaining the certificate involves a lengthy bureaucratic process that requires legal representation, and is a process that many indigenous groups have not even begun. In 2003, the government declared October as “Indigenous Peoples’ Month,” establishing a Day of Recognition for Indigenous Peoples, set for October 29, to renew the commitment to ensure fair treatment of these peoples. The Catholic Church in the Philippines, through the Episcopal Commission for Indigenous Peoples, Diocesan Groups and Religious Institutes, has undertaken to “listen to our indigenous brothers and sisters who are members of the family of God, to respond to their aspirations as members of our society” and to protect their lives. An example of this commitment is the award of the National Prize named after Saint Theresa of Calcutta to Sister Minerva Caampued for her work in favor of the indigenous peoples in the province of Cagayan, after thirty years of tireless work for the indigenous Agta community in the areas of environmental protection, health care, nutrition and educational programs. (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 30/10/2024)
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Waskesiu Detachment is asking for the public’s assistance in locating 63-year-old Margaret (also goes by Harder) Sinclair from Southend, Saskatchewan. She was reported missing on October 29 around 9:00 p.m.
Margaret/Harder was a passenger in a vehicle and got out on Highway #2 near Weyakwin this evening – we don’t have a specific location.It is unknown if she caught a ride with anyone.
RCMP are concerned for her well-being, especially given the cold temperatures.
Margaret/Harder is described as: 170 pounds, 5’1″ tall, brown and grey coloured hair, wearing a black jacket. She was not dressed for the weather. She had a walker with her, which she requires for mobility.
Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Margaret/Harder is asked to contact their nearest police service or Waskesiu RCMP at 310-RCMP or 911.
Oct. 30, 2024 Release Number 20241030-01 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TAMPA, Fla. – U.S. Central Command forces conducted a series of strikes against several known ISIS camps in Syria, in the early evening of Oct 28, resulting in up to 35 ISIS operatives killed.
The strikes targeted multiple ISIS locations in the Syrian desert, targeting multiple ISIS senior leaders.
There are no indications of civilian casualties.
The airstrikes will disrupt the ability of ISIS to plan, organize, and conduct attacks against civilians, as well as U.S., allies, and partners throughout the region and beyond. CENTCOM, alongside allies and partners in the region, will continue to aggressively degrade ISIS operational capabilities to ensure its enduring defeat.
Donald Trump hugs an American flag as he arrives at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Feb. 24, 2024, in Baltimore. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Shortly after Donald Trump was inaugurated as president of the United States in January 2017, George Orwell’s 1949 novel “Nineteen Eighty-Four” shot to the top of Amazon’s bestseller list. Apparently, lots of people thought Orwell had something relevant to say in that political moment.
Nearly eight years later, the United States once again faces the prospect of a Trump presidency.
In 2016, many Americans were caught off guard by Trump’s win, leading them to grapple with the potential consequences of a Trump presidency only after he was elected. But this time, more people seem to be thinking about the ramifications of such an outcome in advance.
In my work as a professor of philosophy and law, I’ve spent a lot of time studying Orwell’s writing. I think people were correct eight years ago to conclude that Orwell could provide insight into a Trump presidency.
Here are three such insights that I think are useful for Americans to keep in mind as they prepare to vote for their next president.
Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as they try to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington, D.C. Brent Stirton/Getty Images
Nationalism is not patriotism
In his 1945 essay “Notes on Nationalism,” Orwell distinguishes between the terms nationalism and patriotism.
For Orwell, nationalism was “the habit of identifying oneself with a single nation or other unit, placing it beyond good and evil and recognizing no other duty than that of advancing its interests.”
He was quick to point out that this was distinct from the concept of patriotism, which he defined as “devotion to a particular place and a particular way of life, which one believes to be the best in the world but has no wish to force on other people.”
To understand Orwell’s conception of patriotism, I find it useful to consider an analogy. Many parents think that their kids are the best kids in the world. This doesn’t mean that they think there are objective metrics that could be used to rank children. Most parents recognize that there is no such thing, and they don’t go around saying other children aren’t as good as theirs. Yet there is still a real sense in which they see their own kids as the very best.
There is something similar in the attitude of Orwell’s patriot. They may think that their country or their way of life is the best, but – and this may be the most important part – they have no wish to force their views or way of life on others.
Not so with the nationalist. Orwell claims, “Patriotism is of its nature defensive, both militarily and culturally. Nationalism, on the other hand, is inseparable from the desire for power.” The nationalist is like a parent who goes around tearing other people’s kids down in order to lift theirs up.
Mere love of country is not inherently dangerous. Making advancement of one’s nation or culture one’s top priority is extremely dangerous. Patriotism sticks to the former. Nationalism goes in for the latter.
Orwell insightfully recognizes that when the nationalist makes advancement of their way of life their top priority, they inevitably end up placing that goal “beyond good and evil.” This makes the nationalist susceptible to endorsing unethical means for advancing their own way of life.
Donald Trump does exactly what Orwell predicts the nationalist will do. He conceptualizes everything, as Orwell put it, “in terms of competitive prestige” and “his thoughts always turn on victories, defeats, triumphs and humiliations.”
Fixation on competitive prestige is not patriotic. It’s unadulterated nationalism.
An autocrat is easy to underestimate
In a 1942 essay written during the middle of World War II and reflecting on his experiences as a volunteer soldier in the Spanish Civil War, Orwell wrote that “our traditions and our past security have given us a sentimental belief that it all comes right in the end and the thing you most fear never really happens,” and that “we believe half-instinctively that evil always defeats itself in the long run.”
Orwell was worried by these optimistic instincts because he thought they ran counter to the evidence. The evidence, on the contrary, suggested that things typically don’t turn out right on their own. Rather, social improvements normally require concerted effort and vigilance against backsliding.
In another essay from the same year, Orwell criticized various intellectuals who treated Hitler as “a figure out of comic opera, not worth taking seriously.” And he criticized many English-speaking countries for being places where it was “fashionable to believe, right up to the outbreak of war, that Hitler was an unimportant lunatic and the German tanks made of cardboard.”
Yet many Americans excuse such talk, failing to treat it as the evidence of a threat to democracy that it is. This seems to me to be driven in part by the tendency Orwell identified to think that truly bad things won’t happen – at least not in one’s own country.
Orwell thought it was worth taking the possibility of bad outcomes seriously. This is one way to understand what he was up to in his most famous books, “Animal Farm” and “Nineteen Eighty-Four.” Americans would benefit from taking potential threats to U.S. democracy seriously, too.
George Orwell, whose writings from the middle of the 20th century have relevance in 2024. Ullstein Bild/Getty Images
Nationalism can attack within
You can read “Nineteen Eighty-Four” as Orwell’s attempt to think about what a ruling political party completely captured by nationalism might look like.
In “Nineteen Eighty-Four,” orthodox party members in the fictional nation of Oceania are obsessed with “competitive prestige” and “the desire for power.” Activities such as the Two Minutes Hate, where party members were encouraged to scream and jeer at a video of a political opponent, prompt party members to focus their thoughts on “victories, defeats, triumphs and humiliations.”
A notable feature of the party is how often it turns on its own members through kidnapping, torture and murder. The occurrence was so frequent in Oceania that it had a name: being “vaporized.” Nationalists are a threat not only to those outside the nation but also to those inside the nation who don’t fully support the nationalist’s pursuit of power at any cost.
Orwell’s writing suggests that voters should take such threats seriously.
Mark Satta does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Colin Wong, a blind Ph.D. student, can’t forget having to pay US$100 for an Uber when he needed to take a standardized test. There was no testing center in San Francisco, where he lived, that could accommodate his disability.
That kind of expensive hassle isn’t unusual. It costs nearly $7,000 more per year to live in the U.S. with his disability, according to research I, a social work scholar, conducted with four experts at the American Foundation for the Blind – a nonprofit dedicated to promoting equality and inclusion for people with blindness or low vision.
For our research, we looked at survey data from a representative sample of Americans, focusing on how people with visual impairments answered. We considered anyone who said they live with a vision disability – or said that they have a lot of trouble seeing or can’t see at all, even with glasses – as a person with low vision or blindness.
We calculated that people with blindness or low vision spend, on average, 27% of their household income on expenses related to their disability – about $7,000 per year.
Low-income Americans with disabilities are shouldering an even bigger burden. The people who took this survey and were earning less than $25,000 per year said they spent about 40% of their income on costs related to their disability, on average, compared with 16% for those with higher incomes.
That leaves them with less money for other essentials such as food and housing. About 1 in 4 of the people we surveyed said they spent less on food to cover their expenses associated with their disability.
And about 2 in 3 of the people we surveyed said they frequently go without goods and services they need, including medical care, assistive technologies and transportation to get to school or go to work.
One reason for the higher costs of living is that people with disabilities tend to incur many other extra expenses, such as spending more on transportation, prepared foods and grocery delivery services. Others struggle to afford the prescription and over-the-counter drugs and supplements they need.
Politicians and policymakers appear to be paying more attention to this problem, which my research team calls the “disability squeeze.” Vice President Kamala Harris, for example, announced in October 2024 a proposal to expand Medicare to cover the long-term care needs for older adults and people with disabilities.
Denise Chamberlin and her guide dog, Ridley, emerge from a Toronto subway station. AP Photo/Business Wire
What still isn’t known
Our survey included 288 people with blindness or low vision. Studies with larger numbers of participants could greatly expand upon what’s known about this problem and what can be done about it.
Expanding accessible public transit, making assistive technologies more affordable and increasing disability benefits might be enough for some people with disabilities to have an opportunity to thrive, but not for others.
Future research could shed a brighter light on the cracks in the U.S. health and social welfare systems. For example, researchers could look into why people with health insurance from Medicaid or Medicare told us they had more unmet needs rather than fewer than those with coverage through private insurers. Other studies could examine how the disability squeeze affects the health and employment of people with disabilities over the long term.
The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.
Zachary Morris’ research presented here is funded from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The contents of this survey do not necessarily represent the policy of the federal government or any government agency.
Many offices make a point to celebrate diversity, but what does that look like when it comes to faith?FatCamera/E+ via Getty Images
Since we spend so much of our lives at our jobs, it’s only natural that conversations with colleagues go beyond the work in front of us. People share interests and hobbies, family struggles, health concerns, and hopes or goals, from the silly to the serious.
The topic of religion, however, can provoke anxiety. Many people might second what the Muslim CEO of a technology company told us: “If you want to express faith, do it! Just do it on your own time.” Uncertainty surrounding religion’s role in the workplace tends to lead to silence. Even among researchers who study workplaces, religion is often ignored.
Yet for many people, faith is a core component of their identity – part of the “whole self” that employees are increasingly encouraged to bring to work. It’s an important piece of diversity but one that managers often tiptoe around. And for many Americans, faith is part of why they show up at their job each day: 1 in 5 consider their work a spiritual calling.
We are social scientists who spent the past five years conducting research on the role of faith at work. Our findings – from more than 15,000 surveys with a nationally representative population, and nearly 300 in-depth interviews with some of those workers – confirm that there are many challenges when religion comes into the workplace. However, the costs of ignoring or suppressing workers’ faith often exceed those risks and challenges.
Conflict and discrimination
The most common concern we heard about bringing up religion in the workplace is that it will lead to conflict – including conflict from people trying to change each other’s beliefs. A Catholic woman who works in eldercare told us, “I think we shouldn’t talk about religion at work because that’s when the problems arise. I’m going to defend what I think, and they will defend what they think, their way of being, their religion.”
Several other people we interviewed also expressed concerns that some forms of religious expression could make people uncomfortable, or even turn into harassment. A nonreligious security guard noted that during Christmas and Easter some of his Christian co-workers will say, “‘God bless,’ ‘Let’s pray,’ and stuff like that. It becomes very uneasy for me, uncomfortable.”
Asking workers to bottle up their faith when they start the workday may seem like the easiest way to avoid these problems. Some workers we interviewed agreed with this sentiment. As one Muslim federal employee told us, “If I wear my religion as a badge on my shoulder, it will rub somebody the wrong way. So, why do that?”
What’s more, silence around religion may seem like a neutral request. If no one expresses their faith, after all, then no one can be discriminated against, no one can be offended, and no one is seen as getting special treatment for their religious beliefs.
Not so neutral
There are a few problems with this logic, however.
What’s more, vague expectations about not acknowledging faith at work aren’t necessarily so neutral and often tend to disproportionately harm minority groups.
In our survey, we asked individuals whether they “conceal their religious beliefs at work for fear of others’ perceptions.” Nineteen percent of Jewish workers, 51% of Hindus, 29% of Muslims and 28% of Buddhists said they did. By contrast, only 9% of evangelical Protestants, 15% of nonevangelical Protestants and 13% of Catholics reported that they conceal their faith at work.
A Jewish project manager at an engineering firm told us how she has tried to conceal her faith from others: “The times that I did have to pray, I actually walked outside into a closed corner in the hallway to do it.”
In the same survey, we asked individuals if they “have been treated unfairly” at work due to their “religion or non-religion.” Overall, 31% of U.S. adults agreed, and such experiences are most common among Muslim and Jewish workers.
One Muslim woman we interviewed described how her colleagues made life extremely difficult for her, calling her names that were derisive, and said she’s received little support from her employer. Indeed, during one meeting her boss “got up and talked a lot about me being Muslim, and it was all negative.”
One of our surveys, for example, asked workers whether they “turn to faith for support through stressful times in their work life.” Nearly half agreed.
For many Americans, faith is also part of why they do their work in the first place. According to another one of our surveys, 20% of U.S. adults “see their work as a spiritual calling.” This percentage is higher among certain groups, such as evangelical Protestants and Muslims: 33% and 30%, respectively. Viewing work in spiritual terms is also more likely among women, at 24%, and Black workers, at 31%.
And it is not just workers in explicitly religious jobs who view their work this way. One marine biologist explained to us, “I think that all truth is from God and, as a scientist, I try to understand and reveal the truth of how the world works.”
Social science research has found that people’s well-being, social interactionsand performance are harmed when they feel the need to suppress an important part of themselves within a group or organization. In other words, everyone suffers when individuals are not allowed to bring their whole selves to work.
Welcome at work
Despite such evidence, our research finds that many organizations are not taking even basic steps to accommodate individuals’ religious lives.
In one survey, we asked workers whether their “workplace provides accommodations that allow people to practice their religion.” Almost one-fifth of workers disagreed. This percentage was highest among Muslim workers: 54%.
Workers appreciate when their employers take active steps to let employees know that religious accommodations are available and that religious expression in general is not forbidden. Having upfront conversations about what is or is not appropriate – not only legally but socially – can go a long way toward setting boundaries.
A Muslim optometry technician we interviewed, for example, recounted how appreciative she was when her boss told her, “If you ever do prayers or anything, feel free to go to that room – it can be your space, you can leave your mat in there.”
Ideally, however, organizations would take active steps to establish and communicate policies to all employees, rather than reacting to situations as they arise.
While we recognize the challenges when it comes to addressing individuals’ faith in the workplace, proactively engaging in conversations about the appropriate role of religion at work is better for workers and workplaces.
Christopher P. Scheitle receives funding from the National Science Foundation and the John Templeton Foundation.
Denise Daniels receives funding from the Lilly Endowment.
Elaine Howard Ecklund receives funding from the Templeton Religion Trust and the Lilly Endowment.
Donald Trump and Kamala Harris present dueling platforms for U.S. education. Getty Images
When it comes to education policy, former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris not only have mostly distinct visions but also distinct track records.
At the same time, there are some commonalities, including the growing importance of career and technical education. What follows is a review of what the two candidates have done in the world of education while in office.
On higher education
The candidates share a concern about the high cost of higher education. But they have different visions for how to address those costs. As California’s attorney general, Harris secured a US$1.1 billion judgment against Corinthian Colleges for false advertising. The judgment provides refunds for students who were misled by claims about job placement rates, program offerings and military affiliations.
The administration has faced challenges to the constitutionality of the loan forgiveness initiative on the grounds that the president does not have the authority under present law to unilaterally cancel debt. Opponents have also said any debt forgiveness would have to be authorized by Congress. Critics say further that loan forgiveness does not address the root causes of rising costs of higher education. Loan forgiveness could cause further price increases if institutions thought that students would care less about the cost of college in anticipation of having their debt forgiven.
Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, Trump expanded college savings 529 plans to allow parents to save up to $10,000 per year tax-free for K-12 private school tuition.
As a candidate for the presidential nomination in 2019, Vice President Harris also called for federal funding to provide teachers with an average of a $13,500 raise, though she has not made a similar call in this campaign.
As California attorney general, Harris made reducing chronic absenteeism a signature issue when she led the In School and On Track anti-truancy initiative. This initiative included additional funding to districts and schools to use data to better understand and monitor absenteeism and to communicate with parents about the importance of school attendance.
Neither Trump nor Harris has a significant record of tangible actions when it comes to early childhood education. Project 2025, which Trump has disavowed but was written by close allies of the former president, calls for eliminating Head Start, a federally funded, locally run, early childhood learning program to support low-income families.
Although Trump made several similar proposals to cut funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant by about 5%, they were not passed into law by Congress.
More recent studies of some universal pre-K programs have raised questions about how long the academic gains from early childhood programs persist. On net, however, the evidence from the highest-quality studies for high-quality early childhood programs in general, and the Head Start program in particular, suggests that they improve cognitive skills among children.
Robert Shand does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Published and released in October 2024 by University of Michigan Press, the album and digital archive features two volumes of hip-hop music, an annotated timeline, several videos and a digital book. The album – originally submitted to Clemson University in South Carolina as Carson’s doctoral dissertation – has been mastered. In the following interview with The Conversation U.S., Carson explains the significance of the project and what it means for hip-hop in the world of academe.
‘Owning My Masters’ seems like a deep play on words. Is it?
Yes. The Latin word “magister” was used to describe a master or teacher in ancient Rome. I earned a master’s degree before enrolling in my doctoral program, so I own that. People probably know that the final step in the process of composing an album is called mastering. In that process, a master version of the recording is created. This is what gets duplicated and released on streaming services, vinyl or whatever way you receive music.
It’s not always guaranteed that an artist owns the rights to those recordings, but I own all of my music.
Also, the album was written in South Carolina at Clemson University, which is located on a former plantation owned by the slaveholding U.S. politician John C. Calhoun. Buildings there are named for people who had owned, enslaved and trafficked people; fought in the Civil War to preserve the right to traffic people; and lynched Black people. Earning a terminal degree from a place with that kind of reprehensible history seemed like a way to figuratively own those so-called slave masters and so-called masters and teachers.
Who is your audience for this album?
I’m always thinking about multiple audiences. For lovers of hip-hop, the album demonstrates the power and promise I feel listening to albums that have influenced me. For academics, I believe it is the future of research. Academic credentials have been used by folks to perpetuate the idea that expertise looks and sounds a certain way, and this project infiltrates that system to disprove that idea.
If you’re interested in learning about hip-hop, academia and how arguments are made, the album can be instructive, challenging, entertaining and educational.
The album had to pass through a doctoral dissertation defense committee and then academic peer review. But before then, I posted drafts on SoundCloud to get feedback from regular folks who use that site to listen to new music.
What kind of themes does the album address?
My Ph.D. is in rhetorics, communication and information designs, so it’s also about rap rhetorics – including emphasis on the local and how hip-hop can preserve information like histories and counter-histories.
Since I had moved to Clemson, and was feeling anxiety about leaving home in Illinois, I wrote “Dissertation (Part 1: The Introduction)” early on in the process. And because I lived in that South Carolina college town, “See the Stripes” is a song about Clemson’s history and its present. The song and its video moved through Clemson’s communities, but then, as protests were happening on campuses across the world, it found national and global audiences with whom the subject matter resonates. When students were finally able to get Calhoun’s name removed from the honors college in 2020, they acknowledged their work was continuing efforts since “See the Stripes.”
The album is presented in chronological order from the time I arrived on campus in 2013 until I finished my coursework and submitted the 34-song project to my dissertation committee.
I would say earning a Ph.D., earning tenure and having the album count as my academic work qualify as success. Those are things that sound kind of selfish, but I think are incredibly significant for hip-hop and for the ways we think about expertise and success in the culture.
To me, success is being able to make a living creating challenging and thought-provoking music that doesn’t have to abide by traditional notions of success like sales charts or commercial music awards. I also measure success by the inquiries and applications of students who want to do similar kinds of critical thinking and making. When those people are able to launch and sustain careers, that’s a measure of success in my eyes as well.
Why haven’t we seen more albums in academia?
Change in academia comes at a glacial pace, it seems.
Audiences associate expertise, especially regarding subjects that are considered academic, with how people have demonstrated their understanding of the matters in writing, like traditional theses, dissertations, books and essays. I believe this is connected to the histories in the U.S. that link credibility with formal education and literacy. This is difficult to separate from the history of Black folks being legally prohibited from learning to read.
While music has long been one of the ways information is recorded and passed from one generation to the next, in my experience, music itself is still not taken as seriously as a form of scholarship as writing books or essays about music.
These previously excluded forms of scholarship can change the ways people regard academia. In my mind, music sits alongside other scholarly forms that emphasize academic prose. I believe universities should make space and resources available for students to explore it the same way. More generally, I think citing more albums as scholarship – the same way journal articles and academic monographs are cited – would also be transformative.
A.D. Carson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Evangelist Lance Wallnau addresses people at the ‘Courage Tour’ rally. Michael E. Heyes, CC BY
As a scholar of religion, I attended the “Courage Tour,” a series of religious-political rallies, when it made a stop in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, from Sept. 27-28, 2024.
From what I observed, the various speakers on the tour used conservative talking points – such as the threat of communism and LGBTQ+ “ideologies” taking over education – and gave them a demonic twist. They told people that diabolical forces had overtaken America, and they needed to expel them by ensuring Donald Trump was elected.
The tour is not only focused on defeating Democrats but also on defeating demons. The idea that demons exert a hold over the material world is a key feature of the New Apostolic Reformation, or NAR, worldview. The NAR is a loose group of like-minded charismatic Christian churches and religious leaders – sometimes termed “prophets” – who want to see Christians dominate all walks of life.
As someone who recently finished a book on the intersection of demons and politics, “Demons in the USA: From the Anti-Spiritualists to QAnon,” I was eager to see this combination for myself. I believe it would be a mistake to think that the New Apostolic Reformation is a fringe group with no real influence.
The influence and reach
The group has an associated nonprofit organization known as Ziklag – named for a town in the Hebrew Bible that is an important site associated with David’s kingship – with deep pockets for the movement’s goals. A ProPublica investigation found that the group had already spent US$12 million “to mobilize Republican-leaning voters and purge more than a million people from the rolls in key swing states, aiming to tilt the 2024 election in favor of former President Donald Trump.”
The Southern Poverty Law Center calls the New Apostolic Reformation “the greatest threat to U.S. democracy that you have never heard of.”
The diffuse nature of NAR membership and its rapid growth make it difficult to gauge followers: Estimates have placed the number of NAR adherents between 3 million and 33 million, but individuals who may not label themselves as part of the NAR might nevertheless agree with the group’s theology.
Moreover, Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance’s presence at the meeting I attended is also a tacit and significant endorsement for this group.
The ‘Seven Mountain Mandate’
According to NAR’s theology, there are “seven mountains” that govern areas of worldly influence, and Christians are destined to occupy all of them. These mountains are religion, government, family, education, media, entertainment and business.
Known as the “Seven Mountain Mandate,” this “prophecy” first rose to prominence in 2013 with the publication of “Invading Babylon: The 7 Mountain Mandate,” written by Bill Johnson, lead pastor of Bethel Church in Redding, California, and member of the NAR, and Lance Wallnau, NAR prophet and one of the founders of the Courage Tour. In the book, the Seven Mountain Mandate is trumpeted as a message received directly from God.
The NAR perceives the majority of these mountains as currently occupied by diabolical spiritual forces. To counter these forces, the NAR engages in “spiritual warfare,” which are acts of Christian prayer that are used to defeat or drive out demons.
Alternatively, it is not uncommon for pastors to incorporate spiritual warfare into church services. For example, in a much-reported sermon, Paula White-Cain, the former spiritual adviser to Trump, commanded all “satanic pregnancies to miscarry.” In the sermon’s context, satanic pregnancies were not literal pregnancies. Instead, White-Cain was praying for the failure of satanic plots “conceived” by the devil.
The ground level occurs in a case of individual exorcism or deliverance, a kind of “one-on-one” battle with demons. The second level is the occult level, in which believers seek to counter what they believe to be demonic movements such as shamanism and New Age thought. Finally, there is the strategic level in which the movement does battle with powerful spirits whom they believe control geographic areas at the behest of Satan.
Friday night on the Courage Tour.
The Courage Tour
The Courage Tour is part of a strategic-level act of spiritual warfare: Stumping for Trump is really about exerting Christian influence over the “government mountain” that followers of the NAR believe to be occupied by the devil.
According to the speakers on the tour, America is in trouble: It is currently being run by “the Left,” or Democrats, a group that is slowly pushing the U.S. toward communism, a system of government in which private property ceases to exist and the means of production are communally owned.
It claims that the Left wants to see this shift occur because it is populated by “cultural Marxists.” This is part of a far-right conspiracy theory that suggests all progressive political movements are indebted to the ideas of Karl Marx, whose Communist Manifesto is most closely associated with communism.
In more extreme forms of communism, nation-states disappear – an idea reflected in speakers’ frequent criticism of “globalism,” which was generally defined as a single, worldwide governmental structure. The group rejects globalism on the grounds that God instituted nation-states as a divinely ordained form of government.
This negative view of nontraditional gender and sexual orientations is a long-lived feature of the group. John Weaver, a scholar of religion, notes in his book “The New Apostolic Reformation” that the group’s ideas are indebted to conservative theologian Rousas John Rushdoony, who supported the death penalty for homosexuals.
Likewise, religion scholar Damon T. Berrywrites that members of the movement believe that “demonic spirits” are “acting to subvert the will of God through aspects of culture like the toleration of homosexuality, abortion, addiction, poverty and political correctness.”
Wallnau encouraged the audience on the Courage Tour to “fight for your families because I don’t want to leave behind a demonic train wreck for my children.”
As hard as it is to believe, one of the most important questions of the election might well be – how many Americans believe in demons?
Michael E. Heyes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
If you are still undecided and mulling your pick for president, there are clear differences between Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris that are important to understand.
The Conversation has published stories from more than a dozen scholars looking at the records of the two candidates.
We had an anthropologist provide our readers with a window into why both Trump and Harris supporters favor their presidential pick.
It’s no surprise that Harris and Trump have contrasting records on policy issues like LGBTQ+ rights and gun violence. The differences don’t stop there.
While Harris has consistently supported protecting and expanding abortion rights, Trump took actions while president that made it harder for people to get an abortion, explains legal scholar Rachel Rebouché.
In other cases, their differences are not as clear-cut. Both candidates have supported restricting immigration to the U.S., writes immigration scholar William McCorkle. And both of them tried to lower drug prices, writes pharmacy practice scholar C. Michael White.
Donald Trump and running mate JD Vance appear at a 9/11 memorial event in New York City on Sept. 11, 2024. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Why people like Trump and Harris
Alex Hinton, an anthropologist who researches both the far right and political polarization in the U.S., helped answer why, after all of the controversies and alleged wrongdoing, people still support Trump.
“Many people have thoughtful reasons for voting for Trump, even if their reasoning – as is also true for those on the left – is often inflamed by populist polarizers and media platforms,” Hinton writes.
There are a few central factors that keep Trump’s supporters loyal. These include the fact that some people recall – whether accurately or not – having more money when Trump was president, and that the economy seemed better. They are upset about immigration. And some supporters like his outlandish persona.
And then there’s the other side to understand: Why people are voting for Harris. Hinton explained that many people deeply dislike and distrust Trump, as well as the extreme direction they think he can take the country.
“In contrast, they contend that Harris combines steady leadership with a message of change, calm, honesty and hope for a better future,” he writes.
Harris’ support of abortion rights and health care, as well as her commitment to international alliances and bipartisan governing, are other reasons people want her as their president.
“Some voters also support Harris because they see her as a candidate of change,” Hinton writes. After Harris replaced President Joe Biden as the Democratic presidential nominee, “voters across a range of demographics were immediately galvanized by her relative youth, biracial identity, articulateness and positive message of change and possibility, as opposed to fear.”
It’s possible that none of this information resonates with undecided voters and that they are considering backing a third-party candidate instead, or not voting at all.
But the logic that an individual vote won’t matter anyway is not accurate, according to behavioral economics scholar Daniel F. Stone.
Every single vote matters, especially in an election like this one that is incredibly close in all of the important swing states, Stone says. This matters if the difference between Harris and Trump is just 5,000 votes in a state like Pennsylvania, for example.
“So, if the 10,000 unhappy voters do vote for one of the two major-party candidates, they can swing the election,” Stone writes.
Even if someone boycotts an election and doesn’t support either of the two viable candidates, “One of them is going to win whether you like it or not,” Stone writes.
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur spoke to the cadets at U.S. Military Academy on May 12, 1962 and gave what would become known as his “Duty, Honor, Country” speech.
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Source: The White House
Today’s GDP report shows how far we’ve come since I took office—from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression to the strongest economy in the world. Since I took office, the economy has grown 12.6%, we’ve had the lowest average unemployment in 50 years, nearly 16 million jobs have been created, and incomes have risen $4,000 more than inflation. While critics thought we’d need a recession to lower inflation, instead we’ve grown around 3% a year on average, while inflation has fallen to the level right before the pandemic.
We need to keep building on this progress. Instead, Congressional Republicans are proposing across-the-board tariffs that would cost families nearly $4,000 a year, reignite inflation, and kill hundreds of thousands of jobs. The Vice President and I are fighting to lower costs on everyday goods—from housing and groceries to health care and child care—while Republicans fight for more tax breaks for the wealthy and large corporations. The best way to grow the economy is from the middle out and the bottom up, not the top down.
Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –
At the meeting of the Academic Council of the Polytechnic University on October 30, a ceremony was held to present the diploma and mantle of the Honorary Doctor of SPbPU to the head of the S. M. Kirov Military Medical Academy (VMedA), Lieutenant General of the Medical Service, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Evgeny Kryukov.
The decision to award the honorary title to Evgeny Kryukov was made unanimously by the members of the Academic Councilmeeting on May 24 this year.
Evgeny Vladimirovich graduated with a gold medal from the military medical faculty of the Gorky Medical Institute, served in the Black Sea Fleet as a doctor and head of the medical service of a submarine. He was a senior resident and head of the therapeutic department, chief therapist, and since 2009 – head of the Naval Hospital named after Academician N. I. Pirogov. From 2014 to 2020, he headed the Main Military Clinical Hospital named after Academician N. N. Burdenko. In 2020, he was appointed to the post of head of the Military Medical Academy named after S. M. Kirov.
Evgeny Vladimirovich is a legendary man who has visited all the hot spots, a doctor with a capital letter. In our difficult times, he heads the Military Medical Academy named after Sergei Mironovich Kirov, famous for the names of outstanding scientists and healers. It is the highest honor for us to accept you, Evgeny Vladimirovich, into our ranks as an Honorary Doctor of the Polytechnic University, – the rector of SPbPU, chairman of the St. Petersburg branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences Andrei Rudskoy opened the ceremony.
The new Honorary Doctor of the University was presented by the University Scientific Secretary Dmitry Karpov: Today, the large family of Polytechnicians welcomes a man for whom caring for the lives of others has become his life’s work. Often, saving lives. Evgeny Vladimirovich is a military doctor: from the Crimean Medical Institute and the Military Medical Faculty of the Gorky Medical Institute, which he graduated with honors, to the title of Honored Doctor of Russia and veteran of military service. Evgeny Vladimirovich is a scientist: since 1994 – Candidate of Medical Sciences, since 2004 – Doctor of Sciences, since 2016 – Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the Department of Medical Sciences, since 2022 – Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the specialty of “military field therapy”. The author of more than six hundred scientific papers, prepared eleven candidates and doctors of science.
Dmitry Karpov noted that Evgeny Kryukov contributed to the formation of a system for providing troops in armed conflicts, the creation of principles for interaction between military and civilian healthcare, and the adjustment of the scientific process to the needs of the army and navy.
Dmitry Anatolyevich also said that Yevgeny Vladimirovich made a significant contribution to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and participated in the trials of the Sputnik V vaccine. As the head of the Main Military Clinical Hospital at the time, Yevgeny Kryukov put on a protective suit and carried out procedures in the red zone himself to understand the operating conditions of medical personnel. For his dedicated work during the pandemic, he received the specially established Pirogov Order. Yevgeny Vladimirovich’s awards also include the Certificate of Honor of the President of the Russian Federation (2021), the Order of Honor (2022) and “For Military Merit” (2024).
Evgeny Kryukov significantly strengthened the ties of the Military Medical Academy with the Russian Academy of Sciences and relevant international organizations. In conclusion of the presentation, Dmitry Karpov expressed confidence that such a connection will also be strengthened with the St. Petersburg Polytechnic University.
After all the welcoming words, the rector of the Polytechnic gave the command: Bring in the Honorary Doctorate Diploma, the mantle and the medal!
According to tradition, the doctoral gown and cap were brought into the hall of the Academic Council by students dressed in the uniform of polytechnics of the early 20th century. The ceremony was accompanied by the Gaudeamus anthem performed by the Polyhymnia choir. Yevgeny Vladimirovich was also presented with a book about the Honorary Doctors of the Polytechnic — his page is already in it.
In his response, Evgeny Kryukov thanked the members of the Academic Council for the honor of being elected as an Honorary Doctor of the country’s leading engineering university.
Our cooperation in medicine dates back about sixty years, when the Department of Biophysics was created at the Polytechnic University. In 1997, the outstanding professor of the Military Medical Academy Vladimir Olegovich Samoilov headed the faculty of medical physics at your university, – said Evgeny Vladimirovich. – Over this time, more than a hundred people have been awarded the high honor of becoming Honorary Doctors of the Polytechnic University, mainly representatives of engineering and exact sciences. Today’s event is especially valuable for me, because for the first time a doctor has been elected Honorary Doctor of the Polytechnic University. First of all, this is, of course, the merit of scientific schools, professors of the Military Medical Academy, the merit of all military medicine. Your decision demonstrates the unity of science, the army and society. Probably, it was this unity that allowed our country to win victories over enemies in all historical periods, preserve its cultural identity and gave a powerful incentive to the scientific and technical development of the country. It is symbolic that this event is taking place on the eve of the great holiday of National Unity Day.
At the end of the ceremony, the rector of the Polytechnic invited Evgeny Kryukov, as an Honorary Doctor, to support the tradition and give a lecture to the students.
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Today’s GDP report shows how far we’ve come since I took office—from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression to the strongest economy in the world. Since I took office, the economy has grown 12.6%, we’ve had the lowest average unemployment in 50 years, nearly 16 million jobs have been created, and incomes have risen $4,000 more than inflation. While critics thought we’d need a recession to lower inflation, instead we’ve grown around 3% a year on average, while inflation has fallen to the level right before the pandemic.
We need to keep building on this progress. Instead, Congressional Republicans are proposing across-the-board tariffs that would cost families nearly $4,000 a year, reignite inflation, and kill hundreds of thousands of jobs. The Vice President and I are fighting to lower costs on everyday goods—from housing and groceries to health care and child care—while Republicans fight for more tax breaks for the wealthy and large corporations. The best way to grow the economy is from the middle out and the bottom up, not the top down.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with the President of the Republic of Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol.
The leaders discussed recent developments and expressed their deep concern and condemnation over North Korea’s troop deployment to support Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine.
The Prime Minister and the President welcomed Canada and Korea’s first High-Level Foreign and Defence Policy Dialogue (2+2) between ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defence later this week. They also noted the value of our growing defence partnerships and reaffirmed the importance of bilateral co-operation on regional and global issues, including in the Indo-Pacific.
Prime Minister Trudeau and President Yoon agreed to remain in close contact and looked forward to meeting soon.
Today, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, made the following statement:
October 30, 2024 – Ottawa, Ontario
Today, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, made the following statement:
“Foreign investment encourages economic growth, innovation, and employment opportunities in Canada. At the same time, the Government of Canada has a responsibility to make sure the most significant foreign investments will benefit Canadians.
“On July 15, 2024, Stelco Holdings Inc. and Cleveland-Cliffs announced an agreement pursuant to which Cleveland-Cliffs would acquire all of the outstanding shares of Stelco.
“Following an extensive review under the Investment Canada Act, yesterday, I approved the investment. This approval is contingent on a significant package of binding, five-year-long undertakings to support Cleveland-Cliffs’ net benefit case which it provided as part of the review process, including:
To respect Stelco’s historic brand by carrying on operations under the name, “Stelco, a Cleveland-Cliffs Company”;
To maintain Stelco’s head office in Hamilton, with responsibility for Stelco’s day-to-day operations;
To continue to employ at least the same number of unionized employees and the vast majority of non-unionized employees as were employed when the transaction was announced;
To honour all existing collective bargaining agreements and Stelco’s employee benefit and pension commitments;
To make significant capital and research and development expenditures in support of Stelco’s operations; and
To ensure Stelco’s Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emission intensity do not increase and continue to be at least 25 percent below the global average for integrated steel mills.
“While Canada welcomes foreign investment, the Government is committed to considering all factors laid out in the Investment Canada Act when reviewing transactions to ensure they are beneficial to Canadian workers and Canada’s economic interests.”
Media Relations Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada media@ised-isde.gc.ca
The IAM continues to ramp up efforts across Wisconsin in collaboration with the state AFL-CIO and other affiliates to mobilize union households ahead of the upcoming elections. The initiative focuses on encouraging voters to support candidates who prioritize infrastructure development, good jobs, and the protection of union rights, ultimately aiming to build a stronger economy for all.
IAM members from across the state, including Milwaukee, La Crosse, and Green Bay have actively engaged in grassroots efforts, canvassing neighborhoods and making phone calls to amplify the voice of union voters. Through these direct outreach efforts, the union is committed to informing and energizing the community around pro-labor candidates who align with their values and goals.
“As Election Day approaches, the IAM remains dedicated to ensuring that union voices are heard loud and clear: Every vote matters,” said IAM Midwest Territory General Vice President Sam Cicinelli. “It’s about more than just this election; it’s about shaping a future where working families can thrive.”
The IAM District 66 office in La Crosse is serving as a key organizing hub, where members gather to strategize and prepare for conversations with union voters.
“We believe it’s crucial for our members and their families to understand the importance of their vote,” said IAM Midwest Territory Grand Lodge Representative Brian Simmons. “Supporting candidates who back working families and union rights is vital for safeguarding our democracy and advancing our collective interests.”
The autumn season, also known as fall, is meteorologically defined in the Northern Hemisphere as the three month period of September through November and represents a season of transition. Summer heat transitions to crisp, cool days; the colors of the leaves transition from green to different hues of yellow, orange, and red; the length of daylight shortens; and our wardrobe transitions from tank tops and shorts to sweaters and long pants. We also begin noticing pumpkins decorating many homes across the U.S. during this time of year.
Pumpkins are a staple of the autumn season and pumpkin-picking is a tradition enjoyed by many across the U.S. We decorate our homes with pumpkins and fall flowers such as Chrysanthemums, create jack-o-lanterns as Halloween approaches, and pumpkin food items (e.g., pies, lattes, coffee, soups, and many more) are abundant and can be found most anywhere we go.
Fig 1. Pumpkin production by State for 2021. (Source: USDA Economic Research Service)
Pumpkins are produced across all states. However, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Illinois is the top pumpkin-producing state (Fig. 1), harvesting close to 30% of all the pumpkins produced across the U.S. While Illinois produces the most pumpkins, close to 80% of the pumpkins harvested there are processed and canned for products such as pumpkin puree, while the other states sell mostly fresh pumpkins that are used for decoration.
Weather impacts on pumpkin production
Like any other crop, deciding when to begin planting pumpkins can be tricky. In order to have pumpkins by autumn, farmers usually begin planting from late May to early July, depending on the location. And after planting, 120 days later, pumpkins are typically harvested.
Despite their hard exterior, pumpkins are very sensitive to weather conditions.
Frost/freeze: If farmers plant too early in the spring, when below-freezing temperatures can still occur, then there is a chance that the plant is susceptible to frost, and this could cause the plant to die. Frost or freeze episodes are usually less of a concern during autumn, when temperatures begin to drop, since the plants have reached maturity and the damage is much less.
Extreme heat: If it is too hot during summer, this could lead to wilted plants or potentially cause the pumpkin flowers to fall. In order for plants to produce crops, pollination needs to occur. However, during very warm days, the pumpkin flowers stay open for shorter periods of time, affecting the effectiveness of pollination.
Extreme wet conditions: If it rains too much and the soil is extremely wet, this could lead to a delay in planting during spring or harvesting during autumn. Very wet conditions can also lead to nutrient deficiencies, delayed maturity of the plant, and also increases the chance of the development of plant disease such as mildew.
All of these examples can lead to significantly fewer pumpkins than normal. However, extremely wet conditions have the biggest impact on pumpkin production, and are usually pumpkin farmers’ top weather-related concern. It has been reported that during the very wet years, especially during late summer and early fall, when pumpkins are reaching their maturity, pumpkin growers tend to see that the fruit quality decreases, there are fewer pumpkins, and more disease spreads across the plants.
Fig. 2. Fresh pumpkin availability per capita for the period of 2000–2023. (Source: USDA Economic Research Service)
While the production of pumpkins can fluctuate from year to year due to weather, there was a visible reduction in pumpkin availability in 2015 (Fig. 2). This was mainly due to heavy rains that affected the Midwest region during the crucial time for pumpkin planting.
While the months of May and July were wetter-than-normal for Illinois, the month of June was extremely wet (Fig. 3). June 2015 is Illinois’s wettest June on record with a total of 9.44 inches of rain—which is 5.35 inches more than normal. June 2015 is also Illinois’ second-wettest month for any month on record, trailing behind September of 1962 (9.62 inches).
Fig. 3. Map of the “Statewide Precipitation Anomalies” for June 2015. (Source: NCEI Climate at a Glance)
During the three-month period of May–July during 2015, Illinois averaged 20.04 inches of rain, which is 8.24 inches more than normal, and ranked as the wettest May–July period in the state’s 130-year record.
The very wet conditions during the planting season flooded fields and caused disease and mildew to spread. Eventually, when drier conditions returned, farmers replanted, but the damage was done and the yield of pumpkins was much lower. Overall, this led to slightly more than a 50% reduction in Illinois’s production of pumpkins (from 652 million pounds to close to 318 million pounds of pumpkins).
Fig. 4. Map of statewide precipitation anomalies for the three-month period of May–July 2015. (Source: NCEI Climate at a Glance)
Climate change and pumpkin production
“Climate change is projected to reduce the availability and affordability of nutritious food, with impacts being unevenly distributed across society.” – Fifth National Climate Assessment
The Earth’s climate is warming and despite the overall global temperature increase seeming to be small, its effects can be significant at the local level.
The U.S. is not exempt from the effects of climate change. The contiguous U.S. annual average temperature has increased 0.16°F per decade since 1895; however, it is close to three times more (0.46°F) since 1981. Meanwhile, precipitation totals at the national-level have increased at 0.17 inch per decade since 1895 and no increase is evident since 1981.
Fig. 5. U.S. annual (a) temperature and (b) precipitation anomalies for the period of 1895–2023. (Source: NCEI Climate at a Glance)
A warmer climate will affect agricultural production, including pumpkins, across the U.S. through changes in the frequency and intensity of certain extreme events. The Midwest, which is known for its significant agricultural production, is already seeing the effects of climate change. The region has observed increased temperatures, longer growing seasons, and increased intensity and frequency of heavy rainfall events that lead to floods. The increasing warmer temperatures and the shifting of the growing seasons are also leading to larger pest populations that can harm crops and affect the production.
Extreme events are projected to continue to increase in intensity and frequency, putting agricultural production and availability at greater risk.
Agricultural adaptation practices
While climate change is affecting many aspects of our lives, including our food security, farmers are preparing themselves for changes through agricultural adaptation. Agricultural adaptation is when farmers adjust their agricultural practices to reduce the effects of weather and climate change during crop production.
Across the Midwest, many pumpkin growers have implemented additional water resources (e.g. stock ponds, wells, among others) to help mitigate the effects of drought and protect their pumpkins and other crops. Some have implemented what is known as biological controls, which refers to using natural predators (e.g. spiders), parasites, or other living organisms that are found in the ecosystem to control certain pests from harming the crops.
While pumpkin farming, as well as other agricultural practices, are facing challenges as our climate continues to warm, farmers and scientists are continuously working together to better understand the impacts and how they can address those to continue successful farming and producing pumpkins (and other crops) for our nation.
La estación del otoño se define meteorológicamente en el hemisferio norte como el período de tres meses de septiembre a noviembre y representa una estación de transición. El calor del verano se transforma en días frescos; los colores de las hojas cambian de verde a diferentes tonos de amarillo, naranja y rojo; la duración de la luz del día se acorta; y nuestro vestuario cambia de camisetas sin mangas y pantalones cortos a suéteres y pantalones largos. También comenzamos a notar calabazas que decoran muchos hogares en los EE. UU. durante esta época del año.
Las calabazas son comunes durante la temporada de otoño y visitar fincas para escoger calabazas es una tradición que disfrutan muchas personas en los EE. UU. Decoramos nuestras casas con calabazas y flores de otoño como las crisantemos, creamos linternas de calabaza cuando se acerca Halloween y los alimentos de calabaza (por ejemplo, pasteles, café, sopas y muchos más) son abundantes y se pueden encontrar en cualquier lugar al que vayamos.
Fig 1. Producción de calabaza por estado en el 2021. (Fuente: USDA Economic Research Service)
Las calabazas se producen en todos los estados. Sin embargo, según el Departamento de Agricultura de los Estados Unidos (conocido como USDA por sus siglas en inglés), Illinois es el principal estado productor de calabazas (Fig. 1), ya que cosecha cerca del 30% de todas las calabazas producidas en los Estados Unidos. Aunque Illinois produce la mayor cantidad de calabazas, cerca del 80% de las calabazas que se cosechan allí se procesan y se enlatan para productos como puré de calabaza, mientras que los otros estados venden principalmente calabazas frescas que se usan para decoración.
El tiempo afecta la producción de calabazas
Como cualquier otro cultivo, decidir cuándo empezar a sembrar calabazas puede ser complicado. Para tener calabazas en otoño, los agricultores suelen empezar a sembrar desde finales de mayo hasta principios de julio, dependiendo del lugar. Y 120 días después de sembrar las semillas, normalmente se cosechan las calabazas.
A pesar de su duro exterior, las calabazas son muy sensibles a las condiciones del tiempo.
Heladas: Si los agricultores siembran demasiado pronto en la primavera, cuando todavía pueden darse temperaturas bajo cero, existe la posibilidad de que la planta sea susceptible a las heladas, y esto podría provocar su muerte. Las heladas o episodios de congelación suelen ser menos preocupantes durante el otoño, cuando las temperaturas empiezan a bajar, ya que las plantas han alcanzado la madurez y el daño es mucho menor.
Calor extremo: Si hace demasiado calor durante el verano, esto podría provocar que las plantas se marchiten o que las flores de la calabaza se caigan. Para que las plantas produzcan cosechas, es necesario que se produzca la polinización. Sin embargo, durante los días muy cálidos, las flores de la calabaza permanecen abiertas durante períodos de tiempo más cortos, lo que afecta a la eficacia de la polinización.
Condiciones de humedad extrema: Si llueve demasiado y el suelo está extremadamente húmedo, esto podría provocar un retraso en la siembra durante la primavera o un retraso en la cosecha durante el otoño. Las condiciones muy húmedas también pueden provocar deficiencias de nutrientes, un retraso en la madurez de la planta y también aumentan la posibilidad de desarrollo de enfermedades de las plantas como el moho.
Todos estos ejemplos pueden resultar en una cantidad significativamente menor de calabazas de lo normal. Sin embargo, las condiciones extremadamente húmedas tienen el mayor impacto en la producción de calabazas y son la principal preocupación de los agricultores de calabazas. Se ha informado de que durante los años muy húmedos, especialmente a fines del verano y principios del otoño, cuando las calabazas están alcanzando su madurez, los agricultores de calabazas tienden a ver que la calidad de la fruta disminuye, hay menos calabazas y se propagan más enfermedades en las plantas.
Fig. 2. Disponibilidad de calabaza fresca per cápita durante el período 2000–2023. (Fuente: Servicio de Investigación Económica del USDA)
Aunque la producción de calabazas puede fluctuar de un año a otro debido al tiempo, hubo una reducción visible en la disponibilidad de calabazas en el 2015 (Fig. 2). Esto se debió principalmente a las fuertes lluvias que afectaron la región del Medio Oeste durante el momento crucial para la siembra de calabazas.
Los meses de mayo y julio fueron más húmedos de lo normal en Illinois y el mes de junio fue extremadamente húmedo (Fig. 3). Junio del 2015 es el junio más húmedo registrado en Illinois con un total de 9.44 pulgadas de lluvia, que es 5.35 pulgadas más de lo normal. Junio del 2015 también es el segundo mes más húmedo de Illinois de todos los meses registrados, detrás de septiembre del 1962 (9.62 pulgadas).
Fig. 3. Mapa de las anomalías de precipitación en todo los estados para junio del 2015. (Fuente: NCEI Climate at a Glance)
Durante el período de tres meses de mayo a julio del 2015, Illinois tuvo un promedio de 20.04 pulgadas de lluvia, que es 8.24 pulgadas más de lo normal, y se clasificó como el período de mayo a julio más húmedo en los 130 años de registro del estado.
Las condiciones muy húmedas durante la temporada de siembra inundaron los campos y provocaron la propagación de enfermedades y moho. Finalmente, cuando regresaron las condiciones más secas, los agricultores volvieron a sembrar, pero el daño ya estaba hecho y la producción de calabazas fue mucho menor. En general, esto provocó una reducción de poco más del 50% en la producción de calabazas de Illinois (de 652 millones de libras a cerca de 318 millones de libras de calabazas).
Fig. 4. Mapa de anomalías de precipitación a nivel estatal para el período de tres meses de mayo a julio del 2015. (Fuente: NCEI Climate at a Glance)
El cambio climático y la producción de calabaza
“Se proyecta que el cambio climático reducirá la disponibilidad y asequibilidad de alimentos nutritivos y que sus impactos se distribuyan de forma desigual en la sociedad”. – Quinta Evaluación Nacional del Clima
El clima de la Tierra se está calentando y, a pesar de que el aumento general de la temperatura global parece ser pequeño, sus efectos pueden ser significativos a nivel local.
Los Estados Unidos no está exento de los efectos del cambio climático. La temperatura media anual de los Estados Unidos contiguos ha aumentado 0.16°F por década desde 1895; Sin embargo, es casi tres veces más (0.46°F) desde 1981. Mientras tanto, los totales de precipitaciones a nivel nacional han aumentado a un ritmo de 0.17 pulgadas por década desde 1895 y no hay ningún aumento evidente desde 1981.
Fig. 5. Anomalías anuales de (a) temperatura y (b) precipitación en EE. UU. durante el período de 1895 a 2023. (Fuente: NCEI Climate at a Glance)
Un clima más cálido afectará la producción agrícola, incluyendo la de calabazas, en todo los EE. UU. a través de cambios en la frecuencia e intensidad de ciertos eventos extremos. El Medio Oeste, que es conocido por su producción agrícola, ya está viendo los efectos del cambio climático. La región ha observado un aumento de las temperaturas, temporadas de crecimiento más largas y una mayor intensidad y frecuencia de eventos de lluvias intensas que provocan inundaciones. El aumento de las temperaturas y el cambio de las temporadas de crecimiento también están generando poblaciones de plagas más grandes que pueden dañar los cultivos y afectar la producción.
Se proyecta que los eventos extremos seguirán aumentando en intensidad y frecuencia, poniendo en mayor riesgo la producción y la disponibilidad agrícolas.
Prácticas de adaptación agrícola
Aunque el cambio climático está afectando muchos aspectos de nuestras vidas, incluyendo nuestra seguridad alimentaria, los agricultores se están preparando para los cambios mediante la adaptación agrícola. La adaptación agrícola es cuando los agricultores ajustan sus prácticas agrícolas para reducir los efectos del tiempo y el cambio climático durante la producción de cultivos.
En el Medio Oeste, muchos productores de calabazas han implementado recursos hídricos adicionales (por ejemplo, estanques de almacenamiento, pozos, entre otros) para ayudar a mitigar los efectos de la sequía y proteger sus calabazas y otros cultivos. Algunos han implementado lo que se conoce como controles biológicos, que se refiere al uso de depredadores naturales (por ejemplo, arañas), parásitos u otros organismos vivos que se encuentran en el ecosistema para controlar ciertas plagas que dañan los cultivos.
Aunque el cultivo de calabazas, así como otras prácticas agrícolas, enfrentan desafíos a medida que nuestro clima continúa calentándose, los agricultores y los científicos trabajan juntos continuamente para comprender mejor los impactos y cómo pueden abordarlos para continuar cultivando y produciendo calabazas (y otros cultivos) exitosamente para nuestra nación.
The Department of Justice, Office of Information Policy (OIP) is pleased to announce that nominations are open for the 2025 Sunshine Week FOIA Awards, recognizing the contributions of FOIA professionals from around the government. Each year, the number of nominations submitted to OIP to recognize the exceptional achievements of federal FOIA employees grows. As such, OIP is opening the nomination window earlier this year than in previous years to allow more time for review of submissions.
As the Attorney General recognized in his FOIA Guidelines issued in March 2022, “[t]he federal government could not process the hundreds of thousands of FOIA requests that are received every year without its dedicated FOIA professionals.” Agency FOIA professionals are at the center of ensuring successful FOIA administration and we look forward to celebrating the work of these individuals from around the government. For this year’s event, OIP is seeking nominations for five categories of awards:
Exceptional Service by a FOIA Professional or Team of FOIA Professionals
Outstanding Contributions by a New Employee
Exceptional Advancements in IT to Improve the Agency’s FOIA Administration
Exceptional Advancements in Proactive Disclosure of Information
Lifetime Service Award
Nominations can be submitted by agencies or by a member of the public. All nominations are due to OIP by Friday, December 6th, 2024.
Awardees will be recognized during the Department’s 2025 Sunshine Week event on March 17th, 2025.
Submission Guidelines
All agency personnel are eligible for the awards listed below. These personnel can include Government Information Specialists, supervisors, FOIA attorneys, FOIA administrative specialists, or other staff at the agency that meet the award category criteria.
We invite nominations for these awards from agencies as well as members of the public. Agency submissions should be made by the agency’s principal FOIA contact or Chief FOIA Officer.
Nominations must include:
The full name, title, agency (or organization if applicable), and contact information for the person submitting the nomination,
The name(s) of the individual(s) they are nominating,
The award category that best reflects the nominee(s)’ accomplishments,
A summary, not to exceed two single-spaced pages, that describes the nominee’s or group’s accomplishments, why the individual or group should receive the award, what they have done that sets them apart, and how their actions benefited FOIA administration, and
A short abstract (100 words or less) that briefly outlines the nominee’s accomplishments.
Nominations must be submitted to DOJ.OIP.FOIA@usdoj.gov with the subject line “2025 Sunshine Week FOIA Award Nomination” by December 6, 2024.
Award Categories
Award for Exceptional Service by a FOIA Professional or Team of FOIA Professionals
Recognizing exemplary performance by a FOIA professional or team of FOIA professionals in carrying out the agency’s administration of the FOIA. This award recognizes those individuals or teams whose exceptional contributions have significantly benefited FOIA administration. These benefits could include increased efficiency, greater use of technology, reduced backlogs, improved timeliness, and increased proactive disclosures.
Award for Outstanding Contributions by a New Employee
Recognizing exceptional performance and notable contributions in carrying out the agency’s FOIA responsibilities by a new employee with fewer than three years of work in FOIA.
Exceptional Advancements in IT to Improve the Agency’s FOIA Administration
Recognizing exceptional achievements in making greater use of technology to make information more accessible. These efforts could include the implementation of new and advanced technologies to increase efficiencies as well as to improve proactive disclosures and the online availability of information.
Exceptional Advancements in Proactive Disclosure of Information
Recognizing exceptional achievements by an agency or team of professionals at the agency to proactively make more information available online. These efforts can include both the posting of more information online and steps taken to make that information more useful to the public.
Lifetime Service Award
Recognizing an agency FOIA professional with at least 20 years of work in FOIA administration who has demonstrated high standards of excellence and dedication in the administration of the FOIA throughout their career.
