Last night, all the stars were in attendance for the Gotham Television Awards held at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.
Day: June 3, 2025
Kyrgyzstan is offering a novel solution to Tajikistan’s mounting water scarcity and pasture degradation: the construction of artificial glaciers, or so-called “ice towers.” These structures store water during the winter and release it during the arid summer months, providing a lifeline for communities affected by climate change.
Innovation Amid a Warming Climate
The initiative was highlighted during the session “Activating Global Action to Enhance Glacier Resilience: Civil Society Experiences in Central Asia,” held as part of the recent International Conference on Glacier Conservation in Dushanbe.
According to Anar Alymkulova, executive director of Kyrgyzstan’s Institute for Sustainable Development, artificial glaciers have proven effective in mitigating the effects of climate change and addressing water shortages. Since the first ice tower was constructed in 2022 in Jalal-Abad, the initiative has expanded significantly. Two more towers were added in 2023, and in 2024, seven were built in Batken region, collectively storing over 1.5 million cubic meters of ice during the winter.
By the end of this year, four additional towers are planned in the Batken and Leylek districts. In total, approximately 30 such structures now operate across Kyrgyzstan.
How Ice Towers Work
The technology is simple yet effective. Water from springs is channeled via an underground pipeline, spanning several kilometers, to a vertical pipe up to 20 meters tall. During winter, water is sprayed from the pipe and freezes, forming an ice tower 30 to 50 meters high. In the spring and summer, the ice melts gradually, supplying water for people and livestock.
Oleg Guchgeldiev, Kyrgyzstan’s representative in the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), noted that each ice tower costs between $3,000 and $4,000 and can store up to 50,000 cubic meters of water. This method offers a practical solution in remote, arid regions where traditional water sources have become unreliable.
A Critical Issue for Tajikistan
Sustainable water management is a growing concern in Tajikistan, where more than 1,000 glaciers have disappeared in the last 23 years. The country has lost about 20% of its glacier volume and 30% of its glacier area over the past five to six decades. According to UNEP projections, Central Asia could lose over half its glaciers by 2050, jeopardizing water security for more than 64 million people, particularly in rural and mountainous areas.
In response, the Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon spearheaded a successful campaign at the UN General Assembly to declare 2025 the International Year of Glacier Conservation. The initiative culminated in a major conference from May 29 to 31 in Dushanbe, attracting over 2,500 delegates from 80 countries and numerous international organizations.
A Scalable Regional Solution
The Kyrgyz model of artificial glaciers presents a scalable solution for Tajikistan and potentially the broader Central Asian region. As glacier retreat accelerates and drought risks rise, such technologies could play a key role in national climate adaptation strategies.
“Artificial glaciers are not only a way to store water, but also a tool for adapting to a changing climate,” experts at the Dushanbe conference emphasized. “They demonstrate how local communities can protect their future using simple technologies and international cooperation.”
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Disabling nuclear missile silos using AI-powered drones is a hypothetical scenario with significant technical,… pic.twitter.com/uJsIilOD9A— Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) June 3, 2025
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Several weeks ago—in an unprecedented move in U.S. history—President Donald Trump issued a presidential memorandum directing a federal review of a private citizen for criticizing him.
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That person was me.
In 2018, while working as a the Chief of Staff for the Department of Homeland Security, I called on my colleagues to preserve our democratic institutions. Now, I am calling on federal watchdogs to take action.
This week my legal team submitted a formal complaint to the Inspectors General of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ). We are asking them to investigate whether federal officials are carrying out what we argue is an unconstitutional order that targets a citizen not for a crime but for dissent.
I served in the first Trump Administration and sounded the alarm about the abuses of power I saw firsthand, first by blowing the whistle anonymously and then publicly. I warned that if Trump returned to power, he would use the presidency to punish his critics. This warning was not rhetorical. I said it would be a “revenge machine” against individuals and institutions alike.
Since then, the Trump White House has been busy proving my point.
The President issued his order on April 9 suspending my security clearance and instructing DHS to conduct an investigation of my time in government. As he did, he suggested that I was guilty of treason—a crime punishable by death—and that the Attorney General should likewise investigate. Trump teased years ago that he would punish me for speaking out, and now back in office, he has followed through on the threat, indifferent to First Amendment protections.
But this is much bigger than me. This is about whether we will allow the President—any president, of any political party—to criminalize criticism. That’s why this Inspector General complaint matters.
Inspectors General are supposed to be the immune system of American democracy. They exist inside our federal agencies to investigate misconduct and prevent the abuse of government authority. They are not prosecutors, and they do not issue verdicts. But they shine a light in the dark, especially when public officials try to exploit their offices to advance political ends.
Now is the time for them to act.
Trump appointees have been directed to use their powers to investigate me, my former colleague Chris Krebs, and our associates. The consequences have already been very real.
I’ve been forced to step away from my job because the blacklisting makes it impossible for me to carry out my work. My family faces the prospect of financial ruin because of legal costs, so we’ve had to set up a legal defense fund. Threats have rolled in against us, including from stalkers who have harassed and doxxed us. Friends have distanced themselves for fear of retribution. A top DHS official was even fired after photos were circulated showing that in 2019 he attended my wedding. And the Justice Department has used the President’s order against me to justify the removal of protections for journalists, making it easier for authorities to get search warrants against news outlets.
But the real harm will come if Trump’s lieutenants are allowed to carry forward with these revenge investigations, unimpeded. Indeed, it will create a precedent for this White House or any future president to investigate anyone they please.
That’s why the Inspectors General must rise to this occasion. DHS and DOJ watchdogs have a responsibility to investigate whether their departments are being misused to punish dissent, whether federal employees are violating constitutional rights, and whether this abuse of power is the beginning of something much worse.
We are in a moment that will test democracy for the ages.
Will the system be able to protect Americans from political retaliation? Or have the guardrails corroded so badly that anyone now faces the prospect of the President’s pen becoming a sword?
This isn’t theoretical anymore. It’s happening—right here in America. And only a handful of institutions remain to stop it.