Category: Evening Report

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nicholas Ross Smith, Senior Research Fellow, National Centre for Research on Europe, University of Canterbury

In the wake of the US military intervention in Venezuela and Donald Trump’s repeated threats towards Greenland, a wave of pessimism has swept the western world.

For countries wedded to a rules-based international order arbitrated by a mostly benevolent America, the emergence of what Trump has branded a “Donroe Doctrine” represents an existential crisis.

This is certainly true in New Zealand, which for 75 years has looked to the US as a security guarantor. What has been heralded as a new epoch of naked great-power politics will require what political theorists call a “realist” approach to a world of competing, self-interested powers.

When Winston Peters became foreign minister in 2024, he largely foreshadowed this, saying he would take “the world as it is” – a famous realist maxim.

But the problem with a realist outlook is that it can embed a pessimistic (even paranoid) view of world affairs. Through such a lens, for example, the threat of China can be exaggerated, along with what New Zealand needs to do to survive.

There is another way of looking at the world, however. The theory of “multiplexity” – pioneered by international relations scholar Amitav Acharya – offers such a vantage point.

Not a single global order

Multiplexity stems from observing that the current international environment lacks a truly dominant global power, or “hegemon”, such as the US arguably was after the Cold War.

At the same time, there is a proliferation of influential nations and a more open global political space. There is more cultural, ideological and political diversity as well as broader interdependence between countries.

In Acharya’s words: “a multiplex world is like a multiplex cinema” as it gives the audience – that is, countries – a choice of what they want. It is “not a singular global order, liberal or otherwise, but a complex of cross-cutting, if not competing, international orders”.

This is an era when international relations have moved from rigid bipolar and unipolar systems to a more complex, decentralised state of affairs. Traditionally silenced voices – particularly from the Global South – now have growing confidence and agency.

This may make little sense to the current US administration, with its “might makes right” attitude.

But China is more suited to a multiplex world because much of its engagement comes from a relational world view: unique and complex relationships, not the actors themselves or any overarching hierarchical structures, are the key element of international relations.

To this end, China has been effective in convincing Global South partners – including in the Pacific – that it is not beholden to colonial or Cold War mentalities and can offer important material support.

Of course, China is also self-interested, and the power asymmetries in these relationships naturally produce uneven outcomes. But so far, China has avoided pursuing an overt “strings attached” approach with other countries.

A new non-aligned movement

New Zealand could excel in a multiplex world, given it has already had success managing strong relationships with both China and the US.

This could be enhanced by drawing inspiration from te ao Māori (the Māori worldview), which mirrors the Confucian and Daoist thought underpinning China’s foreign policy, and offers a relational understanding of the world.

This would make most sense in the South Pacific region where New Zealand has real influence.

Drawing from Melanesian, Micronesian and Polynesian traditional knowledge, the Pacific Islands Forum released its 2050 strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent in 2022, as an alternative to the largely Western concept of the Indo-Pacific.

The strategy speaks of “our shared stewardship of the Blue Pacific Continent” and the “need for urgent action to combat climate change”.

Such sentiments may be easy to dismiss, coming from tiny island states with no real influence in the world of realist great power politics. But inspiration can be sought from the Non-Aligned Movement which emerged in the 1950s.

This galvanised a disparate collection of countries – spearheaded by Egypt, Ghana, India, Indonesia and Yugoslavia – to work together and push back against the great power politics of the Cold War.

The movement eventually lost steam, in part due to the deaths of key leaders, India’s Jawaharlal Nehru and Egypt’s Gamal Abdel Nasser. But for a time it demonstrated how smaller states could collectively resist great power encroachment.

Part of its success was a focus on issues that resonated widely among smaller states, such as the threat of nuclear annihilation and the need for equitable decolonisation. The Blue Pacific is also centred on an issue that resonates widely: climate change.

Furthermore, like the Non-Aligned Movement, the Blue Pacific is firmly against great power politics and warns against exaggerating the threat of China. As Tuvaluan politician Simon Kofe stated in 2022:

If we’re truly serious about world peace and addressing climate change, then there really is no good guys and bad guys […] We need China on board. We need the US on board.

Rather than retreating into pessimism, New Zealand could embrace multiplexity and chart its own course. Using its unique cultural perspectives and Pacific partnerships, it could demonstrate to other small powers an alternative to the prevailing realist vision of international relations.

Nicholas Ross Smith does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. How NZ can survive – and even thrive – in Trump’s new world of great-power rivalry – https://theconversation.com/how-nz-can-survive-and-even-thrive-in-trumps-new-world-of-great-power-rivalry-273575

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brenton Griffin, Academic Status in the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences, Flinders University

The new Netflix documentary Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story, directed by Skye Borgman, seeks to understand the shocking crimes of both Hildebrandt and business partner Ruby Franke.

In 2023, Hildebrandt and Franke became internationally known when they were arrested and plead guilty for aggravated child abuse. They were accused of the forceful restraint, torture and malnourishment of two of Franke’s children, aged 12 and 9 at the time.

Hildebrandt and Franke collaborated on various Mormon-focused self-improvement businesses, including the podcast Moms of Truth and workshop ConneXions.

The abuse became known when Franke’s son escaped Hildebrandt’s home in south-west Utah and sought assistance from neighbours. However, as the documentary makes clear, signs of abuse are evident in earlier 8 Passengers videos. For example, the oldest Franke son, 15 at the time, was forced to sleep on a bean bag for seven months as a form of discipline.

The documentary, including those who are interviewed, articulate that these crimes are Mormon-centric. This is a story of religious fanaticism.

The positioning of Mormonism within this documentary is essential to the documentary’s framing. Those who are the strongest to condemn Hildebrandt in the film – including therapists, police and legal professionals, as well as victims of Hildebrandt – are adamant to profess their more mainstream “Mormonness” in comparison to Hildenbrandt and Franke’s extremism.

What Evil Influencer does well

The Franke–Hildebrandt case captured international attention for several reasons explored during the documentary.

First, the abuse happened at the hands of Franke, the children’s mother, and Hildebrandt, a trusted businesswoman in the Mormon mental health community.

Before founding her business ConneXions, Hildebrandt was a licensed therapist, though her license had been put on probation for violating patient confidentiality.

Ruby Franke, with her husband Kevin, was an immensely popular family vlogger. Their 8 Passengers YouTube channel had millions of subscribers and over a billion views.

Second, the documentary explores the ever-present pressure on families, in particular mothers, within Mormon culture. Mothers are responsible for teaching children correct gospel principles, which ensures their salvation.

Mormon doctrine emphasises the role of both parents. But this responsibility usually rests on the mothers, who are encouraged to not work.

This pressure to perform a certain way under the constraints of a high-control, patriarchal religion is similarly expressed by the participants of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.

Third, the documentary places Hildebrandt’s actions in the context of Mormon sexual purity culture. The film claims she was part of an “approved” list of therapists Church leaders would contact when members of their congregation struggled with “sexual deviancy”.

Hilderbrandt’s aggressive tactics towards clients are discussed in detail by former victims. These included the removal of parents from children and separations.

Hildebrandt’s actions towards victims is spliced with footage of Church leaders denouncing pornography as of the devil, more addictive than cocaine, and as able to corrupt souls to lose their salvation.

Hildebrandt’s “life-coaching” was the reason Ruby Franke and her children were living with Hildebrandt. According to the documentary, Kevin had been instructed by Jodi to not be in contact with his family for over a year.

What Evil Influencer misses

As with other documentaries that have examined Mormon women who have abused their children – including another documentary on Ruby Franke, and one on Lori Vallow, who in 2019 murdered her children in rural Idaho – the filmmaker’s grounding in Mormon cosmology could be improved.

Crucial to both the Franke and Vallow cases is the belief demons can possess individuals, including children. This is a part of the foundational Mormon narrative, the “First Vision”, in which a 14-year-old Joseph Smith was “seized upon by some power which entirely overcame” him. In his words, Smith is only saved by the literal appearance of God and Jesus Christ.

In Mormon cosmology, children are free from sin until the age of eight, after which they are baptised. Ecclesiastical leaders interview children about their faith and understanding of gospel principles, and whether they are willing to uphold baptismal and confirmation “covenants”.

When the documentary quotes from Franke’s diary, in which she refers to her son “or rather his demon”, this is likely not metaphorical. Similarly, Hildebrandt states to police the boy should not be allowed near other children.

In Mormon thought, the closer to God a person becomes – as Hildebrandt claimed to be due to her visions – the harder Satan will attempt to destroy a person through temptation and/or possession, as in the case of Joseph Smith.

Towards the end of the documentary, Hildebrandt, through recorded prison phone calls, quotes scripture, claiming Jesus Christ had warned his followers they would be persecuted and imprisoned. Hilderbrandt sees her imprisonment as a mirror of the Church’s founder, who was repeatedly arrested.

Smith similarly saw mirrors of his treatment in that of Jesus Christ’s experience. This idea of religious persecution sits at the heart of Hildebrandt’s denial.

Evil Influencer does very well to ground Hildebrandt and Franke’s crimes in Mormon culture, especially in regards to sexuality, motherhood and family. However, more cosmological context, especially surrounding the way in which Mormonism views demonic possession, is just as crucial for understanding these crimes.

Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story is on Netflix now.

Brenton Griffin was raised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but is no longer a practising member of the church. His research is focused on the religion’s place in Australian and New Zealand popular culture, politics, and society from the 19th century to present.

– ref. What Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story tells us about Mormonism – https://theconversation.com/what-evil-influencer-the-jodi-hildebrandt-story-tells-us-about-mormonism-272810

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jon Piccini, Senior Lecturer in History, Australian Catholic University

US President Donald Trump’s invitation of selected world leaders, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, to join a “Board of Peace” has sparked a predictable mix of deep concern and morbid humour.

One particular point of contention is that the proposed body, which Trump suggests could be a “more nimble and effective international peace-building body”, might undermine the United Nations’ role as the preeminent global institution.

Albanese has not yet said if Australia will accept Trump’s invitation. However, history suggests it would be unwise to join the new venture. Putting aside the grave legal and ethical risks of the proposed board, Australia has long exercised a constructive influence at the UN, which has reinforced rather than undermined national interests and bilateral partnerships.

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Read more:
Should Australia join Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’? Here are 5 key points to consider

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Australia at the founding of the UN

Australia was a founding member of the wartime alliance that became the “United Nations” in 1942. Labor Attorney-General H.V.“Doc” Evatt emerged as an unexpected champion of the “smaller nations” at the UN’s founding conference in San Francisco in April-June 1945.

Evatt’s success in achieving an expanded role for the General Assembly as a parliament of the world meant its “international prestige stands very high”.

In 1946, Australia was elected to the first UN Security Council, and Evatt became president of the General Assembly in September 1948.

This was not unbridled internationalism, however. At the same time, Evatt worked assiduously to ensure Australia’s interests would be guaranteed. Under the UN Charter, Evatt happily reported to parliament on his return from the negotiations, “internal matters such as the migration policy of a state will not fall within the scope of the organisation”. Evatt had helped secure a seemingly watertight protection of “domestic jurisdiction” to protect the White Australia immigration policy.

Furthermore, Australia played an outsized role in crafting the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, one of the UN’s key documents. Australian representative in the drafting committee, ANZAC veteran William Hodgson, ensured aspects of the Labor government’s postwar agenda, including full employment and welfare, appeared in the document.

Importantly, none of this precluded Australia from strengthening bilateral and multilateral partnerships outside of, but not in conflict with, the UN. Examples of this include the ANZUS treaty (1951) and the South East Asian Treaty Organisation (1954).

Decolonisation and the UN

The UN of Evatt’s day changed radically in the era of decolonisation. New nations in Asia and Africa joined in droves, shifting the organisation’s focus to issues of anti-colonialism and racial discrimination.

On both counts, Australia was in a less than enviable position. However, it was able to use the UN as it found its place in a very new world – and eventually, as a forum to “sell” its progress.

On the one hand, Australia was empowered by the UN to bring Papua New Guinea to independence. Canberra’s lacklustre pace in achieving decolonisation saw Australia regularly targeted by both Soviet and non-aligned nations in the trusteeship council in the 1950s and 1960s.

However, by the late 1960s, and particularly under the Labor government of Gough Whitlam from 1972-5, the pace of independence accelerated. In the eyes of the UN, Australia went from colonial recalcitrant to dutiful nation builder when independence was achieved in 1975.

Whitlam’s government also brought an end to the White Australia Policy, which despite Evatt’s hopes, was indeed the subject of intense international criticism. It also signed on to numerous declarations, conventions and treaties, including the International Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination.

Such engagement ensured that Australia, as Whitlam put it, “will enjoy a growing standard as a distinctive, tolerant, co-operative and well regarded nation”.

Punching above our weight

Australians have continued to play constructive and powerful roles at the UN until this day. Elizabeth Reid, Whitlam’s advisor on women, became director of the UN’s development program (1989-1998). Another Australian, James Ingram, become the first Australian head of a UN body when he assumed the role of executive director of the World Food Program (WFP) in 1983.

In the 1990s, Australia’s engagement with the UN became particularly pronounced. Australian Lieutenant-General John Sanderson led the 16,000 member United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (1992-3). In 1999, after sustained protest, the Howard government agreed to head the UN’s International Force East Timor (INTERFET) operation, which brought an end to Indonesia’s bloody rule over East Timor. This in turn safeguarded the independence referendum carried out under the auspices of the UN.

The UN record on peace is less than stellar. But the record of the parties presently involved in the peace board is vastly less promising still. On a larger scale, the post-1945 international order that Australia played no small part in bringing about has been an unprecedented success in avoiding another global conflagration.

Is it perfect? Of course not. And Australia has often fallen dramatically short of its obligations to the United Nations, most recently in terms of refugee and Indigenous rights.

It was a comparative accident that Evatt found himself, and Australia, in a place to shape the UN in ways that advantaged smaller and middle powers. This board seems to offer a very different, and much less advantageous, vision of the world to a power like Australia.

Roland is an ARC Future Fellow.

Jon Piccini does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. It may not be perfect, but history shows Australia cannot turn its back on the UN – https://theconversation.com/it-may-not-be-perfect-but-history-shows-australia-cannot-turn-its-back-on-the-un-273896

Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. –

COMMENTARY: By Caitlin Johnstone

I can’t get over the fact that people were casting bets on whether the US would bomb Iran the other day. It just says such dark things about the type of civilization we are living in.

In this dystopia, Americans are never given the option to vote for a president who won’t bomb foreign countries in wars of aggression. But they do have the option to gamble on when those bombs will be dropped.

They’re not allowed to vote against war, militarism and imperialism, but they can go to an app on their smartphone and place bets on how the war, militarism and imperialism will unfold.

Preventing your government from raining military explosives onto foreign countries full of civilians who are just trying to live their lives? No. Thumbs down. You don’t get to do that.

Pouring money into “prediction market” scams like Kalshi and Polymarket with bets on when those military explosives will end the lives of those foreign civilians? Yes. Thumbs up. You are encouraged to do that.

You’re allowed to get rich making an app which lets Westerners gamble on military atrocities of immense humanitarian consequence.

In this dystopia . . .                                              Video: Caitlin Johnstone

You’re allowed to get rich starting a company that manufactures missiles, sells those missiles to the US government, and then pays think tanks and lobbyists to convince US decision makers to use those missiles in gratuitous acts of mass military violence.

You’re allowed to get rich buying stocks in the arms industry and then funding the political campaigns of politicians who pledge to help start wars.

As long as it’s profitable and sits within the extremely broad parameters of acceptable liberal norms, it’s perfectly legal.

But when it comes to doing anything that might eat into those profits by making the world a less violent place, there’s not even a viable option at the ballot box.

Our world looks the way it looks because our entire civilisation is driven by the mindless pursuit of profit.

It’s profitable to start wars, so the wars never end.

It’s profitable for corporations to destroy the ecosystem and offload the costs of industry onto the environment, so it keeps happening.

It’s profitable for capitalists to keep wages down and worker’s rights at a minimum, so wealth inequality gets worse and worse.

It’s profitable for plutocrats to manipulate legislation and government policy using campaign funding and corporate lobbying, so the government gets more and more corrupt and oligarchic while society gets more and more unjust and oppressive.

As long as we have systems in place which cause mass-scale human behaviour to be driven by the pursuit of profit, things are going to keep getting more and more violent, abusive, poisoned, polluted, unjust, unhappy, and dystopian.

This will continue until we as a collective decide we’ve had enough and force new systems into place. Until then the object in motion shall remain in motion.

Caitlin Johnstone is an Australian independent journalist and poet. Her articles include The UN Torture Report On Assange Is An Indictment Of Our Entire Society. She publishes a website and Caitlin’s Newsletter. This article is republished with permission.

This article was first published on Café Pacific.

COMMENTARY: By Eugene Doyle

Donald Trump is a classic example of why you don’t let bullies prosper. “Trump is cutting the last threads of the tattered cloth of ‘the rules-based international order’  — the self-serving system that touted international law as long as it didn’t apply to the US and its allies.

The Canadians, the Danes, the Panamanians and the rest of us should wake up to reality and see we are objects, we are mere “things” to the Americans, not allies with some deeply shared “values”. 

I wrote that in January 2025 in this article that I reproduce today. It provides a useful backgrounder, including historical precendents, to help us navigate through the times we are living through right now.

What do Panama, Canada and Greenland have in common? Could Trump be getting the US back to brass tacks, to a core strategy of dominating the Western hemisphere? Possibly, and he may be blowing away the fraudulent rhetoric about rules-based international order, territorial integrity, international law and the crusade to expand democracies.

Trump said this week that the US is prepared to use military force to assert control over Panama and Greenland.

“We need Greenland for national security purposes.  People don’t even know if Denmark has any legal right to it but even if they do they should give it up because I’m talking about protecting the free world,” Trump said.

The world’s largest island is bigger than France, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, Italy, Greece, Switzerland, and Belgium combined. It’s literally bigger than Texas (300 percent bigger) — and the US wants it.

A greater risk
Think about that.  The US may pose a greater risk to the territorial integrity of the European Union than the Russians do. If they get antsy with the US, Trump will “tariff them”.

The Danes, like the rest of Europe, are frightened of the US. In response to Trump’s Greenland gambit, Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen timidly said this week that Denmark was “open to a dialogue with the Americans on how we can cooperate, possibly even more closely than we already do, to ensure that American ambitions are fulfilled”.

To ensure American ambitions are fulfilled. And this was the country that gave us the Vikings. If Ragnar Lodbrok, Eric Bloodaxe or Bjorn Ironside had been around when Donald Trump Junior swooped into Nuuk for his photo op, his skull would have been used as a drinking tankard for a blót sumbl feast that same evening.

Top independent strategists have for years despaired of the strategic brainlessness of US foreign policy — the Midas Touch in reverse, as Professor Mearsheimer calls it.  Wherever they went — from Vietnam to Iraq, Afghanistan, Ukraine and Gaza — Americans embroiled themselves in conflicts of little strategic worth and left behind piles of bodies, millions of implacable enemies and a litany of failures.

Trump’s rough woo-ing of Canada to become the 51st state, and his threat to use military force to seize both Greenland and the Canal, speak to a back-to-basics focus for American imperialism — a shift in US policy that will bring it closer to its core strategic interests.

That’s quite appropriate for a man who counts President Teddy Roosevelt (1901-09) as a role model. There is a whiff of the Rough Rider (Roosevelt’s cavalry which kicked over the Spaniards in Cuba in 1898) about Trump’s recent utterances.

Outside the American Museum of Natural History in New York you could see a magnificent statue of Teddy Roosevelt, cowboy kerchief around his neck, six-shooter hanging off his hip, astride a proud steed with two bare-chested Noble Savages — an African and an American Indian — walking on either side of the Great White Man.

Punkish metal spikes
I particularly like the slightly punkish metal spikes sticking out of his hair to stop birds crapping on his head.  After 82 years, the City finally woke up to the fact that this was a racist, colonialist trope and took the statue down in 2021.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra

The Nationals have defied shadow cabinet solidarity, voting in the Senate against the government’s hate crime legislation, which passed late Tuesday night with the support of the Liberals.

The Nationals’ action puts new strain on Coalition relations, and is destabilising for Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, who did the deal with Anthony Albanese to support the legislation in return for concessions.

The four Nationals senators voting against the legislation were frontbenchers Bridget McKenzie, Ross Cadell and Susan McDonald, and backbencher Matt Canavan.

The Nationals’ vote against the bill came after the failure of the party’s amendments to refer the legislation to a committee and to insert more guardrails around the provision enabling hate-promoting organisations to be banned.

Nationals leader David Littleproud said in a statement before the vote, “The Nationals support the intent of the legislation, but we must get it right.

“The legislation needs amendments to guarantee greater protections against unintended consequences that limit the rights and freedom of speech of everyday Australians and the Jewish community,” he said.

“We cannot risk the consequences of getting this legislation wrong.

“If The Nationals’ amendments are not supported in the Senate, the Party will oppose the Bill.”

Littleproud insisted the Nationals’ position “does not reflect on the relationship within the Coalition.

“The Coalition has secured significant improvements to the legislation, but The Nationals’ Party Room has concluded that more time is required to more fully examine and test the Bill before it is finalised.”

How Ley reacts to the Nationals’ action will be a fresh test for her.

Liberal or Nationals backbenchers can vote as they choose without consequences. (Liberal Senate backbencher Alex Antic voted against his colleagues.) But it’s another matter for frontbenchers, who are bound to collective solidarity.

When the Coalition split briefly after the May 2025 election, one issue was the question of solidarity. Ley flagged to Littleproud she would not countenance defiance by Nationals frontbenchers. Littleproud said at the time he had accepted as “more than reasonable” Ley’s requirement for shadow cabinet solidarity.

The extraordinary agonising within the Nationals on Monday and Tuesday over the hate crime legislation underscored the uneasy relationship between the Liberals and their flaky minor partner.

On Sunday the shadow cabinet arrived at a position on the legislation: Ley negotiated changes with the government on Monday. The resulting agreement to support the bill was then endorsed by a Liberal Party meeting.

But the Nationals, internally split, could not make up their collective mind on whether to support or oppose the bill. In particular, they were unhappy about the breadth of the provision on banning extremist organisations, such as Hizb ut-Tahrir.

Canavan summed up this view when he told the ABC the measure gave the minister “way too much power to ban groups that go far and beyond organisations that would be encouraging or supporting violent acts”.

By lunchtime Tuesday the Nationals had had multiple meetings of their party room.

The back story to their division and dithering was One Nation’s surge, highlighted in two polls at the weekend. In Newspoll, One Nation was polling 22%, above the Coalition on 21%.

With Barnaby Joyce’s defection, the Nationals are increasingly seeing One Nation as an existential threat. They are worried both about the minor party’s support on the ground and the possibility of more defections.

Littleproud’s lack of authority over his party was shown by what happened in Tuesday’s vote on the legislation in the House of Representatives.

Littleproud issued a statement saying the Nationals hadn’t had time to deal with their concerns before the house vote. “Therefore The Nationals’ position is to abstain from voting in the House of Representatives, so that we can put forward amendments to the bill in the Senate to fix these issues.”

Despite this, two Nationals from Queensland, Colin Boyce and Llew O’Brien, voted against the legislation. Former leader Michael McCormack voted for it. In other words, the handful of Nationals in the house spread themselves across all possible positions.

McCormack said later this was the only legislation that would ban Hizb ut-Tahrir and neo-Nazi groups and “I couldn’t in all conscience vote against a bill that does that”.

The Senate early Tuesday evening passed the government’s gun reform legislation, with the Greens voting with the government and the Coalition voting against.

Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. View from The Hill: defiant Nationals break with Liberals over hate bill, putting strain on Coalition – https://theconversation.com/view-from-the-hill-defiant-nationals-break-with-liberals-over-hate-bill-putting-strain-on-coalition-272437

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kaveh Madani, Director of the Institute for Water, Environment and Health, United Nations University

The world is now using so much fresh water amid the consequences of climate change that it has entered an era of water bankruptcy, with many regions no longer able to bounce back from frequent water shortages.

About 4 billion people – nearly half the global population – live with severe water scarcity for at least one month a year, without access to sufficient water to meet all of their needs. Many more people are seeing the consequences of water deficit: dry reservoirs, sinking cities, crop failures, water rationing and more frequent wildfires and dust storms in drying regions.

Water bankruptcy signs are everywhere, from Tehran, where droughts and unsustainable water use have depleted reservoirs the Iranian capital relies on, adding fuel to political tensions, to the U.S., where water demand has outstripped the supply in the Colorado River, a crucial source of drinking water and irrigation for seven states.

Water bankruptcy is not just a metaphor for water deficit. It is a chronic condition that develops when a place uses more water than nature can reliably replace, and when the damage to the natural assets that store and filter that water, such as aquifers and wetlands, becomes hard to reverse.

A new study I led with the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health concludes that the world has now gone beyond temporary water crises. Many natural water systems are no longer able to return to their historical conditions. These systems are in a state of failure – water bankruptcy.

What water bankruptcy looks like in real life

In financial bankruptcy, the first warning signs often feel manageable: late payments, borrowed money and selling things you hoped to keep. Then the spiral tightens.

Water bankruptcy has similar stages.

At first, we pull a little more groundwater during dry years. We use bigger pumps and deeper wells. We transfer water from one basin to another. We drain wetlands and straighten rivers to make space for farms and cities.

Then the hidden costs show up. Lakes shrink year after year. Wells need to go deeper. Rivers that once flowed year-round turn seasonal. Salty water creeps into aquifers near the coast. The ground itself starts to sink.

That last one, subsidence, often surprises people. But it’s a signature of water bankruptcy. When groundwater is overpumped, the underground structure, which holds water almost like a sponge, can collapse. In Mexico City, land is sinking by about 10 inches (25 centimeters) per year. Once the pores become compacted, they can’t simply be refilled.

The Global Water Bankruptcy report, published on Jan. 20, 2026, documents how widespread this is becoming. Groundwater extraction has contributed to significant land subsidence over more than 2.3 million square miles (6 million square kilometers), including urban areas where close to 2 billion people live. Jakarta, Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City are among the well-known examples in Asia.

Agriculture is the world’s biggest water user, responsible for about 70% of the global freshwater withdrawals. When a region goes water bankrupt, farming becomes more difficult and more expensive. Farmers lose jobs, tensions rise and national security can be threatened.

About 3 billion people and more than half of global food production are concentrated in areas where water storage is already declining or unstable. More than 650,000 square miles (1.7 million square kilometers) of irrigated cropland are under high or very high water stress. That threatens the stability of food supplies around the world.

Droughts are also increasing in duration, frequency and intensity as global temperatures rise. Over 1.8 billion people – nearly 1 in 4 humans – dealt with drought conditions at various times from 2022 to 2023.

These numbers translate into real problems: higher food prices, hydroelectricity shortages, health risks, unemployment, migration pressures, unrest and conflicts.

How did we get here?

Every year, nature gives each region a water income, depositing rain and snow. Think of this like a checking account. This is how much water we receive each year to spend and share with nature.

When demand rises, we might borrow from our savings account. We take out more groundwater than will be replaced. We steal the share of water needed by nature and drain wetlands in the process. That can work for a while, just as debt can finance a wasteful lifestyle for a while.

Those long-term water sources are now disappearing. The world has lost more than 1.5 million square miles (4.1 million square kilometers) of natural wetlands over five decades. Wetlands don’t just hold water. They also clean it, buffer floods and support plants and wildlife.

Water quality is also declining. Pollution, saltwater intrusion and soil salinization can result in water that is too dirty and too salty to use, contributing to water bankruptcy.

Climate change is exacerbating the situation by reducing precipitation in many areas of the world. Warming increases the water demand of crops and the need for electricity to pump more water. It also melts glaciers that store fresh water.

Despite these problems, nations continue to increase water withdrawals to support the expansion of cities, farmland, industries and now data centers.

Not all water basins and nations are water bankrupt, but basins are interconnected through trade, migration, climate and other key elements of nature. Water bankruptcy in one area will put more pressure on others and can increase local and international tensions.

What can be done?

Financial bankruptcy ends by transforming spending. Water bankruptcy needs the same approach:

• Stop the bleeding: The first step is admitting the balance sheet is broken. That means setting water use limits that reflect how much water is actually available, rather than just drilling deeper and shifting the burden to the future.

• Protect natural capital – not just the water: Protecting wetlands, restoring rivers, rebuilding soil health and managing groundwater recharge are not just nice-to-haves. They are essential to maintaining healthy water supplies, as is a stable climate.

• Use less, but do it fairly: Managing water demand has become unavoidable in many places, but water bankruptcy plans that cut supplies to the poor while protecting the powerful will fail. Serious approaches include social protections, support for farmers to transition to less water-intensive crops and systems, and investment in water efficiency.

• Measure what matters: Many countries still manage water with partial information. Satellite remote sensing can monitor water supplies and trends, and provide early warnings about groundwater depletion, land subsidence, wetland loss, glacier retreat and water quality decline.

• Plan for less water: The hardest part of bankruptcy is psychological. It forces us to let go of old baselines. Water bankruptcy requires redesigning cities, food systems and economies to live within new limits before those limits tighten further.

With water, as with finance, bankruptcy can be a turning point. Humanity can keep spending as if nature offers unlimited credit, or it can learn to live within its hydrological means.

Nothing to disclose.

– ref. The world is in water bankruptcy, UN scientists report – here’s what that means – https://theconversation.com/the-world-is-in-water-bankruptcy-un-scientists-report-heres-what-that-means-273213

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yixiao Zhou, Associate Professor in Economics and Director of China Economy Program, Australian National University

China’s economy met the government’s official growth target in 2025, with official figures showing real gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 5%.

Exports played an outsized role in delivering this headline growth. Despite a simmering trade war with the United States, China finished up the year with a record-breaking trade surplus of US$1.2 trillion as it lifted exports to new markets in the rest of the world.

Yet behind these headline figures, China’s economy continues to face some stubborn headwinds. Consumer spending remains subdued. Exports – while strong – face mounting global uncertainty. And government expenditure is constrained by public sector debt pressures.

Adding to this, China’s population continued to shrink for the fourth straight year in 2025 as the birth rate reached a record low, reinforcing concerns an ageing population will hold back the economy in coming years.

A shrinking population isn’t necessarily incompatible with rising living standards. What matters is whether productivity growth can compensate for a smaller workforce.

For China, that means domestic investment, rather than consumption or expansionary government spending, is likely to be the key mechanism for sustaining growth.

Problems at home

Recent data suggest China’s weak household consumption is not merely a temporary, post-pandemic phenomenon but instead reflects deeper structural factors.

While China’s GDP growth reached its annual target in 2025, retail sales grew by only 0.9% year-on-year in December, the slowest pace since late 2022.

This highlights the fragility of consumer demand, despite policy measures aimed at supporting spending.

Although the services sector continues to expand and accounts for more than half of GDP, household consumption as a share of the economy remains low by international standards.

High savings rates, lingering uncertainty linked to the property downturn, and concerns about job and income security continue to weigh on spending decisions.

This is consistent with long-running trends identified in academic research. Policies to stimulate consumption can boost spending in the short term, but they have not fundamentally altered households’ preferences to save rather than spend.

Strong exports

Manufacturing output remained resilient, and net exports contributed significantly to overall expansion. This helped offset weak domestic demand.

China’s exports to the US did fall in 2025. But a shift to new markets in Southeast Asia, South America, Europe and Africa more than offset this decline.

However, China’s reliance on net exports as a source of growth is vulnerable. While exports contributed unusually heavily to growth in 2025, this pattern may be difficult to repeat amid protectionist pressures and potential tariff escalations.

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Read more:
Have US tariffs failed to bite? China’s trade surplus hits a record US$1.2 trillion

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Constraints on government spending

In theory, government spending could step in to stabilise demand. Right now, that’s difficult in practice.

Local governments face high debt burdens, falling revenues from land sales and rising pressures related to social programs and maintaining infrastructure.

This limits their capacity for large-scale government spending without making financial risks worse.

Despite this, China continues to generate very high national savings. In 2024, China’s national savings reached 43.4% of GDP. Meanwhile, consumption as a share of GDP – the reverse side of the savings rate – remained around 20 percentage points below the global average.

Turning savings into investment

If a country’s savings are not absorbed domestically through productive investment, they end up fuelling a current account surplus. This can expose an economy to tensions with trading partners.

In 2025, investment in fixed assets (long-term investments such as buildings and equipment) fell 3.8%, with property investment plunging by about 17%.

This signals both the scale of the investment decline in the real estate sector and the need to pivot investment toward higher-returning sectors, such as manufacturing, services and technology.

In the long run, channelling China’s high national savings into efficient domestic investment could have greater impact than government stimulus measures. That’s as long as capital is allocated to productive firms and sectors rather than bridges to nowhere.

A shrinking population

China’s shrinking population adds a further important dimension to this challenge. Population contraction is not necessarily incompatible with rising living standards.

But it creates a need to boost productivity, through technological progress, innovation and upskilling the labour force.

Official statistics already show technology-intensive services and high-value manufacturing segments are expanding faster than the rest of the economy.

China’s 2025 growth outcome masks a set of enduring structural realities. Consumer spending is likely to remain subdued, exports face increasing global uncertainty, and fiscal policy is constrained by debt burdens.

The key policy challenge, therefore, is not to reverse demographic trends at any cost. It is to accelerate the transition toward a more productive, capital- and knowledge-intensive growth model.

Yixiao Zhou does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. To sustain prosperity as its population shrinks, China will have to invest big at home – https://theconversation.com/to-sustain-prosperity-as-its-population-shrinks-china-will-have-to-invest-big-at-home-273894

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vic Camilieri-Asch, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Queensland University of Technology

Four people have now been bitten by sharks in the last two days in New South Wales, including three in Sydney Harbour. Two people are in critical condition.

The shark species responsible isn’t yet known. But some of these incidents likely involved the highly adaptable bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas). This unique fish species can tolerate a wide range of water salinity, from oceans to brackish estuaries, and even freshwater rivers.

Bull sharks have long been found in warmer Australian waters, ranging from south-west Western Australia, all the way around the Top End and down the east coast as far as the New South Wales-Victorian border.

The movements of bull sharks in Sydney Harbour have been studied for several years. Their presence is more likely when waters are warmer over summer. But they’re staying longer than before. Last year, researchers found that bull sharks were spending on average an extra day per year in their summer grounds (shallower coastal waters, estuaries and rivers) as ocean temperatures rise due to climate change.

Record heavy rains in Sydney flushed plenty of nutrient-rich water from farms and wastewater treatment plants into the river system, including the harbour. This nutrient runoff attracts more prey such as baitfish and larger fish, and in turn larger predators such as sharks. Stormwater also makes harbour waters murkier, which means that bull sharks rely more on hearing and electroreception than sight to locate food sources. This can lead to bites due to mistaken identity.

Although human activity (noise and movements) in the water can attract sharks, humans are not a food source for bull sharks. Almost all encounters and negative interactions from these sharks come from an exploratory bite. Unfortunately for those affected, the bites can be very serious.

What could be behind these incidents?

Bull sharks are unique among sharks in that they can tolerate fresh, brackish and salt water. Most other shark species don’t use estuaries or rivers as part of their home range or lifecycle. This ability to tolerate and adapt to different salinity levels is one reason bull sharks are found in both coastal waters and river systems around the world, including estuaries.

Once mature, female bull sharks will return to their home rivers to give birth to live young. Newborns are small adult replicas. As they grow, juvenile and sub-adult bull sharks travel down river systems and tend to live in the lower estuaries for the first five years of their life to avoid larger predators. During that time, they opportunistically feed on a range of prey to get bigger before moving into the open ocean.

Bull sharks are very opportunistic feeders. Scientists have found an astonishing variety of things in bull shark stomachs, such as wood, metal and other inorganic matter, though fish are their prey of choice.

Estuaries and harbours tend to have murkier water than the open ocean, as rivers often carry plenty of sediment and nutrients. This means bull sharks have to rely on senses other than sight, such as sound, which travels well underwater, smell, as well as their close-range ability to sense weak electrical fields caused by the movements of living creatures. Many shark bites are likely due to the habit bull sharks have of opportunistically biting in case it might be food.

Over the last week, pulses of stormwater have made Sydney Harbour murkier and more nutrient-rich, attracting baitfish and the predators who follow them.

Bull sharks, like other sharks, learn patterns quickly. Many species of shark have learned to associate the specific sound made by fishing boat engines with food. When fish are hooked or trapped in a net, sharks may be able to get a free feed. Dolphins do the same thing.

How can people stay safe?

Authorities have shut down at least 20 beaches in Sydney’s Northern Beaches for 48 hours.

This is a good move, as it will give the murkiness some time to clear. But it may take longer than this to fully clear.

As shark experts, we would recommend going further:

• avoid swimming in murky water wherever possible
• avoid swimming in Sydney Harbour after heavy rain
• avoid surfing at nearshore beaches until the dirty water clears
• avoid swimming where people are fishing, especially where fish cleaning occurs
• avoid swimming where baitfish are common, including where other marine predators such as dolphins are hunting
• monitor local council and state fisheries websites for updates on staying shark smart this summer.

It’s important not to overstate the risks. Almost all the negative interactions reported in the Australian database of shark incidents come from exploratory bites, or incidental bites of people fishing or even feeding sharks.

Queenslanders have had to adapt to the year-round presence of bull sharks in their rivers and coastal waters for many years. People don’t swim in bull shark hotspots such as the Gold Coast canals or the Brisbane River. Authorities recommend avoiding swimming and surfing up to a few days after heavy rain.

As the oceans warm, bull sharks are likely to spend more time in Sydney Harbour as well as other NSW estuaries. Sydneysiders and NSW residents may have to adapt to their extended presence.

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Read more:
4 shark bites in 48 hours: how what we do on land may shape shark behaviour

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Vic Camilieri-Asch receives funding from various state, national and international government organisations and foundations, consults for industry councils via a small consultancy (Shark Ethology Australia)

Bonnie Holmes receives funding from state and local government organisations and foundations

– ref. Bull sharks are spending longer in Sydney Harbour and other summer grounds. Here’s how you can stay safe – https://theconversation.com/bull-sharks-are-spending-longer-in-sydney-harbour-and-other-summer-grounds-heres-how-you-can-stay-safe-273897

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus Professor of Middle Eastern Studies, Australian National University; The University of Western Australia; Victoria University

US President Donald Trump has announced the formation of his “Board of Peace”, inaugurating the second phase of his 20-point peace plan for Gaza.

The board has already caused controversy. Moreover, the implementation of the second phase is set to be more complex and problematic than the first phase that forged a very shaky ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Australia has been invited to join the board. It has welcomed the advent of the board and second phase. But it has yet to state if it will accept the invitation. There are a number of issues for the Albanese government to consider here.

From the scant information available, the Board of Peace is to be chaired permanently by Trump, with a veto power. It is to be the ultimate decision-making authority in overseeing the application of the second phase.

Its initial members are largely made up of Trump loyalists, some of them well-known for their pro-Israel stance. In addition to Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Special Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff, they include former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. It is not yet clear to what extent Israel has been consulted on the board or what its role will be.

Many Palestinians and their supporters distrust Blair for his “pro-Israeli” stance, which was evidenced when he headed the Quartet (comprised of the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations). The Quartet was set up in 2002 to mediate the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, but was abandoned as ineffective in 2012. Blair is also widely criticised for his role in the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, which left the country in a mess.

No Palestinian is appointed to the board at this stage, but invitations to join the board have gone out to about 60 countries, with a reported membership fee of US$1 million (A$1.49 million) for three years and US$1 billion (A$1.49 billion) for a permanent seat.

The board’s charter outlines its pre-eminence in resolving conflicts, with no mention of Gaza or a two-state solution. This has led some critics to claim Trump envisions the body to function as an alternative to the UN Security Council, given his opposition to the UN and other international organisations.

The Palestinians were not consulted about the board, which appears to be a “colonial solution” imposed on the Palestinians, negating their right to self-determination.

Five critical issues need to be addressed in the second phase of the peace plan: stabilisation, governance, demilitarisation, Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and reconstruction. Each one appears highly problematic to achieve.

1. Stabilisation. No international peacekeeping force has yet been established. Neither the size nor the composition of the force is finalised. Washington has been in discussions with several countries, but none has fully committed and received Israel’s approval.

Israel has already objected to the participation of two Muslim countries, Turkey and Pakistan. The only Muslim state that has indicated a commitment is Indonesia. One of the significant tasks of the force is to create security and train a Palestinian police force for maintaining civil order.

2. Governance. In the realm of governance, a 15-member technocratic committee for administration of Gaza has been designated, with the former deputy minister of reconstruction and development of the Palestinian Authority, Ali Sha’ath, named as its head. Sha’ath is a trained civil engineer and well-experienced for the job. But the committee has not been fully formed, although some Gazan figures, who are not linked to Hamas, have been approached.

3. Demilitarisation. Demilitarising Gaza and Israeli withdrawal will be the most contentious items. Under the plan, Hamas is obliged to totally disarm, but the group has always said it would do so when an independent Palestinian state comes into existence. Yet the US and Israel want Hamas removed immediately from the scene.

In fact, the peace plan makes no mention of a “two-state solution” or linkage between Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which the Palestinians aspire to have as their future independent state. And Trump has said if Hamas refuses to disarm, there will be “hell to pay”.

4. Israeli withdrawal. Similarly, a thick cloud shrouds Israel’s position on total withdrawal from Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has never explicitly committed himself to a pullout. He has stressed Israel’s security and the need for its control of Gaza.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) still occupies 53–58% of the Strip, and since the start of the ceasefire, it has gained more territory beyond the designated yellow line, in repeated violations of the ceasefire. In the process, more than 450 Palestinians have been killed. Israel has blamed Hamas for killing three of its soldiers and for ceasefire breaches. It has also accused Hamas of deliberately delaying the return of the last hostage’s body, though it may be buried under rubble and might never be found.

5.Reconstruction. With Israel having dropped about 85,000 tons of bombs, destroying about 80% of Gaza, the task and cost of rebuilding the Strip will be gigantic.

An estimated US$70 billion (A$104.25 billion) is required, and as yet no country, including the oil-rich Arab states, has volunteered to make a substantial contribution. In the past, Trump has floated the idea of turning Gaza into a Middle East Riviera. Kushner, who is a favoured investor in the area and closely allied with some of the oil-rich Arab states, Saudi Arabia in particular, has mentioned the private sector could shoulder the heavy burden in this respect. However, nothing as yet is on the table.

Meanwhile, the two million displaced Gazans are in desperate need of food, shelter and health care, with more than one-third living in conditions of famine. The latest storms and floods have worsened their living conditions. Israel has not opened the Rafah crossing with Egypt, and has banned all humanitarian organisations that could ease the situation, including most importantly, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency. The Gazans’ desperation is beyond description.

Having said all this, the fate of the peace plan is very much in the hands of the all-powerful Trump. The president has a lot of leverage over Netanyahu and Israel, given all the help he has provided to ensure their survival. He is also in a position to lean heavily on Hamas and the three mediators – Egypt, Qatar and Turkey – to ensure the success of the plan.

But whether he will do this or allow Netanyahu, whom he has praised as a “war leader” without whom Israel would not “exist”, to sink the plan in pursuit of realising his ambition of “Greater Israel”, is an open question.

Amin Saikal does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Should Australia join Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’? Here are 5 key points to consider – https://theconversation.com/should-australia-join-trumps-board-of-peace-here-are-5-key-points-to-consider-273794

ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on January 20, 2026.

4 shark bites in 48 hours: how what we do on land may shape shark behaviour
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shokoofeh Shamsi, Professor in Veterinary Parasitology, Charles Sturt University samriley/iNaturalist, CC BY-NC Beachgoers in Australia are on high alert following four shark incidents in New South Wales in 48 hours. On Tuesday morning, a surfer was bitten by a shark at Point Plumer, on the state’s mid-north

Deep sea mining is the next geopolitical frontline – and the Pacific is in the crosshairs
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Sexualised deepfakes on X are a sign of things to come. NZ law is already way behind
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cassandra Mudgway, Senior Lecturer in Law, University of Canterbury Yui Mok/Getty Images Elon Musk finally responded last week to widespread outrage about his social media platform X letting users create sexualised deepfakes with Grok, the platform’s artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot. Musk has now assured the United Kingdom

The way Earth’s surface moves has a bigger impact on shifting the climate than we knew
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ben Mather, ARC Early Career Industry Fellow, School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, The University of Melbourne Our planet has experienced dramatic climate shifts throughout its history, oscillating between freezing “icehouse” periods and warm “greenhouse” states. Scientists have long linked these climate changes to fluctuations in

Why Keir Starmer had to speak out against Trump over Greenland after staying quiet on Venezuela
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Ralph, Professor of International Relations, University of Leeds The Labour government came into office promising to “use realist means to pursue progressive ends”. US president Donald Trump’s recent actions over Venezuela and Greenland have tested Keir Starmer’s ability to deliver on that promise. When the prime

How George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four predicted the global power shifts happening now
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A year on from his second inauguration, Trump 2.0 has one defining word: power
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bruce Wolpe, Non-resident Senior Fellow, United States Study Centre, University of Sydney As Donald Trump celebrates the anniversary of his second inauguration as president of the United States and begins his sixth year in office, his greatest asset is power. He covets absolute power. The greatest threat

I think I’m grinding or clenching my teeth. Why? And can anything help?
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ER Report: A Roundup of Significant Articles on EveningReport.nz for January 19, 2026
ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on January 19, 2026.

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jye Marshall, Lecturer, Fashion Design, School of Design and Architecture, Swinburne University of Technology

Valentino, who died on Monday at 93, leaves a lasting legacy full of celebrities, glamour and, in his words, knowing what women want: “to be beautiful”.

The Italian fashion powerhouse has secured his dream of making a lasting impact, outliving Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent.

Valentino was known for his unique blend between the bold and colourful Italian fashion and the elegant French haute couture – the highest level of craftsmanship in fashion, with exceptional detail and strict professional dressmaking standards.

The blending of these styles to create the signature Valentino silhouette made his style distinctive. Valentino’s style was reserved, and over his career he built upon the haute couture skills he had developed, maintaining his signature style while he led his fashion house for five decades.

But he was certainly not without his own controversial views on beauty for women.

Becoming the designer

Born in Voghera, Italy, in 1932, Valentino Clemente Ludovico began his career early, knowing from a young age he would pursue fashion.

He drew from a young age and studied fashion drawing at Santa Marta Institute of Fashion Drawing in Milan before honing his technical design skills at École de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, the fashion trade association, in Paris.

He started his fashion career at two prominent Parisian haute couture houses, first at Jean Dessès before moving to Guy Laroche.

He opened his own fashion house in Italy in 1959.

His early work had a heavy French influence with simple, clean designs and complex silhouettes and construction. His early work had blocked colour and more of a minimalist approach, before his Italian culture really came through later in his collections.

He achieved early success through his connections to the Italian film industry, including dressing Elizabeth Taylor fresh off her appearance in Cleopatra (1963).

Valentino joined the world stage on his first showing at the Pritti Palace in Florence in 1962.

His most notable collection during that era was in 1968 with The White Collection, a series of A-line dresses and classic suit jackets. The collection was striking: all in white, while Italy was all about colour.

He quickly grew in international popularity. He was beloved by European celebrities, and an elite group of women who were willing to spend the money – the dresses ran into the thousands of dollars.

In 1963, he travelled to the United States to attract Hollywood stars.

The Valentino woman

Valentino’s wish was to make women beautiful. He certainly attracted the A-list celebrities to do so. The Valentino woman was one who would hold themselves with confidence and a lady-like elegance.

Valentino wanted to see women attract attention with his classic silhouettes and balanced proportions. Valentino dressed women such as Jackie Kennedy, Audrey Hepburn, Julia Roberts, Gwyneth Paltrow and Anne Hathaway.

His aristocratic taste inherited ideas of beauty and old European style, rather than innovating with new trends. His signature style was formal designs that had the ability to quietly intimidate – including the insatiable Valentino red.

Red was a signature colour of his collections. The colour provided confidence and romance, while not distracting away from the beauty of the woman.

French influence

Being French-trained, Valentino was well acquainted with the rules of couture.

With this expertise, he was one of the first Italian designers to be successful in France as an outsider with the launch of his first Paris collection in 1975. This Paris collection showcased more relaxed silhouettes with many layers, playing towards the casual nature of fashion.

While his design base was in Rome, many of his collections were shown in Paris over the next four decades. His Italian culture mixed with the technicality of Parisian haute couture made Valentino the designer he was.

Throughout his career, his designs often maintained a classic silhouette bust, matched with a bold Italian colour or texture.

Unlike some designers today, Valentino’s collections didn’t change too dramatically each season. Instead, they continued to maintain the craftsmanship and high couture standards.

“Quintessentially beautiful” is often the description of Valentino’s work – however this devotion to high beauty standards has seen criticism of the industry. In 2007, Valentino defended the trend of very skinny women on runways, saying when “girls are skinny, the dresses are more attractive”.

Critics said his designs reinforce exclusion, gatekeeping fashion from those who don’t conform to traditional beauty standards.

The Valentino runways only recently have started to feature more average sized bodies and expand their definition of beauty.

The $300 million sale of Valentino

The Valentino fashion brand sold for US$300 million in 1998 to Holding di Partecipazioni Industriali, with Valentino still designing until his retirement in 2007.

Valentino sold to increase the size of his brand: he knew without the support of a larger corporation surviving alone would be impossible. Since Valentino’s retirement, the fashion house has continued under other creative directors.

Valentino will leave a lasting legacy as the Italian designer who managed to break through the noise of the French haute couture elite and make a name for himself.

The iconic Valentino red will forever be remembered for its glamour, and will live on with his legacy. A true Roman visionary with unmatched craftsmanship.

Jye Marshall does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Valentino shaped the runway – and the red carpet – for 60 years – https://theconversation.com/valentino-shaped-the-runway-and-the-red-carpet-for-60-years-273891