Thursday, September 24 | Volume 40 No 28

Keeping Children Safe One Ride at a Time

By Helen Arbogast, DrPH, MPH

Thursday, September 24, 2026

South Africa Leverages Platinum To Court US And China

NATIONAL--- South Africa is seeking to use its dominance in platinum-group metals to navigate a fraught relationship with the US and, at the same time, strengthen economic ties with China. Wash ington needs platinum for its auto motive and defense industries, as well as for other technologies. For Beijing, the metals are necessary to develop green hydrogen and its broader clean-energy ambitions. Both countries also need the metal for expanding their data center in dustries. With South Africa hold ing roughly 80% of the world’s known platinum-group metal re serves, Pretoria is strategically important to the competing pow ers. However, beyond simply sell ing raw metals, Pretoria wants US companies to invest in smelters, factories, and processing facilities in South Africa. The government is pursuing this strategy to create jobs, strengthen manufacturing, and diversify the economy.

Every parent, grandparent, and caregiver want the same thing: for the children they love to be safe. This Child Passenger Safety Week (September 20 to 26), I am proud to partner with the Califor nia Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) and Caltrans to encourage fami lies to take simple steps to protect children on every trip. Keeping children safe in a vehicle starts before the engine is turned on. It begins with making sure a child is riding in the right car seat and that the seat is being used correctly. The good news is that one sim ple action can make a big differ ence. Using the right car seat for a child's age and size can help re duce the risk of serious injury. As someone who has dedicated my career to injury prevention and child safety, I have seen how small choices can save lives. I have also seen how easy it is for busy fami lies with the best of intentions to make an honest mistake when us ing a car seat. Many people are surprised to learn that car seat misuse is com mon. A harness may be too loose. A seat may not be installed tightly enough. A child may transition from a rear-facing seat to a for ward-facing seat, or from a har nessed seat to a booster, before they are ready. More than half of car seat installations are incorrect.

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