Latest news with #Waters
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
U by Kotex® Teams Up with #1 Pickleball Player Anna Leigh Waters to Help Smash Period Stigma in Sports
The Champion Athlete Proves Periods Don't Have to Sideline Performance CHICAGO, June 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The U by Kotex® Brand is taking a shot at period stigma through its new partnership with pickleball champion, Anna Leigh Waters, to challenge the outdated idea that periods hold athletes back. As the number one pickleball player in the world at just 18 years old, the new U by Kotex® brand ambassador is revealing her power move … her period. A recent study suggests some women's mental agility may actually improve during menstruation1, with faster reaction times and better accuracy while on their period. Coming out of an undefeated tournament in San Clemente, California, this week, where she swept doubles matches while on her period, Waters is reinforcing that peak performance doesn't pause for your cycle. "It's always a rush to win a match, but yesterday's win was especially rewarding considering I'm on my period," said Waters. "Many girls today think playing on their period is a barrier to success, even causing many of them to drop out of sports entirely. Thankfully, I now have U by Kotex® as a partner to further our shared mission of empowering women to stay in the game, every day of the month. I am proof that periods shouldn't stop you from competing, chasing your goals, or showing up as your best self – especially when you have the right protection." Additionally, according to a study in the UK, more than 84% of teenage girls ages 11-16 say their interest in sports and physical fitness decreased after starting their period2. Furthermore, nearly 25% of respondents say they feel embarrassed to take part in physical activity during their menstrual cycle2. The U by Kotex® partnership with Anna Leigh aims to debunk the stigma and weaknesses associated with periods in sports – and normalize conversations about how playing on your period can be powerful. "We're proud to partner with Anna Leigh Waters to show the world that a period shouldn't stand in the way of a woman's progress," said Nicole Pawlukowsky, vice president of U by Kotex®. "Celebrating and showcasing female athletes' resilience and strength is something the U by Kotex® brand is proud to champion, and we're honored to partner with the #1 Pickleball player in the World to prove a period shouldn't get in the way of doing what you love." Follow along on social at @UbyKotex on Instagram and @UbyKotexUS on TikTok. About Kimberly-ClarkKimberly-Clark (NASDAQ: KMB) and its trusted brands are an indispensable part of life for people in more than 175 countries. Fueled by ingenuity, creativity, and an understanding of people's most essential needs, we create products that help individuals experience more of what's important to them. Our portfolio of brands, including Huggies, Kleenex, Scott, Kotex, Cottonelle, Poise, Depend, Andrex, Pull-Ups, GoodNites, Intimus, Plenitud, Sweety, Softex, Viva and WypAll, hold No. 1 or No. 2 share positions in approximately 70 countries. We use sustainable practices that support a healthy planet, build strong communities, and ensure our business thrives for decades to come. We are proud to be recognized as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies(R) by Ethisphere for the seventh year in a row and one of Fortune's Most Innovative Companies in America in 2024. To keep up with the latest news and to learn more about the company's 150-year history of innovation, visit the Kimberly-Clark website. Media Contactskotex@ 1 According to a 2024 study, Attentional, anticipatory and spatial cognition fluctuate throughout the menstrual cycle: Potential implications for female sport, Neuropsychologia.2 According to a 2023 study, Exploring the menstrual cycle's impact on physical activity, Nuffield Health. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Kimberly-Clark Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Democratic divisions emerge as Congress tackles crypto regulation
Democrats are wrestling with their strategy on cryptocurrency, a once underground industry that has become a powerful player on Capitol Hill — and closely associated with President Donald Trump. Cryptocurrency groups scored a major win in Washington on Tuesday, with the Senate passing a landmark bill to regulate some digital assets. It was a bipartisan vote, with 18 Democrats joining nearly every Republican to support the bill following an intense lobbying and advocacy effort. But the battle over the legislation has exposed deep Democratic divisions over how to handle the broader issue of crypto in a GOP-controlled Washington. While some Democrats have pushed for the party to be leading the charge on developing policy for the quickly emerging industry, others have been wary of embracing a tool that they say has created conflicts of interest for Trump. Newly released financial disclosures show Trump made one of his largest fortunes last year, $57.3 million, on his family's cryptocurrency company World Liberty Financial. Progressive Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking committee, said the GENIUS Act — the bill the Senate passed that would establish the first regulatory framework for issuers of stablecoins, digital tokens pegged to fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar — would create a 'superhighway' for corruption in the Trump White House. Warren also lamented to NBC News that the crypto industry is 'pouring money in to try to influence votes here in Congress.' But other Democrats see this is a rare chance for Congress to get ahead of an issue, arguing they can't afford to wait until they win back power in Washington to act — especially with how quickly technology moves. 'I think every politician will say this. It's the same thing about any industry that they don't like or understand,' Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., who supports the GENIUS Act, told NBC news in an interview. The GENIUS Act now heads to the House, where the Democratic divide over cryptocurrency — which can often fall along generational lines — came to a head during a private meeting last week attended by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., other Democratic leaders and committee ranking members, according to three sources who were in the room and a fourth source who was briefed on the meeting. Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., who is running for the Senate, expressed her support for the industry and a recent bipartisan bill called the Clarity Act, which would provide a regulatory framework for digital assets, according to three of the sources. The 53-year-old Craig serves in the House Agriculture Committee as the top Democrat, and 86-year-old Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., is the ranking member in the Financial Services Committee. Waters opposes the legislation and instead wants to bar Trump from benefiting from the digital assets Congress could legitimize. Waters expressed those concerns in the Wednesday meeting, three of the sources said. Other members agreed, including Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee. Both Himes and Waters stressed a need for greater insider trading protections in the bill, the three sources said. The lawmakers said Democrats should not enable Trump to get wealthy off of unfettered access to the industry he wants Congress to regulate. Craig argued Trump was already bound by existing laws, one of the sources said. Waters began talking over Craig, who told the room that she was in the middle of speaking, leading to a heated discussion, the source said. As this episode was unfolding, Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., suggested that perhaps Democrats should act to ban the industry altogether, two sources added — an example of just how wildly far apart some Democrats are on the issue. Jeffries moved to table the discussion for another time, the three sources said. After the meeting, both Waters and a Craig spokespersons declined to comment, saying the meeting was private. Jeffries' office also declined to comment on a private meeting. A spokesperson for Scott did not respond to a request for comment. Craig, whose re-election campaign received a big boost from groups associated with the industry last year, has backed a check on Trump. During the Agriculture Committee markup on the Clarity Act, Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., offered an amendment targeting entities that hold meme-based assets associated with the president, vice president or other public officials. All 24 Democrats on the panel, including Craig, backed the amendment; Republicans successfully voted it down. Looming over the Democratic debate is the fact that groups associated with the crypto industry were heavily involved in the last election. Fairshake, a crypto-focused super PAC that formed in 2023, spent $195 million in the 2024 elections. And the group already has $116 million in cash on hand for the 2026 midterm election cycle, according to the group's spokesperson, Josh Vlasto. 'We are keeping our foot on the gas and all options are on the table,' Vlasto told NBC News. Crypto groups supported candidates from both parties in 2024, but they also spent $40 million to oppose then-Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, who was ultimately defeated by Republican Bernie Moreno. That race is still lingering in the air among Democrats who fear that kind of cash being used against them. The cryptocurrency industry has also dialed up its lobbying and grassroots advocacy efforts in recent years. Stand With Crypto, an advocacy group, launched a campaign around the passage of the GENIUS Act encouraging people to call or email their senators in support of the bill. The effort resulted in 75,000 emails being sent to members, according to the organization. The group also organized so-called fly-in meetings ahead of key votes on the bill in order to link members with constituents who utilize crypto. Stand With Crypto has not made any election endorsements, but it is leaving itself the room to do so in the future. In the meantime, the group created a 'scorecard' that tracks how members fare on key votes and has been arguing to lawmakers that an increasing number of voters care about crypto. 'For these folks that are afraid of [crypto] people donating money, that's not really what we do. But what they should be concerned about is our voters voting differently, because these votes are up for grabs,' Mason Lynaugh, community director for Stand With Crypto, told NBC News. 'A lot of these people were not civically engaged before, and I don't know if the genie's going back in the bottle.' Even though Democrats are far from united on the topic, the industry has made some key allies in the party. 'We are here to legislate, and again, to try to bring into compliance an economy that is largely outside the United States is uncontrollable at this point,' Gallego said. 'I think it's the responsibility of us as Congress to put down the rules of the road.' Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., who also supports the GENIUS Act, said he voted for the bill because many of his constituents already use crypto. 'We're already using these products. And so from a public policy point of view, one of the questions for me, is, what will leave the consumers in a better place? So we clearly need some kind of regulatory structure,' Warnock told NBC news. Asked if the industry is pumping too much money into elections, Warnock replied: 'I think there's too much money in our system whether you're talking about oil and gas or the gun industry, it's a serious democracy problem.' This article was originally published on
NBC News
3 days ago
- Business
- NBC News
Democratic divisions emerge as Congress tackles crypto regulation
Democrats are wrestling with their strategy on cryptocurrency, a once underground industry that has become a powerful player on Capitol Hill — and closely associated with President Donald Trump. Cryptocurrency groups scored a major win in Washington on Tuesday, with the Senate passing a landmark bill to regulate some digital assets. It was a bipartisan vote, with 18 Democrats joining nearly every Republican to support the bill following an intense lobbying and advocacy effort. But the battle over the legislation has exposed deep Democratic divisions over how to handle the broader issue of crypto in a GOP-controlled Washington. While some Democrats have pushed for the party to be leading the charge on developing policy for the quickly emerging industry, others have been wary of embracing a tool that they say has created conflicts of interest for Trump. Newly released financial disclosures show Trump made one of his largest fortunes last year, $57.3 million, on his family's cryptocurrency company World Liberty Financial. Progressive Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking committee, said the GENIUS Act — the bill the Senate passed that would establish the first regulatory framework for issuers of stablecoins, digital tokens pegged to fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar — would create a 'superhighway' for corruption in the Trump White House. Warren also lamented to NBC News that the crypto industry is 'pouring money in to try to influence votes here in Congress.' But other Democrats see this is a rare chance for Congress to get ahead of an issue, arguing they can't afford to wait until they win back power in Washington to act — especially with how quickly technology moves. 'I think every politician will say this. It's the same thing about any industry that they don't like or understand,' Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., who supports the GENIUS Act, told NBC news in an interview. Democrats clash over crypto behind closed doors The GENIUS Act now heads to the House, where the Democratic divide over cryptocurrency — which can often fall along generational lines — came to a head during a private meeting last week attended by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., other Democratic leaders and committee ranking members, according to three sources who were in the room and a fourth source who was briefed on the meeting. Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., who is running for the Senate, expressed her support for the industry and a recent bipartisan bill called the Clarity Act, which would provide a regulatory framework for digital assets, according to three of the sources. The 53-year-old Craig serves in the House Agriculture Committee as the top Democrat, and 86-year-old Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., is the ranking member in the Financial Services Committee. Waters opposes the legislation and instead wants to bar Trump from benefiting from the digital assets Congress could legitimize. Waters expressed those concerns in the Wednesday meeting, three of the sources said. Other members agreed, including Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee. Both Himes and Waters stressed a need for greater insider trading protections in the bill, the three sources said. The lawmakers said Democrats should not enable Trump to get wealthy off of unfettered access to the industry he wants Congress to regulate. Craig argued Trump was already bound by existing laws, one of the sources said. Waters began talking over Craig, who told the room that she was in the middle of speaking, leading to a heated discussion, the source said. As this episode was unfolding, Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., suggested that perhaps Democrats should act to ban the industry altogether, two sources added — an example of just how wildly far apart some Democrats are on the issue. Jeffries moved to table the discussion for another time, the three sources said. After the meeting, both Waters and a Craig spokespersons declined to comment, saying the meeting was private. Jeffries' office also declined to comment on a private meeting. A spokesperson for Scott did not respond to a request for comment. Craig, whose re-election campaign received a big boost from groups associated with the industry last year, has backed a check on Trump. During the Agriculture Committee markup on the Clarity Act, Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., offered an amendment targeting entities that hold meme-based assets associated with the president, vice president or other public officials. All 24 Democrats on the panel, including Craig, backed the amendment; Republicans successfully voted it down. Crypto groups spent big bucks on the last election Looming over the Democratic debate is the fact that groups associated with the crypto industry were heavily involved in the last election. Fairshake, a crypto-focused super PAC that formed in 2023, spent $195 million in the 2024 elections. And the group already has $116 million in cash on hand for the 2026 midterm election cycle, according to the group's spokesperson, Josh Vlasto. 'We are keeping our foot on the gas and all options are on the table,' Vlasto told NBC News. Crypto groups supported candidates from both parties in 2024, but they also spent $40 million to oppose then-Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, who was ultimately defeated by Republican Bernie Moreno. That race is still lingering in the air among Democrats who fear that kind of cash being used against them. The cryptocurrency industry has also dialed up its lobbying and grassroots advocacy efforts in recent years. Stand With Crypto, an advocacy group, launched a campaign around the passage of the GENIUS Act encouraging people to call or email their senators in support of the bill. The effort resulted in 75,000 emails being sent to members, according to the organization. The group also organized so-called fly-in meetings ahead of key votes on the bill in order to link members with constituents who utilize crypto. Stand With Crypto has not made any election endorsements, but it is leaving itself the room to do so in the future. In the meantime, the group created a 'scorecard' that tracks how members fare on key votes and has been arguing to lawmakers that an increasing number of voters care about crypto. 'For these folks that are afraid of [crypto] people donating money, that's not really what we do. But what they should be concerned about is our voters voting differently, because these votes are up for grabs,' Mason Lynaugh, community director for Stand With Crypto, told NBC News. 'A lot of these people were not civically engaged before, and I don't know if the genie's going back in the bottle.' Even though Democrats are far from united on the topic, the industry has made some key allies in the party. 'We are here to legislate, and again, to try to bring into compliance an economy that is largely outside the United States is uncontrollable at this point,' Gallego said. 'I think it's the responsibility of us as Congress to put down the rules of the road.' Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., who also supports the GENIUS Act, said he voted for the bill because many of his constituents already use crypto. 'We're already using these products. And so from a public policy point of view, one of the questions for me, is, what will leave the consumers in a better place? So we clearly need some kind of regulatory structure,' Warnock told NBC news. Asked if the industry is pumping too much money into elections, Warnock replied: 'I think there's too much money in our system whether you're talking about oil and gas or the gun industry, it's a serious democracy problem.'
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Battery manufacturer Powin files for bankruptcy months after landing $200M loan
Battery manufacturer Powin filed for bankruptcy on Wednesday. The Oregon-based company said it has more than $300 million in debt. The Chapter 11 filing will let the company continue operating while it restructures its debt. Powin manufactured grid-scale batteries using lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) cells from China. The company had been searching for alternative domestic suppliers, but the supply chain wasn't sufficiently mature, Jeff Waters, the company's former CEO, told Bloomberg in April. The company laid off nearly 250 employees earlier this month, and just 85 remain, less than a fifth of what it started the year with. Alongside the bankruptcy filing, Waters was replaced by Brian Krane, Powin's chief projects officer. Powin was a survivor of the first clean tech boom over a decade ago. The company was taken private in 2018, and it received $135 million in growth equity in 2022 from investors, including Energy Impact Partners, GIC, and Trilantic Energy Partners. More recently, it secured a $200 million revolving credit facility from KKR. In recent years, Powin has grown alongside the boom in grid-scale battery storage, ranked third in the U.S. in terms of installed capacity and fourth worldwide. The company did not say what spurred the sudden rise in debt, though given its reliance on Chinese LFP cells, tariffs may have played a roll.
Otago Daily Times
13-06-2025
- Health
- Otago Daily Times
Exhibit spotlights birth of Plunket
"Putting the power in women's own hands." The history of New Zealand's child health service Plunket will be the subject of a colourful display at the Waikouaiti Coast Heritage Centre from today. Plunket was formed in 1907 following a public meeting called by a Dunedin doctor, Truby King. Dr King (later Sir Truby King) was concerned about the child mortality rate and the lack of help and advice available to new mothers. The date of the first meeting was May 14, 1907, now known as Founder's Day. Waikouaiti Coast Heritage Centre committee chairman Ian Waters said the exhibition was a tribute to the creation of the Plunket Society at Karitane, the birthplace of the movement, founded by Dr King. "It's about celebrating the work he did in putting the power in women's own hands. "He helped to organise a committee, and then a society, and branches of Plunket throughout Otago, which served the purpose of training Plunket nurses and looking after babies that were undernourished," Mr Waters said. The name "Plunket" comes from the organisation's first patron and staunch supporter, Lady Victoria Plunket, wife of the then governor-general and a mother of eight. The exhibition features 5-1 scale models built by Mr Waters, including Plunket rooms and Dr King's beach hospital at Karitane, where many babies were nursed back to health. The hospital operated from 1907 to 1909 before it was relocated to the Dunedin suburb of Andersons Bay, Mr Waters said. "It was originally in Dr King's holiday beach house and he negotiated a property in Andersons Bay. It was given by a very wealthy businessman called Wolf Harris who was an importer," he said. The property included stables that became the first nursing hostel, where Dr King lived, and there were up to 30 babies within the first year being cared for there. As the hostel grew "through the war years", Plunket expanded and was relocated to Andersons Bay, where it ran until 1978, he said. The exhibition also features work from local artist Dinah Fear, who is also a volunteer at the museum. Fear had painted murals of key Plunket locations, including the Andersons Bay Karitane Hospital and Dr King's mausoleum on Melrose Hill in Wellington, Mr Waters said. "Her work is fantastic and it brings things to life," he said. The exhibition will be opened by Elyse Childs, the great-great-granddaughter of Joanna MacKinnon, the first-ever Plunket nurse. The heritage centre will also show a five-minute film about her life and other items from the movement. "Elyse Childs will talk about Joanna's life and she's got a real treasure trove, the first Plunket medal, so that will be on display." The mortality rate of babies was the main driving factor for Dr King's establishment of Plunket. After a visit to Japan in 1904, where he observed that Asian babies were five times less likely to die in infancy than New Zealand babies, Dr King started producing his own milk and cod liver oil emulsions to help improve the health of babies. The exhibition runs for 12 months.
