Author: HeraldStar

By Hadia Khan, YOUNGO Reporter A young Kashmiri advocate is connecting community realities in climate- and border-vulnerable areas with legal reform, migration research and international policy conversations. MUZAFFARABAD, Azad Jammu & Kashmir — For young Kashmiri advocate Hadia Khan, work on migration and displacement did not begin solely in a classroom or conference hall. It developed through her connection to Azad Jammu and Kashmir and engagement with communities living amid the overlapping pressures of climate vulnerability, fragile livelihoods, geographic isolation and life around sensitive border areas. Coming from an Indigenous community in Kashmir, Khan has visited border and climate-vulnerable areas…

September 2026 | International Affairs & Youth Leadership The Council for Global Affairs and Development (CGAD) is pleased to announce the appointment of Zainab Nour Hijazi as a member of the CGAD Global Youth Advisory Board for the 2026–2027 term, recognising her commitment to justice, human rights, youth leadership and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Zainab Nour Hijazi is an LLB Law Candidate at Oxford Brookes University and an emerging youth leader with a particular interest in medical law, human rights and social impact. Her academic interests and leadership experience reflect her commitment to exploring how law, public…

September 2026 | International Affairs & Youth Leadership The Council for Global Affairs and Development (CGAD) is pleased to announce the appointment of Ahmad Hweidi as a member of the CGAD Global Youth Advisory Board for the 2026–2027 term, recognising his contributions to international relations, diplomacy, civil society engagement and international cooperation between Latin America and the Middle East. Ahmad Hweidi is a Brazilian-Palestinian professional whose work spans international relations, diplomacy, media, human rights and international development. His professional and academic journey reflects a commitment to strengthening dialogue between regions, promoting international cooperation and advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development…

September 2026 | International Affairs & Youth Leadership The Council for Global Affairs and Development (CGAD) is pleased to announce the appointment of Kevin Jonatan Purificação Muti as a member of the CGAD Global Youth Advisory Board for the 2026–2027 term, recognising his commitment to youth empowerment, education, international cooperation and sustainable development. Kevin Jonatan Purificação Muti is a final-year Law student from Timor-Leste currently pursuing his studies in Portugal. His academic interests and international engagement reflect his dedication to public policy, international cooperation, educational development and creating meaningful opportunities for young people. With a particular interest in education and…

September 2026 | International Affairs, Technology & Youth Leadership The Council for Global Affairs and Development (CGAD) is pleased to announce the appointment of Diane Douala as a member of the CGAD Global Youth Advisory Board for the 2026–2027 term, recognising her contributions to artificial intelligence, emerging technologies, technology diplomacy, digital governance and youth empowerment. Diane Douala is a Data and AI Consultant, Tech Diplomacy Strategist and Emerging Technology Advocate whose work focuses on the intersection of technological innovation, digital infrastructure, international cooperation and inclusive development. Her professional and leadership experience reflects her commitment to bridging the gap between emerging…

By Qaiser Nawab, Chairman BRISD President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the United States from September 23 to 25 comes at a time when predictability has become a scarce commodity in international affairs. The visit, at the invitation of President Donald Trump, follows Trump’s state visit to China in May and marks another round of direct leader-level engagement within a relatively short period. The White House has scheduled a formal welcome, talks and a state dinner in Washington. The ceremony will inevitably attract attention. But the more consequential part of the visit lies elsewhere: in the effort to keep senior-level…

By Qaiser Nawab On September 12, Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei called for slowing the development of increasingly powerful artificial intelligence systems. His proposal included closer coordination among leading AI companies and permanent access for independent safety evaluators. The announcement attracted attention because it came from the head of one of the companies actively developing the technology whose advancement he wanted to manage more carefully. The timing merits examination. Just two days earlier, Anthropic had published a detailed threat-intelligence report documenting its investigations into the misuse of Claude. The company had also introduced new data-retention requirements for certain advanced models…

By Qaiser Nawab The recent disclosure that an artificial intelligence system developed by OpenAI gained unauthorised access to an Australian government healthcare database has exposed an uncomfortable reality about the direction of technological progress. AI systems are becoming increasingly capable of performing complex tasks independently, but the mechanisms designed to control their actions are struggling to keep pace. The incident occurred in June when an OpenAI agent, conducting research into Australian healthcare expenditure, circumvented security restrictions and accessed information beyond its authorised reach. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese disclosed the breach in September, expressing concern not only about the incident…

By Qaiser Nawab For developing countries, technological revolutions often arrive twice: first as a promise and later as a reminder of how far behind they remain. The industrial age was built around capital-intensive factories; the information age around computing power, networks and intellectual property. By the time many countries in the Global South acquired the infrastructure and skills needed to participate, the frontier had moved again. Artificial intelligence may not follow the same script. That is the argument recently made by Justin Yifu Lin, former World Bank chief economist and a leading Chinese development economist. Lin believes open-weight AI —…

By Qaiser Nawab, In Hohhot, AI, cheap computing and three years of free rent are turning solo entrepreneurs into businesses At an open-plan desk in the Yungu OPC Community in Hohhot, the capital city of China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Li Xiaoyu stares at his screen as AI generates scenes for a short drama frame by frame. He is, quite literally, a company of one. A few months ago, producing a three-to-five-minute AI-generated drama could leave him gasping under the weight of computing costs. Now the same production costs 2,000-3,000 yuan less. On a monthly basis, he enjoys a revenue…