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  • MIL-OSI USA: Rosen, Cortez Masto join 45 Senators in Introducing Resolution Condemning Pardons of Individuals Found Guilty of Assaulting Capitol Police Officers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV)
    Resolution comes after Trump pardons 1,500 Jan 6 insurrectionists—including those convicted of violently assaulted police officers
    The senators will seek unanimous consent to pass the resolution this week
    WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), and 45 of their colleagues introduced a new resolution condemning the pardons of individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police Officers. The resolution follows the move by President Trump, on the first day of his second term, to grant full, complete, and unconditional pardons to over 1,500 people charged with committing crimes in the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and to commute the sentences of 14 others, including leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, far-right militias. Among those pardoned by Trump were 169 people who pled guilty to assaulting police officers on January 6th.  During the siege of the Capitol that day, over 80 U.S. Capitol Police Officers were assaulted, as well as over 60 officers from the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.
    The senators’ resolution, Condemning the pardons for individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police Officers, simply states: “Resolved, That the Senate disapproves of any pardons for individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police officers.” This week, Senator Murray will seek unanimous consent on the Senate floor to pass the resolution.
    “It’s unconscionable that one of President Trump’s first actions in office was to pardon criminals who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, 2021,” said Senator Rosen. “A number of these convicted felons attacked police officers and injured them. It should not be a partisan issue to fully condemn these actions and President Trump’s pardons.”
    “President Trump is pardoning violent criminals who assaulted police officers and attempted to overturn a fair and free election,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “This is an insult to law enforcement across the country and an endorsement of political violence. The very least my Republican colleagues can do to back law enforcement is to support this resolution.”
    According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, approximately 1,572 defendants have been federally charged with crimes associated with the attack of the U.S. Capitol on January 6th. This includes approximately 598 charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement agents or officers or obstructing those officers during a civil disorder, including approximately 171 defendants charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer. As proven in Court, the weapons used and carried on Capitol grounds during the January 6th attack include firearms; OC spray; tasers; edged weapons, including a sword, axes, hatchets, and knives; and makeshift weapons, such as destroyed office furniture, fencing, bike racks, stolen riot shields, baseball bats, hockey sticks, flagpoles, PVC piping, and reinforced knuckle gloves.
    The full text of the resolution can be read HERE.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICYMI—Hagerty Joins Mornings With Maria on Fox Business to Discuss Trump’s Cabinet Nominees, Agenda

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Tennessee Bill Hagerty
    NASHVILLE, TN—United States Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN), a member of the Senate Appropriations, Banking, and Foreign Relations Committees and former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, today joined Mornings With Maria on Fox Business to discuss Senate Republicans’ role in confirming President Donald Trump’s cabinet nominations and implementing his legislative agenda.

    *Click the photo above or here to watch*
    Partial Transcript
    Hagerty on the politically-motivated delay of Trump’s cabinet confirmations: “What we’ve seen is the minority is using every procedural trick in the book. They tried to slow us down dramatically. We would’ve been much further along, even in Trump’s first term, clearly in [former President Barack] Obama’s first term. In Obama’s first term, we had twelve cabinet members seated in the first fifteen days. What we saw happen back in Trump’s first term was the resistance movement unfold against us. The Democrats plied all these procedural measures, slowed us down dramatically. We returned the favor in [former President] Joe Biden’s Administration. [Senate Majority Leader] John Thune offered to move back to a more normal sequence, as we [did with] Obama. The Democrats have no interest in it—we’ve gone through massive political gyrations—but we’re going to push these nominees through. That’s why we were here, willing to go through the night and early Sunday morning. The Democrats finally came to an 11th hour agreement to let us move Scott Bessent later today. But we’re going to keep pushing these through, grinding these through. There is no reason to be slowing all of this down, particularly when you think about the national security crises that we face as a nation. The American public wants us to get to work. They expect President Trump to be on the case. The Democrats are, yet again, doing everything they can to slow things down and throw sand into the gears.”
    Hagerty on his strong support for Pam Bondi: “Pam Bondi is a top priority nominee for us. She will get confirmed; there’s no question about that. Getting Pam and getting Kash Patel into position to deal with the national security crises and threats that we face here domestically is absolutely critical. She’s high priority. She’s in this first wave that will go—she will go—and I have every reason to expect she’ll go on a bipartisan basis. We’ve just got to get the Democrats to realize this and start to work with us more closely. The American public expect it.”
    Hagerty on the reconciliation process: “What we need to do is get as many things accomplished as quickly as we possibly can. Look, the situation in Florida is urgent. It makes sense to put it on a piece of legislation that’s moving through quickly. That’s certainly going to help us bring along various Florida members. I think that should be part and parcel of this. And if you just step back for a minute and think about where America saw this country in November of this last year, seventy-five percent of Americans said we were on the wrong track as a nation. Maria, the American people voted. President Trump won every single battleground state a landslide in the electoral college. He won the popular vote. Democrats should wake up and realize the public needs us to make significant change. These are the vehicles that will allow those changes to occur, I hope we’ll get their support.”
    Hagerty on Trump’s agenda to bring back American sovereignty: “Senator Thune certainly is focused on the process that we’re going to be moving through right now, to make certain that our military is adequately funded. But I’ve had great conversations with Elon Musk about what we can do, from an operational efficiency standpoint, deploying new technologies, making certain that the most relevant technologies that are available in the private sector are being deployed in our military. The focus is going to be back on lethality and effectiveness, not on pronouns at the Pentagon. Now [Secretary] Pete [Hegseth], he has got that message loud and clear. I’m excited about what may come, in terms of deploying new technologies, new ways to make America’s warfighters the most lethal in the world. So, I think the combination of the ongoing effort that we’ve got from a legislative standpoint, plus the operational efforts that are taking place with the Department of Government Efficiency, need to come to bear, in full force, and our procurement exercises in the Department of Defense, making certain that we have our men and women in the military in as great a position as we possibly can to deliver for the American people.”
    Hagerty on the national security concerns in doing business with the CCP: “I think there’s so much that can be done regarding China accessing our capital markets. Maria, one of my pet peeves is allowing Chinese companies that have golden share arrangements to list on our capital markets. You know what golden share is? That’s a minority stake that the Chinese government, the CCP has control of, that can actually be a veto for any corporate action that one might take. They have this control over Bytedance. They have this sort of control over Tencent. It’s amazing that these companies are allowed to list here. The American public does not understand the extent of control that the Chinese Communist Party has over their champion industries, yet they’re allowed to come here, take capital from our markets, the most efficient capital markets in the world, in a situation that is entirely unfair. When you think about it from a corporate governance standpoint, there are many ways, I think, that Scott Bessent can look at these critical issues and I hope address them very quickly.”
    Hagerty on the debt ceiling: “President Trump wants the debt ceiling dealt with as quickly as possible. In the past, it’s always been used by the Democrats as a cudgel to force actually more spending. We could deal with this in a number of fashions, perhaps dealing with it alongside disaster relief for California or others. But we need to deal with it right up front, quickly and effectively, and not let this become an issue or a hurdle to get larger things accomplished.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: King Seeking to Expand GI Benefits to Purple Heart Recipient Dependents

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Maine Angus King

    strong>WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) is cosponsoring bipartisan legislation to allow veterans who received their Purple Heart after their service to transfer their GI Bill education benefits to their dependents. This bill would level the playing field for these veterans, since servicemembers who receive the Purple Heart while in active status are allowed to pass their well-earned benefits to their loved ones. The Purple Heart Veterans Education Act would close this loophole, allowing these benefits to be transferred to dependents.

    “For decades, the GI Bill education benefits have helped create a more affordable and accessible path to higher education for veterans and their family members,” said Senator Angus King. “However, a current loophole prevents veterans who received a Purple Heart post-service from passing these benefits along to their dependents. I’m honored to join a bipartisan group of my colleagues in supporting the Purple Heart Veterans Education Act — proving once again that looking out for those who served is not a partisan issue. This simple fix continues to build on the promise we’ve made to our servicemembers, veterans and their families to return the same service that they so selflessly gave to our country.”

    In 2017, Congress passed the Forever GI Bill, which incentivized servicemembers to continue their service in the military by allowing them to transfer their GI bill benefits to their dependents after they completed six years of service and agreed to serve an additional four. In 2018, the Department of Defense (DoD) expanded GI Bill transferability benefits to Purple Heart recipients, allowing them to transfer them to their dependents while on active duty. While this policy honors most wounded warriors, it leaves behind a small group of those who received their Purple Hearts after being discharged from the military.

    Specifically the legislation would:

    1. Permit an individual awarded the Purple Heart for service in the Armed Forces on or after September 11, 2001, to transfer their educational benefits to one or more of their dependents;
    2. Allow flexibility by permitting the veteran to allocate different amounts, totaling 36 months of benefits to each of their dependents. For example, one dependent may be designated 20 months and the other 16 months;
    3. Protect the veteran’s right to their benefits by prohibiting the use of their educational benefits to be treated as marital property or the asset of a marital estate;
    4. And honor the veteran’s legacy by allowing their dependents to continue using the unused benefits after their death.

    The bill is supported by Disabled Veterans of America (DAV), Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).

    Representing one of the states with the highest rates of veterans per capita, Senator King is a staunch advocate for America’s service members, veterans and military families.  Previously, he led the bipartisan Military Spouse Employment Act — pieces of which passed into law in the FY2024 NDAA — which allows military spouses to have a remote work career with any federal agency and helps them to maintain consistent employment should they move with their spouse. Last summer, he cosponsored bipartisan legislation that supports job flexibility for military families.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: India’s Petroleum Industry

    Source: Government of India

    India’s Petroleum Industry

    Fueling Growth and Innovation

    Posted On: 27 JAN 2025 8:22PM by PIB Delhi

    Introduction

    India’s petroleum industry is a comprehensive sector encompassing exploration, production, refining, distribution, and marketing of petroleum and its by-products. This includes upstream activities like extraction of crude oil and natural gas, midstream activities such as transportation and storage, and downstream processes including refining and distribution of fuels like petrol, diesel, LPG, and kerosene. A critical contributor to India’s energy basket, the petroleum industry ensures energy security and underpins various economic activities.

    At present, India has nineteen Public-Sector Undertaking (PSU) refineries, three Private-Sector refineries, and one Joint Venture refinery. The country’s refining capacity increased from 215.066 Million Metric Tons per annum (MMTPA) in April 2014 to 256.816 MMTPA in April 2024.

     

    Origin and Brief History

    The roots of India’s petroleum industry trace back to 1867 when the first oil well was drilled in Digboi, Assam. This discovery marked the inception of the country’s exploration and production activities. The establishment of the Indian Oil Corporation in 1959 heralded a structured approach to refining and distribution. Over the decades, the sector witnessed significant expansion, from small-scale refineries to a robust network capable of meeting domestic and export demands. Today, India’s petroleum industry stands as a symbol of resilience and innovation, evolving in response to global and domestic energy challenges.

    Industry Development and Evolution

    The Indian petroleum industry has evolved significantly, driven by technological advancements and policy reforms. The 1990s marked a pivotal era with economic liberalization, leading to increased private and foreign investment. Public sector undertakings (PSUs) like ONGC and Indian Oil Corporation have played a crucial role in exploration and refining. Establishing state-of-the-art refineries, such as Jamnagar Refinery in Gujarat, has bolstered refining capacities, making India a refining hub in Asia. Furthermore, government initiatives like the National Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP) have incentivized exploration activities.

    India’s energy landscape is rapidly evolving. The country boasts 651.8 million metric tons of recoverable crude oil reserves and 1,138.6 billion cubic meters of recoverable natural gas reserves within its sedimentary basins.

    Here are some recent updates in India’s petroleum industry:

    1. India is on track to increase its exploration acreage to 1million square kilometers by 2030, with a 16% increase expected in 2025.
    2. The price of a domestic LPG cylinder in India is among the lowest worldwide, with costs as low as Rs. 803 per 14.2 Kg cylinder. For PMUY households, after a targeted subsidy of Rs 300 per cylinder, the effective price is Rs 503/ cylinder.
    3. The approval process for exploration and production activities in the petroleum industry has now been simplified, reducing 37 approval processes to just 18, of which nine are now available for self-certification.
    4. Introducing the Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Amendment Bill in 2024 ensures policy stability for oil and gas producers, and enables single license for all hydrocarbons. This bill was recently passed by the Rajya Sabha on December 3, 2024.

     

    Foreign trade of Petroleum

    India has witnessed a remarkable surge in petroleum product exports over the last decade. The country’s refining capacity, now exceeding 250 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA), has enabled it to cater to global markets.

    Key export destinations include South Asian, African, and European countries. The government’s emphasis on export-oriented growth and establishing Special Economic Zones (SEZs) for refineries have further boosted this trend. Exports not only contribute to foreign exchange reserves but also enhance India’s stature as a global energy supplier.

    Source: https://ppac.gov.in/

     

    Share in GDP

    As per the information provided by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Gross Value Addition (GVA) of manufacture of Coke and Refined Petroleum Products has increased from Rs.1.56 lakh Crore in 2012-13 to Rs. 2.12 lakh Crore in 2022-23 (as per first revised estimates) which has also contributed in increase of All India GDP from Rs.99.44 lakh Crore to Rs. 269.49 lakh Crore in the corresponding period, at current prices. This industry also provides direct and indirect employment to millions, spanning exploration, refining, distribution, and retail sectors. The industry’s value chain supports ancillary industries such as petrochemicals, logistics, and manufacturing. The sector enhances socio-economic stability by fostering skill development and offering diverse career opportunities.

    Global Ranking in Refining and Supply

    India ranks among the top five refining nations globally, thanks to its robust infrastructure and strategic geographic location. The country is the seventh-largest exporter of refined petroleum products. Facilities like the Jamnagar refinery, one of the world’s largest, underscore India’s dominance in the refining sector. This global standing enhances India’s energy security and positions it as a key player in international energy markets. International Energy Agency (IEA) in February 2024 assessed that India will become the largest source of global oil demand growth between now and 2030. India is the second-largest economy in biofuel blending, following Brazil.

     

    Metric

    India’s Global Rank

    Exporter of Refined Products

    7th

    Ethanol Blending in Petrol

    2nd

    BioFuel Producer

    3rd

    LNG Terminal Capacity

    4th

    Refining Capacity (MMTPA)

    4th

     

    Technological Advancements in Petroleum Industry

    Adopting cutting-edge technologies has been pivotal to the petroleum industry’s growth. Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) techniques, digitalization, and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) have optimized exploration and production processes. Refineries are increasingly adopting green technologies to minimize environmental impact. Projects such as bio-refineries and the development of alternative fuels like compressed bio-gas (CBG) showcase the industry’s commitment to sustainability and innovation.

    Government Initiatives

    The Indian government has launched several initiatives to bolster the petroleum sector. Here are some key schemes:

    1. Pradhan Mantri JI-VAN Yojana: Supporting bio-ethanol projects such as second generation and third generation plants for sustainable fuel production.
    2. Strategic Petroleum Reserves: Enhancing energy security through storage facilities. In India, the SPR is primarily located at three underground storage facilities in Visakhapatnam, Mangalore, and Padur (Karnataka), with a total capacity of 5.33 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) of crude oil managed by the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL).
    3. Ethanol Blending Program: Promoting biofuels to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and curb emissions. The government has a target of achieving 20% ethanol blending in petrol by 2025-26. Since the inception of the EBP Programme, ethanol blending has increased from 38 crore litres in the Ethanol Supply Year (ESY) 2013-14 to over 707.4 crore litres in ESY 2023-24.
    4. City Gas Distribution Network Expansion: Expanding piped natural gas (PNG) and compressed natural gas (CNG) infrastructure by covering 733 districts in 34 states/UTs covering almost 100% of the mainland area and almost 100% of total geographical area of the country.
    5. Energy Security Initiatives: Investing in overseas exploration and acquisition of oil blocks.

    Moving towards Greener Fuels

    1. SATAT Initiative (Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation): The SATAT initiative invites potential investors to set up Compressed Biogas (CBG) production plants. The aim is to make better use of agricultural residue, cattle dung, and municipal solid waste, and provide farmers with an additional source of revenue.
    2. Mission Green Hydrogen: Promoting green hydrogen production to reduce carbon footprint. According to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, a global demand of over 100 MMT of Green Hydrogen and its derivatives like Green Ammonia is expected to emerge by 2030. Aiming at about 10% of the global market, India can potentially export about 10 MMT Green Hydrogen/Green Ammonia per annum. The production capacity targeted by 2030 is likely to leverage over ₹8 lakh crore in total investments and create over 6 lakh jobs. Nearly 50 MMT per annum of CO2 emissions are expected to be averted as a result of the various Green Hydrogen initiatives under the Mission. Achievement of Mission targets is expected to contribute to India’s energy security and reduce a cumulative ₹1 lakh crore worth of fossil fuel imports by 2030 .
    3.  National Bio-Energy Programme: Focused on bio-energy production and reducing waste.
    4. Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP): Encouraging private investment in exploration and production.

     

    Implications for India’s Growth and Development

    The petroleum industry’s expansion has multifaceted implications. Economically, it boosts GDP, foreign exchange earnings, and industrial growth. Politically, energy independence strengthens India’s global standing and reduces strategic vulnerabilities. Socially, the industry’s growth promotes rural development through improved energy access and employment.

     

    Future Prospects

    India’s petroleum industry faces a dynamic future, shaped by global energy transitions and domestic demand. Increasing investments in exploration, expanding refining capacities, and embracing renewable energy sources will define its trajectory. Initiatives like green hydrogen production and carbon capture technologies highlight the sector’s adaptability. With a focus on sustainability and energy efficiency, India is poised to maintain its leadership in the global energy landscape while aligning with its climate commitments.

     

    Key Area

    Future Target

    Refining Capacity

    309.5 MMTPA by 2030

    Ethanol Blending

    20% by 2025-26

    Green Hydrogen Production

    5 MMTPA by 2030

    Exploration Acreage

    1 million sq. kms. by 2030

     

    References

    https://www.isprlindia.com/aboutus.asp

    https://mopng.gov.in/

    https://nghm.mnre.gov.in/overviews.php

    https://ongcindia.com/web/eng/about-ongc/ongc-at-a-glance/oil-and-gas-industry

    https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2043042

    https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2038435

    https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1940265

    https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1946408

    https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2003519

    https://pib.gov.in/PressNoteDetails.aspx?NoteId=152007&ModuleId=3&reg=3&lang=1

    https://pib.gov.in/newsite/pmreleases.aspx?mincode=20

    https://ppac.gov.in/import-export

    https://ppac.gov.in/infrastructure/installed-refinery-capacity

    https://pmuy.gov.in/

    https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2024/jan/doc202413295811.pdf

    Click here to see PDF.

    ******

    Santosh Kumar/ Ritu Kataria/ Rishita Aggarwal

     

    Annexure 1

    Refineries in India:

    Refinery Location

    Name of the Company

    Name Plate Capacity (MMTPA)

     

    PSU Refineries

    		  

    Digboi – 1901

    Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

    0.650

    Guwahati – 1962

    Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

    1.200

    Barauni – 1964

    Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

    6.000

    Koyali – 1965

    Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

    13.700

    Bongaigaon – 1974

    Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

    2.700

    Haldia – 1975

    Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

    8.000

    Mathura – 1982

    Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

    8.000

    Panipat – 1998

    Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

    15.000

    Paradip – 2016

    Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

    15.000

    Manali – 1965

    Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

    10.500

    Cauvery Basin* – 1993

    Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

    0.000

    Mumbai – 1954

    Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

    9.500

    Vizag – 1957

    Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

    13.700

    Mumbai – 1955

    Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

    12.000

    Bina^ – 2011

    Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

    7.800

    Kochi – 1963

    Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

    15.500

    Numaligarh – 2000

    Numaligarh Refinery Ltd.

    3.000

    Mangalore – 1996

    Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd.

    15.000

    Tatipaka, AP – 2001

    Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd.

    0.066

    Total PSU Refineries

    		  

    157.316

     

     

     
     

    JV Refineries

    		  

    Bathinda – 2012

    HPCL Mittal Energy Ltd.

    11.300

    Total JV Refineries

    		  

    11.300

     

     

     

     

    Private Sector Refineries

    		  

    DTA-Jamnagar – 1999

    Reliance Industries Ltd.

    33.000

    SEZ-Jamnagar – 2008

    Reliance Industries Ltd.

    35.200

    Vadinar – 2006

    Nayara Energy (Formerly Essar Oil Ltd.)

    20.000

    Total Private Sector

    		  

    88.200

    Grand Total

    		  

    256.816

     

     

    * The Cauvery Basin refinery is under capacity augmentation.

    ^The Bina oil refinery, in the year 2021, become wholly owned subsidiary of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited – a ‘Maharatna’ PSU of Government of India.

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    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Ministry of I&B announces top awards for content creators like influencers, podcasters, animation makers & game developers etc. ahead of 1st World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit

    Source: Government of India

    Ministry of I&B announces top awards for content creators like influencers, podcasters, animation makers & game developers etc. ahead of 1st World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit

    Union Ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw and Gajendra Singh Shekhawat launch WAVES Bazaar, an eMarketplace to bring together creators & firms dealing in creative content

    Classical & Semi classical Music challenge ‘Wah Ustad’ & Promotion of Khadi among three more Create in India challenges launched for WAVES; Tourism & Cultural heritage promotion content challenge also announced

    WAVES to position India as a global capital of content creation; India’s Cultural Heritage being elevated to global prominence, echoing Vivekananda’s legacy: Sh. Ashwini Vaishnaw

    WAVES is an important platform for art lovers and will inspire Indian creators to narrate before the world our rich cultural heritage: Sh. Gajendra Shekhawat

    Posted On: 27 JAN 2025 7:22PM by PIB Delhi

    The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting today marked a significant milestone in the lead-up to the World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit (WAVES) with the launch of major initiatives at the National Media Centre, New Delhi by Sh. Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister of Information & Broadcasting, Railways and Electronics & Information Technology and Sh. Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister of Culture & Tourism.

    Sh. Sanjay Jaju, Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Shri Arunish Chawla, Secretary, Ministry of Culture. Indian Filmmaker Sh. Shekhar Kapur and Sh. Gaurav Dwivedi, CEO Prasar Bharati were also present at the launch.

    Transforming India into a global capital of the creator economy

    Echoing the Prime Minister’s vision, of establishing the World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit (WAVES) as a summit of global repute, akin to the Davos Economic Forum, the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting, mentioned that this effort is part of a broader strategy to highlight India’s creative economy, which is rich with tradition, storytelling, and cultural significance—elements of what is globally recognized as the ‘Orange Economy.‘

    “Our rich culture, which once resonated in the halls of the Chicago World’s Fair through Swami Vivekananda, is today being carried forward by our Prime Minister on the global stage, through initiatives like yoga, culture, creativity, and Ayurveda,” stated Sh. Ashwini Vaishnaw. “WAVES is an extension of this effort, aiming to make India the global capital of the creator economy.”, he added.

    The Union Ministers launched WAVES Bazaar, 3 Create in India Challenges, WAVES Awards and also announced one more Challenge.

    WAVES Bazaar: Harnessing the potential of creative economy

    The event witnessed the unveiling of the WAVES Bazaar – Global e-Marketplace, a groundbreaking platform designed to connect India’s vast creative talent pool with international markets. The platform enables users to showcase their content, pitch projects, and build meaningful connections that transcend geographical boundaries. It simplifies global business interactions by offering tailored tools and resources, ensuring creators and businesses can expand their reach while discovering new opportunities for growth and success.

    On this occasion, Secretary I&B mentioned that WAVES Bazaar is a transformative platform that will unite creators, buyers, and collaborators from across various entertainment sectors such as film, TV, music, esports, animation, visual effects, gaming, and comics. It will bridge geographical gaps, allowing creators to display their work and engage in meaningful B2B interactions.

    WAVES Bazaar will also support brand collaborations, funding, and distribution, helping creators secure the backing they need to realise their ideas. This comprehensive e-marketplace will be an important tool to harness the potential of the budding creative economy in India. This platform will enable content creators to market their products, ideas and skills.

    WAVES Awards

    WAVES Awards are set to commence with nominations opening on February 15, 2025. Celebrating excellence across various creative disciplines, the WAVES Awards feature categories such as Game of the Year, Film of the Year, and Advertising Campaign of the Year. The awards also include Special Selection Awards, honouring lifetime achievements and significant impacts in fields like technology and social influence.

    Three new challenges under Create in India Challenges

    Another highlight was the launch of three new challenges under the Create in India Challenges, viz. “Resonate: The EDM Challenge”, “Make The World Wear Khadi” and “Wah Ustad”.

    1. Wah Ustad

    Envisioned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, driven by the esteemed “Dilli Gharana” in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Doordarshan, “Wah Ustad” provides a platform for young, classically trained vocalists to showcase their exceptional skills. It is open to participants aged 18 years and above, including international participation. It is a two-phased competition culminating in a Grand National finale at WAVES 2025 whose registrations have been opened today on the website of Prasar Bharati (https://prasarbharati.gov.in/wah-ustad/).

    1. ‘Make The World Wear Khadi’

    This challenge invites advertising professionals and freelancers to develop innovative campaigns that position Khadi as a global brand. Open for international participation, this challenge aims to promote Khadi within India and internationally. The participants have to explore innovative design concepts across various formats (e.g., digital, print, video, experiential). “Make The World Wear Khadi” encourages creative thinking and strategic approaches to elevate Khadi’s brand image and drive consumer engagement.

    1. Resonate: The EDM Challenge: Hosted by the Indian Music Association (IMA), “Resonate” invites artists, composers, musicians, and performers from around the world to showcase their exceptional talent in Electronic Dance Music (EDM) production. This challenge is open to all nationalities.

    New challenge for promoting India’s cultural heritage and tourism

    The Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting also announced a new challenge aimed at promoting films that explore India’s rich tourism and cultural heritage. This initiative challenges filmmakers to delve deep into the nation’s vibrant cultural tapestry, showcasing it to both national and international audiences. These challenges aim to foster creativity, innovation, and global participation.

    WAVES: Showcasing India’s Cultural Prowess Globally

    Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister of Culture and Tourism, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, described India as a vibrant crucible of storytellers, musicians, content creators, and religious diversity. “Our cultural heritage is not just a testament to our past but the backbone of our future on the global stage,” Shri Shekhawat stated. To leverage this rich cultural tapestry, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has launched WAVES, a dynamic platform that aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of showcasing and economically empowering India’s creative talents.

    As India progresses in various sectors—economic, social, and technological—our cultural prowess remains our greatest asset. While expressing gratitude to the Ministry of I&B, he said that through WAVES India’s cultural diversity will gain the global recognition it deserves, positioning the cultural creative economy as an integral part of the world’s formal economy. This initiative underscores the pivotal role that WAVES will play in showcasing and enhancing India’s cultural strength, providing a foundation for our creators to earn respect and recognition worldwide.

    Create in India Challenges

    Create in India Challenges, the cornerstone of the World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit (WAVES), a flagship initiative by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, has witnessed an overwhelming response from aspiring and professional creators from India and across the globe. With over 70,000 registrations and counting, the challenge has captured the imagination of individuals and communities from diverse backgrounds, fostering a holistic ecosystem for vibrant creativity and innovation. So far, 31 Create in India Challenges have been launched out of which 25 are still open for registration with 22 attracting global participation.

     India: Land of storytelling

    Acclaimed filmmaker Shekhar Kapur also highlighted India’s status as the largest content creation and consumption nation during his address. “India is not just a hub but a powerhouse of cultural and digital content, ranging from films to gaming. This is what we refer to as our ‘soft power’,” Kapur noted. Continuing on this theme, Sh. Kapur expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming WAVES summit, where this expansive creative energy will be showcased, underscoring the event as a critical platform for demonstrating India’s leadership in the global creative economy.

    An opportunity, not to be missed

    The summit is designed to be the first of its kind, converging audio, video, and entertainment into a single platform, thus providing a unique opportunity for creators from around the globe to network, collaborate, and display their creative prowess. Sh. Vaishnaw exhorted all the content creators to participate actively in WAVES, emphasizing that it is an opportunity that should not be missed.

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  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: A Convergence of Flagship Initiatives Driving Regional Growth, says Dr. Jitendra Singh at North East Aroma Conclave 2025

    Source: Government of India

    A Convergence of Flagship Initiatives Driving Regional Growth, says Dr. Jitendra Singh at North East Aroma Conclave 2025

    Both the Northeast region as well as Jammu & Kashmir have been on the priority of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Aroma Mission launched by the government headed by him in J&K is now picking up in the Northeast

    North East Set to Mirror Lavender Revolution: Minister Hails Aroma Mission’s Role in Empowering Startups and Driving Innovation

    Dr. Jitendra Singh Inaugurates Incubation & Innovation Complex (IICON), Paving the Way for Startup Growth in North East

    Posted On: 27 JAN 2025 6:42PM by PIB Delhi

    Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology; Earth Sciences and Minister of State for PMO, Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Space, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr. Jitendra Singh said that both the Northeast region as well as Jammu & Kashmir have been on the priority of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Aroma Mission launched by the government headed by him in J&K is now picking up in the Northeast.

    Both these regions have abundant natural resources which have in the past remained unexplored but can be a vital value addition to India’s economy, said the Minister.

     

    Speaking virtually at the inauguration of the Incubation & Innovation Complex (IICON) of CSIR-NEIST, Dr Jitendra Singh underscored the transformative potential of the Aroma Mission at the north East Aroma Conclave 2025, highlighting how the initiative integrates multiple flagship schemes of the Government to empower the region.

     

    The Minister called It a model of the “whole-of-government” approach, aligning programs such as StartUp India, MSME support, agricultural advancements, and rural development.

    “This single initiative represents the spirit of convergence that the Modi Government has championed,” Dr. Jitendra Singh said. He noted that the Aroma Mission is not just an agricultural or scientific initiative but a platform fostering startups, self-help groups, and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) while simultaneously contributing to farmers’ income and promoting employment.The event witnessed the distribution of agreements to 25 startups, entrepreneurs, NGOs, and self-help groups, empowering them to utilize the advanced facilities at IICON and contribute to the region’s economic growth and innovation.

    Dr. Jitendra Singh further elaborated that this mission has drawn strength from the Prime Minister’s vision of inclusive development of regions like the North East and Jammu & Kashmir. “Through the Aroma Mission, we are addressing the untapped potential of these biodiverse regions, enabling them to contribute significantly to India’s economy,” he said.

    The mission’s outcomes have been promising. Over 27 facilities established at CSIR-NEIST are being utilized by entrepreneurs, self-help groups, and startups. These efforts are creating new opportunities for employment and innovation in sectors such as essential oils and medicinal plants, with North East India poised to replicate the success of lavender cultivation in Jammu & Kashmir.

    Dr. Jitendra Singh highlighted how the initiative ties into broader priorities such as doubling farmers’ income and fostering women’s empowerment. He praised the Rural Women Technology Park developed under the mission, describing it as a template for replication in other parts of the country.

    The Minister also pointed to the broader vision of transforming the North East into a hub of connectivity, innovation, and collaboration. “From being regions with minimal connectivity, states in the North East now boast robust rail, air, and water networks, opening avenues for industrial partnerships and exports,” he remarked.

    Dr. Jitendra Singh expressed confidence that the Aroma Mission will not only bring prosperity to the North East but also bolster India’s bio-economy and biotechnology sectors. With the recently launched Bio-E3 policy and new collaborations in place, the region is set to emerge as a key contributor to India’s growth story, paving the way for achieving the vision of India@2047.

    The North East Aroma Conclave 2025, with its blend of innovation, entrepreneurship, and sustainable development, stands as a beacon of how integrated government initiatives can drive regional progress and national aspirations.

    Dr. Jitendra Singh underscored the significance of IICON, calling it a “one-stop solution” for entrepreneurs, farmers, and artisans. The state-of-the-art facility offers 27 advanced technologies to support startups and MSMEs, fostering innovation and skill development while reducing business risks. Selected entrepreneurs and self-help groups will have access to the incubation facilities for up to two years, allowing them to refine production and marketing strategies before launching their independent ventures.

    The Minister commended the CSIR-North East Institute of Science and Technology (CSIR-NEIST) for translating research into impactful solutions for rural communities. Through the Aroma Mission and Floriculture Mission, CSIR-NEIST has successfully introduced aromatic crops like citronella, lemongrass, patchouli, and chamomile across more than 5,000 hectares in the North East, benefiting over 10,000 farmers. Additionally, the institute has established 39 essential oil distillation units and plans to distribute 1 lakh agarwood saplings in the coming year, paving the way for the region to emerge as a major player in the aromatic plants industry.

    Dr. Jitendra Singh concluded by stressing the importance of leveraging the North East’s natural and human resources to achieve the vision of India@2047. With initiatives like the Aroma Mission, IICON, and the Government’s Act East Policy, the North East is poised to become a gateway for trade and innovation, fostering regional prosperity and strengthening India’s position on the global stage.

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  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: PRAYAGRAJ AIRPORT SETS NEW BENCHMARKS AS THE GATEWAY TO MAHAKUMBH

    Source: Government of India

    Posted On: 27 JAN 2025 6:38PM by PIB Delhi

    Under the leadership of the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and Civil Aviation Minister Shri Ram Mohan Naidu, Prayagraj Airport has transformed into a modern gateway to the city of devotion, culture and the grand Maha Kumbh Mahotsav. Major expansion efforts were undertaken to accommodate the influx of devotees from January 13 to February 26, 2025.

    The efficient operations at Prayagraj Airport result from meticulous planning and coordination. On December 8, 2024, Shri Ram Mohan Naidu reviewed terminal expansion, construction progress and traveler amenities, and issuing time-bound directives. Regular inspections and review meetings with state authorities, DGCA, BCAS, and AAI ensured timely completion of projects. On January 9, 2025, Minister of State Shri Murlidhar Mohol reviewed the work progress at Prayagraj airport.

    To facilitate the sacred journey, 81 additional new flights were introduced into schedule in January 2025. Currently, there are 132 flights operating with approximately 80000 monthly seats to Prayagraj from across India. Presently, Prayagraj is connected directly with 17 cities across India as against 08 cities in December 2024. With direct and connecting flights reaching to 26 cities, including Srinagar and Visakhapatnam; Prayagraj is now a well- connected hub for devotees.

    As per directions of Union Minister of Civil Aviation Minister Shri Ram Mohan Naidu to ensure that airfares remain in check as the festival’s peak days approach, especially during the forthcoming Shahi Sanan on January 29th, February 3rd, and other important Sanan on February 4th, February 12th, and February 26th, 2025; DGCA has advised airlines to ensure sufficient capacity to accommodate passengers. Accordingly:

    1. Akasa Air will begin operating flights on January 28th and 29th, connecting Ahmedabad and in February plans to operate 09 flight from Ahmedabad and 12 flight from Bangalore to Prayagraj adding approximately 4000 seats.

    2. SpiceJet is set to launch flight services between Delhi, Chennai, Guwahati, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Jaipur and Hyderabad to Prayagraj, adding approximately 43000 seats in February 2025.

    These new flights are part of the ongoing efforts to ensure regional connectivity and accommodate the influx of travelers to Prayagraj during the Maha Kumbh period. The addition of these flights is expected to ease the pressure on airfares and improve overall accessibility for devotees and tourists.

    During Maha Kumbh, the airport witnessed 30,172 passengers and operated 226 flights in just one week, surpassing 5,000 passengers in a single day for the first time. Night flights were also introduced, enabling 24/7 connectivity for the first time in 106 years.

    The airport’s modernization included expanding the terminal area from 6,700 sq. m. to 25,500 sq. m., reconfiguring the old terminal to handle 1,080 peak-hour passengers (up from 540) and operationalizing a new terminal for 1,620 passengers. Parking capacity increased from 200 to 600 vehicles, while check-in counters rose from 8 to 42, and XBIS- HB machines increased to 10 from 4. Aircraft movement efficiency was enhanced with an additional taxi track, parking bays increased from 4 to 15, conveyor belts from 2 to 5 and airport gates from 4 to 11. Additional aerobridge and more security infrastructure, including door-framed metal detectors were added.

    Passenger comfort saw notable improvements with the addition of lounges, a child care room, and boarding bridges (increased from 2 to 6). F&B counters were increased, complemented by the UDAN Yatri Cafe for affordable food. New services include meet-and-greet assistance for differently-abled individuals, prepaid taxi counters, and a city bus service in collaboration with the UP Government. Medical facilities were bolstered with ambulance deployment and air ambulance services; while arriving pilgrims receive floral welcomes for a warm start to their journey.

    This transformation underscores the government’s commitment to delivering world-class infrastructure, ensuring seamless connectivity and unmatched travel experiences for all devotees visiting Maha Kumbh 2025.

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  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Over 23,000 Track Kilometers Upgraded for 130 kmph Speed

    Source: Government of India

    Over 23,000 Track Kilometers Upgraded for 130 kmph Speed

    Indian Railways Achieves Significant Milestone

    Posted On: 27 JAN 2025 6:37PM by PIB Delhi

    Indian Railways has achieved a significant milestone by upgrading over 23,000 track kilometers (TKM) of the Indian Railways network to support train speeds of up to 130 kilometres per hour (kmph). This remarkable progress underscores the government’s commitment to modernizing railway infrastructure, improving connectivity, and reducing travel times for millions of passengers nationwide. With nearly one-fifth of India’s railway network now equipped for higher speeds, these advancements have been made possible through robust safety measures such as modern signalling systems and strategic fencing, marking a new era of efficiency and reliability in train travel.

    The modernization of track infrastructure involves comprehensive upgrades, including the strengthening of tracks to ensure stability and durability for high-speed operations, the implementation of advanced signalling systems for precise communication and safe train operations, and the installation of safety measures such as fencing at vulnerable locations to enhance security and mitigate risks. These efforts align with Indian Railways’ goal of fostering a safer and more efficient railway network, catering to the needs of both passenger and freight demands.

    The upgrades prominently feature sections of the Golden Quadrilateral and Golden Diagonal networks, vital corridors linking the nation’s major cities. These routes, which handle a significant portion of India’s passenger and freight traffic, are now better equipped to accommodate higher speeds, ensuring faster transit and improved logistics.

    Additionally, around 54,337 TKM of tracks have been upgraded to support speeds up to 110 kmph. This systematic enhancement ensures seamless connectivity across various regions and bolsters the overall operational efficiency of Indian Railways.

    Indian Railways’ flagship semi-high-speed train, the Vande Bharat Express, exemplifies the success of these infrastructure improvements. Capable of achieving speeds up to 160 kmph, the Vande Bharat Express symbolizes a new era in Indian train travel, offering passengers a faster, more comfortable, and premium travel experience. To accommodate such speeds safely, Indian Railways has prioritized safety fencing along high-speed track sections. These measures not only ensure the smooth operation of trains but also minimize the risk of accidents. Compared to the previous year, specialised train services during periods of peak demand increased significantly by 54%, reaching to 57,169 services.

    ASPECT

    DETAILS

    Increased Revenue

    A 4% rise in earnings between April and December of the current fiscal year, 2024-25 with ₹1.26 lakh crore revenue from freight operations. The passenger segment earnings increased by 6%, reaching Rs 55,988 crores.

    Higher Capital Expenditure

    2% higher capital expenditure in 2024-25 where the capital investments increased to ₹1.92 lakh crore during the current fiscal year, 2024-25 showcasing the government’s commitment to infrastructure development.

    Enhanced Freight Efficiency

    For the January-24 to November-24 period, the revenue earning freight loading on Indian Railways has been 1473.05 metric tonnes, recording a growth of 3.86% over the corresponding period of last year.

    The ongoing modernization drive of Indian Railways extends far beyond track upgrades. With a focus on adopting cutting-edge technologies, strengthening infrastructure, and enhancing passenger amenities, Indian Railways is setting the stage for a transformative travel experience. These initiatives are aimed at improving the reliability and efficiency of train services, fostering economic growth by enabling the faster movement of goods and passengers, and ensuring an inclusive and accessible railway system that caters to the diverse needs of the population.

    With the successful completion of these upgrades, Indian Railways is establishing new benchmarks in speed, safety, and service. These efforts not only enhance the travel experience for millions of passengers but also reaffirm the role of Indian Railways as the lifeline of the nation.

    As the modernization journey progresses, Indian Railways continues to symbolize progress and innovation, driving India toward a brighter and more interconnected future. The advancements reflect the organization’s commitment to building a railway network that supports the nation’s growth and meets the aspirations of its people.

    References

    Click here to see PDF.

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  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Office of PSA, IISc and MEA organise Technology Dialogue 2025 to Explore New Frontiers in Technology Diplomacy on 24th and 25th January 2025

    Source: Government of India

    Posted On: 27 JAN 2025 6:21PM by PIB Delhi

    Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India, Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) jointly organised an international technology policy summit titled “Technology Dialogue 2025: Exploring New Frontiers in Technology Diplomacy” on 24 and 25 January 2025 in IISc, Bengaluru as a continuation to Dialogue 2023 held in November 2023.

    Recognising the importance of technology in driving India’s global partnerships, the summit focused on India’s international technology engagement framework, and the need for leveraging strategic partnerships on critical and emerging technologies such as quantum, AI, semiconductors, space tech, and bioeconomy.

    The summit was inaugurated with a keynote address on International Technology Engagement Framework (ITEF) by the Hon’ble Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Dr. Jitendra Singh, who highlighted various national initiatives and missions aimed at advancing India’s technological aspirations while emphasizing the importance of global partnerships and collaborations. Hon’ble Minister Dr Singh also emphasised the need for a structured framework and approach in elevating India’s International Technology Engagements. The inauguration ceremony was joined by Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood (Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India), H.E. Pavan Kapoor (Deputy National Security Adviser, Government of India), Shri S. Raghuram (Joint Secretary of Policy Planning & Research, Ministry of External Affairs), Prof. G. Rangarajan (Director of IISc), and Dr. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (Chairperson and Managing Director of Biocon), and was chaired by Prof. G.K. Ananthasuresh (Dean of the Division of Mechanical Sciences, IISc). PSA Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood delivered a special address on conceptualisation and building blocks of ITEF. Dr. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw delivered a special address on industrial perspective that should shape India’s ITEF.

    The summit featured a keynote address on leveraging strategic partnerships on critical and emerging technologies for India by H.E. Pavan Kapoor (Deputy National Security Adviser, Government of India). This was followed by a featured panel on expanding the contours of international engagements for technology partnerships featuring H.E. Chandru Iyer (His Majesty’s Deputy Trade Commissioner for Investment for Souh Asia, Deputy High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to Karnataka and Kerala), H.E. Carly Partridge (Minister Counsellor,  Australian High Commission), H.E. Alfonso Tagliaferri (Consulate General of Italy in Bengaluru), Dr Soren Tranberg Hansen (Consulate General of Denmark) and Dr Rama Swami Bansal (Chief Scientist & Head, International S&T Affairs Directorate, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

    The second day began with a keynote address on Technology and Development Partnerships of India by Shri Periasamy Kumaran, Special Secretary (ER & DPA), Ministry of External Affairs where he highlighted the ongoing bilateral efforts of Government of India with multiple countries in emerging and critical technologies.

    Thematic panel on ‘Fostering Collaboration for Quantum Revolution’ was organised on to deliberate on advancements in quantum technologies and policy imperatives globally. The panel began with a lead presentation by Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood highlighting features of India’s National Quantum Mission (NQM). The panel also featured Prof Andrew White (ARC Australian Laureate Fellow), Dr Amith Singhee (Director, IBM Research India) and Prof Urbasi Sinha (Professor at Raman Research Institute), moderated by Mr Luke Preskey (Chief Revenue Officer, Resonance).

    The summit also featured a dialogue between Dr S Somanath (Former Secretary, Department of Space and former Chairman of ISRO), and Dr Koichi Wakata (Astronaut and CTO, Asia-Pacific at Axiom Space) on the theme, ‘Unlocking Potentials of Space Tech’ discussing space exploration boom, the entry of private entities, industry partners and foreign investment, as well the encouraging growth of space startups.

    The panel on ‘Accelerating Artificial Intelligence (AI) Innovation’ featured Shri S Krishnan (Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology), H.E. Arthur Barichard (Deputy Ambassador for Digital Affairs, Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Republic of France), Ms Laxmi Shenoy (Managing Director, Accenture), Shri Biswajit Das (Head – Data Analytics and AI, Amazon Web Services), and Dr Leah Junck (Global Center on AI Governance, South Africa), moderated by Prof Chiranjib Bhattacharyya (Chair, Department of Computer Science and Automation, IISc). The panel deliberated on building a trustworthy AI ecosystem, focusing on AI governance, the future of work, and AI for public interest.

    The panel on ‘Advancing India’s Bio-Economy’ featured Dr Alka Sharma (Adviser, Department of Biotechnology), Shri Krishna Mohan Puvvada (Senior Vice President, MEIA Novonesis), Mr Peter Bains (Group CEO of Biocon Group), Prof Usha Vijayraghavan (Dean, Biological Science Division, IISc) and Dr Bhuvnesh Shrivastava (Director- Healthcare, US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), moderated by Prof Gayatri Saberwal (Dean, Institute of Bioinformatics and Applied Biotechnology). The panel discussed the importance of international collaboration for India to achieve its bio-economy ambitions.

    The valedictory session featured a keynote address on driving sectoral transformation through independent and synergistic technology advancements by Dr Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary, Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India. The session also featured a fireside chat on positioning India in the global semiconductor value chain between Shri Utpal Shah (Senior Vice President – Strategy and Business Development, Tata Electronics) and Prof Andrew White, chaired by Prof Navakanta Bhat (Dean, Division of Interdisciplinary Sciences, IISc).

    The Technology Dialogue 2025 also featured the India-France AI Policy Roundtable: Roadmap for the AI Action Summit 2025. The roundtable was co-chaired by Shri Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, and Chief Executive Officer of the IndiaAI Mission, representing India, and H.E. Mr. Marc Lamy, Consul General of France in Bengaluru, representing France. The discussion focused on key policy positions related to global AI development and governance, while also exploring opportunities for collaboration and synergy between India and France. The roundtable focused on the following key objectives:

     

    ●          Unified Global AI Governance

    ●          Understanding AI Technologies and Implications

    ●          Addressing Digital Divide and Market Concentration

    ●          Common and Open AI Infrastructure

    ●          Cultural and Linguistic Diversity in AI

    ●          Sustaining AI Innovation and Addressing Resource Needs

     

    The India-France AI Policy Roundtable, during Technology Dialogue 2025, served as a platform for discussions leading up to the 2025 AI Action Summit to be co-chaired by Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

    The two day summit exploring technology policy and diplomacy efforts with key partner countries witnessed the participation from various foreign missions in India, global thought leaders on critical and emerging technologies, industry and academia thought leadership in various technologies, industries bodies, start-ups and scholars of public policy.

    More details at: https://technologydialogue.in/

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  • MIL-OSI USA: CLINTON COUNTY – Shapiro Administration to Launch Pilot Project to Improve Care for Mothers and Babies

    Source: US State of Pennsylvania

    January 28, 2025 – Lock Haven, PA

    ADVISORY – CLINTON COUNTY – Shapiro Administration to Launch Pilot Project to Improve Care for Mothers and Babies

    Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Dr. Debra Bogen will join UPMC and local organizations at DOH’s State Health Center in Lock Haven to launch a new pilot project focused on improving care for pregnant women and babies in Clinton County.

    State Health Center staff are partnering with UPMC of North Central Pennsylvania and other local partners for a two-year, $1.3 million pilot project. The project’s goal is to develop a model for providing a variety of physical, mental, emotional, and social health resources for women in regions with limited access to pre- and post-pregnancy care.

    Since taking office, Governor Josh Shapiro has charged his Administration with finding ways to improve the health of the Commonwealth’s mothers and babies. The Governor’s 2024-2025 bipartisan budget secured a $2.6 million increase for work to address and prevent maternal mortality, especially among Black mothers, who are disproportionately affected.

    WHO:
    Department of Health Secretary Dr. Debra Bogen
    UPMC in North Central Pennsylvania President Patti Jackson-Gehris
    Lycoming County Chief Deputy Coroner Kathryn Kiessling

    WHEN:
    TUESDAY, January 28, 2025, at 2:00 PM

    WHERE:
    Clinton County State Health Center
    300 Bellefonte Ave.
    Suite 100
    Lock Haven, PA 17745

    MEDIA RSVP: Media interested in attending must RSVP with the name of the reporter and photojournalist to ra-dhpressoffice@pa.gov.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Sapulpa Couple Sentenced for Their Role in Abusing Three-Week-Old Baby

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    TULSA, Okla. – Today, U.S. District Judge Sara E. Hill sentenced Jeannie Rene Romero, 25, for Child Abuse and Child Neglect in Indian Country. Judge Hill ordered Jeannie to serve 60 months, followed by five years of supervised release.

    In October 2022, Jeannie was taking care of her three-week-old baby. While changing the baby’s diaper, Jeannie admittedly used unreasonable force, breaking the baby’s femur in half. She failed to seek medical attention for more than 48 hours. Doctors noted that the baby had additional injuries consistent with abuse.

    In June, Judge Hill sentenced Jeannie’s husband, Jacob Alejandro Romero, 24, for Child Neglect in Indian County. Jacob was at work when the abuse occurred. However, the infant’s injury was noticeable, and he failed to seek help. Judge Hill ordered Jacob to serve 24 months imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release.

    The baby and its sibling were removed from the home and placed in the care of the family members. Jeannie and the baby are citizens of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.  

    Jeannie will remain in custody pending transfer to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. Jacob was previously released on bond and taken into custody following his sentencing in June. 

    The FBI and Sapulpa Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie N. Ihler prosecuted the case.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Louisville Man Sentenced to Over 20 Years in Federal Prison for Carjacking Resulting in Death

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Louisville, KY – Today, a Louisville man was sentenced to 20 years and 5 months in federal prison for a carjacking which resulted in the death of teenage motorist.

    U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky, Special Agent in Charge Michael E. Stansbury of the FBI Louisville Field Office, Chief Paul Humphrey of the Louisville Metro Police Department, and Shelby County Sheriff Mark Moore made the announcement.

    According to court documents, Michael Dewitt, 31, was sentenced to 20 years and 5 months in federal prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release, for carjacking resulting in death. Dewitt committed a carjacking at gunpoint on March 1, 2021, and stole a 2011 Ford F350 from its owner in Simpsonville, Kentucky. During the immediate flight from the carjacking, and while still in possession of the stolen truck, Dewitt collided with a vehicle on Dixie Highway in Louisville, causing the death of a minor victim. Dewitt had controlled substances in his system at the time.

    There is no parole in the federal system.

    This case was investigated by the FBI Louisville Field Office, the Louisville Metro Police Department, and the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert Bonar and Mac Shannon prosecuted this case.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Voluntary assisted dying is legal in Australia – but many of us don’t know

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ben White, Professor of End-of-Life Law and Regulation, Australian Centre for Health Law Research, Queensland University of Technology

    imtmphoto/Shutterstock

    Voluntary assisted dying is lawful in all Australian states. This allows terminally ill adults who are suffering and have decision-making capacity to choose to receive help to die.

    Victoria’s law was the first, coming into effect in 2019. New South Wales was the last state, with its voluntary assisted dying law beginning in late 2023.

    Voluntary assisted dying will be allowed in the Australian Capital Territory in November, and a Northern Territory report has recommended it pass a voluntary assisted dying law too.

    While the vast majority of Australians now live in jurisdictions where voluntary assisted dying is permitted, accessing voluntary assisted dying depends on knowing it’s a legal option. But our new research suggests many Australians don’t know this.

    A study in Queensland

    Voluntary assisted dying became legal in Queensland on January 1, 2023. We conducted an online survey of 1,000 Queensland adults in mid-2024 to find out if the community knew about this new end-of-life choice.

    We set quotas for age, gender and geographical location to ensure the people we surveyed represented the overall Queensland population.

    First, we asked whether people thought voluntary assisted dying was legal in Queensland. Only one-third (33%) correctly identified it was. Of the 67% who didn’t, 41% thought voluntary assisted dying was illegal and 26% said they didn’t know.

    People who did know voluntary assisted dying was legal had generally found out in one of three ways:

    • from the media

    • from professional experience (for example, working in health care)

    • from personal experience (for example, knowing someone who had asked about, requested or accessed voluntary assisted dying).

    We then told our survey participants voluntary assisted dying was legal in Queensland and asked if they would know how to go about accessing it if they wished to. Only one-quarter (26%) answered yes.

    The survey also asked people where they might look for information about voluntary assisted dying. Most people said they would seek this information online, but asking health practitioners, especially doctors, was also important.

    We found two-thirds of people didn’t know voluntary assisted dying was legal.
    Ground Picture/Shutterstock

    Legal and cultural barriers

    Perhaps it’s not surprising so few members of the surveyed public know voluntary assisted dying is a legal choice. It’s still a relatively new law. But there are specific barriers in Australia that can prevent people finding out about it.

    One major barrier is health practitioners are often not able to freely discuss voluntary assisted dying with their patients. The laws in all states control how conversations about voluntary assisted dying can occur.

    For example, in Queensland, only doctors and nurse practitioners can raise voluntary assisted dying and only if they also discuss available treatment and palliative care options and their likely outcomes.

    But the most problematic are Victorian and South Australian laws which prohibit health practitioners from raising the topic with patients altogether. Many people rely on their doctor to tell them about treatment options, so it’s a problem if the onus is on the patient to bring it up first.

    Conscientious objection is another significant barrier. Some doctors are opposed to voluntary assisted dying and even if they practise in a state where they can legally raise it, may choose not to tell their patients about it. This is another reason patients may not know voluntary assisted dying could be a choice for them.

    It’s important to note our study was only done in Queensland, so we can’t be confident the findings represent the wider Australian population. But given these barriers to knowing about voluntary assisted dying, it’s reasonable to anticipate similar trends in other states.

    A national challenge

    Raising community awareness of voluntary assisted dying is a challenge around the country. Voluntary assisted dying oversight boards from five states (Queensland, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia) have all discussed this issue in their most recent annual reports.

    In addition, Western Australia recently reviewed its voluntary assisted dying laws, identifying lack of community knowledge as a problem. The review called for a strategy to fix this.

    We see this challenge as one of “voluntary assisted dying literacy”. Greater voluntary assisted dying literacy will enable members of the public to know the options available to them, and how to make the choices they want.

    Raising community awareness about voluntary assisted dying is a challenge nationally.
    Tero Vesalainen/Shutterstock

    What can we do about this?

    We need community awareness initiatives to increase knowledge that voluntary assisted dying is legal and ensure people know where to find information about this option. Information about voluntary assisted dying is already available from all state government health departments, but more action is needed to ensure it reaches more people.

    Respondents in our survey suggested using social media campaigns, advertising, and sharing information through Centrelink, health clinics and other trusted community channels.

    We also propose targeted information for particular patient groups who may be eligible for voluntary assisted dying, such as people with cancer or neurodegenerative diseases. This means they will know voluntary assisted dying may be one of the treatment options available to them, and how to navigate the process should they wish to.

    These initiatives would need to be designed sensitively with a focus on providing information to avoid any perception that people could feel induced or directed to access voluntary assisted dying.

    Training for health practitioners is also important. This is particularly needed for GPs and specialists working in end-of-life care. Training will support health practitioners to facilitate informed discussions with patients and families.

    Strong community support was a key argument in legalising voluntary assisted dying in Australia. The public wanted this as an end-of-life choice. But that choice is only a real one if people know it exists.

    Our online resource End of Life Law in Australia has more information about voluntary assisted dying and contact points for accessing it in each state.

    Ben White has received funding from the Australian Research Council, the National Health and Medical Research Council, Commonwealth and state governments, and philanthropic organisations for research and training about the law, policy and practice relating to end-of-life care. In relation to voluntary assisted dying, he (with colleagues) has been engaged by the Victorian, Western Australian and Queensland governments to design and provide the legislatively mandated training for health practitioners involved in voluntary assisted dying in those states. He (with Lindy Willmott) has also developed a model bill for voluntary assisted dying for parliaments to consider. Ben is a recipient of an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (project number FT190100410: Enhancing End-of-Life Decision-Making: Optimal Regulation of Voluntary Assisted Dying) funded by the Australian government. He is also a Chief Investigator on a current Australian Research Council Linkage Project on voluntary assisted dying (partnering with Voluntary Assisted Dying (Review) Boards and/or Departments of Health in five Australian States. The research this article discusses was funded by Queensland Health.

    Lindy Willmott receives or has received funding from the Australian Research Council, the National Health and Medical Research Council and Commonwealth and state governments for research and training about the law, policy and practice relating to end-of-life care. She is a Chief Investigator on an Australian Research Council Linkage Project on voluntary assisted dying (partnering with Voluntary Assisted Dying (Review) Boards and/or Departments of Health in five Australian States. She (with colleagues) has been engaged by the Victorian, Western Australian and Queensland governments to design and provide the legislatively mandated training for health practitioners involved in voluntary assisted dying in those states. She (with Ben White) has also developed a model bill for voluntary assisted dying for parliaments to consider. Lindy Willmott is also a member of the Queensland Voluntary Assisted Dying Review Board, but writes this piece in her capacity as an academic researcher. She is a former board member of Palliative Care Australia.

    Rachel Feeney receives funding from the Australian Research Council for research about voluntary assisted dying. Rachel has been employed on multiple research projects as a research fellow at the Australian Centre for Health Law Research. She is also employed on End of Life Law for Clinicians, a training program for clinicians about end of life law, funded by the Commonwealth government. Rachel was previously engaged as a clinical consultant for the Voluntary Assisted Dying Training Education Module for Healthcare Workers in Queensland.

    – ref. Voluntary assisted dying is legal in Australia – but many of us don’t know – https://theconversation.com/voluntary-assisted-dying-is-legal-in-australia-but-many-of-us-dont-know-248114

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: 1975 was declared International Women’s Year. 50 years on, the ‘revolution in our heads’ is still being fought

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marian Sawer, Emeritus Professor, School of Politics and International Relations, Australian National University

    National Archives of Australia

    In December 1972, the same month the Whitlam government was first elected, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 1975 as International Women’s Year (IWY). This set in train a series of world-changing events, in which Australia was to play a significant part.

    The aim of IWY was to end discrimination against women and enable them to participate fully in economic, social and political life. Fifty years later, such participation has become an indicator of development and good governance. But the full promise of International Women’s year has yet to be fulfilled, hampered by pushback and the scourge of gender-based violence.

    ‘The greatest consciousness-raising event in history’

    Dubbed “the greatest consciousness-raising event in history”, the UN’s first World Conference on Women took place in Mexico City in June 1975. Consciousness-raising had been part of the repertoire of women’s liberation. Now it was taken up by government and intergovernmental bodies.

    The Mexico City conference was agenda-setting in many ways. The Australian government delegation, led by Elizabeth Reid, helped introduce the world of multilateral diplomacy to the language of the women’s movement. As Reid said:

    We argued that, whenever the words “racism”, “colonialism” and “neo-colonialism” occurred in documents of the conference, so too should “sexism”, a term that had not to that date appeared in United Nations documents or debates.

    Reid held the position of women’s adviser to the prime minister. In this pioneering role, she had been able to obtain government commitment and funding for Australia’s own national consciousness-raising exercise during IWY.

    A wide range of small grants promoted attitudinal change – “the revolution in our heads” – whether in traditional women’s organisations, churches and unions, or through providing help such as Gestetner machines to the new women’s centres.

    IWY grants explicitly did not include the new women’s services, including refuges, women’s health centres and rape crisis centres. Their funding was now regarded as an ongoing responsibility for government, rather than suitable for one-off grants.

    IWY began in Australia with a televised conversation on New Year’s Day between Reid and Governor-General John Kerr on hopes and aspirations for the year. On International Women’s Day (March 8), Prime Minister Gough Whitlam’s speech emphasised the need for attitudinal change:

    Both men and women must be made aware of our habitual patterns of prejudice which we often do not see as such but whose existence manifests itself in our language and our behaviour.

    The Australian postal service celebrated the day by releasing a stamp featuring the IWY symbol, showing the spirit of women breaking free of their traditional bonds. At Reid’s suggestion, IWY materials, including the symbol, were printed in the purple, green and white first adopted by Emmeline Pankhurst in 1908 and now known as the suffragette colours.


    Author supplied

    Policy power

    Inside government, Reid had introduced the idea that all Cabinet submissions needed to be analysed for gender impact. After the Mexico City conference, this idea became part of new international norms of governance.

    Following the adoption at the conference of the World Plan of Action, the idea that governments needed specialised policy machinery to promote gender equality was disseminated around the world.

    Given the amount of ground to be covered, IWY was expanded to a UN Decade for Women (1976–85). By the end of it, 127 countries had established some form of government machinery to advance the status of women. Each of the successive UN world conferences (Copenhagen 1980, Nairobi 1985, Beijing 1995) generated new plans of action and strengthened systems of reporting by governments.

    The Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing was a high point. Its “platform for action” provided further impetus for what was now called “gender mainstreaming”. By 2018, every country recognised by the UN except North Korea had established government machinery for this purpose.

    The global diffusion of this policy innovation was unprecedented in its rapidity. At the same time, Australia took the lead in another best-practice innovation. In 1984, the Commonwealth government pioneered what became known as “gender budgeting”. This required departments to disaggregate the ways particular budgetary decisions affected men and women.

    As feminist economists pointed out, when the economic and social division of labour was taken into account, no budgetary decision could be assumed to be gender-neutral. Governments had emphasised special programs for women, a relatively small part of annual budgets, rather than the more substantial impact on women of macro-economic policy.

    Standard-setting bodies such as the OECD helped promote gender budgeting as the best way to ensure such decisions did not inadvertently increase rather than reduce gender gaps.

    By 2022, gender budgeting had been taken up around the world, including in 61% of OECD countries. Now that it had become an international marker of good governance, Australian governments were also reintroducing it after a period of abeyance.

    Momentum builds

    In addition to such policy transfer, new frameworks were being adopted internationally. Following IWY, the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) was adopted in 1979. CEDAW became known as the international bill of rights for women, and has been ratified by 189 countries. This is more than any other UN Convention except that on the rights of the child.

    All state parties to CEDAW were required to submit periodic reports to the UN on its implementation. Non-government organisations were encouraged to provide shadow reports to inform the questioning of government representatives. This oversight and dialogue relating to gender equality became part of the norm-building work of the UN.

    However, this very success at international and regional levels helped fuel “anti-gender movements” that gathered strength after 1995. No more world conferences on women were held, for fear there would be slippage from the standards achieved in Beijing.

    In Australia, the leveraging of international standards to promote gender equality has been muted in deference to populist politics. It became common to present the business case rather than the social justice case for gender-equality policy, even the cost to the economy of gender-based violence (estimated by KPMG to be $26 billion in 2015–16).

    The battle continues

    Fifty years after IWY, Australia is making up some lost ground in areas such as paid parental leave, work value in the care economy, and recognition of the ways economic policy affects women differently from men.

    However, all of this remains precarious, with issues of gender equality too readily rejected as part of a “woke agenda”.

    The world has become a different place from when the Australian government delegation set out to introduce the UN to the concept of sexism. In Western democracies, women have surged into male domains such as parliaments. Australia now has an almost equal number of women and men in its Cabinet (11 out of 23 members).

    But along with very different expectations has come the resentment too often being mobilised by the kind of populist politics we will likely see more of in this election year.

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

    – ref. 1975 was declared International Women’s Year. 50 years on, the ‘revolution in our heads’ is still being fought – https://theconversation.com/1975-was-declared-international-womens-year-50-years-on-the-revolution-in-our-heads-is-still-being-fought-241791

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: What’s the difference between Hass and Shepard avocados? It’s not just the colour

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yasmine Probst, Professor, School of Medical, Indigenous and Health Sciences, University of Wollongong

    Stepanenco Valeria/Unsplash

    Whether with crumbled feta or poached eggs, you’d be challenged to find a cafe in Australia or farther afield that doesn’t have avocado somewhere on the menu.

    This fruit (yep, it’s a fruit from a tree, not a vegetable) is widely associated with brunch culture and other trendy eating habits.

    The Australian avocado industry developed in the 1960s, 30 years after the start of the first large-scale production in California. Orchards producing avocados now span all parts of Australia, except Tasmania, Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory.

    Avocados are considered a monoculture crop: they’re grown on the same land each year, making them more susceptible to pests and creating a need for increased fertiliser use. The carbon footprint of avos is almost twice as high as that of apples, but much lower than many animal food sources.

    There are now over 50 different avocado types globally, but only a few are grown commercially.

    Not all avos are the same

    You may not notice a difference when you get your avocado toast at a cafe. But at the shops or the market, a striking difference occurs each year in Australia.

    In autumn, the familiar dark purple Hass avocado disappears and is replaced with the lighter green Shepard variety. In Australia, this typically happens between February and May.

    If you don’t know the difference between the two, you may expect Shepard avos to perform the same way as Hass – and be left disappointed. There are some important differences.

    Hass avocados

    Hass avocado skin is very dark when ripe.
    Nungning20/Shutterstock

    Hass avocados are known for their dark, pebbly-looking skin that appears almost black when ripe. They have an ovoid shape with a slight pear-like appearance. The thick skin can be a challenge to peel, often requiring a sharp knife or avocado slicer.

    Hass avocado flavour is rich, creamy and buttery, with nutty undertones. Their texture is ideal for mashing, blending and spreading, creating a creamy texture in dips, guacamole and smoothies.

    Hass avocados ripen – and darken in colour – slowly over several days. They remain firm to the touch when ripe, and will feel squishy when overripe. A slight give when pressed confirms Hass avos are ready to eat.

    Available in Australia from May to January, Hass are the dominant variety of commercially grown avocado worldwide. They were cultivated by horticulturalist Rudolph Hass in California in the 1920s.

    Shepard avocados

    Shepard avocados have smooth, green skin that remains green even when they are fully ripe. They are round to slightly oblong in shape and have a slightly milder and sweeter taste, with less pronounced nutty undertones.

    Shepard avocados ripen more quickly than Hass, but you won’t be able to tell that by the colour. Instead, check for softness – Shepard avocados are very soft when ripe. What might feel overripe when handling a Hass will likely be ideal ripeness if it’s a Shepard. The thin, smooth skin makes them easy to peel by hand or with a gentle squeeze.

    Their buttery soft texture is firm and creamy, and they hold their shape well when cut, making them ideal for slicing, dicing and spreading despite being structurally firm.

    Interestingly, Shepard avocados brown much more slowly than Hass, making them perfect for garnishes. Their milder flavour also makes Shepard avos well suited to sweet dishes, such as chocolate mousse.

    Shepard avos account for approximately 10–15% of Australian avocados and are in season from February to April each year while there is a gap in the Hass season.

    Australia is the only country in the world that grows Shepard avocados commercially. (They are grown in Queensland.)

    Avocados and our health

    As avocados contain 59% fat, people wishing to lose weight were previously advised to avoid or limit eating them.

    We now know that a majority of this fat is oleic acid, a monounsaturated (healthy) fat that helps to reduce cholesterol and improve heart health.

    Additionally, only 1% of an avocado is made up of carbohydrates, making the fruit popular with people following a ketogenic (keto) diet of low carbs and high fat.

    People who consume avos also tend to follow a better pattern of eating in general. They eat more whole grains, fruit and vegetables and fewer discretionary or takeaway foods.

    As an energy-dense food, consuming a whole avocado is about the same as eating 2.5 whole apples. Per 100 grams, avocado actually gives you less energy than an equivalent amount of cooked white rice.

    As avocado dishes are visually appealing and often featured in food photography, they have become a symbol of modern eating habits.

    Yasmine Probst receives funding from Multiple Sclerosis Australia and has previously received funding from various industry groups including the Hass Avocado Board. She is presently affiliated with the National Health and Medical Research Council, Multiple Sclerosis Plus and Multiple Sclerosis Limited.

    Karen Zoszak receives funding from MS Australia.

    – ref. What’s the difference between Hass and Shepard avocados? It’s not just the colour – https://theconversation.com/whats-the-difference-between-hass-and-shepard-avocados-its-not-just-the-colour-233243

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Klobuchar, Sullivan Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Lower Costs and Increase Access to Affordable Child Care

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn)
     The Child Care Workforce and Facilities Act would provide competitive grants for states to train child care workers and build or renovate child care facilities
    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) reintroduced their bipartisan legislation to lower child care costs and address the nationwide shortage of affordable child care. The Child Care Workforce and Facilities Act would provide competitive grants for states to train child care workers and build or renovate child care facilities. Families across the country are struggling to access available child care, with rural communities increasingly becoming “child care deserts” due to the noticeable decline in the number of child care providers. Companion legislation in the House of Representatives is led by Representatives Josh Harder (D-Calif.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa).
    “For far too many families, the struggle to find high-quality, affordable child care serves as a barrier to children’s early development and to parents entering the workforce,” said Klobuchar. “Our bipartisan legislation will train more child care workers and build and expand facilities in child care deserts, so families in all parts of the country can afford and access the child care they need.”
    “Access to quality, affordable child care is key to healthy families and a thriving economy,” said Sullivan. “I hear repeatedly from working Alaska parents that the lack of affordable child care is among their top concerns, and those concerns are overwhelmingly confirmed by the data. Unfortunately, this problem disproportionately impacts parents striving to re-enter the workforce. Our bipartisan legislation will help by offering grants focused on states hardest hit, like Alaska, to enhance workforce development among child care professionals, and improve facilities that serve families in child care deserts, particularly in our rural communities.”
    “As a dad to two young daughters, my wife and I know firsthand how expensive child care has gotten. Parents are left in a very tough spot trying to find safe, quality child care centers,” said Harder. “Parents should be able to pay a reasonable price to drop their little ones off at daycare and know they will be safe. This bill is a must-pass for every working parent – we need to get this done.”
    “American families should never have to choose between affordable childcare and the quality their children deserve,” said Fitzpatrick. “Our bipartisan and bicameral Child Care Workforce Facilities Act directly confronts the untenable challenges facing childcare in our nation by establishing competitive grant programs that strengthen caregiver education, expand childcare facilities, and bolster the dedicated workforce at the heart of our children’s development. This targeted investment will address shortages in our PA-1 community and nationwide, building a stronger foundation for America’s children, families, and future.”
    The Child Care Workforce and Facilities Act would:
    Address the shortage of affordable child care and qualified child care professionals, particularly in rural areas; 
    Provide competitive grants to states to support the education, training, or retention of the child care workforce;
    Provide competitive grants to states to build, renovate, and expand child care facilities in areas experiencing shortages; 
    Require grant applicants to demonstrate how their projects would increase the availability and affordability of quality child care, and help child care workers continue advance their careers; and 
    Enhance retention and compensation of quality child care professionals.
    The legislation is cosponsored by Senators Gillibrand (D-NY), King (I-Maine), Merkley (D-Ore), Shaheen (D-NH), and Whitehouse (D-RI).

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Staffing shortages risk Ontario’s $10-a-day child care

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Emis Akbari, Adjunct Professor, Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development at Ontario Institute for the Study of Education (OISE) and Senior Policy Fellow at the Atkinson Centre, University of Toronto

    Ontario’s agreement under the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) program is set to expire in March 2026, and troubling signs suggest the province is far from meeting its commitments.

    Despite receiving $13.2 billion — almost half of the total $27.2 billion federal investment — Ontario has fallen short on critical benchmarks.

    Unlike most families across Canada, Ontario parents have yet to see significant growth in available spaces or $10-a-day child care.

    This provincial inaction is particularly troubling in a federal election year. While federal maintenance funding is to continue post-2026, without the benefits of the child care plan widely realized and apparent to voters, future governments could easily scale back any gains.

    Our recent study, conducted in collaboration with regional governments tasked with implementing Ontario’s early learning and child-care agreement, shows how staffing shortages have created long wait-lists for care. Children are ageing out of child care before a space becomes available. The unmet demand, regional officials told us, is eroding public confidence in the program as parents become frustrated in their search for affordable care.

    While other provinces have enacted comprehensive compensation reforms — including pensions, benefits and wage increases of up to 50 per cent — to attract and retain qualified educators, Ontario’s support for trained early childhood educators tops out at $24.86 per hour, well below the federal poverty line for a family of four.

    Low wages, staffing shortfalls

    Low wages deter new graduates from entering the child-care field and drive away those already employed. Of the 4,200 early childhood educators that Ontario colleges graduate annually, fewer than 60 per cent enter licensed child care, and only 40 per cent remain after five years.

    Small wonder for the exodus. One in five child-care staff responding to our survey told us they hold a second job to make ends meet. Over 55 per cent of couple families, and 83 per cent of lone parent families, are concerned about their housing.

    The province acknowledges a shortfall of 8,500 educators needed to meet its expansion goal of 86,000 new spaces. Yet the issue runs deeper. Staff shortages mean existing child-care rooms are empty. A single absence can force centre directors to abruptly close rooms, leaving parents scrambling for alternatives.

    The human costs

    The consequences extend beyond empty classrooms. Staff shortages compromise the quality and inclusivity of early childhood programs. Our report found that children with disabilities are often sent home or denied admission altogether due to insufficient staffing.

    This is despite Jordan’s Principle, which the federal government says ensures all First Nations children access the products, services and supports they need, when they need them.

    Ontario’s requirement for qualified staff is among the lowest in Canada, mandating that only half of a centre’s staff hold a college diploma in early education. The use of ministry “approvals,” a stop-gap measure allowing untrained staff to fill roles until qualified educators are found, has become standard practice.

    Our research found entire programs, particularly those in northern regions and those serving francophone and Indigenous families, operating without a single qualified early childhood educator.

    Educator shortages not only exclude children from child care, but degrade the quality of care. While less than one per cent of the province’s almost 28,000 early childhood educators working in licensed child care are reported to authorities, incidents involving the improper handling of children have seen an uptick.

    This may partly reflect the COVID-19 pandemic’s aftermath, but it also may signal staff burnout and the prevalence of untrained workers.

    Equally alarming, 14 per cent of respondents in our study indicated they would be reluctant to recommend their own centre to a family member or friend seeking child care.

    Quality and staffing challenges vary significantly across Ontario’s child-care network of over 5,700 centres. Publicly operated centres and established community providers, where wages and benefits are higher, report fewer staffing shortages or quality problems.

    In contrast, for-profit centres, where wages are significantly lower, experience the highest staff turnover and lowest levels of job dissatisfaction.

    These disparities are particularly concerning given Ontario’s pressure on regional governments to divest their public centres, and its push to lift the cap on the percentage of new for-profit spaces allowed under its agreement with Ottawa.

    A blueprint for change

    Ontario’s challenges are not insurmountable. Other provinces and territories are showing that fair compensation tied to qualifications and responsibilities can help to stabilize the child-care workforce.

    Publicly funded pensions, benefits, and additional incentives for educators in remote, Indigenous and francophone communities have proven effective in attracting and retaining staff.

    Ontario must urgently follow suit. The CWELCC program isn’t just about child care; it’s a highly effective economic strategy. The province’s Financial Accountability Office estimates that the national plan could enable 98,000 more Ontario mothers to join the workforce.

    However, this potential can only be realized if sufficient child-care spaces are created. Without early childhood educators new spaces are wasted infrastructure. This represents squandered economic development, children denied quality early education and families left to struggle financially.

    The time to act is now. Ontario must seize the promise of CWELCC before it becomes another missed opportunity.

    Emis Akbari receives funding from the Atkinson Foundation, the Lawson Foundation, and the Margaret and Wallace McCain Family Foundation.

    Kerry McCuaig receives funding from the Atkinson Foundation, the Lawson Foundation and the Margaret and Wallace McCain Family Foundation.

    – ref. Staffing shortages risk Ontario’s $10-a-day child care – https://theconversation.com/staffing-shortages-risk-ontarios-10-a-day-child-care-247273

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Man Accused of Murder in Teenager’s Overdose Death Captured by U.S. Marshals

    Source: US Marshals Service

    Memphis, TN – The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) captured a Memphis murder fugitive, Samuel Sipes, 22, in Olive Branch, Mississippi.

    In January of 2023, a 17-year-old male was found dead of an overdose in a home on Wrenwood Street in Memphis. It is alleged that he died of a fatal dose of fentanyl. In April of the same year, Samuel Sipes was charged with second degree murder in connection to this crime and released on a $100,000 bond; however, he failed to return for his court date.

    A failure to appear warrant was issued on November 12, 2024. The case was adopted for a fugitive investigation by the USMS Two Rivers Violent Fugitive Task (TRVFTF) in Memphis.

    On January 27, 2025, the TRVFTF and Desoto County (Mississippi) Sheriff’s Deputies went to an apartment complex in Olive Branch. Deputy marshals and task force officers found Sipes inside an apartment. He was taken into custody without incident and transported to the Desoto County Jail where he awaits extradition to Tennessee.

    The U.S. Marshals Service Two Rivers Violent Fugitive Task Force is a multi-agency task force within Western Tennessee. The TRVFTF has offices in Memphis and Jackson, and its membership is primarily composed of Deputy U.S. Marshals, Shelby, Fayette, Tipton, and Gibson County Sheriff’s Deputies, Memphis and Jackson Police Officers, Tennessee Department of Correction Special Agents and the Tennessee Highway Patrol. Since 2021, the TRVFTF has captured approximately 3,000 violent offenders and sexual predators.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI: ConeCraft Announces Partnership with T&C Stainless

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    FORT WORTH, Texas, Jan. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ConeCraft, LLC (“ConeCraft”), a premier designer, engineer, and fabricator of custom processing equipment for the biopharmaceutical industry, is pleased to announce a strategic partnership with T&C Stainless, LLC and Preferred Stainless Holdings, LLC (collectively “T&C”).

    Headquartered in Mount Vernon, Missouri, T&C provides a full range of custom-designed bioprocessing equipment, specializing in product-contact mixers, holding tanks, bioreactors, and fermenters. T&C offers equipment across the biopharmaceutical production chain and serves a global base of leading biopharmaceutical producers, engineering firms, and custom module fabricators.

    The combination of ConeCraft and T&C forms a comprehensive bioprocessing solutions platform, with engineering capabilities encompassing single-use and product contact production vessels from 10L to 15,000L, heat exchangers, tube-management solutions, carts, and mobile workstations. With deep experience designing equipment for both new facility buildouts and existing process retrofits, ConeCraft possesses the engineering and fabrication expertise to service a full range of bioprocessing projects at any scale.

    “T&C is a respected leader in the bioprocessing industry, committed to high-quality, product-contact vessels, creating an ideal complement to ConeCraft’s single-use offering”, said ConeCraft CEO Jim Austin. “The addition of T&C’s engineering and manufacturing capabilities meaningfully augment’s ConeCraft’s portfolio of solutions, allowing us to offer our customers a single source for equipment throughout the entire drug production process.”

    About T&C

    T&C was founded in 1994 with a singular focus on designing and manufacturing high-quality, custom tanks and other equipment for the biopharmaceutical industry. With a commitment to engineering and fabrication excellence, T&C’s deep expertise across the product-contact equipment spectrum has allowed it to grow consistently over the past 30 years. From its three facilities totaling 48,000 SF in Mount Vernon, Missouri, T&C has built a diverse base of blue-chip biopharmaceutical and food and beverage customers. For more information, visit T&C at www.tcstainless.com

    About ConeCraft

    ConeCraft was founded in 2003 with a shared vision of creating better equipment for the single-use biopharmaceutical industry. The Company has over 100,000 SF of engineering and production space across three facilities in Fort Worth, Texas, all of which maintain ASME code certification. ConeCraft strives to design equipment that improves the experience for the end users and holds several patents to key features that make single-use systems safer, more reliable, and easier to operate. All equipment provided by the Company is available for Factory Acceptance Testing at their facility in Fort Worth. For more information, visit ConeCraft at www.conecraft.com.

    Media Contact:
    Babbett Tidwell
    P: (817) 922-9200
    btidwell@conecraft.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Kennedy in the Telegraph: It’s time to ditch the Chagos Islands deal for good

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator John Kennedy (Louisiana)
    WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) penned this op-ed in The Telegraph arguing that the United Kingdom was right to consult the Trump administration before ceding sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, including the key U.S.-U.K. military base on Deigo Garcia, to Mauritius. 
    Key excerpts of the op-ed are below:
    “Sir Keir Starmer appears to have had a change of heart when it comes to working with the Trump administration—and that’s a good thing. 
    “Just a few weeks ago, the Prime Minister was poised to sign away the fate of a joint U.K.-U.S. military base on the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia.
    “According to reports, Starmer and members of the outgoing Biden administration wanted to finali[z]e the agreement to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Islands—including Diego Garcia—to Mauritius before President Trump could take his oath.
    “Fortunately, cooler—and perhaps wiser—heads prevailed. Prime Minister Starmer agreed to welcome President Trump to the negotiating table. This is great news. Friends don’t strike deals behind each other’s backs, especially when our shared security is on the line.”
    . . . 
    “The idea that the U.K. must hand over the islands to atone for whatever perceived wrongs Britain’s forefathers may have committed is nonsense. The [United Nations] does not care about what is best for the Chagossian, British or American people. They only care about furthering a misguided anti-Western agenda. 
    “The U.K. is our ally, and Mauritius is our friend, but this is a matter of national security for the U.S. Anyone who expects the Trump administration to elevate the sensitivities of U.N. militants above the best interests of America and our allies is writing a [check] that can’t be cashed.
    “The Chagossian, American and British people would all be safer if this deal with Mauritius found its way into the shredder for good.”
    Background
    On Jan. 15, Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that he wanted President Trump and his administration to weigh in on any deal struck between the U.K. and Mauritius regarding the transfer of the Chagos Islands, including the transfer of the U.S.-U.K. shared military base on the island of Diego Garcia. 
    The U.K. had previously announced on Oct. 3, 2024, that it had reached a deal with Mauritius to cede the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands. The decision to consider ceding sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius followed a years-long pressure campaign from the United Nations.
    On Oct. 23, 2024, Kennedy wrote to then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken seeking answers about the Biden administration’s involvement in the deal between the U.K. and Mauritius.
    Kennedy also penned this op-ed in Oct. arguing that the Biden administration owes the American people an explanation for its decision to allow this deal between the U.K. and Mauritius to move forward.
    Former Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.), President Trump’s nominee for National Security Advisor, has criticized the deal, saying, “Should the U.K. cede control of the Chagos to Mauritius, I have no doubt that China will take advantage of the resulting vacuum.”
    Secretary of State Marco Rubio has similarly condemned the deal and said it “poses a serious threat to our national security interests in the Indian Ocean and threatens critical U.S. military posture in the region.”
    Read Kennedy’s full op-ed here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Whitehorse — RCMP update regarding Lake Laberge investigation

    Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

    On January 25, 2025 police and other emergency services responded to a report of a submerged vehicle in Lake Laberge, Yukon. Three occupants were in the vehicle and only two were able to make it out of the vehicle safely.

    Although it was anticipated that the recovery operation would take several days, British Columbia RCMP Under Water Recovery Team arrived to the Yukon and were able to locate and recover the person from the vehicle late in the afternoon on January 26, 2025.

    Whitehorse RCMP would like to thank all of the first responders including volunteer first responders who attended the incident for their support.

    Out of respect for the privacy of the family, no information will be released by the police about the deceased.

    This matter is still under investigation and as such, no further information will be provided at this time.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-Evening Report: What is the story of hongbao, the red envelopes given out at celebrations like Lunar New Year?

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ming Gao, Research Scholar of East Asia Studies, Gender and Women’s History Research Centre, Australian Catholic University

    Remi Chow/Unsplash

    Red envelopes, known as hongbao in Mandarin, are a cherished cultural tradition in China and many other parts of Asia.

    In China, the vibrant red colour symbolises good fortune and joy. Hongbao can be given during many various festive and joyful occasions, and they are a prominent feature of Lunar New Year.

    Receiving a hongbao is something most Chinese people, particularly children, eagerly anticipate every Lunar New Year. It was also one of my fondest childhood memories. But what’s the history behind this tradition?

    A historical tradition

    The origins of hongbao can be traced back to the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE) when amulet-like items in the shapes of coins were worn.

    Early practices resembling money giving took place in the Tang dynasty court (618–907 CE), where coins were scattered in springtime as part of celebrations.

    Giving children money during celebrations became an established custom during the Song and Yuan dynasties (960–1368). In the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368–1911/12), this tradition evolved further with money being given to children threaded on red string.

    In the Ming and Qing dynasties money was given to children threaded on red string.
    Nataliia K/Shutterstock

    The modern concept of hongbao emerged in early 20th-century China. Elders would give money wrapped in red paper to children during the Lunar New Year as a talisman against evil spirits, known as sui (祟).

    The red envelopes given to children, or in some cases unmarried adults, during Lunar New Year are also called ya sui qian.

    Colloquially, ya sui qian translates to “suppressing age money”, as sui (岁) also means age. Ya sui qian reflects the belief this money could ward off misfortune and slow ageing.

    In traditional contexts, the amount of money inside the envelope carries symbolic meaning.

    Even numbers, except for the number four (considered unlucky due to its phonetic similarity to the word for “death” in Chinese), are regarded as lucky. Six (symbolising smooth progress) and eight (symbolising prosperity) are particularly favoured.

    Beyond monetary value, the act of giving and receiving hongbao represents a gesture of goodwill, reinforcing social bonds and conveying respect and care.

    The digital revolution

    Today, hongbao straddle the worlds of tradition and modernity, adapting to societal changes while preserving their cultural essence.

    Super-apps like WeChat and AliPay have transformed this age-old practice from a physical tradition into a digital, virtual experience.

    Red packet designs available on WeChat.
    Screenshot/Ming Gao

    WeChat popularised the concept of “digital red envelopes” in 2014, incorporating gamified elements such as randomised monetary amounts and group exchanges.

    In 2017, WeChat recorded a staggering 14.2 billion hongbao transactions on the eve of Lunar New Year alone. While the initial excitement around the digital hongbao has waned over time, the practice remains popular. On Lunar New Year’s Eve in 2024, WeChat users recorded approximately 5.08 billion digital hongbao transactions.

    The shift to digital formats aligns with our increasingly cashless society, making it easier for people to participate in the custom, even across great distances. Families separated by migration can partake in this tradition in real time, maintaining connections that might otherwise weaken over long distances.

    My child doesn’t get to see my parents very often, but my mother promised to send a “large” hongbao to her grandchild on the eve of the Lunar New Year this year. Despite the geographical distance spanning the ocean between Australia and China, the tradition of giving hongbao transcends borders, connecting our family members across continents every Lunar New Year.

    Societal significance

    The enduring popularity of hongbao highlights its importance in Chinese culture. It serves not only as a means of giving but also as a way to uphold tradition amid rapid modernisation.

    The act of giving hongbao, whether physical or digital, reinforces intergenerational ties and preserves cultural heritage. Parents and grandparents giving hongbao to children during Lunar New Year continue to embody the traditional values of family and unity.

    The act of giving hongbao reinforces intergenerational ties and preserves cultural heritage.
    SeventyFour/Shutterstock

    But the digitisation of hongbao has sparked debates about its impact on traditional values. Some argue the ease of sending digital hongbao reduces the personal touch and thoughtfulness inherent in the physical exchange.

    Others view it as an evolution that keeps the practice relevant and accessible in a fast-paced world.

    Regional variations

    While hongbao is most closely associated with Chinese culture, similar traditions exist across Asia, each with notable regional variations.

    In Korea, during the Lunar New Year (Seollal), elders give money to young or unmarried adults after receiving their New Year’s bow (sebae). One legend suggests the Korean tradition originates from China. However, unlike the red envelopes used in Chinese culture, the money in Korea can be presented in white envelopes, as whiteness in Korean culture symbolises purity and new beginnings.

    Similar traditions exist across Asia. These red envelopes are hanging in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
    Marie Shark/Shutterstock

    In Singapore, where a diverse population blends Chinese, Malay and Indian traditions, the giving of hongbao (also known as ang bao or ang pow in Hokkien) is a common practice. This tradition has extended beyond the Chinese population, reflecting the cultural influence of Chinese diasporic communities.

    While red envelopes are traditional, envelopes in other colours, such as pink or gold, are also considered acceptable.

    The Future of hongbao

    As technology continues to shape societal norms, the practice of giving hongbao is likely to further evolve.

    The advancement of E-CNY (China’s digital currency), regardless of its ultimate success, could introduce new dimensions to traditional practices, enabling more innovative and secure forms of exchange.

    The enduring appeal of hongbao lies in its core values: the celebration of relationships, the sharing of blessings, and the preservation of cultural heritage.

    As the Lunar New Year of the Snake approaches, it’s wise to have some hongbao ready, whether digital or physical, to avoid being caught off guard by a playful youngster cheerfully exclaiming, “May you be prosperous, now hand over the red envelope!” (“gong xi fa cai, hong bao na lai”). This light-hearted and catchy greeting cleverly combines good wishes with a cheeky request for a hongbao.

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

    – ref. What is the story of hongbao, the red envelopes given out at celebrations like Lunar New Year? – https://theconversation.com/what-is-the-story-of-hongbao-the-red-envelopes-given-out-at-celebrations-like-lunar-new-year-247687

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Changing jobs is a big move but it’s worth considering if your workplace is toxic

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology

    Rauschan_films/Shutterstock

    Returning to work after a summer break can be jarring, especially for the many workers dissatisfied with their jobs. Almost half report high levels of job-related stress.

    Dissatisfaction can be tied to an unhealthy, even toxic workplace where negative behaviour and poor leadership harm employee wellbeing and productivity.

    Key indicators include bullying, harassment, lack of trust, poor communication and high job strain.

    The impact of toxic workplaces

    If you think your workplace is toxic, it is worth considering the impact it is having on your mental health. You might also consider how committed your organisation is to supporting its employees’ mental health.

    Toxicity can develop gradually through subtle patterns of micromanagement, exclusion, or eroding morale. These dynamics create a draining environment that undermines individual wellbeing and business success.

    As well as affecting employees’ mental health, there is growing evidence workplace stress may lead to serious physical health problems, such as cardiovascular disease.

    According to Safe Work Australia, mental health-related workers’ compensation claims have increased by over a third since 2017-2018.

    In 2021-2022, there were 11,700 accepted claims relating to mental health conditions. These cases proved highly costly for employers, with the median compensation paid being A$58,615.

    The International Standards Organisation released a global standard in 2021 to help manage psychological health and safety risks in workplaces.

    A number of countries, including Canada and Australia, have introduced laws and standards making employers responsible for preventing and managing work-related stress.

    To support a safe workplace, some researchers (including one of the authors) have recommended an integrated, multidisciplinary approach to ensure companies respond appropriately to mental health risks.

    What your employer is doing in the following three areas can show how committed they are to protecting mental health.

    1. Preventing, minimising or managing the negatives

    Most work, health and safety legislation and standards in Australia relates to protecting employees from physical hazards, including slips, trips and falls.

    More recently, attention has turned to psychosocial hazards.

    Safe Work Australia and Comcare, as well as state and territory regulators, keep a list of common hazards.

    These include bullying, excessive workloads, low job control, lack of role clarity and exposure to traumatising events, for example, witnessing an accident.

    These lists are not exhaustive and there are some problems unique to specific jobs. For instance, teachers are often isolated from their colleagues, face big administrative loads and sometimes have to deal with abusive students and/or parents.

    Most employers can make necessary improvements including creating fairer workloads, redefining job roles and providing more support to individual employees.

    2. Responding to employee mental health issues

    Despite efforts to minimise the impact of psychosocial hazards, some employees will nonetheless experience mental health issues.

    Employers should not try to treat an employee’s mental health problems. They should support them and direct them to appropriate mental health care.

    Managers can also help by identifying signs of distress, having sensitive conversations with workers about the impact of mental illness and making reasonable changes to their roles.

    Giving employees access to support services through employee assistance programs, which can offer confidential short-term counselling, can also help.

    Making counselling available to employees can help staff mental health and workplace morale.
    kmpzzz/Shutterstock

    Establishing a critical incident investigation procedure for events that have compromised employee mental health can help identify the cause of incidents and shape responses.

    3. Promoting the positive

    As well as managing the negative aspects of work, organisations can create conditions that promote employee mental health and wellbeing.

    One approach for doing this is to provide flexible working arrangements, such as hybrid work, which can offer employees greater choice in work location and scheduling.

    Another approach involves fostering social connectedness and inclusion among employees. This could involve team-building, social events and opportunities for employees to build relationships.

    Leaders can also promote a culture of psychological safety – where employees feel able to bring their authentic selves to work and speak their minds freely. This has been linked to greater employee wellbeing.

    The SMART model suggests employees will be most satisfied in jobs that provide stimulation (for example, solving meaningful problems), mastery (receiving mentoring or constructive feedback), autonomy (creative freedom), social relationships (supportive colleagues) and tolerable demands (lack of psychosocial hazards).

    Should I stay or should I go?

    Making the decision to leave a workplace requires careful consideration.

    In addition to your own wellbeing, you should consider whether your organisation prioritises mental health and how comfortable you would feel initiating a discussion about mental health.

    Remember while changing jobs is a big step, staying in a toxic workplace can have serious long-term consequences for both mental and physical health.

    Consider seeking advice through your employee assistance program or an independent career counsellor.

    Whatever you decide, prioritising your mental health and wellbeing should be central to your decision making.

    Timothy Colin Bednall holds a part-time appointment as Head of Data Science with FlourishDx, a consultancy focused on workplace mental health. He receives funding from the National Mental Health Commission.

    Kathryn Page has previously received research funding from WorkSafe Victoria, SuperFriend, VicHealth, and the NHMRC in the areas of workplace mental health. In addition to her Adjunct Professor role at Swinburne University she works full time as a Leadership Partner with ByMany. ByMany is a leadership consultancy. It does not do psychosocial risk assessments.

    – ref. Changing jobs is a big move but it’s worth considering if your workplace is toxic – https://theconversation.com/changing-jobs-is-a-big-move-but-its-worth-considering-if-your-workplace-is-toxic-246885

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Is it school reluctance or refusal? How to tell the difference and help your child

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Leslie, Lecturer in Curriculum and Pedagogy with a focus on Educational Psychology, University of Southern Queensland

    It’s back-to-school season around Australia. While many students will be excited to reunite with friends, or have some nerves about the first day, others may feel an overwhelming sense of dread about school.

    This can be confusing and worrying for parents.

    We are researching child and parent perspectives about what is making school too stressful to attend. We have found it is useful to think about school attendance as a spectrum that may look like reluctance at one end and emotional distress at the other.

    Understanding the difference can help you to know which supports to seek for your child.

    School attendance in Australia

    Last week, new national figures showed school attendance continues to be an issue in Australian schools post-COVID.

    In 2024, school attendance rates (the number of days students attend) for Years 1–10 was 88.3%. This is down slightly from 88.6% in 2023. Student attendance levels (the percentage of students who go for more than 90% of the time) was 59.8% in 2024, down from 61.6% in 2023.

    In 2019, national attendance rates were 91.4% and attendance levels were 73.1%.

    While these reports don’t tell us why the figures are dropping, we know school refusal is a common and growing issue. A 2023 Senate inquiry heard how family requests for support to groups such as School Can’t Australia have almost doubled every year since 2014.

    A 2023 Greens-commissioned survey of 1,000 families found 39% said their child had been unable to attend school in the past year because of anxiety or stress.

    What is school reluctance?

    Sometimes children and young people will not want to go to school but it is not school refusal.

    When this is temporary and tied to a specific stressor, such as a test, social conflict, sports lesson or event like a camp or swimming carnival, it can be described as “school reluctance”.

    Signs can include clinginess in younger children or teenagers, as well as complaints of seemingly minor ailments such as a tummy ache, headache or “feeling sick”.

    In these cases, it is important for parents to validate a child’s feelings. Using phrases such as “I can see you’re nervous about starting a new class” can make children feel seen and heard.

    Families should also set up predictable morning routines to help children build self-regulation skills. If you celebrate small wins, such as completing the day, or getting to school on time, you can help boost motivation and confidence.

    These early interventions can help avoid escalation into more significant school-related distress.



    Read more:
    Is your child nervous about going back to school? Try asking them what they are looking forward to

    When it’s more than reluctance

    But at other times, a child’s issues with school are more serious and a child feels overwhelmed by stressors that make attending school feel threatening, unsafe and impossible. This is what is seen as “school refusal”, although some families and researchers are now using the term “school can’t” to reframe the issue and avoid blaming children in these situations.

    Some signs this could be happening to your child include:

    • spending significant portions of the school day in the office or sick bay

    • extreme difficulty in getting ready in the morning, even with basic tasks such as dressing or making breakfast

    • physical symptoms such as nausea or dizziness that worsen on school days, but may also be evident on weekends

    • persistent absences from school, even with encouragement and support

    • extreme emotional reactions – crying, anger or complete withdrawal – when school is mentioned.

    Who can be impacted?

    Reports show school refusal is more common in some groups, for example neurodiverse students, gender-diverse students, and students born with innate variations of sex characteristics (also known as intersex variations / traits).

    School refusal is closely associated with social anxiety, separation anxiety and school anxiety. This anxiety can become overwhelming and trigger a student’s need to avoid the environment that is causing them emotional distress. For these students, not going to school might be a survival mechanism or a way to respond to burnout.

    Whatever the reason, we know this can lead to stress and conflict for families. For students, it can have long-term effects on academic success, social skills and mental health, as well as poorer outcomes after they leave school.

    Supporting your child

    If your child is refusing or can’t go to school, they need your empathy and support. Listen to them and be their advocate. Remember, you know them best. You can also:

    • seek professional help. A psychologist may help uncover and address the root causes of their distress

    • work with the school. Talk to teachers and staff about accommodations such as flexible schedules or sensory breaks, and how else they may offer inclusive, affirming and supportive learning environments

    • think outside the box. This can include prioritising wellbeing over attendance. Consider a break from schooling or alternative forms of education, which may suit your family better

    • seek support from other families. You are not alone – there are many other families who share this experience.

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

    Rachel Leslie is affiliated with the Queensland Guidance and Counselling Association of Queensland and the Australian Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools association. She is working with family support and advocacy organisation School Can’t Australia as part of her research.

    Annette Brömdal receives funding from the Medical Research Future Fund; Queensland Mental Health Commission; Queensland Sexual Health Research Fund; the Department of Education, Queensland; and the Australian Association of Gerontology. Annette is affiliated with Lifeline Darling Down and South West QLD Ltd as a volunteer Board Director. She is working with family support and advocacy organisation School Can’t Australia as part of her research.

    Cris Townley is working with family support and advocacy organisation School Can’t Australia as part of their research. They are also a member of the the School Can’t Australia support network, and of the advocacy network Parents for Trans Youth Equity (P-TYE).

    Glenys Oberg is working with family support and advocacy organisation School Can’t Australia as part of her research.

    – ref. Is it school reluctance or refusal? How to tell the difference and help your child – https://theconversation.com/is-it-school-reluctance-or-refusal-how-to-tell-the-difference-and-help-your-child-247805

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Atonement by Ian McEwan is a meditation on creativity in later life

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By David Amigoni, Professor of Victorian Literature, Editorial Board Chair, Keele University

    In Ian McEwan’s Atonement (2001), aspiring writer 13-year-old Briony Tallis glimpses a world of opaque “adult emotion”. Holding a pen and blank paper before her, she feels a powerful impulse to write in order to impose order and meaning on adulthood’s slippery uncertainties.

    Earlier on that hot summer’s day in 1935, she had witnessed a perplexing scene of seeming “ugly threat”. Her older sister, Cecilia, undressed in front of their cleaning lady’s son (and fellow Cambridge graduate) Robbie Turner. She then plunged, in her underwear, into an ornamental fountain.

    Briony’s urge to write is triggered when she reads the private note she had been tasked with delivering from Robbie to Cecilia. Within, she is shocked to discover Robbie’s desire for Cecilia, expressed through use of the unutterable “c” word. Later, looking through the door of their darkened library, Briony mistakenly believes she sees Robbie committing a violent assault on her sister.

    This article is part of Rethinking the Classics. The stories in this series offer insightful new ways to think about and interpret classic books, films and artworks. This is the canon – with a twist.

    McEwan’s novel presents a privileged English country house setting that descends into a chaos of mistakes, class resentment, educational ambition and sex, expressed both as desire and power. The latter is evident in the rape of Briony’s cousin Lola.

    Convinced that she has seen, and now read, the truth about “evil” Robbie’s “disgusting” obsession with her sister, Briony believes he is the culprit. She is confident that her writing will expose a “maniac’s” guilt. However, her urge to write upon the blank page is stronger than her sense of what precisely to say.

    In fact, what she writes at this crucial moment – “There was an old lady who swallowed a fly” – feels entirely strange. But just as the old lady of the nursery rhyme fatally bites off ever more that she can chew in swallowing a fly, a spider, a bird, a cat, so Briony’s tragically mistaken ideas about Robbie ends in his incrimination and incarceration.

    Robbie is free only when released to fight for the British Expeditionary Force in France in 1940. He strives to return to Cecilia via the horrors and heroism of that most resonant of British stories, Dunkirk.

    Life stages, ageing and creativity are important themes in Atonement. It is as an older lady writer herself that Briony atones for the incriminating stories that her juvenile writer self swallowed and multiplied.



    Read more:
    Dunkirk survivors’ terror didn’t end when they were rescued

    Creativity in later life

    Putting age and later life front and centre urges the reader to reassess McEwan’s renowned “twist”. That is, the moment readers discover that key scenes in the novel – meetings between Briony, Cecilia and Robbie following the latter’s evacuation from Dunkirk – never happened.

    As we are told on the penultimate page, the truth is that Robbie died of septicaemia in the dunes of Dunkirk and Cecilia was killed in the direct hit of a bomb on the Balham tube station in 1940.

    At this moment, we realise that what we have been reading is the final draft of the atoning conclusion to a work by now 77-year-old Briony. Like so many late stylists (a writer who, in later life, returns to earlier preoccupations and themes), Briony, an established author with a reputation for “amorality”, revisits her early work on her 77th birthday party. It’s an event that brings her back to the estate of her childhood, now converted into a hotel.

    Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

    Briony’s later life shapes the closure of the story, but McEwan’s imaginative engagement with ageing affects every aspect of the novel. He presents readers with story-shaped anticipations of mid- and later life, even when the character will not live to see that age.

    Robbie, working-class protégé of Mr Tallis’s educational philanthropy, with a first in English literature from Cambridge, consciously awakens into his unacknowledged love for Cecilia while thinking about his age and future.

    The feelings coincide with his developing aspiration to train in medicine, and his imaginary anticipations of his life course.

    He thought of himself in 1962, at 50, when he would be old, but not quite old enough to be useless, and of the weathered, knowing doctor he would be by then, with the secret stories, the tragedies and successes stacked behind him”

    These will be embodied in books – more writings – “possessed in the thousands”. Briony and Cecilia’s migraine-suffering mother Emily, meanwhile, sees her ageing self grow “stiffer in the limbs and more irrelevant by the day”.

    Through the character of Briony, McEwan contests the ageism and invisibility that can be the fate of older women. McEwan may take her to the brink of a terminal neurological decline in 1999 – she is diagnosed with vascular dementia – but Briony resists the othering that ageism imposes on older people: “we may look truly reptilian, but we’re not a separate tribe”.

    The end of the novel presents readers with a view of active, meaningful later life as a creative time of collaborative, curatorial story telling.

    The older Briony was played by Vanessa Redgrave in the 2007 adaptation of Atonement.

    Readers become aware of the “sources” of the dramatic story of Robbie’s trek across northern France in the company of Corporals Mace and Nettle. Seventy-seven-year-old Briony donates the “dozen long letters from old Mr Nettle” to the archives of the Imperial War Museum, where she has been researching.

    This act of memory preservation returns readers to the meaning of the horrors, carnage and heroism of the Dunkirk evacuation which McEwan presents through that powerful central episode in the novel. The evacuation of more than 300,000 troops from Dunkirk, including a small proportion of volunteer boats, makes Dunkirk a nationally resonant story.

    Briony’s collaborative, later-life storytelling captures the heroism and sacrifice inherent in the perspectives of the wounded evacuee combatants. But so, too, their more sceptical, critical accents.

    They “were bitter about the newspaper celebrations of the miracle evacuation and the heroism of the little boats. ‘A fucking shambles,’ she heard one of them mutter.” Or more precisely, the older lady recalled hearing, and then wrote.

    Beyond the canon

    As part of the Rethinking the Classics series, we’re asking our experts to recommend a book or artwork that tackles similar themes to the canonical work in question, but isn’t (yet) considered a classic itself. Here is David Amigoni’s suggestion:

    Paul Bailey, who died in October 2024, was an excellent but under-acknowledged writer who deserves to be more widely read.

    His writing went against the grain is subtle ways. He was experimenting with ways of writing about later life at the beginning of his career in 1967, with the publication of At the Jerusalem, set in a home for older women. He was then in his early 30s.

    The Prince’s Boy (2014) was written when he was 77 – the same age as McEwan’s fictional Briony Tallis when she completes Atonement. It revisits key themes in Bailey’s earlier work: sexuality (he was a gay man), love, Proust, Romania and Europe.

    David Amigoni received funding from RCUK (now UKRI) for his work on ageing and late-life creativity. He is affiliated with The Conversation UK as Chair of its Editorial Board.

    – ref. Atonement by Ian McEwan is a meditation on creativity in later life – https://theconversation.com/atonement-by-ian-mcewan-is-a-meditation-on-creativity-in-later-life-244801

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Donald Trump’s suggestion of ‘clearing out’ Gaza adds another risk to an already fragile ceasefire

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Karin Aggestam, Professor of Political Science, CMES Director, Lund University

    Donald Trump’s recent statement describing Gaza as a “demolition site” – and his suggestion to “evacuate” Palestinians in Gaza to Egypt and Jordan to “clean out that whole thing” – has sent shockwaves across the region.

    Trump reportedly told journalists travelling with him on Air Force One at the weekend that he had spoken with King Abdullah of Jordan and planned to talk with Egypt’s president, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. “You’re talking about probably a million and a half people, and we just clean out that whole thing,” he said.

    He added that relocating Palestinian civilians to “some of the Arab nations, and build[ing] housing in a different location, where they can maybe live in peace for a change” could be “done temporarily or could be long term”.

    Israel’s extreme ultra-nationalist parties, both in and outside of the Israeli government, are thrilled by the idea. It’s one they have long advocated.

    But it has been widely criticised across the region as a potential “second Nakba” – referring to the violence and displacement of Palestinians after Israel’s unilateral declaration of statehood in 1948. The proposal has also been outright rejected by Egypt and Jordan. It has also been strongly condemned by the Palestinians.

    It remains unclear to what extent this aligns with US policy and diplomacy, but such rhetoric risks undermining the pivotal regional diplomatic efforts. These efforts, led by Qatar and Egypt in close coordination with Washington, are focused on continuing the negotiations on the ceasefire, monitoring progress, and verifying compliance.

    So it’s far from certain if this is an official US policy position or another example of the US president simply airing his thoughts. But what is clear is that his latest pronouncement will further complicate the ceasefire deal agreed on January 17.

    The deal already faces significant challenges and uncertainties, not least the mutual distrust between the Israeli and Palestinian leaderships. History tells us that this lack of trust has developed, in part, because of the numerous times ceasefires have been used for purposes other than pursuing long-term settlement, such as opportunities to regroup, rearm or reposition strategically.

    So the staged nature of the current deal carries considerable risks, as it creates opportunities for “spoilers” on both sides to derail the process. The recent violence of Jewish settlers on the West Bank and Hamas’s active encouragement of confrontation there are other examples of things that could derail the ceasefire.

    The negotiation process is further complicated by dynamics tied to the political survival of Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. One party (Jewish Power) has already left his coalition government in protest against the ceasefire. Meanwhile the leader of the Religious Zionist party, Bezalel Smotrich, has threatened to do the same if the military operation against Hamas is not resumed.

    Hamas, in turn, has attempted to reassert its control in Gaza. We’ve seen examples of that during the hostage exchange process when Hamas fighters conspicuously present at the handovers. Hamas may have been severely weakened, but it still controls significant parts of Gaza’s bureaucracy and policing and wants the world to know it.

    Challenges ahead

    If any part of the agreement falters there is a substantial risk that each side will blame the other of breaching the terms of the ceasefire. Two of the most contentious issues in the second phase are determining who will govern Gaza and how to implement a full Israeli withdrawal.

    While Israel continues its security cooperation with the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank, it vehemently opposes any PA role in Gaza. There is also considerable doubt as to whether Israel will agree to any long-term solution which involves complete withdrawal of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) from Gaza.

    The recent resignation of the IDF’s chief of staff Herzl Halevi, as he took responsibility for the IDF’s failures on October 7, has further destabilised the political and military dynamics in Israel. A lot will depend on his successor.



    Read more:
    Donald Trump’s presidency presents Benjamin Netanyahu with a crisis that could be existential – here’s why

    Transactional diplomacy

    Recent geopolitical shifts have reshaped regional dynamics. This presents challenges and opportunities for any diplomatic initiatives surrounding Israel and Palestine. The weakening of Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance”, including Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in neighbouring Lebanon – and the now-collapsed Assad regime in Syria – may provide an opportunity for the normalisation of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

    This in turn will offer an opportunity to reshape the Middle East’s geopolitical landscape. This potential breakthrough builds on the Abraham accords, which was one of Trump’s foreign policy initiatives. It’s a transactional approach to diplomacy, which prioritises pragmatic and results-oriented negotiations.

    The new US Middle East envoy, former real estate developer Steve Witkoff, has emphasised “courageous diplomacy”, as well as strong leadership and what he called “reciprocal actions” from the parties to the peace deal. Whether the new US administration will revive the 2020 Trump plan for a Palestinian state remains uncertain.

    That plan proposed granting 70% of the West Bank and Gaza to Palestinians while allowing Israel to retain sovereignty over Jerusalem. It also included US approval for Israeli annexation of territories with Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

    For Israel, normalisation with Saudi Arabia would be a major diplomatic victory. Washington is playing a crucial role here, offering incentives such as sale of advanced American weapons systems to Riyadh. But Saudi Arabia has reportedly demanded concrete steps toward establishing a Palestinian state as part of the deal. Trump’s latest gambit, if it becomes official US policy, would make that a non-starter.

    Karin Aggestam has received research funding from Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, Australian Reseach Council, Wallenberg Foundation and others.

    – ref. Donald Trump’s suggestion of ‘clearing out’ Gaza adds another risk to an already fragile ceasefire – https://theconversation.com/donald-trumps-suggestion-of-clearing-out-gaza-adds-another-risk-to-an-already-fragile-ceasefire-248334

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: What Davos delegates missed when they discussed green finance for business

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Michael Harrison, Senior Lecturer in Economics and Finance, University of East London

    Addressing the climate crisis was one of the key themes at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Rustam Zagidullin/Shutterstock

    Every year, leaders from politics and business come together with economists, investors and even celebrities at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos. One of the five key themes of this year’s event was safeguarding the planet. The forum’s own figures suggest that human-caused climate change has cost the planet US$3.6 trillion (£2.9 trillion) in damage since 2000 alone.

    Many of the sessions at Davos focused on climate change, which was especially pertinent after US president Donald Trump’s decision to abandon for a second time the Paris Agreement – a framework to keep the warming of the planet to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels by the end of the century.

    In an online address to Davos delegates, Trump even argued that the oil-producers’ group Opec should reduce the price of oil. This is in stark contrast to the views of many other governments – exemplified by UK energy and climate change secretary Ed Miliband’s assertion that net zero is “unstoppable”.

    But one of the less discussed elements of the path to net-zero by the year 2050 (a key target to keep the Paris Agreement on track) is the role of the financial sector.

    As economists, we believe that banks and financial institutions should play a key role in making the green transition happen. Companies that produce goods and services will need to invest in equipment and technology – either to make new greener products or to ensure that they pollute less.

    But this will cost money – likely money that firms do not actually have on their balance sheet or under their mattress. When banks assist in providing funding for this type of investment, it is known as green finance.

    Green finance from banks can take two forms. Either the banks underwrite corporate bonds, which means they sell bonds to investors in exchange for a fee. Or they become involved in the provision of a syndicated loan, which is when they collaborate with other banks to lend money.

    But both options are constrained by the rule that a bank will only provide finance out of self-interest. This means they act only when the profit they earn is proportional to the credit risk they take on. But this was in contrast to the message from Davos that businesses should take the lead, with the aid of finance from banks, in mitigating the risks of climate change.

    With easier access to finance, more firms could invest in innovative ways to go green like this car park with inbuilt solar panels in Leeds.
    Clare Louise Jackson/Shutterstock

    Sources of credit for businesses to make green investments include philanthropists, public finance and the private sector (that is, commercial banks). However, it is arguable that charity and public money are best used in partnership with private banks, to finance projects that are perceived high risk and low return. Banks alone would not support these because of their promotion of self-interest.

    However, philanthropy can be limited and inconsistent in providing funds for green projects. And the public sector has so many demands on its purse that its ability to support is also limited. This is where the private sector plays a key role in mitigating climate change and where partnerships between these three sectors could offer a way forward.

    This pathway was discussed at Davos but the speakers were not clear on what effective partnerships would look like. As academics who have researched the factors that influence green finance provision across multiple European countries, we would suggest a partnership structure between the public sector and the private sector, based on risk-sharing.

    In these cases where banks perceive the risk to be unbearable (and therefore not in their self-interest), governments could partner with banks in offering finance and so share the consequences of a bad project outcome. In other words, they would form a partnership with the bank to share the downside risk.

    A bank may consider an investment to be higher risk where a project has less certain outcomes, or requires funding for a longer period of time. Both of these factors are comparatively common in green financing deals. This could be because a firm is investing in new or untested tech or production methods – for example car manufacturers exploring new electric vehicle battery technologies.

    The struggle for smaller businesses

    This partnership approach could especially benefit small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which make up 99% of Europe’s companies. But these businesses can struggle to access finance from banks due to their lack of capital, which can make banks see them as a high risk. And this of course is challenging for SMEs, which mostly have no other sources of external finance.

    Research shows that medium-sized firms often rely on loans for finance. Our work focuses on how companies in Europe and the UK source green financing. It has highlighted that larger companies, as well as more liquid and more profitable firms, tend to raise finance via bonds (issued by banks and bought by investors) rather than loans (from a bank or other financial institution).

    In fact, our research shows that in some European countries (including Latvia, Malta and Romania), domestic banks have no record whatsoever of providing green finance to companies.

    This means it is much easier for larger businesses to get green finance compared to their smaller peers. And smaller companies tend to obtain relatively lower amounts of green financing, creating a real risk that SMEs may not get what they need in order to play their part in reducing their emissions.

    Without a significant shift in allowing SMEs to get the finance they need to become greener, governments will struggle to get close to their net-zero goals. But, along with financial regulators, governments could lead the way to create partnerships with banks and other financial institutions to overcome the barriers that SMEs face.

    Sharing the risk would ensure banks continue their green lending activities and accelerate progress toward meeting government climate targets.

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

    – ref. What Davos delegates missed when they discussed green finance for business – https://theconversation.com/what-davos-delegates-missed-when-they-discussed-green-finance-for-business-248208

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Australian Open 2025 serves up a grand slam for Melbourne’s economy

    Source: National Australia Bank

    Record-breaking crowds at the Australian Open have served up a welcome spending boost to Melbourne’s economy with accommodation the big winner over the last fortnight.

    International tourists and domestic visitors booked out hotels, motels and serviced apartments, spending more than $111 million on accommodation across Melbourne. Accommodation group Ascott Australasia highlighted a 16% jump in demand during the 2025 tournament.

    Transaction data from Australia’s largest business bank, NAB, reveals a grand slam in consumer spending over the fortnight:

    • More than $275 million was spent at Melbourne’s pubs, bars and restaurants over the fortnight.
    • Melbourne’s bars experienced a 3% uplift in spending compared to the 2024 Australian Open.
    • Businesses immediately surrounding the Melbourne Park precinct experienced a $74 million spending injection, up 2% on last year.
    • Clothing and apparel spending at businesses surrounding Melbourne Park was up by 3% year on year.

    NAB Business Banking Executive Julie Rynski said the Australian Open’s marquee event status drove positive economic benefits across the inner city and surrounds.

    “Visitors from interstate and overseas flock to Melbourne for the tennis and take the opportunity to enjoy the best of the city’s vibrant culinary and cultural scene over the fortnight,” Ms Rynski said.

    “We’re seeing crowd records broken and consumer spending growing year-on-year, cementing the event’s status as an all-important launchpad for businesses into the year ahead.

    “The continued growth in spending translates to a real vibe which you can see and feel with booked out eateries and hotels, packed pubs and bars, lines for take away coffee and busier taxis and public transport.

    “Major events like the Australian Open not only generate direct spending but also create a ripple effect with flow through benefits for the wider economy, retailers, transport services and tourism operators.

    “This is a welcome boost to businesses given cost-of-living concerns. It’s clear people are making thoughtful spending changes through the year to save up, visit Melbourne and enjoy the city and the tennis,” Ms Rynski said.

    Managing Director, Ascott Australasia and Chair of Accommodation Australia David Mansfield said the tournament was a boom for accommodation providers.

    “The Australian Open has once again proven to be a transformative event for Melbourne’s hospitality and accommodation sectors, driving occupancy rates to record levels and surpassing the strong demand seen in previous years,” Mr Mansfield said.

    Ascott’s Melbourne properties which include Quest Apartment Hotels, Citadines on Bourke, Oakwood Premier, and lyf Collingwood experienced a significant 16% increase in demand during this year’s tournament. Additionally, revenue per available room (RevPAR) saw a 13% increase compared to 2024, underscoring the event’s growing significance in driving revenue for the accommodation sector.

    “The Australian Open doesn’t just fill hotels; it powers the entire tourism ecosystem. Every visitor who arrives in Melbourne spends on local bars, restaurants, attractions, and small businesses,” Mr Mansfield said.

    “For the accommodation industry specifically, the event has highlighted the vital role our sector plays in supporting large-scale tourism and economic growth.

    “As Chair of Accommodation Australia, I am thrilled to see how events like the Australian Open highlight the resilience, importance, and potential of the hospitality and tourism sectors.

    “With each passing year, the Australian Open continues to grow in scale and influence. Its success reminds us of the importance of ongoing investment destination marketing, infrastructure, workforce development, and collaborative efforts between industry and government to ensure the tourism and accommodation sectors thrive well into the future,” Mr Mansfield said.

    Notes to editors

    • * Estimates taken from spend at NAB merchant terminals surrounding Melbourne Park and across Melbourne between 12 January and 26 January 2025.
    • Pre-settlement data has been used to indicate trends and % movements. Final, exact figures are subject to change.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cortez Masto, Rosen join 46 Senators Introducing Resolution Condemning Pardons of Individuals Found Guilty of Assaulting Capitol Police Officers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Nevada Cortez Masto
    Resolution comes after Trump pardons 1,500 Jan 6 insurrectionists—including those convicted of violently assaulted police officers
    The senators will seek unanimous consent to pass the resolution this week
    Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), and 44 of their colleagues introduced a new resolution condemning the pardons of individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police Officers. The resolution follows the move by President Trump, on the first day of his second term, to grant full, complete, and unconditional pardons to over 1,500 people charged with committing crimes in the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and to commute the sentences of 14 others, including leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, far-right militias. Among those pardoned by Trump were 169 people who pled guilty to assaulting police officers on January 6th.  During the siege of the Capitol that day, over 80 U.S. Capitol Police Officers were assaulted, as well as over 60 officers from the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.
    The senators’ resolution, Condemning the pardons for individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police Officers, simply states: “Resolved, That the Senate disapproves of any pardons for individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police officers.” This week, Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) will seek unanimous consent on the Senate floor to pass the resolution.
    “President Trump is pardoning violent criminals who assaulted police officers and attempted to overturn a fair and free election,” said Senator Cortez Masto.“This is an insult to law enforcement across the country and an endorsement of political violence. The very least my Republican colleagues can do to back law enforcement is to support this resolution.”
    “It’s unconscionable that one of President Trump’s first actions in office was to pardon criminals who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, 2021,” said Senator Rosen. “A number of these convicted felons attacked police officers and injured them. It should not be a partisan issue to fully condemn these actions and President Trump’s pardons.”
    According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, approximately 1,572 defendants have been federally charged with crimes associated with the attack of the U.S. Capitol on January 6th. This includes approximately 598 charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement agents or officers or obstructing those officers during a civil disorder, including approximately 171 defendants charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer. As proven in Court, the weapons used and carried on Capitol grounds during the January 6th attack include firearms; OC spray; tasers; edged weapons, including a sword, axes, hatchets, and knives; and makeshift weapons, such as destroyed office furniture, fencing, bike racks, stolen riot shields, baseball bats, hockey sticks, flagpoles, PVC piping, and reinforced knuckle gloves.
    The full text of the resolution can be found here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: New Jersey Return Preparer Charged with Preparing False Tax Returns and Obstructing the IRS

    Source: US State Government of Utah

    An indictment was unsealed last week charging a New Jersey return preparer with preparing and filing 55 false income tax returns on behalf of clients and obstructing the IRS.

    According to the indictment, from at least 2018 through 2023, Christopher Demba, of Hillsborough, owned and operated Demba & Associates CPA LLC, a return preparation business. Demba allegedly prepared returns for clients that claimed false deductions, credit carryforwards or fraudulently recategorized income to claim expenses that would otherwise be disallowed. The indictment further alleges that Demba obstructed the IRS by providing false working papers to IRS personnel in an attempt to justify some of the claims made on returns he prepared for clients. 

    If convicted, Demba faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count as well as a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

    Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karen E. Kelly of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

    IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

    Trial Attorneys Mark McDonald and Alexis Hughes of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.

    An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    MIL OSI USA News –