NewzIntel.com

Category: Environment

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Government and stakeholders progressively strengthen efforts to prevent chikungunya fever (with photos)

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

         Following the meeting of the Pest Control Steering Committee yesterday (July 23), the Government and stakeholders are progressively strengthening efforts to prevent chikungunya fever (CF). The Under Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Miss Diane Wong, and Assistant Director (Operations) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) Mr Wan Chi-shun visited the area around Greig Road in the Eastern District today (July 24) to inspect the enhanced CF prevention efforts in the community.
     
         According to the discussions at yesterday’s meeting, the intensified mosquito prevention and control measures by the Government and stakeholders include: constantly updating the list of mosquito infestation hotspots to adjust and plan their work based on the actual situation, to ensure that mosquito prevention and control work is prompt and effective; carrying out a new round of actions promptly following Typhoon Wipha to thoroughly eliminate mosquito breeding places, supplemented by fogging operations (i.e. ultra-low volume spraying) to eradicate adult mosquitoes; continuing to take proactive anti-mosquito measures including clearing potential breeding grounds at least once a week during the rainy season and timely co-ordinate fogging operations until the season ends.
     
         The FEHD is convening meetings of inter-departmental task forces on anti-mosquito work through its District Environmental Hygiene Offices to strengthen mosquito control work with district stakeholders, including to remove accumulated water and carry out mosquito prevention and control work in target areas that have drawn particular concern, such as public markets, cooked food centres and hawker bazaars, single-block buildings, streets and back lanes, common parts of buildings, village houses, construction sites, vacant sites and road works sites. The FEHD will also call on property managements to properly repairs their premises so as to minimise mosquito breeding places. Furthermore, regular ultra-low volume fogging operations have been conducted since the onset of the rainy season. The FEHD will continue to provide departments and the industry with professional advice and technical support to assist them in formulating and implementing effective anti-mosquito measures swiftly. At the same time, the FEHD will strengthen publicity and public education.
     
         The survey area inspected today recorded gravidtrap indices reaching Level 3 alert level in May and June this year, indicating  extensive distribution of Aedes albopictus mosquitoes. The FEHD has been collaborating with relevant departments and stakeholders to strengthen mosquito prevention and control work in areas under their purview, including eliminating mosquito breeding places, applying larvicides, conducting fogging operations to eradicate adult mosquitoes, and ensuring that mosquito trapping devices at appropriate locations are operating properly. The first-phase gravidtrap index for this survey area in July has dropped to 5.8 per cent.
     
         Apart from the co-ordination mechanism at district level, the Environment and Ecology Bureau will also convene a meeting with stakeholders under the regular meeting mechanism for pest control. During the meeting, the Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health will present the latest situation of chikungunya fever and responsive measures to be taken by the public. The 15 organisations or institutions participating in this mechanism include the Hong Kong Housing Society, Link, People’s Place, the Hong Kong Property Services Alliance, the Hong Kong Association of Property Management Companies, the Federation of Hong Kong Property Management Industry, the Hong Kong Association of Property Services Agents, the Pest Control Personnel Association of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Pest Management Association, the Federation of Hong Kong, Kowloon, New Territories Hawker Associations, the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants and Related Trades, the Association for Hong Kong Catering Services Management, the Association of Restaurant Managers, the Hong Kong Construction Association, and the Hong Kong General Building Contractors Association.
     
         As the hot and rainy weather approaches, the overall risk of mosquito borne diseases may rise significantly. Recently, a considerable number of CF infection cases have been reported in neighbouring regions and some overseas countries. There is also a large number of citizens and tourists frequently travelling to and from Hong Kong and different places. If people infected with CF outside Hong Kong and is bitten by mosquitoes in Hong Kong during the infectious period, and subsequently the mosquitoes bite other people, local transmission may occur. In view of this, although there have been no CF cases in Hong Kong since 2020, the industry and the public must remain vigilant and intensify mosquito prevention and control efforts to avoid the risk of local cases.
     
         The Government again appeals to members of the public to continue working with us to take early measures to prevent and eliminate mosquitoes at home and other venues early, including inspecting their homes and surroundings to remove potential breeding places, changing water in vases, scrubbing their inner surfaces, and emptying water fromsaucers under potted plants at least once a week, properly disposing of containers such as soft drink cans and food containers, and drilling large holes in unused tyres. The FEHD also advises members of the public and property management companies to keep drains free of blockage and level all defective ground surfaces to prevent the water accumulation. They should also scrub all drains and surface sewers with alkaline detergents at least once a week to remove any mosquito eggs.
     

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Dev’t chief views restoration work

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn toured the department of the Palace Museum undertaking the conservation of cultural relics on the second day of her visit to Beijing today.

    Accompanied by Director of Art Exhibitions China Tan Ping, Ms Linn toured the museum’s Department of Conservation & Restoration to ascertain the restoration of the relics including calligraphy and paintings, woodenware, lacquerware, clocks and watches.

    She then had lunch with Deputy Administrator of the National Cultural Heritage Administration Sun Deli to discuss co-operation on conservation and promotion of cultural relics between the Mainland and Hong Kong. She also visited the Capital Museum to gain insights into the rich history of Beijing’s urban development.

    Ms Linn also held a working meeting with Deputy Director-General of the Bureau of International Cooperation of the State-owned Assets Supervision & Administration Commission of the State Council Xie Hui.

    She gave Mr Xie an update on the development of the Northern Metropolis, including the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government’s work on land planning and development, infrastructure, market participation and industry introduction.

    Ms Linn said the Northern Metropolis will become the new engine for Hong Kong’s economic development and a platform for co-operation in the Greater Bay Area, providing numerous investment opportunities for Mainland enterprises, including state-owned enterprises.

    Mainland enterprises are welcome to invest in the Northern Metropolis to promote the economic co-operation between the Mainland and Hong Kong as well as the development of the region, she added.

    The development chief also called on the Ministry of Water Resources to discuss with its Vice Minister Liu Dongshun the bilateral co-operation on water management as well as comprehensive water resources management, flood prevention and emergency response.

    Ms Linn expressed gratitude to the country for providing a reliable and stable supply of Dongjiang water to Hong Kong in the past 60 years, supporting the sustainable economic development of the city and furnishing its citizens with a better living environment.

    Looking ahead, she said the Development Bureau and the Ministry of Water Resources will enhance collaboration to jointly safeguard water resources for the contribution to high-quality development of Hong Kong and the bay area.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI: Love Not War AI Unveils Mathematical Framework That Aligns Capitalism with Collective Good

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM, July 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Love Not War AI today announced the launch of Progressive Utility Mechanics, a newly discovered mathematical framework created by innovator Valraj Singh Mann. This groundbreaking system offers a universal method for designing economic models in which individual financial success automatically enhances social welfare. The announcement marks the first implementation of the framework in a real-world application via the LVAI cryptocurrency, positioning it as a potential tool for addressing systemic issues like poverty, climate change, and inequality at scale.

    Unlike traditional economic systems that create tension between profit and purpose, Progressive Utility Mechanics create mathematically structured guarantees that individual success automatically generates increasing social benefit. The framework is going to be demonstrated through LVAI (Love Not War AI), the first cryptocurrency where charitable impact grows over time, but applications extend across all human economic organization – from corporate structures to government policy to international development.

    “We’ve developed the mathematical framework that may reshape how economic systems are designed across sectors,” said Mann. “For the first time in history, we can create mathematically structured mechanisms that align individual greed with collective good automatically. This isn’t just about cryptocurrency – it’s about demonstrating that capitalism can be inherently charitable, that economic growth can systematically reduce poverty, and that success can help everyone through what we’re calling ‘Mann Mechanics.’”

    Independent analysis confirms this represents the first mathematically structured mechanism demonstrating that economic systems can be designed to automatically strengthen social outcomes as they grow, potentially addressing root causes of global inequality, environmental degradation, and systemic poverty.


    HUMANITY’S GREATEST ECONOMIC CHALLENGE

    Throughout history, human societies have struggled with the fundamental tension between individual success and collective welfare. Traditional capitalism creates wealth but concentrates it, leading to inequality. Socialist systems promote equality but reduce prosperity. Regulatory approaches create compliance costs and economic drag. Charitable solutions depend on voluntary giving that decreases as wealth concentrates.

    “Every economic system in human history has forced a choice between individual freedom and collective good,” noted Mann. “We’ve developed a mathematically structured mechanism demonstrating that choice may be false – they can be systematically unified through progressive design.”

    The framework addresses systemic challenges affecting billions globally:

    • Global Poverty: 700+ million people in extreme poverty despite unprecedented global wealth
    • Climate Change: Economic incentives that reward environmental destruction over restoration
    • Inequality Crisis: Wealth concentration accelerating in every developed economy
    • Corporate Externalities: Profit maximization creating social and environmental costs
    • Aid Dependency: International development creating dependency rather than self-sufficiency
    • Government Inefficiency: Tax systems that reduce productivity while funding bureaucracy


    PROGRESSIVE UTILITY MECHANICS: THE UNIVERSAL SOLUTION

    Progressive Utility Mechanics (also known as “Mann Mechanics”) create economic systems where individual market participation automatically generates increasing social benefit through mathematically structured allocation mechanisms that strengthen over time.

    This framework transforms traditional zero-sum economic thinking into positive-sum systems where everyone’s success helps everyone else automatically, without coercion, regulation, or voluntary charity.

    Real-world applications include:

    • Progressive Impact Corporations: Business structures where shareholder profits automatically fund stakeholder benefits, making successful companies automatically beneficial to their communities

    • Self-Funding Development Programs: Economic zones where business success automatically generates poverty reduction funding, creating sustainable development without foreign aid dependency

    • Progressive Environmental Bonds: Investment vehicles where profit automatically funds environmental restoration, aligning financial returns with ecological recovery

    • Municipal Progressive Systems: City economies where business success automatically improves public infrastructure and services, creating self-improving urban environments

    • Progressive Education Funding: Systems where private success automatically enhances public education, leveling educational playing fields through market mechanisms

    “This framework could eliminate the need to choose between economic growth and social good,” observed one policy researcher. “Every successful business, every profitable investment, every economic gain automatically helps solve humanity’s greatest challenges.”


    GLOBAL IMPACT POTENTIAL

    Progressive Utility Mechanics address the mathematical core of humanity’s most pressing challenges:

    Poverty Elimination: Systems where economic success automatically generates anti-poverty funding may provide sustainable income support without government intervention or international aid dependency.

    Climate Solutions: Investment structures where environmental restoration becomes systematically profitable through progressive mechanics may help reverse ecological damage while generating returns.

    Inequality Reduction: Economic designs where success automatically levels playing fields may reduce wealth concentration without reducing prosperity or economic freedom.
    Corporate Transformation: Business models where profit maximization automatically optimizes social and environmental outcomes could revolutionize capitalism without regulatory coercion.

    International Development: Self-funding development programs could replace aid dependency with sustainable economic systems that strengthen as they succeed.

    “We’re not just talking about improving existing systems,” emphasized Mann. “We’re demonstrating that fundamentally different systems are possible – ones that may systematically address problems rather than creating them.”


    MATHEMATICAL PROOF OF CONCEPT: LVAI IMPLEMENTATION

    LVAI cryptocurrency will serve as the first mathematical proof that Progressive Utility Mechanics work in practice, demonstrating charitable impact that increases rather than decreases over time through three-phase evolution:

    • Phase 1: Economic growth automatically funds ecosystem expansion

    • Phase 2: Balanced allocation prevents stagnation while building social impact capacity

    • Phase 3: Unused economic capacity automatically becomes permanent charity endowment.

    The implementation includes institutional-grade security (94/100 audit rating) and has been mathematically verified to create stronger charitable impact as the system matures, demonstrating that economic success can be systematically aligned with social benefit through mechanism design.


    APPLICATIONS ACROSS HUMAN CIVILIZATION

    The discovery provides mathematical foundations for redesigning economic organization across all sectors:

    Corporate Governance: Progressive Impact Corporations where shareholders profit more as stakeholder outcomes improve, automatically aligning business success with social good.

    Municipal Economics: Progressive Economic Zones where local business success automatically funds public goods, creating self-improving communities without tax burden increases.

    International Relations: Progressive development frameworks where economic growth in developing nations automatically generates sustainable funding for infrastructure, education, and healthcare.

    Environmental Policy: Progressive conservation systems where land preservation and restoration become more profitable over time, creating economic incentives for ecological recovery.

    Educational Systems: Progressive funding mechanisms where private educational success automatically enhances public education quality, reducing inequality through market forces rather than redistribution.

    Healthcare Systems: Progressive health economics where medical innovation profitability automatically funds public health improvements, aligning pharmaceutical profits with population wellness.


    RESHAPING ECONOMIC THEORY

    Progressive Utility Mechanics (Mann Mechanics) represent the first mathematical framework proving that Adam Smith’s “invisible hand” – the foundational concept from the 18th-century economist known as the “Father of Modern Economics” – can be engineered rather than hoped for, creating guaranteed alignment between individual rational behavior and optimal collective outcomes.

    The innovation addresses fundamental questions that have challenged economists, philosophers, and policymakers:

    • Can capitalism be inherently fair? YES – through progressive design
    • Can individual greed serve collective good automatically? YES – through mathematical alignment
    • Can economic growth reduce rather than increase inequality? YES – through systematic progressive allocation
    • Can free markets solve social problems without government intervention? YES – through proper incentive design

    “This could be the most important breakthrough in economics since Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations,” noted one academic researcher. “Mann Mechanics provide the missing mathematical framework for creating automatically beneficial economic systems, potentially establishing a new field of study alongside Nash Equilibrium – developed by John Nash, the Nobel Prize-winning mathematician portrayed in ‘A Beautiful Mind’ – and Keynesian Economics, created by John Maynard Keynes, the influential British economist whose theories shaped modern government economic policy.”


    POTENTIAL CIVILIZATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE

    If validated and widely implemented, Progressive Utility Mechanics may represent a significant advance in human economic organization since the development of market capitalism, potentially enabling:

    • Systematic poverty reduction through automatically self-funding anti-poverty systems
    • Climate change mitigation through profitable environmental restoration mechanisms
    • Inequality reduction without prosperity reduction through systematic leveling mechanisms
    • Corporate transformation from profit-maximizing to systematically beneficent entities
    • Government efficiency through market-based rather than bureaucratic social solutions

    “We’re exploring the potential to address humanity’s greatest challenges not through sacrifice or coercion, but by redesigning economic systems to systematically optimize for everyone’s benefit,” concluded Mann.


    PRIORITY ESTABLISHMENT

    This announcement establishes Valraj Singh Mann as the inventor of Progressive Utility Mechanics (Mann Mechanics) and creator of the mathematical framework for systematically aligning individual success with collective benefit. The innovation represents the first mathematically structured mechanism demonstrating that economic systems can be designed for systematic social optimization without reducing individual incentives or economic freedom.

    Comprehensive project documentation, including detailed whitepaper and technical specifications, is available at https://lovenotwar.ai


    ABOUT VAL MANN

    Valraj Singh Mann is the inventor of Progressive Utility Mechanics and creator of the mathematical framework for systematically aligning individual economic success with collective social benefit. Through breakthrough mathematical innovation, Mann has developed potential solutions to humanity’s greatest economic challenges while demonstrating that capitalism may be redesigned to be inherently beneficial to all participants.


    ABOUT PROGRESSIVE UTILITY MECHANICS

    Progressive Utility Mechanics (Mann Mechanics) represent a universally applicable mathematical framework for creating economic systems where individual success systematically generates increasing collective benefit. The principle provides potential applications across corporate governance, municipal economics, international development, environmental policy, and all forms of human economic organization.

    MEDIA CONTACT

    Ana Thapar
    Relations Manager
    Email: info@lovenotwar.ai
    Website: https://lovenotwar.ai
    New Community Channel: https://t.me/LoveNotWar_Base

    For global implementation discussions, academic collaboration, policy consultation, or interview requests, contact info@lovenotwar.ai with “Progressive Utility Framework” in the subject line.


    FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

    This press release contains forward-looking statements about potential applications of Progressive Utility Mechanics to global economic challenges. Implementation of any framework requires extensive testing, stakeholder collaboration, and adaptation to specific economic, legal, and cultural contexts. All projections represent potential applications based on mathematical modeling and require real-world validation.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Keep fighting for a nuclear-free Pacific, Helen Clark warns Greenpeace over global storm clouds

    Asia Pacific Report

    Former New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark warned activists and campaigners in a speech on the deck of the Greenpeace environmental flagship Rainbow Warrior III last night to be wary of global “storm clouds” and the renewed existential threat of nuclear weapons.

    Speaking on her reflections on four decades after the bombing of the original Rainbow Warrior on 10 July 1985, she said that New Zealand had a lot to be proud of but the world was now in a “precarious” state.

    Clark praised Greenpeace over its long struggle, challenging the global campaigners to keep up the fight for a nuclear-free Pacific.

    “For New Zealand, having been proudly nuclear-free since the mid-1980s, life has got a lot more complicated for us as well, and I have done a lot of campaigning against New Zealand signing up to any aspect of the AUKUS arrangement because it seems to me that being associated with any agreement that supplies nuclear ship technology to Australia is more or less encouraging the development of nuclear threats in the South Pacific,” she said.

    “While I am not suggesting that Australians are about to put nuclear weapons on them, we know that others do. This is not the Pacific that we want.

    “It is not the Pacific that we fought for going back all those years.

    “So we need to be very concerned about these storm clouds gathering.”

    Lessons for humanity
    Clark was prime minister 1999-2008 and served as a minister in David Lange’s Labour government that passed New Zealand’s nuclear-free legislation in 1987 – two years after the Rainbow Warrior bombing by French secret agents.

    She was also head of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 2009-2017.

    “When you think 40 years on, humanity might have learned some lessons. But it seems we have to repeat the lessons over and over again, or we will be dragged on the path of re-engagement with those who use nuclear weapons as their ultimate defence,” Clark told the Greenpeace activists, crew and guests.

    “Forty years on, we look back with a lot of pride, actually, at how New Zealand responded to the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior. We stood up with the passage of the nuclear-free legislation in 1987, we stood up with a lot of things.

    “All of this is under threat; the international scene now is quite precarious with respect to nuclear weapons. This is an existential threat.”


    Nuclear-free Pacific reflections with Helen Clark         Video: Greenpeace

    In response to Tahitian researcher and advocate Ena Manuireva who spoke earlier about the legacy of a health crisis as a result of 30 years of French nuclear tests at Moruroa and Fangataufa, she recalled her own thoughts.

    “It reminds us of why we were so motivated to fight for a nuclear-free Pacific because we remember the history of what happened in French Polynesia, in the Marshall Islands, in the South Australian desert, at Maralinga, to the New Zealand servicemen who were sent up in the navy ships, the Rotoiti and the Pukaki, in the late 1950s, to stand on deck while the British exploded their bombs [at Christmas Island in what is today Kiribati].

    “These poor guys were still seeking compensation when I was PM with the illnesses you [Ena] described in French Polynesia.

    Former NZ prime minister Helen Clark . . . “I remember one of the slogans in the 1970s and 1980s was ‘if it is so safe, test them in France’.” Image: Asia Pacific Report

    Testing ground for ‘others’
    “So the Pacific was a testing ground for ‘others’ far away and I remember one of the slogans in the 1970s and 1980s was ‘if it is so safe, test them in France’. Right? It wasn’t so safe.

    “Mind you, they regarded French Polynesia as France.

    “David Robie asked me to write the foreword to the new edition of his book, Eyes of Fire: The Last Voyage and Legacy of the Rainbow Warrior, and it brought back so many memories of those times because those of you who are my age will remember that the 1980s were the peak of the Cold War.

    “We had the Reagan administration [in the US] that was actively preparing for war. It was a terrifying time. It was before the demise of the Soviet Union. And nuclear testing was just part of that big picture where people were preparing for war.

    “I think that the wonderful development in New Zealand was that people knew enough to know that we didn’t want to be defended by nuclear weapons because that was not mutually assured survival — it was mutually assured destruction.”

    New Zealand took a stand, Clark said, but taking that stand led to the attack on the Rainbow Warrior in Auckland harbour by French state-backed terrorism where tragically Greenpeace photographer Fernando Pereira lost his life.

    “I remember I was on my way to Nairobi for a conference for women, and I was in Zimbabwe, when the news came through about the bombing of a boat in Auckland harbour.

    ‘Absolutely shocking’
    “It was absolutely shocking, we had never experienced such a thing. I recall when I returned to New Zealand, [Prime Minister] David Lange one morning striding down to the party caucus room and telling us before it went public that it was without question that French spies had planted the bombs and the rest was history.

    “It was a very tense time. Full marks to Greenpeace for keeping up the struggle for so long — long before it was a mainstream issue Greenpeace was out there in the Pacific taking on nuclear testing.

    “Different times from today, but when I wrote the foreword for David’s book I noted that storm clouds were gathering again around nuclear weapons and issues. I suppose that there is so much else going on in a tragic 24 news cycle — catastrophe day in and day out in Gaza, severe technology and lethal weapons in Ukraine killing people, wherever you look there are so many conflicts.

    “The international agreements that we have relied are falling into disrepair. For example, if I were in Europe I would be extremely worried about the demise of the intermediate range missile weapons pact which has now been abandoned by the Americans and the Russians.

    “And that governs the deployment of medium range missiles in Europe.

    “The New Start Treaty, which was a nuclear arms control treaty between what was the Soviet Union and the US expires next year. Will it be renegotiated in the current circumstances? Who knows?”

    With the Non-proliferation Treaty, there are acknowledged nuclear powers who had not signed the treaty — “and those that do make very little effort to live up to the aspiration, which is to negotiate an end to nuclear weapons”.

    Developments with Iran
    “We have seen recently the latest developments with Iran, and for all of Iran’s many sins let us acknowledge that it is a party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty,” she said.

    “It did subject itself, for the most part, to the inspections regime. Israel, which bombed it, is not a party to the treaty, and doesn’t accept inspections.

    “There are so many double standards that people have long complained about the Non-Proliferation Treaty where the original five nuclear powers are deemed okay to have them, somehow, whereas there are others who don’t join at all.

    “And then over the Ukraine conflict we have seen worrying threats of the use of nuclear weapons.”

    Clark warned that we the use of artificial intelligence it would not be long before asking it: “How do I make a nuclear weapon?”

    “It’s not so difficult to make a dirty bomb. So we should be extremely worried about all these developments.”

    Then Clark spoke about the “complications” facing New Zealand.

    Mangareva researcher and advocate Ena Manuireva . . . “My mum died of lung cancer and the doctors said that she was a ‘passive smoker’. My mum had not smoked for the last 65 years.” Image: Asia Pacific Report

    Teariki’s message to De Gaulle
    In his address, Ena Manuireva started off by quoting the late Tahitian parliamentarian John Teariki who had courageously appealed to General Charles De Gaulle in 1966 after France had already tested three nuclear devices:

    “No government has ever had the honesty or the cynical frankness to admit that its nuclear tests might be dangerous. No government has ever hesitated to make other peoples — preferably small, defenceless ones — bear the burden.”

    “May you, Mr President, take back your troops, your bombs, and your planes.

    “Then, later, our leukemia and cancer patients would not be able to accuse you of being the cause of their illness.

    “Then, our future generations would not be able to blame you for the birth of monsters and deformed children.

    “Then, you would give the world an example worthy of France . . .

    “Then, Polynesia, united, would be proud and happy to be French, and, as in the early days of Free France, we would all once again become your best and most loyal friends.”

    ‘Emotional moment’
    Manuireva said that 10 days earlier, he had been on board Rainbow Warrior III for the ceremony to mark the bombing in 1985 that cost the life of Fernando Pereira – “and the lives of a lot of Mā’ohi people”.

    “It was a very emotional moment for me. It reminded me of my mother and father as I am a descendant of those on Mangareva atoll who were contaminated by those nuclear tests.

    “My mum died of lung cancer and the doctors said that she was a ‘passive smoker’. My mum had not smoked for the last 65 years.

    “French nuclear testing started on 2 July 1966 with Aldebaran and lasted 30 years.”

    He spoke about how the military “top brass fled the island” when winds start blowing towards Mangareva. “Food was ready but they didn’t stay”.

    “By the time I was born in December 1967 in Mangareva, France had already exploded 9 atmospheric nuclear tests on Moruroa and Fangataufa atolls, about 400km from Mangareva.”

    France’s most powerful explosion was Canopus with 2.6 megatonnes in August 1968. It was a thermonuclear hydrogen bomb — 150 times more powerful than Hiroshima.

    Greenpeace Aotearoa executive director Russel Norman . . . a positive of the campaign future. Image: Asia Pacific Report

    ‘Poisoned gift’
    Manuireva said that by France “gifting us the bomb”, Tahitians had been left “with all the ongoing consequences on the people’s health costs that the Ma’ohi Nui government is paying for”.

    He described how the compensation programme was inadequate, lengthy and complicated.

    Manuireva also spoke about the consequences for the environment. Both Moruroa and Fangataufa were condemned as “no go” zones and islanders had lost their lands forever.

    He also noted that while France had gifted the former headquarters of the Atomic Energy Commission (CEP) as a “form of reconciliation” plans to turn it into a museum were thwarted because the building was “rife with asbestos”.

    “It is a poisonous gift that will cost millions for the local government to fix.”

    Greenpeace Aotearoa executive director Russel Norman spoke of the impact on the Greenpeace organisation of the French secret service bombing of their ship and also introduced the guest speakers and responded to their statements.

    A Q and A session was also held to round off the stimulating evening.

    A question during the open mike session on board the Rainbow Warrior. Image: Asia Pacific Report

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Keep fighting for a nuclear-free Pacific, Helen Clark warns Greenpeace over global storm clouds

    Asia Pacific Report

    Former New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark warned activists and campaigners in a speech on the deck of the Greenpeace environmental flagship Rainbow Warrior III last night to be wary of global “storm clouds” and the renewed existential threat of nuclear weapons.

    Speaking on her reflections on four decades after the bombing of the original Rainbow Warrior on 10 July 1985, she said that New Zealand had a lot to be proud of but the world was now in a “precarious” state.

    Clark praised Greenpeace over its long struggle, challenging the global campaigners to keep up the fight for a nuclear-free Pacific.

    “For New Zealand, having been proudly nuclear-free since the mid-1980s, life has got a lot more complicated for us as well, and I have done a lot of campaigning against New Zealand signing up to any aspect of the AUKUS arrangement because it seems to me that being associated with any agreement that supplies nuclear ship technology to Australia is more or less encouraging the development of nuclear threats in the South Pacific,” she said.

    “While I am not suggesting that Australians are about to put nuclear weapons on them, we know that others do. This is not the Pacific that we want.

    “It is not the Pacific that we fought for going back all those years.

    “So we need to be very concerned about these storm clouds gathering.”

    Lessons for humanity
    Clark was prime minister 1999-2008 and served as a minister in David Lange’s Labour government that passed New Zealand’s nuclear-free legislation in 1987 – two years after the Rainbow Warrior bombing by French secret agents.

    She was also head of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 2009-2017.

    “When you think 40 years on, humanity might have learned some lessons. But it seems we have to repeat the lessons over and over again, or we will be dragged on the path of re-engagement with those who use nuclear weapons as their ultimate defence,” Clark told the Greenpeace activists, crew and guests.

    “Forty years on, we look back with a lot of pride, actually, at how New Zealand responded to the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior. We stood up with the passage of the nuclear-free legislation in 1987, we stood up with a lot of things.

    “All of this is under threat; the international scene now is quite precarious with respect to nuclear weapons. This is an existential threat.”


    Nuclear-free Pacific reflections with Helen Clark         Video: Greenpeace

    In response to Tahitian researcher and advocate Ena Manuireva who spoke earlier about the legacy of a health crisis as a result of 30 years of French nuclear tests at Moruroa and Fangataufa, she recalled her own thoughts.

    “It reminds us of why we were so motivated to fight for a nuclear-free Pacific because we remember the history of what happened in French Polynesia, in the Marshall Islands, in the South Australian desert, at Maralinga, to the New Zealand servicemen who were sent up in the navy ships, the Rotoiti and the Pukaki, in the late 1950s, to stand on deck while the British exploded their bombs [at Christmas Island in what is today Kiribati].

    “These poor guys were still seeking compensation when I was PM with the illnesses you [Ena] described in French Polynesia.

    Former NZ prime minister Helen Clark . . . “I remember one of the slogans in the 1970s and 1980s was ‘if it is so safe, test them in France’.” Image: Asia Pacific Report

    Testing ground for ‘others’
    “So the Pacific was a testing ground for ‘others’ far away and I remember one of the slogans in the 1970s and 1980s was ‘if it is so safe, test them in France’. Right? It wasn’t so safe.

    “Mind you, they regarded French Polynesia as France.

    “David Robie asked me to write the foreword to the new edition of his book, Eyes of Fire: The Last Voyage and Legacy of the Rainbow Warrior, and it brought back so many memories of those times because those of you who are my age will remember that the 1980s were the peak of the Cold War.

    “We had the Reagan administration [in the US] that was actively preparing for war. It was a terrifying time. It was before the demise of the Soviet Union. And nuclear testing was just part of that big picture where people were preparing for war.

    “I think that the wonderful development in New Zealand was that people knew enough to know that we didn’t want to be defended by nuclear weapons because that was not mutually assured survival — it was mutually assured destruction.”

    New Zealand took a stand, Clark said, but taking that stand led to the attack on the Rainbow Warrior in Auckland harbour by French state-backed terrorism where tragically Greenpeace photographer Fernando Pereira lost his life.

    “I remember I was on my way to Nairobi for a conference for women, and I was in Zimbabwe, when the news came through about the bombing of a boat in Auckland harbour.

    ‘Absolutely shocking’
    “It was absolutely shocking, we had never experienced such a thing. I recall when I returned to New Zealand, [Prime Minister] David Lange one morning striding down to the party caucus room and telling us before it went public that it was without question that French spies had planted the bombs and the rest was history.

    “It was a very tense time. Full marks to Greenpeace for keeping up the struggle for so long — long before it was a mainstream issue Greenpeace was out there in the Pacific taking on nuclear testing.

    “Different times from today, but when I wrote the foreword for David’s book I noted that storm clouds were gathering again around nuclear weapons and issues. I suppose that there is so much else going on in a tragic 24 news cycle — catastrophe day in and day out in Gaza, severe technology and lethal weapons in Ukraine killing people, wherever you look there are so many conflicts.

    “The international agreements that we have relied are falling into disrepair. For example, if I were in Europe I would be extremely worried about the demise of the intermediate range missile weapons pact which has now been abandoned by the Americans and the Russians.

    “And that governs the deployment of medium range missiles in Europe.

    “The New Start Treaty, which was a nuclear arms control treaty between what was the Soviet Union and the US expires next year. Will it be renegotiated in the current circumstances? Who knows?”

    With the Non-proliferation Treaty, there are acknowledged nuclear powers who had not signed the treaty — “and those that do make very little effort to live up to the aspiration, which is to negotiate an end to nuclear weapons”.

    Developments with Iran
    “We have seen recently the latest developments with Iran, and for all of Iran’s many sins let us acknowledge that it is a party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty,” she said.

    “It did subject itself, for the most part, to the inspections regime. Israel, which bombed it, is not a party to the treaty, and doesn’t accept inspections.

    “There are so many double standards that people have long complained about the Non-Proliferation Treaty where the original five nuclear powers are deemed okay to have them, somehow, whereas there are others who don’t join at all.

    “And then over the Ukraine conflict we have seen worrying threats of the use of nuclear weapons.”

    Clark warned that we the use of artificial intelligence it would not be long before asking it: “How do I make a nuclear weapon?”

    “It’s not so difficult to make a dirty bomb. So we should be extremely worried about all these developments.”

    Then Clark spoke about the “complications” facing New Zealand.

    Mangareva researcher and advocate Ena Manuireva . . . “My mum died of lung cancer and the doctors said that she was a ‘passive smoker’. My mum had not smoked for the last 65 years.” Image: Asia Pacific Report

    Teariki’s message to De Gaulle
    In his address, Ena Manuireva started off by quoting the late Tahitian parliamentarian John Teariki who had courageously appealed to General Charles De Gaulle in 1966 after France had already tested three nuclear devices:

    “No government has ever had the honesty or the cynical frankness to admit that its nuclear tests might be dangerous. No government has ever hesitated to make other peoples — preferably small, defenceless ones — bear the burden.”

    “May you, Mr President, take back your troops, your bombs, and your planes.

    “Then, later, our leukemia and cancer patients would not be able to accuse you of being the cause of their illness.

    “Then, our future generations would not be able to blame you for the birth of monsters and deformed children.

    “Then, you would give the world an example worthy of France . . .

    “Then, Polynesia, united, would be proud and happy to be French, and, as in the early days of Free France, we would all once again become your best and most loyal friends.”

    ‘Emotional moment’
    Manuireva said that 10 days earlier, he had been on board Rainbow Warrior III for the ceremony to mark the bombing in 1985 that cost the life of Fernando Pereira – “and the lives of a lot of Mā’ohi people”.

    “It was a very emotional moment for me. It reminded me of my mother and father as I am a descendant of those on Mangareva atoll who were contaminated by those nuclear tests.

    “My mum died of lung cancer and the doctors said that she was a ‘passive smoker’. My mum had not smoked for the last 65 years.

    “French nuclear testing started on 2 July 1966 with Aldebaran and lasted 30 years.”

    He spoke about how the military “top brass fled the island” when winds start blowing towards Mangareva. “Food was ready but they didn’t stay”.

    “By the time I was born in December 1967 in Mangareva, France had already exploded 9 atmospheric nuclear tests on Moruroa and Fangataufa atolls, about 400km from Mangareva.”

    France’s most powerful explosion was Canopus with 2.6 megatonnes in August 1968. It was a thermonuclear hydrogen bomb — 150 times more powerful than Hiroshima.

    Greenpeace Aotearoa executive director Russel Norman . . . a positive of the campaign future. Image: Asia Pacific Report

    ‘Poisoned gift’
    Manuireva said that by France “gifting us the bomb”, Tahitians had been left “with all the ongoing consequences on the people’s health costs that the Ma’ohi Nui government is paying for”.

    He described how the compensation programme was inadequate, lengthy and complicated.

    Manuireva also spoke about the consequences for the environment. Both Moruroa and Fangataufa were condemned as “no go” zones and islanders had lost their lands forever.

    He also noted that while France had gifted the former headquarters of the Atomic Energy Commission (CEP) as a “form of reconciliation” plans to turn it into a museum were thwarted because the building was “rife with asbestos”.

    “It is a poisonous gift that will cost millions for the local government to fix.”

    Greenpeace Aotearoa executive director Russel Norman spoke of the impact on the Greenpeace organisation of the French secret service bombing of their ship and also introduced the guest speakers and responded to their statements.

    A Q and A session was also held to round off the stimulating evening.

    A question during the open mike session on board the Rainbow Warrior. Image: Asia Pacific Report

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Sex-segregated toilets ruling studied

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    The Government is carefully studying the judgment handed down by the Court of First Instance on the judicial review concerning the provisions on segregation of the sexes under the Public Conveniences (Conduct & Behaviour) Regulation, and is seeking legal advice and considering lodging an appeal.

    The Environment & Ecology Bureau made the statement today, noting that members of the public must continue to use public toilets according to the principle of segregation of the sexes to avoid contravening the relevant laws.

    In the judicial review, the Court of First Instance ordered that provisions related to segregation of the sexes under the aforesaid regulation shall be struck down, and suspended the execution of the order for 12 months to allow the Government time to address the matter of transgender individuals with gender identity disorder using Food & Environmental Hygiene Department’s public toilets.

    The bureau said the establishment of sex-segregated public toilets under the regulation aims to protect the privacy and safety of the public when using public toilets and to reflect social norms and expectations, an arrangement that has been widely accepted by society.

    Currently, public toilets under the department’s purview are categorised into sex-segregated public toilets and gender neutral public toilets.

    Sex-segregated toilets follow the segregation of the sexes under the regulation. Concurrently, gender-neutral toilets are available near about half of the number of sex-segregated toilets. They include “Accessible Toilets” and “Unisex Toilets”, available for use by all members of the public including transgender individuals.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: New flood warning service rolled out across Greater Manchester

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    Press release

    New flood warning service rolled out across Greater Manchester

    Flood warning service expanded to provide early warning of flooding to communities in Cheadle, Stockport and Platt Bridge. Residents can register for free.

    Defra

    The Environment Agency has expanded its flood warning service across Cheadle, Stockport and the Platt Bridge area of Wigan to ensure more people than ever across Greater Manchester are warned about any imminent risk of flooding. 

    The new flood warnings cover almost 800 homes and businesses and will see a warning message issued when flooding is forecast and then again to warn users if impacts are likely.  

    Flood warnings tell people about the risk of flooding to their home or business, and help people make informed decisions about how to respond. There are three types of warning – Flood Alert, Flood Warning and Severe Flood Warning.  

    Residents can register for the new service for free and choose to receive notifications via phone call (voice recording), text or email and by fully registering, people can also sign up to receive warnings for multiple locations.

    Improving the Service

    The new flood warning areas have been added as part a result of new modelling and data – part of the Environment Agency’s drive to continually improve the flood warning service it provides across the country.

    Several of the new locations to receive flood warnings were places that flooded over the New Year period.

    Laila Berry, Flood Resilience Team Leader at the Environment Agency, said:  

    We know all too well the devastating impact that flooding can have, which is why protecting people and communities is our top priority.  

    Our staff use the latest technology to monitor rainfall, river and tide levels 24 hours a day to forecast flooding.

    The extension of our flood warning service will allow even more people across Stockport, Cheadle and Wigan to take action and stay safe if flooding is likely to occur.

    “We would encourage all of those people in new flood warning areas to fully register their preferred details via Gov UK or Floodline for free, for both their safety and peace of mind.”

    Be Prepared for Flooding

    Householders are encouraged to prepare if they receive a Flood Alert which could mean packing a bag that includes medicines, insurance documents and anything else they wouldn’t want to lose if flooding were to take place.

    A Flood Warning calls on people to act now which means turning off gas, water and electricity and moving family and pets to safety. A Severe Flood Warning means you are in immediate danger and should follow advice from the emergency services. 

    The accuracy of flood warnings improves over time as the Environment Agency gather more data and get a better understanding of how the river reacts to heavy rainfall. In the short term in new flood warning areas, there may be a higher than normal occurrence of false alarms, due to them always being issued on the side of caution.

    There are over 1.6 million users registered to receive flood warnings at the touch of a button across the country. These flood warnings are generated from river level data which is collected via an extensive monitoring network across England.

    The data is combined with weather forecasts, river models and other information to produce location specific flood forecasts. 

    Find Out More

    Home and business owners will be auto enrolled to the Flood Warning service via their mobile network. However, to get the most benefit out of the service the Environment Agency is encouraging people to register directly with them by calling Floodline on 0345 988 1188, or visiting https://flood-warning-information.service.gov.uk/warnings where they can register preferred contact details and sign up for multiple locations if appropriate. 

    Know what to do when you receive a flood warning and download this flood plan – https://flood-warning-information.service.gov.uk/what-to-do-in-a-flood

    To sign up to the new flood warning service please visit: http://www.gov.uk/sign-up-for-flood-warnings  or call Floodline on 0345 988 1188.

    People can also check your long term flood risk at https://flood-warning-information.service.gov.uk/long-term-flood-risk.

    Updates to this page

    Published 24 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: 24 July 2025 Departmental update WHO unveils health and environment scorecards for 194 countries

    Source: World Health Organisation

    The World Health Organization (WHO) has released the 2024 update of its health and environment country scorecards, assessing how countries are managing eight major environmental threats to health across sectors. These threats include air pollution, unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), climate change, loss of biodiversity, exposure to chemicals, and radiation, occupational risks, and environmental risks in and around health care facilities. This year’s edition also introduces a new summary score, offering a concise snapshot of how environmental conditions are impacting people’s health.

    WHO’s health and environment country scorecards serve as a valuable tool for guiding national action. They provide detailed data across the eight key areas linking environment, climate change, and health policies, promoting cross-sectoral engagement, and helping governments prioritize evidence-based interventions. 

    “Tackling environmental risks isn’t optional—it’s a prescription for better health, stronger economies, and a safer future. You can’t have healthy people on a sick planet,” said Dr Maria Neira, WHO Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health. “We urge all countries to take bold, coordinated action across sectors to reduce environmental threats. Investing in clean air, safe water, and climate-protective policies is not just good for the planet. It’s essential for the health and future of their people.”

    From among countries, Norway and Canada received the highest scores overall. Among income groups, Argentina scored highest for upper-middle-income countries, Jordan for lower-middle-income, and Malawi for low-income countries. European countries led in regional averages, followed by the Americas, Western Pacific, and Eastern Mediterranean, and other regions.

    In this third round of scorecards, the introduction of the summary score marks a significant step forward in helping countries prioritize action on health and environment. The summary score is designed to condense a wide range of environmental health indicators into a single, accessible measure. Comprising 25 key indicators across environment, climate change, and health, the score enables countries to track progress at national, regional, and global levels—highlighting trends in exposures, health impacts, policy implementation, as well as identifying critical data gaps.

    The scorecards support countries in conducting situation assessments and setting evidence-based priorities for action. While large disparities exist between countries, shaped in part by differing levels of economic resources, every country has an opportunity to strengthen efforts to reduce environmental health risks.

    “The updated scorecards, together with the summary score, now bring new visibility to the links between environment and health at country level,” said Dr Annette Pruess, Unit Head, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, WHO. “This is a powerful tool for governments to identify challenges and shape targeted responses.”

    About 25% of the global burden of disease is linked to environmental threats that are largely preventable. By addressing these environmental risk factors through stronger policies, cleaner technologies, and sustainable practices, we can significantly reduce preventable illnesses and deaths—improving health outcomes while protecting our planet.

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao Health, Animal and Plant Quarantine and Food Safety Control Meeting 2025 held online

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

    The Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao Health, Animal and Plant Quarantine and Food Safety Control Meeting 2025 was held online for two consecutive days and concluded today (July 24). Representatives from the three places shared experiences and exchanged views on various topics within the fields of health, animal and plant quarantine, and food safety control. The three places agreed to further strengthen exchanges and co-operation.

    Speaking at the meeting, the Permanent Secretary for Environment and Ecology (Food), Ms Irene Young, said that with the acceleration of the integration process of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the movement of people, trade in goods, and economic interactions among the three places have become increasingly frequent. The governments of the three places have been working closely together in areas such as health, animal and plant quarantine, and food safety control, achieving significant results across various fields. The meeting enabled experts from the three places to exchange insights, taking the collaboration to new heights.

    The Controller of the Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health, Dr Edwin Tsui, also said at the meeting that the meeting would further strengthen collaboration on health quarantine between Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao. This will help build a robust cross-boundary public health protection system that safeguards the health and safety of people travelling to and from the three places, creating a “Healthy Bay Area”.

    Representatives from the Mainland and the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) attending the meeting included the Deputy Director General of the Guangdong Sub-Administration of the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China, Mr Feng Guoqing; the Acting Chairman of the Administration Committee on Municipal Affairs of the Municipal Affairs Bureau of the Macao SAR Government, Mr Mak Kim-meng; and the Director of the Centre for Disease Prevention and Control of the Health Bureau of the Macao SAR Government, Dr Leong Iek-hou.

    Other representatives from Hong Kong were the Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Mr Donald Ng; the Director of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation, Mr Mickey Lai; and Acting Controller of the Centre for Food Safety, Dr Yonnie Lam and Dr Terence Cheung.

    The Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao Health, Animal and Plant Quarantine and Food Safety Control Meeting is held every two years.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Cumbria project named finalist in global river restoration awards

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    Press release

    Cumbria project named finalist in global river restoration awards

    Cumbrian River Restoration Partnership Programme selected as finalist in the Thiess International Riverprize Awards. Winner announced in Brisbane in September.

    Environment Agency

    The Cumbrian River Restoration Partnership Programme – led by the Environment Agency and Natural England – has been named a finalist in the prestigious Thiess International Riverprize Awards.

    The winner of the award, which sees the Cumbria programme’s work compete alongside finalists Chicago River, USA; Vjosa River, Albania and Klamath River, USA will be announced at a Gala event in Brisbane in September. 

    The Programme has restored nearly 100km of rivers and over 150 hectares of floodplain across the Eden, Derwent and Kent catchments. By reinstating natural river processes – such as reintroducing meanders, removing obsolete weirs and planting native trees – the Partnership is helping nature recover, build climate resilience, reduce flood risk, improve water quality, and boost biodiversity and support sustainable agriculture.  

    This international recognition follows the Programme’s previous win of the European Riverprize in 2022, cementing Cumbria’s place on the world stage for cutting-edge nature-based solutions. 

    Better Habitats and Building Climate Resilience

    Olly Southgate, Cumbria River Restoration Programme Manager at the Environment Agency, said: 

    The Cumbrian River Restoration Partnership Programme is about giving rivers room to breathe and nature the chance to recover while also supporting sustainable farming for the future. 

    By allowing rivers to flow more naturally, we’re not only creating better habitats for wildlife but in some cases, we’re also helping to protect our communities by building climate resilience. It’s a win for people and a win for the planet 

    This nomination is a huge honour and a tribute to the power of partnership. We’re proud to showcase Cumbria’s leadership on the world stage and we thank the many dedicated landowners, local communities and partner organisations who made it all possible.” 

    The Cumbrian River Restoration Partnership Programme is being led by the Environment Agency alongside partners including Natural England, National Trust, RSPB, Ullswater CIC, United Utilities, and the Eden, West Cumbria and South Cumbria Rivers Trusts. 

    100 Restoration Projects Delivered

    The initiative responds to centuries of river modification, across Cumbria, for farming and development, which has led to degraded habitats, increased flood risk, and the loss of wildlife. Over 100 projects have now been delivered throughout the region, combining practical restoration with community involvement, education, and landowner collaboration. 

    In line with the Environment Agency’s goal to leave the environment in a better state for future generations, this work is an example of how nature-based solutions can restore ecosystems at scale and support thriving landscapes and communities. 

    The Thiess International Riverprize, awarded by the International River Foundation since 1999, is the world’s most esteemed prize for river restoration. Winners will be announced at a ceremony in Brisbane, Australia in September.

    Updates to this page

    Published 24 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Meeting of Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Turchin

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – Government of the Russian Federation –

    An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    The meeting took place on the sidelines of the International Environmental Conference

    From the transcript:

    M. Mishustin: Dear Alexander Genrikhovich! Dear friends!

    Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Turchin

    July 24, 2025

    Meeting of Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Turchin

    July 24, 2025

    Meeting of Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Turchin

    July 24, 2025

    Meeting of Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Turchin

    July 24, 2025

    Meeting of Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Turchin

    July 24, 2025

    Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Turchin

    July 24, 2025

    Previous news Next news

    Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Turchin

    I am very glad to meet you again here in the Altai Republic at the International Environmental Conference, which is dedicated to the most pressing issues of environmental protection in the entire Eurasian region. Let’s talk about natural phenomena, about ecology – there are many questions.

    And of course, first of all, I would like to ask you to convey the kindest words of greetings to the President of Belarus, the respected Alexander Grigorievich Lukashenko, from the President of Russia Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin and from me personally.

    Dear Alexander Genrikhovich, we are in constant contact by phone. We have spoken several times in the last couple of weeks alone.

    At the government level, in my opinion, systematic work has been established to implement the decisions made by our leaders, which are primarily based on the main areas of implementation of the Treaty on the Union State for 2024–2026.

    Drive

    Conversation between Mikhail Mishustin and the head of the Altai Republic Andrey Turchak

    Mikhail Mishustin visited the Republican Hospital in Gorno-Altaisk

    Despite the unprecedented sanctions pressure from the collective West, our economic cooperation continues to strengthen. The share of machinery, equipment and high-tech products in our joint trade turnover is growing.

    We already conduct over 90% of settlements in national currencies. All this helps protect our mutual trade and investments from negative external conditions.

    To be continued…

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

    .

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Andy King appointed to lead Companies House

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    Andy King appointed to lead Companies House

    New Chief Executive will start in post from September, taking on the role from retiring CEO Louise Smyth.

    Ministers have today confirmed the appointment of Andy King as the new Chief Executive of Companies House, the UK’s registrar of companies. 

    Andy brings extensive experience in leadership roles in customer, business operations, regulatory and enforcement settings, including during his time at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Defence. He will lead the organisation as it continues to modernise company registration and strengthen the UK’s business environment. 

    Companies House plays a vital role in maintaining the integrity of the UK’s corporate landscape, processing over 14 million company filings each year and providing essential information to businesses, lenders, and the public. 

    The appointment comes as the organisation prepares for new reforms designed to improve efficiency, enhance corporate transparency, and tackle economic crime. 

    Competition and Markets Minister Justin Madders said: 

    I’d like to thank Louise Smyth for her significant contribution for the past eight years as CEO and especially for her leading role in the transformation of the organisation.  

    Andy King brings excellent expertise to Companies House and I look forward to working together to improve corporate transparency and tackle economic crime.  

    This appointment will help strengthen Britain’s business environment and support our Plan for Change to kickstart economic growth.

    New Companies House CEO Andy King said:  

    I’m delighted to be joining Companies House and feel honoured to be able to lead such a motivated and dedicated team.   

    I am excited by our mission to deliver essential services to business, and the opportunity to be ambitious in our vision for those services, our workforce and our organisation, as we continue to advance our change programme.

    King will take up the role in September and will be responsible for leading Companies House’s 1900-strong workforce across offices in Cardiff, Edinburgh, and Belfast. 

    The appointment was made following an open competition overseen by the Civil Service Commission, ensuring the process met the highest standards of fairness and transparency.

    Updates to this page

    Published 24 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: Togo’s ‘Nana-Benz’: how cheap Chinese imports of African fabrics have hurt the famous women traders

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Fidele B. Ebia, Postdoctoral fellow, Duke Africa Initiative, Duke University

    The manufacturing of African print textiles has shifted to China in the 21st century. While they are widely consumed in African countries – and symbolic of the continent – the rise of “made in China” has undermined the African women traders who have long shaped the retail and distribution of this cloth.

    For many decades Vlisco, the Dutch textile group which traces its origins to 1846 and whose products had been supplied to west Africa by European trading houses since the late 19th century, dominated manufacture of the cloth. But in the last 25 years dozens of factories in China have begun to supply African print textiles to west African markets. Qingdao Phoenix Hitarget Ltd, Sanhe Linqing Textile Group and Waxhaux Ltd are among the best known.

    We conducted research to establish how the rise of Chinese-made cloth has affected the African print textiles trade. We focused on Togo. Though it’s a tiny country with a population of only 9.7 million, the capital city, Lomé, is the trading hub in west Africa for the textiles.

    We conducted over 100 interviews with traders, street sellers, port agents or brokers, government officials and representatives of manufacturing companies to learn about how their activities have changed.

    “Made in China” African print textiles are substantially cheaper and more accessible to a wider population than Vlisco fabric. Our market observations in Lomé’s famous Assigamé market found that Chinese African print textiles cost about 9,000 CFA (US$16) for six yards – one complete outfit. Wax Hollandais (50,000 CFA or US$87) cost over five times more.

    Data is hard to come by, but our estimates suggest that 90% of imports of these textiles to Lomé port in 2019 came from China.

    One Togolese trader summed up the attraction:

    Who could resist a cloth that looked similar, but that cost much less than real Vlisco?

    Our research shows how the rise of China manufactured cloth has undermined Vlisco’s once dominant market share as well as the monopoly on the trade of Dutch African print textiles that Togolese traders once enjoyed.

    The traders, known as Nana-Benz because of the expensive cars they drove, once enjoyed an economic and political significance disproportionate to their small numbers. Their political influence was such that they were key backers of Togo’s first president, Sylvanus Olympio – himself a former director of the United Africa Company, which distributed Dutch cloth.

    In turn, Olympio and long-term leader General Gnassingbé Eyadéma provided policy favours – such as low taxes – to support trading activity. In the 1970s, African print textile trade was considered as significant as the phosphate industry – the country’s primary export.

    Nana-Benz have since been displaced – their numbers falling from 50 to about 20. Newer Togolese traders – known as Nanettes or “little Nanas” – have taken their place. While they have carved out a niche in mediating the textiles trade with China, they have lower economic and political stature. In turn, they too are increasingly threatened by Chinese competition, more recently within trading and distribution as well.

    China displaces the Dutch

    Dating back to the colonial period, African women traders have played essential roles in the wholesale and distribution of Dutch cloth in west African markets. As many countries in the region attained independence from the 1950s onwards, Grand Marché – or Assigamé – in Lomé became the hub for African print textile trade.

    While neighbouring countries such as Ghana limited imports as part of efforts to promote domestic industrialisation, Togolese traders secured favourable conditions. These included low taxes and use of the port.



    Read more:
    West Africans ditch Dutch wax prints for Chinese ‘real-fakes’

    Togolese women traders knew the taste of predominantly female, west African customers better than their mostly male, Dutch designers. The Nana-Benz were brought into the African print textile production and design process, selecting patterns and giving names to designs they knew would sell.

    They acquired such wealth from this trade that they earned the Nana-Benz nickname from the cars they purchased and which they used to collect and move merchandise.

    Nana-Benz exclusivity of trading and retailing of African print textiles cloth in west African markets has been disrupted. As Vlisco has responded to falling revenues – over 30% in the first five years of the 21st century – due to its Chinese competition, Togolese traders’ role in the supply chain of Dutch cloth has been downgraded.

    In response to the flood of Chinese imports, the Dutch manufacturer re-positioned itself as a luxury fashion brand and placed greater focus on the marketing and distribution of the textiles.

    Vlisco has opened several boutique stores in west and central Africa, starting with Cotonou (2008), Lomé (2008) and Abidjan (2009). The surviving Nana-Benz – an estimated 20 of the original 50 – operate under contract as retailers rather than traders and must follow strict rules of sale and pricing.

    While newer Togolese traders known as Nanettes are involved in the sourcing of textiles from China, they have lower economic and political stature. Up to 60 are involved in the trade.

    Former street sellers of textiles and other petty commodities, Nanettes began travelling to China in the early to mid-2000s to source African print textiles. They are involved in commissioning and advising on the manufacturing of African print textiles in China and the distribution in Africa.

    While many Nanettes order the common Chinese brands, some own and market their own. These include what are now well-known designs in Lomé and west Africa such as “Femme de Caractère”, “Binta”, “Prestige”, “Rebecca Wax”, “GMG” and “Homeland”.

    Compared to their Nana-Benz predecessors, the Nanettes carve out their business from the smaller pie available from the sale of cheaper Chinese cloth. Though the volumes traded are large, the margins are smaller due to the much lower final retail price compared to Dutch cloth.

    After procuring African print textiles from China, Nanettes sell wholesale to independent local traders or “sellers” as well as traders from neighbouring countries. These sellers in turn break down the bulk they have purchased and sell it in smaller quantities to independent street vendors.

    All African print textiles from China arrive in west Africa as an incomplete product – as six-yard or 12-yard segments of cloth, not as finished garments. Local tailors and seamstresses then make clothes according to consumer taste. Some fashion designers have also opened shops where they sell prêt-à-porter (ready-to-wear) garments made from bolts of African print and tailored to local taste. Thus, even though the monopoly of the Nana-Benz has been eroded, value is still added and captured locally.

    Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese actors have become more involved in trading activity – and not just manufacturing. The further evolution of Chinese presence risks an even greater marginalisation of locals, already excluded from manufacturing, from the trading and distribution end of the value chain. Maintaining their role – tailoring products to local culture and trends and linking the formal and informal economy – is vital not just for Togolese traders, but also the wider economy.

    Rory Horner receives funding from the British Academy Mid-Career Fellowship. He is also a Research Associate at the Department of Geography, Environmental Management and Energy Studies at the University of Johannesburg.

    Fidele B. Ebia 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. Togo’s ‘Nana-Benz’: how cheap Chinese imports of African fabrics have hurt the famous women traders – https://theconversation.com/togos-nana-benz-how-cheap-chinese-imports-of-african-fabrics-have-hurt-the-famous-women-traders-260924

    MIL OSI Analysis –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: UNESCO strengthens fire resilience in the Pantanal and Cerrado with support from local communities

    Source: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

    The initiative aims to protect areas recognized as World Natural Heritage Sites and Biosphere Reserves through the Heritage Emergency Fund (HEF).

    UNESCO is intensifying its efforts in Brazil to protect areas recognized as World Natural Heritage Sites and Biosphere Reserves in response to the rise in extreme wildfires driven by climate change. Through the Heritage Emergency Fund (HEF), the organization is leading a strategic initiative to bolster fire resilience in the Pantanal of Mato Grosso and in Goiás.

    A total of 60 volunteers were trained through this project: 30 in the Pantanal Matogrossense National Park (MT), 15 in Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park (GO), and 15 in Emas National Park (GO). Around 800 pieces of equipment were distributed, including firefighting tools and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Additionally, an action plan is being developed to guide volunteer firefighters, based on Integrated Fire Management (IFM) and UNESCO’s Fire Risk Management Guide.

    “The project funded by the Heritage Emergency Fund makes a significant contribution to local communities by recognizing and strengthening their vital role in fire prevention and control”

    Interinstitutional initiative in the Pantanal

    From 22 to 25 April 2025, the Serra do Amolar — a remote and hard-to-reach region between Corumbá (MS) and Cáceres (MT), on the border with Bolivia — hosted a community brigade training supported by UNESCO’s Heritage Emergency Fund. The activity took place in the Pantanal Matogrossense National Park, in collaboration with WWF-Brazil, GEF Terrestrial (Funbio), Ibama (PrevFogo), Ecoa (Ecology and Action), and the Brazilian Navy.

    Three brigades, made up of 30 Pantanal residents — including 14 women — took part in the training. Over three intensive days of technical and practical lessons, participants learned fire prevention and control techniques from specialists.

    In addition to traditional methods — such as the use of specific tools, fire front control, heat mapping, and surveillance — the training incorporated agroforestry practices adapted to the Pantanal context. “One innovation was the management of slash-and-burn plots and backyard gardens. These areas, besides being vital for local subsistence, serve as ecological corridors that can protect wildlife during fires”, explains André Luiz Siqueira, Director of Ecoa.

    Another innovation was the introduction of the Sigma tool, a software developed by SOS Pantanal, which sends real-time fire alerts to mobile phones. Using satellite imagery and data such as wind direction and temperature, the technology is accessible even to those with limited formal education.

    Support from the Brazilian Navy enabled the logistics for participants and specialists, including transport via small boats, 950 liters of petrol, and 870 kilograms of food. Accommodation was provided by staff from the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio).

    Geographical and climatic challenges in firefighting

    Corumbá, covering over 64,000 km², is the 11th largest municipality in Brazil. The rugged terrain of the Serra do Amolar and limited access via rivers or air pose logistical challenges for firefighting. The presence of peat — organic matter accumulated in wetlands — creates highly flammable biomass during the dry season, making fires frequent and intense.

    The region encompassing the Pantanal Matogrossense National Park is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site alongside three Private Natural Heritage Reserves, and is also recognized as a Ramsar Site — an international designation for wetlands of high ecological importance.

    “The Pantanal harbors great biodiversity and is vital for fish reproduction (ichthyofauna). This region is essential for traditional peoples, sustainable tourism, and the conservation of species such as the jaguar, giant otter, and giant anteater”

    In 2024, the Pantanal experienced one of the worst wildfire seasons on record. According to the Laboratory for Environmental Satellite Applications (Lasa/UFRJ), around 2.6 million hectares — 17% of the biome — were consumed by fire. This was the second-highest figure since the historical series began in 2012, surpassed only by 2020, when 3.6 million hectares were devastated.

    “The drought pattern has changed. Although climate change is intensifying, those combating the fires are now better organized. We have more brigade members, resources, support from the National Security Force, the Armed Forces, and a more structured state response,” says Márcio Yule, coordinator of PrevFogo/Ibama in Mato Grosso do Sul.

    Extreme drought — worsened by the El Niño phenomenon — combined with improper fire use, high temperatures, and low humidity, has increased vegetation vulnerability and impacted biodiversity and traditional community livelihoods.

    I’ve been a brigade member since 2001, and the training helps us in many ways. Having the right equipment, rather than just our bare hands, makes all the difference. As traditional people, we have knowledge of fire management and know the land. When firefighters arrive, they need to talk to the community to understand what’s happening here. This combination of our knowledge, training, and equipment allows us to care for the land and the Pantanal.

    She is a quilombola and indigenous woman from the Guató people, living in the Barra de São Lourenço community — on the banks of the Cuiabá River near the Paraguay River, on the border between Mato Grosso do Sul and Mato Grosso, and the frontier with Bolivia.

    Silas Ismael

    Despite the increasingly challenging climate scenario, the combination of community mobilization, traditional knowledge, and technology has proven effective in mitigating damage. “The formation of civil brigades is more than a fire response plan — it is a territorial adaptation strategy that supports autonomy and resilience in the Pantanal,” says Osvaldo Barassi Gajardo, Conservation Specialist at WWF-Brazil.

    With each new training session, more than just skills are developed — a living protection network is built, where nature, science, and community walk hand in hand. Brigade member Eliane has a dream for the world’s largest wetland. “We care for nature, and nature cares for us. My dream is a green Pantanal full of animals”.

    Rosi do Céu, rooted in the Cerrado

    Since childhood, 47-year-old Rosilene Rodrigues da Silva Santos has guided people through the beauties and unique features of the Cerrado biome in Chapadão do Céu, Goiás, Brazil.

    “I grew up in this region. When visitors came to our house looking for tours, my parents would ask me to show them the trails, explain the routes, and teach them how to reach Emas National Park”. Today, Rosi works as a guide at the park during weekend and holidays, volunteers as a firefighter, and has served as a primary school teacher for the past 28 years. Currently, she teaches first grade at a municipal school in Chapadão do Céu from Monday to Friday.

    In 2010, a massive wildfire devastated approximately 90% of the 132,000 hectares of Emas National Park and the surrounding region. “That was my first time volunteering. The fire lasted several days, and the entire community helped. We brought clothes, supplies, and food for those battling the flames. It was my first experience with fire”.

    In her view, “nature still hasn’t fully recovered” from that fire. “The animals didn’t all return, there are far fewer now. But the Cerrado is life. It regenerates. The trees are twisted, with thick bark and deep roots. It’s on purpose. When fire comes, it doesn’t consume the forest floor. The Cerrado survives, it’s resilient,” she explains.

    In April, Rosi participated in a fire brigade training coordinated by UNESCO, with support from the Heritage Emergency Fund (HEF), and with WWF-Brazil. Trainings were held at three sites: Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park (GO), Emas National Park (GO), and Pantanal Matogrossense National Park (MT) – addressing conservation efforts across the Cerrado and Pantanal biomes.

    The training was excellent. Now we’re better prepared to manage the park during the dry season, following the management plan. And if emergencies arise, we know how to fight fires strategically, safely, and effectively.

    But if you ask Rosi do Céu (Rosi of the Sky) what she loves most, the answer is nature and wildlife. “Some people admire celebrities. I admire those who love nature. I love the wilderness and care for animals”.

    Rosi also makes handcrafted items from bamboo and wood, and rescues snakes and wild animals when needed. “Just send me a message on WhatsApp. If there’s an opossum or any creature, people say, Call Rosi, she’ll take care of it.” In 2018, she rescued a tapir and named her Preciosa (Precious). “Every time I go to Emas National Park, near where she stays, I call her name, she comes and eats from my hand. It’s love,” says the firefighter, guide, teacher, artisan, and animal caregiver.

    Eliane: ancestral wisdom

    Eliane Aires de Souza, 58 years, carries in her eyes and hands the wisdom born of deep interaction with nature and ancestral knowledge. A Pantanal native, she lives in the community of Barra de São Lourenço (MT), shaped by the waters and the vibrant life that surrounds her. She is an Indigenous woman of the Guató people, with quilombola ancestry, and works the land with knowledge and care as an agroforestry practitioner. Since 2001, she has served as a civilian firefighter, confronting the wildfires that each year are increasingly threatening the Pantanal.

    Silas Ismael

    This is our way of life. The Pantanal is our home. Having proper training and equipment helps us take care of it and protect our collective house.

    Eliane is a mother, grandmother, and president of the Renascer Women’s Association, created to strengthen the dreams and autonomy of the women in her community. In her words, she highlights the daily challenges of keeping culture alive and staying connected to the land. “Here, we live off fishing, bait, and handicrafts”.

    Eliane feels the effects of climate change and the abandonment of the rivers. She speaks with sadness of the Rio Velho, which no longer flows as it once did. “It’s like a clogged vein in the body. If we don’t take care of the river, the whole body falls ill”. For her, protecting nature means protecting herself, her family, her community, and the future. “That tree behind you is like a vein, it gives life to other lives”.

    In her daily life, Eliane cultivates an agroforestry system at home. She nurtures and protects the land. “That’s what agroforestry is: we care for it, and it cares for us”. Drawing on ancestral wisdom, she explains the importance of nourishing the soil, preserving humidity, and ensuring shade, life, and food. She grows bananas, cassava, lemons, and oranges, and dreams of more. She envisions a seedling nursery and a green corridor that reconnects fragmented forest areas, providing food for animals and nourishing hope.

    “If we keep waiting, the soil will die. And with it, our way of life”. She refuses to depend on the city for basic needs. “It’s the dream that keeps us going”.

    And perhaps it is that persistent force of dreaming, that way of resisting with hands in the soil, body in the canoe, and soul in the crafts, that keeps the Pantanal alive. As long as there are Elianes and Rosis, there will be hope for rebirth.

    About the UNESCO Heritage Emergency Fund

    This activity was supported by the UNESCO Heritage Emergency Fund (HEF). We express our gratitude to its donors: the Principality of Andorra, the Qatar Fund for Development, Canada, the Slovak Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the French Republic, the Republic of Lithuania, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Principality of Monaco, the Kingdom of Norway, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Republic of Poland, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Republic of Serbia, and ANA Holdings INC.

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI: Bitcoin Swift Nears End of Stage 1 Presale With AI-Driven Yield Protocol and Governance Model

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    LUXEMBOURG, July 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bitcoin Swift (BTC3), the developer of a new blockchain protocol combining programmable yield mechanics with AI-driven governance, today announced the upcoming conclusion of Stage 1 of its BTC3 token presale. With just two days remaining before Stage 2 begins, the project reports a significant increase in interest from early-stage participants.

    The BTC3 protocol is designed to address limitations in scalability, yield accessibility, and governance faced by earlier-generation blockchains. Its hybrid architecture incorporates AI-assisted voting systems, privacy-preserving smart contracts, and a Proof-of-Yield (PoY) model that allows users to access staking rewards immediately upon the conclusion of each presale stage.

    Stage 1 Presale Highlights

    • Presale Stage 1 ends July 26, 2025
    • Current Price: $1.00
    • Stage 2 Price: $2.00
    • Projected Launch Price: $15.00
    • Stage 1 APY: 143% via Proof-of-Yield mechanism
    • Presale concludes: September 18, 2025

    Unlike traditional presales that require users to wait for protocol access, Bitcoin Swift activates its PoY system in real-time. This feature allows token holders to receive programmable staking rewards that are distributed automatically based on smart contract logic.

    Core Technology Features

    • Proof-of-Yield (PoY): A staking framework that calculates real-time APY based on network activity
    • AI Governance: Proposal evaluation through AI agents prior to DAO voting
    • Sustainability Tracking: Environmental metrics integrated via federated oracles
    • Privacy & Identity: zk-SNARK encryption and DID-based voting infrastructure
    • Compliance-Ready Architecture: Designed with data privacy and user protections in mind

    “Bitcoin Swift was built to offer a more intelligent and dynamic blockchain layer, starting with immediate utility at the presale level,” said a representative from the Bitcoin Swift team. “We believe that programmable rewards and AI-based governance models will play a key role in the next evolution of decentralized finance.”

    What Influencers Are Saying

    The buzz around BTC3 has been steadily rising across crypto communities. Influencers like Crypto Vlog, Token Empire, and Crypto Show have released detailed reviews breaking down why Bitcoin Swift’s architecture is more than just hype. Many highlight its compliance-readiness and AI-led innovation as major selling points for 2025.

    Even broader coverage by creators like Crypto League and Crypto Nitro emphasizes how the protocol’s emphasis on sustainability and privacy could set a new standard for blockchain finance.

    Looking Ahead

    Following the conclusion of Stage 1, Bitcoin Swift will transition to Stage 2 of the presale at a new token price of $2.00. The final public sale will conclude on September 18, 2025, followed by the activation of full governance and on-chain protocol utilities. BTC3 will be deployed with Solana-compatible infrastructure to support high throughput and low transaction fees.

    For more information about the BTC3 presale or the Bitcoin Swift protocol, please visit: https://bitcoinswift.com

    Contact:
    Luc Schaus
    support@bitcoinswift.com

    Disclaimer: This content is provided by Bitcoin Swift. The statements, views, and opinions expressed in this content are solely those of the content provider and do not necessarily reflect the views of this media platform or its publisher. We do not endorse, verify, or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any information presented. We do not guarantee any claims, statements, or promises made in this article. This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial, investment, or trading advice. Investing in crypto and mining-related opportunities involves significant risks, including the potential loss of capital. It is possible to lose all your capital. These products may not be suitable for everyone, and you should ensure that you understand the risks involved. Seek independent advice if necessary. Speculate only with funds that you can afford to lose. Readers are strongly encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. However, due to the inherently speculative nature of the blockchain sector—including cryptocurrency, NFTs, and mining—complete accuracy cannot always be guaranteed. Neither the media platform nor the publisher shall be held responsible for any fraudulent activities, misrepresentations, or financial losses arising from the content of this press release. In the event of any legal claims or charges against this article, we accept no liability or responsibility. Globenewswire does not endorse any content on this page.

    Legal Disclaimer: This media platform provides the content of this article on an “as-is” basis, without any warranties or representations of any kind, express or implied. We assume no responsibility for any inaccuracies, errors, or omissions. We do not assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information presented herein. Any concerns, complaints, or copyright issues related to this article should be directed to the content provider mentioned above.

    Photos accompanying this announcement are available at

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c4db1a26-86a9-4888-866a-926035fd9a27

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8376232e-a9dd-439f-9baa-da86eb803455

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-Evening Report: The Murray–Darling Basin Plan Evaluation is out. The next step is to fix the land, not just the flows

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Stewardson, CEO One Basin CRC, The University of Melbourne

    Yarramalong Weir is one of many barriers to the passage of fish in the Murray-Darling Basin. Geoff Reid, One Basin CRC

    A report card into the A$13 billion Murray–Darling Basin Plan has found much work is needed to ensure the ecology of Australia’s largest river system is properly restored.

    The assessment, by the Murray–Darling Basin Authority, is the most comprehensive to date.

    The authority says the river system is doing better now than it would have without the plan, which aims to ensure sustainable water use for the environment, communities and industries. But it found there is more to be done.

    We are water, economics and environmental researchers with many years of experience working in the Murray-Darling Basin. We agree more work is needed, but with a more local focus, to restore the basin to health.

    This requires more than just more water for the environment. Coordinated local efforts to restore rivers and the surrounding land are desperately needed. There’s so much more to the river system than just the water it contains.

    Preparing for the 2026 Basin Plan Review (Murray–Darling Basin Authority)

    What’s the plan?

    The Murray-Darling Basin is Australia’s food bowl. But for too long, the health of environment was in decline – rivers were sick and wildlife was suffering. The river stopped flowing naturally to the sea because too much water was being taken from it.

    Poor land management has also degraded the river system over time. Floodplain vegetation has been damaged, the river channel has been re-engineered, and pest plants and animals have been introduced.

    The Murray-Darling Basin Plan was established in 2012. It aimed to recover water for the environment and safeguard the long-term health of the river system, while continuing to support productive agriculture and communities. It demanded more water for the environment and then described how this water would be delivered, in the form of targeted “environmental flows”.

    Since 2012, the allocation of water to various uses has gradually changed. So far, 2,069 billion litres (gigalitres) of surface water has been recovered for the environment. Combined with other earlier water recovery, a total of about 28% of water previously diverted for agriculture, towns and industry is now being used by the environment instead.

    A mixed report card

    The evaluation released today is the first step towards a complete review of the plan next year. The 2026 review will make recommendations to Environment and Water Minister Murray Watt. It will then be up to him to decide whether any changes are needed.

    It is a mixed report card. Ecological decline has been successfully halted at many sites. But sustained restoration of ecosystems across the basin is yet to be achieved, and native fish populations are in poor condition across 19 of the basin’s 23 catchments.

    Climate change is putting increasing pressure on water resources. More intense and frequent extreme climate events and an average 20–30% less streamflow (up to 50% in some rivers) are expected by mid-century.

    The evaluation also called for better policy and program design. Specifically, flexible programs have proven more effective than prescriptive, highly regulated programs.

    Finally, the report also highlights that the cost of water reform is increasing.

    Direct buybacks of water licences, mostly from irrigators, account for around two-thirds of the water recovered for the environment under the basin plan. Buybacks are the simplest and most cost-effective way to recover water but are controversial because of concerns about social and economic impacts.

    Much of the remaining water has been recovered through investment in more efficient water supply infrastructure, with water savings reserved for environmental use.

    The authority suggests different approaches will be needed for additional water recovery.

    Having plenty of native vegetation on river banks is important for river health.
    Geoff Reid, One Basin CRC

    Healthy rivers need more than water

    For the past two decades, measures to restore the Murray-Darling Basin have focused largely on water recovery. But research suggests attention now needs to be paid to other, more local actions.

    In March, one author of this article – Samantha Capon – identified nine priority actions to restore Australia’s inland river and groundwater ecosystems at local levels. They included:

    • revegetating land alongside waterways
    • retiring some farmland
    • modifying barriers to fish movements
    • installing modern fish screens on irrigation pumps.

    The study estimated such actions would cost around A$2.9 billion a year, if completed over the next 30 years.

    Works to restore vegetation or other environmental conditions at these critical habitats will only occur with landholders, as well as Traditional Owners.

    That’s because most of the basin’s wetlands and floodplain areas are on private property, including in irrigation districts.

    Irrigator involvement is needed to place fish screens on private irrigation pumps or retire farmland. There is a growing interest and some early experience in using private irrigation channels to deliver environmental water. This also requires local partnerships.

    The basin plan should include targets for environmental outcomes, not just water recovery. This will allow the benefits from local restoration measures and environmental flows to be included when tracking the plan.

    Such ecosystem accounting tools already exist. Research is urgently needed to make these tools both locally relevant and suitable for the basin plan.

    Time for a local approach

    To date, water for the environment under the basin plan has been recovered largely through centralised government-led programs. Decisions around the delivery of environmental flows are also largely in the hands of government agencies.

    But other local restoration actions are also needed.

    A business-as-usual approach would leave responsible agencies struggling to complete these vital local measures with limited funding, resources and accountability.

    Michael Stewardson is a member of the Advisory Committee on Social, Economic and Environmental Science, which advises the Murray Darling Basin Authority,, although he is not representing the views of this committee in this article. The committee is established under Section 203 of the Water Act 2007.
    Michael Stewardson is the CEO of the One Basin CRC, which is jointly funded under the commonwealth Cooperative Research Centre Program and by its partners listed here: https://onebasin.com.au/
    These partners include: state and federal government agencies including the Murray Darling Basin Authority; irrigation infrastructure operators (government owned and non-government), natural resource management agencies (government and non-government); agriculture businesses, industry organisation and R&D organisations; local government organisations; consulting companies in the water sector; technology companies; education and training organisations; and research organisation. Partners contribute to the One Basin CRC in the form of in-kind and cash contributions. The One Basin CRC is also funded by the Commonwealth Environmental Water Office under its FlowMER program. The views in this article do not necessarily represent the views of these partner and funding organisations.
    Michael Stewardson has previously received research funding from the Australian Research Council and both state and federal government agencies.

    Neville Crossman is a Program Leader for Adaptation and Innovation in the One Basin CRC. He is a past employee of the Murray-Darling Basin Authority (2018-2024). He has worked closely with a range of State and federal government agencies and many researchers, industry and community members in the Murray-Darling Basin throughout his career.

    Samantha Capon receives funding from the federal Department of Climate Change, Energy Efficiency, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW), NSW DCCEEW, the Cotton Research and Development Corporation. She is a member of the Murray-Darling Basin Authority’s Advisory Committee for Social, Economic and Environmental Science (ACSEES), but is not representing the view of this committee in this article. Samantha has worked closely with NRM agencies, a range of State and federal government agencies and many researchers, industry and community members in the Murray-Darling Basin throughout her career.

    Seth Westra is the Research Director for the One Basin CRC. He receives funding from the federal Department of Climate Change, Energy Efficiency, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW), NSW DCCEEW and the South Australian Department for Environment and Water (DEW). Seth is Research Director of the One Basin Cooperative Research Centre, Director of the Systems Cooperative, and has worked closely with NRM agencies, a range of State and federal government agencies and many researchers, industry and community members in the Murray-Darling Basin throughout his career.

    – ref. The Murray–Darling Basin Plan Evaluation is out. The next step is to fix the land, not just the flows – https://theconversation.com/the-murray-darling-basin-plan-evaluation-is-out-the-next-step-is-to-fix-the-land-not-just-the-flows-261840

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI: cBrain positioned as first-mover supporting new U.S. standards for environmental permitting

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Press Release no. 6/2025

    cBrain positioned as first-mover supporting new U.S. standards for environmental permitting

    Copenhagen, July 24, 2025

    cBrain (NASDAQ: CBRAIN) today announced that the cBrain F2 Permitting Solution supports the newly established U.S. federal standards for environmental permitting, as defined by the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). cBrain believes it is among the very first vendors to support the new CEQ standards.

    In collaboration with the Danish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), cBrain has developed a fully digital permitting solution based on the cBrain F2 platform. This solution replaces traditional paper-based applications, reduces case processing times, and enhances both quality and transparency.

    As the importance of environmental assessment and permitting grows globally, governments are increasingly requiring robust review and approval processes for infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges, mines, factories, and power plants. This trend creates a significant market opportunity for cBrain.

    Earlier this year, as part of its expanded growth strategy, cBrain identified environmental permitting as a key international vertical. The company aims to establish a leading global position in this market with its cBrain F2 Environmental Permitting solution.

    To support international scaling, cBrain has formed a dedicated team focused on exporting the F2 Environmental Permitting solution and views environmental permitting as a strategic entry point into the U.S. market.

    In April 2025, the White House issued an Executive Order directing all federal agencies to adopt digital technologies to streamline environmental permitting. 30 days later, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) released their Permitting Technology Action Plan and introduced a new set of federal data standards for digital permitting systems.

    cBrain has rapidly configured its F2 Environmental Permitting solution to align with these standards and, in July 2025, demonstrated the adapted solution to U.S. federal authorities in Washington, D.C.

    This early alignment provides a first-mover advantage and cBrain is experiencing an increased interest in its permitting technology as federal and state agencies are seeking to provide answers to political demand for faster permitting through digital modernization.

    Best regards

    Per Tejs Knudsen, CEO

    Inquiries regarding this Press Release may be directed to 

    Ejvind Jørgensen, CFO & Head of Investor Relations, cBrain A/S, ir@cbrain.com, +45 2594 4973

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: cBrain positioned as first-mover supporting new U.S. standards for environmental permitting

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Press Release no. 6/2025

    cBrain positioned as first-mover supporting new U.S. standards for environmental permitting

    Copenhagen, July 24, 2025

    cBrain (NASDAQ: CBRAIN) today announced that the cBrain F2 Permitting Solution supports the newly established U.S. federal standards for environmental permitting, as defined by the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). cBrain believes it is among the very first vendors to support the new CEQ standards.

    In collaboration with the Danish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), cBrain has developed a fully digital permitting solution based on the cBrain F2 platform. This solution replaces traditional paper-based applications, reduces case processing times, and enhances both quality and transparency.

    As the importance of environmental assessment and permitting grows globally, governments are increasingly requiring robust review and approval processes for infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges, mines, factories, and power plants. This trend creates a significant market opportunity for cBrain.

    Earlier this year, as part of its expanded growth strategy, cBrain identified environmental permitting as a key international vertical. The company aims to establish a leading global position in this market with its cBrain F2 Environmental Permitting solution.

    To support international scaling, cBrain has formed a dedicated team focused on exporting the F2 Environmental Permitting solution and views environmental permitting as a strategic entry point into the U.S. market.

    In April 2025, the White House issued an Executive Order directing all federal agencies to adopt digital technologies to streamline environmental permitting. 30 days later, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) released their Permitting Technology Action Plan and introduced a new set of federal data standards for digital permitting systems.

    cBrain has rapidly configured its F2 Environmental Permitting solution to align with these standards and, in July 2025, demonstrated the adapted solution to U.S. federal authorities in Washington, D.C.

    This early alignment provides a first-mover advantage and cBrain is experiencing an increased interest in its permitting technology as federal and state agencies are seeking to provide answers to political demand for faster permitting through digital modernization.

    Best regards

    Per Tejs Knudsen, CEO

    Inquiries regarding this Press Release may be directed to 

    Ejvind Jørgensen, CFO & Head of Investor Relations, cBrain A/S, ir@cbrain.com, +45 2594 4973

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: The Data Center Next Door: As Trump Eviscerates Guardrails, Senator Markey Hosts Roundtable Discussion on How AI Data Centers Can Harm Environment, Increase Costs to Households, and Threaten Public Health

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Massachusetts Ed Markey

    View Storybook (PDF)

    Washington (July 23, 2025) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a co-chair of the Environmental Justice Caucus and a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, today hosted a virtual roundtable discussion titled “The Data Center Next Door: Hidden Costs and Harms of Artificial Intelligence and Cryptomining.” Senator Markey was joined by Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), frontline advocates, and allies to discuss the effects of rapid data center development on climate and communities, including impacts on local air quality, water, grid reliability, health, and utility bills. Speakers highlighted how communities and allied organizations across the country are working to curb harms from data center build-out and how policymakers can more proactively address unsustainable data center development.

    Today, Senator Markey also released a new storybook highlighting the personal experiences of individuals living near data center infrastructure.

    “I have heard from people across the country whose stories make clear: unregulated, uncontrolled data center development is sucking our communities dry. Our environment doesn’t have to be a sacrificial lamb on the altar of innovation. We can have green growth—but not if we have Trump’s AI Inaction Plan as our Big Tech Bible. Lawmakers at all levels of government can and must ensure the Trump administration’s no-holds-barred approach to data center construction does not come at the cost of our health and welfare,” said Senator Markey. “We are not truly moving forward if we harm and leave people behind in the process. We owe it to our neighbors, near and far, to address these impacts at the federal level before we see a race to the bottom—one that could even disadvantage states and towns that try to do things right.”

    “The heart of my district is seeing the environmental impacts of Artificial Intelligence (AI) first-hand, with the world’s biggest supercomputer beginning operations last year. It requires one million gallons of water each day to cool its components and uses the same amount of energy as all 250,000 households in Memphis combined. The continued development of AI will have a drastic effect on energy and water costs and consumption, and our environment as a whole,” said Congressman Cohen.

    “Bitcoin mining is the most energy and water-intensive technology ever created. As long as the bitcoin mining algorithm is operating at scale, it is impossible to make the transition to a resilient, equitable, affordable, and renewable grid,” said Jackie Sawicky, member of the National Coalition Against Cryptomining (NCAC).

    “Families across America are struggling to afford their soaring electric bills as a result of energy-guzzling AI data centers. We cannot afford to let AI fuel a new fossil fuel boom that raises our bills and destroys our environment,” said Ben Inskeep, Program Director at Citizens Action Coalition of Indiana.

    “West Virginia has long borne the brunt of powering our country via the extraction of our natural resources. This legacy and continued pollution from fossil fuel industries worsened health disparities, increased our utility bills, and poisoned our air and water. The rapid growth of artificial intelligence development and the numerous proposals of fossil fuel powered data centers in our region simply carries on that toxic tradition of resource extraction, corporate exploitation, and harmful pollution for West Virginians,” said Morgan King, Climate and Energy Program Manager at West Virginia Citizen Action Group.

    “What’s happening in Virginia is unsustainable and the desire to go even faster is irresponsible. The impacts are too great and the risks are too high, we must slow down and put better guardrails in place,” said Julie Bolthouse, AICP, Director of Land Use at Piedmont Environmental Council.

    “Over the last year, xAI installed and operated dozens of unpermitted methane gas turbines at its Memphis data center, essentially building a power plant without any public oversight or input from nearby communities. These turbines pump out smog-forming pollution and harmful chemicals like formaldehyde and are located near predominantly Black communities that are already overburdened with a long history of environmental injustice. Families in South Memphis deserve transparency and clean air,” said Amanda Garcia, senior attorney in the Tennessee office of the Southern Environmental Law Center.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Dassault Systèmes: Q2 well aligned with objectives; Reaffirming 2025 growth outlook Advancing AI for software-defined industries

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Press Release

    VELIZY-VILLACOUBLAY, France — July 24, 2025

    Dassault Systèmes: Q2 well aligned with objectives; Reaffirming 2025 growth outlook

    Advancing AI for software-defined industries

    Dassault Systèmes (Euronext Paris: FR0014003TT8, DSY.PA) today reports its IFRS unaudited estimated financial results for the second quarter 2025 and first half ended June 30, 2025. The Group’s Board of Directors approved these estimated results on July 23, 2025. This press release also includes financial information on a non-IFRS basis and reconciliations with IFRS figures in the Appendix.

    Summary Highlights1  

    (unaudited, IFRS and non-IFRS unless otherwise noted,
    all growth rates in constant currencies)

    • 2Q25: Total revenue of €1.52 billion, up 6%, well aligned with objectives;
    • 2Q25: Software revenue up 6%, driven by subscription revenue up 10%;
    • 2Q25: 3DEXPERIENCE software revenue up 20% with good dynamics across industries;
    • 2Q25: Operating margin of 29.3% and diluted EPS non-IFRS up 4% to €0.30;
    • For the first six months, recurring revenue up 7% driven by subscription growth of 13%;
    • FY25: Reaffirming non-IFRS full-year objectives with total revenue growth of 6% to 8% and diluted EPS growth of 7% to 10%.

    Dassault Systèmes’ Chief Executive Officer Commentary

    Pascal Daloz, Dassault Systèmes’ Chief Executive Officer, commented:

    “The first half of the year reaffirmed the strength of our core Manufacturing sector, with resilient performance in Transportation & Mobility and strong growth in High-Tech. Aerospace & Defense also had an excellent start, with notable engagement at the Paris Air Show, underscoring our leadership in these strategic areas. In Life Sciences, our PLM solutions are playing more and more a critical role in driving the evolution toward smarter manufacturing and agile supply chains.

    As we look to the future, Dassault Systèmes is uniquely positioned to help clients navigate the increasingly complex and dynamic global landscape. Our focus on high-growth segments, particularly Space, Defense, Energy, and AI-driven cloud infrastructure, places us at the core of sovereignty and security challenges.

    With the introduction of 3D UNIV+RSES, presented at our Capital Markets Day, we are entering new high-value territories such as regulatory and compliance management. AI will be a key enabler in these areas, and early customer feedback has been exceptionally promising. With AI for software-defined industries, we are confident that our continued innovation will unlock new levels of value for our clients, reinforcing our role as a trusted partner in their transformation journeys.”

    Dassault Systèmes’ Chief Financial Officer Commentary

    (revenue and diluted EPS (“EPS”) growth rates in constant currencies,
    data on a non-IFRS basis)

    Rouven Bergmann, Dassault Systèmes’ Chief Financial Officer, commented:

    “In Q2, both total and software revenues grew by 6%, in line with our objectives. Year-to-date, we’ve seen a 5% increase in growth, with subscription rising 13%. Our performance across the Manufacturing sector has been resilient, particularly driven by the continued strength of SIMULIA, ENOVIA, and CATIA.

    On the operational front, we remain committed to strategic investments aimed at capturing long-term value, while protecting EPS. The acquisition of Ascon is a key step in accelerating the shift to software-defined manufacturing.

    Looking ahead, we maintain our outlook for full-year revenue growth between 6-8%, with EPS growth expected to range from 7-10%. Additionally, we’ve updated our currency assumptions for the second half of the year.”

    Financial Summary

    In millions of Euros,
    except per share data and percentages    		   IFRS   IFRS
      Q2 2025 Q2 2024 Change Change in constant currencies   YTD 2025 YTD 2024 Change Change in constant currencies
    Total Revenue   1,521.6 1,495.8 2% 5%   3,094.6 2,995.4 3% 4%
    Software Revenue   1,372.7 1,346.5 2% 6%   2,805.4 2,699.4 4% 5%
    Operating Margin   15.9% 18.4% (2.6)pts     17.6% 20.0% (2.4)pts  
    Diluted EPS   0.17 0.21 (19)%     0.37 0.42 (14)%  
    In millions of Euros,
    except per share data and percentages    		   Non-IFRS   Non-IFRS
      Q2 2025 Q2 2024 Change Change in constant currencies   YTD 2025 YTD 2024 Change Change in constant currencies
    Total Revenue   1,523.2 1,495.8 2% 6%   3,096.2 2,995.4 3% 5%
    Software Revenue   1,374.2 1,346.5 2% 6%   2,807.0 2,699.4 4% 5%
    Operating Margin   29.3% 29.9% (0.7)pts     30.1% 30.5% (0.4)pts  
    Diluted EPS   0.30 0.30 (1)% 4%   0.61 0.60 2% 5%

    Second Quarter 2025 Versus 2024 Financial Comparisons

    (unaudited, IFRS and non-IFRS unless otherwise noted,
    all revenue growth rates in constant currencies)

    • Total Revenue: Total revenue in the second quarter grew 5% in IFRS and 6% in non-IFRS, to €1.52 billion, and software revenue increased by 6% to €1.37 billion. Subscription & support revenue rose 6%; recurring revenue represented 80% of software revenue. Licenses and other software revenue rose 5% to €276 million. Services revenue increased 3% to €149 million, during the quarter.
    • Software Revenue by Geography: The Americas revenue increased by 2% to represent 37% of software revenue, with High-Tech and Industrial Equipment performing well. Europe grew by 10% to 39% of software revenue, reflecting an acceleration led by France and Southern Europe. In Asia, revenue rose 6% with strong double-digit growth in China. Asia represented 24% of software revenue at the end of the second quarter.
    • Software Revenue by Product Line:
      • Industrial Innovation software revenue rose 9% to €745 million. SIMULIA, CATIA and ENOVIA were the best contributors to growth. Industrial Innovation software represented 54% of software revenue, during the period.
      • Life Sciences software revenue was flat at €268 million, to account for 20% of software revenue.
      • Mainstream Innovation software revenue increased by 3% to €360 million in IFRS, and was up 4% to €361 million in non-IFRS, represented 26% of software revenue. SOLIDWORKS had a strong subscription growth, advancing its business model shift.
    • Software Revenue by Industry: Industrial Equipment, High Tech, Transportation & Mobility and Aerospace & Defense were the best contributors to growth this quarter. In Life Sciences, Dassault Systèmes’ PLM solutions are playing more and more a critical role in driving the evolution toward smarter manufacturing and agile supply chains. In fact, outside of the MEDIDATA product line, Life Sciences revenue grew mid-teens.
    • Key Strategic Drivers: 3DEXPERIENCE software revenue increased 20% and represented 41% of 3DEXPERIENCE Eligible software revenue. Cloud software revenue grew 6% in non-IFRS, representing 25% of software revenue during the period. 3DEXPERIENCE Cloud software revenue increased 15% in constant currencies.
    • Operating Income and Margin: IFRS operating income decreased 12%, to €242 million, as reported. Non-IFRS operating income decreased 0.4% at €446 million, as reported. The IFRS operating margin stood at 15.9% compared to 18.4% in the second quarter of 2024, mainly reflecting the effect of the employee shareholding plan “TOGETHER 2025” offered during the quarter. The non-IFRS operating margin totaled 29.3%, versus 29.9% in the same period of last year, with a negative currency impact of 50 basis points.
    • Earnings per Share: IFRS diluted EPS was €0.17, decreasing 19% as reported. Non-IFRS diluted EPS grew to €0.30, down 1% as reported, up 4% in constant currencies.

    First Half 2025 Versus 2024 Financial Comparisons

    (unaudited, IFRS and non-IFRS unless otherwise noted,
    all revenue growth rates in constant currencies)

    • Total Revenue: Total revenue grew 4% to €3.09 billion in IFRS, and was up 5% to €3.10 billion in non-IFRS. Software revenue increased 5% to €2.81 billion. Subscription and support revenue rose 7% to €2.33 billion; recurring revenue represented 83% of total software revenue. Licenses and other software revenue decreased 2% to €474 million. Services revenue was down 2% to €289 million.
    • Software Revenue by Geography: The Americas, Europe and Asia all grew 5%, representing respectively 40%, 37% and 23% of software revenue.
    • Software Revenue by Product Line:
      • Industrial Innovation software revenue rose 8% to €1.54 billion and represented 55% of software revenue. CATIA, SIMULIA and ENOVIA were among the strongest contributors to growth.
      • Life Sciences software revenue was flat to €561 million, representing 20% of software revenue.
      • Mainstream Innovation software revenue increased by 3% to €707 million in IFRS and to €708 million in non-IFRS. Mainstream Innovation represented 25% of software revenue.
    • Software Revenue by Industry: Aerospace & Defense, High Tech, Industrial Equipment and Transport & Mobility were among the strongest contributors to growth. In Life Sciences, Dassault Systèmes’ PLM solutions are playing more and more a critical role in driving the evolution toward smarter manufacturing and agile supply chains. In fact, outside of the MEDIDATA product line, Life Sciences revenue grew mid-teens.
    • Key Strategic Drivers: 3DEXPERIENCE software revenue increased by 19%, representing 40% of 3DEXPERIENCE Eligible software revenue. Cloud software revenue grew 7% in non-IFRS, and represented 25% of software revenue. 3DEXPERIENCE Cloud software revenue increased 26% in constant currencies.
    • Operating Income and Margin: IFRS operating income was down 9%, to €546 million, as reported. Non-IFRS operating income increased 2% to €932 million, as reported. IFRS operating margin totaled 17.6% compared to 20% for the same period in 2024, mainly reflecting the combined effect of the employee shareholding plan “TOGETHER 2025” and higher share-based compensation related social charges, notably in France, where the rate rose from 20% to 30% in the first half of 2025. Non-IFRS operating margin stood at 30.1% in the first half of 2025, compared to 30.5% in the same period last year, impacted by negative currency effect of 30 basis points.
    • Earnings per Share: IFRS diluted EPS was €0.37, a decrease of 14% as reported. Non-IFRS diluted EPS grew by 2% to €0.61, as reported, or 5% in constant currencies.
    • Cash Flow from Operations (IFRS): Cash flow from operations totaled €1.15 billion for the first six months of 2025, compared to €1.13 billion last year. Cash flow from operations was principally used for the acquisition of ContentServ for €202 million, repurchase of Treasury Shares for €225 million and dividend payments for €343 million.
    • Balance Sheet (IFRS): Dassault Systèmes’ net financial position totaled €1.51 billion as of June 30, 2025, an increase of €0.05 billion, compared to €1.46 billion for the year ended December 31, 2024. Cash and cash equivalents totaled €4.08 billion in the first half.

    Financial Objectives for 2025

    Dassault Systèmes’ third quarter and 2025 financial objectives presented below are given on a non-IFRS basis and reflect the principal 2025 currency exchange rate assumptions for the US dollar and Japanese yen as well as the potential impact from additional non-Euro currencies:

               
          Q3 2025 FY 2025  
      Total Revenue (billion) €1.485 – €1.535 €6.410 – €6.510  
      Growth 1 – 5% 3 – 5%  
      Growth ex FX 5 – 8% 6 – 8%  
               
      Software revenue growth * 5 – 9% 6 – 8%  
        Of which licenses and other software revenue growth * 7 – 14% 4 – 7%  
        Of which recurring revenue growth * 5 – 8% 7 – 8%  
      Services revenue growth *

    1 – 5%

    		 1 – 3%  
               
      Operating Margin 29.7% – 29.9% 32.2% – 32.4%  
               
      EPS Diluted €0.29 – €0.30 €1.32 – €1.35  
      Growth 0 – 4% 3 – 6%  
      Growth ex FX 5 – 9% 7 – 10%  
               
      US dollar $1.17 per Euro $1.13 per Euro  
      Japanese yen (before hedging) JPY 170.0 per Euro JPY 166.1 per Euro  
      * Growth in Constant Currencies      

    These objectives are prepared and communicated only on a non-IFRS basis and are subject to the cautionary statement set forth below.

    The 2025 non-IFRS financial objectives set forth above do not take into account the following accounting elements below and are estimated based upon the 2025 principal currency exchange rates above: contract liabilities write-downs estimated at approximately €4 million; share-based compensation expenses, including related social charges, estimated at approximately €324 million (these estimates do not include any new stock option or share grants issued after June 30, 2025); amortization of acquired intangibles and of tangibles reevaluation, estimated at approximately €336 million, largely impacted by the acquisition of MEDIDATA; and lease incentives of acquired companies at approximately €1 million.

    The above objectives also do not include any impact from other operating income and expenses, net principally comprised of acquisition, integration and restructuring expenses, and impairment of goodwill and acquired intangible assets; from one-time items included in financial revenue; from one-time tax effects; and from the income tax effects of these non-IFRS adjustments. Finally, these estimates do not include any new acquisitions or restructuring completed after June 30, 2025.

    Corporate Announcements

    Today’s Webcast and Conference Call Information

    Today, Thursday, July 24, 2025, Dassault Systèmes will host in Paris a webcasted presentation at 9:00 AM London Time / 10:00 AM Paris time, and will then host a conference call at 8:30 AM New York time / 1:30 PM London time / 2:30 PM Paris time. The webcasted presentation and conference calls will be available online by accessing investor.3ds.com.

    Additional investor information is available at investor.3ds.com or by calling Dassault Systèmes’ Investor Relations at +33.1.61.62.69.24.

    Investor Relations Events

    • Third Quarter 2025 Earnings Release: October 23, 2025
    • Fourth Quarter 2025 Earnings Release: February 11, 2026
    • First Quarter 2026 Earnings Release: April 23, 2026
    • Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Release: July 23, 2026

    Forward-looking Information

    Statements herein that are not historical facts but express expectations or objectives for the future, including but not limited to statements regarding the Group’s non-IFRS financial performance objectives are forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on Dassault Systèmes management’s current views and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results or performances may differ materially from those in such statements due to a range of factors.

    The Group’s actual results or performance may be materially negatively affected by numerous risks and uncertainties, as described in the “Risk Factors” section 1.9 of the 2024 Universal Registration Document (‘Document d’enregistrement universel’) filed with the AMF (French Financial Markets Authority) on March 18, 2025, available on the Group’s website www.3ds.com.

    In particular, please refer to the risk factor “Uncertain Global Environment” in section 1.9.1.1 of the 2024 Universal Registration Document set out below for ease of reference:

    “In light of the uncertainties regarding economic, business, social, health and geopolitical conditions at the global level, Dassault Systèmes’ revenue, net earnings and cash flows may grow more slowly, whether on an annual or quarterly basis, mainly due to the following factors:

    • the deployment of Dassault Systèmes’ solutions may represent a large portion of a customer’s investments in software technology. Decisions to make such an investment are impacted by the economic environment in which the customers operate. Uncertain global geopolitical, economic and health conditions and the lack of visibility or the lack of financial resources may cause some customers, e.g. within the automotive, aerospace, energy or natural resources industries, to reduce, postpone or cancel their investments, or to reduce or not renew ongoing paid maintenance for their installed base, which impact larger customers’ revenue with their respective sub-contractors;
    • the political, economic and monetary situation in certain geographic regions where Dassault Systèmes operates could become more volatile and negatively affect Dassault Systèmes’ business, and in particular its revenue, for example, due to stricter export compliance rules or the introduction of new customs barriers or controls on the exchange of goods and services;
    • continued pressure or volatility on raw materials and energy prices could also slow down Dassault Systèmes’ diversification efforts in new industries;
    • uncertainties regarding the extent and duration of costs inflation could adversely affect the financial position of Dassault Systèmes; and
    • the sales cycle of the Dassault Systèmes’ products – already relatively long due to the strategic nature of such investments for customers – could further lengthen.

    The occurrence of crises – health and political crises in particular – could have consequences both for the health and safety of Dassault Systèmes’ employees and for the Company. It could also adversely impact the financial situation or financing and supply capabilities of Dassault Systèmes’ existing and potential customers, commercial and technology partners, some of whom may be forced to temporarily close sites or to cease operations. A deteriorating economic environment could generate increased price pressure and affect the collection of receivables, which would negatively affect Dassault Systèmes’ revenue, financial performance and market position.

    Dassault Systèmes makes every effort to take into consideration this uncertain outlook. Dassault Systèmes’ business results, however, may not develop as anticipated. Furthermore, due to factors affecting sales of Dassault Systèmes’ products and services, there may be a substantial time lag between an improvement in global economic and business conditions and an upswing in the Company’s business results.”

    In preparing such forward-looking statements, the Group has in particular assumed an average US dollar to euro exchange rate of US$1.17 per €1.00 as well as an average Japanese yen to euro exchange rate of JPY170.0 to €1.00, before hedging for the third quarter 2025. The Group has assumed an average US dollar to euro exchange rate of US$1.13 per €1.00 as well as an average Japanese yen to euro exchange rate of JPY166.1 to €1.00, before hedging for the full year 2025. However, currency values fluctuate, and the Group’s results may be significantly affected by changes in exchange rates.

    Non-IFRS Financial Information

    Readers are cautioned that the supplemental non-IFRS financial information presented in this press release is subject to inherent limitations. It is not based on any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles and should not be considered in isolation from or as a substitute for IFRS measurements. The supplemental non-IFRS financial information should be read only in conjunction with the Company’s consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with IFRS. Furthermore, the Group’s supplemental non-IFRS financial information may not be comparable to similarly titled “non-IFRS” measures used by other companies. Specific limitations for individual non-IFRS measures are set forth in the Company’s 2024 Universal Registration Document filed with the AMF on March 18, 2025.

    In the tables accompanying this press release the Group sets forth its supplemental non-IFRS figures for revenue, operating income, operating margin, net income and diluted earnings per share, which exclude the effect of adjusting the carrying value of acquired companies’ deferred revenue, share-based compensation expense and related social charges, the amortization of acquired intangible assets and of tangibles reevaluation, certain other operating income and expense, net, including impairment of goodwill and acquired intangibles, the effect of adjusting lease incentives of acquired companies, certain one-time items included in financial revenue and other, net, and the income tax effect of the non-IFRS adjustments and certain one-time tax effects. The tables also set forth the most comparable IFRS financial measure and reconciliations of this information with non-IFRS information.

    FOR MORE INFORMATION

    Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform, 3D design software, 3D Digital Mock Up and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions: http://www.3ds.com

    ABOUT DASSAULT SYSTÈMES

    Dassault Systèmes is a catalyst for human progress. Since 1981, the company has pioneered virtual worlds to improve real life for consumers, patients and citizens. With Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform, 370 000 customers of all sizes, in all industries, can collaborate, imagine and create sustainable innovations that drive meaningful impact.
    For more information, visit www.3ds.com.

    Dassault Systèmes Investor Relations Team                FTI Consulting

    Beatrix Martinez: +33 1 61 62 40 73                        Arnaud de Cheffontaines: +33 1 47 03 69 48

                                                            Jamie Ricketts : +44 20 3727 1600

    investors@3ds.com

    Dassault Systèmes Press Contacts

    Corporate / France        Arnaud MALHERBE        arnaud.malherbe@3ds.com        +33 (0)1 61 62 87 73

    © Dassault Systèmes. All rights reserved. 3DEXPERIENCE, the 3DS logo, the Compass icon, IFWE, 3DEXCITE, 3DVIA, BIOVIA, CATIA, CENTRIC PLM, DELMIA, ENOVIA, GEOVIA, MEDIDATA, NETVIBES, OUTSCALE, SIMULIA and SOLIDWORKS are commercial trademarks or registered trademarks of Dassault Systèmes, a European company (Societas Europaea) incorporated under French law, and registered with the Versailles trade and companies registry under number 322 306 440, or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are owned by their respective owners. Use of any Dassault Systèmes or its subsidiaries trademarks is subject to their express written approval.

    APPENDIX TABLE OF CONTENTS

    Due to rounding, numbers presented throughout this and other documents may not add up precisely to the totals provided and percentages may not precisely reflect the absolute figures.    

    Glossary of Definitions

    Non-IFRS Financial Information

    Acquisitions and Foreign Exchange Impact

    Condensed consolidated statements of income

    Condensed consolidated balance sheet

    Condensed consolidated cash flow statement

    IFRS – non-IFRS reconciliation

    DASSAULT SYSTÈMES – Glossary of Definitions

    Information in Constant Currencies

    Dassault Systèmes has followed a long-standing policy of measuring its revenue performance and setting its revenue objectives exclusive of currency in order to measure in a transparent manner the underlying level of improvement in its total revenue and software revenue by activity, industry, geography and product lines. The Group believes it is helpful to evaluate its growth exclusive of currency impacts, particularly to help understand revenue trends in its business. Therefore, the Group provides percentage increases or decreases in its revenue and expenses (in both IFRS and non-IFRS) to eliminate the effect of changes in currency values, particularly the U.S. dollar and the Japanese yen, relative to the euro. When trend information is expressed “in constant currencies”, the results of the “prior” period have first been recalculated using the average exchange rates of the comparable period in the current year, and then compared with the results of the comparable period in the current year.

    While constant currency calculations are not considered to be an IFRS measure, the Group believes these measures are critical to understanding its global revenue results and to compare with many of its competitors who report their financial results in U.S. dollars. Therefore, Dassault Systèmes includes this calculation to compare IFRS and non-IFRS revenue figures for comparable periods. All information at constant currencies is expressed as a rounded percentage and therefore may not precisely reflect the absolute figures.

    Information on Growth excluding acquisitions (“organic growth”)

    In addition to financial indicators relating to the Group’s entire scope, Dassault Systèmes also provides growth information excluding acquisitions’ effects, and named organic growth. To do so, the Group’s data is restated to exclude acquisitions, from the date of the transaction, over a period of 12 months.

    Information on Industrial Sectors

    Dassault Systèmes provides broad end-to-end software solutions and services: its 3D UNIV+RSES (made of multiple virtual twin experiences) powered by the 3DEXPERIENCE platform combine modeling, simulation, data science, artificial intelligence and collaborative innovation to support companies in the three sectors it serves, namely Manufacturing Industries, Life Sciences & Healthcare, and Infrastructure & Cities.

    These three sectors comprise twelve industries:

    • Manufacturing Industries: Transportation & Mobility; Aerospace & Defense; Marine & Offshore; Industrial Equipment; High-Tech; Home & Lifestyle; Consumer Packaged Goods – Retail. In Manufacturing Industries, Dassault Systèmes helps customers virtualize their operations, improve data sharing and collaboration across their organization, reduce costs and time-to-market, and become more sustainable;
    • Life Sciences & Healthcare: Life Sciences & Healthcare. In this sector, the Group aims to address the entire cycle of the patient journey to lead the way toward precision medicine. To reach the broader healthcare ecosystem from research to commercial, the Group’s solutions connect all elements from molecule development to prevention to care, and combine new therapeutics, medical practices, and Medtech;
    • Infrastructure & Cities: Infrastructure, Energy & Materials; Architecture, Engineering & Construction; Business Services; Cities & Public Services. In Infrastructure & Cities, the Group supports the virtualization of the sector in making its industries more efficient and sustainable, and creating desirable living environments.

    Information on Product Lines

    The Group’s financial reporting on product lines includes the following information:

    • Industrial Innovation software revenue, which includes CATIA, ENOVIA, SIMULIA, DELMIA, GEOVIA, NETVIBES, and 3DEXCITE brands;
    • Life Sciences software revenue, which includes MEDIDATA and BIOVIA brands;
    • Mainstream Innovation software revenue, which includes its CENTRIC PLM and 3DVIA brands, as well as the SOLIDWORKS brand and its expanded offerings in design, simulation, PLM, and manufacturing.

    OUTSCALE has been a Dassault Systèmes brand since 2022, extending the portfolio of software applications. As the first sovereign and sustainable operator on the cloud, OUTSCALE enables governments and corporations from all sectors to achieve digital autonomy through a Cloud experience and with a world-class cyber governance.

    GEOs

    Eleven GEOs are responsible for driving the development of the Company’s business and implementing its customer‑centric engagement model. Teams leverage strong networks of local customers, users, partners, and influencers.

    These GEOs are structured into three groups:

    • the “Americas” group, made of two GEOs;
    • the “Europe” group, comprising Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and made of four GEOs;
    • the “Asia” group, comprising Asia and Oceania and made of five GEOs.

    3DEXPERIENCE Software Contribution

    To measure the relative share of 3DEXPERIENCE software in its revenues, Dassault Systèmes calculates the percentage contribution by comparing total 3DEXPERIENCE software revenue to software revenue for all product lines except SOLIDWORKS, MEDIDATA, CENTRIC PLM and other acquisitions (defined as “3DEXPERIENCE Eligible software revenue”).

    Cloud revenue

    Cloud revenue is generated from contracts that provide access to cloud-based solutions (SaaS), infrastructure as a service (IaaS), cloud solution development and cloud managed services. These offerings are delivered by Dassault Systèmes through its own cloud infrastructure or by third-party cloud providers. They are available through different deployment methods: Dedicated cloud, Sovereign cloud and International cloud. Cloud solutions are generally offered through subscription-based models or perpetual licenses with support and hosting services.

    DASSAULT SYSTÈMES

    NON-IFRS FINANCIAL INFORMATION

    (unaudited; in millions of Euros, except per share data, percentages, headcount and exchange rates)

    Non-IFRS key figures exclude the effects of adjusting the carrying value of acquired companies’ contract liabilities (deferred revenue), share-based compensation expense, including related social charges, amortization of acquired intangible assets and of tangible assets revaluation, lease incentives of acquired companies, other operating income and expense, net, including the acquisition, integration and restructuring expenses, and impairment of goodwill and acquired intangible assets, certain one-time items included in financial loss, net, certain one-time tax effects and the income tax effects of these non-IFRS adjustments.

    Comparable IFRS financial information and a reconciliation of the IFRS and non-IFRS measures are set forth in the separate tables within this Attachment.

    In millions of Euros, except per share data, percentages, headcount and exchange rates Non-IFRS reported
    Three months ended Six months ended
    June 30,

    2025

    		 June 30,

    2024

    		 Change Change in constant currencies June 30,

    2025

    		 June 30,

    2024

    		 Change Change in constant currencies
    Total Revenue € 1,523.2 € 1,495.8 2% 6% € 3,096.2 € 2,995.4 3% 5%
                     
    Revenue breakdown by activity                
    Software revenue 1,374.2 1,346.5 2% 6% 2,807.0 2,699.4 4% 5%
    Of which licenses and other software revenue 275.6 271.8 1% 5% 473.7 490.3 (3)% (2)%
    Of which subscription and support revenue 1,098.6 1,074.8 2% 6% 2,333.2 2,209.1 6% 7%
    Services revenue 148.9 149.2 (0)% 3% 289.2 296.1 (2)% (2)%
                     
    Software revenue breakdown by product line                
    Industrial Innovation 744.6 701.9 6% 9% 1,537.7 1,433.2 7% 8%
    Life Sciences 268.3 281.7 (5)% 0% 560.9 566.4 (1)% 0%
    Mainstream Innovation 361.3 363.0 (0)% 4% 708.3 699.7 1% 3%
                     
    Software Revenue breakdown by geography                
    Americas 505.0 525.5 (4)% 2% 1,116.2 1,079.1 3% 5%
    Europe 534.8 491.9 9% 10% 1,048.0 995.1 5% 5%
    Asia 334.4 329.1 2% 6% 642.8 625.2 3% 5%
                     
    Operating income € 446.1 € 447.8 (0)%   € 932.2 € 914.3 2%  
    Operating margin 29.3% 29.9%     30.1% 30.5%    
                     
    Net income attributable to shareholders € 391.0 € 397.1 (2)%   € 811.2 € 794.3 2%  
    Diluted earnings per share € 0.30 € 0.30 (1)% 4% € 0.61 € 0.60 2% 5%
                     
    Closing headcount 26,253 25,811 2%   26,253 25,811 2%  
                     
    Average Rate USD per Euro 1.13 1.08 5%   1.09 1.08 1%  
    Average Rate JPY per Euro 163.81 167.77 (2)%   162.12 164.46 (1)%  

    DASSAULT SYSTÈMES

    ACQUISITIONS AND FOREIGN EXCHANGE IMPACT

    (unaudited; in millions of Euros)

    In millions of Euros Non-IFRS reported o/w growth at constant rate and scope o/w change of scope impact at current year rate o/w FX impact on previous year figures
    June 30,

    2025

    		 June 30,

    2024

    		 Change
    Revenue QTD 1,523.2 1,495.8 27.4 72.6 7.5 (52.7)
    Revenue YTD 3,096.2 2,995.4 100.7 125.9 7.7 (32.9)

    DASSAULT SYSTÈMES

    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME

    (unaudited; in millions of Euros, except per share data and percentages)

    In millions of Euros, except per share data and percentages IFRS reported
    Three months ended Six months ended
    June 30, June 30, June 30, June 30,
    2025 2024 2025 2024
    Licenses and other software revenue 275.6 271.8 473.7 490.3
    Subscription and Support revenue 1,097.1 1,074.8 2,331.7 2,209.1
    Software revenue 1,372.7 1,346.5 2,805.4 2,699.4
    Services revenue 148.9 149.2 289.2 296.1
    Total Revenue € 1,521.6 € 1,495.8 € 3,094.6 € 2,995.4
    Cost of software revenue (1) (120.1) (124.8) (249.3) (236.8)
    Cost of services revenue (144.6) (127.9) (275.7) (259.8)
    Research and development expenses (348.7) (326.1) (697.3) (637.5)
    Marketing and sales expenses (448.0) (423.8) (894.5) (844.1)
    General and administrative expenses (123.7) (111.6) (244.2) (216.7)
    Amortization of acquired intangible assets and of tangible assets revaluation (85.4) (92.3) (173.8) (185.6)
    Other operating income and expense, net (9.3) (13.2) (13.7) (15.0)
    Total Operating Expenses (1,279.9) (1,219.8) (2,548.4) (2,395.4)
    Operating Income € 241.7 € 276.0 € 546.1 € 600.0
    Financial income (loss), net 29.9 33.3 60.2 63.4
    Income before income taxes € 271.5 € 309.2 € 606.3 € 663.5
    Income tax expense (53.0) (47.7) (128.4) (116.0)
    Net Income € 218.6 € 261.5 € 477.9 € 547.5
    Non-controlling interest 4.9 1.2 6.1 1.0
    Net Income attributable to equity holders of the parent € 223.5 € 262.7 € 484.0 € 548.4
    Basic earnings per share 0.17 0.20 0.37 0.42
    Diluted earnings per share € 0.17 € 0.21 € 0.37 € 0.42
    Basic weighted average shares outstanding (in millions) 1,315.9 1,313.2 1,314.9 1,313.7
    Diluted weighted average shares outstanding (in millions) 1,324.4 1,326.2 1,325.7 1,328.7

            (1) Excluding amortization of acquired intangible assets and of tangible assets revaluation.

    IFRS reported

     

    		 Three months ended June 30, 2025 Six months ended June 30, 2025
    Change (2) Change in constant currencies Change (2) Change in constant currencies
    Total Revenue 2% 5% 3% 4%
    Revenue by activity        
    Software revenue 2% 6% 4% 5%
    Services revenue (0)% 3% (2)% (2)%
    Software Revenue by product line        
    Industrial Innovation 6% 9% 7% 8%
    Life Sciences (5)% 0% (1)% 0%
    Mainstream Innovation (1)% 3% 1% 3%
    Software Revenue by geography        
    Americas (4)% 2% 3% 5%
    Europe 8% 10% 5% 5%
    Asia 2% 6% 3% 5%

                    (2) Variation compared to the same period in the prior year.

    DASSAULT SYSTÈMES

    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET

    (unaudited; in millions of Euros)

    In millions of Euros IFRS reported
    June 30, December 31,
    2025 2024
    ASSETS    
    Cash and cash equivalents 4,083.7 3,952.6
    Trade accounts receivable, net 1,575.9 2,120.9
    Contract assets 40.1 30.1
    Other current assets 406.2 464.0
    Total current assets 6,105.9 6,567.6
    Property and equipment, net 903.5 945.8
    Goodwill and Intangible assets, net 7,030.3 7,687.1
    Other non-current assets 375.7 345.5
    Total non-current assets 8,309.4 8,978.3
    Total Assets € 14,415.3 € 15,545.9
    LIABILITIES    
    Trade accounts payable 183.2 259.9
    Contract liabilities 1,559.3 1,663.4
    Borrowings, current 534.0 450.8
    Other current liabilities 1,063.0 1,147.4
    Total current liabilities 3,339.5 3,521.5
    Borrowings, non-current 2,043.9 2,042.8
    Other non-current liabilities 836.0 900.9
    Total non-current liabilities 2,879.9 2,943.7
    Non-controlling interests 11.5 14.1
    Parent shareholders’ equity 8,184.3 9,066.6
    Total Liabilities € 14,415.3 € 15,545.9

    DASSAULT SYSTÈMES

    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED CASH FLOW STATEMENT

    (unaudited; in millions of Euros)

    In millions of Euros IFRS reported
    Three months ended Six months ended
    June 30, June 30, Change June 30, June 30, Change
    2025 2024 2025 2024
    Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent 223.5 262.7 (39.3) 484.0 548.4 (64.4)
    Non-controlling interest (4.9) (1.2) (3.7) (6.1) (1.0) (5.1)
    Net income 218.6 261.5 (42.9) 477.9 547.5 (69.5)
    Depreciation of property and equipment 48.5 45.1 3.4 98.9 92.7 6.2
    Amortization of intangible assets 86.2 94.2 (8.0) 175.9 189.4 (13.5)
    Adjustments for other non-cash items 20.5 36.6 (16.1) 36.6 74.3 (37.7)
    Changes in working capital (39.4) 21.9 (61.3) 358.0 226.3 131.7
    Net Cash From Operating Activities € 334.3 € 459.3 € ( 124.9) € 1,147.3 € 1,130.2 € 17.2
                 
    Additions to property, equipment and intangibles assets (39.3) (50.6) 11.3 (95.3) (107.8) 12.5
    Payment for acquisition of businesses, net of cash acquired (9.2) (11.2) 2.0 (202.9) (15.7) (187.2)
    Other 3.2 0.8 2.3 (34.6) 23.1 (57.7)
    Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Investing Activities € (45.3) € (61.0) € 15.6 € (332.8) € (100.4) € (232.4)
                 
    Proceeds from exercise of stock options 7.4 13.9 (6.5) 29.6 35.2 (5.7)
    Cash dividends paid (342.6) (302.7) (39.9) (342.6) (302.7) (39.9)
    Repurchase and sale of treasury stock (144.7) (176.6) 31.8 (224.8) (307.7) 82.9
    Capital increase 111.3 – 111.3 111.3 – 111.3
    Acquisition of non-controlling interests 0.0 (0.0) 0.0 (0.2) (2.6) 2.5
    Proceeds from borrowings 121.3 – 121.3 81.0 – 81.0
    Repayment of borrowings – (0.1) 0.1 (18.5) (0.2) (18.4)
    Repayment of lease liabilities (22.7) (18.3) (4.4) (45.4) (42.3) (3.0)
    Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Financing Activities € (270.0) € (483.7) € 213.7 € (409.5) € (620.2) € 210.7
                 
    Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents (178.1) 21.0 (199.1) (273.9) 53.6 (327.5)
                 
    Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents € (159.1) € (64.4) € (94.7) € 131.2 € 463.2 € (332.1)
                 
    Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period € 4,242.9 € 4,095.9   € 3,952.6 € 3,568.3  
    Cash and cash equivalents at end of period € 4,083.7 € 4,031.5   € 4,083.7 € 4,031.5  

    DASSAULT SYSTÈMES
    SUPPLEMENTAL NON-IFRS FINANCIAL INFORMATION
    IFRS – NON-IFRS RECONCILIATION
    (unaudited; in millions of Euros, except per share data and percentages)

    Readers are cautioned that the supplemental non-IFRS information presented in this press release is subject to inherent limitations. It is not based on any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles and should not be considered as a substitute for IFRS measurements. Also, the Group’s supplemental non-IFRS financial information may not be comparable to similarly titled “non-IFRS” measures used by other companies. Further specific limitations for individual non-IFRS measures, and the reasons for presenting non-IFRS financial information, are set forth in the Group’s Document d’Enregistrement Universel for the year ended December 31, 2024 filed with the AMF on March 18, 2025. To compensate for these limitations, the supplemental non-IFRS financial information should be read not in isolation, but only in conjunction with the Group’s consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with IFRS.

    In millions of Euros, except per share data and percentages Three months ended June 30, Change
    2025 Adjustment(1) 2025 2024 Adjustment(1) 2024 IFRS Non-IFRS(2)
    IFRS Non-IFRS IFRS Non-IFRS
    Total Revenue € 1,521.6 € 1.6 € 1,523.2 € 1,495.8 – € 1,495.8 2% 2%
    Revenue breakdown by activity                
    Software revenue 1,372.7 1.6 1,374.2 1,346.5 – 1,346.5 2% 2%
    Licenses and other software revenue 275.6 – 275.6 271.8 – 271.8 1% 1%
    Subscription and Support revenue 1,097.1 1.6 1,098.6 1,074.8 – 1,074.8 2% 2%
    Recurring portion of Software revenue 80%   80% 80%   80%    
    Services revenue 148.9 – 148.9 149.2 – 149.2 (0)% (0)%
    Software Revenue breakdown by product line                
    Industrial Innovation 744.6 – 744.6 701.9 – 701.9 6% 6%
    Life Sciences 268.3 – 268.3 281.7 – 281.7 (5)% (5)%
    Mainstream Innovation 359.7 1.6 361.3 363.0 – 363.0 (1)% (0)%
    Software Revenue breakdown by geography                
    Americas 505.0 – 505.0 525.5 – 525.5 (4)% (4)%
    Europe 533.4 1.4 534.8 491.9 – 491.9 8% 9%
    Asia 334.3 0.1 334.4 329.1 – 329.1 2% 2%
    Total Operating Expenses € (1,279.9) € 202.9 € (1,077.1) € (1,219.8) € 171.9 € (1,047.9) 5% 3%
    Share-based compensation expense and related social charges (107.7) 107.7 – (65.8) 65.8 –    
    Amortization of acquired intangible assets and of tangible assets revaluation (85.4) 85.4 – (92.3) 92.3 –    
    Lease incentives of acquired companies (0.4) 0.4 – (0.5) 0.5 –    
    Other operating income and expense, net (9.3) 9.3 – (13.2) 13.2 –    
    Operating Income € 241.7 € 204.4 € 446.1 € 276.0 € 171.9 € 447.8 (12)% (0)%
    Operating Margin 15.9%   29.3% 18.4%   29.9%    
    Financial income (loss), net 29.9 0.6 30.4 33.3 0.5 33.8 (10)% (10)%
    Income tax expense (53.0) (32.8) (85.7) (47.7) (36.4) (84.1) 11% 2%
    Non-controlling interest 4.9 (4.7) 0.3 1.2 (1.6) (0.4) 300% (167)%
    Net Income attributable to shareholders € 223.5 € 167.6 € 391.0 € 262.7 € 134.4 € 397.1 (15)% (2)%
    Diluted Earnings Per Share (3) € 0.17 € 0.13 € 0.30 € 0.21 € 0.09 € 0.30 (19)% (1)%

    (1) In the reconciliation schedule above, (i) all adjustments to IFRS revenue data reflect the exclusion of the effect of adjusting the carrying value of acquired companies’ contract liabilities (deferred revenue); (ii) adjustments to IFRS operating expense data reflect the exclusion of the amortization of acquired intangible assets and of tangible assets revaluation, share-based compensation expense, including related social charges, lease incentives of acquired companies, as detailed below, and other operating income and expense, net including acquisition, integration and restructuring expenses, and impairment of goodwill and acquired intangible assets; (iii) adjustments to IFRS financial loss, net reflect the exclusion of certain one-time items included in financial loss, net, and; (iv) all adjustments to IFRS income data reflect the combined effect of these adjustments, plus with respect to net income and diluted earnings per share, certain one-time tax effects and the income tax effect of the non-IFRS adjustments.

    In millions of Euros, except percentages Three months ended June 30, Change
    2025

    IFRS

    		 Share-based compensation expense and related social charges Lease incentives of acquired companies 2025

    Non-IFRS

    		 2024

    IFRS

    		 Share-based compensation expense and related social charges Lease incentives of acquired companies 2024

    Non-IFRS

    		 IFRS Non-

    IFRS
    Cost of revenue (264.7) 13.9 0.1 (250.7) (252.8) 5.0 0.1 (247.6) 5% 1%
    Research and development expenses (348.7) 28.9 0.1 (319.7) (326.1) 20.4 0.2 (305.5) 7% 5%
    Marketing and sales expenses (448.0) 39.7 0.1 (408.2) (423.8) 23.2 0.1 (400.5) 6% 2%
    General and administrative expenses (123.7) 25.2 0.0 (98.5) (111.6) 17.2 0.0 (94.3) 11% 4%
    Total   € 107.7 € 0.4     € 65.8 € 0.5      

    (2) The non-IFRS percentage increase (decrease) compares non-IFRS measures for the two different periods. In the event there is non-IFRS adjustment to the relevant measure for only one of the periods under comparison, the non-IFRS increase (decrease) compares the non-IFRS measure to the relevant IFRS measure.
    (3) Based on a weighted average 1,324.4 million diluted shares for Q2 2025 and 1,326.2 million diluted shares for Q2 2024, and, for IFRS only, a diluted net income attributable to the sharehorlders of € 223.5 million for Q2 2025 (€ 276.7 million for Q2 2024). The Diluted net income attributable to equity holders of the Group corresponds to the Net Income attributable to equity holders of the Group adjusted by the impact of the share-based compensation plans to be settled either in cash or in shares at the option of the Group.

    DASSAULT SYSTÈMES
    SUPPLEMENTAL NON-IFRS FINANCIAL INFORMATION
    IFRS – NON-IFRS RECONCILIATION
    (unaudited; in millions of Euros, except per share data and percentages)

    Readers are cautioned that the supplemental non-IFRS information presented in this press release is subject to inherent limitations. It is not based on any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles and should not be considered as a substitute for IFRS measurements. Also, the Group’s supplemental non-IFRS financial information may not be comparable to similarly titled “non-IFRS” measures used by other companies. Further specific limitations for individual non-IFRS measures, and the reasons for presenting non-IFRS financial information, are set forth in the Group’s Document d’Enregistrement Universel for the year ended December 31, 2024 filed with the AMF on March 18, 2025. To compensate for these limitations, the supplemental non-IFRS financial information should be read not in isolation, but only in conjunction with the Group’s consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with IFRS.

    In millions of Euros, except per share data and percentages Six months ended June 30, Change
    2025 Adjustment(1) 2025 2024 Adjustment(1) 2024 IFRS Non-IFRS(2)
    IFRS Non-IFRS IFRS Non-IFRS
    Total Revenue € 3,094.6 € 1.6 € 3,096.2 € 2,995.4 – € 2,995.4 3% 3%
    Revenue breakdown by activity                
    Software revenue 2,805.4 1.6 2,807.0 2,699.4 – 2,699.4 4% 4%
    Licenses and other software revenue 473.7 – 473.7 490.3 – 490.3 (3)% (3)%
    Subscription and Support revenue 2,331.7 1.6 2,333.2 2,209.1 – 2,209.1 6% 6%
    Recurring portion of Software revenue 83%   83% 82%   82%    
    Services revenue 289.2 – 289.2 296.1 – 296.1 (2)% (2)%
    Software Revenue breakdown by product line                
    Industrial Innovation 1,537.7 – 1,537.7 1,433.2 – 1,433.2 7% 7%
    Life Sciences 560.9 – 560.9 566.4 – 566.4 (1)% (1)%
    Mainstream Innovation 706.8 1.6 708.3 699.7 – 699.7 1% 1%
    Software Revenue breakdown by geography                
    Americas 1,116.1 0.1 1,116.2 1,079.1 – 1,079.1 3% 3%
    Europe 1,046.6 1.4 1,048.0 995.1 – 995.1 5% 5%
    Asia 642.7 0.1 642.8 625.2 – 625.2 3% 3%
    Total Operating Expenses € (2,548.4) € 384.4 € (2,164.0) € (2,395.4) € 314.3 € (2,081.1) 6% 4%
    Share-based compensation expense and related social charges (196.2) 196.2 – (112.6) 112.6 –    
    Amortization of acquired intangible assets and of tangible assets revaluation (173.8) 173.8 – (185.6) 185.6 –    
    Lease incentives of acquired companies (0.8) 0.8 – (1.2) 1.2 –    
    Other operating income and expense, net (13.7) 13.7 – (15.0) 15.0 –    
    Operating Income € 546.1 € 386.0 € 932.2 € 600.0 € 314.3 € 914.3 (9)% 2%
    Operating Margin 17.6%   30.1% 20.0%   30.5%    
    Financial income (loss), net 60.2 1.1 61.3 63.4 1.5 64.9 (5)% (6)%
    Income tax expense (128.4) (54.4) (182.8) (116.0) (68.0) (184.0) 11% (1)%
    Non-controlling interest 6.1 (5.6) 0.5 1.0 (1.9) (0.9) N/A (152)%
    Net Income attributable to shareholders € 484.0 € 327.2 € 811.2 € 548.4 € 245.9 € 794.3 (12)% 2%
    Diluted Earnings Per Share (3) € 0.37 € 0.25 € 0.61 € 0.42 € 0.17 € 0.60 (14)% 2%

    (1) In the reconciliation schedule above, (i) all adjustments to IFRS revenue data reflect the exclusion of the effect of adjusting the carrying value of acquired companies’ contract liabilities (deferred revenue); (ii) adjustments to IFRS operating expense data reflect the exclusion of the amortization of acquired intangible assets and of tangible assets revaluation, share-based compensation expense, including related social charges, lease incentives of acquired companies, as detailed below, and other operating income and expense, net including acquisition, integration and restructuring expenses, and impairment of goodwill and acquired intangible assets; (iii) adjustments to IFRS financial loss, net reflect the exclusion of certain one-time items included in financial loss, net, and; (iv) all adjustments to IFRS income data reflect the combined effect of these adjustments, plus with respect to net income and diluted earnings per share, certain one-time tax effects and the income tax effect of the non-IFRS adjustments.

    In millions of Euros, except percentages Six months ended June 30, Change
    2025

    IFRS

    		 Share-based compensation expense and related social charges Lease incentives of acquired companies 2025

    Non-IFRS

    		 2024

    IFRS

    		 Share-based compensation expense and related social charges Lease incentives of acquired companies 2024

    Non-IFRS

    		 IFRS Non-

    IFRS
    Cost of revenue (525.0) 18.8 0.2 (505.9) (496.5) 8.0 0.3 (488.2) 6% 4%
    Research and development expenses (697.3) 61.4 0.3 (635.7) (637.5) 38.3 0.6 (598.7) 9% 6%
    Marketing and sales expenses (894.5) 64.2 0.2 (830.1) (844.1) 36.8 0.2 (807.1) 6% 3%
    General and administrative expenses (244.2) 51.8 0.1 (192.3) (216.7) 29.5 0.1 (187.1) 13% 3%
    Total   € 196.2 € 0.8     € 112.6 € 1.2      

    (2) The non-IFRS percentage increase (decrease) compares non-IFRS measures for the two different periods. In the event there is non-IFRS adjustment to the relevant measure for only one of the periods under comparison, the non-IFRS increase (decrease) compares the non-IFRS measure to the relevant IFRS measure.
    (3) Based on a weighted average 1,325.7 million diluted shares for YTD 2025 and 1,328.7 million diluted shares for YTD 2024, and, for IFRS only, a diluted net income attributable to the sharehorlders of € 484.0 million for YTD 2025 (€ 562.3 million for YTD 2024). The Diluted net income attributable to equity holders of the Group corresponds to the Net Income attributable to equity holders of the Group adjusted by the impact of the share-based compensation plans to be settled either in cash or in shares at the option of the Group.

    1 IFRS figures for 2Q25: Total revenue of €1.52 billion, up 5%, and subscription revenue up 9%; Operating margin of 15.9% and diluted EPS of €0.17; IFRS figures for YTD25: total revenue of €3.09 billion, subscription revenue up 12%; Operating margin of 17.6% and diluted EPS of €0.37.  

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: Why Texas Hill Country, where a devastating flood killed more than 135 people, is one of the deadliest places in the US for flash flooding

    Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Hatim Sharif, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Texas at San Antonio

    A Kerrville, Texas, resident watches the flooded Guadalupe River on July 4, 2025. Eric Vryn/Getty Images

    Texas Hill Country is known for its landscapes, where shallow rivers wind among hills and through rugged valleys. That geography also makes it one of the deadliest places in the U.S. for flash flooding.

    In the early hours of July 4, 2025, a flash flood swept through an area of Hill Country dotted with summer camps and small towns about 70 miles northwest of San Antonio. More than 135 people died in the flooding. The majority of them were in Kerr County, including more than two dozen girls and counselors at one summer camp, Camp Mystic. Dozens more people were still unaccounted for a week later.

    The flooding began with a heavy downpour, with more than 10 inches of rain in some areas, that sent water sheeting off the hillsides and into creeks. The creeks poured into the Guadalupe River.

    A river gauge at Hunt, Texas, near Camp Mystic, showed how quickly the river flooded: Around 3 a.m. on July 4, the Guadalupe River was rising about 1 foot every 5 minutes at the gauge, National Weather Service data shows. By 4:30 a.m., it had risen more than 20 feet. As the water moved downstream, it reached Kerrville, where the river rose even faster.

    Flood expert Hatim Sharif, a hydrologist and civil engineer at the University of Texas at San Antonio, explains what makes this part of the country, known as Flash Flood Alley, so dangerous.

    What makes Hill Country so prone to flooding?

    Texas as a whole leads the nation in flood deaths, and by a wide margin. A colleague and I analyzed data from 1959 to 2019 and found 1,069 people had died in flooding in Texas over those six decades. The next highest total was in Louisiana, with 693.

    Many of those flood deaths have been in Hill County. It’s part of an area known as Flash Flood Alley, a crescent of land that curves from near Dallas down to San Antonio and then westward.

    The hills are steep, and the water moves quickly when it floods. This is a semi-arid area with soils that don’t soak up much water, so the water sheets off quickly and the shallow creeks can rise fast.

    When those creeks converge on a river, they can create a surge of water that wipes out homes and washes away cars and, unfortunately, anyone in its path.

    Hill Country has seen some devastating flash floods. In 1987, heavy rain in western Kerr County quickly flooded the Guadalupe River, triggering a flash flood similar to the one in 2025. Ten teenagers being evacuated from a camp died in the rushing water.

    San Antonio, at the eastern edge of Hill Country, was hit with a flash flood on June 12, 2025, that killed 13 people whose cars were swept away by high water from a fast-flooding creek near an interstate ramp in the early morning.

    Why does the region get such strong downpours?

    One reason Hill Country gets powerful downpours is the Balcones Escarpment.

    The escarpment is a line of cliffs and steep hills created by a geologic fault. When warm air from the Gulf rushes up the escarpment, it condenses and can dump a lot of moisture. That water flows down the hills quickly, from many different directions, filling streams and rivers below.

    As temperature rise, the warmer atmosphere can hold more moisture, increasing the downpour and flood risk.

    A tour of the Guadalupe River and its flood risk.

    The same effect can contribute to flash flooding in San Antonio, where the large amount of paved land and lack of updated drainage to control runoff adds to the risk.

    What can be done to improve flash flood safety?

    First, it’s important for people to understand why flash flooding happens and just how fast the water can rise and flow. In many arid areas, dry or shallow creeks can quickly fill up with fast-moving water and become deadly. So people should be aware of the risks and pay attention to the weather.

    Improving flood forecasting, with more detailed models of the physics and water velocity at different locations, can also help.

    Probabilistic forecasting, for example, can provide a range of rainfall scenarios, enabling authorities to prepare for worst-case scenarios. A scientific framework linking rainfall forecasts to the local impacts, such as streamflow, flood depth and water velocity, could also help decision-makers implement timely evacuations or road closures.

    Education is particularly essential for drivers. One to two feet of moving water can wash away a car. People may think their trucks and SUVs can go through anything, but fast-moving water can flip a truck and carry it away.

    Officials can also do more to barricade roads when the flood risk is high to prevent people from driving into harm’s way. We found that 58% of the flood deaths in Texas over the past six decades involved vehicles. The storm on June 12 in San Antonio was an example. It was early morning, and drivers had poor visibility. The cars were hit by fast-rising floodwater from an adjacent creek.

    This article, originally published July 5, 2025, has been updated with the death toll rising.

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

    – ref. Why Texas Hill Country, where a devastating flood killed more than 135 people, is one of the deadliest places in the US for flash flooding – https://theconversation.com/why-texas-hill-country-where-a-devastating-flood-killed-more-than-135-people-is-one-of-the-deadliest-places-in-the-us-for-flash-flooding-260555

    MIL OSI –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Government Cuts – Govt funding squeeze sees DOC cutting a further 71 roles – PSA

    Source: PSA

    The need to meet Government spending cut requirements means the Department of Conservation (DOC) will be cutting a net 71 support roles around the country, many in small rural towns.
    DOC confirmed to staff today that it will be disestablishing 143 support roles and creating 72 new positions, meaning a net reduction of 71 roles. Of the 72 new support roles, 25 are half-time.
    Removing support staff, who monitor the radios used by DOC staff working away from the office to stay safe, poses health and safety risks, PSA National Secretary Fleur Fitzsimons says.
    “The current support staff have sizeable health and safety responsibilities, such as monitoring staff radio systems and helping to manage emergencies like fires. The loss of these team members will mean that these important duties will fall on others – and pose a significant health and safety risk.
    “DOC Rangers, contractors and volunteers rely on the radios to stay in regular contact with their offices and ensure they can get help if they run into trouble,” Fitzsimons says.
    “It’s one example of how the loss of business support staff will mean administrative work will have to be done by other DOC staff.
    “This will mean they have less time to focus on vital work like protecting threatened species, repairing tracks and pest control,” Fitzsimons says.
    The cuts also mean the public will no longer be able to access DOC offices, apart from Visitors’ Centres, because the loss of support staff will mean there will be no one to manage reception.
    “A farmer in town for errands will no longer be able to drop into the DOC office to talk with staff about matters of concern. A wealth of local knowledge and wisdom will be lost with the axing of support staff,” Fitzsimons says.
    “Downgrading 25 roles to half-time is a blow to the many workers who cannot make

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI: Voice2Me.ai Launches Industry’s Fastest, Most Secure AI Voice Agents Across Salesforce, PEGA, and ServiceNow Platforms

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    FAIRFAX, Va., July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Voice2Me.ai, the boutique firm driving innovation in enterprise AI voice intelligence, today announced major platform expansions that sets a new standard for AI voice automation with secure, production-grade agents now available across Salesforce, PEGA, and ServiceNow. Building on its success in the ServiceNow certified store, the company’s ultra-secured AI voice agents are now available across Salesforce and PEGA platforms, demonstrating how enterprises can deploy top AI voice agents that are ready to take your call across multiple enterprise ecosystems.

    Voice2Me.ai Customer Support

    Strategic Platform Expansion Beyond ServiceNow

    Voice2Me.ai’s expansion from its flagship ServiceNow integration to Salesforce and PEGA represents a significant milestone in making the best AI voice agents accessible across all major enterprise platforms. The company’s certified and approved ServiceNow apps in the ServiceNow store, has driven deeper trust and recognition in the industry, establishing Voice2Me.ai as the go-to provider for building AI voice agents for production-grade enterprise environments.

    “Our expansion beyond ServiceNow proves that organizations across all platforms are hungry for top AI voice agents that deliver both security and simplicity,” said Eva Karnaukh, CEO of Voice2Me.ai. “We’re not just building AI voice agents – we’re creating intelligent conversation platforms that transform how enterprises communicate across their entire technology stack.”

    Enterprise-Grade Security and Model-Agnostic Architecture

    Voice2Me.ai’s platform distinguishes itself through enterprise-grade security architecture combined with a large-model agnostic approach that delivers fast, secure, and scalable AI voice intelligence. This foundation ensures that AI voice agents are ready to take your call while maintaining the highest standards of data protection across all integrated platforms.

    “The question isn’t whether AI voice agents are ready to take your call – it’s whether your enterprise platform can deliver the conversational experiences your customers expect with military-grade security,” added Karnaukh. “Our model-agnostic approach ensures that regardless of your enterprise architecture, you can deploy the best AI voice agents that integrate seamlessly with your existing workflows.”

    Advanced Technical Innovation for Production Environments

    Voice2Me.ai goes beyond voice enabling multimodal resolution that lets midmarket – enterprise teams speak, see, and solve in real time. From voice to visual context, our agents understand inputs the way humans do. Built to scale across critical industries like healthcare, insurance, and government, the platform pairs advanced telephony with secure AI orchestration for end-to-end support.

    Key technical innovations include:

    • Enterprise-Grade Security Framework: Military-grade security with zero data persistence and comprehensive compliance readiness across all platforms
    • Large-Model Agnostic Architecture: Seamless integration with leading AI models for optimal performance and flexibility
    • Multi-Platform Native Integration: Direct deployment capabilities across ServiceNow, Salesforce, PEGA, with Appian and Workday integrations planned
    • Production-Ready Scalability: Fast, secure, and scalable infrastructure designed for enterprise-grade deployments
    • Advanced Telephony Integration: SIP integrations with major call center providers for enterprise-grade voice capabilities

    With zero data persistence, FedRAMP/HIPAA readiness, and human-in-the-loop controls, the platform is trusted by government, healthcare, and financial services alike.

    Future Roadmap and Platform Strategy

    Following successful deployments across ServiceNow, Salesforce, and PEGA, Voice2Me.ai is strategically planning its next integration with either Appian or Workday, depending on market priorities. This expansion strategy demonstrates the company’s commitment to making top AI voice agents available across all major enterprise platforms while maintaining the security and performance standards required for building AI voice agents for production.

    Global Operations and Professional Services Excellence

    With operations spanning the United States, Europe, and Asia, Voice2Me.ai has positioned itself as a global disruptor of enterprise platform capabilities. The company’s boutique professional services team ensures smooth and fast deployment, helping customers elevate their enterprise platform experience with modern development and AI-powered architecture.

    Voice2Me.ai’s approach focuses on three core principles:

    • Security-First Design: Enterprise-grade security architecture that enables building AI voice agents for production environments
    • Platform Enhancement: Enabling existing midmarket – enterprise platform capabilities with the best AI voice agents
    • Model Flexibility: Large-model agnostic architecture that adapts to evolving AI landscape

    Industry Impact and Market Leadership

    As enterprises increasingly seek solutions for building AI voice agents for production environments, Voice2Me.ai’s comprehensive approach addresses the full spectrum of conversational AI needs. From showing organizations how to deploy top AI voice agents that integrate natively with existing platforms to providing the infrastructure for AI voice agents that are ready to take your call with enterprise-grade security, the company has established itself as the definitive source for production-grade voice intelligence.

    The company’s commitment to ethical, secure, and responsible AI development ensures that all implementations maintain the highest standards of data protection and regulatory compliance while delivering the performance enterprises demand.

    Platform Availability and Enterprise Adoption

    Voice2Me.ai’s expanded platform integrations are available immediately, with enterprises able to deploy the best AI voice agents across ServiceNow (available in the certified store), Salesforce, and PEGA environments. The company’s model-agnostic architecture ensures that organizations can leverage the most advanced AI capabilities while maintaining the security and scalability required for production deployments.

    Organizations interested in learning more about building AI voice agents for production environments can access comprehensive resources and technical documentation through Voice2Me.ai’s platform. The company’s fast, secure, and scalable architecture enables rapid deployment of top AI voice agents that are ready to take your call across any enterprise platform.

    About Voice2Me.ai

    Voice2Me.ai is the leading boutique firm specializing in enterprise AI voice intelligence solutions. Founded in Fairfax, Virginia, the company delivers the best AI voice agents for production environments across major enterprise platforms including ServiceNow (certified store), Salesforce, PEGA, with planned expansions to Appian and Workday. With operations in the US, Europe, and Asia, Voice2Me.ai empowers organizations to build AI voice agents with enterprise-grade security and model-agnostic architecture, providing fast, secure, and scalable conversational AI solutions for enterprises worldwide.

    Media Contact: Eva Karnaukh, CEO Voice2Me.ai Email: press@voice2me.ai Website: voice2me.ai

    Learn More:

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8214011f-b8b3-4d8d-9dbe-9ad08e50e7be

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Greenpeace Statement – Gore ‘not out of the woods yet’- nitrate level linked to increased risk of preterm birth

    Source: Greenpeace

    Greenpeace Aotearoa has tested a sample collected from the Gore town supply, which returned a result above 5 mg/L nitrate (NO3-N), a level associated with an increased risk of preterm birth.
    Above this level of nitrate, the New Zealand College of Midwives recomm

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: World’s highest court issues groundbreaking ruling for climate action. Here’s what it means for Australia

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Wesley Morgan, Research Associate, Institute for Climate Risk and Response, UNSW Sydney

    JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images

    The world’s highest court says countries are legally obliged to prevent harms caused by climate change, in a ruling that repudiates Australia’s claims it is not legally responsible for emissions from our fossil fuel exports.

    The landmark ruling overnight by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will reverberate in courts, parliaments and boardrooms the world over.

    In a closely watched case at The Hague, the judges were asked to clarify the legal obligations countries have to protect the Earth’s climate system for current and future generations. They were also asked to clarify the legal consequences for nations that fail to do this.

    At issue was the scope of legal obligations. During the court’s deliberations, Australia sided with other fossil fuel exporters and major emitters – including Saudi Arabia, the United States and China – to argue state obligations on climate change are restricted to those set out in climate-specific treaties such as the Paris Agreement.

    But the court disagreed. It found countries have additional obligations to protect the climate and take action to prevent climate harm inside and outside their boundaries. These obligations arise in human rights law, the law of the sea, and general principles of international law.

    This clear statement will have groundbreaking consequences. It means Australia must set a 2035 emissions reduction target in line with the best available science, as required under the Paris Agreement. But it must also go further, by regulating the fossil fuel industry to prevent further harm.

    Australia’s arguments rejected

    The ICJ is the primary legal organ of the United Nations. Its key role is to settle disputes between countries and clarify international law as it applies to nation states.

    While weighing up the obligations of countries to address the climate crisis, the court heard legal arguments from almost 100 countries, making it the largest case ever heard by the ICJ.

    The case threatened major implications for fossil-fuel producers such as Australia, which is heavily reliant on coal and gas exports.

    In his oral presentation to the ICJ, Australian Solicitor-General Stephen Donaghue told the court only the Paris Agreement should apply when it comes to mitigating climate change. Under the Paris rules, countries must set targets to cut domestic emissions, but they are not required to report emissions created when their fossil fuel exports are burned overseas.

    Donaghue and the Australian delegation also suggested responsibility for harms caused by climate change could not be pinned on individual states. Australia also argued protecting human rights does not extend to obligations to tackle climate change.

    The ICJ largely rejected these arguments.

    The ICJ judges largely rejected Australia’s arguments. Pictured: ICJ President Yuji Iwasawa (third from right) and members issuing their advisory opinion.
    JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images

    Fossil fuel era is over

    The court found Australia, and other fossil fuel producers, are obliged under international law to prevent fossil fuel companies in their territory from causing significant climate harm.

    This will essentially require a managed phase out of fossil fuel production. As the ICJ ruling says:

    Failure of a State to take appropriate action to protect the climate system from [greenhouse gas] emissions – including through fossil fuel production, fossil fuel consumption, the granting of fossil fuel exploration licences or the provision of fossil fuel subsidies – may constitute an internationally wrongful act which is attributable to that State.

    Australia is one of the world’s largest exporters of coal and gas. When burned overseas, emissions from Australia’s fossil fuel exports are more than double those of its entire domestic economy.

    Australia has approved hundreds of oil, gas and coal projects in recent decades. Dozens more are in the approvals pipeline. Final federal approval is still pending for Woodside’s massive Northwest Shelf gas project – which is set to add millions of tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year, for decades.

    The Australian government must heed the message from the Hague. The days of impunity for the fossil fuel industry are coming to an end.

    Woodside’s massive Northwest Shelf gas project is set to add millions of tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year.
    GREG WOOD/AFP via Getty Images

    A spark of hope from the Pacific

    Today’s ruling is remarkable for where it originated.

    In 2019, 27 law students at the University of the South Pacific in Vanuatu were given a challenge: find the most ambitious legal pathways towards climate justice.

    Each year, Vanuatu faces the prospect of cyclones, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes, flooding rain and drought. Climate change compounds the risk to island communities – people who have done the least to contribute to the problem.

    The students decided to file a case with the world court. And so began a legal campaign that travelled from Vanuatu’s capital, Port Vila, through the halls of the United Nations in New York and to the world court in the Hague.

    In 2023 Vanuatu and other island nations succeeded in passing a UN General Assembly resolution. It asked the ICJ to give an advisory opinion on countries’ obligations to protect the climate system and legal consequences for states causing “significant harm” to Earth’s climate.

    This week’s ruling delivers poetic justice to Vanuatu and other vulnerable island states.

    The ruling delivers poetic justice to Vanuatu and other vulnerable island states. Pictured: representatives of Pacific states outside the International Court of Justice in December 2024.
    Michel Porro/Getty Images

    A new era for climate justice

    The court’s findings are likely to influence a wave of climate litigation worldwide. It could shape legal reasoning in Australia, too.

    Last week, a Federal Court judge found the Australian government has no legal duty of care to protect Torres Strait Islanders from climate change. If that case is appealed, a superior court may revisit the government’s obligations – and have regard to the ICJ ruling in doing so.

    The ICJ decision will also be relevant for the Queensland Land Court, which this week began hearing a challenge to stop a greenfield mine proposed by Whitehaven Coal – citing environmental and human rights impacts of the project’s emissions.

    Clarified international law obligations should also guide policymakers in the Australian parliament. With a huge majority in the House of Representatives and a climate-friendly Senate crossbench, the Albanese government has a mandate to implement policy in line with Australia’s international law obligations.

    Wesley Morgan is a fellow with the Climate Council of Australia

    Gillian Moon is a regular donor to the Australian Conservation Foundation, which is a party in the Whitehaven Coal case.

    – ref. World’s highest court issues groundbreaking ruling for climate action. Here’s what it means for Australia – https://theconversation.com/worlds-highest-court-issues-groundbreaking-ruling-for-climate-action-heres-what-it-means-for-australia-261842

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: ER Report: A Roundup of Significant Articles on EveningReport.nz for July 24, 2025

    ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on July 24, 2025.

    World’s highest court issues groundbreaking ruling for climate action. Here’s what it means for Australia
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Wesley Morgan, Research Associate, Institute for Climate Risk and Response, UNSW Sydney JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images The world’s highest court says countries are legally obliged to prevent harms caused by climate change, in a ruling that repudiates Australia’s claims it is not legally responsible for emissions

    Politics with Michelle Grattan: Chris Bowen on why it’s ‘a little frustrating’ bidding for COP 31
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Energy and climate issues are front and centre for both sides of politics. The government is struggling with pushback from some regional communities against the rollout of transmission lines and wind farms. At the same time, it will soon have

    Cycling’s governing body is introducing new rules to slow down elite riders. Not everyone’s happy
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Popi Sotiriadou, Associate Professor of Sport Management – Director Business Innovation, Griffith University MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP via Getty Images Most sports look to support their athletes to become “faster, higher, stronger” – in reference to the Olympic Games’ original motto – so it is perhaps surprising that cycling’s

    Swirling nebula of two dying stars revealed in spectacular detail in new Webb telescope image
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Benjamin Pope, Associate Professor, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Macquarie University The day before my thesis examination, my friend and radio astronomer Joe Callingham showed me an image we’d been awaiting for five long years – an infrared photo of two dying stars we’d requested from

    UN’s highest court finds countries can be held legally responsible for emissions
    By Jamie Tahana in The Hague for RNZ Pacific The United Nations’ highest court has found that countries can be held legally responsible for their greenhouse gas emissions, in a ruling highly anticipated by Pacific countries long frustrated with the pace of global action to address climate change. In a landmark opinion delivered yesterday in

    Five arms, no heart and a global family: what DNA revealed about the weird deep-sea world of brittle stars
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim O’Hara, Senior Curator of Marine Invertebrates, Museums Victoria Research Institute A brittle star of the species _Gorgonocephalus eucnemis_. Lagunatic Photo / Getty Images You may have read that the deep sea is a very different environment from the land and shallow water. There is no light,

    Birds use hidden black and white feathers to make themselves more colourful
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Simon Griffith, Professor of Avian Behavioural Ecology, Macquarie University The green-headed tanager (_Tangara seledon_) has a hidden layer of plumage that is white underneath the orange feathers and black underneath the blue and green feathers. Daniel Field Birds are perhaps the most colourful group of animals, bringing

    Is sleeping a lot actually bad for your health? A sleep scientist explains
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Charlotte Gupta, Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Appleton Institute, HealthWise Research Group, CQUniversity Australia Walstrom, Susanne/Getty We’re constantly being reminded by news articles and social media posts that we should be getting more sleep. You probably don’t need to hear it again – not sleeping enough is bad

    From grasslands to killing fields: why trees are bad news for one of Australia’s most stunning birds
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gabriel Crowley, Adjunct Associate Professor in Geography, University of Adelaide JJ Harrison/Wikimedia, CC BY Picture this. A small, rainbow-coloured chick emerges from its nest for the first time. It stretches its wings and prepares to take flight. But before the fledgling’s life in the wild has begun,

    As seas rise and fish decline, this Fijian village is finding new ways to adapt
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Celia McMichael, Professor in Geography, The University of Melbourne Celia McMichael, CC BY-NC-ND In the village of Nagigi, Fiji, the ocean isn’t just a resource – it’s part of the community’s identity. But in recent years, villagers have seen the sea behave differently. Tides are pushing inland.

    After 70 years, twisted gothic thriller The Night of the Hunter remains as disturbing and beguiling as ever
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ben McCann, Associate Professor of French Studies, University of Adelaide United Artists/Getty Images In 1955, director Charles Laughton crafted one of the darkest, strangest fairytales ever to come out of Hollywood. The Night of the Hunter remains visually exquisite and profoundly unsettling. Shortly before Ben Harper is

    Almost a third of NZ households face energy hardship – reform has to go beyond cheaper off-peak power
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kimberley O’Sullivan, Senior Research Fellow, He Kainga Oranga – Housing and Health Research Programme, University of Otago Igor Suka/Getty Images The spotlight is again on New Zealand’s energy sector, with a group of industry bodies and independent retailers pushing for a market overhaul, saying the sector was

    Immigration courts hiding the names of ICE lawyers goes against centuries of precedent and legal ethics requiring transparency in courts
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cassandra Burke Robertson, Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Professional Ethics, Case Western Reserve University Some immigration courts have allowed ICE attorneys to conceal their names during proceedings. Jacob Wackerhausen/iStock via Getty Images Something unusual is happening in U.S. immigration courts. Government lawyers are

    How the UK’s immigration system splits families apart – by design
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nando Sigona, Professor of International Migration and Forced Displacement and Director of the Institute for Research into International Migration and Superdiversity, University of Birmingham arda savasciogullari/Shutterstock The letter that arrived for eleven-year-old Guilherme in June 2025 was addressed personally to him. The UK Home Office was informing

    4.48 Psychosis revival: the play’s window into a mind on the edge is as brutal as ever
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leah Sidi, Associate Professor of Health Humanities, UCL Under bright lights, the audience looks at a bare stage on two planes. Below, a small stage is white and empty, occupied only by a table and two chairs. Above, a huge, slanted mirror reflects a bird’s-eye view of

    Togo’s ‘Nana-Benz’: how cheap Chinese imports of African fabrics has hurt the famous women traders
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Fidele B. Ebia, Postdoctoral fellow, Duke Africa Initiative, Duke University The manufacturing of African print textiles has shifted to China in the 21st century. While they are widely consumed in African countries – and symbolic of the continent – the rise of “made in China” has undermined

    2 ways cities can beat the heat: Which is best, urban trees or cool roofs?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Smith, Research Scientist in Earth & Environment, Boston University Trees like these in Boston can help keep neighborhoods cooler on hot days. Yassine Khalfalli/Unsplash, CC BY When summer turns up the heat, cities can start to feel like an oven, as buildings and pavement trap the

    Indonesian military set to complete Trans-Papua Highway under Prabowo’s rule
    By Julian Isaac The Indonesian Military (TNI) is committed to supporting the completion of the Trans-Papua Highway during President Prabowo Subianto’s term in office. While the military is not involved in construction, it plays a critical role in securing the project from threats posed by pro-independence Papuan resistance groups in “high-risk” regions. Spanning a total

    View from The Hill: Nationals’ mavericks ensure the Coalition is the issue in parliament’s first week
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra For almost as long anyone can remember, the Nationals have caused the Coalition grief on climate and energy policy. Still, for Barnaby Joyce to bring on a fresh load of trouble – with a private member’s bill to scrap Australia’s

    Childcare centres will have funding stripped if they’re not ‘up to scratch’. Is this enough?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Erin Harper, Lecturer, School of Education and Social Work, University of Sydney Maskot/Getty Images Childcare centres will lose their eligibility for fee subsidies if they don’t meet safety standards, according to a new bill introduced to parliament on Wednesday. As Education Minister Jason Clare told parliament: it

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: ER Report: A Roundup of Significant Articles on EveningReport.nz for July 24, 2025

    ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on July 24, 2025.

    World’s highest court issues groundbreaking ruling for climate action. Here’s what it means for Australia
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Wesley Morgan, Research Associate, Institute for Climate Risk and Response, UNSW Sydney JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images The world’s highest court says countries are legally obliged to prevent harms caused by climate change, in a ruling that repudiates Australia’s claims it is not legally responsible for emissions

    Politics with Michelle Grattan: Chris Bowen on why it’s ‘a little frustrating’ bidding for COP 31
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Energy and climate issues are front and centre for both sides of politics. The government is struggling with pushback from some regional communities against the rollout of transmission lines and wind farms. At the same time, it will soon have

    Cycling’s governing body is introducing new rules to slow down elite riders. Not everyone’s happy
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Popi Sotiriadou, Associate Professor of Sport Management – Director Business Innovation, Griffith University MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP via Getty Images Most sports look to support their athletes to become “faster, higher, stronger” – in reference to the Olympic Games’ original motto – so it is perhaps surprising that cycling’s

    Swirling nebula of two dying stars revealed in spectacular detail in new Webb telescope image
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Benjamin Pope, Associate Professor, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Macquarie University The day before my thesis examination, my friend and radio astronomer Joe Callingham showed me an image we’d been awaiting for five long years – an infrared photo of two dying stars we’d requested from

    UN’s highest court finds countries can be held legally responsible for emissions
    By Jamie Tahana in The Hague for RNZ Pacific The United Nations’ highest court has found that countries can be held legally responsible for their greenhouse gas emissions, in a ruling highly anticipated by Pacific countries long frustrated with the pace of global action to address climate change. In a landmark opinion delivered yesterday in

    Five arms, no heart and a global family: what DNA revealed about the weird deep-sea world of brittle stars
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim O’Hara, Senior Curator of Marine Invertebrates, Museums Victoria Research Institute A brittle star of the species _Gorgonocephalus eucnemis_. Lagunatic Photo / Getty Images You may have read that the deep sea is a very different environment from the land and shallow water. There is no light,

    Birds use hidden black and white feathers to make themselves more colourful
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Simon Griffith, Professor of Avian Behavioural Ecology, Macquarie University The green-headed tanager (_Tangara seledon_) has a hidden layer of plumage that is white underneath the orange feathers and black underneath the blue and green feathers. Daniel Field Birds are perhaps the most colourful group of animals, bringing

    Is sleeping a lot actually bad for your health? A sleep scientist explains
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Charlotte Gupta, Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Appleton Institute, HealthWise Research Group, CQUniversity Australia Walstrom, Susanne/Getty We’re constantly being reminded by news articles and social media posts that we should be getting more sleep. You probably don’t need to hear it again – not sleeping enough is bad

    From grasslands to killing fields: why trees are bad news for one of Australia’s most stunning birds
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gabriel Crowley, Adjunct Associate Professor in Geography, University of Adelaide JJ Harrison/Wikimedia, CC BY Picture this. A small, rainbow-coloured chick emerges from its nest for the first time. It stretches its wings and prepares to take flight. But before the fledgling’s life in the wild has begun,

    As seas rise and fish decline, this Fijian village is finding new ways to adapt
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Celia McMichael, Professor in Geography, The University of Melbourne Celia McMichael, CC BY-NC-ND In the village of Nagigi, Fiji, the ocean isn’t just a resource – it’s part of the community’s identity. But in recent years, villagers have seen the sea behave differently. Tides are pushing inland.

    After 70 years, twisted gothic thriller The Night of the Hunter remains as disturbing and beguiling as ever
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ben McCann, Associate Professor of French Studies, University of Adelaide United Artists/Getty Images In 1955, director Charles Laughton crafted one of the darkest, strangest fairytales ever to come out of Hollywood. The Night of the Hunter remains visually exquisite and profoundly unsettling. Shortly before Ben Harper is

    Almost a third of NZ households face energy hardship – reform has to go beyond cheaper off-peak power
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kimberley O’Sullivan, Senior Research Fellow, He Kainga Oranga – Housing and Health Research Programme, University of Otago Igor Suka/Getty Images The spotlight is again on New Zealand’s energy sector, with a group of industry bodies and independent retailers pushing for a market overhaul, saying the sector was

    Immigration courts hiding the names of ICE lawyers goes against centuries of precedent and legal ethics requiring transparency in courts
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cassandra Burke Robertson, Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Professional Ethics, Case Western Reserve University Some immigration courts have allowed ICE attorneys to conceal their names during proceedings. Jacob Wackerhausen/iStock via Getty Images Something unusual is happening in U.S. immigration courts. Government lawyers are

    How the UK’s immigration system splits families apart – by design
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nando Sigona, Professor of International Migration and Forced Displacement and Director of the Institute for Research into International Migration and Superdiversity, University of Birmingham arda savasciogullari/Shutterstock The letter that arrived for eleven-year-old Guilherme in June 2025 was addressed personally to him. The UK Home Office was informing

    4.48 Psychosis revival: the play’s window into a mind on the edge is as brutal as ever
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leah Sidi, Associate Professor of Health Humanities, UCL Under bright lights, the audience looks at a bare stage on two planes. Below, a small stage is white and empty, occupied only by a table and two chairs. Above, a huge, slanted mirror reflects a bird’s-eye view of

    Togo’s ‘Nana-Benz’: how cheap Chinese imports of African fabrics has hurt the famous women traders
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Fidele B. Ebia, Postdoctoral fellow, Duke Africa Initiative, Duke University The manufacturing of African print textiles has shifted to China in the 21st century. While they are widely consumed in African countries – and symbolic of the continent – the rise of “made in China” has undermined

    2 ways cities can beat the heat: Which is best, urban trees or cool roofs?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Smith, Research Scientist in Earth & Environment, Boston University Trees like these in Boston can help keep neighborhoods cooler on hot days. Yassine Khalfalli/Unsplash, CC BY When summer turns up the heat, cities can start to feel like an oven, as buildings and pavement trap the

    Indonesian military set to complete Trans-Papua Highway under Prabowo’s rule
    By Julian Isaac The Indonesian Military (TNI) is committed to supporting the completion of the Trans-Papua Highway during President Prabowo Subianto’s term in office. While the military is not involved in construction, it plays a critical role in securing the project from threats posed by pro-independence Papuan resistance groups in “high-risk” regions. Spanning a total

    View from The Hill: Nationals’ mavericks ensure the Coalition is the issue in parliament’s first week
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra For almost as long anyone can remember, the Nationals have caused the Coalition grief on climate and energy policy. Still, for Barnaby Joyce to bring on a fresh load of trouble – with a private member’s bill to scrap Australia’s

    Childcare centres will have funding stripped if they’re not ‘up to scratch’. Is this enough?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Erin Harper, Lecturer, School of Education and Social Work, University of Sydney Maskot/Getty Images Childcare centres will lose their eligibility for fee subsidies if they don’t meet safety standards, according to a new bill introduced to parliament on Wednesday. As Education Minister Jason Clare told parliament: it

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cramer Chairs EPW Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee Hearing, Discusses Regulatory Reforms, Safe Routes to School

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, held a hearing on the development of the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill. The hearing focused specifically on three bipartisan bills Cramer led with colleagues on the EPW committee:

    • S.1733, the Highway Funding Transferability Improvement Act, which increases the percentage of funds a state Department of Transportation (DOT) can transfer between formula categories from 50% to 75% percent. This change gives state DOTs more flexibility to direct funds to high-priority infrastructure projects allowing them to make investments better reflecting local needs.
    • S.1167, the Transportation Asset Management Simplification Act, which cuts red tape for State DOTs by streamlining asset management reporting requirements. Specifically, it eliminates annual asset management compliance reports allowing state DOTs to spend more time maintaining and improving roads and bridges instead of filing redundant paperwork.
    • S.1828, the Safe Routes Improvement Act, which requires each state DOT to designate a Safe Routes to School Program coordinator. The intent is to enhance program accessibility for communities in North Dakota and nationwide.

    [embedded content]

    ***Click here for audio. Click here for video.***

    In his opening statement, Cramer said: “As we look toward reauthorization, I’m focused on advancing practical, bipartisan policies to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Federal Aid-highway program.

    “As I like to say, without well-maintained routes like Interstate 94, which is made possible because of formula funding, durum wheat from North Dakota would never become pasta in New York or Los Angeles. North Dakota is low population state, but the number one producer of many commodities. Our roads can’t be relegated to gravel and expect interstate commerce to thrive. The formula system works and this committee has demonstrated a strong commitment to it over the years.

    “Greater flexibility for states is precisely the goal of the Highway Funding Transferability Improvement Act, which I was happy to partner with Ranking Member Alsobrooks on. It’s a great idea and I’m glad we’re working on it. Her forward-thinking approach on this issue is refreshing. The concept with our legislation is remarkably simple, a lot of good things are, but very important. States know their needs better than any bureaucrat in Washington.

    “I look forward to working with my colleagues to get this bill done and to ensure the highway program is more responsive to the needs of our constituents.”

    Cramer introduced Chad Orn, who serves as the Deputy Director for Planning at the North Dakota Department of Transportation, saying “Chad knows firsthand how critical transportation infrastructure is to everyday life in North Dakota. He literally works every day to ensure our roads and bridges meet the needs of communities across the state. I couldn’t ask for a better voice to bring a boots on the ground perspective to this hearing.”

    He also introduced Marisa Jones, the Managing Director for the Safe Routes Partnership. In the last highway bill, Cramer and U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) expanded the Safe Routes to School Program to include high school students. Earlier this year, Cramer introduced the Safe Routes Improvement Act to further enhance the Safe Routes to School Program. In her introductory remarks, Ms. Jones highlighted specific examples of how several North Dakota communities have utilized the Safe Routes to School program to advance projects. “Let’s look at North Dakota to see examples of how Safe Routes to School works in small towns and rural states. Gwinner, with population 924, built sidewalks to connect the Southside neighborhood to the school. Even Medora with just 155 residents completed a Safe Routes to School project connecting the high school to Main Street. And Minot, which I concede is a big city for North Dakota, but it’s been working on Safe Routes for 15 years, guided by a district-wide plan and building sidewalks to schools annually, funded through the transportation alternatives program.”

    [embedded content]

    ***Click here for audio. Click here for video.***

    Cramer first asked Orn and Samantha Biddle, the Maryland Deputy Secretary of Transportation, about specific suggestions for accelerating the delivery of infrastructure projects. Both witnesses highlighted a need to allow more projects to qualify for an expedited environmental review process. This goal aligns with the intent of the One Federal Decision which was included in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and championed by Cramer.

    “We need to raise the rates on that for value engineering, and then the definition of a major project,” said Orn. “That’s another thing. Even here in North Dakota, we’re right up against, the definition of a major project, which, when I first started at DOT, I and I never, ever thought we would be anywhere near what cost a major project but just sheer cost of projects we’re right there.”

    “Just being, you know, realistic about kind of how far we are able to stretch these dollars and then how that does also apply to the permitting landscape, I think, is a needed adjustment in thinking through those sorts of things,” responded Biddle. 

    Cramer then discussed the Safe Routes to School Program. He asked Jones to explain how communities, especially in rural areas, can learn more about the program and ultimately access funds to move forward with safety projects.

    “There’s more funding available, but it means that in a small rural community where they might not have full time staff at all, and maybe the mayor is also the grocery clerk,” responded Jones. “They don’t have the capacity or awareness, sometimes to pursue [this] funding. And so this is exactly why we need statewide routes to school coordinators to help communities, first of all, raise their awareness that this is an opportunity, and then help them navigate federal funding, apply for grants, and build projects that save lives. And we see the return on that investment in rural states in states all across the country […]These are projects that children and families love, local elected officials, love these projects. These help build economic development, improve safety, get kids physically active, and help get kids to school and time and ready to learn.”

    Cramer concluded the hearing by asking witnesses about solutions to address work zone safety challenges. “As big a hurry as we are to get a highway maintained or built or fixed, we’re also often in too big a hurry to get to wherever our destination is and don’t pay it close enough attention to the hazard of workers right on the very highway we’re driving on,” said Cramer. “Maybe you could if you have any thoughts or suggestions legislatively that we should be looking at for improvement of worker safety?”

    Biddle explained how in Maryland, “We implemented legislation, through the state of Maryland, that introduced a tiered fine structure and also allows us to expand our implementation of work zone cameras. I always say that I hope we don’t earn a single dollar through these programs, because it’s not about generating revenue. It’s about protecting our workers and saving lives.”

    Orn outlined the agency’s commitment to safety and the importance of working closely with local partners. “We have a real good relationship with our AGC, our American General Contractors, so we do work with them, and [a] work zone is important, but we don’t want to see a bunch of restrictions on them,” replied Orn. “We still want flexibility to be able to work with our contractors and our partners on the work zone safety. And if we hear any feedback, we make corrections. We fix it. We listen to them because we know it’s critical with that. A few examples of stuff that we did in North Dakota as Samantha led to, we also just raised our fines within work zones, almost doubled them in the state, and that’s going to go an effect on August 1, the state legislature does that. And another thing we do, and we’ve been doing for years and years and years, is we provide overtime dollars to our highway patrol, so then that they can patrol the work zone.”

    Below is the opening statement of Chair Cramer, as delivered.

    “This is a good hearing and a good day to discuss the road ahead for us. We’re going to discuss proposals to improve America’s transportation infrastructure. It’s an important conversation, on the EPW Committee, we’ve already begun to work to craft surface transportation reauthorization legislation for next year.

    “Senator Alsobrooks and I were just visiting about how the last one passed out of the committee unanimously. Beginning work early, working together, having good witnesses helps us get to a similar goal next year.

    “I commend Chairman Capito for her leadership in getting the reauthorization process started early and look forward to working with her, Ranking Member Whitehouse, Ranking Member Alsobrooks, and of course my fellow committee members to get a comprehensive, bipartisan bill across the finish line next year. 

    “I also want to thank our witnesses today for being here. We appreciate your time and the insight that you bring to this conversation.

    “As we look toward reauthorization, I’m focused on advancing practical, bipartisan policies to improve the efficiency and the effectiveness of the Federal Aid-highway program. Just last week, as I said, the full committee held an excellent hearing with state and local leaders, including Governor Kelly Armstrong where we talked about lessons learned in past bills and what improvements we can make. Some programs like the Bridge Formula program are a high priority for all states. Governor Armstrong spoke in strong support of it and it’s no surprise that his Department of Transportation is echoing the same strong support in your testimony today.

    “But there are areas where we can improve. In recent months, I’ve introduced three bills, which I believe are all central to this effort. Each reflects direct input from states and is about getting better outcomes, without increasing the cost to the taxpayers.

    “From the start, however, I need to emphasize the importance of preserving and strengthening formula funding. As I like to say, without well-maintained routes like Interstate 94, which is made possible because of formula funding, durum wheat from North Dakota would never become pasta in New York or Los Angeles, and wouldn’t that be too bad. North Dakota is low population state, but the number one producer of many agricultural commodities. Our roads can’t be relegated to gravel and expect interstate commerce to thrive. The formula system works and this committee has demonstrated a strong commitment to it over the years.

    “In terms of reforms, I think we need to take a serious look at reducing the regulatory burden on states and cutting red tape within the highway program. My bill with Senator Kelly, the Transportation Asset Management Simplification Act, does just that. It’s a small fix but it supports a much bigger goal of cutting through the bureaucracy so that every dollar goes further.

    “Another key principle is providing more flexibility for states to make investment decisions that better reflect local needs. Greater flexibilities for states is precisely the goal of the Highway Funding Transferability Improvement Act, which I was happy to partner with Ranking Member Alsobrooks on. It’s a great idea and I’m glad we’re working on it. Her forward-thinking approach on this issue is refreshing. The concept with our legislation is remarkably simple, a lot of good things are, but very important. States know their needs better than any bureaucrat in Washington. North Dakota and Maryland’s constituents have very different transportation needs. It turns out, when Washington gets out of the way, states know exactly what to do and deliver real results. Both Ranking Member Alsobrooks and I served in state and local government, and I think both of us would agree, the best partnerships with the federal government were those where we could be the most nimble to meet a constituent’s needs. I always tell federal witnesses and nominees: please, do not impose federal mediocrity on our state’s excellence. This bill embodies that basic principle and I look forward to hearing from both our state witnesses on this point.

    “Safety, however, must also be at the forefront of everything we do. Specifically, making it safer and easier for kids to walk and bike to school. I introduced the Safe Routes to School Improvement Act with Senator Markey to do just that. This builds on bipartisan work that we did with Senator Cortez Masto in the last highway bill that expanded the Safe Routes to School program to include high schools. This bill would enhance access to the program for communities in North Dakota and nationwide by requiring states to have a specific point of contact to help local communities navigate the program and understand what exactly they are eligible to apply for. This will improve infrastructure like sidewalks and street crossings so that children who walk or bike to school are safer in that process.

    “Lastly, this committee must do more to accelerate project delivery. There is a lot to be said on this, but I’d just note the One Federal Decision (OFD) framework was a strong concept under the last bipartisan infrastructure bill, but it hasn’t delivered the results we hoped for. As part of reauthorization, at minimum, we should revisit the OFD and make real improvements.

    “I look forward to working with my colleagues to get this bill done and to ensure the highway program is more responsive to the needs of our constituents.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Tuberville Speaks to USDA Undersecretary of Agriculture Nominee

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Alabama Tommy Tuberville

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) participated in a Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry hearing today to consider Mr. Richard Fordyce to be Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm Production and Conservation. During the hearing, Sen. Tuberville and Mr. Fordyce discussed the Farm Board Act and Mid-South Oilseed Double Cropping Study Act—two pieces of legislation Sen. Tuberville introduced today to help Alabama farmers and livestock producers. Sen. Tuberville and Mr. Fordyce also discussed the need to increase guaranteed loan limits to ease the burden on our poultry producers and problems Alabama continues to face with feral swine.

    Excerpts from the interview can be found below and the full interview can be viewed on YouTube or Rumble.

    ON ADDING A PRODUCER FOR LIVESTOCK AND CROPS TO FCIC:

    TUBERVILLE: “Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Fordyce for being here. I grew up close to a town called Fordyce in Arkansas, home of a famous football coach years ago, Mr. Bear Bryant. 

    Thanks for wanting to do this again in another fashion. Thanks for your service because it is awfully hard. […] First of all, I wanna know if you’ll help me support these bills. I just put two new bills, Ag bills, on the floor today. […] The first addresses the Federal Crop Insurance Board of Directors. There are four seats for producers, and we want one of those seats to be for a producer of both livestock and crops to provide a different perspective for various new livestock crops insurance products RMA (Risk Management Agency) is implementing. That’s my first one. Does that sound pretty good?”

    FORDYCE: “Yes, Senator. It actually does. It sounds like it makes some sense. […]”

    TUBERVILLE: “Now we’re from Alabama, and we can make some sense now. OK?”

    […]

    FORDYCE: “So, I’m not backpedaling, Senator, but I think what I would need to do is understand exactly what the makeup is of the Federal Crop Insurance Board, but it sounds like a good idea to me.”

    ON CONDUCTING AN RMA STUDY FOR OILSEED:

    TUBERVILLE: “Thank you. Thank you. The second bill would authorize a study for double and rotational cropping of winter canola in the Mid-South region. This would gather data as farmers in North Alabama and Tennessee are starting to grow winter canola for synthetic aviation fuel and diesel fuel. All these bills get complex. […]”

    FORDYCE: “I’m sure that is complex, but I am aware of the winter canola effort. And I would say that I would applaud the RMA for being responsive and having the ability to, you know, to evolve as things change. So, I would think that they would take a look at what kind of options might be available.”

    TUBERVILLE: “Thank you. And as we all know, our farmers are in bad trouble. I have a lot of friends that are huge farmers, and they don’t know whether they’re gonna make it through the year, much less through this crop. […]”

    ON RAISING GUARANTEED LOAN LIMITS:

    TUBERVILLE: “So, access to credit is becoming harder and harder. This year was really tough. We had to come up with some subsidies for some of the farmers to get them through this past winter to get another crop. Poultry producers are facing huge challenges, steep cost of poultry houses. $3.5 million for four houses. Can you discuss the importance of increasing our guaranteed loan limits to $3.5 million because of that?”

    FORDYCE: “Well, I was serving as the Administrator for the Farm Service Agency the last time the loan limits were raised. And I think it was welcomed certainly by the agency, and it was welcomed by the producers that the farm loan programs serve. And if that were the intent of Congress to raise those loan limits, I think that would be appropriate given the cost of things and the entry level costs of things.”

    ON FERAL SWINE ERADICATION PROGRAM:

    TUBERVILLE: “It’s going to sky high. It’s not getting any cheaper. One quick question: feral swine. We got huge problems in our state, and I know in other states. In the Big Beautiful Bill, we had $105 million for the feral swine eradication program. What’s your stance on the eradication program? You think we’re making progress?”

    FORDYCE: “That would be tough for me to say. We do have those in Missouri as well.”

    TUBERVILLE: “Y’all have hogs?!”

    FORDYCE: “We have, yeah. We have feral swine. We have wild hogs in Missouri. […] Well, in Missouri, they’ve stopped the ability for folks to hunt them because the idea was that if they’re hunting them, then there has to continue to be a supply of them, and somehow, they just keep showing up. So, I don’t know, I guess, it was, maybe, is one way of looking at it.”

    TUBERVILLE: “Well, just let them know that us and Alabama will send you some if you need them. Because we got a way over abundance. And we’re gonna send them to Senator Grassley in Iowa. He loves hogs. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.”

    Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs, HELP and Aging Committees.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: Accelerating Federal Permitting of Data Center Infrastructure

    Source: US Whitehouse

    By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered:

    Section  1.  Policy and Purpose.  My Administration has inaugurated a golden age for American manufacturing and technological dominance.  We will pursue bold, large-scale industrial plans to vault the United States further into the lead on critical manufacturing processes and technologies that are essential to national security, economic prosperity, and scientific leadership.  These plans include artificial intelligence (AI) data centers and infrastructure that powers them, including high‑voltage transmission lines and other equipment.  It will be a priority of my Administration to facilitate the rapid and efficient buildout of this infrastructure by easing Federal regulatory burdens. 

    In addition, my Administration will utilize federally owned land and resources for the expeditious and orderly development of data centers.  This usage will be done in a manner consistent with the land’s intended purpose — to be used in service of the prosperity and security of the American people.

    Sec. 2.  Definitions.  For purposes of this order:

    (a)  “Data Center Project” means a facility that requires greater than 100 megawatts (MW) of new load dedicated to AI inference, training, simulation, or synthetic data generation.

    (b)  “Covered Components” means materials, products, and infrastructure that are required to build Data Center Projects or otherwise upon which Data Center Projects depend, including:

    (i)    energy infrastructure, such as transmission lines, natural gas pipelines or laterals, substations, switchyards, transformers, switchgear, and system protective facilities;

    (ii)   natural gas turbines, coal power equipment, nuclear power equipment, geothermal power equipment, and any other dispatchable baseload energy sources, including electrical infrastructure (including backup power supply) constructed or otherwise used principally to serve a Data Center Project;

    (iii)  semiconductors and semiconductor materials, such as wafers, dies, and packaged integrated circuits;

    (iv)   networking equipment, such as switches and routers; and

    (v)    data storage, such as hardware storage systems, software for data management and protection, and integrated services that work with public cloud providers.

    (c)  “Covered Component Project” means infrastructure comprising Covered Components, or a facility with the primary purposes of manufacturing or otherwise producing Covered Components.

    (d)  “Qualifying Project” means:

    (i)    a Data Center Project or Covered Component Project for which the Project Sponsor has committed at least $500 million in capital expenditures as determined by the Secretary of Commerce;

    (ii)   a Data Center Project or Covered Component Project involving an incremental electric load addition of greater than 100 MW;

    (iii)  a Data Center Project or Covered Component Project that protects national security; or

    (iv)   a Data Center Project or Covered Component Project that has otherwise been designated by the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, or the Secretary of Energy as a “Qualifying Project”.

    (e)  “Project Sponsor” means the lead sponsor providing financial and other support for a Data Center Project or Covered Component Project, as determined by the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, or the Secretary of Energy, as appropriate.

    (f)  “Superfund Site” means any site where action is being taken pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 9604, 9606, or 9620.

    (g)  “Brownfield Site” means a site as defined in 42 U.S.C. 9601(39).

    Sec.  3.  Encouraging Qualifying Projects.  The Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and other relevant executive departments and agencies (agencies), shall launch an initiative to provide financial support for Qualifying Projects, which could include loans and loan guarantees, grants, tax incentives, and offtake agreements.  All relevant agencies shall identify and submit to the Director of OSTP any such relevant existing financial support that can be used to assist Qualifying Projects, consistent with the protection of national security.

    Sec. 4.  Revocation of Executive Order 14141.  Executive Order 14141 of January 14, 2025 (Advancing United States Leadership in Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure), is hereby revoked.

    Sec.  5.  Efficient Environmental Reviews.  (a)  Within 10 days of the date of this order, each relevant agency shall identify to the Council on Environmental Quality any categorical exclusions already established or adopted by such agency pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), reliance on and adoption of which by agencies (pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 4336 and 4336c) could facilitate the construction of Qualifying Projects.

    (b)  The Council on Environmental Quality shall coordinate with relevant agencies on the establishment of new categorical exclusions to cover actions related to Qualifying Projects that normally do not have a significant effect on the human environment.  Agencies shall, for purposes of establishing these categorical exclusions, rely on any sufficient basis to do so as each such agency determines.

    (c)  Consistent with 42 U.S.C. 4336e(10)(B)(iii), loans, loan guarantees, grants, tax incentives, or other forms of Federal financial assistance for which an agency lacks substantial project-specific control and responsibility over the subsequent use of such financial assistance shall not be considered a “major Federal action” under NEPA.  For purposes of this order, Federal financial assistance representing less than 50 percent of total project costs shall be presumed not to constitute substantial Federal control and responsibility.

    Sec.  6.  Efficiency and Transparency Through FAST‑41.  (a)  The Executive Director (Executive Director) of the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (FPISC) may, within 30  days of the date that a project is identified to FPISC by a relevant agency, designate a Qualifying Project as a transparency project pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 4370m-2(b)(2)(A)(iii) and section 41003 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (Public Law 114-94, 129 Stat. 1312, 1747) (FAST-41).  Within 30 days of receiving such agency notification, the Executive Director may publish Qualifying Projects on the Permitting Dashboard established under section 41003(b) of FAST-41, including schedules for expedited review. 

    (b)  In consultation with Project Sponsors, the Executive Director shall expedite the transition of eligible Qualifying Projects from transparency projects to FAST-41 “covered projects” as defined by 42 U.S.C. 4370m(6)(A).  To the extent that a Qualifying Project does not meet the criteria set forth in 42 U.S.C. 4370m(6)(A)(i) or (iii), FPISC may consider all other available options to designate the project a covered project under 42 U.S.C. 4370m(6)(A)(iv).

    Sec. 7.  Streamlining of Permitting Review.  (a)  The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall assist in expediting permitting on Federal and non-Federal lands by developing or modifying regulations promulgated under the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.); the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.); the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.); and other relevant applicable laws, in each case, that impact the development of Qualifying Projects.

    (b)  The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall, consistent with the Environmental Protection Agency’s statutory authorities, expeditiously identify Brownfield Sites and Superfund Sites for use by Qualifying Projects.  As part of this effort, within 180 days of the date of this order, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall develop guidance to help expedite environmental reviews for qualified reuse and assist State governments and private parties to return such Brownfield Sites and Superfund Sites to productive use as expeditiously as possible.

    Sec.  8.  Biological and Water Permitting Efficiencies.  (a)  Upon identification of sites by the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Energy as described in section 9 of this order, the action agency, as identified through the process described in the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544) (ESA), shall initiate consultation under section 7 of the ESA with the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, or both with respect to common construction activities for Qualifying Projects that will occur over the next 10 years at a programmatic level.  The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce shall utilize programmatic consultation to ensure timely and efficient completion of such consultation.

    (b)  Within 180 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, shall review the nationwide permits issued under section 404 of the Clean Water Act of 1972 (33 U.S.C. 1344) and section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403) to determine whether an activity-specific nationwide permit is needed to facilitate the efficient permitting of activities related to Qualifying Projects.

    Sec. 9.  Federal Lands Availability.  (a)  The Department of the Interior and the Department of Energy shall, after consultation with industry and further in consultation with the Department of Commerce as to the Project Sponsors to which relevant authorizations shall be granted, offer appropriate authorizations for sites identified by the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Energy, as applicable and appropriate for the relevant uses, consistent with 42 U.S.C. 2201, 42 U.S.C. 7256, 43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq., and all other applicable law.

    (b)  The Secretary of Defense shall, pursuant to 10 U.S.C. 2667 or other applicable law and as and when the Secretary of Defense deems it necessary or desirable, identify suitable sites on military installations for Covered Component infrastructure uses and competitively lease available lands for Qualifying Projects to support the Department of Defense’s energy, workforce, and mission needs, subject to security and force protection considerations.

    Sec. 10.  General Provisions.  (a)   Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

    (i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

    (ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

    (b)  This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

    (c)  This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

    (d)  The costs for publication of this order shall be borne by the Department of Energy.

                                  DONALD J. TRUMP

    THE WHITE HOUSE,

        July 23, 2025.

    MIL OSI USA News –