Latest news with #OSF
New Indian Express
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Oscar race officially begins as Academy opens submissions for 2025 consideration
The road to the 2025 Oscars is now officially open. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has launched its submissions portal, allowing studios and filmmakers to begin uploading their eligible films to the Academy Screening Room, the exclusive members-only streaming platform where many Oscar voters catch up on contenders. To secure a spot on the platform, film companies must navigate a series of submission steps, including fees, detailed documentation, and deadlines based on a film's release window. There are two key deadlines for general entry in the feature film category. For films released between January 1 and June 30, materials must be submitted by Wednesday, September 10, at 5 p.m. PT. For titles premiering between July 1 and December 31, the final deadline is Thursday, November 13, at 5 p.m. PT. Required materials include a signed Oscars Submission Form (OSF) and a full list of screen credits.
Chicago Tribune
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
When half the nation steps forward: Women's contributions to security
As the Army faces a potential 7% reduction in combat strength in only two years, women are proving to be the solution. With an unprecedented 18% increase in enlistment rates compared to just 8% for men, women's leadership brings to bear an expanded pool of talent that fortifies long-term military readiness and provides strategic value to military and peace operations globally. Recruitment offices once dominated by male applicants now see a steady stream of women signing contracts. Nearly 10,000 women joined active duty in 2024 alone, propping up a service that missed male recruitment targets by 25%. This shift is not incidental. As traditional male eligibility pools shrink, military strategists openly admit women now represent the most viable recruitment demographic, a reality underscored by their overrepresentation in education and skill-based qualifications critical for modern warfare. While women comprise 17 percent of armed forces personnel, senior leadership remains overwhelmingly male, creating a 'glass ceiling' that undermines retention. Recruitment wins mask a devastating leak in the pipeline. A 2020 report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that women exit military service 28% faster than men, with sexual violence and institutional distrust driving the exodus. Reports from the Department of Defense's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office between 2016 and 2021 also revealed that 1 in 4 assault survivors takes concrete steps to leave the military entirely, while 60% of servicewomen doubt their safety will be prioritized. These numbers highlight a troubling paradox: while military organizations depend on women to serve, they continue to face challenges in earning their trust and ensuring they feel safe enough to remain. The Navy's newly launched Women's Initiatives Team indicates growing awareness within military leadership of this issue and aims to reverse it by fostering a more enabling environment, spreading awareness, and influencing policy changes to increase the recruitment and retention of servicewomen throughout the Navy. It will meet on a periodic basis to build community, develop best practices and discuss relevant issues, leading to opportunities for barrier removal by Navy leadership. However, real change requires dismantling decades of entrenched culture. Childcare limitations, uneven promotion pathways and the daily grind of proving competence in male-dominated spaces further strain retention. The conversation on recruitment and retention cannot ignore the importance of policy frameworks like the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, championed by organizations such as Our Secure Future (OSF). By leveraging insights from UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 and Women, Peace and Security National Action Plans, OSF has demonstrated how incorporating women's perspectives enhances operational effectiveness. Implementing UNSCR 1325 and WPS National Action Plans is essential not only for advancing women's participation and leadership, but also for enhancing the operational effectiveness of military organizations. Local cultural understanding and organizational diversity are critical and such implementation equips forces to navigate the complex challenges of stabilization more effectively. Policy frameworks laid the groundwork, but it's on the frontlines where the value of women can be proven. In Afghanistan, for example, Marine Corps Task Force Lioness deployed female teams to conduct culturally sensitive searches, disrupting insurgent tactics that exploited gender norms to hide weapons and operatives. Army Cultural Support Teams later formalized this approach, enabling access to local populations closed off to male soldiers. Special Operations Command took notice, embedding women with Green Berets and Rangers for high-stakes missions. The United Nations rightly underscores the critical importance of integrating female soldiers and their perspectives into peace operations, particularly where military and civilian responsibilities intersect. As noted in an Inclusive Security report on implementing UNSCR 1325 for military effectiveness, female personnel play a vital role in addressing the specific needs of women and girls, such as supporting the demobilization and reintegration of female ex-combatants. They are also uniquely positioned to interview survivors of gender-based violence, mentor female cadets in military and police academies, and engage with women in communities where cultural norms restrict interaction with men. Beyond these functional roles, female soldiers also serve as powerful role models, encouraging local women and girls to claim their rights and participate in peacebuilding efforts. Though these contributions may not align with traditional notions of military combat power, they are increasingly indispensable in the multifaceted operations that define modern peacekeeping and military operations. Ukraine's defense against Russia offers the latest validation. Its military recruited 70,000 women as snipers, tank commanders and medevac pilots, who now anchor frontline units. Yet even there, cultural resistance persists. Reports indicate that male commanders often marginalize female soldiers, wasting critical skills in a war of survival. Research stresses that modern conflicts demand this duality: women securing villages by day and mentoring cadets by night, blending combat rigor with community trust-building. As OSF emphasizes, failing to harness this full spectrum doesn't just disadvantage women, it undermines mission success. The data leaves no ambiguity. Women will enlist, lead and fight when given the chance. But until militaries address the affliction of sexual violence and institutional bias, they'll keep losing their best recruits to preventable failures.
Herald Malaysia
28-06-2025
- General
- Herald Malaysia
Catholic Sister brings synodal approach to prison through restorative justice
Sr. Janet Ryan, OSF, facilitates restorative 'justice circle keeper' trainings for staff and incarcerated individuals inside prisons in the US state of Illinois, as part of her ministry with Mobilizing Network. Jun 28, 2025 Sr. Janet, OSF leads a circle training with Catholic Mobilizing Network at Precious Blood Ministry of Reconciliation in Chicago, Illinois By Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, Catholic Mobilizing Network*When thinking of the American penal system, we might recall the harsh conditions depicted in popular movies and television shows. And when one hears about justice being pursued or carried out in these environments, the first words that come to mind might be punishment and retribution. Of course, our Catholic understanding of justice extends beyond this narrow definition to include concepts and goals like rehabilitation and restoration. True justice—Gospel-inspired justice—is oriented toward genuine peace, flourishing, and even communion. This vision of justice is truly a synodal way of proceeding. It is rooted in the dignity of each person, something that is innate and cannot be forfeited. But does that vision of justice and the recognition of each person's dignity, even when they have committed grave crimes, seem like a mere fantasy, given the nature of incarceration and capital punishment in the United States? Sr. Janet Ryan, OSF, does not think so. That's why she is leading restorative justice trainings inside prisons throughout Illinois. Sowing Seeds of Hope in Prison Sr. Janet is a Fransiscan sister from Clinton, Iowa. For more than a decade, she has served at Precious Blood Ministry of Reconciliation (PBMR), an organization located in the Back of the Yards neighborhood in Chicago, IL, which exists to restore human dignity through hospitality, hope, and healing. It feels especially fitting to share the story of her hope-filled work in prison as we continue to celebrate this special Jubilee Year dedicated to hope. Founded by the Catholic religious order, the Missionaries of the Precious Blood, PBMR serves community members who are impacted by violence and the criminal justice system, including men and women who are currently incarcerated. Sr. Janet's particular role within PBMR is to lead the peace circle prison ministry. A peace circle, also known as the restorative practice of circle process, invites participants to sit in a circle and pass a talking piece, which signals the speaking order. Facilitators, like Sr. Janet, guide the dialogue using a series of prompts to which every person has the chance to provide a response. Recently, Sr. Janet has initiated a new circle process training program inside prisons to equip incarcerated individuals and prison staff to use the restorative practice of circle process themselves. Offering this program not only to those who are incarcerated, but to the correctional staff at these prison facilities as well, Sr. Janet transcends this common divide in a highly uncommon way. Sr. Janet says each time she gathers in a circle is an opportunity to meet 'beautiful, loving, funny, gifted people.' There is a lot of laughter and a lot of tears. Through authentic dialogue, the circle process creates space to recognize the humanity in every person, which Sr. Janet says 'has the potential to have long-term impact and bring about real transformation'—even if that takes time. Each training is conducted over the course of four days and takes roughly 28 hours to complete. In that time, Sr. Janet shares that she hopes to reflect the goodness, beauty, and dignity of those who are incarcerated and those who work in corrections, creating a space where each person feels safe enough to share honestly and vulnerably without judgment. By the end of this experience, Sr. Janet says the participants—whether incarcerated individuals or prison staff—walk away with the skills and tools needed to facilitate these kinds of authentic dialogues in prison or in their community. Catholic Mobilizing Network's facilitator guide, Conversations in Communion: Parish Dialogues for Connection and Understanding, serves as a companion to Sr. Janet's trainings. She said that one inmate was particularly passionate about the potential impact of this model. He made a striking observation, suggesting that you could change parish to prison, and parishioner to inmate, and distribute copies throughout prisons across the country. Synodal Encounters Toward Healing and Communion A testament to the success of this approach is that Sr. Janet's co-trainer, Eric Anderson, is helping to facilitate circles in the very facility where he was incarcerated about five years ago. His story is a great inspiration to many of the men who know his history and desire a better way forward. The staff, meanwhile, have been polite and professional toward him, even those not yet ready to participate in a circle with him. Sr. Janet is aware that the circle process is deeply countercultural—particularly in the prison system. But this is why it can be so transformational. She believes we can do better—for the incarcerated individuals and the prison staff—to reduce trauma and stress and to create a more just and effective system. Hosting these trainings is one step in that direction. Amid fractured relationships and divided communities, we are all in need of dialogue like this that fosters deep listening, authentic encounter, and radical truth-telling that can build a path toward healing and communion. Whether behind prison bars or in the parish hall, this is the work of synodality that we as a Church are being called to. Both synodality and restorative justice encompass a vision and process for journeying together through woundedness and division, inside prison and here on the outside. Just how critical this work is can be best summed up here: When some of the incarcerated individuals found out that the Department of Corrections did not provide any funding for their trainings, they pooled their own resources and wrote Sr. Janet a check for more than $1,000. Sr. Janet's teaching of circle process—and the transformation made possible through the practices of restorative justice—is truly a tangible sign of hope today. * Are you interested in bringing the restorative process of circle process to your parish, ministry, or community? Explore Catholic Mobilizing Network's formation program Conversations in Communion: Parish Dialogues for Connection and Understanding. --Vatican News
Yahoo
24-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
‘It makes my heart happy': OSF doctor stresses importance of diapers ahead of donation event
URBANA, Ill. (WCIA) — Diapers are critical to the health of newborn babies. Data shows, though, half of families with young kids in the U.S. can't afford enough to keep their children clean and healthy. WCIA and United Way of Champaign County want to reverse the statistics and are hosting a Diaper Drive on Friday, June 20th. Dr. Awad Alyami, a pediatrician at OSF, knows donations can make a big difference. Watch his interview above as he breaks down 'why.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Champaign Refugee Center reacts to sweeping travel bans and restrictions
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — President Trump signed a proclamation Wednesday that bans visitors and immigrants from 12 countries and restricts the entry of people from another seven. This has some in Central Illinois, including those at the Refugee Center in Champaign scared, but Trump said it's necessary for the security of the country. Champaign Co. energy program receiving $1M through grant 'It can't come fast enough, we don't want other bad people coming into our country,' Trump said. The countries facing full bans include: Afghanistan Myanmar Chad Republic of Congo Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Haiti Iran Libya Somalia Sudan Yemen The countries facing restrictions include: Burundi Cuba Laos Sierra Leone Togo Turkmenistan Venezuela Long called the melting pot, Refugee Center Director Lisa Wilson said Trump's proclamation goes directly against what the country represents. She and her team work daily helping immigrants immerse themselves into their new homes. 'It flies in the face of what America stands for,' Wilson said. 'Unless you were a Native American, at some point in our history, somebody in your family decided they were in a situation where they could not stay in their home country, and they had no choice but to leave.' Wednesday's proclamation doesn't take effect until Monday, but Trump said this continuation of his first term actions will protect Americans from countries that lack vetting and screening. OSF's Urbana, Danville medical centers merging to meet 'critical needs' 'It is the policy of the United States to protect its citizens from aliens who intend to commit terrorist attacks, threaten our national security, hateful ideology, or otherwise exploit the immigration laws,' Trump said in the proclamation. Wilson said if Trump is so concerned about security, he should have never suspended the country's Refugee Admissions Program in January. 'The refugee resettlement system has multiple checks and balances, multiple security steps that the Department of State is in control of,' Wilson said. 'This isn't dependent on a country of origin.' She said Champaign County has large populations of people from Afghanistan, the Republic of Congo and Venezuela. She said this ban, although it has exceptions, could keep families apart indefinitely. 'I do think there is a tendency of this administration to demonize immigrants, especially non-Christian immigrants,' Wilson said. There are several exceptions, however. Those include: U.S. permanent residents and the spouses and children of U.S. citizens who have 'clear and convincing evidence of identity and family relationship' Afghans who assisted American forces and have special visas Diplomats Athletes coming to the U.S. for the World Cup, the Olympics and other major sporting events Dual nationals with a passport from a country not listed in the President's decree Adoptions Ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran with immigrant visas Exceptions made by the attorney general or secretary of state for travel deemed as advancing 'United States national interest' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
