NewzIntel.com

Category: Americas

  • MIL-OSI USA: FACT SHEET: Protecting America from Connected Vehicle Technology from Countries of  Concern

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    Chinese automakers are seeking to dominate connected vehicle technologies in the United States and globally, posing new threats to our national security, including through our supply chains. The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring that our automotive supply chains are resilient and secure from foreign threats. Today, President Biden is announcing strong action to protect America from the national security risks associated with connected vehicle technologies from countries of concern. The Department of Commerce is issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would, if finalized as proposed, prohibit the sale or import of connected vehicles that incorporate certain technology and the import of particular components themselves from countries of concern, specifically the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Russia. The announcement is the next step in a process President Biden announced in February, 2024. This NPRM incorporates public feedback submitted in response to the Department’s advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) issued on March 1, 2024, which sought public comment on the national security risks associated with certain technologies used in connected vehicles. Connected vehicles provide many benefits — from promoting vehicle safety to assisting drivers with navigation — but they also pose new and growing threats. These technologies include computer systems that control vehicle movement and collect sensitive driver and passenger data as well as cameras and sensors that enable automated driving systems and record detailed information about American infrastructure. Now more than ever, vehicles are directly connected into our country’s digital networks. As the Department of Commerce has found, vehicles’ increasing connectivity creates opportunities to collect and exploit sensitive information. Certain hardware and software in connected vehicles enable the capture of information about geographic areas or critical infrastructure, and present opportunities for malicious actors to disrupt the operations of infrastructure or the vehicles themselves. Commerce has determined that certain technologies used in connected vehicles from the PRC and Russia present particularly acute threats. These countries of concern could use critical technologies within our supply chains for surveillance and sabotage to undermine national security. The Department of Commerce’s proposed rule would prohibit the import or sale of certain connected vehicle systems designed, developed, manufactured, or supplied by entities with a sufficient nexus to the PRC or Russia. Specifically, the rule covers “vehicle connectivity systems” (VCS) — that is, systems and components connecting the vehicle to the outside world, including via Bluetooth, cellular, satellite, and Wi-Fi modules — and “automated driving systems” (ADS), which allow highly autonomous vehicles to operate without a driver behind the wheel. The rule includes restrictions on imports or sales of connected vehicles using VCS and ADS software, as well as imports of VCS hardware equipment. The Department of Commerce is also proposing procedures to let certain parties, such as small producers of vehicles, receive exemptions from the prohibitions on an exceptional basis, in order to minimize unanticipated and unnecessary disruption to industry. The prohibitions on software would take effect for Model Year 2027, and the prohibitions on hardware would take effect for Model Year 2030, or January 1, 2029 for units without a model year. These restrictions will help address national security risks posed by connected vehicle technologies from countries of concern. As the Department of Commerce develops the final rule, the Administration encourages interested stakeholders to share input with the Department so that their views can be taken into consideration. The Department will continue to consult closely with industry, U.S. allies and partners, and other stakeholders throughout the regulatory process to ensure any actions maximally protect U.S. national security, while minimizing unintended consequences or disruptions.
    The Biden-Harris Administration is focused on comprehensively addressing the threats caused by foreign automobiles and supply chains. In May of this year, President Biden directed an increase from 25% to 100% on the tariff rate on Chinese electric vehicles under Section 301. The Inflation Reduction Act tied eligibility for the $7,500 EV tax credit to final assembly in North America and sourcing key battery minerals and components from the United States or trade partners. These prior actions underscore the Administration’s commitment to ensuring that the American auto industry is leading in quality and innovation, and that U.S. automakers have the opportunity to compete on a level playing field as they develop the next generation of automobiles. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Climate change is a pollution problem, and countries have stopped similar threats before – think DDT and acid rain

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Alexander E. Gates, Professor of Earth and Environmental Science, Rutgers University – Newark

    Adding scrubbers in coal-fired power plants helped reduce acid rain, but they continued to fuel climate change. Drums600 via Wikimedia, CC BY-SA

    Climate change can seem like an insurmountable challenge. However, if you look closely at its causes, you’ll realize that history is filled with similar health and environmental threats that humanity has overcome.

    The main cause of climate change – carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels – is really just another pollutant. And countries know how to reduce harmful pollutants. They did it with the pesticide DDT, lead paint and the power plant emissions that were causing acid rain, among many others.

    In each of those cases, growing public outcry eventually led to policy changes, despite pushback from industry. Once pressured by laws and regulations, industries ramped up production of safer solutions.

    I am an earth and environmental scientist, and my latest book, “Reclaiming Our Planet,” explores history’s lessons in overcoming seemingly insurmountable hazards. Here are a few examples:

    Banning DDT despite industry pushback

    DDT was the first truly effective pesticide and considered to be miraculous. By killing mosquitoes and lice, it wiped out malaria and other diseases in many countries, and in agriculture, it saved tons of crops.

    After World War II, DDT was applied to farms, buildings and gardens throughout the United States. However, it also had drawbacks. It accumulated in mother’s milk to levels where it could deliver a toxic dose to infants. Women were advised against nursing their babies in the 1960s because of the danger.

    U.S. bald eagle populations were decimated by DDT. Once the chemical was banned, they began to rebound.
    U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

    In addition, DDT bioaccumulated up the food chain to toxic levels in apex species like raptors. It weakened the eggshells to the point where brooding mothers crushed their eggs. Bald eagles were reduced to 417 breeding pairs across North America by 1967 and were placed on the endangered species list.

    Biologist Rachel Carson documented DDT’s damage in her 1962 book “Silent Spring” and, in doing so, catalyzed a public environmental movement. Despite disinformation campaigns and attacks from the chemical industry, tremendous public pressure on politicians led to congressional hearings, state and federal restrictions and eventually a U.S. ban on the general use of DDT in 1972.

    Rachel Carson, whose book ‘Silent Spring’ led to a study of pesticides, testifies before a Senate committee in Washington on June 4, 1963.
    AP Photo/Charles Gorry

    Bald eagles recovered to 320,000 in the United States by 2017, about equal to populations from before European settlement. The chemical industry, facing a DDT ban, quickly developed much safer pesticides.

    Building evidence of lead’s hazards

    Lead use skyrocketed in the 20th century, particularly in paints, plumbing and gasoline. It was so widespread that just about everyone was exposed to a metal that research now shows can harm the kidneys, liver, cardiovascular system and children’s brain development.

    Clair “Pat” Patterson, a geochemist at the California Institute of Technology, showed that Americans were continuously exposed to lead at near toxic levels. Human skeletons from the 1960s were found to have up to 1,200 times the lead of ancient skeletons. Today, health standards say there’s no safe level of lead in the blood.

    Lead paint was banned for residential use in the U.S. in 1978, but existing lead paint in older homes can still chip, creating a health risk for children today.
    EPA

    Despite threats both personally and professionally and a disinformation campaign from industry, Patterson and his supporters compiled years of evidence to warn the public and eventually pressured politicians to ban lead from many uses, including in gasoline and residential paints.

    Once regulations were in place, industry ramped up production of substitutes. As a result, lead levels in the blood of children decreased by 97% over the next several decades. While lead exposure is less common now, some people are still exposed to dangerous levels lingering in homes, pipes and soil, often in low-income neighborhoods.

    Stopping acid rain: An international problem

    Acid rain is primarily caused when sulfur dioxide, released into the air by the burning of coal, high-sulfur oil and smelting and refining of metals, interacts with rain or fog. The acidic rain that falls can destroy forests, kill lake ecosystems and dissolve statues and corrode infrastructure.

    Acid rain damage across Europe and North America in the 20th century also showed the world how air pollution, which doesn’t stop at borders, can become an international crisis requiring international solutions.

    The problem of acid rain began well over a century ago, but sulfur dioxide levels grew quickly after World War II. A thermal inversion in London in 1952 created such a concentration of sulfur dioxide and other air pollutants that it killed thousands of people. As damage to forests and lakes worsened across Europe, countries signed international agreements starting in the 1980s to cut their sulfur dioxide emissions.

    Trees killed by acid rain in the Czech Republic in 1998. Forests across many parts of Europe and North America suffered from acid rain damage.
    Seitz/ullstein bild via Getty Images

    In the U.S., emissions from Midwestern power plants killed fish and trees in the pristine Adirondacks. The damage, health concerns and multiple disasters outraged the public, and politicians responded.

    Sulfur dioxide was named as one of the six criteria air pollutants in the groundbreaking 1970 U.S. Clean Air Act, which required the federal government to set limits on its release. Power plants installed scrubbers to capture the pollutant, and over the next 40 years, sulfur dioxide concentrations in the U.S. decreased by about 95%.

    Parallels with climate change

    There are many parallels between these examples and climate change today.

    Mountains of scientific evidence show how carbon dixoide emissions from fossil fuel combustion in vehicles, factories and power plants are warming the planet. The fossil fuel industry began using its political power and misinformation campaigns decades ago to block regulations that were designed to slow climate change.

    And people around the world, facing worsening heat and weather disasters fueled by global warming, have been calling for action to stop climate change and invest in cleaner energy.

    The first Earth Day, in 1970, drew 20 million people. Rallies in recent years have shifted the focus to climate change and have drawn millions of people around the world.

    Public campaigns and huge rallies for action on climate change, like this one in New York City in 2023, help put public pressure on politicians.
    Erik McGregor/LightRocket via Getty Images

    The challenge has been getting politicians to act, but that is slowly changing in many countries.

    The United States has started investing in scaling up several tools to rein in climate change, including electric vehicles, wind turbines and solar panels. Federal and state policies, such as requirements for renewable energy production and limits on greenhouse gas emissions, are also crucial for getting industries to switch to less harmful alternatives.

    Climate change is a global problem that will require efforts worldwide. International agreements are also helping more countries take steps forward. One shift that has been discussed by countries for years could help boost those efforts: Ending the billions of dollars in taxpayer-funded fossil fuel subsidies and shifting that money to healthier solutions could help move the needle toward slowing climate change.

    Alexander E. Gates is affiliated with The Newark Green Team.

    – ref. Climate change is a pollution problem, and countries have stopped similar threats before – think DDT and acid rain – https://theconversation.com/climate-change-is-a-pollution-problem-and-countries-have-stopped-similar-threats-before-think-ddt-and-acid-rain-236479

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Lankford’s Shadow Wolves Improvement Act Clears Homeland Security Committee

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Oklahoma James Lankford

    OKLAHOMA CITY, OK — The Senate Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee unanimously approved the Shadow Wolves Improvement Act, which was introduced by Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), Ranking Member and Chair of the Border Management Subcommittee, along with Senators John Hoeven (R-ND) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ). The Shadow Wolves Improvement Act would provide additional career mobility opportunities for Shadow Wolves law enforcement officers, making it easier to recruit and retain Shadow Wolves agents and to improve border security. 

    “ICE Shadow Wolves agents—a Native American tactical patrol unit—use their unique expertise and personal knowledge to stop drug traffickers and human smugglers from coming across the southern border. Giving these critical law enforcement officers access to expanded career mobility and opportunity not only supports their work to secure the border but also strengthens recruiting and retention for agents,” said Lankford.

    “Our bill ensures the Tohono O’Oodham Nation’s Shadow Wolves have the resources needed to continue combating drug smuggling, human trafficking, and other illicit activity on the Southwest border. I’m proud my legislation earned strong bipartisan support, and I look forward to getting it passed into law,” said Sinema.

    “Our legislation builds upon the success of the Shadow Wolves initiative, giving these agents the career mobility they deserve while expanding the program, including along the northern border,” said Hoeven. “Doing so comes as part of our broader efforts to deploy the personnel, infrastructure and technology needed to ensure the security of our nation’s borders, get the illegal immigration crisis under control and protect against human and drug trafficking.” 

    “The Shadow Wolves are a critical asset of our nation’s border security efforts, using their unique skills and knowledge to stop dangerous drug and human trafficking operations on tribal lands,” said Kelly. “By enhancing recruitment and retention, we are not only protecting the Tohono O’odham Nation, but strengthening security along our entire southern border. I’m proud to see our bill advance with strong bipartisan support, and I look forward to seeing it through to final passage.” 

    “The Shadow Wolves are an elite, all-Native American tracking and investigative unit with decades of experience, who use both technology and traditional tracking methods to interdict human and drug smuggling on the Tohono O’odham reservation. The Tohono O’odham Nation strongly supports the Shadow Wolves Improvement Act, which will further enhance the effectiveness of the Shadow Wolves program by improving retention and recruitment and expanding the program. The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee has done great work incorporating feedback from the Nation into this bill. Its passage will ensure that this group of Native American agents can continue to grow and provide their uniquely important capabilities to protect the Tohono O’odham and the US homeland,” said Verlon Jose, Chairman of Tohono O’odham Nation.

    “Public Safety, particularly drug and human trafficking, continue to be a priority for Indian Country. These issues are uniquely difficult for tribal communities, like the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, who are located along the US border. The Shadow Wolves Improvement Act is an additional tool within the law enforcement toolbox that will help. The Tribe appreciate Senators Sinema and Hoeven introducing this legislation and urge its swift passage in the Senate,” said Jamie Azure, Chairman of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians.

    “The Shadow Wolves Improvement Act is a necessary step forward to provide appropriate guidance and options to a group of Native American law enforcement agents which will permit them to receive the same compensation, benefits, and opportunities as their non-native brothers and sisters,” said President Mat Silverman of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA). “FLEOA recognizes the value and expertise the Shadow Wolves provide and support the expansion of this program. Our country and Native American border communities will benefit from the increased opportunities, increased safety, and equality this Act will bring to the Tohono O’odham Nation and other tribes across this great nation.”

    Shadow Wolves are members of the Tohono O’odham Nation who patrol the 76-mile stretch of land that the Tohono O’odham Nation shares with Mexico. They are known for their ability to track drug smugglers as they attempt to smuggle illegal commodities across Tribal land, thanks to their unique geographical and cultural knowledge. They also help improve the relationship between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Tribal communities. The Shadow Wolves unit is classified as special agents allowed to patrol, investigate, interdict, and secure the border. Shadow Wolves were previously classified as tactical officers under ICE Homeland Security Investigation (HSI), making them unable to access the same career opportunities, pay, and job mobility afforded to HSI special agents. However, Shadow Wolves still lack the same career opportunities as other HSI special agents because of how they were originally hired.

    The Shadow Wolves Improvement Act solves this by providing ICE with the authority to convert Shadow Wolves from the excepted to the competitive service upon completion of three years of satisfactory service—affording them career mobility and compensation parity with other HSI special agents. This update will enhance career opportunities for Shadow Wolves agents, strengthen recruitment efforts, and improve border security. Additionally, the legislation codifies GAO’s recommendations to improve and expand the Shadow Wolves program.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: 1 Day Left To Apply for FEMA Assistance

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: 1 Day Left To Apply for FEMA Assistance

    1 Day Left To Apply for FEMA Assistance

    FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentuckians affected by the May 21-27 severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes, landslides and mudslides have until 11:59 p.m. ET, Monday, Sept. 23, to apply for FEMA assistance.

    How To Apply for FEMA Individual Assistance

    • Call FEMA at 800-621-3362. Multilingual operators are available. If you use a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, give FEMA your number for that service.
    • Apply at DisasterAssistance.gov.
    • Download and use the FEMA app.

    FEMA programs are accessible to people with disabilities and others with access and functional needs.

    Survivors who don’t agree with FEMA’s decision can always file an appeal. To learn more about the appeals process, read How To Appeal FEMA’s Decision.

    In addition, Monday is the final day for homeowners, renters, businesses, and nonprofit organizations to apply for long-term, low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to cover losses not fully compensated by insurance and other sources. Kentucky residents and businesses can apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via the SBA’s secure website at sba.gov/disaster.

    gerard.hammink

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: 2 Days Left To Apply for FEMA Assistance

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: 2 Days Left To Apply for FEMA Assistance

    2 Days Left To Apply for FEMA Assistance

    FRANKFORT, Ky. — FEMA would like to remind Kentuckians that there is still time to apply for federal disaster assistance. Applications will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. ET, Monday, Sept. 23.

    How To Apply for FEMA Individual Assistance

    • Call FEMA at 800-621-3362. Multilingual operators are available. If you use a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, give FEMA your number for that service.
    • Apply at DisasterAssistance.gov.
    • Download and use the FEMA app.

    FEMA programs are accessible to people with disabilities and others with access and functional needs.

    Survivors who don’t agree with FEMA’s decision can always file an appeal. Please refer to the link to learn more about the appeal process.

    In addition, Monday is the final day for homeowners, renters, businesses, and nonprofit organizations to apply for long-term, low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to cover losses not fully compensated by insurance and other sources. Kentucky residents and businesses can apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via the SBA’s secure website at sba.gov/disaster.

    gerard.hammink

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: A video game based on the Chinese novel ‘Journey to the West’ is the most recent example of innovative retelling of this popular story

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Michael Naparstek, Lecturer in Religious Studies, University of Tennessee

    Gaming enthusiasts at the 2023 Gamescom gaming fair on Aug. 23, 2023, in Cologne, Germany. Sascha Schuermann/Getty Images

    The recent launch of the video game “Black Myth: Wukong” has broken numerous records around the world for the number of users. The game is set in the world of the famous Chinese novel “Journey to the West,” where players battle gods and demons of traditional popular Chinese religion. In the first few weeks following its release on Aug. 19, 2024, “Black Myth: Wukong” had reportedly sold over 18 million copies, making it one of the fastest-selling games of all time.

    Players take on the role of freeing Sun Wukong, the monkey protagonist from the popular 16th-century novel. The story details the journey of the Chinese monk, Xuanzang, as he makes his way to India in search of Buddhist scrolls. Sun Wukong aids the monk in this trip. Yet, the monkey proves to be the ultimate troublemaker, as Sun Wukong insults popular gods of the Chinese pantheon and insists on besting them in magical battles. Sun Wukong’s fate is sealed when the Buddha imprisons him under a mountain as punishment for all the havoc he created in Heaven.

    The video game picks up after the end of the story, pitting the player against those whom Sun Wukong had fought in the popular narrative. In so doing, the game continually references the complex and competitive world of traditional Chinese religion in which Buddhist, Taoist and popular gods are always interacting with one another.

    As a scholar of Chinese religion, I am interested in the ways narratives of Chinese deities become popular and spread across different contexts. The popularity of “Black Myth: Wukong” is the most recent example in a centuries-old tradition of retelling this story through popular media.

    Woodblock print of the monkey king from the Chinese novel ‘Journey to the West.’
    Japanese Artist Yashima Gakutei, 1827, Metropolitan Museum of Art.

    Many stories, many versions

    “Journey to the West” was first published in 1592, but the stories were popular long before that.

    As scholar of Chinese literature Anthony Yu notes, the various tales describing Xuanzong and Sun Wukong’s adventures existed for nearly 1,000 years before they were collected and published in “Journey to the West.” People in traditional China would hear many of these adventures through oral storytelling, but also through various media such as dramatic performances, poetic tales and short stories.

    Traveling opera troupes were one of the most popular ways to tell Sun Wukong’s tale. Professional actors would perform tales of Sun Wukong’s exploits through dramatic renditions coupled with acrobatic fight scenes and dazzling displays of martial arts. These entertaining performances would disseminate information about the gods to both literate and illiterate audiences all throughout China.

    An 18th-century painting of a Chinese traveling opera performance.
    Xu Yang, 18th c. via Wikimedia Commons

    Stories of Sun Wukong’s mischievous, and often irreverent, behavior made their rounds throughout traditional Chinese society. The monkey hero’s brash attempts at subverting authority and picking fights with divine personae cemented his place as a popular cultural icon. As scholar of Chinese religions Meir Shahar notes, novels such as “Journey to the West” served as a way to define and transmit an entire pantheon of deities all across the various regions of traditional China.

    In so doing, these forms of media would reflect the dynamic world of Chinese religion and, at the same time, help shape the way people would come to understand the stories of their own gods.

    Impact on Chinese religions

    Many of the characters who appear in “Journey to the West” come directly out of the Chinese pantheon. Guanyin, the Buddhist deity of compassion and one of the most popular gods across East Asia, has her struggles against Sun Wukong; Taoist figures, such as the deified Lao-tzu, the purported author of the Taoist classic “Tao Te Ching,” battles with the monkey, and ancient Chinese deities like the Queen Mother to the West and the Jade Emperor play a prominent role as authority figures throughout the story.

    Sun Wukong also battles localized gods like the martial deity Erlang. Many of these figures are also referenced throughout the video game, while some, like Erlang, appear as “bosses” who need to be defeated before moving on to the next level.

    In the novel, the gods work together to stand in the way of Sun Wukong, representing the authority of the Chinese pantheon. At the same time, Sun Wukong often gets the better of the gods, either through trickery or martial prowess. Eventually, the authority of the gods wins out, with the monkey trapped under the mountain. Yet, this is not the end of Sun Wukong. As the recent release of the video game demonstrates, it is but one more beginning to the monkey’s story.

    While the game is careful not to promote any one religious identity, the cultural source for these compelling characters remains deeply rooted in the long history of Chinese religions.

    Today’s gamers get to encounter aspects of Chinese culture in a whole new way. Players who may be unfamiliar with Sun Wukong’s character from the novel can still see Sun Wukong flip in the air, brandish his weapons and defeat his enemies with dramatic flair. Only now the gamer gets to perform these feats through their connection with the video game’s hero.

    Still, while the gaming experience may be relatively new, enjoying tales of the gods is very old.

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

    – ref. A video game based on the Chinese novel ‘Journey to the West’ is the most recent example of innovative retelling of this popular story – https://theconversation.com/a-video-game-based-on-the-chinese-novel-journey-to-the-west-is-the-most-recent-example-of-innovative-retelling-of-this-popular-story-238404

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: FEMA Offers Free Repair and Rebuilding Advice in Davison and Union Counties

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: FEMA Offers Free Repair and Rebuilding Advice in Davison and Union Counties

    FEMA Offers Free Repair and Rebuilding Advice in Davison and Union Counties

    SIOUX FALLS – Whether you were affected by this summer’s severe storms and flooding or are simply seeking ways to enhance your home’s safety and resilience, FEMA will be providing free mitigation, repair, and rebuilding advice coming up in Davison and Union Counties.

    FEMA mitigation specialists will be available at the following locations: 

    Davison County

    Menards

    815 E Spruce St

    Mitchell, SD, 57301

    Sept. 25 through Sept. 29 from the hours of 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

    Union County

    Olson’s Ace Hardware

    305 NW 13th St, Beresford, SD 57004.

    Oct. 2 through Oct. 5 from the hours of 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Oct 6 from the hours of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

    Mitigation specialists can answer questions and discuss topics such as:

    • Proven methods for preventing damage from future disasters
    • Techniques for rebuilding homes
    • Tips for reducing your disaster risk – whether you own or rent your home

    Mitigation reduces a property’s risk to future events. It can allow residents to return more quickly to a home with less damage. While it usually takes an initial investment, mitigation pays off in the long run. On average, every $1 spent on mitigation saves $6 in future losses.

    Advice is available to all homeowners and renters, not only those affected by the recent severe storms and flooding.

    The public also may contact a FEMA mitigation subject matter expert with questions by emailing                           fema-r8-hmhelp@fema.dhs.gov or by calling the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Helpline at 833-336-2487.

    To learn more about how mitigation efforts help individuals and communities visit https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/risk-management.

    # # #

    FEMA’s mission is helping people before, during, and after disasters. 
    Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) at @femaregion8

    tiana.suber

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Last Day for Kentuckians To Apply for FEMA Assistance

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Last Day for Kentuckians To Apply for FEMA Assistance

    Last Day for Kentuckians To Apply for FEMA Assistance

    FRANKFORT, Ky. — Survivors of the May 21-27 severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes, landslides, and mudslides have only a few hours left to apply for FEMA assistance. The application deadline is 11:59 p.m. ET, Sept. 23.

    How To Apply for FEMA Individual Assistance

    • Call FEMA at 800-621-3362. Multilingual operators are available. If you use a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, give FEMA your number for that service.
    • Apply at DisasterAssistance.gov.
    • Download and use the FEMA app.

    FEMA programs are accessible to people with disabilities and others with access and functional needs.

    In addition, today is the final day for homeowners, renters, businesses, and nonprofit organizations to apply for long-term, low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to cover losses not fully compensated by insurance and other sources. Kentucky residents and businesses can apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via the SBA’s secure website at sba.gov/disaster.

    gerard.hammink

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Mixed emotions – neuroscience is exploring how your brain lets you experience two opposite feelings at once

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Anthony Gianni Vaccaro, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Psychology, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

    Can you hold a positive emotion simultaneously with a negative one? Dimitri Otis/Stone via Getty Images

    Countless parents across the country recently dropped their kids off at college for the first time. This transition can stir a whirlwind of feelings: the heartache of parting, sadness over a permanently changed family dynamic, the uncertainty of what lies ahead – but also the pride of seeing your child move toward independence. Some might describe the goodbye as bittersweet, or say that they’re feeling mixed emotions.

    In that scenario, what would you do if I asked you to rate how you felt on a scale from 1-9, with 1 being the most negative and 9 the most positive? This question seems silly given the circumstances – how should you rate this blend of bad and good? Yet, this scale is what psychology researchers often use to survey feelings in scientific studies, treating emotions as either positive or negative, but never both.

    I’m a neuroscientist who studies how mixed emotions are represented in the brain. Do people ever truly feel both positive and negative at the same time? Or do we just switch quickly back and forth?

    What emotions do for you

    Scientists sometimes define emotions as states of the brain and body that motivate you toward or away from things. People typically experience them as either positive or negative.

    If you’re walking in the woods and see a bear, your heart rate and breathing accelerate, giving you the urge to flee – likely helping you make a decision that keeps you alive. Many scientists would label that reaction as the emotion of “fear.”

    Similarly, warm feelings around loved ones make you want to stay around them and nurture those relationships, helping strengthen your social network and support system.

    This approach-and-avoid view of emotions helps explain why emotions evolved and how they affect decision-making. Scientists have used it as a guiding principle when trying to figure out the biology behind emotions.

    But mixed emotions do not fit into this framework. If opposite biological systems inhibit each other, and if emotions are biological, you can’t experience opposites in the same moment. This reasoning would mean it’s impossible to hold two opposite emotions at once; you must instead be flipping back and forth. Ever since scientists proposed the first theories on the biological foundations of emotion, this is how they’ve conceptualized mixed emotions.

    The pride, love and sadness that mingle when a parent drops off a child at college comprise a classic mixture of emotions.
    fstop123/E+ via Getty Images

    Untangling the biology of mixed emotions

    Mainstream methods for measuring feelings still treat positive and negative as opposite sides of a spectrum. But researchers find that study participants commonly report mixed emotions.

    For instance, people across cultures experience some feelings, such as nostalgia and awe, as simultaneously positive and negative.

    One research group found that volunteers’ physiological responses – such as heart rate and skin conductance – display unique patterns during experiences that are both disgusting and funny, compared with either category separately. This implies that disgusted and amused reactions are indeed occurring simultaneously to create something new.

    In a seemingly contradictory finding, research that used functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, to study brain responses to disgusting humor did not find a pattern of brain activity that was distinct from plain disgust. The brain states of people reporting being both disgusted and amused seemed to reflect only disgust – not a unique pattern for a new mixed emotion.

    But fMRI studies generally rely on averaging brain activity across people and time. The heart of the question – experiencing truly mixed emotions versus fluctuating between positive and negative states – concerns what the brain is doing over time. It is possible that by looking at the average brain activity across time, scientists end up with a pattern that looks a lot like one emotion – in this case, disgust – but are missing important information about how activity changes or stays the same second-to-second.

    Mixed emotions in the brain

    To dig in to that possibility, I ran a study to see whether mixed emotions were related to a unique brain state that held steady over time.

    While in the MRI machine, participants watched a bittersweet animated short film about a young girl’s lifelong pursuit, with her father’s support, to become an astronaut. Spoiler alert: Her dad dies. After scanning, those same subjects rewatched the video and labeled the exact times they had felt positive, negative and mixed emotions.

    Researchers looked for brain areas with above average (red) or below average (blue) activity during moments in Taiko Studio’s ‘One Small Step’ that elicited mixed emotions.
    Taiko Studios and University of Southern California Dornsife Office of Communications

    My colleagues and I discovered that mixed emotions didn’t show unique, consistent patterns in deeper brain areas like the amygdala, which plays an important role in quick responses to emotionally important items. Strikingly, the insular cortex, a part of the brain that connects deeper brain regions with the cortex, had consistent and unique patterns for both positive and negative emotions, but not for mixed ones. We took this finding to mean that regions such as the amygdala and insular cortex were processing positive and negative emotions as mutually exclusive.

    But we did see unique, consistent patterns in cortical regions such as the anterior cingulate, which plays an important role in processing conflict and uncertainty, and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, which is important for self-regulation and complex thinking.

    These brain regions in the cortex that carry out more advanced functions appear to represent much more complex states, allowing someone to truly feel a mixed emotion. Brain regions such as the anterior cingulate and ventromedial prefrontal cortex integrate many sources of information – essential for being able to form a mixed emotion.

    Our findings also fit with what scientists know about brain and emotional development. Interestingly, kids do not begin to understand or report mixed emotions until later in childhood. This timeline matches up with what researchers know about how development of these brain regions leads to more advanced emotional regulation and understanding.

    What happens next

    This study revealed something new about how complex feelings are formed in the brain, but there is much more to learn.

    Mixed emotions are so interesting, in part, because of their potential role during important life events. Sometimes, mixed emotions help you cope with big changes and turn into cherished memories. For example, you may experience both positive and negative feelings when your friends throw a big going away party before you move to another city for your dream job.

    Other times, mixed emotions are an ongoing source of distress. Even if you know you should break up with a romantic partner, that doesn’t mean all the positive feelings you have about them automatically go away, or that a split won’t bring some pain.

    What leads to this difference in outcome? Might these differences have to do with how the brain represents these mixed emotional states over time? A better understanding of mixed emotions might help people make sure these kinds of strong feelings become cherished memories that help them grow, instead of a distressing goodbye they fail to get over.

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

    – ref. Mixed emotions – neuroscience is exploring how your brain lets you experience two opposite feelings at once – https://theconversation.com/mixed-emotions-neuroscience-is-exploring-how-your-brain-lets-you-experience-two-opposite-feelings-at-once-234994

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Here’s how to maintain healthy smartphone habits

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Shelia R. Cotten, Provost’s Distinuished Professor of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice and Communication, Clemson University

    Do you have a healthy relationship with your phone? Morsa Images/DigitalVision via Getty Images

    What is the first thing you do in the morning after you awaken? Many people immediately check their phones for notifications of messages, alerts and social media updates by their social ties.

    Ninety-seven percent of U.S. adults report owning a cellphone, with 90% reporting that they own a smartphone.

    While some researchers and media outlets portray phone use as detrimental, the reality is that the effects of technology use, including phones, vary depending on multiple factors. These include the amount, type, timing and purpose of that use. What is best for one group may not be best for another when thinking about technology use.

    As a researcher who studies technology use and quality of life, I can offer some advice to hopefully help you thrive in a phone-saturated world. Some people may struggle with how to effectively use smartphones in their daily lives. And many people use their phones more than they think they do or more than they would like at times.

    1. Monitor your use on a weekly basis

    If the hours per day are increasing, think about why this is the case and whether this increased use is helping or hurting your everyday activities. An aspect of digital literacy is understanding your usage patterns.

    2. Consider how you can use these devices to make your life easier

    Using a smartphone can help people access online information, schedule appointments, obtain directions, communicate through a variety of mechanisms and potentially be in constant contact with their social ties.

    This availability and access to information and social ties can be beneficial and help people juggle work and family responsibilities. However, it may also be related to work intensification, information overload, decreased well-being and the blurring of work/nonwork boundaries.

    Weighing the pros and cons of use may help you understand when your phone use is beneficial versus detrimental.

    3. Silence nonessential notifications and alerts

    Do you really need to know that an old friend from high school messaged you on Facebook at that particular moment?

    4. Select particular times during the day for social media

    Be deliberate about when you allow yourself to use your phone for social media and other activities. Knowing these times each day may help you concentrate as well as help you to use your phone in more useful and productive ways.

    This is a good way to disrupt your sleep.
    Sergey Mironov/Moment via Getty Images

    5. Avoid phone use at bedtime

    Don’t look at your phone last thing before going to sleep or first thing when you awaken. Have you ever checked email one last time before going to sleep, only to find a message that gets your mind racing and ends up impeding your rest?

    6. Choose when not to use your phone

    Set times and situations when you are not going to use your phone.

    Some of my research has shown that using your phone when in the presence of others who are not using devices, particularly older adults, can be perceived as rude, deter communication and induce distress. My colleagues and I termed this situation the physical-digital divide.

    7. Find your own phone-use balance

    Don’t compare yourself with others in terms of amount of use but be cognizant of when your use is beneficial versus perhaps leading you to feel stressed or distracted.

    8. Moderate phone-as-distraction

    Using your phone as a distraction is OK, but do it in moderation. If you find yourself constantly turning to your phone when you are bored or working on something that is hard, try to find ways to maintain your focus and overcome the challenges you are experiencing.

    Using your phone as a distraction isn’t necessarily bad – if you don’t overdo it.
    Aja Koska/E+ via Getty Images

    9. Set boundaries

    Let your immediate social ties know that you are not going to be checking your phone constantly. While people often expect immediate responses when they message others, the reality is that the majority of messages do not need an immediate response.

    10. Be a savvy consumer of online information

    This is not exclusive to phones, but it is relevant given the proportion of people who report using their mobile phones and other digital devices to access news and social media. In the era of mis- and disinformation, being critical of information found online is a necessity.

    These suggestions can help you to be more cognizant of how much you are using your phone as well as the reasons you are using it. It’s important for your well-being to be a critical consumer of technology and the information you glean from using your devices, particularly your ever-present mobile phone.

    Shelia R. Cotten currently receives funding for her research from The National Science Foundation.

    – ref. Here’s how to maintain healthy smartphone habits – https://theconversation.com/heres-how-to-maintain-healthy-smartphone-habits-236555

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Burchett requests Dan Bongino testify on Trump security failures

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Tim Burchett (R-TN)

    WASHINGTON, D.C., (Sept. 23, 2024) – U.S. Congressman Tim Burchett (TN-02) sent a letter to House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (KY-01) requesting he bring in Dan Bongino to testify in a hearing on the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) security failures that led to two assassination attempts on former President Trump.

    “Whether it is because of malice or gross incompetence, the USSS has twice failed in its mission of protecting the former president. Furthermore, current leaders at the USSS are not transparent with Congress. That is why I respectfully encourage the Committee to hold a hearing on these assassination attempts with former special agent Bongino,” said Rep. Burchett in the letter.

    Dan Bongino served as a New York police officer from 195 to 1999 and with the USSS from 1999 to 2011. He has been extensively covering the details of the assassination attempts and the failures of the USSS on his popular podcast, the Dan Bongino Show.

    Rep. Burchett’s full letter can be found here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Translation: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres

    MIL OSI Translation. Canadian French to English –

    Source: Prime Minister of Canada – in French

    Yesterday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on the margins of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

    The Prime Minister congratulated the Secretary-General on the adoption of the Compact for the Future, and the two leaders discussed progress towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As Co-Chair of the SDG Advocates Group and the SDG Stimulus Leaders Group, the Prime Minister reaffirmed his commitment to promoting global action towards the SDGs. He stressed the urgency of financing for development in support of the SDGs and the need for innovative approaches and tools to address multidimensional challenges.

    The Prime Minister and the Secretary-General exchanged views on priority global issues and persistent challenges that threaten the rules-based international order. They reiterated their strong support for democracy and the promotion of global peace and stability.

    Regarding the situation in the Middle East, the two leaders reaffirmed the need for an immediate ceasefire and expressed deep concern over the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. They agreed on the importance of defining a path towards lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians, and recalled the importance of upholding international humanitarian law, ensuring that humanitarian assistance reaches conflict-affected areas and protecting civilians.

    Prime Minister Trudeau and Secretary-General Guterres discussed the situation in Haiti and agreed on the need for continued and sustained support to the transitional government and the United Nations-authorized Multinational Security Support Mission.

    Prime Minister Trudeau underscored Canada’s unwavering support for Ukraine and our commitment to working with our international partners to mitigate the global impact of Russia’s illegal and unjustifiable invasion.

    Secretary-General Guterres thanked Prime Minister Trudeau for Canada’s continued support for the United Nations. The two leaders agreed to stay in touch and continue working together, including in advance of Canada’s G7 presidency next year.

    Related links

    EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is a translation. Apologies should the grammar and/or sentence structure not be perfect.

    MIL Translation OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Defense News: USNS Lucy Stone Christened as MSC’s Newest Fleet Replenishment Oiler

    Source: United States Navy

    SAN DIEGO — The fleet replenishment oiler USNS Lucy Stone (T-AO 209), the Military Sealift Command’s newest ship, was christened during a ceremony at the General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard in San Diego, Calif., today.

    The event was attended by Secretary of the Navy, Carlos Del Toro; Meredith Berger, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations and Environment; Vice Adm. John F. G. Wade, commander, U.S. THIRD Fleet; Vice Adm. Jeffrey Jablon, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Installations and Logistics; Rear Adm. Thomas J. Anderson, Program Executive Officer, Ships; Capt. Micah Murphy, commander, Military Sealift Command Pacific; U.S. Merchant Marine Capt. Lee Apsley, Stone’s civil service master; as well as executives and employees of NASSCO San Diego.

    The ship honors American suffragist Lucy Stone, who joined other notable advocates such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Ernestine Rose, and Antoinette Brown Blackwell to petition for suffrage and abolition in the 19th century. Her efforts as a founder of the Women’s National Loyal League were essential to the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery.

    “In choosing to name this ship after Lucy Stone, Secretary Mabus and Secretary Berger knew the legacy of this remarkable woman, who dedicated her life to freedom and to equality for all, “said Deborah Donnley Simmons, Stone co-sponsor. “Her legacy will continue to be told, as this ship sails throughout the world.”

    The official christening moment happened when the ship’s co-sponsors, Alicia Aadnesen
    Deborah Donley Simmons broke a bottle of champagne over the ship’s bow with the words, “For the United States of America, I christen you the USNS Lucy Stone. May God bless this ship and all who sail on her.” Following the christening moment, the ship blew her horns and slid down the rails, amid a fanfare of music from the Navy Band Southwest and red, white and blue streamers.

    “The enduring legacy of Lucy Stone as a trailblazer in the women’s rights movement remains an indelible source of inspiration today,” said Mabus. “How extraordinary that all of these years later, today, our United States Navy is headed-up by the Chief of Naval Operations, a female by the name of Adm. Lisa Franchetti. It would not have been possible if it had not been for the efforts of Lucy Stone.”

    The 746-foot Stone is the fifth ship in the new John Lewis-class previously known as the TAO(X). This class of oilers has the ability to carry 162,000 barrels of diesel ship fuel, aviation fuel and dry stores cargo. The upgraded oiler is built with double hulls to protect against oil spills and strengthened cargo and ballast tanks and will be equipped with a basic self-defense capability. The Lewis-class of oilers will replace the current Kaiser Class fleet replenishment oilers as they age out of the MSC fleet. The ship will be manned by a crew of about 100 civilian Merchant Mariners, sailing under the operational control of MSC.

    “In order to maintain sustained operations at sea, our Navy warships rely on Military Sealift Command’s Combat Logistics Fleet,” said Mabus. “Despite the challenges posed by shortfalls in numbers, MSC continues to play a vital roll in supporting our nation’s logistics readiness. I thank all of our Merchant Mariners for answering our national call to maritime service, and for their ongoing efforts to recruit and maintain our critical capabilities!”

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Alaska Congressional Delegation Welcomes $277 Million in Fishery Disaster Funding for Alaska

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Alaska Lisa Murkowski
    09.23.24
    Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan (both R-AK) and Representative Mary Sattler Peltola (D-AK) welcomed the announcement of $277 million in funding for Alaska fishery disasters from the U.S. Department of Commerce. Funding for a number of salmon and crab fisheries from 2020-2023 will be transmitted to the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission for distribution to fishermen, their crews, seafood processors, and communities impacted by these fishery disasters.
    “There is no question that fisheries and coastal communities in Alaska need help as they navigate catastrophic fishery collapses,” Senator Murkowski said. “Although I am grateful our fishermen and communities will finally see some relief, for many it might be too little too late. After years of waiting, some have already moved onto other professions, and in some cases have even left the state. I will continue working with my colleagues to pass legislation to streamline the process so these regulatory delays are a thing of the past. I am hopeful this assistance will help Alaska’s hardworking fishermen recover from a devastating few years so they can get back on the water and return to their active role in this critical industry.”
    “I’m glad to see this significant batch of federal relief dollars finally being distributed to our hard-working fishermen and coastal communities,” said Senator Sullivan. “These Alaskans should never have had to wait this long to see this relief processed—a frustration I raised with Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and NOAA Fisheries Director Janet Coit on numerous occasions in recent months. The Commerce Department must address the serious disruptions caused by their new financial management system and other bureaucratic hurdles. I have put forward legislation with Senator Rick Scott to enact timelines on the executive branch’s approval process for these disasters to ensure our fishermen are receiving the relief dollars they are due in a timely fashion. We need this funding to expeditiously reach Alaskans so that they can weather these disasters over the long-term and continue to responsibly harvest the freshest, most sustainable seafood in the world.”
    “Our fishermen and fishing families have suffered enough the last few years – when disaster strikes, it only sets us back further,” said Rep. Peltola. “This funding is critical in helping our fisheries recover and support the communities all over Alaska, and beyond, that rely on their seafood product output.”

    Fishery Disaster

    Allocation

    Alaska Gulf of Pacific Cod Fishery 2020

    $17,772,540

    Alaska 2018 East Side Setnet Salmon and 2020 Upper Cook Inlet Salmon Fisheries
    Alaska Copper River and Prince William Sound Salmon Fisheries, 2018 and 2020

    $43,730,937

    Alaska Bering Sea Crab Fisheries, 2021/2022
    Alaska Norton Sound Red King Crab Fisheries, 2020 and 2021
    Alaska Bering Sea Crab Fisheries, 2022/2023

    $193,915,406

    Alaska Chignik Salmon Fishery, 2021

    $4,989,902

    Alaska Norton Sound Salmon Fisheries 2021
    Alaska Kuskokwim River Salmon Fishery, 2021
    Alaska Copper River/Prince William Sound Salmon Fisheries, 2020

    $16,998,673

    Background:
    On November 15, 2022, the Alaska delegation sent a letter to Secretary Raimondo in support of Governor Dunleavy’s 2020-2023 fishery disasters declarations.
    On November 17, 2022, Senators Murkowski and Sullivan, along with Senators Cantwell and Murray (both D-Wash.), sent a letter to Secretary Raimondo requesting a federal disaster for several crab fisheries.
    On December 16, 2022, the Department of Commerce determined that fishery disasters have occurred in numerous Alaska fisheries, allowing this funding to be distributed to fishermen and their crews, seafood processors, and research initiatives in regions that experienced fishery disasters.
    On May 15, 2024, Senator Murkowski pressed Secretary Raimondo during a Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations to share an update regarding fisheries disaster funding.
    On May 23, 2024, Senator Sullivan organized and Senator Murkowski and Representative Peltola participated in an Alaska Seafood Industry Roundtable with Secretary Raimondo at the U.S. Department of Commerce to facilitate dialogue between state industry leaders and the Department.
    On September 4, 2024, Sens. Murkowski and Sullivan joined Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and several colleagues in sending a letter to the Department of Commerce (DOC) demanding answers regarding the implementation of the DOC’s new financial management system that has delayed financial relief for fishery disasters.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Vermont Delegation Introduces Bill to Redraw Boundaries of the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Park in Woodstock

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont)
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Vermont Congressional Delegation, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Representative Becca Balint (VT-At-Large) introduced the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park Establishment Act Amendments Act, legislation that extends the boundary of the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Park to include the neighboring King Farm, which is currently owned by the Vermont Land Trust.  
    “The Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park is a treasure for Vermont and our nation,” said Senator Sanders. “Vermont’s forests and working farms have always been vital to our economy and critical to our character as a state. I’m pleased this bill will continue Vermont’s conservation legacy by expanding this park and helping to conserve land for agriculture, forestry, and educational purposes for future generations.” 
    “The Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park is a unique example of how decades of conservation and stewardship have shaped our landscape and Vermont Values. As Vermont’s first and only national park, this park plays an important role in conserving and educating folks about out state’s rich agricultural heritage,” said Senator Welch. “By expanding the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP to include the King Farm, our bill will create new enrichment opportunities and ensure that future generations can continue to enjoy and appreciate this historical treasure.” 
    “In Vermont, we care deeply about the preservation, stewardship, and the future of our parks and lands,” said Rep. Balint. “I’m proud to take action to strengthen this partnership and ensure that King Farm has the resources it needs for trail maintenance, conservation, and land management. I’m grateful to work with Senator Welch and Sanders and our shared commitment to our state’s outdoor recreation.” 
    Located in Woodstock, the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP preserves a significant historical, agricultural, and natural landscape. The Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP became Vermont’s first and only national park when it opened its doors to the public in 1998. The Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP commemorates the historical contributions of its namesakes—George Perkins Marsh, Frederick Billings, and Mary French Rockefeller—preserves Vermont’s proud agricultural heritage, and conserves native forestland ecosystems. It also provides countless educational opportunities for visitors, protects archaeological sites, and showcases historic architecture. 
    The Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park Establishment Act Amendments Act would expand resources for the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP’s Stewardship Institute to support educational programing, research, community engagement, and conservation efforts. Additionally, the bill would authorize the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP to acquire the King Farm from willing property owners in the future, without requiring its sale. 
    The Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park Establishment Act Amendments Act is endorsed by the Vermont Land Trust and has the support of the Town of Woodstock: 
    “The Town of Woodstock is happy with this legislation as we have an outstanding and cooperative relationship with the National Park Service and our residents enjoy all the activities and services they currently offer,” said Eric Duffy, Municipal Manager, Town of Woodstock. “The Park is a massive tourist draw and a vital part of our community.” 
    “We welcome the opportunity to partner more closely with NPS in enhancing access to land and programming at King Farm. The timing aligns perfectly with our efforts to raise funds and invest in King Farm, alongside community partners,” said Tracy Zschau, President and CEO, Vermont Land Trust. 
    Learn more about the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park Establishment Act Amendments Act. 
    Read the full text of the bill. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NASA Astronaut Tracy C. Dyson, Crewmates Return from Space Station

    Source: NASA

    NASA astronaut Tracy C. Dyson completed a six-month research mission aboard the International Space Station on Monday, returning to Earth with Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub.
    The trio departed the space station aboard the Soyuz MS-25 spacecraft at 4:36 a.m. EDT Monday, Sept. 23, making a safe, parachute-assisted landing at 7:59 a.m. (4:59 p.m. Kazakhstan time), southeast of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan.
    While aboard the orbiting laboratory, Dyson conducted multiple scientific and technology activities including the operation of a 3D bioprinter to print cardiac tissue samples, which could advance technology for creating replacement organs and tissues for transplants on Earth. Dyson also participated in the crystallization of model proteins to evaluate the performance of hardware that could be used for pharmaceutical production and ran a program that used student-designed software to control the station’s free-flying robots, inspiring the next generation of innovators.
    Dyson launched on March 23 and arrived at the station March 25 alongside Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy and spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya of Belarus. Novitskiy and Vasilevskaya were aboard the station for 12 days before returning home with NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara on April 6.
    Spanning 184 days in space, Dyson’s third spaceflight covered 2,944 orbits of the Earth and a journey of 78 million miles as an Expedition 70/71 flight engineer. Dyson also conducted one spacewalk of 31 minutes, bringing her career total to 23 hours, 20 minutes on four spacewalks.
    Kononenko and Chub, who launched with O’Hara to the station on the Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft last September, spent 374 days in space on a trip of 158.6 million miles, spanning 5,984 orbits. Kononenko completed his fifth flight into space, accruing a record of 1,111 days in orbit, and Chub completed his first spaceflight.
    Following post-landing medical checks, the crew will return to the recovery staging city in Karaganda, Kazakhstan. Dyson will then board a NASA plane bound for the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
    Learn more about space station activities by following @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook, ISS Instagram, and the space station blog.
    -end-
    Claire O’Shea / Julian ColtreHeadquarters, Washington202-358-1100claire.a.o’shea@nasa.gov / julian.n.coltre@nasa.gov
    Sandra JonesJohnson Space Center, Houston281-483-5111sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICYMI: Sue Altman flip-flops on police

    Source: US National Republican Congressional Committee

    The following text contains opinion that is not, or not necessarily, that of MIL-OSI –

    September 23, 2024

    In case you missed it… New York Post reported last week that extreme Democrat Sue Altman scrubbed her old tweets advocating for defunding the police. 

    This comes as she tried to distance herself in a recent interview but the internet lasts forever. 

    Read more here and below.

    NJ Dem House candidate Sue Altman flip-flops on police and public safety in resurfaced social media posts

    New York Post

    September 19, 2024

    New Jersey House Democratic candidate Sue Altman has disavowed several anti-law enforcement policies — including the “Defund the Police” movement — that she backed in past social media posts.

    The former boss of the Garden State’s progressive Working Families Party has modified her past stances, telling NJ Spotlight News in an interview last week that she is “not in favor of defund the police.”

    […]

    But as her campaign to unseat Republican Rep. Tom Kean in New Jersey’s 7th District was heating up last fall, a Democratic campaign operative tweeted out a screenshot showing she supported defunding the police — a post that has since been deleted.

    “NJ’s Sheriffs … are overwhelmingly white and male, snuggled in w[ith] our massive county government, and control HUGE budgets,” Altman posted on Twitter, now X.

    “Those of us working on #DefundThePolice in Jersey might consider looking here,” she added.

    The screenshot did not include a date, but the profile image matches Altman’s Twitter profile photo between 2019 and 2021, according to archived posts from her account.

    […]

    The Altman campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

    […]

    Read the full article here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Mark Cuban Foundation Brings Free AI Bootcamp to New York City Teens

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, Sept. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Time is running out to apply to participate in the Mark Cuban Foundation Artificial Intelligence (AI) Bootcamp. Applications for the no-cost bootcamp, held in New York, are closing September 30.

    The Mark Cuban Foundation is bringing the only artificial intelligence (AI) camp of its kind, free of charge, to high school students in New York. With a custom and highly relevant curriculum focused on teaching students about the latest developments in the world of AI and Generative AI, the camp will provide the tools to make these technologies work for them and promises to educate, inspire and fuel the next generation of AI professionals.

    The program aims to provide students with a foundational understanding of artificial intelligence and its applications to future careers. Students can select from six tracks: healthcare, arts and entertainment, business and entrepreneurship, computer science, sports science, or education and career readiness. Driven by the belief that fostering interest in AI at a young age is crucial for preparing the next generation for their future, the AI Bootcamps are introductory and accessible to students in 9-12 grade with an interest in technology. Students do not need any familiarity with computer science or programming to attend.

    This free AI Bootcamp is hosted for underserved high school students with a transparent focus on recruiting girls, students of color, first generation college students, and those from low to moderate income households.

    “As AI continues to become an undeniable force in all of our lives, it’s crucial that we open the door to this knowledge, especially to young people who want to explore it,” said Mark Cuban, founder. “While technology expands and becomes more advanced, it becomes more critical that we ensure our students are prepared when they apply for schools or jobs in the future. This bootcamp will offer an avenue to explore this fascinating field of technology to any student, no matter their means.”

    This year’s bootcamp, taking place in New York on November 2nd, 9th, and 16th, will provide students with lunch and a snack, transportation assistance, and technology equipment during bootcamp.

    There is just one week left until the September 30 deadline. Do not miss your chance—submit your application now, as spaces are limited.

    Apply for the bootcamp at: markcubanai.org.

    Watch Mark Cuban’s message about Mark Cuban Foundation’s AI bootcamps and access the full media kit here.

    To learn more, visit markcubanai.org.

    Media Contact:
    Bishop.wash@markcubanai.org

    This bootcamp is facilitated with support from Mark Cuban Foundation AI Bootcamp Program’s media partner, Notified, a globally trusted technology partner for investor relations, public relations and marketing professionals.

    About Mark Cuban Foundation’s AI Bootcamp Initiative
    The Mark Cuban Foundation is a 501(c)(3) private non-profit led by entrepreneur and investor Mark Cuban. The AI Bootcamps Program at MCF seeks to inspire young people with emerging technology so that they can create more equitable futures for themselves and their communities. Over 3 consecutive Saturdays underserved 9th -12th grade students learn what AI is and isn’t, where they already interact with AI in their own lives, the ethical implications of AI systems, and much more. Learn more about the no-cost AI Bootcamp program at markcubanai.org.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: SBA Offers Disaster Assistance to Businesses and Residents of Illinois Affected by July Storms

    Source: United States Small Business Administration

    WASHINGTON – Low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) are available to businesses and residents in Illinois following the announcement of a Presidential disaster declaration for severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds and flooding that occurred on July 13-16.

    “SBA’s mission-driven team stands ready to help Illinois small businesses and residents impacted by this disaster in every way possible under President Biden’s disaster declaration for certain affected areas,” said SBA Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman. “We’re committed to providing federal disaster loans swiftly and efficiently, with a customer-centric approach to help businesses and communities recover and rebuild.”

    The disaster declaration covers Cook, Fulton, Henry, St. Clair, Washinton, Will and Winnebago counties which are eligible for both Physical and Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the SBA. Small businesses and most private nonprofit organizations in the following adjacent counties are eligible to apply only for SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs):  Boone, Bureau, Clinton, Dekalb, DuPage, Grundy, Jefferson, Kane, Kankakee, Kendell, Knox, Lake, Madison, Marion, Mason, McDonough, McHenry, Mercer, Monroe, Ogle, Peoria, Perry, Randolph, Rock Island, Schuyler, Stark, Stephenson, Tazewell, Warren and Whiteside in Illinois; Lake in Indiana; St. Louis in Missouri; and Green and Rock in Wisconsin. 

    Disaster survivors should not wait to settle with their insurance company before applying for a disaster loan. If a survivor does not know how much of their loss will be covered by insurance or other sources, SBA can make a low-interest disaster loan for the total loss up to its loan limits, provided the borrower agrees to use insurance proceeds to reduce or repay the loan.

    Businesses and private nonprofit organizations of any size may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace disaster-damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other business assets.  

    For small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private nonprofit organizations, the SBA offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) to help meet working capital needs caused by the disaster. Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance is available regardless of whether the business suffered any physical property damage.

    Disaster loans up to $500,000 are available to homeowners to repair or replace disaster-damaged or destroyed real estate. Homeowners and renters are eligible for up to $100,000 to repair or replace disaster-damaged or destroyed personal property.

    Interest rates are as low as 4% for businesses, 3.25% for nonprofit organizations, and 2.688% for homeowners and renters, with terms up to 30 years. Interest does not begin to accrue, and monthly payments are not due, until 12 months from the date of the initial disbursement. Loan amounts and terms are set by the SBA and are based on each applicant’s financial condition.

    Building back smarter and stronger can be an effective recovery tool for future disasters. Applicants may be eligible for a loan amount increase of up to 20% of their physical damages, as verified by the SBA for mitigation purposes. Eligible mitigation improvements may include a safe room or storm shelter, sump pump, French drain or retaining wall to help protect property and occupants from future disasters. 

    “The opportunity to include measures to help prevent future damage from occurring is a significant benefit of SBA’s disaster loan program, said “Francisco Sánchez, Jr., associate administrator for the Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience at the Small Business Administration.  “I encourage everyone to consult their contractors and emergency management mitigation specialists for ideas and apply for an SBA disaster loan increase for funding.”

    With the changes to FEMA’s Sequence of Delivery, survivors are now encouraged to simultaneously apply for FEMA grants and the SBA low-interest disaster loan assistance to fully recover.  FEMA grants are intended to cover necessary expenses and serious needs not paid by insurance or other sources. The SBA disaster loan program is designed for your long-term recovery, to make you whole and get you back to your pre-disaster condition.  Do not wait on the decision for a FEMA grant; apply online and receive additional disaster assistance information at sba.gov/disaster.  

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

    The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is Nov. 19, 2024. The deadline to return economic injury applications is June 20, 2025.

    ###

    About the U.S. Small Business Administration 

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

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Mark Cuban Foundation Brings Free AI Bootcamp to Raleigh-Durham Teens

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    RALEIGH-DURHAM, N.C., Sept. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Time is running out to apply to participate in the Mark Cuban Foundation Artificial Intelligence (AI) Bootcamp. Applications for the no-cost bootcamp, held in Raleigh, are closing September 30.

    The Mark Cuban Foundation is bringing the only artificial intelligence (AI) camp of its kind, free of charge, to Raleigh-Durham high school students. With a custom and highly relevant curriculum focused on teaching students about the latest developments in the world of AI and Generative AI, the camp will provide the tools to make these technologies work for them and promises to educate, inspire and fuel the next generation of AI professionals.

    The program aims to provide students with a foundational understanding of artificial intelligence and its applications to future careers. Students can select from six tracks: healthcare, arts and entertainment, business and entrepreneurship, computer science, sports science, or education and career readiness. Driven by the belief that fostering interest in AI at a young age is crucial for preparing the next generation for their future, the AI Bootcamps are introductory and accessible to students in 9-12 grade with an interest in technology. Students do not need any familiarity with computer science or programming to attend.

    This free AI Bootcamp is hosted for underserved high school students with a transparent focus on recruiting girls, students of color, first generation college students, and those from low to moderate income households.

    “As AI continues to become an undeniable force in all of our lives, it’s crucial that we open the door to this knowledge, especially to young people who want to explore it,” said Mark Cuban, founder. “While technology expands and becomes more advanced, it becomes more critical that we ensure our students are prepared when they apply for schools or jobs in the future. This bootcamp will offer an avenue to explore this fascinating field of technology to any student, no matter their means.”

    This year’s bootcamp, taking place in Raleigh on November 2nd, 9th, and 16th, will provide students with lunch and a snack, transportation assistance, and technology equipment during bootcamp.

    There is just one week left until the September 30 deadline. Do not miss your chance—submit your application now, as spaces are limited.

    Apply for the bootcamp at: markcubanai.org.

    Watch Mark Cuban’s message about Mark Cuban Foundation’s AI bootcamps and access the full media kit here.

    To learn more, visit markcubanai.org.

    Media Contact:
    Bishop.wash@markcubanai.org

    This bootcamp is facilitated with support from Mark Cuban Foundation AI Bootcamp Program’s media partner, Notified, a globally trusted technology partner for investor relations, public relations and marketing professionals.

    About Mark Cuban Foundation’s AI Bootcamp Initiative
    The Mark Cuban Foundation is a 501(c)(3) private non-profit led by entrepreneur and investor Mark Cuban. The AI Bootcamps Program at MCF seeks to inspire young people with emerging technology so that they can create more equitable futures for themselves and their communities. Over 3 consecutive Saturdays underserved 9th -12th grade students learn what AI is and isn’t, where they already interact with AI in their own lives, the ethical implications of AI systems, and much more. Learn more about the no-cost AI Bootcamp program at markcubanai.org.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Mark Cuban Foundation Brings Free AI Bootcamp to Richardson Teens

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    RICHARDSON, Texas, Sept. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Time is running out to apply to participate in the Mark Cuban Foundation Artificial Intelligence (AI) Bootcamp. Applications for the no-cost bootcamp, held in Richardson, are closing September 30.

    The Mark Cuban Foundation is bringing the only artificial intelligence (AI) camp of its kind, free of charge, to high school students in Richardson. With a custom and highly relevant curriculum focused on teaching students about the latest developments in the world of AI and Generative AI, the camp will provide the tools to make these technologies work for them and promises to educate, inspire and fuel the next generation of AI professionals.

    The program aims to provide students with a foundational understanding of artificial intelligence and its applications to future careers. Students can select from six tracks: healthcare, arts and entertainment, business and entrepreneurship, computer science, sports science, or education and career readiness. Driven by the belief that fostering interest in AI at a young age is crucial for preparing the next generation for their future, the AI Bootcamps are introductory and accessible to students in 9-12 grade with an interest in technology. Students do not need any familiarity with computer science or programming to attend.

    This free AI Bootcamp is hosted for underserved high school students with a transparent focus on recruiting girls, students of color, first generation college students, and those from low to moderate income households.

    “As AI continues to become an undeniable force in all of our lives, it’s crucial that we open the door to this knowledge, especially to young people who want to explore it,” said Mark Cuban, founder. “While technology expands and becomes more advanced, it becomes more critical that we ensure our students are prepared when they apply for schools or jobs in the future. This bootcamp will offer an avenue to explore this fascinating field of technology to any student, no matter their means.”

    This year’s bootcamp, taking place in Richardson on November 2nd, 9th, and 16th, will provide students with lunch and a snack, transportation assistance, and technology equipment during bootcamp.

    There is just one week left until the September 30 deadline. Do not miss your chance—submit your application now, as spaces are limited.

    Apply for the bootcamp at: markcubanai.org.

    Watch Mark Cuban’s message about Mark Cuban Foundation’s AI bootcamps and access the full media kit here.

    To learn more, visit markcubanai.org.

    Media Contact:
    Bishop.wash@markcubanai.org

    This bootcamp is facilitated with support from Mark Cuban Foundation AI Bootcamp Program’s media partner, Notified, a globally trusted technology partner for investor relations, public relations and marketing professionals.

    About Mark Cuban Foundation’s AI Bootcamp Initiative
    The Mark Cuban Foundation is a 501(c)(3) private non-profit led by entrepreneur and investor Mark Cuban. The AI Bootcamps Program at MCF seeks to inspire young people with emerging technology so that they can create more equitable futures for themselves and their communities. Over 3 consecutive Saturdays underserved 9th -12th grade students learn what AI is and isn’t, where they already interact with AI in their own lives, the ethical implications of AI systems, and much more. Learn more about the no-cost AI Bootcamp program at markcubanai.org.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: IAM Union, TWU-IAM Association Win Pay, Pension Increases for 34,000+ American Airlines Members

    Source: US GOIAM Union

    More than 34,000 members of the TWU-IAM Association, a union alliance of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) and the Transport Workers’ Union (TWU) at American Airlines, will soon vote on well-deserved pay, pension, license and other premium increases.

    The Association’s negotiating committees reached tentative agreements with the carrier after roughly a month of negotiations. IAM Districts 141 and 142 represent mechanic and related, fleet service and related, and stores workers at American Airlines.

    The two-year proposed extension, from Jan. 1, 2025 to Jan. 1, 2027, includes:

    • Average wage increase for covered employees in January 2025 ranging from 10.8% to 16.7% and 18% to 26% over the life of the extension.
    • 3% out year increases in January 2026 and 2027 that also match the highest in the industry.
    • Several non-economic quality of life issues were also addressed.
    • Increases in License Pay, Skill Pay, and Crew Chief Pay.
    • Increases in IAM National Pension Plan contributions.
    • No concessions/givebacks.

    “The IAM continues to negotiate agreements that are fundamentally changing the landscape of the entire airline industry,” said IAM Air Transport Territory General Vice President Richie Johnsen. “By continuing to win contracts that push wages and retirement security to new heights, we are lifting every worker and community that makes the world move.”

    “Our negotiating committee showed up ready to achieve the pay, pension, license increases along with other premium increases that our members deserve – and they have delivered,” said IAM Airline Coordinator Tom Regan. “These increases at American Airlines are great news for the entire airline industry and every worker who deserves to be compensated fairly for their labor.”

    “IAM members are the people who make American Airlines run every single day,” said IAM District 142 President and Directing General Chair John M. Coveny Jr. “This agreement is a testament to our negotiating committee and the dedication of our skilled membership.”

    “The IAM is delivering well-deserved wage increases for every member at American Airlines,” said IAM District 141 President and Directing General Chair Mike Klemm. “Our strength and solidarity has never been more powerful, and we’re continuing to make history with every agreement in the airline industry.”

    In the coming weeks, IAM representatives will schedule in-person and virtual meetings to explain the agreement and voting process to members.

    The TWU-IAM Association, the largest union at the carrier, was formed after the merger of American Airlines and US Airways in 2012.

    Share and Follow:

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Translation: In Cuba, Vietnamese parliamentary delegation

    THOUSAND OSI Translation. Region: Spanish/Latin America/UN –

    Source: Republic of Cuba

    Vietnamese parliamentary delegation in CubaHavana, September 22, 2024.- The Vice President of the National Assembly of Vietnam, Nguyen Duc Hai, is in Cuba, leading a large delegation from his country, to participate in the First Binational Interparliamentary Session.According to the National Assembly of People’s Power of Cuba (ANPP, parliament), during their stay, Duc Hai and his entourage will hold talks with leaders of the Legislature and the Council of State, including its president Esteban Lazo.They will also visit centers of economic, historical, scientific and cultural interest; Among other activities. Upon their arrival the day before at the José Martí International Airport in Havana, the legislators were received by the Hero of the Republic and member of the Council of State, Gerardo Hernández, who conveyed to them the fraternal greetings of the head of the Cuban Parliament and other members of the ANPP leadership. He also stressed that it is an honor to preside over the Cuba-Vietnam Parliamentary Group, belonging to a generation that grew up admiring the heroism of the Vietnamese people. For his part, Duc Hai expressed his great joy at visiting Cuba for the second time; this time to work “with our Cuban brothers,” fulfilling the request of the president of the Vietnamese National Assembly, Tran Thanh Man. Vu Hai Ha, president of the Foreign Relations Commission of the Vietnamese legislative body and of the Vietnam-Cuba Parliamentary Friendship Group, also participated in the dialogue. (Cubaminrex-Granma)

    EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is a translation. Apologies should the grammar and/or sentence structure not be perfect.

    MIL Translation OSI

  • MIL-OSI Africa: A water secure Africa in the spotlight at UN General Assembly

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    Water and Sanitation Minister, Pemmy Majodina, and a delegation of water sector stakeholders will attend the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, USA from 24 to 26 September 2024.

    The Minister will join other global leaders in interrogating and mobilising commitments for a water-secure Africa.

    President Cyril Ramaphosa is attending the UN General Debate and High-Level Week (UNGA79) in New York from 21-24 September 2024.

    This annual gathering of world leaders is the most important event on the UN calendar, with Heads of State and Government and Heads of International Organisations discussing global challenges and how to address these challenges in the best interest of humanity. 

    Majodina is expected to participate in panel discussions to review the progress in mobilising investments for the AU High Level Panel Investment Action Plan and outline a road map towards the coming AU Africa Water Investment Summit and UN Water Conference in 2026, with South Africa leading the G20 Presidency next year.

    As part of the AU High-Level Panel, Majodina said South Africa will participate in discussions and the review of previous UN recommendations on how to accelerate progress to achieve access and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, as well as the achievement of other multiple SDGs.

    “The deliberations will focus on understanding, valuing, and managing water to provide a foundation for broader integrated water management and building partnerships and international collaboration at the global level,” Majodina said.

    The Minister is also expected to participate in panel discussions on Climate Change and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), to explore wider methods and opportunities to advance their agendas.

    READ | President Ramaphosa in New York for UN General Assembly

    President Ramaphosa is expected to address the General Assembly on the opening day, Tuesday, 24 September 2024.

    This year, the African Group presides over the General Assembly, with Philemon Yang, former Prime Minister of Cameroon, elected as President of the 79th Session.

    The theme identified by the President of UNGA79 is: “Unity in diversity, for the advancement of peace, sustainable development and human dignity for everyone everywhere.”

    Among the issues on which President Ramaphosa will focus on during his engagements in New York include the necessity for the maintenance of international peace and security; the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda; climate change and the upcoming COP29 in Baku; financing for development, and health and pandemic preparedness. – SAnews.gov.za
     

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Americas: Record wildfires in South America Require an Unprecedented Response

    Source: Amnesty International –

    In response to record fires across South America, with several millions of hectares burning across the Amazon basin and the entire continent, Amnesty International today published an Open Letter addressed to the presidents of Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Peru calling for governments to ramp up action to extinguish wildfires, strengthen efforts to abandon fossil fuels, protect territories of Indigenous Peoples, and provide guarantees to environmental human rights defenders.  

    August and September 2024 have seen record fires across South America, with several millions of hectares burning not only in rainforests of the Amazon basin, but also in diverse ecosystems stretching across entire countries.

    “The world is watching and cannot wait for the Amazon basin and other precious ecosystems in the continent to be saved from extinction. South American leaders must, more than ever, take urgent action to prevent climate catastrophe that could have irreversible consequences for the entire planet and future generations. The time to act is now,” said Ana Piquer, directora para las Américas de Amnistía Internacional.

    The world is watching and cannot wait for the Amazon basin and other precious ecosystems in the continent to be saved from extinction. South American leaders must, more than ever, take urgent action to prevent climate catastrophe that could have irreversible consequences for the entire planet and future generations. The time to act is now.

    Ana Piquer, directora para las Américas de Amnistía Internacional.

    The publication of the Open Letter coincides with the United Nations´ Summit of the Future, in New York on 23 September, which will be attended by. Amnesty International´s Secretary General Agnès Callamard.

    For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact [email protected]

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI: Aether Fuels Signs MOU with JetBlue

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHICAGO, Sept. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Aether Fuels (Aether), a venture-backed climate technology company, today announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with JetBlue (NASDAQ: JBLU). Aether has developed a breakthrough technology that utilizes a diverse array of waste feedstocks to produce sustainable liquid fuels at a lower cost and greater scale than existing approaches. The agreement creates a pathway for Aether to supply JetBlue with sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) when commercial production begins.

    The MOU extends Aether’s relationship with JetBlue that began when its venture capital subsidiary, JetBlue Ventures, invested in Aether’s convertible note and Series A financings.

    Aether’s technology, known as Aether Aurora™, uses a range of waste carbon feedstocks that do not compete with food or feed value chains. This critical “feedstock flexibility” differentiator enables the large-scale deployment of Aether Aurora technology and contributes to the breakthrough economics that are essential for sustainable liquid fuels, by enabling the conversion of numerous abundant waste carbon feedstocks into jet fuel. This overcomes the supply constraints faced by many other SAF production processes that rely on a limited type of often-scarce or cost-constrained feedstocks.

    The technology, an enhanced version of the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) process, combines innovations in chemistry (catalysts), equipment (reactors), and novel process flow schemes that enable major process simplifications (intensification) when converting waste carbon streams, such as captured carbon dioxide, industrial waste gases, biogas and treated agricultural residues, into liquid hydrocarbons. It is a robust, flexible, and efficient process engineered to deliver high yield and broad feedstock support at lower investment and operating costs.

    This MOU is the first for Aether in the SAF space. It comes as the company’s team of expert technologists, in partnership with GTI Energy, are constructing a 100 gallon-per-day (380l/day) pilot line that builds on the successful operation of an existing 1.5 gallon-per-day (6l/day) pilot line. The work leverages eight years of technology development initiated by GTI Energy and accelerates the commercial deployment of Aether Aurora at scale.

    In parallel, Aether is developing a pipeline of commercial-scale production facilities. This includes projects in the U.S. and Southeast Asia to produce SAF and other high-value sustainable liquid fuels in collaboration with select strategic partners.

    “JetBlue is a leader in proactively transitioning to SAF so their interest in the company and the Aether Aurora technology is gratifying,” said Conor Madigan, Co-founder and CEO at Aether. “For a disruptive technology like ours, early and informed input from potential users, including airlines, can accelerate the ramp from R&D to commercialization. We are excited to engage with JetBlue and look forward to supporting their SAF vision.”

    “Scaling up production of SAF is the essential challenge to solve for the decarbonization of aviation,” said Sara Bogdan, Managing Director of Sustainability and ESG at JetBlue. “Aether Fuels’ technology targets a key need. By enabling access to a much wider range of feedstocks than previously available, the new technology shows incredible promise to help SAF reach the commercial scale needed for the industry transition to renewable fuels. As our investment via JetBlue Ventures demonstrates, we are believers in the Aether technology and team, and we look forward to being part of that journey.”

    Aether Aurora is trademarked by Aether Fuels

    About JetBlue: JetBlue is New York’s Hometown Airline®, and a leading carrier in Boston, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood, Los Angeles, Orlando and San Juan. JetBlue, known for its low fares and great service, carries customers to more than 100 destinations throughout the United States, Latin America, the Caribbean, Canada and Europe. For more information and the best fares, visit jetblue.com.

    About Aether Fuels: Aether Fuels envisions a net-zero world enabled by its breakthrough sustainable liquid fuel production technology. We are developing highly scalable solutions that dramatically improve the unit economics of producing sustainable fuels for aviation and ocean shipping. Established in 2022 as a spin-out of Xora Innovation, a deep-tech early-stage investment platform of Temasek, we maintain principal offices in the U.S. and Singapore. For more information, visit www.aetherfuels.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

    Contact

    Kelsey Duke; Diffusion PR for Aether Fuels; email: AetherFuels@Diffusionpr.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: View politics critically but charitably and with good old common sense: cowboy commentator Will Rogers’ wisdom for 2024

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Steven Watts, Professor of History, University of Missouri-Columbia

    Will Rogers made a career out of making fun of politics and politicians − with a generous spirit. George Rinhart/Corbis via Getty Images

    For those trying to come to terms with a particularly tumultuous election year full of deep divisions, ideological invective and personal insults, guidance can come from a historical figure whose insights into American politics still prove useful.

    As I chronicle in my new book, “Citizen Cowboy: Will Rogers And The American People,” Will Rogers stood as perhaps the most influential commentator on public affairs in the United States a century ago. Born in Oklahoma, he had risen to fame as a cowboy humorist in vaudeville, the Ziegfeld Follies, Broadway shows and silent movies, and he earned public acclaim with his shrewd, folksy and witty observations on American life and values.

    By the 1920s, this led to a syndicated column Rogers wrote for over 300 newspapers, a stream of magazine articles and essays, and steady appearances on the national lecture circuit. He hosted a national radio program and had starring roles in several Hollywood “talkie” movies.

    Rogers became the most beloved figure in America until his death in 1935. As I discovered in my research, a flood of eulogies appeared in newspapers and magazines following his passing. Typical was this one appearing in the Minneapolis Journal: “We all loved Will Rogers … . Poets we have had, and philosophers, and humorists of note; but not one among them all so endeared to the heart of the whole people. None was ever mourned with such genuine grief, none will be so missed from our common life.”

    Especially fascinated by the nation’s politics, Rogers often trained his humor on its foibles and achievements alike. Three touchstones guided his commentary: a genial skepticism about politics as usual, a belief that politics must be subsumed within a broader perspective on life and, above all, an insistence that political discussants honor a code of civility.

    Will Rogers sends up politics and politicians in this radio broadcast from 1924.

    ‘I just … report the facts’

    Rogers got most of his laughs from skeptical jabs at the system. He gleefully skewered the “bunk” of American politics, his favorite word for politicians’ shameless hypocrisy, bombastic rhetoric, inflated egos and shady deal-making. Both Democrats and Republicans stood guilty of peddling bunk.

    “You know, the more you read and observe about this politics thing, you’ve got to admit that each party is worse than the other,” Rogers said. “It is getting so that a Republican promise is not much more to be depended on than a Democratic one. And that has always been considered the lowest form of collateral in the world.”

    The Oklahoman poked fun at the political system’s grandiose rituals and fumbling institutions. He wrote of a benumbing presidential convention in 1924 that took three weeks and 103 ballots to nominate a nonentity: “In number of population the convention is holding its own. The deaths from old age among the delegates is about offset by the birthrate.”

    Rogers pilloried governmental ineptness in Washington, D.C. One year, when Congress reconvened after a round of egregious bickering and inaction, he joked, “Let us all pray: Oh Lord, give us strength to bear that which is about to be inflicted upon us. Be merciful with them, Oh Lord, for they know not what they do.”

    He claimed a simple approach: “I don’t make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.”

    ‘Critical yet charitable’

    Yet Rogers insisted that political disputation should be kept in perspective. He urged his fellow citizens to avoid politicizing every public issue and instead concentrate on more meaningful endeavors – family, friends, community and work.

    Despite the dire warnings of political zealots, he said, “There is no less sickness, no less Earthquakes, no less Progress, no less inventions, no less morality, no less Christianity under one (president) than the other.”

    But for Rogers, the ultimate guarantee of stability came from the mass of workaday American citizens seeking commonsense solutions to public problems. What Rogers called the “Big Honest Majority” lived simply and worked hard, wanted a good life for their families and pursued their own version of happiness.

    The average citizen, Rogers believed, had solid judgment and “was not simple minded enough to believe that EVERYTHING is right and doesn’t appear to be cuckoo enough to believe that EVERYTHING is wrong.”

    Finally, Rogers urged an approach to politics that was critical yet charitable, principled yet magnanimous. A connoisseur of civility, he insisted that political disputants were opponents, not enemies, and that contrary viewpoints deserved respect.

    The humorist set the example: “I haven’t got it in for anybody or anything.”

    Will Rogers dining with Oklahoma Gov. Bill Murray on Feb. 3, 1931, in Oklahoma City. Murray had his usual meal of hard-boiled eggs and milk; Rogers chose fried chicken.
    Associated Press

    Surviving overwrought partisanship

    Even as he pilloried politicians’ shortcomings, he never made it personal. Despite their faults, Rogers wrote, “the Rascals, when you meet ’em face to face and know ’em, they are mighty nice fellows.” He declared famously, “I’ve joked about every prominent man in my time but I never met a man I didn’t like.”

    Determinedly nonpartisan throughout most of his career, he leaned toward the party of Franklin Roosevelt during the Great Depression while jesting, “I don’t belong to any organized political faith; I’m a Democrat.” The cowboy humorist saw politics as an endeavor for genial discussion, not a blood sport.

    Rogers’ political axioms of healthy skepticism, perspicacity and civility remain useful guides for surviving even the most sordid electioneering.

    So when you hear overwrought partisans lamenting “the end of democracy” or “we won’t have a country left anymore,” take a deep breath and consider Will Rogers’ calmer, wiser approach to presidential elections a century ago. Remember his conclusion that America won’t be ruined “no matter who is elected, so the Politicians will have to wait four more years to tell us who will ruin us then.”

    Then you can adopt his sage advice that when dealing with a political adversary, “don’t disagree with him looking at him; walk around behind him and see the way he’s looking.”

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

    – ref. View politics critically but charitably and with good old common sense: cowboy commentator Will Rogers’ wisdom for 2024 – https://theconversation.com/view-politics-critically-but-charitably-and-with-good-old-common-sense-cowboy-commentator-will-rogers-wisdom-for-2024-239372

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Gun violence in Philadelphia plummeted in 2024 − researchers aren’t sure why, but here are 3 factors at play

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Carla Lewandowski, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, Rowan University

    Philadelphia had 563 homicides in 2021 — the deadliest year on record. Alex Potemkin/E+ Collection via Getty Images

    Philadelphia experienced a surge in shootings and homicides during the COVID-19 years that disproportionately affected young Black and Latino men in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods with drug markets.

    In 2020, Philadelphia had 499 homicides – nearly 150 more than the previous year. Gun violence worsened in 2021 – with 562 homicides that year – and then dropped slightly in 2022.

    Fortunately, recent data shows a notable decline in these crimes over the past two years. As of late September 2024, homicides are down 40% for the year to date compared with 2023. And the number of shooting victims has decreased similarly – from 1,236 in the first eight months of 2023 to 758 for the same period in 2024.

    As professors of criminal justice who live in Greater Philadelphia, we know that there is no single explanation for the drop in gun violence. Rather, many factors at both the local and national levels could be playing a role.

    Police and justice system return to (sort of) normalcy

    A shortage of police – driven by pandemic-era resignations, retirements and injuries – significantly affected cities like Philadelphia.

    Additionally, the Philadelphia Police Department’s number of traffic and pedestrian stops dropped drastically. This was due to both the need to adhere to social distancing guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic and a widespread reluctance among officers to engage with citizens after massive protests in response to the murder of George Floyd. In fact, the number of documented stops plummeted by 83% from 2019 to 2020 alone.

    Philadelphia police staffing remains nearly 20% lower than before the pandemic.
    Spencer Platt/Getty Images News via Getty Images

    As the year progressed, the department struggled with officers’ abuse of the Pennsylvania Heart and Lung Act. This statewide disability program allows police and firefighters injured on the job to collect their full salaries.

    By September 2021, 14% of Philadelphia patrol officers were out of work on “no duty” disability leave, according to investigations by both The Philadelphia Inquirer and the city controller.

    Though up-to-date data is unavailable, there was a 31% drop in injury claims by December 2022, 10 months after the Inquirer investigation was published.

    More recently, the Philadelphia Police Department has attempted to increase its ranks through intensified recruitment efforts. It also lowered physical requirements and eliminated certain residency restrictions.

    Despite these efforts, staffing remains nearly 20% lower than in 2019. This places considerable strain on the existing workforce.

    Of course, the COVID-19 years considerably affected the entire criminal justice system and beyond in Philadelphia. Courts operated in a limited capacity, cases backlogged, probation and parole officers were less able to supervise individuals in the community, and the jail population was reduced. The city’s array of community- and hospital-based violence intervention programs were also disrupted.

    The post-pandemic resumption of court operations, improved violence intervention programs, police recruitment efforts and reduced disability claims may help explain the recent drop in shootings.

    New leadership and crime-fighting strategies

    Reducing gun violence was a top campaign issue during Philadelphia’s 2023 mayoral race.

    Mayor Cherelle Parker, elected on a law-and-order platform, declared a public safety emergency on her first day in office.

    She also appointed Kevin Bethel as police commissioner in charge of the more than 6,000-member force. Bethel, second in command under former Commissioner Charles Ramsey, quickly released a 100-day plan that focused on crime reduction in high-crime districts, shutting down open-air drug markets in Kensington and reinforcing federal partnerships to tackle violent crime.

    Philadelphia has also adopted new policing strategies and technologies.

    In early 2022, before Parker and Bethel’s tenure, the Philadelphia Police Department under former Commissioner Danielle Outlaw designated a new unit to investigate nonfatal shootings. In 2021, only 17% of nonfatal shootings led to arrests, a failure that can fuel retaliatory violence, legal cynicism – which refers to a drop in trust of the legal system – and communities resorting to self-policing.

    While it’s not yet clear what effect the new unit has had in Philadelphia, research shows such units that prioritize resources to solving nonfatal shootings in places such as Boston and Denver have reduced gun violence.

    More recently, the city began deploying mobile surge teams on weekends to flood high-crime areas with officers to deter potential criminal activity.

    Meanwhile, Temple University attributes the reduction in crime within its patrol areas to the implementation of safety measures, including new equipment for officers such as firearms and radios, upgraded security cameras and advanced technology such as license plate readers, which help identify stolen vehicles or those linked to criminal behavior.

    Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel has prioritized reducing gun violence in high-crime neighborhoods.
    Ryan Collerd/AFP via Getty Images

    National crime trends

    While local initiatives have likely contributed to Philadelphia’s drop in violent crime, these improvements also fit into national crime trends as cities across the U.S. experienced similar declines.

    Economics and public safety expert John Roman, for example, attributes both the rise and fall of violence to pandemic-related losses in government staffing and functionality, which he argues returned to prepandemic levels in late 2023.

    Roman shows how 1.3 million government jobs were lost nationally at the outset of COVID-19, with 75% of the losses coming at the local level. These local government employees, such as social and outreach workers, often connect people in marginalized communities that bear the brunt of gun violence to crucial services such as trauma counseling, victim advocacy and legal assistance.

    In Philadelphia, approximately 3,000 local government jobs were lost between 2019 and 2022. The reopening of social services and increase in those jobs and community-based interventions post-pandemic may have helped stabilize Philadelphia’s neighborhoods.

    Crime trends tend to ebb and flow. This current drop appears to align with a national de-escalation in violent crime. These factors, alongside the statistical phenomenon of regression to the mean – where crime rates normalize after extreme spikes – apply to both national and local crime rates.

    Some researchers, including Roman, have also considered the possibility that the recent 2020-2022 homicide peak killed a portion of the most violent offenders who drive shootings in their neighborhood. It’s based on the concept of the victim-offender overlap that those at the highest risk of violence are often offenders themselves.

    But crediting Philadelphia’s decline in homicides and violent crime to any single cause oversimplifies a much more intricate picture. While the exact causes of these shifts are complex, understanding the interplay of local and national forces is essential to sustaining this positive trajectory.

    John A. Shjarback receives funding from: the South Jersey Institute for Population Health; the NJ Gun Violence Research Center; and a few local/county governments including Cumberland County, NJ, Atlantic City, NJ, and Suffolk County, NY.

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

    – ref. Gun violence in Philadelphia plummeted in 2024 − researchers aren’t sure why, but here are 3 factors at play – https://theconversation.com/gun-violence-in-philadelphia-plummeted-in-2024-researchers-arent-sure-why-but-here-are-3-factors-at-play-235485

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI: Canon U.S.A., Inc. Supports Cross-University Project

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    MELVILLE, N.Y., Sept. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Aligned with its commitment to supporting higher education and fostering collaboration, Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, is proud to announce its support of a collaborative project between Syracuse University and Universidad del Sagrado Corazón in San Juan, Puerto Rico through which their students created a documentary film. The project was made possible through the help of powerful technology provided by Canon1, enabling students from both universities to work together to bring their ideas to life from ideation to execution. The resulting documentary, A Tale of Two Cities, will make its debut at the upcoming Syracuse Film Festival in Syracuse, New York, showcasing the students’ unique perspectives and collaborative efforts.2

    Under the guidance of faculty members Milton Santiago at Syracuse University and Professor Harold Leonard Navarro at Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, students explored a topic of mutual regional significance. Despite the geographic distance between the two groups, they were able to seamlessly collaborate using Canon’s AMLOS (Activate My Line of Sight) solution and captured the documentary on Canon’s EOS R5C hybrid camera. Canon’s AMLOS solution facilitated real-time interaction, allowing the students to communicate in an engaging way to merge their unique perspectives and skills into a cohesive documentary project.

    “This project truly enabled our students to understand the power of collaboration,” said Santiago, an assistant professor of visual communications at Syracuse University’s renowned Newhouse School of Public Communications.

    “Despite being geographically distant, the students at Syracuse and at Sagrado were able to rally around a common goal: telling an important story while raising awareness about a timely issue,” Santiago added. “In joining forces through storytelling, the work they have created will have impact beyond our academic walls.”

    In exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, captured on Canon’s EOS R5 C camera, students reflect on how they used the AMLOS solution to collaborate seamlessly across geographic boundaries.

    A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking on this link.

    Additional footage shows the students working with the EOS R5 C camera to bring their documentary vision to life, highlighting the impact of Canon’s technology on their creative process.

    A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking on this link.

    The benefits of Canon’s technology extended beyond merely facilitating interaction. It empowered students to work together to merge their perspectives seamlessly to help them create a polished final product.

    “The success of this project demonstrates that technology is an extremely powerful tool for collaboration across academic disciplines,” said Professor Navarro. “This experience has opened the door for future projects, bringing together students and faculty from diverse backgrounds in innovative ways.”

    Students echoed this sentiment, emphasizing how the project made a profound impact on their learning experience.

    “The experience that everyone got from this project is something that will leave a lasting impact on us,” said Jennifer Wybieracki, master’s graduate student at Syracuse University. “The collaboration between multidisciplinary fields is super important as we’re able to see how different industries operate and how we all contribute to the end product.”

    “We thank Canon for providing us with the equipment that allowed us to present the reality of the community by enabling us to obtain high-quality content,” said Victor Jiménez, journalism undergraduate student at Universidad del Sagrado Corazón.

    Supporting this collaborative project underscores Canon’s ongoing commitment to fostering creativity and innovation across academic institutions.

    “At Canon, we believe that technology has the power to transcend boundaries, whether geographic, cultural, or academic,” said Shinya Fukuda, senior vice president, Corporate Planning and Communications, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “By supporting this cross-university collaboration, we’re proud to help equip the next generation of filmmakers and storytellers with the tools they need to not only share their unique perspectives but also to foster meaningful connections through creativity and innovation.”

    About Newhouse School at Syracuse University

    The S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University trains the next generation of communications leaders, preparing students to not only enter a rapidly changing media industry, but to shape its future. Called one of the “very best schools” in its field by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC) in a 2023 report, Newhouse has been lauded for providing an excellent educational experience due to its outstanding students, faculty, staff, leadership and facilities, as well as financial stability and a deep curriculum. Newhouse is committed to expanding academic excellence through research and creative activity, as well as community engagement and professional opportunities to help students develop their skill set outside the classroom.

    About Universidad del Sagrado Corazón

    The Universidad del Sagrado Corazón is the oldest educational project in Puerto Rico, founded in 1880. It is located in the heart of Santurce, in the capital city of San Juan. The university offers academic programs that foster innovative thinking and creativity, helping students develop into leaders across various industries. The Ferré Rangel School of Communication is the premier institution for media and communication studies in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean. Its graduates hold leadership roles in media and communication organizations both domestically and internationally. Learn more about the Ferré Rangel School of Communication at https://www.sagrado.edu/en/communications/

    About Canon U.S.A. Inc.

    Canon U.S.A. Inc. is a leading provider of consumer, business-to-business, and industrial digital imaging solutions to the United States and to Latin America and the Caribbean markets. With approximately $29.4 billion in global revenue, its parent company, Canon Inc. as of 2023 has ranked in the top-five overall in U.S. patents granted for 38 consecutive years†. Canon U.S.A. is dedicated to its Kyosei philosophy of social and environmental responsibility. To learn more about Canon, visit us at www.usa.canon.com and connect with us on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/canonusa.

    † Based on weekly patent counts issued by United States Patent and Trademark Office.

    1 Canon U.S.A., Inc. also provided limited financial support to the schools for the project.

    2 The views and opinions expressed in the documentary are the views and opinions of the makers thereof and do not reflect the views and opinions of Canon U.S.A.

    To learn more about the AMLOS solution, including requirements, technical specifications and compatibility information please contact your Canon Authorized Representative. Subscription to, purchase, and use of other Canon and third-party services and solutions required for set-up, sound, to see remote users, and other features. Subject to applicable Canon or third-party provider’s terms and conditions. Neither Canon Inc. nor Canon U.S.A., Inc. represents or warrants any third-party product, service, or feature referenced hereunder.

    Not responsible for typographical errors.

    Canon is a registered trademark of Canon Inc. in the United States and may also be a registered trademark or trademark in other countries. AMLOS, the AMLOS logo and Activate My Line of Sight are trademarks of Canon U.S.A., Inc. All referenced product names, and other marks, are trademarks of their respective owners.

    Contact info: Nicole Esan Niesan@cusa.canon.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Minister Ng promotes trade and investment ties at Association of Southeast Asian Nations economic ministers meeting in Lao People’s Democratic Republic

    Source: Government of Canada News

    Over the weekend, the Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development, concluded her participation in the 13th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Economic Ministers-Canada Consultation, in Vientiane, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR).

    September 23, 2024 – Ottawa, Ontario – Global Affairs Canada

    Over the weekend, the Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development, concluded her participation in the 13th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Economic Ministers-Canada Consultation, in Vientiane, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR).

    During the consultation, Minister Ng highlighted the progress Canada and ASEAN member states have made toward an ASEAN-Canada free trade agreement, and underscored the importance of intensifying efforts to conclude the agreement negotiations in 2025.

    At the meeting, Minister Ng and ASEAN partners discussed the increased trade and economic cooperation since the launch of Canada-ASEAN Strategic Partnership a year ago, including the advancement of initiatives under Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy in key areas such as inclusive trade, digital trade, agriculture and agri-food and sustainability.

    The Minister also acknowledged the Canada-ASEAN Business Council’s participation in the consultations and recognized its support of Canada’s commitment to creating new opportunities for Canadian businesses and investors.

    On the margins of the consultations, Minister Ng also interacted with several international partners to advance discussions on trade priorities of mutual interest.

    These included:

    • Malaithong Kommasith, Minister of Industry and Commerce, Lao PDR
    • Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz, Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry, Malaysia
    • Filipus Nino Pereira, Minister of Commerce and Industry, Timor-Leste
    • Kao Kim Hourn, Secretary-General of ASEAN
    • Cham Nimul, Minister of Commerce, Cambodia
    • Helene Budliger Artieda, State Secretary for Economic Affairs, Switzerland
    • Tim Ayres, Assistant Minister for Trade, Australia
    • Douglas Alexander, Minister of State (Minister for Trade Policy and Economic Security), the United Kingdom

    “These in-person engagements in the Lao PDR were an excellent opportunity for us to continue strengthening the ASEAN-Canada bilateral commercial relationship and contribute to our mutual economic prosperity and growth. Canada will keep working with ASEAN partners to deepen trade ties that will benefit Canadian businesses and workers, create good jobs and generate strong, inclusive and sustainable economic growth from coast to coast to coast.”

    – Mary Ng, Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development

    Huzaif Qaisar
    Press Secretary
    Office of the Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development
    343-575-8816
    Huzaif.Qaisar@international.gc.ca

    MIL OSI Canada News –