This article is published in association with United Nations. The United Kingdom will fight disinformation at home and abroad, and work to ensure global safety standards for artificial intelligence (AI), new Prime Minister Andy Burnham said on Monday evening in his first address to the United Nations General Assembly. Mr. Burnham said recent years have seen […]United Kingdom announces action on disinformation and global AI standards
September 23, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. The United Kingdom will fight disinformation at home and abroad, and work to ensure global safety standards for artificial intelligence (AI), new Prime Minister Andy Burnham said on Monday evening in his first address to the United Nations General Assembly. Mr. Burnham said recent years have seen […]UN Crime Congress: Technology is transforming crime – and the response to it
September 21, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. Sitting in her Vienna office ahead of a pivotal UN gathering in Abu Dhabi, Monica Juma is focused on a simple reality: crime has evolved faster than many of the institutions designed to combat it. Criminal networks now move money, goods and information across borders at lightning […]AI, climate and conflicts top Guterres’s agenda ahead of General Assembly
September 17, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. Ahead of the UN General Assembly’s high-level week, Secretary-General António Guterres said the world had entered “an era of deep uncertainty” and urged governments to embrace international cooperation to address global threats. Speaking to reporters six days before world leaders gather in New York, Mr. Guterres identified […]Who should set the rules for AI? The UN is pushing for a safer digital future
September 17, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. Artificial intelligence (AI) is advancing rapidly, raising questions about how societies and governments can capture its benefits while managing risks that often extend beyond national borders. Those concerns intensified after a former researcher at the AI company Anthropic warned on 8 September that AI could pose an existential […]Using AI to stay one step ahead of dementia
September 15, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. Vebjørn Andersson has seen first-hand how long a dementia diagnosis can take. As a PhD student and dementia researcher at Oslo University Hospital, he sees many patients with late-stage dementia who may have missed opportunities for earlier support and care. “It takes too long for the diagnostic […]How AI is helping cities tackle invisible pollution
September 14, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. In cities, air pollution can vary sharply from one street to the next. Fumes may linger between tall buildings, collect at busy junctions or drift towards a school gate. However, cities often lack the detailed forecasts needed to act before […]AI datacentres pose growing threat to electricity systems worldwide
September 9, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. Use of data-intensive technologies – in particular artificial intelligence (AI) data centres – is growing faster than electricity infrastructure can handle, the UN’s economic commission for Europe has warned, raising concerns about the future reliability and resilience of energy systems worldwide. Datacentre consumption is expected to almost […]AI: Türk urges action before it becomes an ‘existential risk to humanity’
September 8, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. UN human rights chief Volker Türk added his voice on Monday to growing calls for greater AI controls, warning that the revolutionary technology could become an “existential risk to humanity” if left unchecked. Without binding rules, independent oversight and clear limits, the technology could become impossible to […]Digital Neuro-Regulated Environments: Advancing Mental Health Awareness Among Future Healthcare Professionals
September 3, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Prosper Mazimpaka, a medical student at the University of Rwanda, SCORP National Officer of MEDSAR Rwanda. Prosper is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily […]Hunting down the last cases of sleeping sickness
September 2, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Sleeping sickness has been all but eradicated, but a couple of hundred cases still continue to appear across the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) – the second-largest country in Africa. Missing even a few could allow the disease to flare […]AI dives into a sea of data, from plankton to pollution
September 2, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. When asked why Jean-Olivier Irisson, a scientist at Sorbonne Université in Paris, decided to dedicate his life to studying microscopic creatures in the sea, his answer was simple: “They are beautiful.” Beauty may not be the first thing that comes […]New advanced materials could give electric motors an efficiency boost
September 2, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Electric motors are the largely unseen workhorses of modern life. They power everything from washing machines to factory equipment. Individually, many are already highly efficient. But because there are billions of them, even small improvements could translate into significant energy […]Youth advocates gather in New York to launch new AI standards
August 13, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. As artificial intelligence (AI) rapidly transforms everything from how we learn, to the job market, children are adopting the technology more than three times faster than adults – exposing them to unique opportunities and risks. The UN hosted more than 600 young people from around the world on […]Scientists recruit the cell’s own waste system to heal diabetic wounds
August 11, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Diabetes affects more than 800 million people worldwide and can cause a range of serious complications. Among the most challenging are diabetic foot ulcers – chronic wounds that resist healing and can lead to amputation or death if not treated […]3D printing gets a living upgrade
August 11, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Nature has spent billions of years perfecting the art of building with living cells. A team of researchers is now learning from that process – and finding ways to speed it up. For Massimo Vassalli, professor of bioengineering at the […]What music reveals about the human brain
August 11, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. During conversation, our brains are constantly predicting which word comes next. That ability helps us understand speech in a noisy café, or anticipate a friend’s next sentence. This skill for prediction is also linked closely to our enjoyment of music. […]Researchers zoom in on tiny life forms that could save our soils and our health
August 10, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. No organism on Earth is sterile. All living systems, from soil and plants to water and humans, are teeming with bacteria, fungi, microalgae and other microscopic life forms. Together, they make up complex ecosystems known as microbiomes. Thanks to advances […]Seeking a lasting cure for hepatitis B
August 10, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Hepatitis B is a chronic infection affecting roughly 254 million people worldwide and causing about 1.1 million deaths each year, mainly from cirrhosis and liver cancer. Although a preventive vaccine has been available for more than 40 years, there is […]In Somalia, AI is helping deliver food to hungry families
August 4, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Although the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) cannot reach all 6 million Somalis facing hunger, data collected by its partners and analysed through AI tools in its hunger-tracking platform HungerMap Live help the agency position resources in specific areas before conditions deteriorate. Somalia faces climate change-induced […]Better enforcement of rules needed for a safer social media and online environment
July 17, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament. Companies should guarantee that the use of social media and the digital environment is safe, particularly for children and young people, MEPs say. To protect minors from the impact of social media, MEPs want EU legislation better enforced and implemented. In a report adopted […]From NASA to the classroom: The engineer bringing AI to those left behind
July 13, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. Nia Jetter spent two decades building spacecraft and robots. Now she is trying to make sure the artificial intelligence revolution doesn’t leave anyone behind. Growing up in New Jersey, Ms. Jetter saved the quarters her grandfather gave her – not for sweets, but for batteries and light bulbs, so she […]From saving sight to next-generation logistics: meet the 2026 EU Women Innovators
June 30, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. When Dr Katerina Spranger was a child, she came very close to losing her sight. “I had an accident and had to undergo emergency surgery,” she recalled. Precision is a key part of such procedures. Even a tiny error can […]Teen scientists are tracking plastic pollution across Europe’s rivers
June 29, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Along a small stream in Spain, groups of teenagers are at work. One hovers around a black tarpaulin covered in wet pieces of plastic. Another stands on a small bridge, fishing with a net. Others sort small pieces of plastic, […]From prosthetics to paper and AI: Europe’s innovation summit backs new tech
June 29, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. In a conference space at the edge of Brussels, networking reaches a crescendo as a DJ plays music in the background. On the floor, everyone is showcasing their work – from semiconductor chips to advanced renewable energy technologies and eco-friendly […]Growing platelets on silk to keep blood supplies flowing
June 29, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Every day, hospitals rely on platelet transfusions to stop bleeding, support cancer treatment and help patients recover from surgery and serious illness. Yet one of medicine’s most essential blood products is also among its most fragile. Unlike red blood cells, […]European Research Council awards €838 million to 319 top scientists to deliver groundbreaking discoveries
June 23, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Research Council (ERC) has unveiled the winners of its 2025 Advanced Grants, awarding €838 million to 319 leading researchers across Europe. These prestigious grants empower senior scientists to pursue high-risk, high-reward research with the potential to deliver groundbreaking discoveries. Funded under the […]Teen scientists are tracking plastic pollution across Europe’s rivers
June 18, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Along a small stream in Spain, groups of teenagers are at work. One hovers around a black tarpaulin covered in wet pieces of plastic. Another stands on a small bridge, fishing with a net. Others sort small pieces of plastic, […]The hidden biodiversity battle to save Europe’s forests
June 18, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. In the village of Suonenjoki, the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) stands surrounded by a forest of pine trees. The local soils are not fertile and pine is pretty much the only species that can grow there. But in a […]EU to mobilise up to €25 billion for renewable energy and clean technology by 2035 through Pact for the Mediterranean initiative
June 10, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Today, the European Union launches the Trans-Mediterranean Renewable Energy and Clean Tech Cooperation (T-MED) – a flagship initiative under the Pact for the Mediterranean. T-MED aims to accelerate the development of renewable energy, hydrogen, clean technology manufacturing and modern electricity networks across the Mediterranean […]AI’s environmental costs threaten water, land and climate
June 8, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article is published in association with United Nations. Artificial Intelligence is not only responsible for worrying amounts of earth-warming greenhouse gases: the technology’s environmental footprint is also expanding at a pace that could strain the planet’s natural resources. Data centres, the global infrastructure powering AI, could consume 945 terawatt-hours of electricity annually by 2030 – […]AI listens in to help protect wildlife
June 5, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Strolling through a forest, you may notice that the air is filled with sound. Birds sing, insects and small mammals rustle through the undergrowth, and at dusk bats squeak as they communicate with each other. These soundscapes contain a wealth of information […]Planting the seeds of sustainability through education
June 3, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. What if schools could do more than teach sustainability? What if they could test it, measure it and experience it in real time? Across Europe, students and teachers have been turning classrooms into small-scale laboratories for environmental change. Over the past […]Science without borders: the lasting legacy of Marie Skłodowska-Curie
June 1, 2026 by Leave a Comment
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Nearly a century after her death, Marie Skłodowska-Curie remains one of science’s most enduring symbols of curiosity and discovery. The breakthroughs she made in radioactivity transformed medicine and physics, and her legacy reaches far beyond the laboratory. “I am among […]
