# NuseReal

UNCTAD World Investment Report: Global foreign direct investment fell by 11% to $1.5 trillion in 2024, second consecutive year of decline (LINK) 19 June 2025

— " Modest growth seemed possible at the start of the year, but escalating trade tensions, geopolitical fragmentation and economic volatility have led to sharp downward revisions of most FDI prospects. These include GDP growth, capital formation, trade flows, financial market stability and investor confidence. Early 2025 data show record-low deal and project activity."

---

Swiss exports to the US plummeted in May (LINK) 19 June 2025

— Exports to North America dropped by 39.6%. This is the lowest figure recorded since the end of 2020. As recently as March, exports to the US had doubled and reached a record level. Goods were shipped quickly before the feared tariff hammer took effect. By April, exports to the US had already fallen by around a third.

— The decline in exports was widespread across all sectors. The chemical-pharmaceutical industry, which accounts for more than half of total Swiss exports, made a particularly large contribution (-19%). Meanwhile, exports stagnated in the hard-hit Swiss machinery and electronics industry. Imports increased by 0.8% in May (real: +0.5%) to CHF19.02 billion. The export surplus thus shrank to CHF1.98 billion.

---

Political interference in US education undermines academic freedom and equitable access to education: UN expert (LINK) 19 June 2025

— "Recent developments, including the contested decision to bar Harvard University from enrolling international students, are part of a wider trend threatening academic freedom, student rights and democratic integrity."

Rapporteur's 2024 report — (LINK)

— "Special Rapporteur on the right to education, Farida Shaheed, visited the United States of America from 29 April to 10 May 2024: The growing privatization of education threatens the integrity of public schooling, while inadequate mental health support, teacher shortages and poor working conditions undermine student well-being and learning outcomes. Political interference, discriminatory censorship laws, book bans and other attacks on academic freedom further restrict access to diverse perspectives and critical inquiry, creating what has been identified as a chilling effect by a number of interlocuters. Student protests are increasingly met with criminalization, surveillance and disciplinary actions, stifling free expression and civic engagement. Without systemic reforms to funding, governance and assessment, these challenges will continue to erode equitable access and the broader role of education in fostering democracy and social progress."

---

Procurement and deployment of artificial intelligence must be aligned with human rights: UN experts (LINK) 19 June 2025

---

Breakthrough for gig workers: ILO to develop first binding global standards (LINK) 18 June 2025

— the gig economy accounts for up 12% of the global labour force, with over 400 million workers.The standards aim to tackle misclassification, low pay, exclusion from social security benefits, and opaque algorithmic management systems.

— The decision received majority support from ILO member states and worker delegates, though employer delegates and several governments including the US, Switzerland, and India opposed the initiative. The final round of negotiations will take place in 2026.

---

Catchup: UN Ocean Conference makes progress on protecting marine waters (LINK) 13 June 2025

— New countries committed to the high seas treaty, a moratorium on deep-sea mining and the World Trade Organization Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, while a huge group of nations pushed for a strong global plastics treaty. Several countries also moved to create marine protected areas (MPAs) and reserves, or strengthen existing ones, including the announcement of the world's largest MPA in French Polynesia. A wide range of groups announced other marine conservation initiatives.

---

Catchup: New report by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre reveals how 65 top fashion brands are failing to integrate worker rights and representation into their climate strategies, particularly in Bangladesh and Cambodia (LINK) 11 June 2025

— "In production hubs already grappling with extreme heat, flooding, and climate-linked wage instability, workers are facing rising risks with no seat at the table. Far from the runways and boardrooms where sustainability targets are set, the reality is unfolding in overheated factories and precarious homes where those most affected by climate change are excluded from the decisions shaping their futures."

---

DHS moves to restrict lawmaker visits to detention centers: Election officials told to give 72 hours' notice before visiting immigration facilities, with some sites completely off limits (LINK) 19 June 2025

---

Serial rapist Zhenhao Zou jailed for minimum of 24 years: London student who police fear may have drugged and raped more than 60 women receives life sentence (LINK) 19 June 2025

---

Climate study warns of more heavy summer storms in the Alps (LINK) 19 June 2025

— If the climate warms by two degrees, a Swiss-Italian research team expects a doubling of short, heavy summer rainfall in the Alps. Researchers from the University of Lausanne (Unil) and the University of Padua (Italy) analysed data from almost 300 mountain weather stations in Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy and France.

---

Hackers say they wiped out $90 million from Iran cryptocurrency exchange (LINK) 19 June 2025

---

Expedition to 'real home of the pirates of the Caribbean' hopes to unearth ships and treasure: exploration of Bahamas seabed will be first time notorious New Providence hideout has been searched (LINK) 19 June 2025

---

UBS: Switzerland is still the richest country in the world: average per-capita wealth in Switzerland rose last year to $687,000 (CHF561,000), an increase of 3% compared to the previous year, followed by the United States (LINK) 18 June 2025

— "Many new millionaires have become millionaires simply because the value of their own property has risen." Eastern Europe recorded the largest asset growth with an increase of 12%. This was closely followed by North America with 11.98%.

---

FDA approves Gilead's twice-yearly HIV prevention injection, offering a powerful and convenient new option (LINK) 18 June 2025

— The launch of the injection faces potential threats, including the Trump administration's proposed cuts to federal funding for HIV prevention efforts.

---

SpaceX's Starship explodes during routine test in Texas (LINK) 18 June 2025

---

World's top parliamentarians to meet in Geneva 29-31 July: Sixth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament, UN Geneva (LINK) 18 June 2025

— Established in 2000 by the IPU, the World Conference of Speakers of Parliament brings together the highest level representatives of parliaments and the United Nations every five years.

---

The 77th Swiss Gymnastics Festival in Lausanne 12-21 June: 65,000 gymnasts for the event held every 6 years (LINK)

---

Blue-Chip works by Rothko, Richter, and Picasso headline Art Basel (19-22 June), where dealers cast wide range of price points and styles against market uncertainty (LINK)

12 things not to miss at Art Basel 2025 — (LINK)

The best large-scale works at Art Basel Unlimited 2025 — (LINK)

---

The 77th Swiss Gymnastics Festival in Lausanne 12-21 June: 65,000 gymnasts for the event held every 6 years (LINK)

---

Irène Zurkinden (1909–1987), rebel artist and friend of Meret Oppenheim, finally has her day in the Swiss spotlight at Basel's H. Geiger Kulturstiftung till 7 September (LINK, long article)

— The ambitious show, years in the making, attempts to reclaim Zurdinken's legacy from the margins of art history and position her as an artistic rebel, a daring woman who remained untethered to conventions, and whose outlook on the world around her was honest, unflinching, and dazzlingly inclusive. Last year, at Art Basel, New York's Meredith Rosen Gallery devoted its booth to Zurkinden, with Rosen calling her "truly… one of the greatest artists". That presentation followed the gallery's exhibition of her work in "The Paris Years" in the summer and fall of 2023, back in New York.

---

WTO: Trade and Environment Week 30 June-4 July (LINK)

---

Swiss sign human rights declaration for 2025 European Women's Football Championship on July 2-27 (LINK)

---

United Nations Conference on Competition and Consumer Protection, held every 5 years: 7-11 July in Geneva (LINK)

---

Geneva to host new international talks on plastic pollution on August 5-14. (LINK)

---

Irène Zurkinden (1909–1987), rebel artist and friend of Meret Oppenheim, finally has her day in the Swiss spotlight at Basel's H. Geiger Kulturstiftung till 7 September (LINK, long article) 14 June 2025

— The ambitious show, years in the making, attempts to reclaim Zurdinken's legacy from the margins of art history and position her as an artistic rebel, a daring woman who remained untethered to conventions, and whose outlook on the world around her was honest, unflinching, and dazzlingly inclusive. Last year, at Art Basel, New York's Meredith Rosen Gallery devoted its booth to Zurkinden, with Rosen calling her "truly… one of the greatest artists". That presentation followed the gallery's exhibition of her work in "The Paris Years" in the summer and fall of 2023, back in New York.

---

Swiss Pavilion during the 2025 World Expo in Osaka, Japan ("Designing Future Society for Our Lives": April 13 to October 13, 2025) includes The Geneva Public Portal to Anticipation: "From Heidi to High-Tech". (LINK)

— A first-of-its-kind interactive exhibition, designed to immerse the public in future scenarios generated by AI using data from the GESDA Science Breakthrough Radar.

---