Category: Education

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Hon’ble President of India confers 5th National Water Awards, 2023

Source: Government of India

Posted On: 22 OCT 2024 8:42PM by PIB Delhi

Hon’ble President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu, conferred the 5^th National Water Awards, 2023 at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. 38 winners, including joint winners across 09 categories were awarded for their exemplary work in the field of water conservation and management. Each award winner was conferred with a citation and a trophy as well as cash prizes in certain categories. The event started with the traditional ‘Jal Kalash’ ceremony.

Addressing the gathering, Hon’ble President, Smt Droupadi Murmu appreciated the award winners asserting that their contribution towards water conservation and management is extraordinary and will set an example for the coming generations towards the development of the nation. Hon’ble President appreciated the schemes being undertaken by Ministry of Jal Shakti , especially mentioning about the highly effective execution of the Jal Jeevan Mission which exemplifies the objectives of quantity, quality and continuity and asserted that access to safe drinking water is right of every citizen. The president stated that the collective efforts of general public and Government could help achieve the goal of “water secure India” and vouched for every house of country to have a Rain Water Harvesting Structure (RWHS). She lauded the efforts of the water awardees and stated that the recognition of these efforts through National water awards will encourage the masses to take up water conservation activities.

The Union Minister for Jal Shakti, Shri C.R. Paatil expressed gratitude toward the award winners for their efforts in the field of water management and conservation and said that these Awards have made a deep impact and fostered a healthy competitive environment among those working in the water sector. Shri Paatil congratulated the states of Odisha for winning the first prize in best State category as well as for the second position by Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat and Puducherry for winning the third position jointly. He said that the way these states has worked from the point of view of water management, it will certainly serve as an inspiration for many states and institutions. Hon’ble Minister also focused on the National water awards as  recognition of the good work and efforts made by various stake holders across the country in attaining the government’s vision of a ‘Jal Samridh Bharat’.

The Secretary, Department of Drinking Water & Sanitation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Smt Vini Mahajan in her speech mentioned that water is foundation of our life and Ministry of Jal Shakti is focused on water conservation and management in collaboration with the public to turn it into a Jan Andolan. She highlighted the schemes being undertaken by Ministry of Jal Shakti mentioning the achievements of Jal Jeevan Mission, Namame Gange, Swatch Bharat Abhiyan, and Atal Bhujal Yojana.

The Secretary, Department of Water Resources, RD & GR, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Smt Debashree Mukherjee in her concluding remarks gave with a vote of thanks to the Hon’ble  President of India for inaugurating the event and encouraging the national water awardees and mentioned that the 6^th National water awards, 2024 are to be launched shortly and urged the media as well as other participants to encourage participation in the water awards on a large scale.

The book titled “Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Best Practices” was launched by the Hon’ble Minister of Jal Shakti and dignitaries at the dais.  The book highlights the Best practices of water conservation undertaken by various stakeholders under the Jal Shakti Abhiyan.

During the  award distribution ceremony, the  works undertaken by the awardees were highlighted. Odisha state, the first winner in the state category, has made exemplary strides in water conservation by creating about 53,000 water conservation & rain water harvesting structures, 10,800 reuse & recharge structures, 68,700 watershed development and 21,000 waste water treatment plants as well as renovating 11,000 traditional water bodies. Uttar Pradesh, the second winner in the state category, under Jal Jeevan Mission over 1.91 crore households constituting 72.78% of the total rural houses in UP have been provided with tap water. Besides, 133 Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs), &  06 Ganga Biodiversity Parks for cleaning Ganga river & 14,679 Amrit Sarovars have been completed.

Winners in best District category, BANDA (UTTAR PRADESH) from North Zone (joint winner)- around 400 ponds rejuvenated, 3,300 farm bunds & 530 farm ponds, 250 rooftop rainwater harvesting structure, 4,690 soak pits, and 460 check dams constructed. GANDERBAL (J&K) from north zone (joint winner) – maintenance works of about 400 km of canals, and lining of 1.35 km of canals to prevent water wastage completed. INDORE (MADHYA PRADESH) from west zone constructed – 420 farm ponds, 180 percolation tanks, 100 Nistari tanks, and 190 Check dams have been constructed. 20 lakh saplings during Hariyali Mahotsav have been planted. Under Mission Amrit Sarovar, 103 water bodies have been renovated.  VISAKHAPATNAM (ANDHRA PRADESH) from south zone – 33 water bodies under Amrit Sarovar scheme & about 2,400 various artificial recharge structures as well as riverbanks on Sarada river have been renovated/restored. BALANGIR (ODISHA) from EAST ZONE – around 260 farm ponds, 170 check dams, 160 diversion weirs, 1,320 water harvesting structures, 460 percolation tanks & 670 groundwater recharge structures have been constructed. DHALAI (TRIPURA) from North East zone- about 740 community recharge structures, 60 ponds, 170 check dams and 137 water tanks for rainwater harvesting have been constructed.

Other prominent winners in various categories include Surat, Gujarat in best urban local body, Pullampara, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala in best village panchayat,  BAIF Development Research Foundation, Pune in best civil society, Pentakli Project Union of Water User Association, Buldhana, Maharashtra in best water user association, and Govt. Upper Primary School, Jethwan Ka Bas, Sikar, Rajasthan in best school/college, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu in Best Institution and Aravali Power Company Private Limited, Jhajjar, Haryana in best industry.

Details of winners 5th National Water Awards.

5TH NATIONAL WATER AWARDS, 2023

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DSK

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MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: What’s the difference between fusion and fission? A nuclear physicist explains

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Matthew Hole, Professor, Mathematical Sciences Institute and School of Computing, Australian National University

Quality Stock Arts/Shutterstock

Globally, nuclear power accounts for roughly 10% of electricity generation. In some countries, such as France, this figure is nearly 70%.

Big tech companies such as Google are also turning to nuclear power to meet the huge power demands of their data centres.

The source of all nuclear power is the binding energy of an atom. The energy stored in an atom can be released in two main ways: fission or fusion. Fission involves splitting big heavy atoms into smaller, lighter ones. Fusion involves combining little atoms together into bigger ones.

Both processes release a lot of energy. For example, one nuclear fission decay of U235, an isotope of uranium typically used as the fuel in most power plants, produces more than 6 million times the energy per single chemical reaction of the purest coal. This means they are great processes for generating power.

What is fission?

Fission is the process behind every nuclear power plant in operation today. It occurs when a tiny subatomic particle called a neutron is slammed into an uranium atom, splitting it. This releases more neutrons, which continue colliding with other atoms, setting off a nuclear chain reaction. This in turn releases a tremendous amount of energy.

To convert this energy to electricity a heat exchanger is installed, which turns water to steam, driving a turbine to produce power.

The fission reaction can be controlled by suppressing the supply of neutrons. This is achieved by inserting “control rods” which soak up neutrons. Historically, nuclear accidents such as Chernobyl have occurred when the control rods fail to engage and quench the neutron supply, and/or coolant circulation fails.

So called “third generation” designs improve on early designs by incorporating passive or inherent safety features which require no active controls or human intervention to avoid accidents in the event of malfunction. These features may rely on pressure differentials, gravity, natural convection, or the natural response of materials to high temperatures.

The first third generation reactors were the Kashiwazaki 6 and 7 advanced boiling water reactors in Japan.

The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Station in Japan.
Tokyo Electric Power Co, CC BY-SA

An unresolved challenge for fission is that the byproducts of the reaction are radioactive for a long time, in the order of thousands of years. If reprocessed, the fuel source and waste can also be used to make a nuclear weapon.

Fission power is a demonstrated technology. It is also scalable from large scale (the largest is the 7.97 gigawatt Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant in Japan) through to small-to-medium reactors that produce around 150 megawatts of electricity, as used on a ship or nuclear submarine. These are the reactors that will power Australia’s eight nuclear submarines promised as part of a trilateral security partnership with the United Kingdom and the United States.

What is fusion?

Fusion is the process that powers the Sun and stars. It is the opposite process to fission. It occurs when atoms are fused together.

The easiest reaction to initiate in the laboratory is the fusion of isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium and tritium. Per unit mass, the reaction produces 4 times more energy than the fission of U235.

The fuel ion deuterium is incredibly abundant on Earth and in the universe. Tritium is radioactive with a half-life of 12 years, so is very rare on Earth. The universe is 13.8 billion years old; the only isotopes of light nuclei (hydrogen, helium and lithium) found in nature are those that are stable on those time scales.

In a fusion power plant, tritium would be manufactured using a “lithium blanket”. This is a solid lithium wall in which fusion neutrons slow and ultimately react to form tritium.

However, at present it’s very difficult for scientists to create a fusion reaction outside of the laboratory. That’s because it requires incredibly hot conditions to fuse: the optimal conditions are 150 million degrees Celsius.

Fusion is the process that powers the Sun.
SOHO (ESA & NASA)

At these temperatures the fuel ions exist in the plasma state, where electrons and (nuclear) ions are dissociated. The byproduct of this process isn’t radioactive; rather, it’s helium, an inert gas.

The leading technology path to demonstrate sustained fusion is called “toroidal magnetic confinement”. This is when the plasma is confined at extreme temperatures in a very large doughnut-shaped magnetic bottle.

Unlike fission, this technology path requires continuous external heating to reach fusion conditions and a strong confining field. Terminate either and the reaction stops. The challenge is not uncontrolled meltdown, but getting the reaction to occur at all.

A major unresolved challenge for toroidal magnetic confinement fusion, which attracts the majority of research interest, is the demonstration of a burning self-heated plasma. This is when the heating power produced by the reaction itself is primary. This is the objective of the publicly funded multi-national ITER project, the world’s largest fusion experiment, and the privately funded SPARC experiment at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

However, the consensus of much of the scientific community is that fusion will not be commercially viable until at least 2050.

A climate solution?

I am often asked if nuclear power could save Earth from climate change. I have many colleagues in climate science, and indeed my late wife was a high-profile climate scientist.

The science is clear: it is too late to stop climate change. The world needs to do everything it can to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and minimise catastrophic damage, and it needs to have done it decades ago.

For the planet, fission is part of that global solution, together with widespread rollout and adoption of renewable sources of power such as wind and solar.

On a longer time scale, one hopes that fusion might replace fission. The fuel supply is much larger and ubiquitously distributed, the waste problem is orders of magnitude smaller in volume and timescale, and the technology cannot be weaponised.

Matthew Hole receives funding from the Australian government through the Australian Research Council and the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), and the Simons Foundation. He is also affiliated with ANSTO, the ITER Organisation as an ITER Science Fellow, and is Chair of the Australian ITER Forum.

– ref. What’s the difference between fusion and fission? A nuclear physicist explains – https://theconversation.com/whats-the-difference-between-fusion-and-fission-a-nuclear-physicist-explains-240438

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Labor looks set for a resounding defeat in Queensland. But the state’s elections have long thrown up surprises
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Pandanus Petter, Research Fellow School of Politics and International Relations, Australian National University

On Saturday October 26, Queensland Premier Steven Miles’ Labor is vying for a fourth consecutive term in government, up against David Crisafulli’s Liberal National Party (LNP).

Although Labor won the previous election in 2020 comfortably, opinion polls in the lead up to this election have consistently pointed to an LNP win.

Recent Queensland history shows voters can produce dramatic election results, such as the 2012 wipeout of Labor, and its equally dramatic return to government in 2015. With no upper house to provide a check on government power, whoever wins will likely have a relatively free hand to enact their policy agenda.

A continuing trend of increased early voting means many Queenslanders have already made their judgement. But what have been the big issues dominating the campaign, and what priorities will the next government be working toward?

The usual suspects

The big issues of concern to voters in Queensland are likely familiar to people in other states:
- cost of living
- housing
- crime
- health
- to a lesser extent, economic management.
However, the two main parties have different emphases and approaches.

A campaign on crime and crises

The LNP is focused on attacking Labor’s record. Crisafulli has largely tried to keep the party firmly on-message, highlighting what they describe as “crises” in housing, youth crime, cost of living, health and government integrity for at least the last year.

The extent of youth crime, what causes it and what solves it are a matter of debate.

But the LNP has been keen to present themselves as proposing tougher solutions than their opponents. They’ve made promises to change youth sentencing laws to deter offenders under the slogan “adult crime, adult time”.

They’ve also promised to provide “tough love” to at-risk youth with mandatory re-training camps.

On other issues, they’ve been promising more efficient health services, incentives to home ownership and greater government transparency.

However, they’ve been careful to try to avoid more controversial issues and present a “small target” on economic management. Interestingly, the LNP has largely confirmed they’ll adopt many of Labor’s budgetary priorities on cost of living relief.

Despite this, a last minute emphasis on the possible reversal of legislation decriminalising abortion and voluntary assisted dying has threatened to derail their careful messaging.

Reverting to old ways, the LNP is backing an “indefinite” commitment to coal fired power plants and dumping a controversial proposed hydroelectric dam.

Crisafulli has walked back earlier support for Treaty with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

If they win government, the LNP would also likely shut down the freshly minted Truth Telling and Healing Inquiry, claiming they will focus on “practical” help for Indigenous communities instead.

They’re also promising electoral reform with a longstanding commitment to remove “corrupt” compulsory preferential voting and the reversal of laws that banned property developer donations.

Progressive balancing act

Steven Miles took over from Annastacia Palaszczuk as Labor leader and premier less than a year ago.

Labor has also been focused on using incumbency to address key issues, while trying to stake out a position as a force for progressive change.

They have warned of the potential “hidden” dangers of the LNP, pointing to unpopular cuts to the civil service last time the LNP governed.

On cost of living, they’ve given direct relief to households, with 50 cent fares for public transport, $1000 household energy rebates and promised free lunches for public school students.

They have been keen to say this is a dividend from increased royalties charged to coal mining companies.

On housing, they have continued their focus on addressing the undersupply of social and affordable housing alongside modest reforms to renters’ rights (although ruling out any caps on prices).

They’re promising a new era of state intervention to improve competition in petrol and energy retail.

On crime, Labor has followed the LNP’s lead in some matters, such as investing in extra police resources. They’ve also controversially ignored the Human Rights Act to keep youth imprisoned while emphasising diversion over punishment.

Of more comfort to progressive voters, they have positioned themselves as firmly committed to keeping their abortion and voluntary assisted dying legislation intact. Labor will also continue the transition to renewable energy.

Disenchantment with the major parties

Despite their efforts, or perhaps because of Crisafulli’s disciplined messaging, it doesn’t look as if voters have been swayed to keep the government. There’s a clear mood for change.

However, it should be noted this isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement of Crisafulli or the LNP’s whole agenda, as opinion polls show neither is particularly popular.

After trailing for most of the campaign, Miles is still behind, but has made up a lot of ground in the past week.

Whoever wins, they will have to govern in an era when more people are disenchanted with the mainstream parties.

Among those vying to hold or increase their crossbench seats in regional Queensland are the socially conservative Katter’s Australian Party, as well as some popular local mayors running as independents.

Meanwhile, the Greens are pushing to claim more Brisbane seats.

The minor parties are campaigning hard on persistent problems in housing, cost of living, health and crime. These are all hard to solve quickly and not necessarily helped by rushed responses.

The next parliament will have to find a way to represent a state divided in public opinion between those in the city and those in regional areas across all of the key issues.

Pandanus Petter receives funding from the Australian Research Council to study public opinion polling, democratic responsiveness and the idea of ‘the Fair Go’ in public policy.

– ref. Labor looks set for a resounding defeat in Queensland. But the state’s elections have long thrown up surprises – https://theconversation.com/labor-looks-set-for-a-resounding-defeat-in-queensland-but-the-states-elections-have-long-thrown-up-surprises-241774
MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –
January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Are cats good for our health?

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Susan Hazel, Associate Professor, School of Animal and Veterinary Science, University of Adelaide

Yerlin Matu/Unsplash

Cats have lived with humans for thousands of years. And long before cat memes and viral TikToks took over the internet, they’ve been comforting us with their purrs and making us laugh with their weird antics.

But what does the research say – are cats good for us?

Living with a cat can have a profound – and sometimes surprising – effect on our physical and mental health. Still, living with cats is not without risks.

Part of the family

You may have heard cats don’t have owners, they have “staff”. In fact, multiple studies show the humans who live with them feel more like beloved relatives.

In a study of 1,800 Dutch cat owners, half said their cat was family. One in three viewed their cat as a child or best friend and found them loyal, supportive and empathetic.

Another US study developed a “family bondedness” scale and found cats were just as important a part of families as dogs.

Read more:
Is owning a dog good for your health?

Many cats would choose human interaction over food or toys. And they can distinguish when we are talking to them (rather than another human).

In fact we’ve adapted to each other. Cats are more likely to approach human strangers who first give a “kitty kiss” – narrowing your eyes and blinking slowly. And research suggests cats have developed specific meows that tune into our nurturing instincts.

What does this close relationship mean for health outcomes?

Cats slow blink when they’re feeling relaxed.
beton studio/Shutterstock

A sense of purpose

Owning a pet is associated with less social isolation. And some cat owners say “providing for the cat” increases their feelings of enjoyment and sense of purpose.

But the benefits of the relationship may depend on how you relate to your cat.

One study looked at different relationship styles between humans and cats, including “remote”, “casual” and “co-dependent”. It found people whose relationship with their cat was co-dependent or like a friend had a higher emotional connection to their pet.

Links to heart health

People who own – or have owned – a cat have a lower risk of dying from cardiovascular diseases such as stroke or heart disease. This result has been repeated in several studies.

However a problem interpreting population studies is they only tell us about an association. This means while people with cats have lower risk of dying from cardiovascular diseases, we can’t say for sure cats are the cause.

People who own a cat – or have in the past – are at lower risk of stroke and heart disease.
Ruth McHugh-Dillon, CC BY-NC

Cat ownership has also been associated with some positive changes in the gut microbiota, especially in women, such as improved blood glucose control and reduced inflammation.

Helping mental health

Having cat or dog is also associated with higher psychological well-being. For people with depression, patting or playing with their cat has been shown to reduce symptoms (although this was over a short, two-hour period and can’t be extrapolated longer-term).

Another way to find out about the health impact of cats is qualitative research: asking people what their cats mean to them, beyond the numbers.

When colleagues and I surveyed veterans, we found people more attached to their pets actually had poorer mental health scores. But their survey responses told a different story. One respondent said, “my cats are the reason I get up in the morning”.

Another wrote:

I consider my pet to be a service animal. My cat helps me to relax when I’m dealing with my anxiety, depression or when I wake during the night from the frequent nightmares I have. My cat isn’t just a pet to me, my cat is a part of me, my cat is part of my family.

It may be that veterans were more attached to their cats because they had worse mental health – and relied on their cats more for comfort – rather than the other way around.

Mental health downsides

It is possible being attached to your cat has downsides. If your cat becomes sick, the burden of caring for them may have a negative impact on your mental health.

In our study of owners whose cats had epilepsy, around one third experienced a clinical level of burden as caregivers that was likely to interfere with their day-to-day functioning.

People with depression report reduced symptoms after playing with their cat.
Artacke Pictures/Shutterstock

Toxoplasmosis

Cats can also carry zoonotic diseases, which are infections which spread from animals to humans.

They are the main host for toxoplasmosis, a parasite excreted in cat faeces which can affect other mammals, including humans. The parasite is more likely to be carried by feral cats that hunt for their food than domestic cats.

Most people have mild symptoms that may be similar to flu. But infection during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage or stillbirth, or cause problems for the baby including blindness and seizures.

Pregnant women and people with lowered immunity are most at risk. It is recommended these groups don’t empty cat litter trays, or use gloves if they have to. Changing the litter tray daily prevents the parasite reaching a stage that could infect people.

Allergies

Up to one in five people have an allergy to cats and this is increasing.

When cats lick their fur, their saliva deposits an allergen. When their fur and dander (flakes of skin) come loose, it can set off an allergic reaction.

People without severe allergies can still live with cats if they regularly wash their hands, clean surfaces and vacuum to eliminate dander. They can also exclude cats from areas they want to be allergen-free, such as bedrooms.

People with allergies can live with cats if their symptoms aren’t severe.
Ruth McHugh-Dillon, CC BY-NC

While cats can provoke allergic reactions, there is also evidence contact with cats can have a protective role in preventing asthma and allergic reactions developing. This is because exposure may modify the immune system, making it less likely allergic reactions will occur.

Susan Hazel is affiliated with the Dog & Cat Management Board of South Australia, Animal Therapies Ltd and the RSPCA South Australia.

– ref. Are cats good for our health? – https://theconversation.com/are-cats-good-for-our-health-238993

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: No home left behind: a postcode approach to electrification

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gill Armstrong, Researcher in architecture and urban planning, Climateworks Centre

EndeavourEnergy

In Australia and overseas, it’s clear that homes without gas – running on clean energy – are healthier, have cheaper power bills, and produce lower greenhouse emissions.

The emissions part is crucial. Collectively, homes are responsible for 10% of Australia’s greenhouse emissions. But how do we get Australia’s 11 million homes to ditch gas and switch to electricity for cooking, hot water and home heating?

The current approach is slow and piecemeal. State and local governments offer incentives to individual households, but few adopt them. For those that do, little coordinated support and guidance is available. The households must deal with suppliers and tradies on their own, which can be a frustrating and lonely process.

A pilot project to electrify 500 homes in a single postcode south of Sydney could show a better way. After a two-year campaign by residents, “Electrify 2515” has won A$5.4 million in federal funding, along with industry support. Challenges remain, but this pilot promises to demonstrate how household electrification can be accelerated and coordinated at scale.

As independent climate transitions specialists within Monash University, Climateworks Centre has no direct involvement in this project. But our ongoing Renovation Pathways Program focuses on ways to decarbonise Australia’s existing houses and bring about a national renovation wave. So we are watching with keen interest.

Testing extra incentives

The 2515 postcode sits between Wollongong and Sydney in New South Wales. It covers the suburbs of Austinmer, Clifton, Coledale, Scarborough, Thirroul and Wombarra.

The pilot encourages households to retire three types of gas appliance: water heaters, space heaters and cookers. Financial subsidies of up to $1,000 off electric hot water systems, reverse-cycle air conditioners and induction cooktops, and up to $1,500 off home batteries, are available. Higher subsidies are available to low-income households.

Successful applicants receive the subsidies as a discount on the purchase price of these new electrical appliances, rather than a rebate. Money for this is coming from the federal government’s Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

Such incentives prompt households within a single community to make the switch together, retiring their electric appliances before their gas appliances fail or break, speeding up the transition.

A fully subsidised smart energy device, valued at around $1,500, is also installed in every home to track and optimise energy use. Subsidies are also available for upgrades to switchboards where required to meet modern safety standards.

Rooftop solar and electric vehicle chargers can also be purchased through the pilot, but will not be subsidised.

How it works.
Electrify 2515

The 2515 difference

2515 is not the first community to rally behind clean energy. Grassroots initiatives are scattered around the country, such as in Yackandandah in northeast Victoria, Parkes in central west NSW, and Broken Hill in far west NSW.

Home energy pilot projects are also already underway through the Cooperative Research Centre Race2030, which partners with industry and research institutions. But these initiatives, along with those at a state and local government level, tend to recruit individual households across a wider geographic area.

In contrast, Electrify 2515 offers holistic support for households within a community. It is not driven by a single government program, or by a gas supply problem – which was the case for the people of Esperance in Western Australia.

By electrifying 500 homes in a single community, Electrify 2515 will provide a tangible measure of what’s required to drive rapid household electrification. The main challenge isn’t technological – it’s social. The technology is here. Getting the social drivers and settings right, at scale, is the key.

The holistic approach will demonstrate what consumers need to make the shift from gas to electricity. This includes what conversations are needed and which incentives enable all households to act in a coordinated way.

Local 2515 residents explain why everyone should join them in applying for the Electrify 2515 Community Pilot.

The bright side of a community approach

The whole-of-community focus brings technical and financial advantages.

After completing an application form and receiving an offer, households receive guidance and support from the installation partner Brighte, a commercial company that provides consumer loans for clean energy appliances such as solar panels and batteries. The service streamlines the decision-making process, which is often the biggest barrier stopping households from progressing with electrification.

Being able to work with a larger number of homes at once is likely to streamline and scale up installation with dedicated teams of installers and tradespeople.

It also helps build households’ trust in literature about payback times and financial benefits through friendly neighbourhood conversations and, importantly, through access to local real-world evidence, not just theory.

Thermal efficiency is also key

The electrification pilot is a solid starting point, especially for a community in a relatively mild coastal climate such as postcode 2515.

For homes in more extreme climates, or for inefficient older homes – which a lot of Australia’s homes sadly are – the fundamental thermal efficiency of the building must be improved alongside electrification of appliances.

The thermal efficiency of homes can be improved by insulating ceilings, walls and floors, double-glazing windows and sealing gaps. These measures make a home more comfortable for occupants. They can also reduce peak demand on the energy network and save on household energy bills.

Electrify 2515 currently focuses on appliance upgrades but adding thermal efficiency upgrades could take it to the next level. Without these upgrades, there is a risk of households in harsher climates using more electricity in a heatwave if homes are draughty and inefficient.

There are various ways to upgrade a home’s capacity to stay cool in summer and warm in winter.
Climateworks Centre, 2023, Climate-ready homes: Building the case for a renovation wave in Australia.

When paired with electrification, thermal upgrades could save Australian households around $2,200 annually on their energy bills (based on 2023 gas and electricity prices), according to Climateworks Centre analysis.

Projects like Electrify 2515 should include both home thermal efficiency improvements and electrification efforts, particularly for communities in harsher climates in order to maximise benefits to households.

Electrification challenges

Electrify 2515 caters for low-income households, by offering higher subsidies to households in the lowest 25% income percentile to ensure these groups comprise 25% of community buy-in.

Renters are encouraged to put their hand up too. But it may still be challenging to encourage their landlords to invest in upgrades.

Further challenges include decarbonising homes that cannot generate electricity from rooftop solar panels due to being shaded by taller buildings or trees. This can sometimes be an issue for homes in colder winter climates with higher annual energy demands, such as Victoria, Tasmania and the ACT.

Building momentum for widescale rollout

The technology for all-electric homes exists. Now we must identify the key social drivers and settings required to spur Australia’s electrification wave.

Electrify 2515 is a promising approach. It’s a way to build momentum, showcase technology at scale, and prompt meaningful discussions around the benefits and challenges of getting off gas.

This program, and others like it, can provide a tangible real-world foundation to bring about bills savings, emissions reductions and healthier homes across Australia. And it will help ensure no one is left behind.

Climateworks Centre is a part of Monash University. It receives funding from a range of external sources including philanthropy, governments and businesses.

– ref. No home left behind: a postcode approach to electrification – https://theconversation.com/no-home-left-behind-a-postcode-approach-to-electrification-241471

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Rebuilding homes after a disaster is an opportunity to build back better – why isn’t the insurance industry on board?

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antonia Settle, Lecturer, Monash University

For many Australians, 2022 was a dark and devastating year. Major floods wreaked havoc on hundreds of communities in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. But for some, the floods themselves were only half the disaster.

As a recent report by Financial Counselling Victoria showed, many affected households had their insurance claims rejected or diminished, whether due to complicated exclusion clauses or because their “sum insured” had been whittled away by unexpected costs.

A long parliamentary inquiry sought to examine the insurance industry’s response to this disaster. Its final report – released to little fanfare last Friday – revealed a sector in crisis.

The report put forward 86 recommendations, which taken together could deliver real progress in pushing the insurance sector to deliver on its promises.

Some standout areas of focus included abolishing a principle called “like-for-like reinstatement” and increasing accountability and oversight. Making sure households can rely on their own coverage is a vital step.

But the report also highlighted just how vulnerable Australia’s housing stock is to climate change, which is no easy problem to solve.

Read more:
How extreme weather and costs of housing and insurance trap some households in a vicious cycle

Forced to repeat the same mistakes

To address the challenge of rising climate risk, we need to increase the resilience of Australian homes. Insurance will only be affordable if risk exposure can be brought down.

Recommendation 26 of the inquiry’s final report deals with the principle of “like-for-like reinstatement”. Written into many policies, this protects insurers from having to pay for home improvements in an insurance claim – known as “betterment” in insurance jargon.

‘Like-for-like’ rules can prevent households from improving their disaster resilience when rebuilding.
Anna Mente/Shutterstock

The underlying idea is to stop households sneaking an extra en-suite bathroom into their insurer-funded rebuild. The same dimensions and building materials have to be used.

But this can mean a home that has been flooded ends up being rebuilt with exactly the same flood risk.

This was the experience of Madeleine Serle, whose home was flooded in Melbourne in 2022. She told me she had asked her insurer to rebuild using polished concrete floors in the downstairs rooms of her home, instead of the plasterboard and wood that had soaked up the floodwaters. Serle reasoned that if it flooded again, it wouldn’t cause so much damage.

Her insurer refused. Even when Serle offered to pay any extra costs herself that might arise from concrete flooring, her insurer insisted on a “like-for-like reinstatement”. This meant using the same low-resilience materials that will likely be destroyed if inundated again by floodwater.

Bringing ‘betterment’ to the fore

Serle was actively trying to reduce her future flood risk, but this was precluded by the terms of her insurance contract.

By seeking an end to like-for-like reinstatement, recommendation 26 is pushing for “betterment” to be brought to the forefront of how we think about insurer rebuilds.

It proposes allowing households to swap out size for quality in an insurer rebuild. That could allow them to use the money saved from reducing the footprint of their home on resilience measures, which are often much more expensive.

This wouldn’t just reduce their exposure to climate risks – fire, flooding and so on. It could also improve the energy efficiency of our houses, which is another key part of the climate challenge in Australia.

Standardised products

Many of the report’s other recommendations centred on the better handling of claims and better outcomes for households.

This includes by strengthening accountability through stronger regulatory oversight (recommendations 2, 4, 9, 41, 47, 49), tightening up some key loopholes (recommendations 3, 10, 13), and penalising insurers for delays in the resolution of claims (recommendations 19 and 57).

It also laid out ways to improve communications between insurers and households (recommendations 6, 10, 24, 25, 28, 33), so people can better understand what they should expect from their insurer – and when their insurer might be falling short.

These proposed reforms aim to create more standardised insurance products across the industry. But they could have gone further. The report didn’t go as far as recommending a fully standardised insurance product that all insurers would have to offer.

Making insurance products more standardised could make them easier to compare.
DC Studio/Shutterstock

As the Financial Rights Legal Centre has argued, standardisation is vital to untangling the “confusopoly” that leaves households unable to make informed decisions about the merits of different policies on the market without reading reams of product disclosure statements.

Reform alone isn’t enough

The inquiry’s final report recommends the government buy back some of the riskiest homes (recommendation 81), alongside much stronger government support for households looking to mitigate their own risks.

But insurance reform alone isn’t enough to solve the problem that Australian households face in securing their housing amid worsening climate risk.

The bigger overarching problem faced by Australia is one of climate change mitigation and adaption. While our country is exposed to relatively high levels of climate risk, much of this risk is borne by individuals through home ownership.

With nearly half of all renter retirees living in poverty, Australians know owning their own home is a powerful way to secure their economic future. That’s why home ownership is referred to as part of the “third pillar” of the retirement income system (voluntary private savings), along with superannuation and the public pension.

Reforming our insurance system can make important strides in providing households with better tools to manage climate risk.

Only with stronger safety nets, and by grappling with risks at the societal level, can we counteract the extreme individualisation of climate risk that we experience here in Australia.

Read more:
Some New Zealand homes are becoming uninsurable because of natural disasters – but all may not be lost

Antonia Settle 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. Rebuilding homes after a disaster is an opportunity to build back better – why isn’t the insurance industry on board? – https://theconversation.com/rebuilding-homes-after-a-disaster-is-an-opportunity-to-build-back-better-why-isnt-the-insurance-industry-on-board-241576

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the situation in Azerbaijan, violation of human rights and international law and relations with Armenia – B10-0133/2024

Source: European Parliament

Sergey Lagodinsky, Ville Niinistö, Maria Ohisalo, Catarina Vieira, Hannah Neumann, Nicolae Ştefănuță, Markéta Gregorová, Michael Bloss, Alice Kuhnke, Isabella Lövin, Pär Holmgren, Marie Toussaint
on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

B10‑0133/2024

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Azerbaijan, violation of human rights and international law and relations with Armenia

(2024/2890(RSP))

The European Parliament,

– having regard to its previous resolutions on Azerbaijan and Armenia, and in particular its resolution of 25 April 2024 on Azerbaijan, notably the repression of civil society and the cases of Dr Gubad Ibadoghlu and Ilhamiz Guliyev [1],

– having regard to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

– having regard to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,

– having regard to the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment,

– having regard to the European Convention on Human Rights,

– having regard to the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners,

– having regard to the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Azerbaijan, of the other part [2],

– having regard to the statement of 29 May 2024 by the Spokesperson of the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on the human rights situation in Azerbaijan,

– having regard to Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) resolution 2527 (2024) of 24 January 2024 entitled ‘Challenge, on substantive grounds, of the still unratified credentials of the parliamentary delegation of Azerbaijan’,

– having regard to Rule 136(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas Azerbaijan’s track record on human rights has reached a historic low point owing to the fact that, since late 2022, the government has intensified its systematic repression of critics and dissident voices, with a new and ongoing wave of arrests of human rights defenders, political and civic activists, journalists and independent researchers on the basis of politically motivated baseless charges;

B. whereas the detained journalists and activists listed in its urgency resolution of 25 April 2024 remain in custody;

C. whereas these developments are taking place in the lead-up to the 29th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) in Baku, as part of a concerted effort by the Azerbaijani authorities to effectively silence the few remaining dissenting voices and stifle Azerbaijani civil society; whereas Azerbaijan was granted the status of COP29 host city by the UN Regional Group of Eastern European States, which includes 11 EU Member States;

D. whereas people are being detained for actions such as participating in public protests, giving media interviews, criticising the government on social media, exposing police brutality and alleging government corruption, which is in violation of the Azerbaijani Government’s obligations under international human rights law; whereas in addition to politically motivated persecution, the Azerbaijani authorities also use tools of intimidation and harassment to incite fear and effectively censor independent voices;

E. whereas there are credible reports of severe acts of ill treatment and even of torture inflicted upon detained persons by police officers in Azerbaijan; whereas Azerbaijan refuses to cooperate with the Council of Europe’s European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment;

F. whereas Anar Mammadli, who leads the Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center and is a founding member of the Climate Justice Initiative, which seeks to advocate for civic freedoms and environmental justice in conjunction with COP29, was arrested by Azerbaijani authorities on 29 April 2024 on bogus smuggling charges; whereas Mr Mammadli’s health has deteriorated significantly while in custody;

G. whereas researcher and activist Bahruz Samadov was arrested on 21 August 2024 and charged with ‘high treason’ for his articles criticising Azerbaijan’s Nagorno-Karabakh policy;

H. whereas women human rights defenders continue to face threats, coercion, violations of their right to privacy and smear campaigns that are gender-specific and target them as women;

I. whereas Azerbaijani laws regulating the registration, operation and funding of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are highly restrictive, and Azerbaijani authorities arbitrarily implement these laws; whereas this results in the effective criminalisation of unregistered NGO activity;

J. whereas civil society activists have been fleeing the country in growing numbers since November 2023; whereas the ongoing crackdown on freedom of expression in Azerbaijan is also reflected in reports of transnational repression and reprisals against family members of detainees;

K. whereas the media sector is under the official control of the authorities, and any remaining independent media outlets, primarily AbzasMedia and Toplum TV, have been targeted through judicial harassment and the detention of its journalists;

L. whereas many international and domestic human rights activists and organisations have called on the international community to recognise and respond to the urgency and gravity of the human rights situation in Azerbaijan;

M. whereas PACE officially suspended the Azerbaijan delegation on 24 January 2024 owing to Azerbaijan’s failure to conduct free and fair elections and ensure the separation of powers, the weakness of its legislature vis-à-vis the executive, and the lack of independence of the judiciary and respect for human rights;

N. whereas a number of European Court of Human Rights decisions have found that Azerbaijan has violated human rights; whereas more than 320 court judgments against Azerbaijan have not yet been executed or have been only partially implemented, which is the highest number among all state parties to the European Convention on Human Rights;

O. whereas the EU has intensified its energy trade relations with Azerbaijan over the past two years with a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on a Strategic Partnership in the Field of Energy and more recently an MoU on wind energy cooperation; whereas Commissioner Kadri Simson earlier this year praised the dynamism of the EU’s energy cooperation with Azerbaijan;

P. whereas Article 21 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) stipulates that the Union’s action must be guided by democracy, the rule of law, the universality and indivisibility of human rights and fundamental freedoms, respect for human dignity, the principles of equality and solidarity, and respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter and international law;

Q. whereas, separately, peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia are ongoing, with both sides stating that negotiations are edging towards a peace agreement; whereas several significant deadlocks seemingly remain, owing to issues including Azerbaijani demands in relation to Armenia’s constitution and a corridor to connect mainland Azerbaijan with its Nakhchivan exclave via southern Armenia, disregarding Armenia’s sovereignty; whereas earlier this year a deal was signed on a joint border commission to demarcate and delimit their shared border;

1. Reiterates its profound concern regarding the human rights situation in Azerbaijan, in particular the government’s severe restrictions on freedoms of expression, assembly and association that have worsened over the past two years;

2. Is deeply concerned about the systematic repression of freedom of expression by the Azerbaijani authorities, targeting civil society, civic and political activists, journalists and human rights defenders, including acts of harassment, intimidation, arbitrary detention and severe ill treatment and torture by police officers, and politically motivated legal persecution; expresses deep concern about the environment of fear that this has created inside the country, leaving civil society effectively silenced;

3. Urges the Government of Azerbaijan to immediately and unconditionally release Anar Mammadli, Bahruz Samadov, Igbal Abilov, Farid Mehralizade, Emin Ibrahimov and Famil Khalilov, as well as political prisoners named in previous urgency resolutions, including Ilhamiz Guliyev, Tofig Yagublu, Akif Gurbanov and Bakhtiyar Hajiyev, and human rights defenders and journalists Ulvi Hasanli, Sevinj Vagifgizi, Nargiz Absalamova, Hafiz Babali, Elnara Gasimova, Aziz Orujov, Rufat Muradli, Avaz Zeynalli, Elnur Shukurov, Alasgar Mammadli and Farid Ismayilov; calls, further, for the vacation of any convictions against those released and the removal of restrictions on their freedom of movement;

4. Reminds Azerbaijan that the provision of healthcare for prisoners is the responsibility of the state; calls for adequate healthcare and medical treatment to be provided to all those detained in Azerbaijan on politically motivated charges;

5. Urges the Azerbaijani authorities to drop all charges against renowned scholar, anti-corruption activist and shortlisted finalist of the 2024 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought Dr Gubad Ibadoghlu, release him from house arrest, and allow him to travel abroad for urgent medical care without delay and attend the Sakharov Prize ceremony in Strasbourg in December;

6. Is deeply concerned about Azerbaijan’s violations of the freedom of association through undue restrictions and misuse of NGO legislation, resulting in the persecution of civil society and curtailing of its work; calls on the Azerbaijani Government to repeal the restrictive NGO and media legislation and ensure that civil society can operate without undue hindrance or fear of reprisals and persecution;

7. Encourages the Commission to review its approach to supporting human rights in Azerbaijan and recommends a reassessment of its funding mechanisms for Azerbaijani independent civil society and media, aligning them more closely with the strategies used to support these sectors in Belarus;

8. Condemns the continued repression of the right to freedom of assembly, for instance in the case of anti-pollution protests in the village of Soyudlu in 2023, which were quashed by security forces using violence and arrests;

9. Calls on the Azerbaijani Government to swiftly comply with long-standing recommendations of the Council of Europe’s European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment on the subject of the widespread recourse to physical ill treatment (including, on occasion, torture) by the police in Azerbaijan;

10. Calls on the Azerbaijani Government to implement all decisions by the European Court of Human Rights, reminds it of its obligations to respect human dignity and fundamental freedoms and calls on it to repeal repressive legislation on the registration and funding of NGOs, to bring it in line with Venice Commission recommendations;

11. Deeply regrets statements by various Commission representatives, including President Ursula von der Leyen, calling Azerbaijan a ‘reliable partner’ in the field of energy; insists that, in the interest of its geopolitical security, integrity and pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals, the EU end its reliance on fossil-fuel-rich authoritarian countries once and for all;

12. Reiterates its denunciation of Azerbaijan’s systematic bribery of European politicians, including in the context of PACE;

13. Considers that the ongoing human rights violations in Azerbaijan are incompatible with the country’s role as COP29 host; urges the EU and the Member States to use COP29 as an occasion for the international community to remind Azerbaijan of its international obligations and to condemn and address in a meaningful way Azerbaijan’s human rights violations in interactions with the Azerbaijani authorities in Baku during COP29; calls on delegates attending COP29 on behalf of the EU and the Member States, in particular President Ursula von der Leyen, to make public and private calls for the immediate and unconditional release of arbitrarily detained journalists, activists and human rights defenders and to request meetings with political prisoners while in the country;

14. Stresses the fact that Azerbaijan will host COP29 on behalf of the UN Regional Group of Eastern European States, which includes EU Member States, and that they cannot allow the Azerbaijani Government to use the occasion to whitewash its image and human rights track record; demands that the organisers and the Member States make clear to the Azerbaijani authorities how important a thriving and independent civil society is to the conference’s success, and ensure that human rights, fundamental freedoms and the effective participation of civil society are guaranteed during the event;

15. Calls for the EU and the Member States to prioritise, in line with Article 21 TEU, addressing Azerbaijan’s appalling human rights situation in their relations with the country and introducing stronger human rights conditions in the EU’s relations with Azerbaijan; calls for the EU’s economic and political ties with and support for Azerbaijan, including any cooperation on energy, to be made conditional on the release of all political prisoners, reform of laws and regulations governing NGOs and their funding, and the improvement of the overall human rights situation in the country; insists, in this regard, that the EU and the Member States suspend all energy trade relations with Azerbaijan, including the MoU on a Strategic Partnership in the Field of Energy, and make any reinstatement conditional on meeting the above requirements;

16. Calls on the Commission to investigate options for imposing targeted sanctions under the EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime on those individuals responsible for the grave and consistent human rights violations in Azerbaijan;

17. Welcomes, separately, the ongoing negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan on all pending issues with the aim of concluding a peace treaty, and calls on both parties to remain fully committed to a lasting and peaceful settlement of the long-standing dispute, through dialogue and negotiations; believes that an agreement between these two countries needs to be negotiated in good faith and be based on the recognition of sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-use of force; recalls that, meanwhile, all rights of the Armenian minority in Azerbaijan must be safeguarded and calls for all prisoners of war to be released in line with the 1949 Third Geneva Convention;

18. Urges the Commission and the Council to ensure the EU’s ability to credibly and effectively continue supporting the negotiations directed at a lasting peace for the benefit of all people in the region;

19. Calls on Türkiye to take more diplomatic responsibility in the region by actively contributing to the promotion of peace negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and by playing a constructive role in facilitating a lasting and peaceful resolution of the conflict;

20. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the European External Action Service, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the President and Parliament of Azerbaijan and the President, Prime Minister and Parliament of Armenia.

MIL OSI Europe News –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Senator Collins Delivers Remarks at Inauguration of Husson University President

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for Maine Susan Collins
Published: October 18, 2024

Click HERE, HERE, and HERE for individual photos
Bangor, ME – Today, U.S. Senator Susan Collins delivered remarks at the inauguration of Husson University’s 7th president, Lynne Coy-Ogan, at the University’s Gracie Theater. Former Husson University Presidents Bob Clark and Bill Beardsley were also in attendance to congratulate President Coy-Ogan.
“From serving as principal at Bangor’s Fruit Street School to a nearly 20-year career here at Husson as dean, provost, and vice president, Lynne has dedicated her life to education,” Senator Collins said during her remarks. “As a Maine native, she is devoted to our State and its people. As the first woman to hold this position, she is a role model and an inspiration. I commend the Board of Trustees for this excellent, enthusiastic, and unanimous choice.”
Dr. Coy-Ogan was born in Bangor, Maine and earned a bachelor’s degree from Boston University, a master’s in school counseling from Johns Hopkins, and an Ed.D. in educational leadership from Liberty University, where she focused her research on first-generation college students. She later served as a principal in the Bangor School Department and Regional School Unit 68. She joined Husson University in 2005 as dean of the School of Education, eventually becoming provost and Vice President before being named the University’s 7th President.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Yoruba vs Igbo: how a 1977 football cup caused ethnic tensions to boil over in Nigeria

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Chuka Onwumechili, Professor of Communications, Howard University

Football is a game of passion, and passions can become particularly inflamed when the sport represents larger political struggles. In Nigeria in 1977, an Africa-wide football contest fuelled the ethnic rivalry between the Yoruba and the Igbo people to the point that the military had to intervene. The game was to be played as a semi-final in the Africa Cup Winners’ Cup, the club football tournament that would go on to become the Caf Confederation Cup.

As scholars of sports communication, we recently published a research paper about that 1977 confrontation between Shooting Stars of Ibadan (Ibadan is home to a Yoruba majority in the south-west) and Enugu Rangers (Enugu is an Igbo state).

Read more:
Hamas-Israel conflict: Algeria offers to host Palestine’s football matches – the bigger history

Our study adds to a history of football and politics that is not well documented in Africa. In the process it shows that football represents more than just sport, but can also be a way of understanding cultural and political issues.

Yoruba vs Igbo

The rivalry between the Igbos and Yorubas is almost as old as the formation of Nigeria in 1914. Both groups vie politically and for jobs. Each forms roughly a fifth of the Nigerian population. The Igbo had lost political power after the Nigerian Civil War of 1967-1970.

This rivalry became particularly visible in Nigerian football from the 1950s when ethnic groups contested annually for the Alex Oni Cup. The Yorubas often won, the Igbos a close second but the tournament was eventually discontinued because of fights between players and spectators.

After this, Igbos did not have a representative club team in national competitions until after the war ended in 1970. Top Igbo footballers were employed at various clubs across the country, particularly in Lagos. Yorubas played for various clubs in their home region. One such club was the Shooting Stars. They made up the bulk of the Ibadan Lions team that won the national Challenge Cup four times from 1959 to 1969.

Read more:
Football and politics in Kinshasa: how DRC’s elite use sport to build their reputations and hold on to power

After the civil war, most Igbo footballers – who had fought unsuccessfully for the secession of Biafra state – were afraid to live in other parts of the country. Enugu Rangers was formed and the club dominated Nigerian football in the 1970s and 1980s.

Shooting Stars had become the beacon club of the Yorubas and quickly developed a rivalry with Enugu Rangers.

The semi-final that caused all the trouble

This ongoing rivalry escalated when the two clubs beat off opposition from across the continent to meet in the two legs of the semi-final of the Africa Cup Winners Cup in 1977. Shooting Stars were defending the title. Rangers chose not to take part in the more prestigious Africa Champions Club’s Cup – instead they sought to equal Shooting Stars’ feat of winning the Cup Winners Cup.

To add to the tension, Nigeria’s national team was made up of mainly by players from these two clubs – and the national team was competing in the last stage of the qualifiers for the 1978 men’s football World Cup. It was feared that the rivalry would affect its chances. Almost daily, the newspapers reported on accusations levelled by officials of the two teams at each other and the Nigerian Football Association (today the Nigeria Football Federation).

The association had to find solutions – fast. Both teams had played their home matches in their own cities so far. The association decided that their two semi-final games should be played in a “neutral” location: Lagos.

Read more:
Egypt’s powerful football fans and politics: a toxic mix that could combust during Afcon

But after the first leg, a designated “home game” for Shooting Stars, ended 0-0, controversy erupted. Lagos is in the west of the country, home of the Yorubas. This was seen to give the Shooting Stars an advantage. There was also controversy about whether the teams could call up some or all of their players in the national team. The association’s authority to re-schedule the second leg was then called into question. These issues were argued at fever pitch and publicly by fans and in the media, with threats and ethnic undertones.

The association wanted to bar both Rangers and Shooting Stars from using their national team players, but was eventually forced to agree on the release of all players to play in the final leg of the Africa Cup Winners’ Cup semi-final. But not before making a very late request that the Confederation of African Football put off the game until after the national team’s World Cup qualifying games.

Shooting Stars, frustrated by the postponement, lashed out publicly and in the media. They accused Nigeria’s federal sports commissioner, Dandeson Isokrari, of ethnocentrism and favouritism. Isokrari was an easterner, from Enugu Rangers territory.

With tension boiling over and threats issued from both sides, the second-in-command of the Nigeria state, Major General Musa Yar’ Adua, stepped in to avoid ethnic strife and possible violence. He instructed the match to move to Kaduna, a northern city, away from the homes of the clubs. This decision by the country’s military leadership calmed nerves.

Read more:
Morocco will co-host the 2030 World Cup – Palestine and Western Sahara will be burning issues

An overflowing crowd packed the Kaduna venue from the early morning. In the early minutes of the game, Shooting Stars mounted a siege in the Rangers’ goal area. It was so tense that journalists and photographers converged behind the Rangers goal. Angry Rangers supporters claimed they were not journalists and photographers, but disguised juju men concocting mystical incantations that kept the ball rooted in the Rangers goal area.

The match ended in another 0-0 tie but Rangers advanced when goalkeeper Emmanuel Okala helped to turn the penalty kick tiebreaker in the club’s favour, 4-2. Despite the tensions, there were no reported incidents of violence during the match.

This epic contest between two clubs during a continental cup contest in 1977 reminds us of the rivalry that persists even today among ethnic groups across the continent. Football often represents such ethnic rivalries beyond the field of play – and in the case of Enugu Rangers and Shooting Stars it reached a dangerous level that forced the state to step in.

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

– ref. Yoruba vs Igbo: how a 1977 football cup caused ethnic tensions to boil over in Nigeria – https://theconversation.com/yoruba-vs-igbo-how-a-1977-football-cup-caused-ethnic-tensions-to-boil-over-in-nigeria-239128

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: FBI Seeks Public Assistance in Locating Missing Montana Child

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News

Montana – The FBI is seeking the public’s assistance in locating Sa’Wade Birdinground, a 13-year-old member of the Crow Tribe, who has been missing since October 6, 2024.

There have been no known contacts with her family or friends since she disappeared. Sa’Wade has been described as a quiet, kind and artistic child who likes to laugh. Sa’Wade is well liked by her peers and teachers. She has never run away from home or been in any serious trouble. Her disappearance from home is totally out of character for her, and her family is very concerned about her. A Missing Endangered Person Advisory (MEPA) has been issued by the Montana Department of Justice due to concerns for her safety.

“We are doing everything we can to bring Sa’Wade home safely. The community’s help is crucial at this time, and we urge anyone with information to come forward immediately,” said Jeramie Middlestead, Big Horn County Sheriff. “Sa’Wade’s family is deeply worried, and any information, no matter how small, can make a difference.”

“The FBI is working closely with local law enforcement to find Sa’Wade Birdinground,” said Rhys Williams, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Salt Lake City Division. “We are asking for the public’s assistance in locating her, and we won’t stop until we have answers. If you have any information, please contact us.”

Based on the investigation thus far and the length of time that she has been missing, we are taking this case very seriously and chasing down every lead. Investigators are searching, canvassing multiple neighborhoods, and interviewing members of our community. We urge anyone with information to please call 406-665-9798. Any details, no matter how small, could assist in bringing her home safely.

MIL Security OSI –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI China: 3 killed in trail ride shooting in U.S. state of Mississippi

Source: China State Council Information Office

Three people were killed and eight others injured on Saturday during a trail ride shooting in Holmes County, the southern U.S. state of Mississippi, authorities said.

The incident occurred when at least two people opened fire into a crowd of 200 to 300 people celebrating Holmes County Consolidated School’s homecoming football win at an outdoor event several hours after the game ended.

Holmes County Sheriff Willie March said the shooting followed an argument among several young men.

The sheriff said police officers are searching for the suspects in connection to the shooting and an investigation is underway.

MIL OSI China News –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Africa: Yoruba vs Igbo: how a 1977 football cup caused ethnic tensions to boil over in Nigeria

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Chuka Onwumechili, Professor of Communications, Howard University

Football is a game of passion, and passions can become particularly inflamed when the sport represents larger political struggles. In Nigeria in 1977, an Africa-wide football contest fuelled the ethnic rivalry between the Yoruba and the Igbo people to the point that the military had to intervene. The game was to be played as a semi-final in the Africa Cup Winners’ Cup, the club football tournament that would go on to become the Caf Confederation Cup.

As scholars of sports communication, we recently published a research paper about that 1977 confrontation between Shooting Stars of Ibadan (Ibadan is home to a Yoruba majority in the south-west) and Enugu Rangers (Enugu is an Igbo state).

Read more: Hamas-Israel conflict: Algeria offers to host Palestine’s football matches – the bigger history

Our study adds to a history of football and politics that is not well documented in Africa. In the process it shows that football represents more than just sport, but can also be a way of understanding cultural and political issues.

Yoruba vs Igbo

The rivalry between the Igbos and Yorubas is almost as old as the formation of Nigeria in 1914. Both groups vie politically and for jobs. Each forms roughly a fifth of the Nigerian population. The Igbo had lost political power after the Nigerian Civil War of 1967-1970.

This rivalry became particularly visible in Nigerian football from the 1950s when ethnic groups contested annually for the Alex Oni Cup. The Yorubas often won, the Igbos a close second but the tournament was eventually discontinued because of fights between players and spectators.

After this, Igbos did not have a representative club team in national competitions until after the war ended in 1970. Top Igbo footballers were employed at various clubs across the country, particularly in Lagos. Yorubas played for various clubs in their home region. One such club was the Shooting Stars. They made up the bulk of the Ibadan Lions team that won the national Challenge Cup four times from 1959 to 1969.

Read more: Football and politics in Kinshasa: how DRC’s elite use sport to build their reputations and hold on to power

After the civil war, most Igbo footballers – who had fought unsuccessfully for the secession of Biafra state – were afraid to live in other parts of the country. Enugu Rangers was formed and the club dominated Nigerian football in the 1970s and 1980s.

Shooting Stars had become the beacon club of the Yorubas and quickly developed a rivalry with Enugu Rangers.

The semi-final that caused all the trouble

This ongoing rivalry escalated when the two clubs beat off opposition from across the continent to meet in the two legs of the semi-final of the Africa Cup Winners Cup in 1977. Shooting Stars were defending the title. Rangers chose not to take part in the more prestigious Africa Champions Club’s Cup – instead they sought to equal Shooting Stars’ feat of winning the Cup Winners Cup.

To add to the tension, Nigeria’s national team was made up of mainly by players from these two clubs – and the national team was competing in the last stage of the qualifiers for the 1978 men’s football World Cup. It was feared that the rivalry would affect its chances. Almost daily, the newspapers reported on accusations levelled by officials of the two teams at each other and the Nigerian Football Association (today the Nigeria Football Federation).

The association had to find solutions – fast. Both teams had played their home matches in their own cities so far. The association decided that their two semi-final games should be played in a “neutral” location: Lagos.

Read more: Egypt’s powerful football fans and politics: a toxic mix that could combust during Afcon

But after the first leg, a designated “home game” for Shooting Stars, ended 0-0, controversy erupted. Lagos is in the west of the country, home of the Yorubas. This was seen to give the Shooting Stars an advantage. There was also controversy about whether the teams could call up some or all of their players in the national team. The association’s authority to re-schedule the second leg was then called into question. These issues were argued at fever pitch and publicly by fans and in the media, with threats and ethnic undertones.

The association wanted to bar both Rangers and Shooting Stars from using their national team players, but was eventually forced to agree on the release of all players to play in the final leg of the Africa Cup Winners’ Cup semi-final. But not before making a very late request that the Confederation of African Football put off the game until after the national team’s World Cup qualifying games.

Shooting Stars, frustrated by the postponement, lashed out publicly and in the media. They accused Nigeria’s federal sports commissioner, Dandeson Isokrari, of ethnocentrism and favouritism. Isokrari was an easterner, from Enugu Rangers territory.

With tension boiling over and threats issued from both sides, the second-in-command of the Nigeria state, Major General Musa Yar’ Adua, stepped in to avoid ethnic strife and possible violence. He instructed the match to move to Kaduna, a northern city, away from the homes of the clubs. This decision by the country’s military leadership calmed nerves.

Read more: Morocco will co-host the 2030 World Cup – Palestine and Western Sahara will be burning issues

An overflowing crowd packed the Kaduna venue from the early morning. In the early minutes of the game, Shooting Stars mounted a siege in the Rangers’ goal area. It was so tense that journalists and photographers converged behind the Rangers goal. Angry Rangers supporters claimed they were not journalists and photographers, but disguised juju men concocting mystical incantations that kept the ball rooted in the Rangers goal area.

The match ended in another 0-0 tie but Rangers advanced when goalkeeper Emmanuel Okala helped to turn the penalty kick tiebreaker in the club’s favour, 4-2. Despite the tensions, there were no reported incidents of violence during the match.

This epic contest between two clubs during a continental cup contest in 1977 reminds us of the rivalry that persists even today among ethnic groups across the continent. Football often represents such ethnic rivalries beyond the field of play – and in the case of Enugu Rangers and Shooting Stars it reached a dangerous level that forced the state to step in.

– Yoruba vs Igbo: how a 1977 football cup caused ethnic tensions to boil over in Nigeria
– https://theconversation.com/yoruba-vs-igbo-how-a-1977-football-cup-caused-ethnic-tensions-to-boil-over-in-nigeria-239128

MIL OSI Africa –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: It would cost billions, but pay for itself over time. The economic case for air conditioning every Australian school

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Geoff Hanmer, Adjunct Professor of Architecture, University of Technology Sydney

Later this week the government will receive the report of the year-long independent inquiry into its handling of the COVID pandemic.

Among the issues it will have to contend with is air quality, in particular the air quality in high occupancy public buildings such as schools, aged-care facilities, shops, pubs and clubs.

Many already have high quality air. High-fitration air conditioning (so-called mechanical ventilation) is standard in offices, hospitals and shopping centres.

But not in schools. Almost all of our schools (98% in NSW) use windows.

In Australia’s national construction code, this is called “natural ventilation” and it is allowed so long as the window, opening or door has a ventilating area of not less than 5% of the floor area, a requirement research suggests is insufficient.

Windows, but no requirement to keep them open

There’s no requirement to actually open the windows. School windows are often shut to keep in the heat in (or to keep out the heat in summer).

The result can be very, very stuffy classrooms, far stuffier than we would tolerate in shopping centres. This matters for learning. Study after study has found that when air circulation gets low, people can’t concentrate well or learn well.

And they get sick. Diseases such as flu, COVID and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) spread when viruses get recirculated instead of diluted with fresh air.

The costs of the resulting sickness are borne by students, parents, teachers and education systems that need to find replacement staff to cover for teachers who are sick and parents who need to look after sick children at home.

A pilot study prepared for the Australian Research Council Centre for Advanced Building Systems Against Airborne Infection (known as “Thrive”), suggests the entire cost of installing high-filtration air conditioning in every Australian school would be offset by the savings in reduced sickness.

What classroom air is like

The study carried out by the education architecture firm ARINA compared the ventilation of 60 so-called naturally ventilated schools in southern NSW and the Australian Capital Territory to that of a school in Sydney that happened to have been fitted with a Standards Australia-compliant air conditioning system to control aircraft noise.

It used carbon dioxide levels to measure ventilation. Carbon dioxide is a good proxy for ventilation because its levels are determined by both the number of people breathing out concentrated carbon dioxide and the clean air available to dilute it.

Under a normal load, defined as 26 students, one teacher and one assistant, measured levels of carbon dioxide in the air-conditioned school stayed below 750 parts per million (ppm) and were typically between 500 and 600 ppm.

A reading of 700 ppm is particularly good. It means the people in the room breathe in less than 0.5% of air breathed out by others.

But in “naturally ventilated” classrooms the reading often climbed to 2,500 ppm and sometimes more, within an hour of a class commencing.

At 2,500 parts per million, people in the room are breathing in 5.5% of the air breathed out by others. This is also high enough to affect cognition, learning and behaviour, something that begins when carbon dioxide climbs above 1,200 ppm.

Research suggests using ventilation to cut carbon dioxide to 700 ppm can cut the risk of airborne transmission of disease by a factor of two and up to five.

The economic case for healthy air

In 2023, Australia had 9,629 schools with 4,086,998 students.

ARINA has previously estimated the cost of ensuring all of these schools are mechanically ventilated at A$2 billion per year over five years.

Offsetting that cost would be less sickness. Documents released under freedom of information laws show Victoria spent $360.8 million on casual relief teachers between May 2023 and May 2024, 54% more than before COVID in 2019.

The figures for other states are harder to get, but if Victoria (with 26% of Australia’s population) is spending $234 million more per year on casual relief teachers than before COVID, it is likely that Australia is spending $900 million per year more.

Add in the teachers in non-government schools (37% of Australia’s total) and the potential saving from air conditioning schools exceeds $1 billion per year.

Add in the other non-COVID viruses that would no longer be concentrated and circulated in classrooms and the potential savings grow higher still.

Worth more than $1 billion per year

And, in any event, the cost of replacement teachers is a woefully incomplete measure of the cost of illness in schools. Many ill teachers can’t be replaced because replacements aren’t available, making schools cancel lessons and combine classes, costing days, weeks and sometimes months of lost education.

Also, the bacteria and viruses spread by recirculated air infect students as well as teachers, keeping students (and often their parents) at home as well.

This suggests the costs per year of not air conditioning schools exceed $1 billion and may well approach or exceed $2 billion, which is the estimated cost per year over five years of air conditioning every Australian school.

Natural ventilation was never a good idea for classrooms: it was cheap at the time, but not cheap at all when the costs are considered. Those costs happen to extend beyond disease to thermal comfort, energy use and the ability of students to concentrate.

It’s time we gave students and teachers the kind of protections we demand for ourselves in our offices, our shopping centres and often our homes. It would soon pay for itself.

Geoff Hanmer is a member of the executive of the Industry Training and Transformation Centre for Advanced Building Systems against Airborne Infection Transmission (known as Thrive) which receives funding from the Australian Research Council, QUT, the University of Melbourne and industry partners in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. He is a director of the health expert body OzSAGE and the managing director of ARINA, an architectural consultancy.

– ref. It would cost billions, but pay for itself over time. The economic case for air conditioning every Australian school – https://theconversation.com/it-would-cost-billions-but-pay-for-itself-over-time-the-economic-case-for-air-conditioning-every-australian-school-241465

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Center Opens in Mecklenburg County

Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

Headline: Disaster Recovery Center Opens in Mecklenburg County

Disaster Recovery Center Opens in Mecklenburg County

RALEIGH, N.C. – A Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) will open Monday, Oct. 21 in Charlotte (Mecklenburg County) to assist North Carolina survivors who experienced loss from Tropical Storm Helene.

The Mecklenburg County DRC is located at:

Corvian Community School
9501 David Taylor Drive
Charlotte, NC 28262
Open: 8 a.m. – 7 p.m., Monday through Sunday

A DRC is a one-stop shop where survivors can meet face-to-face with FEMA representatives, apply for FEMA assistance, receive referrals to local assistance in their area, apply with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) for low-interest disaster loans and much more.

FEMA financial assistance may include money for basic home repairs, personal property losses or other uninsured, disaster-related needs, such as childcare, transportation, medical needs, funeral or dental expenses.

Centers are already open in Asheville, Bakersville, Boone, Brevard, Hendersonville, Jefferson, Lenoir, Marion, Morganton, Newland, Old Fort, Sparta, Sylva and Waynesville. To find those center locations, go to fema.gov/drc or text “DRC” and a zip code to 43362. Additional recovery centers will open soon. All centers are accessible to people with disabilities or access and functional needs and are equipped with assistive technology. 

Homeowners and renters in 39 North Carolina counties and tribal members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians can visit any open center, including locations in other states. No appointment is needed. 

It is not necessary to go to a center to apply for FEMA assistance. The fastest way to apply is online at DisasterAssistance.gov or via the FEMA app. You may also call 800-621-3362. If you use a relay service, such as video relay, captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA your number for that service.

aubrey.pound
Sun, 10/20/2024 – 19:20

MIL OSI USA News –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: A technical fix to keep kids safe online? Here’s what happened last time Australia tried to make a ‘clean’ internet

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Houlihan, PhD Candidate in History, Monash University

Prostock Studio / Shutterstock

For anyone who has been online in Australia longer than a decade or so, the discussion around current proposals to set a minimum age for social media use might trigger a touch of déjà vu.

Between 2007 and 2012, the Rudd–Gillard government’s efforts to implement a “Clean Feed” internet filter sparked very similar debates.

Beset by technical problems and facing fierce opposition, the Clean Feed was eventually abandoned in favour of laws that already existed. Will the proposed social media ban face a similar fate?

How to regulate cyberspace

The question of how to regulate a cyberspace occupied by both adults and children has puzzled governments for a long time. Traditional controls on physical media are difficult to apply to online spaces, particularly when so much online media comes from overseas.

As early as 1998, an Australian Broadcasting Authority report noted a key difficulty in online regulation. Namely, balancing adults’ access to legal online spaces and content with restrictions on childrens’ access to age-inappropriate material and bans on illegal content.

The Clean Feed proposal attempted to address parental concerns about age-inappropriate websites. First raised in 2006 by Labor in opposition, it became a campaign promise at the 2007 election.

The proposal aimed to solve the issue of overseas content. Australian authorities could already require website owners in Australia to take down illegal content, but they had no power over international sites.

To address this, the Clean Feed would require internet service providers to run a government-created filter blocking all material given a “Refused” classification by the Australian Classification Board, which meant it was illegal. Labor argued the filter would protect children from “harmful and inappropriate” content, including child pornography and X-rated media. The Australian Communications and Media Authority created a “blacklist” of websites that the filter would block.

Technical trouble

The Clean Feed was plagued by technical issues. Trials in 2008 revealed it might slow internet speeds by up to 87%, block access to legal websites, and wouldn’t block all illegal content.

While the effect on speeds was improved, the 2008 trials and others in 2009 revealed another problem: determined users could bypass the filter.

There were also fears the blacklist would be used to block legal websites. While the government maintained the filter would only target illegal content, some questioned whether this was true.

Internet service providers were already required to prevent access to content that had been given a Refused classification. This, along with unclear government statements about removing age-inappropriate material, led many to believe the blacklist could be more far-reaching.

The government also planned to keep the list secret, on the grounds that a published list could become a guide for finding illegal material.

The blacklist

In 2009, the whistleblowing website Wikileaks published a list of sites blacklisted in Denmark. The government banned those pages of Wikileaks, and in response Wikileaks published what it said was the Australian government blacklist. (The government denied it was the actual blacklist.)

Newspapers noted that around half the websites on the published list were not related to child pornography.

Wikileaks published what it claimed was the government’s planned ‘blacklist’ of websites, along with a rationale for publishing the list.
Wikileaks

The alleged blacklist also contained legal content, including Wikipedia pages, YouTube links, and even the website of a Queensland dentist. This lent weight to fears the filter would block more than just illegal websites.

More debates emerged surrounding how the Refused classification category was applied offline as well as on the internet.

In January 2010, the Australian Sex Party reported claims from pornography studios that customs officials had confiscated material featuring female ejaculation (as an “abhorrent depiction” or form of urination) and small-breasted adult women (who might appear to be minors). Many questioned whether these should be banned, and if such depictions would be added to the blacklist – including members of hacker-activist group Anonymous.

Operation Titstorm and the end of the Clean Feed

While Anonymous members had already protested the Clean Feed, this new information sparked a new protest action dubbed Operation Titstorm.

On February 10 2010, activists targeted several government websites. The Australian Parliament site was down for three days. Protesters also mass-emailed politicians and their staff the kinds of pornography set to be blocked by the filter.

While Operation Titstorm gained media attention, other digital activists (such as Electronic Frontiers Australia and other members of Anonymous) criticised its illegal tactics. Many dismissed the protest as juvenile.

In February 2010, hacker-activists from Anonymous launched denial-of-service attacks and email campaigns in protest of proposed internet filters.
WIkipedia

However, one participant argued that many protesters were children, who had used these methods because “kids and teenagers don’t really get the chance to voice their opinions”. The protesters may have been the very people the Clean Feed was supposed to protect.

The government abandoned the Clean Feed in 2012 and used existing legislation to require internet service providers to block INTERPOL’s “worst of” child abuse list. It remains to be seen whether the social media minimum age will similarly crumble under the weight of controversy and be rendered redundant by existing legislation.

The same, but different

The Clean Feed tried to balance the rights of adults to access legal material with protecting children from age-inappropriate content and making cyberspace safer for them. In a sense, it did this by regulating adults.

The filter limited the material adults could access. Given it was government-created and mandatory, it also decided for parents what content was age-appropriate for their children.

The current proposal to set a minimum age for social media flips this solution by determining what online spaces children can occupy. Similar to the filter, it also makes this decision on parents’ behalf.

The Clean Feed saga reveals some of the difficulties of policing the internet. It also reminds us that anxiety about what Australian youth can interact with online is nothing new – and is unlikely to go away.

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

– ref. A technical fix to keep kids safe online? Here’s what happened last time Australia tried to make a ‘clean’ internet – https://theconversation.com/a-technical-fix-to-keep-kids-safe-online-heres-what-happened-last-time-australia-tried-to-make-a-clean-internet-241371

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: What are executive function delays? Research shows they’re similar in ADHD and autism

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam Guastella, Professor and Clinical Psychologist, Michael Crouch Chair in Child and Youth Mental Health, University of Sydney

ABO Photography/Shutterstock

Neurodevelopmental conditions such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism affect about one in ten children. These conditions impact learning, behaviour and development.

Executive function delays are core to challenges people with neurodevelopmental conditions experience. This includes skills such as paying attention, switching attention, controlling impulses, planning, organising and problem-solving.

These skills are important for learning and long-term development. They have been linked with future occupational, social, academic and mental health outcomes. Children with improved executive function skills and supports for these skills do better long term.

Decades of studies have described how difficulties in attention and impulse control underpin ADHD. Meanwhile, difficulties with switching attention and flexibility of thinking have been proposed to underpin autism.

As a result, different supports and interventions developed for different neurodevelopmental conditions target these skills. It sets up a system where a diagnosis is made first, then a set of supports is provided based on that diagnosis.

But our recent study, published in Nature Human Behaviour, shows executive function problems are similar across all neurodevelopmental conditions. Understanding these common needs could lead to better access to supports before waiting for a specific diagnosis.

Our study found more similarities than differences

We looked at 180 studies, over 45 years, that compared executive function skills across two or more neurodevelopmental conditions.

We brought the research together for all neurodevelopmental conditions that have been defined by diagnostic manuals, including ADHD, Tourette’s syndrome, communication disorders and intellectual disabilities.

Surprisingly, we found most neurodevelopmental conditions showed very similar delays in their executive skills.

Children with ADHD showed difficulties with attention and impulse control, for example, but so did children with autism, communication and specific learning conditions.

There were very few differences between each neurodevelopmental condition and the type of executive function delay.

This suggests executive function delay is best considered as a common difficulty for all children with neurodevelopmental conditions. All of these children could benefit from similar supports to improve executive skills.

But supports have become siloed

For decades, research has failed to integrate findings across conditions. This has led to siloed research and practices across the education, health and disability sectors.

Our data showed a gradual shift in the type of conditions that have been studied since 1980. In the earlier days, as a percentage, there were a far greater proportion of studies conducted on tic disorders, such as Tourette’s syndrome. In the past ten years, autism has been of greater focus.

This means research and practice is also siloed, based on the focus on funding and interest in the community. Some groups miss out from good science and practice when they become less visible in the political landscape.

This has led to a skewed support system where only children with a specific diagnosis can be offered certain interventions. It also reduces access to supports if families can’t access diagnostic services, which can be particularly difficult in regional and rural communities.

Due to these diagnosis-driven research practices, there are now assessment services, guidelines and treatments that are recommended for autism. These are usually independent from and not offered to children with ADHD, Tourette’s syndrome, communication disorders or intellectual disabilities despite a significant overlap in children’s needs.

How does this affect access to support

Families often find it hard to get the help they need. They often describe the assessment and support process as confusing, with long wait times and lots of barriers.

We have previously shown caregivers often attend assessment and support services with a broad range of needs, but leave with many needs unaddressed.

Recent national child mental health, autism and ADHD guidelines call for more integrated supports for children. But most services are not well set up to do this. It will take time to drive such system change if this is to be achieved.

Why we need integrated research

More integrated research will lead to more cohesive support systems across education, health and disability for all children in need.

Studies show, for example, that many risk factors (genetic and environmental) are common to all neurodevelopmental conditions. These include a broad overlap of risk genes that are the same between conditions, and common environmental factors that influence development in the womb, such as the use of certain drugs, stress and a significant immune response.

Other studies show how most children diagnosed with one neurodevelopmental condition will also be diagnosed with others.

But gaps remain. While we know certain stimulant medications can work well for ADHD, for example, we have less information about how they might help children with other neurodevelopmental conditions who have attention difficulties.

Unlike our knowledge about social supports for children with autism, we don’t have much research on how we can help children with ADHD with their social needs.

We should take a wider view of children’s needs

It’s important for families to be aware that if their child meets criteria for one neurodevelopmental condition, it is very likely that they will meet criteria for other neurodvelopmental conditions. They will likely have many needs relevant to other conditions.

It is worth asking clinical services about broader needs beyond a diagnosis. This should include developmental, mental and physical health needs.

It is also important to consider that many common interventions may have potential to support all children with neurodevelopmental conditions.

This is an important issue for government. Reviews are under way for supporting the needs of people with autism, intellectual disability and ADHD.

It’s time to establish more integrated systems, supports and strategies for all people with neurodevelopmental conditions for their home, school, play and work.

Adam Guastella receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council and Australian Research Council for research into neurodevelopmental conditions. He is director of the Clinic for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Research and scientific chair of Neurodevelopment Australia, a scientific group seeking to improve the knowledge and supports for all people with neurodevelopmental conditions.

Kelsie Boulton 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. What are executive function delays? Research shows they’re similar in ADHD and autism – https://theconversation.com/what-are-executive-function-delays-research-shows-theyre-similar-in-adhd-and-autism-238760

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: How light helped shape our skin colour, eyes and curly hair

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mike Lee, Professor in Evolutionary Biology (jointly appointed with South Australian Museum), Flinders University

Pictrider/Shutterstock

Welcome to our ‘Light and health’ series. Over six articles, we look at how light affects our physical and mental health in sometimes surprising ways.

For most of our evolutionary history, human activity has been linked to daylight. Technology has liberated us from these ancient sleep-wake cycles, but there is evidence sunlight has left and continues to leave its mark.

Not only do we still tend to be awake in the daytime and sleep at night, we can thank light for many other aspects of our biology.

Light may have driven our ancestors to walk upright on two legs. Light helps explain the evolution of our skin colour, why some of us have curly hair, and even the size of our eyes.

As we’ll explore in future articles in this series, light helps shape our mood, our immune system, how our gut works, and much more. Light can make us sick, tell us why we’re sick, then treat us.

Million of years of evolutionary history means humans are still very much creatures of the light.

We stood up, then walked out of Africa

The first modern humans evolved in warm African climates. And reducing exposure to the harsh sunlight is one explanation for why humans began to walk upright on two legs. When we stand up and the Sun is directly overhead, far less sunshine hits our body.

Curly hair may have also protected us from the hot Sun. The idea is that it provides a thicker layer of insulation than straight hair to shield the scalp.

Early Homo sapiens had extra Sun protection in the form of strongly pigmented skin. Sunlight breaks down folate (vitamin B9), accelerates ageing and damages DNA. In our bright ancestral climates, dark skin protected against this. But this dark skin still admitted enough UV light to stimulate vital production of vitamin D.

However, when people colonised temperate zones, with weaker light, they repeatedly evolved lighter skin, via different genes in different populations. This happened rapidly, probably within the past 40,000 years.

With reduced UV radiation nearer the poles, less pigmentation was needed to protect sunlight from breaking down our folate. A lighter complexion also let in more of the scarce light so the body could make vitamin D. But there was one big drawback: less pigmentation meant less protection against Sun damage.

How our skin pigmentation adapted with migration patterns and changing light.

This evolutionary background contributes to Australia having among the highest rates of skin cancer in the world.

Our colonial history means more than 50% of Australians are of Anglo-Celtic descent, with light skin, transplanted into a high-UV environment. Little wonder we’re described as “a sunburnt country”.

Sunlight has also contributed to variation in human eyes. Humans from high latitudes have less protective pigment in their irises. They also have larger eye sockets (and presumably eyeballs), maybe to admit more precious light.

Again, these features make Australians of European descent especially vulnerable to our harsh light. So it’s no surprise Australia has unusually high rates of eye cancers.

We cannot shake our body clock

Our circadian rhythm – the wake-sleep cycle driven by our brains and hormones – is another piece of heavy evolutionary baggage triggered by light.

Humans are adapted to daylight. In bright light, humans can see well and have refined colour vision. But we see poorly in dim light, and we lack senses such as sharp hearing or acute smell, to make up for it.

Our nearest relatives (chimps, gorillas and orangutans) are also active during daylight and sleep at night, reinforcing the view that the earliest humans had similar diurnal behaviours.

This lifestyle likely stretches further back into our evolutionary history, before the great apes, to the very dawn of primates.

The earliest mammals were generally nocturnal, using their small size and the cover of darkness to hide from dinosaurs. However, the meteorite impact that wiped out these fearsome reptiles allowed some mammalian survivors, notably primates, to evolve largely diurnal lifestyles.

If we inherited our daylight activity pattern directly from these early primates, then this rhythm would have been part of our lineage’s evolutionary history for nearly 66 million years.

This explains why our 24-hour clock is very difficult to shake; it’s so deeply ingrained in our evolutionary history.

Successive improvements in lighting technology have increasingly liberated us from dependence on daylight: fire, candles, oil and gas lamps, and finally electric lighting. So we can theoretically work and play at any time.

However, our cognitive and physical performance deteriorates when our intrinsic daily cycles are disturbed, for instance through sleep deprivation, shift work or jet lag.

Futurists have already considered the circadian rhythms required for life on Mars. Luckily, a day on Mars is around 24.7 hours, so similar to our own. This slight difference should be the least of the worries for the first intrepid martian colonists.

How would humans cope on Mars? At least they wouldn’t have to worry too much about their body clocks.
NikoNomad/NASA/Shutterstock

Light is still changing us

In the past 200 years or so, artificial lighting has helped to (partly) decouple us from our ancestral circadian rhythms. But in recent decades, this has come at a cost to our eyesight.

Many genes associated with short-sightedness (myopia) have become more common in just 25 years, a striking example of rapid evolutionary change in the human gene pool.

And if you have some genetic predisposition to myopia, reduced exposure to natural light (and spending more time in artificial light) makes it more likely. These noticeable changes have occurred within many people’s lifetimes.

Light will no doubt continue to shape our biology over the coming millennia, but those longer-term effects might be difficult to predict.

Mike Lee receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Hermon Slade Foundation

– ref. How light helped shape our skin colour, eyes and curly hair – https://theconversation.com/how-light-helped-shape-our-skin-colour-eyes-and-curly-hair-237240

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Do electric cars greatly increase the average mass of cars on the road? Not in Australia

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robin Smit, Adjunct Professor, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Technology Sydney

Karolis Kavolelis/Shutterstock

Statements have been circulating online, including leading news platforms, that battery electric cars will greatly increase the average mass of the on-road fleet. This claim is used as an argument against these cars.

Even the Australian motoring organisation NRMA has posed the question: “EVs are heavy. Are they safe on our roads and carparks?” (It does say the answer is yes.)

The stated reason for such concerns is generally that electric car batteries are heavy and increase overall vehicle mass. A heavier vehicle needs more energy to drive it and so will typically increase emissions. A greater mass also reduces traffic safety and could have damaging impacts on parking spaces and roads.

A critical review released yesterday took a closer look at these claims to see if they hold true in Australia. It finds these claims don’t stack up in a country where sales of fossil-fuelled (petrol, diesel, LPG) vehicles skew towards large and heavy utes and SUVs.

When adjusted for actual top 10 vehicles sold and using realistic mass values, the average mass of battery electric and fossil-fuelled cars differs by just 68 kilograms. That difference is not significant, especially because electric cars are much more energy-efficient.

Oversimplifying a complex topic

The claims being made often oversimplify a complex reality. They tell only part of the story, which can be misleading.

For instance, internal combustion engine cars have consistently increased in mass over time. Known as car obesity, this fact is often unfairly ignored in comparisons.

Similarly, these statements pretend to know how complex consumer behaviour will respond to future availability of battery electric cars and their fast-changing and improving features. Often, the results of overseas studies cannot be directly applied to different Australian conditions.

4 points of contention

Our report identifies and unpacks four main points of contention.

First, there are different ways to define and compare the mass of battery electric and combustion engine cars. In practice, the choice is rather arbitrary. Depending on the method, the comparison may be neither adequate nor accurate.

Often the comparison is made between similar or similarly sized battery electric and combustion engine cars. Or electric cars can be compared only to an equivalent non-electric version of models such as the VW Golf. Another variation is to simply compare the average mass of a large range of cars currently on sale, without considering the impact of sales volumes.

Second, a common argument is that batteries are heavy, so electric cars are heavier than fossil-fuelled cars. But this is simplistic – it’s not only the battery that matters.

Offsetting the extra battery mass, other parts of the electric car such as their motors are smaller and lighter. They can cut its mass by up to 50%.

And actual extra battery mass itself depends on a range of factors. Battery chemistry, battery size and energy storage capacity (which determines how often a car needs recharging) all affect the mass. Indeed, battery mass varies between 100 and 900 kilograms for cars.

Third, car obesity has greatly and consistently increased fossil-fuelled car mass. Unless we include this rise in car obesity, the comparison with battery electric cars tells only half the story.

Finally, it is challenging to accurately predict the mass impacts of electric cars. A common assumption is that future vehicle buyers’ behaviour does not change when switching to battery electric cars. This assumption seems unlikely and again oversimplifies the comparison.

For instance, market availability, marketing focus, purchase price and performance characteristics will largely guide buyers’ decisions. These considerations are all highly dynamic. They are changing significantly and fast.

So how do they compare in Australia?

A proper comparison needs, at least, to include realistic vehicle mass and sales data. Our study compares the differences in vehicle mass between the top ten best-selling cars for both battery electric and fossil-fuelled vehicles in Australia in 2022, as shown below.

Masses of the top 10 most popular new battery electric (top) and fossil-fuelled (bottom) passenger cars sold in Australia in 2022. Circle sizes represent sales volumes. The top-selling internal combustion engine car is the Toyota Hilux (64,391 sold). For pure battery electric cars it’s the Tesla Model 3 (10,877 sold). Vehicle mass is defined as ‘mass in running order’, adjusted for average vehicle occupancy.
Author provided, Transport Energy/Emission Research (TER)

Currently sold top 10 models of battery electric cars cluster more at the heavy end, but the most popular cars are relatively light. The top 10 models of fossil-fuelled cars have a larger spread in mass. Yet, when it comes to sales, most are relatively heavy SUVs or utes.

When ranked by popularity and compared, battery electric cars are not always heavier. They can be almost 300kg (12%) lighter to almost 800kg (55%) heavier than the corresponding fossil-fuelled car. Importantly, the overall difference in the average mass of the two categories when adjusted for sales is just 68kg (about 3% of total vehicle mass).

This small difference is insignificant in terms of energy and emission impacts. A more important factor here is the superior energy efficiency of battery electric vehicles.

How will they compare in future?

Clearly, future sales profiles may differ from current sales profiles. The current profile may be largely defined by a certain type of customer (such as a high-income early adopter). They might not be typical of mainstream consumers in coming years.

Buyers’ future behaviour is uncertain and hard to predict. It would depend on the effectiveness of (new) policy measures such as Australia’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard, the actual vehicles offered for sale, marketing efforts by car suppliers and possibly also cultural changes.

Any shifts in buyer behaviour could greatly influence the car fleet’s average mass. They could continue the current trend towards larger and heavier vehicles, or shift to smaller and lighter vehicles.

But this is the point: the impacts of electrification of passenger vehicles on average mass are highly uncertain. Statements on the matter are often speculative and can be unfairly biased by the methods used.

In markets where heavy petrol and diesel vehicles dominate car sales, such as Australia and New Zealand, current evidence suggests increased electric car sales are unlikely to greatly increase average vehicle mass. In fact, average mass could actually go down as cheaper and lighter electric cars go on sale here.

Vehicle mass remains important

Importantly, the report is not downplaying the importance of vehicle mass for transport emission abatement.

In previous research it was estimated that only a passenger vehicle fleet dominated by small and light battery electric vehicles may get Australia close to achieving the net-zero emissions target in 2050.

To meet the target, it is thus important to reverse the trend of increasing car obesity, for all cars. But vehicle mass should not be used as an argument against electrification.

Robin Smit is the founding Research Director at the Transport Energy/Emission Research (TER) consultancy.

– ref. Do electric cars greatly increase the average mass of cars on the road? Not in Australia – https://theconversation.com/do-electric-cars-greatly-increase-the-average-mass-of-cars-on-the-road-not-in-australia-240555

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Why do some schools still force girls to wear skirts or dresses?

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kayla Mildren, PhD Candidate in the politics of school uniform policies, Griffith University

A Queensland tribunal has ruled it is not discriminatory for a school to require girls to wear a skirt at formal events.

The private high school said girls needed to wear skirts for occasions including excursions, ceremonies and class photographs.

A female student had complained to the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal about different treatment for boys and girls.

While the tribunal acknowledged there was “different treatment between the sexes”, it found there was not enough evidence to show this was “unfavourable”.

Why are female students still made to wear skirts and dresses? And why is this a problem?

Who decides?

In Australia, uniform rules are largely determined by individual schools.

Schools have some obligations to their communities, governing bodies (such as state education departments and independent school peak bodies) and anti-discrimination legislation.

For example, Victoria’s Education Department requires policies to include an exemption process and “support inclusion”.

But ultimately, it’s up to the school to decide how their uniform looks, who can access different items, where and when items may be worn, and what non-uniform items are regulated.

School uniforms are ultimately decided by the school.
Monkey Business Images/ Shutterstock

Read more:
No mullets, no mohawks, no ‘awkwardly contrasting colours’: what are school policies on hair and why do they matter so much?

The pants question

Pants occupy an odd space here. For public schools, most state education departments require girls to have the option of pants (which can include shorts or trousers), for both sport and regular uniforms.

This is a relatively new standard. For example, Queensland introduced this in 2019 and New South Wales allowed it from mid-2018.

Often, these changes were prompted by sustained campaigning by families and lobby groups.

But private schools do not have the same obligations. Some are starting to update their policies and allow girls to wear shorts or pants if they choose.

Others, however, have been met with conservative backlash when they do.

So, when can girls wear pants?

Girls’ access to pants is not as straightforward as a school including them within the uniform policy.

As researchers note, simply allowing girls to wear pants may not be enough. If school cultures are not welcoming, or if the design is uncomfortable, girls may still avoid them.

Or, as can be the case with private schools, a school may offer pants on a limited basis, such as only during winter. Alternatively, there may be a special order process for pants, making them difficult to obtain.

Or schools may permit their use, except on special occasions such as photo days or excursions, like the Queensland case.

Why does it matter?

The skirt itself isn’t the issue. The element of choice is.

As researchers note, skirts and dresses are linked to outdated expectations of modesty and femininity. They can be targets of fetish and harassment, and entrench binary ideals of gender.

Flexible policies support gender-diverse youth and enable all students to select uniform items based on their body rather than their gender. Research shows offering students pants or shorts can also promote physical activity.

These school uniform debates are also taking place amid concerns about misogyny and harassment of female students and teachers in schools and concern for queer young people’s wellbeing.

The longer gender-normativity is baked into school policies, the longer students are denied their right to equitable education. And the longer that schools promote the idea of “girl” and “boy” as opposite and concrete categories, the harder it will be to combat schoolyard misogyny and queerphobia.

Kayla Mildren 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 do some schools still force girls to wear skirts or dresses? – https://theconversation.com/why-do-some-schools-still-force-girls-to-wear-skirts-or-dresses-241484

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: B.C. election tells the tale of two British Columbias divided along ideological fault lines

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Philip Resnick, Professor Emeritus, Political Science, University of British Columbia

The British Columbia election has turned out to be a nail-biter. Throughout the four-week campaign, the polls predicted a very close race between the incumbent NDP led by David Eby and a newly rejuvenated Conservative Party under the leadership of John Rustad. Those polls turned out to be accurate as no clear winner has emerged in the hours after British Columbians cast their ballots.

The B.C. Liberal Party, a right-of-centre amalgam of Liberal and Conservative voters federally that had ruled the province between 2001-2017, disappeared from the scene, resulting in a political realignment — New Democrats vs. Conservatives — and matching what has become the norm in Canada’s three other western provinces.

As I write this, the NDP leads or is elected in 46 seats, the Conservatives in 45, with the Green Party’s two elected members holding the balance of power. The results are so close in several ridings that it may be at least another week for outstanding mail ballots to come in and recounts to occur before knowing the definitive result.

Parallels to previous elections

In one way, the 2024 election is a repeat of the 2017 vote, when the B.C. Liberals and the NDP were just two seats apart. The Greens threw their three seats behind the NDP to pave the way for an NDP government. The same may well prove to be the case this time around once the dust has settled.

In another way, this election is reminiscent of 1952, when a newly led Social Credit party under W.A.C. Bennett came out of nowhere to topple the old-line Liberal and Conservative parties, edge out the CCF (the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation) — predecessor to today’s NDP — by a single seat and go on to rule the province for a full 20 years.

Read more:
How the British Columbia election is being haunted by the ghosts of 1952

In 1951, Bennett had broken with his party, the Conservatives, to sit as an Independent MLA. Rustad had been turfed out of his party, the B.C. Liberals, to sit as an Independent MLA, before assuming the leadership of a B.C.’s dormant Conservative Party. The Conservatives had not held a seat in the provincial legislature for almost 50 years, and had last won a provincial election in 1928.

Yet in 2024, with 43.5 per cent of the popular vote compared to the NDP’s 44.5 per cent, Rustad’s party is a major contender for power.

Geographical and ideological divides

What the election results ultimately show is that there are two British Columbias. The NDP tends to dominate on the coast, with a clear majority of the seats in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island. The Conservatives dominate the B.C. Interior of the province, with a fair sprinkling of suburban seats in the Lower Mainland as well.

Beyond the geographical divide lies a deeper ideological one. In some ways it parallels the old divide between a more free-enterprise oriented party and one with a stronger commitment to the welfare state. Rustad said as much in his speech on election night. But there is more to the story than that.

The NDP, after all, has become much more of a centrist party than it was previously, in particular when it governed the province under Dave Barrett between 1972 and 1975.

It’s no accident that in the 2024 election, no small number of federal Liberal supporters voiced their support for the NDP rather than the Conservatives. With respect to issues like gun control, protection of the environment, reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples or vaccine mandates during pandemics, their views align more closely with the NDP than the Conservatives.

The Conservatives, on the other hand, spoke to the frustrations many British Columbians feel in terms of the housing affordability crisis, the serious shortcomings in the province’s health-care system and the toxic drug crisis in B.C. cities. Eby admitted as much in his own election night speech.

The B.C. Conservatives’ call for change echoed what federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has been saying at the federal level. Not surprisingly, support for the Conservatives provincially closely matches for support for the federal Conservatives in the province.

Governing from the centre

British Columbia is clearly polarized politically, a phenomenon we’re seeing even more distinctly south of the border and in various European countries.

The task of governing from the centre — on the assumption that the NDP and Greens reach a confidence-and-supply agreement — may therefore prove a more challenging one than before due to a much empowered Conservative opposition.

But had the Conservatives won a clear mandate to govern, they would have faced significant opposition from the more liberal-minded sections of the population given some of the party’s hard-line positions on unabashed resource development, Indigenous reconciliation and the role of private versus public providers in the health-care system.

Such is the state of play in Canada’s westernmost province.

Philip Resnick 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. B.C. election tells the tale of two British Columbias divided along ideological fault lines – https://theconversation.com/b-c-election-tells-the-tale-of-two-british-columbias-divided-along-ideological-fault-lines-241767

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Green growth and security to underpin UK relationships with Indonesia and South Korea
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

Foreign Secretary David Lammy visits Indonesia and South Korea.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy meets with President of Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto on his visit to Indonesia. Picture by Ben Dance / FCDO

UK will put green growth and security at the centre of our relationships across the region.

Government will step up efforts towards a new, deeper Strategic Partnership with crucial G20 partner Indonesia to support green innovation and accelerate the clean energy transition.

Driving forward further security collaboration, the Foreign Secretary will visit South Korea to galvanise work on defence, clean energy and growth.

A new chapter in the relationship between the UK and Indonesia, a vital Indo-pacific and G20 partner, begins with the Foreign Secretary arriving in Jakarta today (20th October).

The Foreign Secretary will attend the inauguration of President Prabowo Subianto, as the UK and Indonesia celebrate seventy five years of diplomatic relations this year. With new governments in the UK and Indonesia, both countries will work together to build a deeper Strategic Partnership that delivers growth and security while ensuring a sustainable future for our planet.

Reinforcing the UK and South Korea’s shared global values, David Lammy will travel onwards to Seoul where he will visit the Demilitarized Zone and underline our geopolitical collaboration on security, climate and growth with another G20 power in the Indo-Pacific.

In South Korea the Foreign Secretary will witness first-hand the geopolitical reality and immediacy of the divided Korean peninsula and the ongoing threat posed by North Korea.

Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, said:

Our South Korean partners have stood side-by-side with us in defence of Ukraine whilst also working to preserve regional stability here on the Korean peninsula.

It is a stark reminder of the interconnectedness of conflict, with North Korea supporting Russia and prolonging conflict on Europe’s borders whilst their illegal weapons of mass destruction programme threatens regional security. That is why it is so important for the UK to engage globally over conflict on our continent and security beyond it.

Indonesia is a key player in our fight to tackle the climate crisis – and our new governments are working together to build a strategic partnership that delivers green growth, deepens our cooperation on security and ensures a sustainable future for our planet.

Right across this region, we are working to further unlock growth, trade and green innovation.

Underlining the UK and South Korea’s joint commitment to upholding peace both on the Korean Peninsula and across the globe, the Foreign Secretary will announce the first UK and South Korea Foreign and Defence Ministerial 2 + 2 Dialogue. This set-piece consultation will provide a formalised space to further enhance cooperation in addressing regional and global challenges to peace and security.

The Ministerial 2 + 2 will sit alongside an Inaugural UK-Korea Hybrid Threats Dialogue, which will enable discussion on issues of shared national interest and identification of new opportunities to tackle shared threats together – jointly improving our resilience.

The Foreign Secretary’s visit to both Indonesia and South Korea will also be underpinned by the UK’s international leadership on the climate crisis, through clean power and green solutions.

In Indonesia, the Foreign Secretary will meet Indonesian companies supported by the UK to spearhead green innovations. He will also see first-hand the UK expertise being deployed to support sustainable infrastructure development in Indonesia.

In the Republic of Korea, Mr Lammy will visit Ewha Women’s University to share expertise and experience on the UK’s and South Korea’s clean energy transition. Focusing on how both countries can deliver female leadership in climate and growth, the Foreign Secretary will meet with the university’s President, Kim Eun Mee, and leaders within the climate sphere.

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Contact the FCDO Communication Team via email (monitored 24 hours a day) in the first instance, and we will respond as soon as possible.

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Published 20 October 2024
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: What does class mean today in Britain? Podcast

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Laura Hood, Host, Know Your Place podcast, The Conversation

Gig economy workers take a break in Chinatow, London. Shutterstock/Grant Rooney

Social class continues to influence British people’s opportunities and the way they think about them, even if the boundaries between those classes have shifted.

In the third part of Know Your Place: what happened to class in British politics, a podcast series from The Conversation Documentaries, we explore how class is defined and measured, and how the UK’s changing class identity interacts with identity politics.

Over the course of the last half century, there’s been a big shift in the make up of the labour market, and a decline in what are traditionally considered working class jobs, such as in manufacturing. And yet, data from the annual British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey run by the National Centre for Social Research, found that 52% of people identify as working class compared with 43% who identify as middle class.

According to Oliver Heath, professor of politics at Royal Holloway University of London, who co-authored the chapter on class for the BSA report in 2023, people still think about themselves in class terms to exactly the same degree as they did 40 years ago.

There’s been no decline in terms of whether people think of themselves as identifying with a class, and no decline in whether they identify with being working class or not. So that seems remarkably stable and if anything showed some signs of actually increasing.

The growth of self-employment, and in particular the gig economy, has disrupted the UK’s traditional class structure, according to Daniel Evans, a lecturer of criminology, sociology and social policy at Swansea University.

The size of the formally self-employed has absolutely exploded. It’s close to about 5 million, which is coming very close to the size of the entire public sector. This is absolutely unprecedented. In the early 1970s, it was about 1 million self-employed people.

Evans argues this has also muddled what it means to be part of the petit bourgeoisie, someone who own the means of your own production in a Marxist sense.

So many people are doing almost like bogus forms of self-employment. Whereas in the past, lots and lots of people are doing this voluntarily, a lot of working class people aspired to join the ranks of the self-employed because they wanted to be their own boss … more and more people have been forced, basically, into self-employment.

Education, education, education

Amid these shifts, education has become a dominant force in recent years, overriding class defined by occupation or income as the most influential factor in voter behaviour. According to Paula Surridge, professor of political sociology at the University of Bristol, this was true for the Brexit vote too, she says.

Education is a stronger predictor of Brexit vote than class, with those with degree or higher level education more likely to vote remain than those with lower level qualifications. And the reason for that is the Brexit vote was primarily driven by a set of social values that don’t relate to economics.

Town and gown: Britain’s modern political divide.
Shutterstock

This can be a tricky dynamic to talk about. The education divide is not a term intended to deliver a value judgement but describes two distinct experiences of life. The university population in the UK has exploded since the 1990s and going to university has a profound effect on a person’s outlook, according to John Curtice, professor of politics at the University of Strathclyde and senior research fellow at Natcen:

The experience of university, where people get mixed with people from diverse backgrounds, they’re encouraged, particularly in the humanities, to be critically reflective about culture, etc. that that seems to create a rather more socially liberal ambience.

For more analysis, listen to the full episode of Know Your Place: what happened to class in British politics on The Conversation Documentaries.

A transcript is available on Apple Podcasts.

Know Your Place: what happened to class in British politics is produced and mixed by Anouk Millet for The Conversation. It’s supported by the National Centre for Social Research.

Newsclips in the episode from BBC Newsnight, Financial Times, The Frost Report, CBC News, Sky News, France24 English, AP Archive, BBC News, Official Jeremy Corbyn Channel and Channel 4 News.

Listen to The Conversation Documentaries via any of the apps listed above, download it directly via our RSS feed or find out how else to listen here.

John Curtice receives funding from UKRI-ESRC. Tim Bale has previously received funding for research on the Conservative Party and party members from the Leverhulme Trust and from the Economic and Social Research Council. Oliver Heath 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. Paula Surridge 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. Daniel Evans 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. Know Your Place: what happened to class in British politics is supported by the National Centre for Social Research.

– ref. What does class mean today in Britain? Podcast – https://theconversation.com/what-does-class-mean-today-in-britain-podcast-241412

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Students and teachers of the State University of Management participate in the VII Youth Forum “Heritage”

MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

On October 19, 2024, as part of the educational program of the VII Youth Forum “Heritage”, Associate Professor of the Department of Public and Municipal Administration of the State University of Management Irina Milkina held an open lecture for the Forum participants.

The lecture was held in the Urban Studies section on the topic of “Revitalization of cultural heritage sites in the context of sustainable development”. Irina Milkina spoke about global challenges and sustainable development goals, about how the restoration and revitalization of cultural heritage sites affects the creation of new opportunities for the social, economic and environmental development of cities and improving the quality of life of the population.

The educational program also included lectures on other topics that help Forum participants in developing a project: economics, history, management, jurisprudence, sociology, design and architecture, PR.

The grand opening of the VII Youth Forum “Heritage”, organized by the Department of Cultural Heritage of the City of Moscow, took place on September 28 at the “Youth of Moscow” site. The opening ceremony was attended by students from the State University of Management, the Higher School of Economics, Moscow State University of Civil Engineering, Moscow University of Architecture and Civil Engineering, the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation and others. SUM was represented by 3rd and 4th year students of the “Urban Studies and City Management” program.

The forum was opened by the head of the Moscow Department of Cultural Heritage, Alexey Yemelyanov: “This year, a record number of students are participating in the competition program of the VII Youth Forum “Heritage” — more than 300. The number of universities has also increased — from 23 in 2023 to 28 now. Over the past two years, the guys have been working on restoration and adaptation projects for Moscow estates, and now they will have to prepare a concept for including a constructivist monument — the Palace of Culture of the “Serp i Molot” plant — into the life of a modern metropolis.”

Participants were drawn and divided into interdisciplinary teams. The teams consist of specialists in architecture, restoration, urban studies, sociology, management, economics, law, design, IT and PR.

In two months, the Forum participants will have to prepare a restoration project for the Hammer and Sickle Palace of Culture by architects Ignatius Milinis and Aleksandr Vilesov. The 1930 constructivist building is located in the Tagansky District of Moscow and is a cultural heritage site of regional significance.

From October 5 to 7, a tour of the site was organized for each team, where the participants were able to become familiar with the history of the place in detail, discuss the further work plan of each specialist, and develop a concept for including the site in the life of the city.

The defense of the finished projects will take place on November 22. At the defense, the jury will evaluate the work done by the participants and select the best projects for the restoration and adaptation of the cultural heritage site.

Also, within the framework of the Forum, the organizers will hold educational events for participants: lectures, master classes, excursions to restoration workshops, workshops and job fairs.

Comments from participants:

Alexandra Nenarokomova, 3rd year student: “I have been participating in the project for the third year now, and I can say that for me this is an opportunity to demonstrate my professional skills, meet specialists in my field, and learn something new about my city.”

Anastasia Kupreeva, 3rd year student: “I am glad to take part in the Forum this year. We will have to work with a unique object and improve the existing concept.”

Vladislav Zelensky, 4th-year student: “This year, for the first time, we will be able to work with a Soviet-era monument, which is pleasing and creates additional interest in the forum. In the past two years, as part of this event, my teams and I worked on pre-revolutionary buildings, which had more design restrictions.”

Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 21.10.2024

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

Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

Students and teachers of the State University of Management participate in the VII Youth Forum “Heritage”

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MIL OSI Russia News –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: FACT SHEET: Biden-⁠ Harris Administration Proposes Rule to Expand Coverage of Affordable Contraception Under the Affordable Care Act

US Senate News:

Source: The White House
Biden-Harris Administration Announces Proposal for Most Significant Expansion of Contraception Coverage Under the Affordable Care Act in More Than a Decade
President Biden and Vice President Harris have protected and built on the Affordable Care Act. Nearly 50 million people over the past decade have had coverage through the Affordable Care Act’s Marketplaces, and the law has protected more than 100 million people with preexisting medical conditions. Thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration, Affordable Care Act coverage is more affordable than ever with millions of families saving an average of $800 per year on Marketplace coverage.
The Affordable Care Act has also helped millions of women save billions of dollars on contraception—an essential component of reproductive health care that has only become more important since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. As part of President Biden and Vice President Harris’ steadfast commitment to reproductive rights, the Biden-Harris Administration has further strengthened contraception access and affordability under the Affordable Care Act, through Medicare and Medicaid, through the Title X Family Planning Program, through federally qualified health centers, and for federal employees, Service members, veterans, and college students.
Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is proposing a rule that would significantly increase coverage of contraception without cost sharing for 52 million women of reproductive age with private health insurance. Building on the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that most private health plans must cover contraception without cost sharing, today’s proposed rule from the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor, and the Treasury would:
Expand coverage of over-the-counter contraception without cost sharing. Under the proposed rule, for the first time, women would be able to obtain over-the-counter (OTC) contraception without a prescription at no additional cost. As a result, more women would be able to access and afford critical OTC medications such as emergency contraception and the first-ever daily oral contraceptive approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use without a prescription that is now widely available across the country.
Make it easier to learn about coverage for OTC contraception. To help ensure that women understand this new benefit, most private health plans would be required to disclose that OTC contraception is covered without cost sharing and without a prescription—and take steps to help women learn more about their contraception coverage.
Strengthen coverage of prescribed contraception without cost sharing. The proposed rule would make it easier for most women with private health insurance to obtain contraception without cost sharing that is prescribed by their health care provider. Health plans would be required to cover every FDA-approved contraceptive drug or drug-led combination product without cost sharing unless the plan also covers a therapeutic equivalent without cost sharing, eliminating barriers that some women continue to face in accessing contraception prescribed by their provider.
This proposed rule, if finalized, would be the most significant expansion of contraception coverage under the Affordable Care Act since 2012, when contraception was first required to be covered. Also today, the Biden-Harris Administration is issuing new guidance to help ensure that patients can access other preventive services, such as cancer screenings, that must be covered without cost sharing under the Affordable Care Act.
The Biden-Harris Administration is issuing this proposed rule at a time when reproductive rights are under attack, and Republican elected officials remain committed to repealing the Affordable Care Act. Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, dangerous and extreme abortion bans are putting women’s health and lives at risk and disrupting access to critical health care services, including contraception, as health care providers are forced to close in states across the country. At the same time, Republican elected officials in some states have made clear they want to ban or restrict birth control in addition to abortion, and Republicans in Congress have attacked contraception access nationwide by proposing to defund the Title X Family Planning Program. In contrast, President Biden and Vice President Harris believe that women in every state must have the freedom to make deeply personal health care decisions, including the right to decide if and when to start or grow their family.
Today’s announcements build on actions that the Biden-Harris Administration has already taken to expand access to affordable contraception, including to implement the President’s Executive Order on Strengthening Access to Affordable, High-Quality Contraception and Family Planning Services from June 2023. The Administration has taken action to:
Expand contraception coverage and affordability under the Affordable Care Act. The Departments of HHS, Labor, and the Treasury proposed a rule to provide a new pathway under the Affordable Care Act for women to access coverage of contraceptives when their private health coverage is exempt from covering this benefit due to a religious objection. These agencies also issued new guidance to support expanded coverage of a broader range of FDA-approved, cleared, or granted contraceptives at no additional cost under the Affordable Care Act, building on guidance issued after Roe v. Wade was overturned to clarify protections for contraceptive coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Further, HHS strengthened the standard for inclusion of family planning providers in Marketplace plan provider networks and provided nearly $9 million in grant funding to support state efforts to enhance and expand coverage of, and access to, reproductive and maternal health services, including contraception. And the Internal Revenue Service issued new guidance affirming that high-deductible health plans can cover OTC contraception as preventive care.
Bolster family planning services through Title X clinics. HHS continues to rebuild and grow the Title X Family Planning Program, which has played a critical role in ensuring access to a broad range of high-quality family planning and preventive health services for more than 50 years. During the prior administration, more than 1,000 service sites left the Title X Family Planning Program, leading to a significant decline in people served. The Biden-Harris Administration reversed the policy changes that led to those departures, strengthening the Title X Family Planning Program and helping ensure that the Program remains a critical part of the nation’s health safety net. In 2023, HHS provided about $287 million to nearly 4,000 Title X clinics across the country to provide free or low-cost voluntary, client-centered family planning and related preventive services for 2.8 million women and families—an 80 percent increase since 2020.
Support family planning coverage through the Medicaid and Medicare programs. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued new guidance to state Medicaid programs and Children’s Health Insurance Programs (CHIP) to help ensure that enrollees can access family planning services. The new guidance outlined existing state obligations under federal law, highlighted strategies to enhance access to contraception, affirmed confidentiality requirements for those seeking family planning services, and shared recommendations on ways to measure quality in delivering family planning services. To help ensure that women with Medicare coverage have access to more covered types of contraception without unnecessary barriers, CMS updated its Medicare Part D formulary clinical review process for plan year 2024 and 2025 to include additional contraceptive types, such as long-acting contraceptives, and is increasing public awareness of contraceptive coverage options under Medicare Part B. The Secretary of HHS also issued a letter to state Medicaid and CHIP programs as well as private health insurers and Medicare plans about their existing obligations to cover contraception for those they serve.
Increase contraception access through federal health centers. Federal health centers continue to be an important source of family planning services: in 2023, health centers provided nearly 3 million contraceptive services visits to patients, a 14 percent increase since 2020. To support health centers in providing high-quality family planning services, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) provided updated guidance on existing federal requirements for family planning and related services, which is a required primary health care service under federal law, as well as evidence-based recommendations and resources. HRSA also adopted new data measures for health centers that will help assess whether patients have been screened for contraception needs. Screening and data measures will help enhance the overall delivery of voluntary family planning and related services.
Support contraception access for federal employees and their families. The Office of Personnel Management strengthened access to contraception for federal workers, retirees, and family members by issuing guidance to insurers participating in the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program to clarify standards and support expanded coverage of a broader range of FDA-approved, cleared, or granted contraceptives at no additional cost. The Office of Personnel Management also required insurers that participate in the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program to take additional steps to educate enrollees about their contraception benefits and launched a public education campaign to highlight contraception benefits available to federal employees and their families.
Promote contraception access and affordability for Service members and their families and certain dependents of veterans. To improve access to contraception at military hospitals and clinics, the Department of Defense expanded walk-in contraceptive care services for active-duty Service members and other Military Health System beneficiaries and eliminated TRICARE copays for certain contraceptive services. And the Department of Veterans Affairs eliminated out-of-pocket costs for certain types of contraception through the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Support access to affordable contraception for college students. To help increase access to contraception for college students, President Biden directed the Secretary of Education to convene institutions of higher education to share best practices and ways to help students understand their options for accessing contraception. In 2023, Vice President Harris joined a Department of Education convening of representatives from 68 colleges and universities across 32 states to discuss promising strategies for protecting and expanding access to contraception for their students. This convening followed Vice President Harris’s multiple conversations about reproductive health access with students on college campuses across the country.
Enhance contraception access through technical assistance and public-private partnership. In June 2023, HHS announced a new five-year public-private partnership to expand access to contraception with Upstream, a national nonprofit organization that provides health centers with free patient-centered, evidence-based training and technical assistance to eliminate provider-level barriers to offering the full range of contraceptive options. To date, HHS has connected Upstream to more than 130 health care clinics, resulting in partnerships that will help Upstream accelerate their national expansion to reach 5 million women of reproductive age every year.
Promote research and data analysis on contraception access. To document the gaps and disparities in contraception access as well as the benefits of comprehensive coverage, HHS convened leading experts to discuss the state of research, data collection, and data analysis on contraception access and family planning services. These convenings helped identify research gaps, opportunities for collaboration, and ways to bolster research efforts for both Federal agencies and external partners.
In addition to strengthening access to affordable contraception, the Biden-Harris Administration continues to implement President Biden’s threeExecutiveOrders and a Presidential Memorandum directing federal agencies to protect access to reproductive health care issued since the Court overturned Roe v. Wade. To date, the Biden-Harris Administration has taken action to protect access to abortion, including FDA-approved medication abortion; defend access to emergency medical care; support the ability to travel for reproductive health care; safeguard the privacy of patients and health care providers; and ensure access to accurate information and legal resources.
The Vice President has led the White House’s efforts to partner with leaders on the frontlines of protecting access to abortion, highlighting the harm of abortion bans to women’s health at more than 100 events in more than 20 states since Roe v. Wade was overturned, and meeting with hundreds of state legislators, health care providers, and advocates. On what would have been the 51st anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Vice President launched a nationwide Fight for Reproductive Freedoms tour to continue fighting back against extreme attacks throughout America.
President Biden and Vice President Harris will continue to call on Congress to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade in federal law to ensure that women in every state are able to make their own decisions about reproductive health care.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Success of SPbGASU in the competition of the International Public Organization for the Promotion of Construction Education (ASV)

Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Fragment of the work by Anastasia Babinova. Open full size image

The results of the competition of final qualification works, held by the International Public Organization for the Promotion of Construction Education (ASV), have been summed up. Students and graduates of SPbGASU became its laureates.

Anastasia Babinova won first place in the nomination “Bachelor’s Project in the Field of Construction Technology and Organization” with her work “Design and Construction of a Complex of Buildings and Structures of a Technopark in the City of Vladikavkaz”. Anastasia continues her studies in the Master’s program. Her supervisor Sergey Bovteyev, Associate Professor of the Department of Construction Organization, tells about the student’s work:

– Anastasia Babinova’s final qualification work examines a complex of objects, the architectural solutions for which were fully developed by the graduate herself during her third year of study. Margarita Aleksandrovna Gurieva, senior lecturer at the Department of Architectural and Construction Structures, provided great assistance in this. In addition, the project adopted a number of non-standard organizational and technological solutions, and also used modern calendar-network planning software. The knowledge gained from studying the course “Construction Organization” helped here, taught by Roman Vladimirovich Motylev, head of the Department of Construction Organization, and Vera Mikhailovna Chelnokova, associate professor at the Department of Construction Organization.

Fragment of the work by Tatyana Pletnikova. Open full size image

Tatyana Pletnikova was awarded a diploma for effective participation in the competition in the nomination “Technology and organization of construction”. The topic of her research is “Application of 4D modeling in the organization of construction of a 27-story monolithic residential building”. Tatyana Pletnikova’s work was also supervised by Sergey Bovteev.

Anna Rerikh’s project “High-tech building solutions using nanocellulose” became the second among the research works of masters in the direction of “Production and application of building materials, products and structures”. The leader was Georgy Khrenov, associate professor of the Department of Building Materials Technology and Metrology.

– Anna Vladimirovna demonstrated incredible diligence and perseverance. This allowed her to complete the work at a high level in a short time, publish several articles, including in a journal from the list of the Higher Attestation Commission. But most importantly, she managed to obtain interesting scientific results, determining the rational area of application of nanocellulose in building solutions. Anna Vladimirovna summarized the obtained results and developed a draft of practical recommendations that can be implemented in production, – said Georgy Khrenov.

Timur Aibedulov with his work “Ventilation of the educational building of SPbGASU, Serpukhovskaya St., Bldg. 10 (TIM-project)” won second place in the nomination “Heat and Gas Supply and Ventilation (project)”. The work was supervised by Kirill Sukhanov, associate professor of the Department of Heat and Gas Supply and Ventilation.

As Kirill Sukhanov explained, Timur carried out the work as part of a comprehensive TIM project. The team consisted of several people: an architect, a designer, a coordinator, an estimator and specialists in engineering sections. As part of the project, a 3D scan of the building was performed, and a full inspection of the facility was conducted.

– Timur conducted a survey of the existing ventilation systems of the building. Based on the data obtained, he created an information model. Performed verification calculations of the ventilation system. After creating an information model of the existing facility, a model of the building reconstruction was created. Timur performed the necessary calculations and selected ventilation equipment. Particular attention was paid to the design of the atrium and parking ventilation systems. A ventilation system for the assembly hall was also developed while preserving the historical ventilation grille. Research was carried out on the parameters of the microclimate of the assembly hall with various ventilation equipment. The research was carried out using numerical modeling methods. The results obtained allowed us to select the optimal equipment that provides acceptable microclimate parameters, – said Kirill Sukhanov.

Kristina Astashkevich with her work “Design of foundations of a multi-storey building with a single-level underground parking in the Kalininsky district of St. Petersburg” took third place in the nomination “Bachelor’s project in the field of geotechnics”. Now Kristina continues her studies in the master’s program. Her supervisor is Andrey Boyarintsev, senior lecturer of the Department of Geotechnics.

– No construction project can be completed without geotechnical calculations, because each building requires a foundation. Moreover, in dense urban development, there is a need for additional parking spaces. According to current urban planning concepts, underground parking is the best solution for apartment complexes, as it saves above-ground space that can be occupied by public areas or green spaces. However, in the conditions of St. Petersburg, underground construction is complicated by weak water-saturated soils, which requires complex engineering solutions for the construction of the facility. It was this case of underground parking construction in a multi-story residential building, erected on weak soils, that was considered in the final qualification work. Now I continue to do geotechnical calculations, including in poor engineering and geological conditions. I am also involved in projects to strengthen the foundations of historical buildings in St. Petersburg, – said Kristina. The student is grateful for the help, consultations and important engineering solutions of Andrey Boyarintsev and Anatoly Osokin, Director of the Soil Testing Center of St. Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Head of the Department of Geotechnics.

Linda Fortas came in third in the nomination “Master’s Research in the Profile of Heat and Gas Supply and Ventilation” with her work “Air-thermal curtains for large-sized gates”. Her supervisor is Viktor Puhkal, associate professor of the Department of Heat and Gas Supply and Ventilation.

– At automobile transport enterprises intended for repair of heavy-duty vehicles, large gates are used for entry and exit. Recommendations and methods for selecting air-thermal curtains for such gates are absent. That is why Linda chose the topic of her master’s thesis “Air-thermal curtains for large-sized gates”. The work includes studies of temperature and speed fields for various designs, positions and sizes of curtains. The influence of coolant parameters on the efficiency of curtains is also studied. The strengths of the work are the novelty of the research and consideration of issues of energy efficiency of air-thermal curtains, – said Viktor Puhkal.

In the nomination “Master’s Research in Geotechnics”, Daria Paskacheva distinguished herself with her work “Stress-strain state of flexible enclosing structures in conditions of weak clay soils”, taking third place. Supervisor – Ivan Dyakonov, associate professor of the Department of Geotechnics.

According to Daria, the high level of development of geotechnics in St. Petersburg is connected with the prevalence of “weak” clay soils in the city, which requires a highly scientific calculation approach to ensure safety during construction.

The Department of Geotechnics of SPbGASU occupies a leading position in the field of calculations and design in such conditions.

– I chose this topic because I became interested in what needs to be done to ensure the accuracy of geotechnical calculations in St. Petersburg’s natural conditions. Geotechnical calculations themselves, it seems to me, always include a large share of creative scientific work due to the complexity and relative youth of such a discipline as soil mechanics, – noted Daria Paskacheva.

Currently, Daria continues to develop this topic in graduate school. The main component of her dissertation is the development of her own mathematical model of weak clay soil. In addition, in a team of graduate students and young teachers of the department, she is working on the creation of a software package based on the finite element method, which will allow the implementation of this model.

– I would like to express my deep gratitude to my supervisor in the Master’s program, Associate Professor of the Department of Geotechnics Ivan Pavlovich Dyakonov for his support and guidance, which played an important role in my admission to graduate school and continuation of research in this area. I would also like to thank postgraduate student of the Department of Geotechnics Ivan Borisovich Bashmakov for his inspiration and help in choosing geotechnics as the main direction of my scientific and design activities.

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

Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

http://www.spbgasu.ru/nevs-and-events/nevs/success-spbgasu-at-the-competition-of-an-international-public-organization-promoting-construction-industry/

MIL OSI Russia News –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Toothbrushes and showerheads covered in viruses ‘unlike anything we’ve seen before’ – new study

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Primrose Freestone, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Microbiology, University of Leicester

Toothbrushes and showerheads in American homes are teeming with viruses known as bacteriophages (bacteria eaters), a new study has found. Many of these “phages” – as they’re known for short – have never been identified before.

The researchers, from Northwestern University in Illinois, swabbed 92 showerheads and 36 toothbrushes. They described what they found as “unlike anything we’ve seen before” and “absolutely wild”. But how alarming is this finding? And what should you do to remain safe?

It is increasingly recognised that wherever you look for microbial species (viruses and bacteria) you will probably find them, particularly in damp places where they thrive, such as showerheads and toothbrushes. The fact that bacteria-infecting viruses were found in great numbers on showerheads and toothbrushes should not come as a surprise. Where there are bacteria, there will inevitably be viruses that infect them.

People’s homes are host to a variety of microbial communities, which include bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa. And it has been known for over a decade that showerheads and their hoses can harbour various bacterial species. These include ones that can cause ill health, such as mycobacteria, which can cause respiratory infections, Legionella which causes legionnaire’s disease and Pontiac fever, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which can cause ear and eye infections.

Showerheads

These bacteria have been found on showerheads at levels over 100 times those found in tap water.

In showerheads, there will inevitably be viruses that infect the bacteria found on them. And the more species of bacteria there are, the greater the diversity of phages likely to be present.

The presence of a microscopic ecosystem in your showerhead also means every time you shower, you are coating yourself in the showerhead bacteria and their related phage viruses. And this is an infection risk.

To disinfect your showerhead, soak it in vinegar. It has the added benefit of removing any limescale.

Unscrew the showerhead, brush off any soap residue, and place the showerhead in a plastic bag or other container with enough undiluted white vinegar to cover the item. Leave it for up to two hours.

Rinse the showerhead well after taking it out of the vinegar solution, and repeat every month or so, depending on usage.

Toothbrushes

The researchers at Northwestern University also looked at phages inhabiting regularly used toothbrushes. Unsurprisingly, they also found a diversity of phages on the brush heads.

During brushing, toothbrushes come into contact with structures in the mouth (gum, teeth, tongue, cheeks, uvula and palates). And each of these is home to hundreds of species of bacteria and other microbes.

Oral microbes play an important role in keeping the mouth healthy by excluding harmful germs (pathogens), helping digest food, and regulating the working of the heart and immune system.

The bacterial diversity of the mouth and tooth microbiomes will, as the US study found, influence the diversity of phages deposited onto toothbrushes.

The study provides an interesting snapshot of the diversity of the oral micro-ecosystems (bacteria and viruses) that are deposited on toothbrushes but may cause some people to worry that the microbes on their toothbrushes are a potential source of infection.

The toothbrush viruses identified were bacterial, not human viruses so they are not a health concern. However, while toothbrush microbes are not a risk to the toothbrush owner, as the microbes on it are their own, they can cause infections in others if a toothbrush is shared. One person’s harmless oral microbes can be another’s pathogens, leading to illnesses ranging from colds to endocarditis (a life-threatening inflammation of the heart’s inner lining).

Phages explained.

It is a good idea to clean your toothbrush regularly. The NHS advises running it under the hot tap for about 30 seconds, followed by air drying.

Other websites advise soaking toothbrush heads in antibacterial mouthwash or denture cleaners. For electric toothbrushes, you should follow the manufacturer’s cleaning guidance.

The take-home message from the Northwestern study is that we live in a richly microbial world and that interactions with bacteria and other microbes in our homes are an integral part of our human biology. Also, despite many new phage species being discovered, there is no cause for alarm – as long as you follow the advice above and keep your showerhead and toothbrush clean.

Primrose Freestone 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. Toothbrushes and showerheads covered in viruses ‘unlike anything we’ve seen before’ – new study – https://theconversation.com/toothbrushes-and-showerheads-covered-in-viruses-unlike-anything-weve-seen-before-new-study-241072

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Education and gender equality: focus on girls isn’t fair and isn’t enough – global study
Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Kathryn Watt, Research Manager, The Asenze Project, University of KwaZulu-Natal

For the past two decades, investing in girls’ schooling has been hailed as a cornerstone of promoting gender equality in sub-Saharan Africa. Between 2016 and 2018 the World Bank Group invested US$3.2 billion in education projects benefiting adolescent girls.

The logic is straightforward. Girls face significant barriers to education, among them poverty, insufficient academic support, adolescent pregnancy, child marriage, and school related gender-based violence. Reducing these barriers can substantially improve their educational outcomes.

But is this approach – investing in girls’ education – fair to boys, and enough to make a meaningful impact on girls’ lives in the long term? Having studied the relationship between interventions and the way people’s lives develop in adverse contexts, we argue that the answer is no on both counts.

We explain this view in a recent paper. In it we compare the different effects of directing development assistance: improving girls’ school enrolment, prioritising schooling for both girls and boys, and addressing barriers to gender equality throughout life.

We used publicly available data for 136 low- and middle-income countries, including those in sub-Saharan Africa. We calculated the female-to-male ratio for important education indicators in each country to show where girls are ahead, on par or behind boys.

Our findings suggest that the current focus on girls’ schooling may both unintentionally disadvantage boys and be a relatively inefficient means of advancing gender equality.

Girls’ and boys’ education in sub-Saharan Africa

We focused on two indicators to assess the current state of girls’ and boys’ education in the region:
- secondary school completion
- student performance in standardised test scores, known as harmonised learning outcomes.
Harmonised learning outcomes measure learning and progress based on the results from seven different types of tests combined and made comparable among children attending school. They reflect the environmental inputs into learning and achievement, such as school quality. Completing secondary school, meanwhile, has been shown to increase a person’s potential for future development, opportunities for employment and higher education.

In most countries in sub-Saharan Africa, girls are behind boys on secondary school completion. The average completion rate for boys is 30%. For girls it is just 24%. In southern Africa specifically, girls have higher completion rates than boys. Figure 1 shows where girls are ahead or behind on this indicator.

In sub-Saharan Africa, the average harmonised learning outcomes score for boys is 301; it is 303 for girls. Our results show that, for most countries in the region, girls are achieving roughly equal scores to their male peers.

This suggests that gender gaps in education are not as pronounced as is often portrayed.

Firstly, although school completion rates are higher for boys, this gap is small, and overall completion rates remain low for both genders.

Secondly, where boys are averaging higher levels of completed schooling, it is not due to better academic performance. Once enrolled, girls in the region tend to keep up with boys in school completion and academic performance.

Rather than asking who is ahead, it’s more important to note that neither boys nor girls are doing well. Our results show that educational outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa – including school performance and completion – are alarmingly poor for both girls and boys.

So, if all children in the region are clearly in need of support, why target education interventions at girls alone?

Large disparities in later life

The key to gender equality lies in ensuring girls and boys, and men and women, have the same opportunities to reach their potential from early life, through late childhood and adolescence, into adulthood.

Research emphasises that human development does not hinge on any single factor such as schooling. Rather, it depends on capabilities built throughout life.

In early childhood, proper nutrition, among other things, is crucial for developing a child’s basic physical and cognitive capabilities. These early investments protect the potential for human development.

During childhood and adolescence, factors like quality schooling and social support allow young people to realise that potential.

Finally, in adulthood, social norms and job opportunities determine how fully a person can use their realised potential.

Our findings suggest that, on average, in low- and middle-income countries the development potential of girls and young women is protected and realised better than it is for boys and young men. But later in life, women don’t have as many opportunities as men to use that potential.

This implies that initiatives focused on girls’ schooling are likely not the most effective means of promoting girls’ development or reducing gender gaps.

Large disparities emerge later in girls’ lives. For example, our findings show that women earn less than men in almost every country in sub-Saharan Africa. These results reflect how patriarchal norms, particularly the unequal burden of housework and childcare, tend to push women into lower-paid informal or part-time work. Even when similarly qualified and in comparable positions, women typically earn less than men.

These findings, when considered in the context of the current state of education in the region, challenge the idea that focusing solely on girls’ education is enough to promote their lifelong development or meaningfully reduce gender inequalities.

The argument that boys should not receive the same support as girls is weak.

How to promote greater gender equality in sub-Saharan Africa

Targeted interventions are likely to have the greatest impact where girls and women face the greatest barriers: in using their potential. That means, for example:
- recognising the unpaid household and caregiving work that women shoulder
- improving women’s access to better job opportunities in paid and formal work
- challenging discriminatory laws and social norms.
Social protection policies, including childcare and reproductive health services, can ease women’s caregiving burden and give them the time and agency to fully participate in politics, the economy and society.

There are also opportunities beyond government, where support for trade unions, for instance, has been shown to help narrow gender wage gaps.

Addressing gender inequality requires a life-course approach. It should involve quality education for both genders, and tackling the policies, practices and social norms that marginalise women and girls, especially in the later stages of their lives.

Sara Naicker, Jere Behrman and Linda Richter contributed to the research this article is based on. Dhyan Saravanja contributed to this article.

Chris Desmond receives funding from UK Research and Innovation Global Challenges Research Fund Accelerating Achievement for Africa’s Adolescents Hub,Grant/Award Number: ES/S008101/1

Kathryn Watt 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. Education and gender equality: focus on girls isn’t fair and isn’t enough – global study – https://theconversation.com/education-and-gender-equality-focus-on-girls-isnt-fair-and-isnt-enough-global-study-240239
MIL OSI – Global Reports –
January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Zimbabwe’s ZiG: devaluations won’t fix a currency that’s in trouble because of government overspending
Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Jonathan Munemo, Professor of Economics, Salisbury University

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe devalued the ZiG by 43% on 27 September 2024. This weakened the official exchange rate from 13.9 ZiG per US dollar to 24.4 ZiG per US dollar.

The ZiG (Zimbabwe Gold) is the nation’s newest currency and was launched in April 2024.

The unexpected devaluation was prompted by the need to contain resurgent exchange rate pressure which started back in August due to higher food import costs and a slide in mineral export sales. The central bank decided to ease this pressure by lowering the value of the currency instead of burning reserves to keep its value steady at 13.9 ZiG per dollar.

The strain on the ZiG has intensified in the aftermath of the devaluation. It has weakened even further to more than 26 ZiG per dollar as of 18 October. This has raised speculation that it will continue to weaken.

This would have a number of negative consequences. It would keep upward pressure on import prices, hurting households and businesses. If this happened, Zimbabwean households already hit by falling paycheques and savings might cut back further on spending.

The strain on the currency also risks reigniting inflation. The risk comes after monthly inflation ticked up to 1.4% in August and then climbed to 5.8% in September. Resurgent inflation would also increase costs for businesses and threaten to stifle investment. That was on display in 2000-08 and 2019-20 when price instability dampened economic activity and created a costly business environment which discouraged investment.

A further risk factor from currency instability is that it would deter foreign investors worried about the ZiG as a reliable store of value. The prospect of declining business investment, loss of confidence in the ZiG, and anaemic consumption would in turn be a major drag on economic activity. Economic growth in 2024 is expected to slow down to 2% from 5% last year. El Niño-induced drought, lower mining prices, and macroeconomic instability are among the key reasons.

This is the sixth time Zimbabwe’s authorities have attempted to establish a stable national currency in the past 15 years. The history of failed attempts has cast a long shadow on the ZiG. The recent devaluation has not eased concerns about Zimbabwe’s struggles to develop and maintain a domestic currency that can be widely used for transactions and as a store of value on a voluntary basis.

I have long thought the devaluation was inevitable. Authorities must confront the fundamental causes, which are rooted in a loss of faith in the ability of government to manage spending. In particular, its habit of printing money, overspending on its budgets and failing to expand the economy.

Interventions

The ZiG is part of a multicurrency system which allows individuals to use other major currencies including the US dollar, euro, South African rand and pound sterling.

To increase the ZiG’s uptake, authorities imposed a number of measures. The new unit has to be used for paying a portion of company taxes and most government services. Fines are issued to traders unwilling to accept ZiG payments.

Measures like these are not sufficient because they do not consider the real problems hindering success of the Zimbabwe dollar.

The central bank also announced that it aims to slow the ZiG’s decline by imposing currency controls and raising the benchmark policy rate (the rate used to implement its monetary policy) from 20% to 35%. The jump in the cost of borrowing triggered by these measures will further weigh on business investment and consumer spending.

Gains to Zimbabwean exporters from a cheaper ZiG are unlikely to be substantial because of an El Niño-induced drought which has devastated crops in southern Africa. And dollar earnings for Zimbabwe’s mineral exports have been hurt by lower commodity prices. The agriculture and food sector contributes about 17% to GDP and 40% of total export earnings on average, while mining accounts for about 12% of GDP and 80% of total exports.

My worry is that a cheaper ZiG may not juice exports and reduce the trade shortfall of US$1,453 million recorded last year, given the hit to commodity prices and adverse impact of drought on agricultural production. A bigger trade deficit will keep downward pressure on the currency. The weaker ZiG could however boost inbound tourism.

To retain a stable domestic currency, authorities will have to address deeper structural causes rooted in the country’s long history of printing money to pay for government overspending amid slow economic expansion. That means:
- slashing the budget while giving greater spending priority to health, education, public infrastructure and other critical investments.
- government weaning itself off dependence on printing money to finance fiscal deficits
- supporting credible policies for more sustainable and private-sector led growth and policies for capturing more revenue from growth.
Precedents

This is not the first time that the Zimbabwe dollar has been unstable and weak. In the 2000s, printing money to finance government deficit spending produced periods of high inflation amid slow growth, making the currency weak and unstable.

The currency eventually collapsed in 2009 due to hyperinflation and the US dollar became the official currency.

Another local currency (the RTGS dollar) was later introduced in 2019. With the power to print more money restored, inflation rapidly accelerated and surpassed 500% in 2020. This made the new Zimbabwe dollar highly unstable and its value quickly deteriorated.

As a result, the US dollar continued to be the dominant currency used in transactions and as a store of value. Inflation remained elevated until April 2024, when the ZiG was launched as the new national currency. Its value is backed by gold and foreign currency reserves.

At first the move seemed to have tamed inflation. But widespread voluntary use of the ZiG failed to materialise. That’s because people are still wary of the government’s power to print money, which had been the key driver of inflation and currency instability.

What policy makers can do

Authorities must tackle the root causes of the nation’s currency struggles once and for all. Steps that can be taken to resolve longstanding structural factors include:
- Re-prioritising public spending by undertaking deep fiscal reforms that will divert more resources towards spending on health, education, public infrastructure and other critical investments needed to boost growth. These reforms should also aim to capture more revenue from growth, for example, through tax reforms.
- Implementing reforms to address corruption and improve governance is essential for imposing the discipline necessary to push back against covering fiscal deficits by printing money and for restoring faith in government institutions.
- Pursuing credible policies for more sustainable and private-sector led growth. Strong growth expands tax revenues and gives the government more policy space to spend on essential services and critical investment needs.
Devaluation and other measures that have been imposed to support the ZiG are not the solution.

Jonathan Munemo 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. Zimbabwe’s ZiG: devaluations won’t fix a currency that’s in trouble because of government overspending – https://theconversation.com/zimbabwes-zig-devaluations-wont-fix-a-currency-thats-in-trouble-because-of-government-overspending-241686
MIL OSI – Global Reports –
January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Poverty in Lagos isn’t just about money – here’s why

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Oluwaseyi Omowunmi Popogbe, Lecturer II, Crawford University

Lagos is Nigeria’s economic powerhouse, but it has some of the worst slums in the country.

Lagos slums are characterised by high levels of poverty – the state of not having enough resources to meet basic needs for living, such as food, water, shelter, healthcare and education.

Poverty is multidimensional. It is not only about money. Yet poverty in Lagos slums has often been studied using traditional methods that focus mostly on income thresholds. A person is considered poor if their income falls below a certain level. This approach captures financial hardship. But it misses other aspects of poverty, such as lack of access to education, healthcare, clean water and decent living conditions.

Measuring poverty requires a multidimensional approach, not simply an income approach. Multidimensional poverty means looking at all the aspects of deprivation to get a fuller picture of what it means to live in poverty. It helps policymakers and researchers understand that even with some income, a person may still be struggling because they don’t have other essential services.

In a study of poverty in the Lagos State slums, two other development economists and I used a mathematical framework to model multidimensional poverty. We used what is known as the fuzzy set approach. This was developed in the 1990s as an alternative to purely monetary measures of poverty.

The traditional monetary approach often classifies people as either “poor” or “not poor” based on specific cut-off points. In reality, poverty exists on a spectrum, and people can experience different levels of deprivation across various aspects of their lives. The fuzzy set approach accounts for this by assigning degrees of membership to different poverty indicators.

We found considerable disparities in poverty, based on a multidimensional index, across slums in Lagos State. Our insights will enable economists and policymakers to see the different ways people in slums are deprived. In turn this should help them understand how to make their lives better in a more targeted and effective way.

Background and methodological approach

Our study focused on five big slums that lie close to the coastal line in Lagos state. These are among the slums the World Bank has identified for upgrading as part of a US$200 million loan project to improve drainage and solid waste management.

We chose 400 respondents from the five slums: Makoko, Iwaya, Ilaje, Ijora Badia and Amukoko.

According to Avijit Hazra and Nithya J Gogtay, researchers in bio-statistics and research methodology, a minimum of 384 samples is appropriate for a large population size. Nevertheless, the selected sample for this study limits the ability to generalise the findings to other slums, especially those with different characteristics.

Findings

The multidimensional poverty index was highest in Makoko and Iwaya. These scores indicate severe poverty, as they are above the threshold of 0.50.

In contrast, Amukoko had the lowest multidimensional poverty index, showing relatively less severe deprivation across indicators.

Makoko and Iwaya are particularly deprived in areas like schooling, sanitation and nutrition. This explains their higher poverty levels compared to other communities.

Makoko’s location along the coast, with its makeshift housing and poor infrastructure, adds to its vulnerability. Iwaya shares similar challenges in education and health services. These factors make both areas more deprived than other slums.

Of the three broad poverty dimensions measured, education emerged with the highest deprivation across all communities. This highlighted the limited formal education among residents.

Specifically, Makoko and Iwaya showed the highest deprivation in schooling. Despite some improvements, particularly in child enrolment, these communities are still marked by severe deprivation.

The second dimension exhibiting severe deprivation was living standards. There were variations across different slums. Makoko and Iwaya had higher sanitation challenges.

The third dimension in the severe deprivation category was health. Indicators included mortality and nutrition. They were high across many slums, contributing significantly to their multidimensional poverty indexes.

Other communities, such as Amukoko (0.0312), showed better sanitation outcomes. On the other hand, electricity, flooring and cooking fuel indicators generally showed lower levels of deprivation, with most slums scoring around or below 0.03 in these categories.

The prevalence of both serious and minor illnesses, coupled with insufficient medical care, contributed to high mortality rates.

Poor sanitation could also be a factor in health issues. In Makoko and Iwaya, toilet facilities and waste management were poor, with waste often disposed of in waterways.

Despite this, personal hygiene practices such as using clean water, soap and regular brushing were prevalent. This helped keep the sanitation index relatively low compared with other factors affecting health.

Other slums had relatively better-organised waste collection systems and generally improved sanitation practices.

What needs to be done

Policymakers should prioritise education-focused initiatives. This should include improving access to quality schools, providing scholarships and setting up adult literacy programmes.

The study also highlights challenges related to sanitation, especially in Makoko and Iwaya. There is a need for improved infrastructure in these areas, such as better sanitation facilities, waste management systems and access to clean water.

Policies should focus on upgrading sanitation services to reduce health risks and improve living conditions.

But the differences in poverty index across slums indicate varying levels of deprivation, suggesting that a one-size-fits-all approach will not be effective.

Coastal slums like Makoko and Iwaya require more intensive interventions compared to slums not directly on coastal lines such as Amukoko.

Policymakers should focus resources where they are most needed to have the greatest impact.

Slums like Ilaje and Ijora Badia are close to the threshold of severe poverty. Policymakers need to take proactive measures to prevent these communities from falling into severe deprivation.

Lastly, it is important to use data to identify priority areas and develop targeted interventions aimed at improving the quality of life for slum dwellers.

Instead of relying on generalised approaches, the insights from this study can facilitate the design of specific policies that address the distinct needs of each community.

Oluwaseyi Omowunmi Popogbe 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. Poverty in Lagos isn’t just about money – here’s why – https://theconversation.com/poverty-in-lagos-isnt-just-about-money-heres-why-240847

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 24, 2025
MIL-OSI Africa: Education and gender equality: focus on girls isn’t fair and isn’t enough – global study

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Kathryn Watt, Research Manager, The Asenze Project, University of KwaZulu-Natal

For the past two decades, investing in girls’ schooling has been hailed as a cornerstone of promoting gender equality in sub-Saharan Africa. Between 2016 and 2018 the World Bank Group invested US$3.2 billion in education projects benefiting adolescent girls.

The logic is straightforward. Girls face significant barriers to education, among them poverty, insufficient academic support, adolescent pregnancy, child marriage, and school related gender-based violence. Reducing these barriers can substantially improve their educational outcomes.

But is this approach – investing in girls’ education – fair to boys, and enough to make a meaningful impact on girls’ lives in the long term? Having studied the relationship between interventions and the way people’s lives develop in adverse contexts, we argue that the answer is no on both counts.

We explain this view in a recent paper. In it we compare the different effects of directing development assistance: improving girls’ school enrolment, prioritising schooling for both girls and boys, and addressing barriers to gender equality throughout life.

We used publicly available data for 136 low- and middle-income countries, including those in sub-Saharan Africa. We calculated the female-to-male ratio for important education indicators in each country to show where girls are ahead, on par or behind boys.

Our findings suggest that the current focus on girls’ schooling may both unintentionally disadvantage boys and be a relatively inefficient means of advancing gender equality.

Girls’ and boys’ education in sub-Saharan Africa

We focused on two indicators to assess the current state of girls’ and boys’ education in the region:

Harmonised learning outcomes measure learning and progress based on the results from seven different types of tests combined and made comparable among children attending school. They reflect the environmental inputs into learning and achievement, such as school quality. Completing secondary school, meanwhile, has been shown to increase a person’s potential for future development, opportunities for employment and higher education.

In most countries in sub-Saharan Africa, girls are behind boys on secondary school completion. The average completion rate for boys is 30%. For girls it is just 24%. In southern Africa specifically, girls have higher completion rates than boys. Figure 1 shows where girls are ahead or behind on this indicator.

Figure 1: Secondary school completion. Author provided (no reuse)

In sub-Saharan Africa, the average harmonised learning outcomes score for boys is 301; it is 303 for girls. Our results show that, for most countries in the region, girls are achieving roughly equal scores to their male peers.

Figure 2: Harmonised learning outcomes. Author provided (no reuse)

This suggests that gender gaps in education are not as pronounced as is often portrayed.

Firstly, although school completion rates are higher for boys, this gap is small, and overall completion rates remain low for both genders.

Secondly, where boys are averaging higher levels of completed schooling, it is not due to better academic performance. Once enrolled, girls in the region tend to keep up with boys in school completion and academic performance.

Rather than asking who is ahead, it’s more important to note that neither boys nor girls are doing well. Our results show that educational outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa – including school performance and completion – are alarmingly poor for both girls and boys.

So, if all children in the region are clearly in need of support, why target education interventions at girls alone?

Large disparities in later life

The key to gender equality lies in ensuring girls and boys, and men and women, have the same opportunities to reach their potential from early life, through late childhood and adolescence, into adulthood.

Research emphasises that human development does not hinge on any single factor such as schooling. Rather, it depends on capabilities built throughout life.

In early childhood, proper nutrition, among other things, is crucial for developing a child’s basic physical and cognitive capabilities. These early investments protect the potential for human development.

During childhood and adolescence, factors like quality schooling and social support allow young people to realise that potential.

Finally, in adulthood, social norms and job opportunities determine how fully a person can use their realised potential.

Our findings suggest that, on average, in low- and middle-income countries the development potential of girls and young women is protected and realised better than it is for boys and young men. But later in life, women don’t have as many opportunities as men to use that potential.

This implies that initiatives focused on girls’ schooling are likely not the most effective means of promoting girls’ development or reducing gender gaps.

Large disparities emerge later in girls’ lives. For example, our findings show that women earn less than men in almost every country in sub-Saharan Africa. These results reflect how patriarchal norms, particularly the unequal burden of housework and childcare, tend to push women into lower-paid informal or part-time work. Even when similarly qualified and in comparable positions, women typically earn less than men.

Figure 3: Adult earnings. Author provided (no reuse)

These findings, when considered in the context of the current state of education in the region, challenge the idea that focusing solely on girls’ education is enough to promote their lifelong development or meaningfully reduce gender inequalities.

The argument that boys should not receive the same support as girls is weak.

How to promote greater gender equality in sub-Saharan Africa

Targeted interventions are likely to have the greatest impact where girls and women face the greatest barriers: in using their potential. That means, for example:

Social protection policies, including childcare and reproductive health services, can ease women’s caregiving burden and give them the time and agency to fully participate in politics, the economy and society.

There are also opportunities beyond government, where support for trade unions, for instance, has been shown to help narrow gender wage gaps.

Addressing gender inequality requires a life-course approach. It should involve quality education for both genders, and tackling the policies, practices and social norms that marginalise women and girls, especially in the later stages of their lives.

Sara Naicker, Jere Behrman and Linda Richter contributed to the research this article is based on. Dhyan Saravanja contributed to this article.

– Education and gender equality: focus on girls isn’t fair and isn’t enough – global study
– https://theconversation.com/education-and-gender-equality-focus-on-girls-isnt-fair-and-isnt-enough-global-study-240239

MIL OSI Africa –

January 24, 2025