A former Stoke-on-Trent school site which has been vacant for almost two decades is being given a new lease of life as a brand-new housing estate for almost 120 homes.
Plans to transform the former Brookhouse Green Primary School site in Wellfield Road, Bentilee, into 117 new, affordable homes were approved in April as part of the city council’s mission to ensure everyone has access to a decent home.
Now the authority has entered into a pre-construction services agreement with GRAHAM – and work is expected to start on site before the start of next year.
The national company will work collaboratively with the council to ensure that homes are of high quality and energy efficient.
The plans include a mix of homes for older people to live independently, dormer bungalows, apartments and family houses. Construction is expected to last approximately two years.
Councillor Finlay Gordon-McCusker, cabinet member for transport, infrastructure and regeneration, said: “We have got a fantastic opportunity here to transform derelict brownfield land into new homes, creating new jobs and a sense of community.
“We know people are in desperate need of new, affordable homes so I’m delighted that we have appointed GRAHAM and we are looking forward to working with them in future.
“By working together, we’re making great strides to bring much-needed new homes to the city to ensure families can live their best lives now and in the future.”
Councillor Sarah Jane Colclough, ward councillor for Bentilee, Ubberley and Townsend, added: “The redevelopment of this site will make a massive difference to local residents. This is a large piece of land which has been empty since the old school closed back in 2006, so I’m really pleased to see progress being made to bring it back into use.”
The Wellfield Road site was deemed surplus to requirements in 2020. The redevelopment is being supported by a £1.8 million government grant from the Brownfield Land Release Fund 2.
Ronan Hughes, Regional Director at GRAHAM,said: “We’re proud to be working in partnership with Stoke-on-Trent City Council to bring this long-vacant site back into productive use.
“By delivering a mix of high-quality, energy-efficient homes, we’re helping to address local housing needs and support wider regeneration goals. This project is a great example of how collaboration can unlock social value and long-term benefits for communities.”
This absence of women in prominent positions in politics subtly reinforces societal biases and moulds public opinion, which subconsciously excludes women from political leadership.
We are a group of researchers who have expertise in gender and African politics and childhood political socialisation. We have been researching the political socialisation of children in Nigeria for the past three years.
Our research in Ogun State reveals that children are internalising what they see on the political stage. We asked children aged 5 to 16 at 12 schools in Ogun State to imagine and draw a leader such as a president, governor, or member of a national or state assembly at work. Only 5% of 981 children drew a woman as a political leader.
Ninety-two percent of girls drew a man, compared to 98% of boys.
A drawing of a political leader by an 11-year-old girl.Source: The authors
Why do so few children draw women as political leaders? Children absorb the power dynamics and gender roles they observe in political happenings, shaping their understanding of politics.
In democracies, a lack of women interested in politics, as well as running for and winning political office, matters. If women are absent in decision-making spaces, their concerns might not be considered. While men can represent women’s interests, women committed to change can draw on their experiences and those of women in their networks to bring new ideas to the table.
We conducted our study in the three senatorial districts of Ogun State, one of Nigeria’s 36 states. In Ogun State, the deputy governor, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, is a woman, and her picture is on many classroom walls.
The late anti-colonial activist and leader Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti was from Ogun State too. The presence of visible women leaders could encourage some children in the state to imagine and depict women as political leaders. Thus, it is possible that our sample of children were more likely to draw a woman than children in other states.
Six other states have women deputy governors: Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Kaduna, Plateau and Rivers States.
But women’s representation in state assemblies throughout the country is low. No woman has ever been elected to be a governor in Nigeria.
In our study, we asked children what jobs they would like to have in the future. In general, boys were more interested in jobs in politics (president, governor, local government chair) than girls were. For the specific job of president or governor, however, girls seemed to be just as interested as boys.
The children’s response isn’t specific to Nigeria. In a study conducted in 2017 and 2018 in the United States (where 19.3% of members of the House of Representatives at the time were women), only 13% of children drew a woman political leader.
Multiple factors hinder women’s representation in elected offices in Nigeria. These include political party practices that favour the recruitment and selection of men candidates, the high costs of running for office, as outlined in Ayisha Osori’s book Love Does Not Win Elections, and societal biases against women holding positions of political power.
Deeply entrenched societal biases add to the challenges. Cultural norms assign leadership roles to men and certain religious interpretations restrict women’s public participation.
The perception that women are more suited for domestic roles, or lack assertiveness, impedes their ability to garner support for political leadership.
Low numbers of women representatives also suggest there are systemic biases in the democratic electoral process.
Recent research shows that when girls observe women in political power or running for political office, they are more engaged in politics later in life. This suggests that positive exposure to women in politics may have positive effects on girls’ political engagement. Negative exposure could have negative effects.
Take, for example, the “Natasha-Akpabio case” in Nigeria. Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan alleged that Senate president Godswill Akpabio had sexually harassed her. The Senate president denied the allegation. Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended from her position by the Senate ethics committee for what it described as misconduct and disregard for the Senate standing orders.
Experiences like those may influence future generations’ understanding of gender equality in leadership. When young Nigerians observe powerful women facing harassment and retaliation for voicing their concerns, it may undermine the notion that women are equally capable of political authority.
Girls may internalise the idea that politics is a hostile space for women. For boys, seeing women leaders undermined might reinforce a sense of male dominance.
Our finding that children largely see politics as a “man’s world” prompts reflection on societal and political biases. To address the under-representation of women in political leadership positions in Nigeria, it is important to invest in civic education programmes. Children should be helped to understand the significance of equitable political participation from an early age.
Campaigns should use different media platforms to challenge gender stereotypes in leadership.
Finally, enacting and enforcing legislated gender quotas across all levels of Nigerian government and within political parties is a crucial step to improve the representation of women in leadership positions.
– Nigerian children don’t imagine women as political leaders: what shapes their view – https://theconversation.com/nigerian-children-dont-imagine-women-as-political-leaders-what-shapes-their-view-256638
Source: United States Senator for Maine Susan Collins
Department of Education’s action follows letter sent last week by Senators Collins and Shaheen calling for the immediate release of funding to current recipients.
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Susan Collins, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that the Department of Education has released the TRIO Upward Bound grants—which fund programs preparing high school students from disadvantaged backgrounds for college—to current grant recipients in Maine. This action from the Department follows a letter sent last week by Senators Collins and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) to Secretary Linda McMahon urging the immediate release of this funding after reports that multiple Upward Bound programs had yet to receive the funding they’d been promised for the coming program year.
“I am pleased that Secretary McMahon responded quickly to our request and that Upward Bound students in Maine will continue to have access to this lifechanging program,” said Senator Collins. “TRIO has made an incredible difference in the opportunities provided for many low-income and first-generation students seeking higher education. As Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will continue to work to ensure this program is protected for Maine families and students across America.”
The following Upward Bound programs received funding, which will support over 180 Maine students:
Bowdoin College Upward Bound – $549,957
Currently serving students at:
Carrabec High School
Lawrence High School
Madison High School
Mt. Abram High School
Skowhegan High School
Spruce Mountain High School
Waterville High School
The University of Maine at Farmington Upward Bound – $437,584
Source: United States Senator for Vermont – Bernie Sanders
WASHINGTON, June 3 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, issued the following statement in response to new calculations from Yale University and the University of Pennsylvania finding that more than 51,000 additional Americans will die each year if Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” is signed into law.
“Let’s be clear. The Republican reconciliation bill which makes massive cuts to Medicaid in order to pay for huge tax breaks for billionaires is not just bad public policy. It is not just immoral. It is a death sentence for struggling Americans,” Sanders said. “If this bill becomes law, more than 51,000 Americans will die unnecessarily each and every year. That’s not Bernie Sanders talking. That is precisely what experts at Yale and the University of Pennsylvania have found. In other words, when you throw 13.7 million Americans off the health care they have as the CBO has estimated, when you increase the cost of prescription drugs for low-income seniors, and when you make nursing homes throughout America less safe, not only will some of the most vulnerable people throughout our country suffer, but tens of thousands will die. We cannot allow that to happen.”
Sanders was responding to projections on the mortality implications of the Republican reconciliation bill he received in a letter today from the Yale School of Public Health and the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics at the University of Pennsylvania. The letter estimates that if the Republican reconciliation bill is signed into law, over 51,000 people will die annually.
The estimate from Yale and the University of Pennsylvania is based on the annual impact of four policies included in the Republican reconciliation bill:
11,300 more Americans will die as a result of working people losing health coverage from Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA);
18,200 more Americans will die as a result of low-income seniors losing subsidies that reduce their prescription drug costs;
13,000 more Americans will die as a result of the elimination of safe staffing requirements in nursing homes; and
8,811 more Americans will die as a result of the failure to extend tax credits for ACA coverage.
Sanders concluded:“In the wealthiest country in the world, we should be guaranteeing health care to all as a human right, not taking health care away from millions of seniors and working families to pay for tax breaks for billionaires. As the Ranking Member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, I will be doing everything that I can to see that this disastrous bill is defeated.”
Read the letter from Yale and the University of Pennsylvania here.
In a powerful move to combat tobacco use through education and awareness, the Ministry of Education, in collaboration with MyGov, has launched the World No Tobacco Day Awareness Quiz 2025. The initiative aims to inform and empower students, educators, and citizens across India about the harmful effects of tobacco and the importance of making healthy, informed lifestyle choices.
What sets this year’s campaign apart is its unprecedented multilingual approach. For the first time, the awareness quiz is available in twelve Indian languages: English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, and Punjabi. This aligns with the principles of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which emphasizes inclusivity and learning in local and regional languages to ensure no one is excluded due to linguistic barriers.
“This is more than just a health initiative—it’s a social and educational mission,” a Ministry spokesperson said. “By making the quiz multilingual, we are reinforcing our commitment to reach every learner in a language they understand, ensuring that awareness is widespread and accessible.”
The quiz is free and open to all. Interested participants can visit https://quiz.mygov.in/quiz/world-no-tobacco-day-awareness-quiz to select the “World No Tobacco Day Awareness Quiz – 2025”, choose their preferred language, and complete a simple registration using a mobile number or email. Upon completion, participants will receive a digital certificate from MyGov as recognition of their contribution to a tobacco-free India.
By engaging with this digital platform, participants not only promote healthier lifestyles—particularly among adolescents—but also advance the NEP’s goal of inclusive education that respects India’s linguistic and cultural diversity.
The Ministry is encouraging schools, teachers, students, and community members nationwide to take part and spread the word. “Let this be more than a digital event—let it become a movement,” the Ministry said. “Awareness begins with understanding, and understanding begins with language.”
This absence of women in prominent positions in politics subtly reinforces societal biases and moulds public opinion, which subconsciously excludes women from political leadership.
We are a group of researchers who have expertise in gender and African politics and childhood political socialisation. We have been researching the political socialisation of children in Nigeria for the past three years.
Our research in Ogun State reveals that children are internalising what they see on the political stage. We asked children aged 5 to 16 at 12 schools in Ogun State to imagine and draw a leader such as a president, governor, or member of a national or state assembly at work. Only 5% of 981 children drew a woman as a political leader.
Ninety-two percent of girls drew a man, compared to 98% of boys.
Why do so few children draw women as political leaders? Children absorb the power dynamics and gender roles they observe in political happenings, shaping their understanding of politics.
In democracies, a lack of women interested in politics, as well as running for and winning political office, matters. If women are absent in decision-making spaces, their concerns might not be considered. While men can represent women’s interests, women committed to change can draw on their experiences and those of women in their networks to bring new ideas to the table.
We conducted our study in the three senatorial districts of Ogun State, one of Nigeria’s 36 states. In Ogun State, the deputy governor, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, is a woman, and her picture is on many classroom walls.
The late anti-colonial activist and leader Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti was from Ogun State too. The presence of visible women leaders could encourage some children in the state to imagine and depict women as political leaders. Thus, it is possible that our sample of children were more likely to draw a woman than children in other states.
Six other states have women deputy governors: Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Kaduna, Plateau and Rivers States.
But women’s representation in state assemblies throughout the country is low. No woman has ever been elected to be a governor in Nigeria.
In our study, we asked children what jobs they would like to have in the future. In general, boys were more interested in jobs in politics (president, governor, local government chair) than girls were. For the specific job of president or governor, however, girls seemed to be just as interested as boys.
The children’s response isn’t specific to Nigeria. In a study conducted in 2017 and 2018 in the United States (where 19.3% of members of the House of Representatives at the time were women), only 13% of children drew a woman political leader.
Multiple factors hinder women’s representation in elected offices in Nigeria. These include political party practices that favour the recruitment and selection of men candidates, the high costs of running for office, as outlined in Ayisha Osori’s book Love Does Not Win Elections, and societal biases against women holding positions of political power.
Deeply entrenched societal biases add to the challenges. Cultural norms assign leadership roles to men and certain religious interpretations restrict women’s public participation.
The perception that women are more suited for domestic roles, or lack assertiveness, impedes their ability to garner support for political leadership.
Low numbers of women representatives also suggest there are systemic biases in the democratic electoral process.
Recent research shows that when girls observe women in political power or running for political office, they are more engaged in politics later in life. This suggests that positive exposure to women in politics may have positive effects on girls’ political engagement. Negative exposure could have negative effects.
Take, for example, the “Natasha-Akpabio case” in Nigeria. Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan alleged that Senate president Godswill Akpabio had sexually harassed her. The Senate president denied the allegation. Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended from her position by the Senate ethics committee for what it described as misconduct and disregard for the Senate standing orders.
Experiences like those may influence future generations’ understanding of gender equality in leadership. When young Nigerians observe powerful women facing harassment and retaliation for voicing their concerns, it may undermine the notion that women are equally capable of political authority.
Girls may internalise the idea that politics is a hostile space for women. For boys, seeing women leaders undermined might reinforce a sense of male dominance.
Our finding that children largely see politics as a “man’s world” prompts reflection on societal and political biases. To address the under-representation of women in political leadership positions in Nigeria, it is important to invest in civic education programmes. Children should be helped to understand the significance of equitable political participation from an early age.
Campaigns should use different media platforms to challenge gender stereotypes in leadership.
Finally, enacting and enforcing legislated gender quotas across all levels of Nigerian government and within political parties is a crucial step to improve the representation of women in leadership positions.
Alice J. Kang received funding for the study from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Congress Fund and Research Council.
Jill S. Greenlee receives funding from Department of Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies at Brandeis University and the
Norman Fund at Brandeis University.
Adebusola Okedele 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.
“Resurrection” Millet – A Plant that Revives after Severe Drought
Contact: ARS Office of Communications, Media Relations Email: ARSPress@usda.gov
Fort Collins, Colo., June 3, 2025 — A new discovery by scientists could help protect crop production and reduce plant mortality due to drought, which accounts for a quarter of U.S. crop production losses.
Water is essential for plants to grow, reproduce, and survive. Drought causes severe stress in plants and can significantly reduce yearly production or kill entire crops. Drought also increases costs for farmers, who must invest in irrigation to keep their crops alive. These impacts and costs result in reduced food supply and higher food prices for consumers.
After years of studying the mechanisms and effects of drought in plants, scientists at the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and Colorado State University (CSU) identified how plants die during drought and how some of the effects of drought can be reversed. They also discovered a plant species (a wild millet relative) with remarkable resiliency to extreme drought, demonstrating an ability to “resurrect” after acute drought episodes.
Barnyard millet. Getty image.
During severe drought stress, the soil and atmosphere become so arid that liquid water inside the plant changes into water vapor gas. This process, known as embolism formation, results in gas bubble blockages within the water-conducting tissues of the plant. These embolism blockages reduce the transport of water and minerals from the soil [roots] to the leaves, impairing essential processes for the growth, reproduction, and survival of plants.
ARS scientist Sean Gleason and the “resurrection” millet. Photo by CSU Jared Stewart.
Embolism formation was poorly understood in plants because embolisms could not be seen using the types of instrumentation and methodology used in past studies. The team of scientists at ARS and CSU used an innovative method that involved scanning entire plants with a type of laboratory X-Ray machine. The machine allowed them to see water movement through segments of the plant, including stems, roots, and leaves, which enabled the scientists to detect these gas bubble formations, or embolisms, throughout the plant.
“We have discovered that a wild millet relative is capable of reversing embolism formation in the water-conducting tissues,” said Sean Gleason, ARS research plant physiologist at the Water Management and Systems Research Unit in CO. “We call this plant resurrection millet because if the plant is watered even after nearly 100% of the tissue has been embolized, the plant is able to re-fill these embolisms and recover. This study provides the first direct evidence of complete and functional stem xylem ‘refilling’ following severe drought stress. This breakthrough challenges long-standing assumptions about plant hydraulic recovery and has significant implications for crop resilience in water-limited environments.”
Barnyard millet. Getty image.
Troy Ocheltree, a co-author and collaborator with the CSU Department of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship, explained the important implications this study has for both crop improvement and natural grasslands.
“The results suggest that even if plants become severely stressed, they may be able to recover in the same year of the drought and begin growing again,” he said. “This ability impacts the yield of crop production and the amount of forage available for cattle.”
Researchers seek to leverage new technology to transfer the resiliency found in this millet species to other crop species such as wheat, corn, and rice, thus protecting U.S. agriculture.
The Agricultural Research Service is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s chief scientific in-house research agency. Daily, ARS focuses on solutions to agricultural problems affecting America. Each dollar invested in U.S. agricultural research results in $20 of economic impact.
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USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
Scientists have been working to assemble the pieces of the puzzle for years, including estimating the size of the reservoir of plastic on the ocean surface, in the water column and in the deep ocean. However, marine animals are often overlooked.
All animals can be reservoirs of plastic pollution, but to understand just how much ocean plastic pollution is stored in ocean life, we used sea turtles as a case study.
To estimate how much plastic resides within sea turtles, we built a model using data on plastic ingestion in sea turtles and factors we suspected may predict how much plastic a turtle eats. That includes geographical, socio-economic and ecological factors.
We estimated the size of the global reservoir for female green turtles because we had the most data for that group.
We estimate that approximately 60 tonnes of plastic debris reside within female green turtles at any given time. This is roughly the equivalent of a garbage truck’s worth of plastic pollution.
Based on our findings, we also predicted that an individual green turtle can contain up to 26.4 grams of plastic on average, the equivalent mass of 10 ping pong balls.
Predicting ingestion
Where a turtle lives matters. We found that sea turtles who forage closer to the equator are more likely to accumulate plastic debris. Furthermore, turtles that forage nearby countries with a lower socio-economic status are likely to eat more plastic, as socio-economic status is related to waste management.
We also found that species-specific characteristics, including body size and foraging strategy — where and how a turtle identifies and retrieves food — play a role.
Loggerhead turtles forage in the open ocean for the first seven to 15 years of their lives. (Shutterstock)
For instance, loggerhead turtles are carnivores and forage in the open ocean for the first seven to 15 years of their lives before migrating to nearshore coastal areas.
In contrast, leatherback turtles spend most of their lives in the open ocean and feed on a diet of soft-bodied prey, including jellyfish and salps. This makes it easy for them to mistake balloons as food.
Green turtles, on the other hand, primarily feed on algae and sea grasses, spending only three to five years in the open ocean before relocating to shallow coastal areas where they remain for the rest of their lives.
These different behaviours of sea turtles, along with their body size, influence where and how turtles are exposed to plastic debris and how much plastic can fit inside a turtle’s stomach at any given time.
Understanding what factors predict plastic ingestion is important for pinpointing which species are most at risk: we found that leatherback turtles have the greatest propensity for ingesting plastic debris.
Future work
Sea turtles are impacted by a changing ocean, and our plastic waste is part of that change. The relatively consistent load of plastic in sea turtles raises questions about risk.
Thousands to millions of tonnes of plastic end up in the ocean annually. (Shutterstock)
Relevant to our study, the next step is to try to understand how the plastic reservoir varies among other species. What is the total amount stored in global marine animals at any one time?
In addition, could sea turtles and marine animals in general be transporting plastic debris around as they move, essentially acting as conveyor belts of plastic throughout the ocean?
Call to action
In order to answer these questions, we need more data for sea turtles and other species. We call for further monitoring of sea turtles to improve future modelling efforts and to inform risk. We also call for further monitoring of other species, and recommend standardized reporting practices and greater data transparency.
We also hope our work can inform direct actions to protect sea turtles from the effects of plastics, and reduce the amount of plastic entering the ocean.
Xia (Alice) Zhu receives funding from the Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship.
Chelsea Rochman receives funding from NSERC, ECCC, DFO.
Matthew Mazloff receives funding from NASA, NOAA, NSF, UCSD.
Countries around the world are increasingly turning to nature to help alleviate the impacts of climate change. Forests, grasslands and wetlands are already considered as “natural climate solutions.” Now, some scientists are asking: could kelp forests be part of the solution too?
As some of the fastest growing species on Earth, kelp form lush underwater forests along temperate coastlines. In addition to supporting marine biodiversity, sustaining fisheries and contributing to local economics and livelihoods, kelp forests also absorb carbon. But their role in climate change mitigation remains uncertain.
In the first national assessment of Canada’s kelp forests, our research team set out to estimate how much carbon these ecosystems might be capturing and storing in the ocean, and whether that carbon stays out of the atmosphere long enough to be considered a natural climate solution.
To tackle this question, we assembled a national kelp forest database, including satellite and aerial maps, kelp productivity measurements and ocean current models to estimate how much kelp carbon actually leaves the continental shelf.
This study is part of a national research effort being led by researchers at the University of Victoria called Blue Carbon Canada, which was funded by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), Oceans North and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) to investigate how Canada’s “blue carbon” could fit into its national climate mitigation strategy. Our team included 22 kelp researchers and experts from 14 academic institutions, government agencies and NGOs from Canada, the United States and Australia.
The carbon absorbed by trees, peatlands and seagrasses typically gets locked away for decades or longer. However, when kelp dies or breaks apart, instead of storing the carbon in the ground, much of it is released back into the ocean. Depending on the conditions, some of it sinks. Some of it washes back to shore. Some gets eaten and and fuels coastal food webs.
Only a small fraction settles in coastal seafloor sediments or makes it far enough offshore to reach deep water, where it’s more likely to stay out of the atmosphere over the long term. Another fraction decomposes and becomes tiny dissolved particles that can circulate on ocean currents below the mixed layer depth for decades to centuries.
So while protecting and managing kelp forests promotes carbon capture, it may not always directly translate into climate change mitigation.
Our research found that between 40,000 and 400,000 metric tonnes of carbon per year is likely being captured and exported from Canadian kelp forests to the deep ocean. In terms of carbon dioxide removal, this would be at least comparable to more established natural climate solutions carbon ecosystems in Canada, like tidal marshes and seagrasses, suggesting they merit further consideration.
It’s a promising number. But the potential role of kelp in Canada’s climate action plans is far from settled.
Kelp forests have not yet been included in national inventories. However, there has been growing interest in whether better kelp forest management and even restoration could qualify.
Part of the problem is data. Most countries, including Canada, still lack sufficient information on where their kelp forests are, how productive they are, where that carbon is going in the ecosystem and how these dynamics are changing over space and time. As a result, few countries have been able to assess their kelp forests at national scales.
There are also unanswered questions about how much kelp forest loss can be prevented under climate change and how much ecosystem restoration could be scaled up to meaningfully contribute to climate change mitigation. Restoration methods for kelp forests, such as green gravel, are being actively developed but remain largely untested.
Our study provides guidance to help countries overcome some of these challenges. We offer a step-by-step blueprint for developing first kelp carbon estimates from limited data, including data needs and sources and tools for data analysis that acknowledge data uncertainties.
Looking ahead
Managing and protecting kelp forests is likely to be a low-regret option, meaning that while it might not significantly mitigate climate change, its many other benefits would still outweigh the costs. After all, these ecosystems offer a host of benefits, from supporting fisheries to shoreline protection. Given our findings, they may also have the ability to help tackle climate change.
But leaning too heavily on kelp before the science is clear could backfire. Overstating its role in climate change mitigation could lead to misplaced confidence and unrealistic expectations. Worse, it could distract from the most important and immediate task: fossil fuel reductions.
That does not mean kelp’s climate solutions potential should be dismissed. At present, it’s thought that kelp forests and other algae capture and store around 175 million tonnes annually, maybe more given recent research.
But Canada needs to proceed carefully and invest in closing key knowledge gaps before scaling up plans to include kelp in national carbon accounting. This includes greater public investment in kelp forest mapping, monitoring, high resolution oceanographic modelling and ground-truthing of national estimates.
Overall, a precautionary approach is needed to ensure we don’t miss out on future kelp solutions. That’s because even as interest in kelp grows, these ecosystems are disappearing in many places.
Kelp restoration methods, like green gravel shown here from the Kelp Rescue Initiative in B.C., are advancing but still in their infancy. (Lauren Dykman/University of Victoria)
In British Columbia, kelp forests have declined in recent decades due to climate change-fuelled marine heatwaves and population booms of sea urchins, which graze on kelp.
Similar trends have been documented in many parts of the world, from Norway to Tasmania, where lush kelp forests are being replaced by weedy turf algae.
When kelp forests are lost, the carbon they hold can be released quickly. Export of kelp carbon to the deep ocean and other carbon sinks stops. So instead of helping to slow climate change, their loss could make things much worse.
Kelp forests will not solve the climate crisis on their own. But our research shows they could be apart of the solution, especially if we act now to fill critical research gaps.
Today, the most immediate value of kelp forests lies in supporting marine biodiversity, coastal fisheries, and community livelihoods. That alone makes them worth saving.
Jennifer McHenry receives funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada (NSERC), Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO),and Oceans North.
Julia K. Baum receives funding from NSERC, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and Oceans North. She is also affiliated as a science advisor with the Kelp Rescue Initiative.
Headline: Governor Josh Stein Announces Western North Carolinians to Join Governor’s Recovery Office for Western North Carolina
Governor Josh Stein Announces Western North Carolinians to Join Governor’s Recovery Office for Western North Carolina lsaito
Raleigh, NC
(RALEIGH) Governor Josh Stein today announced two western North Carolinians who will join the Governor’s Recovery Office for Western North Carolina (GROW NC) and play a key role in Hurricane Helene recovery efforts.
“I am committed to bringing leaders to the GROW NC team who will prioritize urgency, focus, transparency, and accountability to help rebuild western North Carolina,” said Governor Josh Stein. “I welcome to the team Sharon Decker, a former Secretary of Commerce, to serve as a Senior Advisor, and Forrest Gilliam, a former Madison County manager and legislative liaison, as Legislative Director. I am grateful for their continued service to the people of western North Carolina.”
“My team and I are determined to help western North Carolina rebuild and recover as quickly as possible,” said Matt Calabria, GROW NC Director. “I am excited to continue building our team with these highly qualified professionals who have deep roots in western North Carolina.”
“The devastation has been horrific, but the fortitude and perseverance of western North Carolinians is extraordinary,” said Sharon Decker. “We will come back, and better than before. A strong plan, with actionable steps built on improved health care, more available and affordable housing, a strong education network across the region, planned economic development, strengthened infrastructure, and collaborative community engagement is essential for ensuring our recovery leads us on a sure path for the future.”
Sharon Decker, Senior Advisor for Long-Term Recovery
Sharon Decker and her nonprofit Tapestry Collaborative will contract with GROW NC to lead a collaborative effort that produces a framework and plan for long-term economic recovery as the region rebuilds. She will serve as an advisor to the Governor, GROW NC, and the Department of Commerce on long-term economic recovery, and will liaise with public, private, and social sector institutions to identify opportunities for cross-sector partnerships that advance recovery efforts. GROW NC and the Governor’s Office appreciate the support of philanthropies partnering with the state to engage Decker and her team, whose expertise and experience will help foster economic growth and help pursue opportunities to accelerate recovery.
A native of North Carolina, Sharon Decker has held leadership roles in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors across the state. She spent 17 years at Duke Power (now Duke Energy), becoming its first female Vice President. Her career also includes leadership at The Lynnwood Foundation, The Tapestry Group, and western North Carolina companies, including Doncaster and Tryon International.
In 2013, she was appointed Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Commerce by Governor Pat McCrory, where she led the creation of The Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC). Since 2019, Sharon has served as President of Tryon International. She and her husband, Bob, live in Polk County and remain based in Western North Carolina.
Forrest Gilliam, Legislative Director for GROW NC
Forrest Gilliam will join GROW NC as Legislative Director. With nearly two decades of experience across all levels of government, Forrest Gilliam’s career includes work on Capitol Hill for Congressman Heath Shuler, as a legislative and committee assistant at the North Carolina General Assembly for Representative Ray Rapp, as a member of Governor Bev Perdue’s legislative affairs team, and as director of the Governor’s Western Regional Office. In local government, Forrest served five years as county manager for Madison County. Since 2020, Forrest has contracted with the Town of Marshall as a town administrator, where he has focused on efforts to successfully secure funding for water and sewer infrastructure, with a recent focus on Hurricane Helene response and recovery. Raised in Madison County, Forrest’s involvement in civic affairs began in middle school when he helped secure state funding for a new public library. Forrest holds a B.A. in Political Science with a concentration in Public Management from Appalachian State University.
Decker and Gilliam join colleagues from across western North Carolina and Raleigh who serve to facilitate collaboration, streamline communication, and accelerate recovery from Hurricane Helene. The work of this team is guided by Governor Stein with an emphasis on urgency, focus, transparency, and accountability.
Headline: Governor Stein Announces a $11 Million Expansion for BSH Home Appliances in Craven County, Adding Nearly 200 Jobs
Governor Stein Announces a $11 Million Expansion for BSH Home Appliances in Craven County, Adding Nearly 200 Jobs lsaito
Raleigh, NC
(RALEIGH) Today Governor Josh Stein announced BSH Home Appliances Corporation (BSH), the home appliances division of the Bosch Group, will add 199 new jobs in Craven County. The company will invest more than $11 million to expand its New Bern facility into a hub for all U.S. innovation and manufacturing.
“When globally known companies like BSH choose North Carolina for an expansion, it confirms the strength of our workforce,” said Governor Stein. “North Carolina has the largest manufacturing workforce in the southeast, and we look forward to BSH’s pioneering production that will create more good jobs and growth opportunities for Craven County.”
Headquartered in Munich, Germany, with its North American headquarters in California, BSH develops and manufactures appliances offered under the Bosch, Thermador and Gaggenau brands in North America. From cooking, cooling, small appliances, dish care, laundry and more, BSH products are celebrated globally for precision engineering, world-class innovation and superior quality. This development reflects the expansion of U.S. production and development operations at its New Bern site, creating a central hub for cooking and dishwashing research, innovation and manufacturing, along with distribution and customer support for the United States.
“BSH’s manufacturing operation has called North Carolina home for many years, and this expansion is reflective of a valued relationship that’s deepening as we move forward,” said Darcy Clarkson, Chief Executive Officer of BSH Region North America. “New Bern’s importance to BSH is growing, and this investment is one of several new developments that will increase our footprint, create jobs and drive innovation for the company as we look to the future, with North America designated as a growth region for BSH.”
“We’ve been proud members of the New Bern community for over 25 years, and we look forward to further strengthening our contributions to the city and region with this important expansion,” added Andy MacLaren, Chief Technology Officer of BSH Region North America.
“BSH’s decision validates North Carolina’s reputation for manufacturing excellence,” said Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley. “This latest investment mirrors our commitment to developing our world-class workforce and training systems that help attract companies to every corner of the state.”
This announcement builds on the meetings that BSH, Secretary Lilley, and state leaders previously held in Germany, which set the foundation for this expansion.
While wages for the engineering, manufacturing, and logistics associates vary, the annual average salary for the new positions will be $60,779, exceeding Craven County’s average of $48,770. These new jobs could potentially create an annual payroll impact of more than $12 million for the region.
A performance-based grant of $500,000 from the One North Carolina Fund will help the company’s expansion in North Carolina. The OneNC Fund provides financial assistance to local governments to help attract economic investment and to create jobs. Companies receive no money upfront and must meet job creation and capital investment targets to qualify for payment. All OneNC grants require matching participation from local governments, and any award is contingent upon that condition being met.
“This expansion is a welcomed addition to Craven County and the entire state,” said Senator Bob Brinson. “The people of eastern North Carolina are well-equipped for these new, good-paying jobs, and we’re ready to support the company’s next phase of growth.”
“BSH has been a great corporate citizen and contributor to our economy,” said Representative Steve Tyson. “We are grateful to the partnerships here on the local and state level that helped bring this investment and expansion to fruition.”
In addition to the North Carolina Department of Commerce and the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, other key partners in this project include the North Carolina General Assembly, North Carolina Community College System, Craven Community College, North Carolina State University, North Carolina’s Southeast, Craven County, Craven 100 Alliance, City of New Bern, Duke Energy, and Piedmont Natural Gas.
Source: United States Senator for New Hampshire Jeanne Shaheen
MANCHESTER – On Monday, U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan and Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander discussed with New Hampshire AmeriCorps members and program directors the importance of national service for both members and their communities, as well as the implications of the Trump Administration’s reckless cuts to AmeriCorps. Members of the Congressional Delegation heard directly from members whose programs have been terminated entirely and from members whose programs are facing budget uncertainty.
“Bringing young people together—putting ideology and partisanship aside—to work for our country and our communities is in everybody’s interest, and that’s exactly what AmeriCorps volunteers have done for decades,” said Senator Shaheen. “It’s shameful to see the Trump administration making cuts to this bipartisan program that, as we heard at yesterday’s roundtable, continues to fill critical service gaps across the Granite State and gives young people an opportunity to serve their country. How does this save taxpayers money or make our government more efficient?”
“AmeriCorps members serve our communities and represent the best of New Hampshire, and I was grateful to join them yesterday morning to hear firsthand about the work that they do across our state,” said Senator Hassan. “I remain deeply concerned about the Trump Administration’s arbitrary actions to gut funding and fire the staff that make AmeriCorps possible. These reckless cuts are hurting our communities at a time when we should be supporting national service programs that help people make a difference across our state.”
“For decades, Republicans and Democrats have supported and defended AmeriCorps because this truly American program gets important things done for the people of New Hampshire — from our public schools to our public parks to the homes of seniors across our state who rely on AmeriCorps as a lifeline,” said Congresswoman Goodlander. “I will continue working with AmeriCorps members and partners from across New Hampshire to use every tool – including tireless advocacy, litigation, and legislation – to defend AmeriCorps today and for generations to come. We will not give up.”
Senator Hassan has been voicing her opposition to President Trump’s funding cuts that will harm students, educators, and families across New Hampshire. Last month, Senator Hassan and Congresswoman Goodlander met with educators and school officials in Manchester to discuss the importance of the Department of Education for students and the impact of the Trump Administration’s attacks on public education.
Last month, Senator Shaheen joined a bipartisan group of 33 former Governors to file an amicus brief in support of the states challenging the Trump Administration’s abrupt dismantling of AmeriCorps. She also joined an April bicameral letter to the President expressing opposition to these cuts and urging the Administration to reverse course.
Congressman Keith Self proudly hosted the Service Academy Sendoff Reception on Saturday. Thirty-one of the best and brightest students from Texas’ Third District will attend our nation’s service academies and preparatory schools.
This year, Texas’ Third District is going to send eight cadets to United States Military Academy; six midshipmen to United States Naval Academy; eight cadets to United States Air Force Academy; one midshipman to United States Merchant Marine Academy; one candidate to United States Military Academy Civil Preparatory School; three candidates to Naval Academy Preparatory School; one candidate to United States Naval Academy Civil Preparatory School; and three candidates to United States Air Force Academy Preparatory School.
“It’s an honor celebrating this incredible group of students from the Third District of Texas who will be embarking on the adventure of a lifetime,” said Congressman Keith Self. “It takes courage, character, and commitment to achieve success at the Service Academies, and I have every confidence they will rise to the challenge.”
U.S. Military Academy
Nathan Ooreoluwa Adejokun, from Melissa, graduate of Melissa High School
Caleb Wesley Caldwell, from Allen, graduate of Jesuit Dallas
Jordan Crandall Curtis, from Plano, graduate of Plano West Senior High School
Reed William Hisle, from McKinney, graduate of McKinney North High School
Blake Ryan McKenna, from Plano, graduate of John Paul II
Owen Younghoon Ryu, from McKinney, graduate of Texas Academy of Math and Science
Anna Faith Williams, from Prosper, graduate of Rock Hill High School
Matthew Sumin Wooton, from McKinney, graduate of Imagine International Academy
U.S. Naval Academy
Brandon Preston De Vun, from McKinney, graduate of McKinney North High School
Aden Tye Lewis, from Greenville, graduate of Greenville High School
Sophie Ella Lopez, from McKinney, graduate of Liberty High School
Matthew David McCoy, from Allen, graduate of Allen High School
Nickole Sophia Rios, from Allen, graduate of Allen High School
Joaquin Cruz Vargas, from McKinney, graduate of McKinney North High School
U.S. Air Force Academy
Sophie Belle Bridges, from Prosper, graduate of Prosper High School
Taylor Rae Carroll, from Allen, graduate of Allen High School
Sara Elizabeth Compton, from Prosper, graduate of Rock Hill High School
Bryce Tanner Denton, from Anna, graduate of Anna High School
Corbin Benzi Glass, from Parker, graduate of Plano East Senior High School
Garrett Christopher Hutchins, from Lucas, graduate of Lovejoy High School
Luke Tyler Phillips, from McKinney, graduate of Princeton High School
Timothy Hunjae Seo, from McKinney, graduate of Emerson High School
U.S. Merchant Marine Academy
Jack Quinlin Flannery, from McKinney, graduate of McKinney North High School
U.S. Military Academy Civil Preparatory School
Ethan Hunter Hayward, from Allen, graduate of Lovejoy High School
U.S. Naval Academy Preparatory School
Trystan Rohan Hutchison, from Sachse, graduate of Wylie High School
Tyler Aiden Wall, from McKinney, graduate of McKinney Boyd High School
Benjamin L Yost, from Princeton, graduate of Olympic High School
U.S. Naval Academy Civil Preparatory School
McKenzie Kendall Quigley, from McKinney, graduate of Lovejoy High School
U.S. Air Force Academy Preparatory School
Howard Fisher IV, from Wylie, graduate of Wylie East High School
Christian Rome Jeffers, from Wylie, graduate of Wylie East High School
Aidan Marc Wylie, from Plano, graduate of Liberty High School
Lini passed away at the Port Vila General Hospital on Sunday, according to local news media.
Lini was the first woman to be elected to the Vanuatu Parliament in 1987 as a member of the National United Party.
Motarilavoa Hilda Lini in 1989 . . . She received the Nuclear-Free Future Award in 2005. Image: Wikipedia
She went on to become the country’s first female minister in 1991 after being appointed as the Minister for Health and Rural Water Supplies. She held several ministerial portfolios until the late 1990s, serving three terms in Parliament.
She was the sister of the late Father Walter Lini, who is regarded as the country’s founding father.
Chief of the Turaga nation She was a chief of the Turaga nation of Pentecost Island in Vanuatu.
“On behalf of the government, we wish to extend our deepest condolences to the Lini family for the passing of late Motarilavoa Hilda Lini — one of the first to break through our male-dominated Parliament during those hey days,” the Vanuatu Ministry for the Prime Minister said in a statement today.
“She later championed many causes, including a Nuclear-Free Pacific. Rest in Peace soldier, for you have fought a great fight.
In a condolence message posted on Facebook, Vanuatu’s Speaker Stephen Dorrick Felix Ma Au Malfes said Lini was “a trailblazer who paved the way for women in leadership and politics in Vanuatu”.
“Her courage, dedication, and vision inspired many and have left an indelible mark on the history of our nation.
“As Vanuatu continues to grow and celebrate its independence, her story and contributions will forever be remembered and honoured. She has left behind a legacy filled with wisdom, strength, and cherished memories that we will carry with us always.”
A Vanuatu human rights women’s rights advocate, Anne Pakoa, said Lini was a “Pacific hero”.
‘Wise and humble leader’ “She was a woman of integrity, a prestigious, wise and yet very humble woman leader,” Pakoa wrote in a Facebook post.
Port Vila MP Marie Louise Milne, the third woman to represent the capital in Parliament after the late Lini and the late Maria Crowby, said “Lini was more than a leader”.
“She was a pioneer . . . serving our country with strength, dignity, and an unshakable commitment to justice and peace. She carried her chiefly title with pride, wisdom, and purpose, always serving with the voice of a true daughter of the land,” Milne said.
“I remember her powerful presence at the Independence Day flag-raising ceremonies, calling me ‘Marie Louise’ in her firm, commanding tone — a voice that resonated with leadership and care.”
“Though I am not in Port Vila to pay my last respects in person, I carry her memory with me in my heart, in my work, and in my prayers. My thoughts are with the Lini family and all who mourn this national loss.”
She said Lini’s legacy lives on in every woman who rises to serve, in every ni-Vanuatu who believes in justice and unity.
“She will forever remain a symbol of strength for Vanuatu and for all Melanesian women.”
Motarilavoa Hilda Lini will be buried in North Pentecost tomorrow.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
A conference abstract presented at the annual conference of the American Society for Nutrition looks at a new approach for classifying processed foods.
Prof Martin Warren, Chief Scientific Officer and Group Leader, the Quadram Institute, said:
“Refining the definition of processed food is key to improving scientific precision as the current NOVA categories, especially “ultra-processed foods” (UPFs), are too broad and vague, grouping diverse foods together based on processing techniques rather than nutritional composition or health outcomes. Clearly, more precise definitions would allow for more appropriate research on diet and health outcomes.
“This also has implications for policy and regulation, as governments and organizations use NOVA to shape food labelling laws as well as dietary guidelines.
“Currently, there is a mismatch with nutrient profiling with some foods classified as UPFs being nutritionally adequate or even beneficial (e.g., some plant-based alternatives, fortified foods). A refined system could integrate both processing level and nutritional quality, enabling more balanced assessments.
“It’s difficult to tell about the quality of this abstract without more detailed analysis of the paper – but the general description and approach seems logical and robust.
“A step in the right direction but there is a lot of work to do with encouraging people to address the need to adopt the five-a-day recommendation, which has such clear health benefits.”
Prof Eileen Gibney, Professor in the School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin (UCD), said:
“This is an interesting piece of work.
“It attempts to address some of the criticisms of the current dialogue around the topic of ultra processed foods. As the authors state some of the issues raised in relation to the current definitions used in the UPF discussion is that you can have two distinctly different foods – a sweet or ‘candy’ bar (e.g. chocolates / sweets) in the same category as a fortified sugar-free whole grain breakfast cereal. This makes it complicated to use the concept of UPF in nutritional guidance, and nutritional advice. You can’t ask individuals to simply remove all UPF from a diet, as this leaves little choice for the consumer, and would be incredibly hard for people to follow. What we need to do is to understand which processed foods to minimise, and those that are in fact beneficial in a diet.
“The work presented here looks more closely at the ingredients, determining which are processed and not, as well as their known impact on health, it then considers how much added sugar the food contains, and how the combined ingredients impact on health, penalising foods with ingredients which have evidence for increased risk of disease.
“Essentially this scoring system aims to consider the level of processing (by considering the ingredients within the foods), but also considers evidence that links those ingredients with health outcomes. This more nuanced evidenced based approach appears to then discriminate foods that have been processed for benefit (e.g. sugar free fortified breakfast cereal) versus those that do not give any nutritional or health benefit e.g. a chocolate bar.
“This differentiation is important as it means that we are not simply considering the ‘presence of processing’ in a food, as the existing categorization does, but using an evidence based approach, informed by scientific evidence that demonstrates if a processing step, and/or ingredient actually impacts health. Evidence based approaches to the provision of nutritional advice is really important, and underpins our approach to public health. It will be important that this scoring system is updated as and when new evidence is available.”
Prof Helen Roche, Full Professor of Nutrigenomics (Nutrition and ‘Omics’), Director Of Academic Centre – Conway Institute School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sports Science, University College Dublin (UCD), said:
“It is an example of nice research which advances the ways we can enhance and improve classification of healthy versus unhealthy foods, based on sound, systematic science, to better inform the consumer. It is very difficult to distinguish processed from non-processed food and their potential impact on health. Take for example lasagne, if you make it yourself at home versus a highly processed version, which by virtue of inferior ingredients and extensive food processing – the end products are very different in terms of nutritional quality. The new classification system proposed WISEcode UPF has the potential to more accurately classify processed versus non-processed foods – which when presented in an app might help support consumers choice towards more healthy food options.”
Prof Alexandra Johnstone, Theme Lead for Nutrition, Obesity and Disease, Rowett Institute, University of Aberdeen, said:
“The press release and abstract are very brief and do not allow for this novel research to be assessed for quality or rigor. The experienced US-based research group present a novel scoring system to classify foods and ingredients according to processing and evidence of impact on health, in comparison to the existing NOVA scale which is commonly used to classify UPF. There is very limited description on the validation of the tool and no perspective on limitations of the dataset. For example, this is being presented at a US nutrition meeting and the trademark terms look to be only relevant for the US food system; it is not clear if this is transferrable in other countries. Prior to a peer-review publication, it is difficult to comment further on the translation of the data.”
Dr Amanda Avery, Associate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Nottingham, said:
“The NOVA system for classifying foods as ultra-processed or not has served us well since it was first introduced in 2009. But it is time to look for an update given that we know that not all ultra-processed foods are equal and some can contribute to a healthy diet. Also given the ever-increasing number of manufactured food products and increasing level of processing.
“It is unsurprising that AI has been used to create an app with a scoring system using an assessment of ingredients weighted based on current scientific knowledge of the associated health risks, the percentage of calories that come from added sugars, and considerations for ingredients with known health concerns (such as high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, and salt). Without further information, one assumes that there is also consideration of the positive health benefits of wholegrains providing dietary fibre.
“This scoring system was applied to a large number of foods and many different food ingredients were considered. The USA-based scientists found that the proposed scoring system was better able to differentiate between foods classified as ultra-processed compared to using the NOVA criteria. As one would expect, and hope, there was less differentiation between those foods that are minimally processed.
“It is unlikely that there will ever be a perfect system that accounts for all the nuances that weigh up the risks and benefits of processed food and health. Food manufacturers continue to process food to develop products that are safe and appealing without always considering the wider health impact and of course the health impact is very dependent on how often and how many ultra-processed foods are included in an individual diet. If included occasionally as part of an overall healthy and nutritionally balanced diet, the health risks will be considerably reduced.
“Sadly, whilst such an app may be able to influence healthier food choices, people’s food choices are influenced by a number of factors. Having a greater awareness of the level of processing and ingredients included in a product may not influence choice for everyone. Price for many has a huge influence on the food choices they make, and sadly ultra-processed foods often remain the cheaper option. One exception is that instore brands can often have a better nutritional profile compared to the equivalent branded product and such technology may provide consumers with a greater awareness of this – which is great.
“The abstract being presented is very much describing the development of the app. There does not seem to be any robust evaluation of the use of the app that demonstrates conclusive evidence of the value of the app in improving consumer food choice or the wider health benefits. It would also be good to know if the ability for consumers to be able to compare similar products changes food manufacturing practices to reduce the level of processing and use of artificial ingredients.
“The app has been developed in the USA and whilst a large number of foods and ingredients have been used as part of the development, there are differences in the foods that are available in the UK.”
Abstract title: ‘Ultra-Processed Foods Are Not All Alike: A Novel, Objective Approach to Differentiate Among Processed Foods Including Those Classified As NOVA 4’ by Richard Black et al. It will be presented at the NUTRITION 2025 conference, and is under embargo until 15:00 UK time on Tuesday 3 June 2025.
There is no paper.
Declared interests
Prof Martin Warren: “The Quadram Institute is a UK science national capability strategically supported by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, and also receives funding from other government agencies, national and international charities, and limited funding from industry (six per cent of total funding in 2022/23 came from industry).
Martin’s not got any interests to declare.”
Prof Eileen Gibney: “Eileen R. Gibney is a Professor of Nutrition in University College Dublin, and Director of the UCD Institute of Food and Health. Over the last 5 years she has received research funding through the following; Enterprise Ireland for Technology Centre – Food for Health Ireland (www.fhi.ie) project, co-funded with core partners Carbery, Kerry, Tirlan, Dairygold & Bord Bia; Research Ireland for the Insight Centre for Data Analytics and Co-Centre for Sustainable Food Systems; Horizon Europe most recently in projects such as FNSCloud, PLANEAT and MarieCurie CareerFIT; PhD studentship funding from Société des Produits Nestlé, Switzerland; UCD Foundation and McCarrick Family has provided funding for PhD studentship.
A travel bursary including Registration, Accommodation and Honorarium for attendance and speaking at the Nestle International Nutrition Symposium 2025, was provided by Société des Produits Nestlé, Switzerland.
Eileen R Gibney has completed consultancy work for the following; Société des Produits Nestlé, Switzerland; Irish Advertising Standards Agency, Food Safety Authority of Ireland. No personal payment was received, all payments were made into a research fund through Consult UCD.”
Prof Helen Roche: “I have no conflict of interest with respect to the study I commented on.”
Prof Alexandra Johnstone: “AJ holds voluntary roles within the UK Nutrition Society, Association for the Study of Obesity and British Nutrition Foundation.
Dr Amanda Avery: “Besides my academic position at the University of Nottingham, I also hold a position at Slimming World as Consultant dietitian in the Nutrition, Research & Health Policy team.
I have no other conflicts of interest to declare.”
Shifting the public’s perspective toward greater concern for future generations could result in more support for climate change policies, among others.Artur Debat/Moment via Getty Images
People often prioritize the well-being of family, friends and neighbors, as they feel a closeness emotionally and share the same temporal context. But they overlook how people born decades or centuries from now may suffer as a result of today’s failures to address major global risks such as climate change, future pandemics and unregulated artificial intelligence.
Our new research, published in the British Journal of Social Psychology, shows that brief, low-cost psychological interventions can help individuals adopt a more expansive moral perspective to include future generations.
We conducted three online studies with over 8,700 participants to examine whether prompting people to consider the long-term consequences of their actions could shift moral priorities beyond the present.
In one of two interventions, participants imagined themselves serving on a government committee responsible for protecting future generations. Their task was to ensure that new legislation accounted not only for immediate needs but also for long-term impacts; they were asked to write a speech communicating these goals to the American public. This exercise highlighted institutional responsibility and the role of collective action across time.
In the second intervention, participants engaged with a more personal thought experiment adapted from philosopher William MacAskill’s book “What We Owe the Future,” which explores our moral responsibility toward humanity’s long-term future.
The impact of actions over time.
Here, they read a scenario about a hiker who comes across broken glass on a remote trail – glass that may one day injure an unknown child. Should the hiker clean it up, even though no one is watching and the child may not appear for decades? After reflecting on this story, participants were asked to write about what they themselves could do to help make the future better for others.
Moral concern for both intervention and control participants was assessed using the Moral Expansiveness Scale. We asked participants to rate how much moral concern they felt for a wide range of issues. These included concern for future generations, alongside family and friends, strangers, marginalized groups such as LGBTQ+ people, animals and the natural environment.
Why it matters
Although these exercises differed, one emphasizing collective responsibility and the other individual, both led to the same outcome: Participants randomly assigned to an intervention condition expressed significantly greater moral concern for future generations than those assigned to a control condition who completed neither exercise.
This effect held across cultural contexts and across six diverse countries – the U.S., Argentina, South Africa, the Philippines, the U.K. and Australia – and persisted even when participants were required to make trade-offs in a zero-sum version of the Moral Expansiveness Scale. In this version of the task, they distributed a fixed number of “moral concern points” across competing groups, compelling them to weigh the moral importance of future generations against that of present-day entities like family members, strangers, nature and others.
What’s especially intriguing, however, is that the elevated concern for future generations among intervention participants did not come at the expense of concern for other socially distant entities or those viewed as marginalized.
What changed was how participants prioritized their moral concern: They placed slightly less emphasis on family and friends – groups that people typically prioritize most, even when they may be least in need of moral protection.
In contrast, concern increased for distant others, both living today and in the future.
What’s next
This perspective, encouraged by the interventions, could perhaps help lay the groundwork for more durable public support for addressing long-term challenges.
In future work, we hope to explore whether these interventions can inspire real-world action. This could include increased support for climate policies, voting for leaders who prioritize long-term investments like sustainable infrastructure and pandemic preparedness, or donating to causes that benefit future generations.
But how might these interventions be integrated into everyday life? One promising approach is to embed them into settings where such reflections already occur, such as schools, civic education programs or public awareness campaigns.
To assess their real-world potential, we plan to examine the durability of these effects. We want to see whether deploying them in such contexts can meaningfully inspire long-term shifts in attitudes and – importantly – behavior.
For example, brief storytelling exercises or classroom role-plays, like imagining oneself as a future-focused policymaker, could be incorporated into high school or college curricula to shape students’ values, goals and even career trajectories. Similarly, community workshops, online media or social campaigns could adapt these scenarios to foster long-term thinking in broader populations.
When people reflect on how their actions today shape the future, they may be more likely to back solutions to present-day issues like poverty and inequality, knowing these problems can have ripple effects for generations to come. They may also become more motivated to confront emerging risks, such as unregulated artificial intelligence or future pandemics, before those risks escalate.
The Research Brief is a short take on interesting academic work.
The research relevant to this article was funded by the John Templeton Foundation and APA Division 48.
The research relevant to this article was funded by the John Templeton Foundation and APA Division 48.
Source: The Conversation – USA – By Tania Lizarazo, Associate Professor of Latin American Studies and Global Studies, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Local activists known as ‘comisionadas’ pose with women from Tanguí, Chocó, Colombia, at the end of a workshop in 2013.Tania Lizarazo
It’s been almost nine years since Colombia celebrated a landmark peace agreement between one guerrilla group and the government, and three years since President Gustavo Petro vowed “total peace.” But in reality, the country’s decades-long internal conflict continues – making it one of the oldest in the world.
Violence surged in early 2025, the most intense uptick in years. Fighting between two armed guerrilla groups in the northeastern Catatumbo region killed dozens of people and displaced tens of thousands more. Since the largest armed group – the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as FARC – signed the 2016 peace accord, more than 400 signatories have been killed. Meanwhile, more than 1,200 social leaders and human rights defenders have been assassinated.
We often define peace as the absence of war. The problem with thinking about peace and war as an all-or-nothing binary, however, is that it obscures the violence that takes place in “peaceful times.” For Colombians, that paradox is nothing new. In many communities most affected by the violence, thinking about a “post-conflict era” feels utopian.
As a Colombian researcher who has collaborated with Afro-Colombian leaders for over a decade, I have noticed that emphasizing peace talks and accords erases the historical violence that is still present, especially for racial minorities. Colombia has the largest Black population in Spanish-speaking Latin America. In Chocó – a region on the Pacific coast where I conducted my research – Afro-Colombians form a majority.
Communities there are contending not only with the contemporary conflict, but also ongoing challenges from the legacies of slavery, colonialism and extractive industries. Many residents, particularly women, work together every day to try to bring peace and justice within reach.
Signs in the office of COCOMACIA, a Black women’s organization, say ‘option for life’ and ‘peace, we all build it.’ Tania Lizarazo
Rights vs. reality
Colombia has been mired in war for over six decades, as legal and illegal armed groups across the political spectrum fight for territories and resources. The conflict is estimated to have killed around 450,000 people and displaced around 7 million.
Black and Indigenous communities have disproportionately suffered the brunt of the war – especially in rural areas, where their lives and territories have been threatened by armed groups and companies alike. In Chocó Department, the site of my research, the region’s remoteness and biodiversity have attracted illegal groups and practices like drug trafficking, as well as mining and other types of resource extraction that threaten traditional livelihoods. Mercury from industrial mining poses an additional danger to people’s health and the environment.
Andres Magallan carries an urn with the remains of Ivan Mejia, who was murdered by right-wing paramilitary guerrillas years before, in Santa Maria, Chocó, Colombia, in 2010. Raul Arboleda/AFP via Getty Images
Black rural communities in the Pacific lowlands, where most of Chocó is located, have a legal right to collective ownership of their territories and to be consulted about development plans. In reality, land grabs and targeted killings over illegal crops, mining and other extractive practices have become the norm here, as is true throughout rural Colombia.
The conflict has intensified racism and gender hierarchies, with Black women, particularly activists, especially vulnerable. Vice President Francia Márquez Mina, for example – who has won awards for her activism against illegal mining – survived an attack near her home in the nearby department of Cauca in 2019. She and her family have received other threats on their lives since then.
Building solidarity
Even in “postconflict” times, peace is a challenging task. It requires social change that does not happen overnight. Rather, it is the accumulation of tiny sparks in people’s daily commitments.
In my book “Postconflict Utopias: Everyday Survival in Chocó, Colombia,” I write about how Black women’s organizations care for their territories and communities. The “comisionadas,” for example, belong to one of the largest such groups in Colombia, called COCOMACIA. These women travel the Atrato River and its tributaries to lead workshops about the organization, as well as territorial rights and women’s rights.
Comisionadas next to a poster with information about a landmark law against domestic violence, on July 7, 2012. María del Socorro Mosquera Pérez sits on the left. Tania Lizarazo
Everyone in the community is welcome to participate in dialogues about issues such as women’s political participation, land ownership and related legislation. Comisionada María del Socorro Mosquera Pérez, for example, wrote a song to share the importance of Law 1257, a landmark 2008 law against violence and discrimination against women.
In her story for the research project that I discuss in my book, “Mujeres Pacíficas,” comisionada Rubiela Cuesta Córdoba says it best: “The best legacy that one leaves to family and friends is resistance.”
One focus of these women’s groups’ work is the Atrato River itself. Since 2016, the same year of the peace accords, Colombian courts have recognized the river as a legal person, with rights to protection, conservation, maintenance and restoration.
Students paint a mural in Quibdó, Chocó, Colombia, which says ‘Somos Atrato’: We are the Atrato River. Jan Sochor/Getty Images
The river is a source of food and transportation between many basin communities where potable water, electricity and other amenities are scarce. But it is also intertwined with politics and spirituality. Pilgrimages like “Atratiando,” a trip along the river and its tributaries that has taken place multiple times since 1999, highlight that there is no life without the river. Participants travel through areas where paramilitaries and guerrillas are active, showing solidarity with vulnerable communities.
COCOMACIA’s comisionadas are part of many other organizations – highlighting how survival is not only intertwined with lands and rivers, but other regions and countries. The struggle for women’s rights has led the comisionadas to collaborate with other organizations, creating wider networks of care. These include La Red Departamental de Mujeres Chocoanas, a feminist coalition of women’s organizations in Chocó; La Ruta Pacífica de las Mujeres, a feminist movement of 300 organizations from across Colombia; and Women in Black, an anti-militarism network with members in over 150 countries.
Their solidarity is a reminder that peace and justice are a collaborative, everyday effort. As Justa Germania Mena Córdoba, leader of the comisionadas at the time, told me in 2012: “One cannot change the world by herself.”
Tania Lizarazo does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
The internet is abuzz with tributes to a liquid chemical called methylene blue that is being sold as a health supplement.
Over the past five or 10 years, methylene blue has come to be touted online as a so-called nootropic agent – a substance that enhances cognitive function. Vendors claim that it amps up brain energy, improves memory, boosts focus and dispels brain fog, among other supposed benefits.
Health influencers, such as podcaster Joe Rogan, have sung its praises. In February 2025, shortly before he was confirmed as health and human services secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appeared in a video squirting a blue liquid widely presumed to be methylene blue into a glass – though he never verbally endorsed the substance.
As a researcher studying inflammation and cancer, I investigate how dyes affect human health. Claims about methylene blue are alluring, and it’s easy to buy into its promise. But so far, evidence supporting its health benefits is scant, and there are some serious risks to using the substance outside of medical practice.
Methylene blue is a synthetic dye that exists as a dark green powder and takes on a deep blue color when dissolved in water. My work and that of others suggest that many synthetic dyes widely used in foods and medicines can trigger potentially harmful immune system reactions in the body. But unlike commonly used food dyes – one of which was recently banned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration – methylene blue is not derived from petroleum, also known as crude oil. Instead, it comes from a different family of dyes, which isn’t thought to have these health concerns.
Methylene blue was first synthesized in 1876 as a dye for textiles and was valued for its intense color and ability to bind well to fabrics. Soon after, German physician Paul Ehrlich discovered its ability to stain biological tissues and to kill the parasite that causes malaria — making it one of the first synthetic drugs used in medicine.
The chemical didn’t gain widespread use as a malaria treatment because it was no more effective than quinine, the standard therapy at the time. But in the 1930s, the dye found a new use in testing the safety of raw or unpasteurized milk. If its blue color faded quickly, the milk was contaminated with bacteria, but if it remained blue, the milk was considered relatively clean.
This safety test now is largely obsolete. But it works thanks to methylene blue’s chemical superpower, which is that its molecules can swap electrons with other molecules, like a tiny battery charger.
How do doctors use it today?
That same chemical superpower enables some of methylene blue’s medical uses. Most significantly, doctors use it to treat a rare blood disorder called methemoglobinemia, in which hemoglobin, an iron-rich protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen, takes on a different form that can’t do the job. Methylene blue restores hemoglobin’s function by transferring an electron.
So far, most of what’s known about the substance’s effects on the brain comes from studies in rats and in cells grown in a lab dish – not in people. For example, researchers have found that methylene blue may improve learning, boost memory and protect brain cells in rats with a condition that mimics Alzheimer’s disease.
A handful of clinical trials have investigated the effects of methylene blue in treating aspects of Alzheimer’s disease in people, but a 2023 review of these trials notes that their results have been mixed and not conclusive. A small study of 26 people found that a single low dose of the chemical boosted memory by about 7% and increased brain activity during thinking tasks. Another study by the same researchers found that methylene blue changed how different parts of the brain connected, though it didn’t improve thinking skills.
Although some studies in people have shown hints that methylene blue may be beneficial for some brain-related issues, such as pain management and neuropsychiatric disorders, such studies to date have been small. This suggests that while there may be patient circumstances where methylene blue is beneficial, researchers have not yet pinned down what those are.
Is methylene blue safe?
Methylene blue is generally safe when used under medical supervision. However, the chemical has some serious risks.
Overall, while scientists have found hints of some fascinating properties of methylene blue, much larger, longer trials are needed to know if it truly works, what the right dose is and how safe it is over time.
Lorne J. Hofseth does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Scientists use a system of complicated-sounding names to refer to everyday creatures, a practice heavily lampooned in the Warner Bros. cartoons featuring the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote – or, respectively, Accelleratii incredibus and Carnivorous vulgaris.
As abiologist, I use these seemingly odd names myself and help my students learn them. For most people it’s a huge effort, like learning a second language. That’s because it is.
The science of naming and classifying organisms is called taxonomy. Scientists do this so they can be as precise as possible when discussing living things.
The first word in an organism’s name is its genus, which is a group of related species, such as Panthera for lions, tigers and leopards.
The second word is the specific name identifying the species, usually defined as a population that can reproduce only with each other, such as Panthera leo for lion.
Every two-word combination must be unique. Called binomial nomenclature, this naming system was popularized by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the 1700s. So, humans are Homo sapiens, the red maple Acer rubrum, garlic Allium sativum, and the eastern spotted skunk Spilogale putorius.
Today, biologists maintain huge databases containing the taxonomic names of plants, animals, fungi and other organisms. For instance, one of these databases – the Open Tree of Life project – includes over 2.3 million species.
The scientist who discovers a species usually names it by publishing a formal description in a peer-reviewed journal. From there, the name makes its way into the databases. From then on, scientists always use that name for the organism, even if it turns out to be misleading. For example, many fossils were originally given names containing the Greek root “saur,” which means lizard – even though paleontologists later realized dinosaurs were not lizards.
To most people, these names sound inscrutable. Particularly nowadays, as science becomes more open and accessible to everyone, such arcane vocabulary can come across as old-fashioned and elitist.
As modern science began taking shape in Europe during the 1600s, scientists had a problem. They wanted to read and be read by others, but language got in the way. French scientists couldn’t read Swedish, Swedes couldn’t read Italian, and Italians couldn’t read German.
Also, writing about plants and animals posed a particular challenge: Many species had common names that could vary from place to place, and some common names might apply to multiple species. Scientists needed a way to be precise and consistent when referring to species, so that everyone could understand each other.
To sidestep the language issue, scientists of the era mostly published their work in classical Latin. Back then, everyone learned it – at least every European man wealthy enough to attend school and become a scientist. Others published in classical Greek, also widely taught. By sticking with these more universally known languages, early scientists made sure that science was accessible to as many of their peers as possible.
So why continue to use Latin and Greek names today? Taxonomists do it partly out of tradition, but partly because the terminology is still useful. Even without seeing a photo of the animal, a biologist might work out that Geomys bursarius – “earth-mouse with a pouch” – was a pocket gopher. Or that Reithrodontomys fulvescens – “groove-toothed mouse that is yellow” – is a yellow mouse with grooves on its incisors.
A two-minute, how-to-do-it lesson.
What’s in a name?
Although taxonomists still largely adhere to the naming principles of Linnaeus, new scientific names are more and more frequently derived from non-European languages. For example, a chicken-size dinosaur discovered and named in China is called Yi qi, meaning “strange wing” in Mandarin.
Some of the more recent names are touched by whimsy, with a few honoring politicians and celebrities. Etheostoma obama is a spangled darter named after the 44th U.S. president; the Swift twisted-claw millipede – Nannaria swiftae – is named after pop star Taylor Swift.
In the future, another language – or no language at all – might rise to dominance. Artificial intelligence may act as a universal translator. This possibility would let everyone publish and read science in their own language. Predicting how technology will change our relationship with terminology is challenging, but the need for precise scientific language, including the names of species, will never go away.
Nicholas Green does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Moths are known to swarm porch, stadium and street lights at night. Each summer, Denver is visited by miller moths as they make their trek to the mountains. Fairfax Media/GettyImages
At night, porch lights, stadium lights and street lamps are regularly visited by moths, a collective term for most of the nocturnal members of the insect order called Lepidoptera. Butterflies are also part of this order, but they are mostly diurnal, or active during the day. Butterflies are actually just a subset of moths, so all butterflies are moths, but not all moths are butterflies.
The Front Range lies on the path of a springtime migration of a particularly familiar species of moth, usually referred to in this part of the country, including Colorado and neighboring states, as “miller moths.” Miller moth caterpillars are often called the “army cutworm,” a whimsical name referring to the caterpillars’ tendency to reach large numbers that march across fields and roads to find food. Both the moths and their caterpillars are rather drab and brown in color, though the moths are variable in patterning.
‘Miller moth’ is the common name for a moth species that migrates from southeastern Colorado to the Front Range to forage for food. Chuck Harp, Colorado State University
Many people find miller moths to be a nuisance, and the caterpillars can be a pest. But miller moths are a native species to Colorado and play important roles across the plains and up into the high country.
As an entomologist, I crisscross the state looking for moths for my ongoing evolutionary, classification and life history studies. During miller moth migrations, they may swarm my moth traps, which are made up of a bright light in front of a white sheet. The crush of miller moths makes finding the less common species that I am looking for all the more challenging in a sea of dusty brown.
To spot and trap moths, entomologists set up bright lights in front of a white background. Ryan St. Laurent
What makes miller moths so unique?
In temperate regions like most of North America, most moth species hibernate in the cold winter months. During this time, they are in a dormant pupal stage. Some species spin cocoons. They then hatch into adult moths, mate, lay eggs, and those caterpillars grow during the spring and summer. Come fall, the cycle starts over.
While miller moths also have a hibernation period, it is not like that of most moths. Miller moths instead spend their winters on the plains of eastern Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Nebraska and nearby states as partially grown caterpillars, rather than a pupa, having gotten a head start on feeding in the late summer. This puts the caterpillars at an advantage. As soon as the weather warms and low-lying crops like wheat and alfalfa produce new, nutrient-rich foliage during the early spring, the caterpillars are right there ready to feast and may cause serious damage to the crops in outbreak years.
Pupation then occurs later in the spring, and unlike in most Lepidoptera, the adult moths hatch without an extended pupal diapause, and instead begin to migrate west. They travel more than 100 miles (roughly 160 kilometers) toward higher elevations to seek out flowering plants, feeding on nectar and pollinating as they go.
Miller moths migrate to the Rocky Mountains to forage for food. In this video, courtesy of Ecologist Adrian Carper, thousands of moths flutter around trees in the mountains.
This migration is where folks on the Front Range become all too familiar with these weary travelers, who seek out narrow spaces to rest, often crawling into gaps in cars and homes. Inside a home, miller moths don’t feed, reproduce or lay eggs. Sudden agitation of the resting moths may cause them to fly about to seek out a new spot to hide – that is, if your house cat doesn’t see them first. If they do make their way inside, they can be easily swept into a cup or jar and let outside.
People on the Front Range experience a second run-in with these moths after they finish their summer of feeding in the mountains and head back to the plains to lay their eggs in the fields from August to September.
My work aims to understand what certain moths eat in their caterpillar stage, but other researchers, and my colleague Dr. Julian Resasco, at the University of Colorado Boulder, study what plants the adults are feeding on as they pollinate.
Colorado moths
Moths are among the primary airborne insects at night, playing a significant, and perhaps leading, role in insect-feeding bat diets. During their migration to the mountains, there are so many miller moths that they are a substantial protein- and fat-rich meal for animals as large as bears.
Considering that we still know so little about moths, it’s important to realize that light pollution, habitat loss and agricultural chemicals are all impacting moth numbers, resulting in annual declines in these insects globally.
So, the next time you see a miller moth in Colorado, or any moth at a light anywhere on Earth, remember that it’s working the night shift. Turn out that light so it can go about its way.
Ryan St Laurent receives funding from the National Science Foundation (no active grants). Some scientific publications referenced in this article were coauthored by Ryan or by his other collaborators.
The vehicle assembly building at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Fla. AP Photo/Marta Lavandier
Over the past several days, NASA’s ambitious space exploration plans have experienced major setbacks. First, on May 30, 2025, newly released budget documents revealed the extent of the significant budget and personnel cuts proposed by the Trump administration. Then, just a day later, President Donald Trump withdrew the nomination of Jared Isaacman to be NASA administrator just days before an expected confirmation vote.
From my perspective as a space policy expert, these events signal problems ahead for a space agency that now faces stiff competition in space exploration from the commercial sector. Without a leader and facing a fight over its budget, NASA faces an uncertain future, both in the months ahead and longer term.
Budget problems
When the Trump administration released a preview of its budget proposal in early May, it was clear that NASA was facing significant cuts.
After receiving US$24.9 billion for 2025, the president’s proposal would allot NASA $18.8 billion in 2026. After accounting for inflation, this amount would represent NASA’s smallest budget since 1961.
Space science programs are one of the largest targets of the proposed budget cuts, seeing an almost 50% reduction, to just $3.9 billion. Specific programs targeted for elimination include the Mars Sample Return mission, the currently operating Mars Odyssey and MAVEN missions around Mars, and several missions to Venus.
Several ongoing and proposed astrophysics programs, including the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, would also end if the proposed budget passes.
Artemis III, planned for 2027, would be the first crewed flight back to the lunar surface since 1972. The mission would use the Space Launch System rocket and Orion crew vehicle to get there. The proposed Lunar Gateway, a mini-space station in lunar orbit, would be abandoned entirely.
Several Mars missions, including the Mars Sample Return, MAVEN and Mars Odyssey, would be canceled under the proposed budget. It would instead establish a program to work with commercial partners to put humans on the red planet. NASA, ESA, Zolt G. Levay (STScI)
A smaller budget also means a smaller NASA workforce. The budget proposal suggests that the number of NASA employees would be reduced by one-third, from more than 17,000 to 11,853.
Advocates for space science and exploration have criticized the cuts. The Planetary Society has stated that these cuts to space science represent an “extinction level event” that would all but end NASA’s ability to perform meaningful science.
Democrats in Congress were also quick to push back on the proposed cuts, arguing that they would hamper the U.S.’s ability to carry out its missions.
The budget documents released so far are just proposals. Congress must make the final decisions on how much money NASA gets and which programs are funded. While this might be good news for NASA funding, my research has shown that Congress rarely appropriates more money for NASA than the president requests.
Leadership challenges
The release of the president’s proposed budget was followed with the news that the president would withdraw his nomination of Jared Isaacman to be NASA’s administrator.
Jared Isaacman, the former nominee for NASA administrator, is a businessman who has been to space on several commercial flights. AP Photo/John Raoux, File
In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote, “After a thorough review of prior associations, I am hereby withdrawing the nomination of Jared Isaacman to head NASA. I will soon announce a new Nominee who will be Mission aligned, and put America First in Space.”
Like the budget proposal, news of Isaacman’s withdrawal has also hit the space community hard. Following his nomination, Isaacman won the support of many in the space industry and in government. His confirmation hearing in April was largely uncontentious, with support from both Republicans and Democrats.
NASA will now need to wait for the president to make a new choice for NASA administrator. That person will then need to go through the same process as Isaacman, with a hearing in the Senate and several votes.
Given the amount of time it takes for nominations to make their way through the Senate, NASA is likely to face several more months without a confirmed administrator. This absence will come while many of its programs will be fighting for money and their existence.
The months ahead
Like many federal agencies right now, NASA faces a tumultuous future. Budgetary and leadership challenges might be the immediate problem, but NASA’s long-term future is potentially rocky as well.
Since its founding, NASA’s mission has been largely centered on sending humans to space.
If that role shifts to commercial companies, NASA will need to grapple with what its identity and mission is going forward.
History provides some insight. One of NASA’s forerunners, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, or NACA, largely focused on advanced research and development of aeronautical technologies. For instance, NACA researched things such as proper engine placement on airliners as well as advances that helped air flow more efficiently over those engines.
A new NASA that’s more similar to NACA might continue research into nuclear engines or other advanced space technology that may contribute to the work commercial space companies are already doing.
Choices made by the Trump administration and Congress in the coming months will likely shape what NASA will look like in the years to come. Until then, NASA, like many government organizations, faces a period of uncertainty about its future.
Wendy N. Whitman Cobb is affiliated with the US School of Advanced Air and Space Studies. Her views are her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Defense or any of its components.
Union Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday launched the Urban Adda 2025 conclave at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi. The three-day event focuses on promoting sustainable urban futures through discussions on key issues like climate resilience, mobility, and inclusive transport.
Marking World Bicycle Day, Dr. Mandaviya also unveiled two significant books, Cycling, Children & Cities by Dr. Bhairavi Joshi and Road to Cycle2School by Dr. Bhairavi Joshi and Ar. Kush Parikh, which highlight cycling’s benefits for health, environmental sustainability, and urban transformation.
In his address, Dr. Mandaviya championed cycling as a cornerstone of fitness and environmental conservation, stating, “Cycling is the best form of exercise. It not only makes us healthy but also helps in environmental sustainability. Cycling is the solution to pollution.” Reflecting on his personal experience, he shared, “When I first became an MP, I used to cycle to Parliament every day, and people saw me as the ‘cycle-wala MP.’ We must turn cycling into a movement, dispel the notion that it is only meant for a particular segment of society, and make it a fashion for everyone.” He highlighted the success of the Sundays on Cycle initiative, describing it as a nationwide movement promoting the Fit India campaign, and urged citizens to embrace cycling daily to contribute to the vision of a Viksit Bharat (Developed India) by 2047.
Running from June 3 to 5, Urban Adda 2025 brings together young voices, experts, and leaders to discuss critical urban issues such as climate-resilient cities, gender and mobility, clean air and water, waste management, and inclusive transport. The event features a Youth Adda, a forum empowering young people to shape urban transformation, a Cyclothon flagged off on World Bicycle Day with over 100 cyclists promoting active mobility, the Urban Adda Film Festival (UAFF-25) on June 4 showcasing short films on climate resilience and urban innovation followed by a Gala Night attended by actor Pooja Bedi, and interactive public art exhibits led by artist Sagar Singh, blending art, movement, and sustainability.
Organized by the Raahgiri Foundation in partnership with the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) and GuruJal, and supported by Nagarro, the event was attended by dignitaries including Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, Delhi Transport Minister Dr. Pankaj Kumar Singh, Haryana Minister Rao Narbir Singh, Rajasthan Minister Rajyavardhan Rathore, and thought leaders from academia, civil society, and international organizations.
A new Gaelic primary school is set to open in Glasgow next year after a £2 million investment from the Scottish Government.
The funding will complete the refurbishment and extension of the former St James’ Primary School building to establish Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn (Calton Gaelic Primary School) which will become the city’s fourth Gaelic language primary.
Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic Kate Forbes announced the investment as part of a £2.4 million package to support Gaelic schools and cultural initiatives across Scotland.
The funding will also support:
the construction of a second classroom at West Primary School in Paisley
the expansion of two Gaelic cultural centres in the Highlands
cultural events through An Comunn Gàidhealach who will host this year’s Royal National Mòd in Lochaber
On a visit to the site of the new school, Ms Forbes said:
“This school will build on the encouraging surge we have seen in the number of Gaelic speakers and learners in Glasgow and support the language’s growth into the future.
“Gaelic medium education enriches communities and offers good value for money by providing better grade averages across all qualification levels despite costs being no greater than average.
“To support Gaelic’s growth across Scotland, we are providing an additional £5.7 million for Gaelic initiatives this year. We are also progressing the Scottish Languages Bill which, if passed by MSPs, will introduce measures to strengthen the provision of Gaelic education.”
The new school, with space for 416 pupils, will be managed by Glasgow City Council. It meets a growing demand for Gaelic primary education in the city. Census figures published last year show a 45% increase in the number of people with some Gaelic skills in Glasgow compared to 2011.
Alison Richardson, headteacher of Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn, said:
“With Gaelic medium education continuing to flourish in Glasgow, our pupils and parents are excited and proud to be moving Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn into its very own repurposed school located in the East End.
“We look forward to supporting Gaelic’s growth in the Calton area, where many spoke it in the past, and for the school to become a real focal point and asset to the local community.”
Background
Projects benefiting from Scottish Government Gaelic Capital Fund allocations for 2024-25 are listed below.
Project
Capital allocated
Summary
Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn (Calton Gaelic Primary School)
£2,000,000.00
Refurbishment and extension of the former St James’ Primary School building.
West Primary School, Paisley
£43,000.00
Construction of a second classroom.
Broadford Primary School, Skye
£60,630.00
Upgrade to Games Hall.
Calder Glen High School, East Kilbride
£51,935.00
Construction of a bothy with computing, cooking and gardening space and provision of laptops, speakers, desks and other equipment.
Greenfaulds High School, Cumbernauld
£38,772.50
Equipment to allow more children from across North Lanarkshire to attend classes virtually.
Whitehills Primary School, Forfar
£5,748.36
Chromebooks, tablet cases and a replacement smartboard.
Inverclyde Academy, Greenock
£2907.00
Installation of bilingual signage throughout the school.
Feasibility study on establishing a Gaelic secondary school in Stornoway
£30,800.00
Study to explore the feasibility of establishing Gaelic secondary provision.
An Comunn Gàidhealach
£65,600.00
Delivery of this year’s Royal National Mòd.
The University of Edinburgh’s Opening the Well Crowdsourcing Gaelic Transcription project
£17,305.00
Transcription of Gaelic audio recordings, which will be added to a free online archive of Gaelic folklore and historical materials.
Ionad Thròndairnis (The Trotternish Centre)
£75,000.00
Extension of a Gaelic cultural centre in Skye.
Co-Chomann Dualchas Shrath Naruinn (Strathnairn Heritage Association
£40,000.00
Establishment of a Gaelic heritage centre in the former Dunlichity Church building.
Fèis Ghasaigh
£36,469.00
Delivery of a two-day Gaelic music event in South Uist.
Glasgow is home to the third largest number of children and young people in Gaelic Medium Education in Scotland with 740 primary pupils in 2023. Census statistics show that 17,380 people in Glasgow had some Gaelic skills 2022, an increase of 7,911 people from 2011.
Glasgow City Council has provided £17.6 million towards works at Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn, within an overall project budget of £23.8 million. The works are supported by the Scottish Government’s £2 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme which is delivered in partnership with local authorities. Nine school projects included in the programme will open in 2025-26.
A’ cumail taic ri fàs na Gàidhlig
Maoineachadh do sgoiltean agus pròiseactan cultarail.
Tha bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig ùr gu bhith a’ fosgladh ann an Glaschu an ath-bhliadhna às dèidh tasgadh-airgid luach £2 millean bho Riaghaltas na h-Alba.
Leis a’ mhaoineachadh, thèid crìoch a chur air ath-uidheamachadh agus leudachadh an t-seann togalaich air làrach Bun-sgoil Naoimh Sheumais airson Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn a stèidheachadh, ’s i gu bhith na ceathramh bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig sa bhaile.
Dh’fhoillsich an Leas-Phrìomh Mhinistear agus Rùnaire a’ Chaibineit airson na h-Eaconamaidh agus na Gàidhlig, Ceit Fhoirbeis, an tasgadh-airgid mar phàirt de phacaid luach £2.4 millean a chumas taic ri sgoiltean agus iomairtean cultarail Gàidhlig air feadh Alba.
Cumaidh am maoineachadh cuideachd taic ri:
togail dàrna seòmar-teagaisg aig Bun-sgoil an Iar ann am Pàislig
leudachadh air dà ionad cultair Gàidhlig air a’ Ghàidhealtachd
tachartasan cultarail tron Chomunn Ghàidhealach a chumas am Mòd Rìoghail Nàiseanta ann an Loch Abar am-bliadhna
Air turas do làrach na sgoile ùr, thuirt a’ Bh-uas. Fhoirbeis:
“Togaidh an sgoil seo air an àrdachadh bhrosnachail a chunnacas ann an àireamh luchd-labhairt agus luchd-ionnsachaidh na Gàidhlig ann an Glaschu, ’s i a’ cur taic ri fàs a’ chànain san àm ri teachd.
“Tha foghlam tro mheadhan na Gàidhlig a’ cur beairteas ri coimhearsnachdan agus tha deagh luach an airgid na lùib, ’s comharran cuibheasach nas fheàrr gan toirt do sgoilearan thar gach ìre teisteanais gun cosgaisean a bhith nas àirde na tha iad sa chumantas.
“Gus taic a chumail ri fàs na Gàidhlig air feadh Alba, tha sinn a’ toirt £5.7 millean a bharrachd do dh’iomairtean Gàidhlig am-bliadhna. Tha sinn cuideachd a’ toirt air adhart Bile nan Cànan Albannach, agus ma ghabhas na BPA rithe, bheir i a-steach ceumannan gus solarachadh foghlam Gàidhlig a neartachadh.”
Thèid an sgoil ùr, far am bi àite do 416 sgoilear, a stiùireadh le Comhairle Baile Ghlaschu. Tha i a’ coileanadh iarrtas a tha a’ sìor-fhàs air foghlam Gàidhlig bun-sgoile anns a’ bhaile. Tha figearan a’ chunntais-shluaigh a chaidh fhoillseachadh an-uiridh a’ sealltainn àrdachadh de 45% ann an àireamh nan daoine le beagan sgilean Gàidhlig ann an Glaschu an taca ri 2011.
Thuirt Alison Richardson, ceannard Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn:
“Le foghlam tro mheadhan na Gàidhlig a’ sìor-shoirbheachadh ann an Glaschu, tha na sgoilearan agus pàrantan againn air bhioran agus moiteil gum bi Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn a’ gluasad a-steach dhan sgoil ath-leasaichte aice fhèin, ’s i suidhichte ann an Ceann an Ear a’ bhaile.
“Tha sinn a’ dèanamh fiughair ri taic a chumail ri fàs na Gàidhlig ann an sgìre a’ Challtainn, far an robh mòran ga bruidhinn san àm a dh’fhalbh, agus ri an sgoil a bhith aig fìor theas-meadhan na coimhearsnachd ionadail agus na buannachd dhi.”
Cùl-fhiosrachadh
Tha pròiseactan a gheibh buannachd bho chuibhreannan Maoin Chalpa na Gàidhlig le Riaghaltas na h-Alba ann an 2024-25 air an liostadh gu h-ìosal.
Pròiseact
Calpa air a shònrachadh
Geàrr-chunntas
Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn
£2,000,000.00
Ath-uidheamachadh agus leudachadh an t-seann togalaich air làrach Bun-sgoil Naoimh Sheumais.
Bun-sgoil an Iar, Pàislig
£43,000.00
Togail dàrna seòmar-teagaisg.
Bun-sgoil an Àth Leathainn, an t-Eilean Sgitheanach
£60,630.00
Ath-nuadhachadh air Talla nan Geamaichean.
Àrd-sgoil Ghlinn Challdair, Cille Bhrìghde an Ear
£51,935.00
Togail bothain le àite airson coimpiutaireachd, còcaireachd agus gàirnealaireachd, agus solarachadh laptopaichean, labhradairean, deasgan agus uidheamachd eile.
Àrd-sgoil Greenfaulds, Comar nan Allt
£38,772.50
Uidheamachd a leigeas le tuilleadh cloinne bho air feadh Siorrachd Lannraig a Tuath clasaichean a fhrithealadh air astar.
Bun-sgoil Whitehills, Farfar
£5,748.36
Laptopaichean Chromebook, còmhdaichean tablaid agus bòrd-glic ùr.
Acadamaidh Inbhir Chluaidh, Grianaig
£2907.00
Cur suas shoidhnichean dà-chànanach air feadh na sgoile.
Sgrùdadh iomchaidheachd air stèidheachadh àrd-sgoil Ghàidhlig ann an Steòrnabhagh
£30,800.00
Sgrùdadh a rannsaicheas iomchaidheachd an lùib foghlam Gàidhlig àrd-sgoile a stèidheachadh.
An Comunn Gàidhealach
£65,600.00
Lìbhrigeadh Mòd Rìoghail Nàiseanta na bliadhna seo.
Pròiseact Opening the Well: Crowdsourcing Gaelic Transcription le Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann
£17,305.00
Tar-sgrìobhadh de chlàraidhean claisneachd Gàidhlig a thèid a chur ri tasglann an-asgaidh, air-loidhne de bheul-aithris na Gàidhlig agus stuth eachdraidheil.
Ionad Thròndairnis
£75,000.00
Leudachadh air ionad cultar na Gàidhlig san Eilean Sgitheanach.
Co-Chomann Dualchas Shrath Naruinn
£40,000.00
Stèidheachadh ionad dualchas na Gàidhlig ann an seann togalach Eaglais Dhùn Fhlichididh.
Fèis Ghasaigh
£36,469.00
Lìbhrigeadh de thachartas-ciùil Gàidhlig thairis air dà latha ann an Uibhist a Deas.
Tha baile Ghlaschu na dhachaigh dhan treas àireamh as motha de chloinn agus daoine òga a th’ ann am Foghlam tro Mheadhan na Gàidhlig ann an Alba, ’s 740 sgoilear ann am bun-sgoiltean ann an 2023. Tha staitistigean a’ chunntais-shluaigh a’ sealltainn gun robh beagan sgilean Gàidhlig aig 17,380 duine ann an Glaschu ann an 2022, àrdachadh de 7,911 duine bho 2011.
Tha Comhairle Baile Ghlaschu air £17.6 millean a thoirt do dh’obraichean aig Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn, taobh a-staigh buidseat-pròiseict iomlan de £23.8 millean. Tha na h-obraichean a’ faighinn taic bho Phrògram Tasgaidh na h-Oighreachd Ionnsachaidh (luach £2 billean) le Riaghaltas na h-Alba a thèid a lìbhrigeadh ann an com-pàirteachas ri ùghdarrasan ionadail. Fosglaidh naoi pròiseactan-sgoile a tha nam pàirt dhen phrògram ann an 2025-26.
Taieri MP Ingrid Leary reflected on her years in Fiji as a television journalist and media educator at a Fiji Centre function in Auckland celebrating Fourth Estate values and independence at the weekend.
It was a reunion with former journalism professor David Robie — they had worked together as a team at the University of the South Pacific amid media and political controversy leading up to the George Speight coup in May 2000.
Leary was the guest speaker at a gathering of human rights activists, development advocates, academics and journalists hosted at the Whānau Community Centre and Hub, the umbrella base for the Fiji Centre and Asia Pacific Media Network.
She said she was delighted to meet “special people in David’s life” and to be speaking to a diverse group sharing “similar values of courage, freedom of expression, truth and tino rangatiratanga”.
“I want to start this talanoa on Friday, 19 May 2000 — 13 years almost to the day of the first recognised military coup in Fiji in 1987 — when failed businessman George Speight tore off his balaclava to reveal his identity.
She pointed out that there had actually been another “coup” 100 years earlier by Ratu Cakobau.
“Speight had seized Parliament holding the elected government at gunpoint, including the politician mother, Lavinia Padarath, of one of my best friends — Anna Padarath.
Hostage-taking report “Within minutes, the news of the hostage-taking was flashed on Radio Fiji’s 10 am bulletin by a student journalist on secondment there — Tamani Nair. He was a student of David Robie’s.”
Nair had been dispatched to Parliament to find out what was happening and reported from a cassava patch.
“Fiji TV was trashed . . . and transmission pulled for 48 hours.
“The university shut down — including the student radio facilities, and journalism programme website — to avoid a similar fate, but the journalism school was able to keep broadcasting and publishing via a parallel website set up at the University of Technology Sydney.
“The pictures were harrowing, showing street protests turning violent and the barbaric behaviour of Speight’s henchmen towards dissenters.
“Thus began three months of heroic journalism by David’s student team — including through a period of martial law that began 10 days later and saw some of the most restrictive levels of censorship ever experienced in the South Pacific.”
Leary paid tribute to some some of the “brave satire” produced by senior Fiji Times reporters filling paper with “non-news” (such as haircuts, drinking kava) as act of defiance.
“My friend Anna Padarath returned from doing her masters in law in Australia on a scholarship to be closer to her Mum, whose hostage days within Parliament Grounds stretched into weeks and then months.
Whanau Community Centre and Hub co-founder Nik Naidu speaking at the Asia Pacific Media Network event at the weekend. Image: Khairiah A. Rahman/APMN
Invisible consequences “Anna would never return to her studies — one of the many invisible consequences of this profoundly destructive era in Fiji’s complex history.
“Happily, she did go on to carve an incredible career as a women’s rights advocate.”
“Meanwhile David’s so-called ‘barefoot student journalists’ — who snuck into Parliament the back way by bushtrack — were having their stories read and broadcast globally.
“And those too shaken to even put their hands to keyboards on Day 1 emerged as journalism leaders who would go on to win prizes for their coverage.”
Speight was sentenced to life in prison, but was pardoned in 2024.
Taeri MP Ingrid Leary speaking at the Whānau Community Centre and Hub. Image: Nik Naidu/APMN
Leary said that was just one chapter in the remarkable career of David Robie who had been an editor, news director, foreign news editor and freelance writer with a number of different agencies and news organisations — including Agence France-Presse, Rand Daily Mail, The Auckland Star, Insight Magazine, and New Outlook Magazine — “a family member to some, friend to many, mentor to most”.
Reflecting on working with Dr Robie at USP, which she joined as television lecturer from Fiji Television, she said:
“At the time, being a younger person, I thought he was a little but crazy, because he was communicating with people all around the world when digital media was in its infancy in Fiji, always on email, always getting up on online platforms, and I didn’t appreciate the power of online media at the time.
“And it was incredible to watch.”
Ahead of his time She said he was an innovator and ahead of his time.
Dr Robie viewed journalism as a tool for empowerment, aiming to provide communities with the information they needed to make informed decisions.
“We all know that David has been a champion of social justice and for decolonisation, and for the values of an independent Fourth Estate.”
She said she appreciated the freedom to develop independent media as an educator, adding that one of her highlights was producing the groundbreaking documentary Maire about Maire Bopp Du Pont, who was a student journalist at USP and advocate for the Pacific community living with HIV/AIDs community.
She later became a nuclear-free Pacific parliamentarian in Pape’ete.
Leary presented Dr Robie with a “speaking stick” carved from an apricot tree branch by the husband of a Labour stalwart based in Cromwell — the event doubled as his 80th birthday.
In response, Dr Robie said the occasion was a “golden opportunity” to thank many people who had encouraged and supported him over many years.
Massive upheaval “We must have done something right,” he said about USP, “because in 2000, the year of George Speight’s coup, our students covered the massive upheaval which made headlines around the world when Mahendra Chaudhry’s Labour-led coalition government was held at gunpoint for 56 days.
“The students courageously covered the coup with their website Pacific Journalism Online and their newspaper Wansolwara — “One Ocean”. They won six Ossie Awards – unprecedented for a single university — in Australia that year and a standing ovation.”
He said there was a video on YouTube of their exploits called Frontline Reporters and one of the students, Christine Gounder, wrote an article for a Commonwealth Press Union magazine entitled, “From trainees to professionals. And all it took was a coup”.
Dr Robie said this Fiji experience was still one of the most standout experiences he had had as a journalist and educator.
Along with similar coverage of the 1997 Sandline mercenary crisis by his students at the University of Papua New Guinea.
He made some comments about the 1985 Rainbow Warrior voyage to Rongelap in the Marshall islands and the subsequent bombing by French secret agents in Auckland.
But he added “you can read all about this adventure in my new book” being published in a few weeks.
Taieri MP Ingrid Leary (right) with Dr David Robie and his wife Del Abcede at the Fiji Centre function. Image: Camille Nakhid
Biggest 21st century crisis Dr Robie said the profession of journalism, truth telling and holding power to account, was vitally important to a healthy democracy.
Although media did not succeed in telling people what to think, it did play a vital role in what to think about. However, the media world was undergoing massive change and fragmentation.
“And public trust is declining in the face of fake news and disinformation,” he said
“I think we are at a crossroads in society, both locally and globally. Both journalism and democracy are under an unprecedented threat in my lifetime.
“When more than 230 journalists can be killed in 19 months in Gaza and there is barely a bleep from the global community, there is something savagely wrong.
“The Gazan journalists won the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize collectively last year with the judges saying, “As humanity, we have a huge debt to their courage and commitment to freedom of expression.”
“The carnage and genocide in Gaza is deeply disturbing, especially the failure of the world to act decisively to stop it. The fact that Israel can kill with impunity at least 54,000 people, mostly women and children, destroy hospitals and starve people to death and crush a people’s right to live is deeply shocking.
“This is the biggest crisis of the 21st century. We see this relentless slaughter go on livestreamed day after day and yet our media and politicians behave as if this is just ‘normal’. It is shameful, horrendous. Have we lost our humanity?
“Gaza has been our test. And we have failed.”
Other speakers included Whānau Hub co-founder Nik Naidu, one of the anti-coup Coalition for Democracy in Fiji (CDF) stalwarts; the Heritage New Zealand’s Antony Phillips; and Multimedia Investments and Evening Report director Selwyn Manning.
SEATTLE, June 03, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Payscale Inc., the leading compensation data technology company, today announced a strategic partnership with Pearl Meyer, the leading executive compensation and leadership consulting firm. This collaboration addresses the need for executive salary data, empowering organizations to make confident pay decisions.
Traditional salary data is an important element of a compensation data approach, with Payscale’s 2025 Compensation Best Practices Report revealing 70% of organizations with more than 750 employees rely on traditional salary survey data to inform their pay decisions.
Pearl Meyer’s top-tier executive compensation data is integrated directly into Payscale’s compensation management solutions, offering an unparalleled buying experience. The powerful combination of Payscale’s innovative technology with Pearl Meyer’s robust compensation data enhances the customer’s ability to price executive leadership jobs accurately and confidently.
“Payscale customers now have all the data and insights they need in one place to create executive compensation strategies or price a leadership role,” Payscale CEO Chris Hays said. “This high-quality data fills information gaps for our customers and helps them recruit and retain the best leaders out there.”
Payscale’s partner ecosystem includes some of the most trusted names in compensation data. Best-in-class executive compensation data from Pearl Meyer provides robust executive and employee compensation data coverage for Payscale customers. Paired with Payscale’s compensation data technology, users can confidently price jobs with trusted data.
“We believe when organizations can build, develop, and reward great leadership teams that it drives long-term success,” said Rebecca Toman, vice president of the Survey Business Unit at Pearl Meyer. “Our collaboration with Payscale provides clients with a seamless data platform experience, combining our robust and trusted dataset with Payscale’s innovative technology to uncover insights that help organizations make better pay decisions.”
Pearl Meyer is the leading advisor to boards and senior management helping organizations build, develop, and reward great leadership teams that drive long-term success. Our strategy-driven compensation and leadership consulting services act as powerful catalysts for value creation and competitive advantage by addressing the critical links between people and outcomes. Our clients stand at the forefront of their industries and range from emerging high-growth, not-for-profit, and private organizations to the Fortune 500.
Payscale stands at the forefront of compensation data technology, pioneering an innovative approach that harnesses advanced AI and up-to-date and reliable market data to align employee and employer expectations. With its suite of solutions—Payfactors, Marketpay, and Paycycle—Payscale empowers 65% of Fortune 500 companies to make strategic compensation decisions. Organizations like Panasonic, ZoomInfo, Chipotle, AccentCare, University of Washington, American Airlines, and Rite Aid rely on its unique combination of actionable data and insights, experienced compensation services, and scalable software to drive business success. By partnering with Payscale, businesses can make confident compensation decisions that fuel growth for both their organization and their people.
MIAMI, June 03, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Varonis Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: VRNS), the leader in data security, today announced Varonis Identity Protection, the latest enhancement to its Data Security Platform that gives organizations unified visibility and control of data and identities.
Most identity security tools operate in a vacuum — with no understanding of the critical data each identity can access or how they’re accessing it.
Varonis connects the dots between identities and data, helping organizations automatically reduce access to their most sensitive data, fix identity posture issues, and stop identity-based threats — including those originating from insiders, stolen credentials, and AI tools and agents.
Unlike traditional identity products, Varonis understands the blast radius of every identity — showing how much data would be exposed if an identity were compromised. Varonis Identity Protection distinguishes between human and non-human identities, classifies them as internal, guest, external, or privileged, and monitors how they interact with data to detect anomalies.
“Identity and data are deeply intertwined — securing one without the other leaves dangerous gaps,” said Varonis CEO, President, and Co-Founder Yaki Faitelson. “By unifying identity and data security, Varonis gives customers the context they need to better ensure identity threats don’t become data breaches.”
Key Capabilities of Varonis Identity Protection:
Machine Learning-Based Identity Classification: Varonis integrates with Entra ID, Okta, Active Directory, and others to map user accounts across environments. Using machine learning, Varonis auto-classifies identities — tagging executives, privileged users, service accounts, non-human identities, and more.
Peer Analysis & User Behavior Analysis: Varonis continuously analyzes peer behavior to detect anomalies in identity usage, flagging deviations from normal patterns to surface risky activity earlier.
Identity Threat Detection & Response (ITDR): Varonis monitors identity providers for signs of compromise, alerting on suspicious logins, password resets, MFA changes, and policy updates — in context with each account’s data access activity.
Identity Posture Management With Automated Remediation: Varonis flags stale contractor accounts, excessive permissions, and missing MFA — then automatically remediates risks by revoking access, removing entitlements, and eliminating ghost accounts.
These identity capabilities also enhance Varonis Managed Data Detection and Response (MDDR), enabling our expert analysts to detect and respond to a broader range of threats faster and more effectively across customer environments.
Additional Resources
About Varonis Varonis (Nasdaq: VRNS) is the leader in data security, fighting a different battle than conventional cybersecurity companies. Our cloud-native Data Security Platform continuously discovers and classifies critical data, removes exposures, and detects advanced threats with AI-powered automation.
Thousands of organizations worldwide trust Varonis to defend their data wherever it lives — across SaaS, IaaS, and hybrid cloud environments. Customers use Varonis to automate a wide range of security outcomes, including data security posture management (DSPM), data classification, data access governance (DAG), data detection and response (DDR), data loss prevention (DLP), AI security, identity protection, and insider risk management.
Varonis protects data first, not last. Learn more at www.varonis.com.
Investor Relations Contact: Tim Perz Varonis Systems, Inc. 646-640-2112 investors@varonis.com
News Media Contact: Rachel Hunt Varonis Systems, Inc. 877-292-8767 (ext. 1598) pr@varonis.com
Albion Crown VCT PLC Interim Management Statement LEI Code: 213800SYIQPA3L3T1Q68
Introduction I present Albion Crown VCT PLC (the “Company”)’s interim management statement for the period from 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025.
The Company completed the merger with Albion Venture Capital Trust PLC (AAVC) in December 2024 which created a new C share class (CRWC). The C share class (CRWC) will convert into ordinary shares (CRWN) on a relative Net Asset Value basis as at 30 June 2026, which is expected to complete in November 2026.
Performance and dividends
Ordinary shares The ordinary shares unaudited net asset value (NAV) as at 31 March 2025 was £113.7 million or 31.35 pence per ordinary share, an increase of 0.18 pence per ordinary share (0.58%) since 31 December 2024.
After accounting for the dividend of 0.78 pence per ordinary share, paid on 30 April 2025 to shareholders on the register on 11 April 2025, the NAV is 30.57 pence per ordinary share.
C Shares The C shares unaudited NAV as at 31 March 2025 was £57.9 million or 43.15 pence per C share, a decrease of 0.12 pence per C share (0.27%) since 31 December 2024.
After accounting for the dividend of 1.08 pence per C share, paid on 30 April 2025 to shareholders on the register on 11 April 2025, the NAV is 42.07 pence per C share.
Fundraising A prospectus Top Up Offer of new ordinary shares opened to applications on 6 January 2025. On 31 March 2025, the Board announced that it had reached its £30 million limit (inclusive of a £10 million over-allotment facility which had been exercised) and therefore had closed to further applications.
During the period from 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025, the Company issued the following ordinary shares under the Albion VCTs Top Up Offers:
Date
Number of ordinary shares issued
Issue price per ordinary share
Net consideration received (£’000)
21 March 2025
65,583,583
31.81 to 32.14 pence
20,446
Portfolio As noted in the Half-yearly Financial Report for the six months to 31 December 2024, after reviewing detailed cash flow forecasts, the Board agreed with the Manager that the current investment focus for the C share class will be on supporting existing portfolio companies and not to make further new investments. This is to ensure that the C share class has sufficient cash resources for follow-on investments, dividends and share buybacks.
The following investments have been made during the period from 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025:
New investments
Ordinary shares
C shares
Activity
£’000
£’000
Latent Technology Group
621
70
Reinforcement Learning based Animation
Scripta Therapeutics
139
–
AI-enabled drug discovery
Innerworks Technology
109
–
Adaptive security
OtoImmune
88
–
Detection and treatment of autoimmune diseases.
Pastel Health
31
17
Digital-first provider of multi-specialty care
Formicor Pharmaceuticals
28
–
Drug reformulation
Total new investments
1,016
87
Further investments
Ordinary shares
C shares
Activity
£’000
£’000
TransFICC
794
114
A provider of a connectivity solution, connecting financial institutions with trading venues via a single API
Mondra Global
406
226
Food supply chain emissions modelling
Runa Network
77
10
Cloud platform and infrastructure that enables corporates to issue digital incentives and payouts
NuvoAir Holdings
66
11
Digital therapeutics and decentralised clinical trials for respiratory conditions
uMedeor (T/A uMed)
30
56
A middleware technology platform that enables life science organisations to conduct medical research programmes
Total further investments
1,373
417
Combined top ten holdings as at 31 March 2025:
Investment
Carrying value £’000
% of combined net asset value
Activity
Ordinary shares
C shares
Combined
Quantexa
20,877
–
20,877
12.2%
Network analytics platform to detect financial crime
Gravitee Topco (T/A Gravitee.io)
4,176
5,342
9,518
5.5%
API management platform
Chonais River Hydro
2,077
3,586
5,663
3.3%
Owner and operator of a 2 MW hydro-power scheme in the Scottish Highlands
The Evewell Group
2,774
2,800
5,575
3.2%
Operator and developer of women’s health centres focusing on fertility
Runa Network
2,817
2,475
5,292
3.1%
Cloud platform and infrastructure that enables corporates to issue digital incentives and payouts
Radnor House School (TopCo)
2,918
2,308
5,226
3.0%
Independent school for children aged 2-18
Proveca
5,193
–
5,193
3.0%
Reformulation of medicines for children
TransFICC
2,691
2,044
4,735
2.8%
A provider of a connectivity solution, connecting financial institutions with trading venues via a single API
Elliptic Enterprises
1,675
2,878
4,553
2.7%
Provider of Anti Money Laundering services to digital asset institutions
Healios
2,135
2,049
4,184
2.4%
Provider of an online platform delivering family centric psychological care primarily to children and adolescents
A full breakdown of the Company’s ordinary and C share portfolios can be found on the Company’s webpage on the Manager’s website at www.albion.capital/vct-funds/CRWN.
Share buy-backs During the period from 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025, no shares were repurchased by the Company.
It remains the Board’s policy to buy back shares in the market, subject to the overall constraint that such purchases are in the Company’s interest, including the maintenance of sufficient resources for investment in existing and new portfolio companies and the continued payment of dividends to shareholders.
It is the Board’s intention for such buy-backs to be at around a 5% discount to net asset value, so far as market conditions and liquidity permit.
Material events and transactions after the period end After the period end, the Company issued the following new ordinary shares of nominal value 1 penny per share under the Albion VCTs Prospectus Top Up Offers 2024/25:
Date
Number of ordinary shares issued
Issue price per ordinary share
Net consideration received (£’000)
4 April 2025
27,830,556
32.14 pence
8,676
After the period end, the Company also issued the following new ordinary and C shares under the dividend reinvestment scheme:
Date
Number of ordinary shares issued
Issue price per ordinary share
Net invested (£’000)
30 April 2025
1,504,893
30.39 pence
443
Date
Number of C shares issued
Issue price per C share
Net invested (£’000)
30 April 2025
484,437
42.19 pence
197
There have been no other material events or transactions after the period end to the date of this announcement.
Further information
Further information regarding historic and current financial performance and other useful shareholder information can be found on the Company’s webpage on the Manager’s website at www.albion.capital/vct-funds/CRWN.
Richard Glover, Chairman 3 June 2025
For further information please contact: Vikash Hansrani Operations Partner Albion Capital Group LLP – Tel: 020 7601 1850
For the majority of people who lose weight, keeping the weight off can be challenging.
Research has shown biological, behavioral, and environmental factors may undermine weight loss maintenance. Within 2 to 3 years, most individuals will regain nearly all the weight they lost. As a result, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has identified weight-loss maintenance as the next major challenge in obesity treatment.
Tricia Leahey, professor of allied health sciences and director of the UConn Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy (InCHIP), and, Amy Gorin, professor of psychological sciences and vice provost for health sciences and interdisciplinary initiatives, have led a new study that underscores the power of patient-delivered care for weight loss maintenance.
Leahey and Gorin also direct InCHIP’s Weight Management Research Group, which develops and assesses weight management interventions for the treatment of obesity and reduction of chronic disease.
The study, which was recently published in the prestigious, peer-reviewed academic journal, JAMA Internal Medicine, found that patient-delivered care may be more effective than care delivered by professional staff.
Tricia Leahey, director of the Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy
“Patient-delivered care holds great potential, but how patients promote health behavior change has not been investigated extensively. Our goal with this study was to better understand how patient care providers support weight loss maintenance and improve cardiovascular disease risk, and whether this model would be sustainable long-term,” says Leahey, who is the study’s lead author.
Leahey is a clinical health psychologist who has extensive experience developing and evaluating lifestyle interventions for obesity treatment. Her recent work has explored how patient-provided care influences short-term weight loss outcomes.
Overweight and obesity are complex health conditions that can increase one’s risk of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and more. In addition, adults with obesity can pay up to $2,505 in additional medical expenses per year. From 2001 to 2016, total direct medical costs relating to obesity doubled from $124 billion to $260.6 billion.
Obesity impacts about 40% of U.S. adults, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obesity treatment, whether lifestyle, pharmaceutical, or surgery, produces significant weight loss and reduces the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. However, these risks may return if weight is regained.
Traditionally, treatment for sustaining weight loss is delivered regularly over the course of 18 months by professional staff who have a master’s degree and training in behavioral weight loss maintenance. While this approach is effective, it can be costly and difficult to maintain. Research has also demonstrated that weight regain occurs after treatment ends.
Insights into patient-provided care
Patient-delivered care may be a more cost-effective option that could be sustainable indefinitely. This model employs two types of patient providers: mentors and peers. Mentors are patients who have successfully altered their health behaviors and coach incoming patients on lifestyle change. Peers are incoming patients who support and coach one another. Typically, patient-delivered care employs a hybrid approach that incorporates patients and professional staff.
The research evidence supporting the efficacy of patient-provided care has been mixed. Studies have shown this model can enhance quality of life and survival rates for cancer patients. It has also been shown to improve short-term blood sugar levels in individuals with diabetes and weight loss outcomes when used in conjunction with professionally delivered treatment.
Other studies suggest the effectiveness of patient-provided support is limited when used for managing depression or pain.
Despite these varied outcomes, patient care providers may offer a unique sense of empathy and motivation not replicated by professional caregivers. Fellow patients may also provide ongoing weekly support over an extended period, and possibly when patients need it the most – again, not possible with professional providers.
Leahey and Gorin’s study addressed these research gaps. It is the first study to examine the efficacy of a treatment intervention fully delivered by patient-providers and compare it to professionally delivered treatment. The study is also the first to train patient providers to provide all components of the treatment intervention, include both types of patient providers, and determine whether patients continue to coach one another after the treatment period ends.
“This study offers insights into how patient providers may support weight loss maintenance over the long-term. By including both mentors and peers in the treatment intervention, we leveraged the strengths of both to provide a more effective treatment program,” says Leahey.
Required: ongoing support and intervention
The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease funded the study (PI: Leahey; Co-I: Gorin), which employed a two-phase weight loss maintenance design considered the gold standard for weight loss maintenance trials.
Phase one was a weight loss intervention where all study participants engaged in a 4-month online obesity treatment program based on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP). This evidence-based lifestyle change program provides education on eating healthy, physical activity and behavior change strategies to support weight loss.
Phase one participants who lost more than 5% of their body weight were eligible to participate in the study’s second phase, the weight loss maintenance trial.
Phase two participants were randomly assigned to participate in one of two weight loss maintenance interventions – patient-delivered treatment or standard of care delivered by a professional.
The authors found that study participants in the patient-delivered intervention group had superior weight loss maintenance compared to those in professional care.
Additionally, the patient-delivered treatment group had significantly lower diastolic blood pressure and resting heart rate and this group engaged in more lifestyle activity and less sedentary behavior during the weight loss maintenance program.
These results are meaningful and demonstrate the potential of patient-delivered care in behavioral medicine where health behavior maintenance remains a significant challenge, whether weight loss, smoking cessation, physical activity, or other behavior.
“Sustaining health behaviors, including weight loss, requires ongoing intervention and support. Patient-provided treatment eliminates the need of costly professional care and promotes ongoing support and excellent maintenance outcomes,” says Leahey.
Leahey and Gorin’s study indicates that patient-provided care for weight loss maintenance is just as effective as the gold-standard, professionally delivered treatment, potentially shifting the obesity treatment paradigm for long-term weight loss maintenance.
Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –
The Polytechnic University hosted another seminar on artificial intelligence, where participants discussed expanding the capabilities of passenger transport in St. Petersburg.
Pavel Polyakov, Head of the Information Technology and Intelligent Systems Department at Gorelectrotrans, spoke about the new functional capabilities of the rolling stock and transport infrastructure of the city. Pavel Sergeevich noted what intelligent systems the city transport is already equipped with and what else will be added. He spoke in detail about the driver monitoring camera, the active safety and driver assistance system (ASDS), which use AI technologies. Today, the company operates 302 tram cars with the ASDS system.
Pavel Polyakov emphasized that smart transport should be trained in basic skills of work in real conditions at specialized testing grounds, and all systems should have information exchange and the possibility of mutual integration. Currently, such a tram is being tested at the testing ground on the territory of “Shavrovo”, where RFID tags, V2X equipment, and traffic lights are installed. After the adoption of the relevant resolution of the government of St. Petersburg, this rolling stock will go on city routes.
Even when switching to unmanned mode, we will not abandon human participation in the movement. Our main task is to ensure the safety of passengers and improve the quality of services provided, – noted Pavel Polyakov.
Deputy Head of the Computer Technology, Communications and Communications Service of Gorelektrotrans Andrey Sokolov spoke about the development of methods that will allow an objective assessment of the degree of reliability of a particular system and the level of trust in them.
Everyone is waiting for certain approaches, requirements and restrictions before implementing systems in practice. And here we are already talking about trusting and explanatory artificial intelligence, which will provide justifications for why this or that decision was made, – commented the moderator of the seminar, head of the laboratory “Industrial systems of streaming data processing” of SPbPU Marina Bolsunovskaya.
Associate Professor of the Higher School of Management of the Institute of Metallurgy and Metallurgy Dmitry Plotnikov noted that the regulatory framework is lagging far behind the technology, and outlined the interdisciplinary tasks in the development of ground unmanned vehicles. He emphasized that it is necessary to conduct a lot of tests and accumulate data that will form the basis of standards. Dmitry Plotnikov spoke about unmanned vehicles that were developed at SPbPU, about the prospects for the implementation of AI systems in transport.
The participants discussed the possibility of trial operation of the Polytechnic University’s development in the GET — a control system for unmanned cargo transport based on the Gazelle e-NN vehicle. They also considered the advantages of virtual modeling of road situations instead of real tests. Dmitry Plotnikov emphasized that virtual modeling will not completely replace real tests, since it is impossible to virtually foresee all physical processes. Marina Bolsunovskaya believes that at the first stage, virtual modeling can be carried out and then confirmed by full-scale tests. They are important, since not all real-world objects have been analyzed and fully described.
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The famed Michelin Red Guide is coming to Philadelphia, and inspectors are already scouting local restaurants to award the famed Michelin star.
Michelin says the selected restaurants will be announced in a Northeast cities edition celebration later this year. Boston will also be included for the first time.
As an anthropologist of ethics and religion who has an expertise in food studies, I read the announcement with some curiosity and a lot of questions. I had seen this small red guide revered by chefs and gourmands alike around the globe.
How did the Michelin guide begin reviewing restaurants? And what makes it an authority on cuisine worldwide?
It all began in 1889 in the small town of Clermont-Ferrand in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France. Brothers Andre and Edouard Michelin founded their world-famous Michelin tire company, fueled by a grand vision for France’s automobile industry – though there were fewer than 3,000 cars at the time in the whole of France.
To encourage travel, they distributed a red-bound guide filled with maps and helpful tips on routes and destinations. Initially free to automobile owners, it soon started to sell for seven francs – roughly US$1.50 at the time. The guide later added lists of restaurants and eateries along with other points of travel interest.
Being French, readers had questions about the quality of the food at these establishments, so the brothers started a rating system of a single star to denote high-quality establishments worthy of their elite customers and their fancy automobiles.
But that wasn’t enough for discerning diners. So the guide created a discriminating hierarchy of one-, two- and three-star establishments: one star for “high-quality cooking worth a stop,” two stars for “excellent cooking worth a detour,” and three stars for “exceptional cuisine worth a special journey.”
An army of anonymous inspectors
How do restaurants get a Michelin star – or three? According to the guide, restaurants have to be consistently extraordinary to garner three stars. To ensure a restaurant’s excellence is consistent, Michelin has to surveil them repeatedly, which it does using a stable of mysterious diners called “inspectors.”
You might be thinking of Inspector Clouseau, the klutzy, misguided detective from the Pink Panther movies played by the inimitable Peter Sellers.
Mais non!
Michelin inspectors are dreaded anonymous restaurant reviewers. They dine at restaurants unannounced and undercover, and inevitably write scathing critiques of everything – ingredients, food, chefs and dishes – in their reports.
In the 2015 Bradley Cooper movie “Burnt,” the restaurant is obsessed with the mystery Michelin inspectors, who dine incognito. Restaurateur Tony, played by Daniel Bruhl, instructs the dining room staff on how to spot them:
“No one knows who they are. No one. They come. They eat. They go. But they have habits. One orders the tasting menu, the other orders a la carte. Always. They order a half a bottle of wine. They ask for tap water. They are polite. But attention! They may place a fork on the floor to see if you notice.”
The inherent elitism of the iconic Michelin Guide was central, though left unspoken.
To counteract the guide’s existential classist bias, Michelin introduced the Bib Gourmand award in 1997 to identify affordable “best value for money restaurants.” Bib Gourmand restaurants are easier on the wallet than Michelin-starred establishments and offer casual dining. The award’s logo is the Bibendum, also known as the inflatable Michelin Man, licking his lips.
In 2020, the guide introduced yet another award: the green star for eateries with farm-to-table fresh quality.
Today, the Michelin Guide has become a vaunted yet controversial subjective yardstick by which restaurants are measured.
The 2022 dark comedy “The Menu” stars Ralph Fiennes as one such celebrity Michelin chef, whose exclusive island restaurant has a lavish modern menu that culminates in a mystery performance. His greatest fear is losing his Michelin star – a cause for lament, mental health crises and, sometimes, murder.
Three stars for Eurocentrism
The Michelin Guide evaluates restaurants on the quality of their ingredients, the mastery of their flavors, the chef’s personality in their cooking, the harmony of flavors, and the consistency of the cuisine over the course of numerous visits.
Yet somehow, all these factors, seemingly easily translatable across the world’s cuisines, has led to an intensely parochial guide.
Only in 2007, 118 years after its inception, did the guide recognize Japanese cuisine as worthy of its gaze. Soon after, stars rained down on Tokyo’s many stellar eateries.
On a contemporary map charting where the Michelin Guide is found, huge swathes of the world are missing. There is no Michelin Guide in India, one of the world’s greatest and oldest cuisines, or in Africa with its multiplicity of cultural flavors.
Perhaps a side of racism with the boeuf bourguignon?
Despite a movement to decolonize food by rethinking colonial legacies of power and extractive ways of eating, Michelin has derived its stellar reputation primarily from reviewing metropolitan European cuisine. It has celebrated obscure European gastronomic processes such as “fire cooking” in Stockholm’s famous Ekstedt restaurant, and new chemical processes such as “molecular gastronomy” in Spain’s famed el Bulli eatery.
One could say Michelin is a somewhat conservative enterprise. Rather than leading the way, it has followed consumers’ expanding palates.
In 2024, in a rare break with tradition, Michelin awarded one star to a small family-run taqueria, El Califa De León, in Mexico City. The taqueria is known for its signature tacos de gaonera – thinly sliced rib-eye steak cooked in lard on fresh corn masa tortillas with a squeeze of lime.
Some discerning diners worried that Michelin had gone downhill.
Quelle horreur!
The decision to give a star to a Mexican restaurant that is essentially just a steel counter, fridge and griddle was so unlike Michelin that it resorted to describing El Califa tacos as “elemental and pure”; language previously reserved only to describe elite cuisine.
Soon-to-be-reviewed Philadelphia boasts a portfolio of epicurean excellence, with contributions from a global diaspora of culinary creators. Restaurants such as Zahav, Kalaya and Mawn – which serve Israeli, Thai and Cambodian food, respectively – are surely eyeing their prospects for a starry future.
That Boston and Philadelphia’s tourism boards likely paid for the pleasure of the guide visiting their cities has been a topic of discussion among food cognoscenti. Reportedly, the Atlanta Tourism Board paid nearly $1 million for Michelin to visit their city. Is Michelin merely a well-regarded shakedown? A few stars in exchange for a million dollars?
After indirectly footing that big bill, what can local diners look forward to in the wake of Michelin awards scattering across the Northeast?
Starred restaurants will also likely feel tremendous pressure to maintain high food quality and service, and this too can add to cost – particularly in an era of tariffs on foreign ingredients and alcohols.
Diners won’t escape unscathed. Industry officials suggest that Michelin stars add an average of $100 per diner per star. But, on the upside, diners may be able to gawk at local and international celebrities at dinner, since hanging out at Michelin-starred establishments has long been a celebrity preoccupation.
So if you have a favorite hot restaurant in Philadelphia, better make that reservation immediately, before a Michelin star makes it impossible to get in.
Tulasi Srinivas does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
