Good morning! Nebraska can ban soda purchases with food stamps thanks to Brooke Rollins’ USDA, New York Attorney General Letitia James is under investigation for mortgage fraud, and former U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May closes out the MPW International Summit.
– Global hope. Fortune’s Most Powerful Women International Summit in the Middle East closed yesterday with a wide-ranging conversation between my colleague Ellie Austin and former U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May.
May touched on her currency advocacy related to fighting modern slavery, why she champions a greener economy, and President Donald Trump’s unconventional approach to diplomacy.
One of the main challenges May sees in western politics today is the “absolutism” many bring to the table. Increasingly, she sees people will support someone whose views 100% align with theirs, and if there are differences, then they will be 100% opposed, she said.
“Democracy depends on debate. It depends on people having different views, but being able to respect that other people can have different views, and being able to talk about those and come to a solution,” May said. “And it’s so important that we maintain that approach.”
But May’s words during a back and forth on the turn against globalization—she was forced to quit as PM in 2019 after her Brexit deal was repeatedly rejected—have particularly resonated with me.
While discussing the declining trust that young people in democracies around the globe have in their leaders and institutions, May said that the sense of malaise often stems from the sense that their economic prospects are not meaningfully improving. She pointed to housing affordability and the growing threat of artificial intelligence eliminating entry level jobs as especially salient issues impacting today’s youth.
“You have to be able to give young people hope for the future,” May said. “You have to be able to show them that optimistic vision, that their life will be improving, that their life will be better.”
Also in Riyadh on Wednesday, Silvana Koch-Merin, a former Member of the European Parliament, detailed how she helped get parliament to include diaper-changing facilities in both women’s and men’s restrooms, Julie Brill, Microsoft’s chief privacy officer, discussed how AI is accelerating the pace of innovation, and Deemah AlYahya, secretary general of the Digital Cooperation Organization, raised alarm bells about the AI divide between the world’s wealthy and the so-called Global South.
And that’s a wrap on the international summit—a truly global event that brought together women from over 30 countries. Congrats to Emma, Ellie, and the whole team.
Alicia Adamczyk
alicia.adamczyk@fortune.com
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ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
- Stopping soda. The USDA approved a waiver allowing Nebraska to ban people from buying soda using food stamps; 150,000 people in the state will be affected by this policy change. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said the waiver approval is “a historic step to Make America Healthy Again.” New York Times
- Getting even. New York Attorney General Letitia James called the Department of Justice’s investigation into her alleged mortgage fraud “nothing more than retribution”—James and her office won a $455 million judgement against President Donald Trump and the Trump Organization for the inflation of property values for their own benefit, which is currently on appeal. CBS
- Leaving the Commission. Democratic Commissioner Kristin Johnson will step down from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission later in the year, potentially leaving the commission with just one member following other members’ departures. Bloomberg
- Tech threat. AI will threaten 9.6% of traditionally female jobs compared to 3.5% of traditionally male jobs, says a new report from the United Nations’ International Labour Organization. In most cases, these jobs won't be fully eliminated, but instead substantially changed. NBC
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
Kasey Jenkins, chief growth officer of McCormick, will be retiring early next year. She has been at the spices and seasonings company for 32 years.
Podcast and audiobook platform Podimo appointed Georgia Brown as chief content officer. Previously, she was head of Amazon Studios Europe.
Apothékary, a wellness brand, named Tina Shim SVP of marketing and commercialization. Most recently, she was VP of marketing and digital for IGK Hair at Luxury Brand Partners.
ON MY RADAR
Big Food’s Big Tobacco moment: Arianna Huffington Fortune
The status sweatshirts making college girls crash out The Cut
The last Lucille Roberts New York Times
PARTING WORDS
“It was at a time when men’s stories were really important. Where’s my Mad Men? It just felt like a bummer, like, ‘When is somebody going to see that I have more to offer them?’”
— Actor Jessica Biel on always being cast as “the girlfriend” after her breakout role in 7th Heaven