Judicial Independence: South Korea’s Chief Justice Jo Hee-de urged judges to rule “solely according to the law,” stressing separation between judiciary, legislature and executive amid a Supreme Court nomination dispute. El Niño Watch: NOAA and WMO forecasts point to a very strong “Super El Niño,” with travel and local risk shaped by regional rain vs drought patterns. Ecuador Tech & Health: Gilead and PAHO agreed to widen access to twice-yearly lenacapavir for HIV prevention via PAHO’s regional purchasing, including Ecuador among 14 countries. Biotech Licensing: VaxThera (Colombia) will exclusively license Codagenix’s fully synthetic yellow fever vaccine candidate Syn17D-YF for manufacturing and clinical development. Conservation Science: Ecuador researchers described new Andean frogs with direct development (no tadpole stage) and flagged habitat loss in Carchi, recommending Critically Endangered status. AI Governance: A UN chief contender called for AI regulation “like nuclear weapons,” warning of a potential new arms-race risk. Climate & Cocoa: A study links heavy rainfall timing to cocoa yield losses across Ecuador, Ghana and Indonesia, warning extremes can hit harvests later. Supply Chain Security: The U.S. trained 50+ nations to build forced-labor import bans, shifting compliance risk across tech supply chains. Local Ecuador Angle: Ecuador’s fishing and cocoa sectors face El Niño-linked disruptions, while Quito and Guayaquil reported blackouts during hydro repairs.