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Turmeric May Help with Weight Loss, Diabetes
Turmeric supplements led to modest weight loss in people with type 2 diabetes.

The effects were greater with higher doses or longer-term use.

Benefits varied and were not a replacement for standard diabetes care.
Type 2 diabetes is a complex condition where the body struggles to manage blood sugar levels. It’s often linked to abdominal obesity and can lead to serious health problems like damage to the eyes, nerves, kidneys and heart. With over 536 million people affected globally in 2021 (and that number expected to rise), diabetes is a growing concern.

Managing diabetes can be challenging, as no single treatment works for everyone, and traditional medications can be expensive or have side effects. This has led researchers to explore safer, more affordable alternatives.

One promising option is turmeric, a bright yellow spice commonly used in cooking. Its active compound, curcumin, has shown potential benefits for diabetes, obesity and inflammation. However, research results have been mixed. While some studies show promising benefits, others have found little to no effect, leaving its overall impact unclear.

Because of these conflicting results, a new meta-analysis was conducted to take a closer look and provide clearer answers. This study is one of the most thorough reviews to date, specifically examining how turmeric and curcumin influence body measurements in people with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes, and the results were published in Nutrition & Diabetes.

How Was The Study Conducted?

The researchers conducted a detailed review and analysis of studies to understand the effects of turmeric and curcumin on body measurements in people with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes.

The reviewers carefully selected studies that met specific criteria, such as focusing on adults with prediabetes or diabetes and comparing turmeric/curcumin to a placebo. Studies on animals or pregnant women, as well as those combining turmeric with other treatments, were excluded. Twenty eligible articles were used for the systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis.

What Did The Study Find?

In the reevaluation of studies, the daily dose of turmeric or curcumin ranged from as low as 80 mg to as high as 2100 mg. The duration of these studies varied, too, lasting anywhere from eight weeks to 36 weeks. The interventions were categorized into three types: unformulated curcumin, high-absorption curcumin and turmeric.

A total of 14 clinical trials studied the effects of turmeric or curcumin on body weight in people with type 2 diabetes. The combined results showed that turmeric/curcumin supplementation led to an average weight loss of 1.9 kg (or about 4.2 pounds) compared to the placebo. Additionally, participants with a body mass index (BMI) under 30 saw a greater weight reduction of 2.2 kg (about 4.8 pounds). These findings suggest turmeric may have an impact on weight management, especially in certain groups.

Other findings included that among participants with type 2 diabetes, turmeric/curcumin supplementation modestly reduced waist and hip circumference, but had little effect on BMI and body fat percentage. As for people with prediabetes, three trials suggested that turmeric/curcumin supplements modestly reduced body weight when taken over 22 weeks, and turmeric/curcumin was also connected to a small reduction in waist circumference.

While this study provides valuable insights into the potential benefits of turmeric and curcumin for managing body weight and measurements in people with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes, it has some limitations. The quality of evidence in many of the included trials was rated as low or very low, partly due to inconsistencies in results and differences in study designs, doses and durations.

Additionally, the high variability between studies makes it harder to draw definitive conclusions. Most trials had small sample sizes, and some relied on self-reported data, which can introduce bias. Furthermore, the study excluded certain populations, such as pregnant women and those using turmeric alongside other treatments, limiting its generalizability. Finally, while turmeric and curcumin showed promise in some areas, the effects were often modest, highlighting that taking this supplement is unlikely to be a magic bullet for seeing noticeable outcomes for some.

How Does This Apply To Real Life?

If you’re managing prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, the idea of adding a turmeric or curcumin supplement to your routine might sound appealing, especially since it’s a natural and more budget-friendly option. The research suggests that turmeric could help with small but meaningful improvements in weight and waist size, particularly when taken in higher doses (over 1500 mg/day) or for longer periods (more than 22 weeks). That said, most turmeric or curcumin supplements usually have between 500 and 1,000 milligrams of curcumin per serving—and you should check in with a healthcare professional before taking a new supplement, especially one with a high dosage.

For example, people with prediabetes saw an average weight loss of 2.5 kg (about 5.5 pounds) and a reduction in waist circumference of nearly 3 cm (about 1.2 inches). While these changes aren’t dramatic, they could be a helpful addition to a broader plan that includes healthy eating, exercise, and regular medical care.

That said, turmeric isn’t a quick fix or a replacement for other treatments. Its effects are modest, and not everyone will see the same results. If you’re considering turmeric or curcumin supplements, it’s important to talk to your healthcare provider first, especially if you’re already on medication for diabetes or other conditions. Supplements can interact with medications, and not all products are created equal. For example, some may not contain the right dose or form of curcumin to be effective. Ultimately, while turmeric shows promise, it works best as part of a well-rounded approach to managing diabetes and overall health.

Our Expert Take

This study, published in Nutrition & Diabetes, highlights the potential of turmeric as a natural, more budget-friendly supplement that may support weight management and reduce waist size in people with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes. But it is important to remember that while the results are promising, the effects are modest and vary depending on factors like dosage, duration and individual health conditions. Turmeric is not a cure-all, but it could serve as a helpful addition to a comprehensive diabetes management plan that includes a healthy diet, regular exercise and medical care. For those looking for alternative ways to support their health, turmeric offers a safe and accessible option worth considering under the guidance of your healthcare provider.
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August 20, 2025
Sex, Alcohol, White Horse in Film ‘Stars of Little Importance’

Sex, plenty of alcohol, girl talk, a white horse roaming the streets and stark black and white cinematography? Those are just some of the elements that Hungarian actor Renátó Olasz brings to the screen in his feature directorial debut Stars of Little Importance (Minden Csillag), which examines nostalgia and loneliness. Executive produced by none other than Hungarian auteur Béla Tarr, the movie, listed as a comedy but also containing drama, just world premiered in the competition lineup of the 31st edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival.

“A brother and sister return home from the capital for Christmas to reunite with childhood friends and first loves,” reads a synopsis. “They hold a party. They drink heavily. Nothing is the same as before. But everything is good, right?”

“Through the siblings’ eyes, we observe an abandoned city, where time has frozen, and we experience some Hungarian rural destinies,” it continues. “The siblings must face some questions: Where are they going now that they are 30 years old? Is this how they imagined their lives would be when they were teenagers?”

Olasz and his co-dramaturg Anna Hámor didn’t write a script, opting instead to discuss with their cast key themes and scenes and leaving most up to improvisation. The cast consists of Olasz, Andrea Waskovics, Emőke Pál and János Szén. Csaba Bántó handled cinematography, with Judit Czakó as editor and music courtesy of Ádám Mészáros.

The producer of Stars of Little Importance is Genovéva Petrovits of Kino Alfa.

THR asked Olasz about adding feature directing to his resume, how he handled the double duty of director and actor, his relationship with Tarr and how he made the movie on a low budget with little hope for support from Hungary’s government.

The filmmaker doesn’t see his new directing credit as a big leap from his acting work. “I hold a Master’s Degree in directing. I finished school before going to acting school, but from my very young age, including in high school, which had a drama class, I directed a lot of theatrical plays and also acted in [them],” he explained. “So, I have this passion for creating, and I wanted to transform that into the filmmaking process. And I like creating in a community.”

Olasz met Tarr when the latter taught a workshop in Budapest. “Since then, we have been friends, and he’s my mentor, my master,” Olasz told THR. “He has supported me through the whole film process. Unfortunately, he is currently in a hospital due to a health issue and can’t be here, but he has been texting me. We really, really like each other.”

There is really only one core lesson he learned from Tarr. “Béla teaches only one thing: just be yourself,” he explained. “Just do what you really feel like and don’t give a shit about any rules.”

One of the inspirations for the film and shooting it in the town where Olasz was born came on a scouting trip. “My cinematographer and I are really good friends, and we were on a location scout for another project in our hometown one night, and we just drove through. I asked him to make a recording of the street,” the director recalled. “And when we saw the footage, we just realized that this city is fucking empty and everything has changed. You know, it just looks like a movie set or something like that. And it’s this experience that just depressed me. It was like a punch to my face. Everybody moved abroad or to the capital. It was crazy, but that feeling inspired me.”

One thing hasn’t changed, however: the pub that features prominently in the film is where Olasz spent much of his young life. “The actual pub was the pub of my childhood and my teenage years,” says Olasz. “And it’s true what I say at the beginning of the movie — that my parents fell in love at that bar. It looks the same as it did 40 years ago. Nothing has changed. Time just stopped there. So that’s why I chose this place, because it has a lot of memories in it.”

Despite this being his first feature, Olasz was adamant about working without a script. “I wanted to try my own method. And because of my background in theater, I really like to create with the actors, the dramaturg, and the DOP from the very beginning,” Olasz told THR. “So we figured out the themes, topics and characters with each other. I created tons of notes, but we really only had ideas for scenes but no dialogue. Every day, we met at the location, talked about what we wanted to shoot that day and what we wanted to express in the scenes, and we figured it all out.”

Key themes that the creatives wanted to explore include “nostalgia and melancholy,” Olasz said. “But it was my aim to combine poetic cinematic language with really raw, naturalistic stuff. I just miss movies with stuff from real life, you know, everybody vomiting or using dirty words. It’s just a part of life, and not just the depressive stuff, but also the humor and jokes and everything. I like movies which are full of life.”

Olasz cited John Cassavetes as one of his favorite filmmakers. “I really like how he handled real life, how we exist, how we behave,” he said. “I like to just observe this kind of thing.”

So what is the meaning of the white horse shown repeatedly throughout the movie? “There is no exact meaning. I’m not philosophical,” the filmmaker told THR. “I wanted something emotional for the audience’s brain and soul. The white horse could be a dream, it could be reality, it could be anything. The meaning depends on you. I’m not bullshitting. I did not want to give any meaning to it to let the audience members think and feel what they want.”

Does Olasz have a new idea for a second feature as a director? “I have an idea,” he told THR, but mentioned that money remains a challenge. “We created this movie without much money, so I tried to work in a low-budget way, not a no-budget way,” he said. In Hungary, “it’s impossible” to get funding due to the right-wing government of Viktor Orbán, Olasz said. “If you are not loyal to the government, you can’t get any money. If you are not a propagandist, you can’t get money. It’s really hard to work in Hungary under these kinds of circumstances.”

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August 20, 2025
What are cloudbursts and why might a warming world make them even more dangerous?

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Sudden and intense bursts of extreme rainfall are causing devastation across mountainous parts of South Asia, triggering flash floods, deadly mudflows and huge landslides that have washed out entire neighbourhoods and turned vibrant communities into heaps of mud and rubble.

In northwest Pakistan, ferocious floods have crashed through villages, killing at least 321 people in the space of 48 hours, local authorities reported Saturday.

More than ten villages in the Buner region of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province were devastated by flash flooding, and dozens of people are believed to still be trapped under the thick mud and debris.

In India-administered Kashmir, at least 60 people were killed and more than 200 were missing when walls of mud and water gushed through the Himalayan town of Chashoti on Friday, according to Reuters news agency. Earlier this month, another surge of flood water tore through a village in India’s mountainous Uttarakhand state, leaving at least four people dead.

In pictures: Pakistan’s deadly monsoon floods

Local authorities in both countries have said much of the deadly floods and landslides were triggered by sudden and violent bouts of torrential rain called cloudbursts.

Scientists say these extreme episodes of rain, be they cloudbursts or longer periods of torrential downpours, are set to get more frequent and ferocious in this ecologically fragile region as the climate crisis intensifies.

Here’s what to know.

Cloudbursts are sudden, highly localized downpours that can be destructive by the sheer volume of water they unleash in a short period of time, often triggering dangerous flash floods and landslides.

They occur in mountainous regions, especially during the monsoon season, when there is a lot of moisture in the air. The areas that have been inundated by destructive rains and floods in recent weeks are in the foothills of South Asia’s giant mountain ranges that are home to the world’s tallest peaks and glaciers.

Monsoonal air hits those mountains, rapidly cooling as it rises and condenses into dense clouds that can then unleash torrents.

The India Meteorological Department defines a cloudburst as having a rainfall rate over 100 mm (4 inches) per hour.

“The Himalayas, Karakoram, and Hindu Kush are especially vulnerable because of their steep slopes, fragile geology, and narrow valleys that funnel storm runoff into destructive torrents,” Roxy Mathew Koll, climate scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, told CNN.

Residents in Pakistan’s hard-hit Salarzai described a torrent of mud and massive boulders that made the ground shake like an earthquake.

These extreme, localized bursts of rain are difficult to forecast.

“This is also a data-sparse region, whether we are studying cloudbursts or glacial outburst floods, making it harder to understand, monitor, and forecast these events,” said Koll.

“The storms are also too small and fast for precise prediction.”

The region’s high poverty levels, a lack of infrastructure and access to basic facilities are also barriers to communicating what little information is available to communities who live there.

“The bigger gap is not the technology gap, it’s the communication gap,” said Islamabad-based climate expert Ali Tauqeer Sheikh.

“Weaker governance and lack of early warning systems” in these regions have compounded the problem, he added.

Together with rampant deforestation and unplanned development, it’s a deadly combination.

“Because of very heavy deforestation, any torrential rain and cloudburst will result in landslides, mudslides, they’ll bring boulders and timber with them,” said Sheikh.

There are often heavy casualties because “a very high percentage of people live along the water bodies and the preparedness time is extremely limited,” he said.

Cloudbursts in the region have occurred with greater intensity and frequency in recent years, fuelled by record-shattering global temperatures.

Warmer air soaks up water like a sponge, and all this extra moisture can result in extreme rain and sudden downpours like cloudbursts, especially when that air meets the mountains.

“Warmer oceans are loading the monsoon with extra moisture, and a warmer atmosphere holds more water, fueling intense rainfall when moist air is forced up steep mountain slopes,” said Koll, from the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology.

During the southwest monsoon season, annual rains fall across parts of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh brought by winds from the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea, which have undergone rapid warming in recent years.

Before this year’s floods, prolonged heatwaves had baked the region.

“For each degree that’s higher than the average temperature, there’s 7% greater moisture in the air,” said Sheikh.

“If there’s a stronger heatwave in the South Asian subcontinent, in India or in Pakistan, we can assume the rainfall will be heavier.”

And melting glaciers are only adding to the disaster.

The massive ranges of the Himalayas and Karakoram region house thousands of glaciers, which are melting and losing mass at an increasingly rapid rate as the world warms.

“While glacial melt does not directly cause cloudbursts, it creates unstable lakes and fragile terrain that can worsen their impacts through floods and landslides,” Koll said.

Pakistan is responsible for less than 1% of the world’s planet-warming gases, European Union data shows, yet it is the most vulnerable nation to the climate crisis, according to the Global Climate Risk Index.

Climate change has already altered the landscape of the region.

“The monsoon itself is shifting under climate change, with longer dry spells punctuated by short, extreme bursts of rain — patterns that have already tripled heavy rainfall events across India in recent decades,” said Koll.

Pakistan suffered its most devastating monsoon season in recent times in 2022, when widespread flooding killed almost 2,000 people, displaced thousands and caused an estimated $40 billion in damage.

Deadly flooding has occurred every year since. A recent study found that rainfall that hit Pakistan between June and July this year was heavier because of the climate crisis.

In Pakistan, the timing, location and quantity of monsoon rains has shifted so that that “average rainfall seems to have decreased in Pakistan, but the frequency of torrential rains has increased,” said Sheikh.

Drought and flooding can impact the country in the same month during the monsoon, so water availability is becoming more uncertain in a country already suffering a severe water crisis. “That affects our food security and cropping patterns,” said Sheikh.

The devastation and financial toll wrought by the floods in Pakistan, India and Nepal this year is what the climate crisis looks like at about 1.2 degrees Celsius of global warming since industrialization.

But the world is on track for around 3 degrees Celsius of warming by the end of the century, as humans continue to burn planet-heating fossil fuels. And scientists warn every fraction of a degree of warming will worsen the impacts of the crisis.

The Himalayas, Karakoram and Hindu Kush regions span eight countries and extreme weather events in one have a knock-on effect in another.

It is “super critical” for the governments of these South Asian nations to come together, said Sheikh.

“We face the same set of problems, and there are similar solutions,” he said.

“But our ability to learn from each other and learn each other’s scientific knowledge, communal knowledge, is absolutely handicapped. And that is very damaging for us.”

But already fraught relations between Pakistan and India deteriorated to their lowest level in years in May when the two sides escalated a long-running conflict in Kashmir, leading India to suspend a key treaty that governs the sharing of the waters of the Indus river that flows through both countries.

“That’s why the Indus Water Treaty needs another lease of life to tackle emerging climate threats and challenges in the water sector,” he said.

For the millions of people who live downstream in India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh, building resiliency is key.

That means “avoiding settlements, construction, and mining in hazard zones, enforcing climate-resilient infrastructure, and strengthening early warning systems,” said Koll.

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August 20, 2025
Industry Managed Forests More Likely to Fuel Megafires

Newswise — The odds of high-severity wildfire were nearly one-and-a-half times higher on industrial private land than on publicly owned forests, a new study found. Forests managed by timber companies were more likely to exhibit the conditions that megafires love—dense stands of regularly spaced trees with continuous vegetation connecting the understory to the canopy.

The research, led by the University of Utah, University of California, Berkeley, and the United States Forest Service, is the first to identify how extreme weather conditions and forest management practices jointly impact fire severity. Leveraging a unique lidar dataset, the authors created three-dimensional maps of public and private forests before five wildfires burned 1.1 million acres in the northern Sierra Nevada, California.

In periods of extreme weather, stem density—the number of trees per acre—became the most important predictor of a high-severity fire. Even in the face of accelerating climate change, how we manage the land will make a difference.

“That’s a really hopeful finding because it means that we can adjust how we manage these landscapes to impact the way fires move through them,” said Jacob Levine, postdoctoral researcher at the U and lead author of the study. “Strategies that reduce density by thinning out both small and mature trees will make forests more robust and resilient to fire in the future.”

In a 2022 study, Levine and collaborators found that fire severity was typically higher on privately managed forests. They also discovered the risks extended to areas near to, but not owned by, private industry, threatening the wilderness, small landowners and urban areas in their shadow. This new study is the first to identify the underlying forest structures that make high-severity fires more likely in some areas than in others.

The study was published on Aug. 20, 2025, in the journal Global Change Biology.

Lidar unlocks forest structure secrets

Plumas National Forest, the study area in California’s northern Sierra Nevada, is emblematic of the wider trend of wildfire occurrence and severity. The region’s mixed conifer forests are adapted to periodic, low- to medium-severity fires that cleared vegetation, creating large spaces between clumps of trees. Efforts to increase timber resources led the U.S. government to implement fire suppression policies in the 1800s, including a ban on controlled burns that Indigenous People practiced for millennia. In the absence of natural fire cycles and Indigenous burning, modern forests have more fodder to fuel high-severity fires, defined as a fire that kills more than 95% of overstory trees.

Plumas National Forest is a mosaic of private industrial and public ownership, and 70% of the study area was burned in five massive wildfires between 2019 and 2021, including the largest single fire in California’s recorded history, the Dixie Fire. Serendipitously, a unique dataset had been collected a year before the region burned.

In 2018, the U.S. Forest Service, Geological Survey and National Aeronautics and Space Administration surveyed the Plumas National Forest and surrounding private land using airborne light detection and ranging (lidar) flights. The lidar sensors shoot billions of lasers at the landscape below, which bounce off the grass, shrubs, saplings, tree canopies and other structures in the forest with high precision.

“We have a really detailed picture of what the forest looked like immediately before these massive fires. It’s an unbelievably valuable thing to have,” Levine said. “Understanding the forest structures that lead to high-severity fire allows us to target mitigation strategies to get ahead of this massive fire problem while still producing enough timber to meet market demand.”

Private vs public management strategies

Timber companies are focused on maximizing profits and providing a sustainable source of wood, a valuable resource for society and economic engine for rural communities. Most practice plantation forestry—clear-cutting an area and replanting the trees in a tightly packed grid. After 80 to 100 years, they do it all again, leaving a patchwork of dense stands of trees of similar age and size.

“You can think about stacking a bunch of matches together in a grid—that’s going to burn a lot better than if you have those matches dispersed as smaller clumps,” Levine explained. “A bigger fire can easily reach the canopy in dense forests. Then it’s ripping through one tree after another, tossing out chunks of burning material miles in advance. It’s a different story.”

The objectives of public lands are more varied, requiring management for grazing, recreation, restoration, timber production and wildlife corridors. They’re also beholden to the public, which stymies their ability to do active management. Environmental organizations often sue to stop proposed projects that would remove trees to thin down density.

Although the study demonstrates that private industrial lands fare worse, both private and public agencies have much room for improvement to protect our nation’s forests. Most Sierra Nevada trees lack adaptations to recover from high-severity fires, leading to more and more of our forests turning into shrub and grasslands.

“This has major implications for timber, but also for carbon sequestration, water quality, wildlife habitat and recreation,” Levine said. “Shrub and grasslands can be beautiful, but when we think of the Sierra Nevada we picture majestic forests. Without major changes in forest management, future generations could inherit a landscape that looks very different than the one we cherish today.”

*****

Other authors include Brandon Collins of the U.S. Forest Service and University of California, Berkeley; Michelle Coppoletta of the U.S. Forest Service; and Scott Stephens of University of California, Berkeley.

The study, “Extreme weather magnifies the effects of forest structure on wildfire, driving increased severity in industrial forests,” was published on Aug. 20, 2025, in the journal Global Change Biology.

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August 20, 2025
Empowering rural entrepreneurs in Indonesia with financial literacy

WAINGAPU, East Sumba, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia (ILO News) – Bernadine Isabella Leidabula, a customer service officer at the Lewa Branch of Bank East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) in East Sumba, has gained the ability to better calculate selling prices, manage business profit and loss and organize her financial records. With her new financial knowledge, she is also able to support her mother’s small catering business.

© A. Alexandra/ILO

Bernadine, or Dini for short, is one of the 24 participants who joined the three-day financial education training in Waingapu, East Sumba, on 14 to 16 July 2025.

Bernadine was one of the 24 participants who joined a three-day financial education training jointly organized by the ILO’s Promoting Micro and Small Enterprises through Entrepreneurial Access to Financial Services (Promise II Impact) project, funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), in collaboration with Bank NTT. Held in Waingapu, East Sumba, from 14 to 16 July 2025, the training marked the fourth session since 2023, reaching a total of 298 participants.

In East Sumba, many small business owners and workers manage their finances based on instinct and experience, often without access to formal financial education. Low financial literacy can lead to uninformed decisions, resulting in a lack of savings, poor budgeting or overreliance on informal loans, factors that increase the risk of financial hardship, especially during illness, emergencies or unexpected expenses.

This training programme, therefore, aimed to improve practical financial knowledge and understanding of budgeting, saving, profit and loss, financial goals and accessible financial products. Originally targeted at Bank NTT clients and officials, the training also attracted a diverse group of participants, including young workers and seasoned entrepreneurs.

“I have worked for the bank for over a decade and recently received financial training, but I found this ILO-led programme both refreshing and insightful,” Bernadine shared. “This kind of training is needed here in East Sumba, especially for young people, as financial services are not easily accessible in places like Waingapu. I hope more people get the chance to join in the future.”

Similarly, Soleman Dapa Doda, a 56-year-old grocery kiosk owner who typically keeps his money in cash at home, admitted that the training changed his mindset about banking. He had rarely used banking services before and preferred to invest his money in purchasing land instead. “There are very few ATMs, and sometimes they are broken. So, it felt safer this way. I usually use my income to buy land instead of saving in the bank,” he said.

Originally from Southwest Sumba, Soleman migrated to East Sumba more than 30 years ago and built a life and business with his wife in Waingapu. Together, they managed to send all four of their children to university, a rare achievement in many rural parts of Indonesia. While land investments have their advantages, Soleman realized through the training that keeping some funds in a bank could help him prepare for emergencies, earn interest and provide greater security for his family.

© A. Alexandra/ILO

Soleman Dapa Doda during the group class exercise on budgeting.

“This is my first financial training, and I have learned the benefits of saving money in the bank. I will apply this for my family’s safety and teach my children to save too,” he said. “I also learned how to properly calculate production costs and set prices, which I never really did before.”

The training also featured support from East Sumba’s Vice Regent, Yonathan Hani, who encouraged participants to shift their mindset for long-term change. “Poverty is not solely about having a low income. It is also about how well people manage their resources,” he explained. “Financial education like this is essential for breaking the cycle of poverty. It encourages better habits and empowers people to think ahead and plan for a more secure future.”

Financial education like this is essential for breaking the cycle of poverty. It encourages better habits and empowers people to think ahead and plan for a more secure future.

Yonathan Hani, East Sumba Vice Regent

© A. Alexandra/ILO

Participants from Waingapu, East Sumba, together with East Sumba Vice Regent, Yonathan Hani and Head of Bank NTT’s Waingapu Branch, Yusuf Hanggar Mawolu.

According to the 2022 National Survey on Financial Literacy and Inclusion by Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority (OJK), NTT Province continues to lag behind other provinces in both financial literacy and access. This gap affects not only individuals and households but also limits the growth and resilience of MSMEs, which are key drivers of the local economy.

“The training gives participants from micro, small and medium enterprises or MSMEs a solid understanding of available financial options, including Kredit Merdeka, a collateral-free microcredit facility designed to support small businesses, making them more competitive and capable of creating jobs,” said Yusuf Hanggar Mawolu, Head of Bank NTT’s Waingapu Branch. “It also reflects our ongoing commitment to empowering local entrepreneurs and strengthening the people’s economy in East Sumba and across NTT.”

Building on its success in East Sumba, the ILO’s Promise II Impact project plans to expand and scale up the training programme to reach more MSME players both within East Sumba and in other project intervention areas.

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August 20, 2025
Matt Hansen Brings The Down Under Tour To Australia And New Zealand This October

Melbourne, AU (August 20, 2025) – Following an incredible debut headline tour last November, rising indie artist MATT HANSEN today announces a new run of Australian and New Zealand shows while he’s in the country as part of the Strummingbird Festival lineup this October. While he dazzled Australian audiences in 2024, this tour marks his first performance in New Zealand.

Matt Hansen will start his run of sideshows at The Tuning Fork in Auckland on Thursday 23 October, before heading over to Corner Hotel in Melbourne on Sunday 26 October, Lion Arts Factory in Adelaide on Tuesday 28 October, and wrapping up at Manning Bar in Sydney on Wednesday 29 October.

My Live Nation members can secure tickets during the presale which commences at 12pm (local) on Friday 22 August and concludes at 12pm (local) on Monday 25 August.

General public tickets go on sale Monday 25 August, 1pm local time.

Tickets and further information at livenation.com.au and livenation.co.nz

MATT HANSEN
DOWN UNDER
AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND TOUR

THE TUNING FORK, AUCKLAND
THU 23 OCT 2025

STRUMMINGBIRD FESTIVAL, SUNSHINE COAST
SAT 25 OCT 2025

CORNER HOTEL, MELBOURNE
SUN 26 OCT 2025

LION ARTS FACTORY, ADELAIDE
TUE 28 OCT 2025

MANNING BAR, SYDNEY
WED 29 OCT 2025

STRUMMINGBIRD FESTIVAL, NEWCASTLE
SAT 01 NOV 2025

STRUMMINGBIRD FESTIVAL, PERTH
SUN 02 NOV 2025

Live Nation Presale: Friday 22 August, 12pm local – Monday 25 August, 12pm local
TICKETS ON SALE MONDAY 25 AUGUST, 1PM LOCAL
For complete tour & ticket information, visit livenation.com.au and livenation.co.nz

ABOUT MATT HANSEN
Matt Hansen, aged 24 and based in Los Angeles, CA, has garnered a significant following of over 3 million on TikTok, where he showcases his soulful reinterpretations of popular songs and original music. With over 900 million streams across his first ten singles, all independently released, Matt’s music has resonated deeply with listeners. His latest hit “yellowstone (holding you)”, has particularly captivated audiences with its powerful vocals and poignant message.

To apply for media accreditation for review purposes, visit here.

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August 20, 2025
How To Watch Pixar Animation’s ‘Elio’ Online

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, The Hollywood Reporter may receive an affiliate commission.

The newest Pixar Animation film Elio, about a lonely boy beamed to outer space after being mistakenly identified as Earth’s leader, was a box office disappointment when it was released in theaters in June. But with its digital release this week, the Pixar film — which features the voices of Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldaña, Brad Garrett, Jameela Jamil and others — is ready to find a wider audience among home viewers.

Starting on Tuesday, Aug. 19, the animated film is available to buy or rent online on digital in 4K Ultra HD starting at $24.99 on Prime Video, Apple TV and other digital platforms.

At a Glance: How to Watch Elio Online

Insiders at Pixar revealed to THR that the box office bomb was a result of changes made during the film’s challenging production process. America Ferrera left her role as the voice of Elio’s mom due to scheduling conflicts, and original director Adrian Molina also exited the project. (Madeline Sharafian and Domee Shi stepped in to co-direct the movie’s new cut.)

Below, watch the official trailer and keep reading for more details on where to watch Elio online.

Where to Watch Elio Online

Distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Pixar’s Elio is expected to stream on Disney+ for subscribers only. Although the studio has yet to announce the movie’s streaming date, it will likely drop sometime in late September or early October.

A Disney+ subscription is required to stream Elio when it is available, and the streamer starts at $7.99 per month with ads. Disney+ is home to hit animated classics and originals such as Emmy-nominated series The Mandalorian, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Goosebumps, Andor, A Real Bug’s Life, I Am Groot, Monsters At Work, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series and much more. Learn more about what Disney+ offers — including pricing, catalog and special deals and bundles — here.

In the meantime, Elio in 4K Ultra HD is available digitally to rent for $24.99 or buy for $29.99 on Prime Video, Apple TV and other video-on-demand platforms.

Elio: Plot, Cast, Run Time

Directed by Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi and Adrian Molina, Elio follows a young boy (voiced by Yonas Kibreab) who is obsessed with space and alien life. But when he finds himself in the middle of a cosmic adventure, he must make new friends to save the universe and find his way back home.

The animated movie’s voice cast includes Zoe Saldaña, Remy Edgerly, Brandon Moon, Brad Garrett, Jameela Jamil and others. It runs one hour and 39 minutes.

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August 19, 2025
‘Will give rise to terrible results’

A man was hospitalized with severe physical and psychiatric symptoms after replacing table salt with sodium bromide in his diet, advice he said he received from ChatGPT, according to a case study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Experts have strongly cautioned against taking medical advice from artificial intelligence-powered chatbots.

“These are language prediction tools — they lack common sense and will give rise to terrible results if the human user does not apply their own common sense when deciding what to ask these systems and whether to heed their recommendations,” said Dr. Jacob Glanville, according to Fox 32 Chicago.

What’s happening?

A 60-year-old man concerned about the potentially negative health impacts of chloride on his body was looking for ways to completely remove sodium chloride, the chemical name for table salt, from his diet.

“Inspired by his history of studying nutrition in college, he decided to conduct a personal experiment to eliminate chloride from his diet,” the case study’s authors wrote. “For three months, he had replaced sodium chloride with sodium bromide obtained from the internet after consultation with ChatGPT, in which he had read that chloride can be swapped with bromide, though likely for other purposes, such as cleaning.”

The “personal experiment” landed the man, who had “no past psychiatric or medical history,” in the emergency room, saying he believed he was being poisoned by his neighbor.

“In the first 24 hours of admission, he expressed increasing paranoia and auditory and visual hallucinations, which, after attempting to escape, resulted in an involuntary psychiatric hold for grave disability,” the authors said.

With treatment, the man’s symptoms gradually improved to the point where he could explain to doctors what had happened.

Why does bad medical advice from AI matter?

The situation highlighted the high levels of risk involved in obtaining medical advice, or other highly specialized knowledge, from AI chatbots including ChatGPT. As the use of AI-powered tools becomes more popular, incidents such as the one described in the case study are likely to occur more frequently.

“Thus, it is important to consider that ChatGPT and other AI systems can generate scientific inaccuracies, lack the ability to critically discuss results, and ultimately fuel the spread of misinformation,” the case study’s authors warned.

They encouraged medical professionals to consider the public’s increasingly widespread reliance on AI tools “when screening for where their patients are consuming health information.”

What’s being done about AI misinformation?

Unless and until governments enact regulatory guardrails constraining what kinds of advice and information AI can and cannot dole out to people, individuals will be left to rely on their own common sense, as Glanville recommended.

However, when it comes to complex, scientifically dense information that requires specialized knowledge and training to properly understand, it is questionable how far “common sense” can go.

The subject of the case study had received some level of specialized academic training with regards to nutrition. Apparently, this was not enough for him to recognize that sodium bromide was not a suitable alternative for table salt in his diet.

Consequently, the best way to protect oneself and one’s family from the harmful effects of AI misinformation is to limit reliance on AI to specific, limited instances and to approach any AI-provided advice or data with a high level of skepticism.

To take things a step further, you can use your voice and reach out to your elected representatives to tell them that you are in favor of regulations to rein in AI-generated misinformation.

Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don’t miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.

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August 19, 2025
Google Pixel 10 Pro XL now spotted in the Geekbench database

Yesterday, a Reddit user uploaded a shot purportedly showing the unannounced Google Pixel 10 Pro XL’s AnTuTu score next to the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s. The next-gen phone managed a better score overall, but with some weird misses, most notably in the GPU department.

Now, the same user has seemingly run Geekbench 6 on the same two devices, and you can see the results below.

The Pixel 10 Pro XL manages a single-core score of 2,296 and a multi-core score of 6,203, versus its predecessor’s 1,889 and 4,247, respectively.

It is thus a massive improvement, especially in the multi-core score – that’s a 46% uplift. In the single-core score it’s only 21% better, but that’s still something, of course.

This benchmark run has revealed the Tensor G5 CPU’s configuration. It has one core clocked at 3.78 GHz, five cores clocked at 3.05 GHz, and two cores clocked at 2.25 GHz. The Pixel 10 Pro XL which ran the benchmark has 16GB of RAM and unsurprisingly boots Android 16, which is the version the entire Pixel 10 family should launch with.

Speaking of that launch, the official announcement is tomorrow, on August 20, at 10 AM local time in California. Stay tuned.

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August 19, 2025
How many wars has President Trump ended?

Jake Horton & Nick Beake

BBC Verify

BBC

As President Donald Trump tries to broker an end to the Russia-Ukraine war, he has been highlighting his track record in peace negotiations since starting his second term in office.

Speaking at the White House on 18 August, where he was pressed by European leaders to push for a ceasefire, he claimed: “I’ve ended six wars… all of these deals I made without even the mention of the word ‘ceasefire’.”

The following day the number he cited had risen to “seven wars”.

The Trump administration says a Nobel Peace Prize is “well past time” for the “peacemaker-in-chief”, and has listed the “wars” he has supposedly ended.

Some lasted just days – although they were the result of long-standing tensions – and it is unclear whether some of the peace deals will last.

Trump also used the word “ceasefire” a number of times when talking about them on his Truth Social platform.

BBC Verify has taken a closer look at these conflicts and how much credit the president can take for ending them.

Israel and Iran

The 12-day conflict began when Israel hit targets in Iran on 13 June.

Trump confirmed that he had been informed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of the strikes.

The US carried out strikes on Iranian nuclear sites – a move widely seen as bringing the conflict towards a swift close.

On 23 June, Trump posted: “Officially, Iran will start the CEASEFIRE and, upon the 12th Hour, Israel will start the CEASEFIRE and, upon the 24th Hour, an Official END to THE 12 DAY WAR will be saluted by the World.”

After the hostilities ended, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei insisted his country had secured a “decisive victory” and did not mention a ceasefire.

Israel has since suggested it could strike Iran again to counter new threats.

“There is no agreement on a permanent peace or on how to monitor Iran’s nuclear programme going forward,” argues Michael O’Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution think tank.

“So what we have is more of a de facto ceasefire than an end to war, but I’d give him some credit, as the weakening of Iran by Israel – with US help – has been strategically significant.”

AFP via Getty Images

Targets in Iran and Israel were hit during 12 days of conflict

Pakistan and India

Tensions between these two nuclear-armed countries have existed for years, but in May hostilities broke out following an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir.

After four days of strikes, Trump posted that India and Pakistan had agreed to a “FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE”.

He said this was the result of “a long night of talks mediated by the United States”.

Pakistan thanked Trump and later recommended him for the Nobel Peace Prize, citing his “decisive diplomatic intervention”.

India, however, played down talk of US involvement: “The talks regarding cessation of military action were held directly between India and Pakistan under the existing channels established between both militaries,” Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said.

Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo

Long-standing hostilities between these two countries flared up after the M23 rebel group seized mineral-rich territory in eastern DR Congo earlier in the year.

In June, the two countries signed a peace agreement in Washington aimed at ending decades of conflict. Trump said it would help increase trade between them and the US.

The text called for “respect for the ceasefire” agreed between Rwanda and DRC in August 2024.

Getty

M23 rebels have been linked to Rwanda

Since the latest deal, both sides have accused each other of violating the ceasefire and the M23 rebels – which the UK and US have linked to Rwanda – have threatened to walk away from peace talks.

“There’s still fighting between Congo and Rwanda – so that ceasefire has never really held,” says Margaret MacMillan, a professor of history who taught at the University of Oxford.

Thailand and Cambodia

On 26 July, Trump posted on Truth Social saying: “I am calling the Acting Prime Minister of Thailand, right now, to likewise request a Ceasefire, and END to the War, which is currently raging.”

A couple of days later, the two countries agreed to an “immediate and unconditional ceasefire” after less than a week of fighting at the border.

Malaysia held the peace talks, but President Trump threatened to stop separate negotiations on reducing US tariffs (taxes on imports) unless Thailand and Cambodia stopped fighting.

Both are heavily dependent on exports to the US.

On 7 August, Thailand and Cambodia reached an agreement aimed at reducing tensions along their shared border.

Armenia and Azerbaijan

The leaders of both countries said Trump should receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in securing a peace deal, which was announced at the White House on 8 August.

“I think he gets good credit here – the Oval Office signing ceremony may have pushed the parties to peace,” says Mr O’Hanlon.

In March, the two governments had said they were ready to end their nearly 40-year conflict centred on the status of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The most recent, serious outbreak of fighting was in September 2023 when Azerbaijan seized the enclave (where many ethnic Armenians lived).

Getty

In August Trump hosted the Azerbaijani president and Armenian prime minister at the White House

Egypt and Ethiopia

There was no “war” here for the president to end, but there have long been tensions over a dam on the River Nile.

Ethiopia’s Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam was completed this summer with Egypt arguing that the water it gets from the Nile could be affected.

After 12 years of disagreement, Egypt’s foreign minister said on 29 June that talks with Ethiopia had ground to a halt.

Trump said: “If I were Egypt, I’d want the water in the Nile.” He promised that the US was going to resolve the issue very quickly.

Egypt welcomed Trump’s words, but Ethiopian officials said they risked inflaming tensions.

No formal deal has been reached between Egypt and Ethiopia to resolve their differences.

Serbia and Kosovo

On 27 June, Trump claimed to have prevented an outbreak of hostilities between them, saying: “Serbia, Kosovo was going to go at it, going to be a big war. I said you go at it, there’s no trade with the United States. They said, well, maybe we won’t go at it.”

The two countries have long been in dispute – a legacy of the Balkan wars of the 1990s – with tensions rising in recent years.

“Serbia and Kosovo haven’t been fighting or firing at each other, so it’s not a war to end,” Prof MacMillan told us.

The White House pointed us towards Trump’s diplomatic efforts in his first term.

The two countries signed economic normalisation agreements in the Oval Office with the president in 2020, but they were not at war at the time.

Additional reporting by Peter Mwai, Shruti Menon and Eve Webster.

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August 19, 2025