NewzIntel.com

Category: Americas

  • MIL-OSI: Lingokids Introduces “Theater” Mode: A Safe, Ad-Free Video Experience for Kids

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TORONTO, Feb. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Lingokids, the #1 learning app for kids, has introduced a new feature, Theater, in selected markets. This dedicated space within the app offers a curated, ad-free video experience designed to provide children with high-quality educational and entertaining content.

    Previously known as Video Mode, this new Mode of Use “Theater” is now completely available for all users in Canada, Australia, Singapore, and Colombia, where families can explore a library of engaging videos tailored to support early learning and development.

    A Safe and Educational Alternative to Streaming Platforms

    Lingokids Theater is designed as a safe and controlled environment where young learners can access age-appropriate content created by educators. The feature includes:

    • Animated stories, songs, and puppetry that introduce key early learning concepts in a fun and engaging way.
    • Activity-based videos such as drawing, dance, yoga, and interactive storytelling that encourage creativity and self-expression.
    • Educational video series developed to reinforce cognitive, social, and emotional skills.

    Unlike traditional streaming platforms, Lingokids Theater ensures a 100% ad-free experience, prioritizing a safe and educational space that aligns with parents’ expectations for quality screen time.

    “Our goal is to offer families a dedicated space where children can enjoy enriching, educational content in a safe and engaging way,” said Rhona Anne Dick, Education & Child Development Lead at Lingokids. “Theater is designed to complement our Playlearning™ approach, giving young learners access to a variety of carefully selected videos that entertain while reinforcing important skills.”

    Currently, Theater is available only in these selected test markets within the Lingokids app. Further updates regarding its availability in other regions will be announced in the future.

    About Lingokids

    Lingokids is an innovative educational platform committed to reimagining early learning. By integrating traditional education with essential life skills, Lingokids’ Playlearning™ approach places children at the heart of an expansive educational ecosystem. Through +2,000 interactive activities across various media formats, the app empowers children to navigate topics such as engineering, empathy, literacy, and resilience. Lingokids is dedicated to preparing children for a well-rounded future that balances academic excellence with personal growth.

    For more information about Lingokids and its educational offerings, visit www.lingokids.com and follow us on social media @Lingokids.

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d336fb6b-8c74-4e04-a691-31e7b2c5019a

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Sezzle Reaches Significant Milestones as Canada’s Favourite Buy Now, Pay Later App

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TORONTO, Feb. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Sezzle Inc. (NASDAQ:SEZL) (Sezzle or Company) // – Sezzle, the leading “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL) solution in Canada, is proud to announce a series of significant milestones that highlight its continued growth and success. With 1.5 million Canadian users, Sezzle continues to cement its position as the highest-rated and most-reviewed BNPL app on the Canadian App Store. The platform is approaching 5 million total orders and has surpassed 50,000 Sezzle Up users—individuals working to improve their financial wellness through opt-in credit reporting.

    New partnerships with retailers such as Manitobah, Allbirds Canada, Tristan, Clément, and Atlas Tools & Machinery have further fueled Sezzle’s rapid expansion. By offering flexible payment options at these popular retailers, Sezzle is helping Canadian shoppers enjoy a more seamless and rewarding experience.

    “Finding new shoppers with Sezzle has been a significant win for us,” said Mike Wodtke, Chief Marketing Officer at Manitobah. “From an easy implementation process to marketing partnerships that have broadened our brand reach, Sezzle has been with us every step of the way. Since adding Sezzle, 65% of Sezzle transactions were brand new customers to Manitobah, and we’ve seen a 20% increase in Average Order Value (AOV).”

    These recent partnership launches underscore Sezzle’s continued growth in the Canadian market and its dedication to providing flexible and innovative financial solutions. Key achievements include:

    • 1.5 million all-time user sign-ups in Canada
    • Becoming the highest-rated and most-reviewed BNPL app on the Canadian App Store
    • Approaching 5 million total orders
    • Surpassing 50,000 Sezzle Up users, a program giving users the opportunity to build credit history through credit reporting

    This momentum represents a significant milestone in Sezzle’s growth and reinforces its role as a leader in flexible payment solutions for Canadian consumers. “Collaborating with well-known, trusted brands has been central to our strategy as we continue expanding our reach and delivering innovative financial tools,” said Patrick Chan, Sezzle Canada GM. “As we surpass 1.5 million user sign-ups and approach 5 million total orders, we’re more committed than ever to driving growth, empowering consumers, and providing Canadians with the best BNPL experience.”

    As Sezzle Canada continues to expand, it remains dedicated to empowering consumers and delivering outstanding shopping experiences for both consumers and retailers alike.

    Download the Sezzle App on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, and explore Sezzle’s wide selection of Canadian merchants here.

    About Sezzle Inc.

    Sezzle is a forward-thinking fintech company committed to financially empowering the next generation. Through its purpose-driven payment platform, Sezzle enhances consumers’ purchasing power by offering interest-free installment plans, both online and in-store. With a focus on transparency, inclusivity, and ease of use, Sezzle provides consumers with the tools to manage their spending responsibly, take control of their finances, and achieve lasting financial independence.

    For additional assets and news on Sezzle please visit https://my.sezzle.com/news/  

    Follow Sezzle on social media: LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook| Twitter

    Sezzle Media Contact:

    Erin Foran

    Tel: (651) 403-2184

    Email: erin.foran@sezzle.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: CIRA’s Net Good Grants champion community-led initiatives to strengthen Canada’s internet

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    OTTAWA, Feb. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The time has never been better to help build a resilient internet in Canada, something that CIRA has been championing for years and has taken on a whole new level of urgency. A strong internet empowers Canada’s economy and provides opportunity for people across the country to build digital skills, start new businesses and advocate for their communities. This year, CIRA is launching the 12th edition of its Net Good Grants program offering over $1,000,000 in grant funding to boost community-led responses to Canada’s digital divide and strengthen our economy.

    CIRA’s Net Good Grants provide financial support to organizations looking to research and develop solutions that get communities online safely, affordably and resiliently. CIRA empowers community-led initiatives to take the lead on addressing access and affordability challenges head on, with a focus on ensuring rural, Northern and Indigenous communities are heard and served. Communities and projects like these have benefitted from CIRA funding:

    • Fort Smith Metis Council in Northwest Territories now have connectivity that offers emergency communications, safety, data mapping and enhanced recreational activities in the campsite area well outside the Fort Smith townsite, used year-round by youth camps, elders and tourists
    • Malahat Nation in British Columbia is now running their own sovereign fibre internet service to community buildings and households that plugs into the single main line coming from the external ISP
    • The first-ever Canadian Youth Internet Governance Forum, a platform for young Canadians, convened to discuss and advocate around internet policy, access to connectivity and youth leadership

    CIRA Net Good Grants 

    For its 12th edition, CIRA’s Net Good Grants will award each project up to $100,000 with a total investment of over $1,000,000. This investment is a key part of Net Good by CIRA’s commitment to build a more sustainable online future for Canadians everywhere. The funding will power essential projects in three core areas: 

    • Infrastructure: connectivity research, network planning and solutions to improve internet access, speed and affordability. 
    • Policy engagement: events, research and policy ecosystem work that broadens public awareness in domestic internet policy and governance. 
    • Online safety: research, educational frameworks, tools, consultations and training programs that increase Canadians’ safety against cybersecurity threats. 

    Applications will be accepted from every province and territory with a focus on projects that benefit rural, Northern or Indigenous communities or K-12 and post-secondary students. CIRA especially encourages applications for eligible projects in the Prairies, Quebec, the North and the Maritimes to help ensure funding reaches traditionally underserved communities. 

    Executive quote 

    “Many Canadians, particularly those in rural and remote areas, do not have adequate access to high-quality internet. That drives CIRA to partner with organizations that are determined to strengthen local communities by delivering internet programs tailored to their residents through our Net Good Grants program. This year, we are keen to invite applications for community-led solutions that address digital challenges in rural, Northern and Indigenous communities across Canada.” 

    — Charles Noir, Vice-president of Community Investment, Policy & Advocacy 

     Who is eligible to apply? 

    • Organizations recognized by the Canada Revenue Agency as registered charities; 
    • Not-for-profit organizations; 
    • Indigenous communities; and 
    • Academics and researchers affiliated with a Canadian university or college. 

    Last year, CIRA awarded a total of $1.25 million in grant funding to 15 community-led internet initiatives that improve the lives of Canadians online. For the 2025 edition, a distinguished cross-Canada panel will review, select funding applications and notify all applicants of the grant decisions by July. Organizations are encouraged to submit their application before the deadline on April 9, at 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT. A webinar in English on March 4 at 1 p.m. ET and in French on March 5 at 1 p.m. ET will be hosted for all interested applicants.

    Additional information 

    About CIRA  

    CIRA is the national not-for-profit best known for managing the .CA domain on behalf of all Canadians. As a leader in Canada’s internet ecosystem, CIRA offers a wide range of products, programs and services designed to make the internet a secure and accessible space for all. CIRA advocates for Canada on both national and international stages to support its goal of building a trusted internet for Canadians by helping shape the future of the internet. 

    About Net Good by CIRA and CIRA Grants  

    Net Good by CIRA supports communities, projects and policies that make the internet better for all Canadians. CIRA proudly funds Net Good by CIRA from the revenue CIRA generates through .CA domains and cybersecurity services. CIRA Grants is one of CIRA’s most valuable contributions to Net Good, with nearly $12 million invested in hundreds of community-led internet projects across Canada that address infrastructure, online safety and policy engagement needs. 

    Media contact 
    Delphine Avomo Evouna 
    CIRA 
    delphine.avomoevouna@cira.ca  
    613-315-1458 

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: The secret lives of polar bear families

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Louise Archer, Postdoctoral Fellow, Biological Sciences, University of Toronto

    Newborn polar bear cubs spend weeks in the den with their mother until they’re old and strong enough to be outdoors. (Dmytro Cherkasov/Polar Bears International), CC BY

    Despite being the largest land carnivore and a top Arctic predator that can weigh over 600 kg, polar bears start off surprisingly small. Blind, almost hairless, and weighing just 600g at birth, cubs are born in maternity dens under the snow. These snow caves keep newborns warm and safe for the first few months of their life, when they grow rapidly by nursing on their mother’s rich milk.

    After three to four months in the den, cubs will have grown to about 20 times their birth weight and will be large enough and furry enough to follow their mothers out into the frigid Arctic spring.

    In a study published in The Journal of Wildlife Management, we used remote cameras to study polar bear families as they emerged from their dens in Svalbard, Norway, gaining insight into the behaviour of mothers and cubs as they experience the world outside the den for the first time.

    Drifting snow helps polar bear dens remain hidden.
    (B.J. Kirschhoffer/Polar Bears International), CC BY

    An elusive phenomenon

    While they provide ideal conditions for developing cubs, maternal dens are difficult for researchers to study and monitor. Challenging weather, limited daylight and the remoteness of many den sites means opportunities for direct observation are few. Often, denning polar bears are identified using tracking devices worn by a bear — usually collars, but also ear or fur tags. These transmit location data via satellite, allowing researchers to track individuals and to study movement patterns.

    As technology has developed, additional data can also be collected from these devices, including data on activity and temperature. An extended stationary period and low activity readings are the telltale signs of denning. Above-ambient temperatures also indicate a bear in a den; insulated by snow and warmed by the mother’s body heat, the interior of the den can be more than 20 °C warmer than the outside.

    In Svalbard, polar bears build their dens on slopes of fjords and mountainous areas, where drifting snow means dens are often impossible to distinguish from the snow-covered surroundings.

    Locating dens

    We relied on GPS locations transmitted from satellite collars worn by females to locate 13 den sites. With the return of daylight to Svalbard in the spring, our team installed time-lapse cameras facing the entrance of each suspected den, capturing footage of polar bear families as they exited. To minimize any disturbance, the final approach was made on foot or by ski, and cameras were collected several months later — long after the polar bear families had departed for the sea ice.

    After processing thousands of images, the camera gave us a detailed look at this cryptic component of polar bears’ life cycle. By linking images back to data from the collars, we were also able to develop a model of the various behaviours caught on camera, providing a new tool to remotely monitor denning bears more accurately.

    A feat of endurance

    Although critical to cubs, denning can be tough on a mother. Pregnant female polar bears usually enter a den in the fall, give birth in mid-winter, and remain in the den nursing their cubs until the family is ready to emerge in the spring. Although their offspring guzzle down high-energy milk, mother polar bears don’t feed at all during this time and rely on their fat reserves, losing up to 43 per cent of their body mass while in the den.

    Despite this clear motivation to get back to hunting seals on the sea ice, polar bear families will often hang out at the den for days or weeks after emerging. On average, the families we monitored in Svalbard stayed at the den site for a further 12 days after first emerging.

    During this time, mother and cubs frequently left the den to explore, sometimes staying outside for less than a minute, and in other cases emerging for hours at a time. Cubs rarely ventured outside without their mother and were seen alone in only five per cent of camera observations. In general, bears spent longer outside when temperatures were warmer and the more days had passed since they first emerged outside.

    This post-emergence period may allow cubs time to acclimatize to the external environment, and to develop the skills and strength they’ll need to follow their mother across the sea ice for the next two-and-a-half years.

    We also saw incredible variation in behaviour post-den emergence, with one family abandoning the den after only a couple of days, and another family remaining at the den for a full month after first appearing outside. Two females even decided to move their cubs to new dens after emerging.

    Consequences of Arctic change

    These kinds of insights lead to new questions: what drives decisions to stay or leave the den, what cues do families respond to? While we continue to build out our data set to better understand these behaviours, on average, we noted that polar bears abandoned their dens about a week earlier than previously recorded in the region. The Barents Sea is one of the fastest warming regions on the planet, and continued monitoring will make clear if this is an emerging trend in response to sea ice loss.

    To get even more detailed information, we have also been testing custom designed camera systems that can capture behaviour continuously.

    Climate warming has already resulted in declining polar bear health in parts of the Arctic that are experiencing rapid loss of sea ice. With continued warming jeopardizing the persistence of polar bears across much of their range, successful denning and reproduction is essential to give the next generation of polar bears a chance.



    Read more:
    Polar bears may struggle to produce milk for their cubs as climate change melts sea ice

    Time spent denning, the date of den exit and the amount of time bears remain at the den after emerging all contribute positively to the subsequent survival of cubs. Yet climate warming means the human footprint in the Arctic is expanding, risking encroachment on denning habitat and disturbing polar bear families.

    Improved monitoring and a deeper understanding of denning behaviour will help to protect polar bears during this critical time.

    Louise Archer receives funding from Polar Bears International. She is affiliated with University of Toronto Scarborough and Polar Bears International. This study was performed in collaboration with the Norwegian Polar Institute and San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.

    – ref. The secret lives of polar bear families – https://theconversation.com/the-secret-lives-of-polar-bear-families-248764

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Human Rights in Russia and the deaths of Alexei Navalny and Boris Nemtsov: Joint Statement to the OSCE, February 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Speech

    Human Rights in Russia and the deaths of Alexei Navalny and Boris Nemtsov: Joint Statement to the OSCE, February 2025

    UK and others commemorate Alexei Navalny and Boris Nemtsov and call on Russia to release political prisoners immediately and unconditionally.

    Thank you  Mr Chair.  I am making this statement on behalf of Albania, Canada, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland, Ukraine and my own country the United Kingdom.   

    Following the anniversary of Alexei Navalny’s death, which followed years of arbitrary detention in poor conditions, we extend our condolences to his family and reiterate that the ultimate responsibility for his death lies with the Russian authorities. Today we also commemorate Boris Nemtsov, ten years after his brutal murder.   

    We regret that Russia’s dire human rights record continues to deteriorate. The Russian government crushes peaceful dissent, maintains a climate of fear and undermines the rule of law. This stands in direct contradiction to shared OSCE principles and commitments on inter alia the right to a fair trial, freedom from arbitrary detention, the right to freedom of assembly and association and the prohibition on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.  

    As we reflect on Navalny and Nemtsov’s enduring legacy, our countries continue to stand with civil society and human rights defenders working tirelessly to build a better future for Russia in the face of immense personal risk. 

    In July 2022, 38 participating States invoked the Moscow Mechanism on threats to the fulfilment of the provisions of the Human Dimension posed by human rights violations and abuses in the Russian Federation.  That Moscow Mechanism report determined that:  “a decade of reform legislation in Russia has completely changed the scope of action of Russian civil society, cutting it off from foreign and international partners, suppressing independent initiatives, stifling critical attitudes towards the authorities, silencing the media and suppressing political opposition”.  

    Such internal clampdowns on human rights and fundamental freedoms helped the Russian Federation prepare the ground for its war of aggression against Ukraine. Since February 2022 the Russian authorities have further tightened internal repression in an apparent attempt to silence all opposition voices.  There are now over 800 political prisoners in Russia, including many imprisoned for speaking out against Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and the brutality shown towards the Ukrainian people.  

    In this context we regret Russia’s lack of response to the Vienna Mechanism of March 2024 on treatment of prisoners.   We also recall the 11 October 2024 report by the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation which inter alia examined the widespread and systematic use of torture and ill treatment in the Russian Federation.  

    We reiterate our call to the Russian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release all political opposition activists, human rights defenders, journalists and other media actors.   

    We will continue to hold Russia to account against its international obligations and commitments on human rights and fundamental freedoms, including OSCE principles and commitments to which it signed up willingly. 

    For as we all agreed in Moscow in 1990, respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms, democracy and the rule of law constitutes one of the foundations of the international order.  And as we also agreed in Moscow, commitments undertaken in the field of the human dimension are matters of direct and legitimate concern to all participating States and do not belong exclusively to the internal affairs of the State concerned.  

    Thank you, Mr Chair.

    Updates to this page

    Published 27 February 2025

    Invasion of Ukraine

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Financial News: BRICS Financial Track: First Meeting in 2025 Held

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Central Bank of Russia –

    Deputy central bank governors and finance ministers of the BRICS countries in Cape Town, South Africa, identified key areas of cooperation. The meeting was hosted by Brazil, which holds the presidency of the group this year.

    The agenda also included priorities that were previously set during the Russian presidency. In particular, the meeting participants confirmed their readiness to discuss the most pressing issues on the payment agenda: the possibilities of using national currencies in settlements, prospects for ensuring the interoperability of the financial markets of the BRICS countries, as well as cooperation in the field of information security. The central banks of the association’s countries in 2025 will also focus on issues of transitional financing and the development of financial technologies.

    The results of the meeting set the vector for further work of the relevant departments of the BRICS countries, and will also be taken into account during the upcoming summit of the association.

    The meeting took place at the Group of Twenty (G20) with the participation of representatives from all countries of the association: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Iran, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, as well as the new BRICS member, Indonesia.

    Preview photo: hxdbzxy / Shutterstock / Fotodom

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

    Please Note; This Information is Raw Content Directly from the Information Source. It is access to What the Source Is Stating and Does Not Reflect

    HTTPS: //vv. KBR.ru/Press/Event/? ID = 23415

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Video: Say HELLO to HIMARS!

    Source: US Army (video statements)

    : DMD

    About the U.S. Army:
    The Army Mission – our purpose – remains constant: To deploy, fight and win our nation’s wars by providing ready, prompt & sustained land dominance by Army forces across the full spectrum of conflict as part of the joint force.

    Interested in joining the U.S. Army?
    Visit: spr.ly/6001igl5L

    Connect with the U.S. Army online:
    Web: https://www.army.mil
    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/USarmy/
    X: https://www.twitter.com/USArmy
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/usarmy/
    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/us-army
    #USArmy #Soldiers #Military #HIMARS

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hppt44FcczM

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI USA: President Donald J. Trump Approves Major Disaster Declaration for West Virginia

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency 2

    ASHINGTON — FEMA announced that federal disaster assistance is available to the state of West Virginia to supplement recovery efforts in the areas affected by severe storms, straight-line winds, flooding, landslides and mudslides beginning on Feb. 15, and continuing.
    The President’s action makes federal funding available to affected individuals in McDowell, Mercer, Mingo and Wyoming counties. Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.
    Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.
    Mark O’Hanlon has been named the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected areas. Additional designations may be made at a later date if warranted by the results of further damage assessments. 
    Individuals and business owners who sustained losses in the designated areas can begin applying for assistance by registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov, by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362) or by using the FEMA App. If you use a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, give FEMA the number for that service.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sols 4466-4468: Heading Into the Small Canyon

    Source: NASA

    Written by Susanne Schwenzer, Planetary Geologist at The Open University

    Earth planning date: Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025
    The fine detail of the image above reminds us once again that geoscience — on Mars and on Earth — is an observational science. If you look at the image for a few moments, you will see that there are different areas made of different textures. You will also observe that some features appear to be more resistant to weathering than others, and as a consequence stand out from the surface or the rims of the block. Sedimentologists will study this and many other images in fine detail and compare them to similar images we have acquired along the most recent drive path. From that they put together a reconstruction of the environment billions of years in the past: Was it water or wind that laid down those rocks, and what happened next? Many of the knobbly textures might be from water-rock interaction that happened after the initial deposition of the material. We will see; the jury is out on what these details tell us, and we are looking closely at all those beautiful images and then will turn to the chemistry data to understand even more about those rocks.
    In the caption of the image above it says “merged” images. This is an imaging process that happens aboard the rover — it takes two (or more) images of the same location on the same target, acquired at different focus positions, and merges them so a wider range of the rock is in focus. This is especially valuable on textures that have a high relief, such as the above shown example. The rover is quite clever, isn’t it?
    In today’s plan MAHLI does not have such an elaborate task, but instead it is documenting the rock that the APXS instrument is measuring. The team decided that it is time for APXS to measure the regular bedrock again, because we are driving out of an area that is darker on the orbital image and into a lighter area. If you want, you can follow our progress on that orbital image. (But I am sure many of the regular readers of this blog know that!)
    That bedrock target was named “Trippet Ranch.” ChemCam investigates the target “San Ysidro Trail,” which is a grayish-looking vein. As someone interested in water-rock interactions for my research, I always love plans that have the surrounding rock (the APXS target in this case) and the alteration features in the same location. This allows us to tease out which of the chemical components of the rock might have moved upon contact with water, and which ones have not.
    As we are driving through very interesting terrain, with walls exposed on the mesas — especially Gould mesa — and lots of textures in the blocks around us, there are many Mastcam mosaics in today’s plan! The mosaics on “Lytle Creek,” “Round Valley,” “Heaton Flat,” “Los Liones,” and the single image on “Mount Pinos” all document this variety of structures, and another mosaic looks right at our workspace. It did not get a nice name as it is part of a series with a more descriptive name all called “trough.” We often do this to keep things together in logical order when it comes to imaging series. The long-distance RMIs in today’s plan are another example of this, as they are just called “Gould,” followed by the sol number they will be taken on — that’s 4466 — and a and b to distinguish the two from each other. Gould Mesa, the target of both of them, exposes many different structures and textures, and looking at such walls — geologists call them outcrops — lets us read the rock record like a history book! And it will get even better in the next few weeks as we are heading into a small canyon and will have walls on both sides. Lots of science to come in the next few downlinks, and lots of science on the ground already! I’d better get back to thinking about some of the data we have received recently, while the rover is busy exploring the ever-changing geology and mineralogy on the flanks of Mount Sharp.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Large Fire Footprint on Faraway Amsterdam Island

    Source: NASA

    On the afternoon of January 15, 2025, a wildfire broke out on the northern end of Amsterdam Island. The island occupies a remote spot in the southern Indian Ocean between Australia, Antarctica, and Africa. Part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands and a UNESCO World Heritage site, it is home to large marine mammal and bird populations, rare plant life, and a research station important for monitoring Earth’s atmosphere.
    By February 9, when the OLI-2 (Operational Land Imager-2) on Landsat 9 acquired these images, the fire had burned a considerable portion of the 54-square-kilometer (21-square-mile) island. The image on the right is shown in false color to help distinguish between burned (brown) and healthy vegetation (green). The image on the left shows the same scene in natural color.
    Burned areas form a thick ring around most of the island’s perimeter. Based on mapping by the Copernicus Emergency Management Service, the fire’s footprint spanned nearly 30 square kilometers—more than half of the island. The cause of the fire was unknown as of early February.
    The fire started a few kilometers away from the Martin-de-Viviès research facility amid dry, windy conditions that helped it spread, according to a French Southern and Antarctic Lands (TAAF) news release. At daybreak the next morning, the 31 people stationed at Martin-de-Viviès evacuated safely to a nearby lobster fishing vessel. They were transferred to a TAAF ship a couple days later.

    News reports have noted concern for the island’s distinct vegetation and abundant wildlife, although the fire’s effects on the ecosystem have yet to be assessed. Amsterdam Island is one of the few places in the world where the endangered Phylica arborea shrub grows. The speck of land also supports the world’s largest Atlantic yellow-nosed albatross population, the only Amsterdam albatross population, and colonies of elephant and fur seals.
    Scientific research operations on Amsterdam are notable for including long-term monitoring of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere. These observations are made atop a cliff near the Martin-de-Viviès research station. Some of the power, water, and communications infrastructure at Martin-de-Viviès was damaged in the fire, according to a TAAF news release on January 29.

    The island produced interesting atmospheric phenomena of its own as the fire burned. The VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite) on the Suomi NPP satellite captured this image of cloud bands and smoke downwind of the landmass on January 28.
    “What you see at Amsterdam Island is a perfect example of a mountain wave effect,” said Galina Wind, atmospheric scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. This phenomenon occurs when winds blow through a stable atmosphere and encounter a barrier—in this case, Amsterdam Island jutting up 881 meters (2,890 feet) from the sea. The disturbance sets off vertical ripples in the air, where clouds form at the cooler wave crests and not in the warmer troughs.
    A faint plume of wildfire smoke also trails to the lee side of the island, entrained with the eddies, Wind noted. If the smoke were brighter, she said, it might be visible forming a similar wave pattern.
    “Because the air is otherwise very stable with very little convection,” Wind said, “this pattern is being transported wholesale by the general circulation far away from the island.” Mountain-wave clouds extended over 300 kilometers (200 miles) on this day—even beyond the scope of the image above.
    NASA Earth Observatory images by Wanmei Liang, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey, VIIRS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE, GIBS/Worldview, and the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership, and MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview. Photo of yellow-nosed albatross on Amsterdam Island by Antoine Lamielle. Story by Lindsey Doermann.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NASA Remembers Long-Time Civil Servant John Boyd

    Source: NASA

    John Boyd, known to many as Jack and whose career spanned more than seven decades in a multitude of roles across NASA as well as its predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), died Feb. 20. He was 99. Born in 1925, and raised in Danville, Virginia, he was a long-time resident of Saratoga, California.
    Boyd is being remembered by many across the agency, including Dr. Eugene Tu, director, NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley, where Boyd spent most of his career.
    “Jack brought an energy, optimism, and team-based approach to solving some of the greatest technological challenges humanity has ever faced, which remains part of our culture to this day,” said Tu. “There are few careers as wide-ranging and impactful as Jack’s.”
    In 1947, Boyd began his career at the then-called Ames Aeronautical Laboratory in Moffett Field, California, as an aeronautical engineer working to design and test various wing shapes using the center’s 1-by-3-foot supersonic wind tunnel. Boyd continued conducting research in wind tunnels, testing designs that led to dramatic increases in the efficiency of the supersonic B-58 bomber, as well as the F-102 and F-106 fighters.
    In 1958, just before Ames became part of a newly established NASA, Boyd recalled thinking, “Maybe someday we’ll go out into the far blue yonder, and if we do, what are we going to fly? How are we going to bring it back into the atmosphere safely?” He and a team of engineers turned their attention to studying the dynamics of high-speed projectiles in hypervelocity ranges, filled with different mixtures of gases to mimic the atmospheres of Mars and Venus, in preparation for sending spacecraft out into space and safely back again or to the surface of other worlds.
    By the mid-60s, Boyd was promoted into leadership and tapped to become deputy director for Aeronautics and Flight Systems at NASA Ames. In the late 1960s, as America was redefining its space exploration goals and sending humans to the Moon, Boyd served as the center’s lead to assist NASA Headquarters in Washington consolidate and create new research programs.
    In 1979, Boyd served as the deputy director at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center (now known as NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center) in Edwards, California, and prepared the center for its role as a landing site for the space shuttle. He briefly returned to Ames before heading to NASA Headquarters to be associate administrator for management under James M. Beggs. Boyd left government service in 1985, taking a position as chancellor for research and an adjunct professor of aerodynamics, engineering, and the history of spaceflight for the University of Texas System.
    Boyd returned to NASA and California’s Silicon Valley in 1993,inspiring students through educational outreach initiatives, and serving as the senior advisor to the director, senior advisor for history, and the center ombudsman until his retirement in 2020.
    Boyd credits his interest in airplanes to a cousin who was a paratrooper and gave him a ride in a biplane in the 1940s. In 1943, he enrolled and became the first in his family to earn a degree with a bachelor of science in aeronautical engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia. He was a recipient of the NASA Exceptional Service Award, the NASA Outstanding Leadership Award, the NASA Equal Employment Opportunity Medal, the Presidential Rank of Meritorious Executive, the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, the Army Command Medal, and the NASA Headquarters History Award. He also was a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and a Sloan Fellow at Stanford University.
    “The agency and the nation thank and honor Jack as a member of the NASA family and the highest exemplar of a public servant who believed investing in others is the greatest contribution one can make,” added Tu. “He will be deeply missed.”
    For more information about NASA Ames, visit:
    https://www.nasa.gov/ames
    -end-
    Cheryl WarnerHeadquarters, Washington202-358-1600cheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov
    Rachel HooverAmes Research Center, Silicon Valley650-604-4789rachel.hoover@nasa.gov

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Fourth Launch of NASA Instruments Planned for Near Moon’s South Pole

    Source: NASA

    Sending instruments to the Moon supports a growing lunar economy on and off Earth, and the next flight of NASA science and technology is only days away. NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative is a lunar delivery service that sends NASA science and technology instruments to various geographic locations on the Moon using American companies. These rapid, cost-effective commercial lunar missions at a cadence of about two per year improve our understanding of the lunar environment in advance of future crewed missions to the Moon as part of the agency’s broader Artemis campaign.  
    Of the 11 active CLPS contracts, there have been three CLPS launches to date: Astrobotic’s Peregrine Mission One, which collected data in transit but experienced an anomaly that prevented it from landing on the Moon; Intuitive Machines’ IM-1 mission, which landed, tipped over, and operated on the lunar surface; and Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission One that is currently enroute and scheduled to land in early March 2025. The CLPS contract awards cover end-to-end commercial payload delivery services, including payload integration, launch from Earth, landing on the surface of the Moon, and mission operations. 
    NASA’s fourth CLPS flight is from Intuitive Machines with their IM-2 mission. The IM-2 mission is carrying NASA science and technology instruments to Mons Mouton, a lunar plateau just outside of 5 degrees of the South Pole of the Moon, closer to the pole than any preceding lunar mission.  
    Scheduled to launch no earlier than Wednesday and land approximately eight days later, Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lander, named Athena, will carry three NASA instruments to the lunar South Pole region – the Polar Resources Ice Mining Experiment-1 (PRIME-1) suite and the Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA). 
    The PRIME-1 suite consists of two instruments, the TRIDENT drill (The Regolith Ice Drill for Exploring New Terrain) and MSolo (Mass Spectrometer observing lunar operations), which will work together to extricate lunar soil samples, known as regolith, from the subsurface and analyze their composition to further understand the lunar environment and gain insight on potential resources that can be extracted for future examination. 
    The meter-long TRIDENT drill is designed to extract lunar regolith, up to about three feet below the surface. It will also measure soil temperature at varying depths below the surface, which will help to verify existing lunar thermal models that are used for ice stability calculations and resource mapping. By drilling into the lunar regolith, information is gathered to help answer questions about the lunar regolith geotechnical properties, such as soil strength, both at the surface and in the subsurface that will help inform Artemis infrastructure objectives. The data will be beneficial when designing future systems for on-site resource utilization that will use local resources to create everything from landing pads to rocket fuel. The lead development organization for TRIDENT is Honeybee Robotics, a Blue Origin Company. 
    The MSOLO instrument is a mass spectrometer capable of identifying and quantifying volatiles (or gasses that easily evaporate) found at or beneath the lunar surface, including– if it’s present in the regolith within the drill’s reach – water and oxygen, brought to the surface by the TRIDENT drill. This instrument can also detect any gases that emanate from the lander, drilling process, and other payloads conducting operations on the surface. Using MSolo to study the volatile gases found on the Moon can help us understand how the lander’s presence might alter the local environment. The lead development organization is INFICON of Syracuse, New York, in partnership with NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. 
    NASA’s LRA is a collection of eight retroreflectors that enable precision laser ranging, which is a measurement of the distance between the orbiting or landing spacecraft to the reflector on the lander. The LRA instrument is passive, meaning it does not power on. It will function as a permanent location marker on the Moon for decades to come, similar to its predecessors. The lead development organization is NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. 
    In addition to the CLPS instruments, two technology demonstrations aboard IM-2 were developed through NASA’s Tipping Point opportunity. These are collaborations with the agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate and industry that support development of commercial space capabilities and benefit future NASA missions.  
    Intuitive Machines developed a small hopping robot, Grace, named after Grace Hopper, computer scientist and mathematician. Grace will deploy as a secondary payload from the lander and enable high-resolution imaging and science surveying of the lunar surface, including permanently shadowed craters around the landing site. Grace is designed to bypass obstacles such as steep inclines, boulders, and craters to cover a lot of terrain while moving quickly, which is a valuable capability to support future missions on the Moon and other planets, including Mars. 
    Nokia will test a Lunar Surface Communications System that employs the same cellular technology here on Earth. Reconceptualized by Nokia Bell Labs to meet the unique requirements of a lunar mission, this tipping point technology aims to demonstrate proximity communications between the lander, a Lunar Outpost rover, and the hopper. 
    Launching as a rideshare alongside the IM-2 mission, NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer spacecraft also will begin its journey to lunar orbit where it will map the distribution of water – and other forms of water – on the Moon. 
    Future CLPS flights will continue to send payloads to the near side, far side, and South Pole regions of the Moon where investigations and exploration are informed by each area’s unique characteristics. With a pool of 13 American companies under CLPS, including a portfolio of 11 lunar deliveries by five vendors sending more than 50 individual science and technology instruments to lunar orbit and the surface of the Moon, NASA continues to advance long-term exploration of the Moon, and beyond to Mars.   

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sols 4464-4465: Making Good Progress

    Source: NASA

    Written by Lauren Edgar, Planetary Geologist at USGS Astrogeology Science Center

    Earth planning date: Monday, Feb. 24, 2025
    Over the weekend Curiosity drove about 48 meters (about 157 feet) to the southwest, continuing to march along on our traverse past Texoli butte and Gould Mesa. I was on shift as the LTP today, and it was great to see the good drive progress, interesting workspace, and exciting stratigraphy that lies ahead.
    Today’s two-sol plan includes contact science and a drive on the first sol, followed by untargeted remote sensing on the second sol. The Geology theme group got straight to work evaluating contact science targets, and decided on a nodular block named “Matilija Poppy” for APXS and MAHLI observations. Then the team turned their attention to the remote sensing activities. There are a variety of interesting rock textures near the rover, so the team spent some time planning Mastcam imaging and ChemCam LIBS activities to assess the diversity. Some blocks have polygonal fractures with raised ridges, while other blocks are more nodular or well-laminated. In addition to looking at the bedrock, Mastcam will document local troughs in the loose sand between blocks, to understand more recent surface processes. The team planned a ChemCam LIBS observation on one of the polygonal fractures at a target named “East Fork” and two long-distance ChemCam RMI mosaics of Gould Mesa to assess the distant stratigraphy. Then Curiosity will drive about 30 meters (about 98 feet) further to the south, and take post-drive imaging to prepare for Wednesday’s plan.
    On the second sol Curiosity will take an autonomously selected ChemCam target, along with multiple environmental monitoring observations to search for dust devils, monitor atmospheric dust, and evaluate clouds. It was a pretty smooth day of planning, and it’s always nice to see how the team works together to accomplish a lot of great science. Looking forward to continuing to make great progress as we start climbing uphill again!

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Under President Trump ICE Arrests Have Increased by 627%

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Under President Trump ICE Arrests Have Increased by 627%

    lass=”text-align-center”>“Hundreds of thousands of criminals were let into this country illegally. We are sending them home, and they will never be allowed to return.” – Secretary Noem 
    WASHINGTON–Today, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced that in a single month under President Trump more than 20,000 illegal aliens were arrested.  
    That’s a 627% increase in monthly arrests compared to just 33,000 at large arrests under Biden for ALL of last year.  
    A statement from Secretary Noem is below:  
    “President Trump and this Administration are saving lives every day because of the actions we are taking to secure the border and deport illegal alien criminals. Hundreds of thousands of criminals were let into this country illegally. We are sending them home, and they will never be allowed to return.”  

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Milky Way on the Horizon

    Source: NASA

    NASA astronaut Don Pettit used a camera with low light and long duration settings to capture this Jan. 29, 2025, image of the Milky Way appearing beyond Earth’s horizon. At the time, the International Space Station was orbiting 265 miles above the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Chile just before sunrise.
    Pettit is part of the Expedition 72 crew, along with NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Nick Hague. The orbital residents are exploring a variety of space phenomena to benefit humans on and off the Earth including pharmaceutical manufacturing, advanced life support systems, genetic sequencing in microgravity, and more.
    Read the Space Station blog to follow their activities.
    Image credit: NASA/Don Pettit

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: 6 Things to Know About NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer

    Source: NASA

    The small satellite mission will map the Moon to help scientists better understand where its water is, what form it’s in, how much is there, and how it changes over time.
    Launching no earlier than Wednesday, Feb. 26, NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer will help resolve an enduring mystery: Where is the Moon’s water? After sharing a ride on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with Intuitive Machines’ IM-2 launch — part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative — the small satellite will take several months to arrive in lunar orbit.
    Here are six things to know about the mission.
    1. Lunar Trailblazer will produce high-resolution maps of water on the lunar surface.
    One of the biggest lunar discoveries in recent decades is that the Moon’s surface has quantities of water, but little about its nature is known. To investigate, Lunar Trailblazer will decipher where the water is, what form it is in, how much is there, and how it changes over time. The small satellite will produce the best-yet maps of water on the lunar surface. Observations gathered during the two-year prime mission will also contribute to the understanding of water cycles on airless bodies throughout the solar system.
    2. The small satellite will use two state-of-the-art science instruments.
    Key to achieving these goals are the spacecraft’s two science instruments: the High-resolution Volatiles and Minerals Moon Mapper (HVM3) infrared spectrometer and the Lunar Thermal Mapper (LTM) infrared multispectral imager. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California provided the HVM3 instrument, while LTM was built by the University of Oxford and funded by the UK Space Agency.  
    HVM3 will detect and map the spectral fingerprints, or wavelengths of reflected sunlight, of minerals and the different forms of water on the lunar surface. The LTM instrument will map the minerals and thermal properties of the same landscape. Together they will create a picture of the abundance, location, and form of water while also tracking how its distribution changes over time and temperature.

    3. Lunar Trailblazer will take a long and winding road to the Moon.
    Weighing only 440 pounds (200 kilograms) and measuring 11.5 feet (3.5 meters) wide with its solar panels fully deployed, Lunar Trailblazer is about the size of a dishwasher and relies on a relatively small propulsion system. To make the spacecraft’s four-to-seven-month trip to the Moon (depending on the launch date) as efficient as possible, the mission’s design and navigation team has planned a looping trajectory that will use the gravity of the Sun, Earth, and Moon to guide Lunar Trailblazer to its final science orbit — a technique called low-energy transfer.
    4. The spacecraft will peer into the darkest parts of the Moon’s South Pole.
    Lunar Trailblazer’s science orbit positions it to peer into the craters at the Moon’s South Pole using the HVM3 instrument. What makes these craters so intriguing is that they harbor cold traps that may not have seen direct sunlight for billions of years, which means they’re a potential hideout for frozen water. The HVM3 spectrometer is designed to use faint reflected light from the walls of craters to see the floor of even permanently shadowed regions. If Lunar Trailblazer finds significant quantities of ice at the base of the craters, those locations could be pinpointed as a resource for future lunar explorers.
    5. Lunar Trailblazer is a high-risk, low-cost mission.
    Lunar Trailblazer was a 2019 selection of NASA’s SIMPLEx (Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration), which provides opportunities for low-cost science spacecraft to ride-share with selected primary missions. To maintain a lower overall cost, SIMPLEx missions have a higher risk posture and lighter requirements for oversight and management. This higher risk acceptance allows NASA to enable science missions that could not otherwise be done.
    6. Future missions will benefit from Lunar Trailblazer’s data.
    Mapping the Moon’s water supports future human and robotic lunar missions. With knowledge from Lunar Trailblazer of where water is located, astronauts could process lunar ice to create water for human use, breathable oxygen, or fuel. And they could conduct science by sampling the ice for later study to determine the water’s origins.
    More About Lunar Trailblazer
    Lunar Trailblazer is led by Principal Investigator Bethany Ehlmann of Caltech in Pasadena, California. Caltech also leads the mission’s science investigation, and Caltech’s IPAC leads mission operations, which includes planning, scheduling, and sequencing of all spacecraft activities. NASA JPL manages Lunar Trailblazer and provides system engineering, mission assurance, the HVM3 instrument, and mission design and navigation. JPL is managed by Caltech for NASA. Lockheed Martin Space provided the spacecraft, integrated the flight system, and supports operations under contract with Caltech. The University of Oxford developed and provided the LTM instrument, funded by the UK Space Agency. Lunar Trailblazer, part of NASA’s Lunar Discovery Exploration Program, is managed by NASA’s Planetary Mission Program Office at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the agency’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington.
    News Media Contact
    Karen Fox / Molly WasserNASA Headquarters, Washington202-358-1600karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / molly.l.wasser@nasa.gov
    Ian J. O’NeillJet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.818-354-2649ian.j.oneill@jpl.nasa.gov
    Isabel SwaffordCaltech IPAC626-216-4257iswafford@ipac.caltech.edu
    2025-027

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Centers Open in Pike County

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Disaster Recovery Centers Open in Pike County

    Disaster Recovery Centers Open in Pike County

    FRANKFORT, Ky –Two Disaster Recovery Centers will open in Pike County on Feb. 27 in areas affected by the February floods. Disaster Recovery Centers, operated by the Kentucky Division of Emergency Management and FEMA, offer in-person support to survivors in declared counties as the result of severe storms, straight-line winds, flooding, landslides and mudslides from Feb. 14, 2025, and continuing.   FEMA representatives can explain available assistance programs, how to apply to FEMA, and help connect survivors with resources for their recovery needs. The deadline to apply for federal assistance is April 25, 2025.Additional Disaster Recovery Centers will open across the Commonwealth disaster area in the coming days. Disaster Recovery Center LocationsPIKE COUNTYPike Public Library, 126 Lee Ave, Pikeville, Ky 41501Belfry Public Library, 24371 US-119, Belfry, Ky 41514Hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET Monday through Sunday.In addition to FEMA personnel, representatives from the Kentucky Office of Unemployment Insurance, the Kentucky Department of Insurance and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) will be available at the recovery centers to assist survivors.You do not need to visit a center to apply with FEMAIf you are unable to visit the center, there are other ways to apply: you can apply online at DisasterAssistance.gov, by calling 800-621-3362, or by using the FEMA mobile app. If you use a relay service, such as video relay (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service.When you apply, you will need to provide:A current phone number where you can be contacted.Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying.Your Social Security Number.A general list of damage and losses.Banking information if you choose direct deposit.If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name.For an accessible video on how to apply for FEMA assistance, go to youtube.com/watch?v=WZGpWI2RCNw.For more information about Kentucky flooding recovery, visit www.fema.gov/disaster/4860. Follow the FEMA Region 4 X account at x.com/femaregion4.###FEMA’s mission is helping people before, during, and after disasters.
    wesley.lagenour
    Wed, 02/26/2025 – 19:39

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Chairman Mast Issues Statement on Deportation of Uyghurs from Thailand to China

    Source: US House Committee on Foreign Affairs

    Media Contact 202-321-9747

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, released the following statement upon the deportation of dozens Uyghur refugees from Thailand back to China.

    “The Thai government sent dozens of refugees straight into the hands of the CCP’s concentration camps. The world knows exactly what happens to Uyghurs in China: forced labor, torture, sterilization, and extermination. Thailand has a choice to not be on the side of genocide.”

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Newsom grants executive clemency

    Source: US State of California 2

    Feb 26, 2025

    SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced multiple clemency actions. He granted pardons in three cases. He also sent multiple clemency cases to the Board of Parole Hearings, initiating the process for granting clemency in fifteen cases. He also sent two clemency applications to the Board and directed the Board to conduct risk assessment investigations.

    The California Constitution gives the Governor the authority to grant clemency in the form of a pardon, commutation, or reprieve. In cases where the applicant has more than one felony conviction, the Governor must first get the approval of the Board of Parole Hearings and the California Supreme Court. The Board of Parole Hearings also investigates clemency applications at the Governor’s request. 

    The Governor issues clemency grants only when they are consistent with public safety. In making this determination, the Governor weighs numerous factors including the applicant’s self-development and conduct since the offense and the impact of a grant on the community, including crime victims and survivors. Clemency recognizes rehabilitative change after conviction. A clemency grant does not forgive or minimize the crime and the harm it caused.

    The Governor regards clemency as an important part of the criminal justice system that can incentivize accountability and rehabilitation, increase public safety by removing counterproductive barriers to successful reentry, and correct unjust results in the legal system. 

    While in office, Governor Newsom has granted a total of 208 pardons, 141 commutations, and 42 reprieves.

    The Governor’s Office encourages victims, survivors, and witnesses to register with CDCR’s Office of Victims and Survivors Rights and Services to receive information about an incarcerated person’s status. For general information about victim services, to learn about victim-offender dialogues, or to register or update a registration confidentially, please click here or call 1-877-256-6877 (toll free).

    Copies of the gubernatorial clemency certificates announced today can be found here. The cases the Governor sent today to the Board of Parole Hearings for a recommendation will be scheduled for a future hearing. Those agendas will be posted here.

    Additional information on executive clemency can be found here.

    Press Releases, Public Safety

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    Feb 26, 2025

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    Feb 25, 2025

    News What you need to know: Governor Newsom today issued a statement in response to the Trump administration’s announcement that it had released more than $315 million of obligated money to create new water storage at the future Sites Reservoir and at the existing San…

    Feb 25, 2025

    News What you need to know: More than 9,000 properties were cleared of hazardous materials in less than 30 days – marking the fastest-ever hazardous debris removal effort in the nation. LOS ANGELES – In less than 30 days, federal and state crews have substantially…

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Lombardo Outlines Nevada’s Medicaid Priorities in Letter to Nevada Legislative Leadership

    Source: US State of Nevada

    CARSON CITY, NV – February 26, 2025

    Today, Governor Joe Lombardo released his letter to Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro and Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager outlining his recent correspondence to Chairman Mike Crapo of the Senate Finance Committee and Chairman Brett Guthrie of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

    Governor Lombardo’s letter highlights Nevada’s Medicaid priorities in any potential budget reconciliation legislation, while reiterating his support for eliminating wasteful federal spending.

    The letter to Nevada legislative leadership is attached.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Office of the Governor — News Release — Gov. Green Considers Judicial Nominations

    Source: US State of Hawaii

    Office of the Governor — News Release — Gov. Green Considers Judicial Nominations

    Posted on Feb 26, 2025 in Latest Department News, Newsroom, Office of the Governor Press Releases

    STATE OF HAWAIʻI 
    KA MOKU ʻĀINA O HAWAIʻI 
     
    JOSH GREEN, M.D. 
    GOVERNOR
    KE KIAʻĀINA 
     

    GOVERNOR GREEN CONSIDERS JUDICIAL NOMINATIONS

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
    February 26, 2025

    HONOLULU — Four nominees for Circuit Judge for the Circuit Court of the Third Circuit (Island of Hawaiʻi) have been announced for consideration. Governor Josh Green, M.D., will nominate a successor to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Circuit Judge Robert D.S., Kim in July of 2024.

    The State Judicial Selection Commission transmitted the list of nominees to Governor  Green following a thorough review of the qualifications and backgrounds of all applicants.

    The nominees are:

    • Mark D. Disher; currently Deputy Corporation Counsel in the County of Hawaiʻi Office of the Corporation Counsel. He is a graduate of the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
    • Brandon K. Flores; currently Assistant Administrator of the Child Support Enforcement Agency in the state of Hawaiʻi Department of the Attorney General. Flores is a graduate of the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
    • Kauanoe A.D. Jackson; currently a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney, county of Hawaiʻi Office of the Prosecuting Attorney. Jackson is a graduate of the Chapman University School of Law (known now as the Dale E. Fowler School of Law).
    • Scott K.D. Shishido; currently the Hawaiʻi Island Managing Attorney for the Legal Aid Society of Hawaiʻi. Shishido is a graduate of the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

    Governor Green must make his appointment within 30 days, or by Friday, March 28, 2025.

    The public is invited to provide comments on the nominees via the Governor’s website https://governor.hawaii.gov/contact-us/contact-the-governor/.

    # # #

    Media Contacts:   
    Erika Engle
    Press Secretary
    Office of the Governor, State of Hawai‘i
    Office: 808-586-0120
    Email: [email protected] 

    Makana McClellan
    Director of Communications
    Office of the Governor, State of Hawaiʻi
    Cell: 808-265-0083
    Email: [email protected]

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Newsom announces statewide plan for economic growth, $245 million for more jobs — with additional investment for LA’s recovery

    Source: US State of California 2

    Feb 26, 2025

    What you need to know: Governor Newsom today released a new economic vision for California’s future with a bold plan, realized locally. The unveiling comes alongside the announcement of more than $245 million in investments to help support workers statewide, including additional investment in LA to bolster the region’s ongoing economic recovery from wildfires.

    Los Angeles, California – Governor Newsom today released the new California Jobs First Economic Blueprint, a statewide plan built with input from 13 regional plans to drive sustainable economic growth, innovation, and access to good-paying jobs over the next decade. The Blueprint is paired with $125 million in funding to support new, ready-to-go projects, $15 million for economic development projects for California Native American tribes, $13 million to support the economic recovery and small businesses in the Los Angeles region, and $92 million in funding for new apprenticeship and jobs programs.

    California’s economic dominance and success are grown locally, with the contributions of each diverse region of our state. From agriculture to clean energy to film to every industry in between, our Golden State owes its success to the people, communities, and industries that make it work. I am proud of the collaborative work of Californians from every region who developed this statewide Economic Blueprint. California thrives because we work together, despite adversity and even disagreement. It is this collective resilient spirit that will help move Los Angeles forward and help us overcome any challenge that stands in our way.

    Governor Gavin Newsom

    The California Jobs First Economic Blueprint launch is a bold step toward building an economy that uplifts every worker, every family, and every community. California leads the world in innovation and opportunity, but opportunity should never be reserved for a select few — it must be a reality for all. Shaped by communities, the California Jobs First Economic Blueprint ensures every Californian has the chance to thrive.

    First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom

    Funding for economic and workforce development 

    Along with the Jobs First Economic Blueprint, the Governor’s announced key investments in the state’s efforts to grow the economy and create job opportunities, including:

    ✅ $125 million grant solicitation to support new “ready-to-go” projects aligned to the state’s strategic sectors, ensuring that every region across California continues to play a critical role in the sustainable growth of the world’s fifth-largest economy. 

    ✅ $15 million grant solicitation for economic planning, pre-development, and implementation projects for California Native American tribes. 

    ✅ $52 million for new apprenticeships through the Apprenticeship Innovation Fund with a focus on high-demand sectors such as finance, advanced manufacturing, and healthcare.

    ✅ $16 million for pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship funding for young people ages 16-24 through the California Opportunity Youth Apprenticeship (COYA) grant program. This funding supports pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs that provide hands-on, real-world job training for young people who are often neither working nor in school.

    ✅ $24.1 million in High Road Training Partnership funds to 10 projects statewide to train people for jobs to meet California’s most urgent healthcare needs, with a focus on behavioral health and nursing. LA recipients include the Center for Caregiver Advancement, which is training home-health workers to be prepared for disasters such as the Los Angeles fires.

    Supporting recovery and rebuilding in LA

    Today, the Governor received the Los Angeles Jobs First Collaborative’s regional plan as part of his continued tour of the state’s thirteen economic regions, and announced new support to aid in LA’s rebuilding and recovery efforts:

    ✅ $10 million on behalf of the State, LA Rises, Maersk and APM Terminals to the LA Region Small Business Relief Fund, a grant program run by the City and County of LA that will be critical in rebuilding fire-impacted communities.  This is the first investment by LA Rises, the unified recovery effort launched by the Governor in January and led by Dodgers Chairman Mark Walter, business leader and basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and Casey Wasserman. 

    ✅ $3 million for the Los Angeles Jobs First Collaborative in their recovery efforts for the region, including for the launch of public-facing campaigns to promote small business support and the addition of capacity for near-term business and economic recovery. 

    California Jobs First: Bold vision, realized locally

    In 2021, Governor Newsom launched a statewide economic development planning process called the Community Economic Resilience Fund (CERF), which was later renamed the Regional Investment Initiative under the banner of California Jobs First in 2023. The objective was to create good-paying, accessible jobs and sustainable economic growth across the state’s thirteen regions.

    Each region created a planning body — or collaborative — with representation from a wide variety of community partners, including labor, business, local government, education, environmental justice, community organizations, and more. The collaboratives then wrote their own data-driven, community-led economic plans, including identifying strategic industry sectors.

    To support this process, California has invested $287 million since 2022, including $5 million per region for planning, $39 million for pilot projects across the state and $14 million per region to develop viable projects that advance their strategic sectors.

    In March 2024, Governor Newsom announced the creation of the California Jobs First Council, made up of nine Cabinet-level agencies, focused on streamlining the state’s economic and workforce development programs to create more family-supporting jobs and prioritize industry sectors for future growth.

    California’s Economic Blueprint

    The California Jobs First Economic Blueprint guides the state’s investments in key sectors to drive sustainable economic growth, innovation, and access to good-paying jobs over the next decade. Made up of ten strategic industry sectors, this framework will help streamline the state’s economic, business, and workforce development programs to create more jobs, faster. 

    The state’s thirteen economic regions engaged more than 10,000 local residents and experts who collectively identified these sectors as key to driving local economies into the future.

    California’s economy has industries at all stages of advancement and growth. They are categorized as follows within the Economic Blueprint:

    • Strengthen: Sectors where California has an established competitive position and/or significant employment, but where there is leveling growth or wages
    • Accelerate: Sectors with moderate to high projected growth that are ready for expansion, where additional investments (e.g., capital, infrastructure) could “bend the curve” to generate growth
    • Bet: Emerging sectors with significant investment or high strategic importance to the innovation ecosystem
    • Anchor: Regional anchors that are critical for attracting and supporting industry activities while also providing quality, good-paying jobs within local communities

    Training workers for jobs in growth sectors 

    The workforce training dollars announced by Gov. Newsom on Wednesday mark another significant milestone in meeting the governor’s goal of creating 500,000 new training slots by 2029. Since 2019, California has served 201,000 registered apprentices, solidifying its position as the nation’s leader in apprenticeship programs. More than 400,000 additional workers have or will be served through existing contracts for earn-and-learn programs, which provide income or stipends while training people for new jobs or to advance in their current fields. Much of the funding prioritizes high-growth sectors like healthcare and advanced manufacturing. 

    The earn-and-learn model is represented in the soon-to-be-released California Master Plan for Career Education, which will prioritize hands-on learning and real-life skills. It envisions new tools to reflect the total of a person’s abilities, including a digital “Career Passport,” that can enable Californians to display their certified skills, badges, and credentials to advance economic mobility and skills-based hiring. The Master Plan on Career Education is designed to complement the Jobs First initiative by preparing a workforce to fill the jobs envisioned in each region.  

    California’s economic dominance

    California remains the fifth-largest economy in the world. With an increasing state population and recent record-high tourism spending, California is the nation’s top state for new business starts, access to venture capital funding, and manufacturing, high-tech, and agriculture.

    Learn more

    More information about the California Jobs First and the Economic Blueprint can be found here. For ongoing updates, follow California Jobs First on LinkedIn and X. 

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  • MIL-OSI USA: State and City Launch 2025 Food Drives to Support Hawaiʻi Foodbank

    Source: US State of Hawaii

    State and City Launch 2025 Food Drives to Support Hawaiʻi Foodbank

    Goal Set to Provide 515,000 Meals to Families in Need

    HONOLULU — The State of Hawaiʻi and the City and County of Honolulu, in partnership with Hawaiʻi Foodbank, have officially launched their 2025 employee food drives to help fight food insecurity across the islands. Together, the state and city have set a goal of providing 515,000 meals to Hawaiʻi residents in need.

    The 26th Annual State Employees Food Drive aims to raise 405,000 meals, while the City and County of Honolulu’s drive aims to raise 110,000 meals. Both food drives will run from February 21 to May 9, encouraging employees and residents to donate food and funds to support local families.

    In 2024, the joint effort surpassed its goal of 500,000 meals. Every donation makes an impact—1.2 pounds of food equals one meal, and every $1 provides approximately 2.15 meals. That means just $10 can provide up to 20 meals, making even small contributions meaningful.

    Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke, who is leading the state’s food drive for a third year said, “Food insecurity affects far too many families in Hawaiʻi, including 90,000 keiki. The generosity of our state employees and community members makes a real difference in ensuring that no one in our islands goes hungry. This food drive is a testament to what we can accomplish when we come together.”

    Hunger remains a significant challenge, with one in three households in Hawaiʻi struggling with food insecurity. In recent months, Hawaiʻi Foodbank has been serving an average of 170,000 individuals each month—this is a dramatic increase from previous years. Rising living costs, the ongoing impacts of the pandemic, and other economic hardships have left more families, children, and kūpuna struggling to meet their basic nutritional needs. The annual food drive helps bridge that gap by providing meals for those in need.

    “28% of households are hungry or food insecure on Oʻahu, according to the Hawaiʻi Foodbank. That alarming statistic demonstrates that we are all facing extraordinarily challenging times,” said Mayor Rick Blangiardi. “But here in Hawaiʻi, we take care of one another, especially those who need it most. I am inspired by the generous spirit of everyone who makes a donation, and I am exceptionally proud to team up with our partners at the State of Hawaiʻi in a dedicated and united effort to aggressively address hunger and food insecurity here at home.”

    Since its inception, the annual food drive has played a crucial role in ensuring families across Hawaiʻi have access to nutritious meals. Every contribution—big or small—helps make a difference.

    “These food drives are such an important component of our collective work—both in raising awareness and in providing critical food assistance to our families and neighbors,” said Amy Miller, president and CEO of Hawaiʻi Foodbank. “Ending hunger is a shared community responsibility, and we are incredibly grateful for the continued partnership with the State of Hawaiʻi and the City and County of Honolulu, and for every employee and resident who gives to help nourish our ‘ohana. By coming together, we can create a future where everybody in Hawai‘i has consistent, sufficient access to the safe and healthy food we all deserve to thrive.”

    Anyone can support the Hawaiʻi Foodbank by donating online, and employee contributions will be counted toward their department’s overall total. Donations can be made at:

    • State Employees Food Drive: org/state
      • Food donations are being accepted in person at the Lt. Governor’s office in the state Capitol (415 S. Beretania St., Fifth Floor).
    • City and County Employees Food Drive: org/city
      • Oʻahu residents can drop off food donations at all Satellite City Halls or at any Honolulu Fire Department station throughout the drive.

    To kick off the drives, Hawaiʻi Foodbank, in coordination with the University of Hawaiʻi Athletics, will also collect food and monetary donations at upcoming UH sports events.

    Friday, Feb. 28

    • Softball: Hawaiʻi vs. Jackson State, 4 p.m., Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium
    • Softball: Hawaiʻi vs. Washington, 6 p.m., Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium
    • Baseball: Hawaiʻi vs. Northeastern, 6:35 p.m., Les Murakami Stadium
    • Men’s Volleyball: Hawaiʻi vs. UC Irvine, 7 p.m., SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center

    Saturday, March 1

    • Men’s Basketball: Hawaiʻi vs. UC Davis, 7 p.m., SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center

    For those facing food insecurity, resources and assistance are available at hawaiifoodbank.org/help.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Statement from Governor Lombardo on the Model Immigration Policies

    Source: US State of Nevada

    CARSON CITY, NV – February 26, 2025

    Today, Governor Joe Lombardo released the following statement on the Model Immigration Policies released by the Office of the Attorney General.

    “The Model Immigration Policies released by the Office of the Attorney General are currently under review by the Executive Branch. All affected state agencies will continue to comply with – and enforce – all applicable law.

    “As the Attorney General has conceded, and as the governing statutes make clear, the Model Immigration Policies are non-binding and non-mandatory guidelines.

    “Let me be clear: The Attorney General does not have the authority to make Nevada a sanctuary state or jurisdiction. As long as I am Governor, Nevada will continue to follow federal law.”

     ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Video: We are refocusing our agency on safety.

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IERkiUTY0MU

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: Secretary Wright joins CNN’s Jake Tapper – February 26th, 2025

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9lL16V_u0k

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: Secretary Wright joins FOX News’s Martha MacCallum – February 26th, 2025

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jltMkcY1cw

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: Secretary Wright visits Oppenheimer House in Los Alamos, NM – February 25th, 2025

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwTknL-er10

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Flower Show to adorn Victoria Park with theme flower cosmos from March 14 (with photos)

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

    Flower Show to adorn Victoria Park with theme flower cosmos from March 14 (with photos)
    Flower Show to adorn Victoria Park with theme flower cosmos from March 14 (with photos)
    ***************************************************************************************

         This year’s Hong Kong Flower Show (HKFS) will be held at Victoria Park for 10 days from March 14 to 23, running from 9am to 9pm daily, featuring the richly coloured cosmos as its theme flower and “Ablaze with Glory” as the theme. With veil-thin petals that flutter in a light breeze, cosmos exudes a gentle and charming vibe. Symbolising tenacity and bliss, the blooming flowers of vigorous cosmos will bring exuberance and vitality to the show.      Native to Mexico, cosmos is an annual herbaceous member of the Asteraceae family. Through years of natural propagation and artificial hybridisation, cosmos has produced many variants and cultivars, including distinctive ones with curled or ligulate florets and double-petal flower heads. Cosmos is highly adaptable to various climates and soils and can even thrive in poor soil conditions.      Cosmos has large and beautiful flowers. The flowering period is as long as several months. The flowers come in an array of vibrant colours, ranging from pure floral colours such as lavender, fuchsia, magenta, pink and white to special species with colours in two-tone, picotee, stripes and inner halo.      The colourful and vigorous cosmos, with its long-lasting flowering period, is easy to cultivate and maintain. It is therefore a desirable material used in roadside planting, decorating flowerbeds and flower arrangements. Apart from being adornments, cosmos has culinary and medicinal uses. The entire plant can be used in traditional Chinese medicine to clear heat and toxins, while its tender shoots and leaves are served as delicacies across Southeast Asia.      In addition to this year’s theme flower and other flowering plants, the event will showcase a large collection of exquisite potted plants, beautiful floral arrangements and well-crafted landscape displays by local, Mainland and overseas organisations. There will also be commercial stalls selling flowers and horticultural products. A wide variety of educational and recreational fringe activities will also be provided for the enjoyment of visitors of all ages.      For more details about the HKFS and its admission fee arrangements, please visit the webpage at www.hkflowershow.hk/en/hkfs/2025/index.html or call 2601 8260 for enquiries.      The HKFS is organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust is supporting the flower show for the 13th consecutive year and has been its major sponsor since 2014.

     
    Ends/Thursday, February 27, 2025Issued at HKT 17:15

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    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: South Africa’s malnutrition crisis: why a cheaper basket of healthy food is the answer

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Julian May, Director DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security, University of the Western Cape

    The death in early February of a 9-year-old South African boy, Alti Willard, who drank poison while scavenging for food in rubbish bins with his father, is a tragic reflection of the persistent food insecurity crisis in the country.

    A child dying while trying to avert starvation is hard to comprehend, given the country’s economic and natural resources. South African has the capability to feed the entire nation. But it is grappling with a triple burden of malnutrition, comprising under-nutrition and hunger, micronutrient deficiencies, and unhealthy diets.

    According to the most recent Food and Nutrition Security Survey, conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), food insecurity affects 63.5% of households in the country – 17.5% of them severely. Food insecurity is not just a matter of inadequate access to food. It is deeply intertwined with child malnutrition, meaning that food security is not just about having enough food; it’s about having nourishing food for children.

    The link between household food insecurity and child malnutrition is stark. Among households with at least one child under the age of five suffering from stunting, food insecurity rates reach 83.3%.

    Alarmingly, 1,000 children die each year due to preventable acute malnutrition. And 2.7 million children under six live in households where poverty levels prevent their basic nutritional needs from being met. Food poverty rates have worsened since the COVID-19 pandemic. Food inflation has exacerbated the crisis.

    The survey indicates that 28.8% of children under the age of five suffer from stunting, an indicator of chronic undernutrition. It means children are below the height expected for their age.

    Read more: South Africa’s hunger problem is turning into a major health crisis

    The South African Early Childhood Review 2024 reinforces these findings. This is an annual review of child development produced by the Children’s Institute at the University of Cape Town and Ilifa Labantwana, an early childhood development NGO. It highlights a rise in child malnutrition, particularly severe acute malnutrition. Between 2020 and 2023, these cases increased by 33%, with 15,000 children requiring hospitalisation in 2022/23 alone.

    Based on our extensive research experience, policy advice and activism in food security, we argue that food insecurity transcends mere food supply issues. It is deeply intertwined with systemic inequality, food system dynamics, poverty and failures in policy.

    Tackling these crises will need a profound change in the approach to food and nutrition security. It requires a shift from temporary relief measures such as the social relief of distress grant to sustainable, structural solutions that lower the cost of a healthy food basket. That would mean no child would have to search for sustenance in refuse bins.

    Any solution so far?

    South Africa has the highest number of people who relay on social grants. Some of these are aimed at addressing food insecurity and nutrition, particularly among children. Despite these safety nets, food insecurity persists, suggesting that they are either inadequately resourced or poorly targeted.

    The grants include:

    • Social grants: About 58% of children aged 14 and younger receive social grants, primarily through the child support grant. However, the youngest children, especially infants, are most likely to be excluded from the grant due to delays in registering infants after birth.

    Read more: Poor South African households can’t afford nutritious food – what can be done

    Enrolling eligible infants from birth requires better coordination between government departments. However, due to the size of the grant relative to the cost of ensuring child nutrition, and competing demands on the grant from other household needs such as housing and clothing, the grants are not enough to alleviate food insecurity.

    Volunteers from the charity Hunger Has No Religion prepare hotdogs for hungry people in Coronationville, Johannesburg. Luca Sola/AFP via Getty Images.

    • School and early childhood development feeding programmes: The National School Nutrition Programme reaches over 9 million children annually. Evidence suggests that children in these programmes have better nutritional outcomes than those who are not.

    • Community and NGO initiatives: While home, school and community gardens, community kitchens and NGO-driven food relief programmes provide support, they lack sustainability and reach.

    What needs to be done?

    The HSRC and South Africa Early Childhood Review 2024 highlight the urgent need for comprehensive, multi-sectoral solutions:

    Read more: 47% of South Africans rely on social grants – study reveals how they use them to generate more income

    • Increase the value of the child support grant, currently R530 (US$28 a month, to align with the cost of a thrifty healthy basket of R945 (US$51).

    • Ensure infants and young children are enrolled in the child support grant from birth through better collaboration between the departments of health, home affairs and social development. The recent reduction in the visa backlog shows what can be achieved.

    • Establish the national multi-sectoral food security coordination body proposed in the National Food and Nutrition Security Plan to streamline policies across different government departments. Brazil followed a similar approach with success.

    • Expand early childhood development nutrition programmes, register informal early childhood development centres, and increase subsidies to improve food provision in these centres.

    • Address gender inequalities in food security by ensuring better economic opportunities for women engaged in food trade, including street vending, who are more likely to be heads of household.

    • Expand community-based health services, using community health workers to monitor child growth and nutrition at the household level.

    • Address neglected dimensions of food insecurity.

    Read more: Africa’s worsening food crisis – it’s time for an agricultural revolution

    For example, poverty negatively affects caregivers’ mental health, which in turn affects child nutrition. Caregivers experiencing food insecurity have higher levels of depression and hopelessness. This potentially affects their capacity to provide the care and attention that children require. Expanding income support and community health services to caregivers can mitigate this cycle.

    Disabled children and caregivers are another example. They face additional challenges and must be specifically targeted for tailored support.

    Finally, children of seasonal farmworkers are highly vulnerable when their caregivers are without employment and not receiving unemployment insurance fund payments. Immediate food relief can prevent fluctuations in the quality and quantity of their diets.

    – South Africa’s malnutrition crisis: why a cheaper basket of healthy food is the answer
    – https://theconversation.com/south-africas-malnutrition-crisis-why-a-cheaper-basket-of-healthy-food-is-the-answer-250308

    MIL OSI Africa –