Month: May 2024

Billionaire philanthropist Melinda French Gates announced she is stepping down from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the charitable organization that she co-founded in 2000 with her now ex-husband, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.

Saying “this is not a decision I came to lightly,” French Gates, 59, wrote in a post on social media that under the terms of the agreement with her former husband upon her departure from the foundation, she will retain more than $12 billion “to commit to my work on behalf of women and families.”  French Gates shared that her last day at the foundation will be June 7, adding that she plans to move onto “the next chapter” of her philanthropic work, called this “a critical moment for women and girls in the U.S. and around the world .. And those fighting to protect and advance equity are in urgent need of support.”

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation CEO Mark Suzman said in a separate statement that the organization would be changing its name to the ‘Gates Foundation.’  Suzman also shared on X that French Gates “has played a crucial role” in the foundation’s achievements, adding that “her vision will leave a lasting legacy, and our foundation remains committed to creating a world where every person has the opportunity to live a healthy and productive life.”

Gates also thanked his ex-wife in a post on X: “I want to thank Melinda for her critical contributions to the Foundation from its very beginning. As a co-founder and co-chair Melinda has been instrumental in shaping our strategies and initiatives, significantly impacting global health and gender equality. Looking ahead, I remain fully committed to the Foundation’s work across all our strategies, and to realizing the opportunities we have to continue improving the lives of millions around the world.” Gates added “I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work.”

Editorial credit: FocusFantastic / Shutterstock.com

Smoke from wildfires in western Canada has led to air quality alerts in four U.S. states, with the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre reporting that Canada has 146 active wildfires burning, including dozens in British Columbia and Alberta that are characterized as “out of control.”

In the United States, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota have issued alerts as winds carry smoke over these regions.as winds carried plumes of smoke over the region. On Sunday, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued an air quality alert in response to a “band of very heavy smoke from wildfires in northeast British Columbia.” The agency said the northern half of the state has since cleared up, but “smoke will linger over southern Minnesota on Monday as northerly winds become light during the day.”

The air quality index, established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to measure daily air pollution levels and communicate the associated risks, reported on Monday that conditions across those four states ranging from “moderate” to “unhealthy” for the general public.

Authorities issued an evacuation order for thousands of residents in Northern Rockies Regional Municipality and Fort Nelson First Nations in British Columbia because of fast moving blazes. According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre, Canada experienced its most devastating wildfire season in recorded history last year, with more than 45 million acres burned; and last summer, smoke from wildfires in Quebec affected wide portions of the U.S., sending air quality down into dangerous levels in cities across the Midwest as well as the Eastern Seaboard. The country is once again bracing for a season of increased fire risk.

Small particles in smoke, less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, can reach deep inside the lungs, causing inflammation and weakening the immune system. This can exacerbate or increase the risk of asthma, lung cancer, and other chronic lung diseases. Older people, infants, children, and pregnant individuals are most vulnerable when air quality worsens.

Editorial credit: SL-Photography / Shutterstock.com

An Ohio police officer investigating a call of a disturbance at a home was fatally shot Saturday night in what authorities described as an “ambush” by an alleged gunman who was found dead Sunday.

Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer said Sunday that Officers were dispatched to a home in Euclid, Ohio, just before 10 p.m. local time in a residential area when a caller said she and her child were threatened by the child’s father. Euclid, Ohio, is about 15 miles northeast of Cleveland.  Capt. Mitchell Houser, a spokesperson for the Euclid Police Department, said in a statement that “while police were investigating, a gunman ambushed an officer, striking him with gunfire.” Houser said the mortally wounded officer, identified as Officer Jacob Derbin, was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. No other officers were injured.

Authorities said the suspect, identified as 24-year-old Deshawn Anthony Vaughn, was found dead by gunshot on Sunday afternoon in a home in Shaker Heights, Ohio. Law enforcement officials would not elaborate on how the suspect died, or say if officers and the suspect exchanged gunfire.

Editorial credit: SevenMaps / Shutterstock.com

Dozens of students walked out of Duke University’s graduation ceremony on Sunday in North Carolina, as actor/comedian Jerry Seinfeld was about to give his commencement speech. Seinfeld was met with boos, with some graduating students walking out, in what is the latest in a wave of anti-war protests that took place at college graduations across the country this weekend.

Videos on social media showed a group of students with Palestinian flags walking down an aisle on the stadium field, filing out of the crowd of graduates at the North Carolina university’s football stadium. Other students and some attendees in the bleachers also stood up from their seats and began walking out of the stadium. Duke University President Vincent Price’s introduction to Seinfeld was drowned out by some people chanting “free Palestine,” while others shouted “Jerry! Jerry!” Seinfeld also received an honorary degree from the school, where his son is currently enrolled and his daughter previously graduated.

The 70-year-old Seinfeld has vocally supported Israel since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants, and has visited the country following the Oct. 7 attack on Israel that sparked the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

Editorial credit: Jay Yuan / Shutterstock.com