The State of Qatar expresses its full solidarity with the friendly United States in the face of the devastating floods that swept through the state of Texas, which resulted in loss of life, injuries, and several missing persons.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expresses the State of Qatar’s sincere condolences to the families of the victims, as well as to the government and people of the United States of America. It also conveys Qatar’s wishes for a speedy recovery for the injured and the safe return of those missing.
Source: United States Senator for Texas John Cornyn
Approval Comes After Cornyn-Led Letter to POTUS Urging More Federal Resources
U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Ted Cruz (R-TX) today thanked President Donald Trump for his formal approval of Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s request for a federal emergency disaster declaration due to devastating flooding in Kerrville and surrounding areas:
“The Kerrville community has endured unimaginable devastation, and I thank President Trump for swiftly approving this disaster declaration to ensure every available resource is being utilized in rescue and recovery efforts,” said Sen. Cornyn. “Being a Texan doesn’t just describe where you’re from, it describes who your family is, and even in the darkest times, Texans come together to serve one another in a powerful way. As a lifelong Texan and a father of two, my heart breaks for the families who have lost loved ones in this tragedy, and I encourage all Texans and Americans to pray for our state and for the safe return of those who are still missing.”
“The flooding we are seeing in Central Texas is absolutely devastating,” said Sen. Cruz. “Heidi and I send our heartfelt condolences to all those who have been directly impacted by this natural disaster. We thank President Trump for quickly approving Governor Abbott’s disaster declaration, and Secretary Noem for being on the ground and sending additional personnel to support Texans. We urge everyone to heed the warnings from local officials and stay out of harm’s way. We are immensely grateful to the first responders—both in Texas and from across the country—who are risking their own safety to rescue those in need. As Texans, we must remain united in spirit and grit, and support our neighbors as we always do best.”
Sens. Cornyn and Cruz sent a letter earlier today to Pres. Trump urging the administration to continue surging all available federal resources to Kerr County to assist with ongoing rescue and recovery efforts. Read the full letter here.
Carlos Alcaraz came through a ferocious fourth-round firefight against a red-hot Andrey Rublev to win 6-7(5) 6-3 6-4 6-4 on Centre Court and keep his bid for a third successive Wimbledon title on track on Sunday.
The Spanish second seed stuttered in his opening three rounds but found his best form to eventually subdue an inspired opponent who once again came up short against the very best.
Rublev rocked Alcaraz by roaring into a 4-1 lead only to be pegged back but the Russian produced some astonishing tennis to snatch the tiebreak and move ahead.
Alcaraz never looked ruffled though and levelled the match after Rublev double-faulted on a break point. Rublev continued throwing everything in his arsenal at the champion in the third set but paid for not taking some early break points as Alcaraz found another gear.
Alcaraz looked impregnable in the fourth set and a single break of serve was enough to seal a 22nd successive match win and set up a last-eight clash with Britain’s Cameron Norrie.
“Andrey is one of the most powerful players we have on Tour and is so aggressive with the ball. It’s really difficult to face him, he forces you to the limit on each point,” Alcaraz, bidding to become only the fourth man to win back-to-back French Open and Wimbledon titles multiple times, said on court.
“Really happy with the way I moved and played intelligent and smart tactically. A really good match all round.”
With so many seeds having fallen early, this was the first match between top-20 players in the men’s singles this year and it did not disappoint as the quality scaled rare heights.
Rublev, 27, has barely been outside of the top 10 since 2022 but has never got close to winning a Grand Slam, losing all 10 quarter-finals that he has contested.
The 14th seed must have sighed when he saw Alcaraz in his way in the fourth round, but he came out in positive fashion, off-loading rockets at the five-time Grand Slam champion.
With the roof closed after earlier thunderstorms the noise of the ball striking strings sounded like rifle shots.
Rublev hit harder, then harder still and at 5-5 in the opening set launched an outrageous backhand winner off a full-blooded Alcaraz forehand and then followed with a powerful forehand of his own to the baseline to move a set ahead.
He barely did anything wrong after that but Alcaraz, finally clicking into gear after three scratchy wins, showed why taking the title off him will be such a tough task.
The turning point came at 3-3 in the third set when Rublev, attempting to save a break point, sent Alcaraz sliding from side to side with a barrage of power only for the Spaniard to whip a forehand cross court winner, before cupping his ear to the crowd who rose as one to salute the moment of genius.
Rublev stuck manfully to his task but he was powerless to prevent an 11th loss from 11 matches against top-five opponents at a Grand Slam.
Source: Republic of South Africa (video statements)
His Excellency President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers intervention on Peace, Security and Global Governance during the 17th BRICS Leaders Summit.
In his address President Ramaphosa spoke about the necessity to reform the UN Security Council to be more democratic, more regionally representative and more accountable.
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External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar on Sunday met Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the 2025 BRICS summit, during which the two leaders discussed bilateral cooperation among other key issues.
“Good to meet with FM Sergey Lavrov of Russia on the sidelines of #BRICS2025. Discussed bilateral cooperation, West Asia, BRICS and SCO”, the EAM said in a post on X.
Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on X, “Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Minister of External Affairs of India @DrSJaishankar hold a meeting on the sidelines of the XVII #BRICS Summit. Rio de Janeiro, July 6.”
Jaishankar also shared a photo with the Russian Foreign Minister.
The meeting took place as BRICS leaders condemned the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, where 26 people were killed. In response, India’s armed forces carried out Operation Sindoor, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Notably, Russia, besides condemning the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, maintained that it stands in solidarity with India in eliminating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
Moscow’s stand was conveyed in May this year when an all-party delegation from India, led by DMK MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, met senior members of the Russian Federation Council, including Andrey Denisov, First Deputy Chair of the Committee on International Affairs, in Moscow to reaffirm the united stand against terrorism.
During that meeting, the Russian side strongly condemned the Pahalgam attack and reiterated its solidarity with India in the global fight against terrorism in all its forms.
The visit was part of India’s unprecedented diplomatic campaign to expose Pakistan’s sustained role in cross-border terrorism following the April 22 Pahalgam attack.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Moscow, July 6 /Xinhua/ — Today, all of Russia is a united, cohesive people’s front. The main goal of Russians is to create a safe and peaceful future for Russia. This was stated on Sunday by Russian President Vladimir Putin at the forum “Everything for Victory!” organized by the All-Russian public movement “People’s Front “For Russia” /All-Russian People’s Front, ONF/.
“The ONF has become a truly mass public movement thanks to the support of the overwhelming majority of Russian citizens, their desire to jointly defend the life principles and values that our ancestors passed on to us, to fight and work for a common result, national success, peace and the safety of our children,” noted V. Putin, pointing out that the ONF has become an effective institution of civil society, civil solidarity, consolidation, public participation and control for Russia.
According to the Russian president, “Everything for Victory” is a historical call known and understood by every Russian, which was heard in the first days of the Great Patriotic War. “It has become a symbol of our time, the struggle for freedom and justice, the security of our native borders, for the right of the people of Russia to independently determine their own path of development. We will achieve this. And so it will be. Because together we are a colossal, indestructible force in our rightness and internal unity,” V. Putin emphasized.
“Today, the entire country is a united, cohesive people’s front. And your initiatives, concern, energy, daily work should be aimed at giving millions of people the opportunity to contribute to the Victory, subordinated to our main goal – a safe and peaceful future for Russia,” added the head of the Russian state. -0-
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.
A man was arrested after allegedly being caught red-handed stealing copper from a communications pit at Beulah Park overnight.
About 1.30am on Monday 7 July, police were notified of an alarm activation within a cabling pit on the corner of The Parade and Shipsters Road, Beulah Park.
Police attended and located the suspect and his vehicle nearby.
A large quantity of copper piping was found inside the vehicle.
A 40-year-old man from Leabrook was arrested and charged with property damage and theft. He was refused police bail and will appear in the Adelaide Magistrates Court later today.
His vehicle was seized for further forensic examination.
The extent of damage to the cabling and communications equipment is not yet known.
Grade inflation happens when teachers knowingly give a student a mark higher than deserved. It can also happen indirectly, when the level of difficulty of a course is deliberately lowered so students achieve higher grades.
To better understand grade inflation, we sought the opinions of those closest to the phenomenon: university teachers. The findings of our survey were recently published in the Journal of Academic Ethics.
Increases in grades
Over the past 50 years, many countries have reported an increase in higher university grades. This includes the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and Australia.
For example, a 2024 Australian report found a 234% increase in the number of distinction grades awarded to students at the University of Sydney between 2011 and 2021.
But are grades improving due to changes in teaching and student performance, or rather is marking generally more lenient to keep students happy?
Our study
To investigate the causes of grade inflation in Australian universities, we surveyed lecturers and tutors who have direct contact with students, teaching them and marking their work.
Our main question was:
[What is] your opinion regarding grade inflation? Does it occur, and if yes, why, and how does it impact the student, profession, institutional reputation, society, and yourself?
In July 2024, we sent the survey to the deans (heads) of research at all Australian universities, asking them to distribute it to their academics. Academics then had two months to answer the questions.
In total, we had 110 respondents, of which 88 answered all the questions of the survey. The majority were aged 31-55 (55%), women (56%), born in Australia (about 70%), with more than five years in academia (more than 80%). There were more respondents from regional Australia (44%) than from urban locations (24.5%). About 30% had experience in both types of locations.
The disciplines most represented were legal studies (37%), education (21%), science, nursing and psychology (each around 7%).
Overall opinions
The majority (73%) said they had seen grade inflation in their universities.
Academics’ dominant feelings about grade inflation were frustration (50% of respondents), powerlessness (44%) and dissatisfaction (31%).
Of those surveyed, about 11% were indifferent and 7% were satisfied with the situation they experienced around grade inflation.
The fact that many academics surveyed felt frustrated and powerlessness indicates they do not inflate grades willingly. Previous studies have suggested university management encourages grade inflation as students are seen as clients and they want to keep the client happy.
Pressure from university administration
Our respondents supported this idea. Most said grade inflation was due to student evaluations – and the role they play in management decisions about staff.
Student evaluations are anonymous questionnaires completed by students after the course about their teachers’ performance. Studies, including those in Australia, have shown the results can be insulting and even abusive, often a “punishment” of unpopular teachers. These studies also question students’ capacity to objectively assess the quality of their educators.
Because students evaluations are commonly used in promotion and retention decisions, this means teachers may inflate grades to get positive evaluations. One respondent to our survey explained the link between these evaluations and grade inflation:
there is a lot of pressure […] as students will often provide strong negative feedback in [student evaluations].
Other academics similarly lamented how the quality of their teaching was assessed “based on student surveys”. Or as another academic told us:
Everyone I know who admits to grade inflation cites student evaluations, promotion, and workload as drivers.
Complaints generate more work
On top of this, if a student complains about their grade, there is automatically more work for an academic who needs to review it and potentially respond to seniors or others in university management. As one academic admitted:
I have inflated grades slightly for students who have failed the course by less than two marks. This saves hundreds of hours of work time.
In this climate, university teachers told us they do not feel supported if a student challenges their grades. They reported it was “very hard” to fail a student and described a “fear” of students’ reactions.
The customer is always right and if they are not happy, you are asked to grade again.
Is it always a problem?
Some respondents justified grade inflation as an acceptable trade-off when done to a limited extent, or as something morally neutral. As one noted, higher grades are the result of more people studying at university:
It is simply a corollary of shifting from tertiary education for the elites to tertiary education for the masses. It is no big deal.
Another said if the increase was small – depending on the context – it would not make a big difference.
1–5 marks do not make a significant difference on professional competence for some course content.
Only three respondents presented grade inflation in a positive light, as an act of social justice or compassion. As one noted:
Students experience many competing demands and many experience mental health issues. Teachers need to be compassionate to students’ situation.
An honest discussion is needed
While countless studies debate grade inflation, ours was the first to invite academics to express their feelings. Despite the relatively small sample, the survey suggests a worrying picture of a frustrated and at times, fearful academic workforce.
Meanwhile, the extent of grade inflation reported raises questions about the quality of some degrees, and more generally about the culture of learning in Australian universities.
To maintain the quality and reputation of higher education in Australia, we need to have an open and honest discussion about grade inflation in our universities.
The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Grade inflation happens when teachers knowingly give a student a mark higher than deserved. It can also happen indirectly, when the level of difficulty of a course is deliberately lowered so students achieve higher grades.
To better understand grade inflation, we sought the opinions of those closest to the phenomenon: university teachers. The findings of our survey were recently published in the Journal of Academic Ethics.
Increases in grades
Over the past 50 years, many countries have reported an increase in higher university grades. This includes the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and Australia.
For example, a 2024 Australian report found a 234% increase in the number of distinction grades awarded to students at the University of Sydney between 2011 and 2021.
But are grades improving due to changes in teaching and student performance, or rather is marking generally more lenient to keep students happy?
Our study
To investigate the causes of grade inflation in Australian universities, we surveyed lecturers and tutors who have direct contact with students, teaching them and marking their work.
Our main question was:
[What is] your opinion regarding grade inflation? Does it occur, and if yes, why, and how does it impact the student, profession, institutional reputation, society, and yourself?
In July 2024, we sent the survey to the deans (heads) of research at all Australian universities, asking them to distribute it to their academics. Academics then had two months to answer the questions.
In total, we had 110 respondents, of which 88 answered all the questions of the survey. The majority were aged 31-55 (55%), women (56%), born in Australia (about 70%), with more than five years in academia (more than 80%). There were more respondents from regional Australia (44%) than from urban locations (24.5%). About 30% had experience in both types of locations.
The disciplines most represented were legal studies (37%), education (21%), science, nursing and psychology (each around 7%).
Overall opinions
The majority (73%) said they had seen grade inflation in their universities.
Academics’ dominant feelings about grade inflation were frustration (50% of respondents), powerlessness (44%) and dissatisfaction (31%).
Of those surveyed, about 11% were indifferent and 7% were satisfied with the situation they experienced around grade inflation.
The fact that many academics surveyed felt frustrated and powerlessness indicates they do not inflate grades willingly. Previous studies have suggested university management encourages grade inflation as students are seen as clients and they want to keep the client happy.
Pressure from university administration
Our respondents supported this idea. Most said grade inflation was due to student evaluations – and the role they play in management decisions about staff.
Student evaluations are anonymous questionnaires completed by students after the course about their teachers’ performance. Studies, including those in Australia, have shown the results can be insulting and even abusive, often a “punishment” of unpopular teachers. These studies also question students’ capacity to objectively assess the quality of their educators.
Because students evaluations are commonly used in promotion and retention decisions, this means teachers may inflate grades to get positive evaluations. One respondent to our survey explained the link between these evaluations and grade inflation:
there is a lot of pressure […] as students will often provide strong negative feedback in [student evaluations].
Other academics similarly lamented how the quality of their teaching was assessed “based on student surveys”. Or as another academic told us:
Everyone I know who admits to grade inflation cites student evaluations, promotion, and workload as drivers.
Complaints generate more work
On top of this, if a student complains about their grade, there is automatically more work for an academic who needs to review it and potentially respond to seniors or others in university management. As one academic admitted:
I have inflated grades slightly for students who have failed the course by less than two marks. This saves hundreds of hours of work time.
In this climate, university teachers told us they do not feel supported if a student challenges their grades. They reported it was “very hard” to fail a student and described a “fear” of students’ reactions.
The customer is always right and if they are not happy, you are asked to grade again.
Is it always a problem?
Some respondents justified grade inflation as an acceptable trade-off when done to a limited extent, or as something morally neutral. As one noted, higher grades are the result of more people studying at university:
It is simply a corollary of shifting from tertiary education for the elites to tertiary education for the masses. It is no big deal.
Another said if the increase was small – depending on the context – it would not make a big difference.
1–5 marks do not make a significant difference on professional competence for some course content.
Only three respondents presented grade inflation in a positive light, as an act of social justice or compassion. As one noted:
Students experience many competing demands and many experience mental health issues. Teachers need to be compassionate to students’ situation.
An honest discussion is needed
While countless studies debate grade inflation, ours was the first to invite academics to express their feelings. Despite the relatively small sample, the survey suggests a worrying picture of a frustrated and at times, fearful academic workforce.
Meanwhile, the extent of grade inflation reported raises questions about the quality of some degrees, and more generally about the culture of learning in Australian universities.
To maintain the quality and reputation of higher education in Australia, we need to have an open and honest discussion about grade inflation in our universities.
The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Justin Alger, Associate Professor / Senior Lecturer in Global Environmental Politics, The University of Melbourne
Deep-sea mining promises critical minerals for the energy transition without the problems of mining on land. It also promises to bring wealth to developing nations. But the evidence suggests these promises are false, and mining would harm the environment.
The practice involves scooping up rock-like nodules from vast areas of the sea floor. These potato-sized lumps contain metals and minerals such as zinc, manganese, molybdenum, nickel and rare earth elements.
Technology to mine the deep sea exists, but commercial mining of the deep sea is not happening anywhere in the world. That could soon change. Nations are meeting this month in Kingston, Jamaica, to agree to a mining code. Such a code would make way for mining to begin within the next few years.
On Thursday, Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, released research into the environmental impacts of deep-sea mining. It aims to promote better environmental management of deep-sea mining, should it proceed.
We have previously challenged the rationale for deep-sea mining, drawing on our expertise in international politics and environmental management. We argue mining the deep sea is harmful and the economic benefits have been overstated. What’s more, the metals and minerals to be mined are not scarce.
The best course of action is a ban on international seabed mining, building on the coalition for a moratorium.
The Metals Company spent six months at sea collecting nodules in 2022, while studying the effects on ecosystems.
Managing and monitoring environmental harm
Recent advances in technology have made deep-sea mining more feasible. But removing the nodules – which also requires pumping water around – has been shown to damage the seabed and endanger marine life.
CSIRO has developed the first environmental management and monitoring frameworks to protect deep sea ecosystems from mining. It aims to provide “trusted, science-based tools to evaluate the environmental risks and viability of deep-sea mining”.
Scientists from Griffith University, Museums Victoria, the University of the Sunshine Coast, and Earth Sciences New Zealand were also involved in the work.
The Metals Company Australia, a local subsidiary of the Canadian deep-sea mining exploration company, commissioned the research. It involved analysing data from test mining the company carried out in the Pacific Ocean in 2022.
In a media briefing this week, CSIRO Senior Principal Research Scientist Piers Dunstan said the mining activity substantially affected the sea floor. Some marine life, especially that attached to the nodules, had very little hope of recovery. He said if mining were to go ahead, monitoring would be crucial.
We are sceptical that ecological impacts can be managed even with this new framework. Little is known about life in these deep-water ecosystems. But research shows nodule mining would cause extensive habitat loss and damage.
Do we really need to open the ocean frontier to mining? We argue the answer is no, on three counts.
How does deep-sea mining work? (The Guardian)
1. Minerals are not scarce
The minerals required for the energy transition are abundant on land. Known global terrestrial reserves of cobalt, copper, manganese, molybdenum and nickel are enough to meet current production levels for decades – even with growing demand.
There is no compelling reason to extract deep-sea minerals, given the economics of both deep-sea and land-based mining. Deep-sea mining is speculative and inevitably too expensive given such remote, deep operations.
Claims about mineral scarcity are being used to justify attempting to legitimise a new extractive frontier in the deep sea. Opportunistic investors can make money through speculation and attracting government subsidies.
But deep-sea mining will not necessarily displace, replace or change mining on land. Land-based mining contracts span decades and the companies involved will not abandon ongoing or planned projects. Their activities will continue, even if deep-sea mining begins.
Deep-sea mining also faces many of the same challenges as mining on land, while introducing new problems. The social problems that arise during transport, processing and distribution remain the same.
3. Common heritage of humankind and the Global South
Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the international seabed is the common heritage of humankind. This means the proceeds of deep-sea mining should be distributed fairly among all countries.
Deep-sea mining commercial partnerships between developing countries in the Global South and firms from the North have yet to pay off for the former. There is little indication this pattern will change.
For example, when Canadian company Nautilus went bankrupt in 2019, it saddled Papua New Guinea with millions in debt from a failed domestic deep-sea mining venture.
The Metals Company has partnerships with Nauru and Tonga but the latest deal with the US creates uncertainty about whether their agreements will be honoured.
European investors took control of Blue Minerals Jamaica, originally a Jamaican-owned company, shortly after orchestrating its start up. Any profits would therefore go offshore.
Given the threat of environmental harm, the evidence suggests deep-sea mining is not worth the risk.
Justin Alger receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
D.G. Webster receives funding from the National Science Foundation in the United States and various internal funding sources at Dartmouth University.
Jessica Green receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Kate J Neville receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Stacy D VanDeveer and Susan M Park do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Justin Alger, Associate Professor / Senior Lecturer in Global Environmental Politics, The University of Melbourne
Deep-sea mining promises critical minerals for the energy transition without the problems of mining on land. It also promises to bring wealth to developing nations. But the evidence suggests these promises are false, and mining would harm the environment.
The practice involves scooping up rock-like nodules from vast areas of the sea floor. These potato-sized lumps contain metals and minerals such as zinc, manganese, molybdenum, nickel and rare earth elements.
Technology to mine the deep sea exists, but commercial mining of the deep sea is not happening anywhere in the world. That could soon change. Nations are meeting this month in Kingston, Jamaica, to agree to a mining code. Such a code would make way for mining to begin within the next few years.
On Thursday, Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, released research into the environmental impacts of deep-sea mining. It aims to promote better environmental management of deep-sea mining, should it proceed.
We have previously challenged the rationale for deep-sea mining, drawing on our expertise in international politics and environmental management. We argue mining the deep sea is harmful and the economic benefits have been overstated. What’s more, the metals and minerals to be mined are not scarce.
The best course of action is a ban on international seabed mining, building on the coalition for a moratorium.
The Metals Company spent six months at sea collecting nodules in 2022, while studying the effects on ecosystems.
Managing and monitoring environmental harm
Recent advances in technology have made deep-sea mining more feasible. But removing the nodules – which also requires pumping water around – has been shown to damage the seabed and endanger marine life.
CSIRO has developed the first environmental management and monitoring frameworks to protect deep sea ecosystems from mining. It aims to provide “trusted, science-based tools to evaluate the environmental risks and viability of deep-sea mining”.
Scientists from Griffith University, Museums Victoria, the University of the Sunshine Coast, and Earth Sciences New Zealand were also involved in the work.
The Metals Company Australia, a local subsidiary of the Canadian deep-sea mining exploration company, commissioned the research. It involved analysing data from test mining the company carried out in the Pacific Ocean in 2022.
In a media briefing this week, CSIRO Senior Principal Research Scientist Piers Dunstan said the mining activity substantially affected the sea floor. Some marine life, especially that attached to the nodules, had very little hope of recovery. He said if mining were to go ahead, monitoring would be crucial.
We are sceptical that ecological impacts can be managed even with this new framework. Little is known about life in these deep-water ecosystems. But research shows nodule mining would cause extensive habitat loss and damage.
Do we really need to open the ocean frontier to mining? We argue the answer is no, on three counts.
How does deep-sea mining work? (The Guardian)
1. Minerals are not scarce
The minerals required for the energy transition are abundant on land. Known global terrestrial reserves of cobalt, copper, manganese, molybdenum and nickel are enough to meet current production levels for decades – even with growing demand.
There is no compelling reason to extract deep-sea minerals, given the economics of both deep-sea and land-based mining. Deep-sea mining is speculative and inevitably too expensive given such remote, deep operations.
Claims about mineral scarcity are being used to justify attempting to legitimise a new extractive frontier in the deep sea. Opportunistic investors can make money through speculation and attracting government subsidies.
But deep-sea mining will not necessarily displace, replace or change mining on land. Land-based mining contracts span decades and the companies involved will not abandon ongoing or planned projects. Their activities will continue, even if deep-sea mining begins.
Deep-sea mining also faces many of the same challenges as mining on land, while introducing new problems. The social problems that arise during transport, processing and distribution remain the same.
3. Common heritage of humankind and the Global South
Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the international seabed is the common heritage of humankind. This means the proceeds of deep-sea mining should be distributed fairly among all countries.
Deep-sea mining commercial partnerships between developing countries in the Global South and firms from the North have yet to pay off for the former. There is little indication this pattern will change.
For example, when Canadian company Nautilus went bankrupt in 2019, it saddled Papua New Guinea with millions in debt from a failed domestic deep-sea mining venture.
The Metals Company has partnerships with Nauru and Tonga but the latest deal with the US creates uncertainty about whether their agreements will be honoured.
European investors took control of Blue Minerals Jamaica, originally a Jamaican-owned company, shortly after orchestrating its start up. Any profits would therefore go offshore.
Given the threat of environmental harm, the evidence suggests deep-sea mining is not worth the risk.
Justin Alger receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
D.G. Webster receives funding from the National Science Foundation in the United States and various internal funding sources at Dartmouth University.
Jessica Green receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Kate J Neville receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Stacy D VanDeveer and Susan M Park do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
In biomedical science, the immune system is described as a cellular defence network that identifies and neutralises threats. In te ao Māori (the Māori worldview), it can be seen as a dynamic system of guardianship, known as te pūnaha awhikiri.
For Māori, wellbeing is relational and interconnected. It encompasses physical, mental, spiritual and environmental health. Within this understanding, we can think about the immune system as a living guardian that protects and regulates an individual’s internal balance and connection to the wider world.
Te pūnaha (system) awhikiri (immunity) expresses how the immune system functions through the lens of mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge), including through concepts such as kaitiakitanga (guardianship), whakapapa (genealogy) and tautika (balance).
The image of a guardian that embraces and protects, and invites empathy and identity, may engage better with people who traditionally have been left out of science and health system discussions.
Framing the immune system through this cultural perspective offers an opportunity to engage Māori communities and to better support public health in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Protecting the land
The immune system is a complex network of cells, tissues and signalling pathways designed to detect and eliminate pathogens. In te ao Māori, this function can be likened to that of a kaitiaki, or guardian, who acts to preserve and protect whenua – which means both land and placenta – and everything in it.
To understand this perspective, it is worth considering several key ideas around the mythological origin, significance and guardianship of land.
In te ao Māori, the universe was formed from Te Kore, a place of potential without form or shape (like the formless void of Greek mythology). From this space, the two major deities of Māori mythology – Ranginui the Sky Father and Papatūānuku the Earth Mother – emerged tightly bound to one another.
Then came Te Pō, a place of darkness in which the deities’ children came into being; foremost among them was Tāne Mahuta who eventually forced his parents apart to reveal Te Ao Mārama, the world of light.
Hence the intermingling of placenta and land, referring to Papatūānuku having begot all life. Land itself becomes a living entity from whence all things come. From Tāne Māhuta we get the first person, Hine-ahu-one, forged from sacred red earth, giving rise to tangata whenua or people of the Earth.
Parallels between immunology and te ao Māori
Taken as a starting point for understanding te ao Māori, te pūnaha awhikiri guards the integrity of the body and its essential life force (mauri). It is imbued with intelligence, memory and purpose, constantly working to sustain balance (tautika) within the body.
There are numerous ways in which we can overlay ideas from mātauranga Māori with the scientific understanding of te pūnaha awhikiri. At its core, the immune system detects foreign agents entering the body, mobilises immune cells to respond appropriately, regulates the strength of response and creates memory of the incursion. These functions map onto concepts in te ao Māori.
Detecting foreign agents is akin to the idea of tauhou, which describes a foreign entity to the body (in terms of a culture or society, a landmass or a person). This term brings to mind the experience of colonisation to Māori people and is associated with the notion of cultural and social institutions displacing tribal authority.
Mobilisation of immune cells reflects the call to action embodied by kaitiaki, people who respond when the need arises to protect their whenua and whānau (family). Often this response may begin with an individual, but that individual can promote an entire whānau, hapū or even iwi to mobilise.
Immunological memory mirrors the ways in which tūpuna (ancestors) pass on inter-generational knowledge to their whānau. This knowledge transfer means people learn lessons from the past, which helps formulate responses for future events or fighting pathogens.
Signal regulation is conceptually similar to how tapu (sacred) and noa (ordinary) regulate the spiritual, social and physical order of things. In te ao Māori, someone may enter a state of tapu (sacredness or spiritual potency) for many reasons, such as to learn sacred knowledge or go to war. However, it is not sustainable to remain in this state for too long and rituals are used to return that person to a state of noa. These rituals are ordained by particular individuals imbued with the correct teachings.
Māori culture values time spent in forests, rivers or coastal areas as a source of wellbeing. Getty Images
Beyond the body
Mātauranga Māori recognises that wellbeing is not just a condition of the body but a state of balance across a network of relationships – between people, land, spirit and ancestors. When these bonds are intact, the system operates with integrity. But when disconnection or trauma occurs, the life force can be diminished, leaving the body and spirit more vulnerable to imbalance and illness.
Te taiao (the natural world) plays a key role for maintaining balance. Time spent in forests, rivers or coastal areas, especially those of ancestral significance, has long been understood in Māori culture to nourish wellbeing. Contemporary science now supports this, showing that immersion in nature can reduce inflammation, lower stress hormones and strengthen immune function.
For Māori, the value is not just physiological; it is spiritual and genealogical. The land is not an external environment. It is kin.
Just as inflammation or infection signals imbalance in Western medicine, in te ao Māori it may indicate a deeper disharmony – one that cannot be resolved without restoring the relationships that sustain life.
Te pūnaha awhikiri responds not only to pathogens or physical threats, but to disconnection, breach of tapu and the lingering effects of cultural trauma. Healing, therefore, is not just a return to physical wellness but a return to relationships. It is an embrace of the people, places and practices that keep us whole.
Te pūnaha awhikiri offers a cultural narrative that unifies numerous strands of mātauranga Māori with science. These ideas affirm Māori ways of knowing, using concepts that reflect inter-connectedness and ancestral insight. They invite understanding of health not as mechanistic, but as a dynamic state of tautika between multiple dimensions.
This opens space for blending Indigenous knowledge and science, supporting inclusive dialogue about different ways of reaching Te Ao Mārama – enlightenment.
Tama Te Puea Braithwaite-Westoby works for the Malaghan Institute of Medical Research. Tama has also recently become an affiliate investigator for the Maurice Wilkins Centre.
In biomedical science, the immune system is described as a cellular defence network that identifies and neutralises threats. In te ao Māori (the Māori worldview), it can be seen as a dynamic system of guardianship, known as te pūnaha awhikiri.
For Māori, wellbeing is relational and interconnected. It encompasses physical, mental, spiritual and environmental health. Within this understanding, we can think about the immune system as a living guardian that protects and regulates an individual’s internal balance and connection to the wider world.
Te pūnaha (system) awhikiri (immunity) expresses how the immune system functions through the lens of mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge), including through concepts such as kaitiakitanga (guardianship), whakapapa (genealogy) and tautika (balance).
The image of a guardian that embraces and protects, and invites empathy and identity, may engage better with people who traditionally have been left out of science and health system discussions.
Framing the immune system through this cultural perspective offers an opportunity to engage Māori communities and to better support public health in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Protecting the land
The immune system is a complex network of cells, tissues and signalling pathways designed to detect and eliminate pathogens. In te ao Māori, this function can be likened to that of a kaitiaki, or guardian, who acts to preserve and protect whenua – which means both land and placenta – and everything in it.
To understand this perspective, it is worth considering several key ideas around the mythological origin, significance and guardianship of land.
In te ao Māori, the universe was formed from Te Kore, a place of potential without form or shape (like the formless void of Greek mythology). From this space, the two major deities of Māori mythology – Ranginui the Sky Father and Papatūānuku the Earth Mother – emerged tightly bound to one another.
Then came Te Pō, a place of darkness in which the deities’ children came into being; foremost among them was Tāne Mahuta who eventually forced his parents apart to reveal Te Ao Mārama, the world of light.
Hence the intermingling of placenta and land, referring to Papatūānuku having begot all life. Land itself becomes a living entity from whence all things come. From Tāne Māhuta we get the first person, Hine-ahu-one, forged from sacred red earth, giving rise to tangata whenua or people of the Earth.
Parallels between immunology and te ao Māori
Taken as a starting point for understanding te ao Māori, te pūnaha awhikiri guards the integrity of the body and its essential life force (mauri). It is imbued with intelligence, memory and purpose, constantly working to sustain balance (tautika) within the body.
There are numerous ways in which we can overlay ideas from mātauranga Māori with the scientific understanding of te pūnaha awhikiri. At its core, the immune system detects foreign agents entering the body, mobilises immune cells to respond appropriately, regulates the strength of response and creates memory of the incursion. These functions map onto concepts in te ao Māori.
Detecting foreign agents is akin to the idea of tauhou, which describes a foreign entity to the body (in terms of a culture or society, a landmass or a person). This term brings to mind the experience of colonisation to Māori people and is associated with the notion of cultural and social institutions displacing tribal authority.
Mobilisation of immune cells reflects the call to action embodied by kaitiaki, people who respond when the need arises to protect their whenua and whānau (family). Often this response may begin with an individual, but that individual can promote an entire whānau, hapū or even iwi to mobilise.
Immunological memory mirrors the ways in which tūpuna (ancestors) pass on inter-generational knowledge to their whānau. This knowledge transfer means people learn lessons from the past, which helps formulate responses for future events or fighting pathogens.
Signal regulation is conceptually similar to how tapu (sacred) and noa (ordinary) regulate the spiritual, social and physical order of things. In te ao Māori, someone may enter a state of tapu (sacredness or spiritual potency) for many reasons, such as to learn sacred knowledge or go to war. However, it is not sustainable to remain in this state for too long and rituals are used to return that person to a state of noa. These rituals are ordained by particular individuals imbued with the correct teachings.
Māori culture values time spent in forests, rivers or coastal areas as a source of wellbeing. Getty Images
Beyond the body
Mātauranga Māori recognises that wellbeing is not just a condition of the body but a state of balance across a network of relationships – between people, land, spirit and ancestors. When these bonds are intact, the system operates with integrity. But when disconnection or trauma occurs, the life force can be diminished, leaving the body and spirit more vulnerable to imbalance and illness.
Te taiao (the natural world) plays a key role for maintaining balance. Time spent in forests, rivers or coastal areas, especially those of ancestral significance, has long been understood in Māori culture to nourish wellbeing. Contemporary science now supports this, showing that immersion in nature can reduce inflammation, lower stress hormones and strengthen immune function.
For Māori, the value is not just physiological; it is spiritual and genealogical. The land is not an external environment. It is kin.
Just as inflammation or infection signals imbalance in Western medicine, in te ao Māori it may indicate a deeper disharmony – one that cannot be resolved without restoring the relationships that sustain life.
Te pūnaha awhikiri responds not only to pathogens or physical threats, but to disconnection, breach of tapu and the lingering effects of cultural trauma. Healing, therefore, is not just a return to physical wellness but a return to relationships. It is an embrace of the people, places and practices that keep us whole.
Te pūnaha awhikiri offers a cultural narrative that unifies numerous strands of mātauranga Māori with science. These ideas affirm Māori ways of knowing, using concepts that reflect inter-connectedness and ancestral insight. They invite understanding of health not as mechanistic, but as a dynamic state of tautika between multiple dimensions.
This opens space for blending Indigenous knowledge and science, supporting inclusive dialogue about different ways of reaching Te Ao Mārama – enlightenment.
Tama Te Puea Braithwaite-Westoby works for the Malaghan Institute of Medical Research. Tama has also recently become an affiliate investigator for the Maurice Wilkins Centre.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Karinna Saxby, Research Fellow, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne
Medicare spending on mental health services varies considerably depending on where in Australia you live, our new study shows.
We found areas with lower Medicare spending on out-of-hospital mental health services had poorer mental health outcomes, including more suicides.
This variation across the country was mostly related to factors such as a shortage of mental health providers and GPs, rather than people in some regions being in poorer mental health in the first place.
We also looked at how much extra government funding in today’s money would make a difference to people’s mental health across the population, using the latestdata.
We worked out increasing government spending on out-of-hospital mental health services by A$153 million a year – about $7.30 per adult per year – could lead to:
28,151 fewer mental health emergency department visits (a 10% reduction)
1,954 fewer hospitalisations due to self-harm (a 20% reduction)
313 fewer suicides (a 10% reduction).
Here’s where our research suggests it’s best to target this extra funding.
What we did
We looked at Medicare-funded out-of-hospital mental health services, such as GP mental health visits, as well as visits to psychologists and psychiatrists. For the purposes of this article, we’ll call these Medicare-funded mental health services.
We also looked at mental health prescriptions (such as for depression or anxiety).
We looked at these services and prescriptions for the entire Australian population from 2011 to 2019.
We followed adults as they moved between regions to see how their use of mental health services and prescriptions changed after the move. This meant we could account for underlying individual factors, such as someone’s mental health needs.
Our study allowed us to assess how differences in the availability of mental health care across regions impacted how much the government spends on mental health services and prescriptions, and how this links to people’s mental health outcomes.
What we found
We found that only 28% of variation in spending on mental health services across regions was driven by patient-related factors, such as their need for mental health care. The rest was due to geographical reasons, such as availability of mental health providers and GPs.
But about 81% of the regional variation in spending on mental health scripts was due to patient factors.
In other words, when people experience mental health distress, accessing mental health medications, largely provided by a GP, is much easier than accessing care from a psychiatrist or a psychologist.
Areas with lower spending on out-of-hospital mental health services had higher rates of mental health-related emergency department visits, hospitalisations for self-harm, and suicides.
We mapped access to mental health services
We also compared funding for people with the same “need” for mental health services across different regions. This was from the best access (the most funding) at 100% down to 0% (no access).
After controlling for factors such as socioeconomic background and underlying mental health-care need, the region with the best access was the Gold Coast, with the highest Medicare spending on out-of-hospital mental health services.
The regions with the worst access were western Queensland and the Northern Territory. Here, a person with similar mental health-care needs would receive about 50% less in mental health service spending compared to someone on the Gold Coast.
Our results suggest there is unmet need for mental health services across the board. But some regions are more affected than others.
So we should target extra funding to rural and low-income regions – particularly when considering expanding access to psychologists and psychiatrists.
Recent policy initiatives have tried to improve access to GPs. This includes creating financial incentives for providers to bulk bill and to practise in underserved regions.
However, these policies have had little or modest effects on boosting access to GPs. There has also been much less focus on attracting more specialty mental health providers, such as psychologists or psychiatrists, to underserved areas.
To address the disparities and unmet needs in mental health care, we recommend:
expanding the mental health workforce: implementing targeted incentives to attract and retain psychologists, psychiatrists, and mental health-trained GPs in underserved areas
reforming funding models: adjusting funding allocations and incentives to target regions where there is significant unmet need. Our map shows which regions should be targeted first
improving access to digital mental health services: using technology to provide accessible mental health support, particularly in areas with limited in-person services, while ensuring digital solutions are integrated with traditional care pathways.
If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Karinna Saxby receives funding from the University of Melbourne McKenzie Fellowship.
Dennis Petrie receives funding from National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF), Australian Research Council (ARC), Transport Accident Commission (TAC), National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), Department of Health, Disability and Aged Care, Department of Social Services (DSS), Breast Cancer Trials and WISE (Employment Service Provider).
Sonja de New receives funding from the Australian Research Council (ARC) and the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lynette Riley, Co-chair of the National NAIDOC Committee and Professor in the Sydney School of Education and Social Work; and Chair, Aboriginal Education and Indigenous Studies.original Education & Indigenous Studies., University of Sydney
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names and/or images of deceased people.
In 1938, when Australia celebrated the sesquicentenary – 150 years since Captain Phillip and the First Fleet landed in Sydney Cove – the organisers wanted Aboriginal people to be involved in a re-enactment.
More than 25 Aboriginal men were rounded up from Menindee in western New South Wales. They were told if they did not perform the role of running up the beach away from the British, their families would starve.
Ngiyaampaa elder Beryl (Yunghadhu) Philp Carmichael, who was three at the time, recollected years later that all she could remember was the crying:
All the women were crying. Whether they were taking them away to be massacred, no one knew.
The re-enactment was of course a fallacy of what really happened on January 26 1788 – it was a “white-washing” of history.
The mistreatment of the Menindee men illustrates the anger that was simmering over the status and treatment of fellow Aboriginal kin.
Protests against Australia Day, which had been growing since the 1920s, led to the Aboriginal Day of Mourning, the first national gathering of Indigenous people speaking up against discrimination and dispossession.
The Aboriginal Day of Mourning was regarded as one of the first major civil rights movements in the world. National Museum of Australia, CC BY
The emergence of Aboriginal protest groups nearly a century ago gave birth in the 1970s to what eventually came to be known as the National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee (NAIDOC), which this year celebrates its 50th anniversary.
Celebrating culture
NAIDOC’s role is to encompass all Indigenous/First Nations peoples in Australia.
to celebrate and recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
NAIDOC Week is essentially a celebration of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth. Numerous events are held across the country – performances, art and photographic exhibitions, smoking ceremonies and the popular National NAIDOC Awards.
They present a crucial opportunity to increase awareness in the wider community of Indigenous history and excellence, while acknowledging the challenges that remain.
It is distinct from Reconciliation Week, which focuses on relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.
As a current co-chair of the NAIDOC Committee, I recognise the ongoing need, as initially established by our Elders as the founders of NAIDOC Week, to highlight the continuing issues for us as Indigenous peoples in Australia.
NAIDOC themes
We do this by setting a theme each year focused on a specific challenge.
The themes are determined through deep consideration of the significant issues facing Indigenous peoples. They have evolved through political protests, social change, recognition, respect and appreciation of Indigenous rights.
Some examples down the years from the 1970s include:
Advance Australia Where? (1972)
Self Determination (1974)
White Australia has a Black History (1987)
Understanding It Takes the Two of Us (1985)
Justice not Tolerance (1995)
Gurindji, Mabo, Wik – Three Strikes for Justice (1997)
Bringing Them Home (1998)
Advance Australia Fair? (2008)
Our Languages Matter (2017)
Voice. Treaty. Truth. (2019)
Always Was, Always Will Be (2020).
NAIDOC Week helps promote to the wider community the importance of truth-telling and learning of societal issues, the heritage of culture and languages, and the history of interactions between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.
Ask yourself: what do you know about the themes? Why are they relevant and what impact do they have on Indigenous peoples across Australia?
Next generation
The theme for 2025 is “The Next Generation: Strength, Vision and Legacy”.
It was selected following the committee’s distress at the way in which our youth are often demeaned in the media and presented as social pariahs and potential risks to the wider community’s safety.
To us, our youth are our cultural and social strength, and the continuity for our communities.
We therefore celebrate our youth. We wish to highlight these amazing young people in our communities, as our vision and legacy for our future.
Look no further than our past NAIDOC Youth winners:
Dante Rodrigues 2024: a professional martial arts and kickboxer who runs health and wellbeing programs for young Indigenous people
Courtney Burns 2023: a marine biologist who is deeply passionate about the connection between ocean, Country and our Mob
Elijah Manis 20022: Young islander working in the fields of social justice issues and the effects of climate change on the Torres Strait.
In NAIDOC and the ABC’s educational resource Culture Is Life, three young people speak of the kind of ancestor they would like to be to inspire future generations.
Visual artist Irwin Lewis said he would want to be known for his conservation of cultural knowledge, stories and language.
Foster care worker Shaylem Wilson nominated never turning away from hard truths, and working with young people who continue to be taken away from their families and Country, as well as maintaining and strengthening their family and cultural ties.
Youth advocate Manny Williams noted he wanted to seek deeper connection to Country to help guide the next generations of young people:
I want to be an ancestor who always nurtured everything
from people to Country — guiding those who seek a deeper
connection; sharing wisdom and knowledge to those who listen. An ancestor who is there to remind our people of the light we all have within ourselves.
The future is in the hands of these remarkable Indigenous youth as they grapple with the human rights, political and societal issues facing their communities.
Many Australians have much to learn from NAIDOC Week.
All of us have much to celebrate.
Lynette Riley is the co-chair of the National NAIDOC Committee
The Story Bridge, with its sweeping steel trusses and art deco towers, is a striking sight above the Brisbane River in Queensland. In 2025, it was named the state’s best landmark. But more than an icon, it serves as one of the vital arteries of the state capital, carrying more than 100,000 vehicles daily.
But a recent report revealed serious structural issues in the 85-year-old bridge. These included the deterioration of concrete, corrosion and overloading on pedestrian footpaths.
But this example – and far more tragic ones from around the world in recent years – have also sparked a broader conversation about the safety of ageing bridges and other urban infrastructure. A simple, proactive step known as structural health monitoring can help.
A number of collapses
In January 2022, the Fern Hollow Bridge in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States collapsed and injured several people. This collapse was caused by extensive corrosion and the fracturing of a vital steel component. It stemmed from poor maintenance and failure to act on repeated inspection recommendations. These problems were compounded by inadequate inspections and oversight.
Three years earlier, Taiwan’s Nanfang’ao Bridge collapsed. Exposure to damp, salty sea air had severely weakened its suspension cables. Six people beneath the bridge died.
In August 2018, Italy’s Morandi Bridge fell, killing 43 people. The collapse was due to corrosion in pre-stressed concrete and steel tendons. These factors were worsened by inspection and maintenance challenges.
In August 2007, a bridge in the US city of Minneapolis collapsed, killing 13 people and injuring 145. This collapse was primarily due to previously unnoticed problems with the design of the bridge. But it also demonstrated how ageing infrastructure, coupled with increasing loads and ineffective routine visual inspections, can exacerbate inherent weaknesses.
A technology-driven solution
Structural health monitoring is a technology-driven approach to assessing the condition of infrastructure. It can provide near real-time information and enable timely decision-making. This is crucial when it comes to managing ageing structures.
The approach doesn’t rely solely on occasional periodic inspections. Instead it uses sensors, data loggers and analytics platforms to continuously monitor stress, vibration, displacement, temperature and corrosion on critical components.
This approach can significantly improve our understanding of bridge performance compared to traditional assessment models. In one case, it updated a bridge’s estimated fatigue life – the remaining life of the structure before fatigue-induced failure is predicted to occur– from just five years to more than 52 years. This ultimately avoided unnecessary and costly restoration.
The cost of structural health monitoring systems varies by bridge size and the extent of monitoring required. Some simple systems can cost just a few thousand dollars, while more advanced ones can cost more than A$300,000.
These systems require ongoing operational support – typically 10% to 20% of the installation cost annually – for data management, system maintenance, and informed decision-making.
Additionally, while advanced systems can be costly, scalable structural health monitoring solutions allow authorities to start small and expand over time.
A model for proactive management
The design of structural health monitoring systems has been incorporated into new large-scale bridge designs, such as Sutong Bridge in China and Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge in the US.
But perhaps the most compelling example of these systems in action is the Jacques Cartier Bridge in Montreal, Canada.
Opened in 1930, it shares design similarities with Brisbane’s Story Bridge. And, like many ageing structures, it faces its own challenges.
Opened in 1930, the Jacques Cartier Bridge in Montreal, Canada, shares design similarities with Brisbane’s Story Bridge. Pinkcandy/Shutterstock
However, authorities managing the Jacques Cartier Bridge have embraced a proactive approach through comprehensive structural health monitoring systems. The bridge has been outfitted with more than 300 sensors.
Satellite-based radar imagery adds a remote, non-intrusive layer of deformation monitoring, and advanced data analysis ensures that the vast amounts of sensor data are translated into timely, actionable insights.
Together, these technologies demonstrate how a well-integrated structural-health monitoring system can support proactive maintenance, extend the life of ageing infrastructure – and ultimately improve public safety.
A way forward for Brisbane – and beyond
The Story Bridge’s current challenges are serious, but they also present an opportunity.
By investing in the right structural health monitoring system, Brisbane can lead the way in modern infrastructure management – protecting lives, restoring public confidence, preserving heritage and setting a precedent for cities around the world.
As climate change, urban growth, and ageing assets put increasing pressure on our transport networks, smart monitoring is no longer a luxury – it’s a necessity.
Andy Nguyen receives funding from the Queensland government, through the Advance Queensland fellowship. He is on the executive committee of Australian Network of Structural Health Monitoring.
On July 5, 2025, the Board of Governors (Board, BoG) of the New Development Bank (NDB) convened the Business Session of its Tenth Annual Meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, under the theme of “Driving Development: Fostering Innovation, Cooperation, and Impact through a Multilateral Development Bank for the Global South”.
The BoG Meeting was chaired by H.E. Mr. Fernando Haddad, the Minister of Finance of the Federative Republic of Brazil and the NDB Governor for Brazil.
The Board welcomed the achievements of NDB in the past year and provided guidance in steering the New Development Bank towards a path of sustainable growth in the future at the juncture of its Ten-year Anniversary.
The Board of Governors officially admitted Colombia and Uzbekistan as borrowing members of the New Development Bank.
The Board of Governors discussed the General Strategy of the Bank and its implementation and provided guidance thereon.
The Board of Governors adopted its resolution on appointment of incoming Vice-President of the New Development Bank. Mr. Roman Serov was appointed as Vice-President of NDB from September 7, 2025, to September 6, 2030.
The Board elected H.E. Mr. Anton Siluanov, the Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation and the NDB Governor for Russia as the next Chairperson of the Board of Governors. H.E. Mrs. Nirmala Sitharaman, the Minister of Finance of the Republic of India and the NDB Governor for India was elected as the next Vice-Chairperson of the Board of Governors. It was agreed that they would hold their respective offices until the end of the Eleventh Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors in 2026.
The Board of Governors decided that Russia will host the Eleventh Annual Meeting of the New Development Bank in 2026.
H.E. Mr. Anton Siluanov, the Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation and the NDB Governor for Russia; H.E. Mrs. Nirmala Sitharaman, the Minister of Finance of the Republic of India and the NDB Governor for India; H.E. Mr. LAN Fo’an, the Minister of Finance of the People’s Republic of China and the NDB Governor for China; Dr. David Masondo, Deputy Minister of Finance of the Republic of South Africa and the NDB Alternate Governor for South Africa; Mr. Md. Shahriar Kader Siddiky, Secretary, Economic Relations Division, Ministry of Finance of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh and the NDB Alternate Governor for Bangladesh; Mr. Mr. Mohamed Bin Hadi Al Hussaini, Minister of State for Financial Affairs and the NDB Governor for the United Arab Emirates; Mr. Atter Hannoura, Director of the PPP Central Unit, Ministry of Finance of Egypt of the Arab Republic of Egypt and the NDB Temporary Alternate Governor for Egypt, participated in the Meeting.
Background Information
New Development Bank was established by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging market economies and developing countries, complementing the existing efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global growth and development.
For more information on NDB, please visit www.ndb.int.
The Presidency says President Cyril Ramaphosa has noted statements made earlier today in a media briefing by South African Police Service (SAPS) KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.
The Provincial Commissioner held a media briefing earlier on Sunday at the KwaZulu-Natal SAPS headquarters where he made various allegations.
“This is a matter of grave national security concern that is receiving the highest priority attention. It is vital that the integrity of the country’s security services is safeguarded and that the rule of law is affirmed,” said the President in a statement on Sunday night.
He said all parties to this matter were called upon to exercise discipline and restraint.
“The trading of accusations and counter-accusations threatens to undermine public confidence and sow confusion. Furthermore, these actions damage the unity and focus of the police,” President Ramaphosa said.
The Presidency said President Ramaphosa would outline the actions to be taken on this matter on his return from the BRICS Leaders’ Summit currently underway in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. – SAnews.gov.za
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday on the sidelines of the BRICS summit, shortly before Ramaphosa backed his call for reform of the United Nations Security Council.
“Good catching up with my friend, President Ramaphosa of South Africa,” PM Modi said in a post on X.
Speaking at the summit, Ramaphosa backed the demand for reform, saying the Council “has become too rigid, too narrow and too disconnected from today’s multipolar realities”, and is unable to fulfil its primary function of maintaining international peace and security.
Ramaphosa said the Council cannot react effectively to global dangers “ranging from humanitarian crises to open acts of aggression”. “Reform is a necessity. The Security Council must be made more democratic, more regionally representative and more accountable,” he said.
Sunday’s ‘catch-up’ was the second meeting between PM Modi and Ramaphosa in 19 days, having last met in Canada during the G7 Summit.
India and South Africa have several joint projects covering skills development, trade, economic cooperation and technology. They plan to deepen their strategic partnership, focusing on sectors such as agro-processing, defence, mining and finance. Bilateral trade between the two countries currently stands at nearly $20 billion.
PM Modi last visited South Africa in 2023 for the BRICS summit and held bilateral talks with leaders there.
Notably, Ramaphosa was the chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations in 2019 and last visited India in 2023 to attend the G20 summit.
As one of Africa’s leading voices, South Africa joins India in representing the Global South in international forums.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
HOUSTON, July 6 (Xinhua) — Eleven children were still missing as of July 6, three days after massive flash floods killed at least 59 people in the central part of the U.S.’s second-largest state of Texas, local authorities said.
Search crews continue to look for children and one counselor missing from Camp Mystic in Kerr County, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leita said at a briefing.
“We will continue the search until everyone is found,” he assured.
The confirmed death toll includes 21 children, he said.
Flooding has affected about 20 Texas counties. –0–
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.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
RIO DE JANEIRO, July 6 (Xinhua) — China is willing to work with Ethiopia to promote the sustainable development of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway, a flagship project of the high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road, and expand bilateral trade and investment, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday.
The head of the Chinese government made this statement during a meeting with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
Li Qiang noted that since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Ethiopia 55 years ago, the two countries have always treated each other sincerely and helped each other despite the changes in the international situation. According to the Premier of the State Council, cooperation between the two countries has long been at the forefront of China-Africa cooperation.
Li Qiang recalled that in June, Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the participants of the ministerial meeting of the coordinators of the implementation of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FCAC), announcing new important measures such as the introduction of zero import duties on 100 percent of goods for 53 African countries that have diplomatic relations with China.
The head of the Chinese government stressed that China is ready to use the new measures together with Ethiopia as an opportunity to promote the full practical implementation of the results of the Beijing FCAC summit.
He called for deepening all-round cooperation between the two countries and making bilateral relations a model for building an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era.
As the premier pointed out, China will continue to support Ethiopia in independently exploring a development path suited to its own conditions, and is willing to deepen bilateral cooperation in such areas as infrastructure, new energy vehicles, green industry, e-commerce and artificial intelligence, and enhance exchanges in tourism, youth and education.
Noting that China and Ethiopia are important countries in the Global South, Li Qiang stressed that China is willing to work with Ethiopia to strengthen communication and coordination within multilateral structures such as the UN and BRICS, promote joint efforts by all parties to realize true multilateralism, firmly safeguard economic globalization and free trade, and bring more stability and positive energy to the world.
Abiy Ahmed, for his part, said that Ethiopia and China are reliable all-weather strategic partners and his country sincerely appreciates China’s long-term support and assistance in Ethiopia’s socio-economic development.
The Ethiopian side, he continued, also highly appreciates China’s efforts in implementing the results of the Beijing FCAC summit.
Noting that China plays a very important role in international affairs, especially in global development, Abiy Ahmed assured that Ethiopia is willing to intensify high-level exchanges with China and deepen political mutual trust.
The Ethiopian side, the head of the Ethiopian government emphasized, expects to jointly increase cooperation with China in such areas as economy and trade, industry, mining, communications, artificial intelligence, infrastructure, tourism, as well as strengthen communication and interaction on multilateral platforms, contributing to the sustainable and deep development of Ethiopian-Chinese relations.
The Chinese leader arrived in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday to attend the 17th BRICS summit. –0–
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.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
RIO DE JANEIRO, July 6 (Xinhua) — China is willing to work with Ethiopia to promote the sustainable development of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway, a flagship project of the high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road, and expand bilateral trade and investment, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday.
The head of the Chinese government made this statement during a meeting with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
Li Qiang noted that since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Ethiopia 55 years ago, the two countries have always treated each other sincerely and helped each other despite the changes in the international situation. According to the Premier of the State Council, cooperation between the two countries has long been at the forefront of China-Africa cooperation.
Li Qiang recalled that in June, Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the participants of the ministerial meeting of the coordinators of the implementation of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FCAC), announcing new important measures such as the introduction of zero import duties on 100 percent of goods for 53 African countries that have diplomatic relations with China.
The head of the Chinese government stressed that China is ready to use the new measures together with Ethiopia as an opportunity to promote the full practical implementation of the results of the Beijing FCAC summit.
He called for deepening all-round cooperation between the two countries and making bilateral relations a model for building an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era.
As the premier pointed out, China will continue to support Ethiopia in independently exploring a development path suited to its own conditions, and is willing to deepen bilateral cooperation in such areas as infrastructure, new energy vehicles, green industry, e-commerce and artificial intelligence, and enhance exchanges in tourism, youth and education.
Noting that China and Ethiopia are important countries in the Global South, Li Qiang stressed that China is willing to work with Ethiopia to strengthen communication and coordination within multilateral structures such as the UN and BRICS, promote joint efforts by all parties to realize true multilateralism, firmly safeguard economic globalization and free trade, and bring more stability and positive energy to the world.
China’s premier arrived in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday to attend the 17th BRICS summit. –0–
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.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
LONDON, July 6 (Xinhua) — The UK Navy’s Maritime Trade Operations Centre (UKMTO) issued a security alert on Sunday following reports of an attack on a vessel about 51 nautical miles southwest of Yemen’s port city of Hodeidah.
According to UKMTO, the vessel was attacked by several boats, which fired small arms and grenade launchers. Armed guards on board the vessel returned fire, the situation is evolving. The competent authorities are currently investigating.
The incident occurred in the UKMTO voluntary reporting area, which includes the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea. –0–
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.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Tbilisi, July 6 (Xinhua) — The Women’s World Chess Cup kicked off in the Georgian city of Batumi on Sunday, with 107 leading players from 46 countries taking part. The tournament will last until July 29, the Georgian Chess Federation reported.
This is one of the key events in the international chess calendar. The top three players will receive direct tickets to the 2026 Candidates Tournament.
Georgia is represented at the tournament by Nana Dzagnidze, Nino Batsiashvili, Meri Arabidze, Lela Javakhishvili, Bela Khotenashvili, Anastasia Kirtadze and Kesaria Mgeladze.
The total prize pool for the tournament is $691,250. The winner will receive $50,000. –0–
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.
Today, President Donald J. Trump officially signed The One Big Beautiful Bill into law — a once-in-a-generation piece of legislation that makes good on his campaign promises and puts America First.
Source: The Conversation – USA (3) – By Lauren S. Hughes, State Policy Director, Farley Health Policy Center; Associate Professor of Family Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
As researchers studying rural health and health policy, we anticipate that these reductions in Medicaid spending, along with changes to the Affordable Care Act, will disproportionately affect the 66 million people living in rural America – nearly 1 in 5 Americans.
People who live in rural areas are more likely to have health insurance through Medicaid and are at greater risk of losing that coverage. We expect that the changes brought about by this new law will lead to a rise in unpaid care that hospitals will have to provide. As a result, small, local hospitals will have to make tough decisions that include changing or eliminating services, laying off staff and delaying the purchase of new equipment. Many rural hospitals will have to reduce their services or possibly close their doors altogether.
Hits to rural health
The budget legislation’s biggest effect on rural America comes from changes to the Medicaid program, which represent the largest federal rollback of health insurance coverage in the U.S. to date.
First, the legislation changes how states can finance their share of the Medicaid program by restricting where funds states use to support their Medicaid programs can come from. This bill limits how states can tax and charge fees to hospitals, managed care organizations and other health care providers, and how they can use such taxes and fees in the future to pay higher rates to providers under Medicaid. These limitations will reduce payments to rural hospitals that depend upon Medicaid to keep their doors open.
Rural hospitals play a crucial role in health care access.
Second, by 2027, states must institute work requirements that demand most Medicaid enrollees work 80 hours per month or be in school at least half time. Arkansas’ brief experiment with work requirements in 2018 demonstrates that rather than boost employment, the policy increases bureaucracy, hindering access to health care benefits for eligible people. States will also now be required to verify Medicaid eligibility every six months versus annually. That change also increases the risk people will lose coverage due to extra red tape.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that work requirements instituted through this legislative package will result in nearly 5 million people losing Medicaid coverage. This will decrease the number of paying patients at rural hospitals and increase the unpaid care hospitals must provide, further damaging their ability to stay open.
Additionally, the bill changes how people qualify for the premium tax credits within the Affordable Care Act Marketplace. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that this change, along with other changes to the ACA such as fewer and shorter enrollment periods and additional requirements for documenting income, will reduce the number of people insured through the ACA Marketplace by about 3 million by 2034. Premium tax credits were expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic, helping millions of Americans obtain coverage who previously struggled to do so. This bill lets these expanded tax credits expire, which with may result in an additional 4.2 million people becoming uninsured.
An insufficient stop-gap
Senators from both sides of the aisle have voiced concerns about the legislative package’s potential effects on the financial stability of rural hospitals and frontier hospitals, which are facilities located in remote areas with fewer than six people per square mile. As a result, the Senate voted to set aside $50 billion over the next five years for a newly created Rural Health Transformation Program.
These funds are to be allocated in two ways. Half will be directly distributed equally to states that submit an application that includes a rural health transformation plan detailing how rural hospitals will improve the delivery and quality of health care. The remainder will be distributed to states in varying amounts through a process that is currently unknown.
While additional funding to support rural health facilities is welcome, how it is distributed and how much is available will be critical. Estimates suggest that rural areas will see a reduction of $155 billion in federal spending over 10 years, with much of that concentrated in 12 states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act and have large proportions of rural residents.
That means $50 billion is not enough to offset cuts to Medicaid and other programs that will reduce funds flowing to rural health facilities.
Rural and frontier hospitals have long faced hardship because of their aging infrastructure, older and sicker patient populations, geographic isolation and greater financial and regulatory burdens. Since 2010, 153 rural hospitals have closed their doors permanently or ceased providing inpatient services. This trend is particularly acute in states that have chosen not to expand Medicaid via the Affordable Care Act, many of which have larger percentages of their residents living in rural areas.
Currently more than half of rural hospitals no longer deliver babies. Rural facilities serve fewer patients than those in more densely populated areas. They also have high fixed costs, and because they serve a high percentage of Medicaid patients, they rely on payments from Medicaid, which tends to pay lower rates than commercial insurance. Because of these pressures, these units will continue to close, forcing women to travel farther to give birth, to deliver before going full term and to deliver outside of traditional hospital settings.
And because hospitals in rural areas serve relatively small populations, they lack negotiating power to obtain fair and adequate payment from private health insurers and affordable equipment and supplies from medical companies. Recruiting and retaining needed physicians and other health care workers is expensive, and acquiring capital to renovate, expand or build new facilities is increasingly out of reach.
Finally, given that rural residents are more likely to have Medicaid than their urban counterparts, the legislation’s cuts to Medicaid will disproportionately reduce the rate at which rural providers and health facilities are paid by Medicaid for services they offer. With many rural hospitals already teetering on closure, this will place already financially fragile hospitals on an accelerated path toward demise.
Far-reaching effects
Rural hospitals are not just sources of local health care. They are also vital economic engines.
Hospital closures result in the loss of local access to health care, causing residents to choose between traveling longer distances to see a doctor or forgoing the services they need.
But hospitals in these regions are also major employers that often pay some of the highest wages in their communities. Their closure can drive a decline in the local tax base, limiting funding available for services such as roads and public schools and making it more difficult to attract and retain businesses that small towns depend on. Declines in rural health care undermine local economies.
Furthermore, the country as a whole relies on rural America for the production of food, fuel and other natural resources. In our view, further weakening rural hospitals may affect not just local economies but the health of the whole U.S. economy.
Lauren S. Hughes has received funding for rural health projects from the Sunflower Foundation, The Colorado Health Foundation, the University of Colorado School of Medicine Rural Program Office, the Caring for Colorado Foundation, and the Zoma Foundation. She currently serves as chair of the Rural Health Redesign Center Organization Board of Directors and is a member of the Rural Primary Care Advisory Council with the Weitzman Institute.
Kevin J. Bennett receives funding from the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, the Health Resources and Services Administration and the state of South Carolina. He is currently on the Board of Trustees of the National Rural Health Association as immediate past president.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called terrorism the “most serious challenge” facing humanity and said condemning it must be a matter of principle, not convenience.
Speaking at the 17th BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro, PM Modi cited the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, in which 26 tourists were killed, as a reminder of the threat terrorism poses to global peace.
“Recently India faced an inhuman and cowardly terrorist attack. On 22 April, the terrorist attack in Pahalgam was a direct attack on the soul, identity, and dignity of India. This attack was a blow not only to India but to the entire humanity. In this hour of grief, I express my heartfelt gratitude to the friendly countries who stood with us, who expressed support and condolences,” he said.
“Terrorism has become the most serious challenge for humanity today. Condemning terrorism should be our ‘principle’, not just a ‘convenience’. If we first see in which country the attack took place and against whom, then it would be a betrayal against humanity,” the PM added.
PM Modi stressed the need for decisive global action, including sanctions, and warned against double standards in tackling terror.
“There should be no hesitation in imposing sanctions against terrorists. The victims and supporters of terrorism cannot be weighed on the same scale. For personal or political gain, giving silent consent to terrorism and supporting terror or terrorists should not be acceptable under any circumstances. There should be no difference between words and actions regarding terrorism. If we cannot do this, then the question naturally arises: are we serious about the fight against terrorism or not?” the Prime Minister said.
PM Modi also underlined the threat of terrorism in the context of global conflicts and the humanitarian fallout in Gaza.
“From West Asia to Europe, today the world is surrounded by disputes and tensions. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is a cause of great concern. India firmly believes that no matter how difficult the circumstances are, the path of peace is the only option for the welfare of humanity,” he said.
“India is the land of Lord Buddha and Mahatma Gandhi. There is no place for war and violence for us. India supports every effort that takes the world away from division and conflict and leads it towards dialogue, cooperation, and coordination, and increases solidarity and trust,” the Prime Minister said, reiterating India’s belief in peace.
Highlighting BRICS’s role in promoting global stability, the Prime Minister said, “Global peace and security is not just an ideal; it is the foundation of our common interests and future. The development of humanity is possible only in a peaceful and secure environment. BRICS has a very important role in fulfilling this objective. We have to unite and make collective efforts to face our common challenges. We have to move forward together.”
PM Modi invited BRICS leaders to India for the next summit in 2026, under India’s chairmanship.
The summit, hosted by Brazil from July 7 to 9, is being attended by leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa and new members Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the UAE and Indonesia.
India created history with a 336-run win over England in the second Test at Birmingham, securing not only their first-ever victory at Edgbaston but also their biggest Test win away from home in terms of runs.
Skipper Shubman Gill, along with pacers Akash Deep and Mohammed Siraj, spearheaded a collective team effort as India levelled the series, overcoming the Birmingham blues with a win that will be remembered for ages.
This is India’s biggest away win in Tests, surpassing their 318-run victory over the West Indies at North Sound in 2016, as they defended a total of 419. Jasprit Bumrah picked up a memorable five-wicket haul in the match, while Ajinkya Rahane was named Player of the Match for his knocks of 81 and 102.
Gill, besides breaking an endless list of records with the bat, also made history as captain. At 25 years and 301 days old, he became the youngest Indian captain to win a Test overseas, surpassing Sunil Gavaskar, who was 26 years and 202 days old when he led India to victory against New Zealand in Auckland in 1976.
Coming to the match, England once again opted to field first. After removing KL Rahul (2) early, an 80-run stand between Yashasvi Jaiswal (87 off 107 balls, 13 fours) and Karun Nair (31 off 50 balls, five fours) helped India recover. Skipper Gill stitched valuable partnerships — 203 runs with Ravindra Jadeja (89 off 137 balls, 10 fours and a six) and a 144-run stand with Washington Sundar (42 off 103 balls, three fours and a six) — steering India to a mammoth 587. Gill scored a marathon 269 off 387 balls, hitting 30 fours and three sixes.
Shoaib Bashir (3/167) was England’s most successful bowler, while Chris Woakes and Josh Tongue claimed two wickets each.
In England’s first innings, India reduced them to 84/5. However, a 303-run stand between Harry Brook (158 off 234 balls, 17 fours and a six) and wicketkeeper-batter Jamie Smith (184* off 207 balls, 21 fours and four sixes) kept England alive. But Siraj (6/70) and Akash Deep (4/88) made the new ball count, bundling out the last five wickets for just 20 runs, dismissing England for 407 and giving India a 180-run lead.
In reply, India’s batters piled on the pressure. Jaiswal (28 off 22 balls, six fours) and Rahul (55 off 84 balls, 10 fours) set the tone with a brisk half-century stand. A 110-run fourth-wicket stand between Rishabh Pant (65 off 58 balls, eight fours and three sixes) and Gill accelerated the charge, before Gill forged another epic 175-run stand with Jadeja. Gill smashed 161 off 162 balls, with 13 fours and eight sixes, while Jadeja remained unbeaten on 69* off 118 balls (five fours and a six). India declared at 427/6, setting England an improbable target of 608.
In the run chase, England were quickly reduced to 50/3. Jamie Smith (88 off 99 balls, nine fours and four sixes) offered the only resistance before England were bundled out for 271, losing by 336 runs. Akash Deep’s brilliant spell of 6/99 gave him a ten-wicket haul for the match.
Gill was named Player of the Match as India levelled the series 1-1.
Haruki Ume spoke to UN News at the UN Pavilion at Expo 2025 currently being held in the Japanese city of Osaka.
One section of the pavilion features a rotating presentation focusing on a specific UN agency or entity and recently, attention turned to the UN Volunteers programme.
“As a 17-year-old, I travelled to the United States on an educational exchange programme and my main motivation was to play baseball and experience American culture.
I met a lot of other people from Africa and Asia as well as Europe and I was shocked and then impressed by their passion and motivation to support their villages and communities back home.
One boy from Azerbaijan told me he was selected for the exchange from over 100 applicants as the only student from his country. As a result, he said that he had a responsibility not to waste his time and represent all those other applicants and his country to the best of his ability.
Haruki Ume plays with two boys during a visit to the Philippines in 2017.
It was at this moment that I decided that I wanted to contribute more to society and so I started studying development issues. I travelled as much as I could during my vacations, to places like Cambodia, the Philippines, India, Peru, Egypt and Uganda.
As a volunteer, I supported education and other initiatives during the field missions and was really driven by helping people who were less fortunate than I. I also learnt a lot from these people, so I definitely valued it an exchange of experiences and knowledge.
Understanding the outside world
I was raised in a small town in rural Japan where there were no foreigners. People grow up, work and die there and many do not ever experience foreign cultures or really understand the outside world.
UN News/Daniel Dickinson
A UN Volunteers staff member explains the role of the organization to visitors at the UN Pavilion.
I remember being nervous about speaking English and eating food that I was not used to, but I was keen to break through these personal barriers and broaden my world.
Being open to new experiences has made it easier to adapt to other cultures and this understanding promotes peace and friendship and ultimately international cooperation.
I have been working at the UN Pavilion at Expo 2025 to promote the UN and the work of UN Volunteers. I’m doing this in the spirit of building cooperation and creating positive change in the world.
Expo 2025 is bringing the world to Osaka and is providing the opportunity for Japanese people to discuss how we can work together more effectively to create a fairer and more peaceful world.”
The UN and volunteering
Headquartered in Bonn, Germany, UNV was established 1970 and is active in around 169 countries and territories every year.
In 2024, UNV deployed over 14,500 volunteers to almost 60 UN entities across the world.
They serve in diverse roles including: community development, human rights, humanitarian assistance, peacebuilding, medical services and communications.
