Ontario teen wins EU contest for robotic turtle using AI to monitor aquatic ecosystems, coral health

A Grade 10 student in Burlington, Ont., hopes his award-winning invention of a bionic turtle will help make underwater ecosystems safer and cleaner. Evan Budz used artificial intelligence (AI) to develop the autonomous bionic sea turtle robot for...

Still no buyers for 'Moscow House' in central Rīga

More than a year and a half ago, the state took over the building at 7 Marijas Street in Riga, popularly known as Moscow House, by a special law. Politicians wanted to auction the property and donate the money to Ukraine. But no buyer has been...

ZZS claims Istanbul Convention declaration is being violated in Latvia

The Union of Greens and Farmers (ZZS) believes that the declaration added by the political force to the Istanbul Convention a few years ago has been violated, according to a statement released to the media. The party calls on Prime Minister Evika...

Latvian cosmetics company launches exports to UAE

Latvia's largest cosmetics manufacturer, H.A.Brieger, is beginning to export its “Dzintars” brand products to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the company said September 22nd. The product is launching in one of the country's leading pharmacy chains...

Latvia produces quite a few healthcare professionals

Latvia does pretty well when it comes to producing sufficient numbers of healthcare professionals according to Eurostat data published on September 19th. In 2023, Latvia's 1.9 million population was served by 1 352 dentitsts (72 per 100 000...

Hospital work and financing in Latvia – different views from LVSADA and the State Audit Office

After reviewing the State Audit Office’s report on the planning of inpatient healthcare, the Latvian Health and Social Care Workers’ Trade Union (LVSADA) identified numerous “serious shortcomings,” the union announced. According to LVSADA, the...

For the Trump Administration, The Enemy is Everywhere

Hello it’s the weekend. This is The Weekender ☕️ The Crisis Factory The White House on Thursday held a roundtable that brought together the national leadership of federal law enforcement agencies with a group of right-wing Youtube streamers and...

Latvia Rolling Up Its Sleeves To Tweak Recovery Fund Plan

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 19. On September 16, Latvia's Ministry of Finance and representatives of the European Commission held their quarterly meeting to assess the progress of Latvia's Recovery and Resilience...

Ukraine updates: Power returns to Kyiv after Russian strike

Skip next section NATO, US, UK fly mission along Russian border 10/11/2025October 11, 2025NATO, US, UK fly mission along Russian border The United Kingdom said two Royal Air Force aircraft flew a 12-hour mission earlier this week alongside United...

Alastair Stewart: A troubling week on the health front. Perhaps it’s another gift from dementia

On the health front, I’ve had a slightly troubling hiccup recently with dizzy spells and a loss of balance. It may be connected to my ears, or perhaps it’s another gift from dementia. Our ever-helpful GP suggested I come in for a kind of “MOT,”...

Future of aggressor state sanatoriums in Latvia still unclear

Two sanatoriums (or sanatoria, if you prefer) – "Belorusija" and "Jantarnij Bereg" or "Dzintarkrasts" – which are in Latvia but owned by the aggressor states Belarus and Russia, respectively, have not been accepting vacationers since Russia's...

Avoiding London Underground keeps me alive – I never thought I'd see this birthday

Various health complaints meant I never expected to live to see my sixteenth birthday and, two years ago, when I was diagnosed with incurable bowel cancer, I wondered if I’d see this one. But, at the time of writing, unless I get stabbed on the...

Where Is Pensioner Poverty The Most Prevalent?

Four in ten people aged 66 and older in Korea were living in relative income poverty in 2022, according to the latest data from the OECD. That year, 39.7 percent of Korean seniors were living on an income below half the national median equivalized...

Panthers Place Dmitry Kulikov On Injured Reserve

The Panthers have placed defenseman Dmitry Kulikov on injured reserve due to an apparent right wrist injury, via Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald. The team hasn’t made any comment on his status, so his return is unknown. They haven’t made a...

Latvian Radio turns up more facts on scale of Dutch 'steel slag' imports

Until now, we did not know how much ends up in Latvia. Companies that import and purchase steel slag do not want to disclose the actual volumes imported. But Latvian Radio has returned to its investigation and says it now knows the aout totals...

Latvia’s Finance Ministry outlines the 2026 budget — more funding for security and social support

According to an informational report submitted to the government by the Ministry of Finance titled “On Priority Measures to Be Included in the State Budget Law for 2026, 2027 and 2028”, an additional 565.5 million euros is planned for the...

Farmers ask for reduced VAT on fresh Latvian meat

Farmers' organisations have addressed an open letter to Prime Minister Evika Siliņa (New Unity) calling for the introduction of a reduced value-added tax (VAT) rate of 12% for certain food groups, including all Latvian fresh meat, the Cooperation...

15,000 children are outside the Latvian education system

The responsible institutions do not have precise information about 4,000 of them, but they assume that they are abroad. In turn, observations by social experts show that the number of young people who have left school early is increasing.Yet...

Latvia's new ombudsman is lawyer Karina Palkova

On Thursday, 18 September, with the support of the majority of the Saeima, Karina Palkova, a professor at Riga Stradiņš University and a lawyer, was appointed to the post of Ombudsman. 71 MPs voted in favour of Palkova's confirmation, 15 voted...

Latvia reports sharp drop in vegetable harvests

Latvian vegetable growers report one of the most difficult years in recent memory, with rainy and cool weather reducing harvests by half in some regions and leaving some farms with no yield at all. According to Zemgale Regional Television, crops...