Breaking News, Business, Financial and Economic News, World News from EconoTimes

Become a contributor

Bookmark Econotimes

Thu, May 28, 2026 12:50 AM All times are UTC

Follow Series

©Econometrics LLC . All Rights Reserved.

Richard Friend

Senior Lecturer in Human Geography, University of York
Richard Friend joined the Department of Environment and Geography in 2016. He has a background in social anthropology and development studies, with a PhD from the University of Bath (UK) based on extensive ethnographic fieldwork in southern Thailand. He has over twenty-five years experience working in Asia – Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India and Nepal. He speaks Thai fluently and is proficient in Lao.

The main focus of his work has been on the poverty and governance dimensions of social and environmental transformations, particularly around fisheries, water resources, urbanization and climate change. His most recent work has addressed water governance in Israel and Palestine, and issues of systemic risk - focusing on food systems in Thailand. He has a longstanding interest in scientific and indigenous knowledge and the role of engaged research in driving social change.

His professional work has involved a range of responsibilities - programme management, capacity building, and policy-oriented action research. He has worked in senior management and advisory positions for the Thailand Environment Institute (TEI), the Institute of Social and Environmental Transition, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the WorldFish Centre, and taken on consultancy roles for a range of NGOs (including Oxfam, Save the Children), UN agencies (UNDP, FAO and UNCDF) and bilateral donors (including DFID, Danida and Sida).

Global Geopolitics Series

Collaborative water management can be a building block for peace between Israelis and Palestinians

Oct 31, 2023 01:21 am UTC| Life

Water is a central element of the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Israel controls several water pipelines entering Gaza, much as it controls most of life there. But water can also be a source of hope for an...

Economy

Oil Prices Jump After New U.S. Strikes on Iran Raise Supply Concerns

Oil prices climbed sharply during early Asian trading on Thursday after reports emerged that the United States launched another military strike on Iran, increasing fears of further disruption to global crude supplies and...

S&P 500 Hits Record High as Tech Rally Slows Amid Iran Peace Uncertainty

U.S. stock markets closed slightly higher on Wednesday as investors balanced strong gains in consumer sectors against weakness in energy and financial stocks. The SP 500 ended nearly flat at 7,520.45, while the Nasdaq...

Gold Prices Slip as Stronger Dollar and Iran Peace Talk Uncertainty Weigh on Market

Gold prices declined on Wednesday as the U.S. dollar strengthened slightly and investors reacted cautiously to ongoing uncertainty surrounding potential peace negotiations between the United States and Iran. Concerns over...

Dollar Gains Slightly as U.S.-Iran Tensions Keep Forex Markets on Edge

The U.S. dollar edged higher on Wednesday as investors closely monitored ongoing developments surrounding the prolonged conflict between the United States and Iran. Market uncertainty over whether both nations could reach...

Dow Hits Record High as Healthcare and Consumer Stocks Lead Wall Street Rally

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at a fresh record high on Wednesday as gains in healthcare and consumer stocks offset weakness in technology shares. Investors paused after the recent AI-driven market rally while...

Politics

Baltic Drone Incursions Raise NATO Security Concerns Amid Russia-Ukraine Tensions

Recent Ukrainian drone incursions into Baltic airspace have heightened security concerns across Eastern Europe, increasing tensions between NATO members and Russia. The incidents come as Ukraine intensifies long-range...

Trump Administration Weighs Halting International Flights at Sanctuary City Airports

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the Trump administration is considering plans to suspend customs and immigration processing for international travelers and cargo flights arriving at airports located...

Israel Says It Killed New Hamas Military Chief in Gaza Strike

Israel announced on Wednesday that it had killed Mohammad Odeh, the newly appointed head of Hamass armed wing in Gaza, as military operations intensified across Gaza, Lebanon, and the West Bank. The Israeli military said...

Biden Sues DOJ to Block Release of Audio From Classified Documents Probe

Former U.S. President Joe Biden has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Justice (DOJ) in an effort to stop the release of audio recordings and transcripts tied to Special Counsel Robert Hurs investigation into Bidens...

US Plans Kenya Ebola Quarantine Facility Amid Congo Outbreak

The Trump administration is preparing to deploy U.S. public health officers to Kenya as part of a proposed Ebola quarantine facility designed to support Americans exposed to the deadly virus during the ongoing outbreak in...

Science

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

NASA Artemis II: First Crewed Moon Mission Since Apollo Takes Four Astronauts on 10-Day Lunar Journey

NASAs Artemis II mission launched Wednesday, marking humanitys return to crewed lunar exploration for the first time since the Apollo era. Carrying four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft, this historic 10-day mission...

NASA's Artemis II Mission: First Crewed Lunar Journey Since Apollo

NASA's Artemis II Crew Arrives in Florida for Historic Moon Mission

The four astronauts chosen for NASAs Artemis II mission have touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, marking the beginning of final launch preparations for the first crewed lunar journey in over 50 years. NASA...

Technology

Snowflake Stock Soars 30% After Q1 Earnings Beat and Major AWS AI Partnership

Snowflake Inc. (NYSE: SNOW) delivered a strong first-quarter performance that surpassed Wall Street expectations, sending the companys stock soaring nearly 30% in after-hours trading. The cloud-based AI Data Cloud company...

Salesforce Q1 FY2027 Earnings Beat Expectations Despite Soft Q2 Revenue Outlook

Salesforce (NYSE: CRM) reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter fiscal 2027 earnings on Wednesday, driven by solid demand for its AI-powered enterprise solutions and continued growth in its cloud-based CRM business....

HP Q2 2026 Earnings Beat Expectations Despite Memory Chip Pressure

HP Inc. (NYSE: HPQ) reported stronger-than-expected fiscal second-quarter 2026 results, surpassing Wall Street estimates on both earnings and revenue. However, HP stock slipped slightly in after-hours trading as investors...

Synopsys Q2 FY2026 Earnings Beat Driven by AI and Semiconductor Demand

Synopsys (NASDAQ: SNPS) reported stronger-than-expected second-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings on Wednesday, fueled by rising demand for semiconductor design software and AI-powered engineering solutions. The electronic...

Xiaomi Shares Drop After Weak Q1 Earnings Amid Rising Smartphone Costs

Xiaomi Corp (HK:1810) shares declined on Wednesday after the Chinese tech giant reported weaker-than-expected first-quarter earnings, pressured by rising component costs and intense competition in the smartphone market....