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Category: Education

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: When big sports events like FIFA World Cup expand, their climate footprint expands too

    Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Brian P. McCullough, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Michigan

    Lionel Messi celebrates with fans after Argentina won the FIFA World Cup championship in 2022 in Qatar. Michael Regan-FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images

    When the FIFA World Cup hits North America in June 2026, 48 teams and millions of soccer fans will be traveling to and from venues spread across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

    It’s a dramatic expansion – 16 more teams will be playing than in recent years, with a jump from 64 to 104 matches. The tournament is projected to bring in over US$10 billion in revenue. But the expansion will also mean a lot more travel and other activities that contribute to climate change.

    The environmental impacts of giant sporting events like the World Cup create a complex paradox for an industry grappling with its future in a warming world.

    A sustainability conundrum

    Sports are undeniably experiencing the effects of climate change. Rising global temperatures are putting athletes’ health at risk during summer heat waves and shortening winter sports seasons. Many of the 2026 World Cup venues often see heat waves in June and early July, when the tournament is scheduled.

    There is a divide over how sports should respond.

    Some athletes are speaking out for more sustainable choices and have called on lawmakers to take steps to limit climate-warming emissions. At the same time, the sport industry is growing and facing a constant push to increase revenue. The NCAA is also considering expanding its March Madness basketball tournaments from 68 teams currently to as many as 76.

    Park Yong-woo of team Al Ain from Abu Dhabi tries to cool off during a Club World Cup match on June 26, 2025, in Washington, D.C., which was in the midst of a heat wave. Some players have raised concerns about likely high temperatures during the 2026 World Cup, with matches scheduled June 11 to July 19.
    AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson

    Estimates for the 2026 World Cup show what large tournament expansions can mean for the climate. A report from Scientists for Global Responsibility estimates that the expanded World Cup could generate over 9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, nearly double the average of the past four World Cups.

    This massive increase – and the increase that would come if the NCAA basketball tournaments also expand – would primarily be driven by air travel as fans and players fly among event cities that are thousands of miles apart.

    A lot of money is at stake, but so is the climate

    Sports are big business, and adding more matches to events like the World Cup and NCAA tournaments will likely lead to larger media rights contracts and greater gate receipts from more fans attending the events, boosting revenues. These are powerful financial incentives.

    In the NCAA’s case, there is another reason to consider a larger tournament: The House v. NCAA settlement opened the door for college athletic departments to share revenue with athletes, which will significantly increase costs for many college programs. More teams would mean more television revenue and, crucially, more revenue to be distributed to member NCAA institutions and their athletic conferences.

    When climate promises become greenwashing

    The inherent conflict between maximizing profit through growth and minimizing environmental footprint presents a dilemma for sports.

    Several sport organizations have promised to reduce their impact on the climate, including signing up for initiatives like the United Nations Sports for Climate Action Framework.

    However, as sports tournaments and exhibition games expand, it can become increasingly hard for sports organizations to meet their climate commitments. In some cases, groups making sustainability commitments have been accused of greenwashing, suggesting the goals are more about public relations than making genuine, measurable changes.

    For example, FIFA’s early claims that it would hold a “fully carbon-neutral” World Cup in Qatar in 2022 were challenged by a group of European countries that accused soccer’s world governing body of underestimating emissions. The Swiss Fairness Commission, which monitors fairness in advertising, considered the complaints and determined that FIFA’s claims could not be substantiated.

    Alessandro Bastoni, of Inter Milan and Italy’s national team, prepares to board a flight from Milan to Rome with his team.
    Mattia Ozbot-Inter/Inter via Getty Images

    Aviation is often the biggest driver of emissions. A study that colleagues and I conducted on the NCAA men’s basketball tournament found about 80% of its emissions were connected to travel. And that was after the NCAA began using the pod system, which is designed to keep teams closer to home for the first and second rounds.

    Finding practical solutions

    Some academics, observing the rising emissions trend, have called for radical solutions like the end of commercialized sports or drastically limiting who can attend sporting events, with a focus on fans from the region.

    These solutions are frankly not practical, in my view, nor do they align with other positive developments. The growing popularity of women’s sports shows the challenge in limiting sports events – more games expands participation but adds to the industry’s overall footprint.

    Further compounding the challenges of reducing environmental impact is the amount of fan travel, which is outside the direct control of the sports organization or event organizers.

    Many fans will follow their teams long distances, especially for mega-events like the World Cup or the NCAA tournament. During the men’s World Cup in Russia in 2018, more than 840,000 fans traveled from other countries. The top countries by number of fans, after Russia, were China, the U.S., Mexico and Argentina.

    There is an argument that distributed sporting events like March Madness or the World Cup can be better in some ways for local environments because they don’t overwhelm a single city. However, merely spreading the impact does not necessarily reduce it, particularly when considering the effects on climate change.

    How fans can cut their environmental footprint

    Sport organizations and event planners can take steps to be more sustainable and also encourage more sustainable choices among fans. Fans can reduce their environmental impact in a variety of ways. For example:

    • Avoid taking airplanes for shorter distances, such as between FIFA venues in Philadelphia, New York and Boston, and carpool or take Amtrak instead. Planes can be more efficient for long distances, but air travel is still a major contributing factor to emissions.

    • While in a host city, use mass transit or rent electric vehicles or bicycles for local travel.

    • Consider sustainable accommodations, such as short-term rentals that might have a smaller environmental footprint than a hotel. Or stay at a certified green hotel that makes an effort to be more efficient in its use of water and energy.

    • Engage in sustainable pregame and postgame activities, such as choosing local, sustainable food options, and minimize waste.

    • You can also pay to offset carbon emissions for attending different sporting events, much like concertgoers do when they attend musical festivals. While critics question offsets’ true environmental benefit, they do represent people’s growing awareness of their environmental footprint.

    Through all these options, it’s clear that sports face a significant challenge in addressing their environmental impacts and encouraging fans to be more sustainable, while simultaneously trying to meet ambitious business and environmental targets.

    In my view, a sustainable path forward will require strategic, yet genuine, commitment by the sports industry and its fans, and a willingness to prioritize long-term planetary health alongside economic gains – balancing the sport and sustainability.

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

    – ref. When big sports events like FIFA World Cup expand, their climate footprint expands too – https://theconversation.com/when-big-sports-events-like-fifa-world-cup-expand-their-climate-footprint-expands-too-259437

    MIL OSI Analysis –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Podcast: The unnatural nature of metamaterials

    Source: US Government research organizations

    Metamaterials are a special class of engineered materials, designed to have properties not found in nature. Glaucio Paulino, a professor at Princeton University, discusses his work on developing modular chiral origami metamaterials, engineering control approaches and the ways they might benefit society.

    [embedded content]

    Listen to NSF Discovery Files wherever you get your podcasts.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Podcast: The unnatural nature of metamaterials

    Source: US Government research organizations

    Metamaterials are a special class of engineered materials, designed to have properties not found in nature. Glaucio Paulino, a professor at Princeton University, discusses his work on developing modular chiral origami metamaterials, engineering control approaches and the ways they might benefit society.

    [embedded content]

    Listen to NSF Discovery Files wherever you get your podcasts.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: #Mvuvet on Palace: Polytechnics became participants in the exhibition of the volunteer movement

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    From July 4 to 24, in the center of St. Petersburg, on Bolshaya Morskaya Street, No. 1 (the Arch of the General Staff Building on Palace Square), a photo exhibition dedicated to the 5th anniversary of the All-Russian Mutual Aid Campaign is taking place

    One of the exhibition’s heroines was the director of the Volunteer Projects Center “Harmony” of SPbPU Tatiana NamUnder her leadership, the Center joined the work of the regional headquarters in the spring of 2020 and is still one of the most active in the country.

    Promotion

    The Harmony Center has been actively involved in the work from the very beginning and has become a point of attraction for good initiatives. Over five years, hundreds of events have been organized: concerts and master classes in military hospitals, collection of humanitarian aid, support for families of SVO participants, educational courses for new volunteers.

    «

    Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    .

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: #Mvuvet on Palace: Polytechnics became participants in the exhibition of the volunteer movement

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    From July 4 to 24, in the center of St. Petersburg, on Bolshaya Morskaya Street, No. 1 (the Arch of the General Staff Building on Palace Square), a photo exhibition dedicated to the 5th anniversary of the All-Russian Mutual Aid Campaign is taking place

    One of the exhibition’s heroines was the director of the Volunteer Projects Center “Harmony” of SPbPU Tatiana NamUnder her leadership, the Center joined the work of the regional headquarters in the spring of 2020 and is still one of the most active in the country.

    Promotion

    The Harmony Center has been actively involved in the work from the very beginning and has become a point of attraction for good initiatives. Over five years, hundreds of events have been organized: concerts and master classes in military hospitals, collection of humanitarian aid, support for families of SVO participants, educational courses for new volunteers.

    «

    Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    .

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI: NANO Nuclear Appoints Vice Admiral Charles J. “Joe” Leidig, Jr. (Ret.) as Chairman of its Executive Advisory Board for Naval Nuclear Initiatives

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Former Deputy to the Commander for Military Operations, U.S. Africa Command, to advise NANO Nuclear on potential civilian and defense applications of its advanced nuclear technologies

    New York, N.Y., July 15, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: NNE) (“NANO Nuclear” or “the Company”), a leading advanced nuclear energy and technology company focused on developing clean energy solutions, today announced that it has appointed distinguished nuclear submarine leader and Former Deputy to the Commander for Military Operations, U.S. Africa Command, Vice Admiral Charles J. Leidig, Jr. (Ret.), as the Chairman of its Executive Advisory Board for Naval Nuclear Initiatives.

    In his role, Vice Admiral Leidig will guide NANO Nuclear’s initiatives to support United States Naval operations with reliable nuclear power solutions, including the potential use of NANO Nuclear microreactors in development for propulsion, baseload power on operating bases and other programs.

    Leidig served as Deputy to the Commander for Military Operations, U.S. Africa Command from August 2010 to June 2013, capping a 39-year Navy career. Prior to this assignment, Leidig was the 80th Commandant of Midshipmen at the U.S. Naval Academy, and earlier commanded USS Cavalla (SSN 684), where his crew earned two Meritorious Unit Commendations and the coveted Battle “E.” Additional leadership posts included Commander, Submarine Development Squadron Five; Commander, Naval Forces and Region Marianas; Commander, Submarine Group Eight; and Deputy Commander, U.S. 6th Fleet. Across these tours he directed submarine rescue programs, Arctic-warfare initiatives, and allied undersea operations, building a reputation for positive, mission-focused leadership.

    Vice Admiral Leidig’s career also included stints as a material officer for Submarine Squadron 11, senior member of the Nuclear Propulsion Examining Board, assistant deputy director for Regional Operations on the Joint Staff, and executive assistant to the Director of the Joint Staff. He is a 1978 graduate, with distinction, of the U.S. Naval Academy and holds a master’s in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College. Professional education later included the National Security Management Program at Syracuse University and the Navy Executive Business Course at UNC Chapel Hill.

    “The U.S. Navy’s long record of safe, reliable nuclear propulsion has shown how compact reactors can deliver consistent power under demanding conditions,” said Charles J. Leidig, Jr., Chairman of NANO Nuclear’s Executive Advisory Board for Naval Nuclear Initiatives. “NANO Nuclear brings that same spirit of innovation to the next generation of microreactors for potential civilian and military use. NANO Nuclear’s rapid progress reflects a focused, highly capable team, and I’m pleased to contribute my naval nuclear experience as we meet growing demand in the marketplace for advanced nuclear technologies.”

    Figure 1 – NANO Nuclear Appoints Vice Admiral Charles J. Leidig (Ret.) as the Chairman of its Executive Advisory Board for Naval Nuclear Initiatives.

    His personal decorations comprise the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, among numerous unit awards. He remains deeply engaged with the Naval Academy community and veterans’ organizations, continuing a lifelong commitment to mentorship and national service.

    “NANO Nuclear is moving steadily toward constructing the first U.S. commercial microreactor, the KRONOS MMR™ Energy System,” said Jay Yu, Founder and Chairman of NANO Nuclear. “As we enter this next phase of development, we are assembling a leadership team equal to the technology’s promise. Vice Admiral Leidig exemplifies the caliber of talent essential to our future, and we are pleased to welcome him to our company.”

    “Vice Admiral Leidig’s appointment further strengthens NANO Nuclear’s roster of leading public- and private-sector advisors,” said James Walker, Chief Executive Officer of NANO Nuclear. “His firsthand experience directing the Navy’s nuclear-power initiatives will be invaluable as the country looks for efficient, long-life energy solutions. With his guidance, we believe our flexible microreactor portfolio in development can help power the next phase of America’s energy transition.”

    About NANO Nuclear Energy, Inc.

    NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: NNE) is an advanced technology-driven nuclear energy company seeking to become a commercially focused, diversified, and vertically integrated company across five business lines: (i) cutting edge portable and other microreactor technologies, (ii) nuclear fuel fabrication, (iii) nuclear fuel transportation, (iv) nuclear applications for space and (v) nuclear industry consulting services. NANO Nuclear believes it is the first portable nuclear microreactor company to be listed publicly in the U.S.

    Led by a world-class nuclear engineering team, NANO Nuclear’s reactor products in development include patented KRONOS MMR™Energy System, a stationary high-temperature gas-cooled reactor that is in construction permit pre-application engagement U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in collaboration with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, “ZEUS”, a solid core battery reactor, and “ODIN”, a low-pressure coolant reactor, and the space focused, portable LOKI MMR™, each representing advanced developments in clean energy solutions that are portable, on-demand capable, advanced nuclear microreactors.

    Advanced Fuel Transportation Inc. (AFT), a NANO Nuclear subsidiary, is led by former executives from the largest transportation company in the world aiming to build a North American transportation company that will provide commercial quantities of HALEU fuel to small modular reactors, microreactor companies, national laboratories, military, and DOE programs. Through NANO Nuclear, AFT is the exclusive licensee of a patented high-capacity HALEU fuel transportation basket developed by three major U.S. national nuclear laboratories and funded by the Department of Energy. Assuming development and commercialization, AFT is expected to form part of the only vertically integrated nuclear fuel business of its kind in North America.

    HALEU Energy Fuel Inc. (HEF), a NANO Nuclear subsidiary, is focusing on the future development of a domestic source for a High-Assay, Low-Enriched Uranium (HALEU) fuel fabrication pipeline for NANO Nuclear’s own microreactors as well as the broader advanced nuclear reactor industry.

    NANO Nuclear Space Inc. (NNS), a NANO Nuclear subsidiary, is exploring the potential commercial applications of NANO Nuclear’s developing micronuclear reactor technology in space. NNS is focusing on applications such as the LOKI MMR™ system and other power systems for extraterrestrial projects and human sustaining environments, and potentially propulsion technology for long haul space missions. NNS’ initial focus will be on cis-lunar applications, referring to uses in the space region extending from Earth to the area surrounding the Moon’s surface.

    For more corporate information please visit: https://NanoNuclearEnergy.com/

    For further NANO Nuclear information, please contact:

    Email: IR@NANONuclearEnergy.com
    Business Tel: (212) 634-9206

    PLEASE FOLLOW OUR SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES HERE:

    NANO Nuclear Energy LINKEDIN
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    Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements

    This news release and statements of NANO Nuclear’s management in connection with this news release contain or may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In this context, forward-looking statements mean statements related to future events, which may impact our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as “expects”, “anticipates”, “intends”, “plans”, “believes”, “potential”, “will”, “should”, “could”, “would” or “may” and other words of similar meaning. In this press release, forward-looking statements include those related to the anticipated benefits to NANO Nuclear of the appointment of Vice Admiral Leidig to the Company’s Executive Advisory Board, as well as the Company’s future development plans in general. These and other forward-looking statements are based on information available to us as of the date of this news release and represent management’s current views and assumptions. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, events or results and involve significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may be beyond our control. For NANO Nuclear, particular risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in our forward-looking statements include but are not limited to the following: (i) risks related to our U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) or related state or non-U.S. nuclear fuel licensing submissions, (ii) risks related the development of new or advanced technology and the acquisition of complimentary technology or businesses, including difficulties with design and testing, cost overruns, regulatory delays, integration issues and the development of competitive technology, (iii) our ability to obtain contracts and funding to be able to continue operations, (iv) risks related to uncertainty regarding our ability to technologically develop and commercially deploy a competitive advanced nuclear reactor or other technology in the timelines we anticipate, if ever, (v) risks related to the impact of U.S. and non-U.S. government regulation, policies and licensing requirements, including by the DOE and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, including those associated with the enacted ADVANCE Act and the May 23, 2025 presidential executive orders seeking to support nuclear energy, and (vi) similar risks and uncertainties associated with the operating an early stage business a highly regulated and rapidly evolving industry. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date of this news release. These factors may not constitute all factors that could cause actual results to differ from those discussed in any forward-looking statement, and NANO Nuclear therefore encourages investors to review other factors that may affect future results in its filings with the SEC, which are available for review at www.sec.gov and at https://ir.nanonuclearenergy.com/financial-information/sec-filings. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as a predictor of actual results. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this news release, except as required by law.

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Xsolis Launches AI Amplified, a New Podcast Hosted by Chief Medical Officer Dr. Heather Bassett, Spotlighting the Real-World Impact of AI in Healthcare

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    FRANKLIN, Tenn., July 15, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Xsolis, an AI-driven healthcare technology company that reduces administrative waste by enabling collaboration between healthcare providers and payers, today announced the launch of AI Amplified, a new podcast hosted by Dr. Heather Bassett, Chief Medical Officer of Xsolis. Produced in partnership with HealthcareNOW Radio, AI Amplified brings together industry leaders as they explore how artificial intelligence is being applied responsibly and effectively across healthcare to improve outcomes, optimize operations, and create more sustainable systems of care.

    The premiere episode, “From Med School to CMIO to CIO to AI Leadership,” features Stephanie Lahr, MD, CHCIO, CEO and Founder of Vital Thread Advisory. In this episode, Dr. Lahr reflects on her journey through clinical care and executive leadership and how those experiences inform her current work advising health systems on AI strategy and digital transformation.

    “As the healthcare industry continues to explore and embrace the potential of AI, it’s critical that we center the conversation on thoughtful, responsible implementation,” said Dr. Heather Bassett, Chief Medical Officer at Xsolis. “AI Amplified is a platform for those conversations focused on impact, accountability, and the people driving innovation forward.”

    Dr. Bassett leads both the clinical services and data science teams at Xsolis and brings deep technical expertise and a strong clinical foundation to every conversation. She led the development of Xsolis’ proprietary Care Level Score, an AI-powered algorithm that drives the company’s utilization management platform, Dragonfly, used by hundreds of hospitals, health systems, and health plans nationwide.

    AI Amplified launched on July 9, 2025, and will feature new episodes releasing every 2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month. The show is available on HealthcareNOW Radio and all major podcast platforms.

    Xsolis has been leveraging human-in-the-loop AI practices to develop AI solutions that streamline medical necessity decision-making in healthcare for over a decade. The company’s generative AI solutions are available alongside its existing Dragonfly platform and predictive AI models, which have saved health system and health plan customers more than $1.5 billion. 

    To learn more, visit:
    https://www.healthcarenowradio.com/programs/ai-amplified

    For podcast booking inquiries, contact media@xsolis.com.

    About Xsolis 

    Xsolis is an AI-driven technology company that reduces administrative waste by enabling collaboration between healthcare providers and payers. Dragonfly®, its AI-driven proprietary platform, is the first and only solution to use real-time predictive analytics to continuously assign an objective medical necessity score and assess the anticipated level of care for every patient, enabling more efficiency across the healthcare system. Xsolis is headquartered in Franklin, Tennessee. For more information, visit www.xsolis.com.

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3beac53a-4a6c-4b95-8d99-7e2b5924565e

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Unlimited Rolls Out Two New Hedge Fund Replication ETFs

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, July 15, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Unlimited and its CEO and CIO, Bob Elliott, today rolled out two new actively managed ETFs: the Unlimited HFMF Managed Futures ETF (HFMF) and the Unlimited HFEQ Equity Long/Short ETF (HFEQ), offering investors exposure to managed futures and equity long/short hedge fund strategies, respectively. These latest additions to the Unlimited lineup align with Unlimited’s mission to provide investors with access to transparent, liquid, and cost-effective hedge fund-style returns. These new strategies will allocate across a diversified basket of ETFs and exchange-listed futures contracts, adjusting dynamically based on evolving market conditions.

    Today’s launch expands Unlimited’s ETF roster to cover the primary hedge fund strategy sectors. “With the addition of our Managed Futures and Equity Long/Short strategies, Unlimited now offers complementary strategies to help achieve diversification in a wide range of investor portfolios,” said Mr. Elliott. “Deploying these strategies in the ETF wrapper, which offers intraday liquidity, affords the manager flexibility to adjust through volatile markets.”

    Each of Unlimited’s sector ETFs were designed to offer a volatility target aligned with equity markets as an investor-friendly way to add the diversification features of alternatives to a balanced portfolio:

    • Unlimited HFMF Managed Futures ETF – trend-following approach that seeks to generate alpha with low expected correlation to broad bond and equity markets.
    • Unlimited HFEQ Equity Long/Short ETF – equity-focused strategy that takes long and short positions across equity sectors, factors, and geographies, aiming to generate alpha relative to broad equity market exposure.
    • Unlimited HFGM Global Macro ETF – seeks to capitalize on global market mispricing opportunities spanning currency, fixed income, equity, credit and exchange rate markets.

    Over time, high fees and inefficient tax structures in hedge funds erode returns, and top tier private funds are often inaccessible to the majority of investors. Unlimited developed proprietary machine learning technology to analyze near real-time hedge fund investment returns and efficiently replicate the underlying exposures while maintaining an expense ratio significantly lower than the standard “2 & 20” hedge fund fee model.

    Unlimited’s ETFs are managed by Mr. Elliott, former investment committee member at Bridgewater Associates, and Bruce McNevin, co-founder and Chief Data Scientist at Unlimited. Mr. McNevin brings extensive experience in quantitative modeling and data science.

    For more information on Unlimited HFMF, HFEQ, HFGM and HFND please visit https://www.unlimitedetfs.com/.

    About Unlimited
    Founded in 2022 by Bob Elliott, Bruce McNevin and Matt Salzberg, Unlimited is an investment firm using proprietary technology to create strategies that offer lower-cost access to 2 & 20-style alternative investment strategies, such as hedge funds, to a wide range of investors. Mr. Elliott has built innovative hedge fund strategies for more than two decades, including at Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund. Mr. McNevin is a Professor of Economics at New York University and has held various data science positions at hedge funds Clinton Group and Midway Group, along with positions at Bank of America and BlackRock. Mr. Salzberg is a Co-Founder and Chairman of various companies, including Unlimited. Learn more at unlimitedfunds.com.

    Media Contacts:

    Sarah Lazarus Zach Kouwe
    Dukas Linden Public Relations Dukas Linden Public Relations
    +1 617-335-7823 +1 551-655-4032
    sarah@dlpr.com zkouwe@dlpr.com
       

    Before investing you should carefully consider the Fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. This and other information is in the prospectus. A prospectus may be obtained by visiting www.unlimitedetfs.com. Please read the prospectus carefully before you invest.

    Important Risks
    Underlying ETFs Risks. The Fund will incur higher and duplicative expenses because it invests in Underlying ETFs. There is also the risk that the Fund may suffer losses due to the investment practices of the Underlying ETFs. The Fund will be subject to substantially the same risks as those associated with the direct ownership of securities held by the Underlying ETFs.

    Management Risk. The Fund is actively managed and may not meet its investment objective based on the Sub-Adviser’s success or failure to implement investment strategies for the Fund.

    Machine Learning, Model and Data Risk. The Fund relies heavily on proprietary “machine learning” selection processes. In addition, the composition of the Fund’s portfolio is heavily dependent on proprietary quantitative models as well as information and data supplied by third parties (“Models and Data”).

    Volatility Risk. The Fund seeks to achieve a higher level of volatility than its target hedge fund industry sector, which may result in substantial price fluctuations over short periods. As a result, the value of the Fund’s investments may rise or fall significantly, and investors should be prepared for increased levels of volatility compared to traditional
    equity funds.

    Commodity Risk. Underlying ETFs that invest in the commodities markets may subject to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities.

    Derivatives Risk. The Fund’s or an Underlying ETF’s derivative investments have risks, including the imperfect correlation between the value of such instruments and the underlying assets or index; the loss of principal, including the potential loss of amounts greater than the initial amount invested in the derivative instrument; the possible default of the other party to the transaction; and illiquidity of the derivative investments.

    Emerging Markets Risk. The Fund may invest in Underlying ETFs that invest in securities issued by companies domiciled or headquartered in emerging market nations. Investments in securities traded in developing or emerging markets, or that provide exposure to such securities or markets, can involve additional risks relating to political, economic, currency, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in U.S. securities and investments in more developed international markets.

    Fixed Income Securities Risk. The Fund may invest in Underlying ETFs that invest in fixed income securities. The prices of fixed income securities may be affected by changes in interest rates, the creditworthiness and financial strength of the issuer and other factors. An increase in prevailing interest rates typically causes the value of existing fixed income securities to fall and often has a greater impact on longer-duration and/or higher quality fixed income securities.

    Foreign Securities Risk. Foreign securities held by Underlying ETFs in which the Fund invests involve certain risks not involved in domestic investments and may experience more rapid and extreme changes in value than investments in securities of U.S. companies.

    Futures Contracts Risk. The Fund or Underlying ETFs may invest in futures contracts.
    Risks of futures contracts include: (i) an imperfect correlation between the value of the futures contract and the underlying asset; (ii) possible lack of a liquid secondary market; (iii) the inability to close a futures contract when desired; (iv) losses caused by unanticipated market movements, which may be unlimited; (v) an obligation for the Fund or an Underlying ETF, as applicable, to make daily cash payments to maintain its required margin, particularly at times when the Fund or Underlying ETF may have insufficient cash; and (vi) unfavorable execution prices from rapid selling.

    New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors do not have a track record or history on which to base their investment decisions.

    Short Selling Risk. The Fund may make short sales of securities of Underlying ETFs, which involves selling a security it does not own in anticipation that the price of the security will decline. Short sales may involve substantial risk and leverage. Short sales expose the Fund to the risk that it will be required to buy (“cover”) the security sold short when the security has appreciated in value or is unavailable, thus resulting in a loss to the Fund. Short sales also involve the risk that losses may exceed the amount invested and may be unlimited.

    Swap Agreement Risk. The Fund or an Underlying ETF may invest in swap agreements. Swap agreements could result in losses if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Swaps can have the potential for unlimited losses. They are also subject to counterparty risk. If the counterparty fails to meet its obligations, the Fund (or the Underlying Fund) may lose money.

    Definitions:
    2 & 20 strategy: Describes the standard fee structure charged by advisers of private funds, which generally includes a 2% asset-based management fee, in addition to a 20% performance fee charged on the profits on investments.

    Distributed by Foreside Fund Services, LLC.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Government launches “Good Food Cycle” to transform Britain’s food system 

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    Government launches “Good Food Cycle” to transform Britain’s food system 

    New “Good Food Cycle” framework serves up healthier eating, stronger food security and greener supply chains  

    Getty images

    The government has served up its new “Good Food Cycle” today (15 July) – a recipe aimed at driving a generational change in the nation’s relationship with food.   

    The Good Food Cycle identifies ten priority outcomes needed to build a thriving food sector while tackling challenges from rising obesity rates to climate change impacts on production, representing a pivotal milestone in the government’s work to develop a comprehensive food strategy      

    Key outcomes to create a good food cycle include:   

    • An improved food environment that supports healthier and more environmentally sustainable food sales    

    • Access for all to safe, affordable, healthy, convenient and appealing food options     

    • Conditions for the food sector to thrive and grow sustainably, including investment in innovation and productivity, and fairer more transparent supply chains     

    This fresh approach sets out the government’s vision for a modern food system, that sits at the heart of the government’s Plan for Change, tackling multiple critical challenges at once and helping to put more money back in people’s pockets.   

    Building stronger, more resilient food supply chains protects Britain from potential disruptions and strengthens our national security. Making sure everyone can afford healthy food drives our health mission by helping people stay well and reducing pressure on the NHS. We’re also working to give children the nutritious start they need to thrive at school and beyond to give every child the best possible start in life, whatever their background.  

    Minister for Food Security Daniel Zeichner, said:    

    Food security is national security – we need a resilient food system that can weather any storm while ensuring families across the country can access affordable, healthy food.   

    The Good Food Cycle represents a major milestone. We are actively defining the outcomes we want from our food system to deliver a whole system change that will help the amazing businesses that feed our nation to grow and thrive, which means more jobs and stronger local economies, while making it easier for families to eat and feel better.   

    This isn’t just about what’s on our plates today, it’s about building a stronger food system for generations to come, supporting economic growth, health and opportunity as part of our Plan for Change. 

    The ten outcomes have been informed by expert advice from departments across government, the Food Strategy Advisory Board, workshops with interested charities and businesses, as well as members of the public from a Citizen Advisory Council to ensure everyone stands to benefit from a nutritious, sustainable and resilient food system, as part of the Plan for Change.    

    The Good Food Cycle builds on recent government measures to curb diet-related health problems. Fresh partnerships with big food companies will see them share data on healthy food sales, creating more transparency and a level playing field across the industry.   

    With two-thirds of adults in England currently overweight or living with obesity and costing the NHS over £11.4 billion annually, the new approach will help make sure healthier choices don’t get squeezed off supermarket shelves by less nutritious options.   

    Minister for Health Ashley Dalton, said:  

    We want to make sure all families have the option of healthy, high-quality food – not least because it helps tackle the epidemic of obesity, which costs our NHS over £11 billion a year.  

    The Good Food Cycle will be good for the health of our communities and help us curb the rising tide of cost and demand on the NHS.  

    This builds on measures in our new 10 Year Health Plan to make the healthy choice the easy choice, including launching a world-first partnership with food manufacturers and retailers.

    Evidence shows that children living in poverty are far less likely to have enough nutritious food to eat, with almost 1 in 5 living in food insecurity, affecting their health and attainment at school. The Good Food Cycle will improve access to healthy, affordable food for families and give them the skills and support to cook and eat healthily.  

    This is a key part of the Government’s wider action to tackle child poverty and support families with the cost of essential goods. It builds on the expansion of Free School Meals to an additional 500,000 children and the rollout of free breakfast clubs for primary school pupils and will form part of the Government’s Child Poverty Strategy published in the Autumn.  

    Minister for Employment, Alison McGovern, who sits on the Ministerial Food Strategy Group and the Child Poverty Taskforce, said:   

    It’s unacceptable that children in Britain are growing up without access to healthy and affordable food – holding back their learning and development.  

    Along with making over half a million more children eligible for free school meals and rolling out breakfast clubs to all primary schools, the Good Food Cycle will ensure the next generation are well fed and ready to reach their full potential.  

    This framework marks an important step in our mission to tackle child poverty, to support families and give all children the very best start in life.  

    Food Security Minister Daniel Zeichner announced the strategy at Darley Street Market in Bradford as part of their 2025 City of Culture celebrations.    

    Cities like Bradford are already pioneering the kind of community-focused food initiatives that the Good Food Cycle strategy aims to scale up nationwide.    

    Bradford’s plans include ensuring primary school pupils get hands-on experience with growing, cooking and eating fresh food – directly supporting the strategy’s goal of giving children the best start in life through better nutrition and food education. The city is also backing venues where citizens of all ages can cook and eat together, creating the kind of inclusive food spaces that help build stronger communities while celebrating local food culture.   

    Cllr Sarah Ferriby, Bradford Council’s portfolio holder for Healthy People and Places, said:     

    We’re delighted to welcome Minister Zeichner to our new Darley Street Market today to launch the Good Food Cycle.   

    Having a clear direction on food policy is vital if we are to tackle some of the key issues that affect communities in our district, such as food poverty and obesity while also supporting our food producers and protecting our environment.  This is why we worked closely with the district’s Sustainable Food Partnership to launch our own food strategy last year which sets out our plans to support residents with healthy and sustainable food, and to reduce health inequalities.  

    It is really fitting to launch this important national framework here in Bradford. Our district has a proud food culture and history which we want to build on. Backing our local producers so they can provide quality, nutritious food to local people is a key part of part of our ambition and why we have invested in this new market.  

    Additional quotes   

    Dan Bates, Executive Director of Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture, said:  

    At Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture, we’re proud to celebrate our district’s rich cultural identity through its diverse culinary traditions. Whether it’s family recipes passed down through generations, a commemorative biscuit tin containing heritage stories, or even a curry festival; these all offer a unique lens into Bradford’s history, creativity and community spirit. We’re delighted that Bradford has been chosen to launch the [Good Food Cycle] at the new Darley Street Market, full of independent local traders to help showcase the city’s dynamic contemporary culture to the world.  

    Professor Susan Jebb, Chair of the Food Standards Agency, said:  

    We welcome the ambitions set out in the Good Food Cycle today and support the outcomes it describes.  

    We continue to work closely with other departments in the delivery of the strategy, playing our part to make it easier for consumers to access food that is healthier and more sustainable. 

    Sarah Bradbury, CEO at IGD, said:   

    As co-secretariat of the FSAB, we partnered with the Defra team earlier this year to host multi-stakeholder workshops, engaging over 150 organisations across the agri-food supply chain. Their insights have directly shaped the Good Food Cycle’s ambition to build a food system that works for everyone. A powerful example of what can be achieved through collaboration.

    Andrew Opie, Director of Food & Sustainability at the BRC, said:  

    Retailers welcome the ambition and direction of the framework. They know customers want more British food, sustainably produced and with clear healthy choices; something we believe this approach can help to deliver. 

    Kate Nicholls, Chair of UKHospitality, said:   

    Hospitality is a central cog in our food system – serving Britain with great food and drink 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The food supply chain shares the Government’s ambitions to create a healthier, more sustainable food system, and it’s critical the Government works with businesses to do that in a pragmatic and achievable way.    

    Diverse and vibrant food cultures are part of what makes our communities thrive, and we look forward to working with the Government to develop a food strategy that recognises hospitality’s vital importance to the food system, economy and society.

    Dalton Philips, CEO of Greencore plc, said:    

    The Good Food Cycle is a bold and timely step toward a healthier, fairer and more sustainable food system. It sets the right direction for industry, government and communities to work together to drive lasting change.   

    Tim J Smith CBE, Chairman of Cranswick, said:     

    As we mark the launch of the Good Food Cycle today and as a member of the Food Strategy Advisory Board I would like to commend the government for its progress on establishing a set of priorities which we can all get behind. This matters for everyone. Wherever we live, whoever we are, we’re all connected to the food system. Food matters. The pace at which this work has developed has been remarkable as has the very unusual cross-government working needed to get us to this point: where our food system is closer to being healthier, more sustainable and affordable and where that system is fair for all.  

    Balwinder Dhoot, Director of Sustainability and Growth, The Food and Drink Federation (FDF), said:   

    From the everyday staples found in kitchen cupboards, fridges and freezers, like oats, yoghurts, tins of beans and frozen vegetables, to ready meals, confectionary and new healthier snacks, UK food and drink manufacturers help the nation have a balanced and varied diet, amid busy lifestyles.   

    We welcome this strategy’s holistic view that considers all of the factors affecting our sector – from creating the right conditions to drive investment in new healthier products, through to removing barriers to trade and ensuring we have the skilled workers we need. We’re pleased to see government acknowledge the importance of our industry to achieving a resilient, sustainable and healthy food system for the UK and look forward to working together to develop this ambitious Food Strategy.

    Citizens Advisory Council: 

    Anna Taylor, Executive Director, The Food Foundation, said:   

    The Food Strategy is an opportunity to reset the rules governing the food system so we start winning the fight against diet related disease and unlock progress  in delivering our nature and climate targets. The wellbeing of citizens must be at the heart of these changes, with food businesses now being encouraged to sell and promote healthier options. This should also be a signal to investors that British food companies making nutritious foods hold the keys to future growth and productivity.  Most importantly it holds the promise of getting our children back on track for long, healthy and fruitful lives.  

    Sue Pritchard, Chief Executive, Food, Farming and Countryside Commission, said:     

    What’s exciting about this approach is that citizens don’t want to see a strategy gathering dust on a shelf. They are really interested in how it will be delivered – and the difference it will make to their everyday lives. They want to see healthy food, sustainably produced, easily available to everyone everywhere. Citizens tend to cut to the chase. They’re interested in what works, and where it is working already, around the UK and elsewhere in the world. They want to make sure that government focuses on making a real difference – for health, for nature, for climate and for a fairer food system for everyone.

    Citizens Advisory Council members:  

    “I think it’s very important to get out and speak to people from different corners of the UK and from all different social aspects and social standings, to understand what the real problems are at the ground level.” – Kevin Robson, Tyne & Wear  

    “I’d love it if we end up in a place where providing healthy, good food for your family becomes a little less confusing. At the moment, I think lots of citizens do find it confusing. It shouldn’t be a struggle to provide healthy food for a family.” – David Njoku, Berkshire  

    “I think what I’m really looking for is change. Defra have been really vocal that they want to hear us and they want to centre citizen voices as a key part of their strategy.” – Emmanuela Kumi, London

    Updates to this page

    Published 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: RSF supported 15 projects of young scientists from HSE

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: State University “Higher School of Economics” –

    An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    The Russian Science Foundation has summed up the results of the 2025 youth competitions for grants. Based on the results of the competition of initiative projects of young scientists, 14 projects of the Higher School of Economics were supported. Based on the results of the competition of scientific groups led by young scientists, one university project was supported.

    The competitions are part of the Presidential Program of research projects implemented by leading scientists, including young scientists, a priority area of the RSF activity “Support for young scientists”. The goal of the presented project should be to solve specific problems within the framework of one of the priorities defined in the Strategy for Scientific and Technological Development of the Russian Federation.

    Competition of initiative projects of young scientists

    Grants are allocated for the implementation of fundamental and exploratory scientific research in 2025–2027 to researchers aged up to and including 33 years who have a PhD degree.

    Following the results of the competition, 14 HSE projects were supported in the following areas: Mathematics, informatics and systems sciences, Physics and space sciences, Humanities and social sciences:

    “Assessing Impact Effects in Economic Research Using Synthesis of Econometric Models and Machine Learning Methods” (headed by Bogdan Potanin, Faculty of Economic Sciences);

    “Trace Operator in Non-Lipschitz Domains and the Steklov Problem” (supervised by Alexander Menovshchikov, Faculty of Mathematics);

    “Solution of the inverse phaseless scattering problem for the Helmholtz equation using the phase reconstruction method” (supervisor Vladimir Sivkin, Faculty of Mathematics);

    “Automorphisms of algebraic monoids” (supervised by Anton Shafarevich, Faculty of Computer Science);

    “Localization and its destruction in one-dimensional disordered quantum multiparticle systems” (head Murod Bakhovadinov, International Laboratory of Condensed Matter Physics);

    “Hessian and locally conformal Hessian manifolds” (supervised by Pavel Osipov, International Laboratory of Mirror Symmetry and Automorphic Forms);

    “Socio-psychological factors of perception of socio-economic inequality: from social comparison to subjective well-being” (headed by Irina Prusova, Faculty of Social Sciences);

    “Industrial postgraduate studies in Russia: practices, barriers and effects of employers’ participation in the training of postgraduate students” (headed by Svetlana Zhuchkova, Institute of Education);

    “‘Gentle’ employment: practices for adapting forms and conditions of employment against the backdrop of deteriorating health in older age groups in Russia” (headed by Anna Chervyakova, Institute of Social Policy);

    “Dynamical systems on direct and oblique products of manifolds” (supervisor Marina Barinova, HSE University – Nizhny Novgorod);

    “Knowledge and Management on the Imperial Outskirts: Experts and Mediators in the Russian North and Far East in the Post-Reform Russian Empire” (headed by Evgeny Egorov, HSE University – Saint Petersburg);

    “At the start of academic careers: student participation in scientific communities and initiatives as a vector for the development of national science” (headed by Irina Lisovskaya, HSE University – St. Petersburg);

    “Socio-psychological and cognitive factors of trust in AI-social agents and AI-generated information in the field of health” (headed by Yadviga Sinyavskaya, HSE University – St. Petersburg);

    “Asymmetrical radiation output from a microdisk laser using a conjugated photonic crystal” (headed by Konstantin Ivanov, HSE University – St. Petersburg).

    Competition of scientific groups led by young scientists

    Within the framework of the competition, grants are allocated for conducting fundamental and exploratory scientific research in 2025–2028 to researchers aged up to and including 35 years, who have a candidate or doctoral degree.

    Based on the results of the competition, the project “Integrable sigma models and conformal field theories” (supervisor Mikhail Alfimov, Faculty of Mathematics) was supported.

    Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    .

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: How 1860s Mexico offered an alternative vision for a liberal international order

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Tom Long, Professor of International Relations, Department of Politics and International Studies, University of Warwick

    The Execution of Emperor Maximilian of Mexico, June 19, 1867 Edouard ManetWikimedia Commons

    In 1867, the world’s most powerful statesmen, including Austria’s Emperor Franz Josef, France’s Napoleon III and US secretary of state, William H. Seward, petitioned the Mexican government to spare the life of a condemned man.

    Mexico’s ragtag army and militias had just humbled France, then Europe’s preeminent land power. The costly six-year campaign drained the French treasury and eroded Napoleon III’s domestic support. Napoleon’s ambition to transform Mexico into a client empire under a Vienna-born, Habsburg archduke, crowned Maximilian I, ended in spectacular failure.

    After his defeat, Maximilian was brought before a Mexican military tribunal. European monarchs regarded the prisoner as their peer, but Mexican liberals convicted him as a piratical invader, usurper and traitor. Despite indignant appeals from European courts, President Benito Juárez refused to commute his sentence. The would-be emperor was executed by firing squad.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    The controversy went beyond one monarch’s fate. It crystallised a clash between opposed visions of global order — as Peru’s president Ramón Castilla said at the time, it was a “war of the crowns against liberty caps”.

    Today, world politics are in flux. The so-called liberal international order, nominally grounded in multilateralism, open markets, human rights and the rule of law, is facing its gravest crisis since the second world war. Former advocates such as the United States now openly flout international law and undermine the very norms they once championed. China remains ambivalent, while Russia unabashedly hastens the order’s unravelling.

    More broadly, the old post-second world war order appears out of step with the global south and with widespread anger over double standards exposed by the wars in Ukraine, Gaza and Iran.
    Amid today’s crises, a world order arranged for and by the great powers looks both insufficient and doomed to lack legitimacy. Reordering will require support from diverse actors, including states across the global south.

    1860s: a turbulent decade

    The 1860s were a turbulent, although often overlooked, moment of global reordering. Technological shifts – the telegraph, electricity, steamships and railways – appeared as disruptive then as AI does today. Combined with shifting power dynamics, these transformations accelerated imperial expansion. Yet the rules of the emerging order remained uncertain, even among the imperial powers themselves.

    In Europe, networks of dynastic rule still carried weight in international politics. Under growing pressure, the ancien régime sought to reinvent and reassert itself. The old empires often justified their expansion by promising to bring order and progress to supposedly backward peoples. But that “civilising mission” clashed with a worldview emerging from Spanish America – where countries had thrown off colonial rule to establish independent republics.

    As we wrote in a recent article in American Political Science Review, Spanish American diplomats articulated a republican vision of international order centred on the protection of weaker states from domination by great powers.

    Fending off Europe’s empires

    Divided by civil conflict, Mexico became an easy target for European empires. Mexico’s Liberal party had regained power but faced internal dissent and crippling foreign debt. Britain, France and Spain formed a coalition to invade and demand repayment. France, however, had more ambitious designs.

    Exploiting the distraction of the US civil war, Napoleon III dreamed of transforming Mexico into a Latin stronghold against Yankee expansion. Best of all, Napoleon thought the scheme would turn a profit. A stable Mexican empire could repay the costs of the intervention – with interest – by increasing production from the country’s famed silver mines. Meanwhile, France would gain a receptive market for its exports and a grateful geopolitical subordinate.

    Maximilian, a young Austrian prince of the house of Hapsburg, somewhat naively accepted the offer to rule a distant and unfamiliar land. He dreamed of regenerating Mexico through a liberal monarchy while reviving his family’s declining dynasty.

    Led by Juárez, Mexico’s liberals fiercely resisted Maximilian’s rule. While militarily Juárez was consistently on the defensive, he remained diplomatically proactive. The Juaristas encouraged US sympathies that proved decisive after the end of the civil war. They also enjoyed solidarity – though limited material support – from other Spanish American republics. Although the monarchies of Europe all recognised Maximilian as Mexican emperor, Juárez’s defiance became a rallying point for liberals and republicans in Europe.

    Hero to the liberals: a monument to Juárez in central Mexico City.
    Hajor~commonswiki, CC BY-ND

    Vision of a new order

    Beyond stoking sympathies, Juárez and his followers offered trenchant critiques of unequal international rules and practices cloaked in liberal guise.

    First, the “republican internationalism” of Mexico’s Juaristas stood in direct opposition to European liberals’ “civilising mission”. Latin American republicans rejected the notion that progress could be imposed on their countries from abroad – though some echoed civilising rhetoric toward their own non-white populations, who like in the US were subject to campaigns of violence and dispossession that stretched from northern Mexico to the Patagonia. Many Latin American liberals likewise remained silent about empire elsewhere.

    Second, the Juarista vision placed popular sovereignty, not dynastic ties, at the heart of legitimate statehood. These ideas drew on Mexico’s independence tradition and the principles enshrined in the 1857 constitution. European intervention, in this view, aimed to suppress popular rule in the Americas and extend the reaction against the failed revolutions of 1848, which had seriously threatened the old order when they raged across Europe.

    Third, popular sovereign states were equal under international law, regardless of power, wealth, or internal disorder. Sovereign equality also underpinned Latin America’s strong commitment to non-intervention. Liberal writer and diplomat Francisco Zarco, a close confidante of Juárez, condemned frequent European economic justifications for intervention as the work of “smugglers and profiteers who wrap themselves in the flags of powerful nations”.

    Finally, Mexican liberals called for an international system premised on republican fraternity, drawing on aspirations for cooperation that went back to liberator Simón Bolívar. The independence leader and committed republican convened a conference in 1826, hoping that a confederation of the newly independent Spanish American states would “be the shield of our new destiny”.

    Similar arguments for an international order that advances non-domination still resonate in the global south today. The Mexican experience also underscores that the architects of international order have never come exclusively from the global north – and those who shape its future will not either.

    Tom Long receives support from UK Arts and Humanities Research Council grant AH/V006622/1, Latin America and the peripheral origins of the 19th-century international order.

    Carsten-Andreas Schulz receives support from UK Arts and Humanities Research Council grant AH/V006622/1, Latin America and the peripheral origins of the 19th-century international order.

    – ref. How 1860s Mexico offered an alternative vision for a liberal international order – https://theconversation.com/how-1860s-mexico-offered-an-alternative-vision-for-a-liberal-international-order-260228

    MIL OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: Why Jane Austen is definitely not just for girls

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Shelley Galpin, Lecturer in Culture, Media and Creative Industries, King’s College London

    In my former life as a teacher, I once had a job interview in which I was asked how I dealt with the problem of teaching Jane Austen to boys.

    Having had experience of this situation, I confidently told my interviewer (a maths teacher) that the “problem” they were assuming didn’t actually exist, and that it was perfectly possible to teach Austen’s novels to mixed-sex classes with successful results. My answer was met by barely veiled scepticism – and suffice to say, I didn’t get the job.

    But where did this popular perception come from? Austen’s genius has been recognised from the earliest days of the development of a canon of English literature, and has never really fallen out of fashion. So it might seem odd that the suitability of her work for a co-educational class is the subject of genuine debate.

    This article is part of a series commemorating the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth. Despite having published only six books, she is one of the best-known authors in history. These articles explore the legacy and life of this incredible writer.

    The increasingly intertwined associations of Austen’s literature with the many (often excellent) adaptations of her work may not help the matter, with screen retellings often foregrounding the love stories and losing much of the ironic tone that characterises Austen’s narrative style.

    The myriad repackaged editions of her novels that adorn bookshelves with pastel-toned floral designs, or images of anonymous portraits of passive young women, also do little to challenge the popular perception of these books as stories for women and girls.

    Finally, and perhaps most troublingly, is the still-commonly held notion that stories with a female protagonist do not have wide-ranging appeal and must be consigned to a “niche interest” bracket. Male-led stories, in contrast, have long been considered to hold universal relevance for audiences.

    This last point is a bigger issue concerning the publishing and entertainment industries, so I will largely park this one. But I will point out that, as others have argued in relation to Austen’s work, the classroom is an excellent place to start countering the assumptions of the “everyman” male experience, in contrast to the “special interest” attitude to female perspectives.

    With regards to the teaching of Austen’s novels, drawing on my experiences both as a scholar and as a teacher, I believe her novels can speak to young readers of different genders and from diverse backgrounds.

    Money, power and inequality

    Addressing the ways in which Austen’s novels tend to be packaged, I asked my students, typically aged 16-18, to explore the ideas at the heart of the novels by redesigning the book covers to better reflect these themes.

    The flowers and passive young women were gone. The redesigned book covers often focused on the idea of wealth, through pictures of differing piles of money, or power, such as the image of imbalanced scales to symbolise the unequal societies inhabited by Austen’s characters.

    Because, as much as they are love stories, Austen’s heroines typically achieve their “happy endings” against a backdrop of money worries, power struggles, familial tension and gendered social hierarchies. While her novels are rightly celebrated for highlighting the unequal treatment of the sexes during her lifetime, it is reductive to see this as their sole contribution to social commentary.

    Take Austen’s last completed novel, Persuasion. Here, Anne Elliot – over the hill at the ripe old age of 27 – begins the novel by rueing her broken engagement to Captain Wentworth, which she had been persuaded to break off eight years earlier due to his lack of fortune.

    While the narrative focus is on Anne, who is left to regret her choice and wonder whether she will ever be able to escape her odious father and siblings, the broken-hearted Wentworth, who reappears in Anne’s life shortly after the start of the novel, is at least as much a victim of the situation as Anne herself.

    At its heart, this is a story of a young woman who allowed herself to be persuaded to make a bad choice, and a young man who, through no fault of his own, was deemed not good enough due to his lack of wealth. The experiences of these characters, although they are older than the average school student, are highly relatable and sympathetic to many teenagers, who may well have experienced meddling family members or unfair judgments of their own.

    Take also Northanger Abbey, in which fanciful Catherine Morland mixes fact and fiction and imagines the titular abbey to be a site of gothic intrigue, only to discover that the real horror derives from a controlling patriarch and his sexually predatory oldest son.

    Here again, the novel cleverly makes the point that social inequalities, and the choices of those motivated by their love of money and power, are the real darkness at the heart of Austen’s society.

    In my experience, students of all genders have been able to appreciate and relate to Northanger Abbey’s depictions of the loss of innocence, class inequality, and the experience of being subject to the sometimes obscure decisions of more powerful individuals.

    Austen’s works, far from being the simple love stories of popular perception, are also razor-sharp satires of social and gendered inequalities. Full of witty observations and universally relatable experiences, there is a reason for the consistent popularity of her writing 250 years after her birth.

    To fail to recognise this in the classroom is to do a disservice to all our students, as well as to Austen herself.

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

    – ref. Why Jane Austen is definitely not just for girls – https://theconversation.com/why-jane-austen-is-definitely-not-just-for-girls-259193

    MIL OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: Just back from holiday and not feeling well? Here are the symptoms you should take seriously

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Dan Baumgardt, Senior Lecturer, School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of Bristol

    What are you bringing back with you? The Picture Studio/Shutterstock

    Summer is synonymous with adventure, with millions flocking to exotic destinations to experience different cultures, cuisines and landscapes. But what happens when the souvenir you bring back isn’t a fridge magnet or a tea towel, but a new illness?

    International travel poses a risk of catching something more than a run-of-the-mill bug, so it’s important to be vigilant for the telltale symptoms. Here are the main ones to look out for while away and when you return.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    Fever

    Fever is a common symptom to note after international travel – especially to tropical or subtropical regions. While a feature of many different illnesses, it can be the first sign of an infection – sometimes a serious one.

    One of the most well-known travel-related illnesses linked to fever is malaria. Spread by mosquito bites in endemic regions, malaria is a protozoal infection that often begins with flu-like symptoms, such as headache and muscle aches, progressing to severe fever, sweating and shaking chills.

    Other signs can include jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes), swollen lymph nodes, rashes and abdominal pain – though symptoms vary widely and can mimic many other illnesses.

    Prompt medical attention is essential. Malaria is serious and can become life threatening. It’s also worth noting that symptoms may not appear until weeks or even months after returning home. In the UK, there are around 2,000 imported malaria cases each year.

    Travellers to at-risk areas are strongly advised to take preventative measures. This includes mosquito-bite avoidance as well as prescribed antimalarial medications, such as Malarone and doxycycline. Although these drugs aren’t 100% effective, they significantly reduce the risk of infection.

    Aside from malaria, other mosquito-borne diseases can cause fever. Dengue fever, a viral infection found in tropical and subtropical regions, leads to symptoms including high temperatures, intense headaches, body aches and rashes, which overlap with both malaria and other common viral illnesses.

    Most people recover with rest, fluids and paracetamol, but in some instances, dengue can become severe and requires emergency hospital treatment. A vaccine is also available – but is only recommended for people who have had dengue before, as it provides good protection in this group.

    Any fever after international travel should be taken seriously. Don’t brush it off as something you’ve just picked up on the plane – please see a doctor. A simple test could lead to early diagnosis and might save your life.

    Avoiding being bitten is a good defensive measure.
    Jaromir Chalabala/Shutterstock

    Diarrhoea

    Few travel-related issues are as common – or as unwelcome – as diarrhoea. It’s estimated that up to six in ten travellers will experience at least one episode during or shortly after their trip. For some, it’s an unpleasant disruption mid-holiday; for others, symptoms emerge once they’re back home.

    Traveller’s diarrhoea is typically caused by eating food or drinking water containing certain microbes (bacteria, viruses, parasites) or their toxins. Identifying the more serious culprits early is essential – especially when symptoms go beyond mild discomfort.

    Warning signs to look out for include large volumes of watery diarrhoea, visible blood in the stool or explosive bowel movements. These may suggest a more serious infection, such as giardia, cholera or amoebic dysentery.

    These conditions are more common in regions with poor sanitation and are especially prevalent in parts of the tropics.

    Some infections may require targeted antibiotics or antiparasitic treatment. But regardless of the cause, the biggest immediate risk with any severe diarrhoea is dehydration from copious fluid loss. In serious cases, hospital admission for intravenous fluids may be necessary.

    The key message for returning travellers: if diarrhoea is severe, persistent or accompanied by worrying symptoms, see a doctor. What starts as a nuisance could quickly escalate without the right care.

    And if you have blood in your stool, make sure you seek medical advice.

    Jaundice

    If you’ve returned from a trip with a change in skin tone, it may not just be a suntan. A yellowish tint to the skin – or more noticeably, the whites of the eyes – could be a sign of jaundice, another finding that warrants medical attention.

    Jaundice is not a disease itself, but a visible sign that something may be wrong with either the liver or blood. It results from a buildup of bilirubin, a yellow pigment that forms when red blood cells break down, and which is then processed by the liver.

    Signs of jaundice should be taken very seriously.
    sruilk/Shutterstock.com

    Several travel-related illnesses can cause jaundice. Malaria is one culprit as is the mosquito-borne yellow fever. But another common cause is hepatitis – inflammation of the liver.

    Viral hepatitis comes in several forms. Hepatitis A and E are spread via contaminated food or water – common in areas with poor sanitation. In contrast, hepatitis B and C are blood-borne, transmitted through intravenous drug use, contaminated medical equipment or unprotected sex.

    Besides jaundice, hepatitis can cause a range of symptoms, including fever, nausea, fatigue, vomiting and abdominal discomfort. A diagnosis typically requires blood tests, both to confirm hepatitis and to rule out other causes. While many instances of hepatitis are viral, not all are, and treatment depends on the underlying cause.

    As we’ve seen, a variety of unpleasant medical conditions can affect the unlucky traveller. But we’ve also seen that the associated symptoms are rather non-specific. Indeed, some can be caused by conditions that are short-lived and require only rest and recuperation to get over a rough few days. But the area between them is decidedly grey.

    So plan your trip carefully, be wary of high-risk activities while abroad – such as taking drugs or having unprotected sex – and stay alert to symptoms that develop during or after travel. If you feel unwell, don’t ignore it. Seek medical attention promptly to identify the cause and begin appropriate treatment.

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

    – ref. Just back from holiday and not feeling well? Here are the symptoms you should take seriously – https://theconversation.com/just-back-from-holiday-and-not-feeling-well-here-are-the-symptoms-you-should-take-seriously-260013

    MIL OSI –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Island pupils find their sporting stride thanks to the PEACH Games 15 July 2025 Island pupils find their sporting stride thanks to the PEACH Games

    Source: Aisle of Wight

    The West Wight Sports Centre played host to the Island’s fifth annual PEACH Games on Friday 3 July. The event saw 320 primary school children and 80 sports leaders from secondary schools across the Island, take part.

    The games, organised by the Isle of Wight Public Health team in collaboration with the School Games Organisers, marks the continued success for the Partnership for Education, Attainment and Children’s Health (PEACH) programme.

    Pupils participated in a variety of activities and rotated through team-based and individual games to experience the benefits of sport. Each helps to improve personal skills, cardiovascular fitness as well as coordination and balance.

    Alongside the sporting activities, pupils learned about physical activity options, and first aid while boosting confidence and self-esteem, all within the athlete’s village. The Island Games is an international programme held every two years for Island teams across the world. The flags designed by the schools will be taken to Orkney with the Island Games athletes.

    Simon Bryant, Director of Public health for the Island commented ‘The PEACH Games are important to promote physical activity, positive wellbeing and healthy competition. This supports young people to lead healthy lives with plenty of exercise and a good, balanced diet.

    Chairman of the Isle of Wight Council, Councillor Ian Dore said ‘‘The Games are really important as they build team spirit among the children, who spent the whole day cheering on their friends. There was so much positivity, inspiration and collaborative working, all pushing each other to cross the line. There’s nothing better than young people getting out and being fit and healthy, and the great weather on the day only amplified that.’’

    The feedback received from participating schools has been positive. The secondary school sports leaders worked tirelessly to ensure the event ran smoothly and provided inspiration and leadership to the primary aged participants.

    The PEACH programme supports schools in improving the health and wellbeing of their pupils, staff and families. It is an award-based framework offered to schools, focussing on the four health domains of Physical Activity, Healthy Eating, PSHE and Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health

    As well as the annual PEACH Games event the Schools Games Organisers make a big impact in schools, offering a series of inclusive festivals designed to get children moving, regardless of ability or experience. These events are delivered as part of the key tasks of the School Games Vision and Mission. The School Games Organisers make a positive and meaningful difference to the lives of children and young people through sport and physical activity. This is achieved by putting physical activity and school sport at the heart of schools.

    Over the academic year, children and young people have taken part in nine PEACH events, trying their hand at everything from rugby and gymnastics to basketball and hockey.

    The programme aims to support year 3 and 4 pupils who are less engaged in physical activity, year 5 and 6 pupils who may require support in transition from primary to secondary school and years 9-13 students to provide leadership opportunities for secondary school sport leaders.

    A heartfelt thank you goes out to the local organisations who helped make the PEACH Games extra special:

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Huge turnout at Western Cape youth career expo

    Source: Government of South Africa

    Huge turnout at Western Cape youth career expo

    The 2025 Western Cape Youth in Action Career Expo has been hailed a tremendous success, drawing more than 11 500 attendees, which doubles the number from the 2024 turnout.

    Organised by the Western Cape Education Department in partnership with the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) marketing team, the event served as a valuable platform for young people to explore various career paths and connect with potential opportunities.

    The expo, which was hosted early this month, aimed to create an inclusive and empowering environment where learners from underserved schools and communities, as well as people with disabilities, could access information and opportunities. 

    Senior Curriculum Planner for Life Orientation, Dr Ismail Teladia, highlighted the event’s alignment with the subject’s world of work component, providing vital exposure to industry partners and tertiary institutions.

    Key stakeholders, including the City of Cape Town and Gift of the Givers,  provided transportation for learners from as far as Toews River.

    “Despite inclement weather, parents and learners showed remarkable enthusiasm, keeping exhibitors busy for two days. More than 171 institutions participated, offering education, training, bursaries, and employment opportunities,” the Western Cape Education department said in a statement. 

    Institutions from outside the province, including North West University, the University of Free State, Rhodes University, and Focus Air, an aviation school in Durban, showcased their programmes. 

    The event was attended by notable dignitaries, including the Founder of Gift of the Givers, Dr Imtiaaz Sooliman, Deputy Mayor Eddie Andrews, Deputy Minister in the Presidency Nonceba Mhlauli, and Western Cape Agriculture MEC, Dr Ivan Meyer. 

    “They praised the expo’s impact and potential to empower young people. Dr Teladia thanked all participants, exhibitors, and stakeholders for their contributions to the event’s success.” 

    Teladia said the planning for next year’s expo has already begun, promising another opportunity for young people to connect with their future. – SAnews.gov.za

    Gabisile

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: £31 million set to be pumped into biggest affordable housing project in city’s history

    Source: City of Stoke-on-Trent

    Published: Tuesday, 15th July 2025

    Extra money is being earmarked for a brand-new multi-million-pound housing estate, made up of almost 120 homes, on a former Stoke-on-Trent school site.

    More than £31 million is now set to be spent on a developing and transforming the former Brookhouse Green Primary School in Wellfield Road, Bentilee, into 117 affordable homes.  

    It marks the biggest single investment in an affordable housing project in the city’s history. The brownfield development will consist of a series of different types of homes, from single-occupier bungalows to three-bedroom family houses.

    Plans to develop the homes on the brownfield site were approved in April as part of the city council’s mission to ensure everyone has access to a decent home.

    The authority has entered into a pre-construction services agreement with developer John Graham Construction Ltd (GRAHAM) – and work is expected to start on site by 2026.

    The national company will work in partnership with the council to ensure that homes are of high quality and energy efficient.

    The council’s cabinet is now set to approve a budget of just over £31 million for the project when it meets later this month. Funding will come from a number of spending pots and grants, as well as the authority’s Housing Revenue Account (HRA).

    The redevelopment of the Wellfield Road site, which was deemed surplus to requirements in 2020, is also being supported by a £1.8 million government grant from the Brownfield Land Release Fund.

    The scheme forms part of the council’s new housing pipeline strategy, which – if approved by cabinet later this month – will see nearly 5,000 homes built across the city in the next few years.

    Councillor Finlay Gordon-McCusker, cabinet member for transport, infrastructure and regeneration at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said: “This is a history-making housing project, which will deliver the types of affordable homes that many people are crying out for in the city.

    “It is also one of many schemes we will be looking to deliver over the next few years as we make housing – ranging from single occupier bungalows up to larger family homes – a real focus. We will also be making it a priority to transform brownfield and current derelict sites as we regenerate our city.

    “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 into the future.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Change of His Majesty’s Ambassador to Armenia: Alexandra Cole

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    Press release

    Change of His Majesty’s Ambassador to Armenia: Alexandra Cole

    Ms Alexandra Cole has been appointed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Republic of Armenia in succession to Mr John Gallagher.

    Ms Alexandra Cole has been appointed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Republic of Armenia in succession to Mr John Gallagher who will be transferring to another Diplomatic Service appointment.  Ms Cole will take up her appointment during September 2025.

    Curriculum vitae

    Full name: Alexandra Pamela Cole

    Year Role
    2024 to present Pre-posting training
    2023 to 2024 FCDO, Head of Contingency Planning, MENA
    2020 to 2023 Doha, Deputy Head of Mission
    2018 to 2020 Tbilisi, Deputy Head of Mission
    2013 to 2018 UK Mission to the UN in Geneva, Counsellor Specialised Agencies
    2011 to 2013 FCO, Policy Unit
    2008 to 2010 Cairo, Consular Regional Director
    2006 to 2008 FCO, Engaging with Islamic World Group
    2004 to 2006 Islamabad, Second Secretary Human Rights
    2002 to 2004 Sarajevo, Second Secretary Political
    2001 to 2002 Pre-posting training (including Bosnian language training)
    1999 to 2001 FCO, Personnel Management Unit
    1996 to 1999 Tehran, Entry Clearance Officer
    1994 to 1995 FCO, Trade Union Side
    1996 to 1999 Tehran, Entry Clearance Officer
    1992 to 1994 FCO, Finance Department
    1990 to 1992 FCO, Migration and Visa Department
    1990 Joined FCO

    Media enquiries

    Email newsdesk@fcdo.gov.uk

    Telephone 020 7008 3100

    Email the FCDO Newsdesk (monitored 24 hours a day) in the first instance, and we will respond as soon as possible.

    Updates to this page

    Published 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: UK air quality is improving but pollution targets are still being breached – new study

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By James Weber, Lecturer in Atmospheric Radiation, Composition and Climate, University of Reading

    Tony Skerl/Shutterstock

    An estimated 4.2 million deaths can be attributed to poor air quality each year. Poor air quality is the largest fixable environmental public health risk in the world.

    Our new study presents analysis of the UK-wide trends for three major pollutants – nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), ozone (O₃) and tiny particulate matter known as PM₂.₅ – between 2015 and 2024 to calculate how often air quality targets were breached.

    Both nitrogen dioxide and PM₂.₅ showed robust decreases over the period 2015-2024, declining on average by 35% and 30% respectively. In 2015-2016, the average Defra monitoring site exceeded the nitrogen dioxide target on 136 days per year. By 2023-2024, this had dropped to 40 days per year.

    For PM₂.₅, the number of days the average Defra site breached the target went from 40 to 22 days per year. While this is an improvement, the World Health Organization advises that these targets should not be breached on more than four days per year.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    To examine the sources of pollution, we studied how pollutants were influenced by factors including time of day, day of week, wind direction and origin, location of monitoring station and even interactions between pollutant. Nitrogen dioxide concentrations are highest at monitoring sites located next to busy urban roads, lower at urban background sites (which are located at sites further from traffic such as parks) and much lower in rural sites.

    Profiles over 24-hour periods show strong nitrogen dioxide peaks coinciding with the morning and evening rush hours and clear decreases at weekends. This all points to local traffic emissions being the major source. While PM₂.₅ is also higher in urban than rural locations, it exhibits more muted rush hour peaks and is more consistent between the week and weekend, suggesting traffic plays a smaller role.

    We explored how wind direction and origin influenced nitrogen dioxide and PM₂.₅ by running a weather forecast model backwards for three UK locations: Reading, Sheffield and Glasgow. While nitrogen dioxide showed only a weak correlation with wind origin, PM₂.₅ was much more dependent.

    For example, the probability of PM₂.₅ breaching air quality targets on a given day exceeded 15% only when the air had come from continental Europe and, for Sheffield and Glasgow, passed over much of the UK too.

    NO₂ and PM₂.₅ pollution reduced over the last decade but remains too high while O₃ pollution has worsened.
    James Weber, CC BY

    While nitrogen dioxide and PM₂.₅ showed clear improvements, ozone exhibited a less positive picture. Ozone increased in 115 of the 121 sites considered, growing by 17% on average. A similar trend was observed across much of northern Europe. The average number of days ozone exceeded the World Health Organization target doubled from seven to 14 per year.

    This may seem modest at present, but several factors are conspiring to drive ozone higher. In much of the UK, the relatively high levels of nitrogen dioxide effectively suppress ozone: as a result, ozone is higher in rural rather than urban areas and, as nitrogen dioxide decreases, ozone will increase further.

    Unless, that is, we also target nitrogen dioxide’s partner in crime, volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs are critical to the production of ozone and are emitted from human sources such as traffic and industry, plus certain types of vegetation like oak trees. While emissions of nitrogen dioxide fell by 20% between 2015-2024, human-driven VOC emissions declined by only 1%.

    Ozone also increases in periods of hot weather due to elevated VOC emissions from vegetation and greater mixing of air from higher up in the atmosphere into the layer closest to the surface. Incidents of hot weather are only going to become more frequent in the UK, making it even more critical to crack down on human-driven VOC emissions to limit ozone pollution.

    Up in the air

    In the UK, considerable efforts have been made to improve air quality. Its importance has been enshrined in law for nearly 70 years. An extensive network of air quality monitoring sites is maintained by the UK government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) plus devolved and local authorities.

    Local authorities are required to monitor air quality and develop air quality management areas in places where targets are unlikely to be met. Clean air or low emission zones have been introduced as a result.

    However, air quality policy must be designed to reflect the complex nature of each pollutants’ drivers. Nitrogen dioxide is dominated by local sources, PM₂.₅ by transport from further afield and ozone by a combination of both.

    An air quality monitoring station.
    Chemival/Shutterstock

    Local and national policies that cut traffic emissions by incentivising the replacement of older cars with newer, cleaner vehicles, retrofitting buses and restricting entry of the most polluting vehicles into towns and cities will probably reduce nitrogen dioxide further.

    But, if nitrogen dioxide decreases are not accompanied by reductions to VOC emissions, locally and internationally, ozone will continue to rise, especially with more frequent hot weather.

    By contrast, most PM₂.₅ comes from sources further afield, including industry and agriculture from other parts of the UK and beyond, so reductions hinge on stronger national and global policies that target emissions at source rather than just local efforts.

    Air pollution doesn’t respect borders and while the technologies to facilitate continued improvements exist, they must be deployed in joined-up, international efforts.

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

    Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 45,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.

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

    – ref. UK air quality is improving but pollution targets are still being breached – new study – https://theconversation.com/uk-air-quality-is-improving-but-pollution-targets-are-still-being-breached-new-study-260961

    MIL OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: UK air quality is improving but pollution targets are still being breached – new study

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By James Weber, Lecturer in Atmospheric Radiation, Composition and Climate, University of Reading

    Tony Skerl/Shutterstock

    An estimated 4.2 million deaths can be attributed to poor air quality each year. Poor air quality is the largest fixable environmental public health risk in the world.

    Our new study presents analysis of the UK-wide trends for three major pollutants – nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), ozone (O₃) and tiny particulate matter known as PM₂.₅ – between 2015 and 2024 to calculate how often air quality targets were breached.

    Both nitrogen dioxide and PM₂.₅ showed robust decreases over the period 2015-2024, declining on average by 35% and 30% respectively. In 2015-2016, the average Defra monitoring site exceeded the nitrogen dioxide target on 136 days per year. By 2023-2024, this had dropped to 40 days per year.

    For PM₂.₅, the number of days the average Defra site breached the target went from 40 to 22 days per year. While this is an improvement, the World Health Organization advises that these targets should not be breached on more than four days per year.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    To examine the sources of pollution, we studied how pollutants were influenced by factors including time of day, day of week, wind direction and origin, location of monitoring station and even interactions between pollutant. Nitrogen dioxide concentrations are highest at monitoring sites located next to busy urban roads, lower at urban background sites (which are located at sites further from traffic such as parks) and much lower in rural sites.

    Profiles over 24-hour periods show strong nitrogen dioxide peaks coinciding with the morning and evening rush hours and clear decreases at weekends. This all points to local traffic emissions being the major source. While PM₂.₅ is also higher in urban than rural locations, it exhibits more muted rush hour peaks and is more consistent between the week and weekend, suggesting traffic plays a smaller role.

    We explored how wind direction and origin influenced nitrogen dioxide and PM₂.₅ by running a weather forecast model backwards for three UK locations: Reading, Sheffield and Glasgow. While nitrogen dioxide showed only a weak correlation with wind origin, PM₂.₅ was much more dependent.

    For example, the probability of PM₂.₅ breaching air quality targets on a given day exceeded 15% only when the air had come from continental Europe and, for Sheffield and Glasgow, passed over much of the UK too.

    NO₂ and PM₂.₅ pollution reduced over the last decade but remains too high while O₃ pollution has worsened.
    James Weber, CC BY

    While nitrogen dioxide and PM₂.₅ showed clear improvements, ozone exhibited a less positive picture. Ozone increased in 115 of the 121 sites considered, growing by 17% on average. A similar trend was observed across much of northern Europe. The average number of days ozone exceeded the World Health Organization target doubled from seven to 14 per year.

    This may seem modest at present, but several factors are conspiring to drive ozone higher. In much of the UK, the relatively high levels of nitrogen dioxide effectively suppress ozone: as a result, ozone is higher in rural rather than urban areas and, as nitrogen dioxide decreases, ozone will increase further.

    Unless, that is, we also target nitrogen dioxide’s partner in crime, volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs are critical to the production of ozone and are emitted from human sources such as traffic and industry, plus certain types of vegetation like oak trees. While emissions of nitrogen dioxide fell by 20% between 2015-2024, human-driven VOC emissions declined by only 1%.

    Ozone also increases in periods of hot weather due to elevated VOC emissions from vegetation and greater mixing of air from higher up in the atmosphere into the layer closest to the surface. Incidents of hot weather are only going to become more frequent in the UK, making it even more critical to crack down on human-driven VOC emissions to limit ozone pollution.

    Up in the air

    In the UK, considerable efforts have been made to improve air quality. Its importance has been enshrined in law for nearly 70 years. An extensive network of air quality monitoring sites is maintained by the UK government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) plus devolved and local authorities.

    Local authorities are required to monitor air quality and develop air quality management areas in places where targets are unlikely to be met. Clean air or low emission zones have been introduced as a result.

    However, air quality policy must be designed to reflect the complex nature of each pollutants’ drivers. Nitrogen dioxide is dominated by local sources, PM₂.₅ by transport from further afield and ozone by a combination of both.

    An air quality monitoring station.
    Chemival/Shutterstock

    Local and national policies that cut traffic emissions by incentivising the replacement of older cars with newer, cleaner vehicles, retrofitting buses and restricting entry of the most polluting vehicles into towns and cities will probably reduce nitrogen dioxide further.

    But, if nitrogen dioxide decreases are not accompanied by reductions to VOC emissions, locally and internationally, ozone will continue to rise, especially with more frequent hot weather.

    By contrast, most PM₂.₅ comes from sources further afield, including industry and agriculture from other parts of the UK and beyond, so reductions hinge on stronger national and global policies that target emissions at source rather than just local efforts.

    Air pollution doesn’t respect borders and while the technologies to facilitate continued improvements exist, they must be deployed in joined-up, international efforts.

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

    Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 45,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.

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

    – ref. UK air quality is improving but pollution targets are still being breached – new study – https://theconversation.com/uk-air-quality-is-improving-but-pollution-targets-are-still-being-breached-new-study-260961

    MIL OSI Analysis –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NEWS RELEASE: STATE RELEASES FORECAST FOR JOBS AND INDUSTRIES THROUGH 2032

    Source: US State of Hawaii

    NEWS RELEASE: STATE RELEASES FORECAST FOR JOBS AND INDUSTRIES THROUGH 2032

    Posted on Jul 14, 2025 in Latest Department News, Newsroom

     

    STATE OF HAWAIʻI

    KA MOKU ʻĀINA O HAWAIʻI

     

    JOSH GREEN, M.D.

    GOVERNOR

    KE KIAʻĀINA

     

    DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

    KA ʻOIHANA PONO LIMAHANA

    JADE T. BUTAY

    DIRECTOR

    KA LUNA HOʻOKELE

    STATE RELEASES FORECAST FOR JOBS AND INDUSTRIES THROUGH 2032

    Hawai‘i Projects 41,000 New Jobs by 2032, Led by Health Care and Food Services

     

    News Release 2025-07

     

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    July 14, 2025

     

    HONOLULU — The Hawai‘i State Department of Labor and Industrial Relations’ Research and Statistics Office has released its latest statewide employment projections for industries and occupations. The projections are based on 2022 employment data and forecast trends through 2032. Statewide projections are published in even-numbered years, while county-specific projections are issued in odd-numbered years.

    Key Highlights:

    Hawai‘i’s total employment is projected to grow by 6.1% over the next decade, increasing from 671,010 jobs in 2022 to 712,200 by 2032 — an addition of 41,190 jobs. Each year, the state is expected to see approximately 83,050 job openings. These openings will primarily result from workers changing jobs (55%) and exiting the labor force (40%), while just 5% will stem from actual job growth. This breakdown highlights the importance of workforce replacement and job mobility in the state’s labor market.

    Top Growing Industries:

    • Health care and social assistance is forecast to be the fastest-growing and largest contributor to job creation, accounting for nearly one-quarter of all new positions.
    • The sector is projected to grow by 12.7%, with particularly strong demand in social assistance services.
    • The food services and drinking places industry will follow closely, with an 11.9% growth rate, driven by Hawai‘i’s strong hospitality sector.
    • The accommodation industry is also forecast to increase by 10.2%, while creating 3,750 positions.
    • The self-employed sector, bolstered by the post-pandemic gig economy, is expected to reach 58,150 workers by 2032.

     

    In contrast, government and retail trade employment are projected to decline, influenced by federal policies and continuing shift toward e-commerce.

    The projections are a valuable tool for:

    • Students and jobseekers exploring career options
    • Education and training providers developing programs
    • Job placement specialists and career counselors guiding individuals toward employment
    • Program managers and policymakers shaping workforce strategies
    • Employers planning for growth or relocation

    Key highlights, comprehensive data tables and other Labor Market Information (LMI) tools — such as Best Job Opportunities to 2032 — can be accessed on the Employment Projections page of the Hawai‘i Workforce Infonet (HIWI): www.hiwi.org.

    Detailed narrative reports will be available by the end of July.

    This effort is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, through the Workforce and Labor Market Information Grants to States (WIGS) program, with a total award of $321,585 for Program Year 2024.

    # # #

    Equal Opportunity Employer/Program
    Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities.
    TDD/TTY Dial 711 then ask for 808-586-8842

    View DLIR news releases:

    http://labor.hawaii.gov/blog/category/news/

    Media Contact:

    Chavonnie Ramos

    Public Information Officer, State of Hawai‘i

    Department of Labor and Industrial Relations

    Phone: 808-586-9720

    Email: [email protected]

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The First Russian Media Mogul. We Study Ivan Sytin’s Biography on a Tour of the Tverskoy District

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –

    An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Tverskaya Street, one of the main streets in the capital, bore the name of the Soviet writer Maxim Gorky for several decades of the last century. Here, in house 12, building 2 (the address is modern, the numbering was different before), Ivan Sytin lived until 1934. He knew Gorky, Anton Chekhov and other writers of that time well. Before the revolution, he was a famous entrepreneur, one of the first publishers of the Russian Empire, the man who introduced the peasants to the works of Alexander Pushkin.

    Together with Alexey Shalamov, a tour guide at the I.D. Sytin Apartment Museum, we travel into the past, which “begins” on the second floor of the house, now a 19th century cultural heritage site, at the entrance to apartment No. 274.

    Family portrait in the interior

    “Ivan Dmitrievich and his family moved here in 1928. He lived in Moscow for a long time – from the age of 15, and moved several times. This apartment was his last home. Before that, the Sytins lived in a mansion on Pushkinskaya, but when the enterprises were nationalized, the family was given this apartment as a replacement. They moved some of the furniture here, so now we can show you the original items,” Alexey Shalamov begins the tour.

    The apartment is truly amazing — an interesting layout, high ceilings, burgundy walls in the hallway elegantly set off by Art Nouveau chandeliers and a pear-wood wardrobe, in the mirrors of which outstanding figures of the early 20th century looked at themselves on Pushkin Square. Alexander Kuprin, Dmitry Merezhkovsky, Ivan Bunin, Alexander Blok, Ilya Repin, Nikolai Roerich, Ivan Bilibin — invisible traces of their coats and hats are kept on the hooks and hangers in the hallway. The Sytins lived here as a large family of 15 people, the last of which moved out of the apartment only in the 1970s. The museum is currently hosting an exhibition called “Traditions of the Sytin Family,” created with the participation of Ivan Dmitrievich’s great-granddaughter. The exhibition tells about the family’s legacy and memory, gives an opportunity to look into the home world, and touch upon the personal life of one of the main educators of the Russian Empire.

    What was read on the “gulvars”, bazaars and in villages. We study popular literature of the 19th-20th centuries

    Ivan Sytin’s career path is truly impressive – the future publisher came from the Kostroma province and went to work in the bookstore of the merchant Pyotr Sharapov as a 15-year-old teenager, and ten years later he acquired his first lithographic press and started his own business, which later turned into a bookstore at the Ilyinsky Gate, and into the “Partnership of I.D. Sytin and Co.”, and into the publishing house “Posrednik”, created jointly with Leo Tolstoy and Vladimir Chertkov. He developed the magazine “Around the World”, which exists to this day, and on Chekhov’s advice acquired the rights to publish the newspaper “Russkoye Slovo”, deciding to increase its circulation at all costs. And he achieved his goal!

    Pushkinskaya Square and its surroundings

    Having learned the family history and imbued with the atmosphere of those years, we go out onto Tverskaya Street and move towards the monument to the sun of Russian poetry, crossing Strastnoy Boulevard. If you leave Pushkin Square on the right, then straight ahead, to the left of the Izvestia newspaper building, you can see the house of I.D. Sytin, where the family lived for more than twenty years before moving to an apartment. The estate, built according to the design of Adolf Erichson, is an example of the Art Nouveau style, very popular at that time. The publishing houses of the Pravda and Trud newspapers were later located here. Due to the fact that the building was moved several dozen meters at one time, the authentic architecture was partially lost, but on the facade you can see details decorated according to sketches by Ivan Bilibin.

    We go deeper into Pushkin Square and stop at the memorial stone to the Strastnoy Monastery. Founded in 1654, it was destroyed in 1937; its territory also housed a necropolis. Ivan Dmitrievich was a religious man, and when his wife died, she was buried here. The monastery’s bell tower offered a magnificent view of the city. Alexey Shalamov explains: “It is known that Nicholas II came here. The King of Sweden and Norway also climbed the bell tower, looked around Moscow and said that all foreigners should visit this monastery.”

    Passing the building of the Izvestia newspaper, on the same side we pay attention to the main house of the city estate of the Dolgorukovs – Bobrinskys. At one time, the president of the Academy of Arts and the Minister of Public Education Sergei Uvarov lived there, Alexander Pushkin and Anton Chekhov visited many times, the Itinerants organized exhibitions, the editorial office of the magazine Novy Mir worked there.

    Along Malaya Dmitrovka

    Around the corner on Malaya Dmitrovka is the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Putinki, a beautiful Orthodox tent-roofed church, unique in its kind. Ivan Sytin often came here with his family and was even the church warden of the parish – it is known that two of his sons were married in the church. Literally in the next building is Mark Zakharov’s Lenkom – now a famous capital theater, and once a gentlemen’s club a la russe. “The merchants decided to build their own opposite the aristocratic club – and so that it would be better,” comments Alexey Shalamov. The 1909 building was erected according to the design of the architect Illarion Ivanov-Shits in a style that is difficult to describe unambiguously: a careful look will recognize elements of Art Nouveau, classicism, eclecticism, and signs of Art Deco. Inside is a large concert hall, a library, billiard rooms, a winter garden and, of course, a very good restaurant. Important business meetings and gatherings were also held here, and Ivan Sytin was also present.

    The final point of this part of the route is the building of the Loan Treasury in Nastasinsky Lane, built in the 1910s by Vladimir Pokrovsky, one of the founders of the neo-Russian style (now a cultural heritage site of federal significance). Here, loans were issued to merchants, among whom, probably, could have been the main hero of our excursion.

    Back to the roots

    On the way back, Alexey Shalamov told about the specifics of the publisher’s branded stores – there were five of them in Moscow, all of them were easily recognizable, thus creating additional advertising for Sytin’s life’s work. The talented entrepreneur grew up in a simple family and knew well what people liked. Therefore, he paid special attention to illustrations that attracted the eye more than the text, collaborated with talented artists, as well as with peddlers who delivered books for sale to peasants in remote villages and hamlets.

    And here we are again, the entrance to the I.D. Sytin Apartment Museum. “The house is very old, it has been heavily remodeled. If we talk about the foundation, it is from the 18th century – the Saltykov estate was here. And the house was built in the 1820s for the chief of police Alexander Shulgin – a very interesting person. Firstly, he was a contemporary of Pushkin, and secondly, his namesake. And there are many similarities in their fates,” says Alexey Shalamov.

    Classicism, Art Nouveau, Constructivism — these walls remember everything. After Shulgin, the house was owned by the entrepreneur Shevaldyshev, who opened a hotel here, where Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Tyutchev stayed. On the ground floor there was a stagecoach office — one of the first types of public transport in Moscow, and in the neighboring Kozitsky Lane, taxis now stand, just like carriages a hundred years ago. After the revolution, various editorial offices and studios were located here, in one of them Vladimir Lenin recorded his fiery speech. Since 1928, the house has become associated with the name of Sytin, without whom the map of the Tverskoy District would be incomplete.

    Ivan Dmitrievich was an extraordinary, very hardworking person, a visionary and a pioneer, whose life path deserves a separate book. On excursions in the I.D. Sytin Apartment Museum, you will be told more about him. Tickets can be purchased atMos.ru.

    Get the latest news quicklyofficial telegram channelthe city of Moscow.

     

    Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    .

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Melissa Harris: Shaping NASA’s Vision for a Future in Low Earth Orbit

    Source: NASA

    With over 25 years of experience in human spaceflight programs, Melissa Harris has contributed to numerous programs and projects during key moments in NASA’s history. As the life cycle lead and Independent Review Team review manager for the Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program, she guides the agency through development initiatives leading to a new era of space exploration.  
    Harris grew up near NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and spent time exploring the center and trying on astronaut helmets. She later earned her bachelor’s degree in legal studies from the University of Houston, master and subject matter expert certifications in configuration management, and ISO 9001 Lead Auditors Certification. When the opportunity arose, she jumped at the chance to join the International Space Station Program. 

    Starting as a board specialist, Harris spent eight years supporting the space station program boards, panels, and flight reviews. Other areas of support included the International Space Station Mission Evaluation Room and the EVA Crew Systems and Robotics Division managing changes for the acquisition and building of mockups in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory and Space Vehicle Mockup Facility in Houston. She then took a leap to join the Constellation Program, developing and overseeing program and project office processes and procedures. Harris then transitioned to the Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Project Office where she was a member of the EVA 23 quality audit team tasked with reviewing data to determine the cause of an in-orbit failure. She also contributed to the Orion Program and Artemis campaign. After spending two years at Axiom Space, Harris returned to NASA and joined the commercial low Earth orbit team. 
    Harris said the biggest lesson she has learned during her career is that “there are always ups and downs and not everything works out, but if you just keep going and at the end of the day see that the hard work and dedication has paid off, it is always the proudest moment.”  
    Her dedication led to a nomination for the Stellar Award by the Rotary National Award for Space Achievement Foundation.

    Harris’ favorite part of her role at NASA is working “closely with brilliant minds” and being part of a dedicated and hard-working team that contributes to current space programs while also planning for future programs. Looking forward, she anticipates witnessing the vision and execution of a self-sustaining commercial market in low Earth orbit come to fruition. 
    Outside of work, Harris enjoys being with family, whether cooking on the back porch, over a campfire, or traveling both in and out of the country. She has been married for 26 years to her high school sweetheart, Steve, and has one son, Tyler. Her identical twin sister, Yvonne, also works at Johnson. 

    Learn more about NASA’s Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program at: 
    www.nasa.gov/commercialspacestations

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Melissa Harris: Shaping NASA’s Vision for a Future in Low Earth Orbit

    Source: NASA

    With over 25 years of experience in human spaceflight programs, Melissa Harris has contributed to numerous programs and projects during key moments in NASA’s history. As the life cycle lead and Independent Review Team review manager for the Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program, she guides the agency through development initiatives leading to a new era of space exploration.  
    Harris grew up near NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and spent time exploring the center and trying on astronaut helmets. She later earned her bachelor’s degree in legal studies from the University of Houston, master and subject matter expert certifications in configuration management, and ISO 9001 Lead Auditors Certification. When the opportunity arose, she jumped at the chance to join the International Space Station Program. 

    Starting as a board specialist, Harris spent eight years supporting the space station program boards, panels, and flight reviews. Other areas of support included the International Space Station Mission Evaluation Room and the EVA Crew Systems and Robotics Division managing changes for the acquisition and building of mockups in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory and Space Vehicle Mockup Facility in Houston. She then took a leap to join the Constellation Program, developing and overseeing program and project office processes and procedures. Harris then transitioned to the Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Project Office where she was a member of the EVA 23 quality audit team tasked with reviewing data to determine the cause of an in-orbit failure. She also contributed to the Orion Program and Artemis campaign. After spending two years at Axiom Space, Harris returned to NASA and joined the commercial low Earth orbit team. 
    Harris said the biggest lesson she has learned during her career is that “there are always ups and downs and not everything works out, but if you just keep going and at the end of the day see that the hard work and dedication has paid off, it is always the proudest moment.”  
    Her dedication led to a nomination for the Stellar Award by the Rotary National Award for Space Achievement Foundation.

    Harris’ favorite part of her role at NASA is working “closely with brilliant minds” and being part of a dedicated and hard-working team that contributes to current space programs while also planning for future programs. Looking forward, she anticipates witnessing the vision and execution of a self-sustaining commercial market in low Earth orbit come to fruition. 
    Outside of work, Harris enjoys being with family, whether cooking on the back porch, over a campfire, or traveling both in and out of the country. She has been married for 26 years to her high school sweetheart, Steve, and has one son, Tyler. Her identical twin sister, Yvonne, also works at Johnson. 

    Learn more about NASA’s Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program at: 
    www.nasa.gov/commercialspacestations

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Change of His Majesty’s Ambassador to Armenia

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    Change of His Majesty’s Ambassador to Armenia

    Ms Alexandra Coles has been appointed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Republic of Armenia in succession to Mr John Gallagher.

    Ms Alexandra Cole has been appointed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Republic of Armenia in succession to Mr John Gallagher who will be transferring to another Diplomatic Service appointment.  Ms Cole will take up her appointment during September 2025.

    Curriculum vitae

    Full name: Alexandra Pamela Cole

    Year Role
    2024 to present Pre-posting training
    2023 to 2024 FCDO, Head of Contingency Planning, MENA
    2020 to 2023 Doha, Deputy Head of Mission
    2018 to 2020 Tbilisi, Deputy Head of Mission
    2013 to 2018 UK Mission to the UN in Geneva, Counsellor Specialised Agencies
    2011 to 2013 FCO, Policy Unit
    2008 to 2010 Cairo, Consular Regional Director
    2006 to 2008 FCO, Engaging with Islamic World Group
    2004 to 2006 Islamabad, Second Secretary Human Rights
    2002 to 2004 Sarajevo, Second Secretary Political
    2001 to 2002 Pre-posting training (including Bosnian language training)
    1999 to 2001 FCO, Personnel Management Unit
    1996 to 1999 Tehran, Entry Clearance Officer
    1994 to 1995 FCO, Trade Union Side
    1996 to 1999 Tehran, Entry Clearance Officer
    1992 to 1994 FCO, Finance Department
    1990 to 1992 FCO, Migration and Visa Department
    1990 Joined FCO

    Media enquiries

    Email newsdesk@fcdo.gov.uk

    Telephone 020 7008 3100

    Email the FCDO Newsdesk (monitored 24 hours a day) in the first instance, and we will respond as soon as possible.

    Updates to this page

    Published 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: S7 Group and Novosibirsk State University Agree on HR Partnership

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Novosibirsk State University –

    An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    S7 Group and Novosibirsk State University (NSU) have signed a cooperation agreement. The parties will join forces to train specialists in various fields: business informatics, economics and management.

    Under the signed agreement, NSU will prepare students in its educational programs, taking into account the needs of S7 Group. In the future, university graduates may be employed by S7 Group in the Novosibirsk Region and other cities.

    — We are pleased to start a strategic partnership with NSU, which will allow us to develop highly qualified specialists for the aviation industry. Joint training of personnel is an investment in the future of our industry and the region as a whole. We are confident that our cooperation will become an example of a successful partnership between business and education, — noted Evgeny Chernyshev, General Representative of S7 Airlines in Tolmachevo.

    NSU will develop and implement educational programs and scientific projects together with S7 Group. S7 Group will provide students with the opportunity to do practical training at its sites and will support the development of campus innovations to create comfortable conditions for living and studying. The company will also organize various events at its enterprises: open days, hackathons, lectures – and will take part in the process of attracting applicants to NSU programs.

    — This is a historic event for our university. Cooperation with the leader of the aviation industry will open new horizons for our students and strengthen NSU’s position as a center for training specialized specialists. Thanks to our cooperation, graduates will receive in-demand skills and good employment opportunities, — emphasized NSU Rector, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Mikhail Fedoruk.

    S7 Airlines (brand of Siberia Airlines, VBV.S7.ru) is a Russian private airline. The airline has a wide network of domestic routes, built on the basis of air transport hubs in Moscow (Domodedovo), Novosibirsk (Tolmachevo) and Irkutsk. In 2007, the airline received official IATA notification of inclusion in the IOSA (IATA Operational Safety Audit) operator register and became the second air carrier in Russia to successfully pass the full international audit procedure for compliance with operational safety standards. In 2024, S7 Airlines carried 12.9 million passengers on almost 100 thousand flights.

    Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    .

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI China: EU proposes new countermeasures amid trade dispute with US

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    This photo taken on Oct. 4, 2024 shows the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium. [Photo/Xinhua]

    The European Union (EU) has proposed a new round of tariffs on U.S. goods worth 72 billion euros (84 billion U.S. dollars), amid the ongoing trade dispute between the world’s largest economy and its biggest trading partner.

    EU trade ministers met in Brussels on Monday following U.S. President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement over the weekend of new tariffs on the bloc. Maros Sefcovic, the EU’s trade chief, said after the meeting that it was “very obvious from the discussions today, the 30 percent is absolutely unacceptable.”

    He said that the commission was sharing proposals with the 27 members “for the second list of goods accounting for some 72 billion euros (84 billion dollars) worth of U.S. imports. They will now have a chance to discuss it. This does not exhaust our toolbox and every instrument remains on the table.”

    Lars Lokke Rasmussen, the foreign minister of Denmark, which recently assumed the EU presidency, said the bloc views the new tariff as “absolutely unacceptable and unjustified” and is prepared to respond if talks with Washington fail to produce a viable outcome.

    “We are committed to continuing working with the United States on a negotiated outcome,” he said, adding that the agreement has to be “mutually acceptable” on both sides.

    In a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Saturday morning, Trump announced a 30 percent tariff on the EU as of Aug. 1, blaming the bloc for causing “long-term, large, and persistent Trade Deficits.”

    “Our relationship has been, unfortunately, far from reciprocal,” he wrote in the letter. “The EU will allow complete, open Market Access to the United States, with no Tariff being charged to us, in an attempt to reduce the large Trade Deficit.”

    In response to Trump’s latest deadline, the EU decided to postpone retaliatory counter tariffs on 21 billion euros (24.5 billion dollars) of U.S. goods that had been due to kick in at midnight on Monday until Aug. 1.

    The EU is open to trade talks with the United States for an agreement before the deadline, but won’t rule out taking countermeasures, said Von der Leyen.

    “We remain ready to continue working towards an agreement by Aug. 1,” the EU leader said in a statement. “At the same time, we will take all necessary steps to safeguard EU interests, including the adoption of proportionate countermeasures if required.”

    The proposed tariff threatens to take a heavy toll on the EU economy. An analysis by the Milan-based Institute for International Political Studies suggested that Italy would be among the EU countries most affected by the U.S. tariffs.

    Under a 30-percent duty scenario, Germany’s GDP would contract by an estimated 0.5 percent compared to a no-tariff baseline, while Italy’s GDP would shrink by approximately 0.36 percent, said the think tank.

    On Monday, the Association for the Development of Industry in the Mezzogiorno (SVIMEZ) released its estimate of the impact of the U.S. tariffs on Italy’s exports, projecting a reduction of nearly one-fifth in export volume and a loss of 12.4 billion euros (14.48 billion U.S. dollars) in trade once the tariffs take effect.

    SVIMEZ also warned of broader macroeconomic consequences, estimating a 0.5-percent reduction in Italy’s GDP in 2026 and the potential loss of up to 150,000 jobs, including some 13,000 in the country’s southern regions.

    “Our government is in close contact with the European Commission and all parties involved in the tariff negotiations,” said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in a statement.

    “A trade war within the West would make us all weaker in the face of global challenges we are addressing together. Europe has the economic strength to protect its interests and reach a fair agreement,” she said.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI China: EU proposes new countermeasures amid trade dispute with US

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    This photo taken on Oct. 4, 2024 shows the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium. [Photo/Xinhua]

    The European Union (EU) has proposed a new round of tariffs on U.S. goods worth 72 billion euros (84 billion U.S. dollars), amid the ongoing trade dispute between the world’s largest economy and its biggest trading partner.

    EU trade ministers met in Brussels on Monday following U.S. President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement over the weekend of new tariffs on the bloc. Maros Sefcovic, the EU’s trade chief, said after the meeting that it was “very obvious from the discussions today, the 30 percent is absolutely unacceptable.”

    He said that the commission was sharing proposals with the 27 members “for the second list of goods accounting for some 72 billion euros (84 billion dollars) worth of U.S. imports. They will now have a chance to discuss it. This does not exhaust our toolbox and every instrument remains on the table.”

    Lars Lokke Rasmussen, the foreign minister of Denmark, which recently assumed the EU presidency, said the bloc views the new tariff as “absolutely unacceptable and unjustified” and is prepared to respond if talks with Washington fail to produce a viable outcome.

    “We are committed to continuing working with the United States on a negotiated outcome,” he said, adding that the agreement has to be “mutually acceptable” on both sides.

    In a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Saturday morning, Trump announced a 30 percent tariff on the EU as of Aug. 1, blaming the bloc for causing “long-term, large, and persistent Trade Deficits.”

    “Our relationship has been, unfortunately, far from reciprocal,” he wrote in the letter. “The EU will allow complete, open Market Access to the United States, with no Tariff being charged to us, in an attempt to reduce the large Trade Deficit.”

    In response to Trump’s latest deadline, the EU decided to postpone retaliatory counter tariffs on 21 billion euros (24.5 billion dollars) of U.S. goods that had been due to kick in at midnight on Monday until Aug. 1.

    The EU is open to trade talks with the United States for an agreement before the deadline, but won’t rule out taking countermeasures, said Von der Leyen.

    “We remain ready to continue working towards an agreement by Aug. 1,” the EU leader said in a statement. “At the same time, we will take all necessary steps to safeguard EU interests, including the adoption of proportionate countermeasures if required.”

    The proposed tariff threatens to take a heavy toll on the EU economy. An analysis by the Milan-based Institute for International Political Studies suggested that Italy would be among the EU countries most affected by the U.S. tariffs.

    Under a 30-percent duty scenario, Germany’s GDP would contract by an estimated 0.5 percent compared to a no-tariff baseline, while Italy’s GDP would shrink by approximately 0.36 percent, said the think tank.

    On Monday, the Association for the Development of Industry in the Mezzogiorno (SVIMEZ) released its estimate of the impact of the U.S. tariffs on Italy’s exports, projecting a reduction of nearly one-fifth in export volume and a loss of 12.4 billion euros (14.48 billion U.S. dollars) in trade once the tariffs take effect.

    SVIMEZ also warned of broader macroeconomic consequences, estimating a 0.5-percent reduction in Italy’s GDP in 2026 and the potential loss of up to 150,000 jobs, including some 13,000 in the country’s southern regions.

    “Our government is in close contact with the European Commission and all parties involved in the tariff negotiations,” said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in a statement.

    “A trade war within the West would make us all weaker in the face of global challenges we are addressing together. Europe has the economic strength to protect its interests and reach a fair agreement,” she said.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Earthquakes in Greece – E-002091/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    Greece is an active user of Copernicus Emergency Management Services (CEMS)[1], including its on-demand mapping services. For example, in 2024, the Greek national civil protection authority, which is the national CEMS’ focal point, activated the rapid mapping service 14 times.

    For the time being, the Commission has not yet received a request from the Greek national civil protection authorities for CEMS risk and recovery services to monitor land deformation or for drawing up evacuation plans for a potential future incident in Santorini.

    However, Greece is aware of this option and has used this service in the past to develop, amongst others, evacuation plans, for example for two United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation World Heritage sites (Delphi and Ancient Olympia), and to assess their exposure to several hazards, including earthquakes.

    Under its Cohesion Policy thematic and regional programmes for the 2021-2027 period, Greece earmarked approximately EUR 130 million for the prevention and management of non-climate-related risks, such as earthquakes.

    In accordance with the shared management procedures, the selection of specific projects is a national competence.

    • [1] https://emergency.copernicus.eu/.
    Last updated: 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Earthquakes in Greece – E-002091/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    Greece is an active user of Copernicus Emergency Management Services (CEMS)[1], including its on-demand mapping services. For example, in 2024, the Greek national civil protection authority, which is the national CEMS’ focal point, activated the rapid mapping service 14 times.

    For the time being, the Commission has not yet received a request from the Greek national civil protection authorities for CEMS risk and recovery services to monitor land deformation or for drawing up evacuation plans for a potential future incident in Santorini.

    However, Greece is aware of this option and has used this service in the past to develop, amongst others, evacuation plans, for example for two United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation World Heritage sites (Delphi and Ancient Olympia), and to assess their exposure to several hazards, including earthquakes.

    Under its Cohesion Policy thematic and regional programmes for the 2021-2027 period, Greece earmarked approximately EUR 130 million for the prevention and management of non-climate-related risks, such as earthquakes.

    In accordance with the shared management procedures, the selection of specific projects is a national competence.

    • [1] https://emergency.copernicus.eu/.
    Last updated: 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: CS visits Hainan Province (with photos/video)

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

    The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, began his visit to Hainan Province yesterday (July 14).
     
    Mr Chan first met with the Party Secretary and Chairman of the Hainan Provincial Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Mr Li Rongcan, in Haikou to exchange views on the latest developments in the two places, and discuss promoting and deepening the partnership between Hong Kong and Hainan Province. Mr Chan said that there is a frequent flow of people, logistics and capital between the two places, and with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two governments in March this year, the exchanges between Hong Kong and Hainan Province will be closer in future. Hong Kong will fully leverage its unique advantage of being backed by the motherland and connected to the world under the “one country, two systems” principle, and will work with Hainan Province to achieve results attributable to the two places’ advantages, deepen economic, trade and cultural exchanges, and make greater contributions to the country’s high-quality development and high-level opening up.
     
    Mr Chan then visited the Hainan Chronicles Museum to learn about the patriotic and revolutionary tradition education work there as well as the construction and development progress of the Hainan Special Economic Zone and Hainan as an international tourism island. Mr Chan then departed for Wenchang to meet with the Secretary of the CPC Wenchang Municipal Committee, Mr Wang Peng. Mr Chan introduced the latest situation of Hong Kong, and exchanged views with Mr Wang on further promoting exchanges between the two places and exploring more co-operation and development opportunities.
     
    Mr Chan visited the Wenchang Yaoguang Rocket Viewing Platform early today (July 15) to join a science exploration activity of the Hainan Aerospace Science and Research Study Tour under the Strive and Rise Programme. Mr Chan engaged with the participants and encouraged them to grasp this valuable learning opportunity to learn and understand the country’s robust developments and significant achievements in the field of aerospace. He also encouraged the participants to continue to work hard in the future to cultivate a sense of contributing to the country and serving the society, and become a new generation with a sense of social responsibility and contributions. Mr Chan said he believed that the experience of joining this meaningful aerospace science and research study tour will boost the participants’ sense of patriotism and national pride.
     
    Mr Chan will depart for Heilongjiang Province today.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –