How news from the Middle East is shaping Gen Z’s mental well-being (June 29, 2025, Arab News)
UNICEF-led study warns constant news exposure is overwhelming Gen Z, fuelling anxiety, disconnection, and growing mental health concerns. Despite feeling informed and engaged, many young people say nonstop digital headlines are undermining their well-being and sense of agency
South Korea's brain drain -- Why top talent is leaving (July 7, 2025, The Korea Herald)
As South Korea ramps up its efforts to attract global talent by lowering visa hurdles and expanding scholarship opportunities for international students, its own highly educated professionals are quietly slipping away.
UAE’s AI University Aims to Become Stanford of the Gulf (May 23, 2025, Bloomberg)
The UAE is on a mission to become a global player in AI. The country appointed the world’s first AI minister back in 2017, and mandated this month that all primary schools add AI-based topics like algorithmic bias and prompt engineering to their curriculums.
A misreading of Gen Z’s ‘political disconnect’ set the stage for Hasina’s ouster (July 4, 2025, The Business Standard)
Once dismissed as politically apathetic and self-absorbed, Bangladesh’s Gen Z shattered long-held stereotypes during the 2024 July Uprising, emerging as a bold, politically aware force that catalysed a nationwide reckoning against authoritarian rule
Smart Education Index to monitor digital HE transformation (June 19, 2025, University World News)
A Smart Education Index (SEI) has been proposed to monitor and analyse digital transformation within Bahrain’s universities. The hope is that it will be taken up in other Arab and Gulf countries to help regional higher education institutions measure their digital education progress.
Only two years left of world’s carbon budget to meet 1.5C target, scientists warn (June 18, 2025, The Guardian)
The planet’s remaining carbon budget to meet the international target of 1.5C has just two years left at the current rate of emissions, scientists have warned, showing how deep into the climate crisis the world has fallen.
New mobile Trojan spying on Southeast Asia users–Kaspersky (June 26, 2025, Business Mirror)
Cybersecurity firm Kaspersky has uncovered a new mobile Trojan, dubbed “SparkKitty,” that is actively spying on users in Southeast Asia—including the Philippines—by infiltrating Android and iOS devices through trojanized apps related to cryptocurrency, gambling, and even TikTok.
China’s Gen Z embrace ‘rat people’ trend amid record unemployment (May 17, 2025, Outsource Accelerator)
Instead of chasing jobs in a tough market, many are embracing a slower, reclusive lifestyle, spending days in bed, scrolling on their phones, and avoiding traditional work.
'Positive review only': Researchers hide AI prompts in papers (July 1, 2025, Nikkei Asia) (Subscription required)
Research papers from 14 academic institutions in eight countries -- including Japan, South Korea and China -- contained hidden prompts directing artificial intelligence tools to give them good reviews.
Death, Bans, and Fines: China’s Top AI-Generated Fake News Stories (June 16, 2025, Sixth Tone)
In an effort to quash the spread of AI-generated disinformation, China’s top internet authority highlighted several viral fake news stories from recent years. As generative AI technologies continue to evolve, China has rolled out a series of regulations to impose legal and technical safeguards to prevent their abuse.
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Joann Pittman
Joann Pittman is Vice President of Partnership and China Engagement and editor of ZGBriefs. Prior to joining ChinaSource, Joann spent 28 years working in China, as an English teacher, language student, program director, and cross-cultural trainer for organizations and businesses engaged in China. She has also taught Chinese at the University …View Full Bio
Blessing Asia
In October-2022 more than 500 Christian leaders from across Asia gathered in Thailand for the Asia 2022 Congress, sponsored by the Lausanne Movement and various partnering organizations. I had the opportunity to participate in the Congress virtually and was mightily blessed. From Bible exposition to K-pop worship, and through seminars and workshops, the participants were encouraged by the stories of what God is doing in countries all over Asia. Clearly, God is on the move.
A beautiful vision was portrayed in a video of the popular worship song The Blessing, featuring singers from all over Asia. Here it is:
Many of the sessions have already been posted on their website and to their YouTube channel.
One that I found particularly helpful considering all that is going on in China was a presentation titled Church and State Relationship in Asia Today. You can see the video here.
I encourage you to spend some time on their website; there are fantastic resources for understanding God’s work in Asia today.
Original link: https://www.chinasource.org/resource-library/blog-entries/blessing-asia/
Image credit: Andrea Brucker, via Unsplash
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