NewzIntel.com

Category: Australia

  • MIL-OSI Australia: CFA launches 80 stories in 80 days

    Source:

    CFA is marking its 80th anniversary with a unique initiative that honours its history and the dedication of its volunteers.

    As part of the anniversary, from today (2 April), we will share 80 stories over 80 days, showcasing the pivotal moments, challenges and triumphs that have shaped CFA in the past 80 years.

    Join us as we unveil these stories, information and facts one by one, each highlighting a different aspect of our journey.

    From our history to the courageous actions of our dedicated volunteers to community education programs to the evolution of firefighting vehicles, training and equipment, each day will build upon a story of the unwavering commitment and resilience that defines CFA and our members.

    Our first story is now ready – visit our 80 in 80 site to find out more

    Each weekday a new story will be ready for you to reveal on the website. The stories will also be shared across CFA’s social media platforms.

    Check back each day to read a new story – we look forward to sharing them with you.

    Submitted by CFA News

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Tuberville Continues to Champion Cryptocurrency, Calls President Trump the “Crypto President”

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Alabama Tommy Tuberville
    WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) reintroduced two pieces of legislation related to protecting American cryptocurrency.
    Senator Tuberville’s first bill, the Financial Freedom Act, would reverse a Biden-era memo from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) that limits options for where Americans can invest their retirement earnings. The Financial Freedom Act would allow Americans to choose how they want to invest their money, including in crypto.
    “The Biden administration was hellbent on controlling every aspect of Americans’ lives,” said Senator Tuberville. “Meddling in 401(k) investments through overregulation restrains financial growth and restricts personal liberty. The federal government, which is $36 trillion debt, shouldn’t be telling anyone how to invest their money. My bill ensures that hardworking Americans have the financial freedom to make decisions about how to invest their retirement savings.”
    Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) is a cosponsor of this legislation.
    Senator Tuberville’s second bill, the Prohibiting Foreign Adversary Interference in Cryptocurrency Markets Act, would prohibit the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) from registering a digital commodity platform that is owned in whole or in part by an entity organized or established in China. It also requires the CFTC to revoke the registration of any digital commodity platform in the event an entity with ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) acquires all or any part of the ownership of the entity.
    Digital commodity platforms collect and store personally identifiable information — including Social Security numbers, mailing addresses, and sensitive financial account data — of their users. Allowing entities based in the PRC to access this information raises serious concerns related to investor protection, data privacy, national security, sanctions compliance, and anti-money laundering efforts. Companies based in the PRC all ultimately answer to the CCP.
    “For four years, the Biden administration put America last – bowing to China at every turn and allowing our adversaries to get ahead,” said Senator Tuberville. “Thanks to President Trump, those days are over. Crypto is the future and we have to make sure our markets are protected from bad actors like China who want to destroy us. This critical bill will protect our markets and make Americans safer.”
    Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) is a cosponsor of this legislation.
    Senator Tuberville discussed his legislation on Fox Business with Larry Kudlow.
    BACKGROUND:
    FINANCIAL FREEDOM ACT
    The Financial Freedom Act would reverse regulatory guidance released by the Employee Benefits Security Administration, an agency inside of U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The guidance attempts to bar 401(k) investors from investing in cryptocurrency and undermines the ability of 401(k) plans to offer brokerage windows, which give retirement plan participants the ability to personally control how their assets are invested.
    The DOL guidance threatens that employers and investment firms could be subject to investigation and enforcement actions should they allow individuals using brokerage windows to invest in cryptocurrency. Senator Tuberville’s bill would bar such investigations and enforcement actions, opening the door for Americans to invest their savings in investments of their choice. 
    Senator Tuberville has consistently been an outspoken advocate in Congress for personal financial freedom. 
    Senator Tuberville previously introduced the Financial Freedom Act in the 117th Congress and penned an op-ed warning against government infringement on personal investment decisions.
    Senator Tuberville spoke on the Senate floor in support of the Financial Freedom Act.
    Senator Tuberville joined 36 of his U.S. Senate colleagues in introducing the Fair Access to Banking Act, a bill to protect fair access to financial services by preventing banks and financial institutions from discriminating against law-abiding businesses.
    Senator Tuberville added his support to a resolution that would challenge the Biden administration’s rule to allow retirement fund managers to consider and prioritize Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors while making retirement investment decisions.
    Senator Tuberville introduced legislation to protect Americans’ financial privacy against government surveillance.
    Prohibiting Foreign Adversary Interference in Cryptocurrency Markets Act
    The CCP’s efforts to mine data and surveil the public are well known, and decisive action is needed to safeguard the American people. Under current law, U.S. regulators have limited tools to block the purchase of a U.S. digital commodity platform by a CCP-tied entity. The Prohibiting Foreign Adversary Interference in Cryptocurrency Markets Act will help to wall off the burgeoning U.S. digital asset industry from Chinese interference and help to ensure continued American leadership in financial innovation. 
    Senator Tuberville believes the CCP seeks to overtake the United States as the top global superpower and that America must face China’s growing military and non-military threats with clear-eyed resolve.
    Since assuming office in the U.S. Senate in 2021, Senator Tuberville has led and supported numerous efforts to protect American investments, intellectual property, and national security from China.
    Senator Tuberville led the call for an investigation into Webull Financial, LLC and Moomoo, Inc. – two Chinese-owned stock trading apps operating in the United States that are registered with the SEC and FINRA.
    Both apps are widely used by American investors and freely collect and store sensitive information about users, including Social Security numbers, mailing addresses, and financial account data.
    In May 2023, Senator Tuberville sent a letter to SEC Chair Gary Gensler and FINRA President and CEO Robert Cook calling for oversight of the trading platforms due to the potential CCP access of American user data. In the letter, Senator Tuberville asked for answers to critical questions about the ability of the SEC and FINRA to examine the Chinese companies’ compliance with U.S. law.
    In March 2023, Senator Tuberville led a congressional delegation to Panama to discuss countering China’s growing influence in the region.
    On the trip, Senator Tuberville met with American and Panamanian officials to strategize ways to combat Chinese attempts to control the Panama Canal, which would give China enormous influence over global supply chains.
    To curb Chinese influence in the economy, Senator Tuberville introduced legislation to ban members of the CCP from receiving B-1 and B-2 visas to the United States for vacation and non-official government business.
    The CCP is responsible for trillions of dollars of intellectual property theft each year. To curb growing foreign influence and crime and discourage other Chinese nationals from joining the CCP, the bill cosponsored by Senator Tuberville would bar all 93 million CCP members from entering the United States using nonimmigrant B-1 and B-2 visas.
    Senator Tuberville believes the retirement savings of our military and federal government employees, known as the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), should not be invested in the economies of our adversaries, such as China.
    Senator Tuberville wrote about this issue in the Wall Street Journal in a column entitled, “I’ll Keep Veterans’ Pensions Safe From Communism” and discussed the issue on Fox Business.
    Senator Tuberville continued the push for accountability from the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB) surrounding the board’s policy on foreign investments. 
    Senator Tuberville placed a hold on nominees to the FRTIB until the nominees provided clarification regarding foreign investment policies, which forced the nominees to commit to opposing TSP investment in China.
    MORE:
    Tuberville Questions CFTC Chairman on Taxation of Cryptocurrency and the Need for a Regulatory Framework for Cryptocurrency
    Tuberville Leads Letter Calling for DOJ, SEC Investigation into China-Tied Crypto Firm Prometheum, Inc.
    Tuberville Leads Bipartisan Bill to Block CCP Ownership of American Crypto Companies
    Tuberville, Lummis Work to Establish Strategic Bitcoin Reserve
    Tuberville Takes Action to Protect Conservatives, Taxpayers from Political Discrimination by Banks
    ICYMI: Tuberville in Daily Caller: A Fed-Controlled Digital Dollar Could Mean The End Of Freedom In America
    Tuberville Reintroduces Bill to Keep the Government Out of Americans’ Investment Decisions 
    WHAT THEY ARE SAYING: Support Grows for Tuberville’s Legislation to Protect 401(k) Investment Freedom
    Tuberville Continues Push to Protect Retirement Savers’ Financial Freedom
    New Tuberville Legislation Promotes Financial Freedom for 401(k) Investors
    Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs, HELP and Aging Committees.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Australian public libraries failing readers with print disabilities

    Source:

    02 April 2025

    A new study has revealed that Australia’s public libraries are struggling to adequately support people with print disabilities, leaving a significant portion of the population without access to essential reading and learning materials.

    The research, published in the Journal of the Australian Library and Information Association, highlights systemic barriers that individuals with vision impairments, dyslexia and other disabilities face when trying to access public library services.

    According to Vision Australia, approximately 18% of adult Australians experience a print disability, making equitable library access a pressing issue. The study reveals that despite nearly all public libraries carrying ebooks, audiobooks and large print editions, access to these resources is often hindered by inaccessible formats, websites and catalogues.

    Researchers from the University of South Australia (UniSA) and the University of Sydney identified the following key issues:

    • Low confidence in accessibility of ebooks and e-audiobooks
    • Limited awareness and training among library staff about how to help patrons with print disabilities
    • Low confidence among library staff in accessibility of their library websites and catalogues
    • Limited awareness of existing services among the print disability community
    • A need for stronger engagement with the print disability community and better marketing of available resources
    • Inconsistent funding and policy approaches across different library networks

    The researchers say that access to information is a “fundamental right, not a privilege” and that “libraries must be equipped to serve all members of the community, regardless of their ability to read standard print materials.”

    “The importance of addressing these barriers cannot be overstated,” says UniSA researcher Dr Jo Kaeding.

    “Research shows that 82% of people with print disabilities rate reading for pleasure as ‘very important’ in their lives. Not only is reading linked to numerous literacy-related benefits; it also opens doors to broader general knowledge.”

    Positive change may be on the horizon. In June 2025, the European Accessibility Act of 2019 will come into effect, requiring a range of products and services – including ebooks – to be produced and available in accessible formats for the European market.

    While the directive affects European publishers, Sydney University researcher Dr Agata Mrva-Montoya says it will also have an impact for Australian publishers wanting to sell books in European markets and is expected to increase the number of accessible ebooks available in Australia.

    “Australian public libraries have a long history of serving print-disabled communities,” Dr Kaeding says. However, the convergence of new legal frameworks, digital technologies and changing user preferences demands a fundamental transformation in how libraries approach accessibility.”

    The researchers recommend increased funding for accessible collections, mandatory staff training in accessibility, and improved engagement with people with print disabilities.

    Print Disability and Public Libraries in Australia: Challenges and Opportunities is published in the Journal of the Australian Library and Information Association. DOI: 10.1080/24750158.2025.2467471

    …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

    Media contact: Candy Gibson M: +61 434 605 142 E: candy.gibson@unisa.edu.au

    Other articles you may be interested in

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: KANGAROO ROAD, LANGHORNE CREEK (Rubbish Fire)

    Source: South Australia County Fire Service

    Issued on
    02 Apr 2025 07:20

    Issued for
    LANGHORNE CREEK in the Murraylands.

    Warning level
    Advice – Avoid Smoke

    Action
    Smoke from LANGHORNE CREEK is in the Kangaroo Road and Boundary Road area.

    Smoke can affect your health. You should stay informed and be aware of the health impacts of smoke on yourself and others.

    Symptoms of exposure includes shortness of breath, wheezing and coughing, burning eyes, running nose, chest tightness, chest pain and dizziness or light-headedness.

    If you or anyone in your care are having difficulty breathing, seek medical attention from your local GP. If your symptoms become severe, call 000.

    More information will be provided by the CFS when it is available.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI: Petrus Resources Declares Monthly Dividend for April 2025

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CALGARY, Alberta, April 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Petrus Resources Ltd. (“Petrus” or the “Company”) (TSX: PRQ) is pleased to confirm that its Board of Directors has declared a monthly dividend in the amount of $0.01 per share payable April 30, 2025, to shareholders of record on April 15, 2025. The dividend is designated as an eligible dividend for Canadian income tax purposes.

    Dividend Reinvestment Plan (“DRIP”)
    Petrus’ DRIP enables eligible shareholders to reinvest all or part of their cash dividends into additional common shares of the Company. Participation in the DRIP is optional. Eligible shareholders who elect to reinvest their cash dividends under the DRIP will receive common shares issued from treasury at a discount of 3% from the market price of the common shares.

    To participate in the DRIP, registered shareholders must deliver a properly completed enrollment form to Odyssey Trust Company (“Odyssey”) before 4:00 p.m. (Calgary time) on the 5th business day immediately preceding a dividend record date. Beneficial shareholders who wish to participate in the DRIP should contact their broker or other nominee through which their Common Shares are held to determine their eligibility and provide appropriate enrollment instructions. Participation by shareholders that are not resident in Canada may be restricted.

    A complete copy of the DRIP is available on the Company’s website at www.petrusresources.com and on Odyssey’s website at https://odysseytrust.com/faq/. A copy of the enrollment form for use by registered shareholders is available on Odyssey’s website at https://odysseytrust.com/faq/. For further information regarding the DRIP, please contact Odyssey at 1-888-290-1175 (Toll free in North America) or 1-587-885-0960.

    ABOUT PETRUS
    Petrus is a public Canadian oil and gas company focused on property exploitation, strategic acquisitions and risk-managed exploration in Alberta.

    FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
    Ken Gray
    President and Chief Executive Officer
    T: 403-930-0889
    E: kgray@petrusresources.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Element to Announce Q1 2025 Results and Host Conference Call on May 1, 2025

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TORONTO, April 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Element Fleet Management Corp. (TSX: EFN) (“Element” or the “Company”), the largest publicly traded, pure-play automotive fleet manager in the world, will hold its Q1 2025 results conference call and webcast for investors and analysts on Thursday, May 1, 2025 at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Element’s financial results for the period will be issued after market close on Wednesday, April 30, 2025 and will be available on the Company’s website at elementfleet.com/investor-relations/public-disclosures.

    The conference call and webcast can be accessed as follows:

    Call Date: Thursday, May 1, 2025
    Call Time: 8:00 a.m. (Eastern Time)

    A taped recording of the conference call may be accessed through June 1, 2025 by dialing 1-855-669-9658 (Canada/U.S. Toll Free) or 1-412-317-0088 (International Toll) and entering the access code 2285919.

    About Element Fleet Management Corp.

    Element Fleet Management (TSX: EFN) is the largest publicly traded pure-play automotive fleet manager in the world. As a Purpose-driven company, we provide a full range of sustainable and intelligent mobility solutions to optimize and enhance fleet performance for our clients across North America, Australia, and New Zealand. Our services address every aspect of our clients’ fleet requirements, from vehicle acquisition, maintenance, route optimization, risk management, and remarketing, to advising on decarbonization efforts, integration of electric vehicles and managing the complexity of gradual fleet electrification. Clients benefit from Element’s expertise as one of the largest fleet solutions providers in its markets, offering economies of scale and insight used to reduce operating costs and enhance efficiency and performance. At Element, we maximize our clients’ fleet so they can focus on growing their business. For more information, please visit: https://www.elementfleet.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: DECARBONIZATION IN THE STEEL SECTOR

    Source: Government of India

    Posted On: 01 APR 2025 4:30PM by PIB Delhi

    The steps including adoption of green technologies, carbon capture and recycling initiatives taken by Government to decarbonize the steel sector in India areas under:-

    1. Ministry has released the Taxonomy for Green Steel to provide standards for defining and categorizing the low emission steel.
    2. Ministry of Steel has released a report titled “Greening the Steel Sector in India: Roadmap and Action Plan” in alignment with the recommendations of the 14 Task Forces constituted by this Ministry for this purpose which provides the future roadmap for green steel and sustainability, towards net-zero target by 2070. The report is available on Ministry of Steel’s website.
    • III. Ministry of Steel has awarded 07 pilot projects for implementation of pilot projects for use of hydrogen in steel sector under National Green Hydrogen Mission launched by Ministry of New & Renewable Energy.
    • IV. National Solar Mission launched by Ministry of New and Renewable Energy in January, 2010 promotes the use of solar energy and also helps to reduce the emission of steel industry.
    1. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has formulated the Vehicle Scrapping Policy that includes a system of incentives/disincentives for creation of an ecosystem to phase out older, unfit polluting vehicles. Under the policy, MoRTH has issued rules for Registration and Functions of Vehicle Scrapping Facility (RVSF), which provides the procedures and infrastructure facilities required for de-pollution and dismantling of End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) for further recovery of metal and other materials under environmental regulations.
    • VI. Ministry of Mines has brought out ‘National Non-ferrous Metal Scrap Recycling Framework, 2020’ to promote a formal and well-organized recycling ecosystem. The Framework lays down standard procedures for recycling and processing of scrap and developing a mechanism for facilitating the Metal scrap recycling activities.
    1. Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change has introduced the Environment Protection (End-of-Life Vehicles) Rules, 2025, which establishes a framework for managing End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) in an environmentally sound manner and mandates Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), requiring vehicle producers to meet annual scrapping targets based on the type of vehicle and materials recovered.
    2. The Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS) has been notified by the Government (Ministry of Power) on 28thJune,2023, which provides an overall framework for the functioning of the Indian Carbon Market.

    CPSEs of Ministry of Steel are collaborating with eminent technology providers such as M/s BHP from Australia, M/s SMS from Germany, M/s Primetal Technologies from United Kingdom, M/s John Cockerill India Limited from Belgium, M/s Ram Charan Company Pvt. Ltd., Madras, National Centre of Excellence in Carbon Capture and Utilization (NCoE-CCU) of IIT, Bombay and Great Eastern Energy Corporation Ltd. to promote low carbon steel production.

    This information was given by the Minister of State for Steel and Heavy Industries, Shri Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.

    *****

    TPJ/NJ

    (Release ID: 2117302) Visitor Counter : 150

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Rep. Carter Calls out Musk-Trump Administration for Dropping Lawsuit Against Major Louisiana Polluter and Abandoning EPA’s Mission to Protect Americans

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Troy A. Carter Sr. (LA-02)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – This week, Congressman Troy A. Carter, Sr. (D-LA) led a coalition of Members of Congress in a letter to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Attorney General Pam Bondi. They expressed concern over the federal government’s decision to dismiss the EPA lawsuit against Denka Performance Elastomer LLC (Denka) related to its neoprene manufacturing facility in Louisiana that emits chloroprene, a likely human carcinogen. The decision represents a significant setback in the ongoing fight for environmental justice for historically disadvantaged communities, who bear the disproportionate burden of industrial pollution.

     

    “Dropping the lawsuit against Denka is a devastating blow to residents in my district that have suffered from decades of industrial pollution from bad actors like Denka who have knowingly poisoned our communities,” said Rep. Carter. “The EPA’s own data confirms the dangers of chloroprene exposure, yet this action signals a retreat from the Musk-Trump Administration’s responsibility to protect public health. Louisianians deserve real accountability, not regulatory abandonment. I urge the EPA and the Department of Justice to reverse course and stand with the families whose health is on the line. Environmental justice is not optional.”

     

    “The dismissal of this lawsuit is a grave injustice to the people of St. John the Baptist Parish and beyond,” said Rep. Fields. “Families deserve clean air and a safe place to live. That’s all there is to it. Not to be ignored while big corporations get a free pass. Denka has put people’s health at risk for far too long and dropping this lawsuit sends the wrong message.”

     

    Considering the EPA’s own well-documented evidence of potential harm from chloroprene, the decision to abandon legal action against Denka is alarming and signals a troubling disregard for the health and well-being of vulnerable communities for the remainder of the Musk-Trump administration.

     

    “The health of Americans should not be sacrificed in favor of corporate interests. Our constituents, and particularly impacted fenceline communities, deserve more than inaction and regulatory rollbacks—they deserve meaningful protection and accountability. We urge both the EPA and the Department of Justice to reconsider this decision and to take decisive steps to reduce pollution exposure for the people who need it most,” the Members wrote.

     

    This letter was signed by 24 additional Members of Congress, including Reps. Cleo Fields (D-LA), Nikema Willims (D-GA), Jahana Hayes (D-CT), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), LaMonica McIver (D-NJ), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr. (D-GA), Jesús G. “Chuy” García (D-IL), Timothy M. Kennedy (D-NY), Delia C. Ramirez (D-IL), Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Adam Smith (D-WA), Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-CA), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Jill Tokuda (D-HI), Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), Valerie P. Foushee (D-NC), Maxine Waters (D-CA), Paul D. Tonko (D-NY), Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-IL), Jared Huffman (D-CA), and Pramila Jayapal (D-WA).

     

    Read the full letter here.

     

    Background

     

    Chloroprene was identified by the EPA’s Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) in 2010 as a likely human carcinogen. The IRIS assessment provided a unit risk estimate (URE), establishing the upper-bound excess lifetime cancer risk associated with continuous exposure to chloroprene at a concentration of 1 microgram per cubic meter (μg/m3) in air. This URE was used in the 2011 National Air Toxics Assessment (NATA), reinforcing the serious risks posed by chloroprene emissions to nearby residents. EPA determined that chloroprene levels in the air near the Denka facility far exceed what is considered safe—many times higher than the EPA’s recommended safety threshold of 0.2 μg/m³– raising urgent concerns about the long-term health effects on residents, including increased cancer risks. The elevated chemical emissions are especially concerning since the Denka facility is located near an elementary school.

     

    In February 2023, EPA filed a lawsuit against Denka for violating the Clean Air Act by emitting dangerous levels of chloroprene. The lawsuit was brought under Section 303 of the Clean Air Act, which allows the EPA to take legal action when pollution presents an imminent and substantial endangerment to public health. EPA‘s suit compelled Denka to immediately reduce emissions and protect public health.

     

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: School inclusion still failing autistic students

    Source:

    02 April 2025

    World-first research from the University of South Australia shows that autistic students are still struggling at school, despite efforts to improve services and supports.

    Conducted in partnership with Flinders University, the new study assessed the experiences of 225 autistic students aged 10-14, finding that they need increased support, acceptance and understanding to thrive and succeed at school.

    Capturing autistic students’ voices of their wellbeing at school and the critical factors influencing it, the meta synthesis highlights the challenges they experience with relationships at school, fitting in at school and the overwhelming sensory school environments.

    Specifically, the study found that:

    • autistic students need more support to fit in at school and to experience positive relationships with their peers and school staff
    • school staff need to be more in tune with the needs of autistic students, and provide tailored supports
    • schools need to improve school environments to better cater for autistic students’ sensory needs.

    The findings emphasise the acute need for Australian schools to create more inclusive environments that recognise and respect autistic students’ identities.

    Lead researcher UniSA’s Dr Kobie Boshoff says that schools can better support these students by fostering positive relationships, offering flexible learning strategies, and ensuring physical environments cater to sensory needs.

    “Autistic students’ school experiences are often marred by being poorly understood, high levels of bullying, interpersonal difficulties, and academic struggles, all of which impact their mental health into adulthood,” Dr Boshoff says.

    “This research amplifies the voices of middle-year autistic students, allowing them to share their firsthand experiences, and for us to learn directly from them about the support they need.

    “Wellbeing is strongly linked to how students see themselves, how others respond to their autism, and how they fit into the school environment. While some students embrace their autism as part of their identity, others try to hide it to fit in. Long term masking can have detrimental effects on their mental health.

    “Positive relationships with peers are vital, yet many autistic students find it hard to make friends. As friendships foster a sense of belonging, schools must prioritise social inclusion alongside academic success.

    “Similarly, caring and supportive school staff can make a significant difference. When students feel understood, they feel safe, respected, and heard. Teachers who adapt their approach for different students, communicate clearly, and create flexible learning environments have a profound impact on student wellbeing.

    “A school’s physical and social environment also plays a crucial role. Noisy, crowded spaces and unpredictable routines can trigger anxiety, making it harder for students to engage. Schools that offer structured support, sensory-friendly spaces, and flexible learning strategies create a more inclusive experience.”

    This year, Australia launched it’s $42.3 million inaugural National Autism Strategy (2025–2031) to create a safe and inclusive society where all autistic people are empowered to thrive. In South Australia, a $250,000 state government trial is introducing autism inclusion teachers (AITs) in nine public high schools to better support neurodiverse students.

    While Australia’s educational landscape is increasingly recognising the importance of inclusivity for students with autism, Dr Boshoff says there is still a long way to go.

    “Support for autistic students shouldn’t fade as they grow older – their needs evolve, and services must evolve with them. Yet, there’s a growing trend of assuming that older students require less support, when in reality, they just need different support,” Dr Boshoff says.

    “Every child deserves the chance to succeed at school. Schools play a critical role in shaping a positive and inclusive learning experience, but they need more funding, training, and professional support to make this a reality.

    “We must invest in practical solutions to ensure every individual autistic student feels valued, understood, and empowered to thrive.”

    …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

    Contact for interview:  Dr Kobie Boshoff E: Kobie.Boshoff@unisa.edu.au
    Media contact: Annabel Mansfield M: +61 479 182 489 E: Annabel.Mansfield@unisa.edu.au

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Threads of Progress

    Source: Government of India

    Threads of Progress

    How Make in India is Shaping the Future of Textiles and Apparel Industry

    Posted On: 01 APR 2025 7:46PM by PIB Delhi

    Introduction

    The Make in India initiative, launched in 2014, has played a crucial role in positioning India as a global textile manufacturing and export hub. The textile and apparel industry is one of the largest contributors to India’s economy, providing employment to millions and generating substantial foreign exchange earnings. With strong policy support, infrastructure development, and a skilled workforce, India has emerged as a preferred investment destination in the global textile sector.

     

    Overview of India’s Textile Industry

    The textile and apparel industry contributes 2.3% to our GDP, 13% to industrial production, and 12% to exports. India exported textile items worth US$ 34.4 billion in 2023-24, with apparel constituting 42% of the export basket, followed by raw materials/semi-finished materials at 34% and finished non-apparel goods at 30%. It is also the second largest employment generators, after agriculture, with over 45 million people employed directly, including many women and the rural population. As further evidence of the inclusive nature of this industry, nearly 80% of its capacity is spread across Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) clusters in the country.

    The sector also has perfect alignment with the Government’s overall objectives of Make in India, Skill India, Women’s Empowerment, Rural Youth Employment and inclusive growth. The industry produces about 22,000 million pieces of garments per year, with the market size projected to reach US$ 350 billion by 2030, from the current $174 billion.

    Recently, the Ministry of Textiles reported a 7% increase in textile and apparel exports, including handicrafts, from April to December 2024, compared to the same period the previous year. In line with the growth roadmap, the Indian textile market currently ranks fifth globally, and the government is actively working to accelerate this growth to a rate of 15-20% over the next five years.

     

    Impact of ‘Make in India’ on the Textile Industry

    The Make in India initiative has catalyzed textile manufacturing and exports through key policy interventions, enhanced infrastructure, and incentives. In the Union Budget 2024-25, to promote domestic textile production, two more types of shuttle-less looms are added to fully exempted textile machinery by the government. The government has introduced multiple schemes to enhance textile production, boost investments, and promote exports, including:

    1. Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for Textiles
    • Objective: To increase manufacturing in man-made fibre (MMF) and technical textiles.
    • Budget: ₹10,683 crore.
    • Incentives: Financial incentives for large-scale textile manufacturers.

     

    1. PM MITRA (Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel) Parks
    • Objective: To develop world-class industrial infrastructure for textile manufacturing.
    • Focus: On developing integrated large scale and modern industrial infrastructure facility for total value-chain of the textile industry like spinning, weaving, processing, garmenting, textile manufacturing, processing & textile machinery industry.
    • Budget: ₹4,445 crore for a period 2021-22 to 2027-28.
    • Key Benefits: Reduced logistics costs, increased FDI, and better competitiveness in global markets.
    • Current Status: A total of 7 Parks established in states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, and Telangana.

     

    1. Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (ATUFS)
    • Objective: To incentivise credit flow for benchmark credit linked technology upgradation in this MSME driven Textile Industry for supporting capital investment.
    • Budget: ₹17,822 crore.
    • Incentives: Capital subsidies for technology upgradation.

     

    1. Samarth (Scheme for Capacity Building in Textile Sector)
    • Objective: To provide skill training to workers in the textile industry, in partnership with the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship.
    • Budget Allocation: An amount of ₹115 crores was sanctioned during the FY 2023-24, out of which ₹114.99 crores (99.9%) were disbursed.
    • Current Status: As of March 27, 2025, more than 4.78 lakh users have been registered on the Samarth portal. As on March 19, 2025, a total of 3.82 lakh beneficiaries have been trained (passed) and 2.97 lakh beneficiaries (77.74%) have been placed.

     

    1. Textile Cluster Development Scheme (TCDS)
    • Objective: To create an integrated workspace and linkages-based ecosystem for existing as well as potential textile units/clusters to make them operationally and financially viable.
    • Benefits: Cluster development model of TCDS will bring benefits of critical mass for customization of interventions, economies of scale in operation, competitiveness in manufacturing, cost efficient, better access to technology and information, etc.
    • Budget: ₹853 crore.
    • Current Status: As of March 18, 2025, about 1.22 lakh employment opportunities have been generated under the scheme. During 2024-25, ₹34.48 crore have been released.

     

    1. National Technical Textiles Mission (NTTM)
    • Objective: To boost Technical Textiles in the country.
    • Target Years: 2020-21 to 2025-26
    • Budget: ₹1480 crore
    • Focus: The Mission focuses on (i) research, innovation and development, (ii) promotion and market development (iii) education and skilling and (iv) export promotion in technical textiles to position country as global leader in technical textiles.
    • Current Status: As on January 1, 2025, 168 projects of value ₹509 crores (approx.) have been approved in the category of Specialty fibres and Technical Textiles.

     

    Union Budget Allocations for Ministry of Textiles

    The Union Budget announced an outlay of ₹5272 crores for the Ministry of Textiles for 2025-26. This is an increase of 19% over budget estimates of 2024-25 (Rs. 4417.03 crore).

     

    Key Highlights

    • Cotton Mission: A five-year plan to improve cotton productivity, especially extra-long staple varieties, with science and technology support.
    • Tax Exemptions on Looms: Duty removed on select shuttle-less looms to reduce costs and modernize weaving.
    • Customs Duty on Knitted Fabrics: Increased from “10% or 20%” to “20% or ₹115 per kg, whichever is higher” to curb cheap imports.
    • Handicraft Exports: Time for export extended from six months to one year, with more items eligible for duty-free input imports.
    • MSME Boost: Focus on exports, credit enhancement, and policies like the National Manufacturing Mission, Export Promotion Mission, Bharat Trade Net, and Fund of Funds to promote employment and entrepreneurship.

     

    These measures aim to boost domestic manufacturing, support MSMEs, modernize the textile sector, and enhance India’s global competitiveness.

     

    Export Growth and Market Expansion

    India is the 6th largest exporter of Textiles & Apparel in the world. The share of textile and apparel (T&A) including handicrafts in India’s total exports stands at a significant 8.21% in 2023-24. India has a share of 3.91% of the global trade in textiles and apparel. Major textile and apparel export destinations for India are USA and EU and with around 47% share in total textile and apparel exports.  The textile and apparel sector has witnessed significant export growth due to government incentives and trade agreements.

    The government has taken several steps to enhance exports in textiles and apparels, including:

    • Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL): On 7th March 2019, Government approved Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) Scheme to rebate all embedded State and Central taxes/levies on export of Apparel/Garments and Made-ups to provide support and enhance competitiveness of these sectors.
    • Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for Textiles: Under this scheme, as per the Quarterly Review Reports (QRRs) released on 31.03.2024, the turnover achieved was Rs. 1,355 crore including export of Rs.166 crore.
    • Free Trade Agreements: India has so far signed 14 Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) including recently concluded agreement with United Arab Emirates (UAE), Australia and TEPA (Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement) with EFTA (European Free Trade Association) countries comprising Switzerland, Iceland, Norway & Liechtenstein. India has 6 Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) with various trading partners. India is presently engaged in FTA negotiations with some of its trading partners notable among these FTAs are India-UK Free Trade Agreement, India- EU Free Trade Agreement, and India-Oman FTA.
    • Quality Control Orders: The Ministry has actively taken up notification of standards for textile products in co-ordination with Bureau of Indian Standards and Quality Control Orders (QCOs) are issued to regulate quality and curb sub-standard imports.
    • Textile Advisory Group on Man-Made Fibre (MMF): The Ministry has constituted a “Textile Advisory Group on Man-made Fibre (MMF)” comprising stakeholders of the country’s entire Man-Made Fibre (MMF) including viscose to deliberate and make recommendations on the issues and concerns of the sector.
    • Exports Promotion Councils (EPCs): There are eleven Exports Promotion Councils (EPCs) representing various segments of the textiles & apparel value chain from Fibre to finished goods as well as traditional sectors like handloom, handicrafts and carpets.  These Councils work in close cooperation with the Ministry of Textiles and other Ministries to promote the growth and export of their respective sectors in global markets. 

     

    FDI in Textile and Apparel Industry

     

     

    Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) plays a role in the Indian textile and apparel sector. From January 2000 to March 2024, the textile sector received US$ 4,472.79 million (₹28,304.10 crore) in FDI equity. FDI in textile sector over the years can be traced in the graph below:

    BHARAT TEX 2024

    Bharat Tex 2024, a global textile expo was successfully organized during February 26 to February 29, 2024 by the consortium of 11 Textiles Export Promotion Councils with the support of Ministry of Textiles. Built on the twin pillars of trade and investment and with an overarching focus on sustainability, the 4-day event attracted besides policymakers and global CEOs, 3,500 Exhibitors, 3,000 Buyers from 111 Countries and over one lakh trade visitors. An exhibition spread across nearly 2 million sq ft of area and encompassing the entire textile value chain, including an artistically curated story of textiles- Vastra Katha were the highlights of the event. The event was hosted simultaneously at two state of the art venues in Delhi – Bharat Mandapam and Yashobhoomi with both venues fully subscribed.

    This global scale conference with 70 sessions and 112 international speakers saw engaging discussions on key textile issues of the day including Textile Mega Trends, Sustainability, resilient global supply chains and Manufacturing 4.0.

     

    BHARAT TEX 2025

    Bharat Tex 2025, India’s largest global textile event, was successfully organized from February 14 to 17, 2025, at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi. The event spanned 2.2 million square feet and featured over 5,000 exhibitors, providing a comprehensive showcase of India’s textile ecosystem. More than 1,20,000 trade visitors, from 120+ countries including global CEOs, policymakers, and industry leaders, attended the event.

    Bharat Tex 2025 served as a platform to accelerate the government’s “Farm to Fibre, Fabric, Fashion, and Foreign Markets” vision. India’s textile exports have already reached ₹3 lakh crore, and the goal is to triple this to ₹9 lakh crore by 2030 by strengthening domestic manufacturing and expanding global reach. The event demonstrated India’s leadership in the textile sector and its commitment to innovation, sustainability, and global collaboration.

     

    Innovation in Textile Sector

    As far as innovation in textiles sector is concerned, Ministry of Textiles has conducted an Innovation Challenges in collaboration with Startup India & DPIIT. In this challenge, 9 winners were recognised and awarded, while incubation opportunities were presented to 6 awardees under the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM). Apart from this, 3 separate innovations challenges were conducted by nature fibre boards on their respective problem statements i.e. 

    • NJB Technological Innovation Grand Challenge in which 3 winners were recognised and awarded out of 125 applicants.
    • CSB Start-up Grand Challenge in which 4 winners were recognised and awarded out of             58 applicants.
    • CWDB Wool Innovation Challenge in which 3 winners were recognised and awarded out of     24 applicants.
    • 17 of the total above-mentioned winners are directly engaging in activities such as textile waste recycling, biobased fibres or sustainable garment production. 

     

    Cotton Industry in India

    Cotton is a vital commercial crop in India, contributing about 24% to global cotton production and sustaining the livelihoods of millions of farmers and workers. It plays a crucial role in India’s foreign exchange earnings through exports of raw cotton, intermediate products, and finished goods. India holds the largest cotton acreage in the world.

    • Acreage and Yield: India has the largest cotton acreage globally; ranks 36th in productivity.
    • Production and Consumption: India is the 2nd largest producer and consumer of cotton in the world.
    • Cotton Species: India grows all four species of cotton: G. Arboreum, G. Herbaceum (Asian cotton), G. Barbadense (Egyptian cotton) and G. Hirsutum (American Upland cotton).
    • Major Growing Zones: Cotton is primarily grown in the Northern, Central, and Southern zones of India.

     

    Production and Consumption of Cotton (in lakh bales)

    Cotton Year

    Production

    Consumption

    2021-22

    311.17

    322.41

    2022-23

    336.60

    313.63

    2023-24 (P)

    325.22

    323.00

     

    Import and Export of Cotton (in lakh bales)

    Cotton Season

    Import (in lakh bales)

    Export (in lakh bales)

    2021-22

    21.13

    42.25

    2022-23

    14.60

    15.89

    2023-24*

    6.73

    26.24

    * Position up to 30.06.2024

     

    Government Schemes and Initiatives:

    • Minimum Support Price (MSP) Operations to ensure remunerative prices to cotton farmers.
    • “Cott-Ally” mobile app for cotton farmers.
    • Aadhar-based farmer registration for MSP benefits.
    • E-auction for transparent sale of cotton stock.
    • QR code using Block Chain Technology for traceability of cotton.
    • Kasturi Cotton Bharat programme for branding Indian Cotton.

     

    Silk Industry in India

    Silk is an insect fibre known for its lustre, drape, and strength. It is called the “Queen of Textiles” worldwide. India has a long history with silk and is the second largest producer and the largest consumer of silk in the world. India is unique in producing all four commercial varieties of silk: Mulberry, Tropical & Oak Tasar, Muga, and Eri. The Indian sericulture industry is important because it provides a lot of employment, requires low capital, and gives good income to silk growers. India produced 38,913 MT of silk, making it the second largest producer globally, after China.

     

    Years

    Mulberry

    Tasar

    Eri

    Muga

    Total

    2004-05

    14,620

    322

    1,448

    110

    16,500

    2014-15

    21,390

    2,434

    4,726

    158

    28,708

    2020-21

    23,896

    2,689

    6,946

    239

    33,770

    2021-22

    25,818

    1,466

    7,364

    255

    34,903

    2022-23

    27,654

    1,318

    7,349

    261

    36,582

    2023-24

    29,892

    1,586

    7,183

    252

    38,913

    2024-25 (April-September)

    14,233

    106

    3,924

    92

    18,355

    Source: Central Silk Board, Bengaluru

     

    The Indian government supports the silk industry through various initiatives and schemes:

    • The Central Silk Board (CSB) is a statutory body under the Ministry of Textiles that was established in 1948 to develop the silk industry.
    • The Ministry of Textiles is implementing the Scheduled Caste Sub Plan (SCSP) and Tribal Sub Plan (TSP) under the Silk Samagra Scheme.
    • In 2023-24, the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, allocated ₹25 crore for the implementation of the SCSP for sericulture. The entire funds allocated under SCSP were fully utilized/released for implementation of beneficiary-oriented components.
    • The government is also working on research and development in the silk sector to improve productivity and quality. This includes promoting soil testing, organic farming, and the use of silkworm by-products. They are also upgrading reeling technology and promoting indigenous automatic reeling machines to boost the Make in India program.
    • The industry also focuses on product design development and diversification to promote Indian silks and help manufacturers and exporters create innovative designs and fabrics.

     

    Jute Industry in India

    The jute industry is a major player in India’s economy, particularly in the eastern regions like West Bengal. It’s a vital source of employment, providing livelihoods for workers in organized mills and diversified units, and supporting numerous farm families. The Indian government actively supports the jute sector through various initiatives aimed at improving productivity, ensuring fair prices for farmers, and promoting the use of jute products.

    • The jute industry provides direct employment to 4 lakh workers in organized mills and diversified units, including the tertiary sector and allied activities.
    • It supports the livelihood of 40 lakh farm families.
    • As per the Office of Jute Commissioner, there are 116 composite jute mills.
    • West Bengal has the highest number of jute mills (86).
    • Government of India provides support to the jute growers through MSP operations by the Jute Corporation of India and also through direct purchase of jute sacking.
    • Average land area under raw jute & mesta cultivation is 799 thousand hectares (average of last four years).
    • Average production of raw jute & mesta is 10,990 thousand bales (average of last four years).
    • Average export of jute goods is 133 thousand MT per annum with a value of Rs. 21,150 million per annum (average of last four years).
    • Jute – ICARE has been launched for improving fibre quality and productivity, reducing the cost of jute production, and increasing the income of jute farmers.
    • The schemes for the promotion of the jute sector are primarily implemented by the National Jute Board.

     

    Conclusion

    The Make in India initiative has significantly enhanced India’s position in global textile manufacturing and exports through targeted policies, infrastructure development, and investment promotion. With sustained efforts, India is poised to become a global textile leader, driving economic growth and employment generation.

     

    References

    https://www.texmin.nic.in/textile-data

    https://jutecomm.gov.in/FAQ.html

    https://www.investindia.gov.in/sector/textiles-apparel

    https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2089306

    https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2098352

    https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2099411

    https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2114277

    https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2104423

    https://www.indiabudget.gov.in/economicsurvey/doc/echapter.pdf

    https://www.texmin.nic.in/sites/default/files/Indian%20Jute%20At%20a%20Glance.pdf

    https://www.texmin.nic.in/sites/default/files/Note%20on%20Cotton%20Sector_0.pdf

    https://sansad.in/getFile/loksabhaquestions/annex/184/AU4118_0othg1.pdf?source=pqals

    https://sansad.in/getFile/loksabhaquestions/annex/184/AS245_n0CCI6.pdf?source=pqals

    https://sansad.in/getFile/loksabhaquestions/annex/184/AU2877_YZdL4e.pdf?source=pqals

    https://sansad.in/getFile/loksabhaquestions/annex/184/AU2873_sOQ5IE.pdf?source=pqals

    https://sansad.in/getFile/loksabhaquestions/annex/184/AS110_T8V4VD.pdf?source=pqals

    https://www.texmin.nic.in/sites/default/files/FDI%20inflow%20at%20a%20glance.pdf

    https://www.texmin.nic.in/sites/default/files/Table-2%20Raw%20Silk%20Production%20Statistics.pdf

    https://texmin.nic.in/sites/default/files/MOT%20Annual%20Report%20English%20%2807.11.2024%29.pdf

    https://www.texmin.nic.in/sites/default/files/FDI%20inflow%20%28Finacial%20year%20wise%29.pdf

    https://ddnews.gov.in/en/india-sets-new-record-with-7-rise-in-textile-exports-government-implements-multiple-schemes-to-boost-sector/

    Threads of Progress

    ***

    Make in India (T&A) | Explainer | 05

    Santosh Kumar | Sheetal Angral | Rishita Aggarwal

    (Release ID: 2117470) Visitor Counter : 183

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Defence is shaping up to be a key election issue, whether politicians like it or not

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter J. Dean, Director, Foreign Policy and Defence, United States Studies Centre, University of Sydney

    International and domestic policy have collided in Australia in recent weeks with a force not seen in decades.

    Foreign policy concerns have dominated media headlines, from the Chinese research vessel travelling along the south coast (and the Chinese navy’s circumnavigation of Australia), to the continued war in Ukraine, the resumption of hostilities in Gaza and US President Donald Trump’s mercurial approach to foreign policy.

    This has brought home to the Australian public, and its political leaders, how tenuous our geostrategic and economic circumstances are.

    This is a policy debate the leaders of both major parties would prefer they didn’t have to have. Debating defence spending is like going down a political cul-de-sac. Once you enter it, it is a dead end with only one way to turn around and get out: spending more money on defence.

    Credibility on the line

    Both political leaders understand federal elections are not won on defence policy debates. Polling data has revealed, unsurprisingly, that cost of living is front and centre of voter’s minds.

    Defence is central, though, to political credibility and it does influence voters’ perceptions. To be seen as “soft” on national security is to fail one of two major credibility tests of national political leadership (the other being basic economic management).

    For the Coalition, national security is perceived as a traditional strength. But in the most recent election, Scott Morrison tried to make security a key election issue and lost control of the agenda, badly damaging his already bruised political image.

    This time, neither leader has much of a choice but to engage in defence and national security debates. Global uncertainty has put defence spending in the frame as a key election issue.

    Trump and his tariffs were front and centre during Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s press conference when he announced the election on Friday morning. The shadow of Trump will stalk both the main candidates wherever they go for the rest of the campaign.

    Pre-election arms race?

    A potential election campaign defence spending arms race is in the making. This is a political reality both that Albanese and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton know.

    Dutton has had to accept more risk and was the first to blink. He committed A$3 billion, in addition to existing defence spending, to buy a fourth squadron of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters.

    The government responded with an extra $1 billion for defence over the next two years in the budget.

    Dutton parried again in his budget reply, pledging to “energise our domestic defence industry” and flagging more announcements to come during the campaign.

    This means that along with the cost of living, health and energy, defence will likely be a key election issue.

    Closer to home

    This defence debate is different from election campaigns of decades past. It is far less about faraway conflicts of political choice, although peacekeeping for Ukraine is still to be decided.

    Instead, the contemporary strategic debate is about how global and regional disruptions are impacting the foundations of the Australian economy.

    And as the Chinese navy’s unprecedented actions off the coast of Australia, including unannounced live fire exercises, underscored, the real question is about how well-prepared we are to defend the homeland.



    Read more:
    Should Australia increase its defence spending? We asked 5 experts

    The government spends around 2% of gross domestic product (GDP) on defence, but with pressures on the existing defence budget, this is widely regarded as not enough.

    Since mid-2024, the main question among defence pundits has been whether the number should be 3% of GDP. If so, how quickly can we get there?

    The pressure for 3% has only increased with the election of Trump and his demands that US allies pay more for their own defence, especially as the US spends 3.4% of its GDP on defence.

    GDP may well be a poor way to measure defence spending, but it has political cache, both domestically and internationally.

    A different debate

    Traditional defence spending debates in Australia have largely focused on big platform announcements, such as which planes, ships and tanks a government will buy for the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The Coalition’s pledge for more F-35s fits this traditional policy mould perfectly.

    But this debate has shifted. The latest defence strategy calls for Australia to work strategically to circumvent the strength of major powers, rather than trying to achieve the same strength. This requires a shift in traditional defence thinking.

    Even more significantly, defence policy is no longer just about the types of major platforms our military will have decades into the future. Now, the debate is centred more on what can be done to ensure the ADF is ready to “fight tonight” or in the near future.

    This focus on preparedness and readiness is at the centre of the 2024 National Defence Strategy the Albanese government brought into place following the 2023 Defence Strategic Review.

    Core to this approach is the concept of “national defence”. This includes key national resilience issues such as field, energy and cyber security, industrial resilience, supply chain resilience, innovation, science and technology, and defence workforce. These should be key focuses.

    This means the real question in the election campaign should be: what can be done with any additional defence spending to ensure we are addressing these issues more quickly and more efficiently?

    Peter J. Dean was co-lead of the 2023 Defence Strategic Review (DSR) Secretariat. He also works at the United States Studies Centre, an independent research centre at the University of Sydney that receives grant funding from the Australian Department of Defence; Bechtel, HII, and Babcock; Thales; Raytheon; Lockheed Martin; US State Department; the National Endowment for Democracy; the Japan Foundation and the Taiwanese Economic and Cultural Office. He is a non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. The author maintains academic freedom and the views expressed in this article are his own.

    – ref. Defence is shaping up to be a key election issue, whether politicians like it or not – https://theconversation.com/defence-is-shaping-up-to-be-a-key-election-issue-whether-politicians-like-it-or-not-253440

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: ‘Sorry mate, I didn’t see you’: when drivers look but don’t see cyclists on the road

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giulio Ponte, Research Engineer at the Centre for Automotive Safety Research, University of Adelaide

    Serhii Milekhin/Shutterstock

    When a vehicle and a cyclist collide, the cyclist almost always emerges worse off. Globally, more than 40,000 cyclists are killed and millions more seriously injured in road crashes.

    In most of these collisions, the driver is responsible.

    So, what factors are involved when a cyclist and a car collide?

    The most common factors

    The most common types of vehicle-cyclist crashes are caused by:

    When drivers ‘look-but-failed-to-see’

    Many drivers fail to notice cyclists until it’s too late. Sometimes this phenomenon is referred to as SMIDSY (“sorry mate, I didn’t see you”).

    Crash researchers often classify these types of crash as a “looked-but-failed-to-see” error.

    Cyclists are extremely susceptible to this. They are small, not a safety threat to drivers, are outnumbered and are typically ranked low on a driver’s “attentional hierarchy”. It may also be that drivers just don’t expect cyclists to be around.

    Cyclists can be inconspicuous but even if they are visible, drivers may look but not “see” them because they’re focusing on something else.

    This selective attention test highlights how easy it is to end up in a looked-but-failed-to-see situation:

    It is inevitable drivers will occasionally make errors resulting in near misses and crashes. Telling drivers to look out for cyclists and not crash into them won’t stop crashes with cyclists. So what might help?

    Solutions with limited effectiveness

    While errors are inevitable, improving road infrastructure and using layouts that highlight cyclists in potential conflict areas can help.

    In practice, this means things such as advanced stop lines or holding areas that place cyclists ahead of motor vehicles at intersections so cyclists are more visible and can move off safely.

    Advanced green lights (where the traffic light turns green for cyclists before it does for cars) could also help, as they allow cyclists to move off while motor vehicle traffic is still stopped.

    Bicycle-activated warning signage provide a visual warning to alert drivers that a cyclist is near by.

    Improved road lighting to highlight cyclists better on the network at night, would also help.

    There are also things cyclists can do to improve their own safety. These include

    Many roads have white lines painted on them to allocate separate space to cyclists and there are mandatory passing distance laws throughout Australia as well as in some international jurisdictions.

    However, research has shown that close passing is still relatively common and that painted bike lanes may actually increase the frequency or severity of these dangerous interactions.

    Speed limit reform

    If we know that errors are inevitable and crashes will occur, then we should make those events survivable.

    Humans are fragile. Being struck by a car at 50 km/h is estimated to result in a 90% chance of being killed. At 30 km/h, the risk of being killed decreases to just 10%.

    Speed limits of 40 km/h and 30 km/h improve safety for both cyclists and pedestrians, particularly in high pedestrian and cyclist locations.

    While lowering speed limits is widely supported within the road safety fraternity, more efforts are needed to promote acceptance throughout the wider community.

    Telling drivers to look out for cyclists and not crash into them won’t stop crashes.
    Rocksweeper/Shutterstock

    Autonomous emergency braking

    One opportunity for reducing or eliminating collisions with cyclists (in the absence of speed limit reform) may be with advanced driver assistance systems such as autonomous emergency braking.

    These systems constantly and rapidly process visual information in the traffic environment.

    They can help prevent certain crashes, or reduce collision speeds, when human error occurs.

    They can also help prevent “dooring”, which is where a cyclist collides with a car door suddenly opened by the driver.

    However, these technologies are not 100% effective; emergency situations between vehicles and cyclists can occur suddenly, with little time for automated systems to respond appropriately.

    These systems are also generally only available on newer vehicles. Given the average age of Australian vehicles is over 11 years, it will take some time before they are widely prevalent and have a significant influence on bicycle safety.

    Eliminating conflicts

    Dedicated separated infrastructure is optimal for cyclist safety as it avoids interactions between vehicles and cyclists completely.

    However, this infrastructure often forces cyclists to share space with pedestrians such as children, dog walkers, wheelchair users, and parents with prams (which can introduce other safety issues).

    Additionally, these dedicated separated paths are not always well connected, or may “lead to nowhere”, so they don’t always appeal to cyclists.

    Another way to eliminate conflicts is through changes to the traffic network. For example, controlling turn movements at traffic lights with right-turn arrows means drivers no longer need to decide when it’s safe to turn.

    But this comes at a cost to traffic efficiency. In our society, unfortunately, there are many who value lost time more than the cost of road crashes and injury trauma.

    Ultimately, if we want to focus on the value of human life and live-ability, we need to rethink the transport hierarchy to place more value on the most vulnerable road users. This could be achieved with “presumed liability” laws, where a driver who collides with a cyclist must prove they were not at fault.

    Finally, we should remember that we are all vulnerable at some point in our transport journeys.

    Giulio Ponte has membership in Bike Adelaide, as well as his local Bicycle User Group, the Royal Automobile Association of South Australia and the Australian College of Road Safety (SA Chapter).

    Jamie Mackenzie is a member of the Australasian College of Road Safety. He is currently the Chair of the South Australian Chapter of the Australasian College of Road Safety and sits on the Executive Council of the national body.

    – ref. ‘Sorry mate, I didn’t see you’: when drivers look but don’t see cyclists on the road – https://theconversation.com/sorry-mate-i-didnt-see-you-when-drivers-look-but-dont-see-cyclists-on-the-road-244935

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: William Wordsworth’s last home is up for sale – returning it to a private residence would be a loss for the UK’s cultural heritage

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amy Wilcockson, Research assistant, University of Glasgow

    Until recently, fans of William Wordsworth could visit his final home, Rydal Mount and Gardens, nestled in the heart of England’s green and beautiful Lake District. Renowned as one of the most prominent British poets, the works of Wordsworth (1770-1850) include what is widely regarded as the most famous poem in the English language, I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud.

    So it’s not surprising that his immaculately maintained house and gardens, with breathtaking views of Lake Windermere and Rydal Water, once attracted 45,000 visitors a year.

    However, rising costs, a fall in visitor numbers to 20,000 or fewer per year, and the residual effects of the pandemic have placed the future of the museum in question.

    The current owners have put Rydal Mount on the market for the first time since 1969 for £2.5 million – meaning this important piece of literary heritage, depending on who buys it, could become closed to the public.

    The house was bought by Mary Henderson, Wordsworth’s great-great-granddaughter, in 1969 and opened as a writer’s house museum a year later.

    Rydal Mount was originally a small 16th-century cottage. By 1813, there was enough room for Wordsworth, his wife Mary and three surviving children, plus Wordsworth’s sister-in-law Sara and sister Dorothy – author of the Grasmere Journal, which detailed the household’s life.

    Leaving the cramped conditions of the more famous Dove Cottage behind them, it was at Rydal Mount that Wordsworth truly settled, building a “writing hut” and extensively landscaping the grounds to his own design.

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

    Next to Rydal Mount is Dora’s Field, which also has literary significance. Here, the poet is believed to have planted 1,847 daffodils to mark his daughter Dora’s memory, following her death from tuberculosis aged 42. These daffodils still bloom every spring.

    While living at Rydal Mount, Wordsworth revised his epic “The Prelude” and wrote many other popular poems. This too is the house where he died in 1850. It was only when Mary died in 1859 that the family’s tenancy of the house came to an end.

    Visitors get to step into the house where all this happened and see a wealth of rare objects, including a rare portrait of Dorothy and Wordsworth’s letter to Queen Victoria refusing the job of Poet Laureate (which he later accepted).

    Owning England’s heritage

    Visitors go to literary museums to experience the “spirit of the place”, to “encounter” the author and absorb some of their creativity. One recent visitor to Rydal Mount was so disappointed not to meet Wordsworth personally that they wrote a disparaging review, telling of their confusion that the poet “wasn’t in” and “when [they] asked when he would be home, all [they] got was blank stares.”

    Wordworth is so closely connected to the Lake District that marketing strategies have used him to promote the area since the 1800s. Rydal Mount has had an integral role in maintaining these traditions. The estate agent’s advert is keen to stress the “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own a piece of England’s heritage” and the “superb gardens … designed by Wordsworth himself”.

    In selling the museum as it is, there is a real risk that Rydal Mount could become a private home lost to the public eye – much like Greta Hall, the home of Wordsworth’s fellow poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, which has long been privately owned.

    Prospective closure is not uncommon for smaller museums in 2025. A recent report noted that three in five small museums fear closure because of declining revenue and footfall. 2020 was the 250th anniversary of Wordsworth’s birth and should have been a bumper year of events and tourism for the Lake District. Instead, the pandemic ravaged the celebrations and left tourist attractions in financial peril that many have not recovered from.

    William Wordsworth lived at Rydal Mount for 37 years and died there.
    Wikimedia, CC BY

    Critics will argue that even if Rydal Mount does close, there are still three more Wordsworth homes open to visitors (Dove Cottage, the favourite of tourist guides, Wordsworth House and Garden, and Allan Bank). Even Wordsworth’s old school is a museum.

    The closure of Rydal Mount would inevitably boost these other sites’ visitor numbers – particularly Dove Cottage, which is on the same (albeit long) road as Rydal Mount. And the condition of Wordsworth’s last home could potentially be improved by a private owner with ample funds to upkeep the house.

    However, it is also true that public appreciation of museums remains high, with 89% of adults in a 2024 YouGov survey advocating for their importance to UK culture, and 54% registering disappointment if their local museum were to close.

    While the British Museum has experienced its highest visitor numbers since 2015, more needs to be done to save regional museums and writer’s house museums from closure. The sale of Rydal Mount into private hands may prove a severe loss to literary history, leaving the Lake District much the poorer for it.

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

    – ref. William Wordsworth’s last home is up for sale – returning it to a private residence would be a loss for the UK’s cultural heritage – https://theconversation.com/william-wordsworths-last-home-is-up-for-sale-returning-it-to-a-private-residence-would-be-a-loss-for-the-uks-cultural-heritage-253561

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Adolescence has sparked fears over teen slang – but emoji don’t cause radicalisation

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jessica Kruk, Lecturer in Indonesian Studies and Linguistics, The University of Western Australia

    Shutterstock

    Jack Thorne and Stephen Graham’s crime drama Adolescence has earned widespread praise for its portrayal of incel culture and male violence.

    But the show’s portrayal of 13-year-old Jamie (Owen Cooper) being radicalised by misogynistic online content has a lot of parents concerned about their own kids and how they talk online.

    For many, this concern is amplified by the fear that, just like the adults in Adolescence, parents are often ignorant of the online language kids use to spread dangerous beliefs.

    Journalists have produced a flurry of articles that promise to decode the “hidden meaning” of teen language by focusing on emoji featured on the show. One headline references supposedly “sinister emojis used by incel teenagers”.

    Such concerns reflect a long history of moral panic around youth language. But defining or banning emoji won’t solve the deeper issues at play.

    Emoji in Adolescence

    Adolescence follows Jamie and his family after the teenager is accused of murdering his classmate, Katie.

    The second episode shows Adam (Amari Bacchus), the teenage son of detective inspector Luke Bascombe (Ashley Walters), correcting his father’s misunderstanding of a series of emoji Katie posted on Jaime’s Instagram profile.

    While Bascome assumes the 💯 and 💥 emoji are flirtatious, Adam explains that, in this context, they are connected to the online “manosphere”.

    Bascome is initially resistant to this explanation, but Adam convinces him by citing examples of different meanings associated with different coloured heart emoji; red is specifically used for “love”, while orange means “you’re going to be fine”. He stresses “it all has a meaning”.

    This scene highlights key generational divides in the perception and use of emoji. For Adam and Jamie’s parents’ generation, emoji are largely treated as decorative. For teenagers, they can carry important meanings.

    Are the kids actually alright?

    It’s important to remember this isn’t the first time we’ve seen concerns about generational communication differences reflecting larger social rifts.
    There are numerous examples in the media linking slang with issues of education, moral decline and even crime.

    These attitudes have sparked debate over whether Australian schools should ban gen alpha and gen Z slang from classrooms.

    While the frustration of parents and teachers is understandable, linguistic research shows aggressively negative attitudes towards teen language demotivate young people, exacerbate inequality and unnecessarily stoke intergenerational tension.

    Emoji are highly context dependent. Much like gestures that are used with speech, we need to understand emoji in the specific conversations and communities they are used in. There is no consistent relationship between emoji use and inner emotional state that can be generalised across groups of teens or other emoji users.

    Instead of fearing or banning emoji, we can try and understand how and why they are used in various contexts. And there are plenty of online resources to help with this. EmojiPedia, for example, describes the pill emoji 💊 as potentially referencing medicine, drugs, or an awakening to a controversial perspective (the “red pill” beliefs referenced in Adolecensce).

    Emojis are also highly contextual. While the pill emoji may be present in misogynistic talk, it could also be referencing medication in another context.
    Shutterstock

    Emoji are intentionally flexible and intended to be used creatively. In fact, Unicode, the organisation that assesses proposals for new emoji, requires that items encoded as emoji are able to hold multiple meanings.

    Research has also shown different people react to emoji differently. One survey from 2018 found older men were most likely to view emoji as confusing and annoying, while young women were most likely to view emoji positively in communication.

    Times change, and stay the same

    Intergenerational differences, and the tensions they evoke, are nothing new.

    Back in the 2000s, parents and teachers voiced concerns that “netspeak”, with its creative punctuation and capitalisation, would diminish young people’s grasp of “proper” English. This did not come to pass.

    Does this mean parents have nothing to worry about when it comes to their kids communicating online? Of course not.

    Online misogynistic movements and red pill communities can bring great harm to vulnerable young people. Their growing popularity is something we all have to reckon with – but online language is not to blame.

    Parents can’t realistically prevent the radicalisation of young men by simply referencing an emoji dictionary, nor can teachers stamp out the spread of misogyny by banning emoji and slang in classrooms.

    Instead, as one scene between Adam and his dad shows, we need to collectively shift our focus towards facilitating open conversations between generations.

    By doing so, we can not only better understand our differences, but can reduce the feelings of social isolation that leave young people vulnerable to becoming radicalised.

    Lauren Gawne is affiliated with Unicode as a member of the Emoji Standard & Research Working Group.

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

    – ref. Adolescence has sparked fears over teen slang – but emoji don’t cause radicalisation – https://theconversation.com/adolescence-has-sparked-fears-over-teen-slang-but-emoji-dont-cause-radicalisation-253218

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: A ban on price gouging and new powers to break up supermarkets are on the table this election. Would either work?

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Barbora Jedlickova, Senior Lecturer, School of Law, The University of Queensland

    wisely/Shutterstock

    With the federal election campaign now underway, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has promised that if re-elected, Labor would seek to make price gouging illegal in the supermarket sector.

    A new taskforce would be set up to examine the best way to do so, drawing on the experience of other countries. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) would then enforce the new “excessive pricing regime”.

    Labor’s proposal comes despite the fact the final report from the ACCC’s supermarkets inquiry didn’t make any explicit accusation of price gouging.

    Meanwhile, the Coalition and Greens still want new divestiture powers to break up the supermarkets, a course of action also not recommended by the ACCC’s report.



    Read more:
    Policy tracker: how will Labor, the Coalition, the Greens and the independents make Australia better?

    Price gouging

    Price gouging, also referred to as “excessive pricing”, isn’t illegal in Australia. As long as prices are set independently by an individual business – and not in collusion with supposed competitors – they can be set as high or low as desired.

    However, the Australian Competition and Consumer Act does allow the ACCC to monitor and regulate the price of some “notified” goods or services – with approval from the relevant federal minister.

    One current example are postal services. The ACCC assesses proposed price increases, and can make an objection.

    Price gouging isn’t illegal in Australia.
    doublelee/Shutterstock

    The legal situation on price gouging differs around the world.

    The European Union, for example, prohibits abuse of a dominant market position by “directly or indirectly imposing unfair purchase or selling prices”.

    It can be difficult to define an “unfair price”. Typically, it’s an excessive, monopolistic price higher than what would be set in a competitive market.

    A landmark EU judgement defines an excessive price as one with “no reasonable relation to the economic value of the product supplied”.

    Despite this ban, enforcement cases are somewhat rare. The European Commission has been more focused on tackling “exclusionary conduct” in recent decades.

    This is when a competitor with significant market power uses restrictive means to directly hurt its competitors and exclude them (and future competitors) from competing in the relevant market.

    An example is predatory pricing, where a company sets prices unrealistically low to drive out competitors – then becoming able to set them as high as they would like.

    What about divestiture?

    Both the Coalition and Greens have pledged to create new “divestiture” powers to break up supermarkets if they were found to be abusing their market power.

    In competition law, divestiture is when a commercial entity is ordered to sell a portion of its assets or its business to a third party, to improve competition in the affected market.

    Australian law has divestiture powers to address anti-competitive mergers and acquisitions. But currently, there aren’t powers to break up businesses for misuse of market power.

    It’s a different picture in the United States, where the government has had powers to break up businesses in the context of “monopolisation” for more than a century.

    The risks of splitting up

    Divestiture powers were not recommended in the ACCC’s final report. That may be linked to market structure here.

    The Australian grocery retail market is highly concentrated. The majority of retail sales are shared among only a few supermarket chains, primarily Woolworths (38%) and Coles (29%).

    However, the combined share of these two retail giants has declined over the past 14 years, from 80% to 67%. Meanwhile, Aldi’s market share has grown to 9%, showing these two retailers face some competition.

    This suggests divestiture may be a misguided approach. There are specific risks that come with divestiture remedies.

    For instance, who would purchase the assets under a specific divestiture order? When considering the structure of the current grocery retail market, there is a high risk it would be another powerful retailer interested in purchasing its competitor’s assets. This would defeat the purpose entirely.

    Other measures already in motion

    Any ban on price gouging or new divestiture powers should be implemented with caution and used as a temporary tool. Directly interfering with free markets comes with risks.

    Other actions are already underway to boost competition in the sector and improve supermarkets’ dealings with suppliers.

    The federal government has previously announced incentives for the states to “cut planning and zoning red tape”, with the aim of making it easier for smaller supermarkets to enter the market and compete.

    And from April, the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct will be made mandatory and enforceable, in line with a key recommendation of the independent Emerson review.

    The Food and Grocery Code of Conduct for dealing with suppliers is now mandatory.
    Nita Corfe/Shutterstock

    Certain restrictive and unfair practices in dealing with suppliers will be directly prohibited and enforced.

    The new code gives the ACCC a range of useful tools to enforce against a breach by a powerful supermarket chain.

    These include:

    • a confidential channel for whistleblowing suppliers
    • effective dispute resolution to address lengthy and costly litigation
    • heavy penalties – as high as A$10 million or 10% of annual turnover – for serious breaches of the code.

    Rather than bring in measures that have not been independently recommended – like a price gouging ban or divestiture powers – it would be worth first seeing how these new enforceable rules work to deliver a better deal for supermarket customers.

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

    – ref. A ban on price gouging and new powers to break up supermarkets are on the table this election. Would either work? – https://theconversation.com/a-ban-on-price-gouging-and-new-powers-to-break-up-supermarkets-are-on-the-table-this-election-would-either-work-253429

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Giving up a daily coffee or weekly parma? How the cost-of-living crisis is reshaping our spending habits

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meg Elkins, Senior Lecturer, School of Economics, Finance and Marketing and Behavioural Business Lab Member, RMIT University

    Bangkok Click Studio/Shutterstock

    Remember when grabbing a coffee was just… grabbing a coffee? When a parma at the local was a budget meal? When Friday night takeaway was a reward for getting through the week? It didn’t require a financial spread sheet.

    For many families navigating the cost-of-living crisis these small indulgences now have to be accounted for. They’re not just automatic purchases.

    We’re not just cutting back on buying large discretionary items, like new cars. The impact of inflation on household budgets has fundamentally reshaped our relationship with food, social connection and small pleasures.

    The current cost-of-living crisis can also create new spending habits. The ways we restructure our budgets can have lasting effects on our lives and local economies.

    Price anchors

    What five years ago was a A$3.80 coffee has now become $5.50 with some options as high as $7.00.

    Despite the price change, customers have a mental reference point of what a coffee should cost from the pre-inflationary period.

    Behavioural economists refer to this as “anchoring” – a rule of thumb price that purchase decisions are judged upon.

    So if you are used to paying $5 for a daily coffee, any price above this is beyond what you see as reasonable value for money.

    Look at parents at weekend sports matches. You’ll notice the increasing presence of the insulated mug full of homemade coffee, replacing the takeaway coffees from the local cafe.

    For my family, Friday night was pizza night and $50 would easily feed a family of four. Then the inflationary price creep started. For us $70 was the tipping point. When the same order cost more we started making pizzas at home.

    Mental accounting

    Nobel laureate Richard Thaler introduced the concept of mental accounting in 1985, as a model of how we allocate money into to different categories for spending.

    If the price is above our threshold point we mentally reassign its purchase to one of our other spending categories. It might shift from being an everyday item in our household budget to an occasionally purchased item.

    Decision fatigue

    During an inflation-fuelled cost-of-living crisis, we face not only financial strain but also significant decision fatigue from constant price revaluations.

    This cognitive burden emerges as mental exhaustion when making even routine purchases.

    Increasing pressure on our finances can trigger a scarcity mindset that consumes our thinking and affects our decision making.

    Our focus shifts to immediate needs, such as paying weekly grocery bills, instead of long-term financial planning for a holiday or retirement.

    The social cost

    These new purchasing habits and economic shifts also have implications for our social connections. The cafe, the pub and takeaway night are not only about food but they are about community and building social connections.

    The so-called third place is the place between work and home where you can be part of the community.

    Buying goods is often accompanied by an exchange of conversation. As the cost-of-living crisis continues making fewer purchases reduces opportunities to connect.

    If higher costs change our spending habits such as a weekly night at the pub, opportunities to connect are also affected.
    Drazen Zigic/Shutterstock

    If the little pleasures we consume as a daily or weekly ritual become luxuries, this can increase the loss of the third space. It means spaces such as cafes, restaurants and pubs no longer foster community cohesion and increase social capital.

    As these goods become luxuries, social division intensifies. Rising prices exclude certain groups and may restrict social mixing across income levels.

    What it means for businesses

    A big question here is how much longer can some hospitality services survive as the cost-of-living crisis continues?

    Australian Bureau of Statistics data reveals big changes for Australia’s café, restaurant and takeaway food industry.

    After a severe downturn during early COVID-19 lockdowns (-35.3% in March-April 2020), the sector rebounded to pre-pandemic levels by March 2021. This was followed by extraordinary expansion during 2021-2022 (26.8% growth) as pent-up demand was unleashed.

    But recent figures reveal a problem: while spending rose 3.76% from January 2024 to January 2025, real growth (adjusted for inflation) was negative at -0.43%.

    Inflationary psychology explains how customers’ behaviour changes and they buy less over time. Eventually a point is reached where they won’t pay the higher price.

    This means, in the case of the hospitality industry, fewer actual meals are being served due to higher prices.

    The industry faces a tough situation with costs rising faster than general inflation due to expensive ingredients, higher wages from worker shortages, and increased energy prices.

    Our happiness threshold

    Humans have a set-point of happiness. When economic pressures mean we adjust to new spending patterns to save money for an extended period, the new patterns, become the norm.

    Inflation, complicates social comparison. If everyone’s purchasing power falls simultaneously, relative positions may remain stable.

    As the current cost-of-living crisis continues our little pleasures such as a weekly parma or daily coffee are increasingly becoming conscious choices rather than automatic purchases.

    This has the potential to permanently change the way Australian households budget.

    The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Giving up a daily coffee or weekly parma? How the cost-of-living crisis is reshaping our spending habits – https://theconversation.com/giving-up-a-daily-coffee-or-weekly-parma-how-the-cost-of-living-crisis-is-reshaping-our-spending-habits-253424

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Australians want nature protected. These 3 environmental problems should be top of the next government’s to-do list

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Euan Ritchie, Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin University

    Christina Zdenek

    Australia is a place of great natural beauty, home to many species found nowhere else on Earth. But it’s also particularly vulnerable to introduced animals, diseases and weeds. Habitat destruction, pollution and climate change make matters worse. To conserve what’s special, we need far greater care.

    Unfortunately, successive federal governments have failed to protect nature. Australia now has more than 2,000 threatened species and “ecological communities” – groups of native species that live together and interact. This threatened list is growing at an alarming rate.

    The Albanese government came to power in 2022 promising to reform the nation’s nature laws, following a scathing review of the laws. But it has failed to do so.

    If re-elected, Labor has vowed to complete its reforms and introduce a federal Environment Protection Agency, in some other form.

    The Coalition has not made such a commitment. Instead, it refers to “genuine conservation”, balancing the environment and the economy. They’ve also promised to cut “green tape” for industry.

    But scientific evidence suggests much more is required to protect Australia’s natural wonders.

    Fighting invaders

    Labor has made a welcome commitment of more than A$100 million to counter “highly pathogenic avian influenza”. This virulent strain of bird flu is likely to kill millions of native birds and other wildlife.

    The government also provided much-needed funding for a network of safe havens for threatened mammals. These safe-havens exclude cats, foxes and other invasive species.

    But much more needs to be done. Funding is urgently needed to eradicate red imported fire ants, before eradication becomes impossible. Other election commitments to look for include:

    Stopping land clearing and habitat destruction

    The states are largely responsible for controlling land clearing. But when land clearing affects “matters of national environmental significance” such as a nationally listed threatened species or ecological community, it becomes a federal matter.

    Such proposals are supposed to be referred to the federal environment minister for assessment under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.

    But most habitat destruction is never referred. And if it is, it’s mostly deemed “not a controlled action”. That means no further consideration is required and the development can proceed.

    Only about 1.5% of the hundreds of thousands of hectares of land cleared in Australia every year is fully assessed under the EPBC Act.

    This means our threatened species and ecological communities are suffering a “death by a thousand cuts”.

    How do we fix this? A starting point is to introduce “national environmental standards” of the kind envisaged in the 2020 review of the EPBC Act by Professor Graeme Samuel.

    A strong Environment Protection Agency could ensure impacts on biodiversity are appropriately assessed and accounted for.

    Habitat destruction at Lee Point, Darwin.
    Martine Maron

    Protecting threatened species

    For Australia to turn around its extinction crisis, prospective elected representatives and governments must firmly commit to the following actions.

    Stronger environmental law and enforcement is essential for tackling biodiveristy decline and extinction. This should include what’s known as a “climate trigger”, which means any proposal likely to produce a significant amount of greenhouse gases would have to be assessed under the EPBC Act.

    This is necessary because climate change is among the greatest threats to biodiversity. But the federal environment minister is currently not legally bound to consider – or authorised to refuse – project proposals based on their greenhouse gas emissions. In an attempt to pass the EPBC reforms in the Senate last year, the Greens agreed to postpone their demand for a climate trigger.

    Key threats to species, including habitat destruction, invasive species, climate change, and pollution, must be prevented or reduced. Aligning government policies and priorities to ensure environmental goals aren’t undermined by economic and development interests is essential.

    A large increase in environmental spending – to at least 1% of the federal budget – is vital. It would ensure sufficient support for conservation progress and meeting legal requirements of the EPBC Act, including listing threatened species and designing and implementing recovery plans when required.

    Show nature the money!

    Neither major party has committed to substantial increases in environmental spending in line with what experts suggest is urgently needed.

    Without such increased investment Australia’s conservation record will almost certainly continue to deteriorate. The loss of nature hurts us all. For example, most invasive species not only affect biodiversity; they have major economic costs to productivity.

    Whoever forms Australia’s next government, we urge elected leaders to act on the wishes of 96% of surveyed Australians calling for more action to conserve nature.



    Read more:
    Protecting salmon farming at the expense of the environment – another step backwards for Australia’s nature laws

    Euan Ritchie receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Action. Euan is a Councillor within the Biodiversity Council, a member of the Ecological Society of Australia and the Australian Mammal Society, and President of the Australian Mammal Society.

    John Woinarski is a Professor at Charles Darwin University, a director of the Australian Wildlife Conservancy, co-chair of the IUCN Australasian Marsupials and Monotremes Specialist group, a councillor with the Biodiversity Council, and a member of the science advisory committee of Zoos Victoria and Invertebrates Australia. He has received funding from the Australian government to contribute to the management of feral cats and foxes.

    Martine Maron has received funding from various sources including the Australian Research Council, the Queensland Department of Environment and Science, and the federal government’s National Environmental Science Program, and has advised both state and federal government on conservation policy. She is a member of the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists, a director of the Australian Wildlife Conservancy, a councillor with the Biodiversity Council, and leads the IUCN’s thematic group on Impact Mitigation and Ecological Compensation under the Commission on Ecosystem Management.

    – ref. Australians want nature protected. These 3 environmental problems should be top of the next government’s to-do list – https://theconversation.com/australians-want-nature-protected-these-3-environmental-problems-should-be-top-of-the-next-governments-to-do-list-253336

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Cancer patients from migrant backgrounds have a 1 in 3 chance of something going wrong in their care

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ashfaq Chauhan, Research Fellow, Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Macquarie University

    SeventyFour/Shutterstock

    More than 7 million people in Australia were born overseas. Some 5.8 million people report speaking a language other than English at home.

    But how well are we looking after culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) Australians?

    In countries around the world, evidence suggests people from CALD backgrounds are at increased risk of harm as a result of the health care they receive when compared to the general population. Common problems include a higher risk of contracting a hospital-acquired infection or medication errors.

    People receiving cancer care are at particularly high risk of harm associated with their health care.

    In a recent study, we found CALD cancer patients in Australia had roughly a one-in-three risk of something going wrong during their cancer care. This is unacceptably high.

    We reviewed medical records

    We worked with four cancer services (two in New South Wales and two in Victoria) that provide care to high proportions of people from CALD backgrounds. These four cancer services offer a combination of care to patients in hospitals, clinics and in their homes.

    We analysed de-identified medical records of people from CALD backgrounds who received care at any of the four cancer services during 2018. To identify CALD patients, we used information from their medical records including “country of birth”, “preferred language”, “language spoken at home” and “interpreter required”.

    We reviewed a total of 628 medical records of CALD cancer patients. We found roughly one in three medical records (212 out of 628) had at least one patient safety event recorded. We defined a patient safety event as any event that could have or did result in harm to the patient as a result of the health care they receive. We also found 44 patient records had three or more safety events recorded over a 12-month period.

    Medication-related safety events were common, such as the wrong medication type or dose being given to a patient. Sometimes the patients themselves took the wrong type or dose of a medication or stopped medication all together. We also observed a variety of other patient safety events such as falls, pressure ulcers and infections after surgery.

    The number of incidents could even be higher than what we observed. We know from other research that not all patient safety events are documented.

    Our research looked at patient safety incidents among CALD patients at four Australian cancer services in 2018.
    Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock

    We didn’t have a control group, which is the main limitation of our study. In other words, we didn’t examine medical records of patients from non-CALD backgrounds to compare how common patient safety events were between groups.

    But looking at other data suggests the rate of incidents is much higher in CALD patients.

    Studies over many years indicate around one in ten patients admitted to hospital experience a safety event.

    One study from Norway found cancer patients have a 39% greater risk of experiencing adverse events in hospital when compared to other patients (24.2% compared to 17.4%).

    Why is the risk of incidents so high for CALD patients?

    We identified miscommunication as a key factor that put cancer patients from CALD backgrounds at risk.

    For example, we observed from one patient’s notes that the patient didn’t take their medication because they were confused by the instructions given by different clinicians. This confusion might have stemmed from language barriers or health literacy issues.

    In some medical records, we also saw interpreter requirements were unmet. For example, at the time of admission, assessment for language needs noted an interpreter was not required. However, later notes mentioned the patient had poor English or needed an interpreter.

    Also, with the limited availability of interpreters, they’re often reserved for specialist appointments, and not used for “routine” tasks, such as during chemotherapy treatment. This may result in side effects from cancer medications not being properly identified and responded to, potentially leading to patient harm.

    Risks may increase if a patient needs an interpreter but doesn’t have one.
    THICHA SATAPITANON/Shutterstock

    What can we do to improve things?

    To make care safer, patients, their families and the clinicians who care for them should come together so that any solutions developed are practical, relevant, and informed by their combined experiences.

    As an example, we developed a tool with consumers from CALD backgrounds and their clinicians that seeks to ensure that when patient medications are changed, there is common understanding between the clinician and the patient of their medication and care instructions. This includes recognising the side effects of the medications and who to contact if they have concerns.

    This tool uses images and simple language to support common understanding of medication and care instructions. It takes into account specific cultural expectations and is available in different languages. It’s currently being evaluated in two cancer clinics.

    To make cancer care safer for patients from CALD backgrounds, health systems and services will need to support and invest in strategies that are specifically targeted towards people from these backgrounds. This will ensure more equitable health solutions that improve the health of all Australians.

    Ashfaq Chauhan’s PhD was funded by Macquarie University Research Excellence Scholarship and Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship. He receives funding from Medical Research Future Fund.

    Melvin Chin has received funding from South Eastern Sydney Local Health District, Cancer Institute NSW, Cancer Australia, National Health and Medical Research Council, AstraZeneca, and Avant Foundation.

    Reema Harrison receives funding from Cancer Institute NSW, Medical Research Futures Fund, NHMRC and ARC.

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

    – ref. Cancer patients from migrant backgrounds have a 1 in 3 chance of something going wrong in their care – https://theconversation.com/cancer-patients-from-migrant-backgrounds-have-a-1-in-3-chance-of-something-going-wrong-in-their-care-250931

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI USA: MAINE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION ISSUES SECOND REQUEST FOR INFORMATION FOR NORTHERN MAINE RENEWABLE ENERGY GENERATION AND TRANSMISSION PROJECTS

    Source: US State of Maine

    April 1, 2025

    Hallowell, Maine – The Maine Public Utilities Commission (Commission) issued a Request for Information (RFI) today for the development of transmission infrastructure and qualified renewable energy generation projects to transmit electricity from Northern Maine to the Independent System Operator of New England (ISO-NE) system.

    During its 2021 session, the Legislature enacted an Act To Require Prompt and Effective Use of the Renewable Energy Resources of Northern Maine, P.L. 2021, Chapter 380 (Act). The purpose of the Act is to “remove obstacles to the use of and to promote development of the substantial renewable energy resources in northern Maine.” The Act directs the Commission to approve a contract or contracts for selected transmission infrastructure and generation proposals. During its 2023 session, the Legislature made several amendments to the Act in P.L. 2023 c. 660.

    “ISO-New England recently issued a request for proposals for transmission to enable the interconnection of at least 1,200 MW of onshore wind in Maine, and we are seeking information about how that should inform our Northern Maine procurement, said Chair Philip L. Bartlett II. We expect to initiate our procurement by the end of year.

    As detailed in the RFI, the Commission is requesting that interested entities provide information concerning and comment on both the Northern Maine Procurement and recent developments that will impact the Northern Maine Procurement on or before June 2, 2025, with supplemental comments permitted through September 30, 2025. Given these recent developments, the Commission is also requesting that potential bidders submit either new or revised Indication of Interest forms on or before June 2, 2025.

    More information can be found on the Commission website at

    CONTACT: Susan Faloon, Media Liaison CELL: 207-557-3704

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Equity Fund reaches $1.5 million milestone

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    The funding distributed to date has supported 2591 students from 1225 Canberra families.

    Just over one month into the 2024 school year and the ACT Government has provided more than $1.5 million to eligible Canberra parents and carers through its Future of Education Equity Fund.

    The funding distributed to date has supported 2591 students from 1225 Canberra families.

    The fund helps ACT students from eligible families access everyday essentials to assist with their education and wellbeing.

    This includes as book packs, uniforms and excursions, sport equipment and activities, tuition, and music lessons.

    It supports financially disadvantaged families with students who are enrolled in preschool through to Year 12 in any ACT school.

    Payments are:

    • $400 for preschool students
    • $500 for primary school students
    • $750 for high school and college students

    Having such items and services, that they otherwise might not have, helps students fully engage with their education.

    Last year the Fund supported 5000 students, with more than $2.9 million disbursed.

    Applications for the 2024 school year will remain open until 29 November 2024.

    Find information about the fund, and a link to apply online.

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    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Meet the 2024 ACT Women’s Awards winners

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    Winners Glenda Stevens, Joanne Farrell and Mijica Lus

    The recipients of the 2024 ACT Women’s Awards have been announced.

    The awards recognise women and gender diverse people who have made an outstanding contribution to the lives of women and girls in the ACT.

    Meet the 2024 ACT Women’s Awards winners:

    2024 ACT Woman of the Year: Joanne Farrell – Founder and Director, Build Like a Girl

    Joanne (Jo) Farrell is a champion for women in the building industry.

    In 2020, she founded Build Like a Girl, a not-for-profit program that supports women of all backgrounds and ages to work in trades. Since then, Jo has helped 33 women gain full-time employment. She regularly assists with programs, initiatives and services aimed at improving the participation rate of women in trades, which is currently just 2 per cent.

    “I’m really honoured to be nominated and recognised for the work,” Jo said.

    “I just turn up every day and try and do the work and promote the industry for other women to work in and try and change the negative cultural behaviour we have across the board.

    “For me it is a recognition of that work and hopefully other women feel encouraged to come and work in our industry with us.”

    Jo is not only the recipient of 2024 ACT Woman of the Year but was also named 2024 ACT Australian of the Year.

    2024 ACT Senior Woman of the Year: Glenda Stevens – CEO, Fearless Women

    Glenda is a community leader and expert in a range of social policy areas.

    Glenda started Fearless Women, a program that provides girls and young women in the ACT with a support service to help them find their voice. It offers short-term counselling, equips girls and women with the tools and resources they need, and offers longer term mentoring support.

    “It’s really exciting to see a young person who was frightened and stressed to be able to feel the exhilaration of achieving something,” Glenda said.

    “For her to feel that sense of achievement and satisfaction is really good for her growth, and it’s good for all of us because we’re receiving the benefits of a wonderful young person.”

    2024 ACT Young Woman of the Year: Mijica Lus – Founder, Aurosokwo Project

    For the last six years, Mijica Lus has volunteered her time and effort with various not-for-profits in the ACT in areas of education, media, health care and human services.

    Mijica leads the Aurosokwa Project, which supports multicultural communities through cross collaboration.

    “If it’s helping with food pantries, decreasing homelessness, supporting mental health initiatives and youth services as well, that’s what the project is about,” Mijica said.

    “I’m really excited to contribute to a city that has given me so much, and this is one way of showing my appreciation.”

    2024 ACT Woman of the Year – Special Commendation Award: Delfina Shakespear, football match official

    Delfina Shakespear is a National and State-level Football Match Official. She volunteers as a mentor, educator, and administrator, and provides strategic advice to Capital Football.

    She is committed to empowering the next generation of female referees.

    Delfina fearlessly speaks up against abuse and poor treatment faced by referees. She actively promotes cultural change through media engagement and initiatives like Reduce Abuse.

    “Seeing the girls and women that I’ve mentored succeed, strive for their goals and push through all the challenges is the most rewarding thing,” Delfina said.

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    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Story Dogs return to Libraries ACT

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    Year 7 student Sara is benefiting from reading sessions with Story Dog Lucky and his owner, Ron.

    Year 7 student Sara has never felt comfortable reading in front of her class.

    The Lanyon High School student would avoid it at all costs. That is, until her mother discovered the Story Dogs program at Libraries ACT.

    The program is ideal for reluctant readers or those facing reading challenges.

    It pairs a student with a trained dog and their volunteer owner, creating a relaxed, supportive environment for reading aloud.

    Sara attends Tuggeranong Library on Friday afternoons to read to Lucky, a 21-month-old golden retriever.

    ‘I like the experience and since I don’t generally like reading in front of other people, I like reading in front the dog,” Sara said.

    “It makes the experience a bit calmer. I am happy to keep doing this for a while.”

    After only two sessions, Sarah’s mum, Rae, has noticed a difference.

    “At school she always refused to talk in front of the class, but I have definitely seen a change,” Rae said.

    “She finds the dog listens. It doesn’t judge and it’s fun. She might now associate the dog with talking out loud and this has really helped for someone who refuses to stand up and read.”

    During her session, Lucky rests by Sara as she makes her way through a pile of story books.

    Though concentrating hard, she touches and pats him as she reads.

    Lucky’s owner, Ron, a retired public servant, listens but remains quiet.

    “It’s great doing this. Last week, we had a little girl come in who is dyslexic and she just sat there on the rug with Lucky and held onto him the whole time. She started off a bit hesitant but after a minute she was right. It really calmed both her and him. Lucky is new to this too, so they were both learning at the same time,” Ron said.

    “I used to coach football, so I know the satisfaction of being able to teach kids.”

    The Story Dogs program is available for children aged 7–12 at Tuggeranong, Dickson and Gungahlin libraries.

    Each child gets 20 minutes of one-on-one reading time with a Story Dog, under the watchful eye of a friendly volunteer like Ron.

    Students who feel anxious or stressed during learning activities can find the presence of a furry friend reassuring.

    Reading to a Story Dog can:

    • promote relaxation
    • lower blood pressure
    • eliminate fear of judgement
    • allow children to learn at their own pace.

    “It’s wonderful to see the progress and you get as much out of it yourself as for anyone else,” Ron said.

    Story Dogs sessions require bookings and are held during school terms at:

    • Gungahlin Library: Wednesdays, 4:00pm to 5:20pm
    • Dickson Library: Fridays, 4:00pm to 5:20pm
    • Tuggeranong Library: Fridays, 4:00pm to 5:20pm.

    Registrations open seven days in advance.

    Further resources

    Register your child for a Story Dog session

    Canberra dog-owners interested in volunteering with the program can contact Story Dogs.

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    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: 2024 ACT Women’s Awards almost here

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    Finalist Mijica Lus is the Founder of the Aurosokwo Project.

    The 2024 ACT Women’s Awards will be announced on Thursday 7 March.

    The awards recognise those who have demonstrated an outstanding contribution to improving the status and lives of girls and women in the ACT.

    They celebrate the achievements of women who are excelling in their field and making a significant impact in helping girls and women achieve their full potential.

    The award categories are:

    • ACT Woman of the Year
    • Senior Woman of the Year (aged over 60 years)
    • ACT Young Woman of the Year (aged between 16 and 24 years).

    Congratulations to the 2024 ACT Women’s Awards’ finalists:

    • Dr Lubna Alam – Co-founder, ALO Enlightened Women
    • Joanne Farrell – Founder and Managing Director, Build Like a Girl
    • Mijica Lus – Founder, Aurosokwo Project
    • Philippa Moss – CEO, Meridian ACT
    • Delfina Shakespear – Football Match Official
    • Glenda Stevens – Founder, Fearless Women
    • Prof Dipti Talaulikar – Founder, Sakhi
    • Selina Walker – Ngunnawal Leader.

    Finalist Delfina Shakespear, an elite match official with Capital Football and Football Australia, thinks the annual awards are important.

    “It enables women to have a platform to talk about what they do, because as women sometimes we go about our business and don’t really talk about it more broadly,” she said.

    Fellow nominee Professor Dipti Talaulikar, a clinical haematologist and professor at the ANU, as well as being the Founder of Sakhi said: “I was very touched with the nomination when I first heard about it. But the journey, the support that the government and the ACT’s Women Office provides is just amazing. The things you get to learn, the other women you get to meet, to hear their stories is just absolutely amazing. So, if you know anyone who is doing good work in the community, please nominate them.”

    For more information on the ACT Women’s Awards and Honour Roll, visit ACT Woman of the Year and Honour Roll – ACT Government

    Dr Lubna Alam – Co-founder, ALO Enlightened Women

    Joanne Farrell – Founder and Managing Director, Build Like a Girl

    Philippa Moss – CEO, Meridian ACT

    Delfina Shakespear – Football Match Official

    Glenda Stevens – Founder, Fearless Women

    Prof Dipti Talaulikar – Founder, Sakhi

    Selina Walker – Ngunnawal Leader

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    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Head contractor appointed for southside hydrotherapy facility

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    Construction is expected to be completed by May 2025.

    The new hydrotherapy pool in Canberra’s south is another step closer with Monarch Building Solutions appointed to lead its construction.

    The first sod has now been turned on the site following the recent development approval for the project.

    The construction phase is the next step and comes after extensive consultation and engagement with stakeholders to inform the design of the facility.

    Construction is expected to be completed by May 2025.

    “Monarch Building Solutions is honoured to play a role in enhancing healthcare infrastructure in Canberra,” Director of Monarch Building Solutions Marco Galeotti said.

    “Our team is excited and ready to dive straight into the construction of the new southside hydrotherapy pool and understand the importance of this facility to the local community.”

    Hydrotherapy offers a vital service for a wide range of Canberrans.

    It provides people with mobility issues access to an important form of recreation. It also supports people to better manage chronic pain caused by illnesses such as cancer, migraine, osteoarthritis and arthritis, and it offers the opportunity to help people recover from injury or surgery.

    The southside pool will complement the hydrotherapy pool opened at the University of Canberra Hospital in 2020.

    “Arthritis ACT welcomes the commencement of the building of this essential infrastructure. For people living with chronic pain conditions which includes all types of Arthritis, hydrotherapy is essential both to providing ongoing pain relief as well as a wonderful place to exercise, especially for those that get a lot of pain when exercising,” CEO of Arthritis ACT Rebecca Davey said.

    Find more information on the new pool on the Built for CBR website.

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    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: William Wordsworth’s last home is up for sale – returning it to a private residence would be a loss for the UK’s cultural heritage

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Amy Wilcockson, Research assistant, University of Glasgow

    Until recently, fans of William Wordsworth could visit his final home, Rydal Mount and Gardens, nestled in the heart of England’s green and beautiful Lake District. Renowned as one of the most prominent British poets, the works of Wordsworth (1770-1850) include what is widely regarded as the most famous poem in the English language, I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud.

    So it’s not surprising that his immaculately maintained house and gardens, with breathtaking views of Lake Windermere and Rydal Water, once attracted 45,000 visitors a year.

    However, rising costs, a fall in visitor numbers to 20,000 or fewer per year, and the residual effects of the pandemic have placed the future of the museum in question.

    The current owners have put Rydal Mount on the market for the first time since 1969 for £2.5 million – meaning this important piece of literary heritage, depending on who buys it, could become closed to the public.

    The house was bought by Mary Henderson, Wordsworth’s great-great-granddaughter, in 1969 and opened as a writer’s house museum a year later.

    Rydal Mount was originally a small 16th-century cottage. By 1813, there was enough room for Wordsworth, his wife Mary and three surviving children, plus Wordsworth’s sister-in-law Sara and sister Dorothy – author of the Grasmere Journal, which detailed the household’s life.

    Leaving the cramped conditions of the more famous Dove Cottage behind them, it was at Rydal Mount that Wordsworth truly settled, building a “writing hut” and extensively landscaping the grounds to his own design.

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

    Next to Rydal Mount is Dora’s Field, which also has literary significance. Here, the poet is believed to have planted 1,847 daffodils to mark his daughter Dora’s memory, following her death from tuberculosis aged 42. These daffodils still bloom every spring.

    While living at Rydal Mount, Wordsworth revised his epic “The Prelude” and wrote many other popular poems. This too is the house where he died in 1850. It was only when Mary died in 1859 that the family’s tenancy of the house came to an end.

    Visitors get to step into the house where all this happened and see a wealth of rare objects, including a rare portrait of Dorothy and Wordsworth’s letter to Queen Victoria refusing the job of Poet Laureate (which he later accepted).

    Owning England’s heritage

    Visitors go to literary museums to experience the “spirit of the place”, to “encounter” the author and absorb some of their creativity. One recent visitor to Rydal Mount was so disappointed not to meet Wordsworth personally that they wrote a disparaging review, telling of their confusion that the poet “wasn’t in” and “when [they] asked when he would be home, all [they] got was blank stares.”

    Wordworth is so closely connected to the Lake District that marketing strategies have used him to promote the area since the 1800s. Rydal Mount has had an integral role in maintaining these traditions. The estate agent’s advert is keen to stress the “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own a piece of England’s heritage” and the “superb gardens … designed by Wordsworth himself”.

    In selling the museum as it is, there is a real risk that Rydal Mount could become a private home lost to the public eye – much like Greta Hall, the home of Wordsworth’s fellow poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, which has long been privately owned.

    Prospective closure is not uncommon for smaller museums in 2025. A recent report noted that three in five small museums fear closure because of declining revenue and footfall. 2020 was the 250th anniversary of Wordsworth’s birth and should have been a bumper year of events and tourism for the Lake District. Instead, the pandemic ravaged the celebrations and left tourist attractions in financial peril that many have not recovered from.

    William Wordsworth lived at Rydal Mount for 37 years and died there.
    Wikimedia, CC BY

    Critics will argue that even if Rydal Mount does close, there are still three more Wordsworth homes open to visitors (Dove Cottage, the favourite of tourist guides, Wordsworth House and Garden, and Allan Bank). Even Wordsworth’s old school is a museum.

    The closure of Rydal Mount would inevitably boost these other sites’ visitor numbers – particularly Dove Cottage, which is on the same (albeit long) road as Rydal Mount. And the condition of Wordsworth’s last home could potentially be improved by a private owner with ample funds to upkeep the house.

    However, it is also true that public appreciation of museums remains high, with 89% of adults in a 2024 YouGov survey advocating for their importance to UK culture, and 54% registering disappointment if their local museum were to close.

    While the British Museum has experienced its highest visitor numbers since 2015, more needs to be done to save regional museums and writer’s house museums from closure. The sale of Rydal Mount into private hands may prove a severe loss to literary history, leaving the Lake District much the poorer for it.

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

    – ref. William Wordsworth’s last home is up for sale – returning it to a private residence would be a loss for the UK’s cultural heritage – https://theconversation.com/william-wordsworths-last-home-is-up-for-sale-returning-it-to-a-private-residence-would-be-a-loss-for-the-uks-cultural-heritage-253561

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Is the risk of brain injury from contact sports being overstated by the media?

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Christian Yates, Senior Lecturer in Mathematical Biology, University of Bath

    PeopleImages/Shutterstock

    More and more people are worried about the long-term effects of contact sports on the brain. In football (soccer), studies have found that repeatedly heading the ball can lead to memory problems and an increased risk of serious brain diseases. This has led to rules limiting heading the ball in youth leagues and calls to protect professional players in similar ways.

    In American football, research shows a high number of former players have a brain condition called chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). This has prompted the National Football League (NFL) to change some rules and introduce better safety equipment.

    Rugby, a sport known for its hard collisions, is also becoming more aware of head injuries. As a result, new rules require players to rest after a concussion – and there are stricter rules about preventing head contact during games.

    Some older players are taking legal action because of the brain injuries they suffered. Lawyers are representing over 500 former players from both rugby union and rugby league, claiming that repetitive head impacts during their careers caused long-lasting brain damage.

    The lawyers argue that the sports’ governing bodies failed to protect these former players from the effects of blows to the head.

    A recent BBC article said that “almost two-thirds of the claimants in a concussion lawsuit against rugby league authorities” had symptoms of CTE. Two-thirds is a lot, but is it really that surprising?

    It’s important to remember that the players in this lawsuit are a self-selecting sample. These people have been chosen for inclusion in the class action lawsuit precisely because they have evidence of brain damage. We should expect a high prevalence of conditions like CTE in this sample. So we must be careful not to infer something about all rugby players that is not supported by the data.

    However, perhaps the BBC article is not so troubling, since the condition for selection – that the players were part of the lawsuit – is clearly stated. More problematic are articles in which the conditions for the selection of the studied sample are not so clearly laid out.

    Another BBC article, published in 2023, summarised the results of studies investigating the prevalence of CTE in the brains of deceased rugby players. It reported that “68% of the brains had traces of the brain condition CTE”. This might suggest to readers that CTE is very common among all rugby players.

    In American football, the problem appears to be even more prevalent. In 2017, the BBC ran an article with the headline: Brain disease affects 99% of NFL players in study. The piece led with the sentence: “A study of American football players’ brains has found that 99% of professional NFL athletes tested had a disease associated with head injuries.”

    This sounds extremely alarming and might lead readers to surmise that nearly all professional NFL players will develop CTE. The study also surveyed the brains of college and high-school students, concluding: “Of the 202 total players, 87% were found to have traces of CTE,” giving the impression that most American football players at all levels might expect to develop CTE.

    Selection bias

    CTE research is difficult because the disease can only be diagnosed by examining samples of a patient’s brain tissue after their death. Consequently, for the NFL study, researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine, who conducted the research, drew their sample from the VA Boston Healthcare System’s “brain bank”.

    The bank, established to better understand the long-term effects of repetitive head trauma, holds hundreds of donated brains potentially damaged through sporting or military activities.

    And herein lies the problem. Many of the brains held in the bank were donated by families who suspected that their loved ones had CTE. The study hugely overrepresented players who were likely to have CTE in comparison to the general American football-playing population.

    To their credit, the scientists who conducted this research were at pains to point out their sample was not representative and should not be used to draw population-level conclusions.

    In particular, the conclusion that many sports fans reading the headlines will have come to – that a huge proportion of American football players will suffer from CTE – is not supported by the study. Somehow, that message got lost between the research article and the media’s reporting of it.

    The eye-catching statistics about the prevalence of CTE in rugby players, derived from a study at the University of Glasgow, are the result of a similar misrepresentation of the underlying research. In this case, the brains that were analysed came from three brain banks (from Scotland, the US and Australia).

    All of these repositories take donations of brains from people who were more likely to have suffered from neurological conditions, and so are unlikely to be representative of the underlying population of ruby players.

    The weight of evidence linking repetitive blows to the head to brain harm (particularly to CTE) is growing stronger. Studies comparing footballers to the general population show the increase in neurological conditions among football players is probably not a statistical fluke.

    However, if we seek to truly understand the risks of undertaking these contact sports, loved by billions, then we need to look beyond the startling headlines. Selection bias, caused by a disparity in the reasons why brains are donated for study, means it’s not enough just to sample from the brains we have available in order to establish an estimate of the prevalence of such diseases.

    Instead, we need to understand who is missing from the studied population, and use that information to infer how a potentially biased sample might cause the statistics we read in the headlines to be unrepresentative.

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

    – ref. Is the risk of brain injury from contact sports being overstated by the media? – https://theconversation.com/is-the-risk-of-brain-injury-from-contact-sports-being-overstated-by-the-media-253378

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Urban cemeteries are at capacity – here’s how they can be more sustainable

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Daniela Pianezzi, Associate Professor in Work and Organization Studies, University of Verona

    Ondrej Prosicky/Shutterstock

    Approximately 170,000 people die every day around the world – that’s around 62 million deaths in 2024 alone. The cumulative effect of this has led to what has been termed a “burial crisis”, with most urban areas where burial remains the norm expected to run out of interment space by the 2050s, some much earlier – as in, now.

    Major cities, including London and Sydney anticipate severe space shortages within the next decade. Smaller community cemeteries, such as Nuneaton cemetery in Warwickshire have already reached full capacity and begun directing families elsewhere. Finding culturally acceptable yet ethically responsible, accessible and sustainable ways of laying to rest, mourning and honouring our loved ones has become an urgent global issue.

    However, the cemetery sector has only recently begun to seriously consider the environmental consequences of how we handle our bodies after death. The sense of urgency coincides with a significant cultural shift, as cremation increasingly replaces traditional burial methods. This is due to societal secularisation, shifts in religious doctrines (including Catholicism lifting past bans) and its affordability compared to burial.

    In the UK, the percentage of cremations has risen from 9% of total burials in 1946 to 80.64% in 2023.

    Yet, cremation is far from a sustainable alternative to burial. It releases substantial amounts of pollutants, notably carbon dioxide and mercury emissions, so regulation is necessary. Technologically advanced techniques, such as water cremation – a process that uses an alkali-water-based solution to reduce a body to bones – have only recently begun to emerge as possible alternatives and remain niche.

    For several years, we have been studying cemeteries in Italy and the UK. Despite the deeply different burial traditions in these two countries (unlike the UK, Italy remains a burial culture) both face the same environmental challenges.

    A tale of two cemeteries

    A few sites do offer environmentally conscious alternatives to traditional burial. One is in Liguria, a densely populated region in northwestern Italy that has suffered significant losses due to climate change, particularly from soil erosion caused by decades of reckless coastal construction.

    Here, a group of environmentally conscious volunteers transformed a woodland called Boschi Vivi (the name means living woods) into a cemetery, creating Italy’s first forest cemetery. Though it involves cremation, this initiative is particularly groundbreaking in a country where cemeteries have historically been conceived as monumental or architectural structures.

    Often, they are heavily reliant on marble, a traditional hallmark of Italian craftsmanship, significantly reducing green spaces in urban areas. The mining of marble also creates huge greenhouse gas emissions and loss of biodiversity.

    In contrast, the cimitero bosco (forest cemetery) of Boschi Vivi follows a different philosophy. Instead of traditional tombstones, only a small plaque is placed near each tree where ashes have been scattered, marking the final resting place of the deceased.

    A tree tomb in the woodland of Boschi Vivi, Liguria, Italy.
    Daniela Pianezzi, CC BY-NC-ND

    Currently, this remains a grassroots initiative that’s starting to emerge in the US and Canada too. Hopefully, more Italian public administrations will adopt this model as traditional cemeteries become increasingly financially and environmentally unsustainable.

    For three decades, Oakfield burial ground in Wrabness, Essex, UK has adopted a similar approach. Oakfield wood is a seven-acre natural woodland burial site along the banks of the river Stour in north Essex, managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust. Instead of headstones or conventional memorials, a native broadleaf tree is planted for each burial, accompanied by a simple wooden plaque at its base. The site forms part of a larger nature reserve, fostering a rich habitat for wildlife.

    Unlike municipal cemeteries or other burial sites, which are often subject to redevelopment or reuse, Oakfield enjoys long-term protection under the Essex Wildlife Trust. This means that burials here are conducted in perpetuity, ensuring that the site remains undisturbed. The trust plans to manage Oakfield solely as a nature reserve once it reaches full capacity, although this will not be for many decades to come.

    Despite these promising initiatives, sites such as Boschi Vivi and Oakwood risk remaining isolated cases unless a radical rethinking of burial takes place. Whether cemeteries are perceived as eerie, macabre spaces (like in Shakespeare’s Hamlet) or as places of peace and reconciliation, as in the final scene of Forrest Gump, they are still dominated by the idea that graves should be organised as a series of permanent markers of individual lives.

    Our research shows that it’s only by considering human beings as part of nature that the growing burial crisis might be averted. That fundamentally involves moving from a human-centred or “ego-logical” ethos to an ecological one.

    The most viable response to the environmental challenges facing not just Nuneaton cemetery, but burial sites across the world, might be simply a new awareness. One that recognises both life and death as integral parts of nature. So, remembrance is not preserved through permanence, but rather through a return to the natural cycle of life.

    Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?

    Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 40,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.

    The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Urban cemeteries are at capacity – here’s how they can be more sustainable – https://theconversation.com/urban-cemeteries-are-at-capacity-heres-how-they-can-be-more-sustainable-252711

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: 31st Session – UN/CEFACT Plenary

    Source: United Nations Economic Commission for Europe

    Election of the UN/CEFACT Vice-Chair (for the period 2025-2026)

    Election of the new UN/CEFACT Vice-Chair will take place on 3 July 2025. According to the Consolidated UN/CEFACT Mandate and Terms of Reference (ECE/TRADE/C/CEFACT/2017/15), the UN Member States who are physically present at the Plenary meeting will elect a Vice-Chair.

    UNECE is inviting UN Member States to nominate their candidates for elections.

    Each Country can nominate one candidate of its choice, using its own criteria for selection and taking into account criteria such as expertise, leadership, ability, willingness to work and geographic balance. The candidate must be a member of the Country’s delegation. It is at the Country’s discretion whether a nominated candidate if from the Government or the Private Sector.

    The deadline to submit nominations is Monday, 19 May 2025.

    In line with the decisions taken at the 30th Plenary, the term of office of the elected Vice-Chair would exceptionally be for one year, with the possibility of one re-election for a three-year term in 2026 (to align the terms of the Chair and Vice-Chair of the UN/CEFACT Bureau, the Plenary decided (ECE/TRADE/C/CEFACT/2024/2) that the next re-election of the entire Bureau (Chair and Vice-Chairs) will be held in 2026).

    Responsibilities of Vice-Chair

    The elected Vice-Chair will be expected to actively participate in at least three physical meetings per year:

    • UN/CEFACT Forums (twice per year, one in Geneva and another one in a different location)*/
    • UN/CEFACT Plenary (one annual meeting in Geneva)

    The Vice-Chairs together with and the secretariat are responsible for preparing the programme of work for approval by the Plenary, with a view to providing a coherent framework that serves the needs of United Nations Member States and other stakeholders within the context of UN/CEFACT’s mandate and terms of reference. This involves outreach to and collaboration with parties interested in working with UN/CEFACT to achieve common goals and, wherever possible, to avoid duplication of work both within and outside of UN/CEFACT.

    The principal functions of the Bureau are outlined in the Consolidated UN/CEFACT Mandate and Terms of Reference (ECE/TRADE/C/CEFACT/2017/15).

          */ In 2025, there will be only one Forum in Dakar, Senegal on 24-28 November 2025

    Guidance on submitting nominations

    The following documents should be submitted for the candidate. This information must be sent directly from the Permanent Mission in Geneva to the UNECE Secretariat ([email protected]):

    • Candidate’s Candidacy Form with motivational statement
    • Government’s Nomination Form with statement of support
    • Recent Curriculum Vitae (including current roles in other relevant organizations and membership in associations)

    For any questions, please contact Ms. Kamola Khusnutdinova, Secretary  of UN/CEFACT at [email protected]

     

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Everything you can do with your nature strip

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    Nature strips help create Canberra’s “garden city” character.

    Nature strips, otherwise known as street verges, help create Canberra’s “garden city” character.

    On most streets, nature strips include footpaths for people walking and cycling. Meaning there are certain things a nature strip can and cannot be used for.

    Looking after verges is a responsibility shared by the ACT Government and residents, and there are lots of ways Canberrans can use them.

    Before you do anything to your nature strip, read the Nature Strip Guidelines in detail.

    Here are some of the things you can do to your verge that don’t require approval.

    Plant a veggie garden

    You can use your nature strip to plant a vegetable garden with seasonal produce of your choosing.

    Fiona Buining of Ainslie Urban Farm says that a verge garden can be planted in less than two hours.

    Read Fiona’s tips on planting a vegetable garden on your nature strip.

    Plant grass, groundcover or shrubs

    Read up on which plants you can use and avoid spiky plants and any weeds or plants that have been declared pest plants. Natives are a great place to start, especially if you are new to landscaping – but if you prefer an exotic grass, a dryland blend is the go-to in Canberra’s climate.

    Remember to keep all plants below 50 centimetres (or 20 centimetres if you live in a bushfire prone area ).

    Install compacted gravel

    Adding gravel to your nature strip can help capture water runoff and improve the quality of stormwater.

    There are some limits on the amount and size of gravel you can use so be sure to do your research.

    Use organic mulch

    When adding organic mulch like pine bark to your verge, please ensure it is free of stones, soils and other contaminants.

    Keep a 50 millimetre clearance from tree trunks and remember to rake it flush with surrounding levels.

    Erect temporary protective fencing

    If you’ve just planted grass or plants and you want to protect your newly refreshed nature strip, you can erect temporary fencing made of rope or string, supported by stakes.

    The fencing can be up for a maximum of 13 weeks. It mustn’t pose a safety hazard to the public.

    Install garden edging

    You can install garden edging on your verge if it’s made of stone, brick or timber.

    The edging can have a maximum height of 150 millimetres, and a depth of 100 millimetres below the surface of the nature strip.

    Always remember to contact Before you Dig – 1100, before you start work.

    Things you can do to your nature strip that require approval:

    • erect bollards to prevent parking on the nature strip
    • modify an existing driveway or construct a new driveway
    • store landscaping materials for longer than two weeks
    • store a skip or construction material.

    Things that are unlikely to be approved for your nature strip:

    • ponds
    • water fountains
    • permanent fencing
    • retaining walls
    • letterboxes
    • shipping containers
    • chicken runs
    • play equipment
    • boulders
    • pavers or concrete paths
    • new trees.

    Parking on the nature strip is prohibited and remember that if you live in a heritage precinct – like some areas of Ainslie, Braddon, Reid and parts of the inner south – you may not be able to make changes to the nature strip in front of your home.

    For more information, read the Nature Strip Guidelines.

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    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Get a sneak peek at Garran Primary’s transformation

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    Construction at Garran Primary School is expected to begin in term 2 2024.

    The Garran Primary School expansion and modernisation project is progressing well.

    The Development Application (DA) for the school’s design has been lodged and is now open for public comment.

    Construction is expected to begin in term 2, subject to the outcome of the DA process.

    Once complete, Garran Primary School will have capacity for 975 students from preschool to year 6.

    The transformation will not only benefit students and staff but also the entire Woden community.

    New features include:

    • all-new learning areas
    • specialist learning environments
    • improved administration facilities
    • new external learning and play spaces
    • a new double gymnasium
    • a new library with a roof garden
    • hard courts, green spaces
    • state-of-the-art facilities for community use
    • improved parking
    • safer access to the school away from the hospital campus.

    View a flythrough showing how the school will look once work has been completed.

    The school will continue to operate once construction begins.

    Further community information sessions will be held later this term.

    Find more information about the project.

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    MIL OSI News –