Category: Entertainment

MIL-OSI Australia: Arrests – Driving offences – Greater Darwin Region

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

The Northern Territory Police Force has arrested two females and four males yesterday for driving under the influence of drugs.

Darwin Traffic Operations members launched a road blitz yesterday targeting speeding in the Greater Darwin Region, resulting in six positive roadside drug tests during random traffic apprehensions.

Two females, aged 40 and 41 years-old, and the four males aged 33, 37, 39, and 52 years-old, have had their drivers licences immediately suspended. Some of the offenders were issued with infringement notices and some have been summonsed to appear in court at a later date.

Darwin Traffic Operations are also investigating a hooning incident that occurred on Saturday night. Police allege two vehicles took off at speed from traffic lights and were later observed on CCTV footage fishtailing along the road. One of the vehicles contained a 3-year-old child at the time of the incident.

A 33-year-old male involved in this incident, will have his vehicle seized and will be summonsed to appear in the Darwin Local Court at a later date. He has been charged with participating in speed trials / races, drive vehicle cause loss of traction and dangerous driving.

Superintendent Paul Wood said, “It is utterly disgraceful that these individuals have chosen to endanger the lives of our fellow Territorians. Not only were these motorists speeding, they also tested positive for drugs. This is a blatant disregard for public safety.”

“Police will continue to remind all road users about the Fatal Five as they are critical factors that contribute to the tragic loss of life on our roads.”

MIL OSI News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI New Zealand: Further arrest following Wainuiomata assault

Source: New Zealand Police (National News)

Attributable to Detective Senior Sergeant Martin Todd, Hutt Valley CIB:

Police have today arrested and charged a 19-year-old man following an assault in Wainuiomata on Wednesday 5 February.

The man faces a charge of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and is due to appear in the Hutt Valley District Court on Friday 21 February.

Today’s arrest follows the arrest of a 23-year-old man on 6 February.

The victim was discharged from hospital after five nights and is recovering at home.

We would like to thank the community for the information they have provided us to date.

The investigation continues to progress, including ongoing efforts to locate the weapon allegedly used in the assault.

Residents in the vicinity of Woolworths Wainuiomata are asked to check their properties for any items similar to a knife that could assist our investigation.

We would still like to hear from anyone with CCTV or dashcam footage of the incident.

You can provide information to Police by calling 105 and quoting file number 250205/0193.

Information can also be shared anonymously through Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

ENDS

Issued by Police Media Centre

MIL OSI New Zealand News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI China: Youngsters take a shine to gold phone stickers

Source: China State Council Information Office

Customers view gold jewelry at a gold shop in Jinan, capital of East China’s Shandong province, Jan 27, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

As gold prices rally, driven by market volatility and central bank purchases, younger Chinese consumers are finding a new way to get in on the action — through the purchase of trendy and low-cost gold phone stickers.

These lightweight accessories, ranging from 0.01 to 0.2 grams in weight and priced anywhere from 40 yuan ($5.5) to over 100 yuan, come in a wide variety of auspicious designs and motifs, from depictions of the God of Wealth to emblems bearing lucky phrases such as “Peace and Happiness” and “Get Rich”.

“By simply peeling off the adhesive and affixing the charm to the back of their smartphones, young consumers can instantly transform their devices into portable talismans of wealth and success,” said Wu Ming, a business owner in Shuibei, a gold jewelry manufacturing and trading hub in Shenzhen, Guangdong province.

It’s a small investment, but the impact is quite powerful, Wu said, adding that the charms allow young people to feel like they’re partaking in the gold rush, while also serving as a daily reminder of their aspirations for prosperity.

The gold phone sticker trend has taken on a strong social media dimension, with users actively engaging with and inspiring one another. This has created a powerful viral effect, attracting more people to participate in this fashion craze.

A search for “gold phone stickers” on the popular social media platform Xiaohongshu, also known as Rednote, yielded over 5.98 million related posts, as of mid-February.

While gold phone stickers have been around for years, it wasn’t until the end of 2024 that they turned highly popular. The key driver behind this surge is advances in manufacturing that have allowed producers to create thinner, lighter charms with a wider array of stylish designs, Wu said.

Collaborations with popular IP and the integration of viral social media catchphrases have proved to be highly effective strategies, Wu added.

Chinese jeweler CHJ Industry has joined forces with the iconic Japanese anime character Doraemon and popular Chinese TV drama Empresses in the Palace, to break out of their traditional mold and tap into the cultural zeitgeist driving the gold phone sticker trend.

“The posts on Xiaohongshu all talk about how wearing these gold charms can bring you luck and prosperity,” said Yang Hongyi, a 26-year-old resident in Beijing.

“I’m not buying them to hold as an investment — I just want a touch of gold on my phone to bring a little auspiciousness, and maybe even give one to a friend as a fun gift for the new year,” Yang said.

Take, for example, a gold phone sticker weighing just 0.1 gram, which is being sold for about 100 yuan at least. This translates to a unit price of over 1,000 yuan per gram, while a gram of pure gold in the open market generally sells for around 700 yuan, including both the cost of the gold and a processing fee of 15 to 35 yuan.

In the past, the primary driver for gold purchases was the metal’s perceived ability to maintain and grow in value over time, but the trend of gold phone stickers has ushered in a new era where the aspirational appeal of these accessories has taken center stage, said Li Yang, an associate professor at Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business.

It’s no longer just about the intrinsic value of the gold, but the social currency and cultural cachet these accessories represent, Li said.

“A gold phone charm is just a decorative item, it has nothing to do with whether it maintains its value or not,” Yang said. “It’s like a phone case — if you don’t like it, you can just change it, and you don’t feel bad about it.”

MIL OSI China News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI Australia: Woman charged with arson over West Launceston fire

Source: Tasmania Police

Woman charged with arson over West Launceston fire

Thursday, 20 February 2025 – 1:52 pm.

A woman has been charged with arson following a fire at a West Launceston residence overnight.
Tasmania Fire Service and Tasmania Police were called to Merrys Lane about 10.30pm Wednesday after reports a structure was on fire.
A man, who was inside the property at the time of the fire, had escaped without injuries and contacted emergency services.
Crews from Launceston and Prospect fire brigades attended and contained the fire.
Damage has been estimated at approximately $400,000.
A woman – who was also outside the residence when emergency services arrived – was arrested by police.
A fire investigation determined the fire was deliberately lit and the woman – a 52 year old of no fixed address – has since been charged with arson and detained to appear in the Launceston Magistrates Court tonight.
Anyone with information or CCTV footage from the area at the time of the fire should contact police on 131 444 or Crime Stoppers anonymously on 1800 333 000 or online at crimestopperstas.com.au

MIL OSI News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Murphy: if Your Plan is to Destroy the Rule of Law, Kash Patel is the Perfect Person to Lead the FBI

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for Connecticut – Chris Murphy
[embedded content]
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) on Wednesday spoke on the U.S. Senate floor to sound the alarm on President Donald Trump’s blatant disregard for the rule of law. Murphy condemned Trump’s efforts to use the justice system as a tool to punish his critics and protect his allies, warning the confirmation of Kash Patel to lead the FBI would be a dangerous step toward dismantling American democracy.
On the dangerous nomination of Kash Patel to lead the FBI, Murphy said: “If your plan is to destroy the rule of law and turn the Department of Justice into a political weapon that rewards loyalty and punishes dissent, then Kash Patel is the perfect person to lead the FBI, and that is likely exactly why he was chosen. […] He has an enemies list. He thinks that people who helped elect Joe Biden are criminals. […] Honestly, how on Earth are we going to let someone lead the world’s most important, most revered law enforcement agency, who is secretly in business with the Chinese Communist Party, who believes that the FBI organized the invasion of the Capitol, who runs a fake charity, who has a brand in order to make money off of his affiliation with Donald Trump?”
Murphy called out Patel’s sham foundation: “While he believes this, he also knows that there’s a money-making opportunity in all of this. This is his logo: K$H. He’s a brand. He says all these things because he believes them, but also because it makes him a hero to the gullible conspiracy theorists inside MAGA. He uses them. He sells stuff to them: sweatshirts, T-shirts, lapel pins. K$H. Now if you buy this sweatshirt for $55, it says all net profits go to the Kash Foundation. But you know what we found out, unsurprisingly, is that in 2023, by selling all these sweatshirts and merch, the K$H Foundation had $1.3 million in revenues. Now it purports to support heroic whistleblowers with legal services and other support services. You know what percentage of that $1.3 million went to actual services? Less than 15%. Kash Patel pocketed almost all the money that he made from selling these T-shirts.”
Murphy detailed how President Trump is brazenly using the Department of Justice to curry favor and punish critics: “Trump ordered the Department of Justice to cut a deal with the indicted mayor of New York City, Eric Adams. The deal was simple. If Adams pledged loyalty to Trump and agreed specifically to cooperate with Trump’s immigration raids in the city, Trump would look the other way regarding Adams’ corruption. The charges would be dropped, and Adams could keep stealing money as long as he was politically loyal to Trump. They didn’t hide this deal. Adams and a high-ranking Trump official literally went on TV to announce that they had formed an alliance based upon the release of charges in exchange for political loyalty.
He added: “There is not a rule of law anymore. There is one set of law for people or entities who are loyal to Donald Trump, and there is one set of law for people who dare criticize him. That is not democracy. And if we don’t find a way, Republicans and Democrats, to come together to defend the rule of law, if we don’t say that what is happening today – deals being cut with corrupt politicians in exchange for their pledges of loyalty to Donald Trump – if we can’t speak with one voice about that kind of corruption, well, then our democracy is cooked.”
He concluded: “The law loses all meaning when it becomes simply what the president, what the leader, on any given day decides. This is the worst possible moment to put a person like Kash Patel in charge of the FBI. It is heartbreaking to see so many of my Republican colleagues, many of whom I admire, put loyalty to Donald Trump ahead of loyalty to this country, and more specifically loyalty to that sacred principle, the rule of law. My prediction is that if you vote for Kash Patel, more than any other confirmation vote you make, you will come to regret this one to your grave.”
A full transcript of his remarks can be found below:
MURPHY: “Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. President, the idea that men and women citizens are bound by a common set of laws that are applied consistently and universally, regardless of one’s income or political power or political affiliation, it’s a fairly modern invention. Because for thousands of years, laws were simply what rulers used to impose and maintain power, to control people. Laws were applied or crimes were invented for the ruler’s critics, and laws were ignored or waived away for those in favor with the regime.
“Now early Americans had watched the British kings apply laws selectively, both in Britain and in the colonies, and they sought – our founders sought – to create a nation where all men were equal in the face of the law, and [where] the law was applied uniformly and justly.
“That idea – equal justice, the law applies to everybody regardless of who you support politically or who you are aligned with politically – was in many ways the founders’ most vital check against tyranny. That’s the difference between a democracy made of equal citizens and an autocracy where the law is simply whatever the ruler decides. It is a foundational principle of American constitutional democracy. It is not something that we can take for granted.
“Now, I will admit, likely every president has made a decision or decisions that compromised that belief in the rule of law. Often those decisions were related to one of the maximalist powers that the president supposes. That’s the power of the pardon. I, for instance, did not agree with President Biden’s decision to issue pardons to his family members. I thought that was excessive. I thought that compromised the rule of law.
“But this President’s contempt for the rule of law, Donald Trump’s contempt for the rule of law, is unprecedented. What we are all watching right now is Donald Trump throwing away the idea that laws apply to everyone equally. And it is astonishing to watch so many of my Republican colleagues fall in line. Some of them may be on board for the destruction of the rule of law because they want the Trump family to rule forever, but many of them know that this is wrong, what is happening, and their silence is heartbreaking.
“Donald Trump issued a statement over the weekend: quote, ‘He who saves the country does not violate any law.’ That’s a quote attributed to one of the most notorious dictators of the last half millennium: Napoleon Bonaparte. It’s a stunning claim that Trump, not the law or Congress, decides what is legal and illegal.
“If he had said that in 2017, maybe we could just write it off as Trump being Trump, as just bluster trolling. But this time he is actually implementing a methodical campaign to seize control of the law and apply it differently depending on whether you support him or oppose him.
“Take, for example, what happened on Friday night. Trump ordered the Department of Justice to cut a deal with the indicted mayor of New York City, Eric Adams. The deal was simple. If Adams pledged loyalty to Trump and agreed specifically to cooperate with Trump’s immigration raids in the city, Trump would look the other way regarding Adams’ corruption. The charges would be dropped, and Adams could keep stealing money as long as he was politically loyal to Trump.
“They didn’t hide this deal. Adams and a high-ranking Trump official literally went on TV to announce that they had formed an alliance based upon the release of charges in exchange for political loyalty. But when Trump told the highest-ranking Justice Department employees in New York City to execute the corrupt deal, they wouldn’t. The top official resigned rather than take part in the corruption. So did the next in the chain of command. By the time that Trump found someone who would implement the deal, seven DOJ lawyers and four of Adams’ deputy mayors had resigned because what was happening in plain view was a fundamental challenge, a fundamental corruption to the rule of law, a rule of law that up until today Republicans and Democrats had both revered.
“Meanwhile, other parts of Trump’s team are engaging on the other side of the ledger, targeting and harassing – using the law – the President’s critics. Because that’s what happens in a nation without the rule of law. Law enforcement lets loyalists like Adams off the hook and is overzealous in targeting critics.
“Let me give you just one example of what is happening right now as we speak. Last month, Trump’s new FCC Chairman opened an investigation into a single radio station that had the audacity to simply file a news report about an ICE raid that was happening locally. Multiple other sources filed similar reports with similar footage, but only one investigation was opened, and you guessed it, it was against the radio station that was owned by a high-profile critic of Donald Trump, George Soros.
“So the game is clear. Like, we can see it. They’re not even hiding it. There is not a rule of law anymore. There is one set of law for people or entities who are loyal to Donald Trump, and there is one set of law for people who dare criticize him. That is not democracy. And if we don’t find a way, Republicans and Democrats, to come together to defend the rule of law, if we don’t say that what is happening today – deals being cut with corrupt politicians in exchange for their pledges of loyalty to Donald Trump – if we can’t speak with one voice about that kind of corruption, well, then our democracy is cooked.
“Which brings us to the pending nominee to lead the FBI, Kash Patel. If your plan is to destroy the rule of law and turn the Department of Justice into a political weapon that rewards loyalty and punishes dissent, then Kash Patel is the perfect person to lead the FBI, and that is likely exactly why he was chosen.
“Listen, Kash Patel is a joke. Many of my Republican colleagues know this. He has spent the last four years taking the most extreme positions inside the world of MAGA in order to make money for himself.
“For instance, he says that he can provide proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the FBI was behind the January 6 invasion of this building. Let me say that again. The man that my Republican colleagues are about to vote to lead the FBI believes that there is irrefutable proof that the agency he is about to lead secretly organized the violent assault on the Capitol. That is bananas. My Republican colleagues know that. That is a lie. And we’re about to put this guy in charge of the FBI? An agency that he claims organized a secret plot to invade the Capitol?
“He wrote a book called ‘Government Gangsters’ and at the end he added an Appendix entitled ‘Enemies List.’ Like, straight out of the McCarthy era. He has a list – he wrote it down – of people he believes are enemies of America. And, shocker, they’re all Democrats, or Republicans who dared speak out and criticize Donald Trump.
“You’re going to put at the head of the FBI – the agency that can arrest anyone they want, put people in jail – a man who thinks that anyone who disagrees with Donald Trump politically is an enemy of the United States. Patel has further suggested that anybody who administered the 2020 election could be subject to arrest. Why? Because he believes in his heart that the election was rigged, despite the fact that Joe Biden won by seven million votes – far, far more than Trump won by in 2024. So anybody who helped rig the 2020 election is, in his mind, a potential criminal.
“This is off-the-wall stuff. But of course it is, because while he believes this, he also knows that there’s a money-making opportunity in all of this. This is his logo: K$H. He’s a brand. He says all these things because he believes them, but also because it makes him a hero to the gullible conspiracy theorists inside MAGA. He uses them. He sells stuff to them: sweatshirts, T-shirts, lapel pins. K$H.
“Now if you buy this sweatshirt for $55, it says all net profits go to the Kash Foundation. But you know what we found out, unsurprisingly, is that in 2023, by selling all these sweatshirts and merch, the K$H Foundation had $1.3 million in revenues.
“Now it purports to support heroic whistleblowers with legal services and other support services. You know what percentage of that $1.3 million went to actual services? Less than 15%. Kash Patel pocketed almost all the money that he made from selling these T-shirts.
“He even hocks a COVID vaccine reversal pill. Let me say that again: the incoming director of the FBI, in addition to selling T-shirts and pocketing most of the proceeds, also sells a vaccine reversal pill that is just pure snake oil. But if there are enough people loyal to Donald Trump to buy anything Trump’s lieutenants sell on the internet, then fair game.
“To top it all off, just recently after his confirmation hearing, we also found out that Kash Patel has been a fashion consultant to a shadowy holding company controlled, it seems, by members of the Chinese Communist Party. Honestly, how on Earth are we going to let someone lead the world’s most important, most revered law enforcement agency, who is secretly in business with the Chinese Communist Party, who believes that the FBI organized the invasion of the Capitol, who runs a fake charity, who has a brand in order to make money off of his affiliation with Donald Trump? He has an enemies list. He thinks that people who helped elect Joe Biden are criminals.
“This is a really dangerous moment. It’s a really dangerous moment. This deal that Donald Trump just cut with the mayor of New York, it’s a big deal. It’s a big deal. I admit that prior presidents have made decisions that compromise the rule of law. But we’ve never seen anything like this, so brazen and out in the open, that the mayor of New York and a Trump official would go on national TV to announce that they had made an arrangement in which Mayor Adams could continue his corruption as long as he was politically loyal to Donald Trump.
“They did that out in the open on TV because it’s a signal to everybody else out there that the law will be applied differently to you if you are loyal to the president and that the law will be zealously applied to you, maybe in excess of the letter of the law, if you are a critic of the president. That’s why they went on TV, to show the world the corruption, as a signal that things are different now, that the law is not the law, the law is what President Trump decides the law is.
“The law loses all meaning when it becomes simply what the president, what the leader, on any given day decides. This is the worst possible moment to put a person like Kash Patel in charge of the FBI. It is heartbreaking to see so many of my Republican colleagues, many of whom I admire, put loyalty to Donald Trump ahead of loyalty to this country, and more specifically loyalty to that sacred principle, the rule of law. My prediction is that if you vote for Kash Patel, more than any other confirmation vote you make, you will come to regret this one to your grave. I yield the floor.”

MIL OSI USA News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI China: 6th ‘Happy Chinese New Year’ film festival opens in Malta

Source: China State Council Information Office 3

The 6th “Happy Chinese New Year” film festival opened on Tuesday evening at Malta’s National Centre for Creativity in Valletta, with the first film, One and Only, receiving prolonged applause from the audience.

The festival, co-hosted by the China Cultural Centre in Malta and the China Film Archive, will run until March 4. Three more Chinese films, namely Pegasus 2, Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms, and Yolo, will be screened.

“Through these films, we aim to showcase the richness of China’s historical heritage, its unique cultural characteristics, and the dynamic spirit of contemporary Chinese society,” Xue Ning, deputy director of the China Film Archive, said at the opening of the film festival.

“The charm of cinema will further enhance emotional resonance and cultural exchange between our nations,” Xue added.

Following the screening, David Michael Schembri, mayor of Qrendi, southern Malta, said that the enthusiastic audience reaction reflected the artistic appeal of One and Only.

“I was really excited about the movie and I loved it very much,” said Noemi Calisto, a 25-year-old movie enthusiast, who expressed her love for Chinese culture and films. She plans to watch all the films at this festival and hopes to see more outstanding Chinese movies in Malta in the future, she told Xinhua.

Charmaine Zammit, education officer for art at the Ministry for Education, Sport, Youth, Research and Innovation, praised One and Only as a “very beautiful” movie that deeply captured the emotions of the audience.

MIL OSI China News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Klobuchar Urges Action at Senate Judiciary Hearing on Children’s Safety Online

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn)

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law, today delivered the following opening statement at the Judiciary Committee hearing on Children’s Safety in the Digital Era: Strengthening Protections and Addressing Legal Gaps.

A transcript of Klobuchar’s full opening statement is available below and a video can be downloaded here.

Senator Klobuchar: Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman, and I am truly looking forward to working with Senator Blackburn on this important Subcommittee. As many of you know, Senator Lee and I chaired the Antitrust Subcommittee for a long time, but I actually think this situation right now, with the possibility of moving on these bills, is going to be a very positive development.

As Senator Blackburn just pointed out, despite the strong support that we have had from Senator Durbin and Senator Grassley and Senator Graham when he chaired this Committee, or was the ranking on this Committee, we’ve just continued to run into roadblocks to passing these laws, and it’s getting absolutely absurd.

Senator Grassley is well aware of the antitrust tech bill that he and I lead, that hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars are spent against it in TV ads, and despite the fact that the companies, FAANG [Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google] as we call them, have agreed in other countries to some of these consumer protections that did not happen in America.

I think that this piece of it—whether it’s Instagram’s promotion of content that encourages eating disorders, frightening rise of non-consensual AI-generated pornographic deep fakes, or the tragic stories of kids losing their lives to fentanyl-laced pills—will most likely be leading the way as we continue to push our antitrust and privacy and news bills.

Just this month, this committee heard from Bridgette Norring of Hastings, Minnesota. Her son, Devin, was struggling with migraines, and bought what he thought was a Percocet over Snapchat to deal with the pain. But it really wasn’t a Percocet, it was a fake pill laced with fentanyl. And with that one pill, as we say, “one pill kills,” he died at age 19.

For too long, the companies have turned a blind eye when young children joined their platforms; used algorithms that pushed harmful content—they have done that; and provided a venue for dealers to sell deadly drugs like fentanyl.

We know that social media also increases the risk of mental illness, addiction, exploitation, and even suicide among kids. I will never forget the testimony of the FBI Director telling us that in just one year, I believe it was 2023, over 20 kids had committed suicide just because of the pornography and the images that had been put out there when they were innocently sending a picture to who they thought was a girlfriend or a boyfriend.

That’s why this committee has taken this on on a bipartisan basis, and I am hopeful that this hearing will be the beginning of actually passing these bills into law.

Representative Guffey, you and I met through Senator Cruz, and the bill that he and I have, the TAKE IT DOWN Act. We have an additional bill that Senator Cornyn and I have that’s really important, that’s passed through this committee, the SHIELD Act. And as you know all too well, the threat of dissemination alone can be tragic, especially for kids. We need to enact the Kids Online Safety Act, which, thanks to Senators Blumenthal and Blackburn, [has] passed the Senate on a 91-3 vote. As we know, some of these are stalled out in the House.

We need to get the federal rules of the road in place for safeguarding our data. According to a recent study, social media platforms generated $11 billion in revenue in 2022 from advertising directed at kids and teenagers, including $2 billion in ad profits derived from users age 12 and under.

I am supportive, as was mentioned by Senator Durbin, of the legislation that he and Senator Graham and Hawley and many others have to open the courtroom doors to those harmed by social media by making those reforms to Section 230. That legislation was enacted long before any of this was going on.

And somehow, with respect to other industries, we’ve been able to make smart decisions to put more safety rules in place. Just ask those passengers that were on that flight that flipped upside down in Toronto, who were in those seats that were the result of safety rules that were put in place. And yet, when it comes to this, we just put up our hands and say, “no, they’re lobbying against us,” or “they have too [much] money,” or “we like some of the people that work there.” And we do nothing.

And by doing nothing, instead of reaching some reasonable accommodations of settlements or things we can do on legislation, we just let them run wild at the expense of our kids’ lives. Thank you.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI New Zealand: Media crisis continues amid Government inaction – E tū

Source: Etu Union

E tū, the union for journalists and media workers, is sounding the alarm over the confirmation of an additional 30 job losses at NZME’s newsroom, as the wave of media cuts continues.

E tū Director Michael Wood says the latest redundancies are yet another blow to journalism in Aotearoa.

“Confirmation that a further 30 jobs will be lost from the NZME newsroom is part of a massacre of journalist capacity across the country,” Michael says.

“It follows on from NZME closing 14 regional titles, major job reductions at Stuff, and successive rounds of cuts at TVNZ. Cumulatively, these reductions mean that the New Zealand media system has less ability to perform its core functions – holding decision-makers to account, providing information in response to natural disasters, covering breaking news, and undertaking long-term investigations that help to inform the public on important issues.”

E tū members at NZME have engaged constructively, securing some changes to the original proposals that have preserved journalistic capacity. Michael says this underscores the value of union membership and collective action.

“The work of E tū members at NZME resulted in some changes to the original proposals, which have preserved some capacity, showing the value of union membership and engagement.

“However, we remain deeply concerned by the scale of these cuts and the clear signal from NZME that resources will be increasingly steered toward content that generates clicks. NZME must find a balance between generating short-term revenue and continuing to invest in high-quality journalism that drives long-term value.”

Responsibility also lies squarely with the Government, which has failed to act on the systemic issues affecting the sector.

“Primarily, though, this further round of cuts can be sheeted home to a Government that is missing in action,” Michael says.

“The sector continues to suffer because the content it produces gets used by social media platforms that do not contribute to its costs while earning advertising revenue from it. Last year, the Government committed to advancing the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill to address this issue, but now appears to have wilted in the face of lobbying from big overseas corporates.”

E tū is calling on the Government to take urgent action to support our local media.

“In the wake of yet another round of cuts, it is more evident than ever that the Government needs to wake up and take action so that we preserve a media system that supports New Zealand’s democracy.”

MIL OSI New Zealand News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI China: China taps box office success to boost tourism

Source: China State Council Information Office 3

China’s film authorities launched a movie-themed tourism campaign at the China National Film Museum in Beijing on Feb. 17, riding the momentum of the country’s recent box office success to attract foreign tourists.

The “China Travel with Chinese Films” campaign is launched at the China National Film Museum in Beijing, Feb. 17, 2025. [Photo courtesy of China Movie Channel]

The “China Travel with Chinese Films” campaign aims to leverage growing international interest in Chinese cinema following a record-breaking Spring Festival movie season. Supported by the country’s expanded transit visa-free policy, the initiative promotes filming locations and cultural sites featured in popular Chinese movies, officials said at the launch event.

The campaign, sponsored by the China Film Administration and China Media Group and organized by CGTN and the China Movie Channel Program Center, will promote a “film plus tourism” concept, encouraging international audiences to discover China through cinema while boosting tourism spending.

The initiative will also nurture collaboration between the film and tourism industries by creating themed travel routes connecting filming locations with cultural heritage sites.

During the 2025 Spring Festival season, six blockbusters generated 9.51 billion yuan ($1.32 billion) in ticket sales and drew 187 million viewers in seven days, according to box office tracker Maoyan Pro. The booming film market has sparked a growing interest in movie-related tourism centered on filming locations and cultural elements among domestic and international visitors.

Ne Zha and Ao Bing performers dance during the “China Travel with Chinese Films” campaign launch at the China National Film Museum in Beijing, Feb. 17, 2025. [Photo courtesy of China Movie Channel]

Among the blockbusters, the animated sensation “Ne Zha 2” has led the race and has continued its record-breaking run beyond the holiday season. So far, the film has grossed over 12.4 billion yuan, making it the highest-grossing Chinese film and animated feature of all time, surpassing both domestic and global box office records.

Thus, “Ne Zha” has become the campaign’s promotional ambassador. A performer dressed as the animated character received a certificate onstage before joining another character, Ao Bing, for a dance performance inviting global audiences to explore China. The film’s influence has spread beyond theaters, sparking nationwide interest. Regions are competing to claim Ne Zha’s “hometown” status to boost local tourism, while related merchandise has sold out quickly.

“‘Ne Zha 2’ is a visually spectacular comedy that tells a Chinese story, innovates traditional Chinese culture and continues the legacy of Eastern aesthetics,” said Wang Jing, the film’s executive producer. “With strong support from Chinese audiences, it aims to deliver a powerful voice of Chinese culture in the new era to global viewers.”

Another Chinese New Year release making international inroads is “Detective Chinatown 1900,” which has grossed more than 3.2 billion yuan ($446 million) in China and opened in nearly 20 overseas territories, including North America, the United Kingdom and Malaysia.

“Chinatowns have long served as windows for Chinese cultural exchange,” said producer Fan Xia, noting how the film showcases historic landmarks across these communities. “The ‘Detective Chinatown’ series, which tells their stories, has also demonstrated remarkable vitality in the field of cultural exchanges.”

Representatives of Spring Festival films present their films’ achievements and tourist destinations during the “China Travel with Chinese Films” campaign launch at the China National Film Museum in Beijing, Feb. 17, 2025. [Photo courtesy of China Movie Channel]

During the event, actor Anastasia Shestakova also invited international visitors to tour the film’s shooting locations in China, including a Native American village constructed in Xingtai, Hebei province, and a full-scale replica of various locations in 1900s San Francisco in Laoling, Shandong province. The 200,000-square-meter San Francisco set, built in just seven months at Laoling Film Studio, opened to the public during the Spring Festival, allowing moviegoers to explore the landmarks they saw on screen.

Actor Nashi, who plays the female general Deng Chanyu in “Creation of the Gods II: Demon Force,” a film set in ancient China’s Shang dynasty, passionately shared insights about period artifacts preserved in museums across Henan and Shaanxi provinces.

Besides the cities and attractions featured in the films, film studios and shooting locations have become popular cultural tourism spots. Representatives from China Movie Metropolis, Wuxi Studios, Western Film Group and Hengdian World Studios presented their production facilities advantages, industry policies and tourism offerings.

Representatives of film studios present their production resources, facilities and tourism offerings during the “China Travel with Chinese Films” campaign launch at the China National Film Museum in Beijing, Feb. 17, 2025. [Photo courtesy of China Movie Channel]

Several foreign cultural ambassadors and travel bloggers shared their China travel plans inspired by Spring Festival films at the event. Tourism and financial sector representatives offered promotional deals, while China Media Group announced its international bureaus would partner with Chinese filmmakers to expand the “China Travel with Chinese Films” campaign, attracting more overseas audiences.

This Chinese New Year, the first since the Spring Festival was added to UNESCO’s Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage, has triggered increased overseas interest in traveling to China.

Ma Yiliang, chief statistician at the China Tourism Academy, said the successful holiday films drove both domestic and international tourists to cities like Xiangyang and Yibin. Local products, including Hubei’s lotus root starch, saw sharp sales increases.

“This wave of cultural tourism has not only enhanced brand recognition for local destinations but also generated significant economic benefits,” he said.

MIL OSI China News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Major investment to boost growth and cement Britain’s place as cultural powerhouse
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

Over £270 million Arts Everywhere Fund for arts venues, museums, libraries and the heritage sector in major boost for growth
Intervention is next step of Government’s Plan for Change to help boost local economies and increase opportunities to gain creative skills

Comes as Culture Secretary marks the 60th anniversary of the first ever arts white paper

People across the nation will benefit from access to the arts and culture on their doorsteps as a result of a major funding package to boost growth and opportunity.

Hundreds of arts venues, museums, libraries and heritage buildings will receive a share of more than £270 million as part of an Arts Everywhere Fund from the government, supporting jobs and creating opportunities for young people to learn creative skills while helping to boost people’s sense of pride in where they live.

The cash will be targeted at organisations in urgent need of financial support to keep them up and running, carry out vital infrastructure work and improve long term financial resilience.

Today’s announcement will help protect hundreds of jobs in the cultural and heritage sectors. Overall, cultural sectors support 666,000 filled jobs across the country.

Arts and culture are a vital part of our first-class creative industries and are a key part of what makes Britain so great. The creative industries are worth £124 billion to our economy, creating jobs, opportunities and showcasing the best of Britain to the world. That is why the creative industries were identified as one of the eight growth-driving sectors in the government’s Industrial Strategy – with the potential to boost economic growth throughout communities in the UK.

At an inaugural lecture marking the 60th anniversary of the first ever arts white paper by former Minister Jennie Lee, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy will gather leaders from across the arts and culture sectors at the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) in Stratford-upon-Avon. She will set out how Jennie Lee’s vision of the ‘arts for everyone, everywhere’ will be made a reality as part of the Government’s Plan for Change.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said:

Arts and culture help us understand the world we live in, they shape and define society and are enjoyed by people in every part of our country. They are the building blocks of our world-leading creative industries and make a huge contribution towards boosting growth and breaking down barriers to opportunities for young people to learn the creative skills they need to succeed.

The funding we are announcing today will allow the arts to continue to flourish across Britain, creating good jobs and growth by fixing the foundations in our cultural venues, museums, libraries and heritage institutions.

As a government that is on your side, our Plan for Change will ensure that arts and cultural institutions truly are for everyone, everywhere.

During the lecture, the Culture Secretary will announce the following funding for the next financial year, beginning in April:

A new £85 million Creative Foundations Fund to support urgent capital works to keep venues across the country up and running;

A fifth round of the popular Museum Estate and Development Fund worth £25 million, which will support museums to undertake vital infrastructure projects, and tackle urgent maintenance backlogs;

A new £20 million Museum Renewal Fund to help keep cherished civic museums open and engaging, protect opening hours and jobs, continue serving communities, and tell our national story at a local level;

An additional £15 million for Heritage at Risk will provide grants for repairs and conservation to heritage buildings at risk, focusing on those sites with most need. This will restore local heritage, such as shops, pubs, parks, and town halls;

A fourth round of the Libraries Improvement Fund worth £5.5 million, which will enable public library services across England to upgrade buildings and technology to better respond to changing user needs;

A new £4.85 million Heritage Revival Fund to empower local people to take control of and look after their local heritage. It will support community organisations to own neglected heritage buildings bringing them back into good use;

An additional £120 million to continue the Public Bodies Infrastructure Fund, which will ensure national cultural public institutions are able to address essential works to their estate;

A 5% increase to the budgets of all national museums and galleries to support their financial resilience and help them provide access to the national collection;

Confirmation that DCMS will be providing £3.2 million in funding for four cultural education programmes for the next financial year to preserve increased access to arts for children and young people through the Museums and Schools Programme, the Heritage Schools Programme, the Art & Design National Saturday Club and the BFI Film Academy.

This package will be integral to ensuring that arts and culture are a catalyst for growth in the Creative Industries and local economies by making sure cultural venues are supported to reach their full potential and attracting more tourists through our cultural institutions.

The Culture Secretary is also set to confirm the advisory panel of experts who will be supporting Baroness Margaret Hodge with her independent review of Arts Council England, as well as the scope of the review within the newly agreed Terms of Reference.

The beneficiaries of the fourth round of the Museum Estate and Development Fund will also be announced, which will see 29 local museums up and down the country receiving a share of almost £25 million to upgrade their buildings.

The news follows another boost for regional growth and regeneration earlier this week, when the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced ten critical culture projects across the UK will receive a total of £67 million. This funding will support exciting projects such as the National Railway Museum in York, the International Slavery Museum and Maritime Museum in Liverpool, and in Leeds, both the National Poetry Centre and the revamping of ‘Temple Works’, paving the way for it to house the British Library North.

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said:  

Our Plan for Change promises growth for every corner of the UK, which is why this week I announced more than £67 million for ten major cultural projects that celebrate our nation.

I had the pleasure to visit some of these projects last week and seeing the role they will play in igniting regeneration in their communities and on a national scale. This means more tourism, more growth and more money in people’s pockets.

This comes on top of the £60 million package recently announced by the Culture Secretary at the Creative Industries Growth Summit to support hundreds of creative businesses and projects across the UK. This is the first step towards delivering the Creative Industry Sector Plan, as part of the UK’s modern Industrial Strategy. Today’s announcement will build upon this, ensuring that the culture sector is able to achieve its full potential.

More details on how to apply to each of these funds and schemes will be made available in due course.

Supportive quotes

Daniel Evans, Tamara Harvey and Andrew Leveson from the Royal Shakespeare Company, said:

The RSC welcomes the government’s celebration of the anniversary of Jennie Lee’s White Paper for the Arts and its announcement of the £85m Creative Foundations Fund, an urgently needed intervention. Ageing capital infrastructure remains a tremendous drag on the sector’s ability to create the work for which it is globally celebrated and maximise its economic and social contribution. We stand ready to work with the government and other stakeholders to ensure that theatre buildings are effectively maintained and put to the most effective use in creating impactful programmes of work that, true to Jennie Lee’s legacy, make the arts accessible to as many people as possible.

Arts Council England, Chief Executive, Darren Henley said:

Today’s a good news day for arts organisations, museums and libraries. We know how much cultural places and spaces are valued in towns and cities across the land. For years to come, this new investment will help more people in more places to flourish by finding joy and connection with high quality culture close to home.

Baroness Hodge’s review gives all of us at the Arts Council the chance to make sure that we’re doing everything we can to serve audiences right across England – and that we’re nurturing an environment where artists, arts organisations, museums and libraries can create their best work for those audiences. We’re looking forward to working with Baroness Hodge and her advisory panel to make sure that happens for everyone everywhere every day.

Duncan Wilson, Chief Executive at Historic England, said:

The £15m Heritage at Risk funding will enable us to help regenerate cherished historic buildings in some of our most deprived areas, boosting local pride and wellbeing, as well as stimulating economic growth where it’s really needed.

Kate Varah, Executive Director and Co-Chief Executive, National Theatre, said:

The support announced today shows that, like the visionary Jennie Lee, this Government keenly understands the arts ecosystem and its leading role in boosting the economy, enriching local communities and enhancing soft power. Much-needed capital investment will begin the task of enabling arts venues in towns and cities across our country to upgrade their facilities, providing more jobs and training, improving their financial and environmental sustainability, and offering more opportunities for young people and communities. Today’s announcement is further proof that the Government sees the benefit of working long term, in deep partnership with our sector, to break down barriers to growth and opportunity. Capital isn’t about bricks and mortar, it’s about making space for creativity to flourish.

Alex Beard, CEO of Royal Ballet and Opera, said:

I am delighted that Government has recognised the need to invest in the country’s performing arts infrastructure. This one year programme is a vital first step in ensuring that future generations of audience members can continue to enjoy our world leading performing arts sector, which plays such an important role in the Government’s growth and wellbeing agendas.

Gurinder Chadha, Film Director, said:

Time and time again the creative industries have proved how much income they bring into our economy from box office sales to expertise, skills and jobs. I am proud to be a part of the British arts industry that is respected globally. Anything that helps local communities and local artists build their skills, to fulfil their potential and further the cultural economy is something to be applauded.

Kwame Kwei-Armah, Director and Playwright, said:

Today’s announcement by our government to invest in our world leading cultural sector could not have come sooner or at a better time. From personal inspiration to international soft power I, like many, will be overjoyed that our government has seen the cultural sector who we are and what we contribute to Britain and beyond.

James Graham, Playwright and Writer, said:

This new investment is an extremely welcome acknowledgement of the role culture can play in rebuilding local communities.

The sector has been just-about-surviving for too long and such injections mean much-loved local venues can begin planning for the future.

On a personal note, as someone who grew up in a town with very limited access to the arts, the new funding for education programmes is to be celebrated. I only fell in love with theatre because of the passion of the drama teachers in my comprehensive school. It’s deeply encouraging to see that the collapse of culture in education over the last decade can finally turnaround, and unleash the creativity of all young people everywhere.

Adjoa Andoh, Actress and Writer, said:

Arts and culture belong to all the people of our amazing creative nation.

Our drama, our literature, our music, our painting, our history – it’s what we’re known for across the world, so at home everyone should have access to their heritage with no barriers to participation. I am thrilled that with the announcement of this fantastic injection of targeted funding for arts infrastructure and education, locally and nationally, the government recognises that only with their active support can all the people fully share in our wonderful cultural inheritance. I am sure Jennie Lee whose white paper championed the arts 60 years ago, would be proud.

Tracy-Ann Oberman, Actress and playwright, said:

Lisa Nandy has shown a huge commitment to the arts. She has been incredibly supportive of my production of “The Merchant of Venice 1936” and the need to tell stories through theatre to bring communities together. I think this announcement shows a real commitment to the arts in the UK and investment in the rich cultural heritage of this country.

Lemn Sissay, Author and Broadcaster, said:

Investing in the arts is an investment in our communities, our creativity, and our future. The creation of the National Poetry Centre is a shining example of this commitment, offering a space where creativity can flourish and voices from all backgrounds are celebrated.

Lisa Nandy’s commitment to providing funding for the arts, for everyone everywhere, ensures that the transformative power of culture reaches every corner of our nation, fostering unity, inspiration, and opportunity for all.

Actors Sanjeev Bhaskar and Meera Syal said:

As not only a vital sector for tourism but also for local communities and businesses, it’s encouraging to see British arts and culture being supported in a tangible and constructive way.

Es Devlin, Stage Designer, said:

Now, more than ever, the cultivation of our collective consciousness, our shared imagination, our ability to seek patterns and imagine possible futures is critical, and this investment in the arts and arts education is urgent and most welcome.

Kate Mosse CBT, Novelist, Historian & Playwright, said:

Today marks the 60th anniversary of Jennie Lee’s visionary White Paper that changed everything. The idea – radical at the time and no less important today – that the arts are for everyone, that creativity can be found everywhere and fostered, that books, theatre, dance, music transform lives, these ideas took root because of Lee’s commitment, enthusiasm and passion. She was one of the great transformational politicians of the 20th century and writers – and artists – salute you.

Nicholas Cullinan, British Museum Director, said:

This additional funding is a wonderful investment in the UK’s museums sector. In every corner of the country, our national and civic museums play a vital role protecting our heritage, bringing communities together, and supporting and inspiring the UK’s world-leading cultural sector.

Mary Beard, Trustee of the British Museum:

This is great news. Museums across the country are places where we go to learn, to be challenged, to wonder, to debate and disagree, and to discover times, people and places different from ourselves. They deserve (and need) all the support we can give them.

Doug Gurr, Natural History Museum Director, said:

I really welcome and am grateful for the additional support from the government for the museums sector, providing a vital lifeline to ensure we continue to reach and inspire audiences locally, nationally, globally.

Tom Sleigh, Chair, Norwich Theatre, said:

We really welcome this announcement. There is a pressing need for better investment in cultural infrastructure, and this funding will be incredibly important for many regional arts organisations, who have such an important role to play in their local communities.

Isobel Hunter MBE, chief executive of Libraries Connected, said:

The Libraries Improvement Fund has been transformative in helping library services in England adapt to the changing needs of their users. This new round will broaden that legacy, creating more accessible, sustainable and inclusive libraries across the country. We can’t wait to see the successful projects take shape.

Jenny Mollica, Chief Executive Officer of English National Opera and London Coliseum, said:

We warmly welcome today’s announcement from the Secretary of State of a new Creative Foundations Fund. This will provide critical and transformative support for many performing and visual arts venues across the country, ensuring that they continue to play a vital role at the heart of their communities. These much-needed, urgent interventions in our cultural spaces will support creativity and innovation, locally and nationally – and are an investment in our audiences of today and the future.

Stephen Freeman, Chief Executive, Royal Exchange Theatre said:

Today’s announcement of a new capital fund to support our cultural infrastructure is most welcome. It is deeply encouraging to see the Secretary of State responding to the real and urgent need for support at cultural venues up and down the country. Many of our most iconic institutions are in serious need of capital funds to support the future sustainability of our world class cultural offer.

Sir Ian Blatchford, Director and Chief Executive, Science Museum Group said:

We are delighted with the Government’s continued strong support for national museums and the wider cultural sector. Museums benefit society in many ways, inspiring audiences with engaging stories, contributing to cohesive communities and showcasing creativity that helps drive tourism. The confirmation this week of £15 million Government investment in our ambitious plans for the National Railway Museum is a clear vote of confidence in the transformative work underway across the Science Museum Group.

Jon Finch – Chair of English Civic Museum Network (ECMN) and Head of Culture and Visitor Economy at Barnsley Council said:

On behalf of England’s regional museum sector, the English Civic Museum Network (ECMN) welcomes the Government’s unprecedented announcement of £45M investment to support regional museums. ECMN is delighted that the Government has recognised the compelling case for investment in local museums as part of its growth agenda. Civic museums are a fundamental part of England’s cultural, creative, and social fabric and are a catalyst for growth on our high streets

Michael Eakin OBE, Chief Executive of Royal Liverpool Philharmonic said:

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic welcomes this additional capital funding to support the sector in 2025-26. We are grateful that Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, one of the UK’s great concert halls, has benefitted from such essential support in past years, but we know that it will continue to need investment in the future. Many of this country’s great cultural buildings are urgently in need of capital works to ensure they can continue to function and meet the needs of performances and audiences, and this new funding will be very welcome and helpful in addressing some of those needs.

Jenny Waldman, Director of Art Fund said:

The £20 million Museum Renewal Fund is a vital lifeline for our civic museums, which have a central place in the lives of local communities. It’s a welcome response to the severe financial pressures museums are facing, particularly those reliant on local authority funding. How appropriate that this crucial investment has been announced to mark the 60th anniversary of Jennie Lee’s visionary first White Paper on the Arts. This investment is an important first step to ensuring financial resilience, economic growth and ensuring our public collections remain accessible for future generations.

Grayson Perry, Artist said:

We should be proud of the brilliant museums and galleries that we have all across the country. It is great to hear that the government understands how important they are and is putting a good chunk of money into maintaining them. These cultural powerhouses give our towns and cities a vital part of their identity, art is a central element of who we are.

Sir Alistair Spalding and Britannia Morton, Co CEOs Sadler’s Wells. Artistic and Executive Directors said:

We welcome today’s announcement. It shows that the Culture Secretary is listening to the needs of the sector and is prepared to act to protect our cultural infrastructure for future generations.

Joshua McTaggart, CEO of Theatres Trust:

Theatres Trust is thrilled that the government has announced its £85million Creative Foundations Fund. We know from our research and industry knowledge that this funding is desperately needed by so many theatres across England. Our diligent team is primed to advise and support theatres up and down the country as they begin their journey on developing and delivering new capital projects, and we encourage people to make use of Theatres Trust’s free impartial expert advice service as they begin their applications.

Rebecca Lawrence, Chief Executive Officer:

The British Library welcomes the extension of the Public Bodies Infrastructure Fund for the next financial year. We hope it will be a vital source of support for addressing some of the most urgent pressures on our buildings and estates, which continue to require substantial ongoing investment to ensure they are well maintained for our users and the national collection. We are also pleased to see the extension of the Libraries Improvement Fund for local authority run library services, who we collaborate with all across the country.

Maria Balshaw, Director of Tate and Chair of the National Museum Directors’ Council said:

Today’s funding announcements are fantastic news for the whole museum sector. We are incredibly grateful to see the Government’s recognition of the importance of our world-class museums.

The increase in budgets for national museums and galleries like my own organisation Tate will be vital in supporting our financial resilience, enabling us to continue caring for and providing access to the national collection and the incredible public benefit we deliver. We also warmly welcome the announcement of additional capital investment for national and regional museums through the Public Bodies Infrastructure Fund and the Museum Estate and Development Fund. This investment is urgently needed right across the museum sector for maintenance and repairs.

In particular, we are delighted to see the announcement of new funding for civic museums, who are facing an unprecedented set of economic pressures. They are some of the finest creative and cultural spaces in the world – caring for internationally significant collections, driving regional tourism and providing vital community services. The new Museum Renewal Fund will help bring civic museums back to a more sustainable position, and we are heartened that Government has listened to calls to protect this key part of our cultural and civic infrastructure.

Andrew Lovett OBE, Chief Executive, Black Country Living Museum

We welcome the financial support announced by the Secretary of State, coming as it does at a challenging economic time for many in the sector. A financial decision is a policy decision and we welcome this policy. On the anniversary of the publication of Jennie Lee’s white paper, this is a timely reminder that Museums and the arts are not only crucial to everyday lives and wellbeing, but are also a vital part of the UK economy and merit sustained investment. We make a mistake when we think museums are in the business of collecting and exhibitions; their business is social cohesion and helping us to better understand the world. And it doesn’t get more important than that.

Notes to editors:

On the review of Arts Council England

Arts Council England is set to undergo a transformative review that will reimagine how we support, develop, and celebrate creativity across every corner of our nation. This landmark independent review, led by Baroness Margaret Hodge, will shine a light on how we can break down barriers, amplify diverse voices, and ensure that arts and culture are truly accessible to everyone, regardless of background or postcode. By examining everything from funding mechanisms to community engagement, we’re taking a crucial step towards building a more inclusive, vibrant, and dynamic cultural landscape that reflects the rich creativity of every community in England.

Cultural organisations and other interested parties are invited to participate in a survey to feed in their views as part of the review.

Read the survey, the advisory panel of experts and the full Terms of Reference for the review.

On the fourth round of the Museum Estate and Development Fund

The Museum Estate and Development Fund enables museums across the country to deliver a better experience for visitors and staff, make access and environmental improvements, unlock income-generating opportunities, and continue to protect treasured buildings and collections for future generations. It is open to museums in England accredited by the Arts Council which are not directly funded by DCMS. This fourth round of funding, worth £24.8 million, will benefit 29 local museums across the country:

North West

Queen Street Mill, Burnley, Lancashire – £813,115

Furness Abbey, Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire – £457,795

Fusilier Museum and Learning Centre, Bury, Lancashire – £81,244

North East

Weardale Museum, Weardale, County Durham – £499,665

Sunderland Winter Gardens, Sunderland, Tyne and Wear – £488,705

Preston Park Museum, Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham – £366,300

Hartlepool Art Gallery, Hartlepool, County Durham – £302,383

Yorkshire

Museum of North Craven Life, Settle, North Yorkshire – £798,500

Land of Iron, Skinningrove, North Yorkshire – £655,907

Bankfield Museum, Halifax, West Yorkshire – £441,978

Pickering Beck Isle Museum, Pickering, North Yorkshire – £388,023

Millennium Gallery, Sheffield, South Yorkshire – £315,684

Midlands

Tamworth Castle, Tamworth, Staffordshire – £1,716,238

Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Wolverhampton, West Midlands – £1,695,75

Newstead Abbey, Ravenshead, Nottinghamshire – £1,482,882

Creswell Crags, Worksop, Nottinghamshire – £499,999

East

Peterborough Museum & Art Gallery, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire – £137,745

Sainsbury Centre, Norwich, Norfolk – £1,276,711

Bressingham Steam Museum, Diss, Norfolk – £429,719

Colchester Castle, Colchester, Essex – £1,293,625

Southchurch Hall, Southend-on-Sea, Essex – £423,105

South East

Bletchley Park, Bletchley, Buckinghamshire – £2,451,350

The Lightbox, Woking, Surrey – £319,000

South West

Russell Cotes Art Gallery and Museum, Bournemouth, Dorset – £1,500,817

Nothe Fort, Weymouth, Dorset – £1,374,763

Dorset Museum and Art Gallery, Dorchester, Dorset – £940,500

Wheal Martyn Clay Works, St Austell, Cornwall – £707,200

London

London Museum of Water and Steam, Brentford, London – £2,626,277

The Foundling Museum, Camden, London – £319,000

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Published 20 February 2025
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI Economics: Eclipsa Audio: Ushering in a New Generation of 3D Sound With Samsung

Source: Samsung

In video content, audio is just as essential as the visuals, playing a key role in immersion and making viewers feel as if they are part of the scene. To create a truly optimized sound experience, Samsung Electronics collaborated with Google to develop Eclipsa Audio — a cutting-edge 3D audio technology officially introduced through Samsung TVs last month at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2025 in Las Vegas.

Samsung Newsroom took a closer look at the technology behind Eclipsa Audio and how it delivers lifelike 3D spatial audio.

Developing 3D Spatial Audio Technology
In 2023, the Alliance for Open Media (AOM) — a global consortium that includes Samsung, Google, Netflix, Meta and other leading companies — officially adopted Immersive Audio Model and Formats (IAMF) as the industry standard for 3D audio. Developed by Samsung and Google, this innovative 3D audio format is currently available to content creators under the brand name Eclipsa Audio.

Eclipsa Audio establishes a shared protocol between different types of media content and the devices that play them. The format delivers a deeply immersive listening experience by optimizing and adapting audio positioning, intensity, spatial reflections and other sound elements to various output environments, such as cinemas, home theater systems, gaming consoles and mobile devices.

Depending on the output device, the technology can render sound from multiple directions — including from the front, back, left, right, above and below — to create a sense of spatial depth and presence within the scene being watched. In a concert video for instance, Eclipsa Audio presents the artist’s performance in crystal-clear detail while also capturing the energy of the audience, making the viewer feel as if they are physically there.

Designed for Optimal 3D Audio in Everyday Life
Among the growing range of technologies enhancing 3D sound — including surround sound, immersive audio and spatial audio — Eclipsa Audio was specifically designed to provide a 3D audio experience optimized for everyday listening.

Traditionally, 3D audio content is created with the assumption that it will be played in environments equipped with multiple surround speakers. However, most home entertainment setups primarily consist of a TV and a soundbar — making it challenging to accurately replicate the content creator’s intended spatial audio effects. Eclipsa Audio overcomes this limitation by automatically analyzing sound elements in each segment of a film — from whispered dialogue to the roar of fighter jets in the background — and delivering a dynamic 3D audio effect fine-tuned for the viewer’s home environment.

Building a 3D Audio Ecosystem With Open-Source Technology
Eclipsa Audio’s open-source framework sets it apart from other 3D audio technologies by allowing anyone to create 3D audio content without paying royalties. Following its debut at CES 2025, the technology has been met with enthusiasm from content creators and has gained momentum across media platforms and online communities.

In this way, Eclipsa Audio serves as an open vessel in which content creators can integrate 3D audio elements from all directions without restrictions. By democratizing spatial audio, Eclipsa Audio empowers content creators and ensures that consumers experience sound as intended — regardless of their audio setup.

Eclipsa Audio on Samsung TVs
Eclipsa Audio’s immersive 3D sound performs at its best when paired with exceptional hardware. To make that peak performance a reality, Samsung and Google have worked tirelessly to provide consumers with Eclipsa Audio-supported 3D audio content — soon to be available via the YouTube app on Samsung’s latest TVs. Eclipsa Audio is set to roll out across the company’s entire 2025 TV lineup from the Crystal UHD series to the premium flagship Neo QLED 8K models.1

Most Samsung TVs are equipped with stereo speakers at the bottom of the screen, and for QLED 4K models and above, additional speakers are positioned at the top. Flagship models, though, come with extra benefits. Besides surround speakers added to the rear of the sides, their top-positioned speakers are specially designed for height perception. Eclipsa Audio reflects sound off the ceiling with these special speakers, creating an effect that allows viewers to experience upward-directional audio — such as the sensation of an object flying overhead. Pairing the TV with a soundbar further enhances the experience, producing richer and more expansive 3D spatial audio.

Eclipsa Audio has established the foundation for a 3D audio content ecosystem by bringing industry leaders — from device manufacturers to content platforms — together under a unified standard. In an era where streaming services blur the line between content creation and consumption, Eclipsa Audio unlocks new possibilities for immersive sound that Samsung is determined to further expand.

1 Rollout schedule and service details may vary depending on the TV model.

MIL OSI Economics –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI Australia: Feisty Feminist Murder Mystery He Had It Coming Announced

Source: Australia Government Statements 4

18 02 2025 – Media release

Stars of He Had It Coming, Lydia West, Natasha Liu Bordizzo and Liv Hewson.
Stan and Screen Australia have announced the brand-new series He Had It Coming, produced by Jungle Entertainment with major production investment from Screen Australia.
Starring Lydia West, Natasha Liu Bordizzo and Liv Hewson, the series is an odd couple comedy-drama of two women accidentally entangled in a murder mystery when their spontaneous feminist art activism is co-opted by a killer.
From Executive Producer Gretel Vella (Totally Completely Fine, The Great), with Chloe Rickard (Population 11, No Activity), Shay Spencer (Wakefield), Bridget Callow-Wright (Population 11), Robert Taylor and Ellie Gibbons. He Had It Coming is a comedic whodunnit following mismatched friends who get caught up in gender politics on campus and murder.
Created and written by Gretel Vella and Craig Anderson (Double The Fist), with writers Emme Hoy (Renegade Nell), Belinda King (Wellmania), Nicholas Cole (Bump) and Hannah Samuel (The Heights). Directed by Rachel House (Mountain) and Anne Renton (The Good Doctor, The Bold Type).
He Had It Coming stars Lydia West (Big Mood, It’s a Sin) and Natasha Liu Bordizzo (Ahsoka: Star Wars, The Voyeurs) who are also Executive Producers, and Liv Hewson (Yellowjackets, Bombshell), with ensemble cast Duncan Fellows (Deadloch), Roxie Mohebbi (Critical Incident), Tom Dawson (Total Control), Alex Campion De Crespigny (Heartbreak High) and Miah Madden (The Sapphires).
Lydia West plays Elise, an awkward English scholarship student (for the bagpipes, she has the shoulders for it) who forms an unlikely alliance with Barbara (Liu Bordizzo), a fashion influencer who posts about girl power all day but is always too busy to attend a protest. After a series of mishaps with men, both decide to take a stand. Barbara spearheads an activist art project in the dead of night and drunk as skunks, the girls deface a statue of the university’s male founder in the University’s Quadrangle.
When the girls wake to discover that the university’s star athlete has been murdered and displayed at the foot of their political statement, they must urgently erase all ties to the crime. With Detective Shepherd (Hewson) following the breadcrumbs they have been trying to sweep up, Barbara and Elise need to find the real culprit amid rising gender tensions on campus and a growing body count.
Screen Australia Director of Narrative Content Louise Gough said, “He Had It Coming is a fun, feminist romp that approaches gender equality in a contemporary, innovative and hilarious way. With a standout cast and powerhouse creative and producing teams, this is must-watch TV.”
Stan Chief Content Officer Cailah Scobie said, “He Had It Coming is a clever and sharp exploration of gender politics led by an extraordinary cast in this vacuum-sealed murder mystery. We celebrate the ongoing collaboration with Gretel Vella who has developed yet another exciting script, attracting an incredible cast to film in Australia. We are also thrilled to continue our ongoing successful collaboration with Jungle Entertainment with support from FIFTH SEASON, Screen Australia and Screen NSW.”
Ava Knight, Director of Acquisitions at FIFTH SEASON said, “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Jungle Entertainment and creator Gretel Vella on He Had It Coming. Gretel expertly uses humour to explore universal themes around gender politics in a way that feels incredibly fresh and timely. We’re excited to bring this brilliant and bold female-led crime caper to audiences around the world – where nothing is quite as it seems.”
Jungle partner and Executive Producer Chloe Rickard said, “We have absolutely loved collaborating again with Stan, Screen Australia and Screen NSW and new partners FIFTH SEASON to bring another unique Australian voice and story to the world. Add Lydia West, Natasha Liu Bordizzo and Liv Hewson to the mix and you’ve got the sizzle for a completely original and fun campus caper.”
Head of Screen NSW Kyas Hepworth said, “Jungle Entertainment continues to produce leading Australian content, and Screen NSW is pleased to support them to bring another first-class project to NSW. With a standout creative team led by NSW-based Gretel Vella and Craig Anderson, the series is a clever and hilarious whodunnit story. I look forward to audiences tuning in when it arrives on Stan.”
The Stan Original series He Had It Coming is produced by Jungle Entertainment. Major production investment from Screen Australia in association with Stan. Financed with support from Screen NSW. International sales by FIFTH SEASON. Post, digital, and visual effects supported by Screen NSW. Developed with the assistance of Screen NSW and in association with The Development Partnership. Stan Executive Producers are Cailah Scobie and Alicia Brown.
The Stan Original Series He Had It Coming has wrapped production and is coming soon, only on Stan.
Stan Media Enquiries
[email protected]
Media enquiries
Maddie Walsh | Publicist
+ 61 2 8113 5915 | [email protected]
Jessica Parry | Senior Publicist (Mon, Tue, Thu)
+ 61 428 767 836 | [email protected]
All other general/non-media enquiries
Sydney + 61 2 8113 5800 | Melbourne + 61 3 8682 1900 | [email protected]

MIL OSI News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Governor Hochul Updates New Yorkers on Congestion Pricing

Source: US State of New York

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul updated New Yorkers on congestion pricing.

VIDEO: The event is available to stream on YouTube here and TV quality video is available here (h.264, mp4).

AUDIO: The Governor’s remarks are available in audio form here.

PHOTOS: The Governor’s Flickr page will post photos of the event here.

A rush transcript of the Governor’s remarks is available below:

Good afternoon. I’m joined here today by Janno Lieber, the Chairman and CEO of the MTA, and my counsel, Brian Mahanna.

At 1:01 p.m. today, The U.S. Department of Transportation emailed us a letter from Secretary Duffy, announcing their attempt to end the congestion pricing program in the State of New York.

At 1:58 p.m., President Donald Trump tweeted, “Long live the king.” I’m here to say, New York hasn’t labored under a king in over 250 years and we sure as hell are not going to start now.

The streets of this city, where battles were fought; we stood up to a king. And we won then. And in case you don’t know New Yorkers, when we’re in a fight, we do not back down. Not now, not ever. Because, who are we fighting for here? We’re fighting for our residents, our commuters, our riders, our drivers, our emergency personnel. Life has gotten better for those who have asthma. People with illness. That’s who we’re fighting for.

And the six million people who use the MTA to get to their jobs and their lives and to their doctorate: nurses, doctors, EMTs and all those that need to get to their jobs in a reliable way, they’re now going to be affected.

I also have to raise a question. They look at the pretext for this rejection — and we have a lot of legal reasons why we know we’re going to be victorious — but they actually cited the will of New Jersey: “New Jersey didn’t want this.” Ignoring the will of the people who live here, their elected leaders in Albany, and all of a sudden, the Trump Administration is citing, “New Jersey isn’t happy.” I’ll talk about that later. But here’s what I want to also say.

I don’t care if you love congestion pricing or hate it. This is an attack on our sovereign identity, our independence from Washington. And we are a nation of states. This is what we fought for. This is what people like Alexander Hamilton and others fought for: To set up a system where we are not subservient to a king or anyone else out of Washington. So this is the fight we’re in. It’s all about our sovereignty.

And I spoke to the President many times. In a reasonable way. In a calm way. You’re a New Yorker. You know how essential it is to have safe, reliable public transit, or else this system shuts down. Our economy shuts down. The nation’s economy could shut down. That’s how essential we are, and one would think he would know that.

And then you have others involved. It feels like — you know what it feels like? The commuters of our city and our region are now the roadkill on Donald Trump’s revenge tour against New York.

And I have to say this to Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy: It’s not the real world, Sean. It’s real life for New Yorkers. And don’t you forget that. We’re in fight mode within seconds of us getting this notification. Our MTA was prepared. We knew this could come and filed a lawsuit within minutes. I’m very confident we will be successful. And I also want to say, the cameras are staying on. We are keeping the cameras on. Lights, cameras, action. They’re staying on.

Last thing I’ll say: If in some world they are successful, the next time you’re stuck in traffic, the next time your train is delayed, the next time you’re in a flooded station because infrastructure repairs were not made, I want you to think of this. Think about this: Next time you’re stuck in traffic, we know where the blame goes. Okay.

We have my top ten reasons why congestion pricing is working. But as someone who’s worked so hard, I want to let Janno Lieber tell you why we believe this program is working and why it’s essential. Then we will take any questions and my counsel can explain our legal strategy as well.

Thank you very much.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI New Zealand: Animal Rights – SAFE renews call for rodeo ban following four deaths – SAFE
Source: SAFE For Animals

SAFE renews call for rodeo ban following four deaths

SAFE is once again urging the Government to ban rodeo following the deaths of four animals so far this summer – deaths that could have been prevented had the Government acted on long overdue animal welfare reforms.

SAFE Campaign Manager Emily Hall says animals used in rodeo events endure extreme physical and psychological trauma, and these recent deaths further illustrate the inherent cruelty of rodeo.

“Over the past two months, we’ve seen animals die from lameness, dislocated limbs, and other severe injuries – all in the name of entertainment,” says Hall.

“The pain and torment these animals endure is absolutely appalling.”

Despite drafting a revised rodeo code of welfare two years ago, the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) and the Government have failed to progress it. SAFE believes that, as a result, New Zealand’s animal welfare laws remain disconnected from the brutal reality of rodeo practices.

“The Animal Welfare Act states that the physical handling of animals must minimise the likelihood of unnecessary pain and distress, yet rodeo practices depend on force and rough handling,” says Hall.

SAFE says releasing the revised code of welfare is urgently needed to allow New Zealanders to have their say on rodeo events, aligning it with both the Animal Welfare Act and public expectations.

“The release of this revised code will allow Kiwis to voice their opinion on the future of cruel rodeo events” says Hall. “Public consultation is the vital next step.”

Yesterday, SAFE took further action by placing an ad in The Post and billboards in Wellington calling for immediate Government intervention on rodeo.

“The abuse of animals in rodeo must end, and NAWAC and Minister Hoggard need to take immediate action to progress the revised code of welfare,” says Hall.

“It is high time Kiwis had their say on the future of rodeo.”

SAFE is Aotearoa’s leading animal rights organisation.

We’re creating a future that ensures the rights of animals are respected. Our core work empowers society to make kinder choices for ourselves, animals and our planet.

Notes for the editor:

Information on the four deaths; The first fatality was of a horse rendered lame following the Taupō rodeo on 29 December who was killed the following day. The second death on December 30 occurred at the Te Anau rodeo, where a three-year-old bull’s hind leg was dislocated during the bull riding event. He was killed on-site. A steer then died prior to the Oruru Valley event on 3 January after being transported from the Warkworth and Far North events. The fourth fatality occurred at the Mad Bull rodeo in Otago on 2 February where a bull died after being ridden the previous day.

SAFE’s February 20th Post Ad is attached.

Visit SAFE’s website to learn more about our campaign and view our submission form calling on NAWAC and the Animal Welfare Minister to release the draft rodeo code for public consultation. ( https://safe.org.nz/take-action/rodeo-cruelty/ )

Whilst vets are required to be on-site at all rodeo events, rodeo clubs are not obliged to report injuries or deaths sustained during events.

In July 2022, SAFE and the New Zealand Animal Law Association (NZALA) jointly contested rodeo in the High Court. The court ruled that the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) must determine appropriate animal welfare guidelines. However, neither NAWAC nor Andrew Hoggard have provided a justification for the significant delay on the revised rodeo code of welfare.
MIL OSI New Zealand News –
February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI Economics: Farewell Address to Staff – Masatsugu Asakawa

Source: Asia Development Bank

Speech by Masatsugu Asakawa, President, Asian Development Bank, 19 February 2025, ADB headquarters, Manila, Philippines

My very dear colleagues, here we are, together again in this room, where I stood before you five years ago to say, “hello,” and “call me Masa.” What a journey it has been!

I don’t think any of us could have predicted what was in store for us on that February day back in 2020. Within just a few weeks, we were in the grip of a pandemic that drove us into lockdown, causing tremendous hardship and drastically changing how we work.

My friends, our journey as an ADB family is forever connected to the journey of this region. And I believe we have shaped that journey, for the better.

We have done our part to help our developing member countries to get through the pandemic and on a path to recovery; to be ready to tackle emerging crises and urgent threats, including the climate crisis; and to maintain focus on long-term development.

I was so pleased to see highlights of this good work in the video you showed and to hear perspectives from Bruce, Nelly, and Bruno. Thank you very much for your kind words.

I am deeply humbled that you credit our achievements to my contributions as President. But even more important, these achievements tell a story about what all of us can do when a challenge comes our way, and we face it together.

So let me take a few moments to share a few reflections on how you have shaped me during this journey.

I. Meeting unprecedented development challenges with quick and decisive action

First, we needed quick, decisive, and bold action, at every step: as the pandemic struck, as the climate crisis mounted, and as there were calls to evolve to deliver better and faster.

I remember coming to my office upstairs almost every day during lockdown. I held videoconferences with ministers and heads of state to see what assistance they needed. I knew ADB needed to respond without delay. And we did, thanks to you.

I truly believe that our assistance helped to prevent grave suffering for millions, and fiscal collapse across our region. Our response, including budget and vaccine support, were spectacular achievements.

The same is true for our climate action. I remember the intense discussions we had before going to Glasgow in 2021 for COP26. These paved the way for our $100 billion climate finance ambition, Energy Transition Mechanism, IF-CAP, and a just transition commitment across our climate operations. This was a real turning point that positioned us as the Climate Bank for Asia and the Pacific.

II. Reforming and innovating to adapt to changing circumstances

And then, we forged ahead with reforms, to unlock an additional $100 billion in lending capacity through CAF; to take stock, and make key shifts, through the NOM and midterm review of Strategy 2030; and to elevate critical agendas including private sector development, domestic resource mobilization, food security, digitalization, and gender equality.

You also made sure that the poorest and most vulnerable in our region were not left behind. The ADF replenishment, including the novel financing you prepared, is helping people in places like Afghanistan and Myanmar, and small island developing states.

All of this was made possible by thinking outside the box. The unprecedented circumstances we faced over the past five years demanded that ADB change quickly and do things differently. You did not hesitate to meet the demands of the moment.

The circumstances also required ADB to balance many needs. Our operations shifted appropriately during the pandemic, to support response and recovery. It took some time for our climate financing to ramp back up, but it did. I know we will also continue to expand our contributions in areas like education and RCI.

III. The priority of wellbeing

As you can see, my friends, there was a lot on my mind over the past five years. A lot of things kept me up at night. But if I may, I’d like to emphasize my most important concern. It was to ensure the safety and wellbeing of staff.

I spoke to you often during the pandemic. I even sent you a musical greeting on my flute! I hope that it brought you some comfort to know that you were not alone.

Another experience that I have not talked about as much is the evacuation of our local staff from Afghanistan when the government fell in 2021. It was such a dangerous and unpredictable situation, and we had very few options. But we had to find a way to get our staff to safety. After consulting with heads of state and coming up with a complex plan, we managed to get everyone out, just in time.

That experience reminded me that staff wellbeing must remain ADB’s highest priority. And the reason is clear: ADB’s most valuable asset is its staff. Even more simply, we are family. And I am so touched by the way you treated me like family.

Colleagues in our field offices, you were always so warm and welcoming when I visited the countries where you live and work. The memories of our beneficiaries, the historical sites, and the delicious local cuisine—and the selfies I took with you!—will stay with me forever.

IV. In praise of staff

Ever since I announced my intention to step down, I have been flooded with good wishes and praise for what ADB has done for the region during my Presidency. But I firmly believe that these successes are not coming from me. They are coming from you.

You have been so innovative, so responsible, and so loyal to our mission. I always knew that whenever we faced a problem, I could consult staff, and you would come up with quick and relevant solutions. That is why, from Day 1, I felt nothing but optimism that we would achieve our mission. And I was never disappointed.

Closing

Your work over the last five years has put our region on the strongest possible foundation to build lasting prosperity, to stay resilient through crises and disasters, and to ensure that growth is inclusive and sustainable.

Asia and the Pacific will indeed remain an engine for global growth for decades to come. And you helped make that possible. I am honored by the ways you stepped up to accomplish everything that I asked of you—and everything the region needed from us. I am in awe of what you have achieved. And my trust in you will never fade.

I will step away now, but I know that the course we have navigated these past five years will take us to an even brighter future. I will be cheering for you every step of the way.

And so, my dearest colleagues, my beloved friends and ADB family, thank you for a job well done. I wish you health, happiness, and good fortune on this unforgettable journey.

Thank you.

MIL OSI Economics –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: ICE investigation leads to 8 criminal arrests and charges for Trinitarios gang members

Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

BOSTON — An investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement led to federal charges unsealed against two dozen leaders, members and associates of the Trinitarios gang — a violent transnational criminal organization. An ICE Homeland Security Investigations-led a task force arrested eight alleged gang members early Feb. 19, and 22 individuals have been charged with federal offenses, including racketeering conspiracy in connection with six murders and 11 attempted murders. Two individuals, who were juveniles at the time of the alleged criminal offenses, have been charged by the Essex County District Attorney’s Office with murder.

The charges are the result of a multijurisdictional investigation that began in the aftermath of four murders, and a series of attempted murders and shootings that took place in Lynn, Massachusetts in 2023, allegedly committed by the Trinitarios criminal enterprise.

According to court documents, Chapters of the Trinitarios were identified in in Lawrence, Lynn, Boston and Haverhill. Trinitarios members in these cities allegedly undertake efforts to dominate their communities by intimidating rival gangs and establishing control over certain neighborhoods. It is further alleged that the Trinitarios do not hesitate to use violence, including murder, to further the organization’s goals and purposes. According to the charging document, these gang rivalries develop through personal enmity and disrespect between members of the rival gangs, competition over drug territory and customers as well as violent acts (such as robberies, shootings and murders) that have been committed by the gangs against each other in the past. It is alleged that these rivalries have become deadly and multiple murders have been committed by Trinitarios gang members.

Specifically, ICE HSI’s investigation allegedly identified that the Massachusetts Trinitarios have committed at least 10 homicides in Essex County over the past decade and are believed to be responsible for numerous attempted murders, shootings, kidnappings and robberies. Sixteen members of the Trinitarios criminal enterprise in Massachusetts have been charged with six of these murders — two of which took place in Lawrence in 2017 and two double murders in Lynn in 2023. The remaining four homicides are being prosecuted by the Essex District Attorney’s Office.

“Today the message should be loud and clear: transnational criminal organizations and foreign-born malign actors committing violent acts in our communities will never have refuge in the United States. We are working every day with our state, local, and federal partners to tackle transnational crime from all angles with all of the resources available to us to make our streets safer,” said ICE HSI New England Special Agent in Charge, Michael J. Krol.

According to the charging documents, the Trinitarios are a hierarchical criminal organization, with positions that are known to exist at the state and local chapter level, whose members adhere to a code of conduct. Enmanuel Paula-Cabral, aka “Nelfew,” aka “Gordo,” aka “Manny,” allegedly serves as the State Supreme of the Trinitarios for Massachusetts, responsible for the entirety of the gang’s criminal activities, coordination with other state leaders and communication with leadership of the Trinitarios in the Dominican Republic.

Paula-Cabral is also allegedly responsible for the Trinitarios Chapter operating in Manchester, New Hampshire as well the Trinitarios located in Maine, where the gang operates a lucrative drug-trade. Below the Supreme is a position referred to as the “Flag” or “Segundo,” which in Massachusetts is allegedly held by Ery Jordani Rosario, aka “Racacha.”

The Massachusetts Trinitarios allegedly recruit new members among communities of legal immigrants and illegal aliens from the Dominican Republic — specifically juveniles in local high schools in Lawrence and Lynn. To curry favor with these new recruits, the Trinitarios allegedly appeal to their shared Spanish language and culture, Dominican patriotism and use the appearance of prosperity and brotherhood.

It is further alleged that members are generally initiated into the gang after a period of observation or probation and are often inducted following the completion of a “mission” — which is generally a substantial act of violence such as shootings, beatings, or fist fights with rival gang members that were the same age or stature. According to the court documents, upon induction, new members are formally “blessed” into the organization during a formal ceremony, are administered oaths by the State Supreme and are awarded with ceremonial beaded necklaces. Younger members are allegedly tasked with lesser roles during many violent “missions,” including standing lookout during a shooting, holding or concealing weapons on behalf of full members and transporting weapons after their use in shootings.

According to the charging documents, the Trinitarios endeavor to project power over the internet and social media allegedly producing music and music videos featuring members in Trinitarios colors and clothing holding weapons, cash and other items, as well as lyrics that boast about violence, drugs and other criminal endeavors as warnings and threats to other rival gangs.

“As the court papers make clear, for well over a decade, Trinitarios gang members have engaged in brazen acts of murder, assault, and drug distribution — instilling fear in the communities of Lynn and Lawrence in particular. Today’s law enforcement operation has struck a significant blow against the leadership of the Trinitarios operating in Massachusetts — virtually dismantling an organization responsible for years of bloodshed, drug trafficking, and lawlessness,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “This enforcement action ends the Trinitarios reign of terror in Massachusetts. Today, our communities are safer with the removal of these alleged violent offenders from our streets, and where appropriate, from our country. This operation is a testament to the tireless collaboration among the dedicated members of our federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. Such shameless and senseless acts of violence have no place anywhere; especially not in any city in Massachusetts. If you threaten the safety of our residents, we will find you, we will hold you accountable, and we will ensure that justice is served.”

“This operation is another example of how the FBI and our law enforcement partners work together to dismantle large-scale, violent transnational criminal organizations that cause chaos and death in our communities. We believe those arrested today — leaders, members, and close associates of the Trinitarios – have allegedly shown a reckless indifference to human life in order to control their turf, push their poison, and make money. There is no question our streets are safer because of this takedown,” said Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division. “The FBI’s North Shore Gang Task Force will continue to work on the public’s behalf to lock up these dangerous offenders who shatter folks’ sense of security and quality of life.”

“Gang violence, as well as illegal gun and drug trafficking, have no place in the Commonwealth,” said Massachusetts State Police Colonel Geoff Noble. “Operations like this show the Massachusetts State Police is committed to working alongside our law enforcement partners to find those responsible for these crimes, arrest them, and pursue justice. Getting these criminals off the street makes Massachusetts a safer place to live.”

“This investigation and the results represent the best of law enforcement partnerships. The residents of Essex County are safer today with the dismantling of this violent criminal enterprise,” said Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker.

“Today’s operation marks the culmination of an extensive investigation, demonstrating the strength of our collaborative efforts to combat gangs and violent criminal activity. These significant arrests will undoubtedly prevent further harm to our community. I want to express my deepest gratitude to our officers and our State and Federal law enforcement partners, the Essex County District Attorney’s Office and the Office of the United States Attorney for Massachusetts for their relentless pursuit of justice and for their commitment to making our city safer,” said Lynn Police Chief Christopher P. Reddy.

“I commend the successful collaboration with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations,” says Manchester New Hampshire Police Chief Peter Marr. “By arresting multiple gang members involved in violent criminal activities throughout the region, we are reinforcing the commitment to making our community safer.”

The charge of conspiracy to conduct enterprise affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity (also known as “racketeering conspiracy” or “RICO conspiracy”) provides for a sentence of up to life in prison, five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery (Hobbs Act conspiracy) provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.

The investigation was led by ICE HSI New England’s Strike Force, Massachusetts State Police, the Essex District Attorney’s Office, the Lynn Police Department and the Manchester New Hampshire Police Department. Valuable assistance was provided by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Hampshire; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Federal Bureau of Investigations; and the Andover, Boston, Franklin, Lawrence, Peabody and Salem Police Departments.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Calling all Colorado Artists! Governor Polis Invites Artists to Submit Work For the Colorado 150th Pedestrian Walkway

Source: US State of Colorado

DENVER – Today, Governor Polis in partnership with the Office of Economic Development and International Trade’s Colorado Creative Industries opened up submissions for local artists to integrate their work in the Colorado 150th Pedestrian Walkway. Artists should submit their work by April 1st, 2025.

“What better way to highlight Colorado artists and our communities than with a walkable art experience that highlights our state’s history and future, while also increasing pedestrian safety and walkability. I look forward to seeing this amazing walkway come to life and create an exceptional experience for Coloradans and visitors alike,” said Governor Polis.

The Colorado 150 Pedestrian Walkway represents a public-private partnership led by the Governor’s Office and the P3 Office at the Colorado Department of Personnel & Administration alongside History Colorado. Serving as a new gateway into revitalized Downtown Denver, the initiative aims to tell the story of Colorado’s 150 years while further re-energizing and highlighting the Civic Center area, including renovations to Denver Central Library, Denver Art Museum upgrades, the new Populus hotel, the future 5280 Trail, Civic Center Next 100: Greek Theater + Central Promenade and the McNichols Building.

More information for prospective artists is provided below:

The Artist Call for the Colorado 150 Pedestrian Walkway is now open. Please take time to read through the FAQ’s and the information sheet before applying or reaching out with questions.

Creatives of all mediums are encouraged to apply, including but not limited to, visual artists (steel, bronze, carpentry, mural/painting, illustration, etc.), literary arts, musicians, lighting specialists, vocalists, digital artists, etc. If you know anyone who might be interested in participating in this call for entry, please feel free to share it with your communities. Our goal is to feature artists throughout the state, so as much as you can share this, the better.

More information on the call for artists.

###

MIL OSI USA News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI: Waldencast Announces Participation in the TD Cowen 2nd Annual Glowing Ahead: Beauty & Wellness Summit

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

LONDON, Feb. 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Waldencast plc (NASDAQ: WALD) (“Waldencast” or the “Company”), a global multi-brand beauty and wellness platform, today announced its participation in the TD Cowen 2^nd Annual Glowing Ahead: Beauty & Wellness Summit being held on February 26, 2025 in New York, New York.

Michel Brousset, Founder and Chief Executive Officer will participate in a fireside chat presentation on Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 2:45 p.m. Eastern Standard Time and host meetings with investors throughout the day. The fireside chat presentation will be webcast live and available for replay on the Company’s Investor Relations website at https://ir.waldencast.com/news-events/events.

About Waldencast

Founded by Michel Brousset and Hind Sebti, Waldencast’s ambition is to build a global best-in-class beauty and wellness operating platform by developing, acquiring, accelerating, and scaling conscious, high-growth purpose-driven brands. Waldencast’s vision is fundamentally underpinned by its brand-led business model that ensures proximity to its customers, business agility, and market responsiveness, while maintaining each brand’s distinct DNA. The first step in realizing its vision was the business combination with Obagi Skincare and Milk Makeup. As part of the Waldencast platform, its brands will benefit from the operational scale of a multi-brand platform; the expertise in managing global beauty brands at scale; a balanced portfolio to mitigate category fluctuations; asset light efficiency; and the market responsiveness and speed of entrepreneurial indie brands. For more information please visit: https://ir.waldencast.com/.

Contacts

Investors
ICR
Allison Malkin
investors@waldencast.com

Media
ICR
Brittney Fraser/Alecia Pulman
waldencast@icrinc.com

The MIL Network –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI: LiveRamp to Present at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — LiveRamp® (NYSE: RAMP), the leading data collaboration platform, today announced that its CEO Scott Howe and CFO Lauren Dillard will present at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference in San Francisco on Wednesday, March 5th at 10:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. ET.

Links to the live webcast of the presentation and a replay will be available on LiveRamp’s investor relations website.

About LiveRamp

LiveRamp is the data collaboration platform of choice for the world’s most innovative companies. A groundbreaking leader in enterprise identity, LiveRamp offers a connected customer view with clarity and context while protecting brand and consumer trust. We offer flexibility to collaborate wherever data lives to support a wide range of data collaboration use cases—within organizations, between brands, and across our global network of premier partners. Global innovators, from iconic consumer brands and tech platforms to retailers, financial services, and healthcare leaders, turn to LiveRamp to deepen customer engagement and loyalty, activate new partnerships, and maximize the value of their first-party data while staying on the forefront of rapidly evolving compliance and privacy requirements. LiveRamp is based in San Francisco, California with offices worldwide. Learn more at LiveRamp.com.

For more information, contact:

Drew Borst
LiveRamp Investor Relations
Investor.Relations@LiveRamp.com

The MIL Network –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI: iBio to Begin Trading on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — iBio, Inc. (NYSEA:IBIO), an AI-driven innovator of precision antibody therapies, today announced that iBio’s common stock has been approved for listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market and iBio will transfer its stock exchange listing to Nasdaq Capital Market from the NYSE American. The Company expects to begin trading as a Nasdaq-listed company on Mar 4, 2025, and will continue to trade under the symbol “IBIO.” The Company’s common stock will continue to trade on the NYSE American until the market close on Mar 3, 2025.

Martin Brenner, Ph.D., DVM, iBio’s CEO and Chief Scientific Officer, commented, “We are pleased to announce our listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market and to join a community of leading biotech companies. We believe the move to Nasdaq will improve the visibility of our common stock, enhance trading liquidity in our shares, and provide us with greater exposure to institutional investors.”

About iBio, Inc.

iBio (NYSEA: IBIO) is a cutting-edge biotech company leveraging AI and advanced computational biology to develop next-generation biopharmaceuticals for cardiometabolic diseases, obesity, cancer and other hard-to-treat diseases. By combining proprietary 3D modeling with innovative drug discovery platforms, iBio is creating a pipeline of breakthrough antibody treatments to address significant unmet medical needs. Our mission is to transform drug discovery, accelerate development timelines, and unlock new possibilities in precision medicine. For more information, visit www.ibioinc.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements in this press release constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Words such as “may,” “might,” “will,” “should,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “continue,” “predict,” “forecast,” “project,” “plan,” “intend” or similar expressions, or statements regarding intent, belief, or current expectations, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon current estimates and assumptions and include statements regarding the transfer to Nasdaq, anticipated date of commencement of trading on the Nasdaq and continuation of trading on the NYSE American and the move to Nasdaq improving the visibility of the Company’s common stock, enhancing trading liquidity in the shares, and providing the Company with greater exposure to institutional investors. While the Company believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on any such forward-looking statements, which are based on information available to us on the date of this release. These forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict that could cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations and assumptions from those set forth or implied by any forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, among others, the Company’s ability to derive the anticipated benefits from the move to Nasdaq, the Company’s ability to execute its growth strategy and advance its pipeline of therapeutic antibody candidates for cardiometabolic diseases and oncology; the Company’s ability to obtain regulatory approvals for commercialization of its product candidates, or to comply with ongoing regulatory requirements; regulatory limitations relating to the Company’s ability to promote or commercialize its product candidates for specific indications; acceptance of the Company’s product candidates in the marketplace and the successful development, marketing or sale of products; and whether the Company will incur unforeseen expenses or liabilities or other market factors; and the other factors discussed in the Company’s filings with the SEC including the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended June 30, 2024 and the Company’s subsequent filings with the SEC on Forms 10-Q and 8-K. The information in this release is provided only as of the date of this release, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this release on account of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by law.

Corporate Contact:
iBio, Inc.
Investor Relations
ir@ibioinc.com

Media Contacts:
Ignacio Guerrero-Ros, Ph.D., or David Schull
Russo Partners, LLC
Ignacio.guerrero-ros@russopartnersllc.com
David.schull@russopartnersllc.com
(858) 717-2310 or (646) 942-5604

The MIL Network –

February 20, 2025

MIL-OSI: Trupanion Reports Fourth Quarter & Full Year 2024 Results

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SEATTLE, Feb. 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Trupanion, Inc. (Nasdaq: TRUP), a leading provider of medical insurance for cats and dogs, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2024.

“2024 was a milestone year for Trupanion. Strong execution drove 20% subscription revenue growth, the doubling of our subscription margin in Q4 from its quarterly low in 2023, and a record $39 million in free cash flow,” said Margi Tooth, Chief Executive Officer and President of Trupanion. “As we look to 2025, our focus remains on sustainable, measured growth while enhancing the member experience and improving retention.”

Fourth Quarter 2024 Financial and Business Highlights

Total revenue was $337.3 million, an increase of 14% compared to the fourth quarter of 2023.
Total enrolled pets (including pets from our other business segment) was 1,677,570 at December 31, 2024, a decrease of 2% over December 31, 2023.
Subscription business revenue was $227.8 million, an increase of 19% compared to the fourth quarter of 2023.
Subscription enrolled pets was 1,041,212 at December 31, 2024, an increase of 5% over December 31, 2023.
Net income was $1.7 million, or $0.04 per basic and diluted share, compared to a net loss of $(2.2) million, or $(0.05) per basic and diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2023.
Adjusted EBITDA was $19.4 million, compared to adjusted EBITDA of $8.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.
Operating cash flow was $23.7 million and free cash flow was $21.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2024. This compared to operating cash flow of $17.5 million and free cash flow of $13.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Full Year 2024 Financial and Business Highlights

Total revenue was $1,286 million, an increase of 16% compared to 2023.
Subscription business revenue was $856.5 million, an increase of 20% compared to 2023.
Net loss was $(9.6) million, or $(0.23) per basic and diluted share, compared to a net loss of $(44.7) million, or $(1.08) per basic and diluted share, in 2023.
Adjusted EBITDA was $46.1 million, compared to adjusted EBITDA of $6.4 million in 2023.
Operating cash flow was $48.3 million and free cash flow was $38.6 million in 2024. This compared to operating cash flow of $18.6 million and free cash flow of $0.4 million in 2023.
At December 31, 2024, the Company held $307.4 million in cash and short-term investments, including $35.4 million held outside the insurance entities, with an additional $15 million available under its credit facility.
The Company maintained $288.0 million of capital surplus at its insurance subsidiaries. The largest insurance subsidiary, APIC, maintained $245.5 million of capital surplus, which was $140.2 million more than the company action level risk-based capital requirement.

Conference Call
Trupanion’s management will host a conference call today to review its fourth quarter and full year 2024 results. The call is scheduled to begin shortly after 1:30 p.m. PT/ 4:30 p.m. ET. A live webcast will be accessible through the Investor Relations section of Trupanion’s website at https://investors.trupanion.com/ and will be archived online for 3 months upon completion of the conference call. Participants can access the conference call by dialing 1-877-300-8521 (United States) or 1-412-317-6026 (International). A telephonic replay of the call will also be available after the completion of the call, by dialing 1-844-512-2921 (United States) or 1-412-317-6671 (International) and entering the replay pin number: 10194900.

About Trupanion
Trupanion is a leader in medical insurance for cats and dogs throughout the United States, Canada, certain countries in Continental Europe, and Australia with over 1,000,000 pets currently enrolled. For over two decades, Trupanion has given pet owners peace of mind so they can focus on their pet’s recovery, not financial stress. Trupanion is committed to providing pet parents with the highest value in pet medical insurance with unlimited payouts for the life of their pets. With its patented process, Trupanion is the only North American provider with the technology to pay veterinarians directly in seconds at the time of checkout. Trupanion is listed on NASDAQ under the symbol “TRUP”. The company was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Seattle, WA. Trupanion policies are issued, in the United States, by its wholly-owned insurance entity American Pet Insurance Company and, in Canada, by Accelerant Insurance Company of Canada. Trupanion Australia is a partnership between Trupanion and Hollard Insurance Company. Policies are sold and administered in Canada by Canada Pet Health Insurance Services, Inc. dba Trupanion 309-1277 Lynn Valley Road, North Vancouver, BC V7J 0A2 and in the United States by Trupanion Managers USA, Inc. (CA license No. 0G22803, NPN 9588590). Canada Pet Health Insurance Services, Inc. is a registered damage insurance agency and claims adjuster in Quebec #603927. Trupanion Australia is a partnership between Trupanion and Hollard Insurance Company. For more information, please visit trupanion.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 relating to, among other things, expectations, plans, prospects and financial results for Trupanion, including, but not limited to, its expectations regarding its ability to continue to grow its enrollments and revenue, and otherwise execute its business plan. These forward-looking statements are based upon the current expectations and beliefs of Trupanion’s management as of the date of this press release, and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements made in this press release are based on information available to Trupanion as of the date hereof, and Trupanion has no obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

In particular, the following factors, among others, could cause results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements: the ability to achieve or maintain profitability and/or appropriate levels of cash flow in future periods; the ability to keep growing our membership base and revenue; the accuracy of assumptions used in determining appropriate member acquisition expenditures; the severity and frequency of claims; the ability to maintain high retention rates; the accuracy of assumptions used in pricing medical plan subscriptions and the ability to accurately estimate the impact of new products or offerings on claims frequency; actual claims expense exceeding estimates; regulatory and other constraints on the ability to institute, or the decision to otherwise delay, pricing modifications in response to changes in actual or estimated claims expense; the effectiveness and statutory or regulatory compliance of our Territory Partner model and of our Territory Partners, veterinarians and other third parties in recommending medical plan subscriptions to potential members; the ability to retain existing Territory Partners and increase the number of Territory Partners and active hospitals; compliance by us and those referring us members with laws and regulations that apply to our business, including the sale of a pet medical plan; the ability to maintain the security of our data; fluctuations in the Canadian currency exchange rate; the ability to protect our proprietary and member information; the ability to maintain our culture and team; the ability to maintain the requisite amount of risk-based capital; our ability to implement and maintain effective controls, including to remediate material weaknesses in internal controls over financial reporting; the ability to protect and enforce Trupanion’s intellectual property rights; the ability to successfully implement our alliance with Aflac; the ability to continue key contractual relationships with third parties; third-party claims including litigation and regulatory actions; the ability to recognize benefits from investments in new solutions and enhancements to Trupanion’s technology platform and website; our ability to retain key personnel; and deliberations and determinations by the Trupanion board based on the future performance of the company or otherwise.

For a detailed discussion of these and other cautionary statements, please refer to the risk factors discussed in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including but not limited to, Trupanion’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 and any subsequently filed reports on Forms 10-Q, 10-K and 8-K. All documents are available through the SEC’s Electronic Data Gathering Analysis and Retrieval system at https://www.sec.gov or the Investor Relations section of Trupanion’s website at https://investors.trupanion.com.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Trupanion’s stated results may include certain non-GAAP financial measures. These non-GAAP financial measures may not provide information that is directly comparable to that provided by other companies in its industry as other companies in its industry may calculate or use non-GAAP financial measures differently. In addition, there are limitations in using non-GAAP financial measures because the non-GAAP financial measures are not prepared in accordance with GAAP, may be different from non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies and exclude expenses that may have a material impact on Trupanion’s reported financial results. The presentation and utilization of non-GAAP financial measures is not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the directly comparable financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. Trupanion urges its investors to review the reconciliation of its non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures in its consolidated financial statements, and not to rely on any single financial or operating measure to evaluate its business. These reconciliations are included below and on Trupanion’s Investor Relations website.

Because of varying available valuation methodologies, subjective assumptions and the variety of equity instruments that can impact a company’s non-cash expenses, Trupanion believes that providing various non-GAAP financial measures that exclude stock-based compensation expense and depreciation and amortization expense allows for more meaningful comparisons between its operating results from period to period. Trupanion offsets new pet acquisition expense with sign-up fee revenue in the calculation of net acquisition cost because it collects sign-up fee revenue from new members at the time of enrollment and considers it to be an offset to a portion of Trupanion’s new pet acquisition expense. Trupanion believes this allows it to calculate and present financial measures in a consistent manner across periods. Trupanion’s management believes that the non-GAAP financial measures and the related financial measures derived from them are important tools for financial and operational decision-making and for evaluating operating results over different periods of time.


Trupanion, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (in thousands, except share data)
	Three Months Ended December 31,						Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
	(unaudited)
Revenue:
Subscription business	$	227,783		$	191,537		$	856,521		$	712,906
Other business		109,524			104,320			429,163			395,699
Total revenue		337,307			295,857			1,285,684			1,108,605
Cost of revenue:
Subscription business		181,614			158,631			706,851			613,686
Other business		102,770			97,162			400,035			363,903
Total cost of revenue^{(1), (2)}		284,384			255,793			1,106,886			977,589
Operating expenses:
Technology and development⁽¹⁾		8,172			5,969			31,255			21,403
General and administrative⁽¹⁾		16,828			13,390			63,731			60,207
New pet acquisition expense⁽¹⁾		18,354			17,189			71,379			77,372
Goodwill impairment charges		5,299			—			5,299			—
Depreciation and amortization		3,924			3,029			16,466			12,474
Total operating expenses		52,577			39,577			188,130			171,456
Gain (loss) from investment in joint venture		2			(79	)		(182	)		(219	)
Operating income (loss)		348			408			(9,514	)		(40,659	)
Interest expense		3,427			3,697			14,498			12,077
Other expense (income), net		(4,773	)		(1,256	)		(14,374	)		(7,701	)
Income (loss) before income taxes		1,694			(2,033	)		(9,638	)		(45,035	)
Income tax expense (benefit)		38			130			(5	)		(342	)
Net income (loss)	$	1,656		$	(2,163	)	$	(9,633	)	$	(44,693	)

Net income (loss) per share:
Basic	$	0.04		$	(0.05	)	$	(0.23	)	$	(1.08	)
Diluted	$	0.04		$	(0.05	)	$	(0.23	)	$	(1.08	)
Weighted average shares of common stock outstanding:
Basic		42,402,323			41,716,527			42,158,773			41,436,882
Diluted		42,903,536			41,716,527			42,158,773			41,436,882

⁽¹⁾Includes stock-based compensation expense as follows:	Three Months Ended December 31,						Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
Cost of revenue	$	1,337		$	1,478		$	5,523		$	5,279
Technology and development		1,160			861			4,934			2,846
General and administrative		4,261			3,269			15,696			17,717
New pet acquisition expense		1,536			1,693			7,279			7,319
Total stock-based compensation expense	$	8,294		$	7,301		$	33,432		$	33,161

⁽²⁾The breakout of cost of revenue between veterinary invoice expense and other cost of revenue is as follows:
	Three Months Ended December 31,						Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
Veterinary invoice expense	$	245,663		$	217,739		$	949,148		$	831,055
Other cost of revenue		38,721			38,054			157,738			146,534
Total cost of revenue	$	284,384		$	255,793		$	1,106,886		$	977,589


Trupanion, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (in thousands, except share data)
	December 31, 2024			December 31, 2023

Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	160,295		$	147,501
Short-term investments		147,089			129,667
Accounts and other receivables, net of allowance for credit losses of $1,117 at December 31, 2024 and $1,085 at December 31, 2023		274,031			267,899
Prepaid expenses and other assets		15,912			17,022
Total current assets		597,327			562,089
Restricted cash		39,235			22,963
Long-term investments		373			12,866
Property, equipment and internal-use software, net		102,191			103,650
Intangible assets, net		13,177			18,745
Other long-term assets		17,579			18,922
Goodwill		36,971			43,713
Total assets	$	806,853		$	782,948
Liabilities and stockholders’ equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable	$	11,532		$	10,505
Accrued liabilities and other current liabilities		33,469			34,052
Reserve for veterinary invoices		51,635			63,238
Deferred revenue		251,640			235,329
Long-term debt – current portion		1,350			1,350
Total current liabilities		349,626			344,474
Long-term debt		127,537			127,580
Deferred tax liabilities		1,946			2,685
Other liabilities		4,476			4,487
Total liabilities		483,585			479,226
Stockholders’ equity:
Common stock: $0.00001 par value per share, 100,000,000 shares authorized; 43,516,631 and 42,488,445 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2024 and 42,887,052 and 41,858,866 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2023		—			—
Preferred stock: $0.00001 par value per share, 10,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and outstanding		—			—
Additional paid-in capital		568,302			536,108
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)		(2,612	)		403
Accumulated deficit		(225,888	)		(216,255	)
Treasury stock, at cost: 1,028,186 shares at December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023		(16,534	)		(16,534	)
Total stockholders’ equity		323,268			303,722
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	806,853		$	782,948


Trupanion, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (in thousands)
	Three Months Ended December 31,						Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
	(unaudited)
Operating activities
Net income (loss)	$	1,656		$	(2,163	)	$	(9,633	)	$	(44,693	)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to cash provided by (used in) operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization		3,924			3,029			16,466			12,474
Stock-based compensation expense		8,294			7,301			33,432			33,161
Goodwill impairment charges		5,299			—			5,299			—
Other, net		(1,294	)		2,481			(1,748	)		1,347
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts and other receivables		15,303			10,153			(6,717	)		(35,440	)
Prepaid expenses and other assets		817			854			3,215			(1,907	)
Accounts payable, accrued liabilities, and other liabilities		2,433			5,476			2,084			1,644
Reserve for veterinary invoices		(4,841	)		1,788			(11,310	)		19,485
Deferred revenue		(7,890	)		(11,412	)		17,199			32,567
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities		23,701			17,507			48,287			18,638
Investing activities
Purchases of investment securities		(26,118	)		(56,547	)		(133,493	)		(165,936	)
Maturities and sales of investment securities		45,886			42,905			127,653			190,270
Purchases of property, equipment, and internal-use software		(1,858	)		(3,970	)		(9,716	)		(18,280	)
Other		548			165			2,099			1,585
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities		18,458			(17,447	)		(13,457	)		7,639
Financing activities
Proceeds from debt financing, net of financing fees		—			—			—			60,102
Repayments of debt financing		(338	)		(337	)		(1,350	)		(1,717	)
Proceeds from exercise of stock options		36			1,374			752			2,655
Shares withheld to satisfy tax withholding		(1,142	)		(240	)		(2,519	)		(1,536	)
Other		(230	)		(228	)		(840	)		(378	)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities		(1,674	)		569			(3,957	)		59,126
Effect of foreign exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash, net		(1,826	)		1,254			(1,807	)		424
Net change in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash		38,659			1,883			29,066			85,827
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash at beginning of period		160,871			168,581			170,464			84,637
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash at end of period	$	199,530		$	170,464		$	199,530		$	170,464


The following tables set forth our key operating metrics.

	Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023
Total Business:
Total pets enrolled (at period end)		1,677,570			1,714,473
Subscription Business:
Total subscription pets enrolled (at period end)		1,041,212			991,426
Monthly average revenue per pet	$	72.98		$	65.26
Average pet acquisition cost (PAC)	$	235		$	228
Average monthly retention		98.25	%		98.49	%


	Three Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2024			Sep. 30, 2024			Jun. 30, 2024			Mar. 31, 2024			Dec. 31, 2023			Sep. 30, 2023			Jun. 30, 2023			Mar. 31, 2023
Total Business:
Total pets enrolled (at period end)		1,677,570			1,688,903			1,699,643			1,708,017			1,714,473			1,712,177			1,679,659			1,616,865
Subscription Business:
Total subscription pets enrolled (at period end)		1,041,212			1,032,042			1,020,934			1,006,168			991,426			969,322			943,958			906,369
Monthly average revenue per pet	$	76.02		$	74.27		$	71.72		$	69.79		$	67.07		$	65.82		$	64.41		$	63.58
Average pet acquisition cost (PAC)	$	261		$	243		$	231		$	207		$	217		$	212		$	236		$	247
Average monthly retention		98.25	%		98.29	%		98.34	%		98.41	%		98.49	%		98.55	%		98.61	%		98.65	%


The following table reflects the reconciliation of cash provided by operating activities to free cash flow (in thousands):

	Three Months Ended December 31,						Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
Net cash provided by operating activities	$	23,701		$	17,507		$	48,287		$	18,638
Purchases of property, equipment, and internal-use software		(1,858	)		(3,970	)		(9,716	)		(18,280	)
Free cash flow	$	21,843		$	13,537		$	38,571		$	358


The following table reflects the reconciliation between GAAP and non-GAAP measures (in thousands except percentages):
	Three Months Ended December 31,						Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
Veterinary invoice expense	$	245,663		$	217,739		$	949,148		$	831,055
Less:
Stock-based compensation expense⁽¹⁾		(800	)		(885	)		(3,335	)		(3,450	)
Other business cost of paying veterinary invoices⁽⁴⁾		(85,378	)		(77,572	)		(324,720	)		(287,858	)
Subscription cost of paying veterinary invoices (non-GAAP)	$	159,485		$	139,282		$	621,093		$	539,747
% of subscription revenue		70.0	%		72.7	%		72.5	%		75.7	%

Other cost of revenue	$	38,721		$	38,054		$	157,738		$	146,534
Less:
Stock-based compensation expense⁽¹⁾		(476	)		(386	)		(1,955	)		(1,544	)
Other business variable expenses⁽⁴⁾		(17,336	)		(19,301	)		(75,050	)		(75,756	)
Subscription variable expenses (non-GAAP)	$	20,909		$	18,367		$	80,733		$	69,234
% of subscription revenue		9.2	%		9.6	%		9.4	%		9.7	%

Technology and development expense	$	8,172		$	5,969		$	31,255		$	21,403
General and administrative expense		16,828			13,390			63,731			60,207
Less:
Stock-based compensation expense⁽¹⁾		(5,277	)		(3,797	)		(19,742	)		(19,869	)
Non-recurring transaction or restructuring expenses⁽²⁾		—			—			—			(4,175	)
Development expenses⁽³⁾		(1,322	)		(1,683	)		(5,624	)		(5,100	)
Fixed expenses (non-GAAP)	$	18,401		$	13,879		$	69,620		$	52,466
% of total revenue		5.5	%		4.7	%		5.4	%		4.7	%

New pet acquisition expense	$	18,354		$	17,189		$	71,379		$	77,372
Less:
Stock-based compensation expense⁽¹⁾		(1,482	)		(1,567	)		(6,908	)		(7,000	)
Other business pet acquisition expense⁽⁴⁾		(8	)		(77	)		(39	)		(200	)
Subscription acquisition cost (non-GAAP)	$	16,864		$	15,545		$	64,432		$	70,172
% of subscription revenue		7.4	%		8.1	%		7.5	%		9.8	%

⁽¹⁾ Trupanion employees may elect to take restricted stock units in lieu of cash payment for their bonuses. We account for such expense as stock-based compensation according to GAAP, but we do not include it in any non-GAAP adjustments. Stock-based compensation associated with bonuses was approximately $0.3 million and $1.5 million for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, respectively. ⁽²⁾ Consists of business acquisition transaction expenses, severance and legal costs due to certain executive departures, and a $3.8 million non-recurring settlement of accounts receivable in the first quarter of 2023 related to uncollected premiums in connection with the transition of underwriting a third-party business to other insurers. ⁽³⁾ Consists of costs related to product exploration and development that are pre-revenue and historically have been insignificant. ⁽⁴⁾ Excludes the portion of stock-based compensation expense attributable to the other business segment.


The following table reflects the reconciliation of GAAP measures to non-GAAP measures (in thousands, except percentages):
	Three Months Ended December 31,						Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
Operating income (loss)	$	348		$	408		$	(9,514	)	$	(40,659	)
Non-GAAP expense adjustments
Acquisition cost		16,872			15,622			64,471			70,372
Stock-based compensation expense⁽¹⁾		8,035			6,636			31,940			31,864
Development expenses⁽³⁾		1,322			1,683			5,624			5,100
Depreciation and amortization		3,924			3,029			16,466			12,474
Goodwill impairment charges		5,299			—			5,299			—
Non-recurring transaction or restructuring expenses⁽²⁾		—			—			—			4,175
Gain (loss) from investment in joint venture		2			(79	)		(182	)		(219	)
Total adjusted operating income (non-GAAP)	$	35,798		$	27,457		$	114,468		$	83,545

Subscription Business:
Subscription operating income (loss)	$	2,995		$	1,300		$	(1,118	)	$	(35,994	)
Non-GAAP expense adjustments
Acquisition cost		16,864			15,545			64,432			70,172
Stock-based compensation expense⁽¹⁾		6,263			5,006			24,985			24,488
Development expenses⁽³⁾		893			1,090			3,745			3,281
Depreciation and amortization		2,650			1,961			10,970			8,021
Goodwill impairment charges		5,299			—			5,299			—
Non-recurring transaction or restructuring expenses⁽²⁾		—			—			—			218
Subscription adjusted operating income (non-GAAP)	$	34,964		$	24,902		$	108,313		$	70,186

Other Business:
Other business operating income (loss)	$	(2,649	)	$	(813	)	$	(8,214	)	$	(4,446	)
Non-GAAP expense adjustments
Acquisition cost		8			77			39			200
Stock-based compensation expense⁽¹⁾		1,772			1,630			6,955			7,376
Development expenses⁽³⁾		429			593			1,879			1,819
Depreciation and amortization		1,274			1,068			5,496			4,453
Non-recurring transaction or restructuring expenses⁽²⁾		—			—			—			3,957
Other business adjusted operating income (non-GAAP)	$	834		$	2,555		$	6,155		$	13,359

⁽¹⁾ Trupanion employees may elect to take restricted stock units in lieu of cash payment for their bonuses. We account for such expense as stock-based compensation in accordance with GAAP, but we do not include it in any non-GAAP adjustments. Stock-based compensation associated with bonuses was approximately $0.3 million and $1.5 million for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, respectively.
⁽²⁾ Consists of business acquisition transaction expenses, severance and legal costs due to certain executive departures, and a $3.8 million non-recurring settlement of accounts receivable in the first quarter of 2023 related to uncollected premiums in connection with the transition of underwriting a third-party business to other insurers.
⁽³⁾ Consists of costs related to product exploration and development that are pre-revenue and historically have been insignificant.


The following table reflects the reconciliation of GAAP measures to non-GAAP measures (in thousands, except percentages):
	Three Months Ended December 31,						Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
Subscription revenue	$	227,783		$	191,537		$	856,521		$	712,906
Subscription cost of paying veterinary invoices		159,485			139,281			621,093			539,746
Subscription variable expenses		20,909			18,367			80,733			69,234
Subscription fixed expenses*		12,425			8,987			46,382			33,740
Subscription adjusted operating income (non-GAAP)	$	34,964		$	24,902		$	108,313		$	70,186
Other business revenue		109,524			104,320			429,163			395,699
Other business cost of paying veterinary invoices		85,378			77,572			324,720			287,858
Other business variable expenses		17,336			19,301			75,050			75,756
Other business fixed expenses*		5,976			4,892			23,238			18,726
Other business adjusted operating income (non-GAAP)	$	834		$	2,555		$	6,155		$	13,359
Revenue		337,307			295,857			1,285,684			1,108,605
Cost of paying veterinary invoices		244,863			216,854			945,813			827,605
Variable expenses		38,245			37,668			155,783			144,990
Fixed expenses*		18,401			13,879			69,620			52,466
Total business adjusted operating income (non-GAAP)	$	35,798		$	27,457		$	114,468		$	83,545

As a percentage of revenue:	Three Months Ended December 31,						Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
Subscription revenue		100.0	%		100.0	%		100.0	%		100.0	%
Subscription cost of paying veterinary invoices		70.0	%		72.7	%		72.5	%		75.7	%
Subscription variable expenses		9.2	%		9.6	%		9.4	%		9.7	%
Subscription fixed expenses*		5.5	%		4.7	%		5.4	%		4.7	%
Subscription adjusted operating income (non-GAAP)		15.3	%		13.0	%		12.6	%		9.8	%

Other business revenue		100.0	%		100.0	%		100.0	%		100.0	%
Other business cost of paying veterinary invoices		78.0	%		74.4	%		75.7	%		72.7	%
Other business variable expenses		15.8	%		18.5	%		17.5	%		19.1	%
Other business fixed expenses*		5.5	%		4.7	%		5.4	%		4.7	%
Other business adjusted operating income (non-GAAP)		0.8	%		2.4	%		1.4	%		3.4	%

Revenue		100.0	%		100.0	%		100.0	%		100.0	%
Cost of paying veterinary invoices		72.6	%		73.3	%		73.6	%		74.7	%
Variable expenses		11.3	%		12.7	%		12.1	%		13.1	%
Fixed expenses*		5.5	%		4.7	%		5.4	%		4.7	%
Total business adjusted operating income (non-GAAP)		10.6	%		9.3	%		8.9	%		7.5	%

*Fixed expenses represent shared services that support both our subscription and other business segments and, as such, are generally allocated to each segment pro-rata based on revenues.

Adjusted operating income is a non-GAAP financial measure that adjusts operating income (loss) to remove the effect of acquisition cost, development expenses, non-recurring transaction or restructuring expenses, and gain (loss) from investment in joint venture. Non-cash items, such as goodwill impairment charges, stock-based compensation expense and depreciation and amortization, are also excluded. Acquisition cost, development expenses, gain (loss) from investment in joint venture, stock-based compensation expense, and depreciation and amortization are expected to remain recurring expenses for the foreseeable future, but are excluded from this metric to measure scale in other areas of the business. Management believes acquisition costs primarily represent the cost to acquire new subscribers and are driven by the amount of growth we choose to pursue based primarily on the amount of our adjusted operating income period over period. Accordingly, this measure is not indicative of our core operating income performance. We also exclude development expenses, gain (loss) from investment in joint venture, stock-based compensation expense, and depreciation and amortization because some investors may not view those items as reflective of our core operating income performance.

Management uses adjusted operating income and the margin on adjusted operating income to understand the effects of scale in its non-acquisition cost and development expenses and to plan future advertising expenditures, which are designed to acquire new pets. Management uses this measure as a principal way of understanding the operating performance of its business exclusive of acquisition cost and new product exploration and development initiatives. Management believes disclosure of this metric provides investors with the same data that the Company employs in assessing its overall operations and that disclosure of this measure may provide useful information regarding the efficiency of our utilization of revenues, return on advertising dollars in the form of new subscribers and future use of available cash to support the continued growth of our business.


The following tables reflect the reconciliation of adjusted EBITDA to net income (loss) (in thousands):

	Year Ended December 31,
		2024			2023
Net loss	$	(9,633	)	$	(44,693	)
Excluding:
Stock-based compensation expense		31,942			31,864
Depreciation and amortization expense		16,466			12,474
Interest income		(12,411	)		(9,011	)
Interest expense		14,498			12,077
Income tax benefit		(5	)		(342	)
Goodwill impairment charges		5,299			—
Non-recurring transaction or restructuring expenses		—			4,175
Gain from equity method investment		(33	)		(110	)
Adjusted EBITDA	$	46,123		$	6,434

	Three Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2024			Sep. 30, 2024			Jun. 30, 2024			Mar. 31, 2024			Dec. 31, 2023			Sep. 30, 2023			Jun. 30, 2023			Mar. 31, 2023
Net income (loss)	$	1,656		$	1,425		$	(5,862	)	$	(6,852	)	$	(2,163	)	$	(4,036	)	$	(13,714	)	$	(24,780	)
Excluding:
Stock-based compensation expense		8,036			8,127			8,381			7,398			6,636			6,585			6,503			12,140
Depreciation and amortization expense		3,924			4,381			4,376			3,785			3,029			2,990			3,253			3,202
Interest income		(2,999	)		(3,232	)		(3,135	)		(3,045	)		(2,842	)		(2,389	)		(2,051	)		(1,729	)
Interest expense		3,427			3,820			3,655			3,596			3,697			3,053			2,940			2,387
Income tax expense (benefit)		38			39			(44	)		(38	)		130			(43	)		(238	)		(191	)
Goodwill impairment charges		5,299			—			—			—			—			—			—			—
Non-recurring transaction or restructuring expenses		—			—			—			—			—			8			65			4,102
Gain from equity method investment		—			(33	)		—			—			—			(110	)		—			—
Adjusted EBITDA	$	19,381		$	14,527		$	7,371		$	4,844		$	8,487		$	6,058		$	(3,242	)	$	(4,869	)

Contacts:

Investors:
Laura Bainbridge, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications
Gil Melchior, Director, Investor Relations
Investor.Relations@trupanion.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1313fc50-df34-432e-8f6b-7dd236de3476

PDF available: http://ml.globenewswire.com/Resource/Download/361c6270-7516-4b4f-a8b7-51c217d753c3

The MIL Network –

February 20, 2025

MIL-Evening Report: Can you afford a private school? Average fees for Year 12 are at least $15,000
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Rowe, Associate Professor in Education, Deakin University

Monkey Business Images/ Shutterstock

This week, updated figures once again showed an increasing number of Australian families are choosing to send their children to private schools.

Just over 63% of Australian students are enrolled in government schools. Almost 20% are in Catholic schools and almost 17% go to independent schools, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics.

How much is it costing parents?

While headlines often focus on the most expensive schools, there is a huge range of private schools operating in Australia.

In our new analysis, which is not peer-reviewed, we looked at private school fees in New South Wales and Victoria (the two most populous states).

Read more:
More Australian families are choosing private schools – we need to understand why

Fees for Year 12

We looked only at independent schools. The non-government school sector is made up of Catholic and independent schools, but Catholic private schools typically charge lower fees and this can skew the data on the sector.

The tuition fees we refer to are based on what is publicly available through each school’s website.

We collected all available data for Year 12 tuition fees in every independent school in NSW and Victoria in 2021 and 2024. We chose to focus on Year 12, as this is typically the most expensive year at school.
- In NSW, we found fee information for 369 schools (77% of independent schools).
- In Victoria we found fee information for 138 schools (92% of independent schools).
Private school fees don’t necessarily include other expenses such as music or sport.
DGLimages/Shutterstock

Read more:
Are public schools really ‘free’? Families can pay hundreds of dollars in voluntary fees

What is the average tuition fee?

In 2024, the average tuition fee for a Year 12 student in NSW was A$15,674 and in Victoria it was $20,923.

This is in keeping with other analyses showing Victoria is the most expensive state for school fees in Australia.

These figures suggest while many schools are far from the headlines of “$50,000 fees”, many families are still paying substantial amounts for a private education – particularly if they have more than one child.

However, there were significant variations in tuition fees between schools. In NSW, 12% of schools in our sample charged under $5,000 per year per student. In Victoria, 9% charged less than $5,000.

One alternative school in NSW charged just $100 per student per year. This is less than parents typically pay out of their own pocket at the average public school.

This shows us there some cheaper options available, depending on where families live although they are certainly not the majority.

At the other end of the sample, The Scots College in NSW and Geelong Grammar School in Victoria charged the highest tuition fees in their respective states for 2024. Geelong Grammar charged $49,720 for Year 12; Scots charged $46,920.

There are other costs

While we only looked at tuition fees, families might also have to pay levies for infrastructure or technology.

There are also extra charges for activities such as camps, excursions and incursions, as well as fees for uniforms, school buses, and special subjects such as music and sport.

For the majority of independent schools, parents are asked to pay to enrol or go on the waiting list. The average application fee in Victoria was $156 and in NSW was $197. These fees widely differed between schools, ranging from zero to $650.

How much are fees growing?

Fees keep climbing each year, and media reports tell us some school fees have already increased for 2025.

Our analysis found in Victoria, tuition fees in independent schools increased by an average of 15% from 2021 to 2024 – roughly 3.75% each year. In NSW, fees increased by 13% from 2021 to 2024, or about 3.25% per year.

In media coverage, individual schools have blamed fee increases on inflation, “operational costs”, rising staff costs, and a drop in federal funding.

Will fees keep rising?

In some OECD countries, if private schools receive government funding, there are conditions placed on what they can charge for tuition.

This is not the case in Australia, where the system is unregulated and uncapped.

Unless this policy approach changes, we can expect private schools to keep increasing fees, as long as there are families willing and able to pay them.

Emma Rowe receives funding from the Australian Research Council.

Diana Langmead 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. Can you afford a private school? Average fees for Year 12 are at least $15,000 – https://theconversation.com/can-you-afford-a-private-school-average-fees-for-year-12-are-at-least-15-000-248769
MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –
February 20, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Will the government’s online gambling advertising legislation ever eventuate? Don’t bet on it

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Rowe, Emeritus Professor of Cultural Research, Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney University

Lukas Coch/AAP, Shutterstock, X.com, The Conversation

As the next federal election came into view before the summer break, concern increased that Labor wouldn’t be honouring its commitment to introduce new restrictions on online (especially sport) gambling advertising during the current parliamentary sitting.

Those fears were well-founded, despite pressure from many sides and broad bipartisan political support.

The Greens made a last-ditch attempt to cooperate with the government to pass some reforms in the February 2025 sitting, but were rebuffed.

Instead, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland blamed the delay on the complexity of advertising reform and the need to continue consultation.

This is despite a House of Representatives inquiry into the harmful impacts of online gambling, led by the late Labor MP Peta Murphy, concluding in June 2023.

In the meantime, much less well-researched but wider-ranging legislation banning children under 16 from using social media was introduced and passed in just eight days in November 2024.

There are both deep historical and immediate political reasons why this legislation has been bogged down.

A nation of sporting gamblers

Professional sport in Australia has an inglorious history of promoting unhealthy goods and services, including cigarettes, sugary drinks, fast food, alcohol and gambling.

Television and, later, online advertisements have been particularly effective vehicles for connecting sport gambling with potential consumers.

This has prompted widespread objections to the health and social consequences and intrusiveness of gambling advertising.

There is convincing evidence that Australia’s world-leading per capita expenditure on gambling and the integral role of sport gambling ads cause harm to a considerable number of people, families and communities.

Such harm includes negative effects on relationships, health, psychological wellbeing, finances, work and study.

The gamblification of sport

Although sport comes third among the main areas of gambling in Australia, it is by far the most prominent, especially in homes.

Read more:
Pokies? Lotto? Sports betting? Which forms of problem gambling affect Australians the most?

The so-called gamblification of sport, accelerated by digitisation, normalises the concept of betting odds among children and young people.

Sport and media’s enthusiasm for gambling money has provoked strong pushback over its negative social consequences, with mounting public pressure for greater controls on gambling advertising.

A recent poll found about 72% of those surveyed wanted to ban online gambling ads, while another of AFL fans reported 76% supported television and radio ad bans.

The response of and to the Murphy Report

The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs was charged with investigating online gambling and its impacts.

It made 31 recommendations, with rare cross-party support, in its “you win some, you lose more” report (which was not only about sport).

Contrary to most public debate and media reporting, it did not formally recommend a blanket ban on all gambling advertising. Its terms of reference only covered online gambling.

But Murphy’s foreword – calling for a “phased, comprehensive ban on all gambling advertising on all media; broadcast and online, that leaves no room for circumvention” – caught the most attention.

The main recommendation was for a three-year, four-phase ban on all forms of online gambling advertising. Dedicated racing channels and programming were exempted and small community radio broadcasters given extra time to comply.

After further consultation lasting almost 18 months, it’s clear this calibrated proposal is not favoured by the government.

Journalists were backgrounded about a watered down law capping ads for gambling at two per hour per TV channel before 10pm, and banning them for an hour either side of a live sport event. A blanket ban would apply only to betting ads on social media and other digital platforms.

Yet even these more modest reforms did not proceed as anticipated.

The reason, it has been widely reported, was heavy lobbying by the sport, media and gambling industries.

High-stakes horse trading

The privileged access to government gained by these sectional interests has had a powerful impact on gambling legislation.

The Coalition of Major Professional and Participation Sports has continually resisted tightening regulations on sport sponsorship and gambling ads.

It claims their reduction or loss would damage the financial viability of its members and their support for grassroots sport.

However, Australia’s major sports leagues derive significant gambling revenue from direct sources (sponsorship, product fees) and indirectly from the value of media rights.

The AFL and NRL generated cumulative revenues of $1.06 billion and $701 million respectively in 2023.

So while sport leagues would have less capacity to monetise their media rights if gambling ads were reduced, it would neither threaten professional sport in general nor seriously jeopardise funding of junior participation.

Follow the money

An Australian Communications and Media Authority report discovered capital city free-to-air television featured 1,381 gambling spots per day between May 2022 and April 2023.

Gambling companies spent $162 million on free-to-air television advertising during this period, not including further investment on subscription platforms.

As free-to-air commercial TV is already losing advertising income to digital media platforms, restrictions on this lucrative advertiser category would not be as easily absorbed today as the tobacco advertising bans in the 1970s.

This is why sports and their media and betting partners are fighting so hard against the legislation.

And all this capital flowing to and through sport, gambling, and media has created the potential to inflict political harm on gambling reforming governments.

Negotiations behind closed doors can easily break out into public campaigns, akin to the infamous “axe the (carbon) tax” agitation, if powerful organisations are not satisfied.

Gambling and the young voter

Sport gambling ads in Australia have especially targeted young men in a jocular larrikin style. But young women are now also being induced to gamble in greater numbers.

Read more:
9 out of 10 Australian sports bettors are men. Here’s why that might change

Those who want curbs on sport gambling advertisements have been cast by some as “wowsers” and “puritans”.

State intervention in the sport-media-gambling nexus may provoke a backlash that working-class men are under attack for engaging in their favourite pastimes.

Like the latest reforms to sport TV anti-siphoning laws, new policies are the product of high-stakes horse trading between nervous governments and pressure groups with manifestly variable degrees of influence.

As in the gambling world, evidence-based policy can confront very uneven odds.

David Rowe has received funding from the Australian Research Council to support research relating to this article: Struggling for Possession: The Control and Use of Online Media Sport (with Brett Hutchins, DP0877777); ‘A Nation of “Good Sports”? Cultural Citizenship and Sport in Contemporary Australia’ (DP130104502), and ‘Australian Cultural Fields: National and Transnational Dynamics’ (with Tony Bennett et al, DP140101970).

Hunter Fujak 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. Will the government’s online gambling advertising legislation ever eventuate? Don’t bet on it – https://theconversation.com/will-the-governments-online-gambling-advertising-legislation-ever-eventuate-dont-bet-on-it-238084

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Durbin Delivers Opening Statement During Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing On Stopping The Exploitation Of Children Online
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Illinois Dick Durbin

February 19, 2025

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled “Children’s Safety in the Digital Era: Strengthening Protections and Addressing Legal Gaps.” Reports of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) have exploded in recent years. Between March 2009 and February 2022, the number of victims identified in CSAM rose tenfold from 2,172 victims to more than 21,413 victims. Between 2012 and 2022, the volume of reports to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s CyberTipline concerning child sexual exploitation increased from 415,650 reports to more than 32 million reports.

Key Durbin Quotes:

“Almost exactly two years ago, this Committee held a similar hearing where we heard from six witnesses about the harms social media does to our kids and grandkids—a mom whose son took his own life after he was bullied online; a young woman whose mental and physical health suffered as she chased the unattainable lifestyle depicted on Instagram and other apps; experts who told us how Big Tech designs their platforms to be addictive, keeping users online for longer and longer so they can be fed more targeted ads; and individuals combatting the tidal wave of child sexual abuse material, or CSAM, flowing across the internet.”

“[Two years ago], the Committee reported five bills that would help protect kids online. This included my STOP CSAM Act and I want to thank Senator Hawley for joining me in that effort, along with bipartisan bills from Senators Graham, Blumenthal, Klobuchar, Cornyn, Blackburn, and Ossoff. These bills were reported out of this Committee unanimously. [The Committee contains] the most conservative Republicans to the most Progressive Democrats. It’s almost unheard of to pass a bill unanimously, yet we did it. Five times.”

“Now let’s be clear, none of these bills are the silver bullet that would make the internet completely safe for our kids. But they would be significant steps toward finally holding tech companies accountable for the harms they’ve caused, the damages they’ve caused, the deaths that they’ve caused. And that’s why the tech companies opposed them as strongly as they did.”

“So just over a year ago, I called in the CEOs of five major tech platforms—some under subpoena—to demand answers under oath. And that hearing produced results. Several companies implemented child safety improvements just days before their CEOs came to testify. And Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, under pressure from Senator Hawley, gave a long overdue apology to the parents his platform has hurt. But apologies and too-little-too-late reforms are simply not enough. The dozens of parents and survivors in that room and the thousands more impacted in every community across our country demand more. And I, for one, plan to follow through.”

“I’m under no illusion that it will be easy to pass legislation to protect kids online and finally make the tech industry legally accountable for the damage they cause, but they should face the same liability [that] every other industry in America [faces]. Just last year, Big Tech and its allies in the House killed a bill—the Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act—that would have imposed a basic duty of care on tech platforms. That bill passed the Senate 91 to 3. Yet it didn’t get a vote in the House.”

“The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children receives 100,000 reports to its CyberTipline every single day. That’s not just a statistic. Each of those reports involves a victim. It could be anything from images of a toddler being raped to a teenager being coerced, extorted, groomed, and encouraged to commit suicide. One hundred thousand reports …every single day. I hope everyone keeps that in mind as we hold this hearing. And I hope it drives them to demand that Congress finally do something.”

Video of Durbin’s opening statement is available here.

Audio of Durbin’s opening statement is available here.

Footage of Durbin’s opening statement is available here for TV Stations.

During his time as Chair, Durbin and the Committee extensively examined the plague of online child sexual exploitation through hearings, legislation, and oversight efforts. On January 31, 2024, the Committee held a hearing featuring testimony from the CEOs of social media companies Discord, Meta, Snap, TikTok, and X (formerly known as Twitter). This hearing highlighted the ongoing risk to children and the immediate need for Congress to act on the bipartisan bills reported by the Committee. Last Congress, the Committee also reported out Durbin’s STOP CSAM Act, which provides a comprehensive response to online child sexual exploitation by supporting victims and increasing accountability and transparency for online platforms. During today’s opening statement, Durbin announced he plans to re-introduce the STOP CSAM Act again this Congress.

This week, Durbin will join U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) to introduce a bill that would sunset Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act in two years. Section 230—and the legal immunity it provides to Big Tech—has been on the books since 1996—long before social media became a part of our daily lives. To the extent this protection was ever needed, its usefulness has long since passed.

In addition to the STOP CSAM Act, since February 2023 and under then-Chair Durbin’s leadership, the Committee unanimously reported multiple bipartisan bills to help stop the exploitation of kids online, including:
1. The EARN IT Act, which removes Big Tech’s blanket immunity from civil and criminal liability for CSAM and establishes a National Commission on Online Child Sexual Exploitation Prevention;
2. The SHIELD Act, which ensures that federal prosecutors have appropriate and effective tools to address the nonconsensual distribution of sexual imagery;
3. The Project Safe Childhood Act, which modernizes the investigation and prosecution of online child exploitation crimes; and
4. The REPORT Act, which combats the rise in online child sexual exploitation by establishing new measures to help strengthen reporting of those crimes to the CyberTipline.
-30-
MIL OSI USA News –
February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: ICYMI: Senator Marshall and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins Hold Fireside Chat at Top Producer Summit and Join RFD-TV to Discuss Agricultural Priorities

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for Kansas Roger Marshall
Kansas City – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) welcomed U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins to Kansas this week. They made multiple stops around the state at key Kansas agriculture locations and ended their trip by attending Top Producer Summit in Kansas City where they held a fireside chat which was moderated by Senator Marshall.
During the conversation, Secretary Rollins discussed her background and priorities for improving American agriculture. Both Senator Marshall and Secretary Rollins emphasized that they are not just fighting for policies, but fighting for the American farmer and rancher who put so much on the line to feed our country and the world. Senator Marshall and Secretary Rollins also discussed the importance of cutting government regulations and increasing agricultural production.
In addition, Senator Marshall and Secretary Rollins joined RFD-TV to discuss tariffs, their commitment to working with President Trump to help ranchers and farmers, and the status of the next Farm Bill.
You may click HERE to watch Senator Marshall’s full interview with RFD-TV.
Highlights from the interview include:
Senator Marshall on how rural farmers are struggling and what can be done:
“As the Secretary mentioned, there’s been a record drop in net farm income. But the opportunities are there. The dairy industry is growing in Kansas. The cattle industry is growing as well. Biofuels are huge opportunities as well. So I think again, in the spirit of optimism, rolling back regulations. The Secretary was very involved before in the previous Trump Administration, rolling back Waters of the U.S. Our farmers and ranchers are being strangled by regulation, so we are looking forward to rolling those back as well.”
Senator Marshall on the importance and function of tariffs:
“Farmers and ranchers support President Trump. They know under Trump 1.0 that he gave us USMCA (United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement)… He used those tariffs for the long-term gain of the farmers. [President Trump is] the best deal maker that you’ve ever met, and he’s going to make a deal with India. And I think India will replace China as one of our top markets as well, but not if they’re tariffing us 50% and we’re not tariffing them. So I think there are huge opportunities. We’ve got a deal maker in DC now, and the Secretary is gonna be right there pushing them down that road as well.”
Senator Marshall on the outlook of the next Farm Bill:
“We’ll get done this year. I am looking forward to working with Senator Klobuchar who’s the new ranking member for the Democrats… So, I think working with her and Senator Bozeman, we’ll get it across the finish line. We will put the farm back in Farm Bill. We’ll take care of the crop insurance. We’re going to take care of reference prices and maybe expand the guardrails for the conservation program so that the farmers and ranchers can actually use them. So, we’ll put the farm back in Farm Bill. We’ll get it done.”
Senator Marshall on working with Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins:
“Secretary Rollins lives, breathes, and eats this agriculture world. And I think she did a great job communicating what was on her heart. She was born and raised in agriculture and that agriculture isn’t just an industry, it’s a way of life. And then her relationship with President Trump over the last eight years, and what a huge priority rural America is to President Trump. 90% of rural Americans voted for President Trump. That’s not lost on him, and he wants us to do everything that he can to make rural America great again.”

MIL OSI USA News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI: Buffalo Run Casino & Resort Chooses QCI Chatalytics to Enhance Casino Operations with Integrated AI Solutions

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Buffalo Casino & Resort has chosen Quick Custom Intelligence’s (QCI) Chatalytics, an AI-based platform, to transform casino operations and enhance guest satisfaction. The QCI Chatalytics package—encompassing Slot Copilot, Player Copilot, the Dashboard, and the Robot Button—integrates OpenAI technology for real-time insights and efficient decision-making across the gaming floor.

Designed to boost both player and slot management, QCI Chatalytics delivers an advanced combination of AI-driven features. Slot Copilot empowers operators with live slot machine performance monitoring, predictive analytics, and automatically assigned tasks. Player Copilot focuses on personalized engagement by analyzing guest data to guide service strategies and reward offerings. With the Dashboard, teams benefit from an easy-to-read, real-time overview of key performance metrics, enabling swift, data-informed insights. Additionally, the Robot Button automates routine tasks, freeing up staff to concentrate on more valuable responsibilities and boosting overall productivity.

Mary Jewett, General Manager of Buffalo Run Casino & Resort, conveyed her enthusiasm: “Bringing QCI Chatalytics on board represents a vital step in leveraging AI to enhance our operations. With cutting-edge tools like the Robot Button, Slot Copilot, and Player Copilot, we can offer more tailored guest experiences while gaining a clearer understanding of our gaming operations.”

Dr. Ralph Thomas, CEO of QCI, outlined his perspective on the new partnership: “We are thrilled to introduce QCI Chatalytics to Buffalo Casino & Resort. By weaving OpenAI’s capabilities into our solution, we deliver an unprecedented degree of automation and clarity. We believe Chatalytics will be a key factor in refining casino floor management and boosting guest satisfaction through instantaneous, data-driven decision-making.”

The QCI Chatalytics suite is part of Quick Custom Intelligence’s broader mission to spur innovation in the gaming sector, offering a robust set of tools that streamline operations and enhance the overall player experience.

ABOUT Buffalo Run Casino & Resort
Owned and operated by the Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma, Buffalo Run Casino & Resort is future-focused on a gaming entertainment experience that both excites and exceeds guest expectations. Maintaining its reputation for a clean and friendly environment, it empowers team members and continues to elevate hospitality and guest experiences by investing in team member training and career development programs. Consequently, this strategic reinvestment into team members and property has resulted in earning the vote for one of the Best and Brightest Companies in the Nation to work for in 2022.

Buffalo Run Casino & Resort has over 70,000 square feet of casino floor and features the area’s widest variety of slots and tables games. The resort also includes a non-smoking Hotel, Truckers Lounge with special amenities and offers, the Peoria Showplace in-door event center, the outdoor amphitheater, complimentary entertainment in the Backwoods Bar, an 18-hole championship golf course, two indoor Top Golf® bays, and a smoke-free high-end Player’s Lounge. Additionally, the Buffalo Run Casino & Resort offers three dining experiences including Coal Creek Restaurant with high-end cuisine, the Bistro with hand-tossed brick oven pizza, and the Backwoods Bar & Grill which claims the title for best in-house smoked barbecue in the area.

Ongoing advancements to the property include the Peoria Showplace remodel, Hotel updates and restaurant remodel with more to come. New technology has been implemented to streamline offer redemption for guests that include self-serve kiosks for dining and promotions, digital core mail pieces, and a mobile app for monthly promotional information. Updates on the casino floor include in-game bonuses and upgraded slots. Innovation and strategic marketing decisions are powered by data driven technology (QCI), empowering the casino to customize the guest experience and increase loyalty in a highly competitive market.

ABOUT QCI
Quick Custom Intelligence (QCI) has pioneered the revolutionary QCI Enterprise Platform, an artificial intelligence platform that seamlessly integrates player development, marketing, and gaming operations with powerful, real-time tools designed specifically for the gaming and hospitality industries. Our advanced, highly configurable software is deployed in over 250 casino resorts across North America, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Latin America, and The Bahamas. The QCI AGI Platform, which manages more than $35 billion in annual gross gaming revenue, stands as a best-in-class solution, whether on-premises, hybrid, or cloud-based, enabling fully coordinated activities across all aspects of gaming or hospitality operations. QCI’s data-driven, AI-powered software propels swift, informed decision-making vital in the ever-changing casino industry, assisting casinos in optimizing resources and profits, crafting effective marketing campaigns, and enhancing customer loyalty. QCI was co-founded by Dr. Ralph Thomas and Mr. Andrew Cardno and is based in San Diego, with additional offices in Las Vegas, St. Louis, Dallas, and Tulsa. Main phone number: (858) 299.5715. Visit us at www.quickcustomintelligence.com.

ABOUT Dr. Ralph Thomas
Dr. Ralph Thomas is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Quick Custom Intelligence. Ralph is a product visionary in applied analytics and the founder of two companies that deliver solutions in casino gaming, education, and adult learning. As a gaming industry veteran, Dr. Thomas has substantial experience implementing analytics into single and multi-property gaming companies to drive tangible and measurable gains to the bottom line and has built business intelligence tools for multibillion-dollar casinos. Dr. Thomas is co-author of seven books and over 80 articles on applied analytics and data science in gaming, an inventor on dozens of patents, and understands gaming from raw data up through casino operations, giving him a unique, 360-degree view of the industry.

Contact:
Laurel Kay, Quick Custom Intelligence
Phone: 858-349-8354

The MIL Network –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How refugee entrepreneurs are supplying sustainable energy to the camps they live in

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Sarah Rosenberg-Jansen, Research Advisor on Humanitarian Energy, University of Oxford

Refugees are providing energy within camps home to millions of displaced people around the world, my research has found.

There are now more than 120 million forcibly displaced people globally. Although United Nations humanitarian agencies provide firewood and small electric lanterns, these are often not enough for most families.

To make up the shortfall, entrepreneurial refugees in the camps I visited have become energy suppliers by establishing shops, phone charging stations, even cinemas.

While visiting camps administered by the UN Refugee Agency in Rwanda, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda and other countries across Africa, I was struck by the hum of electricity and the smell of cooking in the camps’ markets. Energy was everywhere.

A mobile phone and electronics market shop at the Kakuma refugee camp, Kenya.
Sarah Rosenberg-Jansen, CC BY-NC-ND

In all the camps I visited, people were selling clothes, cooking bowls and toys, as well as lighting and electrical appliances. These shops all used energy – computers totted up bills and printed receipts, radios played music, and people everywhere were using mobile phones and the internet. Fans and motors were working hard to keep things cool and the power on. Refugees buy these products at local markets – which are often run by refugees themselves.

After conducting over 170 interviews with refugees and humanitarian practitioners, it became clear refugees buy their own energy to run many of these cafes and shops: buying their own diesel, generators, or electricity technologies including solar panels and batteries.

Formal refugee energy access provided by humanitarian agencies or national governments is projected to be very low: Chatham House statistics suggest 94% of forcibly displaced people living in camps have no meaningful access to power, and 81% lack anything other than the most basic fuels for cooking.

Renewable connections

Local energy businesses operating around the camps in Rwanda and Kenya, such as BBOX or MESH Power, provide solar solutions such as selling solar panels and solar home systems from which refugees can have lighting, charge their phones and plug in electrical appliances. These renewable systems help to lower the costs – but sometimes the companies are not able to expand their businesses within refugee camps due to UN restrictions.

As one of the refugees I spoke to in Rwanda explained: “You can see two types of solar business really. Those using energy that is easy to get to – off-the-shelf products and services – to keep the lights on in the night, or offer cool drinks or a fan. And those businesses where really energy is the business … where people can use solar home systems or other technologies.”

Sadly, this picture is not uniform across the world. For example, buying diesel in refugee camps or purchasing kerosene for lanterns can be very expensive. Spending by displaced people on simple cooking fuels and technologies, as well as basic lighting, is estimated to be around US$200 (£160) per year per family, for less than four hours of energy a day.

Buying from external energy suppliers often comes at great cost to refugee families as energy in refugee camps can be incredibly expensive. Estimates suggest that refugee households in Kenya and Burkina Faso spend between 15% and 30% of their income on energy – a figure that in the UK would mean a household was in a situation of extreme fuel poverty.

In total, refugee households around the world spend at least US$2.1 billion (£1.68 billion) on energy each year.

Refugee-led businesses

In the face of such challenges, refugee energy entrepreneurs are expanding the range of energy services and products available to refugee communities in terms of sustainability: providing new solar solutions and electricity connections from solar-powered energy sources. For members of the refugee community who use this service, this can reduce the cost of energy.

These refugee-led enterprises often start after refugees have saved or borrowed money from friends and family to start their energy businesses – for example, by buying a solar panel and battery and charging customers to use the electricity it generates. Sometimes referred to as micro-enterprises or energy entrepreneurs, they go beyond being passive users of electricity and become active participants in the energy economies of refugee camps.

Examples of such businesses include Kakuma Ventures, based in Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya, which provides wifi and solar energy access to more than 1,500 people in the camps.

A grid pylon next to refugee homes at Kigeme refugee camp, Rwanda.
Sarah Rosenberg-Jansen, CC BY-NC-ND

Another example is Patapia, based in camps in Uganda, which helps refugee women launch and grow businesses powered by clean energy. Successful refugee-led energy businesses are highlighted by the work of climate change charity Ashden through its Humanitarian Energy Award, and its support for local businesses leading the way on sustainable energy in humanitarian settings.

Indeed, many new global initiatives and humanitarian programmes are starting to take seriously the role of refugee-led organisations and businesses. Take the work of Last Mile Climate, which is dedicated to helping grassroots initiatives, refugee-led businesses, charities, humanitarian agencies and government organisations tackle climate-related challenges.

Refugees are also writing on this issue in the media, highlighting how important the issue of inclusivity is in delivering the sustainable energy transition in humanitarian contexts.

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

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

Sarah Rosenberg-Jansen received funding from the Independent Social Research Foundation (ISRF)

– ref. How refugee entrepreneurs are supplying sustainable energy to the camps they live in – https://theconversation.com/how-refugee-entrepreneurs-are-supplying-sustainable-energy-to-the-camps-they-live-in-242862

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Ne Zha 2: the record-breaking Chinese animated film showcases China’s ambition on the global stage

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Ming Gao, Research Scholar of East Asia Studies in History Division, Lund University

Ne Zha is a legendary child warrior from Chinese mythology, often depicted as a rebellious deity who defies fate to carve out his own destiny. Born as a demon, feared for his supernatural powers and doomed to live only three years, he struggles to overcome his destiny and forge his own path.

A new Chinese film about the warrior has broken several box office records, including becoming the highest-grossing animated film of all time (beating Pixar’s Inside Out 2).

Ne Zha 2 is a Chinese animated fantasy adventure film. That it is breaking so many records might seem surprising. It’s a sequel to a film that didn’t do as well, it’s not American and it’s not in English. But its record-breaking run seems to show no signs of slowing down. After debuting during the Chinese Lunar New Year, its success has seen it premiere abroad in regions such as wider Asia, North America and Australia.

For years, Hollywood has dominated China’s box offices, but the release of Ne Zha 2 marks a significant milestone in China’s cinematic and cultural expansion. Its unprecedented box office performance seems to signal a shifting dynamic in the global film industry.

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It showcases China’s ambition and ability to produce world-class content that competes with western animation giants, like Disney and Pixar. It also plays a role in enhancing cultural confidence and soft power projection, which President Xi Jinping has emphasised for years.

Capturing a feeling

The story of Ne Zha, and its many adaptations, have long captivated Chinese people of all ages – including me. I fondly recall watching the 1979 version on a black-and-white TV with my family when I was little. The story originates from the Ming dynasty (1368 to 1644) novel Fengshen Yanyi (Investiture of the Gods) and over the centuries, it has been reinterpreted in various cultural forms of religion and literature.

The original plotline of Ne Zha revolves around his rebellion against feudal patriarchal authority. This struggle is set against a backdrop of familial conflicts and even attempted patricide. In contrast, today’s reinterpretation recasts this mythological unruly child as a dutiful deity who fights for his clan’s interests by forging alliances, confronting rival factions and challenging the existing order.

Ne Zha 2 trailer.

As a commercial film, it has astutely tapped into the emotional needs of contemporary Chinese audiences in a society facing various challenges, such as economic downturn and rising unemployment. Themes of familial love and supportive parenting have struck a deep chord with Chinese audiences, offering both cultural and sentimental reassurance in uncertain times.

Another clear resonance with domestic audiences lies in the themes of Chinese technological success and cultural excellence. This has cultivated a strong sense of cultural identity and national pride among Chinese people.

In China, no words currently seem to better capture the feelings after watching the movie than “pride” and a sense of patriotism – both for the film’s visually striking animation techniques and for its depiction of China’s rich cultural traditions. However, the film needs to be understood within the broader contexts of China’s domestic landscape and its evolving position on the global stage.

‘Cultural confidence’

Beyond entertainment, Ne Zha 2’s success fits within President Xi Jinping’s ideas on “cultural confidence,” which can be succinctly defined as a nation’s firm belief in the strength and vitality of its own culture. Since the film’s record-breaking performance, state media and various state-owned outlets have been actively echoing this narrative.

People’s Daily, the official newspaper of the Communist Party of China, equates Ne Zha to China’s cultural confidence as a means to expand soft power and navigate uncharted territory. This emphasis on cultural confidence, however, is not merely state-driven.

Ne Zha.
Enlight Pictures

The film’s director, Jiao Zi, has expressed his confidence in China’s traditional culture, stating: “China’s stories don’t need to deliberately cater to the west.” Instead, he believes that traditional Chinese culture is a vast treasure trove of inspiration, which is interesting to all.

Indeed, Ne Zha is not an isolated success in drawing inspiration from traditional Chinese culture. Last year’s Black Myth: Wukong, a record-breaking gaming blockbuster, gained global attention at the 2024 Game Awards (the Oscars of the video games industry). Like Ne Zha, it’s based on another legendary 16th-century Chinese novel Xiyouji (Journey to the West). China’s official news agency, Xinhua, characterised the enduring popularity of these ancient tales as “part of a broader cultural renaissance”.

Ne Zha’s success is emerging as a key example of China’s growing cultural identity, aligning with the cultural confidence discourse. A foreign ministry spokesperson has described Ne Zha as “a new bridge for exchanges” and “a fresh window for the world to see China”.

Whether Ne Zha 2 achieves lasting international success remains to be seen. But one thing is clear – Chinese animation is no longer just for domestic audiences. The film’s popularity reflects China’s broader ambitions to expand its soft power alongside its growing economic and strategic influence.

Ming Gao receives funding from the Swedish Research Council. This research was produced with support from the Swedish Research Council grant “Moved Apart” (nr. 2022-01864). Ming Gao is a member of Lund University Profile Area: Human Rights.

– ref. Ne Zha 2: the record-breaking Chinese animated film showcases China’s ambition on the global stage – https://theconversation.com/ne-zha-2-the-record-breaking-chinese-animated-film-showcases-chinas-ambition-on-the-global-stage-249899

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Addressing NYers on Public Safety at Correctional Facilities

Source: US State of New York

Earlier today, Governor Hochul released a video message addressing safety concerns at New York State’s correctional facilities. The Governor has prepared to deploy the New York State National Guard if the unlawful, illegal work stoppage.

VIDEO: The event is available to stream on YouTube here and TV quality video is available here (h.264, mp4).

AUDIO: The Governor’s remarks are available in audio form here.

A rush transcript of the Governor’s remarks is available below:

My fellow New Yorkers, I want to speak to you today about the illegal and unlawful correction officer strike. These disruptive and unsanctioned work stoppages are jeopardizing the safety of their colleagues, the prison population, and causing undue fear for the residents in the surrounding communities.

I will not allow this chaos to continue. My administration and I have been and will continue meeting with union leadership to resolve this situation immediately. But if it is not resolved, I will send in the National Guard to secure the facilities in question. They’ve already been deployed and are ready to stabilize the situation.

I understand the incredibly difficult work our correction officers do under challenging circumstances. I have fought alongside their union to improve salaries, benefits, working conditions – indeed, a fair contract was negotiated and agreed to only last March. I’ve also passed new laws and implemented vital administrative changes to keep contraband out of facilities and protect our officers.

I’ll always advocate for the vitally important work they do. But as Governor, my number one job is to protect the people of this state. And that includes maintaining order in our state prisons. Therefore, I am directing everyone involved in these unlawful strikes to stop these actions immediately. Legal action has already commenced to ensure compliance.

Do what’s right. Do your jobs.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 20, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Spring Hill Man Sentenced for Dog Fighting

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

Tampa, FL — Jose Miguel Carrillo, of Spring Hill, Florida, was sentenced yesterday to 84 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiring to violate the dog fighting prohibitions of the federal Animal Welfare Act and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

According to court filings, Carrillo conspired with others to purchase, acquire, and breed dogs for use in dog fights. Carillo also staged dog fights at his home and traveled to dog fights in Massachusetts, Florida, and Connecticut.

A June 2023 search warrant was executed at Carrillo’s home and led to the seizure of 10 pit bull-type dogs, most of which were later adopted by new owners, as well as a firearm and ammunition. Carrillo also possessed dog fighting paraphernalia including a bloodstained dog fighting box, a skin stapler, syringes, and injectable veterinary medications.

“To its core, dog fighting is a cruel and criminal exploitation of animals for entertainment,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Today’s sentence sends a strong deterrent message that the Justice Department will vigorously prosecute these cases.”

“Exploiting and endangering the welfare of animals for personal gain is cruel and abhorrent,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Sara C. Sweeney for the Middle District of Florida. “Because of the hard work of our law enforcement partners, justice was served.”

“The Office of Inspector General is committed to working with all of our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners in pursuing individuals who choose to participate in animal fighting activities and engage in violations involving animal welfare, while also committing other serious offenses in our communities,” said Special Agent in Charge Charmeka Parker of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General (USDA-OIG).

Photo of dogs at Carrillo’s home, from court documents in United State v. Jose Carrillo, number 8:23-CR-00222, in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

Photo of a bloodstained dog fighting pit at Carrillo’s home, from court documents in United State v. Jose Carrillo, number 8:23-CR-00222, in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

To report animal fighting crimes, please contact your local law enforcement or the USDA-OIG’s complaint hotline at: usdaoig.oversight.gov/hotline or 1-800-424-9121.

The USDA-OIG; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Pasco (Florida) Sheriff’s Office and the Fitchburg (Massachusetts) Police Department investigated the case. Assistance was provided by the U.S. Marshals Service, Massachusetts State Police, New Hampshire State Police, Animal Rescue League of Boston’s Law Enforcement Division, U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service, Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Senior Trial Attorney Matthew T. Morris of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Erin Favorit and Tiffany Fields for the Middle District of Florida prosecuted the case. Trial Attorney Caitlyn Cook of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Wildlife and Marine Resources Section assisted with the transfer of the seized dogs to new owners.

MIL Security OSI –

February 20, 2025

Category: Entertainment

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said:

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said:

Supportive quotes

Daniel Evans, Tamara Harvey and Andrew Leveson from the Royal Shakespeare Company, said:

Arts Council England, Chief Executive, Darren Henley said:

Duncan Wilson, Chief Executive at Historic England, said:

Kate Varah, Executive Director and Co-Chief Executive, National Theatre, said:

Alex Beard, CEO of Royal Ballet and Opera, said:

Gurinder Chadha, Film Director, said:

Kwame Kwei-Armah, Director and Playwright, said:

James Graham, Playwright and Writer, said:

Adjoa Andoh, Actress and Writer, said:

Tracy-Ann Oberman, Actress and playwright, said:

Lemn Sissay, Author and Broadcaster, said:

Actors Sanjeev Bhaskar and Meera Syal said:

Es Devlin, Stage Designer, said:

Kate Mosse CBT, Novelist, Historian & Playwright, said:

Nicholas Cullinan, British Museum Director, said:

Mary Beard, Trustee of the British Museum:

Doug Gurr, Natural History Museum Director, said:

Tom Sleigh, Chair, Norwich Theatre, said:

Isobel Hunter MBE, chief executive of Libraries Connected, said:

Jenny Mollica, Chief Executive Officer of English National Opera and London Coliseum, said:

Stephen Freeman, Chief Executive, Royal Exchange Theatre said:

Sir Ian Blatchford, Director and Chief Executive, Science Museum Group said:

Jon Finch – Chair of English Civic Museum Network (ECMN) and Head of Culture and Visitor Economy at Barnsley Council said:

Michael Eakin OBE, Chief Executive of Royal Liverpool Philharmonic said:

Jenny Waldman, Director of Art Fund said:

Grayson Perry, Artist said:

Sir Alistair Spalding and Britannia Morton, Co CEOs Sadler’s Wells. Artistic and Executive Directors said:

Joshua McTaggart, CEO of Theatres Trust:

Rebecca Lawrence, Chief Executive Officer:

Maria Balshaw, Director of Tate and Chair of the National Museum Directors’ Council said:

Andrew Lovett OBE, Chief Executive, Black Country Living Museum

Notes to editors:

On the review of Arts Council England

On the fourth round of the Museum Estate and Development Fund

North West

North East

Yorkshire

Midlands

East

South East

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Updates to this page

Source: SAFE For Animals

I. Meeting unprecedented development challenges with quick and decisive action

II. Reforming and innovating to adapt to changing circumstances

III. The priority of wellbeing

IV. In praise of staff

Closing

Fees for Year 12

What is the average tuition fee?

There are other costs

How much are fees growing?

Will fees keep rising?

A nation of sporting gamblers

The gamblification of sport

The response of and to the Murphy Report

High-stakes horse trading

Follow the money

Gambling and the young voter

Renewable connections

Refugee-led businesses

Capturing a feeling

‘Cultural confidence’

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said:  