The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the end of the COVID-19 pandemic as a global public health emergency, marking a symbolic end to the devastating pandemic that has caused lockdowns, upended economies, and killed at least 7 million people worldwide. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has urged people to continue to practice safety measures and get vaccinated, as the virus is still a threat.
Posts tagged as “COVID-19”
The Biden administration has announced that the vaccine requirement for federal employees, federal contractors, and international travelers will be ending on May 11th, signaling confidence in the progress made in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. The administration is continuing to take steps to ensure the health and safety of Americans, including providing financial assistance, expanding access to testing, and increasing the availability of vaccines.
Harvard University has announced that former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will be joining the school later this year. Douglas Elmendorf, Dean of the Harvard Kennedy School, praised Ardern for her “strong and empathetic political leadership” and said her presence at the school will “generate vital conversations about the public policy choices facing leaders at all levels of government.” Ardern’s appointment to Harvard is a testament to her leadership and commitment to public service.
Jacinda Ardern, the world's youngest female head of government, gave her farewell speech to Parliament on Wednesday, reflecting on her time in office and the challenges she faced. She thanked her family, her political party, and her supporters for their support and hoped to have demonstrated that "you can be anxious, sensitive, kind and wear your heart on your sleeve" and still be a successful leader. She also hoped her legacy would be showing the world “you can be a nerd, a crier, a hugger” and still be a leader.
The U.S. State Department is facing an "unprecedented demand" for passports as Americans prepare to travel again following the COVID-19 pandemic. The State Department is receiving 500,000 passport applications a week, with wait times of 10 to 13 weeks for a regular passport and seven to nine weeks for an expedited passport. The State Department is hiring additional staff and increasing resources to meet the increased demand and is urging travelers to plan ahead and apply for passports as soon as possible.
Key takeaways: Congress must investigate the circumstances that led to the closures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank of New York. Allowing a large,…
Virgin Orbit Announces Operational Pause and Furloughs Nearly All Employees Amid Financial Struggles
Virgin Orbit Announces Operational Pause and Furloughs Nearly All Employees Amid Financial Struggles
Virgin Orbit, founded by Richard Branson in 2017, is pausing operations and furloughing nearly all of its employees in an effort to shore up the company's finances. This operational pause will have a major impact on the company's operations and Virgin Orbit is hoping to secure a funding lifeline in order to continue providing its services. An update on go-forward operations is expected in the coming weeks.
The House of Representatives has voted unanimously to declassify U.S. intelligence information about the origins of COVID-19, and the bill is now on its way to President Biden's desk. The bill requires Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines to declassify any information about links between the pandemic and the Wuhan Institute of Virology, and Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee Rep. Michael Turner has said that the American public deserves answers. The intelligence community has not yet definitively agreed on the origins of the pandemic, and the declassification of information is expected to provide more clarity.