Source: United States Navy
IWO TO, Japan – U.S. Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technicians assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) 5 participated in Iwo To Live Mine Exercise (MINEX) 2025, a bilateral mine countermeasures (MCM) exercise hosted annually by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) in the vicinity of Iwo To, Japan, May 29 to June 24.
Source: The Conversation – USA (3) – By Diane Winston, Professor and Knight Center Chair in Media & Religion, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Jimmy Swaggart, one of the most popular and enduring of the 1980s televangelists, died on July 1, 2025, but his legacy lives.
Along with Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, he drew an audience in the millions, amassed a personal fortune and introduced a new generation of Americans to a potent mix of religion and politics.
Swaggart was an old-time evangelist whose focus was “saving souls.” But he also preached on conservative social issues, warning followers about the evils of abortion, homosexuality and godless communism.
[Swaggart also denounced] what he called “false cults,” including Catholicism, Judaism and Mormonism. In fact, his denunciations of other religions, as well as his attacks on rival preachers, made him a more polarizing figure than his politicized brethren.
As a reporter, I covered Swaggart in the 1980s. Now, as a scholar of American religion, I argue that while Swaggart did not build institutions like Falwell’s Moral Majority or Robertson’s 700 Club, he helped to spread right-wing positions on social issues, such as sexual orientation and abortion, and to shape the image of televangelists in popular culture..
Born into a hardscrabble life in a small Louisiana town, Swaggart grew up alongside his cousins Jerry Lee Lewis, the future rockabilly pioneer, and future country singer Mickey Gilley.
All three loved music and singing. They polished their playing on an uncle’s piano and sneaked into African American nightclubs to hear the jazz and blues forbidden by their parents.
While Gilley and Lewis turned their musical talent into recording and performing careers, Swaggart felt called to the ministry. He dropped out of high school, married at 17, began preaching at 20 and was ordained at 26.
He was licensed by the Assemblies of God, a Pentecostal denomination that believes the Holy Spirit endows believers with spiritual gifts that include speaking in tongues and faith healing.
Pentecostals were nicknamed Holy Rollers because of their tendency to shake, quake and roll on the floor when feeling the Holy Spirit. Their preachers excelled at rousing audiences’ ardor, and Swaggart commanded the stage better than most. He paced, pounced and poured forth sweat while begging listeners to turn from sin and accept Jesus.
Starting small, he drew crowds while preaching on a flatbed trailer throughout the South. His following grew, and in 1969 he opened the Family Worship Center in Baton Rouge.
At capacity, the church held 10,000 worshippers, who represented a broad swath of America: young girls and grannies, white and Black, bankers and farmers. His sermons began calmly but built to a fever pitch. CBS newsman Dan Rather once called him the “country’s greatest speaker.”
During services, Swaggart also sang and played piano. In 1982, Newsweek magazine noted his musical chops, naming him the “King of Honky Tonk Heaven.” His music crossed gospel, country and honky-tonk – songs with a strong rhythmic beat – and he sold 17 million albums over his lifetime.
By 1975, Swaggart’s on-stage charisma powered the launch of a television ministry that would reach millions within a decade. Viewers were captivated by his soulful tunes and fire-and-brimstone sermons. At its height, Swaggart’s show was televised in 140 countries, including Peru, the Philippines and South Africa.
His ministry also became the largest mail-order business in Louisiana, selling books, tapes, T-shirts and biblical memorabilia. Thanks to the US$150 million raised annually from donations and sales, Swaggart lived in an opulent mansion, possessed a private jet previously owned by the Rockefellers, sported a yellow gold vintage Rolex and drove a Jaguar.
Swaggart disliked competition and had a history of humiliating rival preachers. Wary of the Rev. Marvin Gorman, a Pentecostal minister whose church also was in Louisiana, Swaggart accused the man of adultery. Gorman admitted his infidelity and was defrocked.
Gorman had heard rumors about Swaggart’s own indiscretions, and he and his son decided to tail the famed evangelist. In 1988, they caught Swaggart at a motel with a prostitute, and Gorman reported the incident to Swaggart’s denomination. He also gave news outlets photos of Swaggart and the prostitute. In a tearful, televised apology, Swaggart pleaded for a second chance.
While his fans were willing, the Assemblies of God had conditions: Swaggart received the standard two-year suspension for sexual immorality. Defying the ruling, Swaggart went back to work after three months, and the denomination defrocked him.
Swaggart might have succeeded as an independent minister, but in 1991 the police stopped his car for driving on the wrong side of the road. Inside they found the preacher with a prostitute. This time, Swaggart did not ask for forgiveness. Instead, he informed his congregation, “The Lord told me it’s flat none of your business.”
Afterward, Swaggart never regained his former standing. His mail-order business dried up, donations fell, and attendance at services cratered. But up until his death, he kept on, in his own words, as an “old-fashioned, Holy Ghost-filled, shouting, weeping, soul-winning, Gospel-preaching preacher.”
Swaggart, like other 1980s televangelists, brought right-wing politics into American homes. But unlike Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, Swaggart was less interested in winning elections than saving souls. In fact, when Robertson considered a presidential run in 1988, Swaggart initially tried to dissuade him – then changed his mind and supported him.
Swaggart’s calls for a return to conservative Christian norms live on – not just in Sunday sermons but also in today’s world of tradwives, abortion restrictions and calls to repeal gay marriage. His music lives on, too. The day before he died, the Southern Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame inducted him as a member.
But his legacy also survives in popular culture. In recent years, both reality television and scripted series have starred preachers shaped in the image of Swaggart and his peers. Most exaggerate his worst characteristics for shock and comedic effect.
“Preachers of L.A.,” a 2013 reality show that profiled six Los Angeles pastors, featured blinged-out ministers whose sermons mixed hip-hop with the Bible. The fictional “Greenleaf” followed the scandals of an extended family’s Memphis megachurch, while “The Righteous Gemstones,” a dark spoof of Southern preachers, turned a family ministry into a site for sex, murder and moneymaking.
But these imitations can’t match the reality. Swaggart was a larger-than-life minister whose story – from small-town wannabe to disgraced pastor, to preaching to those who would listen – had it all: sex, politics, music and religion.
For those who want a taste of the real thing, The King of Honky Tonk Heaven lives on. You can see his old services and Bible studies streaming daily on his network.
Diane Winston does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. Jimmy Swaggart’s rise and fall shaped the landscape of American televangelism – https://theconversation.com/jimmy-swaggarts-rise-and-fall-shaped-the-landscape-of-american-televangelism-260377
Source: The Conversation – USA (3) – By John C. Quindry, Professor of Integrative Physiology and Athletic Training, University of Montana
As the summer’s sunny days take hold, many people turn to outdoor exercise.
But in parts of North America, pleasant weather often aligns with wildfire season. As summers get drier, both the frequency and the intensity of wildfires have grown, producing more polluting smoke.
A fire’s smoke can spread across several states, leaving people at risk for the health consequences of air pollution.
Exercisers and health experts are asking whether the benefits of outdoor exercise are negated when the skies are hazy with wildfire smoke.
Air pollution’s components depend on its source. For instance, traffic-related air pollution consists largely of vehicle exhaust and brake and tire wear, while industrial pollution contains significant amounts of ozone.
Wildfires produce huge quantities of airborne particles, also called fine particulate matter. These particles are less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter – about a tenth the size of a pollen grain.
Particles of that size, which air quality experts refer to as PM2.5, raise serious health concerns because they are tiny enough to be carried to the air sacs in the deepest parts of the lungs. From there, they can cross into the blood stream, leading to bodywide inflammation – essentially, the immune system’s fight response – which can promote or aggravate multiple chronic illnesses.
Research shows that long-term exposure to wildfire smoke is linked to lung diseases, heart disease and other conditions. Since these illnesses take decades to develop, scientists think that the health problems caused by wildfire smoke inhalation accumulate after years of exposure.
My research team and others are investigating how short-term smoke exposure might also influence long-term health outcomes such as heart and lung diseases.
To estimate the effects of exposure from a single fire event, environmental scientists can study a variety of factors such as immune system markers of inflammation, signs of physiologic stress and changes in heart, blood vessel and nervous system function. How exactly smoke exposures worsen disease is still poorly understood, but these immediate responses in the body may also be linked to developing chronic disease.
In a study published in June 2025, my colleagues and I examined these outcomes in healthy participants who exercised during a wildfire simulation in our air inhalation lab. The air was filtered to contain high concentrations of PM2.5 particles produced by burning local pine trees – the equivalent to being downwind of a major wildfire.
We asked 20 generally healthy participants in their mid-20s to exercise on a stationary cycle at about half their maximum effort for two hours while breathing the smoke. We found that participants’ blood vessel and nervous system function declined immediately after their smoky exercise session. These stress indicators bounced back to normal within an hour of returning to a clean air environment.
Half of our study participants had a heightened response to physiological stress, which scientists think may signify a heightened risk of chronic diseases. We selected them based on a stress test administered before the experiment: Specifically, their blood pressure spiked when their hands were dipped in ice water for two minutes. The stress-responsive participants experienced significantly stronger declines in blood vessel and nervous system function than people in the typical response group, suggesting that exercise in a very smoky climate may affect some people more than others.
While it isn’t possible to predict who is most at risk, our study underscores the need to think carefully about exposure to wildfire smoke.
Unfortunately, precise air quality thresholds based on factors such as age and medical condition do not exist. But some simple guidelines and considerations can help.
The first step is to check the air quality where you live at the government website AirNow. It uses a scale called the Air Quality Index, created by the Environmental Protection Agency in 1999 – which ranks air quality regionally on a scale from 0 to 500. The website is searchable by ZIP code. The reading for a given region reflects the contribution of several pollutants, including PM2.5 levels.
When the air quality is ranked “good,” the decision is simple – get out there and enjoy the outdoors. And there is little debate that people should generally limit their outdoor exposure when air quality levels cross into the “unhealthy” threshold – or at least be aware that doing so poses health risks.
The risks and benefits of exercising outdoors when air quality is in the “moderate” and “unhealthy for sensitive” ranges are less clear, particularly for people who don’t have chronic health conditions.
One major factor in deciding when and whether to exercise outdoors is your health status. AirNow recommends that people with chronic conditions err on the side of caution and remain indoors when smoke levels cause the air quality rating to approach the “unhealthy for sensitive” category.
That advice may be obvious for people with diagnosed lung conditions such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, given that particles from wildfire smoke aggravate the lungs. But studies suggest it’s true for milder disease states, too. For example, a large study of people with elevated but not clinically high blood pressure indicated that those who lived downwind of air pollution were more likely to develop high blood pressure and, ultimately, heart disease.
Another consideration is the time of day. As the afternoon heats up, the column of air we breathe expands, diluting the particulate counts. And afternoon winds frequently blow stagnant air out of the valleys and downtown areas where particulate matter can concentrate during the cooler parts of the day. That means evening workouts may be safer than early-morning ones, though direct confirmation with air quality readings is key.
Also important is the intensity at which you exercise. Higher-intensity exercise means deeper, more frequent breathing, which likely elevates your exposure to harmful air. So you might choose a shorter jog over a longer run when air quality is moderate or poor.
My lab is currently working to quantify how much pollution a person breathes in while exercising in smoky conditions, based on their exercise intensity, exercise duration and local particulate counts. This line of research is still in its infancy, but our early findings and other published research suggest that when wildfire smoke puts air quality into the “moderate” and “unhealthy for sensitive” range, people can dial down the effects of smoke exposure by decreasing their exercise intensity or the time they spend outside.
John C. Quindry received funding from the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service and the National Institutes of Health – INBRE/RAIN.
– ref. Wildfire smoke can make your outdoor workout hazardous to your health – an exercise scientist explains how to gauge the risk – https://theconversation.com/wildfire-smoke-can-make-your-outdoor-workout-hazardous-to-your-health-an-exercise-scientist-explains-how-to-gauge-the-risk-255812
Source: The Conversation – USA (3) – By Pooja Shree Chettiar, Ph.D. Candidate in Medical Sciences, Texas A&M University
Recently, I found myself pouring my heart out, not to a human, but to a chatbot named Wysa on my phone. It nodded – virtually – asked me how I was feeling and gently suggested trying breathing exercises.
As a neuroscientist, I couldn’t help but wonder: Was I actually feeling better, or was I just being expertly redirected by a well-trained algorithm? Could a string of code really help calm a storm of emotions?
Artificial intelligence-powered mental health tools are becoming increasingly popular – and increasingly persuasive. But beneath their soothing prompts lie important questions: How effective are these tools? What do we really know about how they work? And what are we giving up in exchange for convenience?
Of course it’s an exciting moment for digital mental health. But understanding the trade-offs and limitations of AI-based care is crucial.
AI-based therapy is a relatively new player in the digital therapy field. But the U.S. mental health app market has been booming for the past few years, from apps with free tools that text you back to premium versions with an added feature that gives prompts for breathing exercises.
Headspace and Calm are two of the most well-known meditation and mindfulness apps, offering guided meditations, bedtime stories and calming soundscapes to help users relax and sleep better. Talkspace and BetterHelp go a step further, offering actual licensed therapists via chat, video or voice. The apps Happify and Moodfit aim to boost mood and challenge negative thinking with game-based exercises.
Somewhere in the middle are chatbot therapists like Wysa and Woebot, using AI to mimic real therapeutic conversations, often rooted in cognitive behavioral therapy. These apps typically offer free basic versions, with paid plans ranging from US$10 to $100 per month for more comprehensive features or access to licensed professionals.
While not designed specifically for therapy, conversational tools like ChatGPT have sparked curiosity about AI’s emotional intelligence.
Some users have turned to ChatGPT for mental health advice, with mixed outcomes, including a widely reported case in Belgium where a man died by suicide after months of conversations with a chatbot. Elsewhere, a father is seeking answers after his son was fatally shot by police, alleging that distressing conversations with an AI chatbot may have influenced his son’s mental state. These cases raise ethical questions about the role of AI in sensitive situations.
Whether your brain is spiraling, sulking or just needs a nap, there’s a chatbot for that. But can AI really help your brain process complex emotions? Or are people just outsourcing stress to silicon-based support systems that sound empathetic?
And how exactly does AI therapy work inside our brains?
Most AI mental health apps promise some flavor of cognitive behavioral therapy, which is basically structured self-talk for your inner chaos. Think of it as Marie Kondo-ing, the Japanese tidying expert known for helping people keep only what “sparks joy.” You identify unhelpful thought patterns like “I’m a failure,” examine them, and decide whether they serve you or just create anxiety.
But can a chatbot help you rewire your thoughts? Surprisingly, there’s science suggesting it’s possible. Studies have shown that digital forms of talk therapy can reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, especially for mild to moderate cases. In fact, Woebot has published peer-reviewed research showing reduced depressive symptoms in young adults after just two weeks of chatting.
These apps are designed to simulate therapeutic interaction, offering empathy, asking guided questions and walking you through evidence-based tools. The goal is to help with decision-making and self-control, and to help calm the nervous system.
The neuroscience behind cognitive behavioral therapy is solid: It’s about activating the brain’s executive control centers, helping us shift our attention, challenge automatic thoughts and regulate our emotions.
The question is whether a chatbot can reliably replicate that, and whether our brains actually believe it.
“I had a rough week,” a friend told me recently. I asked her to try out a mental health chatbot for a few days. She told me the bot replied with an encouraging emoji and a prompt generated by its algorithm to try a calming strategy tailored to her mood. Then, to her surprise, it helped her sleep better by week’s end.
As a neuroscientist, I couldn’t help but ask: Which neurons in her brain were kicking in to help her feel calm?
This isn’t a one-off story. A growing number of user surveys and clinical trials suggest that cognitive behavioral therapy-based chatbot interactions can lead to short-term improvements in mood, focus and even sleep. In randomized studies, users of mental health apps have reported reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety – outcomes that closely align with how in-person cognitive behavioral therapy influences the brain.
Several studies show that therapy chatbots can actually help people feel better. In one clinical trial, a chatbot called “Therabot” helped reduce depression and anxiety symptoms by nearly half – similar to what people experience with human therapists. Other research, including a review of over 80 studies, found that AI chatbots are especially helpful for improving mood, reducing stress and even helping people sleep better. In one study, a chatbot outperformed a self-help book in boosting mental health after just two weeks.
While people often report feeling better after using these chatbots, scientists haven’t yet confirmed exactly what’s happening in the brain during those interactions. In other words, we know they work for many people, but we’re still learning how and why.
Apps like Wysa have earned FDA Breakthrough Device designation, a status that fast-tracks promising technologies for serious conditions, suggesting they may offer real clinical benefit. Woebot, similarly, runs randomized clinical trials showing improved depression and anxiety symptoms in new moms and college students.
While many mental health apps boast labels like “clinically validated” or “FDA approved,” those claims are often unverified. A review of top apps found that most made bold claims, but fewer than 22% cited actual scientific studies to back them up.
In addition, chatbots collect sensitive information about your mood metrics, triggers and personal stories. What if that data winds up in third-party hands such as advertisers, employers or hackers, a scenario that has occurred with genetic data? In a 2023 breach, nearly 7 million users of the DNA testing company 23andMe had their DNA and personal details exposed after hackers used previously leaked passwords to break into their accounts. Regulators later fined the company more than $2 million for failing to protect user data.
Unlike clinicians, bots aren’t bound by counseling ethics or privacy laws regarding medical information. You might be getting a form of cognitive behavioral therapy, but you’re also feeding a database.
And sure, bots can guide you through breathing exercises or prompt cognitive reappraisal, but when faced with emotional complexity or crisis, they’re often out of their depth. Human therapists tap into nuance, past trauma, empathy and live feedback loops. Can an algorithm say “I hear you” with genuine understanding? Neuroscience suggests that supportive human connection activates social brain networks that AI can’t reach.
So while in mild to moderate cases bot-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy may offer short-term symptom relief, it’s important to be aware of their limitations. For the time being, pairing bots with human care – rather than replacing it – is the safest move.
Pooja Shree Chettiar does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. The AI therapist will see you now: Can chatbots really improve mental health? – https://theconversation.com/the-ai-therapist-will-see-you-now-can-chatbots-really-improve-mental-health-259360
Source: The Conversation – USA (3) – By Danielle Wilhour, Assistant Professor of Neurology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
“Is it just me, or is there a storm coming?”
If you are one of the 39 million Americans in the U.S. living with migraines, there’s a good chance an intense headache will begin when the weather shifts.
You aren’t alone. Studies find 30% to 50% of people with migraines identify some type of weather change as a trigger, making it the most commonly reported migraine source.
Yet, it’s also one of the most puzzling.
As a neurologist and headache specialist practicing in Colorado, a place with frequent weather shifts, patients often tell me that weather is one of their biggest migraine triggers. The results can disrupt work, school and social plans, and create a sense of helplessness.
Doctors still don’t fully understand why some brains are more sensitive to environmental changes.
What we do know is that people with migraines have especially sensitive nervous systems, and that certain environmental changes – like shifts in air pressure, temperature, humidity and air quality – can activate pathways in the brain that lead to pain.
Weather triggers can vary from person to person, but there are a few common migraine culprits:
Barometric pressure changes, or changes in atmospheric pressure, are among the most commonly cited triggers.
When a storm system moves in, the air pressure drops. Some scientists believe this change may affect the pressure inside your head or how blood vessels in your brain dilate and constrict.
One theory is that changes in barometric pressure may cause a small imbalance in the pressure between the inside of your skull and the outside environment. That might directly stimulate pain-sensitive nerves in the head, triggering inflammation and the start of a migraine.
Others point to inflammation, the way the brain processes sensory input, and changes in serotonin levels – which play a key role in activating migraine.
Temperature extremes, with very hot or very cold days, or sudden changes in temperature, can throw off the body’s internal balance. High humidity or rapid shifts in moisture levels can have a similar effect.
Air pollutants like ozone and nitrogen dioxide can cause inflammation in the nerves that play a role in migraines.
Bright sunlight can also be especially bothersome, likely due to heightened sensitivity to light and an overactive visual processing system in the brain.
Lightning and strong winds may also be linked to migraine attacks in certain individuals.
In short, weather changes can act as stressors on a brain that’s already wired to be more sensitive. The exact triggers and responses vary from person to person, but the research suggests that the interaction between weather and our biology plays a significant role for a subset of patients with migraines.
You can’t change the weather, but you can be proactive. Here are a few tips to help weather-proof your migraine routine:
Track your migraines and watch the forecast: Use a migraine diary or app to track when attacks occur, along with weather conditions. Patterns may emerge, such as attacks a day before rain or during temperature changes, that will allow you to adjust your schedule or medication plan.
Develop healthy eating, sleeping and exercise habits: Dehydration, poor sleep and skipped meals can magnify the effects of weather triggers, so keeping your body on an even keel helps reduce vulnerability. Regular exercise and a healthy diet can also help.
Create a migraine-friendly environment: On days when the sun is harsh or the humidity is high, stay inside. Sunglasses, eye masks or even blue-light glasses can be helpful. Some people find that certain earplugs are able to reduce pressure changes felt in the middle ear.
Try meditation, mindfulness techniques or biofeedback, which teaches people to moderate their physiological responses, such as muscle responses and breathing. These strategies can help your nervous system become less reactive over time, which can be especially helpful when dealing with uncontrollable triggers like weather.
Consider pretreatment: If you know a storm is likely to trigger your migraines, you can keep rescue medications close by or even preemptively treat yourself during weather events.
Look into preventive treatment: If weather triggers frequent migraines, talk to your health care provider about preventive treatments – medications, supplements or neuromodulation devices – which can be used on a regular basis to reduce migraine occurrence.
It’s important to remember that while weather can be a trigger, it’s rarely the only one. Migraine is usually the result of a perfect storm of factors: genetic susceptibility, hormones, stress, sleep, food and, yes, the weather.
That’s why identifying your personal triggers and building a plan, if necessary, with the support of a medical provider, can make a big difference in managing migraines.
Weather-related migraine can be one of the most frustrating triggers because it feels completely out of your hands. However, with knowledge, tracking and the right treatment strategies, you can take back a sense of control.
Danielle Wilhour does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. How weather changes cause migraines – a neurologist explains the triggers and what you can do to ease the pain – https://theconversation.com/how-weather-changes-cause-migraines-a-neurologist-explains-the-triggers-and-what-you-can-do-to-ease-the-pain-258899
Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Anurag Srivastava, Professor of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University
It’s hard work soaking up sunlight to generate clean electricity. After about 25 to 30 years, solar panels wear out. Over the years, heating and cooling cycles stress the materials. Small cracks develop, precipitation corrodes the frame and layers of materials can start to peel apart.
In 2023, about 90% of old or faulty solar panels in the U.S. ended up in landfills. Millions of panels have been installed worldwide over the past few decades – and by about 2030, so many will be ready to retire that they could cover about 3,000 football fields.
As an electrical engineer who has studied many aspects of renewable energy, recycling solar panels seems like a smart idea, but it’s complicated. Built to withstand years of wind and weather, solar panels are designed for strength and are not easy to break down.
Sending a solar panel to a landfill costs between US$1 and $5 in the U.S. But recycling it can cost three to four times as much, around $18. And the valuable materials inside solar panels, such as silver and copper, are in small amounts, so they’re worth about $10 to $12 – which makes recycling a money-losing prospect. Improvements in the recycling process may change the economics.
But for now, it’s even hard to reclaim the glass in solar panels. Many layers are glued together and need to be separated before they can be melted down for reuse. And if the separation is not precise enough, the glass that is recovered won’t be of high enough quality to use in making other solar panels or windows. It will be suitable only for lower-quality uses such as fill material in construction projects.
Other panels, usually older ones, may contain small amounts of toxic metals such as lead or cadmium. It can be difficult to tell whether toxic materials are present, though. Even experts have trouble, in part because current tests, such as the toxicity characteristic leaching procedure, can give inaccurate results. Therefore, many companies that own large numbers of solar panels just assume their panels are hazardous waste, which increases costs for both disposal and recycling. Clearer labels would help people know what a solar panel contains and how to handle it.
If someone wants to recycle a solar panel, and is willing to bear the cost, there aren’t many places in the U.S. that are willing to do it and are equipped to be safe about it.
Despite the Trump administration’s cuts to subsidies for solar projects, millions of solar panels are already in use in the U.S., and millions more are expected to be installed worldwide in the coming years. As a result, the solar industry is working on ways to minimize waste and repeatedly reuse materials.
Some ideas include sending used solar panels that still work at least a bit to developing nations, or even reusing them within the U.S. But there are not clear rules or processes for connecting reused panels to the power grid, so reuse tends to happen in less common, off-grid situations rather than becoming widespread.
Future solar panels could also be designed for easier recycling, using different construction methods and materials, and improved processing systems.
Making panels last longer – perhaps as long as 50 years – using more durable materials, weather-resistant components, real-time monitoring of panel performance and predictive maintenance to replace parts before they wear out would reduce waste significantly.
Building solar panels that are more easily disassembled into separate components made of different materials could also speed recycling. Components that fit together like Lego bricks – instead of using glue – or dissolvable sealants and adhesives could be parts of these designs.
Improved recycling methods could also help. Right now, panels are often simply ground up, mixing all of their components’ materials together and requiring a complicated process to separate them out again for reuse. More advanced approaches can extract individual materials with high purity. For example, a process called salt etching can recover over 99% of silver and 98% of silicon, at purity levels that are appropriate for high-end reuse, potentially even in new solar panels, without using toxic acids. That method can also recover significant quantities of copper and lead for use in new products.
Increasing the practice of recycling solar panels has more than just environmental benefits.
Over the long term, recovering and reusing valuable materials may prove more cost-effective than continually buying new raw materials on the open market. That could lower costs for future solar panel installations. If they are fully reused, the value of these recoverable materials could reach over $15 billion globally by 2050.
In addition, recycling panels and components reduces American reliance on materials imported from overseas, making solar power projects less vulnerable to global disruptions.
Recycling also keeps toxic materials out of landfills. That can help ensure a shift to clean energy doesn’t create new or bigger environmental problems. Also, recycling solar panels emits far less carbon dioxide than manufacturing panels from raw materials.
There are already some efforts underway to boost solar panel recycling. The Solar Energy Industries Association trade group is working to collect and share information about companies that recycle solar panels.
Governments can provide tax breaks or other financial incentives for using recycled materials, or ban disposing of solar panels in landfills. California, Washington, New Jersey and North Carolina have enacted laws or are studying ways to manage solar panel waste, with some even requiring recycling or reuse.
These efforts are important steps toward addressing the growing need for solar panel recycling and promoting a more sustainable solar industry.
Anurag Srivastava receives funding from the US Department of Energy and National Science Foundation to work on renewable energy integration into the grid. He is an IEEE Fellow and member of the IEEE Power and Energy Society and CIGRE working groups.
– ref. Why recycling solar panels is harder than you might think − an electrical engineer explains – https://theconversation.com/why-recycling-solar-panels-is-harder-than-you-might-think-an-electrical-engineer-explains-259115
Source: Scottish National Party
The images coming out of Gaza break my heart every single day – they paint a horrifying picture of human suffering, starvation and desperation.
This suffering has been referred to as a humanitarian catastrophe. This is true – but using that type of language risks leaving people with the idea that this horror has simply come out of the ether as some sort of natural phenomenon.
So I will speak plainly. This suffering is a result of the ongoing actions of the government of Israel. Israel has imposed a suffocating blockade on Gaza since early March – with severe restrictions on food and aid shipments into Gaza throughout the war.
Thousands of people have been killed and injured. Children are dying of starvation and lack of water. Entire cities have been almost completely erased and populations displaced. Pregnant women are unable to access critical medical care, and the rate of miscarriage in Gaza has increased by 300% since October 2023.
The population has been pushed past breaking point, and the suffering being inflicted on the people of Gaza is beyond any justification.
This must end now. The hostages must be released immediately. Israel must lift all restrictions and allow unfettered, safe, and dignified access to humanitarian aid throughout Gaza immediately. The international community must insist on it.
The statements made this week by Israel’s Defence Minister on his plans to force all Palestinians in Gaza into a camp built on the ruins of Rafah – plans which are illegal, inhumane and risk worsening the humanitarian crisis in Gaza – must be rejected by all.
We must stand firm against all efforts to make the conflict in Gaza go on one minute longer than it has gone on today. A two-state solution, one which recognises the sovereignty and the independence of a Palestinian state, is vital for a just and lasting peace, and will be at heart of the Scottish Government’s work towards justice on the international agenda.
In the last year, we have provided £550,000 to charities working in the Middle East who are helping people affected by the ongoing conflict with access to emergency assistance, including food, clean water and medical care. That support is important, but not in itself enough – we are ready and willing to do more.
Getting injured children out of Gaza
Earlier this week, I met with Unicef who raised the particular issue of medical evacuations with me. With hospitals destroyed and medical supplies running out, this is an emergency and a race against time to provide specialist medical care for the children and babies suffering from injuries caused by the war.
Scotland’s world-class National Health Service stands ready to play our full part in supporting these medical evacuations and the treatment of injured Palestinian children.
This requires the support of the UK Government, and I have asked the Prime Minister to support facilitating a transfer of these children, who need medical care to survive, to Scotland.
The suffering of the people of Gaza is one of the greatest international failings of my lifetime – and the international community cannot let it go on one second longer than it already has.
We need to see nations across the world demand that international law is enforced and renew their efforts to support a just and lasting peace for civilians both in Israel and Palestine. History will judge world leaders on how they act at this moment and up until now, that judgement will be damning.
I can give my assurance, that Scotland’s position on the world stage will continue to be one of compassion, justice and global citizenship – and we will keep using our voice to demand peace in the region, and justice for the Palestinian people.
We need to see nations across the world demand that international law is enforced and renew their efforts to support a just and lasting peace for civilians both in Israel and Palestine. History will judge world leaders on how they act at this moment and up until now, that judgement will be damning.
I can give my assurance, that Scotland’s position on the world stage will continue to be one of compassion, justice and global citizenship – and we will keep using our voice to demand peace in the region, and justice for the Palestinian people.
This article was first published in The National on the 10th of July 2025.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Dstl and Frazer-Nash demonstrate how large language models (LLMs) can solve the challenge of getting through large amounts of wargaming data.
The huge volume of outputs wargaming generates can often be unfathomable, even for the most experienced data processing team.
The Defence, Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and Frazer-Nash have produced detailed research demonstrating how large language models (LLMs) can solve this challenge.
The LLMs can turn complex wargaming output data into easy to use, secure information that improves the scenario interrogation and analysis – simultaneously reducing the burden on the operator.
LLMs can:
The 6-month Dstl funded research scrutinised whether an LLM could be used reliably and securely to interrogate the output of a CMO scenario – for example, a complex multi-domain engagement involving sea, air and land units. It helped the analyst understand the result of a battlefield scenario and the key factors that drove it much more easily.
The research considered multiple technologies. This included combining Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) with a local LLM. RAG is a technique that improves the quality of LLM-generated responses, allowing use-case specific data in everyday formats such as PDF, CSV or XML so it can be easily included in the context for an LLM response.
A set of possible use cases were provided and tested across 2 phases during the 6-month research, and a robust framework tool was created for quantifying the accuracy and reliability of the LLM-generated information.
The research showed that LLMs can helpfully interrogate and disseminate output information of complex wargaming scenarios, if used in the right way.
Other positive outcomes of the research include:
The techniques can be developed flexibly around changing components. For instance, data types, tools, methodologies and evaluation metrics. This new approach can then evolve with ever-changing demands and challenges.
Access more of Dstl’s published research.
Find out more about Dstl’s AI, data science and machine learning.
Source: City of Canterbury
Elections and voting may be the last things on your mind right now, but for those voters who have a postal vote, there has been a very important change that you need to be aware of and may require you to take action.
Due to a change in national legislation (the Elections Act), a sizeable majority of those people in our district who currently have a postal vote must now reapply for it.
This affects everyone who applied for a postal vote up until 30 January 2024 – you will all need to reapply.
Only by reapplying will these people be able to vote by post in future elections.
The quickest way to reapply is online via the government website.
An alternative option is to download and print off an application form (using the same link as above), which can be completed and sent to us.
People will need their National Insurance number and will also have to provide a photo of their handwritten signature in black ink on plain white paper.
To be clear, those who do not reapply will have their postal vote cancelled and they will need to vote in person at a polling station at future elections.
We have started sending out emails to our registered postal voters to let them know what is happening and the action they need to take.
A quick response now instead of waiting for an election to be called means people will be in the first batch of postal votes sent out when the time comes, giving them the maximum amount of time to return it.
And if everyone leaves it until the last minute, it will be challenging for us to process and despatch a large volume of applications, which could lead to delays in people receiving them.
The only people who need do nothing are those who applied for a postal vote from 31 January 2024 onwards.
Published: 10 July 2025
Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements
Ambassador Holland honours the memory of those killed in the Srebrenica genocide, and underlines the UK’s support to Bosnia and Herzegovina in its ongoing efforts to build a stable, inclusive country for all its citizens.
Madam Chair, 30 years ago in Srebrenica, genocide took place in Europe for the first time since 1945. Over 8,000 innocent men and boys were brutally killed in a single month that summer, and more than 20,000 women and children were forcibly uprooted from their homes. We honour the memory of those killed, pay tribute to the survivors, and stand firm alongside them in their pursuit of justice and reconciliation.
On 16 June, the UK marked our National Srebrenica Memorial Day at a ceremony in St Paul’s Cathedral, attended by the Deputy Prime Minister. Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Edinburgh will visit Bosnia and Herzegovina this week for the official Commemoration at the Srebrenica Memorial Centre.
The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia found that several individuals were guilty of genocide in Srebrenica. Acknowledgement of that fact should in no way be seen as an attempt to blame an entire country or people for the suffering of another, and it should not be a cause for tension and division. Rather, it is a basis on which true reconciliation can be achieved.
The UK stands with Bosnia and Herzegovina in its ongoing efforts to build a stable, inclusive country for all its citizens, regardless of religion or ethnicity, and to heal the divisions inflicted by war. It is deeply troubling that divisive and inciteful rhetoric, reckless secessionist ambitions, and direct attacks on the Dayton Peace Agreement – which remains Bosnia and Herzegovina’s constitutional framework – continue to threaten peace and stability.
Madam Chair, this will be the fourth successive year that we mark this anniversary in the shadow of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. Terrible events such as the genocide at Srebrenica show the consequences of inaction. We owe it to the victims to create societies that are stable, inclusive and cohesive, and to fight against prejudice, hatred, fear and division. Remaining true to our shared commitment to the concept of comprehensive security, articulated by the Helsinki principles and central to membership of the OSCE, remains the best way to achieve this.
Only through such collective responsibility can we honour the past, respect the survivors’ enduring efforts, and work to ensure that atrocities such as the Srebrenica genocide are never repeated.
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements
Ambassador Holland thanks Austria’s Court of Audit for their professional work as External Auditor, and urges other participating States to engage constructively towards agreeing an OSCE Unified Budget.
The United Kingdom thanks the Secretary General, and representatives of the Austrian Court of Audit and the Audit Committee for their presentations today and their comprehensive reports.
The External Auditor and Audit Committee reports provide an important overview of the OSCE’s financial health, and oversight of the organisation’s administration and internal controls. We recognise that the audit assessments have been made in the context of significant ongoing challenges – including the impact of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and the continued non-agreement of the OSCE Unified Budget.
The UK welcomes the unqualified opinion of the External Auditor that the OSCE’s financial statements for 2024 presented fairly the financial position of the organisation. We appreciate the Austrian Court of Audit’s professional work in this role, and warmly welcome your earlier agreement to extend for a further two audit cycles until July 2026.
Mr Chair, it is vital for the work of all OSCE structures that participating States agree a Unified Budget for 2025 and beyond. As the Reports and presentations this morning clearly illustrate, the continued non-agreement of the Unified Budget – and the lack of an updated Post Table – continue to severely constrain all parts of the organisation in delivering their mandates. We again urge all participating States to engage constructively with budget proposals and ensure the organisation is able to carry out its work effectively in line with the OSCE principles we have all signed up to.
We welcome the assessments in the Reports that the OSCE’s overall financial liquidity remains sound. We commend the OSCE executive structures for their ongoing work to adapt to the financial challenges facing the organisation, and for helping to maintain continuity of business. We also appreciate the tireless efforts of successive Chairs-in-Office – Malta and Finland – in advancing budget proposals and agreeing additional expenditure authorisations.
I again thank the Austrian Court of Audit and the Audit Committee for the comprehensive reports. As always, the UK looks forward to engaging constructively on the report recommendations.
Thank you, Mr Chair.
Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements
Ambassador Holland condemns Russia’s latest aerial bombardment of Ukrainian cities, which have killed civilians and damaged civilian infrastructure, and highlights the UK’s recent sanctions package in response to Russia’s use of chemical weapons in Ukraine.
Thank you, Mr Chair. Last week in this Council we said that Russia had launched its biggest aerial attacks of the war so far. One day later, it was already out of date. Last Friday, on 4 July, Russia broke its record again, launching overnight 539 drones and 11 missiles at Ukraine. Apartments, businesses, a school, a medical facility and other civilian infrastructure were damaged. A thick smoke cloud hung over central Kyiv, prompting health warnings. And, overnight on Tuesday, 8 July, Russia exceeded that again, launching 728 drones and 13 missiles at Lutsk and other Ukrainian cities. This was the largest such attack in the war to date. Russia shows no sign of letting up these aerial assaults. The barrage and destruction continue.
So far in 2025, Russia has launched over 20,000 drones at Ukraine. That’s around 3,500 per month. This is more than 3.5x the average in 2024. Russia has launched the nine largest daily air attacks of the war in the past six weeks.
Mr Chair, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights recently published its periodic report on the human rights situation in Ukraine. It stated: “Our findings strongly suggest a failure to distinguish between civilian and military targets, and to take all feasible precautions to verify the military nature of those targets – or worse, an intentional decision not to.”
These aerial attacks are not the actions of a government that is serious about peace. President Putin has demonstrated that amply in recent days by repeating his maximalist objectives for the war. Following his call with the Kremlin on 3 July, President Trump told reporters that he was ‘very disappointed with the conversation’ because Putin was ‘not looking to stop’.
Mr Chair, the statement published last week by the Dutch and German intelligence services indicating Russian use of chemical weapons on the front line is deeply concerning. The OPCW has now published three reports confirming the presence of CS gas in samples collected by Ukraine from the battlefield. We will not ignore such disregard of the Chemical Weapons Convention. That is why the UK announced a second package of sanctions this week against two senior Russian military officials and a Russian research institute for their involvement in Russia’s chemical weapons violations.
Mr Chair, we must also redouble our efforts to support Ukraine to get through this, and to rebuild after the war is over. The Ukraine Recovery Conference being held in Rome this week is a pivotal moment for the international community to demonstrate its commitment. In total, the UK has committed £5.3 billion in non-military support to Ukraine. The World Bank has estimated that Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction needs will cost USD $524bn over the next decade. Early recovery and reconstruction are vital to get through the war and secure a just and lasting peace. It is essential for all countries to step up their support, ensuring a unified and effective response to Ukraine’s recovery needs. Thank you.
Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: Official website of the State –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Rector of the State University of Management Vladimir Stroyev and Vice-Rector Dmitry Bryukhanov held a working meeting with the Deputy Chairman, Head of the Executive Committee of the All-Russian Public Organization “Business Russia” Nonna Kagramanyan.
The meeting discussed a wide range of issues of cooperation between the State University of Management and Delovaya Rossiya, including holding events aimed at developing entrepreneurial competencies among students and students of additional education programs, developing joint educational and expert activities, and developing a business education system.
One of the key areas is cooperation within the framework of the implementation of MBA programs – creation of joint programs, their examination for compliance with market trends, involvement of experts from Delovaya Rossiya, and consulting of program students.
The Basic Department of “Business Russia” operates on the basis of the Higher School of Business and Technology of the State University of Management, which coordinates joint projects and provides scientific and methodological support in the field of entrepreneurship and business development management.
“Delovaya Rossiya”, founded in 2001, unites more than 10 thousand businessmen of our country. The total number of employees at the enterprises of “Delovaya Rossiya” is more than 4.5 million people, and the total annual revenue of the enterprises exceeds 10 trillion rubles. More than 700 members of the organization are included in public councils of government bodies, working groups of state councils and national projects.
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
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Source: Government of India
Source: Government of India (4)
In a major push towards empowering tribal students, the National Education Society for Tribal Students (NESTS), an autonomous body under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, has unveiled a series of initiatives to enhance education, life skills, and employability for students studying in Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRSs) across the country.
On July 9, NESTS signed landmark agreements with UNICEF India, Tata Motors Limited, and the Ex-Navodayan Foundation to roll out programmes that will support over 1.3 lakh tribal students in their academic and professional journeys.
At the centre of these efforts is TALASH (Tribal Aptitude, Life Skills and Self-Esteem Hub), an innovative national platform launched in partnership with UNICEF. TALASH aims to strengthen both academic learning and personal development by helping students discover their strengths, build essential life skills, and plan clear career pathways.
Through psychometric assessments inspired by NCERT’s ‘Tamanna’ initiative, students will receive individual Career Cards suggesting suitable career options based on their aptitudes. The platform will also provide career counselling, dedicated life skills modules, and resources for teachers to guide students effectively. The phased national rollout has already begun, with 189 teachers from 75 EMRSs trained to lead sessions in their schools. By the end of 2025, TALASH is expected to reach all EMRSs in 28 states and 8 union territories.
Complementing this, NESTS has entered into a five-year Memorandum of Understanding with Tata Motors Limited to bridge the gap between classroom learning and industry-ready skills. Under this partnership, students passing out of Class 12 from EMRSs will be enrolled in Tata Motors’ Kaushalya Program — an ‘Earn & Learn’ initiative that combines a Diploma in Engineering with on-the-job training. Eligible students will be aged 18 to 23 and must have secured at least 60% marks in their Class 10 examinations.
The program provides a monthly stipend, subsidised canteen and transport facilities, uniforms, safety equipment, insurance cover, and opportunities for high-performing students to pursue further technical studies such as B.Tech through tie-ups like BITS Pilani’s Work Integrated Learning Program. Placement support under a ‘One Trainee, One Job’ policy will ensure that trained graduates find employment within Tata Motors’ manufacturing and service locations nationwide.
In a parallel move, NESTS has also signed a tripartite agreement with Tata Motors and the Ex-Navodayan Foundation to offer focused coaching for competitive exams like IIT-JEE and NEET. This initiative will include dedicated residential Centres of Excellence at Chankapur (Maharashtra) and Chintapalle (Andhra Pradesh), providing intensive in-person coaching for meritorious science stream students of Grades XI and XII. Additionally, online preparatory classes for Olympiad, NTSE, and KVPY exams will be made available to students from digitally equipped EMRSs, extending support to learners from Grade IX onwards.
Together, these new measures are intended to close educational gaps, build confidence among tribal youth, and create a sustainable pipeline of skilled students ready to contribute to India’s development.
According to Ajeet Kumar Srivastava, Commissioner, NESTS, these collaborations are “a testament to our commitment to providing tribal students with opportunities to realise their full potential. Through these initiatives, we aim to bridge gaps in education and empower the next generation of tribal leaders.”
NESTS, under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, runs Eklavya Model Residential Schools nationwide to ensure quality education for tribal students. UNICEF India continues to partner with the government in advancing inclusive education, while Tata Motors and the Ex-Navodayan Foundation bring industry experience and academic expertise to strengthen outcomes for tribal youth.
Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Daniel Hungerman, Professor of Economics, University of Notre Dame
The multitrillion-dollar bill that President Donald Trump signed into law on July 4, 2025, will change how the U.S. tax code treats charitable donations. It also has several tax provisions that affect some colleges, universities and other nonprofits. The Conversation U.S. asked Daniel Hungerman, an economist who studies charitable activities and public policy, to explain how these tax policies could influence charitable giving and affect nonprofits.
The consequences generally vary depending on how much money a donor gives to charity. They also depend on whether a donor claims the standard deduction – as about 90% of U.S. taxpayers have done since the 2017 tax reforms took effect during the first Trump administration – or itemizes their tax returns.
Anyone taking the standard deduction, which will rise in 2025 to US$15,750 for an individual and $31,500 for married couples filing jointly, will get a new broadly available tax break of up to $1,000 for giving to a charitable nonprofit if they file on their own. Married couples filing jointly may deduct $2,000 from their taxable income if they give at least that amount to charity. To put this into sharper perspective, the average middle-income household gives about $3,300 annually.
Americans who give a bit more than the typical donor – say, between $5,000 and $20,000 – will see major changes too. In some places, it will become easier for people to deduct more of the amount they pay in state and local taxes from their federal taxes – at least for a few years. Those taxpayers may also deduct their charitable giving from their income when they file their taxes.
But there’s a new catch. People who itemize their taxes can’t claim the charitable deduction unless they give at least the equivalent of 0.5% of their adjusted gross income to charity. For example, someone who earns $100,000 a year would have to donate at least $500 to qualify for this tax break.
A similar new catch will apply to corporate donations: Unless corporations give at least 1% of their taxable income to charity, they will no longer get a charitable tax deduction.
The tax law also revises a rule that limits how much the biggest donors can give to charity and still get a tax break.
Based on my research on tax policies and donations, I don’t expect the $1,000 charitable deduction for taxpayers who take the standard deduction to boost giving. The government has tried this before.
The first time was in the 1980s. Starting in 1982, people taking the standard deduction could take a charitable deduction. The amount changed annually. In 1984, for example, it was $75 – $236 in 2025 dollars. Congress ended this experiment with the 1986 tax reforms.
There was also a temporary $300 charitable deduction for people who took the standard deduction in 2020.
The results were underwhelming both times, for two reasons.
First, the maximum size of those tax breaks was too small in those earlier efforts. Many people were already giving enough to max out this new benefit. When that happens, the government is giving up tax revenue without encouraging people to donate more.
To be fair, there are a couple of reasons that things might be better this time. First, $1,000 in 2025 – or $2,000 for married couples filing jointly – is more money than the $300 deduction in 2020. Also, this time it is permanent. A permanent provision gives charities time to publicize the bill and people time to learn about it.
Another concern with this bill is that Americans who have not given to charity in the past might not begin to open their wallets but will still try to get the new $1,000 charitable deduction anyway by lying about it on their tax returns. There is evidence that a growing number of taxpayers try to game the tax system this way. The only way to stave off that sort of tax evasion would require additional work by the IRS, costing more tax dollars.
This part of the tax law also sends a message that giving is not just for the wealthy, but that everyone can do it and get a tax break for it. That could help halt or reverse a decline in gifts from people who aren’t rich. And it makes me wonder whether a charitable deduction for people who don’t itemize their tax returns will work better this time around.
The government will raise its tax on the income earned by the endowments held by some colleges and universities from 1.4% to as much as 8%. The system is complicated and hinges on how large an endowment is per student enrolled. Colleges attended by fewer than 3,000 students don’t have to pay this tax.
Endowments are pooled financial investments that belong to a nonprofit. Those assets usually come from donations, and the income they earn typically flows into the nonprofit’s budget.
Several prominent schools are bracing for higher taxes. Yale University, for example, says it will have to pay $280 million once this goes into effect.
The higher endowment tax is unlikely to raise a whole lot of tax revenue, but it could force some schools to scale back financial aid, hike tuition or freeze hiring.
Perhaps the most significant change will be a new federal K-12 educational tax credit. Starting in 2027, it will be available to help offset the cost of private K-12 school tuition or other educational expenses, such as homeschooling. If someone makes a $1 gift to a nonprofit scholarship-granting organization – which would then deliver those funds to the school the donor designates – the government will cut their tax bill by $1. This tax credit can be worth up to $1,700 per year.
Many details about how this system would work are yet to be determined.
I believe that this provision could mark another step in the transformation of how private schools are funded in the United States. Beyond that, many private schools are run by churches, and many churches running schools already get large amounts of their funding from vouchers issued by state and local governments. Ultimately, private K-12 education could become an increasing source of revenue for churches.
Even if the megabill boosts charitable giving, nonprofits providing social services are likely to find themselves financially squeezed.
That’s because the bill also cuts spending and tightens eligibility restrictions on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps, and Medicaid, the public health insurance program that mainly covers people who are low-income or have disabilities.
I have researched the effects of the welfare reforms President Bill Clinton signed into law in 1996. One of my findings was that when the government cut spending on safety net programs by a dollar, charities, including churches, stepped in to provide 25 cents of services or more. But for every extra dollar needed to compensate for lost government spending, donors only gave 5 cents more.
Another concern is that this bill makes permanent increases in the standard deduction – which I’ve found to have historically lowered charitable giving considerably. Perhaps the deduction for people who don’t itemize their tax returns, together with the state-and-local-taxes change, will counteract this trend. But it is certainly possible that Americans will give less to charity starting in 2025 compared with a world where there were no Trump tax reforms at all.
Daniel Hungerman is a professor at the University of Notre Dame, and a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research.
– ref. Trump’s ‘big’ bill gives millions of taxpayers a new charitable tax break, but whether it will help nonprofits is unclear – https://theconversation.com/trumps-big-bill-gives-millions-of-taxpayers-a-new-charitable-tax-break-but-whether-it-will-help-nonprofits-is-unclear-260379
Source: The Conversation – USA – By Lauren Berger, Ph.D. Student in Geology, Texas A&M University
Our two-person team loaded the car with a GPS, a drone, notebooks, sample bags, a trowel and a flat spatula lovingly called a scoopula. Then we drove 30 minutes in our rented truck from Yuma, Arizona, to the Algodones Dunes, a sandy field bordering California, Arizona and Mexico. The day was sunny, with a strong breeze. Turning off the highway, we carefully headed onto a gravelly path that acted as our road.
After making decent – if bumpy – progress, we pulled off onto the sand flats and drove slowly toward the dunes, worried we might get stuck in the sand. Having arrived on the outskirts of the Algodones, we stopped and loaded our backpacks, then set off into the desert on foot.
It was November 2022. As a graduate student at Texas A&M University, I was beginning part of my Ph.D. research with my adviser, geology professor Ryan Ewing. We were looking for coarse-grained sand ripples, which are patterned piles of sand shaped by wind. Sand ripples and sand dunes are types of aeolian bedforms, which are wind-created geologic features.
Aeolian bedforms are common on Earth and across the solar system, including on Mars, Venus, Pluto, the Saturn moon Titan, the Neptune moon Triton, and Comet 67P. These geological features, among the first landforms observed by remote images of planetary surfaces, are robust indicators of a world’s wind patterns.
The shapes and patterns of aeolian bedforms can reveal the environmental conditions that created them.
Two sizes of the same bedform, such as small dunes on top of big dunes, are called compound bedforms. I study compound bedforms at two scales – the meter- and centimeter-sized coarse-grained ripples at the dunes here on Earth, and the kilometer- and meter-sized dunes on Mars.
At the Algodones, I measured the height of each large coarse-grained sand ripple and the distance between neighboring ripples. Then we flew our drone low and steady, above the ripples, to create high-resolution images. The drone data allows us to do further measurements on the ripples later, back at my desk.
On that day, I learned an essential rule of fieldwork in the desert: Don’t forget a shovel. Otherwise, if your vehicle gets stuck, as ours did, you’ll have to dig it out by hand. Luckily for us, a dune buggy driver passing by helped us out and we were able to get back to Yuma in time for dinner.
I first became interested in aeolian bedforms during my sophomore year of college, when I interned at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. My job was to view surface images of Mars and then map the sand ripples in the regions where Perseverance, the Mars rover, might land. I assessed the areas where ripples could be hazards – places where the rover could get stuck in the sand, the way our rental truck did in the Algodones.
I mapped those sand ripples on Mars for two years. But while I mapped, I became fascinated with the patterns the ripples made.
Now, as a graduate student and aspiring planetary geologist, my time is split between work in the field and at my computer, where I have stitched together the drone’s photographs of the Algodones to create a large image of the entire study area. I then look for compound dunes on the Martian surface in images taken by the Mars reconnaissance orbiter’s context camera.
Scientists already know about Earth’s weather patterns, sand grain size and wind data. By measuring different parts of bedforms on both planets – such as their height, shape and spacing – I can compare the similarities and differences of the bedforms to find clues to the wind patterns, grains and atmosphere on Mars. Slowly but surely, as I listen to Studio Ghibli soundtracks, I’m creating the first database of compound dunes on Mars.
Developing this database is essential to the proposed human mission to Mars. Dust storms are frequent, and some can encircle the entire planet. Understanding aeolian bedforms will help scientists know where to put bases so they don’t get buried by moving sand.
It is wonderful to spend an afternoon ping-ponging all over a planet that’s 140 million miles from us, seeing gorgeous terrain while I try to answer questions about the compound dunes on Mars. How common are they? Where do they form? How do they compare to those on Earth? I hope to answer these questions as I work toward earning my Ph.D in geology.
Lauren Berger receives funding from NASA FINESST. Lauren Berger would like to acknowledge the help of her mentors Dr. Ryan Ewing (NASA Johnson Space Center), Dr. Marion Nachon (Texas A&M University), and Dr. Julia Reece (Texas A&M University).
– ref. Dune patterns in California desert hold clues that help researchers map Mars’ shifting sands – https://theconversation.com/dune-patterns-in-california-desert-hold-clues-that-help-researchers-map-mars-shifting-sands-251761
Source: Republic of South Africa (video statements)
#G20SouthAfrica’s Presidency, enhancing cross-border payments is a top priority.
Africa faces some of the highest costs for cross-border transactions globally.
The G20 Presidency is committed to making payments:
faster;
cheaper; and
more inclusive and transparent
#GovZAUpdates
Source: APO
Hon. Dhananjay Ramful, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Republic of Mauritius will pay a visit to Japan from July 13 to 16.
During his stay in Japan, the Minister will meet with Mr. IWAYA Takeshi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, and will participate in the National Day Event of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, as official guest of the Government of Japan.
The visit of the Minister is expected to further develop the bilateral relations between Japan and Mauritius.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.
Source: APO
Save the Children and its partners spoke to over 450 of these displaced children in Tawila for the assessment “Children Caught in Conflict”, with children describing traumatic journeys and expressing fear, grief, and a profound sense of uncertainty about their futures.
Hundreds of children have recounted harrowing stories of terror and loss after their homes in Sudan’s North Darfur region were attacked, with many telling Save the Children how they lost contact with friends and loved ones [1].
Violence is happening daily in North Darfur, the epicentre of Sudan’s two-year conflict, with fighting intensifying over the past 12 months and spiking in April this year when the Zamzam camp housing people forced from their homes was viciously attacked.
Nearly 500,000 people – including 260,000 children – were displaced from Zamzam camp between April and May, which amounts to 99% of the camp’s population. About 75% of the displaced people ended up in the Tawila camp [2], which is located around 60km southeast of Zamzam.
Save the Children and its partners spoke to over 450 of these displaced children in Tawila for the assessment “Children Caught in Conflict”, with children describing traumatic journeys and expressing fear, grief, and a profound sense of uncertainty about their futures.
Many children witnessed killings and dead bodies in the streets, with some reporting witnessing young people being arrested or killed, and more than half of the girls interviewed (53%) reported incidents of sexual violence during their journey out of Zamzam to Tawila.
Three children reported that their mothers died during the journey to Tawila, while four others said they lost a brother, and five reported the death of their fathers.
Some children recounted supporting elderly relatives travelling long distances on donkeys, with others saying they were forced to leave behind exhausted family members under threat of violence.
Salma*, 12, originally from El Fasher, was displaced twice — first to Zamzam, then to Tawila. She described witnessing rape, killings, and looting along the road. Her grandfather died during the journey due to exhaustion and lack of care. Upon arrival in Tawila, her family had no food or shelter and slept in the open.
Talha*, 12, was fetching water for his family when the Zamzam camp came under attack. He witnessed shootings, and widespread panic. He ran home to find his family but discovered the house empty. He searched the schools where people were hiding but couldn’t find them. Believing his family had fled to Tawila, Talha followed the crowds on foot. After arriving, he stayed with a host family for seven days before they too left, leaving him alone. Talha told the survey team his only wish is to return to El Fasher and reunite with his family — though he doesn’t know if they are still alive.
While some children said they feel relatively safe in Tawila, many — especially girls — expressed deep grief over the loss of family members and fear of ongoing violence.
Children cited poor living conditions, including sleeping on the ground, extreme heat, food shortages, and the presence of armed individuals, as sources of distress.
Girls reported high levels of fear and vulnerability, particularly when using toilets or traveling long distances for water. Many shared that friends were raped during displacement or in the camps. Both boys and girls acknowledged a rise in sexual violence, with girls aged 12–18 being the most affected. Boys were also aware of the abuse experienced by their sisters and peers.
Francesco Lanino, Deputy Country Director of Programmes and Operations for Save the Children in Sudan, said:
“Children in North Darfur have been to hell and back. They are grieving deeply, while contemplating uncertain futures. Many lost family members before and during their displacement, and don’t have adequate tools to process their experiences. Some children have described to our staff harrowing experiences of parting with older family members on the route, many of whom they haven’t seen since.
“Since the conflict began, children’s lives have been upended. They now wake to the sound of gunfire and shelling. Families dig trenches for protection, schools are closed, and access to healthcare is limited. Many children reported that their peers have joined armed groups or been forced into early marriage due to economic hardship.
“Children’s rights have been completely ignored in Sudan. They are being separated from their families, seeing loved ones killed or maimed, and have already missed years of critical education, with terrible consequences for their long-term well-being. We are incredibly concerned for these children’s futures – and the future of Sudan – if this conflict doesn’t end now.”
Save the Children is urging the international community to redouble efforts to demand a ceasefire in Sudan, to allow safe and unhindered humanitarian access and a drastic scale-up of humanitarian assistance.
Save the Children has worked in Sudan since 1983 and is currently supporting children and their families across Sudan providing health, nutrition, education, child protection and food security and livelihoods support. Save the Children is also supporting refugees from Sudan in Egypt and South Sudan.
Since April 2025, Save the Children has been leading a major humanitarian response in North Darfur, addressing the urgent needs of displaced populations following mass displacement from Zamzam camp and El Fasher. With hundreds of thousands of internally displaced persons across the region, Save the Children has scaled up operations in El Fasher, Tawila and Central Darfur, delivering life-saving services in health, nutrition, water and sanitation, protection, and shelter.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Save the Children.
Source: APO
As part of the celebrations marking the fiftieth anniversary of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the ECOWAS Representation in Benin, with the support of the Beninese Government, the West African Power Pool (WAPP) and the Multinational Maritime Coordination Centre (MMCC) Zone E, organised a commemorative march in Cotonou on Saturday 28th of June 2025.
Titled the “Jubilee Walk”, the event brought together over 300 participants from state and diplomatic institutions, ECOWAS specialised agencies, project partners, West African communities, youth organisations, NGOs, students and teachers.
The march set off from the Place de l’Amazone at 7.00am and took a looping route through the Place Bio Guéra, returning to its starting point at around 10.00am. It was led by a high-level delegation including Ambassador Amadou DIONGUE, ECOWAS Resident Representative in Benin, the representative of the Minister for Sport, the Director of CMMC Zone E and the representative of the WAPP Secretary General. The presence of the Resident Coordinator of the United Nations System, the Resident Representatives of UEMOA and UNFPA, as well as Ambassador Francis OKE, former Permanent Representative of the ECOWAS to the African Union, enhanced the solemnity of the event.
In keeping with the theme of the golden jubilee, “Stronger together for a brighter future”. the march was punctuated by messages in favour of unity and solidarity, the essential foundations of successful regional integration.
In his speech, the ECOWAS Resident Representative said: “This march symbolises our shared commitment to an ECOWAS of peoples, united and in solidarity. In the face of current challenges, it is imperative that we unite our voices on the international stage to defend the interests of our region and accelerate the implementation of our integration policies, in order to create opportunities for our peoples”.
The ceremony ended with words of thanks and encouragement from Ambassador Francis OKE, the Resident Coordinator of the United Nations System, the representative of the Minister for Sport and the Resident Representative of the ECOWAS. They all stressed that the support, solidarity and unity of the peoples are the foundation of West African political and economic integration. The morning ended in a convivial atmosphere, with refreshments and a family photo.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Source: APO
The Directorate of Administration and General Services is currently holding a three-day sensitization meeting on ECOWAS Procurement Standard Documents (the Procurement Code / Manual; Grant Code / Manual, and various Annexes thereof), which are strategic documents intended to ensure consistent interpretation of the documents and their proper application in alignment with international and donor-compliant procurement practices.
The Sensitization exercise is to engender clear, uniform understanding and application of the procurement standard documents during procurement processes whilst promoting clarity of Roles, Responsibilities, and Standard Timelines throughout the procurement standard document cycle.
For enhanced synergy in the ECOWAS procurement chain across all ECOWAS Institutions, and Offices, participants in this important session include officers/stakeholders from the ECOWAS Commission (Directorates of Finance – B&T / FR&G – ITS, Legal Affairs, Human Resources, Infrastructure); Office of the Auditor-General, Parliament, Court of Justice, WAHO, GIABA); Agencies (ARAA, RCDC, PPDU, ECREEE, Gender Center, Water Resources).
The meeting was declared open by the Commissioner for Internal Services (CIS) and moderated by the Director of Administration and General Services (DAGS).
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Source: APO
The Task Force on the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (TLS) met from the 1st to 3rd of July 2025, in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, to take stock of the eight years of field missions across the ECOWAS Member States.
The meeting was attended by the Chairman of the TLS Task Force, Dr Mohamed Ibn CHAMBAS, the ECOWAS Commission’s Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, Ms Massandjé TOURE-LITSE, members of the first and second teams of the TLS Task Force, executives from the Customs Union and Taxation Directorate, and representatives of associations lobbying for the free movement of people and goods in West Africa, including AOCTAH/WACTAF, the Borderless Alliance, ENDA-CACID, NANTS, and ROPPA.
In his welcoming remarks, the Chairman of the TLS Task Force, Dr Mohamed Ibn CHAMBAS, recalled the main objective of the meeting, which is not only to take stock of the actions of the TLS Task Force since the installation of the first team in 2016 up to the present day, to analyse without complacency the strengths and weaknesses of the said actions, but also to make relevant proposals likely to reinforce the gains made and correct the weaknesses, with a view to eliminating obstacles to intra-regional trade.
Opening the meeting on behalf of the President of the ECOWAS Commission, H.E Dr Omar Alieu TOURAY, the Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, Mrs Massandjé LITSE-TOURE, welcomed the key role played by the TLS Task Force in deepening intra-community trade through the free movement of people and goods. She praised the leadership of Dr CHAMBAS, who has brought a number of trade facilitation reforms to the attention of the region’s highest authorities, with tangible results.
The plenary session, which lasted three days, enabling participants to make proposals to allow the TLS Task Force to be more effective in its future actions. The participants also recommended that the TLS Task Force should advocate for the strengthening of Member States’ commitment to regional integration through the appointment of a Special Adviser to the Cabinet of each President of the Republic or Prime Minister. This Special Adviser to the President or Prime Minister should, as a matter of priority, monitor the application by national administrations of Community texts on the free movement of persons and goods. It was also recommended that the TLS Task Force should step up its lobbying of governments on the issue of speeding up the digitisation of customs and trade procedures in order to facilitate the flow of goods along the various ECOWAS trade corridors.
Beyond the question of the mandate of the Task Force on TLS, the participants seized the opportunity of this review meeting, in connection with the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of ECOWAS, to make proposals to be fed back into the reflection on the ECOWAS of the future. These include the creation of an ECOWAS solidarity fund to promote balanced development within the community. ECOWAS should launch federative infrastructure projects (roads, railways, energy, interconnectivity, etc.) based on endogenous resources. Finally, a panel of eminent personalities will be set up to review the ECOWAS Treaty, with a view to strengthening the roles of the Parliament and the Community Court of Justice.
The Chairman of the TLS Task Force, Dr Mohamed Ibn CHAMBAS, will shortly be travelling to Abuja to report to the Chairman of the Commission on the results of the Abidjan meeting.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Source: APO
Golar LNG has officially announced that its FLNG Gimi vessel has reached its Commercial Operations Date (COD) under the 20‑year lease-and-operate agreement for the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) gas project offshore Mauritania and Senegal. Achieving COD triggers the commencement of this long-term contract – unlocking approximately $3 billion in adjusted EBITDA backlog for Golar – and marks a major milestone in positioning both countries as emerging LNG exporters.
The Gimi FLNG unit will initially produce 2.4 million tons of LNG per annum, with plans to ramp up to its full capacity of 2.7 million tons. Backed by an estimated 15 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, the GTA project is expected to bolster regional and global energy security while stimulating economic growth in both host nations.
In line with its growing presence in Africa’s energy landscape, Golar LNG has joined the 2025 edition of African Energy Week (AEW): Invest in African Energies as a Gold Partner. Taking place from September 29 to October 3 in Cape Town, AEW 2025 brings together African governments, energy companies and global investors to explore and advance opportunities across the energy value chain. The event serves as a strategic platform for companies like Golar LNG to showcase innovative FLNG solutions and their long-term commitment to Africa’s energy development.
Golar LNG’s participation at AEW aligns with the event’s broader vision to develop Africa’s estimated 620 trillion cubic feet of natural gas as a catalyst for energy security and poverty alleviation. In June 2024, the company signed a Project Development Agreement with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited for a new FLNG facility in the Niger Delta. The project is designed to liquefy 400–500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day, contributing to Nigeria’s Decade of Gas Initiative and its goal to harness 209 trillion cubic feet of reserves to expand access to cleaner, more reliable energy.
Golar LNG has also played a pioneering role in Cameroon’s gas sector since 2018, operating the 2.4-million-ton-per-annum Hilli Episeyo FLNG facility. As the company continues to grow its balance sheet and expand its footprint across the continent, AEW: Invest in African Energies offers an unparalleled opportunity to engage African stakeholders and pursue new prospects across the natural gas value chain.
“The commercial launch of the Gimi FLNG facility is a major step forward for the MSGBC Basin and Africa’s LNG market,” says Ore Onagbesan, Program Director, AEW. “As countries like Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Mozambique and Tanzania work to monetize their offshore gas resources, innovative and reliable partners such as Golar LNG will play a vital role in driving sustainable growth and long-term value.”
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.
About AEW:
Invest in African Energies is the platform of choice for project operators, financiers, technology providers and government, and has emerged as the official place to sign deals in African energy. Visit www.AECWeek.com for more information about this exciting event.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Farmer-led initiative to create vital nature network across Kent’s diverse landscapes. Project contributes to government’s Nature Recovery Network commitment
Nightingale in nest – credit Ben Andrew (RSPB-images.com)
An ambitious farmer-led initiative connecting Kent’s diverse landscapes from chalk downlands to coastal habitats has officially launched, bringing new hope for wildlife conservation across the region.
The Chalk to Coast project unites three established farm clusters, Hoo Peninsula, Swale and North Kent Downs and Medway Gap, forming a ‘super cluster’ that will create natural wildlife corridors across different habitats.
A farm cluster is a plan to help farmers and partners work more cohesively together in their locality, enabling them to collectively deliver greater benefits for soil, water and wildlife at a landscape scale.
Part of the project includes the creation of ‘natural corridors’ that will be placed strategically on strips of land and help connect fragmented wildlife habitats, allowing plants and animals to move freely and enhancing biodiversity.
These corridors are crucial for supporting wildlife movement, enabling them to find food, mates and suitable breeding grounds, ultimately contributing to a more resilient and thriving natural environment.
The creation of the nature corridors between the three farm clusters, including linking the new North Kent Woods and Downs National Nature Reserve in the countryside with Elmley National Nature Reserve by the sea, will link habitats together, creating a continuous ecological corridor for wildlife to travel between from ‘Chalk to Coast’ in Kent.
Barn owl in flight – credit Robert Canis
Things that can be done to enable nature corridors includes:
James Seymour, Natural England deputy director for Kent, said:
Nature’s recovery is core to delivering the Plan for Change with economic growth and a healthy environment. This project shows how Natural England provides expert advice that enhances ecosystems while supporting agricultural businesses.
This collaborative approach demonstrates how agriculture and nature recovery can work together, delivering biodiversity gains while maintaining profitable farming businesses.
Natural England has played a pivotal role in supporting this initiative, which forms part of the government’s commitment to a growing network of wildlife-rich places that supports nature recovery and sustainable farming practices nationwide.
With a new website now live at www.chalktocoast.co.uk, organisers are calling on more farmers and landowners across Kent to pledge their land to expand this vital nature network.
The three landowners and co-founders of the Chalk to Coast project explain more.
Guy Nevill, of North Kent Downs and Medway Gap Farm cluster, said:
This initiative shows how agriculture and nature recovery can work hand in hand. By connecting farm clusters, we’re creating wildlife corridors across Kent’s landscapes. We’re now encouraging more farmers to join this collaborative approach to land management.
Tom Gore, from Hoo Peninsula Farm cluster, said:
This is an exciting opportunity for both commercial farmers and environmental organisations to come together. Linking wildlife corridors and carrying out a large-scale biodiversity project, where both food production and nature work in harmony
Gareth Fuller, of Swale Farm cluster, said:
We are very excited to be part of Chalk to Coast. Over the last forty years, we have worked to restore abundant nature to the coastal wetlands of Elmley and Swale, and more recently to develop a sustainable nature-based economy though nature tourism and education.
To do more we want to collaborate with others across a much larger area. Chalk to Coast offers the inspiration, ambition, opportunities, and scale to achieve a more connected, abundant landscape for nature and people. We are hugely grateful to Guy Nevill and the other founders for driving this initiative forwards.
Boxing hares – credit Robert Canis
The project contributes to the government’s Plan for Change through the development of a national Nature Recovery Network, helping wildlife thrive and respond to climate change while connecting people with nature, farming and food.
The initiative builds on existing farm clusters in Kent, enabling coordinated action on soil conservation, water management, habitat creation, and species recovery across property boundaries.
Land managers interested in joining can find information at www.chalktocoast.co.uk.
Background:
For more information about Chalk to Coast, visit www.chalktocoast.co.uk.
For more information about Natural England’s work supporting nature recovery, visit www.gov.uk/natural-england.
Journalists only: 0800 141 2743 or communications_se@environment-agency.gov.uk.
Source: City of Birmingham
Six new sites for the location of speed cameras across Birmingham have been announced by the city council, which will be installed by the end of the year.
The average speed enforcement cameras will be funded through the Clean Air Zone net surplus revenues and the locations agreed following joint working with West Midlands Police.
Routes have been selected and prioritised based on the number and severity of road traffic collisions along the route and/or where compliance with speed limits is poor which leads to an increased risk of road harm. All the routes chosen have the full endorsement of WMP.
Cllr Majid Mahmood, cabinet member for environment and transport, said: “Safety on our busy highway network is paramount and these cameras have an important role to play – far too many collisions on our roads involve excessive speed.
“However, they can never be a solution on their own. We all have a role to play in keeping our roads safe and everyone has a duty to think about others, whether pedestrians, cyclists or other motorists. This is not about making money – the majority of revenue goes direct to government – it is about road safety. I would be happy if no fines were issued as that means people are not speeding.
“We also need to rethink how we move people and goods around the city and regions, which is why our Birmingham Transport Plan and Road Harm Reduction Strategy are looking at redesigning street in a way that put people first, and not only reducing speed but reducing the number of vehicles on our streets.”
BCC and WMP entered into a new Joint Working Agreement covering camera enforcement of traffic offences in April 2025. This not only secures ongoing enforcement of existing ASE locations, but also paves the way for new ASE, spot speed and red-light camera locations to be brought forward.
Chief Constable Craig Guildford said: “I fully support this initiative, which will hopefully reduce the number of people who are killed or seriously injured on our roads.”
The new camera locations are:
Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: State University “Higher School of Economics” –
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Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, July 10 (Xinhua) — Chinese authorities on Thursday announced that basic pension payments for retirees will be increased in 2025.
The average monthly old-age pension benefit will be increased by 2 percent from the 2024 level starting from Jan. 1, 2025, for those who retired before the end of 2024, according to a notice jointly released by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and the Ministry of Finance. -0-
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Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, July 10 (Xinhua) — China has taken measures to crack down on smuggling of strategic minerals while continuing to process legitimate applications for their export for civilian use, Ministry of Commerce spokeswoman He Yongqian said Thursday.
Responding to a question about strategic minerals reportedly transiting to the United States, He Yongqian said at a press conference that strategic minerals such as antimony and gallium have obvious dual-use properties, and export controls on them are in line with internationally accepted practices.
In order to resolutely prevent the illegal export of such minerals, China launched a special operation to combat their smuggling in May this year, He Yongqian said, adding that relevant information is available on the ministry’s website.
She stressed that China, as a responsible major country, fully takes into account the reasonable civilian needs of various countries for these strategic minerals.
China reviews applications for export licenses in accordance with laws and regulations and approves those that meet the requirements, she said. -0-
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Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
TIANJIN, July 10 (Xinhua) — Igor Khodachek, director of the Eurasian Studies Center of the European University at St. Petersburg, entered his name on a computer while visiting the Tianjin Vocational Institute of Light Industry and a laser marking machine engraved his name on the surface of a metal plate.
“This is a wonderful souvenir of this trip,” said I. Khodachek, who participated in the “Dialogue of World Mayors – SCO Summit Cities,” which was held from July 6 to 9 in Tianjin, northern China. During the event, guests at the aforementioned institute visited an exhibition hall dedicated to Lu Ban’s Workshop and a base integrating production and training in the field of high-precision instrument manufacturing and intelligent manufacturing.
Lu Ban Workshop, named after the famous ancient Chinese craftsman Lu Ban, is a brand of international vocational education initiated and promoted by Tianjin City Government.
To date, China has built 34 Lu Ban Workshops in 30 countries and regions around the world. 10 of them were established in Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Russia, Pakistan, Cambodia, Egypt and other SCO countries.
With the construction of a practical training center and the provision of modern teaching equipment in Lu Ban Workshop, Chinese teachers and technical personnel are also sent to learn technical skills from local teachers who may be invited to China for experience exchange.
Since 2022, Wu Zhengpeng, a teacher from Tianjin Vocational and Technical Institute of Urban Administration and Construction, has been teaching at Lu Ban Workshop in Tajikistan using China’s advanced equipment and 3D teaching resources.
“We had a comprehensive discussion with the teachers of the Tajik side and jointly formulated the curriculum, discussed the methodology and agreed to invite them to Tianjin for exchanges,” Wu Zhengpeng shared. In July last year, representatives of the teachers and students of the Tajik Technical University named after Academician M.S. Osimi visited Tianjin as planned.
Lu Ban’s workshop provides an opportunity for more and more young people from SCO countries to study abroad.
Ibrahim Maher, a 21-year-old student from Egypt, is currently studying at Tianjin Light Industry Vocational and Technical Institute under the Lu Ban Workshop project, majoring in Computer Numerical Control (CNC) technology.
“Lu Ban Workshop has many advanced teaching equipment and data centers from China, which enables students to transform theoretical knowledge into practical skills and adapt to the working environment more quickly. We are also provided with many opportunities to visit companies, participate in internships, and experience a large number of projects in practice,” he said.
At the end of the tour, Director of the Institute of World Politics of Kyrgyzstan Sheradil Baktygulov said that Lu Ban’s Workshop provides assistance to Kyrgyzstan in developing such areas as robotics, autonomous driving and computer technology.
At present, Lu Ban’s Workshop is an important platform for international exchanges and cooperation in the field of professional education, and also serves as a bridge to promote humanities exchanges and the rapprochement of peoples. -0-
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Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
KUALA LUMPUR, July 10 (Xinhua) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, spoke about the fruitful achievements of bilateral cooperation while delivering a speech at the China-ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting here on Thursday.
First, the community of shared future between neighboring countries has become stronger. In April 2025, Chinese President Xi Jinping made successful visits to Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia, which brought the construction of bilateral communities of shared future to a higher level and promoted mutually beneficial cooperation in the direction of improving quality.
Secondly, steps towards regional openness and cooperation have become more decisive. The negotiations on the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area 3.0 have been fully completed, and the protocol is expected to be signed within a year. The ASEAN-China-GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) summit has launched a new model of interregional cooperation.
Third, security cooperation has deepened. The two sides completed the third reading of the draft text of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, effectively resolving differences and maintaining overall maritime stability. China has also joined hands with Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and other countries to combat transnational crimes such as online gambling and cyber fraud.
Fourth, mutual travel has become easier. Over the past two years, the two sides have held more than 100 cultural and humanitarian events. The issuance of “Lancang-Mekong visa” and “ASEAN visa” has officially begun, making mutual travel as convenient and frequent as family reunions.
Wang Yi noted that China always regards ASEAN as a priority area of its diplomatic relations with its neighbors. Beijing views this region as a pioneering platform for the creation of a community with a common future for mankind, the minister added.
According to him, China will continue to adhere to the principles of good-neighborliness, stable and prosperous neighborhood, benevolence, sincerity, mutual benefit, inclusiveness and common destiny. China is willing to work with ASEAN to promote Asia’s values of peace, cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, and build a common home of peace, security, prosperity, beauty and friendship, Wang said. He also said that China and ASEAN will actively promote the building of an even closer community with a shared future, accelerating the rise of Asia amid the rapid strengthening of the Global South. –0–
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