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  • MIL-OSI USA: Deadline Approaching in Washington for SBA Working Capital Loans Due to Wildfires

    Source: United States Small Business Administration

    SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Francisco Sánchez Jr., associate administrator for the Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience at the Small Business Administration, today reminded Washington small businesses of the Nov. 20, 2024, deadline to apply for an SBA federal disaster loan for economic injury caused by the wildfires that occurred Aug. 18–25, 2023.

    According to Sánchez, small nonfarm businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private nonprofit organizations of any size may apply for Economic Injury Disaster Loans of up to $2 million to help meet working capital needs caused by the disaster. “Economic Injury Disaster Loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable and other bills that cannot be paid because of the disaster’s impact. Economic injury assistance is available regardless of whether the applicant suffered any property damage,” Sánchez said.

    These low-interest federal disaster loans are available in the counties below:
    Washington counties:  Lincoln, Pend Oreille, Spokane, Stevens and Whitman;
    Idaho counties:  Benewah, Bonner and Kootenai.

    The interest rate is 4 percent for businesses and 2.375 percent for private nonprofit organizations with terms up to 30 years. Loan amounts and terms are set by SBA and are based on each applicant’s financial condition.

    Interest does not begin to accrue until 12 months from the date of the first disaster loan disbursement. SBA disaster loan repayment begins 12 months from the date of the first disbursement.

    On October 15, 2024, it was announced that funds for the Disaster Loan Program have been fully expended. While no new loans can be issued until Congress appropriates additional funding, we remain committed to supporting disaster survivors. Applications will continue to be accepted and processed to ensure individuals and businesses are prepared to receive assistance once funding becomes available.

    Applicants are encouraged to submit their loan applications promptly for review in anticipation of future funding.

    Applicants may apply online and receive additional disaster assistance information at SBA.gov/disaster. Applicants may also call SBA’s Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance. For people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

    ###

    About the U.S. Small Business Administration
    The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of business ownership. As the only go-to resource and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal government, the SBA empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the resources and support they need to start, grow, expand their businesses, or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit http://www.sba.gov.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Empty property eyesore finally demolished

    Source: City of Coventry

    The Council has been completing work to demolish an empty block of low-rise flats at 1 to 15 Jasmine Court, Stoke Aldermoor.

    The building should be completely removed over the coming weeks and the site cleared for future redevelopment.

    It follows a long period of legal efforts by the Council officers.

    The Council is increasing its efforts to tackle issues around empty properties in the city – especially with a high demand for good quality housing in the city.

    It is continuing to use all legal powers to remove any further obstacles to the redevelopment of the site.

    Cllr Naeem Akhtar, Cabinet Member for Housing and Communities, said: “I’m delighted that our efforts are paying off to bring empty homes back into use.

    “Jasmine Court has been a real eyesore, and I know that local people will feel a real sense of relief that something positive is going to happen.

    “We are hopeful that eventually suitable social housing, providing family homes, will replace the demolished flats.”

    Cllr Abdul Khan, Deputy Leader of Coventry City Council, added: “I know that a number of council services have been working hard to remove this property.

    “There are often a number of legal steps that need to be addressed to deal with housing that has been left empty and in poor disrepair, and I’m pleased to see a positive outcome for people living around Jasmine Court.”

    Get a closer look at the work by watching this video.

    Monday, 21st October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney’s Office Announces Election Day Efforts for the November 2024 General Election

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Jackson, Miss. – United States Attorney Todd Gee announced today that Assistant United States Attorneys (AUSAs) Bert Carraway and Samuel Goff will lead the efforts of his office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 5, 2024, general election.  AUSAs Carraway and Goff have been appointed to serve as the District Election Officers (DEOs) for the Southern District of Mississippi, and in that capacity are responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of election day complaints of voting rights concerns, threats of violence to election officials or staff, and election fraud, in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.

    United States Attorney Gee said, “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted in a fair and free election. Similarly, election officials and staff must be able to serve without being subject to unlawful threats of violence. The Department of Justice will always work tirelessly to protect the integrity of the election process.”

    The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring and combatting discrimination and intimidation at the polls, threats of violence directed at election officials and poll workers, and election fraud.  The Department will address these violations wherever they occur. The Department’s longstanding Election Day Program furthers these goals and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the electoral process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible federal election law violations.

    Federal law protects against such crimes as threatening violence against election officials or staff, intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input.  It also contains special protections for the rights of voters, and provides that they can vote free from interference, including intimidation, and other acts designed to prevent or discourage people from voting or voting for the candidate of their choice.  The Voting Rights Act protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice (where voters need assistance because of disability or inability to read or write in English). 

               United States Attorney Gee stated that: “The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy.  We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise can exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice. To respond to complaints of voting rights concerns and election fraud during the upcoming election, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, AUSAs Bert Carraway and Samuel Goff will be on duty in this District while the polls are open.  They can be reached by the public at the following telephone numbers: 601-973-2826 or 601-973-2855.”

               In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day.  The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at 601-948-5000.

               Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.

               United States Attorney Gee said, “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the assistance of the American electorate.  It is important that those who have specific information about voting rights concerns or election fraud make that information available to the Department of Justice.”

               Please note, however, in the case of a crime of violence or intimidation, please call 911 immediately and before contacting federal authorities.  State and local police have primary jurisdiction over polling places, and almost always have faster reaction capacity in an emergency. 

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Could new farming methods sustain life on Mars?

    Source: Anglia Ruskin University

    Published: 21 October 2024 at 14:00

    ARU gardening expert will discuss if plants could, or should, grow on the Red Planet

    A talk at the Chelmsford Science Festival will explore research into new farming methods that could potentially grow plants on Mars – and the moral question of whether humans should cultivate another planet even if they could.

    In the 2015 film The Martian, stranded astronaut, Mark Watney, managed to grow potatoes. Recently SpaceX owner Elon Musk has spoken of a desire to set foot on Mars, and potentially colonise the Red Planet. However, the colonisation of Mars would depend on the ability to grow plants.

    During the free talk at Anglia Ruskin University’s Chelmsford campus, ARU horticulture expert Mick Lavelle will discuss some modern farming techniques, drawing on research into vertical farming being carried out at ARU Writtle, and how these could make it possible to cultivate life in hostile environments such as Mars.

    The talk, A Practical Guide to Gardening on Mars, explores the difficulties this poses and the ways it may be achieved, as well as the ethics of taking organic matter to another planet. 

    Research published in peer-reviewed journals earlier this year by ARU Writtle showed the success of vertical farming systems, using LED lighting, in stimulating growth in strawberries and in lavender, a valuable plant for essential oil production.

    These new studies show that vertical farming using artificial light is not only feasible, but can actually be more productive than traditional farming techniques. 

    The research into lavender, to be published in the November edition of the journal Industrial Crops and Products, shows that plants grown in these conditions had greater root emergence, root biomass, chlorophyll content, flower bud emergence, and a higher root-to-shoot ratio compared to lavender crops growing in glasshouses under normal lighting conditions.

    Another study, published in June, found that certain LED lighting conditions stimulated flower bud emergence in strawberries more than four times more effectively than a control group. LED lighting also appeared to stimulate more chlorophyll content – a crucial element in plant growth because it enables plants to absorb the energy from light.

    Mick will also examine whether the desire of wealthy individuals to create life on another planet, and the willingness to strive for it, should be a cue to being better at solving sustainability issues and food production on Earth.

    Mick, Senior Lecturer in Landscape Management at ARU Writtle, said:

    “Mars has an allure to the super-rich due to the hostility of the planet and its reputation through films and science, not to mention the challenge of achieving something that was previously thought impossible – bringing life to Mars.

    “Some new farming techniques do mean this is theoretically possible, and I will draw on our research here at ARU Writtle during the talk.

    “Whether we could grow plants on Mars is a seductive question, but the bigger one is, should we? With climate change already ravaging the developing world and millions of people going hungry, perhaps our desire and willingness to use new scientific techniques to cultivate another planet could be better put to use closer to home.”

    The talk will take place at ARU’s Chelmsford campus on Thursday, 24 October from 7.30pm until 9pm. It is free to attend, but places must be booked by visiting https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/a-practical-guide-to-gardening-on-mars-tickets-1027968420217 

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Leeson Road borehole work providing fascinating glimpse into past 21 October 2024 Leeson Road borehole drilling providing fascinating glimpse into the area’s distant past

    Source: Aisle of Wight

    The drilling of boreholes in the Leeson Road area of Bonchurch is designed to help protect the future of the area but fossils discovered during the work are also giving a fascinating glimpse back into its distant past.

    Ammonites, bivalves and other fossils dating back more than 100 million years have been extracted from the boreholes.

    Though the three boreholes are drilled to depths of up to 130 metres, most of the fossils are being recovered between 30 and 90 metres deep.

    Sophie Powell, an engineering geologist working for AtkinsRéalis on behalf of Island Roads and the Isle of Wight Council, said the Upper Greensand and Gault Clay layers being examined contained fossils from the Lower Cretaceous Period — 100-112 million years ago.

    The fossilised creatures would have lived in an offshore marine environment that over millions of years has transformed into a landmass, albeit an unstable one.

    Sophie said: “We have found a mixture of bivalves, brachiopods and ammonites. When a fossil is well preserved it is possible to identify the scientific name of the fossil, we have managed this for a few.

    “What we have found so far matches previous investigations in the area.”

    Sophie said that because the boreholes were 102mm diameter most of the fossils weren’t complete but they had found some intact specimens. While the geological profile of the area meant the finds were to be expected, it was still interesting to pull out these specimens.

    Though interesting in their own right, the fossils also provide useful markers and reference points that can help comparison with the new boreholes and others already sunk in the area.

    The ground investigation takes core samples of the rock layers which are being assessed and recorded by geotechnical engineers to confirm changes following the landslide.

    The process is also allowing monitoring equipment to be installed to record any small deep ground movements and changes in groundwater pressures at different depths, which might contribute to larger scale ground movements.

    The boreholes are thought to be some of the deepest ever sunk on the Island.

    All this information will help work by the council and Island Roads to develop and maintain an early warning system that will allow re-opening of the road when safe but shut immediately if significant movement is detected.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Suburban Chicago Man Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison for Trafficking Fentanyl and Attempting To Support ISIS

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    CHICAGO — A suburban Chicago man has been sentenced to 18 years in federal prison for trafficking fentanyl and attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, also known as ISIS.

    On three occasions in 2019, JASON BROWN provided $500 in cash to an individual with the understanding that the money would be wired to an ISIS soldier engaged in terrorist activity in Syria.  Unbeknownst to Brown, the individual to whom he provided the money was confidentially working with law enforcement, and the purported ISIS fighter was actually an undercover law enforcement officer.

    Also in 2019, Brown trafficked fentanyl and other drugs from California to the Chicago suburbs and illegally possessed several loaded handguns in furtherance of his drug trafficking activities.

    Brown, 42, of Lombard, Ill., pleaded guilty last year to one count of attempting to provide material support to ISIS, one count of distributing fentanyl, and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  U.S. District Judge Mary M. Rowland imposed the sentence on Oct. 16, 2024, during a hearing in federal court in Chicago. Brown has been in law enforcement custody since his arrest in 2019.

    The sentence was announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Matthew G. Olsen, Assistant Attorney General for National Security at the U.S. Department of Justice, Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI, Ramsey E. Covington, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation Chicago Field Office, and Larry Snelling, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department.  Substantial assistance was provided by the Illinois State Police, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security Investigations, Lombard, Ill. Police Department, Addison, Ill. Police Department, and FBI Field Offices in Atlanta, Los Angeles, and San Diego.  The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shawn McCarthy of the Northern District of Illinois and S. Elisa Poteat, Trial Attorney from the Justice Department’s National Security Division, Counterterrorism Section.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Countdown begins to Christmas in Leicester

    Source: City of Leicester

    SIXTEEN THOUSAND festive lights will start going up in Leicester this week as the countdown to Christmas begins.

    Ahead of this year’s big switch-on event on Wednesday 20 November, the city council’s lighting team will be dressing the city centre with 16,000 low-energy lamps to illuminate the city throughout the festive season.

    Town Hall Square and around 20 city centre streets will be decorated, in a process taking about four weeks, with work being carried out early in the morning and at weekends to minimise disruption.

    The lights going up are just the first sign of the Christmas treats ahead. In the second week of November, a mighty 15m Christmas tree will be delivered from the Kielder Forest in Northumberland, to take pride of place at the Clock Tower.

    A flurry of Christmas trees and the traditional nativity scene will be installed in Town Hall Square. Plus, new for 2024 will be a new Christmas lighting installation to animate the square.

    The huge 35m-high Wheel of Light will also return to illuminate Jubilee Square, from Friday 8 November until the new year – alongside the city’s popular all-weather real ice rink, which will arrive at Jubilee Square from Thursday 5 December.

    Another new addition for 2024, on Gallowtree Gate, is the introduction of a Christmas Market – the perfect place for treats, gifts and warming festive food. The market will run from 14 November until 29 December.

    Leicester’s Christmas lights switch-on kicks off from 5pm on Wednesday 20 November, with activities taking place at key locations across the city.

    On the Haymarket balcony, BBC Radio Leicester presenter Ady Dayman will be hosting proceedings with The Apprentice star and DJ, Virdi Singh Mazaria. And at switch-on moment – around 6.30pm – they will be joined for the countdown by Divina De Campo, runner-up of RuPaul’s Drag Race and Wicked Queen of this year’s panto, Snow White, at De Montfort Hall, plus Jack Ballard, the panto dame!

    Further attractions on the night will include a funfair on Humberstone Gate, plus a 15-piece nutcracker marching band that will lead a trail through the city to switch-on events at the Haymarket Shopping Centre, Highcross and St Martins.

    If you’re watching from Town Hall Square – a quieter space from which to watch the lights go on – you’ll be the first to see the new illuminations in the square, plus you can listen to traditional brass bands and choirs, which will perform from 5pm–8pm.

    Assistant city mayor for culture, Cllr Vi Dempster, said: “Our lighting team is working hard to make sure that Leicester looks magical in time for our big switch-on. It’s always a great event, with thousands of people flocking into the city centre and lots going on to help everyone get into the festive spirit.

    “Leicester has so much to offer, so whether you want to get your shopping done, celebrate with family and friends, or enjoy festive attractions like our ice rink, there’s something for everyone to enjoy this Christmas.”

    Tickets for the ice rink are on sale via the Christmas In Leicester website.  Tickets for Snow White are available at demontforthall.co.uk

    Full details of everything going on over the festive season are available at christmasinleicester.co.uk

    ENDS

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Coast Guard suspends search for missing man near South Padre Island, Texas

    Source: United States Coast Guard

     News Release  

    U.S. Coast Guard 8th District Public Affairs Detachment Texas
    Contact: 8th District Public Affairs Detachment Texas
    Office: 281-464-4810
    After Hours: 832-293-1293
    PA Detachment Texas online newsroom

     

    10/21/2024 10:44 AM EDT

    CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Coast Guard suspended the search Sunday evening for a missing man near

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Deer Lake — Deer Lake RCMP continues to look for missing man, an unaccounted guest of Driftwood Motel

    Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

    Deer Lake RCMP is continuing to look for 77-year-old Eugene Earl Spoon, who was last seen on the evening of October 18, 2024, in Deer Lake. Police have since confirmed that Spoon was a guest at the Driftwood Motel and has been unaccounted for since the time of the blaze.

    Efforts are underway to complete a search of the fire scene. Spoon, who is visiting Newfoundland from the state of Kansas in the United States, has grey hair and is known to wear prescription glasses. His image is attached.

    Anyone having information about the current location of Eugene Spoon is asked to contact Deer Lake RCMP at 709-635-2173.

    The investigation is continuing.

    Background:

    https://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/en/news/2024/missing-person-help-the-rcmp-find-eugene-earl-spoon

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The All-Russian Olympiad in Strength of Materials has ended at the Polytechnic University

    Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    The final round of the 43rd All-Russian Student Olympiad on Strength of Materials with International Participation was held at the Polytechnic University. The event was held as part of the 125th anniversary of SPbPU. The Physics and Mechanics Institute was the organizer.

    At the opening, the Vice-Rector for Educational Activities of SPbPU Lyudmila Pankova noted that in 1976, the Department of Material Strength of the Leningrad Polytechnic Institute was one of the initiators of organizing city Olympiads in Strength of Materials. Later, such events began to be held at the Polytechnic Institute annually. In 1981, the USSR Ministry of Education decided to hold an annual All-Union Olympiad in Material Strength to improve the level of student training. Since 1991, the event has received All-Russian status with international participation. In different years, representatives of Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Ukraine, and Turkmenistan have participated in the Olympiad. Teams from universities in different regions of Russia, from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok, come annually.

    In 2002, the event was first held at the Polytechnic University. In the year of its 125th anniversary, SPbPU again welcomed guests from leading Russian universities. This time, the participants included a team from the Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University named after B. N. Yeltsin.

    “Polytech is expanding its boundaries for the exchange of international academic experience and the establishment of partnerships, as well as for the development of cooperation between universities,” emphasized Lyudmila Pankova.

    Professor of the Higher School of Mechanics and Control Processes (HSMCP) Artem Semenov noted that 63 students from St. Petersburg, Moscow, Novosibirsk, Surgut, Kaliningrad, Belgorod, Tula, Perm, Vladimir, Arkhangelsk, Samara, Tver, Ivanovo, Bishkek (team of the Kyrgyz Republic) registered to participate in the competitive tests.

    “The Olympiad is taking place in St. Petersburg, the city where Pushkin and Dostoevsky lived and worked, and where Euler and Lame wrote their immortal formulas. The book “Who’s Who in Strength of Materials” by N. N. Malinin shows that of the 110 engineers and scientists from all over the world who influenced the development of this discipline, 25 studied or worked in St. Petersburg, and nine are directly related to our university,” said Artem Semenovich.

    He wished the participants to achieve maximum results in the competition, to effectively use their knowledge, and to make new friends.

    Professor of the Higher School of Advanced Digital Technologies of the Advanced Engineering School of SPbPU “Digital Engineering” Irina Krasyuk noted the development of the Olympiad movement, which creates conditions for the formation of engineering potential and lays the foundations for mastering science-intensive engineering and technical disciplines in the future.

    “Strength of materials is a fundamental discipline that studies the features of deformation of the simplest structures and the mechanical stresses that arise in them. The format of the work presented at the Olympiad is aimed at forming advanced professional competencies of a modern engineer,” says Irina Anatolyevna.

    She presented the interaction of the Physics and Mechanics Institute and the Advanced Engineering School “Digital Engineering” in the organization and work of the Olympiad. This contributes to further internal university integration and external cooperation with leading Russian technical universities.

    Irina Anatolyevna focused on how the scientific and educational process takes place at the Physics and Mechanical Institute and the Advanced Engineering School “Digital Engineering” of SPbPU, where they provide a unique set of professional competencies in solving complex multidisciplinary industrial problems that meet the world level and the needs of high-tech industries of the Russian Federation.

    The organizing committee included the chairman — director of PhysMech Aleksey Filimonov, deputy chairman — chief specialist of the Directorate of Educational Programs of PhysMech Daria Afonskaya, adviser to the rector’s office Vitaly Drobchik, professor of GSOMPU Artem Semenov, associate professor of GSOMPU Daria Kitaeva, associate professor of GSOMPU Elena Yakovleva and assistant of GSOMPU Aleksey Grishchenko. The chairman of the jury was professor of Bauman Moscow State Technical University Aleksey Pokrovsky.

    The first place was taken by the team of the Moscow State Technical University named after N.E. Bauman, the second place went to the Moscow Polytechnic University, and the third place went to the Samara National Research University named after Academician S.P. Korolev. Three participants won in the nomination “Miss Olympiad”, and the prize for the originality of the solution was won by a student of the Moscow Automobile and Road State Technical University. All winners and prize winners received diplomas, memorable gifts, souvenirs of the Polytechnic, letters of thanks and certificates.

    The KRSU team was awarded a 1st degree diploma as winners among foreign participants. The head of the university, Denis Fomin-Nilov, was thanked.

    “Thank you very much for your hospitality and cordiality. Our trip to you exceeded all my expectations, which I am very happy about,” shared the head of the KRSU team Azamat Dzhamankulov, head of the Department of Mechanics and Instrumentation named after Ya. I. Rudayev.

    A cultural program was prepared for the Olympiad participants, which included a visit to the Polytechnic History Museum, the A. G. Gagarin Laboratory of Strength of Materials in the Mechanical Building, laboratories of the Higher School of Theoretical Mechanics and Computational Physics, and a walk around the campus.

    The closing ceremony of the Olympiad was attended by the Vice-Rector for Digital Transformation of SPbPU, the Head of the Advanced Engineering School of SPbPU “Digital Engineering” Alexey Borovkov. He noted that the strength of materials, like theoretical mechanics, are an integral fundamental element of high-quality engineering education. Strength of materials or mechanics of materials and structural elements is the most important element of the culture of engineers around the world. The priority goal of the development of systems engineering education is to train engineering special forces with fundamental physical, mathematical, computational and engineering training. Conditions for training such specialists have been created in the Master’s program of the Advanced Engineering School “Digital Engineering” of SPbPU. The uniqueness of the educational process lies in the training of personnel for orders from leading high-tech companies, which allows developing modern multidisciplinary competencies to solve frontier engineering problems put forward by the high-tech industry of Russia.

    Alexey Ivanovich emphasized the importance of acquiring and consolidating knowledge, developing skills and abilities to solve problems within the discipline “Strength of Materials” for the further development of advanced digital and production technologies. This multidisciplinary knowledge and competencies are necessary for the application of advanced technology of the 21st century – the development of digital twins of high-tech products, materials, physical and mechanical, technological and operational processes. The development of system digital engineering requires fundamental principles of physical and mathematical and physical and mechanical education, within which the strength of materials plays an important role.

    In conclusion, Alexey Ivanovich congratulated the participants on their results and invited them to apply for master’s programs at PISh SPbPU, where the educational process is built on the principle of “Come to study where you can work! Come to work where you can study! Which guarantees an invitation to work in a leading high-tech company during your master’s degree!”

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    https://vvv.spbstu.ru/media/nevs/education/the-all-Russian-Olympiad-in-compromise-compromise-has ended at the Polytechnic University/

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Federal Trial Jury Convicts New Orleans Men for Using Stash House for Methamphetamine, Heroin, Fentanyl Distribution Conspiracy and Being Felons in Possession of Firearms

    Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime News

    NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – A federal jury convicted TERENCE WILSON (“WILSON”), age 42, and TRAVIS ENCLADE (“ENCLADE”), age 42, both of New Orleans,  on October 9, 2024 for using a stash location in the 3500 block of Encampment Street in New Orleans to conspire to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl and, for being felons in possession of firearms.

    According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, WILSON and ENCLADE conspired together, and with others, to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl from August 2022 through October 12, 2022.  During this time, WILSON and ENCLADE engaged in multiple, near daily, hand-to-hand transactions with drug customers in the Hollygrove area. 

    In September 2022, law enforcement identified a residence being used by WILSON and ENCLADE as a stash house.  Both WILSON and ENCLADE regularly made short trips to the stash house, indicative of drug activities, and possessed access  keys.  When law enforcement executed a search warrant at the stash house, they seized over 534 grams of heroin and fentanyl, over 120 grams of fentanyl, and 363 grams of mostly pure methamphetamine.  Law enforcement also seized a Diamondback Model DB9, multicaliber pistol, a Palmetto State Armory Model PA-X9, multicaliber pistol and drug paraphernalia, including, vacuum seal bags, a plastic mixer bottle containing a brownish residue, digital scales with suspected drug residue, a mechanical press used to compress drugs into kilogram shaped packages for distribution, and bags of brown sugar, used as a cutting agent. 

    During a separate search of ENCLADE’s residence, law enforcement seized a stolen Ruger Model 57, 5.7 x 28-millimeter pistol.

    In Count 1, the jury convicted WILSON and ENCLADE of conspiracy to distribute and, possess with intent to distribute, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, 40 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture, and 100 grams or more of heroin mixture.  With respect to Count 2, possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, 40 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture and, 100 grams or more of a heroin mixture, the jury found WILSON guilty and ENCLADE not guilty.  The jury convicted WILSON and ENCLADE of being felons in possession of firearms in Counts 3 and 4.  The jury found WILSON and ENCLADE not guilty on Count 5, which charged possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

    For both Counts 1 and 2, WILSON faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000,000, at least 5 years of supervised release.  For Count 1, ENCLADE faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000,000, at least 5 years of supervised release. For being a felon in possession of firearms, WILSON and ENCLADE each face up to 10 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to 3 years of supervised release. Additionally, for each count of conviction, both WILSON and ENCLADE face payment of a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.  Sentencing is set for January 21, 2025.

    This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

    This prosecution is also part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

    The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, New Orleans Division, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Special Response Team, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Special Response Team, the New Orleans Police Department, the Louisiana State Police, the Slidell Police Department, the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Gretna Major Crimes Task Force, and the Thibodeaux Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Rachal Cassagne and André Jones of the Narcotics Unit are in charge of the prosecution.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Polytechnic at the Kyrgyz-Russian Educational Forum

    Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    The Kyrgyz-Russian Educational Forum was held at the J. Balasagyn Kyrgyz National University in Bishkek. The event was organized by Rossotrudnichestvo and the Ministry of Education and Science of the Kyrgyz Republic with the support of the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan and the Administration of the President of Russia. More than 40 Russian and 34 Kyrgyz universities participated.

    “Ties between Russia and Kyrgyzstan are being established and strengthened. Our energy, medicine, education and other sectors need highly qualified specialists, and we must train them. In this matter, we have great support from Russia,” said Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Kyrgyz Republic Edil Baisalov at the opening of the forum.

    “Russia allocates 700 quotas for admission of Kyrgyz citizens to leading Russian universities,” said Pavel Shevtsov, Deputy Head of Rossotrudnichestvo. “Today’s forum and exhibition will allow us to understand even more deeply what areas of training and specialties are most in demand among young people in Kyrgyzstan. The country’s leading universities, which have been successfully training citizens of foreign countries for decades, are present here. The Decade of Science and Education is currently taking place in Russia. And today Russia has something to show Kyrgyzstan and the world. I am confident that today’s forum will give impetus to the development of higher education in both countries.”

    Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University was represented at the forum by the executive secretary of the coordinating council of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation in the field of education “Engineering, technology and technical sciences” professor Pavel Romanov. He held a round table on the topic “Engineering and technical education of the future: training personnel for the digital economy”, spoke about the proposals of the coordinating council of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation in the field of engineering, technology and technical sciences to create a nationally oriented model of engineering education, presented the experience of developing the Advanced Engineering School “Digital Engineering”, and also introduced the participants of the round table to the tasks and practices of strategic interaction between SPbPU and the Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University named after B.N. Yeltsin (KRSU) on the development of engineering education in KRSU.

    Following the round table, the Polytechnic University’s proposal was adopted into the draft resolution of the forum: “Cooperation between Russia and Kyrgyzstan in the development of engineering education is a priority task. The basis for cooperation is the presence of a historically established common fundamental basis for engineering education: the unity of all levels of the educational space; high-quality physical and mathematical training in schools; fundamental and practical orientation of engineering education. Taking into account modern trends in technological development, it is recommended to pay special attention to the possibilities of digital technologies in education and, in general, to the processes of digital transformation of universities as tools for accelerated development. It is also recommended to develop interaction between universities and industrial partners to improve the efficiency of training personnel to meet the needs of the economy. A successful example of effective interaction between universities in Russia and Kyrgyzstan in the development of engineering education is the cooperation between Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University and the Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University named after B.N. Yeltsin. The dissemination of this experience will allow us to significantly improve the quality and demand for engineering education in the short term.”

    “For two days, representatives of the educational community of the two countries participated in lively discussions on issues of scientific and educational cooperation, discussed the most interesting formats of interaction. The forum aroused great interest among colleagues from Kyrgyzstan and Russia. I thank our partners for the warm welcome and rich program,” said Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation Konstantin Mogilevsky.

    In conclusion, the delegates attended a concert by the Black Sea Fleet ensemble.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    https://vvv.spbstu.ru/media/nevs/partnership/polytech-at-the-kyrgyz-russian-educational-forum/

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Existential uncertainty: how it affects your mind – and what you can do about it

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Dusana Dorjee, Associate professor in Psychology in Education, University of York

    ‘Doomscrolling’ is an unhelpful coping strategy. Olezzo/ Shutterstock

    With near-constant headlines discussing the devastating crises humanity is currently facing – from climate change to political polarisation and war – many of us are experiencing feelings of existential uncertainty.

    This can manifest in different ways, such as feeling anxious or distressed when consuming the news. You might also feel a more subtle but persistent sense of unease and worry about the future.

    These feelings are actually linked to changes in the brain. By knowing how this works, we can understand what techniques will best help us to manage this feeling when we next experience it.

    Worrying thoughts and feelings about existential threats increase activity in the amygdala – a brain region that responds to threat. This releases stress hormones – first in the brain (hypothalamus and pituitary gland) and then in the adrenal cortex (which sits on top of the kidneys).

    The release of these hormones from the adrenal cortex can impact our attention, problem-solving and decision-making abilities due to their effects on two distinct brain regions which support cognitive functions and memory – the prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus. These regions can actually decrease stress hormone levels, but can become less effective at doing so in response to extremely stressful events or very frequent experiences of stress and anxiety. Chronic stress exposure damages these two brain regions, and can create a vicious cycle of prolonged anxiety.

    To cope with this uncertainty and anxiety, one common response people use is information seeking – where we seek out information about an event or situation in order to feel more certain and less anxious.

    But this coping mechanism can lead to doomscrolling on social media, where negative content tends to be shared more frequently and feelings of existential uncertainty are exploited for financial or political gain. Our brains also remember negative information better than positive information, which is why negative content is often used for manipulation.



    Read more:
    Existential crisis: how long COVID patients helped us understand what it’s like to lose your sense of identity and purpose in life

    Our attempts to make sense of existential uncertainty can also make some people more susceptible to conspiracy theories. This is because when we feel threatened and uncertain, any explanation for what’s happening seems better than none – and this brings some short-term relief from our worries.

    We may also be more inclined to cling to ideas and values that make us feel part of something bigger than ourselves when experiencing existential uncertainty. That’s why some people find themselves feeling more strongly about their political or religious views during periods of unrest – even if such beliefs can sow distrust towards others.

    These coping mechanisms may only provide short-term relief from feelings of anxiety – and even worsen our mental health in the long run. To better cope and protect your mental health during times of existential uncertainty, here are some more effective things you can do instead:

    1. Stress-reduction exercises

    Next time the news makes you feel anxious, try naming the emotion you’re experiencing. Naming emotions can reduce their intensity and unpleasantness. Then count to four while breathing in and count to five while breathing out. Breathing out for longer activates the parasympathetic system – the pathway of neural cells that helps the body rest and relax.

    Using a “sensory anchor” such as a nearby sound or object to ground your attention in the moment can also be effective. This can quell the stream of worrying thoughts.

    Other stress-reducing activities you can add into your daily routine include practising relaxation techniques such as progressive muscle relaxation or taking brief mindfulness breaks. Physical activity, such as dancing or walks, can also temporarily decrease stress as brief acute stress during exercise is another way of activating the parasympathetic system afterwards.

    2. Look to connect

    It can be helpful when experiencing existential uncertainty to remind yourself that others are probably feeling the same way. Acknowledging the common humanity of our worries may help reduce the feelings of threat we have.

    Awe-inducing activities, such as spending time outdoors, making art or meditating or praying, can all expand feelings of connectedness and reduce worry.

    Volunteering can help you connect with others.
    PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/ Shutterstock

    Writing about what you’re grateful for is another useful way to decrease distress during times of uncertainty. This increases brain activity in the medial prefrontal cortex – a brain area involved in regulating emotions, stress and boosting social-connectedness. The increased brain activity can last as long as three months.

    Practising compassion can also reduce distress during times of existential uncertainty. Whereas witnessing others’ suffering can trigger empathic distress – a negative emotion that’s also linked to withdrawal – finding ways to be compassionate and help others can shift this into a positive emotion and make us feel closer to people.

    3. Shift your thinking

    Instead of spending hours doomscrolling, try using your need for information to search for creative solutions or view the crises as opportunities for innovation where you can put your skills to positive use.

    Or, try finding initiatives that help to create this kind of constructive mindset. This can be anything from volunteering at a food bank or charity, writing a blog to making art. These kinds of activities can have a buffering effect on the stress response by protecting mental health and reduce negative emotions.

    Similarly, new creative ways of responding during times of crisis can shift our thinking to being solution-focused – instead of dwelling on the problems we face. This can support our emotional wellbeing.

    If everyone follows these tips, this may create a more cooperative environment which may bring us a bit closer to addressing current global crises at the collective, societal level.

    Dusana Dorjee received funding for her research from the British Academy, ESRC, UKRI Innovate UK and Mind & Life Institute. She is a co-director of a community interest company providing training in mindfulness-based wellbeing courses for schools and adults.

    – ref. Existential uncertainty: how it affects your mind – and what you can do about it – https://theconversation.com/existential-uncertainty-how-it-affects-your-mind-and-what-you-can-do-about-it-241197

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Finding solutions for women and gender diverse people’s top health priorities

    Source: Government of Canada News (2)

    News release

    $13.7 million investment will support 24 health research projects

    October 21, 2024 | Ottawa, Ontario | Canadian Institutes of Health Research

    For decades, the health of women and gender diverse people has been under-researched, leading to disparities in health outcomes, gaps in access to care and too many instances of mis- and under-diagnosis. The National Women’s Health Research Initiative (NWHRI), led by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and supported by Women and Gender Equality Canada, has been working to change that, with a focus on evidence-based solutions that will directly improve women’s and gender diverse people’s access to and experience within the health care system.

    Today, the Honourable Mark Holland, Minister of Health, announced that the Government of Canada, through the NWHRI, is investing $13.7M to support 24 research projects that will delve into under-researched areas of women’s and gender diverse people’s health, including endometriosis, women’s heart health, intimate partner violence, mental health, access to safe abortion and more.

    This funding will help research teams tackle important issues such as developing and rapidly adopting screening measures for endometriosis in women and gender diverse youth in Canada, implementing highly efficient, evidence-informed treatment for youth with eating disorders and closing the gap in health disparities in rural, remote and northern Indigenous communities.

    Quotes

    “I am proud to see great science finding solutions for the broadest range of health issues facing women and gender diverse people. What makes this research even more important is that the topics were identified by women as their health research priorities.”

    The Honourable Mark Holland
    Minister of Health

    “The National Women’s Health Research Initiative is about more than addressing gaps in women’s and gender diverse people’s health—it’s a commitment to advancing gender equality in Canada. By fostering talent development, supporting diverse researchers, and driving systemic change, this initiative ensures better health outcomes for all and strengthens the future of scientific research.”

    The Honourable Marci Ien
    Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth

    “When it comes to improving health outcomes and access to health care, what women and gender diverse communities need are real-world, evidence-based solutions. That’s exactly what these 24 projects are delivering.”

    Dr. Angela Kaida
    Scientific Director, CIHR Institute of Gender and Health

    Quick facts

    • Women and gender diverse people have been historically under-represented in medical research, such as clinical trials.

    • The purpose of this funding is to support innovative applied health research to address implementation gaps and advance real-world solutions that improve access to health care and ultimately improve health outcomes for women, girls and gender diverse people across Canada.

    • Translational research refers to projects focused on expediting the development and adoption of new health care diagnostics, therapeutics and medical devices for the benefit of women, girls, and gender diverse people within the health care system.

    • Health care implementation science refers to projects focused on scaling up promising practices for removing barriers and improving access to health care.

    • The initiative goes beyond the sex and gender binary and welcomes the experiences and needs of all people who identify as a woman, girl, intersex, and/or an under-represented gender identity, including, but not limited to, Two-Spirit, trans, non-binary, gender fluid and agender people.

    Associated links

    Contacts

    Matthew Kronberg
    Press Secretary
    Office of the Honourable Mark Holland
    Minister of Health
    343-552-5654

    Media Relations
    Canadian Institutes of Health Research
    mediarelations@cihr-irsc.gc.ca

    At the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) we know that research has the power to change lives. As Canada’s health research investment agency, we collaborate with partners and researchers to support the discoveries and innovations that improve our health and strengthen our health care system.

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: The 2026 Commonwealth Games will create an economic model that allows smaller nations to step up and host

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Gayle McPherson, Chair in Events and Cultural Policy, and Director of the Research Centre for Culture, Sport and Events, University of the West of Scotland

    The tension was palpable as we waited to see if Glasgow would rescue the Commonwealth Games for 2026. After the Australian state of Victoria pulled out, the eyes of the Commonwealth turned to Scotland.

    Glasgow delivered a hugely successful event in 2014, raising questions about whether a future games there could match that success. I was part of the bid team as the cultural advisor for Glasgow 2014 and went on to conduct research on the impact of the games on sustainable community participation for people with a disability. So I understand the positive impact the games had for Scotland.

    My work over the past couple of decades has examined the social impact of mega sports events and their role as agents for change, specifically disability rights, social inclusion, and peace and diplomacy. In other words, considering whether major sport events truly serve as a force for good as it’s often argued they do. If this is indeed the case, why shouldn’t smaller Commonwealth nations benefit from hosting the games?

    Experts often criticise the economic and social impact of major sporting events, but others argue for the social value these events can bring to communities long after they have left town.

    My research team conducted a survey on perceptions of the impact of the Glasgow 2014 games that revealed overwhelming support for their lasting impact on the city and Scotland.

    The results showed that 75% of respondents believed the games increased civic and national pride, boosted Glasgow and Scotland’s chances of securing future events, enhanced their international reputation, and, as often attested, strengthened the nation’s soft power. Scotland ranks second (behind Quebec) out of ten similar territories for overall soft power, and third for sport.

    Amid a rise in the Bric countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) using sport in soft power terms, other nations have sought to be part of this too. The Commonwealth Games is increasingly being used as a vehicle for positive change and regional soft power.



    Read more:
    Glasgow’s 2026 Commonwealth Games needs to showcase an affordable and socially beneficial way of hosting sporting events

    There has been a rise in emerging states running mega sports events, often wealthy illiberal nations such as China and Qatar. However, what about the smaller nations in the Commonwealth? Only two – Malaysia and Jamaica – have ever hosted the Commonwealth Games, and the only other nation outside of Australia, Canada, UK and New Zealand to do so is India.

    Glasgow is offering a new model that will create a legacy not only for Scotland, but for many other smaller nations in the Commonwealth. The games are known as the “Friendly Games” – it’s a community that is known for three core values: humanity, equality and destiny.

    The family of nations

    The African nations form a significant part of the Commonwealth sports movement, so shouldn’t we expect the model that Glasgow is developing to be transferable, ensuring that sport can serve a common good? An environmentally sustainable approach would use facilities and networks already in place to help developing nations, which already suffer disproportionately in terms of climate and environmental risks.

    Under this model, venues and infrastructure are already in place. The event is athlete-focused, with competitors staying in hotels as opposed to a purpose-built athlete village, and transport needs minimised through walking or the use of team buses. The 2026 Glasgow event could serve as a blueprint for a sustainable approach to games delivery, inspiring nations such as Ghana, which already has the necessary venues and infrastructure to take on future Commonwealth Games.

    With just ten sports across four venues, Glasgow 2026 has thought differently about delivery and digital broadcast. This is the only fully integrated games, hosting para competition at the same time as able-bodied events. This too will help smaller nations’ para-athletes, who often do not get a chance to compete internationally.

    The Commonwealth is made up of 56 independent countries and the Commonwealth Games Federation consists of 72 member nations and territories. Gabon and Togo joined the Commonwealth in 2022, neither of which had previous ties to the British empire or other Commonwealth states, demonstrating that some countries still want to be part of a wider family.

    Given 19 African countries have Commonwealth Games Associations, we could well see one of these take the baton in future. The Ghanaian sports minister made it clear that after hosting a successful African Games in 2024, he believed the next step would be the Commonwealth Games.

    The recent African Games in Ghana’s capital Accra held athletics in a stadium that seats 11,000 spectators, while the World Athletics Championships in 2022 used the University of Oregon’s temporary stadium that seated 13,000. Commonwealth Games Scotland realised that, for 2026, Glasgow could host athletics at an existing stadium in the city with an upgrade to facilities that would provide seating for 11,000.

    Ghana and Scotland are learning from each other to lay a path for smaller nations to host future games. The Birmingham Commonwealth Games in 2022 contributed £1.2 billion to the UK economy and £79.5 million in social value. This is possible for small nations too.

    Glasgow 2026 can create a different legacy for the Commonwealth Games; one that is built on inclusion, diversity and sustainability and which incorporates the culture, values and pride of the Commonwealth. The time is right to offer a new approach to event delivery that offers other smaller nations the chance to benefit from sport as a force for good.

    Professor Gayle McPherson receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and Sport Canada and has previously received funding from the Peter Harrison Foundation and Observatory for Sport in Scotland.

    – ref. The 2026 Commonwealth Games will create an economic model that allows smaller nations to step up and host – https://theconversation.com/the-2026-commonwealth-games-will-create-an-economic-model-that-allows-smaller-nations-to-step-up-and-host-241059

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: AI is just one of the thorny issues facing photography – here’s how the industry can prioritise ethics

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Savannah Dodd, Postdoctoral research fellow, Centre for Creative Ethnography, Queen’s University Belfast

    Photography is an immensely powerful medium. Unlike paintings or drawings, photographs have long been connected to ideas of truth and used as evidence, shaping our understanding of the world. When it comes to journalism, photographs have been shown to have a greater impact than the written word alone – in fact, the lead image of a news article can alter how a reader interprets the text.

    But right now the industry is having a crisis of conscience, and the past few years have seen a surge in online debate about ethics, as concerns have been raised about photographic practices across a wide range of industries, from fashion advertising to charity fundraising.

    These concerns have extended to the news media, which has drawn criticism for the one-dimensional representation of certain communities, for example that of black men and Afghan women, which is exacerbated by inconsistent standards applied to publishing images of suffering.

    This article is part of our State of the Arts series. These articles tackle the challenges of the arts and heritage industry – and celebrate the wins, too.

    While questions of image ethics are not new, this crisis is only deepening with the exponential growth in the production and use of AI-generated images.

    It is often difficult to differentiate between photographs and photo-realistic AI-generated images, and the lines between the two are being increasingly blurred as AI images are sold on picture library platforms and used by advocacy campaigns for charities. AI images are now being used in the campaign for the upcoming US election, perhaps most famously with an AI image of Taylor Swift endorsing Donald Trump.

    Despite the ongoing discussion about photography ethics, practice is sometimes slower to change. This can create a tension between those who espouse more traditional approaches to photography, and those who are critiquing those approaches. This is contributing to polarisation within the industry and a growing uncertainty about how we can use photography ethically today.

    As an anthropologist who teaches visual media ethics, I am interested in how professional photographers think about and practise ethics in their work. This year, as part of my research into this topic, I analysed 48 interviews I conducted between 2020 and 2023 with people working in photography.

    These interviews focused particularly on the perspectives of professionals, including those whose voices have often been marginalised within the industry. This includes black photographers, photographers of colour, photographers in the global south, disabled photographers and female photographers. All of these interviews are publicly available online.

    Lessons in self-reflection

    In each interview, I asked: “What does photography ethics mean to you?” Through analysing their responses, I have distilled eight key lessons about photography ethics. From foundational ideas about the power of photography to practical advice about personal biases, collaboration, asking for consent and building trust, these lessons can help to foster a deeper understanding of the ethical considerations in photography.

    One of the threads that runs through many of these lessons is the importance of self-reflection. Photographers speak about engaging in self-reflection to understand their own motivations for telling a certain story through photography, as well as their own personal perspective in relation to the stories they tell. Photographer Kirsty Mackay says:

    I think looking at the objective and your own reasons for documenting a subject is really, really important. What we see, quite often, is middle-class photographers making a story about working-class people, not really to raise awareness of an issue, but really for themselves, and for their own ego, and to elevate their status within photography.

    Self-reflection can help photographers to better understand how their perspective shapes the way they tell visual stories by identifying their underlying assumptions and unconscious biases. As photographer and academic Dr Tara Pixley explains: “In your career as a photographer … you’re going to tell hundreds of stories, but the first story you have to tell to yourself is the one about you.”

    While self-reflection is important for mining our motivations and mitigating our biases, it cannot achieve objectivity. Despite long-held beliefs in the objectivity of photography, there is a growing recognition within the industry that we all see the world through our own lens, subjectively. This is why we need a diversity of photographers.

    Additionally, no amount of self-reflection can substitute knowledge and understanding of the people, places and topics we are photographing. Photographers like Taha Ahmad stress the importance of research in their practice. He explains that doing research can help photographers to “have a better understanding of the kind of work they are going to produce and what impact the work could make when it is out in front of the world”.

    Despite its limitations, self-reflection is critical for the future of the photography industry. Photography ethics are changing as the world changes. This may mean that past practice does not match up with the current ethical standards. This may also mean that we respond to ethical issues differently today than we might have in the past. The key is to learn from our past experiences to inform our practice in the future.

    The lessons identified by this report should not be understood as guidelines or rules, nor are they comprehensive. Instead, they are intended to help inform how we think about photographs, the photographic process and photography ethics – and, perhaps, they can help us to navigate the current crisis of conscience felt across the photography industry.


    Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

    Savannah Dodd is the founder and director of the Photography Ethics Centre. She receives funding from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).

    – ref. AI is just one of the thorny issues facing photography – here’s how the industry can prioritise ethics – https://theconversation.com/ai-is-just-one-of-the-thorny-issues-facing-photography-heres-how-the-industry-can-prioritise-ethics-241148

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: What is it like to be a prison officer in the UK?

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Kaigan Carrie, PhD Candidate in Criminology, University of Westminster

    When prison officers are in the news, it’s rarely for a positive reason. Recent headlines have included officers smuggling contraband into prisons, or having inappropriate relationships with prisoners. It’s little wonder that the many prison officers who only want to do a good job feel undervalued. We don’t often hear about the ones saving lives on the wings.

    Prison officers get a bad reputation. Research suggests that the public think they are power-hungry disciplinarians with questionable morals. It doesn’t help that a record high 165 staff in England and Wales were dismissed for misconduct in the past year.

    But what is it like to be a prison officer in the UK today? I talk to prison officers in Scotland and Finland for my own PhD research and I regularly interview prison officers around the world for my podcast, Evolving Prisons.

    Prison officers wear many hats. They’re mentors, firefighters and first-aiders. Officers themselves have likened their job to that of a parent. Sometimes they’re teaching a prisoner how to read, helping with job applications and sometimes they’re just having a conversation which might help someone change their thinking. Prison officers are the cornerstone of the prison system.

    This is why it is so concerning that prisons in England and Wales are chronically understaffed. More than 13% of prison officers left His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service in the 12 months prior to June 30 2024. And 32% of the remaining officers have less than two years’ service, which puts them at risk due to their inexperience.

    Want more politics coverage from academic experts? Every week, we bring you informed analysis of developments in government and fact check the claims being made.

    Sign up for our weekly politics newsletter, delivered every Friday.

    This understaffing means that prisoners spend longer in their cells, as there are fewer opportunities for them during the day. This, coupled with unprecedented overcrowding, creates a “pressure cooker” environment which results in higher rates of violence and an increase in staff assaults.

    One officer, who has worked in UK prisons for three decades, said it’s like going through a meat grinder and living each day in fear.

    A 2023 study by the House of Commons justice committee surveyed 5,113 prison officers (about 25% of the total officer workforce). The results found a staggering 50% of them do not feel safe in the prison they work in.

    The Ministry of Justice revealed that, in the 12 months to March 2024, the rate of assaults on staff in prisons in England and Wales increased by 24% from the year before, totalling 9,847 assaults. Working in a job where you are exposed to violence regularly has a negative impact on your physical and mental health.

    Physical and mental health toll

    Prison officers are in constant contact with people deemed too dangerous to be in society. As a result of this and the lack of resources available to them to do their job, they’re found to experience elevated rates of stress and burnout. They are also at heightened risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke.

    In addition to the stress-related risks, working in a prison carries other environmental hazards that have both physical and mental effects.

    For example, the use of the synthetic drug “spice”, a psychoactive substance, is prevalent in prisons around the UK and prison officers are at risk from inhaling the fumes. The symptoms are wide-ranging from one officer telling me it made her believe she had six fingers, to another being hospitalised and left with long-term health problems. Earlier this year, five prison officers were taken to hospital after a curry made for them by prisoners was suspected to have been spiked with spice.

    Hypervigilance is common in prison officers and manifests as a way to keep themselves safe. However, research found it can negatively affect their sleep and their relationships, and it can psychologically fatigue officers. Some research suggests that some officers may help prisoners commit crime as a result of burnout, due to feeling a lack of motivation and dedication to the job.

    Prison officers can also experience “moral injury”, a form of psychological trauma that can occur when someone acts against deeply held beliefs, as they find themselves going against their internal beliefs in their work. One officer told me, when working with female prisoners who had previously been victims of domestic abuse, that she felt she had replaced their perpetrator and was further traumatising them by telling them when they could shower, eat and leave their cell.

    Prison officers witness a lot of trauma such as self-harm, suicide attempts and violence. Little research exists into rates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among serving prison officers in the UK. However, a 2018 study in the US found prison officers have PTSD rates six times higher than the general population.

    It’s clear that UK prison officers have been struggling with their mental health. One in eight took sick days for mental health reasons in 2022.

    A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said recently that the department will “get a grip on the situation … and make our prisons safer for hard-working staff.”

    But until that happens, the country’s prisons remain in a state of disarray. And prison officers are the people being asked to hold them together, while putting their own health and wellbeing on the line.

    Kaigan Carrie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. What is it like to be a prison officer in the UK? – https://theconversation.com/what-is-it-like-to-be-a-prison-officer-in-the-uk-241596

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI: WISDOMTREE MULTI ASSET ISSUER PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY (the “ISSUER”) (a public company incorporated with limited liability in Ireland)  NOTICE IN RESPECT OF PROPOSED CHANGE TO THE ISSUING AND PAYING AGENT

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    21 October 2024

    LEI: 2138003QW2ZAYZODBU23

    WISDOMTREE MULTI ASSET ISSUER PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY
    (the “ISSUER”)
    (a public company incorporated with limited liability in Ireland) 

    NOTICE IN RESPECT OF PROPOSED CHANGE TO THE ISSUING AND PAYING AGENT

    The Issuer refers to a notice issued by it on 27 September 2024 (the “Preliminary Notice”).

    The Issuer hereby notifies ETP Securityholders that the Issuer, the Trustee, the Registrar, Apex IFS, Apex Fund Services and the Manager have entered into a novation agreement to effect the IPA Change (the “Novation Agreement”). The Novation Agreement is effective as at the date of this notice.

    The Issuer further notifies ETP Securityholders that:

    • on and from the date of this notice, Apex Fund Services shall act as the Issuing and Paying Agent under the Programme; and
    • as at the date of this notice, the sub-delegation agreement entered into between Apex IFS and BCMGlobal ASI Limited in relation to certain issuing and paying agency services, has terminated.

    Terms used in this notice but not otherwise defined shall have the same meaning ascribed to them in the base prospectus of the Issuer dated 5 September 2024 or the Preliminary Notice.

    For further information, please contact: europesupport@wisdomtree.com  

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Why does Donald Trump tell such blatant lies?

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Geoff Beattie, Professor of Psychology, Edge Hill University

    When it comes to lying in politics, Donald Trump is in a class of his own. According to the Washington Post, he made 30,573 false or misleading claims in his four years as president, increasing year-on-year from six per day in his first year to 39 per day in his fourth.

    Although other presidents have lied to the public, none have lied like this. Some of Trump’s lies are trivial, and many are self-aggrandising (“Nobody builds better walls than me”). Then there are his more egregious lies, like the one about the 2020 presidential election being “stolen” – demonstrably and dangerously contrary to the facts, with serious consequences for the nation and public trust.

    And these lies can cut through. Research by political scientists Kevin Arceneaux and Roy Truex found that this “big lie” about the stolen election was very “sticky”. Around 50% of Republican voters believed it, regardless of any emerging contrary evidence. The researchers also found that belief in this lie boosted Republican supporters’ self-esteem – as they weren’t “losers” after all.

    Politicians who lie can gain a strategic advantage. If you can successfully embellish the truth or construct a new reality, this often tends to be more interesting and engaging than the complicated truth. The truth may be a bit dull and uninspiring; the lie can be whatever you want it to be. You know what your audience wants to hear.

    Politicians know that lying is part of our everyday lives. Research in psychology using lie diaries tells us that people lie on average twice a day. Many are harmless “white” lies told for the benefit of others, but some are not so harmless and told for the benefit of the liar themselves.

    Some people get significant pleasure from telling such self-centred lies. Psychologists call this “duping delight”. It confuses the recipient of the lie, who expects to detect signs of guilt or anxiety. Instead, all they see is a faint smile of satisfaction. The liar gets away with it – that smile could mean anything.

    Who likes lying?

    Certain types of personality are drawn to telling these sorts of lies, including those with little empathy, such as narcissists and psychopaths. They don’t care about the consequences for the recipient; it’s all about them.

    People typically start lying early in life – between two and three years of age. Charles Darwin observed this in his own son.

    And the ability to lie improves as our cognitive abilities develop. Like any skill, we get better at it with practice. While many adults still feel guilt when they don’t tell the truth, some politicians don’t appear to feel any guilt, shame or sadness at telling a lie.

    Donald Trump claimed falsely that immigrants in Ohio were eating cats and dogs.

    Telling a big lie

    Politics was once thought of as an art. It was political philosopher Nicolo Machiavelli who, in 1532, wrote: “Those princes who have done great things … have known how to circumvent the intellect of men by craft.” Part of that craft was lying. Machiavelli argued that rulers should do whatever it takes to retain power, and this could include “being a great dissembler”.

    Politicians can lie by omission and by exaggeration – but sometimes, like Trump, they tell outright “big lies”. This term was introduced by Adolf Hitler in Mein Kampf, and the concept of the big lie was used by the Nazis to justify persecution of the Jews.

    A big lie is often defined as “a deliberate gross distortion of the truth used especially as a propaganda tactic”. These have, it is argued, the power to disrupt society.

    Political historian Timothy Snyder accused Trump of using the big lie technique in his denial of the 2020 election result.

    To work, according to Hitler, big lies must also be able “to awaken the imagination of the public through an appeal to their feelings”. They are not aimed at our rational selves, but our unconscious and emotional selves.

    Trump saying that immigrants are eating the dogs and cats in Springfield, Ohio, is not appealing to our rational system. It’s providing us with a vivid image, and trying to affect our emotional and unconscious system.

    As the sociobiologist Robert Trivers has pointed out, lying can give you a clear evolutionary advantage. Status, wealth and achievements are important in that great evolutionary battle, the survival of the genes – that’s why people (including Trump) lie about them. But Trivers says self-deceit can also be evolutionarily advantageous, because if you can convince yourself then it makes you more convincing to others, and therefore more effective.

    Perhaps Trump managed to convince himself that they really were eating the dogs and cats in Springfield. Or perhaps he thought to himself: “Plant the emotional image, that’s all you need for the faithful.”

    Attractive fictions might well engage us and sweep us along but, as Shakespeare suggested in the Merchant of Venice, many people hope the “truth will out” eventually. The last few months of the US election campaign suggest this may not always be true.

    Geoff Beattie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Why does Donald Trump tell such blatant lies? – https://theconversation.com/why-does-donald-trump-tell-such-blatant-lies-241192

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: UN Secretary-General’s remarks for the inauguration of the renovated Africa Hall

    Source: United Nations secretary general

    Dear Prime Minister Abiy, dear Chairperson Moussa Faki, dear friends and colleagues,

    It is an enormous pleasure to join all of you for this moment of history – in this house of history. 

    I thank all our partners – particularly the Government of Ethiopia, along with our own United Nations Economic Commission for Africa for the tremendous work.

    This hall is where Africa came together to give life to the Organization of African Unity, now the African Union. 

    Times were very different. 

    In 1961, when this Hall was inaugurated by Emperor Haile Selassie, only 26 African nations had achieved independence – many of them just months before.

    Today, Africa is a transformed continent.

    And to my mind, this renewed building symbolizes renewed hope and unity for Africa.

    This Hall is a bridge between Africa’s past and future – honouring shared struggles and achievements, while embracing common aspirations.  It is ubuntu.

    A state of the art 21st century facility that preserves the grandeur and history of this great continent.

    I also see it as an invitation for everyone to cooperate in pursuit of a better future, for Africa and for the world.

    Dear friends,

    As we celebrate this new beginning, we must also acknowledge the challenges ahead of us.

    Africa is a continent of hope. 

    But it faces challenges that are deeply rooted in history and are exacerbated by climate change, conflict and persistent poverty.

    And African women often bear the brunt of these hardships.

    Addressing these issues requires resolute action and renewed solidarity.

    Our global institutions were built at a time when most of Africa was under colonial rule.  

    But unlike this Hall with its 21st century innovations, many of these global institutions are stuck in those times, unable to respond to the aspirations and rights of the African people.

    Africa still has no permanent seat at the Security Council. And let’s hope it will be corrected soon.

    And international financial institutions often cannot provide African countries with the response they need – whether it is protection from strangling debt or from climate catastrophe they did not cause.

    We can only move forward if we also renew and update global institutions – by making them more effective, fair and inclusive.

    Last month, world leaders adopted the Pact for the Future, the Global Digital Compact and the Declaration on Future Generations.

    The Pact recognizes the need to reform the Security Council to make it representative, transparent, efficient, democratic and accountable.

    It also calls for groundbreaking reforms of the international financial architecture – including to massively scale-up affordable development and climate finance.

    And the Global Digital Compact includes the first truly universal agreement on the governance of Artificial Intelligence – giving every country a seat at the table, while supporting partnerships to bridge the digital divide and build AI capacity in developing countries and namely in Africa.

    We must now move forward together in implementing these historic agreements without delay.

    And we must include young people at every step of the way.

    Dear friends,

    For more than sixty years, the Africa Hall has been a symbol of the continent’s collective aspirations, a testament to its resilience, and a beacon of hope for entire generations.

    Today, as we step into this renewed space, let us also renew our pledge to work for the people of Africa and the world we need.

    May the debates and discussions here continue to lead towards greater peace, unity and prosperity for all on the African continent.

    And I thank you.

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Canadian Grain Commission compensates producers at 75% for unpaid deliveries to Global Food and Ingredients Inc.

    Source: Government of Canada News (2)

    Winnipeg, Manitoba (October 10, 2024) – Producers who were not paid for grain delivered to Global Food and Ingredients Inc. will be compensated for their eligible claims through the Canadian Grain Commission’s Safeguards for Grain Farmers Program.

    Winnipeg, Manitoba (October 21, 2024) – Producers who were not paid for grain delivered to Global Food and Ingredients Inc. will be compensated for their eligible claims through the Canadian Grain Commission’s Safeguards for Grain Farmers Program.

    Following a review of individual producer claims, the Canadian Grain Commission determined that there were 29 eligible claims totalling $2.661 million for unpaid deliveries to Global Food and Ingredients Inc. The company had $2 million in security available so individual payments will be prorated. As a result, producers will receive 75% compensation for their eligible claims. Cheques have been mailed to producers.

    In addition to this compensation, the Canadian Grain Commission is working with the receiver, Richter LLP, to realize on proceeds from the sale of the company’s grain inventory. Holders of outstanding primary elevator receipts may receive a portion of these funds through the Canadian Grain Commission at a later date, once the receivership has been concluded.

    Christianne Hacault

    Head of communications

    Canadian Grain Commission

    204-229-0128

    christianne.hacault@grainscanada.gc.ca

    Canadian Grain Commission

    The Canadian Grain Commission is the federal agency responsible for establishing and maintaining Canada’s grain quality standards. Its programs result in shipments of grain that consistently meet contract specifications for quality, safety and quantity. The Canadian Grain Commission regulates the grain industry to protect producers’ rights and ensure the integrity of grain transactions.

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI: Quadient Secures New c.$1 Million Contract with U.S. Federal Agency for Mail Modernization Project

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Quadient (Euronext Paris: QDT), a global automation platform powering secure and sustainable business connections, announced today that a large U.S. federal government agency has awarded Quadient a contract worth nearly $1 million for a comprehensive mail modernization project. This opportunity, secured through one of Quadient’s business partners, highlights Quadient’s commitment to fostering long-term customer relationships and developing strategic partnerships to better serve customers while reaching new businesses in need of process automation platforms.

    By maintaining close relationships with customers and regularly assessing their operations, Quadient identifies operational efficiencies and growth opportunities for its clients that it can meet with a wide array of solutions. The U.S. federal agency, which already operates nearly 60 Quadient mailing systems nationwide, recognized the potential to enhance its inbound mail process efficiency. Quadient, its partner and the federal agency were able to jointly identify additional needs leading to the proposal of a new mail processing solution for the organization.

    “We are thrilled to deepen our relationship with the U.S. administration through this modernization project,” said Alain Fairise, Chief Solution Officer, Mail Automation for Quadient. “This contract results from the excellent relationships our government team maintains with customers throughout their entire lifecycle, understanding their needs, and building trust through consistent performance and innovation. We continue to be laser-focused on providing innovative solutions that address our customers’ unique challenges, establishing and nurturing high-value partnerships to deliver exceptional results.”

    Quadient’s mail automation solutions have a proven track record of helping public organizations streamline their communications and improve service delivery. Quadient solutions enable these organizations to manage both traditional and electronic communications efficiently while ensuring compliance and full tracking of every interaction. This approach not only reduces operational costs but also enhances accuracy and speed, which are critical in highly regulated sectors like government services. Quadient’s close collaboration with its customers allows them to identify new opportunities for innovation and provide tailored solutions that support long-term growth and improved service outcomes.

    Quadient’s continued success with large public entities underscores the company’s strategic vision of offering integrated, innovative and compliant solutions that evolve with customer needs. By combining digital platforms with advanced mail automation systems, Quadient not only modernizes processes but also delivers comprehensive support to its clients. The company’s unique ability to cross-sell and up-sell multiple applications to new and existing customers, alongside trusted partner solutions, boosts lifetime value and is expected to drive about 70% of its growth by 2030.

    About Quadient®
    Quadient is a global automation platform powering secure and sustainable business connections through digital and physical channels. Quadient supports businesses of all sizes in their digital transformation and growth journey, unlocking operational efficiency and creating meaningful customer experiences. Listed in compartment B of Euronext Paris (QDT) and part of the CAC® Mid & Small and EnterNext® Tech 40 indices, Quadient shares are eligible for PEA-PME investing. For more information about Quadient, visit http://www.quadient.com.

    Contacts

    Sandy Armstrong, Sterling Kilgore Joe Scolaro, Quadient         
    Director of Media & Communications Global Press Relations Manager
    +1-630-699-8979 +1 203-301-3673
    sarmstrong@sterlingkilgore.com j.scolaro@quadient.com
       

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Government of Canada to launch Changing Narratives Fund

    Source: Government of Canada News (2)

    The Fund will support diverse communities and organizations in telling their stories and help them promote a diversity of voices in the media and cultural industries

    GATINEAU, October 21, 2024

    We all have a role to play in fighting discrimination and working toward a fairer, safer and more inclusive Canada. The Government of Canada is committed to empowering diverse voices in the media and cultural industries to ensure their experiences and perspectives are better represented.

    Today, the Honourable Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Canadian Heritage, announced the launch of the new Changing Narratives Fund, which will support incentives and initiatives to encourage greater participation by diverse communities in the media and cultural industries. It will also support the objectives of Canada’s Action Plan on Combatting Hate.

    As announced in Budget 2024, the Government of Canada is investing $10 million over three years ($3 million in 2024-25 and 2025-26, and $4 million in 2026-27) on this initiative. The funds, which will focus on Canada’s screen, media and journalism industries, will be made available through the Department of Canadian Heritage’s Changing Narratives Fund. This initiative is aimed at supporting diverse communities and organizations, including Indigenous, Black, racialized, ethno-religious minorities, 2SLGBTQI+ and persons with disabilities, have their stories, experiences and perspectives better represented in the media and cultural industries, which will allow Canadians to appreciate and understand Canada’s diversity.

    The Fund will support mentorship, training and professional development opportunities for diverse communities at all career stages, to encourage better participation in the media and cultural industries. It will also support internships and work placements to provide on-the-job training and experience.

    The Fund will be administered by three existing programs that will focus on the following industries:

    • Canada Media Fund for television, digital media, screen industry and cinematic production;
    • Canada Periodical Fund’s Collective Initiatives component and Local Journalism Initiative for magazines and community newspapers, written press, community radio, community television and online news services.

    Visit the Changing Narratives Fund webpage  regularly for details on the upcoming funding opportunities as programs prepare to launch their application processes.

    Visit the Canada Media Fund website to see details of its programming component, set to launch in November.

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park expansion project

    Source: Government of Canada News

    The St. Lawrence Estuary is a collective gem, both culturally and naturally. The project involves expanding the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park to help protect a larger part of its estuary. Some 400 km long and up to 350 m deep, it is one of the largest and deepest estuaries in the world.

    The proposed expansion would thus bring the Marine Park’s total surface area to 4,487 km2, i.e. 3.6 times its current size. It is proposed to expand the park’s boundaries to the river’s south shore, reaching the administrative regions of Chaudière-Appalaches and Bas-Saint-Laurent, from the municipality of Saint-Jean-Port-Joli to Bic National Park. On the river’s north shore, according to this proposal, the Marine Park would extend within the two administrative regions already bordering the park in its current configuration, i.e. Capitale-Nationale and Côte-Nord. The proposed expansion extends from the municipality of Petite-Rivière-Saint-François to Boisvert Point in the municipality of Longue-Rive.

    The expansion project involves 4 administrative regions, 8 RCMs and 27 coastal municipalities. The Wolastoqiyik Wahsipekuk First Nation community would border the enlarged Marine Park, in the same way that the Essipit Innu First Nation community does under the park’s current boundaries. When combined with the current Marine Park, the expanded park would concern a total of 37 municipalities and 2 adjacent Indigenous communities. The number of citizens residing in a municipality bordering the Marine Park would rise from 19,000 to over 125,500.

    As is the case for the current Marine Park, the planned expansion includes the water column and the seabeds. The area extends to the normal high-water marks, i.e. the maritime boundary delimitation of Quebec public lands. Islands, private property and maritime infrastructure (ports and marinas) are excluded from the proposal. For maritime facilities that do not have a submerged shore lot, a 25 m radius exclusion around infrastructure is planned.

    Elements of Ecological Interest

    In the estuary, the salt waters of the Atlantic mix with the fresh waters of the St. Lawrence, giving rise to a mosaic of habitats that support a wide array of fauna and flora. The territory proposed for the enlargement represents a tremendous ecological treasure. Although a number of elements are of ecological interest, the project would especially help strengthen protection for belugas, rorquals and coastal herbaceous areas. The targeted expansion area includes:

    ·        The beluga’s entire critical summer habitat;

    ·        Important feeding grounds for rorquals; and

    ·        Fragile coastal habitats such as salt marshes and eelgrass beds.

                                                                                                                         -30-

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Day 38 – Strike Update October 20, 2024

    Source: US GOIAM Union

    It’s so important to base your decisions on facts rather than rumors or speculation, especially when it comes to something as crucial as voting for your future. Whether you choose to accept or reject the contract, your Union is committed to making sure you have the correct information to make a decision that best serves you and your family. Please take the time to review the details of the entire proposal thoroughly – the September 12th and October 18th offers combined – and reach out to your Union officials, Stewards, or financial advisors if you have questions. Your decision matters and it’s essential that it’s made with clear, accurate information. The power is in your hands; make it count.

    Prepared by an economist, the document linked below offers a clear breakdown of how your earnings can grow over the life of this agreement. It includes examples of wage increases for each Labor Grade at max pay, covering both base pay and the guaranteed 4% AMPP. This guide is meant to help members understand the impact of compounding wages.

    Our goal is to combat some of the misinformation circulating on social media and in the press. Please use this resource to make an informed decision based on facts, not rumors.

    If you cannot access this document, you can find it on the website at https://www.ourfutureourfight2024.com/contract-2024 along with other one-pagers explaining what’s being offered in the 2024 IAM/Boeing contract proposal we are voting on Wednesday, October 23, 2024.

    Wages and Guaranteed AMPP Payments Over the Life of the Agreement by Labor Grade at Max Pay

    In Unity, Your Union Negotiating Committee

    Share and Follow:

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Quigley Statement on Tenth Anniversary of Laquan McDonald Shooting

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Mike Quigley (IL-05)

    U.S. Representative Mike Quigley (IL-05) released the following statement in recognition of the 10th anniversary of the Laquan McDonald police shooting:

    “Ten years ago today, 17-year-old Laquan McDonald was shot and killed by a Chicago police officer. Laquan’s death shocked our city and led to Chicagoans demanding change from law enforcement and accountability from Chicago’s leaders. Today, I join all those still mourning Laquan’s death and still demanding change.

    “Laquan’s murder is part of a long history of Black men being senselessly killed by police officers. His name is now uttered along with Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Adam Toledo, Eric Garner, George Floyd, and too many more.

    “Going for a jog, a walk, a drive, or simply existing in your own home should never be a death sentence. The only remedy is to enact transformative changes to government and law enforcement systems that have failed Black communities for too long.

    “To that end, after ten years, it is simply unacceptable that the Chicago Police Department has achieved only seven percent compliance with the Justice Department’s consent decree. The residents of Chicago have demanded – and deserve – better. I firmly believe that most police officers seek to do right by their communities but too many bad apples continue to color communities’ relationships with law enforcement. When bad officers erode public trust, they harm the reputation of their fellow good officers.

    “Unconscious bias and systemic racism must be rooted out. Bad officers must be held accountable for their actions. We owe it to Laquan to build a future that reflects our founding belief in equal justice under the law.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Strengthening support for access to justice services in both official languages in Quebec

    Source: Government of Canada News (2)

    October 21, 2024—Montréal, Quebec—Department of Justice Canada

    Access to justice is key to increasing Canadians’ confidence in their justice system. By improving the ability of organizations to offer legal services in French and English across the country, the Government of Canada continues to fulfill its commitment to support official language minority communities.

    Today, the Honourable Marc Miller, Member of Parliament for Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Sœurs, on behalf of the Honourable Arif Virani, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, announced the allocation of $2,340,855 over five years (2023–2028) through the Access to Justice in Both Official Languages Support Fund to support Éducaloi in the delivery of services to English-speaking Quebecers.

    The funding announced today supports the “Access to Justice for English-speaking Quebecers: A Capacity Building and Collective Impact Approach” project. These funds help Éducaloi improve services to English-speaking citizens, including vulnerable and hard-to-reach clienteles. Through the development of plain-language legal information tools and educational resources in English, this project addresses the needs of Quebec’s official language minority community. Website accessibility, more active communication on social media, informative workshops, and an advertising campaign will help increase access to justice in both official languages. The funds will also enable Éducaloi—through its network of partners—to strengthen the capacity of other organizations to offer legal information services in English.

    Founded in 2000, Éducaloi develops and provides legal information in all formats and in a way that is easily understood by all audiences. Its mission is to inform Quebec citizens about the law, their rights, and their obligations.

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: expert reaction to study looking at a home-based transcranial direct current stimulation treatment (tDCS) and major depressive disorder

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    A study published in Nature Medicine looks at home-based brain stimulation as a possible treatment for major depressive disorder. 

    Dr Julian Mutz, King’s Prize Research Fellow, King’s College London, said:

    “Depression is a common mental health condition that carries a significant disease burden.  While medication and psychotherapy are effective, they do not work for every patient and sometimes cause unwanted side effects.  Non-invasive brain stimulation techniques, such as transcranial magnetic or electrical stimulation, offer alternative treatment options.  A barrier to more widespread use is the need for frequent visits to the clinic, usually five times a week for several weeks.  There is considerable interest in transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) due to its potential for home-based use.  However, data from randomised clinical trials are limited.  Prior studies have supported its feasibility but more data are needed to establish efficacy, an important gap that this study addresses.  In this phase II trial of 174 patients, the authors show that tDCS was efficacious over a ten-week period, a longer duration than prior home-based trials.  Nearly half of the patients receiving tDCS achieved clinical remission, compared to just over 20% in the control group.  The treatment also showed a good safety profile, which will provide reassurance to both clinicians and patients.  Given that two of the largest randomised controlled trials of tDCS yielded negative results, this trial will undoubtedly contribute to the ongoing discussions about tDCS as a treatment option for depression.

    “This is a well-designed trial of tDCS, with sample sizes comparable to those of the largest tDCS trials in the clinic.  The trial had appropriate procedures in place to mitigate potential risks of bias and the authors carefully monitored and reported on adverse events and safety.  The assessment of efficacy was not limited to clinician ratings but also included patient reported outcomes.

    “tDCS is different from electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).  ECT involves inducing a seizure and is applied under general anaesthesia.  ECT is generally reserved for the most difficult-to-treat patients when other treatment approaches have been unsuccessful.  tDCS applies mild electrical stimulation to the scalp while the patient is fully awake.”

    Prof Jonathan Roiser, Professor of Neuroscience & Mental Health, UCL, said:

    “This paper reports on a moderately large clinical trial of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) for depression.  tDCS is a non-invasive brain stimulation method that has been tested in many previous depression trials – with mixed success – and involves delivering a mild electric current to a specific brain region (often, as in this study, to the prefrontal cortex, with electrodes placed on the forehead).  tDCS was delivered several times per week for 10 weeks, for half an hour each time.  In the “sham” (i.e. placebo) group, patients received only very brief stimulation to mimic the sensation of the active tDCS on the skin, in an attempt to introduce blinding.  What was relatively new in this study was the use of a commercially available device patients could use at home by themselves, with remote support from the study team.  Patients were told to use the machine five times each week for the first three weeks, reduced to three times each week for the remaining seven weeks.  Around two-thirds of the patients were taking antidepressant medication.  Some of the study investigators had a financial interest in the company that makes the tDCS device.

    “On average, both groups had quite substantial reductions in depressive symptoms (rated by the research team using a standard clinical interview) over 10 weeks.  However, there was a greater reduction in the active stimulation group, around half of whom got completely better.  This improvement was statistically better than in the sham group, around one-quarter of whom got completely better.  The size of the difference was in the small-to-moderate range, which is quite similar to trials of antidepressant medication.  The major challenge in interpreting this otherwise promising finding relates to problems with blinding: around three-quarters of the active stimulation group correctly guessed their treatment allocation, while less than half did so in the sham stimulation group.  This was probably due to minor side effects caused by the stimulation device; mostly skin redness, which occurred in nearly two-thirds of those receiving active stimulation, but also skin irritation and cognitive problems (trouble concentrating) in a small number of patients.  If there was clear skin redness on the forehead, it is possible that the researchers conducting the clinical interviews might also have also guessed the treatment allocation.  It is worth noting that a couple of the patients had more serious side effects, specifically skin burns which may have been caused by incorrect use of the device.”

    ‘Home-based transcranial direct current stimulation treatment for major depressive disorder: a fully remote phase 2 randomized sham-controlled trial’ by Rachel D. Woodham et al. was published in Nature Medicine at 16:00 UK time on Monday 21 October 2024.

    DOI: 10.1038/s41591-024-03305-y

    Declared interests

    Dr Julian Mutz: “I do not have any COIs to report.  I have co-authored publications with the senior author in the past, but have not been involved in any collaboration recently.”

    Prof Jonathan Roiser: “No interests to declare.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI USA: QUIGLEY, DURBIN, DUCKWORTH ANNOUNCE MORE THAN $81 MILLION IN ADDITIONAL FEDERAL FUNDING FOR THE CREATE PROGRAM

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Mike Quigley (IL-05)

    U.S. Representative Mike Quigley (D-IL-05) and U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) announced $81,301,065 in federal funding through the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) INFRA (Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight & Highway Projects) Program for the Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency (CREATE) Program, which aims to reduce traffic delays, increase rail junction safety, and improve mobility throughout Chicago.

    DOT’s INFRA Grant Program provides federal funding for large projects of regional significance and is funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that the lawmakers worked to pass in 2021.

    Last month, Quigley, Durbin, and Duckworth announced $209 million in federal funding for the CREATE Program through DOT’s Mega Grant Program, bringing the total with today’s announced funding to $291,179,049.

    “The CREATE Program is fundamentally changing rail operations in Chicago for both commuters and freight. Last month, we secured $209 million in funding for this program. Today’s announcement marks another significant step toward fulfilling CREATE’s mission to improve safety, alleviate congestion, and boost mobility throughout our city,” said Quigley.

    “Today’s additional funding announcement is a major investment in the future of our transportation infrastructure. Chicagoans will be better connected because of the CREATE Program, which will improve the safety and quality of our rail system and roadways,” said Durbin. “Senator Duckworth, members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation, and I have long supported these investments, and I’m glad to see these federal dollars go toward improving safety and alleviating congestion in a region that desperately needs it.”

    “Investing in our transportation infrastructure is about growing our economy and making it easier, faster, safer and more efficient so people and goods can get where they need to go,” Duckworth said. “This significant federal investment in the CREATE Program—which Senator Durbin, members of the Illinois Delegation and I have been championing for years—will help us modernize our rail system for all Chicagoans while supporting good-paying South Side jobs and strengthening our region’s economy.”

    The CREATE Program brings together the City of Chicago, the State of Illinois, the U.S. Department of Transportation, Metra, Amtrak, and the nation’s freight railroads in a partnership to eliminate transit bottlenecks, boost the economy, and improve overall safety of the Chicagoland area.

    Today’s announced funding will advance the 75th Street Corridor Improvement Project, a three-mile elevated rail corridor on Chicago’s South Side, which approximately 90 freight trains and 30 Metra commuter trains use daily. The project will reconfigure track segments and signals at Belt Junction, add a third track to the Norfolk Southern line, replace and restore 14 aging bridge and viaduct structures, and implement mobility improvements on surface streets throughout the corridor.

    Quigely, Durbin, and Duckworth have long championed rail improvements, having helped secure $132 million in federal funding to begin this project in 2018.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Celebrating rural success: Minister Sigurdson

    Source: Government of Canada regional news

    “Small Business Week allows us to celebrate small business and community success in rural Alberta. Rural communities have long played a crucial role in Alberta’s growth and economy. To support them, we continue to implement our Economic Development in Rural Alberta Plan, a five-year commitment to foster rural economic growth in Alberta with a focus on rural business supports and entrepreneurship.

    “One of the plan’s key initiatives is the Small Community Opportunity Program. Through this program, we pledged $6 million to provide financial backing for Indigenous and small communities to tackle challenges and tap into opportunities to grow their local economic footprint.

    “Through the first round of program funding in 2023-24, we awarded up to $3 million for 43 projects across the province that are on track to develop their local economies by building capacity in the agriculture and small business sectors. Of these projects, 29 were awarded to small communities, three to Indigenous communities and 11 to the non-profit sector.

    “Through the plan’s Capacity Building Grant Project, rural economic development organizations like Young Agrarians and Alberta Women Entrepreneurs also received funding to help teach business skills and offer training and mentorship opportunities.

    “I encourage all Albertans to join me in celebrating our rural businesses, agricultural societies and the hard-working rural residents who strengthen Alberta’s agriculture, agri-food and agri-based products sector. When our rural communities succeed, Alberta is made stronger.”

    Related information

    • Alberta’s Rural Economic Development
    • Small Community Opportunity Program 2023-24 Grant Recipients

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