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Epic monster battles will be at the heart of Final Fantasy XVI

by www.theverge.com Leave a Comment

The thing Naoki Yoshida is most excited about in Final Fantasy XVI is the eikon battles.

In speaking to The Verge , Yoshida, the game’s director, talked about how earth-shattering, knock-down, drag-out fights between some of the franchise’s most prominent and popular monsters featured heavily in this latest single-player, non-remake entry in the 35-year-old JRPG series.

Summons — aka espers, aka aeons, aka eidolons, aka GF (lol) and now eikons — have been a fixture in the Final Fantasy series, representing a kind of “break glass in case of emergency” option in combat. Over the years, players have had varying levels of control over them with the power to call them forth for a one-time big hit like in Final Fantasy VII and IX , issue commands to them directly like in Final Fantasy X, or to summon them as NPC combat allies like in FFXII . But Final Fantasy XVI seems to offer more to summon combat than just having a big dude show up to beat on other dudes for you.

“We have these epic summon versus summon battles,” Yoshida said, speaking through a translator. “And these are not only going to be in cutscenes. The players will be able to actually get into those battles and control an eikon of their own and feel the excitement from the inside, not just from an outside type of view.”

Eikons are at the heart of all the trailers, media, and lore we’ve seen of Final Fantasy XVI so far, and focusing the game on these creatures of immense and awesome power is key to Yoshida’s vision.

“We envision Final Fantasy XVI as like a giant, high-speed roller coaster that will take players on a thrilling ride both story- and gameplay-wise.”

Final Fantasy is in the middle of a “hot Garuda summer” period. Final Fantasy XIV continues to enjoy worldwide popularity while fans are eagerly anticipating the arrival of not only a Crisis Core remake but the launch of the second installment in the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy . No matter if you are a single-player or MMO Final Fantasy fan, you are eating well. But the arrival of XVI revives concerns about Square Enix’s ability to make a successful, original, single-player Final Fantasy title.

The annoyingly titled Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin made waves for being a weird “cringe but make it camp” game outside of the traditional action RPG format, but it didn’t enjoy widespread success. Additionally, Final Fantasy XV was a commercial hit but a critical failure plagued with delays , scope changes , platform changes, and leadership changes creating a messy hodgepodge of a game ( though sprinkled with some truly brilliant series-defining moments ) with a back-half that is almost wholly indefensible.

Going into XVI , Yoshida and his team were aware of the problems that dogged FFXV ’s production.

“One of the first things that we did back in the early days of Final Fantasy XVI development, when we were still just a tiny team, was first focus on what kind of game system we’re having,” Yoshida said. “And then once we had that, we finalized the meat of the script and narrative.”

The result, Yoshida says, is a game that is currently fully playable from start to finish, hopefully without the worry of needing DLC or books to fill in gaps or better express the game’s story after the fact.

Fans are excited for XVI in a way they may not have been for other Final Fantasy games because of Yoshida. He is a big reason why Square Enix was able to salvage Final Fantasy XIV from a barely playable mess into the critically acclaimed game that was, just last year, so popular sales and free trials had to be suspended to alleviate server congestion. I wanted to know what, if any, of his secret FFXIV sauce made it into FFXVI .

But Yoshida said that working on Final Fantasy XVI didn’t call too much upon his experience with Final Fantasy XIV because they’re two very different games for players who want very different things.

“Working on a mainline title and learning who the fans of Final Fantasy are and what those fans expect from the series is what’s proved the most invaluable,” Yoshida said.

Yoshida explained that the experience of developing these games is like the difference between a marathon and a 100-meter dash. He’s a marathon runner, used to stretching out a story in order to keep fans interested and continuously playing, and he needed to train himself, so to speak, to run much faster over a much shorter distance.

“Compared with an MMO, single-player games are more about providing instant gratification,” he said. “They’re short bursts of extreme excitement and then, when you get to the finish, ending on a bang that has people think ‘Wow, that was a great game.’”

Yoshida isn’t the only person from the FFXIV team working on FFXVI. Fans are equally excited to see XIV ’s composer Masayoshi Soken working on XVI ’s music. I asked if Yoshida had any insight into how Soken has been handling the new assignment.

“ Final Fantasy XIV has always been considered like a Final Fantasy theme park, and this has allowed for a lot of different types of music styles,” Yoshida said. “ Final Fantasy XVI , however, is a more focused experience fixed firmly on Clive Rosefield and his journey. As such, I envisioned a more focused experience when it comes to music as well.”

Yoshida shared that Soken confided in him that he’s actually been having a tough time adapting to work on a single-player game.

“Focusing on one theme has been actually very challenging for him,” Yoshida said. “It’s been a long time since he’s had to do that and not be able to just do whatever he wants.”

Yoshida feels that Final Fantasy XVI is a coming of age of sorts for him. He talked about his time playing the first Final Fantasy as a child and how his imagination made him feel like he was playing a movie. Now, with all the advancements in technology, he doesn’t have to rely on his imagination anymore.

“I look at Final Fantasy XVI as like taking the best part of a movie and the best part of a game and putting those together to make a truly interactive type of game / movie,” he said. “The most exciting part about developing this game has been the eikons with the sheer size and scale of their battles. When I was a child playing Final Fantasy I , with its pixel graphics, this is how I imagined they would look and being able to see them now has been really exciting.”

Apple’s renamed ‘Apple Music Festival’ set to kick off in London on Sept. 19 with Connect tie-ins

by appleinsider.com Leave a Comment

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Apple on Tuesday local London time announced start dates for its upcoming UK-based Apple Music Festival, née iTunes Festival, as well as an initial set list including headliners Pharrell Williams, One Direction, Florence + The Machine and Disclosure.

The newly minted event is scheduled to take place from Sept. 19 to Sept. 28 at London’s historic Roundhouse theater, which has for years served as the festival’s main venue. Announced dates have One Direction playing on Sept. 22, Disclosure on Sept. 25, Pharrell on Sept. 26 and Florence + The Machine on Sept. 28.

“We wanted to do something really special for music fans this year,” said Apple SVP of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue. “The Apple Music Festival is a greatest hits set of ten unbelievable nights featuring some of the best performers on the planet appearing live and interacting directly with their fans on Connect and Beats 1.”

As noted by Cue, the festival has been trimmed down to ten days, as opposed to the usual 30-day marathon seen in years past.

It appears that Apple is making the most of its Apple Music branding, as users can tune in to Beats 1 for official coverage and follow a special Apple Music Festival page on Connect. Those who subscribe to the special account via iTunes or Music app for iOS will be privy to future lineup updates, announcements and exclusive behind-the-scenes photos and video from the event.

As always, tickets are to be doled out through media partners in the UK, including the London Evening Standard. In the past, fans in the UK were able to enter drawings through the iTunes Festival app, but Apple is transferring that responsibility to the Music app for iOS in 2015.

The festival will be available to stream via Apple Music or iTunes on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac and PC. Apple TV owners are also getting access to high definition set replays, though there has been no word on live performances.

It’s Never Too Late to Become a Runner. Here’s How.

by www.sfgate.com Leave a Comment

I’ve had an odd running life, which means I’ve had a normal one.

The sport’s brought me equal parts pain and wonder. I’ve used it as a refuge, as a coping mechanism and as a launching pad for adventures — in Montauk, in Death Valley, in the Scottish Highlands, you name it.

At one point in my life, I hated running so much I swore I would never take it up again. Today, I can’t imagine my life without it. On days where I do run, the last few minutes of the final mile are my favorite of the entire day.

Coming to grips with running — and learning to welcome it in its healthiest form — took me a long time. I’m lucky to have the relationship to the sport that I do now, but I’ve made so many mistakes along the way. Often, when I’m asked how to get into running, I’m so excited they’ve approached me on the topic that I’ll start planning their first month of workouts. By the end of my monologue, I can see that I’ve ruined it. Fat chance they’re still interested after they’ve heard me extolling the joys of “fartleks.” If they somehow are, they’ll be abandoning the program by Week Two, regardless.

The following is the pitch I’ve been too breathless to effectively communicate: a measured, well-paced prescription for those looking to get into the sport. (Or, alternatively, for those who have gotten into it — perhaps during the “running boom” of the early pandemic — but found their interest peter out or their exhaustion total up.)

It’s possible to stitch together a running life in stops, starts and sputters, but a sustainable one is best built by embracing these core credos. From the importance of recovery fitness to my aversion for races and run streaks, here’s what you need to know about becoming a runner — no matter how many birthdays you’ve celebrated.

Pace Yourself

Last year, the bourbon label Knob Creek wanted to design a program meant to encourage the health of bartenders around the country (who were hit hard mentally and physically the last couple years, and even in normal times, struggle to stay in shape due to the nature of their work). They envisioned a virtual running club. But the idea wasn’t testing well, so the creative agency behind the initiative decided to brand it as a jogging club instead, dividing participants into regional teams with fun names (“Hair of the Jog”) and low-stakes goals. It was a smash; after 12 weeks,  75% of them met a distance goal, many had lost weight and at least one had called the experience “life changing.”

Point being? Start slow — the goal here is to turn running into a routine, not a chore. You’re allowed to jog before you run, and in the end, the difference doesn’t really matter. I recommend running at whatever your “conversation pace” is in the early days, and focusing on running a bit farther before you attempt running any faster. A one-mile loop is a great place to start. Importantly, running should not replace all other forms of exercise overnight. Limit your running to a four-a-week max, at first, to keep both the activity and your knees fresh. Experiment with different paths so it feels like an exploration, not a forced march. And bring earbuds, so you can listen to something other than your panting. There’s a decent chance that the last time you ran with any regularity, you didn’t have access to a good pair. Take it from someone who loves running — without music, the whole affair can really suck.

No Rush on Racing

For some who take to running, it’s tempting to map every adventure on Strava, compare yourself to others in your age group, or show up to wildly popular running locales with an aim to impress (e.g. New York’s West Side Highway on a Friday). Broadly speaking, that’s all fine — as obsessions go, you could do worse than one of the most heart-healthy activities known to man. But the competitive/performative maw of running culture can lead many nascent runners to believe that the point of the sport is to enter races and post sweaty finish line photos on Instagram. And that’s far from the truth. You can be a lifelong runner and never enter a single race, be it a local 5K or a major marathon.

In fact, it’s probably in your best interest to refrain from entering a race for at least your first year of running. Why? Race-training can carry some of the uncomfortable qualities of goal-oriented fitness. You lock in for a few months in the hopes of completing a single race, you do it, and then, within 72 hours, you start to appreciate “having your life back.” Perhaps you begin sleeping in again, or eating a little more at certain points in the day. Four months go by and you’ve barely run at all, so you think about signing up for another race, as a motivation tool to get back into shape again. To dodge the plight of the on-again, off-again racer, and lean into the lifestyle of a runner, try to eschew the publicly competitive aspects of the sport for a bit. That doesn’t mean you can’t be ambitious; just begin with goals that you only share with yourself. When you’re ready to take that next leap in running, you’ll know. FYI: in the last 12 months, I’ve only competed in two races.

Spend Money

You don’t have to go crazy. But that line about runners “only needing” a pair of laced-up sneakers and open road is trite and hollow, especially in a golden age of performance tech. You should absolutely spend a few bucks on a pair of everyday trainers that won’t cause you shin splints, some socks that won’t cause you blisters and some running shorts that won’t chafe your most sensitive regions. Plus: whatever other layers, hats, phone cases or water bottles you need to feel confident and happy about your new hobby. I get asked once a month about my “favorite running sneakers.” I usually lie. The truth is a fun carbon-plated pair from Nike, because they run so goddamn fast, but I tend to shoot links to my preferred everyday running sneakers, which is the proper place for new runners to start. Right now, I swear by On Running’s Cloudmonster , and Saucony’s Endorphin Speed 2 . My favorite running outfitters, meanwhile, include: Janji , Tracksmith , Allbirds (great shirts, believe it or not), Ten Thousand , Iffley Road , Balega (socks!) and Vuori . It’s expensive stuff throughout, be warned. But your body’s nooks and crannies will thank you in the long run.

Skip the Streaks

Heads up: there’s a subset community of runners known as “streakers.” The most famous and gung-ho of the lot have entries in the United States Running Streak Association or Streak Runners International, and have run at least one mile within each calendar day for years on end, come rain, sleet or broken collarbone. Of the near-4,000 runners on these lists, their only hope of climbing the ladder is in waiting for those above them to finally stop running…or die. While coverage on run streaks is invariably positive, emphasizing how inspirational and resilient streakers are, it’s important to note that the practice has birthed a dubious “no days off” ethos from brands and influencers in the world of running.

Take it from Colleen Quigley, a middle-distance runner who competed at the 2016 Olympics, won gold at the 2019 USATF Indoor Championships (finishing the mile in 4:29) and now runs with Lululemon. As she said to us earlier this year: “The tricky thing with a run streak is that running is an awesome activity that is great for the body and mind… except for that pesky overuse issue. It’s a repetitive motion, it’s weight-bearing and it’s fairly high-impact, so it requires proper recovery between runs to let your muscles and tissues repair.” As you get into running, try to remember that you don’t have to — and and honestly, should not — run every single day. Your body deserves its rest. Listen to it when it’s presenting as overtaxed, let alone hurt, and learn to appreciate that you can become a better runner on a given day without actually running.

Recovery Is King

How so? Through old-school self-care, which now often involves newfangled machinery, like massage guns or automated compression sleeves. If you’re not looking to shell out for the toys, just commit to habits that are kind and attentive to your body’s tissue and joints, which, admittedly, is bound for a pounding after even just a few days of running on cement or trails a week. Some essential rules, along with some offbeat tips:

  • Prioritize dynamic stretches before each run (leg swings, skips, backpedals, etc.) and static ones after a run, when the body is warm and receptive to flexibility-building poses (seated back twists, calf stretches, forward folds, etc.)
  • Take at least two days off from running a week, and make sure one run a week is a “recovery run” — slow, steady, a chance to pinpoint aches in the body
  • Fuel up properly: running burns twice as many calories per minute than walking. I’ll keep it to a banana, water and maybe some oatmeal an hour before I get out there (lots of runners swear by coffee, too), but once the run is done for the day, I’m eating fruits, veggies, nuts, grains and fish all day to avoid the “relative energy deficiency” trap.
  • Cross-train with cycling, yoga, boxing, swimming, soccer…you name it. Running doesn’t have to become the be-all, end-all of your physical activity. In fact, it’s fun to see how your newfound endurance translates to other concentrations.
  • Sleep with intention — to the tune of at least seven hours a night — and cancel morning runs if you’re exhausted or under the weather. It isn’t worth it. You’ll get ’em tomorrow.
  • Keep an open mind to emerging “hacks” that’ll make you a guinea pig in your training program, and make the whole operation of running a lot more fun. I recommend looking into beet juice as a nitrate-boosting pre-workout, cold water therapy for the restorative benefits and running backwards to give your lower half a unique challenge.

Need for Speed

There will come a time where you’ll feel ready and motivated to graduate to a more serious running regimen. That may involve signing up for a race, joining a running club, or choosing a time you’d like to get under. At any rate, you’ll eventually come face to face with track workouts. For new runners, they can seem incredibly intimidating; after all, even serious runners speak about them with a mixture of reverence and revulsion. I wish I could dispel that reputation, but it’s true…they suck. They’ll also make you a better, faster runner. What should you know about them right now? Not much — explaining track workouts to a nascent runner is sort of like expecting a pre-schooler to have a grasp of long division.

Suffice to say, they involve running repeats around a track. A basic example would involve doing the same distance over and over again with short periods of “active rest” (the lightest jog you’ve ever seen) in between each interval. So, a 12 x 400 workout would ask for 12 laps around the track, all at 90% effort or more, with maybe two minutes of rest in between each. Other, more complicated workouts play with varying distances or ask for different pacing goals. The one thing to know, as scary as track workouts sound, is that all ages are capable of performing them. There is no age limit. Speed is relative, but effort isn’t, and as long as you want to become a better runner, the track is always there to help that process along. I would recommend making your first foray onto the track at a time that the weather’s good, and you’ve been putting in time on the roads for at least three months.

Globetrotting

A friend of mine once told me that he packs his running shoes anytime he’s visiting a new city. He likes to run an aimless three miles just after he’s checked into his hotel. It’s his version of riding the local double-decker bus. I’ve gotten into the habit of running on my trips, too (whether I’m there for work or leisure), and now I wouldn’t have it any other way. This is perhaps the greatest gift a regular running routine can offer you — when you’re on the other side of the world, eager to make some sense of a place with your feet, you can do so without needing to wheeze on the side of the road for 45 minutes. You don’t even need to fly somewhere to take advantage of this superpower. There are parks and neighborhoods in all of our backyards, primed and ready for some exploration. More than hitting a specific time, or taking home a medal, this is the running future you should dream about and cherish. One where you’re free to roam and fit enough to find your way home.

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The post It’s Never Too Late to Become a Runner. Here’s How. appeared first on InsideHook .

Column: With Roe overturned, will Democrats finally learn that losing parties can’t construct the court?

by www.latimes.com Leave a Comment

SACRAMENTO —

Elections have consequences. That’s a cliché, but clichés are born of truths. And this is a truth: If a Democrat had been elected president in 2016, we wouldn’t have a right-wing Supreme Court.

If Donald Trump hadn’t beaten Hillary Clinton, gun control laws and national abortion rights would not have been quashed by the Supreme Court last week.

The Supreme Court today would not have a 6-3 conservative majority. It would be 6-3 moderate-to-liberal. Parts of American life wouldn’t have been turned upside down.

Trump named three conservative justices to fill seats that would have been occupied by three liberals or centrists under a Democratic president.

On Friday, Trump bragged about that after the court overturned Roe vs. Wade . The former president noted he pledged during the 2016 campaign to nominate anti-Roe justices, and he did.

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The abortion and other recent court decisions “were only made possible because I delivered everything as promised,” he said.

But Democrats weren’t listening close enough in 2016.

Let’s be honest: Democrats blew it. There could have been a better Democratic nominee than Hillary Clinton.

Someone who didn’t call Trump voters “deplorables.” Someone who had enough savvy to campaign in the swing states of Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania that Trump won — but that Democrat Barack Obama carried four years earlier and Democrat Joe Biden also did in 2020.

In a historic reversal, the Supreme Court strikes down a half-century of nationwide abortion rights in the U.S.

Not Bernie Sanders or another lefty. Liberals finally should have learned from the court’s abortion and gun rulings that their priority must be to elect acceptable decision-makers, not to maul moderates and send messages.

And not necessarily to nominate a woman if she isn’t the best candidate. The main goal should not be to elect the first woman president — although it’s shameful we haven’t — but to install a president who can create a Supreme Court that will protect the rights of women.

Democratic leaders — the few there are — should have cajoled then-Vice President Biden into running that year, despite his grieving for son Beau, who had just died of brain cancer.

Clinton did win the popular vote — 2.9 million more people voted for her than Trump. But he won what counted: the electoral vote by carrying 30 states.

That’s all water under the bridge, another cliché. But there’s more water flowing toward that bridge, and lessons should have been learned.

Party leaders and activists should now be thinking dispassionately about who ought to be the Democratic nominee in 2024 if President Biden doesn’t run for reelection — or even if he does.

There could be more Supreme Court justices to nominate in the next presidential term. And there’ll be lots more appellate judges to name.

This November, voters will decide which party controls Congress. Republicans need to pick up just one net seat in the Senate and five in the House to take power.

Fifty-five years ago this month, California enacted the nation’s most liberal abortion law. Back then, more legislators used to think for themselves, columnist George Skelton writes.

In the next term, there are likely to be moves both left and right on abortion — Democratic efforts to restore national abortion rights and Republican attempts to ban them everywhere.

Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic legislators are trying to protect abortion rights in California by crafting a ballot measure that would specifically guarantee them in the state Constitution. But who knows what a GOP Congress might hatch if a Republican is elected president in 2024?

And the modest gun control bill Congress passed and Biden signed last week should mark the first round in toughening national firearms regulations, not the final shot.

So, Democrats who want to protect their rights to abortions and gun safety in California — and restore them in other states — will need to fight for those rights at the ballot box.

California Democrats should ignore the top-of-the-ticket races for governor and U.S. Senate. They’re in the bag for incumbent Democrats Newsom and Alex Padilla.

The focus should be on a few key congressional races that will help decide House control.

Roe vs. Wade went from ‘settled’ law to overruled in a few years, thanks to four unexpected developments.

For example: The contest in northern Los Angeles County between Republican Rep. Mike Garcia and Democrat Christy Smith, a former state Assembly member. This is a rematch of a race Garcia won two years ago. But the district has been redrawn and now is slightly more Democratic in voter registration.

Democrat Rep. Katie Porter, considered a rising party star, is being challenged in Orange County by local GOP chairman Scott Baugh, a former Assembly minority leader. This is a swing district with a slight Democratic edge.

In the San Joaquin Valley, Hanford Republican Rep. David Valadao — one of 10 GOP House members who voted to impeach Trump — is in a tough reelection fight against Democratic Assemblyman Rudy Salas of Bakersfield. Democrats have a solid registration advantage in the remapped district.

Beyond our borders, there are crucial Senate races. Two are in neighboring Nevada and Arizona. Other key contests are in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and North Carolina.

Democratic politicians are talking a robust game. But will there be follow through?

Will Newsom help House candidates in California by campaigning for them and raising money? Will he lend a hand in Nevada?

“We have the capacity to turn this around,” the governor said Friday, attacking the court’s abortion ruling. “It’s time for us to wake up, control what we can control…. We can control them on election day.”

Republicans turned around the Supreme Court by out-politicking Democrats in 2016. Democrats could begin turning it back this year and in 2024 by never forgetting this major consequence of elections: Losing parties can’t construct the court.

President shows commitment to shared future

by global.chinadaily.com.cn Leave a Comment

President Xi Jinping’s keynote speech to the BRICS Business Forum 2022 on Wednesday can be summarized as a sincere proposal for and commitment to sustainable peace and prosperity.

It was not the first time that Xi urged the world to work for peace and prosperity. The world has seen him deliver a similar message while addressing United Nations platforms, regional associations and forums, and bilateral and national forums.

It is apparent that he shares a belief that without ensuring peace and prosperity, the world cannot achieve the goal of a community with a shared future. His message also shows his resolute belief in the need for, and his commitment to, a shared future that can only be achieved through cooperation.

Historical facts show that it was cooperation that helped the world to grow and overcome many challenges. The World Bank has noted that from 1970 to 2015, global GDP grew 25-fold in the aftermath of globalization, increasing from $2.96 trillion in 1970 to $74 trillion in 2015.

The world was also able to reduce by half, from 1990 to 2019, the number of people living in poverty and facing food insecurity. Unfortunately, despite the huge benefits of cooperation and economic links, some nations still choose other directions.

President Xi rightly identified the problems and the causes of problems, summing up current global contradictions as either peace or war, progress or regression, openness or isolation, and cooperation or confrontation. There is no denying the fact that these contradictions have haunted humanity for a long time, though recently the situation has been aggravated.

Trade war, economic isolation and confrontation in the name of so-called human rights and democracy have become the new normal. Hegemonic aspirations and military bloc politics are igniting the flames of new conflicts and crises. The Russia-Ukraine crisis is the latest example.

Experts believe that the West is adopting such tactics out of fear of losing hegemony and economic power. Western countries are bent on denting the global system without realizing that the fall of this system would be a disaster, and no one would be a winner. Rather, everyone would be a loser.

We have seen the disasters of the two world wars, which engulfed millions of people and caused the destruction of resources.

In this context, Xi’s advice, which emphasized abandoning the hegemonic mentality, is rational. He also urged powerful countries to depart from the philosophy of “position of strength”, as it will not serve the purpose of peace and prosperity.

By citing historical lessons, Xi urged all to pursue and defend peace, as it is the only way to secure sustainable prosperity. He reiterated the importance of the China-proposed Global Security Initiative and its four pillars: common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security for lasting peace.

Thus, the Chinese president proposed that we try to forge partnerships based on the principles of win-win cooperation.

The UN must be at the center of all international engagement, and we should adhere to the core values and principles of the UN Charter. It is not a choice－it is the need of the times, amid global challenges including food and energy insecurity, the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change.

However, the challenges are so huge that no single country or region can handle them alone, so there is a need to strengthen cooperation and avoid isolation.

We should understand that small yards with high fences will not serve the purpose. Our world should promote trade, economic linkages, technology development and investment through the system based on the World Trade Organization. This is a win-win proposition for everyone and will boost innovation and creativity, which would be good news for global growth and development.

Xi also urged the business communities of the BRICS member countries－Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa－to play a role in achieving a development agenda. He asked them to be partners in a new industrial revolution, strengthen cooperation on digital economy, smart manufacturing, clean energy and low-carbon technology, and support the industrial restructuring and upgrading.

In a nutshell, the speech reverberated strongly amid today’s global situation and will give hope to developing countries and build a positive image of BRICS.

The author is CEO of the Asian Institute of Eco-civilization Research and Development in Pakistan.