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February 11, 2026

From Bridgerton to Heated Rivalry, what’s the secret to a good book-to-TV romance?

Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Jodi McAlister, Senior Lecturer in Writing, Literature and Culture, Deakin University

Outside of classics like Pride and Prejudice, romance fiction has not historically been adapted often for the screen, despite its immense popularity.

The success of Bridgerton (2020–) led to countless articles about what romance novels should be adapted for the screen next when it first premiered.

Now more and more romance adaptations are starting to appear – but what makes the translation from page to screen really sing?

The history of romance novel adaptations

Romance adaptations have given us cultural juggernauts, such as Twilight (2008–12), Fifty Shades of Grey (2015–18) and To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before (2018–21).

But romance adaptations have historically been low-budget and escaped mainstream notice.

Authors like Nora Roberts and Debbie Macomber have proved fruitful grounds for made-for-TV adaptations by Hallmark and Lifetime. Passionflix entered the streaming market in 2017 with the sole purpose to adapt romance novels – including Lick (2024) by Australian author Kylie Scott.

Canadian streamer Crave has turned several romances into TV movies, such as Recipe for Romance (2025), an adaptation of Sweet on You by Filipino author Carla de Guzman. Amazon has also joined the game.

The proportion of books that have made it to the screen (and into cultural conversation) is still small. But the needle is moving. This year sees adaptations of Ali Hazelwood’s The Love Hypothesis, Katherine Center’s The Bodyguard, Elle Kennedy’s Off Campus and Emily Henry’s People We Meet On Vacation.

This is to say nothing of the game-changing popularity of a romance adaptation by Crave released late in 2025: Heated Rivalry.

While it has always been popular, romance has become too prominent to ignore: BookTok and Bookstagram have made romance – and its enormous audience – more visible than ever before.

What makes a good romance adaptation?

Romance readers will embrace or reject an adaptation depending on whether the creators love and respect the genre or misunderstand and misrepresent it – or, worse, condescend to and exploit it.

Heated Rivalry shows what happens when a creator truly, in romance critic Olivia Waite’s words, “accept[s] romance’s invitations”.

Rival hockey players Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie) commence a clandestine affair as rookies and gradually fall in love. The series has surpassed 600 million viewing minutes and shows no sign of slowing down.

It has been so successful that Netflix promised the new season of Bridgerton would take audiences to “the cottage”: a reference to that series’ third episode – and a term now synonymous with Heated Rivalry’s finale and happy ending.

The happy ending is crucial to the romance genre, but it is not the only thing Heated Rivalry gets right. While not all romance novel adaptations should be carbon copies of this series, anyone considering adapting romance for the screen in future would be well served to look at what it does right.

Romance novels are stories of a small, compact universe. At the centre is a couple (or polycule’s) attraction and journey towards a serious relationship. Sub-plots and supporting characters matter to the extent that they are part of this journey. In a romance, the leads are all romance fans care about.

This is something Bridgerton has struggled with. While it centres a new lead couple each season, it is also concerned with servicing the plotlines of past and future leads. This has led to a proliferation of subplots, which often distract from the romantic spine.

Heated Rivalry consistently centres Shane and Ilya. Taking place over ten years, during which period both men presumably live full lives, creator Jacob Tierney spotlights the sporadic, stolen moments they are together. The secondary romance between hockey player Scott Hunter (François Arnaud) and his secret smoothie barista boyfriend Kip (Robbie CK) is mostly siloed to its own self-contained episode, with its relevance to the main plot made crystal clear at the end of episode five.

The love plot must be central, and must be treated with the deepest sincerity and gravity. Romance is an inherently earnest genre. It is often funny, but it is never ironic.

Red, White & Royal Blue (2023), adapted from Casey McQuiston’s book, received mixed reviews for glossing over many of the book’s complexities. But one of its successes is treating the high-concept love plot between a British prince and the son of the United States president seriously. (Their happy ending is bound up with a broader political one: a successful US re-election representing a liberal wing; the potential promise of a more progressive monarchy.)

The love at the romance novel’s heart – and the attendant joy and hope of the happy ending – is serious business, and must be treated as such for an adaptation to succeed.

This aspect of romance is often positioned as a “guilty pleasure”, something to be embarrassed by or make fun of, but it is hard to overstate how vital it is to the success of the form.

The worst mistake an adaptation of a romance can make is being ashamed of where it came from. Romance readers are well aware when someone is sneering at them, or trying to take advantage of the lucrative market they represent while trying to “elevate” the genre by chipping away at its core tenets and pleasures.

Heated Rivalry is the only adaptation that has entirely and wholeheartedly embraced the invitations of the romance genre, foregrounding romance and leaning pronouncedly into sincerity. We hope many more adaptations will learn from it going forward.

Jodi McAlister is the current president of the International Association for the Study of Popular Romance.

Jayashree Kamble is past President of the International Association for the Study of Popular Romance

– ref. From Bridgerton to Heated Rivalry, what’s the secret to a good book-to-TV romance? – https://theconversation.com/from-bridgerton-to-heated-rivalry-whats-the-secret-to-a-good-book-to-tv-romance-273577

February 11, 2026

They escaped appalling conditions in scam factories. Now, they are living on the streets in Cambodia

Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Ivan Franceschini, Lecturer, Chinese Studies, The University of Melbourne

Indonesians freed from scam centres wait outside the Indonesian embassy in Phnom Penh for help returning home. Magdalena Chodownik/Anadolu via Getty Images

“I was running from the war, and I got to a war again.” This is how Eric, a young man from central Africa, described how he ended up at a scam compound in Cambodia – and then stranded in the country with no way out.

Eric’s story is like that of many people deceived into the scamming world. After fleeing conflict in his home country and living in extreme deprivation, Eric received an email offering a US$2,000 (A$2,800) monthly job in Cambodia. The recruiter quickly persuaded him to accept. (We are using a pseudonym and not disclosing his country of origin to protect him.)

Upon arriving in Phnom Penh late last year, he was taken directly from the airport to a notorious scam compound near the Thai border, where he was forced to defraud people through online scams.

When he tried to warn one of his targets that he was being scammed, the managers found out and savagely beat him to the point he thought he might die. In the following weeks, he witnessed others being severely abused and the disappearance of co-workers. One jumped from a window in an apparent suicide and was never seen again.

A month later, Eric managed to escape when the Thai military began bombing Cambodia in a skirmish over their shared border. His freedom was short-lived, though. He was re-trafficked to another compound and spent another month in captivity before finally fleeing in mid-January.

Government crackdown

Eric is now stranded in Cambodia, along with thousands of other foreigners who were freed from scam compounds in recent weeks as rumours spread of a massive government crackdown on the industry.

The crackdown began last month after the arrest of Chinese tycoon Chen Zhi, whom the US Justice Department called “the mastermind behind a sprawling cyberfraud empire”.

Chen’s arrest added to growing international pressure on Cambodia to finally confront its role in the booming online scam industry, which brings in billions of dollars a year in illicit revenue and has seen hundreds of thousands of workers trafficked into appalling “scam factories” in Southeast Asia and beyond.

Cambodian authorities have raided compounds before, but these operations have been limited and appeared mainly tokenistic.

The recent crackdown felt different – much broader in scope. Multiple compounds suddenly opened their doors to let people out in January, and a prominent Cambodian businessman linked to the industry and several high-ranking Cambodian officials were arrested.

Stuck in limbo

The mass exodus of workers from the compounds, many of whom lack passports, money or anywhere to go, has now led to what Amnesty International is calling a “growing humanitarian crisis”.

Two of us (Ling and Ivan) were in Cambodia to monitor scam compounds when the crackdown occurred. We saw desperate people without documents queuing in front of their embassies in Phnom Penh, trying to get help to return home.

The Indonesian embassy said more than 3,400 people have sought consular assistance. Based on our conversations with embassy officials, Uganda and Ghana have about 300 stranded nationals each, and Kenya has more than 200.

The Chinese and Indonesian embassies have managed to convince the Cambodian government to move their citizens into facilities while they await deportation. Kenya has obtained a waiver of any fines their citizens may face for lacking documents or overstaying their visas and stranded Kenyans are now scrambling to raise funds to pay for their flights.

Survivors from other countries, however, have been stonewalled by the Cambodian bureaucracy.

Most of the Africans we met are in dire situations. They are from countries without diplomatic representation in Cambodia and have been turned away from international agencies and their local partners because of purported “resource constraints” and limitations imposed by local regulations.

Many survivors have pooled their resources to rent rooms in guesthouses that accept undocumented people, while others are being forced to sleep on the streets or rely on the charity of good samaritans. Many live in fear of arrest because the police are conducting inspections of homes and hotels to check people’s documentation.

Eric is one of the relatively fortunate who have secured temporary shelter, but his future remains deeply uncertain. He has no passport, no family and no country to return to. When asked about his hopes, he says simply he wants a place where he can start over – it doesn’t matter where. He is also desperate to start searching for his family back home. He doesn’t even know if they are still alive.

End of an industry?

Cambodian officials have framed the operations as a decisive break with the past. They have vowed to eradicate the powerful online scam networks in the country by April.

However, it’s unclear if the raids signal a sustained policy shift or are a temporary response to heightened diplomatic scrutiny. Although this is the most comprehensive action Cambodia has taken to date, it is far from the first time the government has cracked down. The industry has always survived.

Empty compounds remain guarded, but we managed to visit one since the crackdown. While the computers, cameras and other items have largely been removed, the physical infrastructure remains intact and ready to be reactivated.

And pockets of the industry remain active. Based on our monitoring of Telegram groups used by scammers and conversations with industry insiders, many are still operating in areas such as Koh Kong and Poipet.

Moreover, scam groups are continuing to recruit workers trapped inside the country. Many of the stranded victims have told us of being approached with job offers, presented as an easy way to earn enough money for a flight home.

Job advertisements are also circulating on Telegram, targeting these same individuals with purported “opportunities” at precisely the moment when they are most vulnerable. Many have endured severe abuse and are in urgent need of psychological support.

So far, the survivors’ appeals to the international community have largely gone unanswered. Without a timely and coordinated intervention to help them, the outlook is bleak, and the advantage will once again lie with the scammers.

In 2024, Ivan co-founded EOS Collective, a non-profit organisation dedicated to investigating the dynamics of the online scam industry and the criminal networks behind it, and supporting survivors of forced criminality in these operations.

Charlotte Setijadi has previously received research funding from Singapore’s Ministry of Education and the Singapore Social Science Research Council. She is currently one of the co-convenors of the University of Melbourne’s Indonesia Forum.

In 2024, Ling Li co-founded EOS Collective, a non-profit organisation dedicated to investigating the dynamics of the online scam industry and the criminal networks behind it, and supporting survivors of forced criminality in these operations.

– ref. They escaped appalling conditions in scam factories. Now, they are living on the streets in Cambodia – https://theconversation.com/they-escaped-appalling-conditions-in-scam-factories-now-they-are-living-on-the-streets-in-cambodia-275218

February 11, 2026

Christchurch terror appeal: why now, and what is really being decided?

Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Kris Gledhill, Professor of Law, Auckland University of Technology

The New Zealand Court of Appeal is this week hearing a case that is unusual in a number of respects.

The person bringing it is Brenton Harrison Tarrant, the 35-year-old Australian man convicted and sentenced for the murder of 51 people in Christchurch in March 2019.

Tarrant – who earlier pleaded guilty to those murders, along with attempting to murder 40 others and committing the acts as terrorism – is seeking to reopen his conviction and sentence.

At first glance, this might seem baffling: how can a person who earlier admitted to serious crimes – and who was sentenced years ago – be trying to appeal? The answer lies in some important rules that illustrate how New Zealand’s legal system works.

Tarrant was sentenced five years ago. How can he appeal now?

Legal systems have to balance competing principles. One principle is that decisions by criminal courts should be final, so that those affected can move on.

At the same time, it is important the decision is the right one, since an incorrect finding by a criminal court is problematic.

As a result, those convicted have a right to appeal, but the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 gives them 20 days to file their application. Additionally, the Appeal Court can extend that time limit if there are good reasons to override the need for finality.

So, the hearing now before the court is actually an application for an extension of time. Tarrant’s notice of appeal against conviction and sentence was filed in November 2022: it should have been filed in September 2020, as he was sentenced in August 2020. So the application is to extend time by over two years.

If the Court of Appeal is not persuaded there are good reasons to extend the time limit, the judges will refuse the application to extend time. There is one final avenue then, which is an application to the Supreme Court.

But he pleaded guilty. How can he appeal that?

A second part of the application Tarrant has made is to set aside his guilty pleas. This can happen for various reasons. The central argument he has raised is that he was acting irrationally when he pleaded guilty because of mental health issues caused by prison conditions.

An admission of guilt, which in this case led to the severest sentence available in our legal system – life without parole – has to be an informed decision. The legal system has processes for when people are not fit to stand trial.

If it is a temporary problem, trials can be adjourned until the person is well enough. If it is a more long-term problem, there can be a modified trial that looks at whether the person did the acts charged without looking at whether they had a criminal state of mind.

That is why the evidence before the Court of Appeal includes him, his trial lawyers and experts. This will allow an assessment of the reliability of the pleas that were entered.

This is the real issue for the Court of Appeal. If the guilty pleas can’t be relied on, that might be a good reason to extend time. However, that is not automatic. The legal test is whether there has been a miscarriage of justice.

This allows the Court of Appeal to consider whether the evidence available showed guilt beyond a reasonable doubt in any event. An admission of guilt and a finding of guilt by a court weighing the evidence lead to the same verdict.

Why don’t we know the names of his lawyers?

Another unusual feature of this case is that we don’t know the names of Tarrant’s lawyers. This is because, in a judgment in November 2024, the Court of Appeal allowed them to be anonymous. This rested on evidence of concerns for their safety.

The Supreme Court declined to hear a further appeal against this ruling. This is why the appeal is being heard in a closed court but with a delayed video link.

This reveals that some people misunderstand the role of defence lawyers. The legal system only works if lawyers are willing to represent unpopular people and present their case in a professional manner.

This does not mean the lawyer believes in or otherwise supports the person they are representing. Rather, they are doing a job that is necessary for the legal system to work properly.

But wasn’t the evidence clear?

Most people charged by the police plead guilty or are found guilty; and most appeals are unsuccessful. But in a minority of situations, police and prosecutors or trial courts don’t get it right.

There have been past instances where people have made confessions to things they did not actually do or did not do with a criminal state of mind.

No-one benefits from an incorrect guilty verdict. That is why we have appeals, including appeals out of time, and a Criminal Cases Review Commission.

Particularly for such a uniquely horrible event, and when the sentence imposed is the most severe one our system can impose, it is important to be sure it was correct. That is what is being assessed. It is also why the Court of Appeal has appointed a lawyer to be on stand-by in case the lawyers for the defence are sacked.

Something similar happened at the sentencing hearing: the trial judge appointed a lawyer to make arguments at the sentencing hearing because Tarrant seemingly accepted the sentence of life without parole and told his lawyers not to argue against it.

The resilience of the victims and their families is again on display. For them in particular, but also for New Zealand more generally, we should remember that court judgments are also important historical records.

Judges give reasoned findings into significant events. The three judges of the Court of Appeal are playing this important role, with the assistance of all the lawyers involved.

Kris Gledhill is currently working on a criminal sentencing project funded by the Borrin Foundation, and is a member of the Executive Committee of the Criminal Bar Association, which represents prosecution and defence lawyers. The views expressed here are his own.

– ref. Christchurch terror appeal: why now, and what is really being decided? – https://theconversation.com/christchurch-terror-appeal-why-now-and-what-is-really-being-decided-275541

February 10, 2026

Trump’s plan to wipe out US climate rules relies on EPA rescinding its 2009 endangerment finding – but will it survive court challenges?

Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Gary W. Yohe, Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies, Wesleyan University

Trucks leave a smoggy Port of Long Beach in 2008, the year before the endangerment finding was released. Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

In 2009, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency formally declared that greenhouse gas emissions, including from vehicles and fossil fuel power plants, endanger public health and welfare. The decision, known as the endangerment finding, was based on years of evidence, and it has underpinned EPA actions on climate change ever since.

The Trump administration now wants to tear up that finding as it tries to roll back climate regulations on everything from vehicles to industries.

But the move might not be as simple as the administration hopes.

An airplane flying over a packed highway with San Diego in the background. — Transportation is the nation’s leading source of emissions, yet the federal government aims to roll back vehicle standards and other regulations written to help slow climate change.
Kevin Carter/Getty Images

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin sent a proposed rule to the White House Office of Management and Budget in early January 2026 to rescind the endangerment finding, and the White House announced that Zeldin would make the move official on Feb. 12, 2026.

There’s no question that rescinding the endangerment finding would be challenged in court. The world just lived through the three hottest years on record, evidence of worsening climate change is stronger now than ever before, and people across the U.S. are increasingly experiencing the harm firsthand.

Several legal issues have the potential to stop the EPA’s effort. They include emails submitted in a court case that suggest political appointees sought to direct the scientific review that the EPA is using to defend its plan. A federal judge also ruled on Jan. 30 that the Department of Energy violated the law when it handpicked five researchers to write that climate science review. While that ruling doesn’t necessarily stop the EPA, it raises questions.

To understand how we got here, it helps to look at history for some context.

The Supreme Court started it

The endangerment finding stemmed from a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Massachusetts v. EPA.

The court found that various greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, were “pollutants covered by the Clean Air Act,” and it gave the EPA an explicit set of instructions.

The court wrote that the “EPA must determine whether or not emissions from new motor vehicles cause or contribute to air pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare.”

But the Supreme Court did not order the EPA to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. Only if the EPA found that emissions were harmful would the agency be required, by law, “to establish national ambient air quality standards for certain common and widespread pollutants based on the latest science” – meaning greenhouse gases.

The Supreme Court justices seated for a formal portrait. — The Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Roberts in 2007 included seven justices appointed by Republican presidents. Front row, left to right: Anthony M. Kennedy (appointed by Ronald Reagan), John Paul Stevens (Gerald Ford), John Roberts (George W. Bush), Antonin Scalia (Reagan) and David Souter (George H.W. Bush). Standing, from left: Stephen Breyer (Bill Clinton), Clarence Thomas (George H.W. Bush), Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Clinton) and Samuel Alito Jr. (George W. Bush).
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

The EPA was required to follow formal procedures – including reviewing the scientific research, assessing the risks and taking public comment – and then determine whether the observed and projected harms were sufficient to justify publishing an “endangerment finding.”

That process took two years. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson announced on Dec. 7, 2009, that the then-current and projected concentrations of six key greenhouse gases in the atmosphere – carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride – threatened the public health and welfare of current and future generations.

Challenges to the finding erupted immediately.

Jackson denied 10 petitions received in 2009-2010 that called on the administration to reconsider the finding.

On June 26, 2012, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld the endangerment finding and regulations that the EPA had issued under the Clean Air Act for passenger vehicles and permitting procedures for stationary sources, such as power plants.

This latest challenge is different.

It came directly from the Trump administration without going through normal channels. It was, though, entirely consistent with both the conservative Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 plan for the Trump administration and President Donald Trump’s dismissive perspective on climate risk.

Trump’s burden of proof

To legally reverse the 2009 finding, the agency must go through the same evaluation process as before. According to conditions outlined in the Clean Air Act, the reversal of the 2009 finding must be justified by a thorough and complete review of the current science and not just be political posturing.

That’s a tough task.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright has talked publicly about how he handpicked the five researchers who wrote the scientific research review. A judge has now found that the effort violated the 1972 Federal Advisory Committee Act, which requires that agency-chosen panels providing policy advice to the government conduct their work in public.

All five members of the committee had been outspoken critics of mainstream climate science. Their report, released in summer 2025, was widely criticized for inaccuracies in what they referenced and its failure to represent the current science.

Scientific research available today clearly shows that greenhouse gas emissions harm public health and welfare. Importantly, evidence collected since 2009 is even stronger now than it was when the first endangerment finding was written, approved and implemented.

Map shows many ares with record or near record warm years. — Many locations around the world had record or near-record warm years in 2025. Places with local record warmth in 2025 are home to approximately 770 million people, according to data from Berkeley Earth.
Berkeley Earth, CC BY-NC

For example, a 2025 review by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine determined that the evidence supporting the endangerment finding is even stronger today than it was in 2009. A 2019 peer-reviewed assessment of the evidence related to greenhouse gas emissions’ role in climate change came to the same conclusion.

The Sixth Assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a report produced by hundreds of scientists from around the world, found in 2023 that “adverse impacts of human-caused climate change will continue to intensify.”

Maps show most of the US, especially the West, getting hotter, and the West getting drier. — Summer temperatures have climbed in much of the U.S. and the world as greenhouse gas emissions have risen.
Fifth National Climate Assessment

In other words, greenhouse gas emissions were causing harm in 2009, and the harm is worse now and will be even worse in the future without steps to reduce emissions.

In public comments on the Department of Energy’s problematic 2025 review, a group of climate experts from around the world reached the same conclusion, adding that the Department of Energy’s Climate Working Group review “fails to adequately represent this reality.”

What happens if EPA does drop the endangerment finding

As an economist who has studied the effects of climate change for over 40 years, I am concerned that the EPA rescinding the endangerment finding on the basis of faulty scientific assessment would lead to faster efforts to roll back U.S. climate regulations meant to slow climate change.

It would also give the administration cover for further actions that would defund more science programs, stop the collection of valuable data, freeze hiring and discourage a generation of emerging science talent.

Cases typically take years to wind through the courts. Unless a judge issued an injunction, I would expect to see a continuing retreat from efforts to reduce climate change while the court process plays out.

I see no scenario in which a legal challenge doesn’t end up before the Supreme Court. I would hope that both the enormous amount of scientific evidence and the words in the preamble of the U.S. Constitution would have some significant sway in the court’s considerations. It starts, “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union,” and includes in its list of principles, “promote the general Welfare.

This article, originally published Feb. 2, 2026, has been updated with the White House announcing a date for rescinding the endangerment finding.

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

– ref. Trump’s plan to wipe out US climate rules relies on EPA rescinding its 2009 endangerment finding – but will it survive court challenges? – https://theconversation.com/trumps-plan-to-wipe-out-us-climate-rules-relies-on-epa-rescinding-its-2009-endangerment-finding-but-will-it-survive-court-challenges-274194

February 10, 2026

For women who live on the margins, health care is often out of reach. Here’s how we can build a bridge to access

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Sonia S Anand, Associate Vice-President Global Health, McMaster University

Most Canadians either know personally or are aware that getting an appointment with a family doctor can be difficult. Across the country, it’s estimated that 6.5 million people do not have a family doctor or nurse practitioner they see regularly.

For women who live on the margins — those experiencing poverty, racism, trauma, care-giving stress or unstable housing — the barriers to care are even greater.

From adolescence through to mid-life, such women often put their own health needs last. Even if they have a family doctor, the structural realities of care — uneven geographical access, long waits, limited appointment slots and rigid scheduling systems — are difficult for most people to navigate. For women with limited resources of income, time and agency, the barriers to access are, too often, insurmountable.

Life satisfaction is lower among women in Canada than men, and serious conditions such as cardiovascular disease, cancer or reproductive health problems are often diagnosed late. For many women, cultural norms may make it difficult to raise issues such as sexual health, contraception or depression within a 15-minute medical visit, especially if they lack language or gender concordance with their family doctor.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that primary care can deliver more than 90 per cent of essential health services, but only if people can access it. For women who live on the margins, gaining this access is difficult.

Real-world needs not met

In 2023, the federal government’s agreement with the provinces committed to expanding access to family health services, especially in rural and remote areas, and to supporting health workers while reducing backlogs.

Under this plan, Ontario was designated receive $2.5 billion between 2023 and 2026 to strengthen family health services, including $90 million specifically to expand inter-professional primary care teams in high-need communities and to help existing teams manage rising costs.

Ontario’s Primary Care Action Plan has committed to incentives and investments to improve rates of attachment to team-based primary care. But it’s not clear if these can overcome the barriers for marginalized women.

There are other forces that impact the availability of access to family physicians. Studies from the United States indicate that if primary care physicians followed every preventive and chronic-care guideline, they would need 27 hours a day — more than half of that devoted to prevention alone.

The system as designed may not be able to meet the real-world needs of patients, especially those with complex social and health circumstances.

A bridge to access: Learning from global innovation

Women on the margins often experience stigma, mistrust and have a scarcity mindset, and are unable to prioritize their own health needs. As a result, they end up in walk-in clinics or emergency departments at a late stage of serious illnesses. Our current system — stretched and time-deficient — is not optimized for preventive, trust-based, community-embedded care.

As physicians and population health researchers, we propose importing and adapting a proven innovation from the Global South — the Community Health Worker model, first endorsed by WHO and UNICEF in the 1978 Alma-Ata Declaration.

A community health worker (CHW) is typically a trusted member of the local community who understands the challenges of those who are sick or socially excluded. With targeted training, CHWs can conduct basic health screenings for conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, breast and cervical cancer, and reproductive and mental health problems.

Importantly, CHWs act as bridges to primary care physicians, meaning when a woman’s screening reveals a concern, the CHW can prioritize her for a physician review. This approach builds trust, continuity and access — creating the “first mile” of connection to the health system for women who might otherwise remain invisible.

Unlike nurses, CHWs do not require professional credentials, though many have college or allied-health backgrounds such as a personal support worker or occupational therapy assistant. Their greatest assets are trust, cultural competence and mobility — the ability to meet marginalized women where they are at.

Implementation is key

The CHW model has the potential to deliver community-based, first-contact access — what we call “A Bridge to Access.” These workers can provide the first mile of care, ensuring that prevention, screening and support reach the women who need it most.

While CHWs can be equipped with digital or artificial intelligence (AI) enabled screening tools to optimize the connection with care, technology should complement — not replace — human connection. Digital tools can support communication and record-keeping, but relationships and trust remain the foundation of effective care.

Money alone cannot fix Canada’s patchwork health-care system of today. Funding is necessary, but innovation is essential. The CHW model — an evidence-based success in countries from India to Indonesia — represents an opportunity for reverse innovation: bringing proven global strategies from the Global South to Canada.

If implemented well, CHWs have the potential to strengthen first-contact accessibility, foster trusting relationships and deliver person-centred, integrated care. For women on the margins, this could mean earlier diagnosis, greater continuity and restored faith in a system they currently cannot access easily.

Testing and evaluating the CHW model in Canada offers a path to close the health-equity gap for women and other underserved populations. If successful, it could be scaled across provinces, contributing to a stronger, more inclusive health-care system — one that delivers on prevention, screening and primary care for those most in need.

Sonia Anand receives funding from Public Health Agency of Canada, and the CIHR. She receives speaking honoraria from pharmaceutical companies. She volunteers for the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.

Gina Ogilvie receives funding from Canadian Institutes of Health Research.

Cathy Risdon 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. For women who live on the margins, health care is often out of reach. Here’s how we can build a bridge to access – https://theconversation.com/for-women-who-live-on-the-margins-health-care-is-often-out-of-reach-heres-how-we-can-build-a-bridge-to-access-273453

February 10, 2026

Flag politics in Canada and New Zealand resulted in drastically different outcomes

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Paul Hamilton, Associate Professor of Political Science, Brock University

National Flag Day, Feb. 15, marks the 61st anniversary of Canada’s Maple Leaf. Fading in the public consciousness are the debates that accompanied Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson’s proposal to replace the Red Ensign in the 1960s.

Of course, Canada isn’t the only state to have considered changes to its national flag. There are numerous example of flags redesigned to reflect a variety of political agendas.

Flags are treated with reverence in public ceremonies. As we’re witnessing as we take in this year’s Winter Olympic Games, flags brand a nation. They serve as a symbol uniting diverse populations of citizens who share this instant sign of belonging.

Irish political scientist Benedict Anderson referred to these populations as “imagined communities” united by symbols, mass media and myth. Flags are great examples of what British social psychologist Michael Billig refers to as “banal nationalism”. But while flags are often taken for granted, proposals to redesign them can arouse great passion.

Canada versus New Zealand

The Canadian process differed from New Zealand’s, which is interesting since the two cases share so much else in common.

Canada and New Zealand are both British settler states with large Indigenous and immigrant populations. Neither achieved independence by revolution and both retain strong ties to the Commonwealth.

A red flag with a Union Jack in the top left corner. — The Canadian Red Ensign used between 1879 and 1898.
(WikiMedia Commons), CC BY

These ties have been reinforced by the First and Second World Wars, when Canadians and New Zealanders shed blood with Great Britain.

Canada became self-governing in 1867, but relied on Westminster to pass constitutional amendments until 1982. New Zealand became self-governing in 1907, but only ended Britain’s role in some legislative matters in 1986.

Both countries also experienced a post-war reassessment of their ties to their colonial pasts, evident in the Union Jack occupying the upper left quadrant of each flag. But the efforts to redesign the Canadian and New Zealand flags followed different pathways.

In the case of Canada, the process ended with an entirely new flag. In the case of New Zealand, the status quo prevailed.

Canadian debate

The debate in Canada was dominated by political leaders, accompanied by lively coverage in the media. Conservative John G. Diefenbaker defended the status quo, while Pearson championed a new design.

The question was whether the new flag should represent a fresh start or retain symbols of a colonial past. Polls revealed that about half of Canadians wanted a new flag, enough to engage politicians but not enough to establish a clear direction.

Canada’s flag debate, which inspired the longest parliamentary session in history, was the country’s top news story of 1964. Politicians tinkered with designs to appease British imperialists, Québec and those who wanted something new.

After more than 200 Conservative speeches — and on the recommendation of the 15-member all-party committee — Parliament voted 163 to 78 in favour of the new flag in December 1964.

The flag was raised for the first time on Feb. 15, 1965. When Diefenbaker died in 1979, his coffin was draped with both the Maple Leaf and the Red Ensign, the symbol he fought so hard to keep, perhaps signalling a societal transition.

According to a recent poll, the flag is now the national symbol that Canadians are most proud of (79 per cent).

New Zealand votes

Unlike Canada, New Zealand held a public consultation about its proposed flag redesign involving two referendums in 2015-16.

The rationale for change was similar to Canada’s but also inspired by mix-ups where the New Zealand flag was mistaken for the Australian one. The referendum was promised by John Key’s National Party after it won the 2014 general election.

A public consultation attracted 10,292 designs, including one featuring a Kiwi firing a laser from its eyes.

Voters were asked to select one of five designs in the first referendum held in November and December 2015. The winner, featuring a silver fern and no Union Jack, was then pitted against the official flag in the second referendum held from March 3-24, 2016. Ultimately, almost 60 per cent of voters chose to keep the official flag that had been adopted in 1902.

In Canada, there was little consultation with Indigenous Peoples about the new flag.

In New Zealand, Maori voters mainly supported the status quo, partly out of a concern with the connection to the British monarchy, the guarantor of the Treaty of Waitangi. A new flag without a Union Jack could have signalled a step toward republicanism and a weakening of Maori political rights and status.

National identity

In both countries, the chance to change the flag represented an opportunity to reflect on their national identity. The New Zealand process took public opinion seriously, but binary referenda may not be the ideal method for choosing a new flag and turnout was low (67 per cent).

In the Canadian case, it seems highly unlikely that such an important change would be enacted today by a simple vote in the House of Commons. A third option, for any country, would be a citizens’ assembly that could deliberate over a longer period and solicit the views of all community members.

A flag is not just a national garment; it’s the national self-portrait. Debates about designs are debates about who we are and can arouse great passion. Such debates are not trivial — they’re essential parts of the evolving nation-building project.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Flag politics in Canada and New Zealand resulted in drastically different outcomes – https://theconversation.com/flag-politics-in-canada-and-new-zealand-resulted-in-drastically-different-outcomes-274905

February 10, 2026

Winter storms can be deadly – here’s how to stay safe before, during and after one hits

Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Brett Robertson, Associate Professor and Associate Director of the Hazards Vulnerability and Resilience Institute, University of South Carolina

When powerful winter storms and freezing temperatures hit the U.S. in late January 2026, they left hundreds of thousands of people without power for days and were blamed for more than 100 deaths from a variety of causes.

Some people died from exposure to cold inside their homes. Others fell outside or suffered heart attacks while shoveling snow. Three young brothers died after falling through ice on a Texas pond. Dozens of children were treated for carbon monoxide poisoning from improperly used generators or heaters.

These tragedies and others share a common theme: Winter storms pose multiple dangers at once, and people often underestimate how quickly conditions can become life-threatening.

A man stands by the open door of a car stuck on a road with deep snow. — If you plan to drive in a winter storm, be prepared to be stranded, as this driver was in Little Rock, Ark., on Jan. 24, 2026. Cars can slide off roads, slide into each other or get stuck in snow drifts. Having warm winter gear, boots and a charged cell phone can help you deal with the cold.
Will Newton/Getty Images

I’m the associate director of the Hazards Vulnerability and Resilience Institute at the University of South Carolina, where we work on ways to improve emergency preparedness and response. Here is what people need to know to reduce their risk of injury during severe winter weather.

Prepare before the storm arrives

Preparation makes the biggest difference when temperatures drop, and services fail. Many winter storm injuries happen after power outages knock out heat, lighting or medical equipment.

Start by assembling a basic emergency kit. The Federal Emergency Management Agency recommends having water, food that does not require cooking, a flashlight, a battery-powered radio, extra batteries and a first-aid kit, at minimum.

Some basics to go into an emergency kit — In addition to these basics, a winter emergency kit should have plenty of warm clothes and snacks to provide energy to produce body heat.
National Institute of Aging

In wintertime, you’ll also need warm clothing, blankets, hats and gloves. When you go out, even in a vehicle, make sure you dress for the weather. Keep a blanket in the car in case you get stranded, as hundreds of people did for hours overnight on a Mississippi highway on Jan. 27 in freezing, snowy weather.

Portable phone chargers matter more than many people realize. During emergencies, phones become lifelines for updates, help and contact with family. Keep devices charged ahead of the storm and conserve battery power once the storm begins.

If anyone in your home depends on electrically powered medical equipment, make a plan now. Know where you can go if the power goes out for an extended period. Contact your utility provider in advance to ask about outage planning, including whether they offer priority restoration or guidance for customers who rely on powered medical equipment.

What to do if the power goes out

Loss of heat is one of the most serious dangers of winter storms. Hypothermia can occur indoors when temperatures drop, especially overnight.

If the power goes out, choose one room to stay in and close its doors to keep the warmth inside. Cover windows with curtains or blankets. Wear loose layers and a knit hat to keep your own body heat in, even indoors. Remember to also eat regular snacks and drink warm fluids when possible, since the body uses energy to stay warm.

Five people sit around a table, each wrapped up in warm clothes and hats. Two children are studying. — Wearing knit caps, lots of layers and staying together in one room can help with warmth. If you light candles, use them carefully to avoid fires.
SimpleImages/Moment via Getty Images

It might seem tempting, but don’t use camp stoves, outdoor grills or generators inside a home. These can quickly produce carbon monoxide, an odorless and deadly gas. During the January storm, one Nashville hospital saw more than 40 children with carbon monoxide poisoning linked to unsafe heating practices.

If you must use a generator, keep it outdoors and far from windows and doors. Make sure your home’s carbon monoxide detectors are working before storms arrive.

If your home becomes too cold, go to a warmer place, such as a friend’s home, a warming center or a public shelter. You can call 2-1-1, a nationwide hotline, to find local options. The American Red Cross and the Salvation Army also list open shelters on their websites. Several states maintain online maps for finding warming centers and emergency services during winter storms, including Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New York, Tennessee, and Texas.

Be careful outside – ice changes things

Winter storms make everyday activities dangerous. Ice turns sidewalks into slippery hazards. Snow shoveling strains the heart.
Frozen ponds and lakes might look solid but often are not as the ice can change quickly with weather conditions.

Walking on icy surfaces, even your own sidewalk, requires slow steps, proper footwear and full attention to what you’re doing. Falls can cause head injuries or broken bones, and it can happen with your first step out the door.

A group of kids scream as they sled down a hillside, legs flying in the air. — Playing in the snow, like this group was at Cherokee Park in Louisville, Ky., can be the best part of winter, but be sure to do it safely. At least three people died in accidents while being towed on sleds behind vehicles on icy streets during the January 2026 storm.
Jon Cherry/Getty Images

Shoveling snow is a common risk that people often overlook, but it deserves special caution. The actions of shoveling in cold weather can place intense strain on the heart. For people with heart conditions, it that extra strain can trigger heart attacks.

Why shoveling snow is more stressful on your heart than mowing your lawn. Mayo Clinic.

If you’re shoveling, take frequent breaks. Push snow instead of lifting when possible. And stop immediately if you feel chest pain, dizziness, or shortness of breath.

Communication saves time and lives

Winter storms disrupt information flows. Cell service fails. Internet access drops. Power outages silence televisions.

In my research on heat and storm emergencies, people frequently rely on personal networks to share updates, resources, and safety information. With that in mind, check on family, friends and neighbors, especially older adults and people who live alone.

Research I have conducted shows that nearby social ties matter during disasters because they help people share information and act more quickly when services are disrupted. Make sure that the information you’re sharing is coming from reliable sources – not everything on social media is. Also, let others know where you plan to go if conditions worsen.

A woman in a puffy jacket, hat and scarf walks up snow-covered subway stairs. — Walk carefully on snow and ice, particularly stairs like these in a New York subway station on Jan. 25, 2026. At home, be sure to clear snow off your steps soon after a storm so ice doesn’t build up.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Use multiple sources for information. Battery-powered radios remain critical during winter storms. Sign up for local emergency alerts by email or text. Studies have found that in regions accustomed to frequent hazardous weather, people often take actions in response to risks more slowly when they don’t have reliable local updates or clear alerts.

Practice matters

Many injuries happen because people delay actions they know they need to take. They wait to leave a house that’s getting too cold or at risk of damage by weather, such as flooding. They wait to ask for help. They wait to adjust plans.

In research I contributed to on evacuation drills involving wildfires, people who practiced their evacuation plan in advance were more likely to react quickly when conditions changed. Talking through evacuation plans for any type of emergency, whether a hurricane or a winter storm, builds people’s confidence and reduces their hesitation.

Take time each winter to review your emergency supplies, communication plans, and heating options.

Winter storms will test your preparation, judgment, and patience. You cannot control when the next one arrives, but you can decide how ready you will be when it does.

This article, originally published Jan. 29, 2026, has been updated with additional details on the new storm.

Brett Robertson receives funding from the National Science Foundation (Award #2316128). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

– ref. Winter storms can be deadly – here’s how to stay safe before, during and after one hits – https://theconversation.com/winter-storms-can-be-deadly-heres-how-to-stay-safe-before-during-and-after-one-hits-274605

February 10, 2026

Loneliness at work matters more than we think

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Julie McCarthy, Professor of Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management, University of Toronto

As loneliness reaches epidemic levels worldwide, work has become one of the main settings where connection is either strengthened or lost. In 2023, Vivek Murthy, the former surgeon general of the United States, labelled loneliness an “epidemic,” warning that its consequences rival those of other major health risks.

This concern is echoed globally. The World Health Organization now estimates that roughly one in six adults worldwide experience significant loneliness.

Work sits at the centre of this crisis. For most adults, work is the primary social environment outside of family and close friends. Drawing on a comprehensive review of more than 200 studies, my colleagues and I synthesized decades of research across the fields of management, psychology and health.

We found that loneliness at work is not a marginal or temporary issue, but a systematic and consequential feature of modern working life. It shapes employee wellbeing, behaviour and performance in ways that extend well beyond the individual.

Why workplace loneliness matters

To understand why workplace loneliness matters, it helps to recognize that loneliness is a complex experience. It emerges when people perceive a gap between the social connection they want and what they believe they have. Because it is subjective, people can feel lonely even in busy, collaborative workplaces.

Loneliness is inherently distressing, but it does not remain confined to emotions. It shapes how people think and behave, influencing attention, motivation and everyday interactions at work.

Loneliness also differs in duration and form, with important implications. For some employees, loneliness is temporary, triggered by transitions such as starting a new role or moving into leadership. In these cases, loneliness can sometimes prompt reconnection.

For others, loneliness becomes chronic, settling into a self-reinforcing pattern that is harder to reverse and more damaging over time. These distinctions help explain why loneliness affects employees and organizations so differently.

Psychological and performance costs

The consequences of loneliness at work are both personal and organizational.

Employee well-being erodes. Loneliness, much like chronic stress, places sustained strain on people’s mental and emotional capacities. Research consistently links workplace loneliness to emotional exhaustion, psychological distress and feelings of alienation.

Loneliness has also been associated with physiological stress responses, including heightened cortisol levels. Beyond strain, loneliness also reduces positive emotions, life satisfaction and a sense of meaning, while increasing negative emotional experiences.

Engagement and effectiveness may also decline. Research consistently shows that lonely employees are less engaged in their work. They are more likely to withdraw from their roles, invest less energy and reduce their overall contribution to organizational outcomes.

Loneliness is also associated with impaired cognitive functioning, including diminished focus and concentration, which undermines productivity.

Behaviour and organizational outcomes

The psychological effects of loneliness have clear downstream consequences for behaviour, performance and health.

Workplace performance can suffer, as loneliness is negatively related to both self-reported and supervisor-rated job performance. Lonely employees have been found to be less committed and are often perceived as less approachable, which can translate into lower performance evaluations. There is also evidence that loneliness is associated with reduced creativity at work.

Research links workplace loneliness to higher levels of counterproductive work behaviours, including cyberloafing, problematic internet behaviours, poorer cybersecurity practices and higher absenteeism.

Loneliness is also associated with a diminished capacity for self-regulation, which plays a critical role in controlling attention, emotions and behaviour at work. When self-regulation is compromised, employees may struggle to stay focused and manage emotional responses effectively.

Health can also be affected. Loneliness is consistently linked to poorer mental and physical health. Among working adults, loneliness is associated with psychological distress, while broader research shows that loneliness is related to mental health difficulties.

How to reduce loneliness at work

Research points to several evidence-based approaches that can reduce loneliness when implemented thoughtfully. First, providing social support is one of the most reliable ways to reduce loneliness, particularly for people already at higher risk. Peer mentoring, group-based support and structured opportunities for connection are especially effective because they create safe environments where relationships can develop.

Building social skills also helps. Loneliness is not always about a lack of opportunity; it can also reflect difficulty initiating or sustaining social connections. Interventions that strengthen interpersonal skills, such as communication and relationship-building, can reduce loneliness by helping people feel more confident and about social interactions at work.

Volunteering reduces isolation. Volunteering has emerged as a particularly promising strategy for reducing loneliness. Engaging in meaningful, pro-social activities outside one’s core role can strengthen social bonds and increase feelings of connection, making it a valuable component of broader organizational strategies.

There is also growing evidence that mindfulness-based approaches can reduce loneliness by targeting unhelpful thought patterns, such as negative self-talk and pessimistic expectations about others. By encouraging present-focused awareness, mindfulness can help disrupt these patterns and support more adaptive social engagement.

Rethinking the design of work

The prevalence of loneliness at work raises a deeper question about the kind of workplaces we’re creating. Environments that consistently reward speed, output and constant availability without equal attention to connection can unintentionally foster isolation, even among highly capable and committed employees.

It is critical that employers design workplaces that allow people to belong as well as perform. Intentionally structuring work to include things like peer support programs, collaborative team rituals and opportunities for mindful focus can strengthen social connection while also improving engagement and performance.

Organizations that take this seriously are not just responding to a social problem but are investing in healthier, more resilient ways of working.

Julie McCarthy receives funding from SSHRC.

– ref. Loneliness at work matters more than we think – https://theconversation.com/loneliness-at-work-matters-more-than-we-think-265845

February 10, 2026

Mandelson and the financial crash: why the Epstein allegations are so shocking

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Stephen Barber, Professor of Global Affairs, University of East London

Suggestions that Peter Mandelson may have shared government information with Jeffrey Epstein amid the fallout of the global financial crisis are being investigated by police.

Emails between Mandelson and the disgraced financier, released by the US Department of Justice, are said to include market-sensitive details. This was at a time when Mandelson was in government and ministers around him were scrambling to keep the UK economy afloat.

Now, the 2008 global financial crisis belongs to a different political generation, with almost all of the leading players having left the world stage. But the ripple effect of the credit crunch can still be felt in our politics and in our pockets.

This surely makes the allegations against Mandelson, some of which date to his time as UK business secretary, even more awful. The anaemic UK economy, its weakened public finances and the divisive nature of UK politics can all trace their ways back to the crisis.

This catastrophic event, where developed economies were brought to the brink of collapse, came at the end of a long period of prosperity. It put paid to a belief, embraced by Gordon Brown when he was chancellor, that the UK had achieved a “Goldilocks economy” – not too hot and not too cold. This was supposedly a triumphant end to the boom and bust of the past.

For a time it worked. Britain experienced 16 years of quarter-on-quarter economic growth, emerging from the aftermath of “Black Wednesday” in 1992 when sterling fell out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism.

The cracks first started to appear in 2007 as US lenders specialising in sub-prime mortgages (typically sold to high-risk borrowers) started to collapse. This was at the heart of what would become a global catastrophe. To meet market demand, lenders bundled together thousands of everyday home loans into “mortgage-backed securities”. These were then sold as low-risk debt to investors.

You can see the attraction: safe and steady repayments over the long term, underpinned by bricks and mortar. Only it was a deception, because that debt was not all safe. As house prices kept rising, banks increasingly agreed loans with customers who did not have the capacity to repay them. And the loans were made against property that had been overvalued.

Then the housing market weakened. Credit markets seized up, since holders of securitised debt found they couldn’t unwind their positions (put simply, they were unable to sell them on) – it was impossible to tell which parts of their holdings were sound and which were toxic. The result was that institutions stopped lending, interest rates on corporate borrowing jumped, investment ground to a near halt and stock markets plummeted.

Banks, big as well as small, started to fail. While the collapse of US giant Lehman Brothers in September 2008 marked the start of the global crisis, in the UK it was the liquidity emergency of Northern Rock that brought things into focus. Savers, having lost confidence, queued up outside branches in September 2007 to withdraw their money, marking the first run on a UK bank since the 19th century. But worse still, banks had lost trust in each other.

The world watched in real time in September 2008 as Lehman Brothers collapsed.

Banks are not just any business; they are the arteries of a functioning economy. Policymakers around the world judged that these banks were simply too big to fail. Governments responded with unprecedented interventions, including bank rescues, capital injections, fiscal stimulus and major regulatory reforms.

In Britain, this included nationalising Northern Rock in February 2008, recapitalising Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds, and launching wide-ranging guarantee and liquidity schemes. It meant containing the crisis, recapitalising the system, and restructuring the sector – all paid for by government borrowing.

In December 2008, Brown – by now prime minister – claimed he had “saved the world”. But what followed was the longest and deepest recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. And that sharp downturn, in contrast to the previous decade, hit the young and the unskilled hardest as unemployment rose. For those in work, pay growth stalled.

It was during this period that Mandelson is suspected of sharing sensitive government information with Epstein. In June 2009, an email appears to show the then-business secretary forwarding details of proposals to sell off UK government assets to raise money for the public purse.

The crisis had blown a hole in the UK’s public finances as the Treasury grappled with falling tax receipts and increased demands on spending on public services and welfare. Added to this, bank rescues had of course piled up public debt.

Meanwhile, other emails in late 2009 appear to show Mandelson and Epstein discussing ways to push back against UK government plans for a “supertax” on bankers’ bonuses. These proposals were a bid to recoup some of the public money pumped into the sector.

For all the successes, perhaps the “Goldilocks economy” wasn’t entirely built on responsible policymaking. While inflation targets were hit, Bank of England experts had all but failed to notice the massive asset bubble. And then there were the “light-touch” banking controls, which even the regulator blamed for its failure to spot the storm brewing.

The long tail of the crisis

While economies eventually stabilised, not least because of Brown’s leadership and that of the subsequent coalition government, the consequences of the crisis play out to this day. In contrast to the optimism of the previous period, the years since the financial crisis have seen weak economic output, derisory productivity growth as well as slow improvements in pay.

Those were the years of austerity policies, with increasing distrust of institutions and a backlash against “elites”. All of this fuelled populism on the left and right.

Many felt left behind by the globalisation that had driven the economy from the mid-1990s, or were hit hard as low-skilled work became more precarious and public services squeezed, or felt taken for granted by the political class. When it came to their vote, Brexit was an opportunity to express their frustration and disrupt a system that they no longer believed worked for them.

And so it is impossible to understand the fractious nature of politics today, or the relatively feeble state of the UK economy, without understanding the huge challenge that the financial crisis posed to a generation of politicians. Although Mandelson is understood to deny any criminality, his alleged betrayal came at the peak of this jeopardy. We are all still paying the cost of bringing the global economy back from the brink.

Stephen Barber 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. Mandelson and the financial crash: why the Epstein allegations are so shocking – https://theconversation.com/mandelson-and-the-financial-crash-why-the-epstein-allegations-are-so-shocking-275272

February 10, 2026

Fantasy writer Brandon Sanderson has retained rare control over screen adaptations of his Cosmere universe

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Cassie Brummitt, Assistant Professor in Film and Television Studies, University of Nottingham

Have you heard of the writer Brandon Sanderson? If you’ve not, you’re sure to soon as a major deal with AppleTV signals that his writing could be a big new fantasy franchise that everyone will be talking about.

Sanderson is best known for his expansive literary universe, the Cosmere, with books set on various planets that manifest different but interconnected forms of magic. What’s so significant about this AppleTV deal is that Sanderson will possess remarkable control over the production of adaptations of his entire back catalogue. Crucially, it has been reported that he will have approval over any decisions, enabling him to oversee projects as writer, consultant and producer.

It’s a level of creative control over the adaptation process from page to screen which has been described as unprecedented for an author.

Writers are often wheeled out when promoting an adaptation to reassure audiences of how “faithful” it is or to show support for any changes to the source material. But it’s not particularly common for an author to wield significant creative authority over the production process itself, especially for big-budget franchises.

In my book on the Harry Potter franchise I explore, for example, how JK Rowling’s approval (and supposed influence) was frequently invoked in promotion for Harry Potter films to build prestige for the franchise. But, it wasn’t until the Fantastic Beasts series (2016-22) that she actually received a production credit as screenwriter.

There are some exceptions. George RR Martin contributed to script-writing, casting and production in the first few seasons of the Game of Thrones TV show, an adaptation of his novel series A Song of Ice and Fire. Martin has since acknowledged, however, that he had “less and less influence” over the TV show as it progressed, with similar breakdowns in communication during the adaptation of prequel series House of the Dragon.

Authors also sometimes write their own adapted screenplays. Gillian Flynn, for example, wrote both the novel Gone Girl and the screenplay for its film adaptation. Emma Donoghue won a best adapted screenplay Oscar for her work adapting her novel Room.

This process, called “self-adaptation”, has a long history in media and entertainment, even going back to Charles Dickens who adapted his works into stage plays. But authors may, of course, have strong opinions about how their work is adapted or have differing priorities to studio executives. Right now, when big-budget franchise instalments are expected to make hundreds of millions and hopefully attain long-term popularity, it’s a risky strategy to give creative control of a budding franchise to an author.

But that is exactly what’s happened with Sanderson. His literary properties are no doubt attractive to studio heads, having sold more than 50 million copies worldwide and slotting into the science fiction and fantasy niche carved out by mega-franchises like the MCU (Marvel Comic Universe), Game of Thrones and Harry Potter.

He’s also famously productive – publishing more than 50 novels in the last 20 years – which reduces the risk of acquiring a literary property whose overall narrative will never been concluded, something HBO had to navigate with the Game of Thrones TV show. The appeal for AppleTV is also clear, given its strategy to adapt genre fiction such as Foundation, Silo and Murderbot.

But how and why has Sanderson managed to retain so much creative control? I think the key lies in his commercial approach.

Sanderson established his own publishing and entertainment company, Dragonsteel Books, in 2012. As an online storefront it sells merchandise from special-edition books to board games to t-shirts. In 2020, it was reported he raised a record-breaking £30 million through Dragonsteel Books, using Kickstarter to self-publish four “secret projects” he had written during the COVID pandemic.

Since 2021, Dragonsteel Books organises a yearly Brandon Sanderson fan convention. And, in 2024, Sanderson announced that his company had purchased land to build “Dragonsteel Plaza”, which is expected to contain a bookstore, creative hub and company headquarters.

Sanderson challenges our cultural idea of the author as a creative genius who shuns commercial activity: he actively embraces it. He demonstrates the kind of attitude that aligns with the priorities of a global megacorporation such as AppleTV that is looking for ambitious large-scale franchises to launch.

With his Mistborn series touted for film and Stormlight Archive for television, it remains to be seen what Sanderson’s creative direction will look like. But what’s clear is the benefit of Sanderson’s collaboration for AppleTV: a creative figurehead and a commercially strategic ally for a fledgling franchise that has incredible potential for longevity.

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Cassie Brummitt 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. Fantasy writer Brandon Sanderson has retained rare control over screen adaptations of his Cosmere universe – https://theconversation.com/fantasy-writer-brandon-sanderson-has-retained-rare-control-over-screen-adaptations-of-his-cosmere-universe-275251