SCROLL NEWS / DISCOVERY
Search headlines
Find the stories shaping the conversation.
Results for " governance " 329 found 🔀 AI-powered Shuffle
Safe blood supply improves as voluntary donations exceed 85%, but many people still lack access
New data from the World Health Organization (WHO) show sustained progress towards safer blood supplies globally but also highlight persistent inequalities in access to safe blood and weaknesses in governance, financing and regulation of blood systems.
Inside Hartford HealthCare's strategy to build a safer AI front door for patients
The health system integrates PatientGPT into its patient portal and clinical infrastructure, seeking to offer consumers AI-powered health guidance while maintaining physician oversight, data governance and continuity of care.
The New Republic of Science
The scientific community functions as a republic—with its own governance of rules and norms, internal politics, and relationships with the states and publics that fund it.
College sports is suddenly facing a major question that hinges on gambling, the ‘unpardonable sin’
Without legal protections, the NCAA struggles to enforce rules, leaving the future of college sports governance uncertain.
The UN’s AI Panel Could Shape Global Governance. Can It Balance Science and Politics?
The United Nations’ new Scientific Panel on AI could give governments a shared evidentiary basis for policymaking—but only if it can balance independence, expertise, and political legitimacy.
The UN’s AI Panel Could Shape Global Governance. Can It Balance Science and Politics?
The United Nations’ new Scientific Panel on AI could give governments a shared evidentiary basis for policymaking—but only if it can balance independence, expertise, and political legitimacy.
The AI Governance Mistake Many Companies Don't Realize They're Making
Companies that treat AI governance as a compliance checkbox rather than a continuous operational discipline are quietly accumulating risks their boards don't yet know exist.
AI in Health Care: The Governance Gap
Artificial intelligence is no longer a future concept in health care; it is already shaping documentation, triage, utilization review, patient
To Improve Global Ocean Health, Countries Should Strengthen Fisheries Governance
Many of the world’s fisheries are at risk. But this summer, the Our Ocean Conference – taking place in Mombasa, Kenya, 16-18 June – will offer a critical opportunity for the global community to discuss important changes to strengthen the health and sustainability of the world’s fisheries.
What It Takes To Be A Top Tier Entertainment Lawyer in 2026
Share I’ve recently run several popular posts breaking down data related to sought after legal jobs. General Counsel Big Law Appellate Attorney Here is another in this series. Two Lawyers, One Elite Market Entertainment law can sound like a single professional category. In practice, the lawyers who reach the top of the Hollywood market often look quite different from one another. Consider two attorneys from the 2025 top-entertainment-law universe. Lesley Freeman represents one route: the company-side entertainment lawyer. She is chief legal officer of AGBO, where she oversees company-wide business and legal affairs across film, television, video game and interactive experiences, and technological innovation, after senior legal roles at MGM, Amazon MGM Studios, HBO, and O’Melveny. Daniel Petrocelli represents another route: the outside-counsel trial lawyer. He is chair of O’Melveny’s trial practice and a vice chair of the firm, with a national litigation practice that includes entertainment, sports, and media disputes. Their careers differ by platform, role, practice area, and professional identity. One sits inside an entertainment company; the other practices from a major law firm. One is associated with corporate and governance work; the other with litigation. Yet both fall within the same publicly recognized top tier of Hollywood lawyers. That contrast points to the article’s central question. If there is no single mold for a top entertainment lawyer, are the paths simply idiosyncratic, or do they follow recurring patterns? The data suggest the latter. The attorneys recognized on The Hollywood Reporter and Variety’s 2025 top-attorney lists do not follow one career template, but their paths are not random. They cluster around several defined routes: entertainment-focused private practice, company-side or operator experience, corporate and finance conversion, litigation conversion, public-service-to-litigation pathways, and smaller specialized lanes in labor, employment, and celebrity family law. Across those routes, the recurring ingredients are platform strength, educational capital or Los Angeles market proximity, long career tenure, specialized practice identity, and entertainment-industry fluency. The article examines five dimensions of the top-attorney sample: route into entertainment law, firm or organizational platform, education pipeline, seniority, and practice specialization. Data and Methodology The dataset includes 103 attorneys drawn from The Hollywood Reporter and Variety’s 2025 lists of top entertainment or Hollywood attorneys. For each attorney, the dataset tracks current organization, law school, J.D. year where available, first-known bar admission year, practice area, prior roles, platform type, and route into entertainment law. The sample is best understood as a recognized-attorney dataset, not a census of all entertainment lawyers. It captures lawyers who reached public top-tier recognition in 2025, rather than every lawyer practicing in the entertainment sector. Multiple but Defined Routes Into Entertainment Law The first question is how these lawyers entered the entertainment-law market. Because every attorney in the dataset is entertainment-related by definition, the key distinction is not whether they practice entertainment law. It is how they got there. The largest group followed what might be called the entertainment private-practice route. These attorneys appear to have built their practices around entertainment, media, talent, music, rights, production, intellectual property, or adjacent industry work relatively early. That route accounts for 40 of the 103 attorneys in the sample, or 38.8%.
Governor Spanberger Reappoints Board Rector and Business Leader Murry Pitts to the Board of Visitors
Old Dominion University is pleased to announce that Governor Abigail D. Spanberger has reappointed alumnus, corporate executive and current Rector P. Murry Pitts ’80 of Charlottesville to the University’s Board of Visitors. Rector Pitts will serve a four-year term, continuing his leadership and service through June 30, 2030. First appointed to the Board in 2020 to an unexpired term, Rector Pitts has served in his current leadership role since 2024, steering the University’s governance through a period of historic transformation.
Do New Leadership Hires Clarify WELL Health Technologies' (TSX:WELL) Public-Sector Digital Health Strategy?
WELL Health Technologies has appointed Dr. Andrew Bond as Chief Health Officer and Head of Public Sector, and Derek Clark as Chief Operating Officer, adding experienced leadership to clinical governance, government engagement, and platform-wide operations. These hires deepen WELL’s bench in both health system policy and complex multi-entity execution, reinforcing its push to work more closely with public health systems while scaling its national digital and clinic network. Next, we’ll...
Israel gives in to the politics of debasement
A shocking new Knesset vote showed just how deleterious Netayahu’s governance has been
One Health in a Fractured World: Why Global Health Governance Must Adapt to Geopolitical Fragmentation - Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Introduction In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic revealed the weaknesses of global health systems to infectious diseases. However, less recognized was how the emergence of this novel virus highlighted the global changes converging to heighten outbreak risks: increased human-animal contact and agricultural intensification, accelerated population growth and urbanization, and changing weather and climatic patterns. These […]
How ASUS Is Bringing AI into Healthcare Workflows
Move from pilot to production with ASUS AI Hub and NVIDIA NemoClaw. Deploy scalable, secure on-premises enterprise Agentic AI with robust data governance and custom knowledge RAG workflows.
Pope Leo’s AI Warning Challenges Big Tech’s Growing Influence
The Catholic Church, which represents nearly 1.4 billion people, sought to establish itself as a prominent voice in debates over AI governance
Health data: Ethics and equity at the heart of research
Experts meeting at the Vatican call for stronger ethical governance and greater fairness in the collection, use, and sharing of health data and ...
Elections to top science bodies test Croatia’s gender equality in research
Croatia’s track-record on gender equality in science has been both questioned and lauded in recent months, following both bad and good news on the topic. On the one hand, a senior awards committee was announced without a single woman researcher included. On the other, the national science academy welcomed its first cohort of fellows with more women than men.Members of the committee, which gives national awards recognising scientific achievement, are proposed by the ministry of science and endorsed by the parliament. The current line-up does include a woman, but she is culture minister Nina Obuljen Koržinek rather than a researcher. Even then, she didn’t make it into the photograph released to announce the appointments on April 16. “The image speaks a thousand words,” says Tanja Rudež, a science journalist for Jutarnji List newspaper. “I am surprised that none of these men, all well-known scientists, saw a problem with the fact that there was not a single successful female scientist on the committee,” she told Science|Business.Ivan Đikić, a prominent Croatian biochemist based at Goethe University Medical School, commented on LinkedIn that the news illustrated a “sad truth” about the state of science in Croatia.“It [. . .] reveals a system where women, despite contributing a substantial share of high-quality, internationally competitive science, are systematically excluded from the very processes that determine recognition and influence,” he wrote. Some 60% of researchers in Croatia are women, according to the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, and they perform well in international competitions. For example, of the 12 European Research Council (ERC) grants awarded to Croatian researchers, seven went to women.“So how is it possible that decision-making bodies are still dominated by men over 60, while not a single female ERC laureate is involved in the selection process?” asked Đikić. “This is not a marginal oversight; it is a structural failure.” The ministry of science did not reply to a request for comment. The awards committee is not unusual. For example, a scientific advisory body announced by the ministry of demographics in April comprises 35 men and five women. The board of the Croatian Science Foundation, newly appointed by the parliament, is a little better, with five men and two women, but still unequal. “This is especially significant because such bodies do not merely distribute prestige. They shape research priorities, funding allocation and long-term scientific development,” Marija Lugarić, chair of the parliament’s committee on gender equality, told Science|Business. “Representation here matters not only symbolically, but materially.”Referring to the awards committee and the board of the science foundation, Lugarić says that while both bodies were appointed by parliament, neither met the minimum 40% gender balance threshold that Croatian law and EU guidelines expressly recommend for public bodies.Đikić wants to see EU institutions put pressure on the government to ensure basic standards of fairness, transparency and democratic governance in science policy are met. “Meaningful change will not come without pressure,” he wrote. “It must intensify both within Croatia and at the level of European institutions. Anything less undermines the credibility of Europe’s commitment to excellence and inclusion in science.”Rudež also underlined the importance of talking and writing about this topic, “because public opinion in Croatia does influence changes in the status and visibility of women in science.”The European Commission has not yet responded to a request for comment.Good news from the academyA more positive story came from the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts on 21 May, with the announcement of seven new women fellows and five men. This is the first time in the academy’s 165-year history that women have outnumbered men in a new intake.One of the new fellows, two-time ERC grantee Iva Tolić, credits the academy leadership with trying to be more modern and inclusive, representing the whole community better. “The academy is really aware that so far, before this election, there were very few women,” she told Science|Business. “So, they are actively trying to make this more equal.”Related articlesExplained: How the MSCA is close to achieving gender balanceCall for EU to leverage academic freedom in global talent raceRudež is more cautious, noting that despite the academy’s “breakthrough this year [. . .] it is still a predominantly male institution, with only 18% women.”This reflects a wider imbalance in Croatia’s research landscape. “The key levers of power in science are still in the hands of men,” she went on. “For example, all 14 rectors of private and public universities are men.”Similarly, Lugarić says a structural glass ceiling still exists in Croatian science, which is “most visible precisely where power is exercised.”She cites data from the Commission’s She Figures 2024 report, which shows that Croatia ranks second in the EU for gender equality in research and innovation overall, with an equality index of 79.6 out of 100. It is in the top five for women’s career advancement, participation in research; representation across all research sectors and for scientific publications.In stark contrast, it ranks second to last when it comes to women in decision-making positions in science. “This is not a coincidence,” Lugarić says. “It is a structural pattern.”Informal barriersThe persistent under-representation of women in the highest structures of Croatia’s academies, boards, award committees and leadership positions is not down to formal barriers, Lugarić says, but arises from more subtle obstacles such as “informal networks, persistent expectations regarding traditional gender roles and the unequal distribution of care responsibilities.”Tolić would like to see more support for young women in terms of affordable housing and child support, and higher salaries. Currently, she says, salaries in science stay low for the first 10-15 years, while housing and spaces in kindergarten are limited and expensive. “You have to work a lot, you get very little money, so it’s not great to have a family in this situation,” she says.But despite the challenges, Tolić is optimistic, saying that gender equality in research in Croatia is “definitely improving and going in the right direction.” The situation is particularly promising in biology, she adds, where most full professors, heads of department and deans of faculties are women. Lugarić, too, see the glass ceiling “very slowly, cracking,” and cites the academy election as an example that structural change is possible. Yet the situation in the national awards committee is a “stark reminder that without a conscious, systemic commitment to gender balance, progress will remain slow and uneven.”
Joint Commission intros new voluntary AI responsibility certification
The program is designed to recognize hospitals and health systems for adopting and implementing artificial intelligence tools with sufficient governance, monitoring processes and education programs in place.
Towards a responsive health system and equitable access to quality RMNCAH services
Indonesia’s vast geography and sociocultural diversity shape the delivery of reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health (RMNCAH) services in ways that are both enabling and challenging. Across provinces, significant variation has been observed in how services are planned, resourced, and delivered. These variations in service standards and quality are felt daily in the lives of women, newborns and adolescents. Despite these challenges, progress is visible. National estimates show a drop in maternal mortality ratio, from 331 to 140 per 100 000 live births since 2000, signaling improvements in care quality and access. Fertility has stabilised and contraceptive use has grown, yet unmet reproductive health needs persist, and adolescent pregnancies continue to reflect early marriage and limited access to youth-friendly services.To better understand how Indonesia’s health system has evolved under decentralisation, the Ministry of Health, supported by World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), IPAS and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), conducted a joint external review of RMNCAH programmes. This review draws on multiple sources of evidence, including existing literature, policy documents, national health system data, as well as field visits to six selected provinces to represent Indonesia’s geographic and administrative diversity. During the field visits, review teams observed service delivery in health facilities, spoke with health workers and local leaders and met mothers and families to understand how RMNCAH policies are operationalised. One of the challenges identified was the management of low birthweight (LBW) infants, a major contributor to neonatal deaths, under resource constraints. One midwife described a severe case of extremely LBW twins, one stillborn and the other died after three days of care. She recalled how the surviving infant struggled to swallow and may not have received breast milk, while simultaneous emergencies required the team’s attention, affecting the care provided to the infant.A subsequent review of the case by the district health office revealed insufficient antenatal care, fragmented maternal medical history due to population mobility, referral delays, limited provider capacity in neonatal intravenous access and a heavy workload that constrained proper newborn monitoring. These insights informed recommendations to strengthen both system-wide and service-level responses. Since the early 2000s, Indonesia’s decentralisation initiative has given much of the responsibility for funding, staffing and managing health services to regional governments. While the Ministry of Health sets national clinical standards, daily management of public health facilities falls under regional authorities through the Ministry of Internal Affairs. While this arrangement allows services to be tailored to local needs, it also depends heavily on local capacity for planning, budgeting and management. Health facilities and district health offices are better positioned to translate national priorities into local action when they have access to consistent technical support, helping health workers manage resource constraints and infrastructure gaps.The complexity of Indonesia’s health system governance is no easy feat to navigate. Understanding these dynamics is essential to strengthening policy, improving coordination and ensuring more equitable access to services across Indonesia. Under the leadership of Ministry of Health, recommendations from this exercise will be key in guiding the nation’s roadmap to an equitable and quality health system for RMNCAH.Written by Edit Oktavia Manuama, National Professional Officer (Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health), and Jessie Yunus, National Professional Officer (Gender, Rights, Equity, and Disability Inclusion)
Brooks senior develops national index tracking AI healthcare policy
As artificial intelligence reshapes health care, new questions are emerging about oversight, accountability, and patient safety. Brooks senior Will Moss ’26 developed the Health and AI Policy Index (HAPI), a public database designed to help policymakers, researchers, and health systems track emerging health care AI governance efforts.
Increased UK Harassment Liability from October 2026: Is Your Business Ready?
October 2026 will mark a fundamental shift in UK workplace harassment law, significantly raising the stakes for employers and reinforcing a broader move away from reactive complaint handling towards proactive prevention, governance, and risk management.What is Changing?Key legal developments in October 2026 under the Employment Rights Act 2025 (ERA 2025) are:
AI roundup: Power redistribution | Governance playbooks | LLMs vs. search engines
More people are turning to LLMs for helpful answers to subjective questions. Might they be better off sticking with web search engines?
CHAI releases AI governance guidance for health systems
The resources aim to offer a standard but flexible framework for health systems, regardless of their size or available resources, the industry group said.
Beyond the EHR: Why one CIO believes AI will dwarf every prior health IT shift
Dave Lundal of Children's Minnesota says health systems must move quickly to build governance, vision and flexibility as artificial intelligence rapidly evolves.
Scientific Societies Launch “Trust Seal” to Strengthen Confidence in Science
Scientific societies and scholarly publishing organizations launch the Trust Seal, a new community-led initiative designed to strengthen confidence in science by supporting trustworthy publishing practices, transparency, and independent governance across the research ecosystem.
BP ousts chairman over ‘serious concerns’ about his conduct
BP has dismissed its chairman Albert Manifold less than a year since he was appointed to the role, after “serious concerns” were raised about “governance standards, oversight and conduct,” the oil giant said Tuesday.
Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly – Daily update: 23 May 2026
Summary of discussions of 23 May at the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly.
Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly – Daily update: 22 May 2026
Summary of discussions of 22 May at the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly.
World Health Assembly endorses resolution on precision medicine
At the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly, Member States endorsed a new resolution on Precision medicine: a path towards targeted, personalized and equitable care, taking an important step towards advancing precision medicine as part of efforts to strengthen equitable, effective and sustainable health systems. Precision medicine refers to the use of clinical, molecular, genomic and other health data to inform prevention, diagnosis and treatment, taking into account variability while applying appropriate ethical and legal safeguards. When integrated responsibly into health systems, precision approaches can improve outcomes across different disease areas and across the life course – from cancer and rare diseases to infectious diseases, maternal, newborn and child health, mental health and noncommunicable diseases. The resolution reflects rapid advances in genomics, diagnostics, data science and digital health, alongside widening global inequities in access to these innovations. Many populations – particularly in low- and middle-income countries – remain underrepresented in data and research, limiting the public health impact of precision medicine and risking the widening of health disparities if action is not taken now. "Precision medicine is not an aspirational idea for health delivery in the future – it is already transforming lives across the world. But its benefits remain out of reach for too many and the research driving progress is concentrated in high income countries. This WHA resolution gives global health leaders, ministries of health, and WHO a clear mandate: to act. From infant screening to setting up genomic databases WHO will work with countries to bring about the power of these innovations." Dr Meg Doherty, Director Science for HealthThrough the resolution, Member States commit to developing and strengthening national policies, infrastructure, workforce capacity and governance frameworks to support the safe, ethical and equitable integration of precision medicine into health systems, aligned with universal health coverage. This includes promoting affordability, ensuring inclusive research and data systems, strengthening regulation and data governance, and fostering collaboration across sectors and regions.WHO is requested to provide technical and normative support, review and coordinate existing guidance, facilitate global and regional collaboration, and develop a Global Strategy on Precision Medicine to guide equitable and context‑appropriate implementation. WHO stands ready to support Member States through tools such as a country maturity model for countries to self-assess capacity in implementing precision medicine depending on their context. In the immediate term WHO will map all existing guidance and frameworks and host extensive consultations with interest holders globally.By placing equity, inclusion and public value at the centre of precision medicine, the resolution reinforces WHO’s commitment to ensuring that scientific advances benefit all people, everywhere, and that no one is left behind in the next era of health innovation."By uniting people-centered healthcare with innovation, precision medicine has the potential to transform lives. This resolution helps ensure those advances serve the shared goal of health for all." Dr Sylvie Briand, Chief Scientist For further information please visit the Health Topic: Genomics
OneStream Unifies Financial and Operational Planning to Help CFOs Run the Business in Real Time
/PRNewswire/ -- OneStream, the AI operating system for modern Finance that unifies core financial and operational processes, embedding the governance, context,...
Big Ten explores self-governance as College Sports Commission sputters, Congress action stalls
As frustration grows with stalled federal action and a shaky NIL enforcement system, Big Ten leaders are exploring a future where the conference sets and polices its own rules
Jonathan Weigel named one of the World's Best 40-Under-40 Graduate Business Professors by Poets & Quants - Haas News
Assistant Professor Jonathan Weigel, who teaches business ethics to MBA students and studies how fragile states can build more accountable governance, has been named one of Poets & Quants’ “World’s Best 40-Under-40 Graduate Business Professors of 2026.” Weigel was selected from more than 1,700 nominations from students, administrators, and faculty members at business schools around […]
Director-General presents Award for Global Health to four distinguished leaders
At the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly in Geneva, WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has presented four distinguished leaders with the Award for Global Health, recognizing their lifetime achievements and exceptional contributions to improving the health and well-being of communities worldwide.
A prayer festival calls for more religion in politics, not less
A prayer festival on the National Mall in Washington, DC was partially organized and funded by the federal government. Its evangelical Christian messaging and call for more religion in politics not less, aligns with the Trump administration's fusion of faith and governance. NPR's Emily Feng went to the event to understand the audience for this approach, and she spoke with author Eric Metaxas, a speaker at the Rededicate 250 festival.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.This episode was produced by Henry Larson, with audio engineering by It was edited by Sarah Robbins and Daniel Burke.Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.
Trust, Play, and Platforms: Sharing Lessons for Safer Digital Spaces
Drawing on expert reflections from a September 2025 symposium, this paper examines how Trust & Safety governance in online gaming compares to social media and what the games industry’s unique experience with community-driven moderation can teach policymakers and advocates working across all digital spaces.
Amid elevated disaster risks Tahoe cannot afford tourism business-driven governance
Local and state governments in 2026 are under more pressure than ever to provide services. These new realities and an uncertain summer came into sharp relief recently in Nevada. During the state’s joint interim standing Government Affairs meeting, lawmakers received an alarming update from Nevada’s head of Emergency Management and Homeland Security about strained disaster […]
Assessing ManpowerGroup (MAN) Valuation After Q1 2026 Growth Governance Changes And Business Sale
ManpowerGroup (MAN) is back in focus after a busy start to 2026, with Q1 revenue growth of 10.3%, shareholder-approved equity and governance changes, and the completed sale of its Jefferson Wells U.S. business. See our latest analysis for ManpowerGroup. The recent governance changes, dividend declaration and the Jefferson Wells sale come at a time when ManpowerGroup’s share price has shown a 7.6% 30 day share price return but a 23.3% decline in 1 year total shareholder return. This suggests...
Botswana’s former President Festus Mogae dies aged 86
The former leader won praise for good governance and the fight against HIV/AIDS in the southern African nation.
The art, science, and safety of human-decision support
John Hancock outlines how AI, architecture, and governance can help drive scalable and responsible transformation
Melco Resorts & Entertainment Publishes 2025 Sustainability Report Highlighting Environmental and Community Initiatives
Melco Resorts & Entertainment released its 2025 Sustainability Report, highlighting environmental achievements and community engagement initiatives.Quiver AI SummaryMelco Resorts & Entertainment has released its 2025 Sustainability Report, titled “RISE to Go Above & Beyond,” highlighting advancements in environmental stewardship, community engagement, and corporate governance. Chairman and CEO Lawrence Ho emphasized the integration of sustainabil
Global Health & WASH: May 2026 Funding Opportunities (14 new opportunities!)
The May update for Global Health & WASH brings new calls that cluster around three distinct shifts: LMIC research leadership moving from funder encouragement into a hard eligibility constraint, pharmaceutical and corporate-linked funders running structurally independent education and use-inspired research portfolios at substantial scale, and AI adoption shifting decisively from speculative tool to operational capability across health and WASH systems alike. In LMIC Research Leadership as Eligibility, Not Encouragement, Wellcome anchors the dominant signal of the month with three separate major calls that all require or strongly center LMIC leadership in their basic eligibility architecture. Wellcome’s ESIC Hubs (£1.5-£1.9M per hub over 3-5 years) explicitly requires an LMIC-based lead applicant, treating Global South leadership as a design constraint rather than a participation goal. Wellcome’s Infectious Disease Clinical Trial Development Award funds transdisciplinary teams whose lead must be a mid-career or established researcher based at an organization in Africa, South Asia, or Southeast Asia. Wellcome’s larger Infectious Disease Clinical Trial Award (£1M-£8M for optimizing licensed interventions) requires the administering organization to be in eligible LMIC regions and at least 50% of applicants based there. Around Wellcome, the same pattern shows up at smaller scale and across funders: CHINNOVA channels $1M into West and Central African research institutions for climate-health work; IBRO’s Neuroscience Training Grants explicitly tier ceilings by region of residence with Africa receiving the highest amount ($5,000); IHME’s GBD Emerging Researcher Award reserves at least one of its two annual awards for an LMIC researcher; Sidaction’s HIV Cure call funds research teams across France, the Netherlands, and eligible African countries with a minimum two-country collaboration requirement. Taken together, these calls signal a meaningful shift in how research equity is being operationalized — not as encouragement language at the bottom of a call, but as a structural feature of who can lead, where the work must be administered, and what proportion of the team must be regionally rooted. In Pharma-Funded Independent Medical Education and Use-Inspired Research, the lineup this month is unusually deep. Pfizer alone runs four parallel calls under independent education and quality improvement frameworks: a Migraine and Women’s Health RFP (200K x 2-year, $500K pool), Migraine IME ($200K, $1M pool), JAK Inhibitor evidence-based education ($100K), and Maternal Vaccination HCP Education in Saudi Arabia ($75K), plus a separate Pediatric Pneumococcal Surveillance research call in Saudi Arabia ($400K per project). Novo Nordisk Foundation runs four parallel calls of its own at substantial scale: Infectious Diseases Catalyst Grants (DKK 60M pool, up to DKK 7M collaborative), Non-Diabetic Endocrinology Collaborative Grants (DKK 53M pool, DKK 5-10M per project), Pioneer Innovator Grant Health (DKK 1.1M), and Distinguished Innovator Grant Health (DKK 6.8M). LEO Foundation deploys DKK 2-4M per project for dermatology research excellence. Pfizer’s framing across calls deliberately separates the funding from product promotion, emphasizing measurable practice-relevant change and structural distance between scientific outputs and commercial activity. Novo Nordisk’s “use-inspired” hard filter pushes researchers toward a credible translation pathway from mechanism to deployable tool. The pattern: industry-aligned funders are running structurally independent portfolios at meaningful $ that fund implementation evidence, not promotion. In AI as Operational Capability, Not Speculation, several calls this month explicitly treat AI adoption as a near-term operational question with real evidence and governance requirements, rather than a speculative trend to be watched. Wellcome’s ESIC Hubs frames AI as “the accelerator” for evidence synthesis, asking hubs to translate technical innovation into adoption-ready workflows that can match real-world policy timelines. UNICEF Venture Fund’s new Climate Tech for Children’s Health call funds for-profit startups deploying AI, machine learning, and blockchain in low-resource environments, with a strict requirement that solutions must already have a working prototype with promising pilot results. The Water Research Foundation has launched two simultaneous AI calls treating reproducibility, cybersecurity guardrails, and human-in-the-loop deployments as core design constraints rather than nice-to-haves: one on GenAI and Agentic AI in water utilities ($200K), one on alternatives to water shutoffs that explicitly screens for implementation economics evidence. Nordic Innovation’s quantum technology call (NOK 4.5M) extends the same logic into life science and healthcare, demanding consortium-stage projects mature enough to test with real users. TEF-Health offers €300K in subsidized testing infrastructure for European healthcare AI and robotics SMEs. The pattern: funders are converting AI pilots into playbooks, requiring transfer evidence and risk controls before AI can move from experimentation to sector-wide operational practice. For LMIC-based researchers in infectious disease or evidence synthesis, the three Wellcome calls together represent the deepest concentration of LMIC-led research capital in recent memory — pair the Infectious Disease Clinical Trial Development Award (£200K, deadline May 19) as a strategic pipeline feeder into the larger Infectious Disease Clinical Trial Award (£1-£8M, deadline June 2), since the development award functions explicitly as a track into the larger trial scheme. For Nordic researchers, the four Novo Nordisk Foundation calls plus LEO Foundation and Nordic Innovation Quantum represent ~$30M in regional research capital this cycle, all with deadlines clustered in May-August. For WASH practitioners, the three Water Research Foundation calls together (each up to $200K) are a cluster worth reading across — one on AI deployment, one on shutoff alternatives, one rewarding applied innovation — and the strongest applicants will articulate how their work bridges utility operations to policy-relevant evidence. For US-based clinical researchers and educators, the four Pfizer calls plus the APF Portfolio’s 80+ programs form an unusually accessible recurring pipeline; APF’s prohibition on indirect costs is a meaningful structural feature for early-career applicants whose institutions might otherwise absorb significant overhead. Snapshot of New Opportunities Total Estimated Funding Pool: $100 Million+ USD The grants are organized into three categories: Open Calls: Current grant and opportunities with a deadline. Grants are listed by closing date. 39 open opportunities- 14 new! Rolling Applications: current grant and opportunities with rolling applications (but it’s still best to submit as early as possible). 14 rolling opportunities- 1 new opportunity! Long term planning: Grants that have closed their current rounds, but are expected to open new windows. 4 long term opportunities! A quick tip for returning readers: if you want to jump straight to the newest additions, use CTRL F to search for “New!” and navigate quickly to the latest funding opportunities This post is for paid subscribers. This helps support the time and effort it takes to curate and organize these opportunities. Subscribe To keep this accessible to everyone who needs it, we’re happy to offer pay what you can rates. You can find more details here. Open Calls: Migraine Competitive Grant Program: Migraine and Women’s Health (Quality Improvement and/or Research RFP), Pfizer.*Closing soon!* Pfizer, in collaboration with the American Headache Society, is seeking independent quality improvement and research projects that close persistent gaps in migraine care for women across the United States. The funding logic centers on measurable, practice-relevant change: proposals should generate actionable evidence, tools, or system improvements that can be shared and used widely, not just within a single site. Priority areas span menstrual migraine and screening in women’s health settings, the role of hormonal fluctuations across the lifespan, sex-specific risk factors, comorbidities and quality-of-life burden, and disparities in outcomes by race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. The call is structured as a two-step competitive process with an initial Letter of Intent, with the strongest concepts expected to translate scientific insight into implementable improvements in diagnosis, management, and equity. Geographies: United States. Who can apply: U.S.-based organizations (not individuals), including professional schools, healthcare institutions, professional organizations, and other entities focused on healthcare improvement. Funding amount: Up to USD $200,000 total over 2 years; total pool USD $500,000. Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Focus areas: migraine, women’s health, quality improvement, clinical research, menstrual migraine, health disparities. Deadline: LOI: May 5, 2026; Full proposal (by invitation): August 28, 2026. Learn more and apply here. This RFP rewards “shareable impact”: the most competitive submissions will pair rigorous methods with a clear plan for system uptake and dissemination beyond the originating institution. ReSSARC: Strengthening the Health Sector and Food Security in the Central African Republic (AID 013381/01/0) Call for Proposals, Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS). *Closing soon!* AICS is seeking a limited set of high-capacity humanitarian partners to deliver an integrated package that stabilizes essential health services while reducing acute malnutrition and strengthening food security resilience in priority areas of the Central African Republic. The funder’s logic is explicitly nexus-based: proposals should meet urgent, life-saving needs while reinforcing local systems, coordination mechanisms, and community-level capacity so results persist beyond the emergency window. AICS emphasizes inclusion and protection outcomes, expecting gender-sensitive design and explicit measures for groups facing compounded vulnerability, including women, children under five, internally displaced people, and people with disabilities. The call also signals a localization pathway, encouraging stronger collaboration with national NGOs and balanced partnerships, alongside clear coordination with existing cluster and humanitarian actors to minimize duplication and improve coverage. Geographies: Central African Republic (Bangui, Ombella-Mpoko, Ouham, Ouham-Pende, Lim-Pende, Lobaye). Who can apply: Non-profit organizations registered with AICS, plus eligible non-profits without an office in Italy that have a pre-existing collaboration agreement with an AICS-listed organization. Funding amount: Total pool EUR €1,800,000; max EUR €800,000 (single applicant) or EUR €1,000,000 (ATS). Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Focus areas: malnutrition prevention and treatment, maternal and child health, community health services, food security and resilience, localization partnerships Deadline: May 5, 2026. Learn more and apply here. This call is structured to reward partners who can link frontline service delivery to system durability and localization, not just short-term coverage gains. Contracts for Innovation in drug and alcohol addiction healthcare, Innovate UK. *Closing soon!* Innovate UK, on behalf of the Office for Life Sciences Addiction Healthcare Goals program, is procuring R&D to accelerate innovations that can improve treatment outcomes, strengthen recovery, and reduce harm and deaths linked to drug and alcohol addiction. The competition is positioned as a market-facing readiness push: selected projects are expected to advance solutions toward later-stage validation, generate evidence of user acceptability and UK market fit, and map credible routes through regulatory and certification requirements. Innovate UK signals a preference for innovations that can be field-tested in relevant UK settings and progressed to TRL 6 or 7, with practical plans for commercialization after contract completion. This structure favors applicants that can execute most work in-house, co-develop with service providers and people with lived experience, and translate technical progress into deployable tools for addiction healthcare delivery. Geographies: United Kingdom. Who can apply: Single organizations of any size (including EU, EEA, or international) leading delivery, with most work and key deliverables carried out in the UK; subcontractors for specialist skills only. Funding amount: GBP £200,000–1.5 million per project (inclusive of VAT); Total pool: GBP £20 million (across two strands). Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Focus areas: Mental Health, Health Systems Strengthening, Research & Development, Technology Access. Deadline: May 6, 2026 (11:00am). Learn more and apply here. This call uses procurement to pull near-market addiction innovations toward operational proof and adoption pathways in UK services.
Africa CDC Launches the African Strategic Advisory Group on Genomics
I’m today announced the launch of the African Strategic Advisory Group on Genomics (ASAG), a new continental advisory mechanism established to provide independent, multidisciplinary, and trusted technical guidance on the strategic governance and implementation of genomics across Africa. The launch of ASAG marks a pivotal step in advancing Africa CDC’s vision to democratize access to […]
AI & Tech brief: States regulate AI in health care
Plus, what the Musk vs. Altman court battle says about AI governance
Unlocking SAP Business Context in Databricks with Semantic Metadata Delta Sharing
SAP Business Data Cloud integration with Databricks made it easy to Delta Share your SAP data sets natively into Databricks. But it is difficult to make use of this data without its rich semantic context. Now, SAP Business Data Cloud Delta Shares automatically sync semantic metadata into Unity Catalog — including column and table descriptions, primary/foreign key relationships, and data governance tags. This enables the Databricks Genie to immediately understand your SAP data, making it ready for natural language discovery and secure analytics.
Apple Business and the Illusion of Simplicity
Apple Business Manager simplifies device enrollment, but true security demands continuous governance and integrated endpoint management with BlackBerry UEM.
Top Texas Tech football donor says nobody has 'authority' to 'enforce any rules' in college sports right now
Texas Tech booster Cody Campbell told Fox News Digital he has concerns about college sports rule enforcement, calling the governance model broken.
Turn ambulatory care into a health system growth engine
Learn how health systems can use ambulatory governance, transparency and accountability to protect margin and drive sustainable growth.
Should Flutter’s Shift to U.S.-Style Governance and Blank-Check Preferred Shares Require Action From Flutter Entertainment (FLUT) Investors?
At its 2026 Annual General Meeting on May 29, held in the past relative to today, Flutter Entertainment plc approved amendments to its Memorandum and Articles of Association to align governance with common U.S. public company practices, including plurality voting in contested director elections, flexible board size, and the ability to issue blank-check preferred shares. An important implication is Flutter’s move to formalize its status as a U.S. domestic issuer under the Securities Exchange...
New fellowship program for senior, experienced tech and scientific innovators
The Belfer Center is seeking applicants from experienced, senior technology and scientific innovators from the private sector to pursue policy-relevant work aimed at expanding the understanding, potential, use, impact, and governance of emerging technologies.
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger Stressed Pragmatism, But Politics Hound Her
Gov. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia has emphasized practical governance as her brand, but the political fight over redistricting has dominated her term so far.
A Governor Who Stressed Pragmatism Is Hounded by Politics
Gov. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia has emphasized practical governance as her brand, but the political fight over redistricting has dominated her term so far.
Healey signs bill reforming marijuana business governance, sales in Mass.
Gov. Maura Healey will now appoint all members of a reformed Cannabis Control Commission. She signed a bill Sunday that included several changes to Massachusetts' marijuana industry.
Indonesia and the politics of platform governance
The relationship between governments and digital platforms is never simple. Governments can introduce regulations, but digital platforms also possess enormous power through the technologies, algorithms, and global information infrastructure they control.
United States and Madagascar Discuss Five-Year Health MOU Implementation Plan - U.S. Embassy in Madagascar
United States and Madagascar Discuss Five-Year Health MOU Implementation Plan The United States and Madagascar’s Ministry of Public Health are in the process of developing a plan for implementing the U.S.-Madagascar five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on health cooperation, signed under the Trump Administration’s America First Global Health Strategy. The two-day workshop, at the U.S. Embassy in Antananarivo, brought together technical experts and senior leadership from the Malagasy and U.S. governments to discuss a shared vision through a preliminary draft MOU Implementation Plan and to establish the joint governance structures that will guide U.S. foreign assistance in health over the next five years. The jointly decided bilateral health MOU, signed on December 22, 2025, builds on decades of U.S. global health assistance to Madagascar. The health MOU involves the U.S.’s plans, working with Congress, to provide approximately $134 million (over 554 billion Ariary) and a Malagasy commitment of $41 million (over 169 billion Ariary). It aims to strengthen Madagascar’s health system, improve disease prevention and response, and support services that address health security concerns for both countries, including malaria, maternal and child health, polio, and global health security issues that could reach U.S. shores if not contained at their source. During the recent workshop, technical staff from the Ministry of Public Health and the U.S. Government health team worked in thematic groups to draft detailed implementation plans for the five-year MOU period. On the second day, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Stephanie Arnold and Ministry of Public Health and Economic and Finance Ministry leadership joined the technical teams to discuss plans and proposed terms of reference for two committees: a Joint Steering Committee and an Operational Committee. These structures will ensure clear roles and responsibilities, regular dialogue between the two governments, consistent monitoring of progress, and accountability for results. The framework includes performance benchmarks that will guide continued U.S. support and track Madagascar’s progress toward self-reliance. “We see this not as a U.S. project, but as a joint framework under Malagasy leadership, with U.S. support,” said U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Stephanie Arnold during the workshop’s opening session. The approach reflects U.S. foreign assistance principles that emphasize strategic, results-driven support that advances American interests while helping recipient countries build sustainable health systems. The framework is designed to build systems that Madagascar will increasingly finance and lead itself, reducing long-term dependence on foreign assistance.
The danger of when government goes rogue
It’s dangerous, even fatal, when government goes rogue whether in a democracy or autocracy. Government officials who ignore or taunt laws that constrain bad acts should be given the heave ho. We’re witnessing these egregious scenarios now at the federal and the Douglas County level. Scorn of basic rules of governance at the federal level […]
Remigration and the New Far-Right Politics of Mass Deportation
Panelists will explore the various interpretations and adaptations of a remigration agenda to fit local political and social contexts in Europe, the UK, and the US, offering regional perspectives on this growing transnational narrative and its implications for democratic governance, civil rights, and the future of immigration policy.
Viewpoint: FP10 should remain open, excellent and secure
Europe is right to worry about research security. Foreign interference is real. So is the misuse of sensitive knowledge. Universities working in sensitive areas such as AI, quantum, semiconductors and advanced materials cannot afford to ignore the geopolitical environment around them.But Europe is in danger of drawing the wrong conclusion, one that would increase, not reduce, its strategic vulnerabilities.If the EU applies an “EU preference” logic to the next Framework Programme for research and innovation (FP10), it will weaken one of its greatest strategic assets: a research system built on openness, excellence and international collaboration. In the name of security, Europe could end up advancing science more slowly, innovating less effectively and making itself less attractive to global talent and partners in advanced science and technology.That would be a serious mistake.The EU preference included in Article 10 of the proposed European Competitiveness Fund may make sense in some industrial or deployment contexts, but is far harder to justify when applied to collaborative research in advanced science and technology, where excellence and global connectivity are crucial. Research is not procurement. It does not thrive when isolated. It advances through access to the best ideas, the best people, the best facilities and the best data, wherever they are found. This is why FP10 should not simply absorb industrial policy logic by default. Doing so would risk importing instruments that are ill-suited to research and that ultimately increase vulnerability rather than resilience.For universities of science and technology, the issue is especially acute. These institutions sit at the frontier of knowledge and technology creation in the very fields Europe sees as critical for its future competitiveness and resilience. They know better than most that security risks are real. But they also know that openness and security are not opposites. In practice, they have to be made to work together. Research security is not about closing doors. It is about building resilience through collective responsibility, trust, proportionate safeguards and better governance. That is a fundamentally different approach from default restriction.The risks of non-collaborationThe real danger in the current debate is that Europe talks too much about the risks of collaboration and not enough about the risks of non-collaboration. Those risks are strategic too. Cut researchers off from international networks and Europe loses access to knowledge, data, infrastructures and talent. Slow down global collaboration in critical technologies and Europe slows down its own progress on cutting-edge science. Make participation rules unpredictable and Europe weakens its attractiveness to researchers and investors alike.In other words, over-restricting collaboration will create strategic vulnerabilities, particularly in advanced science and technologies.This point is often underestimated in policy discussions that frame openness mainly as a value to be defended. Europe’s scientific strength, technological development and long-term competitiveness depend on remaining connected to the best research ecosystems in the world. For a continent that wants to accelerate deep tech, strengthen industrial capacity and reduce strategic dependencies, weakening the excellence base would be self-defeating. That does not mean ignoring risk. Quite the opposite. Universities are already strengthening due diligence, internal governance, awareness-raising, screening procedures and compliance support. Across Europe, institutions are working to manage risks linked to foreign interference, sanctions, export controls and the misuse of research. The right response is not complacency. It is better risk management. But that means targeted, evidence-based and proportionate measures, not blunt top-down restrictions with wide spillover effects. In the daily reality of universities, openness and restriction often coexist. The real challenge is how to apply safeguards without sliding into securitisation that damages academic freedom, open science and international cooperation. Restrict partners, not nationsMore restrictive treatment of collaborators from European Economic Area members Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, or from Switzerland and the UK, is strategically very difficult to justify. These are deeply embedded partners in Europe’s research and innovation ecosystem. Beyond that, Europe should still resist default exclusion and instead rely on case-by-case assessment. The relevant question is not nationality in the abstract. It is the actual risk profile of a collaboration: the institution, the affiliations, the field, the knowledge involved, the intended use and the safeguards available. Screening should focus on institutions and affiliations rather than nationality alone. Related articlesParliament ‘misreads’ link between Horizon Europe and ECF, Commission official saysFrustration grows at governance gap in next Horizon EuropeIf EU preference logic is imported into research without careful calibration, the likely result is a chilling effect. Researchers may step back from legitimate and beneficial collaboration, even where risks are manageable. International partners may see Europe as less predictable. And Europe may end up undermining the very excellence base it needs to compete, scale up and lead in strategic technologies, thereby increasing its dependence on others.FP10 should do the opposite. It should remain open by default, with restrictions used only exceptionally, and then on the basis of clear evidence. It should integrate research security into open science and research integrity frameworks, not set them against each other. And it should recognise that academic freedom, scientific excellence and responsible international collaboration are not obstacles to Europe’s security, they are part of it. Europe needs stronger tools to protect itself. But it also needs the discipline to avoid measures that would weaken it and increase its strategic vulnerabilities in the process. In FP10, that means staying open, excellent and secure.Louise Drogoul is senior advisor for innovation and sustainability at the Cesaer university association.
Upcoming Tech and Sourcing Webinar on Digital Health
Join partner Ben Klaber and of counsels Ariel Seeley and Eric Pennesi on Thursday, April 9, 2026 from 12:00 to 1:00 pm ET for a discussion on innovations and trends in digital health. Topics will include artificial intelligence and connected devices, as well as data governance and regulatory developments.
What farmers can learn from other family business owners
Family farm businesses can adopt strategies learned from enterprises of all sizes to strengthen governance, leadership and succession planning.
UCLA beats South Carolina for 1st NCAA women's basketball title
Gabriela Jaquez and UCLA handily defeated South Carolina for its first women's basketball national championship under the governance of NCAA.
Registrations open for São Paulo School of Advanced Science on Regulatory Governance
School at the Getulio Vargas Foundation (Brazil) covers emerging regulatory frontiers, including central banks in climate risk regulation and antitrust in digital markets. Apply by April 30.
DI Cabinet adopts new rules to address ‘ghost transfers’ for all sports
On Wednesday, the Division I Cabinet adopted a proposal that penalizes programs that sign a transfer student-athlete, add a transfer student-athlete to a roster, or allow a transfer student-athlete to participate in athletically related activities before the student-athlete is entered into the NCAA Transfer Portal.
Phantom science
There’s a new specter haunting environmental governance, and it doesn’t rattle ghostly chains, it’s its generating phantom science. Recently, I was reading a government report trying to find scient…
IGAPA Highlights Key Trends in Government Relations and Political Campaigns at Washington, D.C. Forum
The 11th International Government Relations (GR) & Political Campaigns Forum, organized by IGAPA (International Government Affairs Professional Association), a leading global network of public affairs professionals, convened policymakers, political strategists, consultants, and thought leaders from more than 10 countries to address pressing challenges in governance, elections, and public trust.
A Look At Six Flags Entertainment (FUN) Valuation After Jana Partners Activism And Leadership Shake Up
Six Flags Entertainment (FUN) is back in focus after activist investor Jana Partners publicly urged the company to consider a sale and overhaul its board leadership, prompting a rapid shake up in the chairman role. See our latest analysis for Six Flags Entertainment. The recent governance shake up comes against a mixed backdrop, with a 10.52% 90 day share price return and a 7.17% year to date share price return set against a 1 year total shareholder return decline of 53.46%. This suggests...
Tyler Sloat Joins Hinge Health Board As Growth And Discipline Focus
Hinge Health (NYSE:HNGE) appointed Tyler Sloat to its board of directors, adding a leader with experience in high growth technology companies. Sloat has held senior roles at companies that have gone through rapid expansion and IPOs. The appointment signals a focus on scaling Hinge Health's business and strengthening governance as the company matures. Hinge Health focuses on digital musculoskeletal care, a segment that sits at the intersection of healthcare and technology. As employers and...
People moves: Allen Lo leaves Meta and joins Madison Square Garden Entertainment
Madison Square Garden Entertainment and Sphere Entertainment have announced that Allen Lo has been named EVP,
The NYU Faculty Strike and the Politics of Workers’ Rights
Just days ago, NYU faced an imminent faculty strike of nearly 1,000 non-tenure track faculty as questions about labor conditions and university governance
Opinion | Nothing against California-based Sutter Health, but Allina’s local governance matters
Allina is built on a "model of care that puts patients and families at the center of everything. That is not something that transfers automatically with a transaction. It has to be protected deliberately, by people who understand what it is and why it matters," the writer says.
AI Swarm Attacks Are Coming, Is Your Business Ready?
Leaders need a new cybersecurity playbook for the agentic era, with stronger governance, faster response systems, workforce awareness, and up-to-date security frameworks.
School politics class: Biggest Nato allies reject Donald Trump’s Hormuz armada demand
Global governance
Towards responsible AI for mental health and well-being: experts chart a way forward
On 29 January 2026, WHO‑supported experts met at a TU Delft workshop to address the rapid, largely untested use of generative AI for mental health support. Participants warned of risks to well‑being, especially for young people, and called for stronger governance.
Forum on harnessing Artificial Intelligence for health equity
Register to this forumOver the past decade, artificial intelligence (AI) has significantly evolved in complexity, performance, and utility. Its integration across a wide range of industrial sectors has accelerated, with healthcare emerging as one of the most transformative sectors. In this sector, AI has enabled high-impact applications – from enhancing the speed and accuracy of disease diagnosis and supporting clinical decision-making, to strengthening public health initiatives such as disease surveillance and workforce optimization. Moreover, AI holds immense potential to empower individuals, enabling them to take greater control of their personal health and well-being. Yet the central question remains: Who benefits, who is at risk, and do these innovations close or widen health inequities? While the potential of AI-enabled applications is substantial, many countries have approached their adoption with caution. This hesitancy stems from concerns about risks and benefits, including model bias, data breaches, privacy violations, and the erosion of professional skills due to over-reliance on AI. Additional barriers include inadequate data infrastructure and a lack of robust evidence on the most effective forms and interfaces of AI to enhance service delivery and system performance. Moreover, the rapid rise of Generative AI has introduced a heightened urgency for the development of comprehensive governance and ethical frameworks. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) Health Practice Team and Digital Sector, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for the Western Pacific, are convening the Forum on Harnessing AI for Health Equity on 25–26 March at ADB Headquarters. Senior health officials from 16 developing member countries (DMCs), alongside leading researchers, innovators, and policymakers from across Asia and the Pacific, will engage in discussions on how AI can be governed, financed, and scaled to deliver healthier lives for all. The forum is funded through the High-Level Technology Fund with support from the Government of Japan. Objectives The two-day forum aims to:Identify high-impact, evidence-based health AI use cases suitable for resource-constrained settings and map out a pipeline for potential supportIntroduce and validate the WHO's policy guidance on minimum necessary ecosystem for countries and institutions to self-assess readiness for AI adoptionObtain initial commitment from participating stakeholders to join a pilot regional initiative focused on data/model sharing for a priority health challengeEndorse a prioritized set of actionable policy recommendations focusing on governance, regulation, and sustainable financing necessary to scale high-impact health AI use cases in resource-constrained settings Target participants The forum will convene participants from 16 ADB DMCs including Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Mongolia, Nepal, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Uzbekistan, and Viet Nam. In addition, health system leaders and practitioners, private sector technologists, academic experts, representatives from civil society organizations, development partners, and philanthropic institutions engaged in AI for Health from Australia, the People’s Republic of China, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the Republic of Korea will also be invited. SessionsDay 1 (25 March)Session 1: AI Use Cases for the Care Continuum: Improving Access and QualitySession 2: Adopting a risk-based approach for AI use case prioritizationSession 3: Establishing the Minimum Ecosystem for Implementation Risk ManagementSession 4: Future-Ready Health Workforce: Building Competency for Human-AI CollaborationDay 2 (26 March)Session 5: The Political Economy of AI in Health: Understanding Stakeholder Interests and their Impact on EquitySession 6: AI and Health Financing: Supporting Fair Coverage and ProtectionSession 7: AI Regulation and Oversight: Pathways for Different RealitiesSession 8: The Way Forward – Building Alliances and Regional Partnership How to registerThe forum will be held in a hybrid format. In-person attendance is by invitation only, while livestreaming of the forum will be available to the public. To register, please complete this form on or before 24 March 2026.Event organizers / partnersAsian Development Bank (ADB)WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific High-Level Technology Fund (HLTF)ContactAkihito WatabeHealth Specialist, SD3-HSDawatabe@adb.org Jae Kyoun KimHealth Specialist, SD3-HSDjkkim@adb.org
Integrating health equity into energy transitions and climate governance
Nature Medicine - The health benefits of clean energy transitions are unevenly distributed, even when emissions targets are met. A health-centered global governance framework is urgently needed to...
Aspen Valley Health partners with electronic health record platform
Aspen Valley Health has announced the launch of an Epic Connect partnership, aiming to shift how independent rural hospitals access advanced healthcare technology in alignment with local governance.
How AI‑Driven ELNs Are Becoming the Center of Scientific Reasoning
Embedding AI agents in ELNs and LIMS brings reasoning directly into research. Using validated tools and clear audit trails, scientists accelerate discovery while maintaining governance, transparency, and accountability.
Health IT leaders must adapt to the circuitous route of prescriptions
Hospital and health system CIOs should map current prescription workflows in detail and prioritize interoperability with clear governance frameworks, advises Joseph Kleiman, president of Rx tech company Buzz Health.
AI, embedded across the enterprise: valuable perspective from Mass General Brigham
At the HIMSS26 AI in Healthcare Forum, MGB's chief information and digital officer described strategies for governance, safety and sustainability as it strives to integrate artificial intelligence across all corners of the health system.
Mature Innovation or Machine Governance? Why Business Leaders Risk Losing Their Seat to an AI Agent
Speed became strategy. Efficiency became a competitive advantage.
HIMSS26 sees the convergence of AI governance and cybersecurity resilience
The industry's anxiety is concentrated at this intersection, says Phil Sobol of health IT consulting firm CereCore. Here's what hospital and health system IT leaders can be doing to tackle the challenges.
The “Last Mile” Problem Slowing AI Transformation
Few companies have been able to fundamentally change their operating and business models around AI. The primary obstacle to progress is rarely model quality or data availability, but rather the “last mile” of transformation where technical capability must meet organizational design. There are seven frictions that contribute to this problem: proliferation of pilots, the productivity gap, process debt, the identity problem of tribal knowledge, agentic governance, architectural complexity, and the efficiency trap. To overcome these, companies need to focus on clean-sheet process redesign, strategically capturing knowledge, and managing their new digital workforce.
3L Kevin Afiesh Learns to Translate Legal Risk Into Business Strategy as FinTech Extern - UC Law San Francisco (Formerly UC Hastings)
3L Kevin Afiesh strengthened his corporate and fintech skillset through an externship at Plaid, gaining real-world experience at the intersection of technology and financial services. 3L student Kevin Afiesh shares how UC Law San Francisco’s Corporate Counsel Externship provided immersive, practice-ready training inside Plaid’s in-house legal department. Reviewed and analyzed technology-focused agreements, including emerging AI provisions and liability terms Explored financial services regulation and data governance within a growth-stage company Learned how internal legal teams shape product, partnership, and compliance planning 3L student Kevin Afiesh: During my externship at Plaid, I worked with the in-house legal team supporting a rapidly growing company at the intersection of technology and financial services. My work focused primarily on corporate, commercial, and intellectual property matters. I helped review and analyze vendor and partnership agreements, paying close attention to emerging artificial intelligence-related provisions and risk allocation terms. I also investigated regulatory and compliance issues involving financial services and data governance, and I researched intellectual property litigation relevant to fintech companies. This work supported legal risk assessment to guide strategic decision making. I learned firsthand how an in-house legal team operates in a highly regulated, innovation-driven environment, where legal analysis is closely integrated with business decision making. I saw how attorneys balance legal risk with commercial priorities and how their advice shapes contracting, compliance, and intellectual property strategy. It reinforced that effective in-house lawyers need to understand both the law and the operational realities of the business. The experience also strengthened my ability to communicate complex legal concepts clearly to non-lawyers and to provide advice that is precise, practical, and commercially aware. Throughout my academic and professional journey, I’ve worked with technology companies at different stages. Plaid added a distinct perspective within the tech ecosystem, showing me how a growth-stage fintech company approaches regulatory complexity, innovation, and risk tolerance. This sharpened my ability to adapt to clients with different structures, priorities, and compliance needs. As I prepare to practice corporate law in the technology industry, this exposure has strengthened my ability to align legal advice with a company’s stage of growth, strategic objectives, and internal dynamics. I would absolutely recommend the Corporate Counsel Externship Program. Working directly with an in-house legal team provided a meaningful sense of day-to-day practice inside a technology company, and the attorneys at Plaid were generous with their time and mentorship. The classroom component was equally valuable. Professors Nira Geevargis and Scott Darling created a thoughtful environment where we reflected on our experiences, discussed real-world challenges, and developed practical skills that complemented our fieldwork. More broadly, UC Law San Francisco’s location offers a clear advantage for students interested in technology, corporate practice, and public-interest work. Proximity to courts, law firms, and innovative companies — combined with programs like the Corporate Counsel Externship and an extensive Bay Area alumni network — make it a strong option for students who want to build their careers in the region. The Evidence of Success series highlights UC Law SF students as they share how the college’s opportunities equip them with the experience, skills, and confidence to excel in the legal profession.
Learn more about: Power to Prosper: Self-Governance and Economic Development -
Project Title: Power to Prosper: Self-Governance and Economic Development Nick Brouwer, University of California, Merced Nick Brouwer is currently a PhD candidate in political science at the University of California, Merced. His research focuses on [...]
PENN Entertainment Resets Board As ESPN Exit Refocuses Digital Strategy
PENN Entertainment (NasdaqGS:PENN) has ended a proxy battle with activist investor HG Vora through a cooperation agreement. As part of the deal, three new independent directors are joining the board and the board is being expanded. The governance changes follow PENN's exit from its ESPN Bet partnership and ongoing corporate restructuring efforts. PENN Entertainment, a major US regional casino and online gaming operator, is reworking its boardroom as it reorients around its core land based...
To succeed with AI, leaders must prioritize safety when driving transformation
Dr. Paul A. Testa, CHIO at NYU Langone Health, says artificial intelligence demands the same level of institutional commitment, governance and cultural investment that the best health systems brought to EHR adoption.
TapPFN AI Accelerates Business Transformation on Databricks
Discover how TabPFN eliminates weeks of ML work on Databricks with faster predictions, no retraining, and full governance across core business operations.
3L Ediz Kalkan Builds Practice-Ready Skills through UC Law SF’s Business Law Concentration - UC Law San Francisco (Formerly UC Hastings)
3L student Ediz Kalkan combined rigorous coursework, mentorship, and hands-on client experience to emerge ready for corporate practice. 3L student Ediz Kalkan shares how UC Law SF’s Business Law Concentration helped him gain the practical skills, doctrinal knowledge, and professional confidence to pursue a career advising corporate clients. It’s one of 12 concentrations that allow JD students to gain specialized expertise in a focused area of legal practice. 3L Ediz Kalkan built a strong foundation in corporate law through specialized coursework and mentorship from faculty and industry leaders. He gained hands-on client experience advising startups through the Startup Legal Garage and through roles in-house and at a law firm. He emerged prepared to handle sophisticated legal matters and interact confidently with clients. 3L Ediz Kalkan: I always gravitated toward business law courses at UC Law SF, so it made sense to memorialize that interest by completing the concentration — especially since I already planned to take most of the required coursework. I have taken many practical- and doctrinal-focused courses, including practical-oriented courses such as Mergers and Acquisitions, Venture Capital and Start Ups, Startup Business Lawyering, Private Equity and Hedge Funds, Corporate Governance, Corporate Finance and a few others. On the doctrinal side, I have taken Business Associations and am currently enrolled in Bankruptcy and Securities Regulation. These courses and professors equipped me with a strong foundation in universal corporate legal principals, fluency in the jargon, and insight into how corporate law intersects with markets, public and private companies, and government agencies. I also gained invaluable mentorship and lessons from industry leaders — both from the faculty and the dozens of guest speakers invited to the classroom. At UC Law SF, I participated in the Corporate Module of the Startup Legal Garage, where I observed practicing attorneys and helped real clients with real startup-related legal needs. I learned substantive law, business strategy — and most importantly — was socialized to the practice of law and the etiquette and expectations of being a junior attorney. I spent my 1L summer at AXOS Bank, a commercial bank in San Diego, where I gained experience with securities regulation, enterprise banking, and in-house work at a public company. From January of my 2L year to now, I have worked as a law clerk at Bartko Pavia LLP, gaining experience in a traditional law firm setting. I have had the privilege of working with startups all the way to public companies, as well as international clients. The experience has strengthened my confidence in tackling complex legal issues and interacting with clients. Through these experiences, I’ve learned that effectively advising clients takes more than subject-matter expertise. This work, and my time in the UC Law SF business concentration, have inspired me to pursue an MBA after law school to become a more well-rounded professional. My career plans remain focused on corporate practice and enhancing my value as a business advisor. I would happily recommend UC Law SF and this concentration because of its robust course catalog, highly successful professors and adjuncts, and extensive resources. Not to mention, UC Law SF is uniquely situated just minutes away from many of the world’s most innovative companies, all of which have legal needs — creating meaningful opportunities for students. My peers and I have been incredibly fortunate to have access to this network of industry leaders and legal professionals. Ultimately, business lawyers can take many paths, but all require the strong foundation that the business law concentration and the incredible people at UC Law SF provide. The Evidence of Success series highlights UC Law SF students as they share how the college’s opportunities equip them with the experience, skills, and confidence to excel in the legal profession.
United States and Madagascar to Implement $175 Million Five-Year Health MOU - U.S. Embassy in Madagascar
United States and Madagascar to Implement $175 Million Five-Year Health MOU U.S. and Malagasy health officials are convening in Antananarivo for a two-day joint review process, marking the first major step in implementing the strategic health cooperation framework established in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the two countries in December 2025. The MoU outlines the structure and terms of U.S. support to Madagascar’s health sector from 2026 through 2030, with a total commitment of $134,305,000 from the U.S. Government and $41,216,252 from the Government of Madagascar working jointly to address malaria, maternal and child health, polio and global health security issues. This approach reflects the America First Global Health Strategy by prioritizing effective, results-driven cooperation that advances mutual health security and supports Madagascar’s progress toward self-reliance and independence from foreign assistance. The events bring together U.S. Government health experts and Madagascar’s Ministry of Public Health leadership to conduct a comprehensive review of seven major health programs currently supported by United States funding, discussing current activities, and developing recommendations for programs to align with the signed Memorandum of Understanding, which advances both the America First Global Health Strategy and the Government of Madagascar’s goals. “This memorandum sets the course for U.S. strategic cooperation and support to Madagascar’s health sector over the next five years,” said Chargé d’Affaires Stephanie Arnold at the workshop’s opening. This review will help determine how to maximize the effectiveness and impact of these programs, ensuring resources provided by U.S. taxpayer dollars are used wisely,” she added. “By working together to address global health challenges, we demonstrate America’s leadership and commitment to a safer, healthier world, making both the United States and Madagascar healthier and stronger.” Under President Trump’s leadership, the United States is implementing a Global Health Strategy for foreign assistance that emphasizes increased host country ownership, resilient health systems and human resource capacity to reduce dependency, maintaining frontline support to reduce infectious disease threats, and strong performance monitoring systems for accountability and service delivery. “Diseases do not respect borders, and when we support Madagascar’s capacity to detect, prevent, and respond to infectious disease threats, we are contributing to global health security that benefits communities both here and in the United States,” Arnold emphasized, noting that “The MoU represents a commitment to transparency, accountability, and results.” The United States recognizes the commitment of Malagasy leadership in prioritizing investment of time and significant resources on the healthcare of their own citizens. With recent changes in leadership, Madagascar has an opportunity to strengthen governance, improve performance, and move forward toward greater self-reliance, particularly in the healthcare sector. Through strategic focus and thoughtful collaboration under this MoU, U.S. health programs in Madagascar will deliver meaningful results that advance both countries’ interests while supporting Madagascar’s journey toward greater self-reliance and a healthy future.
Why ERGs Are The Ultimate Business Strategy
ERGs have evolved into strategic engines for engagement retention and leadership development when backed by governance data and intersectionality.
WEBTOON Entertainment (WBTN) Is Up 7.0% After Securities Fraud Case Proceeds Past Dismissal - Has The Bull Case Changed?
WEBTOON Entertainment is now facing an active securities fraud class action after a U.S. District Court in November 2025 denied its motion to dismiss allegations that it misled investors about Monthly Active Users at the time of its June 27, 2024 IPO. The court’s decision has prompted law firms to investigate potential breaches of fiduciary duty by WEBTOON’s officers and directors, raising fresh questions about its disclosure practices and governance controls. We’ll now examine how the...
Veritage Issues Research Report on The Missing Link in Family Business Transitions
Veritage report shows emotional disconnection in wealthy business families, urging dialogue and governance to protect relationships and transitions Photo Courtesy of Veritage HAMILTON, Bermuda, Feb. 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Veritage International has released a new research report that examines key hidden risks facing business families around the world. Missing Link in Family Business Transitions: How Emotional Disconnection Threatens Family Legacy report identifies a major disconnect betwee
It isn't partisan politics to admit that stakeholder capitalism went too far, too fast
The quiet corporate governance revolution recognizes climate change isn't an immediate, existential risk that justifies radical change in everyday life.
Weeks Medical Center controversy puts North Country health care system under microscope
When North Country Healthcare formed in 2016 through the merger of four rural New Hampshire hospitals, it was viewed as a first-of-its-kind model. Weeks Medical Center in Lancaster, Androscoggin Valley Hospital in Berlin, Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital in Colebrook, and Littleton Regional Healthcare in Littleton would all maintain independence and self-governance but combine administration, finance, […]
Japan's top business lobby invites activist fund Elliott for governance talks
Japan's biggest business lobby, Keidanren, has invited activist investor Elliott Investment Management to a private meeting on March 5 to discuss issues of corporate governance, it told member firms in a notice seen by Reuters.
World Laureates Summit: Can science give a blueprint for our future?
In a landmark convergence of intellect and governance, the World Laureates Summit (WLS) opens on Sunday in Dubai, gathering over 150 of the world's most eminent scientists, policymakers, and institutional leaders.Convened alongside the 2026 World Governments
New Perspectives on EU Climate Politics using Text-as-Data Methods
This Collection invites research on EU climate governance, climate communication, climate policy diffusion within and outside the EU, and climate policy ...
Investment and Statecraft: The International Politics of Sovereign Wealth Funds - Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
In 1953, Kuwait established the world’s first sovereign wealth fund to invest the country’s oil revenues and generate returns that would reduce its reliance on a single resource. Since then, over 100 separate funds have been created to preserve national wealth and ensure long-term fiscal sustainability. Today, they manage over $10 trillion in global assets. In this discussion with GJIA, political economist Kathryn Lavelle explains the increasingly novel dynamics that surround fund behavior and what the world can come to expect from their growing presence in international financial markets. GJIA: When it comes to the roles sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) play in global markets and politics, what would you say makes them unique? Kathryn Lavelle: Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) operate on behalf of governments as investors. That in itself is a strange relationship. Within them, a core contest takes place between the state’s interests (or sovereign) part of the dynamic, and the money interests (or wealth) part of it, and these two aspects are frequently in contradiction, serving fundamentally different goals. SWFs are also quite fascinating because when you talk to the people who manage these funds, they have an interest in convincing you that the decisions are made almost exclusively on a financial basis—they really will go to great lengths to differentiate their government owners and those who make the management decisions. At the same time, these people ultimately answer to someone in power. Therefore, for most SWFs, it remains deeply unclear who is actually making the investment decisions and for what purposes. Of course, it is not always clear how other vehicles, such as hedge funds and private equity make the decisions they do, but I think what a lot of people find particularly disconcerting about SWFs is that they seem to act on behalf of people who have a different identity from their own. People who could be trying to manipulate politics and markets in a way that would have a long-term effect on their own populations. Regular investors come and go at will, and they only share an interest in profit as far as most of us understand. However, SWFs have that extra “sovereign” part right behind them that obscures their true interest. GJIA: These funds can be found in countries all across the globe, in both authoritarian states and democracies. Would you say SWFs differ in their goals and structures between regime-type? KL: It is not necessarily regime type that makes the goals and structures of SWFs different. It has to do with their economies. Let’s look at a country like China. There’s going to be a debate about exactly how to characterize the regime, but it is a country with many different kinds of sovereign wealth funds, and a particularly opaque state connection to each. At one time, some of the state-owned Chinese oil companies created specialized investment vehicles listed outside Chinese markets that excluded parts of the firms that were more associated with human rights violations. At the same time, the China Investment Corporation (CIC)—China’s largest SWF—draws a lot of concern, not necessarily because of its investment activities, but because of the dynamics of global politics. So, I wouldn’t really tie differences to regime types themselves in a wholesale way, but rather to how such funds are perceived and how they are structured. Saudi Arabia’s SWF is getting all kinds of attention for its involvement in Hollywood, and this takes me right back to when I was a student in the 1980s, when people were concerned about Japanese investment entities buying assets in Hollywood. They aren’t quite the same in financial terms, but it’s the same kind of concern about foreign investment that drives people to be suspicious, and the whole idea that “foreigners are influencing Hollywood.” This holds true across industries, and it reflects where politics are in places like the United States right now. One metric we can try to look at is transparency, where all the funds will tell you, “we are transparent.” The problem you’ll keep running into with this approach is how you value things. When trying to do comparative studies of equity markets, you’ll find that every country doesn’t use Generally Accepted Accounting Principles like we do in the United States. A fund may appear opaque politically and not want people to show what they’re invested in or what their intent with that investment is, but they could also just not be able to report it because of the way it was purchased, or the kinds of shares they purchased. There are some assets out there that really are difficult to put a monetary value on. GJIA: To what extent do domestic politics shape SWF behavior in both the investing “home” country and the recipient “host” country? KL: This depends on the type of fund present and also on the extent to which voters’ political views are able to influence the fund. For example, in a democratic home state like Norway, the SWF doesn’t invest in nuclear weapons or tobacco because of social concerns, but there is a continuing debate over whether it should invest in oil, even though that’s where most of the money comes from. The degree to which Norway will continue to make those investments, and whether they contradict the government’s overall climate goals, is an open question in Norwegian politics. Because of the way the fund’s governance is structured, it may not be easy to resolve. On the other hand, some people consider pension funds, like the State Teachers Retirement System (STRS) in Ohio, to be quasi-SWF. They have a very strict separation between the people who make up the management division and the fund owners. No teacher or professor would want to invest in things that may harm the future of their students. At the same time, a fund manager might see an opportunity in a diversified multinational corporation that offers a good return, despite it deriving part of its revenue from e-cigarettes. These contests are very apparent. Domestic politics can work in host countries too. A good example is Singapore’s SWF, Temasek, investing in Thailand’s telecommunications sector. If you study political economy, you already know that countries everywhere are uncomfortable with foreign ownership of their telecom sectors because a foreign entity could monitor or manipulate our communications with each other. In the case of Temasek, there was significant pushback from Thai citizens surrounding the deal, which went on to influence national political sentiment toward Singapore as a whole, underscoring the risks some SWFs may face with their investment choices. In this case, fund behavior led to the dissolution of the entire Thai government in 2006 and a subsequent coup d’état. GJIA: To address some of this unease, the Santiago Principles were established in 2009 to ostensibly promote trust and transparency. From your perspective, have these mechanisms actually changed fund behavior? KL: In international relations theory, we always like to have a clear set of norms and best practices—the orientation we want the proverbial ship to be going in. In that regard, the Santiago Principles at least got the discussion going about which direction SWFs should take at a time when people were very skittish about the growing size of these funds. Nobody wanted them to be out there and potentially destabilizing economies, so talks about disclosure, conditions for withdrawal, and the independence of managers were helpful when initiated. The biggest stumbling block was that there wasn’t exactly a good way to measure compliance with the Principles, let alone how to hold funds to them. If you read the Principles, they’re overall quite vague. In general, a fund doesn’t want to reveal how and why they make certain investment decisions because that information is proprietary—a fund makes money off of how and why it makes decisions—so how do you reconcile that with loosely-defined ideas of openness? Some decisions might have a political purpose. The bottom line is that trying to figure out and assign a score to compliance is not easy, and it is therefore the reason why the Santiago Principles never really got off the ground to the point where they could truly direct fund behavior. GJIA: Many emerging markets are looking to build their own SWFs from mineral and oil revenues. Historically, have funds shaped development trajectories in these countries? KL: I think the big story in international emerging markets investment is that the investment is increasingly no longer unidirectional. In the past multinational corporations of primarily Western background were the main form of foreign direct investment in a country. That has changed dramatically, to the point where you have companies from so-called “developing countries” taking over companies in the United States. Therefore, the landscape of international investment has changed, and I think SWFs are certainly a possibility to be the next step in the game. Historically, you didn’t need an entire financial vehicle to reinvest commodity revenues in your country, but as emerging markets get more financially sophisticated, their capacity to operate such funds has increased. SWFs would allow treasuries to move from relying on holding foreign exchange assets like cash or government bonds to having broader financial markets and targeted growth areas, while easing pressure on welfare expenditures. GJIA: With their increasing financial weight, do you see the presence of SWFs being a factor in the political choices leaders will have to make with regard to domestic and foreign policy? KL: It will depend on just how big the funds get. One of the reasons people are already apprehensive is because of their scale, and if certain SWFs in certain countries achieve a large-enough size, the presence will absolutely be cause for concern. The other factor political leaders will have to consider are their objectives. It’s not always clear how to define a SWF, or even where its activity is concentrated, but it is certainly a worry from the perspective of national security of opaque external investment. More than that, I think one of the most interesting questions going forward is whether the United States, the home to the world’s largest financial markets, will develop its own fund, for which the Trump administration announced a plan. There have also been several proposals in Congress. Were it to come into being, it would have tremendous weight. At the same time, one of the hallmarks of U.S. capitalism is a lack of government ownership of shares, so it would not be clear how such a fund would be received in domestic politics, or which direction it would take. Given how politically fragmented the country is, a Democratic administration would likely be concerned about different sectors of the economy, such as healthcare, and want investment there, rather than a Republican administration, which might prefer defense industries. No investment vehicle could thrive under conditions of such instability. Moreover, it remains unclear where the money to fund a theoretical U.S. SWF would come from. It would be a fundamentally different entity depending on whether it is financed with debt, economic surplus, commodities, or the sale of state companies, as in the case of Singapore. If it is debt, or government borrowing of some form, then the fund would have to outperform whatever the cost of that debt is, which is not an easy thing to do. I think our political leaders have enough on their plate. Our system has worked well keeping political and investment functions generally separate. We have seen different forms of business rise and fall, and even the perception of different countries, all of which funds are tied to. Unless a major SWF either starts—like in the case of the United States—or collapses—an issue that concerns the Saudis, I don’t see any political tsunamis on the horizon. . . . Kathryn Lavelle is the Ellen and Dixon Long Professor of World Affairs at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. Her research explores the exchange between domestic and international and political institutions with a particular emphasis on political economy and multilateralism. Dr. Lavelle’s first book, The Politics of Equity Finance in Emerging Markets, explored the political circumstances that surround large issues of stock in the developing world. After being granted tenure at Case Western, she was awarded an American Political Science Association Congressional Fellowship and named the William A. Steiger fellow, a designation given to the most promising political scientist in her class of fellows. While in Washington during 2006-2007, she worked on the staff of the House Committee on Financial Services on issues related to domestic and international monetary policy. Dr. Lavelle holds a PhD in political science from Northwestern University; an M.A. in government and foreign affairs from the University of Virginia; and a bachelor’s degree in international economics from Georgetown University. She is a permanent member of the New York Council on Foreign Relations. This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity and length. Interview conducted by Sid Mehrotra. Image Credit: Jason Leung, Unsplash Content Licenses, via Unsplash
WHO statement on notification of withdrawal of the United States
WHO regrets the United States’ notification of withdrawal from WHO – a decision that makes both the United States and the world less safe. The notification of withdrawal raises issues that will be considered by the WHO Executive Board at its regular meeting starting on 2 February and by the World Health Assembly at its annual meeting in May 2026.
Trump’s ‘pay-to-play’ politics fuel a ‘new gilded age’, experts say
Major donors reap influence and material benefits, ethics experts argue, as money and governance intertwine