NewzIntel.com

Category: Universities

  • MIL-OSI USA: Rep. Becca Balint Leads 67 House Colleagues in Demanding Answers on Mohsen Mahdawi’s Arrest

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Becca Balint (VT-AL)

    Washington, D.C. – Today, Rep. Becca Balint (VT-AL) wrote to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of State secretaries to demand answers on the illegal abduction and arrest of Mohsen Mahdawi. On Monday, April 14th, masked, hooded men in plain clothes removed Mr. Mahdawi, who was then handcuffed and taken into an unmarked van from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office in Colchester, Vermont. Rep. Balint is joined by 67 colleagues in demanding answers on Mr. Mahdawi’s arrest and for his immediate release. 

    Mr. Mahdawi is the latest student the Trump administration has targeted involved in pro-Palestinian organizing on U.S. college campuses. Mr. Mahdawi has not been accused of a crime. According to his lawyers, the Trump administration appears to be seeking his removal from the country under the same legal provision that it is using to detain Mr. Mahmoud Khalil, who was removed from his apartment building for his participation in pro-Palestinian groups at Columbia University, earlier this year. 

    Members are demanding answers from Secretary Rubio if this arrest was made under his own personal determination that Mr. Mahdawi’s speech compromises a compelling U.S. foreign policy interest and on what grounds. If that is the case, Members demand to know if the secretary intends to provide certification to the relevant Congressional committees. Members and many constituents are deeply disturbed that DHS could be hijacking citizenship interviews to engage in immigration enforcement activity. 

    “Americans may disagree on immigration policy, but we have always agreed that the Constitution guarantees people within our borders the most basic of rights including due process and free speech. This administration has ignored those fundamental rights in its horrific imprisonment of Mohsen K. Mahdawi,” members wrote to DHS and the State Department. “If Mr. Mahdawi can be tricked into coming to a government office and then arrested for simply making statements that the Trump Administration does not agree with, every American is at risk. We write to express our profound outrage with this Administration’s continued disappearance of lawful residents of the United States and to demand questions about Mr. Mahdawi’s case.” 

    “It is Mr. Mahdawi’s right as a legal resident of the United States to argue for what he believes in. This most fundamental of American rights is crucial to the fabric of our country, and one that America was built upon. In fact, President Trump stated at his joint address to Congress in March, ‘I’ve stopped all government censorship and brought back free speech in America.’ If the President was serious about protecting free speech in the United States, he would protect it for everyone, including those with whom he disagrees. Mr. Mahdawi’s arrest is immoral, inhumane, and illegal. With Mr. Mahdawi’s abduction, the Trump Administration continues to degrade America’s image on the global stage and descend the country further and further into authoritarianism. We profoundly oppose unlawful abductions and expect a prompt response to our questions,” continued the members. 

    “Without due process and the right to free speech, this is not the America we thought we lived in. And it should terrify us all. It’s critical we stand up loudly for the US Constitution in the face of the authoritarian rule from the White House. I’m proud to lead over 60 Democrats in the fight for Mr. Mahdawi’s rights and the basic liberties enshrined into our constitution. Vermonters and Americans everywhere are horrified to learn of these growing illegal arrests and we will not stand by idly,” said Rep. Balint.  

    67 House Democrats signed the letter including Reps. Amo, Ansari, Barragán, Beyer, Bonamici, Carson, Carter, Casar, Casten, Castro, Chu, Cleaver, Cohen, Correa, Davis (IL), Dean, DeGette, DeSaulnier, Dexter, Doggett, Escobar, Evans, Frost, García (IL), Garcia (CA), Garcia (TX) Goodlander, Green (TX), Hoyle,  Huffman, Jackson (IL), Jayapal, Johnson (GA), Kamlager-Dove, Keating, Larson, Lee (PA), McBride, McClellan, McCollum, McGovern, McIver, Moore, Moulton, Mullin, Nadler, Norton, Ocasio-Cortez, Omar, Pingree, Pocan, Pressley, Quigley, Ramirez, Sánchez, Scanlon, Schakowsky, Simon, Thompson (MS), Tlaib, Tokuda, Tonko, Trahan, Velázquez, Waters, Watson Coleman, Williams (GA)

    View the text of the letter here. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Four St. Louis Area Residents Admit Committing Bank Fraud with Checks Stolen from the Mail

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ST. LOUIS – Four people, including a former U.S. Postal Service employee, have pleaded guilty to federal charges and admitted to involvement in a conspiracy that stole checks from the mail to commit bank fraud.

    Johnathan Barnett, 29, of University City, was sentenced Tuesday in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to 80 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Matthew T. Schelp, who also ordered him to pay restitution of $44,135.

    Barnett pleaded guilty in December to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, one count of possession of stolen mail and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He admitted participating in a conspiracy from January of 2022 to September of 2023 to steal checks from the mail and alter the checks to defraud banks.

    Barnett bought a key to U.S. Postal Service collection boxes from a U.S. Postal Service mail carrier, Wynter Hinton, and then he and others, including Ryan McKinney and Jayden Burklow, used that key to open collections boxes in St. Louis County and steal mail. Hinton also stole checks from the mail while on her postal route.

    Barnett, Burklow and McKinney altered personal and business checks they found in the mail to create counterfeit checks. They recruited others to allow their bank accounts to be used to deposit the fraudulent checks. The conspirators then withdrew the money before the banks realized the checks were fraudulent. Barnett, Burklow and McKinney admitted trying to commit at least $800,000 worth of fraud this way.

    On Sept. 15, 2023, when investigators were conducting a court-approved search of Barnett’s home, he tried to flee through a window with an AR-15-style rifle with a high-capacity drum magazine loaded with 76 rounds. Four other firearms were found in his home, as well as check-making equipment. Barnett was convicted of a 2014 drug charge and charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action in 2020.

    Hinton, 29, of St. Ann, and McKinney, 24, of St. Louis, both pleaded guilty Wednesday. Hinton pleaded guilty to unlawful use of a mail key and McKinney pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of possession of stolen mail. They are scheduled to be sentenced in July.

    Burklow, 21, of O’Fallon, Illinois, pleaded guilty in March to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of possession of stolen mail. He is scheduled to be sentenced in June.

    “The sentencing in this case illustrates that individuals who engage in mail theft will be held accountable for their actions,” stated Inspector in Charge, Ruth Mendonça, who leads the Chicago Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which includes the St. Louis Field Office.  “The Inspection Service is proud to work with our local, state and federal partners to bring Mail Theft perpetrators to justice and prevent financial crimes targeting local citizens, postal customers, and financial institutions.”

    This sentencing and guilty pleas represent the hard work and dedication by USPS OIG Special Agents working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to bring charges on this significant mail theft investigation,” said Special Agent in Charge Dennus Bishop, U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, Central Area Field Office. “The USPS OIG, along with our law enforcement partners, remain committed to safeguarding the U.S. Mail and ensuring the accountability and integrity of U.S. Postal Service employees.”

    The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Creve Coeur Police Department and the University City Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gwen Carroll is prosecuting the case.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cornyn, Texas GOP Colleagues Urge President Trump to Move NASA Headquarters to Houston

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Texas John Cornyn

    AUSTIN – Today, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), along with Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Congressman Brian Babin (TX-36), led a letter to President Trump urging his administration to move the headquarters for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) from Washington, D.C. to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, Texas, when the D.C. office lease expires in 2028. For decades, Houston has been a leader in space exploration and innovation, and the lawmakers argue that relocating NASA’s headquarters to the Lone Star State will help save American taxpayer dollars and spur growth in the nation’s space sector.

    The full text of the letter is available here and below.

    The lawmakers wrote: “From its founding in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has a storied history of exploring new frontiers, making transformational discoveries, and reaching far into the great beyond. However, as NASA’s leadership has languished in our nation’s capital, the core missions of this critical agency are more divided than ever before. This seismic disconnect between NASA’s headquarters and its missions has opened the door to bureaucratic micromanagement and an erosion of centers’ interdependence. For NASA to return to its core mission of excellence in exploration, its headquarters should be located at a place where NASA’s most critical missions are and where transformational leadership from the ground up can be provided. In 2028 the lease for NASA’s current headquarters building in Washington, D.C. expires. We write to urge you to use this opportunity to reinvigorate our national space agency and move NASA’s headquarters from Washington D.C. to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, Texas.”

    “Perhaps no city is more closely linked to America’s space program than ‘Space City.’ Some of the first words spoken on the surface of the moon called out to Houston which is home to numerous aerospace businesses. JSC in particular is the largest home of the NASA workforce, with more than 12,000 employees across its 1,620-acre facility and supporting more than 52,000 public and private jobs. As the pinnacle of human spaceflight development, Houston is home to Mission Control, the NASA astronaut corps, the Lunar Sample Laboratory Facility, commercial space agreements, and extensive research and development partnerships. JSC plays a role in nearly everything that makes America a leader in space exploration.”

    U.S. Representatives Jodey Arrington (TX-19), John Carter (TX-31), Michael Cloud (TX-27), Dan Crenshaw (TX-02), Monica De La Cruz (TX-15), Jake Ellzey (TX-06), Pat Fallon (TX-04), Brandon Gill (TX-26), Craig Goldman (TX-12), Tony Gonzales (TX-23), Lance Gooden (TX-05), Wesley Hunt (TX-38), Ronny Jackson (TX-14), Morgan Luttrell (TX-08) , Michael McCaul (TX-10), Nathaniel Moran (TX-01), Troy E. Nehls (TX-22),  August Pfluger (TX-11), Chip Roy (21), Keith Self (TX-03), Pete Sessions (TX-17) , Beth Van Duyne (TX-24), Randy Weber (TX-14), and Roger Williams (TX-25) also joined the letter.

    April 16, 2025

    President Donald J. Trump

    The White House

    1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.

    Washington, D.C. 20500

    Dear Mr. President:

    From its founding in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has a storied history of exploring new frontiers, making transformational discoveries, and reaching far into the great beyond. However, as NASA’s leadership has languished in our nation’s capital, the core missions of this critical agency are more divided than ever before. This seismic disconnect between NASA’s headquarters and its missions has opened the door to bureaucratic micromanagement and an erosion of centers’ interdependence. For NASA to return to its core mission of excellence in exploration, its headquarters should be located at a place where NASA’s most critical missions are and where transformational leadership from the ground up can be provided. In 2028 the lease for NASA’s current headquarters building in Washington, D.C. expires. We write to urge you to use this opportunity to reinvigorate our national space agency and move NASA’s headquarters from Washington, D.C. to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, Texas.

    Perhaps no city is more closely linked to America’s space program than “Space City.” Some of the first words spoken on the surface of the moon called out to Houston which is home to numerous aerospace businesses. JSC in particular is the largest home of the NASA workforce, with more than 12,000 employees across its 1,620-acre facility and supporting more than 52,000 public and private jobs. As the pinnacle of human spaceflight development, Houston is home to Mission Control, the NASA astronaut corps, the Lunar Sample Laboratory Facility, commercial space agreements, and extensive research and development partnerships. JSC plays a role in nearly everything that makes America a leader in space exploration.

    Houston is particularly well suited for NASA’s headquarters due in part to the unique strengths of the city and the state. Texas is the eighth largest economy in the world, with low government regulation and a strong business environment. Houston boasts a cost of living that is less than half that of the Washington, D.C. area; three “R1: Doctoral Universities” producing the high caliber professionals necessary for human spaceflight; and two major commercial service airports for easy connectivity around the country. In contrast, NASA’s current headquarters in Washington, D.C. is disconnected from the NASA centers across the country and thus much of the day-to-day work. Consolidating greater and greater levels of work and authority in Washington, D.C. has been a decades-long trend, resulting in decision making funneled up to bureaucrats at headquarters rather than empowering scientists and astronauts across the centers. This strategy has separated decision makers from the actual workforce and stands antithetical to NASA’s core function.

    Relatedly, for the United States to reach the surface of Mars, NASA must rely on a robust commercial space sector. Towards that end, no state offers greater economic and geographic benefits than Texas. The Lone Star State is home to more than 2,000 aerospace, aviation, and defense-related companies, with 18 of the 20 largest aerospace companies based in Texas. Notably, SpaceX relocated their entire company to Texas, establishing the town of Starbase, Texas, to develop, test, and launch SpaceX vehicles. Similarly, Blue Origin develops engines and rockets in West Texas, leading a new generation of spaceflight, and conducts its commercial sub-orbital flights there. Firefly Aerospace, in Cedar Park, recently sent photos of Earth from its Blue Ghost lunar lander on its voyage to explore the surface of the moon. Axiom Space, based in Houston, is building the next generation spacesuit for NASA and a commercial space station to succeed the International Space Station. In addition, the State of Texas recently stood up the Texas Space Commission to promote innovation in space operations and commercial aerospace and to attract commercial space ventures to the state. These are just a few of the ways Texas aerospace companies, projects, and institutions are transforming our nation’s leadership in the space economy.

    A central location among NASA’s centers and the geographical center of the United States, Houston offers the ideal location for NASA to return to its core mission of space exploration and to do so at a substantially lower operating cost than in Washington, D.C. Therefore, we strongly encourage you to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the great servants of NASA — who are focused on recommitting America’s space agency to its roots and exploring the final frontier — by relocating NASA’s headquarters from Washington, D.C. to the Johnson Space Center.

    Sincerely,

    /s/

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Growing threats faced by women candidates undermine our democracy

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Inessa De Angelis, PhD Student, Faculty of Information, University of Toronto

    As Liberal MP Pam Damoff prepares to leave politics, she joins other Canadian women MPs in warning that growing threats and harassment are driving them out of politics.

    Their call adds to the voices of other politicians in Australia and the United Kingdom who caution that misogyny and threats of violence, especially on social media, have caused them to refrain from seeking re-election.

    With the Canadian federal election approaching, campaigns expose politicians to increased online incivility and abuse. Nearly 19 per cent of tweets analyzed by the Samara Centre for Democracy during the 2021 campaign contained harassment.

    Harassment undermines democracy and threatens the equal participation of women in politics. When women politicians don’t seek re-election, we lose key voices advocating for a more equitable future.

    Despite threats to our democracy being a key theme of the ongoing federal election campaign, barely anyone is talking about the threat harassment poses.

    Harassment is a threat to representation

    Women remain underrepresented in Canadian Parliament. Canada currently ranks 70th out of 190 countries for representation of women in politics. Following the federal election in 2021, women held only 30.9 per cent of the seats in the House of Commons.

    While research shows women who run for office are just as likely to win as their male counterparts, women require more convincing to step up and put their name on the ballot.

    Once women politicians are elected, they face more barriers in Parliament. Some of these barriers include family obligations and fewer promotions to high-profile roles.

    However, gender-based heckling, violence and harassment are additional barriers.

    Shaping voter behaviour

    Violence against women politicians aims to silence and exclude women from participating in politics simply because they are women.

    And while men and women politicians receive similar amounts of online harassment, online attacks against women politicians tend to be more personal and sexist in tone.

    Online harassment isn’t just driving women out of politics; it’s also shaping voter behaviour.

    In fact, research shows that women voters are less likely to participate in political discussions on social media because they fear getting harassed as women politicians are.

    These findings align with outgoing Liberal MP Jennifer O’Connell’s letter to her constituents that cites online threats of sexual violence fuelled by misinformation and disinformation as rationale for not seeking re-election.

    Increasing security

    The rising threats of harassment against all politicians led the Privy Council Office to offer private-sector security services for candidates who feel intimidated and threatened during the 2025 campaign.

    The goal of private security is to offer an extra level of protection when the threshold for police protection is not met. Through the program, candidates can get an unarmed guard to watch their surroundings and manage risks.

    Which metrics are used to determine if the threshold is met? Private security services should protect all candidates equally. However, the lived experiences and concerns of women politicians are often discounted and not taken seriously.

    A new way to measure harassment

    Defining and quantifying types of harassment is hard. Hate speech is recognized as explicit harassment, but this raises questions about who gets to decide which less explicit incidents count as harassment.

    There are more subtle forms of harassment like sexist microaggressions that threaten women candidates just as much as blatant hate speech. But these subtle microaggressions are often brushed off as not being harassment.

    With no single definition or agreed-upon way to measure harassment, I developed a seven-point scale to categorize nuanced forms of online harassment. This scale takes into account more subtle forms of harassment, including social media comments that question the authority of women politicians to explicit hate speech.

    I found that 86 per cent of replies to tweets sent to women MPs contained some form of harassment.

    We cannot view each incident of harassment such as threatening social media comments, volunteers being screamed at or signs being vandalized as isolated events. Understanding all of these incidents, regardless of their severity, as being connected allows us to track the growing forms and impacts of violence.

    Legislation needed

    Steps have already been taken at Parliament to fight harassment through Bill C-65, which strengthens federal workplace protections against violence and sexual harassment. But more should be done on the campaign trail.

    The Privy Council Office’s new private-sector security service is a start. However, candidates should not be expected to quantify how threats make them feel to receive help. Political parties and the Privy Council Office should proactively offer more support to all candidates.

    Social media platforms must take greater responsibility for applying their terms of service to minimize harmful content.

    New legislation should be drafted to address threats faced by politicians. Regardless of who forms the next government, all parties need to work together to pass online harms legislation.

    Harassment is used as a barrier to stop women from running for office. This is fundamentally about making sure their voices are heard in our democracy.

    Inessa De Angelis receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the Province of Ontario.

    – ref. Growing threats faced by women candidates undermine our democracy – https://theconversation.com/growing-threats-faced-by-women-candidates-undermine-our-democracy-254371

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-Evening Report: ‘They are like my children’: research reveals 4 types of indoor plant owners. Which one are you?

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brianna Le Busque, Lecturer in Environmental Science, University of South Australia

    maramorosz/Shutterstock

    Walk into any home or workplace today, and you’re likely to find an array of indoor plants. The global market for indoor plants is growing fast – projected to reach more than US$28 billion (A$44 billion) by 2031.

    People keep indoor plants inside for a variety of reasons, including as decoration, to clean the air and for stress relief. But my colleagues and I wanted to delve further. What sort of relationships do people have with indoor plants? And what can this tell us about ties between humans and nature?

    We surveyed indoor plant owners in Australia, and found many of us form highly meaningful connections with our leafy companions. Some people even consider their plants as family, get anxious about their health and mourn a plant when it dies.

    Some people worry about the wellbeing of their indoor plants.
    Yurii_Yarema/Shutterstock

    A blooming hobby

    People have grown plants inside for thousands of years.

    Evidence suggests Egyptians brought plants indoors in the 3rd century BC. The remains of the former city of Pompeii reveal indoor plants used there more than 2,000 years ago, and in medieval England, indoor plants were used in medicine and cooking.

    The keeping of indoor plants became widespread across the world in the second half of the 20th century. The practice was particularly popular during the COVID-19 pandemic, likely due to a desire to connect with nature when access to outdoor green spaces was limited.

    The benefits of indoor plants go beyond nature connection. Studies show they can increase positive emotions, reduce stress, enhance productivity, and even decrease physical discomfort such as pain.

    However, people have varying levels of connection to their plants, as research by my colleagues and I shows.

    Why we love indoor plants

    We surveyed 115 Australian adults, recruited through social media posts and poster advertisements at the University of South Australia. Participants were roughly 69% female, 30% male and 1% non-binary, and ranged in age from 18 to 69.

    On average, participants owned 15 indoor plants. Some owned a single indoor plant and one person owned a whopping 500!

    Between them, respondents kept 51 different varieties of house plants. The most common were succulents, devil’s ivy and monstera. They most commonly kept the plants in the living room, kitchen or bedroom.

    Across all participants, 11 benefits of having indoor plants were reported.

    Half the respondents described the aesthetic appeal of indoor plants. Comments included that indoor plants were “nice to look at”, “soften rooms” and “add colour”. Participants also reported air quality benefits, and that they found indoor plants calming.

    Other less commonly reported benefits were that the plants helped the respondents set habits, improved their physical health, provided distraction, relieved fatigue and had a pleasant smell.

    4 types of relationships with indoor plants

    Our research identified four types of relationships people have with their indoor plants:

    1. Highly connected (14% of respondents)

    These people typically described a deep personal connection to their plants. Comments included:

    They are like my children. (male, 28)

    I often water them and take care of them as family members. (female, 26)

    Well I cried over my plants leaf getting broken off today, so you could say I’m pretty attached
    to her. (female, 21)

    I feel terrible if one dies, I feel as though I have let it down and generally bury it in the garden. (female, 34)

    2. Engaged (42% of respondents)

    These people enjoyed and tended to their plants, but without deep emotional attachment. For example:

    Watering them and watching them grow is exciting, I feel proud to keep them alive so long (female, 22)

    I get sad when one dies or is looking droopy, I feel happy when they look alive and freshly
    watered. (female, 22)

    One respondent said his plants were ‘like my children’.
    pikselstock/Shutterstock

    3. Limited engagement (23%)

    These respondents enjoyed having indoor plants but spent minimal time caring for them and reported minimal emotional connections to them. One participant said:

    Feel like indoor plants are fine but through our large windows we can see our outdoor plants and that’s more important to us. (female, 45)

    4. No relationship (12%)

    Participants who did not have a relationship with their indoor plants said:

    Hardly watered it as it’s a succulent. (male, 21)

    They are all gifts rather than something I’ve gone out to buy. (male, 21)

    (For the remaining 9% of participants, their responses to the question of their relationship with house plants were invalid and not included.)

    A minority of survey participants said they had no relationship with their indoor plants.
    Sophia Floerchinger/Shutterstock

    Unlocking the potential of indoor plants

    Our research suggests indoor plants can enrich our lives in ways we are only beginning to understand.

    It’s important to note that data for our study were collected in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. This context may have influenced our results. For example, some participants may have felt particularly connected to their indoor plants because their access to outdoor green space was curtailed. So, further research is needed in the post-pandemic context.

    Human–nature relationships are an emerging field of research. By understanding the relationship between people and plants, we may help unlock the potential for nature to improve our health and wellbeing.

    Brianna Le Busque 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. ‘They are like my children’: research reveals 4 types of indoor plant owners. Which one are you? – https://theconversation.com/they-are-like-my-children-research-reveals-4-types-of-indoor-plant-owners-which-one-are-you-252387

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: New Aussie film The Correspondent is an extraordinary retelling of Peter Greste’s story

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrea Jean Baker, Senior Lecturer in Journalism, Monash University

    Maslow Entertainment

    The Correspondent is a film every journalist should see.

    There are no spoiler alerts. It is based on the globally-publicised jailing in Cairo in 2013 of Australian journalist Peter Greste (played by Richard Roxburgh) and his Al Jazeera English colleagues, Canadian journalist Mohamed Fahmy (Julian Maroun) and local reporter Baher Mohamed (Rahel Romahn).

    The trio were jailed for over 400 days. They were accused of allegedly working without media accreditation, spreading fake news in the aftermath of the Arab Spring and associating with the banned Muslim Brotherhood.

    Skilfully directed by Kriv Stenders, The Correspondent follows Greste’s 2017 memoir. Roxburgh’s performance as the embattled journalist is breathtaking and career defining. With a tight screenplay by Peter Duncan, the film is a masterclass in political subtlety.

    Authenticity in truth telling

    At its world premiere at Adelaide Film Festival in October, Greste said The Correspondent “paid huge respect” to his memoir.

    The film begins with Greste’s surprise arrest in 2013 by Egyptian authorities at the Marriott hotel in Cairo. This is juxtaposed with historical snippets of the Arab Spring uprising in Tahrir Square in January 2011, which ended the 30-year dictatorship of President Hosni Mubarak.

    The next president after Mubarak was Mohamed Morsi, leader of the Freedom and Justice Party. This party was affiliated with the Brotherhood, the country’s oldest and largest Islamist organisation.

    In June 2013, a militarised coup d’état in Egypt was led by Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s regime. Morsi was jailed by the freshly minted President al-Sisi. By December, the Brotherhood was blacklisted and declared a terrorist organisation.

    The Correspondent argues the Al Jazeera English journalists were political pawns for the new Egyptian regime. The regime had a problematic relationship with its wealthy neighbour, Qatar, a country that partially funds Al Jazeera and publicly supported the Muslim Brotherhood.

    Working from a media bunker in the Marriott because their offices were subject to a series of raids and closed down by local police, the trio were accused of illegally mastering a grand conspiracy against al-Sisi’s authoritarian regime.

    Struggle for justice and risky business

    Set between the grimy underworld of the Egyptian jail and the endless circus of Egyptian court trials, The Correspondent is a look into the psychological torment of Greste and his colleagues.

    Between card playing, sarcastic humour and planned hunger strikes, the ritual reality of cell life sets in. Friendships are tested and forged between the journalists, student activist detainees and prison authorities.

    Greste spent decades writing headlines from conflict zones before becoming a headline himself.

    A repetitive motif in The Correspondent is Greste’s flashbacks to his BBC
    days during 2005 in Mogadishu, Somalia, where his producer Kate Peyton (Yael Stone) was killed outside the Sahafi Hotel. In these flashbacks, we are privy to Greste’s guilt-driven internal monologues.

    Roxburgh’s performance as the embattled journalist is breathtaking and career defining.
    Maslow Entertainment

    In three studies, I examined the reportage by the ABC, the BBC and the Al Jazeera network about Greste’s case. Across these publications, the safety of journalists received minimal coverage.

    Coverage focused on the innocence of the trio, impact of Greste’s sentencing on his ageing parents and press freedom. All these facets of the story are reflected in The Correspondent.

    Safety of journalists

    The Correspondent is a wake-up call about the safety of journalists.

    This month, the International Federation of Journalists said at least 156 journalists and media workers have been killed in the current war in Palestine. In December, the Committee to Protect Journalists put the number at more than 137, “making it the deadliest period for journalists since [the committee] began gathering data in 1992”.

    Imprisonment of a Western foreign correspondent often generates international headlines, but most journalists who are imprisoned are local journalists. Foreign correspondents rely on these local journalists, wrote Greste, “when they land in a new, dangerous environment”.

    In focusing tightly on Greste, the film omits the story of the local journalists imprisoned at the same time.
    Maslow Entertainment

    Local journalists hold power to account, as Greste describes it in “ways far more dangerous than any of us in more secure environments could possibly imagine”.

    In focusing tightly on Greste’s story, The Correspondent fails to shine a light on the dozens of local journalists imprisoned at the same time.

    As Greste said during the #FreeAJStaff campaign:

    Rarely have so many of us been imprisoned and beaten up, intimidated or murdered in the course of our duties.

    The Correspondent is an extraordinary film about human resilience and the importance of global diplomacy in the ongoing fight for press freedom.

    The Correspondent is in cinemas from today.

    Andrea Jean Baker 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. New Aussie film The Correspondent is an extraordinary retelling of Peter Greste’s story – https://theconversation.com/new-aussie-film-the-correspondent-is-an-extraordinary-retelling-of-peter-grestes-story-237476

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: With the end of Flybuys NZ, what happens to the personal data of nearly 3 million Kiwis?

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lisa M. Katerina Asher, Doctoral Candidate, Business School, University of Sydney

    JuSun/Getty Images

    After almost three decades in New Zealand, loyalty programme Flybuys announced it would be closing in 2024. The company behind the scheme, Loyalty New Zealand, has since entered liquidation, leaving the future of one of Flybuys’ key assets uncertain.

    That asset is a customer database containing sensitive personal information about millions of New Zealanders. So what happens to it matters.

    Founded in 1996, some 2.9 million New Zealanders representing 74% of the nation’s households eventually signed up to Flybuys. Members collected points at affiliated retailers which they could then redeem through the Flybuys website.

    But over the past decade, partners such as Air New Zealand, Mitre 10 and New World pulled out of the scheme to either join other loyalty programmes or start their own.

    In May last year, Loyalty New Zealand announced it was closing Flybuys New Zealand and liquidators were called in to manage the company’s end. Flybuys Australia continues to operate, jointly owned by Coles Group and Wesfarmers (which owns retailers K-mart and Bunnings).

    According to the first liquidator’s report from early April, Loyalty New Zealand is solvent. This means it is not bankrupt and can pay all debts in full.

    Once creditors are paid, the remaining funds will go to shareholders – Z Energy, BNZ, IAG and Foodstuffs Ventures (NZ), a joint subsidiary of Foodstuffs North Island and Foodstuffs South Island.

    However, the report is silent on Flybuys’ customer database. That data likely includes years of shopping histories, behavioural profiles and potentially sensitive demographic or inferred financial information.

    When the end of Flybuys was announced, Loyalty New Zealand assured customers and retailers it would manage private data according to the New Zealand Privacy Act. But with the liquidation of the company, it is unclear what will now happen to this information.

    While no one has publicly said the information will be sold, there is no assurance it will be deleted either. And the database is arguably Loyalty New Zealand’s most valuable, albeit intangible, asset. Unless liquidators explicitly commit to deletion, the data could potentially be transferred or sold.

    Loyalty schemes such as Flybuys can gather a great deal of information on those who sign-up. That information can become a valuable – and potentially tradable – asset.
    Zamrznuti tonovi/Shutterstock

    Data ownership, privacy and sovereignty

    The risks are far from theoretical. In March this year, DNA ancestry company 23andMe filed for bankruptcy. The genetic data held by the company was put up for sale as an asset, exposing users and their relatives to substantial privacy risks.

    While privacy laws vary by country, the 23andMe case showed how personal data can make customers vulnerable. Flybuys’ data may not be genetic, but it is similarly rich, detailed and easily re-identifiable when combined with other datasets.

    If sold or reused without proper controls or oversight, it might potentially expose former members to discriminatory insurance profiling, targeted scams, manipulative political advertising and algorithmic credit scoring.

    In extreme cases, such data can be used to infer sensitive customer characteristics such as financial stress or health-related behaviours. This could lead to political profiling or surveillance captialism – the collection and commodification of personal data.

    New Zealand’s Privacy Act 2020 is designed to protect personal information. If data is reused for purposes beyond its original intent, or transferred without proper consent, it may breach the law. But the act does not clearly prohibit the sale of data during a liquidation. Nor is it clear on how the rules could be enforced.

    Australia’s Privacy Act 1988 offers even less protection. It allows companies to send personal data overseas if they take “reasonable steps” to ensure recipients follow similar privacy rules. This means Australian Flybuys’ data could be sent to countries such as the United States.

    That is especially worrying given the power of US tech giants, which routinely collect, profile and monetise data with little oversight. In the wrong hands, Flybuys’ trove of shopping habits, preferences and behavioural patterns could be repurposed to build invasive consumer profiles without people’s knowledge or control.

    Setting a global standard

    If Flybuys New Zealand’s data is treated as an asset during the liquidation process, could set a precedent and shape future regulatory standards internationally.

    We have seen this before. In November 2022, Deliveroo Australia entered voluntary administration, raising concerns about how it would handle its extensive customer data. Users were told they had six months to download their own information, but there was no clarity on whether the data would then be deleted, retained or sold.

    This lack of transparency revealed a gap in Australia’s data protection laws during liquidation. While the ultimate fate of the data remains publicly unknown, experts have suggested it was transferred to Deliveroo’s UK-based parent company.

    While Australia’s 1988 Privacy Act requires organisations to handle personal information responsibly, it does not clearly regulate the sale or transfer of data during insolvencies or liquidations. There is a legal grey area which leaves customers and consumers vulnerable, as their data could be treated as a tradable asset without their consent.

    The need for ethical stewardship

    Customer data accumulation is the product of a relationship built on trust that should end when the company and relationship does. Ethical stewardship demands deletion, not redistribution.

    This aligns with global norms such as the “right to be forgotten” under the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation.

    When a company winds down, users should be clearly informed of their options: to retrieve their data, delete it or consent to its transfer. That decision should rest with the member or customer, not be made behind closed doors for potential financial gain.

    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. With the end of Flybuys NZ, what happens to the personal data of nearly 3 million Kiwis? – https://theconversation.com/with-the-end-of-flybuys-nz-what-happens-to-the-personal-data-of-nearly-3-million-kiwis-254568

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: People are ‘microdosing’ weight-loss drugs. A GP explains what to watch out for

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Natasha Yates, General Practitioner, PhD Candidate, Bond University

    MillaF/Shutterstock

    Injectable medications originally developed for the treatment of diabetes are also effective for weight loss, and have surged in popularity for this purpose around the world.

    In Australia, Ozempic is approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, while Wegovy is approved for weight management. Both are formulations of the drug semaglutide, which mimics the action of the naturally occurring GLP-1 hormone on GLP-1 receptors in the gut and the brain, helping regulate appetite and making you feel fuller for longer.

    However these medications are expensive, and sometimes hard to get. They also come with side effects. For these reasons, people are taking to “microdosing” weight-loss drugs, or using less than the dose recommended by the manufacturer.

    But is this effective, and is it safe? As a GP, people are asking me these questions. Here’s what we know – and what we don’t know yet.

    Why are people microdosing weight-loss drugs?

    Microdosing usually refers to psychedelic medication, where people take a low dose of a psychedelic drug to enhance performance, or reduce symptoms of stress and anxiety.

    However, the term is increasingly being used to describe the use of weight-loss injectables at lower-than-recommended doses.

    Three common reasons come up when I ask patients why they microdose weight-loss drugs.

    Cost: injectables used for weight loss are not covered by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, so patients must pay for these out-of-pocket. Costs start from A$260 per month and increase from there.

    Availability: worldwide shortages of these injectable medications have led doctors and patients to seek alternative solutions.

    Side-effects: side-effects are common, and can include nausea, vomiting, bowel habit changes and reflux. Lower doses cause fewer side-effects, which is why the recommended dosing schedule starts low and gradually builds up.

    Weight-loss drugs can cause a range of gastrointestinal side-effects.
    PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock

    How do people microdose weight-loss drugs?

    A standard dose of semaglutide is 2.4mg, but we start patients on much lower doses (0.25mg) and gradually build up to this by increasing the dose each month. This is because starting at the full dose invariably causes bad side-effects.

    Injectables come in an adjustable auto-injector pen which is twisted until the dose counter shows the prescribed dose in milligrams. There’s a click every time the dial is turned. Once the prescribed dose is showing, it’s injected under the skin.

    To microdose, patients simply turn the dial fewer times than recommended for the full dose. They estimate a microdose by “counting clicks”, which means they’re turning it according to the clicks they hear rather than until they see the dial showing the correct dose has been reached.

    Weight-loss drugs come in an adjustable auto-injector pen.
    myskin/Shutterstock

    Alternatively, they may inject the full recommended dose but do so less often than once per week.

    Is it safe?

    Using injectables in this way has not been researched, so the safety has not been established. However, it’s unlikely lower doses would lead to higher safety concerns.

    In fact, logically, lower doses are likely to mean fewer side-effects.

    But these drugs do expire after a few weeks, and microdosing could increase the risk of inadvertently using them after their expiration date. Injecting out-of-date medication can be a significant health risk. For example, it could cause infection if bacteria has started to grow.

    The biggest concern around the safety of microdosing is if patients are doing it without the knowledge of their treating team (such as their GP, dietitian and pharmacist).

    Because there are no clear guidelines around microdosing, patients should only try it with caution and under medical care. Their team can assist with issues such as accounting for the limited shelf-life of the medication.

    Is it effective?

    As lower doses than recommended for weight loss have not been tested, we cannot answer this question yet. However, reduced side-effects at lower doses make it likely there are also reduced therapeutic effects.

    In my experience there’s a reason patients increase their doses as recommended: they simply don’t lose enough weight on the starting doses.

    It’s best to seek advice from your medical team before making any dose changes.
    AnnaStills/Shutterstock

    At the height of semaglutide shortages in 2023, experts from the American Diabetes Association published recommendations around how to prescribe lower doses for patients with diabetes. But these recommendations were for diabetes management, not for patients using the drug for weight loss.

    It’s also important to note that for patients using Wegovy to reduce heart attack and stroke risk – which Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration recently approved it for – there’s no evidence that cardiovascular benefits will be achieved at lower-than-recommended doses.

    Is there any role for microdosing weight-loss drugs?

    There may be a role for microdosing in a few scenarios:

    When side-effects are not manageable: when side-effects are intolerable for patients, even on the lowest introductory dose, there may be a role for individualised approaches. But this is best done with clear communication and regular monitoring, so patients are not under-treated.

    Supply disruption: if there’s a supply disruption, lowering the dose or lengthening the time between doses may be preferable to ceasing the medication altogether.

    Maintenance of weight loss: once therapeutic levels have helped patients achieve their goal weight, lowering the dose may be a helpful longer-term way of keeping them there. We know stopping these drugs altogether results in rebound weight gain. We await evidence for microdosing for weight maintenance.

    So what’s the take-home message?

    Patients who use injectables as part of their approach to weight loss should be under the care of an experienced team, including a GP, who can monitor their progress and ensure they achieve their weight loss in a safe and sustainable way.

    Microdosing weight-loss drugs currently has no clear evidence base, but if a person wants to attempt it, they should do so with the full knowledge of their treating team.

    Natasha Yates wishes to thank Dr Terri-Lynne South – a GP, dietician, and the chair of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners’ specific interest group in obesity management – for providing feedback and peer review on this article.

    Natasha Yates is affiliated with the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners.

    – ref. People are ‘microdosing’ weight-loss drugs. A GP explains what to watch out for – https://theconversation.com/people-are-microdosing-weight-loss-drugs-a-gp-explains-what-to-watch-out-for-253955

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: State of the states: six experts on how the campaign is playing out around Australia

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Clune, Honorary Associate, Government and International Relations, University of Sydney

    The federal election campaign has passed the halfway mark, with politicians zig-zagging across the country to spruik their policies and achievements.

    Where politicians choose to visit (and not visit) give us some insight into their electoral priorities and strategy.

    Here, six experts analyse how the campaign has looked so far in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia.

    New South Wales

    David Clune, honorary associate, government and international relations, University of Sydney

    Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s strategy in NSW seems to include a tacit concession Liberal heartland seats won by the Teals in 2022 are unlikely to come back.

    Instead, the Liberals are hoping to make inroads into Western Sydney electorates held by Labor. It’s a fast-growing, diverse area where families are struggling to pay the mortgage and household bills, and young people have difficulty renting or buying homes. Dutton and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have concentrated their campaigning in this area, both claiming to be the best choice for cost-of-living relief and housing affordability.

    Many of these seats are among Labor’s safest. Most would require a two-party preferred swing of 6% or more to be lost. Historically speaking, swings of this size are unlikely, although nevertheless possible.

    Labor is putting much effort into “sandbagging” marginal coastal seats. A major issue is Labor’s emphasis on renewables versus the Coalition’s policy of building nuclear power plants, including one in the Hunter Valley.

    Dutton’s messaging in the early part of the campaign was confusing, combining pragmatic politics, such as cutting the excise on petrol, with right-wing ideology, such as slashing the public service. The former resonated in the marginals, the latter did not. Albanese, by contrast, stayed on message, releasing a stream of expensive handouts to win the votes of battling Sydneysiders.

    A wildcard is the emergence of Muslim lobby groups, The Muslim Vote and Muslim Votes Matter. These were formed to support pro-Palestine candidates in safe Labor seats in Western Sydney where there is a large Muslim population, such as Blaxland and Watson.

    One factor that won’t be influential is the state government. Premier Chris Minns leads a Labor administration whose performance has generally been lacklustre, but which is not notably unpopular. Unlike in Victoria, NSW voters seem to have their baseball bats in the closet.

    The opinion polls continue to show the trend developing since February of a swing back to Labor in NSW, mirroring the national trend. According to an aggregate of polling data, as at April 15 the Labor two-party preferred vote in NSW was 51.9%, an increase of 1.7% since the March federal budget.

    Queensland

    Paul Williams, associate professor of politics and journalism, Griffith University

    The fact neither Albanese nor Dutton has spent a disproportionate amount of time campaigning in Queensland underscores the view the Sunshine State is not a pathway to The Lodge.

    But the fact both leaders have made several visits – Albanese campaigned here four times in 12 days – also indicates neither leader is taking any seat for granted.

    Indeed, Albanese has visited normally tough-to-win seats, such as Leichhardt in far north Queensland (held by the Coalition for 26 of the past 29 years), which reveals an emboldened Labor Party. With the retirement of popular Coalition MP Warren Entsch, and held by just 3.44%, Labor thinks Leichhardt is “winnable”, especially after reports the LNP candidate Jeremy Neal had posted questionable comments regarding China and Donald Trump on social media.

    If so – and given the growing lead Labor boasts in national polls – the LNP would be also at least a little concerned in Longman (3.1%), Bonner (3.4%), Flynn (3.8%), Forde (4.2%) and Petrie (4.4%).

    At least the opposition can placate itself with this week’s Resolve Strategic poll, which indicates it still leads Labor in Queensland by six points after preferences, 53% to 47%. That’s just a one-point swing to Labor since 2022. However, it would be concerned that the LNP’s lead has been slashed ten points from the previous YouGov poll.

    But most concerning must surely be a uComms poll in Dutton’s own seat of Dickson, held by a slender 1.7%, which forecast the opposition leader losing to high-profile Labor candidate Ali France, 51.7 to 48.3%. The entry of the Climate 200-backed independent candidate Ellie Smith appears to have disrupted preference flows.

    Labor’s own polling indicated a closer contest at 50% each, while the LNP’s polling indicates an easy win for Dutton, 57% to 43%, despite Labor spending A$130,000 on France’s campaign.

    An alleged terror plot against Dutton in Brisbane doesn’t appear to have shifted the dial. But voters’ potential to conflate Dutton with Trump may well have, especially given Trump’s tariffs now threaten Queensland beef producers’ $1.4 billion trade with the United States. In the closing weeks, watch as Dutton draws on the new and popular Premier David Crisafulli for electoral succour.

    South Australia

    Rob Manwaring, associate professor of politics and public policy, Flinders University

    Is there a federal election campaign taking place? In South Australia, there is a something of an elusive air about the current festival of democracy, with many voters disengaged. The lack of excitement reflects the fact that only two seats in the state are marginal: Sturt (0.5%) and Boothby (3.3%).

    The party campaigns have sparkled and flickered, but not really caught alight. The signature move was Albanese’s early announcement of the $150 million new healthcare centre at Flinders, in the seat of Boothby. For the ALP, this neatly coalesced around Labor’s campaign on Medicare.

    Federal Labor also sees its strongest asset in the state in Premier Peter Malinauskas, who was prominent during the recent AFL gather round – the round played entirely in Adelaide and its surrounds.

    In a welcome development for the state, Labor’s announcement Adelaide would be put forward to host the next Climate COP conference in 2026 was an interesting flashpoint. Locally, many businesses welcomed the announcement, as it potentially will generate significant footfall and economic activity.

    Yet, the Coalition quickly announced they would not support the bid, trying to shift the attention away from climate to cost-of-living issues.

    More generally, there is a perception the Coalition has been struggling to build campaign momentum. Notably, in a recent visit by members of the shadow cabinet, energies appear to be focused more on sandbagging the seat of Sturt than on winning Boothy, which Labor holds with a nominal 3.3%.

    Other factors also might explain a sense of indifference in South Australia. There have been key developments in state politics, for example, notably the ongoing criminal case against former Liberal leader David Speirs, and independent MP, and former Liberal, Nick McBride, who faces assault charges related to family and domestic violence (to which he’s yet to enter a plea).

    Tasmania

    Robert Hortle, deputy director of the Tasmanian Policy Exchange, University of Tasmania

    The Labor and Liberal campaign strategies started quite differently across Tasmania’s five electorates.

    Labor is desperate to defend Lyons and Franklin and hopeful of picking up Braddon (though perhaps overly ambitious, given the 8% margin).

    Its candidates have focused on promoting Labor’s big, national-level policies. In the first couple of weeks of the campaign, this meant pushing its flagship healthcare and childcare policies. Following the campaign launches on the weekend, housing is the new flavour.

    The Liberal Party – there is no Coalition in Tassie – is focused on winning super marginal Lyons (0.9%) and holding Braddon and Bass. In contrast to Labor, the Liberal campaign was initially defined by lots of community-level funding announcements and Tasmania-specific infrastructure support.

    Since the Coalition’s plan to halve the fuel excise was announced, the approach has changed somewhat. Tasmanian Liberal candidates are now swinging in behind this and other national policy pronouncements about – you guessed it – housing.

    Both major party candidates have been pretty quiet on the controversial issue of salmon farming. This is surprising given the national spotlight on Braddon’s Macquarie Harbour and the waterways of Franklin. The only exception is Braddon Labor candidate Anne Urquhart’s very vocal support for the salmon industry.

    For the Greens, the goal is to build on their 2022 vote share and turn one Senate seat into two, although this is a long shot. They have campaigned hard on issues – mainly salmon farming and native forest logging – where agreement between the Labor and Liberal parties has left space for a dissenting voice.

    Although the Greens’ chances of winning any of the lower house seats are slim, they will be hoping these issues help them make further inroads into the declining primary vote share of the major parties.

    Victoria

    Zareh Ghazarian, senior lecturer in politics, school of social sciences, Monash University

    Victoria has several seats that can potentially change hands at this election. As ABC election analyst Antony Green reminds us, the state is home to at least a dozen seats the major parties hold by a margin of 6% or less. Additionally, the independents in Kooyong and Goldstein are also on thin margins (2.2% and 3.3% respectively).

    Within this context, the campaign in Victoria has been marked by several visits by the major party leaders. The challenge, however, has been how they have worked with their state counterparts.

    State Liberal Leader Brad Battin has fallen short of explicitly supporting the Coalition’s focus on nuclear energy. Instead, he says he’s ready to have an “adult conversation” about the prospect. Coal currently provides more than 60% of electricity in Victoria.

    Dutton was, however, happy to campaign alongside Battin and also visited a petrol station with the state leader while in Melbourne.

    The Labor Party in Victoria, on the other hand, has been grappling with a drop in support in the polls, with Premier Jacinta Allan’s popularity falling. As a result, there’s been much speculation among political commentators about whether Albanese would want to be campaigning with a leader seemingly struggling to attract support.

    In one of the first visits to the state, Albanese did not campaign with Allan. This was even though he had been happy to be with the premiers of South Australia and Western Australia while campaigning there.

    According to Albanese, it was the fact that parliament was sitting that made it impossible for Allan to join him on the campaign trail. Both leaders were together at a subsequent visit, but this elicited questions about the impact of Allan’s leadership on Labor’s standing in Victoria.

    Western Australia

    Narelle Miragliotta, associate professor in politics, Murdoch University

    Reports the state’s 16 seats will decide which party grouping will form government has resulted in WA voters being treated to regular visits by the major party leaders, including Labor’s campaign launch.

    The campaign context in WA is shaped by its mining economy. Perth is the fastest growing capital in the country, which has led to strong growth in the median housing price and an expensive rental market.

    While the state’s economic prosperity is one of the drivers of cost-of-living pressures, some of this has been offset by relief measures from the state Labor government, relatively low unemployment and some of the highest average weekly incomes in the country.

    On top of this two potentially divisive issues – the nature positive laws and North West shelf gas expansion – have been defused by federal Labor. The party has backtracked in the case of the former. In the case of the latter, it has merely delayed (not without criticism, however) what is likely to be an eventual approval.

    Clearer differences have emerged on future of the WA live sheep trade. But while important to communities directly affected by the phasing out of the practice, the issue does not appear to be capturing the attention of most metropolitan voters.

    What might we expect? Labor’s two-party-preferred margin is comfortable in eight of the nine seats it holds. The five Liberal-held seats are on much slimmer margins. Polling suggests little improvement in their state-wide share of the two party preferred vote since 2022.

    To the extent the polls portend the outcome, the Liberals’ lack of electoral momentum in WA suggests it will be a struggle to regain the target seats of Curtin and Tangney. Only the outcome in WA’s newest seat, Bullwinkel, remains uncertain.

    Paul Williams is a research associate with the TJ Ryan Foundation.

    David Clune, Narelle Miragliotta, Rob Manwaring, Robert Hortle, and Zareh Ghazarian 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. State of the states: six experts on how the campaign is playing out around Australia – https://theconversation.com/state-of-the-states-six-experts-on-how-the-campaign-is-playing-out-around-australia-253124

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Cracks in social cohesion – the major parties must commit to reinvigorating multiculturalism

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Jakubowicz, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, University of Technology Sydney

    In the run up to the May 3 election, questions are being raised about the value of multiculturalism as a public policy in Australia.

    They’ve been prompted by community tensions arising from the Israeli/Palestinian conflict and the sharp increase in antisemitic and Islamophobic hate crimes.

    Is the erosion of social cohesion a consequence of multiculturalism? Or is multiculturalism the most effective approach to minimising the fissures opening up in the Australian community?

    Can Australia still pride itself on being one of the world’s most successful multicultural societies? Or will reinvigorating Australian multiculturalism be one of the great policy challenges for the next government?

    Landmark review

    It could be argued the election of the Albanese government three years ago was only possible because new multicultural candidates unexpectedly won in marginal electorates.

    Yet, the 2022 campaign barely mentioned multicultural policies apart from Labor’s pledge for a Multicultural Framework Review. That pledge was announced the day before the election. It was the first detailed examination of the state of Australia’s multicultural society in 40 years.

    Its report last year recommended the existing structures for managing multiculturalism be replaced. A Multicultural Affairs Commission and a standalone Department of Multicultural Affairs should be established.

    The existing Australian Multicultural Council was criticised as having “limited influence under Home Affairs”. Its proposed replacement, a renamed Multicultural Community Advisory Council, would be better armed to provide strategic advice. It would also have legislated powers to implement institutional change.

    But the government ignored the recommendation. It has persisted with the current Council with a slightly revised membership. Labor hasn’t indicated how it plans to overcome the problem of the Council’s ineffectual influence on multicultural affairs.

    The review stressed the importance of bipartisanship and found discrimination and prejudice is “stubbornly common” in Australia.

    But bipartisanship has been hard to find. Shadow Citizenship Minister Dan Tehan complained the review failed to deal with antisemitism. Nor did it tackle the strains on social cohesion. He blamed this on pro-Palestine civic action, hate speech and intimidation.

    Shifting focus

    The review was rapidly overtaken by events, especially public tensions associated with the Israel/Gaza war and local outbreaks of vandalism. Many grassroots initiatives proposed by the review to promote multiculturalism have been supplanted by urgent action to repair community facilities and improve safety.

    Two government-appointed envoys against antisemitism and Islamophobia have been crossing the country talking to communities, and testing the capacity of institutions to support their aspirations.

    This hive of activity around social cohesion distracts from the limited action on multiculturalism and the persistence and pervasiveness of racism in Australia.

    Last month’s federal budget funded increased security and support for multicultural communities. But the government has failed to rework the institutional infrastructure needed to move forward on the deeper issues raised by the review.

    Multicultural battleground

    There are signs in the first weeks of the campaign that the parties are aware of the issues facing particular communities. However, multiculturalism may struggle to flourish, whoever wins the election.

    Opposition Leader Peter Dutton launched a preemptive attack on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), by threatening to sack DEI positions in the Australian Public Service. And he nailed his colours to the mast by declaring he won’t stand in front of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags if he is elected prime minister.

    The Coalition may have painted itself into a tight corner after Liberal Senator Dave Sharma declared Islamophobia in Australia was “fictitious”. He contradicted the envoy on Islamophobia and potentially alienated hundreds of thousands of conservative Muslim voters.

    Nor has Labor been served well by its initial small target position on multiculturalism and its lethargic implementation of the framework review.

    It’s been wedged on the Middle East conflict: pilloried by the Coalition for its perceived weakness on antisemitism, and condemned by the Greens, who accuse it of a morally questionable position on Gaza and Palestinian issues.

    Labor also suffered a setback with Senator Fatima Payman’s desertion to the cross bench over its approach to the war in Gaza. This was shadowed by rising hostility from the “Arab street”, which could put some Western Sydney seats at risk.

    For its part, the coalition is targeting Teal seats with Jewish communities, while the contest to secure the Chinese-Australian vote could be critical in up to ten seats.

    Muliticultralism post election

    Multicultural policy cannot be allowed to drift, let alone be degraded. High levels of political alienation in many communities across the country suggest a much more fractured electorate.

    It is critical for Australians’ sense of community cohesion, inclusion and social justice that a more robust multicultural strategy be articulated by the major parties. A Multicultural Community Advisory Council with the heft to influence debate must be adopted, as should the recommendation for a legislated Australian Multicultural Commission.

    Silence on multicultural policy will not deliver these outcomes. At the moment the sound of that silence is deafening.

    This is the ninth article in our special series, Australia’s Policy Challenges. You can read the other articles here

    Andrew Jakubowicz was a consultant to the Multicultural Framework Review on research.

    – ref. Cracks in social cohesion – the major parties must commit to reinvigorating multiculturalism – https://theconversation.com/cracks-in-social-cohesion-the-major-parties-must-commit-to-reinvigorating-multiculturalism-250635

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ALLEGHENY COUNTY – Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, Department of Aging to Announce New Initiative to Make the Commonwealth Friendlier, More Welcoming for Older Adults

    Source: US State of Pennsylvania

    April 17, 2025 – McKeesport, PA

    ADVISORY – ALLEGHENY COUNTY – Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, Department of Aging to Announce New Initiative to Make the Commonwealth Friendlier, More Welcoming for Older Adults

    Lt. Gov. Austin Davis will join Pennsylvania Department of Aging Secretary Jason Kavulich and local leaders to highlight current initiatives in Southwest PA to create age-friendly communities – all with the goal of encouraging more cities, towns, and neighborhoods in the Commonwealth to ensure older Pennsylvanians have the services and support they need to age with dignity.

    The event will feature presentations on what an age-friendly community looks like, the successes of these communities, and what it means for older Pennsylvanians.

    The Department of Aging has incorporated the development of age-friendly communities throughout Pennsylvania as part of Aging Our Way, PA – the 10-year strategic plan that will help transform service delivery to ensure all Pennsylvanians can live healthy, fulfilling lives as they age. The Age-Friendly PA initiative will support existing communities and encourage new communities to participate throughout the Commonwealth.

    WHO:
    Lt. Gov. Austin Davis
    Secretary of Aging Jason Kavulich
    Congresswoman Summer Lee
    Senator Nick Pisciottano
    Rich Fitzgerald, executive director, Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission
    Mary Esther Van Shura, AARP executive council member
    Paul Winkler, Southwest PA Partnership for Aging board member
    Dr. Megan Nagel, Penn State regional chancellor
    Dr. Elizabeth Farmer, dean, University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work
    Laura Poskin, executive director, Age-Friendly Greater Pittsburgh

    WHEN:
    Thursday, April 17, 2025, at 2:30 PM

    WHERE:
    Penn State Greater Allegheny
    4000 University Dr.
    McKeesport, 15132
    *Ostermayer Room in the Student Community Center

    MEDIA RSVP: Media interested in attending must RSVP with the name of photographer/reporter to agingcomms@pa.gov

    MEDIA CONTACT:
    Jack Eilber, Revenue, agingcomms@pa.gov

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Putin and Sobyanin visited the new campus of Bauman Moscow State Technical University

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –

    President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin visited the new campus of the Moscow State Technical University (MSTU) named after N.E. Bauman. He familiarized himself with the research and development of teachers, students and postgraduates in the field of space exploration, as well as in other areas. The Mayor of Moscow Sergei Sobyanin reported to the head of state on the work of the Moscow Government to develop Russia’s leading engineering university.

    Vladimir Putin also held a meeting at the university on the development of space activities, which was attended by representatives of departments related to this industry.

    “Our focus today is on the development of the domestic space industry for the long term. Addressing this topic is always a special responsibility to the pioneers of space, to those people who set the highest bar for us,” said the Russian President.

    Vladimir Putin congratulated veterans of the industry, cosmonauts and servicemen of the Russian Aerospace Forces on the recent Cosmonautics Day, and also thanked all employees of state enterprises, private space companies, scientific organizations and universities for their work. Particular attention was paid to the merits of the team of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, among whose graduates there is a whole galaxy of famous cosmonauts, outstanding scientists and designers.

    “The best traditions of personnel training are developing and multiplying these days, and, as we have seen, in the new campus. Modern conditions are being created here for obtaining in-demand competencies. Of course, we will implement such projects in other cities of Russia,” Vladimir Putin emphasized.

    Construction of the campus of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University

    The project for the construction of a new educational complex of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University was implemented by the Moscow Government together with the Russian Government on behalf of Vladimir Putin. The new campus became the first facility in the country built under the federal project “Creation of a Network of Modern Campuses”. It became part of the national project “Science and Universities”, the implementation of which has been ongoing since 2025 within the framework of the national project “Youth and Children”This is one of the largest and most complex projects in the field of development of higher professional education.

    “A total of 14 buildings with a total area of about 170 thousand square meters were built and restored in the shortest possible time. This was achieved through coordinated work – the facilities were built and designed in parallel. In almost 90 percent of cases, components and equipment from domestic manufacturers were used,” the Moscow Mayor said.

    in his telegram channel.

    Source: Sergei Sobyanin’s Telegram channel @Mos_Sobyanin

    In 2022 – early 2024, six facilities of the MSTU research cluster were opened.

    The Life Sciences Engineering Cluster (formerly the Biomedical Systems and Technologies Center) is designed to implement modern educational programs, conduct research and development in the field of engineering and life sciences. Along with the educational programs of the Biomedical Engineering Faculty, research and development in the field of advanced biomedical engineering is conducted here. The building houses classrooms, including an office with a transformable partition, rooms for teachers, and a meeting room. Much space is allocated to advanced laboratories, including Biophotonics and Visualization of Living Systems, Neuroinfobionics, Rapid Prototyping, Cellular Technologies and Tissue Engineering, and Functional Hydrogels.

    The Engineering Center for Ground Transport and Technological Systems is designed to carry out research and development work, as well as to implement educational programs in the field of creation and operation of ground transport and technological machines and complexes. The building houses laboratories, engineers’ offices, educational and laboratory premises, office premises for employees, a classroom, premises for scientific research and meetings. The KAMAZ-Bauman Scientific and Educational Center and several specialized laboratories operate here. In particular, the Wheeled Machines laboratory has been opened, conducting work in five key areas, such as Traction Electric Drives and Mechatronic Transmissions, Intelligent NTTS Systems, Hydraulic Testing, On-Board Storage Devices, and Acoustic Testing.

    The multifunctional scientific and educational building is a new five-story building with an area of 20 thousand square meters, designed to accommodate research laboratories, scientific, administrative and educational spaces. The building houses seven departments of the university, as well as a complex of laboratories of mechanical engineering technologies, ground-based technological and launch equipment for rocket and space, vacuum and compressor technology. In total, 26 laboratories are open here, including laboratories of additive manufacturing technologies, reverse engineering and prototyping, research and certification of additive materials and additive manufacturing technologies.

    The exhibition and educational media space “Palace of Technologies” is located in the building of an architectural monument – the restored two-story Phanagoria barracks built in the 18th century. The ceremonial halls of the palace are intended for holding ceremonies, international meetings, scientific and educational forums and other thematic events of congress and exhibition activities. The university’s specialized departments are located here – the information policy department and the organizational and protocol work department. In December 2023, the building hosted the first open day of the Faculty of Robotics and Complex Automation, which was attended by more than 200 people. Representatives of the faculty prepared lectures on the digital transformation of industry, robotics and engineering infrastructure of a modern industrial enterprise. Applicants and their parents were told about the admission rules, curricula of educational programs, as well as future employment, career and salary prospects.

    The research center is a new six-story building with an area of 5.1 thousand square meters. The advanced engineering school “System Engineering of Rocket and Space Technology” operates on its basis. In addition, departments developing products for space and aviation have launched their activities here.

    The multifunctional library building is a restored three-story building of the chemical laboratory of the Imperial Moscow Technical School, built in the 19th century according to the design of the architect Lev Kekushev. It trains IT specialists. It houses classrooms and computer labs for lectures, seminars and laboratory work, specialized laboratories for classes with senior students of the university’s industrial partners – IT companies, as well as coworking spaces and premises for teachers and postgraduate students of the departments. Since February 2024, the building has been hosting strategic sessions, scientific and practical conferences and other socially significant events. In addition, it was used as an accreditation center on the day of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University alumni meeting, which was attended by more than two thousand people.

    Vladimir Putin and Sergei Sobyanin opened new buildings of Bauman Moscow State Technical University

    By September 2024, work on several sites was completed.

    The central cluster with a total area of about 51 thousand square meters includes five buildings of different heights – from four to six. The main task of the architects was to visually separate different functional areas without disturbing the overall harmony of the ensemble. To do this, they decided to detail the facades of the buildings with the help of scientific formulas. The facade glass looks different: in some places the formulas and equations are visible as clearly as possible, in others they are reflected, and in buildings with atrium spaces they can disappear depending on the viewing angle. All five buildings are united by a hovering dome roof – a membrane structure with an area of 2.5 thousand square meters, which will protect the ensemble and the inner courtyard from bad weather and make it more comfortable.

    The center of the square is the “tree of knowledge” – an oak tree, around which an amphitheater for students and employees of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University is located. The inner courtyard is open to city residents, which made it possible to create a new center for meetings and communication.

    The central cluster of Bauman Moscow State Technical University houses an innovation hub and a congress center, a cluster of “Environmental Protection Technologies – Green Territory”, a center of excellence and a scientific and educational cluster of digital transformation, a center of excellence and a scientific and educational cluster of “Digital Materials Science”, as well as a federal testing center.

    The multifunctional complex “Quantum Park” with a total area of 13.8 thousand square meters houses research laboratories with advanced equipment, including world-class “clean rooms”, co-working spaces and transformable spaces for presenting scientific developments.

    Today, it is one of the most advanced research complexes in the world. It is designed to solve practical problems at the intersection of quantum, photonic and fluid technologies that will determine the future of science and industry.

    The Quantum Park building is one of the largest and at the same time the most equipped in the new cluster. “House of Light” was the working title of the new building. The architects sought to make it truly airy and luminous.

    The Bauman Moscow State Technical University dormitory complex consists of the Spektr and Strela buildings. It is designed to accommodate about 2.3 thousand students.

    According to Sergei Sobyanin, a small plot of land between the river and the city collector was chosen for its construction. Now the dormitories have everything necessary for a comfortable stay of students.

    In addition to living quarters, the buildings with a total area of 60.5 thousand square meters house a multifunctional educational and leisure center, multimedia spaces and the necessary social infrastructure. An unusual form of faceted crystals was chosen for the student dormitory buildings: the monoform effect was achieved by increasing the size of the glass on the facades.

    The flat facade of the building reflects the surrounding environment during the day: trees, clouds and sun. From the street, spectacular panoramic glass spanning the entire floor is visible. The windows inside the building are not only beautiful, but also fully functional: there are window sills and ventilation sashes.

    The seven-story Spektr building on Gospitalnaya Embankment is designed for 550 students who live in single, double, triple and quadruple rooms. Some of the rooms have been adapted for people with disabilities. The residential units have a kitchen area, an entrance hall, a bathroom with a bathtub, and modern and functional furniture. The building houses the Novoselye information center. It processes documents for moving in and accepts requests for electrical, plumbing and furniture repairs. Public spaces include coworking spaces and rooms with individual work areas, music classrooms and rehearsal rooms. The Spektr building also has a modern canteen with 140 seats.

    Sergei Sobyanin announced the completion of construction of two new buildings of Baumanka

    Metro station and pedestrian bridges

    Simultaneously with the construction of the research cluster, the Moscow Government implemented a set of measures to develop transport infrastructure and improve the territory in the area of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University.

    Opened in 2020 Elektrozavodskaya station Large metro ring line. Thanks to the improvement of the adjacent territory, convenient approaches and access roads to it from residential buildings were provided.

    In April 2022, a pedestrian bridge across the Yauza River was opened near the new station. The 111-meter-long artificial structure connected residential areas on the Semenovskaya and Rubtsovskaya embankments, providing convenient access for teachers and students of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, as well as local residents, to the Elektrozavodskaya metro station of the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya and Big Circle Lines and the station of the same name on the third Moscow Central Diameter.

    In September 2024, the construction of a 243-meter-long bicycle and pedestrian bridge across the Yauza River was completed. It provides a connection between the educational buildings of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University, as well as unimpeded passage from Rubtsovskaya Embankment to the buildings of the N.N. Burdenko Main Military Clinical Hospital. The artificial structure was made in the form of open caissoned steel structures with lighting from the bottom. This gives a sense of the fluidity of the bridge and the river beneath it. The smooth lines of the structures compositionally continue the lines of the concrete supports.

    The accent points of the bridge are the staircase and elevator units, made in the form of crystals. They harmoniously connect the appearance of the engineering structure with the architecture of the new campus buildings. In addition, the crystals have a symbolic connection with education and scientific activity. Cyclists and pedestrians can move along the bridge. There is a recreation area and a viewing area – a comfortable observation deck with an amphitheater. In addition to bike paths, the bridge is equipped with ramps for cyclists, stairways and elevators for people with limited mobility.

    Moscow Mayor: 25 Tunnels, Overpasses, Bridges and Overpasses Built in 2024

    Metallurg Stadium

    The historic Metallurg stadium on the bank of the Yauza River was donated to Bauman Moscow State Technical University. It became the university’s main home arena.

    According to Sergei Sobyanin, a complete reconstruction of the stadium is currently underway, within the framework of which a modern gym and changing rooms will be built here, and all the necessary infrastructure will be created.

    The comprehensive renovation of the sports facility is planned to be completed in the third quarter of 2025. It will house a football and rugby field, a basketball and volleyball court, beach volleyball, workout and tennis areas. In addition, sports enthusiasts will be provided with a physical education and health complex and an administrative and household complex with volleyball courts that can be transformed for other sports (table tennis, basketball and mini-football), as well as a hall for the volleyball super league, exercise machines, comfortable locker rooms, coaches’ rooms, a room for storing sports equipment and a first aid station. In addition, the stadium will have an event venue, a recreation area, a pavilion-cafe with a summer terrace and a children’s play area.

    The renovated Metallurg stadium will become a modern sports complex — Sobyanin

    Improvement of neighborhoods in the area of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University

    “Along with the construction of the research cluster, much was done to improve the transport infrastructure in the area of the university. The nearby neighborhoods were also improved,” said Sergei Sobyanin

    in his telegram channel.

    Source: Sergei Sobyanin’s Telegram channel @Mos_Sobyanin

    Landscaping works were carried out in the areas located near the Bauman Moscow State Technical University complex of buildings and the Metallurg stadium. In particular, in 2023, landscaping of 14 objects was completed: Baumanskaya, 2-ya Baumanskaya, Malaya Pochtovaya and Ladozhskaya streets, as well as Staro-Kirochny, Denisovsky, Gardnerovsky, Brigadirsky, Maly Gavrikov, Gospitalny and Spartakovsky lanes, Proektiruyemy proezd No. 1106, the inter-yard area from Lefortovskaya Square to Gospitalny Lane, as well as Khomutovsky blind alley.

    Comfortable conditions for pedestrians were created on the landscaped streets: sidewalks were widened where possible, new outdoor lighting supports with energy-saving lamps were installed, and comfortable public spaces with places to rest were arranged.

     

    Four new pavilions with charging slots and information boards were installed at public transport stops. Convenient parking for 278 cars was arranged, and for cyclists – bicycle parking for 63 places.

    During the additional landscaping work, lawns and flower beds with a total area of over 14 thousand square meters were laid out, and large trees and shrubs were planted.

    Under the Clean Sky project, overhead cable lines were moved to underground collectors. In addition, storm drains were put in order, the asphalt pavement of the roadway was replaced, road signs and other infrastructure facilities were updated.

    Sobyanin: A number of areas near universities in Moscow will be improved by 2024

    In September 2024, the reorganization of the space between Lefortovo Embankment and Bauman Moscow State Technical University was completed. A convenient route from the main building of the university to the Faculty of Power Engineering and a new pedestrian path from Lefortovo Square to the embankment were created for students and teachers. The area in front of Lefortovo Palace was also transformed: an additional approach to the main building of the university was organized in place of the dilapidated buildings, the granite paving of the staircase near the building was renewed, benches were installed on the territory, a lawn was laid out and a video surveillance system was installed. The sidewalk along the embankment was widened, protective screens and lanterns with energy-efficient lamps were installed, and the parking area was reorganized.

    Leading space university in Russia

    Bauman Moscow State Technical University is rightfully considered the largest center for training personnel for the space industry. Among the university’s graduates are outstanding designers Sergei Korolev, Vladimir Barmin, Nikolai Pilyugin, many other managers and leading employees of industry enterprises, as well as 15 cosmonauts.

    Today, more than 4.5 thousand students are studying at the university in areas related to space exploration. By the end of 2024, 90 percent of graduates in these specialties were successfully employed.

    For the practice-oriented training of students and the implementation of research and development work on space topics, specialized divisions operate at Bauman Moscow State Technical University:

    — educational and experimental center based at the Dmitrov branch;

    — an educational and scientific youth space center with a flight control center, in which students develop microsatellites, payloads for space experiments, and special software and mathematical support;

    — the design bureau “Breakthrough Space Research and Technology”, which implements the full cycle of spacecraft and their systems development, integration of target equipment from third-party developers and leading domestic scientific organizations. Currently, there are six satellites in orbit, designed for weather monitoring and forecasting. They are also used for marine navigation of ships, including in the Northern Sea Route zone;

    — advanced engineering school “System Engineering of Rocket and Space Technology”. The federal project was created in 2022 on the initiative of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation with the aim of training specialists in the field of system design to solve breakthrough problems in the rocket and space industry, as well as to implement projects in the interests of high-tech companies. Special equipment and machinery have been purchased for specific educational and research purposes, which are already being used by teachers and students.

    Today, 160 students are studying at the engineering school. The training includes practical work at enterprises of the state corporation Roscosmos and private space companies in the laboratories of the advanced engineering school, work with mentors in team projects. Students in interdisciplinary teams participate in the implementation of research and development work commissioned by industry enterprises. The school works in several areas, including the creation of the Russian orbital station and the production of a promising component base to ensure Russia’s technological sovereignty in space.

    Which capital companies offer internship and practical training programs for university and college students

    On cooperation with the Moscow Innovation Cluster

    MSTU named after N.E. Bauman is a member Moscow Innovation Cluster. The university carries out research and development work for government and commercial customers in the field of creating spacecraft, electronic systems, and other strategically important areas. In particular, work is underway on the project of a small-sized descent vehicle “Zaryanka” – a system for delivering samples and materials for research from orbit of space stations.

    On the development of the Moscow aerospace industry

    Moscow is the center of the rocket and space industry of Russia, where over 40 enterprises, scientific and technical centers, laboratories and research institutes work. They employ over 30 thousand people. These are engineers and designers, developers and other specialists in related fields, thanks to whom almost everything is created in the city: from ultra-light cables to launch vehicles and components for spacecraft.

    In 2024, manufacturers of aircraft, including spacecraft, and related equipment increased shipments by 11.7 percent compared to 2023: companies delivered products worth about 214.4 billion rubles. The revenue of enterprises in 2024 amounted to almost 200 billion rubles, and investments in fixed assets exceeded nine billion rubles.

    The Khrunichev State Space Research and Production Center operates in Moscow. It is one of the basic enterprises of the Roscosmos state corporation, a leading domestic developer and manufacturer of space launch vehicles of various payload capacities and their components for federal and commercial programs. For example, it created the third stage, assembly units, payload fairing and other parts of the Angara-A5 heavy rocket, which was launched on April 11, 2024.

    The development of control systems for rocket and space technology is carried out by the Scientific and Production Center for Automation and Instrumentation (NPCAI) named after Academician N.A. Pilyugin. Here they produced the control system for the Angara-A5 rocket, and for the Proton-M launch vehicle – a single hardware and software complex that ensures control of pre-launch preparation and flight mode. In addition, the Fregat upper stage, designed to launch spacecraft into various specified orbits, is equipped with an integrated inertial-satellite control system of JSC NPCAI.

    A unique development of Moscow industrialists was space bread. The capital’s Research Institute of the Baking Industry is responsible for its production. This product, which can be stored for 15 months, is supplied to cosmonauts in the form of mini-loaves. In addition, flour flatbreads with onions, cheese and ketchup are prepared for them, as well as mini-muffins and rolls for tea.

    The capital’s Spetskabel plant produces a cable for onboard computer networks using SpaceWire technology. Information is transmitted at a speed of 400 megabits per second, four times faster than similar products. It is manufactured using lightweight foam insulation technology, which makes the cable thinner and lighter than foreign analogues. Its operating temperature is from minus 198 to plus 200 degrees, which guarantees stable operation in extreme space conditions.

    In the Moscow engineering center “Automated Control Systems” they test the electronic component base for products of the rocket and space industry in the components of ground simulators for training cosmonauts for flight, as well as in many other devices. They are tested, in particular, for resistance to shock loads and for determining the critical frequencies of the product.

    Ventilation systems produced in the capital are used at key facilities in the space industry. Thus, the GalVent ventilation factory ensures a comfortable microclimate in the premises at the Vostochny and Plesetsk cosmodromes, the country’s scientific and production centers, and the center for the operation of ground-based space infrastructure facilities.

    The Russian aerospace company Bureau 1440 is developing a low-orbit satellite constellation that will provide broadband Internet access with data transfer rates of up to one gigabit per second with minimal delays anywhere on Earth. The work is being carried out as part of the national project Data Economy.

    Sobyanin: Moscow remains the center of Russia’s high-tech industry

    A number of other companies also work in the Moscow space industry. For example, the N.A. Dollezhal Research and Design Institute of Power Engineering produces systems for the automation of reactors and nuclear space installations.

    ExpertStroyProekt LLC produces antenna and telemetry systems, ground-based receiving telemetry stations, as well as command radio line equipment, space, rocket and aviation based for stationary monitoring of the Earth’s surface and its atmosphere, measuring, receiving and control radio engineering and optoelectronic testing complexes for rocket and aviation equipment.

    The State Research Institute of Instrument Engineering produces drones and various devices of a wide range, on-board systems for space and aircraft.

    The Kometa Corporation produces computing systems, automated control systems, spacecraft payloads, television systems, automatic equipment, radio measuring equipment, artistic castings and television surveillance systems. The Research Institute of Precision Instruments produces products for radio control of spacecraft.

    The research and production enterprise (RPE) “Impulse” is creating a controlled thermostatic system for liquid fuel of a rocket engine under conditions of variable thermal load, and the RPE “Quantum” is creating autonomous power supply systems.

    OOO Sputniks (Skolkovo) manufactures debugging tools and devices for microsatellites, and the scientific and production concern Barl develops and implements solutions in the field of remote sensing of the Earth and satellite communications.

    The VNIIEM corporation is engaged in space systems for remote sensing of the Earth, and the scientific and production association Nauka creates life support systems.

    The All-Russian Research Institute of Aviation Materials of the National Research Center “Kurchatov Institute” is producing a light-filtering gold coating for the Orlan spacesuit.

    JSC Aeropribor-Voskhod produces aerometric, radio-electronic and navigation equipment, precision and working pressure gauges for aviation and space technology.

    A large number of projects in this industry and the telecommunications sector are being implemented in the special economic zone (SEZ) Technopolis Moscow. At the Pechatniki site, one of the leading Russian developers of high-tech equipment, Neoros LLC, in partnership with Biforcom Tek LLC, produces transceivers used in telecommunications equipment. The Goodwin Concern produces a microcellular communication system used to service subscribers. Labs 1440 JSC (ICS Holding Company) has placed the production of components for a low-orbit satellite system.

    At the Alabushevo site in Zelenograd, the Electroinvest group of companies launched the production of radiation-resistant secondary power sources.

    The construction of the Moscow Photonics Center has been completed. Its production capacity will be 100 thousand photonic integrated circuits (PIC) per year. A PIC is a microchip designed for ultra-fast processing of light (photonic) signals, which increases the data transfer rate by 100 times. It is a basic element for the implementation of modern technologies of artificial intelligence, fifth-generation mobile communications (5G), biomedicine, lidars, radars and much more.

    Another important project at the Alabushevo site is the construction of a photomask center, which is used to create integrated circuits. The enterprise’s capacity will allow it to produce up to 5.5 thousand photomasks per year.

    Over the year, 30 high-tech production facilities have been launched in the Technopolis Moscow SEZ

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

    Please Note; This Information is Raw Content Directly from the Information Source. It is access to What the Source Is Stating and Does Not Reflect

    HTTPS: //vv.mos.ru/mayor/tkhemes/12629050/

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Hubble Provides New View of Galactic Favorite

    Source: NASA

    As part of ESA/Hubble’s 35th anniversary celebrations, the European Space Agency (ESA) is sharing a new image series revisiting stunning, previously released Hubble targets with the addition of the latest Hubble data and new processing techniques.
    ESA/Hubble published a new image of NGC 346 as the first installment in the series. Now, they are revisiting a fan-favorite galaxy with new image processing techniques. The new image reveals finer detail in the galaxy’s disk, as well as more background stars and galaxies.
    Over the past two decades, Hubble has released several images of the Sombrero Galaxy, including this well-known Hubble image from October 2003. In November 2024, the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope also provided an entirely new perspective on this striking galaxy.
    Located around 30 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo, the Sombrero Galaxy is instantly recognizable. Viewed nearly edge on, the galaxy’s softly luminous bulge and sharply outlined disk resemble the rounded crown and broad brim of the Mexican hat from which the galaxy gets its name.

    NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image of the Sombrero Galaxy, also called Messier 104.
    ESA/Hubble & NASA, K. Noll

    Though packed with stars, the Sombrero Galaxy is surprisingly not a hotbed of star formation. Less than one solar mass of gas is converted into stars within the knotted, dusty disk of the galaxy each year. Even the galaxy’s central supermassive black hole, which at nine billion solar masses is more than 2,000 times more massive than the Milky Way’s central black hole, is fairly calm.
    The galaxy is too faint to spot with the unaided eye, but it is readily viewable with a modest amateur telescope. Seen from Earth, the galaxy spans a distance equivalent to roughly one-third the diameter of the full Moon. The galaxy’s size on the sky is too large to fit within Hubble’s narrow field of view, so this image is actually a mosaic of several images stitched together.
    One of the things that makes this galaxy especially notable is its viewing angle, which is inclined just six degrees off of the galaxy’s equator. From this vantage point, intricate clumps and strands of dust stand out against the brilliant white galactic nucleus and bulge, creating an effect not unlike Saturn and its rings — but on an epic galactic scale.
    At the same time, this extreme angle makes it difficult to discern the structure of the Sombrero Galaxy. It’s not clear whether it’s a spiral galaxy, like our own Milky Way, or an elliptical galaxy. Curiously, the galaxy’s disk seems like a fairly typical disk for a spiral galaxy, and its spheroidal bulge and halo seem fairly typical for an elliptical galaxy — but the combination of the two components resembles neither a spiral nor an elliptical galaxy.
    Researchers used Hubble to investigate the Sombrero Galaxy, measuring the metals (what astronomers call elements heavier than helium) in stars in the galaxy’s expansive halo. This type of measurement can help astronomers better understand a galaxy’s history, potentially revealing whether it merged with other galaxies in the past. In the case of the Sombrero Galaxy, extremely metal-rich stars in the halo point to a possible merger with a massive galaxy several billion years ago. An ancient galactic clash, hinted at by Hubble’s sensitive measurements, could explain the Sombrero Galaxy’s distinctive appearance.
    The Hubble Space Telescope has been operating for over three decades and continues to make ground-breaking discoveries that shape our fundamental understanding of the universe. Hubble is a project of international cooperation between NASA and ESA (European Space Agency). NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the telescope and mission operations. Lockheed Martin Space, based in Denver, also supports mission operations at Goddard. The Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, conducts Hubble science operations for NASA.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How single-stream recycling works − your choices can make it better

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Alex Jordan, Associate Professor of Plastics Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Stout

    Successful recycling requires some care. Alejandra Villa Loarca/Newsday RM via Getty Images

    Every week, millions of Americans toss their recyclables into a single bin, trusting that their plastic bottles, aluminum cans and cardboard boxes will be given a new life.

    But what really happens after the truck picks them up?

    Single-stream recycling makes participating in recycling easy, but behind the scenes, complex sorting systems and contamination mean a large percentage of that material never gets a second life. Reports in recent years have found 15% to 25% of all the materials picked up from recycle bins ends up in landfills instead.

    Plastics are among the biggest challenges. Only about 9% of the plastic generated in the U.S. actually gets recycled, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Some plastic is incinerated to produce energy, but most of the rest ends up in landfills instead.

    A breakdown of U.S. recycling by millions of tons shows about two-thirds of all paper and cardboard gets a second life, but only about a third of metal, a quarter of glass and less than 10% of plastics do.
    Alex Jordan/University of Wisconsin-Stout

    So, what makes plastic recycling so difficult? As an engineer whose work focuses on reprocessing plastics, I have been exploring potential solutions.

    How does single-stream recycling work?

    In cities that use single-stream recycling, consumers put all of their recyclable materials − paper, cardboard, plastic, glass and metal − into a single bin. Once collected, the mixed recyclables are taken to a materials recovery facility, where they are sorted.

    First, the mixed recyclables are shredded and crushed into smaller fragments, enabling more effective separation. The mixed fragments pass over rotating screens that remove cardboard and paper, allowing heavier materials, including plastics, metals and glass, to continue along the sorting line.

    The basics of a single-stream recycling system in Pennsylvania. Source: Van Dyk Recycling Solutions.

    Magnets are used to pick out ferrous metals, such as steel. A magnetic field that produces an electrical current with eddies sends nonferrous metals, such as aluminum, into a separate stream, leaving behind plastics and glass.

    The glass fragments are removed from the remaining mix using gravity or vibrating screens.

    That leaves plastics as the primary remaining material.

    While single-stream recycling is convenient, it has downsides. Contamination, such as food residue, plastic bags and items that can’t be recycled, can degrade the quality of the remaining material, making it more difficult to reuse. That lowers its value.

    Having to remove that contamination raises processing costs and can force recovery centers to reject entire batches.

    Plastic bags, food residue and items that can’t be recycled can contaminate a recycling stream.
    City of Greenville, N.C./Flickr

    Which plastics typically can’t be recycled?

    Each recycling program has rules for which items it will and won’t take. You can check which items can and cannot be recycled for your specific program on your municipal page. Often, that means checking the recycling code stamped on the plastic next to the recycling icon.

    These are the toughest plastics to recycle and most likely to be excluded in your local recycling program:

    • Symbol 3 – Polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, found in pipes, shower curtains and some food packaging. It may contain harmful additives such as phthalates and heavy metals. PVC also degrades easily, and melting can release toxic fumes during recycling, contaminating other materials and making it unsafe to process in standard recycling facilities.

    • Symbol 4 – Low-density polyethylene, or LDPE, is often used in plastic bags and shrink-wrap. Because it’s flexible and lightweight, it’s prone to getting tangled in sorting machinery at recycling plants.

    • Symbol 6 – Polystyrene, often used in foam cups, takeout containers and packing peanuts. Because it’s lightweight and brittle, it’s difficult to collect and process and easily contaminates recycling streams.

    Which plastics to include

    That leaves three plastics that can be recycled in many facilities:

    However, these aren’t accepted in some facilities for reasons I’ll explain.

    Taking apart plastics, bead by bead

    Some plastics can be chemically recycled or ground up for reprocessing, but not all plastics play well together.

    Simple separation methods, such as placing ground-up plastics in water, can easily remove your soda bottle plastic (PET) from the mixture. The ground-up PET sinks in water due to the plastic’s density. However, HDPE, used in milk jugs, and PP, found in yogurt cups, both float, and they can’t be recycled together. So, more advanced and expensive technology, such as infrared spectroscopy, is often required to separate those two materials.

    Once separated, the plastic from your soda bottle can be chemically recycled through a process called solvolysis.

    It works like this: Plastic materials are formed from polymers. A polymer is a molecule with many repeating units, called monomers. Picture a pearl necklace. The individual pearls are the repeating monomer units. The string that runs through the pearls is the chemical bond that joins the monomer units together. The entire necklace can then be thought of as a single molecule.

    During solvolysis, chemists break down that necklace by cutting the string holding the pearls together until they are individual pearls. Then, they string those pearls together again to create new necklaces.

    Other chemical recycling methods, such as pyrolysis and gasification, have drawn environmental and health concerns because the plastic is heated, which can release toxic fumes. But chemical recycling also holds the potential to reduce both plastic waste and the need for new plastics, while generating energy.

    The problem of yogurt cups and milk jugs

    The other two common types of recycled plastics − items such as yogurt cups (PP) and milk jugs (HDPE) − are like oil and water: Each can be recycled through reprocessing, but they don’t mix.

    If polyethylene and polypropylene aren’t completely separated during recycling, the resulting mix can be brittle and generally unusable for creating new products.

    Chemists are working on solutions that could increase the quality of recycled plastics through mechanical reprocessing, typically done at separate facilities.

    One promising mechanical method for recycling mixed plastics is to incorporate a chemical called a compatibilizer. Compatibilizers contain the chemical structure of multiple different polymers in the same molecule. It’s like how lecithin, commonly found in egg yolks, can help mix oil and water to make mayonnaise − part of the lecithin molecule is in the oil phase and part is in the water phase.

    In the case of yogurt cups and milk jugs, recently developed block copolymers are able to produce recycled plastic materials with the flexibility of polyethylene and the strength of polypropylene.

    Improving recycling

    Research like this can make recycled materials more versatile and valuable and move products closer to a goal of a circular economy without waste.

    However, improving recycling also requires better recycling habits.

    You can help the recycling process by taking a few minutes to wash off food waste, avoiding putting plastic bags in your recycling bin and, importantly, paying attention to what can and cannot be recycled in your area.

    Alex Jordan received funding in in the past from TotalEnergies. He has worked on projects to create PP-PE block copolymers.

    – ref. How single-stream recycling works − your choices can make it better – https://theconversation.com/how-single-stream-recycling-works-your-choices-can-make-it-better-250017

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: News release on CRB treatments in Kona

    Source: US State of Hawaii

    News release on CRB treatments in Kona

    Posted on Apr 16, 2025 in Latest Department News, Newsroom

        

         

    STATE OF HAWAIʻI

    KA MOKU ʻĀINA O HAWAIʻI

     

    DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

    ʻOIHANA MAHIʻAI

     

    JOSH GREEN, M.D.
     GOVERNOR

    KE KIAʻĀINA

    SHARON HURD
    CHAIRPERSON

    HAWAIʻI BOARD OF AGRICULTURE

     

    DEAN M. MATSUKAWA
    DEPUTY TO THE CHAIRPERSON

    HAWAIʻI BOARD OF AGRICULTURE

     

     

     

    HDOA CONTINUES COCONUT RHINOCEROS BEETLE TREATMENTS
    IN KONA

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                       

    NR25-08

    April 15, 2025

     

    HONOLULU – The Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture (HDOA), with the assistance of the County of Hawai‘i Public Works Department, have been working collaboratively since January 2025 to combat the coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB) after detections in the Kona area. The HDOA and Hawai‘i County crews completed the latest round of treatments on palm trees last week at Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport in the continuing effort to protect the island from CRB infestations.

    “The staff of the Department of Agriculture remains dedicated to stopping the further spread of the coconut rhinoceros beetle, with emphasis in areas that are not known to be infested,” said Sharon Hurd, chairperson of the Hawai‘i Board of Agriculture. “We truly appreciate the concern and assistance of Mayor Kimo Alameda and the county’s public works crew in providing the resources to prevent CRB from taking hold on Hawai‘i Island. We also appreciate all the various agencies and organizations that work tirelessly in the fight against invasive species.”

    Mayor Alameda emphasized the importance of the state and county working collaboratively to protect the island from the invasive species. “The introduction of the coconut rhinoceros beetle is a major concern, and we are committed to doing everything we can—alongside HDOA and our other partners—to stop its spread,” he said.

     

    In September 2024, HDOA Plant Pest Control (PPC) personnel found a single CRB in a trap during routine monitoring in Waikoloa. This was the first detection of CRB on the island since October 2023 when a Waikoloa resident found six grubs (larvae) in a decaying palm tree stump. Increased surveillance continued throughout the island and more intensely on the Kona side.

    In January 2025, Mayor Alameda and the County of Hawai‘i offered their resources and assistance to HDOA, including the use of their 75-foot boom truck to treat the crowns of palm trees. On January 14, the team treated a total of 38 trees in the Waikoloa area via crown treatments and 24 trees were treated via an injection system which provides systemic protection against CRB. HDOA’s Pesticides Branch was also at the site to assist. So far, there have been no further detections of CRB in Waikoloa.

    On March 3, 2025, the Big Island Invasive Species Committee (BIISC) reported one adult CRB in a detection trap along the boundary of the Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport. A day later, two more adult CRBs were found in traps at the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawai‘i (NELHA).

    After the detections, HDOA, county crews and airport staff targeted treatments at the airport over a period of three days in March. The county provided the use of two boom trucks and the team treated 128 trees on the airport grounds and injected 12 more trees that were inaccessible to the boom trucks. So far, there have been no further detections at the airport.

    Last week, on April 7 and 8, crews began work at NELHA and treated 58 trees via crown treatments with about 14 trees treated via injections due to their close proximity to water.

    All palms that were treated were tagged and surrounded with yellow tape to indicate treatment. Coconuts from treated trees should not be consumed. Questions regarding pesticide use may be addressed to HDOA’s Pesticides Branch at 808-973-9402.

    Surveillance for CRB continues around Hawai‘i Island by HDOA, BIISC, University of Hawai‘i, the County of Hawai‘i and the state Department of Health Vector Control Branch. 

    Residents on all islands are asked to be vigilant when purchasing mulch, compost and soil products, and to inspect bags for evidence of entry holes. CRB grubs breed in decomposing plant and animal waste. An adult beetle is about 2-inches long, all black and has a single horn on its head.

    Residents may go to the CRB Response website at:  https://www.crbhawaii.org/  to learn more about how to detect the signs of CRB damage and how to identify CRB life stages. Reports of possible CRB infestation may also be made to the state’s toll-free Pest Hotline at 808-643-PEST (7378).

    # # #

    Attachments: Photos:
    Waikoloa treatment – boom truck
    Waikoloa injection
    Waikoloa treatment ground (treated trees marked with yellow tape and tagged)
    CRB crown treatment – Kona Airport (Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport)
    CRB crown treatment Kona Airport2 (Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport)
    CRB injection – Kona Airport (Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport)
    Treated trees

    Media Contact:
    Janelle Saneishi
    Public Information Officer
    Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture
    Phone: 808-973-9560
    Cell: 808-341-5528
    Email:     [email protected]
    Website:     http://hdoa.hawaii.govAloha,

    Janelle Saneishi

    Public Information Officer

    Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture
    ph: (808) 973-9560
    email: [email protected]

    Website: https://hdoa.hawaii.gov/

    Confidentiality Notice:  This e-mail message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and/or privileged information.  Any review, use, disclosure, or distribution by unintended recipients is prohibited.  If you are not the intended recipient(s), please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Possible deportation of EU nationals from Germany owing to their participation in public demonstrations – E-001457/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-001457/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Billy Kelleher (Renew), Barry Andrews (Renew), Cynthia Ní Mhurchú (Renew), Barry Cowen (Renew), Maria Walsh (PPE), Lynn Boylan (The Left), Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (S&D)

    Three EU nationals – two Irish and one Polish – have been ordered to leave Germany over their participation in pro-Palestinian protests.

    The authorities have claimed that the three individuals involved constitute a threat to public safety and should therefore leave Germany as soon as possible.

    They have been told to leave Germany by 21 April 2025 or face deportation. All three participated in a pro-Palestinian protest at Berlin’s Free University in October 2024.

    None of these three EU nationals has been convicted of any crime and any charges against them are demonstration-related and of ‘no serious character’.

    Freedom of expression and freedom of assembly are both guaranteed in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and in the European Convention on Human Rights.

    Can the Commission therefore answer the following:

    • 1.Does it believe that the actions of the Berlin authorities violate Articles 6 and 21 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and Article 45 of the TFEU?
    • 2.What actions will the Commission undertake to ensure that all EU citizens have their rights protected?

    Submitted: 9.4.2025

    Last updated: 16 April 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Chairmen Babin and Cruz Lead Texas Delegation in Support of Relocating NASA Headquarters to Houston

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Brian Babin (R-TX)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today,  U.S. House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Brian Babin (TX-36) and Chairman Ted Cruz (R-TX) led a bicameral coalition of federal lawmakers representing Texas communities in sending a letter to President Trump urging his administration to move the headquarters for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) from Washington, D.C. to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, Texas. The lease for NASA’s current D.C. office expires in 2028.

    In the letter, the lawmakers argue that NASA is disconnected from the day-to-day work of its centers and hindered by bureaucratic micromanagement in Washington, D.C. Houston is well suited for NASA’s headquarters because of JSC’s substantial involvement in nearly everything that makes America a leader in space exploration. JSC maintains the largest NASA workforce, accommodates extensive research and development partnerships, and houses Mission Control, the NASA astronaut corps, and the Lunar Sample Laboratory Facility.

    Additionally, Texas boasts a strong business environment, low government regulation, a robust commercial space sector, and a cost of living that is less than half of the Washington, D.C. area. Moving the NASA headquarters to Texas will create more jobs, save taxpayer dollars, and reinvigorate America’s space agency.

    Joining Sen. Cruz and Rep. Babin in sending the letter are Sen. John Cornyn and Reps. Jodey Arrington, John Carter, Michael Cloud, Dan Crenshaw, Monica De La Cruz, Jake Ellzey, Pat Fallon, Brandon Gill, Craig Goldman, Tony Gonzales, Lance Gooden, Wesley Hunt, Ronny Jackson, Morgan Luttrell, Michael McCaul, Nathaniel Moran, Troy E. Nehls, August Pfluger, Chip Roy, Keith Self, Pete Sessions, Beth Van Duyne, Randy Weber, and Roger Williams.

    As the lawmakers wrote:

    “From its founding in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has a storied history of exploring new frontiers, making transformational discoveries, and reaching far into the great beyond. However, as NASA’s leadership has languished in our nation’s capital, the core missions of this critical agency are more divided than ever before. This seismic disconnect between NASA’s headquarters and its missions has opened the door to bureaucratic micromanagement and an erosion of centers’ interdependence. For NASA to return to its core mission of excellence in exploration, its headquarters should be located at a place where NASA’s most critical missions are and where transformational leadership from the ground up can be provided. In 2028 the lease for NASA’s current headquarters building in Washington, D.C. expires. We write to urge you to use this opportunity to reinvigorate our national space agency and move NASA’s headquarters from Washington, D.C. to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, Texas.

    “Perhaps no city is more closely linked to America’s space program than ‘Space City.’ Some of the first words spoken on the surface of the moon called out to Houston which is home to numerous aerospace businesses. JSC in particular is the largest home of the NASA workforce, with more than 12,000 employees across its 1,620-acre facility and supporting more than 52,000 public and private jobs. As the pinnacle of human spaceflight development, Houston is home to Mission Control, the NASA astronaut corps, the Lunar Sample Laboratory Facility, commercial space agreements, and extensive research and development partnerships. JSC plays a role in nearly everything that makes America a leader in space exploration.

    “Houston is particularly well suited for NASA’s headquarters due in part to the unique strengths of the city and the state. Texas is the eighth largest economy in the world, with low government regulation and a strong business environment. Houston boasts a cost of living that is less than half that of the Washington, D.C. area ; three ‘R1: Doctoral Universities’ producing the high caliber professionals necessary for human spaceflight; and two major commercial service airports for easy connectivity around the country. In contrast, NASA’s current headquarters in Washington, D.C. is disconnected from the NASA centers across the country and thus much of the day-to-day work. Consolidating greater and greater levels of work and authority in Washington, D.C. has been a decades-long trend, resulting in decision making funneled up to bureaucrats at headquarters rather than empowering scientists and astronauts across the centers. This strategy has separated decision makers from the actual workforce and stands antithetical to NASA’s core function.

    “Relatedly, for the United States to reach the surface of Mars, NASA must rely on a robust commercial space sector. Towards that end, no state offers greater economic and geographic benefits than Texas. The Lone Star State is home to more than 2,000 aerospace, aviation, and defense-related companies, with 18 of the 20 largest aerospace companies based in Texas. Notably, SpaceX relocated their entire company to Texas, establishing the town of Starbase, Texas, to develop, test, and launch SpaceX vehicles. Similarly, Blue Origin develops engines and rockets in West Texas, leading a new generation of spaceflight, and conducts its commercial sub-orbital flights there. Firefly Aerospace, in Cedar Park, recently sent photos of Earth from its Blue Ghost lunar lander on its voyage to explore the surface of the moon. Axiom Space, based in Houston, is building the next generation spacesuit for NASA and a commercial space station to succeed the International Space Station. In addition, the State of Texas recently stood up the Texas Space Commission to promote innovation in space operations and commercial aerospace and to attract commercial space ventures to the state. These are just a few of the ways Texas aerospace companies, projects, and institutions are transforming our nation’s leadership in the space economy.

    “A central location among NASA’s centers and the geographical center of the United States, Houston offers the ideal location for NASA to return to its core mission of space exploration and to do so at a substantially lower operating cost than in Washington, D.C. Therefore, we strongly encourage you to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the great servants of NASA — who are focused on recommitting America’s space agency to its roots and exploring the final frontier — by relocating NASA’s headquarters from Washington, D.C. to the Johnson Space Center.”

    Read the full text of the letter HERE.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Conclave on PM Vishwakarma–National SC-ST Hub organised in Baripada, Mayurbhanj, Odisha

    Source: Government of India

    Conclave on PM Vishwakarma–National SC-ST Hub organised in Baripada, Mayurbhanj, Odisha

    Co-chaired by Shri Jitan Ram Manjhi, Union Minister of MSME, and Shri Mohan Charan Majhi, Chief Minister of Odisha.

    An endeavour to promote and empower MSMEs in the State and create synergys

    Posted On: 16 APR 2025 5:53PM by PIB Delhi

    The Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME), Government of India, organised the ‘PM Vishwakarma – National SC-ST Hub Conclave’ on 16 April, 2025, at the Convention Hall, Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University, Baripada, Mayurbhanj, Odisha.

    The event commenced with the inauguration of an exhibition and brought together stakeholders, beneficiaries, and government officials to highlight key initiatives such as the PM Vishwakarma Scheme and the National SC-ST Hub.

    The Conclave was co-chaired by Shri Jitan Ram Manjhi, Hon’ble Union Minister of MSME, and Shri Mohan Charan Majhi, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha. The dignitaries inaugurated the Conclave with a ribbon-cutting and lamp-lighting ceremony.

     The gathering was also graced by Shri Gokulananda Mallick, Minister of State (Independent Charge), MSME, Fisheries & Animal Resources Development, Govt. of Odisha; Shri Hemant Sharma, Additional Chief Secretary, Industries & MSME Department, Govt. of Odisha; Shri Prakash Soren, Hon’ble MLA, Baripada, Govt. of Odisha; Ms. Mamata Mohanta, Hon’ble MP, Rajya Sabha, Mayurbhanj, Odisha;
    Shri Ganesh Ram Singh Khuntia, Minister of State (IC)Forest, Environment & Climate Change, Labour, Labour & Employees State Insurance, Govt.of Odisha; Dr. Krushna Chandra Mahapatra, Hon’ble Minister, Housing and Urban Development, Public Enterprises, Govt. of Odisha; Shri Naba Charan Majhi, Hon’ble MP, Lok Sabha, Mayurbhanj, Odisha, and other senior officials of the Ministry.

    The conclave began with the welcome address by Dr. Ishita Ganguli Tripathy, ADC, DC(MSME), followed by a welcome address and a presentation on role of Ministry’s Schemes and MSMEs growth in Odisha State by Dr. Rajneesh, AS & DC, DC(MSME). The event featured experience-sharing by beneficiaries of the PM Vishwakarma, PMEGP, and SC-ST Hub initiatives. To empower entrepreneurs, e-certificates were distributed to PM Vishwakarma beneficiaries, along with the distribution of credit cheques. Certificates were also awarded to National SC-ST Hub beneficiaries and PMEGP beneficiaries.
    Shri Jitan Ram Manjhi, Hon’ble Minister for MSME, Government of India, spoke about the significant role the MSME sector playing in job creation and improving livelihoods. He highlighted the importance and role of the PM Vishwakarma and National SC-ST Hub schemes, along with the contributions of the Coir Board and Khadi, in empowering individuals and improving livelihoods.

    “I express my sincere thanks and gratitude to Hon’ble President Smt. Droupadi Murmu, whose guidance has brought me here to Odisha, her region, with the purpose of promoting MSMEs. Our Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi envisions India becoming a developed nation, and by the year 2027-28, it will become the world’s third-largest economy,” the Hon’ble Minister said.

    Shri Manjhi said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave us a Ministry of a vision — and the Ministry of MSME is truly a ministry of vision. I am 200% sure of this. I feel extremely grateful to be working for the MSME sector. This Ministry is the greatest department, and every entrepreneur aspires to grow through it.”
    “Odisha is doing very well and the MSME sector in the state is progressing impressively. Because of MSME initiatives, today every enterprise is registered on the Udyam Registration Portal. The MSME sector in Odisha will continue to grow through our Ministry’s efforts, contributing to Prime Minister Modi’s vision of a developed India,” he further added.
    Shri Mohan Charan Majhi, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha, highlighted the achievements of the PM Vishwakarma and National SC-ST Hub schemes, and how the people of the state has benefited from the support of the Ministry and its initiatives.

    “PM Vishwakarma is playing a key role in the life of middle class. The Ministry of MSME has given a special focus to Odisha and organised the PM Vishwakarma- National SC-ST Hub Conclave here,” the Hon’ble Chief Minister said.
    Launched on September 17, 2023, the PM Vishwakarma Scheme supports traditional artisans and craftspeople with skill development, financial aid, and toolkits. Meanwhile, the National SC-ST Hub, launched in October 2016, empowers SC/ST entrepreneurs through capacity building, market linkages, and access to technology and credit.

    The MSME sector, comprising over 6.25 crore enterprises and employing 26.7 crore individuals, plays a crucial role in India’s economic development, contributing nearly 30% to GDP and over 45% to exports.

    ***

    SK

    (Release ID: 2122168) Visitor Counter : 74

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: SEC Announces Agenda, Panelists for Roundtable on Crypto Custody

    Source: Securities and Exchange Commission

    The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Crypto Task Force has announced the agenda and panelists for its April 25 roundtable, “Know Your Custodian: Key Considerations for Crypto Custody.”

    “It is important for the SEC to grapple with custody issues, which are some of the most challenging as we seek to integrate crypto assets into our regulatory structure,” said Commissioner Hester M. Peirce, leader of the Crypto Task Force. “We look forward to hearing from experts on these important issues.”

    The roundtable, announced in March as part of a series, will be held at the SEC’s headquarters at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. from 1 p.m. – 5 p.m. The event will be open to the public and webcast live on the SEC’s website. Doors will open at 12 p.m.

    For online attendance, registration is not necessary; a link to watch the event will be available on April 11 on www.sec.gov. For in-person attendance, please register here.

    To learn more about the Crypto Task Force and the roundtable topics, please visit the Crypto Task Force webpage.

    Agenda

    1 p.m. –

    1:20 p.m.

    Opening Remarks from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission:

    • Richard Gabbert, Chief of Staff, Crypto Task Force
    • Acting Chairman Mark Uyeda
    • Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw
    • Commissioner Hester Peirce

    1:20 p.m. –

    3 p.m.

    Custody Through Broker-Dealers and Beyond

    Moderator:

    • Zach Zweihorn, Davis Polk & Wardell LLP

    Panelists:

    • Jason Allegrante, Fireblocks
    • Rachel Anderika, Anchorage Digital Bank
    • Terrence Dempsey, Fidelity Digital Asset Services, LLC
    • Mike Didiuk, Schulte Roth & Zabel, LLP
    • Mark Greenberg, Kraken
    • Veronica McGregor, Exodus Movement, Inc.
    • Brandon Russell, Etana Custody Inc.
    • Tammy Weinrib, Copper Technologies Ltd.

    3 p.m. –

    3:30 p.m.

    Break

    3:30 –

    5 p.m.

    Investment Adviser and Investment Company Custody

    Moderator:

    • Zach Zweihorn, Davis Polk & Wardell LLP

    Panelists:

    • Justin Browder, Simpson Thatcher & Bartlett LLP
    • Larry Florio, 1kx
    • Eliott Frank, Distributed Global LLC
    • Susan Gault-Brown, Allen Overy Shearman Sterling LLP
    • Adam Levitin, Georgetown University Law Center
    • Ryan Louvar, WisdomTree, Inc.
    • Neel Maitra, Dechert LLP
    • Charles Mooney, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: 10 billion Milky Way stars might have habitable exoplanets after all

    Source: US Government research organizations

    Study uses computer model to predict existence of habitable zones in white dwarf star systems

    A research team led by the recipient of a U.S. National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development grant used computer simulations to determine that white dwarf stars have greater potential to host habitable planets than previously realized. The team concluded that many more stars in the Milky Way galaxy might be home to planets that could support life.

    There are approximately 10 billion white dwarf stars in the Milky Way. Because such stars are colder than others, scientists have thought they likely would not support habitable exoplanets. Led by Aomawa Shields, a University of California, Irvine professor of physics and astronomy, researchers used a supercomputer provided by the NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado, to simulate conditions on a theoretical rocky planet orbiting a white dwarf. Using data from real exoplanets orbiting the non-white dwarf star Kepler-62, the researchers found that their simulated rocky planet could have liquid water if it closely orbited a white dwarf and had certain rotational characteristics. Their findings were published in The Astrophysical Journal.

    “Not much consideration has been given to these stars’ ability to host habitable exoplanets,” says Shields. “Our computer simulations suggest that if rocky planets exist in their orbits, these planets could have more habitable real estate on their surfaces than previously thought.”

    Credit: Steve Zylius / UC Irvine

    Aomawa Shields, UC Irvine associate professor of physics and astronomy, headed a study comparing the climates of two exoplanets. Computer simulations led her team to conclude that white dwarf stars – previously considered inhospitable to life-supporting exoplanets – could, in fact, host planets in their habitable zones with comparatively temperate climates.

    These exoplanets would likely be locked into a synchronous orbit with a permanent dayside and a perpetual nightside, but the fast rotation of the simulated model effectively thins cloud circulation around the planet enough to allow heat from the host star to reach its surface, warming the planet above freezing.

    “These findings suggest that we have many more targets of opportunity for finding potentially habitable worlds all across our galaxy,” says Jacqueline Keane, program director in the NSF Division of Astronomical Sciences.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Stein Announces Superior Court Appointment

    Source: US State of North Carolina

    Headline: Governor Stein Announces Superior Court Appointment

    Governor Stein Announces Superior Court Appointment
    lsaito

    Raleigh, NC

    Today, Governor Josh Stein announced the following judicial appointment:

    Lisa Johnson-Tonkins to the Superior Court for Judicial District 24A, serving part of Guilford County. Johnson-Tonkins is filling the vacancy created after the Honorable Lora Cubbage retired.

    • Johnson-Tonkins most recently served as the elected clerk of the Superior Court of Guilford County. She received her B.A. from North Carolina A&T and her J.D. from North Carolina Central University School of Law.  

    “Lisa has served Guilford County faithfully for over a decade,” said Governor Josh Stein. “Her judgement and experience are invaluable, and I look forward to her service on the bench.” 

    Apr 16, 2025

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Hoeven to Host Agriculture Secretary Rollins in North Dakota on April 22

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for North Dakota John Hoeven

    04.16.25

    Senator, Secretary Will Meet with ND Ag Producers, Participate in Technology Demonstrations at Grand Farm

    FARGO, N.D. – Senator John Hoeven today announced that he will host Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins in North Dakota on Tuesday, April 22. Hoeven, who serves as chairman of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee and a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, invited Rollins to the state during her confirmation process earlier this year so she could:

    • Get direct feedback from the state’s ag producers as work proceeds on the next farm bill.
    • Learn firsthand about North Dakota’s leadership in precision agriculture technologies.

    To this end, Hoeven and Rollins will meet with local commodity groups and producers at North Dakota State University (NDSU) and participate in an agriculture technology demonstration at Grand Farm. Specific event details, including times and locations, will be released in the coming days.

    “Our farmers, ranchers and agri-businesses have built North Dakota into a world leader in production agriculture,” said Senator Hoeven. “Their feedback will be invaluable to Secretary Rollins as she works with us to keep the farm in the farm bill. At the same time, this visit will enable her to see the exciting new developments in precision agriculture that are happening right here in the Red River Valley. This is a tremendous opportunity to showcase the partnerships we’ve worked to craft between Grand Farm, NDSU and others and secure key support for strengthening such initiatives.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: The gap between wages and housing prices is widening, fuelling the affordability crisis

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Patrick Michael Condon, Professor and UBC James Taylor Chair in Landscape and Livable Environments., University of British Columbia

    Racial disparities played a significant role in shaping unequal COVID-19 mortality rates. What is less widely understood is how overcrowded housing conditions were an even deadlier variable.

    In California’s Bay Area, for instance, residents of overcrowded apartments — many of them recent immigrants — were found to be significantly more likely to die from COVID-19 than residents of demographically similar, but less crowded, apartments.

    ‘Broken City: Land Speculation, Inequality, and Urban Crisis’ by Patrick M. Condon.
    (UBC Press)

    Even less examined is the root cause of this overcrowding. Overcrowding is not just a matter of zoning or population growth, but something more systemic and difficult to confront: the speculative financial forces acting on the land beneath our feet.

    Urban land is now assessed by people not for its consumption value for a home but for its ability to hold and increase in cash value — in other words, its “speculative value.”

    My recent book, Broken City, paints a picture of how the same market logics that defined the Gilded Age of the late 19th century have quietly returned in our own century, with similarly corrosive consequences for urban life.

    Echoes of the Gilded Age

    A growing share of average workers’ incomes is being swallowed up by housing costs, often for homes that fail to meet their basic needs. This is not the result of natural scarcity, but mechanical economic processes that inform the price of urban land.

    We now find ourselves in circumstances uncomfortably close to those of Victorian England or Gilded Age America, when mass migrations to urban centres were driven by the need for jobs.



    Read more:
    What’s behind Canada’s housing crisis? Experts break down the different factors at play

    Back then, as now, a small number of urban landowners were able to extract enormous wealth — what political economist Henry George called the unearned increment — from the labour of others by virtue of owning the right patch of ground.

    A portrait photograph of Henry George, taken after 1885.
    (Wikimedia Commons)

    The demands for the unearned increment, George explained, was only limited by how much a region’s wage-earners and entrepreneurs collectively produced. Almost all of that value eventually went into land price.

    Today, we appear to be experiencing the same phenomenon. The social and epidemiological pressures produced by inflated land prices are no longer confined to historically marginalized racial or ethnic groups.

    As my book explains, millennials and Gen Xers, who are increasingly working service-sector jobs that dominate today’s economy, especially in countries like Canada and the U.S., are facing housing pressures once reserved only for the poor.

    In short, housing precarity has gone mainstream.

    Skyrocketing land prices

    At the heart of the housing crisis lies a deeper problem: runaway urban land prices are not just a crisis of housing affordability, but a problem of equitable urban design. They are eroding our political capacity to solve many urban problems.

    The same inflated land values that burden tenants and aspiring homeowners also restrict what cities can do to address housing and transportation needs, whether through planning, taxation or direct provision.

    Urban land prices are spiralling due to the collision of two long-term trends. First, the global economy has shifted from being primarily driven by wages earned through labour to one dominated by returns on assets. Urban land is now the single largest category of fixed capital asset in the world.

    Second, this asset-driven economy has widened the gap between wages and home prices, and helped drive the explosion in inequality. Housing has become the primary site where that inequality is expressed.

    Public frustration over this yawning gap between stagnant incomes and sky-high housing costs has erupted into political conflict. Many now blame local governments and planning regulations for blocking the supply of new homes. If only we could build more, they argue, prices would fall.

    But the evidence tells a different story. Take Vancouver, a city that has tripled its housing stock since the 1960s, largely through infill development. If the supply theory held true, Vancouver should be the most affordable city in North America. Instead, it is the least affordable.

    A landmark study published in March by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that supply constraints didn’t explain rising housing prices or housing growth across American cities. In other words, building more housing isn’t enough to bring down prices.

    A path out of the housing crisis

    My book offers several solutions and examples for how cities can reclaim land wealth for the common good.

    One promising approach lies in tying new housing approvals to affordability requirements. This policy framework — known as inclusionary zoning — requires developers to include a certain number of permanently affordable units as a condition for increased density.

    Without such requirements, upzoning — meaning increasing the maximum building size the city authorizes for a parcel — can inflate the value of land, rewarding speculation and driving prices further out of reach.

    Examples of effective inclusionary zoning abound. In Cambridge, Mass., an affordable housing overlay mandates 100 per cent affordability in exchange for permission to double density across the city. In Vancouver, new legislation related to inclusive zoning was introduced in 2024 and a development tax on new high-density projects has helped finance non-market housing directly.

    The path forward is not mysterious. But it does require confronting the truth that the housing crisis is not the result of broken systems — but of a speculative financial systems working exactly as designed.

    Patrick Michael Condon 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. The gap between wages and housing prices is widening, fuelling the affordability crisis – https://theconversation.com/the-gap-between-wages-and-housing-prices-is-widening-fuelling-the-affordability-crisis-252157

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Active Longevity: Finding a Balance Between Tourism and Being a Grandmother

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University Higher School of Economics – State University Higher School of Economics –

    © Higher School of Economics

    Within the framework XXV Yasinsky (April) International Scientific Conference A round table was held on the topic of active longevity. Experts discussed the implementation of state policy and corporate experience in this area.

    The round table “Active Longevity Programs: Regional and Corporate Experience” was organized jointly Institute of Social Policy HSE University and the D.I. Mendeleyev Institute of Demographic Policy.

    Vice-Rector of the National Research University Higher School of Economics, Director of the Institute of Social Policy Liliya Ovcharova recalled that the President’s decree on national development goals contains two target demographic indicators: increasing the total fertility rate and increasing life expectancy.

    “There are many events aimed at promoting the birth rate, and the topic of increasing life expectancy is still not sufficiently represented in the information agenda. At the same time, there are many scientific publications confirming the contribution of active longevity programs to healthy life expectancy,” she noted.

    Deputy Director of the Institute of Social Policy at the National Research University Higher School of Economics Oksana Sinyavskaya spoke about the specifics of socio-demographic processes that influence the priorities of social policy in the interests of the older generation. She noted that the population of Russia is aging, but the reserves for increasing life expectancy are high. According to the definition of the speaker, active longevity is “a state of social, economic, physical and psychological well-being that provides older citizens with the opportunity to meet their needs and be included in various spheres of society, achieved with the active participation of the citizens themselves.”

    Oksana Sinyavskaya also spoke about the implementation of the principles of active longevity in the Strategy of Actions in the Interests of Senior Citizens in the Russian Federation until 2030. Its goal is to increase the life expectancy and quality of life of the elderly. In addition to health protection and the development of medical care in the geriatrics profile, it talks about strengthening the value of a multi-generational family in society, creating conditions for the realization of the personal potential of senior citizens, increasing their financial security and developing infrastructure for a high-quality and safe life.

    More than 12 million people are currently participating in regional active longevity programs. Among the most popular areas of these programs are physical education and sports, education and enlightenment, socio-cultural events and social tourism. At the same time, the speaker noted the rather low awareness of citizens about the possibilities of the programs, as well as some limitations in the offer of services, especially in the area of social tourism.

    Ivan Efimov, Executive Director of the D.I. Mendeleyev Institute of Demographic Policy, noted that despite the beneficial effects of active longevity programs, research shows that they often “take grandparents away from the family.” “I think it is important to work from the point of view that no nanny can replace a grandmother. If we are talking about improving demographics, including the birth of children, it is important that there is a favorable environment for a grandmother to be with her family, with her grandchildren,” he believes.

    Deputy Executive Director of the D.I. Mendeleyev Institute of Demographic Policy, Head Responsible Business Laboratory HSE University Oleg Krivokhizhin told which indicators related to active longevity are taken into account by the Business Reputation Index of Entrepreneurs (EKG-rating). He noted that many enterprises take care of pensioners, make them additional payments and pension supplements, issue voluntary health insurance, organize spa treatment and various cultural events.

    “Today, the ECG rating of companies is becoming an indicator not only of how the company stimulates birth rates, but also of how it supports employees after retirement,” the expert noted.

    Deputy Director of the State Budgetary Institution “Moscow Longevity” Anna Skorik informed about the positive experience of the project implemented in the capital, and the head of the public projects department of the Russian Gerontological Scientific and Clinical Center of the Russian National Research Medical University named after N.I. Pirogov Vadim Samorodov spoke about the medical aspects of working with the elderly and the importance of a systematic approach in this work aimed at improving the quality of life in old age. He noted that in the last five years of life, people spend about 50% of their lifetime treatment costs.

    Olga Eremenko, Vice President and Director of the Department of Ethics and Anti-Corruption Compliance of PSB Bank, Anastasia Gorelkina, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of SDS Holding Company, Member of the Board of Directors of Azot JSC, Vice President of the Association of Communication Agencies of Russia (AKAP), and Alexey Basisty, Deputy General Director for HR Management of Gazprom Transgaz Moscow, shared their companies’ experience in creating conditions for employment of people of different ages and implementing active longevity projects.

    “As part of the implementation of the social support program in 2024, the company allocated more than 190 million rubles to improve the quality of life of people of silver age,” Anastasia Gorelkina reported, in particular.

    According to her, the events cover a wide range of areas – from regular financial assistance to providing free mobile communications. In addition, the company provides additional payments for holidays. For example, Victory Day, Miner’s Day.

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

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: COLUMN: Kennedy: A Strong End to the 2025 Legislative Session

    Source: US State of Georgia

    By: Sen. John F. Kennedy (R–Macon)

    After twelve weeks of tireless work under the Gold Dome, the 2025 Legislative Session has officially come to a close. My Senate Republican colleagues and I fought each day to protect your freedoms, defend your wallets, and invest in the values that make our state strong. We passed bold, conservative legislation that will support communities across the state, empower families, and ensure taxpayer dollars are spent effectively.

    Our most significant achievement was the passage of House Bill 68, the balanced state budget for Fiscal Year 2025-2026. On Friday, the General Assembly fulfilled its constitutional duty by sending the state’s budget to Governor Kemp’s desk. Our budget priorities fund essential services across our state and reflects our commitment to conservative governance. We’re cutting taxes, funding school choice, and strengthening law and order in our state prisons. Our budget prioritized the gang prosecution task force, strengthens our anti-human trafficking prosecutors, and boosts school safety initiatives that will protect our children from those who wish to cause harm. This budget isn’t just numbers; it’s a roadmap of Republican priorities that put Georgians first.

    This year, Senate Republicans advanced key legislation to benefit hardworking Georgians. HB 112 delivers tax rebates up to $500 for families and HB 111 will reduce our state income tax rate, empowering all Georgians to keep more of their hard-earned money. Before we gaveled out for the year, the Senate gave final passage to SB 1 to protect women’s sports and ensure female athletes are able to compete on a level playing field.   

    I was proud to author and carry Governor Kemp’s key priority, delivering meaningful tort reform to balance our civil justice system and stop frivolous lawsuits that burdened our small businesses, farmers, and job creators. We also prioritized assistance for those affected by Hurricane Helene, allocating millions in disaster aid and created catastrophe savings accounts to encourage responsible storm preparation and establishes tax incentives for Georgians to prepare for future natural disasters. These priorities send a clear message: Georgia takes care of its own, and Senate Republicans will ensure it stays that way.

    School safety was one of our top priorities for the 2025 Legislative Session. House Bill 268 will require schools to implement panic alert systems and require campus mapping to assist first responders in the face of danger, and imposes serious consequences for threats against our students, teachers, and school personnel. HB 268 will also hold those who want to do students harm accountable when they commit acts of violence, because the safety of our schools will never be up for negotiation. At the same time, HB 268 supports mental health programs, suicide prevention and youth violence reduction to guarantee students in crisis get the help they need.

    We also prioritized education, passing key pieces of legislation to improve our public schools. SR 237 will build a stronger workforce pipeline, establish mentorship programs, and improve training for our educators. HB 37 ensures our educators fully understand their retirement benefits, ensuring Georgia remains competitive when recruiting future educators. HB 150, the Combating Threats from China Act, increases transparency around foreign influence in our universities. Finally, HB 371 increases capital outlay funding cap for schools and upgrades Georgia’s playgrounds to meet modern accessibility standards. Because every child deserves a safe place to play and learn.

    This session, we fought hard to protect your rights in the courtroom and restore integrity to our judicial system. SB 259, “Ridge’s Law,” ensures families can seek a second opinion when child abuse is alleged, a crucial safeguard against unjust state interference. I was especially proud to support HB 582, the Georgia Survivor Justice Act, which gives victims of domestic violence a voice in court when they act in self-defense. Justice must consider context, and survivors deserve our full support when they take a stand against abuse.

    Senate Republicans stood firmly to support our veterans, law enforcement and emergency responders. HB 266 eliminates state taxes on military retirement income and incentivizes donations to law enforcement foundations. We also passed SR 8 and SR 231, renaming intersections in honor of fallen officers Deputy Brandon Cunningham and Officer Jeremy Labonte. Their sacrifice will never be forgotten.

    During our final week under the Gold Dome, we proudly recognized Mercer University. It was an honor to welcome the future leaders from an incredible educational institution to the Senate Chamber as we concluded our legislative business.

    On Sine Die, we also approved several key study committees, including the Senate Study Committee to Combat Chronic Absenteeism, an issue I’m deeply committed to addressing during the interim. Earlier this session, I was proud to author and carry Senate Bill 123, which will prevent students from being expelled for missing school and require schools to develop ways of intervening with chronically absent students. Although SB 123 will take the initial steps towards solving the problem of chronic absenteeism, this crisis persists with hundreds of thousands of Georgia children still missing significant parts of their education, putting their growth, learning, opportunities and future success at risk. With this study committee, we will have a vital opportunity to dig into the underlying issues and return to the Gold Dome next year with meaningful solutions that support our students.

    Though the 2025 Session may be over, my service to Senate District 18 continues year-round. Whether it’s legislation, budget priorities, or individual constituent needs, I’m here to serve you — every day, in every season. Although we have finished the 2025 legislative session, my door is always open.

    Let’s keep Georgia strong, safe and free.

    # # # #

    Sen. John F. Kennedy serves as the President Pro Tempore of the Georgia State Senate. He represents the 18th Senate District, which includes Crawford, Monroe, Peach and Upson counties, as well as portions of Bibb and Houston counties. He may be reached at (404) 656-6578 or by email at John.Kennedy@senate.ga.gov.

    For all media inquiries, reach out to SenatePressInquiries@senate.ga.gov.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Commencement Student Speaker Spotlight: Kristina Delgado

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    Meet Kristina Delgado. She was born in Mexico City, Mexico, raised in Cuenca, Ecuador, and moved to the U.S. at 18. Growing up in a multicultural household, she developed resilience, a strong work ethic, and a deep appreciation for diversity. Seeking purpose, she enlisted in the U.S. Navy, serving aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, where she achieved the highest rank within her enlistment and was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal. Her military service strengthened her leadership and teamwork skills while exposing her to critical gaps in healthcare, igniting her passion for biomedical research.

    Why did you choose UConn and your UConn Graduate School program?

    My path to UConn and the Biomedical Science Graduate School program was shaped by a fortunate opportunity to work as a technician in the Spirochete Research Laboratory at UConn School of Medicine. There, my passion for infectious disease research, particularly on Treponema pallidum, was sparked. The hands-on experience and guidance from exceptional mentors solidified my decision to pursue further education at UConn, where I knew I could grow both academically and professionally.

    Tell us more about your path to grad school.

    My career path began with my military service, which strengthened my leadership and teamwork skills while exposing me to critical gaps in healthcare, sparking my passion for biomedical research. Afterward, I earned my B.S. in Biological Sciences from Georgia State University, leading to an opportunity at the USDA Foreign Animal Disease Laboratory at Plum Island. There, I gained hands-on experience in virology, further fueling my interest in infectious diseases. This passion ultimately led me to work as a technician in the Spirochete Research Laboratory at UConn Health, where the mentorship of Drs. Radolf, Hawley, and Caimano solidified my decision to pursue a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences, focusing on infectious disease research and vaccine development.

    What activities were you involved with as a grad student?

    As a graduate student, I was fully immersed in my research, but I also made it a priority to support diversity in STEM. As an active member of the Graduate School DEI Committee, I worked alongside a dedicated team to foster an inclusive academic environment. It was incredibly rewarding to give back by mentoring and advising younger students, sharing the opportunities and experiences that shaped my own journey. Being part of something bigger—helping to support and inspire the next generation of scientists—was one of the most fulfilling aspects of my time at UConn.

    What’s one thing that surprised you about UConn?

    One thing that truly surprised me about UConn was how welcoming and supportive everyone is, as well as the incredible depth and diversity of research being conducted here. I wasn’t sure what to expect at first, but I quickly found myself in a collaborative and inspiring community. Being in an environment driven by innovation and curiosity has made my time at UConn both enriching and rewarding.

    What’s one thing every student should do during their time at UConn?

    Every student should take a moment to step beyond their research or career goals and get involved in the broader community. It’s easy to fall into tunnel vision when you’re deep in academic work, but engaging in other aspects of the UConn community helps you gain perspective, connect with others, and see the bigger picture. Whether it’s through mentorship, outreach, or organizations like the DEI Committee, these experiences help you grow in ways that go beyond the lab or classroom. Stepping back from the laboratory bench every now and then reminds us that we’re part of something bigger—and that we have so much to offer to the people and communities around us.

    Who has inspired you most?

    I was incredibly fortunate to be surrounded by an amazing group of mentors who showed me the true impact of our work. They taught me that what we do in the lab isn’t just about experiments—it’s about making a real difference in healthcare. Beyond my mentors, I was also blessed with the unwavering support of my family and friends, who constantly encouraged me and stood by my decision. Their belief in me kept me moving forward, reinforcing my passion and commitment to this field.

    What are your plans after graduation?

    Ah, the dreaded question! I’m happy to say that I still have a deep passion for research and want to continue expanding my scientific expertise. While I don’t know exactly where my career will take me—whether in academia, industry, or teaching—I do know that I want to bridge the gap between basic science and its real-world applications. My goal is to develop the skills needed to move into translational research, connecting fundamental discoveries with clinical trials and patient care. No matter the path I take, I want my work to have a tangible impact on healthcare and the scientific community.

    What’s one thing that will always make you think of UConn?

    One thing that will always make me think of UConn is the sense of community here. Whether it’s the camaraderie among fellow students, the support from mentors, or the collaborative spirit in research, UConn has a unique way of bringing people together. It’s this feeling of connection and shared purpose that I’ll carry with me long after graduation.

    What does being a part of UConn mean to you?

    Being a part of UConn means being part of a supportive and innovative community that fosters growth, collaboration, and inclusion. It’s where I’ve been able to challenge myself, advance my research, and contribute to a diverse environment. The connections I’ve made here, and the shared purpose have shaped me both personally and professionally, and that’s something I’ll carry with me throughout my career.

    What’s it going to be like to walk across the Commencement stage and get your degree?

    Walking across the Commencement stage will be a moment of immense pride and reflection. It will mark the culmination of years of hard work, challenges, and growth. But beyond the academic achievement, it will be a moment to celebrate the support of my family, friends, mentors, and the UConn community that helped me get here. It will be a symbol of not just earning a degree, but of the journey and the people who’ve shaped my path. It’ll be a bittersweet farewell to this chapter, but an exciting step into the next.

    Any final words of wisdom for incoming students?

    No matter how many roadblocks or challenges life throws your way, the key is to face them head-on, learn from them, and keep moving forward. Don’t give up, and remember to enjoy the journey along the way. It’s easy to get caught up in the stress, but make sure you take time to have fun, find balance, and celebrate the small wins. Growth comes from persistence, and the experience will be all the richer if you embrace both the challenges and the moments of joy.

    Delgado’s doctoral dissertation focused on “Cracking the Code of Treponema pallidum Immunity: Lessons from the Rabbit Model to Drive Syphilis Vaccine Innovation.”

    Watch the livestream of UConn Health’s 54th Commencement on May 12, 2025, at 1:00 p.m.

     

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Amplifying delusions: How social media can negatively impact our mental well-being

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Bernard Crespi, Professor, Evolutionary Biology, Simon Fraser University

    Social media is an evolutionary novelty, like M&M’s, e-cigarettes, fentanyl and H-bombs. Each comes with novel risks to health and well-being that humans are entirely unaccustomed to. (Shutterstock)

    Imagine a tribe of uncontacted hunter-gatherers in the deepest Amazon rainforest. Anthropologists airdrop dozens of smartphones loaded with social media apps, with solar chargers, simple instructions in their native language and Wi-Fi just within the tribe. What would happen to their culture and their mental health?

    Such an experiment appears fanciful, but a similar one has been unfolding in our world for about 20 years. For the first time in human evolution, everyday social interactions have changed from face-to-face to disembodied experiences, from in-person to digital and from social reality to whatever someone puts online.

    Social media is an evolutionary novelty, like M&M’s, e-cigarettes, fentanyl and H-bombs. Each comes with novel risks to health and well-being to which humans are entirely unaccustomed.

    What, then, are the risks of seemingly innocuous behaviours such as sharing posts, giving likes, making oneself look good in pictures, and, in general, interacting virtually rather than physically? The short answer is that we don’t know — yet — especially because our big experiment has no control group.

    But we can try to find out.

    Social media and mental disorders

    We recently investigated the question of what mental disorders are associated with high social media use. To do so, we conducted a systematic review — an objective way to find and evaluate all of the relevant literature. We hypothesized that social media use should be higher among people whose psychology, and psychiatric traits and disorders, were more socially mentalistic.

    Mentalism refers to within-brain traits like theory of mind, inferring intentions or emotions of others and empathizing. Social media is expected to be mentalistic because it involves disembodied thoughts, feelings and associated images, intended to connect us with other humans. Mentalistic thinking contrasts with the mechanistic cognition of scientists plying their trade of cause and effect in the physical, non-mentalistic world of things.

    To test our hypothesis, we scrutinized hundreds of scientific articles, and a curious picture emerged. High social media use was strongly associated with a subset of mentalistic traits and disorders: narcissism, erotomania (the belief that some celebrity loves you), paranoia, body dysmorphia and anorexia.

    These traits and disorders seem unrelated, but we noticed they all centrally involve delusions: false beliefs about reality, held despite absent or contradictory evidence. Some delusions can be mental (narcissism, paranoia, and erotomania), or physical (body dysmorphia and anorexia). Some are positively valanced (narcissism and erotomania) and some are negative (paranoia, body dysmorphia and anorexia).

    Why, then, was social media associated with delusionality?

    Social delusions

    Like other mental traits, delusions exist in one’s brain for a reason. What these mental disorders also appear to share, psychologically, is an underdeveloped and fragile sense and construction of the self, which happens during early life through social interactions with family, friends, and others.

    If one’s mental and perceived bodily self is underdeveloped in childhood, it can, later, be bolstered, and this commonly happens through social interactions that involve beliefs that, though false, make oneself feel better.

    Low self-image and self-esteem can be shored up through admiration or love from outside — with extremes of narcissism or erotomania. Perceived embodiment and body image problems can be enhanced through fictitious beliefs about appearance — with extremes of body dysmorphia and anorexia.

    What better way to do any of these things than with social media and the internet, where users can pursue likes and followers to their heart’s content, and present themselves mentally and physically as they wish, using applications designed specifically for that purpose?

    Most importantly, social media allows users to delusionally “improve” themselves because it circumvents reality testing: the direct, face-to-face interactions we engage in when physically interacting with other people.

    Social media allows one to delusionally ‘improve’ oneself because it circumvents reality testing: the direct, face to face interactions we engage in when physically interacting with other people.
    (Shutterstock)

    Delusion amplification

    As we outline in our paper, the processes just described represent a “Delusion Amplification by Social Media” model that can help explain why and how high social media use is linked with a specific subset of mental disorders that involve delusions and an underdeveloped self.

    By this model, some people are relatively vulnerable, psychologically, to the negative effects of social media, because they are drawn to it, and because it amplifies and exacerbates their problems. This exacerbation is, of course, not benign or accidental; the goal of many social media companies is, after all, to keep us online, scrolling, striving and seeking hits of social pleasure and self-validation.

    What, then, then can be done, aside from cutting the virtual social umbilical cord? First and most crucial is enhanced awareness of our own psychological makeups and how they are affected by specific platforms or apps. The problem with delusions, of course, is lack of awareness that our reality is false — but we can still become more cognizant of the rifts between perceived and actual worlds and what drives them.

    Second is more research, to extend the delusion amplification model, and to better determine the psychological and neurological differences between in-person and virtual interactions, and what mental problems they can cause.

    If we find that social media really is ruining mental health, as suggested by recent increases in narcissism, body dysmorphia and other disorders among young people, then the research will need to be incorporated into policy, so we can regain control over our social lives, our brains and our social worlds.

    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. Amplifying delusions: How social media can negatively impact our mental well-being – https://theconversation.com/amplifying-delusions-how-social-media-can-negatively-impact-our-mental-well-being-252137

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Human connections to seagrass meadows date back 180,000 years, study reveals

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Benjamin Jones, Chief Conservation Officer, Project Seagrass & Research Affiliate, Swansea University

    Benjamin Jones/Project Seagrass, CC BY

    For millennia, humans lived as hunter-gatherers. Savannas and forests are often thought of as the cradle of our lineage, but beneath the waves, a habitat exists that has quietly supported humans for over 180,000 years.

    Archaeological evidence suggests that early humans migrated along coasts, avoiding desert and tundra. So, as Homo spread from Africa, they inevitably encountered seagrasses – flowering plants evolved to inhabit shallow coastal environments that form undersea meadows teeming with life.

    Our recently published research pieces together historical evidence from across the globe, revealing that humans and seagrass meadows have been intertwined for millennia – providing food, fishing grounds, building materials, medicine and more throughout our shared history.

    Our earliest known links to seagrass date back around 180,000 years. Tiny seagrass-associated snails were discovered in France at Paleolithic cave sites used by Neanderthals. Too small to be a consequence of food remains, these snails were likely introduced with Posidonia oceanica leaves used for bedding – a type of seagrass found only in the Mediterranean. Neanderthals didn’t just use seagrass to make sleeping comfortable – 120,000 year old evidence suggests they harvested seagrass-associated scallops too.

    A bountiful supply of food

    Seagrass meadows provide shelter and food for marine life, such as fish, invertebrates, reptiles and marine mammals. Because they inhabit shallow waters close to shore, seagrass meadows have been natural fishing grounds and places where generations have speared, cast nets, set traps and hand-gathered food to survive and thrive.

    Long before modern fishing fleets, ancient communities recognised the value of these underwater grasslands. Around 6,000 years ago, the people of eastern Arabia depended on seagrass meadows to hunt rabbitfish – a practice so prevalent here that remnants of their fishing traps are still visible from space.

    Seagrass meadows have even been directly harvested as food. Around 12,000 years ago, some of the first human cultures in North America, settling on Isla Cedros off the coast of Baja California, gathered and consumed seeds from Zostera marina, a species commonly called eelgrass. These seeds were milled into a flour and baked into breads and cakes, a process alike to wheat milling today.

    Further north, the Indigenous Kwakwaka’wakw peoples, as far back as 10,000 years ago, developed a careful and sustainable way of gathering eelgrass for consumption. By twisting a pole into the seagrass, they pulled up the leaves, and broke them off near the rhizome – the underground stem that is rich in sugary carbohydrates. After removing the roots and outer leaves, they wrapped the youngest leaves around the rhizome, dipping it in oil before eating. Remarkably, this method was later found to promote seagrass health, encouraging new growth and resilience.



    Read more:
    Seagrass, protector of shipwrecks and buried treasure

    Today, seagrass meadows remain a lifeline for coastal communities, particularly across the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Here, fishing within seagrass habitats is shown to be more reliable than other coastal habitats and women often sustain their families by gleaning – a fishing practice that involves carefully combing seagrass meadows for edible shells and other marine life. For these communities, seagrass fishing is vital during periods when fishing at sea is not possible, for example, during tropical storms.

    When seagrasses returned to the sea around 100 million years ago, they evolved to have specialised leaves to tolerate both saltwater submergence and periods of time exposed to the sun during tidal cycles. This allowed seagrasses to flourish across our coastlines, but also made them useful resources for humans.

    Seagrass leaves, once dry, are relatively moist- and rot-proof – properties likely discovered by ancient civilisations when exploring the uses of plants for different purposes. Bronze age civilizations like the Minoans, used seagrass in building construction, reinforcing mudbricks with seagrass. Analysis of these reveal superior thermal properties of seagrass mudbricks compared to bricks made with other plant fibres – they kept buildings warmer in winter and cooler in summer.

    These unique properties may have been why early humans used seagrass for bedding and by the 16th century, seagrass-stuffed mattresses were prized for pest resistance, requested even by Pope Julius III.

    By the 17th century, Europeans were using seagrass to thatch roofs and insulate their homes. North American colonialists took this knowledge with them, continuing the practice. In the 19th century, commercial harvesting of tens of thousands of tonnes of seagrass began across North America and northern Europe.

    In the US, Boston’s Samuel Cabot Company patented an insulation material called Cabot’s “Quilt”, sandwiching dried seagrass leaves between two layers of paper. These quilts were used to insulate buildings across the US, including New York’s Rockefeller Center and the Capitol in Washington DC.

    A legacy ecosystem – and a living one

    The prevalence of seagrass throughout human civilisation has fostered spiritual and cultural relations with these underwater gardens, manifesting in rituals and historical customs. In Neolithic graves in Denmark, scientists found human remains wrapped in seagrass, representing a close connection with the sea.

    Our new research tells us that seagrass meadows are not just biodiversity hotspots or carbon storage systems. They are ancient human allies. This elevates their value beyond conservation – they’re repositories of cultural heritage and traditional knowledge. They were practical, valuable, and deeply integrated into human cultures.

    We have depended on seagrass for 180,000 years – for food, homes, customs – so investing in their conservation and restoration is not just ecological, it’s deeply human.

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

    Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 45,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.

    Nicole Foster receives funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe Training and mobility actions.

    Oscar Serrano receives funding from the Spanish National Research Council

    Benjamin Jones 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. Human connections to seagrass meadows date back 180,000 years, study reveals – https://theconversation.com/human-connections-to-seagrass-meadows-date-back-180-000-years-study-reveals-253307

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Minister Nkabane condemns violence at Walter Sisulu University

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    Wednesday, April 16, 2025

    Higher Education and Training Minister, Dr Nobuhle Nkabane, has condemned the tragic incident of violence at the Walter Sisulu University (WSU) in Mthatha, Eastern Cape, where one person lost their life, and several students were injured.

    According to reports, a university residence manager allegedly opened fire, resulting in the death of one person, while several others sustained injuries during Tuesday’s incident.

    In a statement, the Department of Higher Education and Training said the Minister has engaged with WSU Vice-Chancellor, Professor Rushiella Nolundi Songca, to obtain a full briefing and extend the department’s support during this difficult time.

    “The Minister has also requested that the university furnish her with a comprehensive report on the incident as a matter of urgency and without delay, given the seriousness of the situation,” the department said on Tuesday.

    Nkabane conveyed her heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased and extended well wishes for the full and speedy recovery to the students who were injured.

    She also expressed her support for the staff member and their family who were affected by the incident.

    The Minister condemned all forms of violence and intimidation on university campuses, and reiterated the importance of safeguarding students, staff, and all members of the academic community.

    She emphasised that institutions of higher learning must remain safe spaces that nurture learning, dialogue, and development.

    “Dr Nkabane is resolute that no student should ever be harmed while accessing their right to education. This must be the last time we are forced to respond to such a tragedy at our institutions of higher learning,” the department said.

    The Minister is expected to visit Walter Sisulu University in the coming days to engage with stakeholders, assess the situation on the ground, and ensure that appropriate measures are taken to protect the university community. – SAnews.gov.za
     

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI: NextNav Announces Appointment of H. Wyman Howard and Lorin Selby to its Board of Directors

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    RESTON, Va., April 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — NextNav Inc. (NASDAQ: NN), a leader in next-generation position, navigation and timing (PNT) and 3D geolocation, today announced that its board of directors has elected Rear Admiral H. Wyman Howard and Rear Admiral Lorin Selby to serve as board members, effective May 1, 2025.

    “We are honored to welcome Rear Admiral Howard and Rear Admiral Selby to the NextNav Board of Directors,” said Mariam Sorond, NextNav’s Chief Executive Officer and Board Chair. “Their extensive military and national security leadership, experience in technology research and development, and management capabilities will be invaluable to NextNav as we execute on our strategic goals in providing a terrestrial backup and complement to GPS to address a major national security threat.”

    Rear Admiral Howard (Retired) served 32 years in the U.S. Navy, including serving most recently as Commander, Naval Special Warfare Command and previously as Commander, Special Operations Command Central, Assistant Commander, Joint Special Operational Command, and Director of Operations for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. He has commanded at all levels of naval special operations, including as the commanding officer of the Naval Special Warfare Development Group from 2011-2013. Admiral Howard also serves on the board of Bridger Aerospace Group Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: BAER), an aerial firefighting and aerospace services company, and Invitation Homes Inc. (NYSE: INVH), a single-family home leasing and management company. Admiral Howard graduated from the United States Naval Academy and holds a Master of Business Administration from the TRIUM consortium of the London School of Economics, HEC Paris School of Management, and New York University’s Stern School of Business. Admiral Howard holds a Master of Science in National Security and Resource Strategy with a focus on commercial, civil, and military space sectors from the Eisenhower School and a Professional Certificate in Artificial Intelligence and Business Strategy from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory.

    Rear Admiral Selby (Retired) served nearly 37 years in the U.S. Navy, including serving most recently as the Chief of Naval Research, leading the workforce at the Office of Naval Research and the Naval Research Laboratory where they develop leading-edge technologies for the Navy and Marine Corps. Prior assignments include serving as the Commander of the Naval Surface Warfare Centers and as the Chief Engineer of the United States Navy and Deputy Commander for Ship Design, Integration, and Naval Engineering at the Naval Sea Systems Command, where he drove innovation, optimized performance, and generated new ways of doing business. Admiral Selby also held highly visible roles like the Deputy Director of the Navy Office of Legislative Affairs to the U.S. House of Representatives and command of a fast-attack nuclear submarine. Following his retirement, he has taken on various consulting roles, advising small and mid-sized technology companies. He currently serves as President and CEO of Selby Partners Consulting LLC and is a founding partner in a maritime-focused growth equity fund, Mare Liberum Capital Partners. Admiral Selby holds a B.S. in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Virginia, an M.S. in Nuclear Engineering, and a Nuclear Engineer Degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has also completed extensive executive business coursework, and his achievements have been recognized through numerous personal and unit awards.

    About NextNav
    NextNav Inc. (Nasdaq: NN) is a leader in next-generation positioning, navigation and timing (PNT), enabling a whole new ecosystem of applications and services that rely upon 3D geolocation and PNT technology. Powered by low-band licensed spectrum, NextNav’s positioning and timing technologies deliver accurate, reliable, and resilient 3D PNT solutions for critical infrastructure, GPS resiliency and commercial use cases.

    For more information, please visit https://nextnav.com/ or follow NextNav on X at https://x.com/NextNav or LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/nextnav/.

    Source: NN-FIN

    Contacts:
    Investor Contact:
    IR@nextnav.com

    Media Contact:
    NNmedia@nextnav.com

    The MIL Network –