Employment, Skills and Human Capital
Kofi Annan, the former United Nations Secretary-General and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has died at the age of 80. This article is part of the World Economic Forum’s Geostrategy platform How future-proof are your skills — and job? Answers to our Instagram quiz.Hothouse earth. Why climate change might soon accelerate. Photographers have been using drones in recent years to wow us with breathtaking shots of stunning scenery and jaw-dropping landscapes. But now photographer Johnny Miller wants to show us a different side of life from a whole new perspective, through an initiative he calls Unequal Scenes. Synthetic plastics have made many aspect of modern life cheaper, safer and more convenient. However, we have failed to figure out how to get rid of them after we use them. A voracious crop-chomping pest which has wrought havoc in Africa could threaten millions of farmers in Asia, U.N. experts warned on Tuesday, as India battles the continent’s first reported infestation of fall armyworm. New evidence on the performance of non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) during the 2007–13 period casts doubt on the ubiquitous claim that the 2008 financial crisis was triggered by over-extension of mortgage credit and a failure of rating agencies to recognize the associated risks to investors. Non-agency RMBS are backed by mortgages that do not qualify for guarantees issued by agencies of the U.S. government. Examples of such loans are “jumbo” mortgages that exceed the value limit for guarantees, those with a high loan-to-value ratio, and those lacking the documentation needed for agency backing. From 1987 through 2013, various lenders issued about $5.8 trillion in non-agency RMBS. A common narrative for the start of the financial crisis suggests that credit agencies downplayed the riskiness of RMBS, drawing in lenders who did not appreciate their intrinsic risk. Some also claim that ratings were less accurate in the subprime market than elsewhere. Underwater wasteland. NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 9 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – When two university students knocked on the door of Lillian Kanari’s organic food shop five years ago seeking work, she realised their web design skills could help her business solve one of its most intractable problems: food waste. It’s still a man’s world, a bias revealed in phrases about humanity as “measure of man” or “man shall not live by bread alone,” or the ubiquitous use of pronoun “he” even when subject is not identifiable as a man or woman. The diffusion of knowledge and technology worldwide in recent decades has brought important changes to the global innovation landscape. But those changes could be much more profound if countries created more supportive investment environments. Graphene is a modern marvel. It is comprised of a single, two-dimensional layer of carbon, yet is 200 times stronger than steel and more conductive than any other material, according to the University of Manchester, where it was first isolated in 2004. 10 years ago, in early August 2008, the website Airbedandbreakfast.com went online, marking the birth of Airbnb. Back then the three founders, Brian Cheky, Joe Gebbia and Nathan Blecharczyk wanted to help short-term travelers find affordable accommodation and provide renters with an opportunity to make an extra buck by renting out spare rooms or even just the namesake airbed on the floor. Little did they know that 10 years later their little venture would be one of the hottest private companies in the world, valued at nearly $30 billion. Over the years, Airbnb has developed into much more than what it was originally meant to be. These days you can rent millions of houses, apartments and rooms on the platform. For many young travelers is has become the favorite if not the only way to find accommodation when travelling. In many sectors, the disruptive changes now occurring are so major that they have been described as the “fourth industrial revolution”. In response, organisations are focusing on innovation – hackathons, innovation labs and design jams are popular. Unfortunately, many innovations do not make it through to implementation. Many of us eat meat, dairy, and eggs on a regular basis. Unfortunately, these dietary choices are not without harm to the environment. Luckily, you don’t need to cut burgers and eggs from your diet entirely. Even just reducing the amount you eat makes a big difference when it comes to the planet’s health. For example, a survey conducted by Impossible Foods recently found that if Americans swapped 50 percent of the beef they ate with vegan proteins, it would save about 72,000 square miles of land. On Aug. 14, 2003, a software bug contributed to a blackout that left 50 million people across nine U.S. northeastern states and a Canadian province without power. The outage lasted for as long as four days, with rolling blackouts in some areas for days after that. Sir David Attenborough’s long career as a presenter of BBC natural-history programmes first began in 1953 with a three-part series called “Animal Patterns”. Adapted from an address to the Royal College of Physicians, London, on the Occasion of their 500th Anniversary by Andrew Thompson, President and Chief Executive Officer Proteus Digital Health Though nanotechnology is portrayed as a fairly recent human invention, nature is actually full of nanoscopic architectures. They underpin the essential functions of a variety of life forms, from bacteria to berries, wasps to whales. The African integration project took several major steps this year. One of them was the African Union’s adoption of a protocol on the free movement of people. The move has been widely welcomed. South Korea has become the surprise soft-power mecca of the 21st century. American music and movies still make loads of money worldwide, but they seem increasingly passé and predictable. It is instead K-pop and Korean dramas that are providing the world with fresh sounds and storylines, catapulting the Korean boy band BTS atop the 2018 Time 100 reader poll. Let’s see. Where to begin. From San Francisco to South Africa, the issue of fair pay is the subject of furious debate around the world – and for good reason. Businesses around the world are chasing the grey dollar, but older people can contribute more to an economy than how they choose to spend their retirement funds.Humans are living longer, which puts additional strain on healthcare provision, social care and pensions. And unless these issues are addressed, they could wreak havoc on economies in the future. The thinking goes that by harnessing the potential of older workers, governments can raise additional tax revenues and increase spending power, which in turn boosts output. Golden Age Index 2018 The world’s largest vertical farm is coming to Dubai. Show Agenda posts
View more Employment posts
Remembering Kofi Annan
Saturday 18th of August 2018
China is building a new Silk Road, and this one is digital
Saturday 18th of August 2018
Future-proof skills & jobs, factories of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and other top stories this week
Saturday 18th of August 2018
A bird’s eye view of urban poverty and social inequality
Friday 17th of August 2018
Scientists are developing greener plastics – the bigger challenge is moving them from lab to market
Friday 17th of August 2018
Crop-munching armyworm could threaten millions of farmers in Asia
Friday 17th of August 2018
What role did credit ratings play in the 2008 crisis?
Friday 17th of August 2018
An AI has uncovered coral reefs that are resistant to climate change
Friday 17th of August 2018
This Kenyan online food delivery system is cutting waste
Friday 17th of August 2018
Why male is our default gender
Friday 17th of August 2018
How globalization is changing innovation
Friday 17th of August 2018
This graphene battery can recharge itself to provide unlimited clean energy
Friday 17th of August 2018
Chart of the day: London is the Airbnb capital of the world
Friday 17th of August 2018
Your colleagues are not dinosaurs – it’s workplace routines that make innovation difficult
Friday 17th of August 2018
If Americans swapped 50% of the beef they eat for vegan proteins, it could save a lot of land
Friday 17th of August 2018
Electricity grids are at risk from cyberattack. Here’s how we can keep them running
Friday 17th of August 2018
The 2004 lecture that finally convinced David Attenborough about global warming
Friday 17th of August 2018
What will medicine look like in 30 years?
Friday 17th of August 2018
5 ways natural nanotechnology could inspire human design
Friday 17th of August 2018
These are the hurdles to the free movement of African people
Friday 17th of August 2018
K-pop is now so universally beloved that even Algerians speak a little Korean
Friday 17th of August 2018
Buy more books than you ever read? The Japanese have a word for that
Friday 17th of August 2018
Why being paid more often – not just more – will help hourly workers
Friday 17th of August 2018
These countries are gaining the most by employing older workers
Friday 17th of August 2018
Emirates is building a giant vertical farm to feed airline passengers
Thursday 16th of August 2018
Gender Parity
It’s still a man’s world, a bias revealed in phrases about humanity as “measure of man” or “man shall not live by bread alone,” or the ubiquitous use of pronoun “he” even when subject is not identifiable as a man or woman. After more than a year of being put through their paces – learning to scale buildings, defuse bombs and rescue hostages – India’s first all-female commando team started work on Friday, breaking a traditionally male bastion. In Oceans 8, when Debbie Ocean is asked why she felt the need to organise a multi-million-dollar jewellery heist, she replies: “Because it’s what I’m good at.” When women went to work in factories during World War II, they shattered the myth that they weren’t capable of doing the same work as men. From Beyonce Boulevard to Ada Lovelace Lane, a feminist group is rewriting the map of Amsterdam after discovering that nearly 90 percent of the city’s streets are named after men. Fancy seeing Spider-Man in a thong? Or Superman in a skimpy leotard? These images are part of a set of revamped comic book covers that aim to highlight the “sexist” depiction of superheroines, the artist behind the project said on Tuesday. A new study finds that few of the top literary publications are giving equal time to women authors and reviewers. I will start by asking two questions: at what age did you know your gender, and do you think someone else had to tell you what it was? I’m director of mental health at a leading gender clinic in the US. Our clinic is a half-decade old – and in that short period the number of families coming to us with questions about their child’s gender has grown astronomically every month. Employees who come from traditionally underrepresented groups often face a dilemma at work. Do they celebrate and share their cultural, ethnic, racial, gender and other differences? Or do they try to conceal them to create greater social harmony? Wharton management professor Rachel Arnett studies the role that identity plays in cultivating workplace inclusion and how it contributes to professional advancement. She spoke to [email protected] about why managers and employees must get beyond an abstract notion of diversity if they want to effect real change. In the battle for the parity of the sexes, some countries have made progress in reducing inequality—such as in access to health care, education, and financial services—but worldwide, men still have more economic opportunities than women. Children may think more flexibly about gender identities than previously thought, according to new research. From politicians and doctors to activists and athletes, 25 living female heroes dedicated to helping society will be celebrated in statues to help commemorate more women in Britain. New Zealand’s transport authority said on Tuesday it would adopt gender-neutral signs after a 7-year-old girl said it was “wrong and unfair” to suggest only men could work on roadside power lines. When a woman has access to and control over land and its revenue streams, she and her family benefit. Multiple studies have shown how women invest their land-based earnings in the health, nutrition and education of family members. Professional women have strong reasons to ignore recommendations that urge them to have a more visible presence at work, according to a new study. At Luxury Time, a restaurant in the Kurdish city of Erbil, there are no man-size portions. With a flash of green light, a robot sputters and whizzes across the room, obeying the remote control commands 15-year-old Xaviera Nguefo and her team send its way. Half of Colombia’s cabinet ministers will be women when the new government takes office next month in a first for the country and a boost for global gender equality. Legislation to outlaw discrimination on the basis of age was first introduced in the UK in 2006. It was designed to protect people of all ages from discrimination, but older workers are more likely to be adversely affected by age-related stereotypes. It seems there are a number of unfair assumptions about the ability of older workers, which in turn influences how people behave towards older job applicants. Across the United States, more people of all ages are identifying as something other than male or female. It’s been noted that football is one of the few arenas where minority status no longer seems a hindrance, as France’s multicultural World Cup-winning team shows. Now another mainstream field is opening up in the same way: superheroes. Who gets to speak? Who do we listen to? And whose opinions do we respect? These questions are always important, but even more so now, as the UK faces an uncertain future, and political leaders need to make some tough decisions. So it’s disappointing to learn that female voices continue to be marginalised in the nation’s news coverage. Women’s expertise is going untapped and unheard at a critical time. From the first British woman to command a naval base to the first to head spy agency MI5 and the first to become a surrogate mother, a photo exhibition has documented the achievements of British women a century since they won the right to vote. Men bounce back more quickly from the flu because they produce more of a key lung-healing protein, a study suggests. Firms at which senior partners had more daughters than sons hired more women partners and performed better than their competitors.Show Agenda posts
View more Gender posts
Why male is our default gender
Friday 17th of August 2018
India’s first female SWAT team has won its first case – to exist
Thursday 16th of August 2018
What research tells us about gender difference in perceptions of ability at work
Tuesday 14th of August 2018
104 countries have laws that prevent women from working in some jobs
Monday 13th of August 2018
A group is fighting for more streets in Amsterdam to be named after women
Friday 10th of August 2018
A graphic design student has redrawn comic book covers to highlight sexism
Friday 10th of August 2018
There’s still a gender divide when it comes to books
Friday 10th of August 2018
What research tells us about children and gender
Tuesday 7th of August 2018
How firms can make the most of diversity
Tuesday 7th of August 2018
This chart shows the reality behind the gender pay gap
Tuesday 7th of August 2018
Kids are more flexible about gender identity than you might think
Monday 6th of August 2018
More statues of everyday women are set to be built in the UK
Monday 6th of August 2018
New Zealand is replacing ‘sexist’ road signs – after a 7-year-old complained
Monday 6th of August 2018
These projects are helping Zambian women get better access to land
Friday 3rd of August 2018
Why some women are choosing ‘intentional invisibility’ at work
Thursday 2nd of August 2018
This Iraqi restaurant is only for women – and only employs women
Thursday 2nd of August 2018
How robots are helping Cameroon’s women get into work
Tuesday 31st of July 2018
Half of Colombia’s new cabinet will be women
Monday 30th of July 2018
5 myths about older workers
Wednesday 25th of July 2018
Sex and gender diversity is growing across the US
Tuesday 24th of July 2018
TV’s new lesbian Batwoman joins growing numbers of diversity-friendly superheroes
Tuesday 24th of July 2018
Research shows four in five experts cited in online news are men
Friday 20th of July 2018
From spy to surrogate, a new exhibition is celebrating Britain’s female trailblazers
Friday 20th of July 2018
Who recovers from flu faster? Men or women?
Thursday 19th of July 2018
The probability of hiring a female partner at a venture capital firm is down to daughters
Thursday 19th of July 2018
