November 4, 2022

Morrow Sodali Strengthens Its Market Leading Position With New Australian Acquisition

Acquisition of key Australian financial communications and investor relations player, Citadel-MAGNUS will drive rapid growth and significant expansion

NEW YORK, Nov. 04, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Morrow Sodali, the world’s leading shareholder engagement and governance advisory firm, announced today the acquisition of Australian financial communications and investor relations agency, Citadel-MAGNUS, its first since TPG Growth secured a majority stake in April of this year.

The Australian based acquisition represents a significant expansion of Morrow Sodali’s service offering in the APAC region to meet the rapidly growing global demand from corporations for strategic communications and investor engagement services.

The combination of Morrow Sodali and Citadel-MAGNUS brings together two trusted market leading consultancies to provide best in class strategic counsel and support to our clients. Citadel-MAGNUS will be fully integrated into Morrow Sodali enabling the firm to provide a seamless offering and the most comprehensive suite of investor relations and communications solutions to listed and private entities with the intention of rolling out the expanded services to other markets.

The acquisition marks a significant step forward in Morrow Sodali’s strategy to accelerate its growth by investing in services that create value for its clients world-wide.

Alvise Recchi, CEO of Morrow Sodali, commented, “As part of Morrow Sodali’s strategic global growth strategy, the addition of Citadel-MAGNUS will expand our service offering to encompass a broader suite of Board, C-Suite and ESG advisory, Investor Relations and Financial Communications services. We can’t wait to see the potential of this exciting opportunity realised as we continue to grow in new markets around the world.”

Christian Sealey, CEO of Morrow Sodali’s International Business added, “More and more, our clients are coming to us seeking advice and assistance across a wide array of areas covering shareholder communication, stakeholder engagement, capital markets intelligence, corporate governance and ESG advisory. Acquiring Citadel-MAGNUS enables us to provide strategic solutions for our clients and uniquely positions us to become their ongoing trusted partner of choice.”

Peter Brookes, Joint Managing Director of Citadel-MAGNUS said, “Our team is thrilled to be joining forces with Morrow Sodali. We are seeing a growing need to provide clients with an end-to-end offering across the financial calendar and increasingly complex event driven activity where good communication is paramount. The combination of our firms brings together two leading and trusted advisory companies that are deeply embedded in corporate Australia and who share a strong focus on delivering exceptional client service.”

About Morrow Sodali

Morrow Sodali is a global corporate advisory firm that provides clients with comprehensive advice and services relating to corporate governance, ESG, sustainability, proxy solicitation, capital markets intelligence, shareholder and bondholder engagement, M&A, activism and contested situations.

From headquarters in New York and London and offices in global capital markets, Morrow Sodali serves over 1,000 clients in more than 80 countries, including many of the world’s largest multinational corporations. Clients include listed and private companies, mutual fund groups, stock exchanges and membership associations.

In 2022, Morrow Sodali is celebrating its 50^th anniversary and also secured a majority investment from TPG Growth, the middle market and growth equity platform of alternative asset firm TPG. This partnership will significantly advance the firm’s mission of providing clients worldwide with unrivalled strategic advice and comprehensive support, enabling them to maximize value and expertly manage stakeholder relations.

For more information about Morrow Sodali, please visit www.morrowsodali.com.

About Citadel-MAGNUS

Citadel-MAGNUS is a leading corporate and financial communication firm with offices in Sydney and Perth, servicing clients across Australia and internationally.

We have established a reputation for delivering outstanding results for our clients through trusted relationships, integrity and professional excellence. Our priority is to support clients’ business objectives through effective communication and a superior level of service.

Citadel-MAGNUS brings an unrivalled depth of financial markets, corporate and media experience to help companies address the challenges of today’s highly competitive and changing business environment. We have worked with companies in all sectors and of all sizes, and our success has led to established, long-term partnerships with business leaders and companies.

For more information, visit www.citadelmagnus.com.

CONTACT:

Elena Cargnello

Corporate Director, Marketing

e.cargnello@morrowsodali.com

+44 (0)20 4513 6913

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 1000754955

November 4, 2022

PowerChina’s Sustainable development in Africa

BEIJING, Nov. 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Power Construction Corporation of China (PowerChina) is actively participating in the “Belt and Road” initiative in Africa, responding to the planning and demand of African countries.

Promoting the localization

At PowerChina, African staff plays a significant role. Employment is a key issue in African countries, especially women’s right to work. Two female Caterpillar drivers are able to earn a dignified living since their collaboration with the PowerChina at the rehabilitation site of Lot 2 of National Road 4 in Cameroon. Such examples are not uncommon. After finishing school in China in 2014, Kilenga Nelly managed to be recruited by the Zongo II hydroelectric power plant project once she returned to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), allowing her to contribute to the development of her own country.

In April, the company organized the first job fair in the DRC, at the University of Kinshasa, during which more than 90 students submitted their CVs. It is worth noting that some local employees are now in management positions. Young Cameroonian Ngangoua Serge started at PowerChina as an intern in 2008. After his doctoral studies in China in 2010, he assisted in establishing an office in his country and five years later, he was appointed as PowerChina’s representative in Cameroon.

Gaston Eloundou Essomba, Cameroon's Minister of Water and Energy (second on the right), accompanied by Ngangoua Serge (first on the left), at the site of the construction of the new transmission line of the Memve'ele hydroelectric power plant on July 10, 2020.

Serving socio-economic development

To achieve its Vision 2035 of becoming an emerging nation, Cameroon planned hydro power plants in 2009 to address the electricity shortage. PowerChina succeeded in taking charge of the construction of the Memve’ele hydroelectric power plant. PowerChina has also built roads here. The Mintom-Lélé section has changed the daily lives of the local population, facilitating the local transport of people and goods, and has greatly stimulated economic activity.

“Three Gorges Dam of West Africa”, the Soubré hydroelectric plant, whose annual power generation capacity represents 43% of the country. It helps meet the huge demand for electricity and increase electricity exports to neighboring countries, becoming a new engine for economic development in West Africa. In 2021, the Gribo Popoli hydroelectric plant started construction.

Taking social responsibility

PowerChina has a tradition of volunteering at schools, orphanages and neighborhood hospitals near construction sites. On December 22, 2018, the company’s volunteers in Ivory Coast gave about 100 children Christmas gifts worth 1 million CFA francs ($1,557). Besides, PowerChina has joined the fight against the COVID-19 with the local community. Volunteers from the Zongo II hydropower project held an epidemic prevention presentation event at a school in the village of Zongo in the DRC in May 2020. The volunteers also used vehicles to spread messages to prevent the epidemic. They drove through more than 10 villages in the DRC, making more than 30 presentations, covering more than 30,000 people.

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1937951/Gaston_Eloundou_Essomba_Cameroon_s_Minister_Water_Energy__second_right__accompanied.jpg

November 4, 2022

COP27 needs a tremendous focus on action, Commonwealth of Dominica looking to share scalable solutions

Roseau, Nov. 04, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — There are a few days left until COP27 takes place in the Egyptian city of Sharm El-Sheikh from 6 to 18 November and the Commonwealth of Dominica, like many nations around the world, will be watching to see if this summit finally brings action and implementation of proposals and promises.

“We are at the stage where we can no longer use these events as talk shops, but rather, we need to be laser-focused and intentional about developing actionable plans to tackle the biggest challenge of our time – climate change,” says Dr. Vince Henderson, Dominica’s minister for planning, economic development, climate resilience, sustainable development, and renewable energy.

Small island nations like Dominica, are not the only countries facing extreme weather conditions as a result of global warming. UN Secretary-General António Guterres mentioned to journalists in New York recently that a third of Pakistan is flooded, Europe is experiencing its hottest summer in 500 years, the Philippines is dealing with the aftermath of tropical storm Paeng and in the United States, Category 4 Hurricane Ian was just another reminder of the climate crisis.

Dominica has been on a path to be the world’s first climate-resilient nation following Hurricane Maria which left an estimated 90 percent of buildings damaged or destroyed in 2019.

This year, at COP27, Dominica wants to showcase how it will reach climate resiliency by 2030. The country has implemented a number of projects that can be used as case studies that can be used as a flywheel of action.

“Everybody is talking about sustainability and climate change and why we need to reduce carbon emissions, the issue is how we are going to make a meaningful impact. For people to translate insight into action, they need to see good examples that motivate them, and we believe Dominica has an abundance of examples that are yielding results,” continues Minister Henderson.

In response to the destruction caused by Hurricane Maria, Dominica launched a climate resilience policy framework to help guide its recovery journey in the form of the National Resilience Development Strategy 2030 (NRDS).

The Climate Resilience and Recovery Plan of Dominica aim to build strong communities, build a robust economy, have a well-planned and durable infrastructure; strengthen institutional systems and, protect and sustain natural and other unique assets.

It centres around three pillars: structural resilience, financial resilience, and post-disaster resilience.

Structural resilience: The government of Dominica is building a resilient infrastructure capable of withstanding natural disasters, including Category 5 hurricanes. It includes the construction of 5 000 climate-resilient homes, healthcare centres, roads, bridges, airports, and schools.

Financial Resilience: The government of Dominica is implementing institutional fiscal reform to ensure stronger fiscal resilience which will aid in the strengthening of debt sustainability utilising several key institutional fiscal areas.

Post Disaster and Social Resilience: This pillar helps encourage farmers to plant more root crops which are more resilient to heavy rain and wind, and increases farmer training programmes and government assistance with the provision of seeds and fertilizers. The government’s plan to strengthen food security includes specific policies for the resiliency of the agriculture and fisheries industries.

With 2022 set to rank among the 10 warmest years on record, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Dominica is also constructing a geothermal power plant which will increase the country’s share of renewables and diversify the country’s energy matrix. The Commonwealth of Dominica already obtains 28% of its energy requirements from renewable energy sources such as hydropower and wind.

The UN is urging the world’s industrialized nations to ‘lead by example’ by taking ‘bold and immediate actions’. One of these nations includes the United States of America and with President Joe Biden confirmed to attend, it is said he will build on the significant work the United States has undertaken to advance the global climate fight and help the most vulnerable build resilience to climate impacts.

Last year, Biden arrived at COP26 largely empty handed and this year he will promote the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, a bill that devotes hundreds of billions of dollars to clean energy initiatives and brings Biden’s pledge to cut United States emissions in half by 2030 closer within reach.

The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the group of nations that have signed the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which was put together in 1992. It commits them to act together to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations “at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic (human-induced) interference with the climate system”. Since then, the parties, or nations, have met almost annually.

COP26 was held in the Scottish city of Glasgow in November 2021 and it brought together 120 world leaders and representatives from almost 200 countries. It culminated in the Glasgow Climate Pact, which reaffirmed the 2015 Paris Agreement goal of “limiting the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5°C”.

PR Dominica
Commonwealth of Dominica
001 (767) 266 3919
mildred.thabane@csglobalpartners.com

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 8689439

November 4, 2022November 5, 2022

US Flu Season Off to Fast Start as Other Viruses Spread

The U.S. flu season is off to an unusually fast start, adding to an autumn mix of viruses that have been filling hospitals and doctors’ waiting rooms.

Reports of flu are already high in 17 states, and the hospitalization rate hasn’t been this high this early since the 2009 swine flu pandemic, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So far, there have been an estimated 730 flu deaths, including at least two children.

The winter flu season usually ramps up in December or January.

“We are seeing more cases than we would expect at this time,” the CDC’s Dr. José Romero said Friday.

A busy flu season is not unexpected. The nation saw two mild seasons during the COVID-19 pandemic, and experts have worried that flu might come back strong as a COVID-weary public has moved away from masks and other measures that tamp the spread of respiratory viruses.

Community Montessori school in New Albany, Indiana, switched to virtual teaching at the end of the week because so many students were out sick with the flu. Beginning Monday, the school’s 500 students will go back to wearing masks.

“Everybody just wants kids on campus, that is for sure,” said the school’s director, Burke Fondren. “We will do what we need to do.”

There may be some good news: COVID-19 cases have been trending downward and leveled off in the past three weeks, Romero said.

And in a few parts of the country, health officials think they may be seeing early signs that a wave of another respiratory virus may be starting to wane. RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, is a common cause in kids of cold-like symptoms such as runny nose, cough and fever. While RSV continues to rise nationally, preliminary data suggest a decline in the Southeast, Southwest and in an area that includes Rocky Mountain states and the Dakotas, CDC officials said.

Experts think infections from RSV increased recently because children are more vulnerable now, no longer sheltered from common bugs as they were during pandemic lockdowns. Also, the virus, which usually affects children ages 1 and 2, is now sickening more kids up to age 5.
At the University of Chicago Medicine Comer Children’s Hospital, beds have been full for 54 days straight.

“The curves are all going up for RSV and influenza,” said Dr. John Cunningham, Comer’s physician-in-chief.

RSV illnesses seem to be unusually severe, he added.

Comer has had to turn down transfer requests from other hospitals because there was no room. Chicago-area hospitals had been able to transfer kids to Missouri, Iowa and Wisconsin, but that’s stopped.

“They have no more beds, either,” Cunningham said.

There’s not yet a vaccine against RSV, but there are shots for flu and COVID-19. Health officials say flu vaccinations are down in both kids and adults compared with before the pandemic, although they are up in children from last year.

So far this season, there have been an estimated 1.6 million flu illnesses and 13,000 hospitalizations. Flu activity is most intense in some of the areas where RSV is fading, including the Southeast, according to CDC data.

Source: Voice of America

November 4, 2022November 5, 2022

Death in CRISPR Gene Therapy Study Sparks Search for Answers

The lone volunteer in a study involving a gene-editing technique has died, and those behind the trial are now trying to figure out what killed him.

Terry Horgan, a 27-year-old who had Duchenne muscular dystrophy, died last month, according to Cure Rare Disease, a Connecticut-based nonprofit founded by his brother, Rich, to try and save him from the fatal condition.

Although little is known about how he died, his death occurred during one of the first studies to test a gene editing treatment built for one person. It’s raising questions about the overall prospect of such therapies, which have buoyed hopes among many families facing rare and devastating diseases.

“This whole notion that we can do designer genetic therapies is, I would say, uncertain,” said Arthur Caplan, a medical ethicist at New York University who is not involved in the study. “We are out on the far edge of experimentation.”

The early-stage safety study was sponsored by the nonprofit, led by Dr. Brenda Wong at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School and approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The hope was to use a gene-editing tool called CRISPR to treat Horgan’s form of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The rare, genetic muscle-wasting disease is caused by a mutation in the gene needed to produce a protein called dystrophin. Most people with Duchenne die from lung or heart issues caused by it.

At this point, it’s unclear whether Horgan received the treatment and whether CRISPR, other aspects of the study or the disease itself contributed to his death. Deaths are not unheard of in clinical trials, which test experimental treatments and sometimes involve very sick people.

But trials involving CRISPR are relatively new. And Fyodor Urnov, a CRISPR expert at the Innovative Genomics Institute at University of California, Berkeley, said any death during a gene therapy trial is an opportunity for the field to have a reckoning.

“Step one is to grieve for the passing of a brave human soul who agreed to be basically a participant in an experiment on a human being,” Urnov said. “But then, to the extent that we can, we must learn as much as we can to carve out a path forward.”

Few answers yet

A statement from Cure Rare Disease said multiple teams across the country are looking into the details of the trial and its outcome, and the company intends to share findings with the scientific community.

“It will probably be 3-4 months to come up with a full conclusion,” said spokesman Scott Bauman. “At this stage of the game, saying anything is pure speculation.”

The company, which is also working on 18 other therapeutics, said in its statement that the team’s work is essential not only to shed light on the study’s outcome but also “on the challenges of gene therapy broadly.” Meanwhile, it said, “we will continue to work with our researchers, collaborators, and partners to develop therapies for the neuromuscular diseases in our pipeline.”

Bauman said the company has filed a report on death the with the FDA as required. The FDA declined to release or confirm the report.

Sarah Willey, spokesperson for Chan Medical School, said scientists there provided data to the company for the report. She later emailed to say no one there would comment further; out of respect for the family’s wishes, all information would come from Cure Rare Disease.

A crucial question is whether CRISPR played a part in Horgan’s death.

The chemical tool can be used to “edit” genes by making cuts or substitutions in DNA. The tool has transformed genetic research and sparked the development of dozens of experimental therapies. The inventors of the tool won a Nobel Prize in 2020.

In this case, scientists used a modified form of CRISPR to increase the activity of a gene. The CRISPR therapeutic is inserted directly into the body and delivered to cells with a virus.

But CRISPR is not perfect.

“We know that CRISPR can miss its target. We know that CRISPR can be partially effective. And we also know that there may be issues with … viral vectors” that deliver the therapy into the body, Caplan said. “Red flags are flying here.”

Another difference? The recent trial involved just one person — a type of trial Caplan is skeptical about.

A ‘medical pioneer’

On the company’s website, Horgan was described as a “medical pioneer” who “will be remembered as a hero.”

In 2020, the Montour Falls, New York resident blogged that he was diagnosed with Duchenne at age 3. As a kid, he said, he loved computers — once building his own — and would play catch in the driveway with his family when he could still walk. Later in his life, he used a motorized wheelchair. He studied information science at Cornell University and went on to work at the school in the information science department.

“As I grew up and began to understand what it meant to have DMD, my fears about this disease began to grow as it began to manifest,” Horgan wrote. “There weren’t many, or any, trials available to me through the years” — until this one brought the prospect of a customized drug.

The plan was to suppress Horgan’s immune system to prep his body for a one-time, gene-editing therapy delivered by IV at UMass medical school, followed by monitoring in the hospital. The therapy is designed to increase the level of an alternate form of the dystrophin protein using CRISPR, with the goal of stabilizing or potentially reversing the progression of symptoms.

Urnov, scientific director for technology and translation at the Berkeley genomics institute, said no other trial targeted this disease using this kind of virus to deliver this particular payload with its modified form of CRISPR.

Source: Voice of America

November 4, 2022

Small Military Bombing Drone to Debut on AIRSHOW CHINA 2022

ZHUHAI, China, Nov. 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — The opening of the 14th China Airshow is coming soon. LoongUAV will bring a variety of cost-effective, efficient, lightweight military drones to debut, including LOONG 4 surveillance drone, LOONG 5 bombing drone, LOONG 1 targeting drone, LOONG 2 reconnaissance drone.

In recent years of local wars and armed conflicts, as an emerging air combat force, drones have highlighted their combat effectiveness. Equipping drones has become an effective means to enhance national defense strength at a lower cost.

There are various types of military drones, which can be divided into reconnaissance drones, combat attack drones, electronic countermeasure drones, decoy drones, target drones, and reconnaissance and striking drones. It can also be divided into large drones, medium drones, light drones, small drones, and micro drones by their size. Large UAVs like combat attack drones from China and USA are very expensive and have low combat efficiency. Certain Iranian UAVs have only a single function and are not recyclable. The cost for single use is more than hundreds of thousands of dollars. Although some Chinese consumer drones are low-priced, the battery life is short and the application scenarios are limited.

This drone has low cost and high cost-effectiveness. It can carry six 60mm or four 82mm mortars, through a simple module installed on shells at a cost of less than $10, the accuracy of the bombs is within 3 meters, the maximum endurance time exceeds 240 minutes, and the maximum flight speed is 80km/h. The VTOL(Vertical Take-Off and Landing) technology is used to improve deployment maneuverability and optimize flight performance. With suicide attack capability, it can lock and track dynamic targets for precise strikes. It has strong stealth, is a low-slow and small target, has no heat source, and has a very small radar reflection surface, which can effectively avoid radar monitoring and is not easy to be shot down. And it has the strong anti-interference ability and super battlefield survivability, and the current anti-UAV technology cannot defend against it.

Visit www.loonguav.com for more information (includes 3 demo videos)

LoongUAV designs, develops, manufactures, and markets efficient tactical drones, and offers a wide range of tailored support services. Our small military drones are cost-effective, efficient, lightweight, and capable of carrying large payloads over long distances.

For sales requests, please contact: sales@loonguav.com, LoongUAV

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1937201/LOONG_5_Bombing_Drone.jpg