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  • MIL-OSI Russia: The results of the VI International Arctic Forum “The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue” have been summed up

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    The 6th International Arctic Forum “The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue” was held in Murmansk on March 26–27. The organizer was the Roscongress Foundation with the support of the Russian Government.

    “The International Arctic Forum “The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue” – 2025 was attended by about 1.3 thousand participants and media representatives from 21 countries, as well as about 230 representatives of Russian and foreign businesses from more than 110 companies. The business program included 20 events with the participation of more than 150 speakers. The forum turned out to be truly international and significant. At the plenary session, the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin announced a number of fundamental decisions for the socio-economic development of the Arctic. The most important task of the IAF is to discuss current problems that the Government of Russia, federal ministries and regions must jointly solve for the successful operation of enterprises, improving the standard of living of people, supporting the territories as a whole,” emphasized Deputy Prime Minister – Plenipotentiary Representative of the President in the Far Eastern Federal District Yuri Trutnev.

    The IAF has become a platform for international dialogue on issues such as the development of the Northern Sea Route, increasing the investment and entrepreneurial potential of the Arctic zone, as well as environmental issues, humanitarian and cultural cooperation.

    “Right now, the Arctic is becoming a territory of opportunities for the entire country. Given the revision of traditional technological chains, given participation in large-scale Arctic projects, huge prospects are opening up for enterprises across the country and creative, artistic people. The development of the Northern Sea Route as the main transport artery in the Arctic, the construction of new railway approaches to northern ports will also have a multiplier effect for the entire country. Within the framework of the upcoming major international forums, including the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum and the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, the Arctic theme will be taken into account and allocated to a separate block of the business program of events,” said Anton Kobyakov, Advisor to the President of Russia, Executive Secretary of the Organizing Committee for the Preparation and Holding of the International Arctic Forum “The Arctic – Territory of Dialogue”.

    One of the central topics of the forum was the discussion of state policy in the Arctic, aimed at the comprehensive development of the Far North and the growth of the well-being of the region’s residents.

    “The mechanisms of state support need to be improved for the accelerated development of the macro-region, the implementation of investment projects, and the improvement of the quality of life of people. Based on the results of the implementation of the first stage of the Arctic development strategy until 2035, proposals will be prepared to update this fundamental document,” said Minister for the Development of the Far East and Arctic Alexey Chekunkov at a joint meeting of the State Council commissions on the development of the Arctic and the Northern Sea Route.

    The forum was held under the motto “Live in the North!” The event brought together representatives of federal and regional authorities, businesses and the expert community.

    “Our strategic plan is “Live in the North!” This is the motto of today’s forum. For us, this is a plan in addition to national projects. Clear, worked out with people, designed, aimed at ensuring investment growth and, of course, increasing people’s incomes and their quality of life,” noted Murmansk Region Governor Andrei Chibis during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of the MAF.

    Business program

    The business program of the forum included 20 sessions divided into four thematic blocks: “The Arctic and the NSR: how to win in the competitive struggle of world routes”, “The Arctic and the NSR: a pole for attracting investments”, “The Arctic and the NSR: development of key settlements”, “International cooperation and ecology”. More than 150 speakers took part in the discussions.

    The forum included a joint meeting of the State Council commissions on the development of the Arctic and the Northern Sea Route, which united five State Council commissions – in the areas of “Northern Sea Route and the Arctic”, “International Cooperation and Export”, “Energy”, “Youth and Children”, and “Efficient Transport System”.

    The session “The Arctic: Bridges of Cooperation between Peoples and States” summed up the results of the VIII International Scientific and Practical Conference “The Universe of the Polar Bear: Effective Cooperation in the Arctic”.

    Also, for the first time, the MAF hosted a special session dedicated to the role of women in the development of northern regions – the “Arctic Living Room”.

    Plenary session

    The key event of the forum was the plenary session with the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

    “Development of the Russian North, overcoming the challenges of harsh nature, the state’s entry into new promising frontiers – these tasks inspired many generations of our ancestors: sailors and Novgorod merchants of the Middle Ages, Arctic pioneers of the 16th and 17th centuries, industrialists of the 18th and 19th centuries, scientists, polar explorers, engineers, workers of the Soviet Union, teams of companies of modern Russia, which launched large Arctic projects in the early 2000s. And today, the northern vector of development is in the foreground, it is our sovereign, historical choice. And this means that the tasks that we set and solve in the Arctic, the projects that we implement here, must be of an appropriate, historical scale, with an expectation of decades, maybe even centuries. We will do everything to strengthen Russia’s global leadership in the Arctic, and, despite all the current difficulties and complexities, we will ensure the comprehensive development of this region and create a solid foundation for future generations,” the head of state noted.

    Participants

    The forum brought together about 1.3 thousand participants and media representatives from 21 countries, including Russia (Argentina, Great Britain, Venezuela, Vietnam, Germany, India, Kazakhstan, Qatar, China, UAE, Republic of Belarus, Republic of Korea, Russia, USA, Serbia, Singapore, Turkey, Finland, France, Switzerland, Japan).

    The forum was attended by Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office Maxim Oreshkin, Presidential Adviser and Special Representative of the President for International Cooperation in Transport Igor Levitin, Presidential Aide Alexei Dyumin, Presidential Aide Nikolai Patrushev, and Presidential Adviser Anton Kobyakov.

    The forum was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Savelyev and Deputy Prime Minister – Presidential Plenipotentiary Representative in the Far Eastern Federal District Yuri Trutnev, Presidential Plenipotentiary Representative in the Northwestern Federal District Alexander Gutsan, Presidential Plenipotentiary Representative in the Siberian Federal District Anatoly Seryshev, Minister for the Development of the Far East and Arctic Alexey Chekunkov and Minister of Industry and Trade Anton Alikhanov.

    The forum participants included seven heads of federal services and agencies and ten heads of constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

    The Chairman of the Committee of Senior Arctic Officials, Norwegian diplomat Morten Höglund, addressed the forum participants with a video message. In addition, the forum site was visited by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Korea Lee Do-hoon.

    The forum brought together about 230 representatives of Russian and foreign businesses from more than 110 companies.

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    Media

    The forum was attended by 305 media representatives from Russia and nine foreign countries (Great Britain, Venezuela, Vietnam, Germany, Qatar, Serbia, Turkey, Finland, France).

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    Agreements

    Nine agreements were signed at MAF-2025:

    ● PJSC Rosseti North-West, JSC Rosseti Scientific and Technical Center and the Novosibirsk State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering signed a strategic partnership agreement;

    ● JSC Far East and Arctic Development Corporation signed an agreement on information interaction with the Association of Tour Operators of Russia, as well as with JSC Arsenal on cooperation in the extraction and enrichment of rare metal ores in the Murmansk region within the framework of the Kulyok – Rare Earths project with a total investment volume of 10 billion rubles;

    ● The Federal Agency for Nationalities Affairs and PJSC Mining and Metallurgical Company Norilsk Nickel signed an additional cooperation agreement;

    ● a cooperation agreement was signed between the Government of the Republic of Karelia and Vodohod LLC;

    ● the Ministry of Property Relations of the Murmansk Region and the public-law company Roskadastr signed an agreement on the implementation of the pilot project “Involvement of real estate objects in economic circulation in the Murmansk Region”;

    ● the government of the Murmansk region and the Avito company signed a cooperation agreement;

    ● the government of the Murmansk region, Sberbank of Russia PJSC and the V.A. Almazov National Medical Research Center signed a cooperation agreement;

    ● The Arkhangelsk Region Government and the United Volunteer Center of the Murmansk Region signed an agreement on cooperation in the development of volunteerism and strengthening cooperation in the regions of the Arctic zone, scaling up practices to support the wives of military personnel in the Northern Fleet.

    Sports program

    The sports program included eight events. The Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of Russia in the Northwestern Federal District Alexander Gutsan and the Governor of the Murmansk Region Andrei Chibis took part in the ceremonial event dedicated to the 90th Festival of the North. The program of competitions, which will last until mid-April, included cross-country skiing, biathlon, speed skating and alpine skiing, bandy and others.

    For the forum participants, Arctic team building, exercise in ties, ice floating, alpine skiing and snowboarding, snow fights, as well as an introduction to traditional sports of the peoples of the North were organized.

    The forum included a presentation of the Arctic Mosaic sports, health and strength festival, which will be held annually in different regions of the Arctic zone. Under the auspices of the MAF, the IV All-Russian Arctic Games were held in Salekhard and Labytnangi, the program of which included nine sports.

    The final and largest event of the MAF-2025 sports program will be the 51st Murmansk Ski Marathon. On March 29 and 30, 2.5 thousand athletes will take to the start line of the 25 km and 50 km races at the Dolina Uyuta sports complex. The marathon participants will be Olympic winners and medalists Nikita Kryukov, Alexey Petukhov, Maxim Vylegzhanin and Alexander Bessmertnykh.

    Cultural program

    The cultural program included the opening of the Taste of the Arctic gastrofestival, where a joint team of restaurateurs and chefs from the subjects of the Russian Arctic zone presented a menu of regional cuisine. The Sami Village and the Taste the North ice bar operated on the site. There was also an Arctic crafts fair.

    The Murmansk Regional Museum of Local History offered the forum participants excursions that told about the uniqueness of the Murmansk Region. Thematic exhibitions were timed to coincide with the MAF. Among them was an exhibition of paintings dedicated to the development of the Arctic and the Northern Sea Route, from the collections of the Murmansk Regional Art Museum.

    There was also a ceremony of donating works of art to the Murmansk Region and the opening of the exhibition “H2O. Art about water and more…”. Seven paintings and three sculptures were donated to the Murmansk Regional Art Museum from the Siyanie Contemporary Art Center and the collections of Vladimir Nekrasov and Andrey Malakhov.

    In addition, forum participants were able to take a tour of the icebreaker Lenin, the world’s first vessel with a nuclear power plant, which provided navigation along the Northern Sea Route for about 30 years. The icebreaker has guided thousands of ships through the Arctic and traveled a total of 654,400 nautical miles. It has now become a calling card of the Murmansk Region and one of the most visited tourist sites in the Kola North.

    The Murmansk Drama Theatre hosted an “Art Cocktail”, during which the audience saw the play “Prologue to the Murmansk Region” and a concert by the Pacific Fleet ensemble.

    On March 30, a creative evening of People’s Artist of Russia Alexander Oleshko “Set the Mood” will take place.

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    Project “Soul of Russia. Arctic”

    As part of the project, seven films were screened in partnership with Roskino, including the films North Pole and Village of Widows, which were dedicated to the Year of Defender of the Fatherland and the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.

    Creative meetings “Inspired by the Arctic” were held, during which viewers met with the production designer of the Soyuzmultfilm studio, creator of the animated series “Umka” Anna Popova, director of the film “North Pole” Alexander Kott, scriptwriter and producer of the film “Widows’ Village” Olga Martisova.

    During the children’s program “Arctic Film Vacations” they showed “The Best Episodes of Soyuzmultfilm Series” and “Warm Animation from Soyuzmultfilm”.

    The business program included a session entitled “The Northern Creative Path: A Territory of Business Opportunities,” where the contribution of creative industries to the economic growth of the northern territories, the use of the wealth of national cultural traditions to create unique brands, and other issues were discussed.

    Expert and analytical support

    The Roscongress Foundation’s information and analytical system continued to develop the Summary service, which uses artificial intelligence to obtain brief analytical summaries of discussions with descriptions of key conclusions, problems, and solutions voiced during the discussions.

    Based on the results of the forum, an analytical report “Results of the International Arctic Forum 2025” will be prepared, which will be available in electronic form in the information and analytical system of the Roscongress Foundation roscongress.org.

    Expert and analytical support for the forum was provided by experts representing the country’s leading scientific and educational centers that conduct research on a wide range of topics on the Arctic agenda, including the Murmansk Arctic University, the Northern (Arctic) Federal University named after M.V. Lomonosov, the St. Petersburg State University of Economics, the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, the National Research University Higher School of Economics, the G.P. Luzin Institute of Economic Problems of the Kola Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Regional Economic Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences, etc.

    Partners

    The co-organizer of the forum is the state corporation Rosatom, the strategic partner is PJSC Rosseti, the strategic scientific partner is the National Research Center Kurchatov Institute, the communications partner is the media holding MAER, the business program partners are VTB Bank, PJSC Novatek, MMC Norilsk Nickel, PhosAgro, and the business partner is VEB.RF.

    The information partners were the TV channel Rossiya 24, MIA Rossiya Segodnya, the TASS information agency, MIC Izvestia, the Vedomosti newspaper, the RT TV channel, the Business FM radio station, Sputnik, the Arguments and Facts newspaper, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, the Mir TV channel, the Komsomolskaya Pravda publishing house, Lenta.ru, Gazeta.Ru, Shkulev Media – Vokrug Sveta, the Federal Press information agency, the Expert magazine, the Regional Russia magazine, Vesti FM, the NEWS.ru portal, the GoArctic portal, the Arktik-TV TV channel, the Murmansk State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company, the TV21 TV channel, the Murmansk Herald, the Vecherniy Murmansk newspaper and the Severpost information agency.

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

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: As federal environmental priorities shift, sovereign Native American nations have their own plans

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Alyssa Kreikemeier, Assistant Professor of History, University of Idaho

    Billy Frank Jr., left, a Nisqually tribal elder, was arrested dozens of times while trying to assert his native fishing rights during the ‘Fish Wars’ of the 1960s and 1970s. In this 2014 photo, he stands with Ed Johnstone of the Quinault tribe. AP Photo/Ted S. Warren

    Long before the large-scale Earth Day protests on April 22, 1970 – often credited with spurring significant environmental protection legislation – Native Americans stewarded the environment. As sovereign nations, Native Americans have been able to protect land, water and air, including well beyond their own boundaries.

    Their actions laid the groundwork for modern federal law and policy, including national legislation aimed at reducing pollution. Now the Trump administration is seeking to weaken some of those limits and eliminate programs aimed at improving the environments in which marginalized people live and work.

    As an environmental historian, I study how Native Americans have shaped environmental management. Tribal nations are the longest stewards of the lands today known as the United States. My work indicates not only that tribal nations contributed to the origins and evolution of modern environmental management on tribal and nontribal lands, but also that they are well poised to continue environmental management and scientific research regardless of U.S. government actions.

    Environmental sovereignty

    Native peoples stewarded and studied their environments for millennia before European colonization. Today, Native nations continue to use science, technology and Indigenous knowledge to benefit their own people and the broader population.

    Their stewardship continues despite repeated and ongoing efforts to dispossess Native peoples. In 1953, Congress reversed centuries of federally recognizing tribal authority, passing a law that terminated tribal nations’ legal and political status and federal obligations under treaties and legal precedents, including requirements to provide education and health care.

    This termination policy subjected tribal nations and reservation lands to state jurisdiction and relocated at least 200,000 Native people from tribal lands to urban centers.

    A groundswell of Native American resistance captured national attention, including protests and tactics such as “fish-ins,” which involved fishing at traditional grounds guaranteed by treaties but not honored by land use at the time. Their efforts led federal courts to affirm the very rights termination had sought to expunge.

    Native nations regained federally recognized rights and political power at the same time as the national environmental awakening. In fact, tribal nations exercised environmental sovereignty in ways that restored federal recognition and influenced broader U.S. environmental law and policy.

    Air quality

    In the 1960s, air pollution in America posed a serious health threat, with smog killing Americans on occasion and harming their long-term health. Under the 1970 Clean Air Act amendments, the federal government set national standards for air quality and penalties for polluters.

    As early as 1974, the Northern Cheyenne Tribe in southeastern Montana began monitoring its own air quality. Finding that its air was substantially cleaner than other areas of the country, the tribe used a new approach to push the Environmental Protection Agency to approve enhanced protections beyond the minimum federal standards. The Northern Cheyenne wanted to prevent polluting industries from moving into locations with cleaner air that could be polluted without exceeding the federal limits. That protection was codified in the 1977 Clean Air Act amendments, which established legal protections and a process for communities to claim greater pollution protections nationwide.

    In 1978, the Northern Cheyenne used their higher standards to limit pollution sources on private land upwind of tribal lands, temporarily blocking the construction of two additional coal-fired power plants.

    Within a decade, the Assiniboine and Sioux nations at Fort Peck and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes also claimed enhanced air protection and developed air quality monitoring programs even before most state governments did. Dozens of tribal nations have taken control of their air quality in the years since.

    This September 1941 photo shows Native Americans fishing for salmon at Celilo Falls, Ore.
    Russell Lee/Library of Congress via AP

    Waterways

    Native nations also exercise sovereignty over waterways. In the Pacific Northwest, people whose ancestors have lived in the area for at least 16,000 years have moved to protect themselves and their lands from the effects of massive hydropower projects.

    The Columbia River Basin hydropower project, which began in the 1930s, now includes over 250 dams that together generate nearly half of the United States’ hydropower. Its dams and associated development stretch from the Canadian Rockies to Southern California, with effects crossing dozens of Native nations as well as international and state boundaries. The construction of the dams inundated multiple tribal nations’ lands and displaced thousands of Native people.

    When four dams were built on the lower Snake River in Idaho in the 1960s, they inundated ancestral lands and fishing grounds of Columbia River Native Americans, including the Nez Perce Tribe. The dams decimated fish populations many tribes have long relied upon for both sustenance and cultural practices and destroyed ancient and culturally significant fishing sites, including Celilo Falls near The Dalles, Oregon, which had been fished for at least 10,000 years.

    Nez Perce scientists and environmental managers, working alongside other Northwest tribes, have documented the near extinction of numerous species of salmon and steelhead fish, despite federal, state and tribal agencies investing billions of dollars in hatchery programs to boost fish populations. The Nez Perce Department of Fisheries Resources Management protects and restores aquatic ecosystems. In collaboration with nearby communities, the tribe also restores significant areas of habitat on nontribal lands. That includes decommissioning many miles of logging roads, removing mine tailings and sowing tens of thousands of native plants.

    The Nez Perce and other tribes advocate for the removal of those four dams to restore salmon populations. They cite, among other evidence, a 2002 Army Corps of Engineers study that found removal was the most effective way to meet the Endangered Species Act’s requirements to restore decimated fish populations.

    As part of a collaboration between federal agencies and Native tribes, juvenile coho salmon are released into the Columbia River Basin.
    AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus

    Taking a long view

    Native Americans and tribal nations see environmental sovereignty as essential to their past, present and future.

    In 2015, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes became the first Native nation to take over a federal dam when they purchased the Selis Ksanka Qlispe dam, operating on the Flathead River in Montana. Managed by a tribal corporation, the dam produces enough hydropower to supply 100,000 homes, bringing millions of dollars to tribal coffers rather than enriching a corporation in Pennsylvania.

    Over the decades, Native nations have partnered with federal agencies and used federal laws and funds to manage their environments. They have also built connections between tribes and nations across the continent.

    For instance, the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission coordinates and assists Columbia Basin tribes with environmental management and fishing rights. In northern New Mexico, the Indigenous women of Tewa Women United work against the legacy and ongoing effects of nuclear research affecting their homelands and communities from Los Alamos National Laboratory.

    Across the U.S., the Indian Land Tenure Foundation works with Native peoples to secure control of their homelands through land return and legal reforms, while Honor the Earth organizes Indigenous peoples in North America and globally to advance social change rooted in Indigenous sovereignty through treaty organizing and advocacy.

    Tribal governments have been hit hard by the shifts in federal priorities, including Trump administration funding cuts that have slowed scientific research, such as environmental monitoring and management on tribal lands.

    Tribal governance takes a long view based in Native peoples’ deep history with these lands. And their legal and political status as sovereign nations – backed by the U.S. Constitution, treaties, more than 120 Supreme Court rulings and the plain text of federal laws – puts Native nations in a strong position to continue their efforts, no matter which ways the federal winds blow.

    I have conducted research for the National Park Service as an employee of the University of New Mexico’s School for Architecture and Planning. My research at the University of Idaho has been partially supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation’s Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research.

    – ref. As federal environmental priorities shift, sovereign Native American nations have their own plans – https://theconversation.com/as-federal-environmental-priorities-shift-sovereign-native-american-nations-have-their-own-plans-251685

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: From censorship to curiosity: Pope Francis’ appreciation for the power of history and books

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Joëlle Rollo-Koster, Professor of Medieval History, University of Rhode Island

    Pope Francis delivers the Angelus noon prayer in St. Peter’s Square, at the Vatican, on Nov. 10, 2024. AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia

    In January 2025, while doing research at the Vatican archives, I heard Pope Francis’ Sunday prayers in St. Peter’s Square. The pope reflected on the ceasefire that had just gone into effect in Gaza, highlighting the role of mediators, the need for humanitarian aid, and his hope for a two-state solution.

    “Let us pray always for tormented Ukraine, for Palestine, Israel, Myanmar, and all the populations who are suffering because of war,” he concluded. “I wish you all a good Sunday, and please, do not forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch, and arrivederci!”

    A few weeks later, Francis was admitted to the hospital, where he remained for more than a month, receiving treatment for double pneumonia.

    In those weeks of uncertainty, I thought back to the pope’s words that Sunday afternoon. They encapsulate Francis’ image: a spiritual leader using his influence to try to bring peace. He is also a down-to-earth man who wishes you “buon appetito.”

    Francis does not fear addressing contemporary politics, unlike many of his predecessors. And some popes have closed their eyes to not just current events but past ones: learning and history that threatened their vision of the church.

    As a medievalist, I appreciate Francis’ contrasting approach: a religious leader who embraces history and scholarship, and encourages others to do the same – even as book bans and threats to academic freedom mount.

    People in St. Peter’s Square watch a broadcast as Pope Francis makes his first appearance since entering the hospital.
    AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia

    Infamous index

    For 400 years, the Catholic Church famously maintained the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, a long list of banned books. First conceived in the 1500s, it matured under Pope Paul IV. His 1559 index counted any books written by people the church deemed heretics – anyone not speaking dogma, in the widest sense.

    Even before the index, church leaders permitted little flexibility of thought. In the decades leading up to it, however, the church doubled down in response to new challenges: the rapid spreading of the printing press and the Protestant Reformation.

    The Catholic Counter-Reformation, which took shape at the Council of Trent from 1545-1563, reinforced dogmatism in its effort to rebuke reformers. The council decided that the Vulgate, a Latin translation of the Bible, was enough to understand scripture, and there was little need to investigate its original Greek and Hebrew version.

    Bishops and the Vatican began producing lists of titles that were forbidden to print and read. Between 1571-1917, the Sacred Congregation of the Index, a special unit of the Vatican, investigated writings and compiled the lists of banned readings approved by the pope. Catholics who read titles on the Index of Forbidden Books risked excommunication.

    In 1966, Pope Paul VI abolished the index. The church could no longer punish people for reading books on the list but still advised against them, as historian Paolo Sachet highlights. The moral imperative not to read them remained.

    The title page of a version of the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, published in 1711.
    National Library of Slovenia/Drw1 via Wikimedia Commons

    Historian J.M de Bujanda has completed the most comprehensive list of books forbidden across the ages by the Catholic Church. Its authors include astronomer Johannes Kepler and Galileo, as well as philosophers across centuries, from Erasmus and René Descartes to feminist Simone de Beauvoir and existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre. Then there are the writers: Michel de Montaigne, Voltaire, Denis Diderot, David Hume, historian Edward Gibbon and Gustave Flaubert. In sum, the index is a who’s who of science, literature and history.

    Love of humanities

    Compare that with a letter Francis published on Nov. 21, 2024, emphasizing the importance of studying church history – particularly for priests, to better understand the world they live in. For the pope, history research “helps to keep ‘the flame of collective conscience’ alive.”

    The pope advocated for studying church history in a way that is unfiltered and authentic, flaws included. He emphasized primary sources and urged students to ask questions. Francis criticized the view that history is mere chronology – rote memorization that fails to analyze events.

    In 2019, Francis changed the name of the Vatican Secret Archives to the Vatican Apostolic Archives. Though the archives themselves had already been open to scholars since 1881, “secret” connotes something “revealed and reserved for a few,” Francis wrote. Under Francis, the Vatican opened the archives on Pope Pius XII, allowing research on his papacy during World War II, his knowledge of the Holocaust and his general response toward Nazi Germany.

    An attendant opens the section of the Vatican archives dedicated to Pope Pius XII on Feb. 27, 2020.
    Alberto Pizzoli/AFP via Getty Images

    In addition to showing respect for history, the pope has emphasized his own love of reading. “Each new work we read will renew and expand our worldview,” he wrote in a letter to future priests, published July 17, 2024.

    Today, he continued, “veneration” of screens, with their “toxic, superficial and violent fake news” has diverted us from literature. The pope shared his experience as a young Jesuit literature instructor in Santa Fe, then added a sentence that would have stupefied “index popes.”

    “Naturally, I am not asking you to read the same things that I did,” he stated. “Everyone will find books that speak to their own lives and become authentic companions for their journey.”

    Citing his compatriot, the novelist Jorge Luis Borges, Francis reminded Catholics that to read is to “listen to another person’s voice. … We must never forget how dangerous it is to stop listening to the voice of other people when they challenge us!”

    When Francis dies or resigns, the Vatican will remain deeply divided between progressives and conservatives. So are modern democracies – and in many places, the modern trend leans toward nationalism, fascism and censorship.

    But Francis will leave a phenomenal rebuttal. One of the pope’s greatest achievements, in my view, will have been his engagement with the humanities and humanity – with a deep understanding of the challenges it faces.

    Joëlle Rollo-Koster 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. From censorship to curiosity: Pope Francis’ appreciation for the power of history and books – https://theconversation.com/from-censorship-to-curiosity-pope-francis-appreciation-for-the-power-of-history-and-books-250734

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Cuts to science research funding cut American lives short − federal support is essential for medical breakthroughs

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Deborah Fuller, Professor of Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Washington

    Divesting from the next generation of researchers means cutting the lifeblood of science and medicine. J Studios/DigitalVision via Getty Images

    Nearly every modern medical treatment can be traced to research funded by the National Institutes of Health: from over-the-counter and prescription medications that treat high cholesterol and pain to protection from infectious diseases such as polio and smallpox.

    The remarkable successes of the decades-old partnership between biomedical research institutions and the federal government are so intertwined with daily life that it’s easy to take them for granted.

    However, the scientific work driving these medical advances and breakthroughs is in jeopardy. Federal agencies such as the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation are terminating hundreds of active research grants under the current administration’s direction. The administration has also proposed a dramatic reduction in federal support of the critical infrastructure that keeps labs open and running. Numerous scientists and health professionals have noted that changes will have far-reaching, harmful outcomes for the health and well-being of the American people.

    The negative consequences of defunding U.S. biomedical research can be difficult to recognize. Most breakthroughs, from the basic science discoveries that reveal the causes of diseases to the development of effective treatments and cures, can take years. Real-time progress can be hard to measure.

    Medical breakthroughs are built on years of painstaking research.
    Scott Olson/Getty Images

    As biomedical researchers studying infectious diseases, viruses and immunology, we and our colleagues see this firsthand in our own work. Thousands of ongoing national and international projects dedicated to uncovering the causes of life-threatening diseases and developing new treatments to improve and save lives are supported by federal agencies such as the NIH and NSF.

    Considering a few of the breakthroughs made possible through U.S. federal support can help illustrate not only the significant inroads biomedical research has made for preventing, treating and curing human maladies, but what all Americans stand to lose if the U.S. reduces its investment in these endeavors.

    A cure for cancer

    The hope and dream of curing cancer unites many scientists, health professionals and affected families across the U.S. After decades of ongoing NIH-supported research, scientists have made significant progress in realizing this goal.

    The National Cancer Institute of the NIH is the world’s largest funder of cancer research. This investment has led to advances in cancer treatment and prevention that helped reduce the overall U.S. cancer death rate by 33% from 1991 to 2021.

    Basic science research on what causes cancer has led to new strategies to harness a patient’s own immune system to eliminate tumors. For example, all 12 patients in a 2022 clinical trial testing one type of immunotherapy had their rectal cancer completely disappear, without remission or adverse effects.

    Cuts in NIH funding will directly affect patients.

    Another example of progress is the 2024 results of an ongoing clinical trial of a targeted therapy for lung cancer, showing an 84% reduction in the risk of disease progression or death. Similarly, in a study of women who were immunized against the human papillomavirus at age 12 or 13, none developed the disease later. Since the widespread adoption of HPV vaccination, cervical cancer deaths have dropped 62%.

    Despite these incredible successes, there is still a long way to go. In 2024, over 2 million people in the U.S. were estimated to be newly diagnosed with cancer, and 611,720 were expected to die from the disease.

    Without sustained federal support for cancer research, progress toward curing cancer and reducing its death rate will stall.

    Autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases

    Nearly every family is touched in some way by autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases. Government-funded research has enabled major advances to combat conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.

    For example, approximately 1 in 5 Americans have arthritis, an autoimmune disease that causes joint swelling and stiffness. A leading cause of disability and economic costs in the U.S., there is no cure for arthritis. But new drugs in development are able to significantly improve symptoms and slow or prevent disease progression.

    Researchers are also gaining insight into what causes multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks the protective covering of nerves and can result in paralysis. Scientists recently found a link between multiple sclerosis and Epstein-Barr virus, a pathogen estimated to infect over 90% of adults around the world. While multiple sclerosis is currently incurable, identifying its underlying cause can provide new avenues for prevention and treatment.

    The NIH’s BRAIN Initiative has invested more than $3 billion in neuroscience research since it began in 2013.
    Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

    Alzheimer’s disease causes irreversible nerve damage and is the leading cause of dementia. In 2024, 6.9 million Americans ages 65 and older were living with Alzheimer’s. Most treatments address cognitive and behavioral symptoms. However, two new drugs developed with NIH-supported research and clinical trials were approved in July 2023 and July 2024 to treat early-stage Alzheimer’s. Federal funding is also supporting the development of blood tests for earlier detection of the disease.

    None of these breakthroughs are a cure. But they represent important steps forward on the path toward ultimately reducing or eliminating these devastating ailments. Lack of funding will slow or block further progress, leading to the continued rise of the incidence and severity of these conditions.

    Infectious diseases and the next pandemic

    The world’s capacity to combat infectious disease will also be weakened by cuts to U.S. federal support of biomedical research.

    Over the past 50 years, medical and public health advances have led to the eradication of smallpox globally and the elimination of polio in the U.S. HIV/AIDS, once a death sentence, is now a disease that can be managed with medication. Moreover, a new version of treatments called preexposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, offers complete protection against HIV transmission when taken only twice per year.

    Similarly, the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the critical role biomedical research plays in responding to public health threats. Increased federal support of science during this time allowed the United States to emerge with new drugs, vaccine platforms with the potential to treat a variety of chronic diseases, and insights on how to effectively detect and respond to pandemic threats.

    The ongoing avian influenza outbreak and its spillover into American dairy herds and poultry farms is another pandemic threat looming on the horizon. Rather than build upon infrastructure for outbreak surveillance and preparedness, grants that would allow scientists to better understand long COVID-19, vaccines and other pandemic-related research are being cut. Decreased funding of biomedical research will hamper the U.S.’s ability to respond to the next pandemic, putting everyone at risk.

    Research across the country has ground to a halt as grants remain in limbo or have been terminated altogether.
    Scott Olson/Getty Images

    Losses from defunding biomedical research

    The National Institutes of Health contributed over $100 billion to support research that ultimately led to the development of all new drugs approved from 2010 to 2016 alone. Over 90% of this funding was for basic research into understanding the causes of disease that provides the foundation for new treatments.

    Under the new directive to eliminate projects that support or use terms associated with diversity, equity and inclusion, the NIH and other federal agencies have made deep cuts to biomedical research that will directly affect patient lives.

    Already, nearly 41% of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lifetime, and nearly 11% with Alzheimer’s. About 1 in 5 Americans will die from heart disease, and nearly 1.4 million will be rushed to an emergency room due to pneumonia from an infectious disease.

    Defunding biomedical research will result in a cascade of effects. There will likely be fewer clinical trials, fewer new treatments and fewer lifesaving drugs. Labs will likely shut down, jobs will be lost, and the process of discovery will stall. The U.S.’s health care system, economy and standing as the world’s leader in scientific innovation will likely decline.

    Moreover, when the pipelines of scientific progress are turned off, they will not so easily be turned back on. These consequences will affect all Americans and the rest of the world for decades.

    University shortfalls directly resulting from cuts to research support will dramatically reduce the capacity of American institutions to educate and provide opportunities for the next generation. Funding cuts have led to the shuttering or heavy reduction of training programs for future scientists.

    Graduate students and postdoctoral trainees are the lifeblood of biomedical research. Supporting these young people committed to public service through research and health care is also an investment in medical advancements and public health. But the uncertainty and instability resulting from the divestment of federally funded programs will likely severely deplete the biomedical workforce, crippling the United States’ ability to deliver future biomedical breakthroughs.

    By cutting biomedical research funding, Americans and the rest of the world stand to lose new cures, new treatments and an entire generation of researchers.

    Deborah Fuller receives funding from the National Institutes Health. The personal views expressed here are those of the authors.

    Patrick Mitchell receives funding from the National Institutes of Health. The personal views expressed here are those of the authors.

    – ref. Cuts to science research funding cut American lives short − federal support is essential for medical breakthroughs – https://theconversation.com/cuts-to-science-research-funding-cut-american-lives-short-federal-support-is-essential-for-medical-breakthroughs-252150

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Chronic kidney disease often goes undiagnosed, but early detection can prevent severe outcomes

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Eleanor Rivera, Assistant Professor of Population Health Nursing Science, University of Illinois Chicago

    Testing for kidney function can help identify chronic kidney disease early enough to intervene. PIXOLOGICSTUDIO/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

    For a disease afflicting 35.5 million people in the U.S., chronic kidney disease flies under the radar. Only half the people who have it are formally diagnosed.

    The consequences of advanced chronic kidney disease are severe. When these essential organs can no longer do their job of filtering waste products from the blood, patients need intensive medical interventions that gravely diminish their quality of life.

    As an assistant professor of nursing and an expert in population health, I study strategies for improving patients’ awareness of chronic kidney disease. My research shows that patients with early-stage chronic kidney disease are not getting timely information from their health care providers about how to prevent the condition from worsening.

    Here’s what you need to know to keep your kidneys healthy:

    What do your kidneys do, and what happens when they fail?

    Kidneys have multiple functions, but their most critical and unglamorous job is filtering waste out of the body. When your kidneys are working well, they get rid of everyday by-products from your normal metabolism by creating urine. They also help keep your blood pressure stable, your electrolytes balanced and your red blood cell production pumping.

    The kidneys work hard around the clock. Over time, they can become damaged by acute experiences like severe dehydration, or acquire chronic damage from years of high blood pressure or high blood sugar. Sustained damage leads to chronically impaired kidney function, which can eventually progress to kidney failure.

    Kidneys that have failed stop producing urine, which prevents the body from eliminating fluids. This causes electrolytes like potassium and phosphate to build up to dangerous levels. The only effective treatments are to replace the work of the kidney with a procedure called dialysis or to receive a kidney transplant.

    Kidney transplants are the gold standard treatment, and most patients can be eligible to receive them. But unless they have a willing donor, they can spend an average of five years waiting for an available kidney.

    Most patients with kidney failure receive dialysis, which artificially replicates the kidneys’ job of filtering waste and removing fluid from the body. Dialysis treatment is extremely burdensome. Patients usually have to undergo the procedure multiple times per week, with each session taking several hours. And it comes with a major risk of death, disability and serious complications.

    If your kidneys aren’t working, dialysis can do their job for them.
    Picsfive via Getty Images

    What are the risk factors of chronic kidney disease?

    In the U.S., the biggest contributors to developing chronic kidney disease are high blood pressure and diabetes. Up to 40% of people with diabetes and as many as 30% of people with high blood pressure develop chronic kidney disease.

    The problem is, as with high blood pressure, people with early-stage chronic kidney disease almost never experience symptoms. Clinicians can test a patient’s overall kidney function using a measure called the estimated glomerular filtration rate. Current guidelines recommend that everyone – particularly people with risk factors like high blood pressure and diabetes – get their kidney function routinely tested to ensure the condition doesn’t progress silently.

    Early treatment for kidney disease often relies on managing high blood pressure and diabetes. New medications called SGLT2 inhibitors, originally developed to treat diabetes, may be able to directly protect the kidneys themselves, even in people who don’t have diabetes.

    Patients with early-stage kidney disease can benefit from knowing their kidney function scores and from treatment innovations like SGLT2 inhibitors, but only if they are successfully diagnosed and can discuss treatment options during routine visits with their health care providers.

    What are some barriers to early treatment?

    Early treatment for chronic kidney disease often gets overlooked during routine clinical care. In fact, as many as one-third of patients with kidney failure have no record of health care treatment for their kidneys in the early stages of their disease.

    Even if a diagnosis for chronic kidney disease is noted in a patient’s medical record, their provider might not discuss it with them: As few as 10% of people with the disease are aware that they have it.

    That’s partly due to the constraints of the U.S. health care system. The diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of early-stage chronic kidney disease occurs mostly in the primary care setting. However, primary care visit time is limited by insurance company reimbursement policies. Especially with patients who have multiple health problems, doctors may prioritize more noticeably pressing concerns.

    Chronic kidney disease can progress silently over many years.

    The result is that many clinicians put off addressing chronic kidney disease until symptoms emerge or test results worsen, often leaving early-stage patients undiagnosed and poorly informed about the disease. Research shows that people who are nonwhite, female and of lower socioeconomic status or education level are most likely to fall into this gap.

    But patients are eager for this knowledge, according to a study I co-authored. I interviewed patients who had early-stage kidney disease about their experiences receiving care. In their responses, patients expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of information they received from their health care providers and voiced a strong interest in learning more about the disease.

    As kidney disease progresses to the later stages, patients get treated by kidney specialists called nephrologists, who provide patients with targeted treatment and more robust education. But by the time patients progress to late-stage disease or even kidney failure, many symptoms can’t be reversed and the disease is much harder to manage.

    How can patients take charge of kidney health?

    People who are at risk for chronic kidney disease or who have developed early-stage disease can take several steps to minimize the chances that it will progress to kidney failure.

    First, patients can ask their doctors about chronic kidney disease, especially if they have risk factors such as high blood pressure or diabetes. Studies show that patients who ask questions, make requests and raise concerns with their provider during their health care visit have better health outcomes and are more satisfied with their care.

    Some specific questions to ask include “Am I at risk of developing chronic kidney disease?” and “Have I been tested for chronic kidney disease?” To help patients start these conversations at the doctor’s office, researchers are working to develop digital tools that visually represent a patient’s kidney disease test results and risks. These graphics can be incorporated into patients’ medical records to help spur conversations during a health care visit about their kidney health.

    Studies show that patients with chronic kidney disease who have a formal diagnosis in their medical records receive better care in line with current treatment guidelines and experience slower disease progression. Such patients can ask, “How quickly is my chronic kidney disease progressing?” and “How can I monitor my test results?” They may also want to ask, “What is my treatment plan for my chronic kidney disease?” and “Should I be seeing a kidney specialist?”

    In our research, we saw that patients with chronic kidney disease who had seen a loved one experience dialysis treatment were especially motivated to stick with their treatment to prevent kidney failure.

    But even without the benefit of direct experience, the possibility of kidney failure may motivate patients to follow their health care providers’ recommendations to eat a healthy diet, get regular physical activity and take their medications as prescribed.

    Eleanor Rivera receives funding from the National Institutes of Health. She is affiliated with the National Kidney Foundation and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

    – ref. Chronic kidney disease often goes undiagnosed, but early detection can prevent severe outcomes – https://theconversation.com/chronic-kidney-disease-often-goes-undiagnosed-but-early-detection-can-prevent-severe-outcomes-250744

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Two-thirds of South Africans express strong interest in science and technology

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    The 2022 South African Public Relationship with Science (SAPRS) survey, a first of its kind for the country, has found that two-thirds (66%) of the public were “very” or “quite” interested in South African science and technology (S&T). 

    This was among the highlights of the SAPRS, which is the focus of a conference underway at the Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg, Gauteng. 

    The Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Professor Blade Nzimande, released the report in December 2024 at the annual Science Forum South Africa. 

    This week various stakeholders have convened to discuss the survey and its implications for science engagement programmes, among others. 

    The Principal Investigator of the SAPRS Survey and a Distinguished Research Specialist at the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), Dr Vijay Reddy, stated that the survey’s purpose is to monitor the public’s relationship with science, focusing on knowledge, attitudes, and engagement.

    The Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) collaborated with the Equitable Education and Economies Research Programme of the HSRC on the survey.

    The survey was conducted among adults aged 16 and older, selected from 500 areas across all nine provinces. 

    The survey showed that 71% of the public has confidence in universities and research organisations that produce S&T information. 

    According to SAPRS, 51% of those surveyed believed that scientists were honest about their work, which highlighted the need for greater transparency and public engagement. 

    The majority (76%), however, agreed that scientists make life better for people and provide answers that explain the world we live in (75%). 

    “The survey also showed that South African adults have a notable understanding of science knowledge,” the statement read. 

    Meanwhile, six in 10 adults reported they were aware of S&T and had some formal S&T knowledge, while three-quarters (75%) of the public had been exposed to at least one post-grade 9 science or mathematics subject in school. 

    The two-thirds of South African adults (66%) reported they were interested in S&T or wanted to know or learn more. 

    When it came to the country’s research priorities, those polled had the highest knowledge (79%) about the quality of education in South Africa. 

    Meanwhile, clean and efficient water supply ranked second (77%), energy supply third (76%), and access to good-quality food came in fourth (75%). 

    The lowest-ranked priorities were advanced technologies such as robotics (57%) and space science and astronomy (44%). 

    Acting Director-General of the DSTI, Gugulethu Zwane, said that the SAPRS survey results reflect that more needs to be done to provide equitable resources to all communities. 

    She said there was a need to move from temporary improvements to permanent solutions that ensure inclusive science engagement and science literacy. 

    “As we have said many times before, science affects everyone, and so – according to the ’nothing about us without us’ principle – all communities need to have at least some exposure to science. We need to rethink our approaches and ramp up our science outreach,” said Zwane.

    In its 2019 White Paper on Science, Technology and Innovation, the DSTI has committed to carrying out this survey every five years. 

    Preparations for the next survey will begin in the 2025/26 financial year. 

    “The report on the second survey should be completed and released by the end of the current administration’s term. The first survey has shown us where we stand as a nation and given us data that will serve as the foundation for future efforts. The work to improve the situation starts here, in this conference, today,” she added. – SAnews.gov.za

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Reflecting on Progress: CIRCA’s Decade of Increasing Connecticut’s Climate Resilience

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the Connecticut Institute for Resilience and Climate Adaptation (CIRCA) was created to help build climate resiliency in the state of Connecticut. This past October saw CIRCA’s 10th anniversary, which was marked by an event that drew researchers, policymakers, and stakeholders from across the state.

    CIRCA works closely with communities and decision-makers to develop resilience in many ways, from crafting policy, assessing climate vulnerability, supporting clean energy projects, mapping community and environmental justice communities across the state, and many more. Though much has been accomplished, more work is ahead as the climate crisis grows more pressing.

    CIRCA Executive Director and Professor in the Department of Marine Sciences James O’Donnell reflects on last year, a year where overall, while Connecticut was spared hurricanes, areas of the state like Western Connecticut and Norwich experienced major flooding disasters.

    “We were relatively lucky in 2024 since we didn’t have a hurricane, but floods like those in Monroe, Oxford, and Norwich could occur almost anywhere in Connecticut, we’re pretty exposed,” says O’Donnell.

    Addressing the issue of exposure is not an easy undertaking, but CIRCA has made significant progress in building relationships with stakeholders and decision-makers both at the state and local levels. Carrying policies and resilience-building planning efforts from idea to finished product takes a lot of time, coordination, and outreach, and all of this takes expertise, and that is what CIRCA’s team of experts offers – help in building climate resilience.

    O’Donnell draws on the example of how he is currently serving on a legislative committee that was established to make recommendations on how to best support and expand tourism in southeastern Connecticut, an area that is also vulnerable to the impacts of sea level rise and more frequent flood events.

    “They’re concerned about flooding in Mystic, and they realize all of the tourism center, businesses, and the attractions of Mystic Seaport and downtown are largely in the flood zone,” O’Donnell says.

    In the winter of 2023, the area in question was underwater several times, says O’Donnell, and those cases were not the result of storms. With rising sea levels and changes in variations in the circulation of the North Atlantic, this trend of flooding will continue to increase, and in the case of Mystic, O’Donnell says we can expect up to 20 inches of sea level rise by 2050.

    “Sea level increase in the Northwest Atlantic is increasing faster than everywhere else in the world, and it’s a consequence of the patterns of ocean circulation and changes in ocean circulation that a result from warming of the ocean and atmosphere.”

    But for stakeholders and policymakers, having experts to consult and who can provide support and information for making decisions that will ultimately save lives is valuable. O’Donnell says that in his role working with politicians and decision-makers, his role as a physicist is to help answer questions and provide insights.

    “The question of what will happen is not hard to project. The question is, what do you do, and who pays for it? That’s the hard part.”

    Seeing a project through requires many factors to coalesce, from idea to finished project. O’Donnell says a significant step starts with ensuring all stakeholders are on board with a plan. He draws on an example of a project in Bridgeport that CIRCA started working on in 2017. The plan is to build a berm to protect a neighborhood from sea level rise, and all property owners need to agree before the project can proceed. If anyone objects, the plans need to be modified. After everyone approves the project, the permitting process can begin, followed by getting bids from contractors, and if bids come in higher than expected, either more funding needs to be secured, or the project needs to be redesigned to lower costs, which starts the whole process over.

    “It has been eight years, and there’s no construction yet. We’ve got an inventory of around 150 projects that have been identified through a process we call the Resilient Connecticut Planning Process, and those projects are all over the state. We’ve advanced about 15 in a substantial way, and we’ve helped in some other ones. The project pipeline starts, and it ends, and there are steps along the way, and the goal is to advance things up the pipeline, but it takes years.”

    O’Donnell says in the case of Mystic, in planning ways to sustain tourism, some people are more interested in short-term questions such as where a parking structure should be built, but even a seemingly simple project like this one benefits from climate resilience expertise,

    “My role there is to help them appreciate what areas might be vulnerable in the future. Many of the attractions at Mystic Seaport and some of their infrastructure is in the flood zone. They need to think about how to protect it and ensure that they can sustain visitor interest and make it convenient for people to visit.”

    The value of CIRCA’s expertise was appreciated at the 10th-anniversary celebration of CIRCA, says O’Donnell,

    “One of the things that was really rewarding from our meeting in October is realizing how climate is considered now, compared to 10 years ago. We had a bi-partisan panel of three Republicans and three Democrats from across the state and they were all very, very supportive and interested in being informed. The other thing that’s happened is several state agencies have created climate planning offices, so they’ve hired people to provide climate-informed perspectives on the work that the agency is doing, including former employees of CIRCA. They poach people from our program, which is a good thing!”

    CIRCA is not just focused on flooding, says O’Donnell, more recently, they have started to work on the serious problem of heat stress across the state, especially in urban areas like Hartford and Stamford. Researchers are working to measure and understand current and historical data to track the trends to better predict conditions in the future.

    “We currently get two or three days a year when it is above 90 oF at night, and we can expect an increase in the future. When that happens, people feel uncomfortable, and people who are vulnerable suffer, so we’re going to be we have to anticipate that as well. It’s also a significant impact for people who work outside. There are other climate-related impacts that we should plan for.”

    As the climate crisis worsens, besides pushing resilience projects ahead, O’Donnell stresses that it is essential that we reduce our emissions as soon as possible.

    “If we don’t reduce our emissions, things will get worse late in this century. We’re committed to warming and we’re committed to sea level rise, but what we do now will affect what it’s going to be like in 2100 and it’s a huge difference to what it will be like in 2200. If we don’t rapidly shut down emissions now, we’re talking about building much higher flood walls. It is important to make people aware that we can adapt to small changes, but it will be a different world if we don’t reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: NANO Nuclear Energy Bolsters the Engineering Team Overseeing the Development of its ODIN™ Microreactor with Three Additional Leading Professionals

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    New York, N.Y., March 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: NNE) (“NANO Nuclear” or “the Company”), a leading advanced nuclear energy and technology company focused on developing clean energy solutions, today announced that three additional professionals have joined its U.K.-based nuclear science and engineering partner Cambridge AtomWorks, led by Professors Ian Farnan and Eugene Shwageraus. Cambridge AtomWorks personnel are leading the development of NANO Nuclear’s ODIN™, a low-pressure coolant microreactor.

    Radwan Nassim Kheroua joins as a Nuclear Systems Engineer, Luke Godfrey as a Senior Nuclear Engineer, and Jake Miles as a Nuclear Engineer. Their appointments finalize NANO Nuclear’s latest round of additions to its engineering team, building on the previously announced roles for Andrew Steer, Ph.D., as NANO Nuclear’s Head of Regulatory Engagement and James Leybourn and Simon Boddington as Senior Nuclear Engineers.

    Figure 1 – NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. Appoints Radwan Nassim Kheroua as Nuclear Systems Engineer, Luke Godfrey as Senior Nuclear Engineer, and Jake Miles as Nuclear Engineer.

    Mr. Kheroua previously served as a Research Engineer in Reactor Thermal-Hydraulic Modeling at Framatome, where he carried out his first industrial research in nuclear fusion, working on plasma physics at CEA Cadarache and tritium monitoring with the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority’s Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (UKAEA CCFE). He brings extensive expertise in reactor accident analysis and fuel safety case justification.

    Mr. Godfrey previously served as Lead Thermohydraulic Engineer at Moltex, focusing on molten salt heat transfer, coupled reactor system modeling, and safety case development. During his time at Moltex, he was integral to designing the SSRW and FLEX reactors, leading thermal hydraulics, developing coupled simulation tools, contributing to safety cases development, planning verification and validation activities, and designing key experiments.

    Mr. Miles earned a BSc in Physics from the University of Leeds and later completed a Master’s degree in Nuclear Energy at the University of Cambridge. He briefly researched reactor physics and shutdown systems for high-temperature gas-cooled reactors before transitioning to the nuclear maritime industry, where he specialized in modeling and simulation of Molten Chloride Fast Reactors and their systems. In his new role, he will focus on shielding design and core optimization for the ODIN microreactor, supporting the technology’s ongoing development.

    “We are very pleased to continue expanding our engineering team with some of the top talent in the field of nuclear energy,” said Professor Ian Farnan, Lead of Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Radiation and Materials of NANO Nuclear. “These additions bring us a wealth of technical knowledge and a deep understanding of nuclear technologies that will be leveraged to support the development and advancement of our proprietary microreactor systems.”

    “With the additions of Mr. Kheroua, Mr. Godfrey and Mr. Miles, together with our other recent hires, I believe we are assembling a leading team of nuclear engineers,” said Professor Eugene Shwageraus, Lead of Nuclear Reactor Engineering of NANO Nuclear. “Their specialized expertise further strengthens our design process and supports a robust development schedule, ensuring we continue building on our momentum effectively.”

    As NANO Nuclear continues to expand its operations, it remains committed to developing cutting-edge nuclear solutions that redefine the global energy landscape. The addition of Mr. Kheroua, Mr. Godfrey and Mr. Miles’ cutting-edge engineering talent will support NANO Nuclear’s endeavors to tackle the particular challenges associated with the ongoing development of the proprietary ‘ZEUS’ and ‘ODIN’ microreactors, as well as the KRONOS MMR™ Energy System and the LOKI MMR™ high-efficiency nuclear systems for remote and off-grid applications.

    “It is a pleasure to welcome our newest additions to the engineering team overseeing the development of the ODIN microreactor,” said James Walker, Chief Executive Officer of NANO Nuclear. “We’ve assembled a group of highly skilled professionals for this project, and I’m confident their arrival will significantly accelerate our development timeline and strengthen the ODIN microreactor’s path toward demonstration, regulatory approval and ultimately commercialization.”

    About NANO Nuclear Energy, Inc.

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

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

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

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

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

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

    For further NANO Nuclear information, please contact:

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

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    Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements

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

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    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Vicon’s new markerless system enabling Dreamscape Immersive’s latest VR experience

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    28 March 2025

    Oxford Metrics plc

    (“Oxford Metrics” or the “Group”)

    Vicon’s new markerless system enabling Dreamscape Immersive’s latest VR experience

    New location-based VR technology to launch at Dreamscape’s Geneva flagship store in partnership with Swiss research partner, Artanim

    Oxford Metrics plc (LSE: OMG), the smart sensing and software company servicing life sciences, entertainment, engineering and smart manufacturing markets, announces that Vicon, its motion capture division, will be powering Dreamscape’s latest Location Based Virtual Reality (“LBVR”) experience, with its recently launched Vicon Markerless system.

    For Dreamscape, markerless motion capture can now provide a more true-to-life adventure than any other immersive VR experience by allowing more free-flowing movement and exploration without the need for markers and less user gear. Bringing smoother user journeys, this technological upgrade also has a major impact on staff operations and will ultimately facilitate Dreamscape’s international locations rollout.

    Located exclusively at their flagship store in Geneva, this new technology will be implemented across all industry sectors where Dreamscape is active including Entertainment, Education and Corporate solutions.

    Entitled ‘The House of Wonders’, the new six person, markerless and multimodal LBVR experience has been created in partnership with Audemars Piguet, the Swiss haute horlogerie manufacturer. ‘The House of Wonders’ experience delves participants into the hidden depths of enchanting workshops, where they meet a cast of passionate artisans and participate in the creation of a mechanical marvel. The VR technology bringing the experience to life was developed in collaboration with Artanim, the Swiss research institute.

    Imogen O’Connor, Oxford Metrics CEO commented on the collaboration: “Hot off the heels of our markerless launch, it’s great to announce that our innovative technology will be powering Dreamscape’s latest VR experience. Collaborating with Dreamscape on this project offered Vicon a unique opportunity to continue our work with a world leader in Location Based Virtual Reality and demonstrates the value of our markerless motion capture technology. This is only the beginning. Vicon’s system is a first-of-its-kind platform for markerless motion capture for creators, story tellers and 3D artists across Location Based Virtual Reality, Game, Film and Episodic TV.”

    Commenting on the new experience, Caecilia Charbonnier, Co-founder & CIO of Dreamscape, said: “We’ve long anticipated the moment when markerless motion capture could transition from concept to reality, reaching the level of precision needed to unlock its full potential. With Vicon’s decades-long legacy of setting the gold standard in motion capture technology and Dreamscape’s unwavering mission to create seamless, immersive experiences, our collaboration on this project was a natural fit.”

    The collaboration between Vicon and Artanim was key to ensure the desired requirements for the VR use case were met.

    Sylvain Chagué, co-founder and CTO of Artanim and Dreamscape, said: “Delivering best in class virtual body ownership and immersion in VR demands both accurate tracking and very low latency. We dedicated substantial R&D efforts to evaluating computational performance of machine learning-based tracking algorithms, carefully implementing and refining this multi-modal tracking solution – seamlessly integrating full-body markerless motion capture and VR headset tracking for an unparalleled experience.”  

    For further information please contact:

    Oxford Metrics +44 (0) 1865 261860
    Imogen O’Connor, CEO  
    Zoe Fox, CFO
    Emma Colven, Head of Communications    		  
    FTI Consulting +44 (0)20 3727 1000
    Matt Dixon / Emma Hall / Jemima Gurney  

    About Oxford Metrics

    Oxford Metrics is a smart sensing and software company that enables the interface between the real world and its virtual twin. Our smart sensing technology helps over 10,000 customers in more than 70 countries, including all of the world’s top 10 games companies and all of the top 20 universities worldwide. Founded in 1984, we started our journey in healthcare, expanded into entertainment, winning an OSCAR® and an Emmy®, moved into defence, engineering and smart manufacturing. We have a strong track record of creating value by incubating, growing and then augmenting through acquisition, unique technology businesses.

    The Group trades through its market-leading division Vicon, Industrial Vision Systems, and recently acquired, The Sempre Group. Vicon is a world leader in motion measurement analysis to thousands of customers worldwide, including Red Bull, Imperial College London, Dreamscape Immersive, Industrial Light & Magic, and NASA. Industrial Vision Systems is a specialist in machine vision software and technology for high precision, automated quality control systems trusted by blue-chip, smart manufacturing companies across the globe including BD, DePuy, Jaguar Land Rover, Johnson & Johnson, Zytronic and Alkegen. Sempre is a measurement specialist solving manufacturing challenges across multiple industries. Through their expert in-house consultants and partnerships with over 25 well-known manufacturers including Jenoptik, Renishaw and Micro-Vu, Sempre offers an extensive range of products and software to customers in aerospace, automotive, medical, energy and precision engineering.

    The Group is headquartered in Oxford with offices in the United Kingdom, United States and Germany. Since 2001, Oxford Metrics (LSE: OMG), has been a quoted company listed on AIM, a market operated by the London Stock Exchange. For more information about Oxford Metrics, visit www.oxfordmetrics.com.

    About Dreamscape

    Dreamscape Immersive is a world-leading VR company pioneering immersive experiences for entertainment, enterprise, and education.

    Dreamscape combines the emotional power of Hollywood storytelling, the visceral excitement of major theme parks and cutting-edge motion capture technology to create stories and worlds that push the boundaries of virtual reality.

    Dreamscape was founded in 2017 by technology experts, cinematic heavyweights, and live events professionals. The company’s location-based VR venues began rolling out across the United States and the Middle East in December 2018 to unprecedented audience enthusiasm. Most recently, Dreamscape introduced Dreamscape Learn, a new partnership with the nation’s leading innovator in education Arizona State University, to transform learning through exploration. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, California, with its European headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. To learn more about Dreamscape, visit our site at: dreamscapeimmersive.com.

    About Artanim

    A Swiss leading non-profit center in motion capture technologies, Artanim Foundation was founded in Geneva, Switzerland in 2011. The foundation pursues two strategic lines of research related to motion capture:

    • Virtual and augmented reality: Artanim develops virtual or augmented reality applications that emphasize on real-time interaction and virtual characters animation using state-of-the-art technologies. Part of this R&D effort has resulted in the commercial exploitation of story-based full-roam VR experiences as offered by Dreamscape, the leading VR company, leveraging Artanim’s breakthrough VR platform to create the ultimate immersive experience for location-based entertainment and education.
    • Medical research: Artanim combines motion capture with 3D medical imaging to better understand individualized human joint structures and to improve diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal disorders.

    Besides its research activities, Artanim develops award-winning interactive installations that can exploit the potential of virtual and augmented reality, user performance and interactive control to provide new ways of experiencing digital content. For more information about Artanim, visit: artanim.ch.

    About Reach announcements

    This is a RNS Reach announcement. Reach is an investor communication service aimed at assisting listed and unlisted companies to distribute media only / non-regulatory news releases into the public domain. Information required to be notified under the AIM Rules, Market Abuse Regulation or other regulation would be disseminated as an RNS regulatory announcement and not on Reach.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Easing the shortage of skilled labour through higher education for refugees

    Source: Switzerland – Department of Foreign Affairs in English

    The State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) and swissuniversities, the Swiss Conference of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions, want to facilitate access to higher education in Switzerland for refugees with academic potential and thereby ease the shortage of skilled labour. The first phase of the pilot programme will focus on five projects from institutions including the Universities of Basel, Lausanne and Lucerne, the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland and the Lucerne University of Teacher Education.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NASA Shares SpaceX Crew-11 Assignments for Space Station Mission

    Source: NASA

    As part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission, four crew members from three space agencies will launch in the coming months to the International Space Station for a long-duration science expedition aboard the orbiting laboratory.
    NASA astronauts Commander Zena Cardman and Pilot Mike Fincke, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Mission Specialist Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Mission Specialist Oleg Platonov will join crew members aboard the space station no earlier than July 2025.
    The flight is the 11th crew rotation with SpaceX to the station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The crew will conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to help prepare humans for future missions to the Moon, as well as benefit people on Earth.
    Cardman previously was assigned to NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission, and Fincke previously was assigned to NASA’s Boeing Starliner-1 mission. NASA decided to reassign the astronauts to Crew-11 in overall support of planned activities aboard the International Space Station. Cardman carries her experience training as a commander on Dragon spacecraft, and Fincke brings long-duration spaceflight experience to this crew complement.
    Selected as a NASA astronaut in 2017, Cardman will conduct her first spaceflight. The Williamsburg, Virginia, native holds a bachelor’s degree in Biology and a master’s in Marine Sciences from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. At the time of selection, she had begun pursuing a doctorate in Geosciences. Cardman’s research in geobiology and geochemical cycling focused on subsurface environments, from caves to deep sea sediments. Since completing initial training, Cardman has supported real-time station operations and lunar surface exploration planning.
    This will be Fincke’s fourth trip to the space station, having logged 382 days in space and nine spacewalks during Expedition 9 in 2004, Expedition 18 in 2008, and STS-134 in 2011, the final flight of space shuttle Endeavour. Throughout the past decade, Fincke has applied his expertise to NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, advancing the development and testing of the SpaceX Dragon and Boeing Starliner toward operational certification. The Emsworth, Pennsylvania, native is a distinguished graduate of the United States Air Force Test Pilot School and holds bachelors’ degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, in both Aeronautics and Astronautics, as well as Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences. He also has a master’s degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford University in California. Fincke is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel with more than 2,000 flight hours in more than 30 different aircraft.
    With 142 days in space, this will be Yui’s second trip to the space station. After his selection as a JAXA astronaut in 2009, Yui flew as a flight engineer for Expedition 44/45 and became the first Japanese astronaut to capture JAXA’s H-II Transfer Vehicle. In addition to constructing a new experimental environment aboard Kibo, he conducted a total of 21 experiments for JAXA. In November 2016, Yui was assigned as chief of the JAXA Astronaut Group. He graduated from the School of Science and Engineering at the National Defense Academy of Japan in 1992. He later joined the Air Self-Defense Force at the Japan Defense Agency (currently Ministry of Defense). In 2008, Yui joined the Air Staff Office at the Ministry of Defense as a lieutenant colonel.
    The Crew-11 mission will be Platonov’s first spaceflight. Before his selection as a cosmonaut in 2018, Platonov earned a degree in Engineering from Krasnodar Air Force Academy in Aircraft Operations and Air Traffic Management. He also earned a bachelor’s degree in State and Municipal Management in 2016 from the Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok, Russia. Assigned as a test cosmonaut in 2021, he has experience in piloting aircraft, zero gravity training, scuba diving, and wilderness survival.
    For more than two decades, people have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and demonstrating new technologies, making research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. The station is a critical testbed for NASA to understand and overcome the challenges of long-duration spaceflight and to expand commercial opportunities in low Earth orbit. As commercial companies focus on providing human space transportation services and destinations as part of a robust low Earth orbit economy, NASA’s Artemis campaign is underway at the Moon, where the agency is preparing for future human exploration of Mars.
    Learn more about NASA’s Commercial Crew Program at:
    https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew
    -end-
    Joshua Finch / Jimi RussellHeadquarters, Washington202-358-1100joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / james.j.russell@nasa.gov
    Courtney Beasley / Chelsey BallarteJohnson Space Center, Houston281-483-5111courtney.m.beasley@nasa.gov / chelsey.n.ballarte@nasa.gov

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: ECB Consumer Expectations Survey results – February 2025

    Source: European Central Bank

    28 March 2025

    Compared with January 2025:

    • median consumer perceptions of inflation over the previous 12 months decreased, while median inflation expectations for the next 12 months and for three years ahead remained unchanged;
    • expectations for nominal income growth over the next 12 months increased, while expectations for spending growth over the next 12 months decreased;
    • expectations for economic growth over the next 12 months became more negative, while the expected unemployment rate in 12 months’ time increased;
    • expectations for growth in the price of homes over the next 12 months remained unchanged, while expectations for mortgage interest rates 12 months ahead declined.

    Inflation

    The median rate of perceived inflation over the previous 12 months decreased in February to 3.1%, from 3.4% in January. This is its lowest level since September 2021. Median expectations for inflation over the next 12 months were unchanged at 2.6%, as were those for inflation three years ahead at 2.4%. Inflation expectations at the one-year and three-year horizons thus remained below the perceived past inflation rate. Uncertainty about inflation expectations over the next 12 months decreased slightly in February to its lowest level since January 2022. While the broad evolution of inflation perceptions and expectations remained relatively closely aligned across income groups, over the previous year and a half inflation perceptions and expectations for lower income quintiles were, on average, slightly above those for higher income quintiles. Younger respondents (aged 18-34) continued to report lower inflation perceptions and expectations than older respondents (those aged 35-54 and 55-70), albeit to a lesser degree than in previous years. (Inflation results)

    Income and consumption

    Consumers’ nominal income growth expectations over the next 12 months increased to 1.0% in February from 0.9% in January. Perceived nominal spending growth over the previous 12 months decreased further to 4.9% in February, from 5.1% in January and 5.2% in December. This decrease was observed across most income groups. Expected nominal spending growth over the next 12 months also decreased to 3.5% in February, the same value as in December, from 3.6% in January. (Income and consumption results)

    Economic growth and labour market

    Economic growth expectations for the next 12 months were more negative, standing at -1.2%, compared with -1.1% in January, but still above the December value of -1.3%. Expectations for the unemployment rate 12 months ahead increased to 10.5%, the same as in December, from 10.4% in January. Consumers continued to expect the future unemployment rate to be only slightly higher than the perceived current unemployment rate (10.0%), implying a broadly stable labour market. Expectations for both economic growth and the unemployment rate remained broadly stable in the previous fourth months, fluctuating within a narrow range. (Economic growth and labour market results)

    Housing and credit access

    Consumers expected the price of their home to increase by 3.0% over the next 12 months, which was unchanged from January. Households in the lowest income quintile continued to expect higher growth in house prices than those in the highest income quintile (3.5% and 2.7% respectively). Expectations for mortgage interest rates 12 months ahead declined slightly to 4.4% from 4.5%. As in previous months, the lowest income households expected the highest mortgage interest rates 12 months ahead (5.0%), while the highest income households expected the lowest rates (3.9%). The net percentage of households reporting a tightening (relative to those reporting an easing) in access to credit over the previous 12 months declined, as did the net percentage of those expecting a tightening over the next 12 months. (Housing and credit access results)

    The release of the Consumer Expectations Survey (CES) results for March is scheduled for 29 April 2025.

    For media queries, please contact: Nicos Keranis, Tel: +49 172 758 7237

    Notes

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Developing International Education: Dmitry Bryukhanov Becomes Head of the ESU Secretariat

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

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

    On March 26, 2025, the 10th meeting of the Coordination Council of the scientific and educational consortium “Eurasian Network University” (ENU) was held in a mixed format, in which the rector of the State University of Management Vladimir Stroyev and the vice-rector Dmitry Bryukhanov took part.

    The meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia, the State University of Management, the National Research University “MPEI”, the Moscow State Technological University “STANKIN”, the Almaty Technological University, the Kyrgyz State Technical University named after I. Razzakov, the Kyrgyz University of Economics, the University under the Interparliamentary Assembly of the Eurasian Economic Community, the Higher School of Economics, the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, the Moscow State Law Academy named after O.E. Kutafin and others.

    Chairman of the Coordination Council of the Eurasian Network University, Rector of the National Research University “MPEI” Nikolay Rogalev delivered a welcoming speech, familiarizing the participants with the agenda of the meeting. The main topics for discussion were issues of interaction between the Eurasian Network University and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.

    Alexey Poyda, Head of the Department of Bilateral Cooperation with Near Abroad Countries, the CIS and the Union State of the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Education and Science, spoke about the key tasks of the ESU, including the training of qualified personnel and the development of educational programs for additional professional education. Particular attention was also paid to candidates from member states and observer states of the Eurasian Economic Union who are taking part in the ESU Olympiad.

    Representative of the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation O.V. Prosvirina reported on the six main main directions of development of the EAEU, laid down in the declaration on the further development of economic processes within the Eurasian Economic Union. During the meeting, issues of providing the common market with key goods and resources, energy security, the formation of a common space for cooperation and collaboration in the field of technological development, as well as the training of qualified specialists in these industries were discussed.

    The issues of creating a Eurasian Rating Agency and concluding free trade agreements with other countries were also discussed.

    At the initiative of the universities participating in the ESU, a decision was made on the need to amend the regulations on the ESU Secretariat and return to the previous version of the Regulation, which provided for the division of powers between the chairman of the Coordination Council and the head of the ESU Secretariat.

    At the end of the meeting, an open vote was held, following which it was decided to: return to the original version of the Regulation on the ESU Secretariat, appoint the Vice-Rector of the State University of Management Dmitry Bryukhanov to the position of head of the ESU Secretariat, approve the list of joint programs of additional professional education for foreign specialists in Russian, approve the work plan of the ESU scientific and educational consortium for 2025, include the Kyzylorda University “Bolashak” in the ESU.

    The next meeting of the Coordination Council will be held on May 15-16 at the Volgograd State Technical University.

    Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 03/28/2025

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

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Netherlands launches fund to accommodate excellent international scientists

    Source: Government of the Netherlands

    News item | 20-03-2025 | 15:15

    Excellent international scientists who want to continue their work in the Netherlands are welcome in our country. That is the message that Minister of Education, Culture and Science Eppo Bruins is eager to communicate with the world. He has asked the Dutch Research Council (NWO) to set up a programme to attract the best scientists to the Netherlands as soon as possible. Today, Mr Bruins formally stated his intentions in a letter to the House of Representatives.

    Leading scientists

    Minister Bruins: “The world is changing. Tensions are on the rise. We are seeing an increase in the number of scientists looking for another place to continue their work. I want more top international scientists to do so here in the Netherlands. After all, leading scientists are of immense value to the Netherlands and to Europe as a whole.”

    A new NWO fund

    Mr Bruins has asked the Dutch Research Council to establish a new fund as soon as possible to encourage outstanding researchers and talented scientists to come to the Netherlands to pursue their ambitions. For example, a financial package could be made available in the form of a grant. The aim is to ensure that scientists have the resources to live and work in the Netherlands and continue their research at a Dutch knowledge institution.

    Details of the fund have yet to take shape, but the minister is eager to announce it at this early stage to scientists who are currently considering the next step in their career. It is important that they include the Netherlands in their deliberations. Other European countries such as France, Germany, Spain and Belgium are also taking initiatives to bring leading international scientists into the fold.

    Truly international

    A number of guiding principles of the fund have already been made clear. Eligibility is not restricted to Dutch nationals working abroad. Mr Bruins wants to open up the scheme to the full spectrum of top international talent, regardless of nationality. He also wants the fund to launch as soon as possible, sending a strong signal that leading researchers are welcome in the Netherlands. The ambition is that the fund will bring several dozen top scientists to the Netherlands. In close consultation with the Dutch Research Council, the minister expects to clarify the financial details in the coming weeks, along with the start date for the fund and the exact conditions that candidates will have to meet.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: First year of Georgia’s ‘foreign agent’ law shows how autocracies are replicating Russian model − and speeding up the time frame

    Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Anastasiya Zavyalova, Associate Professor of Strategic Management, Rice University

    Demonstrators protest the foreign influence law in front of the Georgian Parliament building on May 28, 2024. Nicolo Vincenzo Malvestuto/Getty Images

    Autocracy is on the move worldwide and becoming more resilient.

    One of the driving forces behind this phenomenon is something scholars call “authoritarian learning,” a process by which autocratic leaders study each other and adapt tactics based on what appears to work, and how to proceed when they encounter resistance.

    Take Georgia. The ruling Georgian Dream party has steered the Caucasus nation from a path toward democracy back to autocracy – and it has done so by learning from Russia. In particular, it adopted a “foreign agent” law in May 2024 – legislation that came straight from Vladimir Putin’s playbook.

    Sold to the public as increasing transparency, the legislation has been utilized to persecute Georgia’s opposition and arrest dissidents with impunity.

    As researchers examining the structure and effects of autocratic regimes, we view Georgia’s first year of its foreign agent law as an example of how politicians are not only learning the tactics of Russian authoritarianism but improving on them in a shorter time frame.

    Bouncing from Europe to Russia

    Georgia’s current ruling party came to power after then-President Mikheil Saakashvili enacted a major series of reforms in the 2000s. Saakashvili, who was jailed in 2021 under highly contested charges, inherited a Georgia seen as a failing and corrupt state tethered to Russia.

    The reform-minded politicians of Saakashvili’s government set the country on a pro-Western path. But after Russia’s invasion of Georgia in 2008, a socially conservative coalition under the banner Georgian Dream won the parliamentary elections in 2012.

    Georgian Dream was buoyed by the fortune of billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, a Russian citizen until 2011. The party capitalized on the public’s fatigue after a decade of Saakashvili’s necessary but intense reforms. The new coalition married a promise for continuing the pro-Western reforms, but with a more traditional, conservative approach to social issues.

    This appeal to traditional Georgian values won support in rural communities and carried the coalition to an absolute majority in Parliament in 2016. Since then, Georgian Dream has adopted pro-Russian rhetoric, accusing a “global war party” of running the West. Increasing attacks on the European Union, in particular, have been a part of a broader strategy to bring Georgia back into Russia’s orbit.

    The Georgian Dream progression in power has mirrored that of Putin in Russia. In 2012, Putin signed a “foreign agents” law that originally targeted NGOs receiving foreign funding and alleged to be engaged in political activity.

    The Kremlin equated this law to the 1938 Foreign Agents Registration Act, or FARA, in the United States, and justified it as a means to increase transparency around foreign involvement in Russia’s internal affairs.

    Unlike FARA, however, Russia’s version of the law neither required establishing a connection between foreign funding and political activity nor provided a clear definition of political activity.

    This vagueness allowed for a wide range of NGOs deemed undesirable by the Kremlin to be labeled as “foreign agents.” The result was the suppression of NGO activities through financial, administrative and legal burdens that led to their liquidation or departure from the country.

    Over the years, this law has reduced Russian civil society’s ability to independently voice and address issues that its population faces.

    Yearlong slide into autocracy

    Georgian Dream passed a very similar foreign agent law on May 28, 2024, after overcoming a presidential veto. It forced NGOs receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register with the Ministry of Justice as “serving the interests of a foreign power.”

    Activists opposing the law have been physically assaulted, and the law has been utilized against what the ruling party has described as “LGBT propaganda.”

    The law fits a wider political landscape in which the ruling party has moved to restrict freedom of the press, prosecuted political opponents and postponed Georgia’s European Union candidate status despite the overwhelming majority of Georgians being pro-EU.

    Protestors take part in a pro-European rally in Warsaw, Poland, on April 30, 2024.
    Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images

    Improving on Russian authoritarians

    Three critical factors played a role in allowing for the foreign agent law in Russia to expand its reach: the power imbalance between the Russian government and NGOs, limited action by international authorities, and delayed media attention to the issue.

    At the time the law was passed, civil society inside Russia itself was split. Some foresaw the dangers of the law and engaged in collective action to oppose it, while others chose to wait and see.

    As it happened, the law and the accompanying repressive apparatus spread to a broader range of targets. In 2015, Putin signed a law that designated an “undesirable” status to foreign organizations “on national security grounds”; in 2017, an amendment expanded the targets of the law from NGOs to mass media outlets; and at the end of 2019, the law allowed the classification of individuals and unregistered public associations – that is, groups of individuals – as mass media acting as foreign agents. By July 2022, the foreign funding criterion was excluded and a status of a foreign agent could be designated to anyone whom the Russian authorities deemed to be “under foreign influence.”

    Russia’s experience highlights the process of early stages of authoritarian consolidation, when state power quashes independent sources of power, and political groups and citizens either rally around the government or go silent. The foreign agent law in Russia was passed only after the protests that accompanied the 2012 elections, which returned Putin to the presidency for the third term.

    In Georgia, the ruling government borrowed from Russia’s lead – after backing down from its first attempt to pass a foreign agent law in the face of massive protests, it pushed it through before the elections.

    The law was then used to raid NGOs sympathetic to the opposition days before the October 2024 parliamentary election. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said before the elections that in the event of Georgian Dream’s victory, it would look to outlaw the pro-Western opposition, naming them “criminal political forces.”

    In the wake of President Donald Trump’s suspension of USAID assistance in February 2025, Georgian Dream has seized the opportunity to expand its war on civil society, echoing Russian, Chinese and American far-right conspiracy rhetoric that foreign-funded NGOs were fomenting revolution. To combat such phantoms, Georgian Dream has passed new legislation that criminalizes assembly and protest.

    A springboard for repression

    The foreign agent law has been a springboard for repressive activities in both Russia and Georgia, but while it took Russia a decade to effectively use the law to crush any opposition, Georgian Dream is working on an expedited timetable.

    Although the EU has suspended direct assistance and closed off visa-free travel for Georgian officials as a result of the law, Trump’s turn toward pro-Russian policies has made it more difficult to obtain Western consensus in dislodging the Georgian government from its authoritarian drift.

    Georgia’s experience, following the Russian playbook, illustrates how authoritarians are learning from each other, utilizing the rule of law itself against democracy.

    Christopher A. Hartwell has received funding from the Institute for Humane Studies and the Swiss National Science Foundation.

    Anastasiya Zavyalova 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. First year of Georgia’s ‘foreign agent’ law shows how autocracies are replicating Russian model − and speeding up the time frame – https://theconversation.com/first-year-of-georgias-foreign-agent-law-shows-how-autocracies-are-replicating-russian-model-and-speeding-up-the-time-frame-250878

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI China: Beijing Intl Film Festival announces star-studded jury, lineup and events

    Source: China State Council Information Office 3

    Organizers have announced the Tiantan Award jury panel and additional details for the 15th Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF), set for April 18-26 in Beijing.

    Organizers reveal the jury panel for the Tiantan Award main competition of the 15th Beijing International Film Festival during a press conference in Beijing, March 27, 2025. [Photo courtesy of the BJIFF Organizing Committee] 

    Prominent Chinese filmmaker Jiang Wen will chair the seven-member jury, organizers revealed at a press conference in Beijing on March 27.

    Jiang, known for his award-winning works “In the Heat of the Sun” (1994) and “Let the Bullets Fly” (2010), also gained international recognition for his role as Baze Malbus in “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” (2016).

    His experience includes serving as a competition juror at the Cannes International Film Festival in 2003 and the Venice International Film Festival in 2013. In 2017, Jiang became a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The following year, he presided as jury president at the Shanghai International Film Festival.

    The BJIFF’s Tiantan Award main competition jury will include Chinese American director and actor Joan Chen, British director David Yates, Chinese mainland actor Ni Ni, Finnish director Teemu Nikki, Swiss director and actor Vincent Perez, and Chinese art director Tim Yip from China’s Hong Kong. The panel will select winners across 10 categories, including best feature film, best director and best screenplay. All awards will be presented at the festival’s closing ceremony and gala.

    The competition received a record 1,794 feature film submissions from 103 countries and regions, marking a 19% increase over last year’s 1,509 entries. International submissions accounted for 1,608 films, comprising nearly 90% of all entries and reflecting exceptional diversity in genre and thematic scope.

    Fifteen films have been shortlisted for the final competition, including three Chinese entries: Hao Ming and Li Peiran’s “Better Me, Better You,” Li Yongyi’s “Deep in the Mountains,” and Zhang Qi’s “Trapped.”

    International selections for the competition include Emine Yildirim’s “Apollon by Day Athena by Night” (Turkey), Sora Hokimoto’s “BAUS: The Ship’s Voyage Continues” (Japan), Maria Brendle’s “Frieda’s Case” (Switzerland), Tim Ellrich’s “In My Parents’ House” (Germany), Lilja Ingolfsdottir’s “Loveable” (Norway), Tobias Schmutzler, Kevin Schmutzler, Apuu Mourine, and Vallentine Chelluget’s “Nawi: Dear Future Me” (Kenya/Germany), Sophie Deraspe’s “Shepherds” (Canada/France), Andrea Segre’s “The Great Ambition” (Italy/Belgium/Bulgaria), Ivan Fund’s “The Message” (Argentina/Spain/Uruguay), Charlie McDowell’s “The Summer Book” (Finland/United Kingdom/United States), Noëlle Bastin and Baptiste Bogaert’s “Vitrival – The Most Beautiful Village in the World” (Belgium), and Hadi Mohaghegh’s “Vortex” (Iran/Czech Republic).

    The festival is supported by the China Film Administration and hosted by the Beijing municipal government and China Media Group. It will include star-studded opening and closing ceremonies featuring red-carpet shows.

    The festival’s core forums will delve into key topics, including intellectual property development, industry innovation, audience-driven storytelling and emerging film technologies. Additionally, the event will offer masterclasses conducted by acclaimed directors Jiang Wen and Jia Zhangke, along with French cinema icon Isabelle Huppert.

    The official poster for the 15th Beijing International Film Festival, designed by the renowned art director Huo Tingxiao. [Photo courtesy of the BJIFF Organizing Committee] 

    The festival also includes the Beijing Film Panorama, a highly anticipated program showcasing nostalgic classics, new blockbusters and previously unreleased films in China. This year, it will celebrate the 120th anniversary of Chinese cinema and the 130th anniversary of world cinema.

    It will feature 18 thematic sections with nearly 300 exceptional international films across about 900 screenings at 33 premium venues in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. These venues span commercial theaters, arthouse cinemas and cultural spaces. Initial confirmed films include a Robert Altman centenary retrospective, as well as works by Jiri Menzel, Andrei Tarkovsky and the late David Lynch.

    The BJIFF will feature a diverse lineup with hundreds of events, including a film carnival, pitch sessions for emerging filmmakers and cross-industry collaborations that merge cinema with music, fashion and gastronomy.

    Additional highlights include cutting-edge tech showcases, programs focused on short films, sports films, works by female directors, and young filmmakers, plus creative markets, an AI-generated film competition unit, and a university student film festival.

    This year, Switzerland serves as the Country of Honor to commemorate 75 years of China-Switzerland diplomatic relations, with a special Swiss Film Week. The festival will also introduce its inaugural China Film Global Distribution and Promotion Awards, recognizing 10 domestic and international distributors for their outstanding work in promoting Chinese cinema globally and enhancing both its commercial reach and cultural impact.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The Kalantarov-Yatsenko Dynasty

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    Pavel Lazarevich Kalantarov, a 1920 graduate of the Polytechnic Institute, played a significant role in the development of theoretical electrical engineering and became one of the founders of higher electrical engineering education in the country. He received a doctorate in technical sciences and was awarded the title of Honored Scientist of the RSFSR, as well as the Order of Lenin. Pavel Lazarevich linked his professional activities with his alma mater, where he held the positions of professor, head of departments, dean and rector. His great-great-grandson Pyotr Yatsenko is currently a first-year student at the Civil Engineering Institute. He shared unique facts from the life of his outstanding ancestor and spoke about other representatives of the Polytechnic dynasty. Read about this in our traditional “Dynasty” column.

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

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Peter Kyle’s speech at the Space-Comm Expo 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments 2

    Speech

    Peter Kyle’s speech at the Space-Comm Expo 2025

    A speech delivered by Secretary of State for Science, Innovation, and Technology, Peter Kyle, at the Space-Comm Expo 2025 on Tuesday 11 March.

    The British Space programme began in the same year that our late queen, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, ascended to the throne.

    Sixty-three years ago, the launch of Ariel One, the first British-American satellite, made Britain only the 3rd country to launch into orbit.

    In little more than a decade, we went from a nation with space ambition to one of the few countries with a satellite operation. 

    Then, as I was enjoying my first birthday, Prospero became the first British satellite to be launched by a British rocket.

    All those years ago, deciding to have a space programme, designing, building and launching a spacecraft, took decades of planning.

    Fast-forward to today:

    • When, somewhere around the world, there is a rocket launching every 34 hours.
    • When the UK’s space economy is outpacing the growth of our economy as a whole.
    • And when, just this month, the second-ever private spacecraft touched down successfully on the surface of the moon. Powered by British engines, engineered in Buckinghamshire.

    An international effort, with British expertise, contributing to a successful lunar mission.

    There is no mistaking the increasing pace of change.

    Or just how much the people in this room – and the businesses you lead – now contribute towards the growing the British economy.

    So, to begin with, it’s my job to say thank you to all of you.

    Britain’s space sector is not just safe in your hands. It is thriving under your stewardship.

    And with the British economy, it’s felt increasingly, and it’s felt day by day.

    This is a government that has economic growth as our number one mission.

    And for us, growth isn’t just a soundbite.

    It is our very purpose.

    Growth rates are more than an indicator of the state of the economy…

    …They are an indication of this government’s state of mind.

    We are:

    • ambitious for Britain

    • determined to build the wealthier, fairer nation for everyone.

    • And we are impatient for the increased wealth and opportunities that economic growth brings to communities, businesses and to people alike.

    With 16% of UK GDP depending on satellite services, there’s no doubt that the space sector is important to that.

    Because Britain has never had a space flight with our own crew on board, it is too easy for some ‘armchair astronauts’ to dismiss the UK space programme.

    I believe we are approaching a space tipping point. At which it becomes simply impossible for even the most determined science-cynic to ignore. 

    From how we message family and friends or check the weather, to how our country protects itself from climate change and national security threats that we increasingly face – space technologies simply underpin our lives.

    From the everyday, right through to the extraordinary.

    As heavy launches into low orbit become less costly – 95% cheaper than 40 years ago – and the barriers to entry are more easily overcome, the space tipping point now brings with it new risks that we have to face up to:

    • Hundreds of millions of pieces of space junk that threaten the satellites that support almost every part of our interconnected world.
    • As that figure rises, so does the chance of an accidental collision of catastrophic consequences.
    • And at the same time, space is becoming more and more accessible to hostile actors as well, eventually, possibly seeking to do Britain harm.

    The severity of these risks cannot be overstated.

    But neither should we be blind to the extraordinary opportunities that space technologies offer to our country and to us.

    To embed innovation in every part of our economy…

    …and open the doors to a new era of high productivity and growth.

    To secure our nation for the century ahead…

    …and make discoveries that will transform citizens’ lives.

    We reach this tipping point, and we have a narrow window to secure our stake in space.

    We sometimes talk about scientific progress as if it were inevitable.

    But there is nothing inevitable about progress as every one of you knows well.

    If we and our allies stand still, whilst our competitors stride ahead – or hostile actors get a foot in the door – we will find ourselves locked out of the opportunities space can bring.

    And left exposed further to the risks.

    That’s why space is a strategic priority for this Labour government as we deliver our Plan for Change.

    That requires strategic partnerships with our allies in Europe and around the globe, and between the public and the private sectors.

    And it also means being clear about the roles and responsibilities of each.

    There are some activities – like national security – which only governments can and should do.

    Others, where the creativity, the ingenuity and the enterprise of the private sector will suffice.

    And then there is a third way, where the power of partnership of governments and enterprise is the route to discovery, prosperity and to greater growth as well.

    Since we took office in July, I’ve met many of the players behind Britain’s burgeoning space economy.

    Businesses like Astroscale and ClearSpace, designing new missions to remove dangerous space clutter from orbit.

    And Space Forge, who are finding ways to manufacture semiconductors in microgravity.

    The success of businesses like these depends on world-leading research and an ambitious, entrepreneurial mindset.

    The UK is well placed to lead in both.

    These businesses also need a government that understands and appreciates their potential, has their back, and gives them the foundations to keep pushing the frontiers forward.

    Since 2015, the UK has attracted more private investment in space than any other country outside of the United States.

    We cherish Britain as a beacon for innovation, investment, stability and the rule of law.

    And we are determined to keep that beacon burning brightly in the increasingly competitive and uncertain international environment.

    Space is one of the first 4 areas singled out for attention by the new Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO).

    That Office will cut the burden of bureaucracy, freeing up your time and your resources to invest and innovate further and faster.

    Government must, always must, continue to fulfil our side of the bargain, backing British space with the support the sector needs.

    That means grant funding for innovation; direct investment into strategically significant projects; and procuring from the UK firms from government contracts.

    Take our £20 million investment into Orbex, to fund the first British-made, British-launched rocket, set for orbit later this year.

    Prime is designed to take small satellites into the polar orbits, to improve our understanding of a region right at the frontline of climate change.

    The launch will transform the UK space industry.

    It will bring highly-paid jobs to the Shetland Islands, whilst boosting Europe’s ability to access space from our own continent.

    The UK space sector is further bolstered by Britain’s membership of the European Space Agency.

    Indeed, Britain does better because of that key partnership.

    From inspiring the nation with Tim Peake’s flight to the International Space Station, to our instrumental role in the James Webb Space Telescope, our partnership with the ESA means British firms winning in this unique global marketplace.

    In the last quarter of 2024, UK businesses’ net revenues from the ESA were £80 million higher than our contribution.

    That’s a record for any member state.

    And this success is a direct result of public and private sectors working closer together to make sure the UK sees the great return on our collective investment.

    The knock-on effects of these contract wins will add up to a £1 billion of boost across our economy.

    They’ll create 3,800 highly skilled jobs, from Stevenage right up to the Shetland Isles.

    And they will ensure that British businesses have the power and investment to continue making discoveries that will transform people’s lives:

    • Like Airbus, selected to build a spacecraft to help us weather violent solar storms.
    • Thales Alenia Space, which will propel crucial cargo and scientific instruments right up to the moon’s surface.
    • And Open Cosmos, granted contracts to study the magnetic field, and using what they learn to bolster our satellites and better fight climate change.

    The immense contribution British businesses make to our island’s space story shows ambition, integrity, and leadership.

    It is testament to these traits, alongside the determination and dedication of our people.

    As we stand in this space tipping point, the government’s commitment to economic growth demands that we support science and we invest in innovation.

    We also champion the critical technologies to maximise the power and potential of the British economy.

    Your contribution and the commitment to our economic growth mission is profoundly important.

    So, I want to finish exactly where I started:

    By acknowledging your efforts and extending our appreciation for them, as you help to make Britain more productive, more prosperous, and more pioneering.

    On this planet and beyond.

    Thank you very much.

    Updates to this page

    Published 11 March 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Undergraduate Admission Interview: Useful Tips

    Source: Universities – Science Po in English

    Students in front of the entrance at 1 St-Thomas (credits: Pierre Morel)

    Virtual Undergraduate Open House day 2025

    Come meet our teams and students at our campuses.

    Sign-up

    Virtual Graduate Open House day 2025

    Meet faculty members, students and representatives and learn more about our 30 Master’s programmes.

    Sign-up

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Natural England board member reappointed

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    Natural England board member reappointed

    Clare Fitzsimmons has rejoined the board for a second term

    Clare Fitzsimmons has today (Friday 28 March) been reappointed to the board of Natural England.

    Her second term will run for three years from 12 March 2025 until 11 March 2028.

    This appointment has been made in accordance with the Governance Code on Public Appointments published by the Cabinet Office.

    Natural England is the government’s statutory adviser for the natural environment in England. Its purpose is to help conserve, enhance and manage the natural environment for the benefit of present and future generations, thereby contributing to sustainable development.

    Biography:

    • Clare Fitzsimmons is Professor of Marine Ecosystems and Governance at Newcastle University. She is Director of Business, Innovation and Skills in the School of Natural and Environmental Sciences and chairs the External Advisory Board, gaining commercial experience in defence and consultancy sectors.

    • Clare is also a Marine Management Organisation-appointed member of the North Eastern Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority. She is co-chair of Natural England’s Science Advisory Committee, multi-disciplinary experts to ensure the best available scientific advice is used to underpin decision-making for nature recovery.

    Updates to this page

    Published 28 March 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: 27 Polytechnic students became recipients of Potanin Foundation scholarships

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    The Potanin Foundation has summed up the results of the 2024/2025 scholarship competition. This prestigious scholarship is a recognition of the outstanding achievements of master’s students in their studies, leadership and public activities. This year, 750 people became winners of the competition. Among the lucky ones are 27 talented students of SPbPU, who will now receive a scholarship of 25,000 rubles until the end of their studies.

    The result of the Advanced Engineering School “Digital Engineering” was especially successful – five students of the SPbPU PISh were among the winners. They demonstrated not only deep academic knowledge, but also the ability to turn theory into practice, which is especially valuable for modern engineering education.

    We are proud of our students, who have once again proven that SPbPU PISh is a forge of talents and innovations. Their victory is not only a personal achievement, but also recognition of the high level of training, – noted the Vice-Rector for Digital Transformation of SPbPU, the head of SPbPU PISh Alexey Borovkov.

    Master’s students of the program “Organization and management of high-tech technologies in the oil and gas industry” shared their impressions of the competition:

    Ksenia Grigorieva: Participation in the competition was not only an opportunity for me to demonstrate my knowledge and skills, but also an important stage in my personal and professional growth. This is not just a competition, but a unique platform for exchanging ideas, finding inspiration and meeting talented people from all over the country. I would like to express special gratitude to the teachers of the Advanced Engineering School, my mentors.

    During her years of bachelor’s degree at the Polytechnic University in the specialty “General Biotechnology”, Ksenia actively demonstrated herself in scientific, educational and creative activities. She considers her participation in the project on the synthesis of human parathyroid hormone and work in the biochemistry department of the “Institute of Experimental Medicine”, the main goal of which was to identify antibodies to modified low-density lipoproteins and study the effect of these antibodies on the development of atherosclerotic lesions, to be some of her main achievements. In addition to scientific activities, last year Ksenia successfully graduated with honors not only from her bachelor’s degree, but also from the additional education program “Digital Departments”. Ksenia’s interests are not limited to study and science – for the fifth year now, the girl has been singing in the youth choir “Polyhymnia”.

    Artem Shcherbak: The purpose of my participation in the Vladimir Potanin scholarship competition was to establish contacts in the professional sphere and meet proactive young people for the potential construction of new projects and work on joint events. I have friends who have previously become laureates of this award, their experience inspired me.

    Artem was an organizer of major events at the Saint Petersburg Mining University of Empress Catherine II, a delegate to the Student Council of Saint Petersburg under the Committee on Youth Policy, a volunteer and organizer of events “Volunteer Company of Combat Brotherhood”, a member of the youth council of the Central District of Saint Petersburg, a laureate of the city award “Best Youth Project 2022”, the owner of a letter of gratitude “For personal contribution to the implementation of socially significant projects and the development of volunteer activities in 2023” from the Committee on Youth Policy under the Government of Saint Petersburg.

    Stepan Akimov: I am very glad that I was able to take part in the scholarship competition. The main thing here is initiative. I realized that if I approach the matter not half-heartedly, show a little interest and turn on creativity, then my approach will pay off. And so it happened! At the end of the final competition day, I felt great pleasure from everything that had been done, I was happy with the stunning victory of my team in the main test and that I was able to play an important role in this.

    Alexey Plyushch has been actively working in the Trade Union of Students of the Polytechnic University for five years now, was the first deputy chairman, head of the sports department, and acts as the main organizer in most projects. Alexey is a trainer and mentor of the inter-institutional training of “Adapters of SPbPU”, the best graduate of the “management” department of IPMET.

    Sergey Gaurgov graduated from the Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Materials and Transport of SPbPU with a bachelor’s degree in “Automation of Technological Processes and Production” in 2024. He is a versatile engineer who can work with both pneumatic and hydropneumatic devices, and is well versed in electrical engineering, circuit design and the development of electronic devices.

    For his master’s degree, Sergey chose the Advanced Engineering School: It seemed to me that studying at PISH would be a logical continuation of the direction of production automation, which I studied in my bachelor’s degree. Here I can specialize in robotics under the guidance of my teacher, an expert in autonomous unmanned systems Georgy Vasilyanov.

    Sergey is currently undergoing an internship at the Saint Petersburg Automobile Plant (formerly Nissan), where he is engaged in optimizing the logistics of unmanned robots in the automation department.

    Also among the winners of the scholarship program are master’s students: Irina Smirnova, Angelina Rubleva, Aelita Maslova and Viktor Sorokin (headquartered in Statistics), Egor Vinokurov and Vitalina Furman (headquartered in Biotechnical Systems and Technologies), Olga Obraztsova and Veronika Chernova (headquartered in Biotechnology), Denis Mametyev and Sergey Sudnishchikov (Construction), Sofia Ivanova (Business Informatics), Alexandra Voziyan (Software Engineering), Gennady Zyabkin (Automation of Technological Processes and Production), Nikita Izbyakov (Power Engineering), Konstantin Mashyanov (Mechatronics and Robotics), Anastasia Mikulenko (Materials Science and Materials Technology), Anastasia Murashova (Sociology), Nikita Oparin (Metallurgy), Zinaida Pavlenkova (Design), Daria Ryzhova (Foreign Regional Studies), Alexey Filatchev (Economics), Anastasia Yarkova (Information Systems and Technologies).

    The winners of the Potanin scholarship receive not only monthly financial support, but also the opportunity to participate in the foundation’s educational and social projects aimed at developing leadership and professional skills.

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

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Global South’s modernization in focus at Boao Forum

    Source: China State Council Information Office

    The Boao Forum for Asia International Conference Center in Boao, Hainan province, March 26, 2025. [Photo by Xu Xiaoxuan/China.org.cn]

    Over the past two decades, Global South countries have contributed nearly 80% of world economic growth, solidifying their role as a key driver of global development. Their growing influence has made them a focal point at the 2025 Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference, held from March 25 to 28 in Boao, south China’s Hainan province.

    At a panel discussion during the forum on March 26, experts explored the diverse paths to modernization for the Global South, emphasizing collaboration, self-reliance and inclusive development.

    Xiaojun Grace Wang, trust fund director at the U.N. Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC), highlighted the varied modernization trajectories of these nations. “Each country has distinct concerns and priorities. Least developed nations and small island states, for instance, have unique considerations,” Wang noted. “We must listen to their collective voices, recognize their varying stages of development, and acknowledge that real strength comes from unity amid diversity.”

    She emphasized that cooperation should extend beyond the traditional North-South divide. “We must leverage the expertise and technology of developed nations,” she said, stressing that collaboration in diversity is key.

    Kirill Babaev, director of the Institute of China and Contemporary Asia of the Russian Academy of Sciences, underscored the shared aspirations of Global South nations despite their regional differences. “From the Eurasian Economic Union and Shanghai Cooperation Organization to ASEAN and the Gulf Cooperation Council, these nations share common values in globalization, forming the foundation for a broader global economic mainstream,” he said.

    Zheng Yongnian, dean of the School of Public Policy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, identified two major challenges facing the Global South. The first is internal: “These countries often express concerns but struggle to translate them into concrete actions,” he observed. The second challenge is external, particularly disruptions to the global trade system initiated by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration. “If globalization is hindered, poverty will deepen, leading to instability,” he warned.

    Zheng also criticized Western-style modernization for its exclusiveness and lack of inclusiveness. He argued that while Western nations have achieved prosperity, they have not actively helped poorer countries develop. “Economic disparity is detrimental to human rights,” he stated.

    Citing a Chinese proverb — “in adversity, perfect oneself; in success, perfect all under heaven” — Zheng said that this philosophy is reflected in China’s modernization approach. China worked hard to develop when it was poor and now seeks to assist other nations through initiatives like the Belt and Road Initiative and the New Development Bank, he explained.

    Danny Quah, dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore, stressed the importance of self-reliance. “Global South countries must demonstrate leadership in their own development,” he said.

    Quah underlined that economic growth and capacity building are essential for ensuring these nations control their own destinies. True development, he added, involves creating value — building infrastructure, improving public health, and unlocking the creativity and potential of people.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Polytech presents the project

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    Did you want to know more about the Polytechnic University Master’s program? And you will find out about it! The SPbPU Public Relations Department and educational departments have launched a new project

    The idea is to make it easier for bachelor’s degree graduates to choose a program to continue their education at the Polytechnic University. The university currently has 166 master’s programs. And new ones open every year, including in collaboration with the university’s industrial partners. So that students can understand this diversity, evaluate the advantages of each direction and choose the right one for themselves, videos about master’s programs are now released on the Polytechnic University’s social networks every week.

    In these video business cards, the head of the educational program or its curator from the industrial partner briefly and succinctly explains what the student will be taught, what specialty he will receive, who and where he will be able to work after completing his master’s degree.

    Bachelor’s degree graduates often face the question: is it worth continuing their education in a master’s degree program, what can it give them in terms of professional growth and what additional competitive advantages will they receive in the labor market? An equally important problem is the choice of a master’s program. Project

    In the future, video presentations will be integrated into the official program descriptions on the university website, which will make choosing a master’s degree even more transparent and convenient.

    “With this project, we wanted to show that a master’s degree is not only a path to science, but also employment in a large company,” said Marianna Dyakova, Head of the Public Relations Department. “We launched the project in the spring, which is an important time for fourth-year students when they make a choice whether to leave the university or continue their education. To begin with, we selected several outstanding master’s programs that were implemented jointly with Gazprom Neft, Power Machines, and other partners. In the future, we will add outstanding, interesting master’s programs from each institute. We invite directors to cooperate!”

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

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Initiative for boosting sustainable development via digital sci-tech released at Zhongguancun Forum

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

    Initiative for boosting sustainable development via digital sci-tech released at Zhongguancun Forum

    BEIJING, March 28 — Participants at a parallel forum of the 2025 Zhongguancun Forum in Beijing unveiled an initiative on Thursday, calling for global collaboration to leverage digital science and technology to accelerate sustainable development and address global challenges.

    Nearly 200 representatives from international organizations, as well as domestic and foreign scholars, attended the International Forum on Sciences for Sustainable Development, which is one of the activities of UNESCO’s “International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development (2024-2033).”

    The Beijing Initiative on Digital Science and Technology for Sustainable Development released at the forum outlines key objectives, including promoting innovative applications of digital sci-tech in sustainable development, and expanding the use of big data, artificial intelligence, space technology and the Internet of Things to address challenges — such as biodiversity conservation, climate change, disaster risk reduction and poverty alleviation.

    The initiative emphasizes the development of digital tools to optimize energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions and enhance natural resource management capabilities.

    The initiative also proposes building global platforms for sharing digital resources and technologies, strengthening the role of digital tools in policy formulation, and promoting public engagement and education concerning sustainability through digital means.

    A highlight of the initiative is the proposal to launch international big-science programs on digital sustainable development — aiming to unite global research institutions, governments and private sectors to establish collaborative platforms for cross-border technology R&D, data sharing and standard-setting. These programs will prioritize technology transfer and capacity-building, particularly for developing nations, to ensure equitable and inclusive global cooperation.

    Guo Huadong, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and director-general of the International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals, said that digital technologies and open data are pivotal to solving sustainability challenges.

    Highlighting data-sharing achievements, Guo noted that China launched SDGSAT-1, the world’s first satellite dedicated to serving the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, on Nov. 5, 2021. Since its launch, the satellite has captured over 420,000 data scenes — which were freely shared worldwide.

    According to Guo, China had met the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 52 percent of its environmental indicators by 2022 — well ahead of schedule. Beijing, China’s capital, ranks first nationwide in terms of environmental SDG indicators, with average PM2.5 concentration showing an annual average reduction rate of 7.56 percent from 2015 to 2023, according to satellite observations.

    Scientists from 104 countries have utilized the data supplied by SDGSAT-1 to inform research efforts and in policy making. Applications span urban planning, environmental monitoring, agricultural monitoring and disaster response. Notable projects enabled by this satellite include the development of sustainability data products for BRICS nations, the conducting of SDG assessments for African countries, and analysis of light pollution on the Iberian Peninsula.

    “In the future, a satellite constellation is expected to be built to serve as a sharper ‘eye in space’ for global sustainable development,” Guo added.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Brownley Statement on Joint Session of Congress

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Julia Brownley (D-CA)

    Washington, DC – Today, Congresswoman Julia Brownley (D-CA) issued the following statement after President Donald Trump’s address at the Joint Session of Congress.

    “Tonight, as President Trump stood before Congress, I walked out of the chamber because I could not, in good conscience, dignify a speech so detached from reality and so disrespectful to the American people. Once again, President Trump demeaned the dignity of his office and embarrassed our nation with his ignorance of real-world problems and his open contempt for the democracy he swore to protect.

    “Rather than offering a vision to unite our country or solutions to the very real challenges facing working families, President Trump instead demonstrated – yet again – that he is unfit to lead the free world. He has neither the capacity nor the desire to meet the pressing needs of families across our nation. He spent more time boasting about his self-serving agenda than addressing the crushing costs keeping families up at night – costs that are rising because of his administration’s disastrous economic policies.

    “The tariffs he announced this week threaten to ignite a devastating trade war, driving up prices on everything from groceries to gas, hurting small businesses, and leaving working families to pay the price. Meanwhile, the Republican budget passed last week handed out trillions in tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans and big corporations, shifting the burden onto middle-class families – all while slashing critical programs like Medicaid and nutrition assistance that millions of families rely on just to get by. This President is dangerously out of touch with the reality of American life – and by reiterating his radical, self-serving agenda tonight, he made clear he has no intention of changing course.

    “Even more disturbing than the President’s rhetoric is his relentless assault on the truth itself. His remarks tonight were riddled with falsehoods and deliberate misinformation – part of an ongoing effort to divide Americans against one another and erode public trust in our institutions. His crass language, misleading claims, and blatant disregard for facts are not just beneath the office he holds – they are an attack on the very foundation of our democracy.

    “But this President’s reckless behavior does not exist in a vacuum. It is enabled every day by the silence and complicity of my Republican colleagues. As we stand on the brink of a government shutdown that could devastate our economy and hurt millions of Americans, House and Senate Republicans refuse to stand up to this President’s overreach and abuse of power. Instead of serving as a check on his reckless dismantling of vital government services, they applaud it – turning a blind eye to his unconstitutional schemes and the unchecked influence of an unelected, unvetted billionaire pulling the strings behind the scenes.

    “Rather than providing the steady leadership our country desperately needs, Republicans in Congress have chosen to shield this President from accountability at every turn – even as he disgraces us on the global stage, undermines our democracy, and wages war on the very values that make America strong. Their refusal to confront the dangers posed by this administration is a profound betrayal of their oath and a direct threat to the future of our nation.

    “Republicans have made their priorities clear: they are willing to sacrifice our nation’s future to cling to political power. With majorities in both chambers of Congress and control of the White House, they can no longer hide behind excuses for their failures. They own this chaos.

    “The American people deserve better. They deserve leaders who put country over party – leaders with the courage to defend our democracy and fight for the hard-working families who built this nation. I urge my Republican colleagues to reflect on their responsibilities – not to their party, but to their constituents and to the Constitution itself. I urge the President to reflect on his own duty to our nation. 

    “If and when they are ready to put the American people first, House Democrats stand ready to work together to lower costs, create good-paying jobs, and build safer, healthier communities. Until then, we will not waver in our fight to protect our democracy, defend working families, and stand up for the fundamental principles of fairness, justice, and equality for all.”

    ###

    Issues: 119th Congress

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Appointment within the Societe Generale Group

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    APPOINTMENT WITHIN THE SOCIETE GENERALE GROUP

    Press release

    Paris, 28 March 2025

    Societe Generale announces the appointment of Alexis Kohler as Executive Vice President. He will join the Bank in June 2025 and will be a member of the Group Executive Committee.

    Reporting to Slawomir Krupa, Chief Executive Officer, Alexis Kohler will have the following responsibilities:

    • As Chairman of Investment Banking, he will be responsible for leading Mergers & Acquisitions, Equity Capital Markets and Acquisition Finance activities, as well as coordinating coverage teams for large clients.
    • He will assist the Chief Executive Officer in implementing transformation programs within the firm.
    • Alexis Kohler will oversee the Group’s General Secretariat and the Human Resources and Communication departments.

    Alexis Kohler will contribute to the Group’s success with his unique skill set, his extensive understanding of the global economy’s dynamics and challenges across all sectoral, industrial and commercial dimensions, and his strong analytical capacity and outstanding dedication. Alexis Kohler’s appointment marks a new addition to Societe Generale’s leadership team, combining different and complementary skills and wide-ranging experiences, to the benefit of the competitiveness and sustainable performance of the bank.

    Slawomir Krupa, Chief Executive Officer, comments: “I am delighted to welcome Alexis Kohler to the Executive Committee of Societe Generale. He will bring a wealth of talent, experience and commitment to our Group. His numerous qualities will be a key asset to foster our development in Investment Banking and continue the transformation journey of our firm, serving our 26 million clients across the world with the same passion we have shared for 160 years.”

    Biography 

    Alexis Kohler has been the General Secretary of the Presidency of the French Republic since 2017, after holding various senior positions at the French Ministry of Economy and Finance in Paris, with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington and the Finance Department of MSC. Alexis Kohler is a graduate of Sciences Po Paris, ESSEC and the Ecole Nationale d’Administration.

    Members of the Group Executive Committee as of June 2025:

    • Slawomir Krupa, Chief Executive Officer 
    • Pierre Palmieri, Deputy Chief Executive Officer 
    • Alexis Kohler, Executive Vice President, Chairman of Investment Banking, also in charge of the Group General Secretary, Group Human Resources, Group Communication and the coordination of transformation programs
    • Lubomira Rochet, Executive Vice President in charge of Retail Banking activities in France, Private Banking and Insurance, as well as the Group’s Chief Operating Office
    • Leopoldo Alvear, Group Chief Financial Officer 
    • Anne-Christine Champion, Co-Head of Global Banking and Investor Solutions
    • Anne-Sophie Chauveau-Galas, Group Chief Human Resources Officer
    • Alexandre Fleury, Co-Head of Global Banking and Investor Solutions 
    • Delphine Garcin-Meunier, Head of Mobility and International Retail Banking & Financial Services
    • Stéphane Landon, Group Chief Risk Officer
    • Laura Mather, Group Chief Operating Officer
    • Laetitia Maurel, Group Chief Communication Officer 
    • Grégoire Simon-Barboux, Group Chief Compliance Officer

    Press contact:  
    Jean-Baptiste Froville_+33 1 58 98 68 00_ jean-baptiste.froville@socgen.com

    Societe Generale

    Societe Generale is a top tier European Bank with around 119,000 employees serving more than 26 million clients in 62 countries across the world. We have been supporting the development of our economies for 160 years, providing our corporate, institutional, and individual clients with a wide array of value-added advisory and financial solutions. Our long-lasting and trusted relationships with the clients, our cutting-edge expertise, our unique innovation, our ESG capabilities and leading franchises are part of our DNA and serve our most essential objective – to deliver sustainable value creation for all our stakeholders.

    The Group runs three complementary sets of businesses, embedding ESG offerings for all its clients:

    • French Retail, Private Banking and Insurance, with leading retail bank SG and insurance franchise, premium private banking services, and the leading digital bank BoursoBank.
    • Global Banking and Investor Solutions, a top tier wholesale bank offering tailored-made solutions with distinctive global leadership in equity derivatives, structured finance and ESG.
    • Mobility, International Retail Banking and Financial Services, comprising well-established universal banks (in Czech Republic, Romania and several African countries), Ayvens (the new ALD I LeasePlan brand), a global player in sustainable mobility, as well as specialized financing activities.

    Committed to building together with its clients a better and sustainable future, Societe Generale aims to be a leading partner in the environmental transition and sustainability overall. The Group is included in the principal socially responsible investment indices: DJSI (Europe), FTSE4Good (Global and Europe), Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index, Refinitiv Diversity and Inclusion Index, Euronext Vigeo (Europe and Eurozone), STOXX Global ESG Leaders indexes, and the MSCI Low Carbon Leaders Index (World and Europe).

    In case of doubt regarding the authenticity of this press release, please go to the end of the Group News page on societegenerale.com website where official Press Releases sent by Societe Generale can be certified using blockchain technology. A link will allow you to check the document’s legitimacy directly on the web page.

    For more information, you can follow us on Twitter/X @societegenerale or visit our website societegenerale.com.

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-Evening Report: The Coalition has promised $400m for youth mental health. Young people told us what they need

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bridianne O’Dea, Little Heroes Professor of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Flinders University

    Ground Picture/Shutterstock

    Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has promised a Coalition government would spend an extra A$400 million on youth mental health services.

    This is in addition to raising the number of subsidised psychology sessions from ten to 20, which had been previously announced.

    While extra funding for youth mental health is welcome, it’s important to target this in ways that will make a real difference to young people.

    In our recent research, we asked young people about their experiences of waiting for mental health support, how they coped in the meantime, and what would really make a difference while they waited.

    Rates of mental illness rising

    An estimated one in seven Australian children and adolescents had a mental illness in the past 12 months. Rates of mental illness have also increased over time, particularly among younger generations.

    The COVID pandemic led to a rapid rise in the number of children and young people seeing their GP for mental health problems. Visits for depression rose by 61% and eating disorders by 56% compared with before the pandemic.

    The number of visits to the emergency department in New South Wales for self-harm, or plans or thoughts about suicide, have also increased since COVID.

    The annual Mission Australia Survey reveals young Australians see mental health as one of their biggest challenges, with thousands calling for more support.

    But there are long waits for care

    Despite the greater demand for mental health treatment in Australia, there is very little information on how long young people wait to access it.

    The Australian Psychological Society reported that during the pandemic, 88% of psychologists increased their wait times and one in five were not taking on new clients. This meant about half of people waited more than three months to begin psychological treatment. But this is for clients of all ages.

    There is also little information on how young people experience the wait for treatment.

    We asked young people about the wait for care

    We recently published research on the wait times for mental health treatment for Australian teens.

    We asked 375 young people aged 13–17 about the mental health care they have tried to access for their anxiety and depression and how long they waited to start treatment. We also asked them about their mental health while they waited, what helped them cope, and the types of support they received.

    We found that on average, teens were waiting more than three months for their first session of treatment. Most teens waited to access psychologists and psychiatrists after a GP referral.

    While their wait times varied, nearly all teens felt they waited “too long”.

    Longer wait times were linked to poorer mental health, with more than 90% of teens reporting high distress while they waited. Many of the teens felt their feelings of worry and sadness had worsened and they had used risky and unhealthy ways to cope, such as spending more time alone, sleeping more, self-harming, and using alcohol and other drugs.

    Most teens did not receive any support from their health-care providers during the wait time, despite wanting it.

    One female 17-year-old had waited six months for treatment and told us:

    It felt like I was hanging over a cliff and was just told to hold on.

    Teens also felt their parents would benefit from greater support during the wait time. But we need more research to better understand how to help families.

    Together, these findings show we desperately need to address wait times for young people’s mental health treatment.

    Teens know the support they need

    If teens are to wait for mental health treatment, they told us they need support while they do so.

    Young people wanted more regular contact and “check-ins” from their service providers, someone to talk to during the wait, as well as more useful information on positive ways to cope.

    Most teens in our study used digital mental health tools – such as mental health websites, online mental health checks, mobile apps, online chat services and forums – while they waited.

    We’re developing digital mental health tools, in consultation with young people and GPs, to support doctors to care for their teen patients when treatment isn’t available right away. We’re testing the system of short digital mental health programs, supportive text messages and peer support in NSW this year.

    But not all teens we surveyed found digital mental health tools helpful. So we need to offer teens a range of supports – from their family, their GP, and from their referred service provider – to help them cope while they wait for treatment.

    What can governments do?

    We must carefully consider when, where and how mental health funds are invested. If governments wish to see more young people treated for their mental health problems, then we need to look at how our health-care system will cope with the growing demand.

    We also need national, transparent benchmarks for how long young Australians wait for mental health treatment. Only some health services in Australia have this. Other countries, such as the United Kingdom, have something similar to minimise the health risks of young people waiting too long for care.

    Ultimately, though, we need to prevent mental health issues from starting in the first place. That would reduce the need for treatment, the very type young Australians are waiting too long for.

    If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, call Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 or Lifeline on 13 11 14.

    Bridianne O’Dea is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) Investigator Fellowship (1197249) and a MRFF Millions Minds Mental Health Grant (2035416). Bridianne O’Dea received funding from the Buxton Family Foundation, Australian Unity, the Frontiers Technology Clinical Academic Group Industry Connection Seed Funding Scheme and the UNSW Medicine, Neuroscience, Mental Health and Addiction Theme and SPHERE Clinical Academic Group Collaborative Research Funding to conduct this research. Bridianne O’Dea is a member of the Australian Society for Mental Health Research and the International Society for Research on Internet Interventions. Bridianne O’Dea’s current work has received pro bono support from Deloitte Digital Australia.

    – ref. The Coalition has promised $400m for youth mental health. Young people told us what they need – https://theconversation.com/the-coalition-has-promised-400m-for-youth-mental-health-young-people-told-us-what-they-need-253328

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Federal Election a decade-defining opportunity for change: Greenpeace

    Source: Greenpeace Statement –

    SYDNEY, 28 MARCH 2025 – As Australians prepare to go to the polls on May 3, Greenpeace Australia Pacific has called on all parties to deliver policies that will address the climate and nature crisis, and deliver a safe and prosperous future.

    “We are calling on politicians to secure a better future for Australians by delivering credible solutions to the cost of living crisis, and the dire situation facing our climate and environment,” David Ritter, CEO, Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said. 

    “As climate disasters cost Australians billions of dollars, heatwaves push temperatures to deadly highs with increasing frequency, and volatile gas prices wreak havoc on energy bills, it is clear that fossil fuels are harming our cost of living, health, and safety. 

    “Australia is also in an ecological crisis, with one of the world’s highest rates of extinction and deforestation, and devastating bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef and Ningaloo Reef. A healthy environment is at the foundation of our society—everything else depends on it. The loss of our natural heritage is not only a source of grief for nature-loving Australians, but a threat to our stability as a country. 

    “As all parties on the campaign trail pledge to address the cost of living crisis and deliver a better Australia for future generations, the credible policies will be the ones that protect nature and accelerate the transition towards cleaner, safer renewable energy,” said Mr Ritter. 

    Greenpeace Australia Pacific’s election asks include: 

    • A rapid transition to clean, affordable renewable energy and a faster phase out of coal, oil, and gas 
    • Laws that effectively protect nature, and provide independent oversight to make sure that development doesn’t go too far and destroy our precious, irreplaceable places. 
    • Enshrining greater protection for our oceans against threats like fishing, pollution, oil drilling and much more.

    Mr Ritter added: “Greenpeace is determined to ensure a safe and secure energy future for all. We’re alarmed by the Coalition’s plans to ‘approve a bucket load of gas’ and fast-track gas developments without due process. These would be a disaster for our climate, and precious places like Scott Reef. 

    “Peter Dutton’s nuclear energy plans are dangerous, expensive ploys that only prolong the use of coal and gas in our energy system, and bring the risk of a nuclear waste accident or meltdown into our communities. 

    “We are halfway through a critical decade for action on climate change, and urgent action is needed to protect our precious, life-sustaining environment. Australians deserve, and demand, elected leaders who will steer us towards a safe, thriving future for generations to come.”

    —ENDS—

    For more information or to arrange an interview please contact Vai Shah on 0452 290 082 or [email protected].

    Greenpeace Australia Pacific is a global independent campaigning organisation that uses peaceful protest and creative confrontation to expose environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICYMI: Pressley Joins Boston Globe for Fireside Chat in Cambridge

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07)

    Wide-Ranging Discussion Covered Future of Progressivism, Harm of Musk-Trump Agenda, and How Democrats Should Fight Back

    Video (YouTube)

    CAMBRIDGE – This week at the King Open School in Cambridge, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) joined Joshua Miller of the Boston Globe for a live, fireside chat about the news of the day, the Trump administration’s latest actions, and the future of progressivism in the United States. In the wide-ranging discussion titled “What do we do now? A conversation with Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley,” Rep. Pressley discussed her personal journey in politics, the harm of the Musk-Trump agenda, and how Democrats can and must fight back.

    The full conversation can be watched here and highlights are available below (edited lightly for clarity).

    On Rep. Pressley’s parents and upbringing:

    REP. PRESSLEY: I grew up raised in a single parented household with the righteous role-modeling of a mother who was a proud Democrat, a super voter. Just to give you a little insight into my upbringing, my mother never read me stories about anyone coming to save me. She read me the speeches of Barbara Jordan and Shirley Chisholm. So, I get it honest. And she, you know, taught me early on that to be Black is something beautiful and to be proud of, but that I was being born into a struggle, and she had an expectation that I would do my part in that struggle, in the work of liberation for Black and all marginalized people.

    So two other quick things I would say that really informed the work that I do from my origin story.  I grew up on public transportation. It’s one of the reasons why I’m so passionate about transit justice. It truly is at the intersection of everything. My father is a brilliant man who battled substance use disorder and a heroin addiction and cycled in and out of the criminal legal system, and it was incredibly destabilizing, and there was great shame and stigma that I carried about that not understanding at the time that it was a disease. But my father, while incarcerated, attained two advanced degrees, came out, attained his PhD, and went on to become a college professor, a dean of a college, and a published author. And so, by my father’s example, that is why I’m so passionate about family reunification and those bonds and re-entry programs and Second Chance Pell Grants – recognizing that there are so many brilliant people whose gifts are dying on the vine that are unjustly incarcerated because my father should have been met with culturally competent on-demand care, not incarceration.

    And now as for my mother, in addition to the ways in which she poured into me – reading the speeches of Barbara Jordan and Shirley Chisholm, being a tenants rights organizer through the Urban League of Chicago – I also had an incredible education with a front row seat into the indignities and injustices that my mother experienced as a Black woman and because I’m an only child, and it was really just sort of me and my mom versus the world. You know, it takes a lot of children to grow up and become an adult to see the humanity in their parent. I was there for my mother’s heart breaks. I was there for her hardship. I was a latch key kid home alone as young as five years old, and she would say, “You cannot tell anyone you were here alone, because they will take you away from me.” But she couldn’t afford childcare, right? I was also there when my mother was battling uterine fibroids, and the healthcare system would delegitimize her pain. She was forced into a radical hysterectomy when she did not need it, and I also remember the day she collapsed on the street because she returned to work too early and had not fully recovered.

    And so, I saw the ways in which a broken government and broken systems and policy violence were showing up in my mother’s life every day. And so as far as my education, your parents are your first teacher. So, both through the consciousness of my parents and through the landscape that they navigated, I received an incredible education.

    On Rep. Pressley’s journey in politics:

    REP. PRESSLEY: I came here in 1992 to attend Boston University, so school is what brought me here. I like to say Chicago is the city that raised me, and Boston is the city that changed me. You know, it was in Boston that I sort of better crystallized my purpose, the contribution I wanted to make in the world.

    And I was very active on campus, Student Government President, President of my College. I was charged with organizing a Martin Luther King Day celebration at Boston University. It was called a day on, not off, because it always bothered me that people treated it as an extended weekend, and because I had seen how many people worked for so long to make that a holiday.

    So I said, I’m going to invite Congressman Joseph P. Kennedy II and Congressman Barney Frank to this event. And I said, I believe in the – I’m an Aquarius, so I’m really into manifestation. And I said, I am going to get an internship with one of them. So, they both came into the room, and I’m just going to tell the truth, because I’ve said it to his face: Barney Frank scared the shit out of me. He was a complete curmudgeon. And I just was like, he’s brilliant. I love everything he’s doing on banking. That’s a no go. Okay. And so, you know, Congressman Joseph P Kennedy II greeted me with a “Hiya, pal!” and I said, this is the way I’m going. And my mother, who was very politically astute, had taught me all the work that Congressman Kennedy was doing on redlining. And so I approached him, and I said, I’d like to intern in your office. I secured this internship in his Roxbury satellite office. I showed up with a briefcase from Goodwill that was permanently locked. I never figured out that – I never figured out that combination. But I thought it was important to look the part. Ladies, do y’all remember a store called Hit or Miss? Okay, so I went to Hit or Miss, got my first little work situation, walked in with that permanently locked attaché case, landed that internship, and that internship changed the trajectory of my life.

    Now, I should say, at that time, internships were unpaid, and most interns were the kids of donors. And so I’m so grateful that we have, now, through a lot of organizing, changed that to open it up so there’s no gate keeping, and all of our interns are paid a living wage.

    So I was a student at Boston University, started as an intern for Congressman Kennedy. Ultimately, I was hired, and I became a constituent services Social Security liaison, advocating for our most vulnerable, our seniors, our veterans. Then I went on to work for United States Senator John Kerry for 11 years, and then served on the Boston City Council for eight years.

    I’m not new to this, I’m true to this – and I’ve been doing this work of electoral politics and movement building, the work of freedom that my mother demanded of me for a very long time. So thank you to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for changing my life. It is also here where I found the love of my life, who is from Cambridge. So thank you Cambridge for the gift of my fine ass husband. But it was, it was here that I found the love of my life, put down roots, grew a family as well. 

    On the Republican government budget bill:

    JOSHUA: I want to talk about Democrats who seem very split, speaking of fight like hell, who seem very split between the House and the Senate these days, between the vanguard and the old guard. Why is there this split, and which of these two constituencies do you think will win out? And the context for this is the Senate passed the government funding bill that every single Democratic Representative, but one, voted against in the House. And the Senate, Chuck Schumer – I’ll let you describe what happened and how you see it. 

    REP. PRESSLEY: Does anyone know what the word trifling means? It was trifling, it was outrageous, it was a betrayal. And this goes right back to the point I was making earlier, that when Democrats have the power, no matter how limiting your tools are in this moment, you have to leverage and exhaust every single one of them – because the American people are exhausted, and we need to be exhaustive.

    The reason why there isn’t a narrative that the Democrats are out there fighting like hell is exactly because of reasons like that. Chuck Schumer stood with me and others in front of the Department of Treasury for, for an agitation, a mobilization effort, and linked arms with us and said, “We will win.” Not like that, Chuck – no, we won’t. No, we won’t.

    So again, the other thing is that [Republicans] presented a false narrative that there were two options: this Republican manufactured shutdown, because that’s exactly what it was – they’re the reason we were on the brink of a shutdown which no one wanted – or this dangerous spending bill that is going to be a tsunami of hurt that everyone is going to feel. And that’s inaccurate. That was a false choice, because the Democrats had a 30-day stopgap spending bill that was on the table that we were ready to vote for.

    JOSHUA: So you think Democrats had leverage that they did not use?

    REP. PRESSLEY: Absolutely, and I don’t know how you win any fight when you started out by ceding ground. But I want you to know this is what I mean, because I hold myself accountable. When this vote was going down, or, you know, hours before it, and I was on the phone myself and my colleagues, we were calling Democratic senators and saying, “Hold the line.” I went on television and appealed to them as well. And I said, if you don’t want to listen to me, listen to your constituents. Listen to the appeals and cries of your constituents.

    Y’all, the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District is an incredible district and one of the most unequal in the country. I have 220,000 Medicaid recipients in my district. 30% of the people the Commonwealth of Massachusetts are Medicaid recipients. So this is a denial of health care. People will get sicker, and people will die. I’m not being hyperbolic. Those are the facts. So you’re supposed to do everything.

    The problem is that there was a false narrative that was presented that the choice was between this Republican rip off to cause harm to the people this country, to pat the pockets of billionaires, or this Republican manufactured shutdown. And that’s not true. So again, I’m very unhappy and very worried about the fallout of this.

    Now you asked about the generational divide and that kind of thing. So two things. Again, I worked for Senator John Kerry 11 years. John Kerry was best friends with John McCain. This is not your grandma’s Republican Party, and I think that there are some Democrats that are still stuck in an old frame of bipartisanship being the goal. And I’m not a dolt, I understand the legislative process and why we need some of them again, appealing to people of conscience. I will sit at the table and work with anyone who is serious about progress and about the safety, the preservation and the health of our shared constituents, but so far, they have proven that they are unserious.

    Bipartisanship is not the goal. The goal is justice. The goal is impact. And there are some people, again in their punditry and analysis of the election outcome, who have said the country sent a message that they want to see bipartisanship. Well, again, I reject that, but let’s say that were true, that was a partisan bad faith spending bill the Democrats had no input on that, and that’s exactly why it should have been stopped and rejected while we continued the work of negotiating for a bipartisan compromise.

    So I want to say that there’s some Democrats that are stuck in an old frame. And then secondly, I ran for Congress because – and was elected under Trump’s first occupancy – and I ran because I felt the time demanded activist leadership, that it was not going to be enough to just vote the right way, that we were going to have to agitate, we were going to have to organize, we were going to have to resist, and that’s the moment we find ourselves in now.

    How Democrats can fight the Musk-Trump agenda:

    JOSHUA: Just in the last few days, the administration seemingly defied a direct federal court order. President Trump called for the judge’s impeachment. He said he no longer considers some pardons issued by Joe Biden to be valid. Definitely pressure testing the system in a big way. And I’m wondering because your constituent asks – what can you substantively do as a Member of Congress in the minority party in a not seeming to be so co-equal branch of government. In the face of all of it, what can you do? And what are you doing?

    REP. PRESSLEY: Fight like hell.

    You know, I keep returning to the words of Cecile Richards – daughter of you know, the great Ann Richards, Governor of Texas – leader of Planned Parenthood. I co-chair the House’s Reproductive Freedom Caucus. And when she was in the throes of her cancer fight, she was still out there organizing and fighting, and people said, “What are you doing here?” And she said, “There will come a time where the question will be asked, ‘What did you do when everything was at stake for the country?’” And she said, “the only acceptable answer will be everything that I could.”

    And so I keep returning to that, because the strategy of this hostile White House administration in the midst of an active hostile government takeover is to overwhelm. It is to shock and awe. It is to get you to believe that these proposals, most of which are lawless, are inevitable, and in that overwhelm, that you will concede and that you will be resigned to a mindset of indifference and of inaction. That is the strategy. When we say that their strategy is to flood the zone, that is why these executive orders are coming out fast and furious. They mean to overwhelm us. They mean to suppress any organizing. They mean to suppress any outcry or resistance, which is why Donald Trump has now instructed them to not even do town halls.

    So as part of our strategy, what’s happening now? Democrats are doing town halls in Republican districts to say that I will come here and be accountable to you, be accessible to you.

    But the Republicans, it bothers me, because people keep asking me, do you see any opportunities for bipartisanship? Are we in the same reality? Where is there a party for bipartisanship? They are operating, Republicans in the House as cowards, complicit cowards, in wholesale harm to our shared constituents. They are operating as a cult. So no, I don’t see any opportunities. Because people that define government efficiency by making people hungrier, poor and sicker are not my kind of people.

    So the Democrats, our defensive strategy is litigation, and we are winning a number of court cases. The second is legislation. So you take, for example, Elon Musk, unelected billionaire, his little grubby hands all over our data. We introduce the Taxpayer Data Protection Act. We just need three Republicans, and we can move legislation. Their majority in the House is just [three] Republicans, so we’re just appealing to them as people of conscience, do the right thing by the people who elected you and not operate with this fealty and loyalty to Donald Trump and cowering under his politics of retribution.

    So our strategy is litigation, which again, we’re winning a number of the cases. Our defensive strategy – legislation and agitation and organizing. And as a member of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, I’ve been conducting real time oversight by showing up and resisting and agitating in the face of these dangerous and draconian proposals from dismantling our federal agencies to the unjust massive firing of our dedicated federal workers.

    Why Democrats lost the 2024 election:

    JOSHUA: You’ve been a Member of Congress now for six years, and this is not your first time as a progressive Democratic Representative during a Trump administration. But a lot more of the country voted for him this time around, and even in your district, one of the very most progressive, he did better last year than in 2020. Why do you think Donald Trump picked up more votes here and across the country in just about every group with voters knowing who he is?

    REP. PRESSLEY: The reason why this isn’t an easy question is because we don’t all agree about why we lost. So what I see happening in real time. And I worry about is that Democrats will reflexively say: you know what, we need to moderate our aspirations. They’ll buy into this shallow punditry that we lost on social issues. I reject that categorically.

    I believe we lost because it was more important to a lot of people to preserve white supremacy. And they were very skilled at advancing othering and a scarcity mindset. And so people knew that harm would come if they believed even a third of what was laid out in Project 2025, which was not a blueprint. It is a playbook which we see playing out in real time, but they just thought that they would be exempt from the harm.

    And then I imagine there are people who believed what he told them, that he was going to lower the cost of prescription drugs and groceries and housing. So for people who did vote for Trump, I know no one gave him a mandate to operate with what I would consider the godlessness, the lawlessness and the callousness that he is in this moment. No one gave him that mandate.

    And then I’m going to say another reason why I believe he won and we lost, Democrats, and we need to remedy this quickly. In my opinion, [Democrats] are afraid of power, and when you operate with scared power, it’s like having no power at all. We have had the House, we have had the Senate, we have had the White House, and we reserve the filibuster. We did not restore voting rights. We did not pass George Floyd Justice in Policing, and so many of the things that I could name. Donald Trump, even if he is just about moving fast and breaking things – he is transparent about the fact that he wants the power, he wants to amass the power, he wants to wield the power, he wants to manipulate, abuse, and exploit the power, but he wants the power – and in order for us to effectively rebuild this party and this coalition of voters, we have to also offer an affirmative – so that, I have to say, come back home and let’s, let’s rebuild this party. Because we need to get the gavel. We need to be back in power. Because when we have the power, we are going to do what, right?

    I know Democrats have always had the better policies. We know that we have a messaging problem. The Republicans have played the long game of building a mass communications ecosystem that they have put money behind. They had a long game of not just the Supreme Court that they’ve enlisted as co-conspirators in their extremist march, but they also went after federal judgeships, district judgeships. And so to quote my brilliant Chief of Staff, Sarah Groh – Democrats don’t need any more policies. We need more strategy.

    So yeah, I think we have to be unapologetic in the pursuit of power, and this is not the time to moderate our aspirations. This is not the time to play small. Democrats win when we deliver, when people feel the impact of our policies. Not because they read it in a press release, but because their life is improved by a permanent Child Tax Credit, by affordable and accessible child care, by access to fresh and healthy foods. Democrats win when you feel the impact of our policy.

    So in my mind, we should go as far and as deep as the hurt. This is not the time to moderate.

    And then finally, I’ll say, in this moment, as I try to distill a path forward, I find it helpful to look back and to look at movements and to look at earlier chapters in the Civil Rights Movement, which we are still very much in, to be clear. And what I have gleaned from studying those earlier chapters in the Civil Rights Movement is that every movement needs three things. You need imagination. So we’re doing radical work, but you have you need a radical dream. You need a North Star. Secondly, strategy. So you need imagination. You need strategy. And here’s the hard one, stamina. You need stamina. So those are just some of the things that I’ve been reflecting on.

    How everyday people can stay engaged:

    JOSHUA: We got 37 pages worth of constituent questions from your constituents. So I want to get to a few of them, and a big theme of them, of the hundreds of questions that came in was that people are scared and they’re angry and they’re looking to you, asking, what can they do to push back? What specifically can they do? People wrote in and said they used to feel like they could call their representative, they could call their senator, and it would make a difference. They don’t believe that anymore. What can they do to pushback? 

    REP. PRESSLEY: Yeah, okay. First, I never want to dissuade you from calling, because even when you feel that it’s not impactful – it is. And I think you should call in two ways. First, if you reject something that we’re doing, make it known. But this is the part that doesn’t always happen. If you agree with something we’re doing, affirm that, because when you do that, it fortifies that member to continue taking those stances and doing those things. And other colleagues take note. Okay, so I want to encourage you to both express what you disagree with, but also affirm what you do agree with.

    Then, educate yourself. There’s so much mis- and dis-information. Again, they’ve got an anti-freedom agenda. They want to control what you read, what media you access. They want to perpetuate lies and propaganda. So, educate yourself. That is huge, because the country is getting a civics lesson on steroids in real time. The fear that you talk about, the fear that I hear from constituents who are telling their child what to do if they come home and they’re not there whose house they should go to instead. Elders that are carrying all their medications around in case they are deported. People afraid to go to medical appointments, to work, their places of worship, children not going to school. The fear is palpable. It is real, and it is justifiable – and even when these lawless executive actions have been introduced and they’ve been beaten back, there’s still a chilling effect. So even if that executive action does not become law, people are moving as if it is. And that’s why educating yourself is so very important.

    The third thing is, I keep returning to the pandemic and the things that we stood up in that moment, infrastructure, mutual aid, rapid response. These are the sorts of things that we need to stand up in this time. Get to know your neighbors. Dr. King posed that urgent question in one of his final writings – Where do we go from here: Chaos or Community? Well, we’re in a moment of chaos, cruelty and callousness, and we have to choose community every single time to fortify ourselves, to strategize, to take care of one another, mutual aid. So those are some of the things I would offer sort of at a macro, but also at a micro. 

    How we can remain hopeful:

    JOSHUA: My final question for you tonight, Congresswoman, what gives you hope?

    REP. PRESSLEY: Okay, what gives me hope? There’s an affirmation that one of my siblings in the movement gifted me during Trump’s first occupancy. And I say it every single day, and I want to give it to you because it is in this room, it is in this movement, that I find hope. We have to continue to choose community. It’s how we fortify one another. And as I said, we need to keep the imagination so it’s not just about radical work. It’s about radical dreaming, and it is about radical love, and we’re going to need community in this room and our neighbors more than ever before.

    So the affirmation I want to leave with you is the following: “I choose the discipline of hope over the ease of cynicism. I choose the discipline of hope over the ease of cynicism. And I choose fortitude over fatalism.”

    So I leave that with you, and I will just say – in the midst of this constitutional crisis, this civil rights crisis, where they’re coming to roll back gains and progress, and they’re coming for every single one of our rights – my appeal to you, I beg of you, is to not give them your joy too.

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    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Dr. Joyce Introduces Bipartisan Legislation to Encourage Life-Saving Innovation

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman John Joyce (PA-13)

    Washington, D.C. –Congressman John Joyce, M.D. (PA-13) and Congressman Don Davis (NC-01) have introduced H.R. 946, the Optimizing Research Progress Hope And New (ORPHAN) Cures Act, legislation that would accelerate the development of new life-saving cures and provide hope to millions Americans affected by rare diseases.

    Under current federal law, a drug or treatment that receives approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat exclusively one rare disease – commonly known as an “orphan drug” – is eligible for certain incentives, including an exemption from Medicare’s drug negotiation program.  Unfortunately, those same incentives do not exist if an orphan drug receives FDA approval to treat two or more rare diseases.  This has the unintended effect of discouraging and disincentivizing American innovators from engaging in the expensive and time-intensive research necessary to determine if an orphan drug could cure or treat additional rare diseases.

    The ORPHAN Cures Act would remedy these harmful, unintended consequences by honoring the intent of the Orphan Drug Act of 1983 and restoring proven, time-tested incentives to encourage the discovery of new cures for the narrow patient populations affected by rare diseases.

    “Over 30 million Americans are affected by nearly 10,000 rare diseases– yet 95% of these rare diseases lack an FDA-approved treatment. We need to be doing more – not less – to bring new FDA-approved treatments to market for rare disease patients,” said Congressman John Joyce, M.D. “The ORPHAN Cures Act ensures that proven, critical R&D incentives are in place so the millions of Americans with rare diseases can continue to have hope for the future.”

    “We must empower our innovators to continue developing lifesaving rare disease treatments,” said Congressman Don Davis. “By cutting red tape for researchers and scientists, Congress can help lay the foundation for the next generation of cures.”

    “Life Sciences Pennsylvania applauds Congressman Joyce on the introduction of the ORPHAN CURES Act in the 119th Congress,” said Christopher P. Molineaux, President and CEO of Life Sciences Pennsylvania.  “Dr. Joyce understands that the process of taking a rare disease medicine from research through development and approval for patients has many unique challenges.  With small patient populations, the development of medicines for rare diseases is significantly more difficult, costly, and risky than typical drug research and development. The ORPHAN CURES Act creates hope for the millions of patients living with a rare disease.”

    “At Tigerlily Foundation, we stand firmly in support of the ORPHAN Cures Act, a vital step toward ensuring access to life-saving treatments for rare disease patients, including those needing care for rare diseases as results of their anti-cancer treatments. This legislation not only accelerates the development of innovative therapies but also addresses the unique challenges faced by patients who have long been overlooked. We believe every individual deserves the right to hope, healing, and health, and the ORPHAN Cures Act brings us closer to that vision. Together, we can create a future where no one is left behind in the fight for better care and cures,” said Maimah Karmo, President & CEO, Tigerlily Foundation

    “On behalf of our LGMD2I/R9 community, CureLGMD2i fully supports the Orphan Cures Act (OCA), which will maintain existing incentives and boost research into new treatments for the 30 million Americans currently suffering from rare diseases. LGMD2I/R9 is an ultra rare and progressive muscle wasting disease that currently has no approved treatment. The OCA provides hope to our patient community by protecting the incentives for drug developers to continue working on a potential treatment for rare diseases like the LGMDs,” saidKelly Brazzo, Co-Founder and CEO of CureLGMD2i Foundation

    “Rare disease medications are often brought to market as a second indication, because research is just too expensive for our small populations to do the initial expansive testing. Eliminating limiting the exemption to one rare disease, hope and treatment is unnecessarily taken away. This, and the removal of incentives for investing in rare disease research are devastating to the rare disease community. While we believe these were oversights in crafting the law, they must be corrected immediately. People’s lives are at stake. Eosinophilic & Rare Disease Cooperative strongly support the passage of the Orphan Cures Act. We are here to help in any way we can to move this legislation forward,” said Sarah Jones, Community Engagement, Eosinophilic & Rare Disease Cooperative

    “With the growing role of genetics and genomics in cancer and other diseases, we are seeing more rare patient communities of under 200,000 who may benefit from a targeted treatment. Passage of the ORPHAN Cures Act is essential to encourage therapeutic innovation for these patients. Without it, the incentives established under the Orphan Drug Act are undermined, and some of our most vulnerable patients will suffer,” said Lisa Schlager, Vice President, Public Policy, FORCE: Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered

    “The Save Rare Treatments Task Force thanks Congressmen Joyce and Davis for their bipartisan leadership in introducing the ORPHAN Cures Act. This vital legislation corrects an unintended consequence in law to ensure strong incentives for research and development of new medical treatments for rare disease,” said the Save Rare Treatments Task Force

    For more information, you can find a one-pager here.

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    MIL OSI USA News –