Embrace indigenous languages, urges UN expert

• States must be more inclusive in the treatment and use of minority and indigenous languages, says the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Fernand de Varennes
• Languages are essential tools to communicate and share knowledge, memory, and history, but they are also key to full and equal participation, he adds

Vietnam shoe maker for Nike, Adidas to cut 6,000 jobs

• PouYuen Vietnam will lay off 3,000 factory workers and will not renew the contracts of 3,000 others because of very few production orders in 2023
• More than 630,000 workers lost their jobs or had their hours cut in Vietnam in 2022, according to the labor ministry

Tunisia coastguard intercepts over 400 migrants in single night

• Tunisia, which at points is less that 90 miles from the Italian island of Lampedusa, is a key departure point for Tunisian and other African migrants seeking better lives in Europe
• Rome says more than 32,000 migrants, including 18,000 Tunisians, reached Italy from Tunisia last year, while thousands more have departed from neighbouring Libya

AstraZeneca to move to Dubai Science Park with new sustainable offices ahead of COP28

• Set to open in Q3 2023, the move is part of the biopharmaceutical giant’s global green agenda
• The company recently held its first multilateral engagement on health and climate at COP27

AI, learning models can’t replace human creativity

• The rise of Web3 and NFT photography, along with AI and deep learning models, are transforming the landscape of photography and the creative industry at large, says an expert
• As artists, it provides us with new avenues for monetising our work and reaching new audiences. It's crucial that we address the security concerns, adds another expert at Xposure

UAE rescue team saves two, five days after Turkey quake

• As part of its ‘Gallant Knight/2’ operation, the UAE has dispatched 134 rescuers to help in the search for survivors in quake-hit Turkey and Syria
• Search and rescue teams, deployed from all over the world, have been racing against time to find survivors amid freezing winter temperatures

Innovations chart Dubai’s path to sustainable future

• Dubai has become the most inspiring example globally for institutionalising the innovation process, says Abdulla Mohammed Al Basti, Secretary-General The Executive Council of Dubai
• An effective partnership model between the public and private sector in Dubai has helped transform innovation into a culture that has enhanced the UAE’s competitiveness, he adds.

TRENDS seeks whistleblowers

Funding gap, consumer apathy peter out sustainability in Middle East retail

Europe in crossfire of US-China economic rivalry

• Europe's fears have deepened after the economic and supply crises sparked by the war in Ukraine that have cast the rules of globalisation into question
• The EU has called on the United States to provide European firms exemptions -- like those granted to trade bloc partners Canada and Mexico