Blogs and Opinions
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Why Modi 2.0 means a boost for India’s relations with China and the Arab world
Friday 24th of May 2019
This article is part of the World Economic Forum’s Geostrategy platform
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These are the world’s best universities by subject
Friday 24th of May 2019
If you want to pick the the best university for your chosen field of study, go to the U.S.
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Ghana will grow faster than any other economy this year, the IMF says why
Friday 24th of May 2019
Just three decades ago, Ghana was in crisis; impoverished and suffering famine, it was on the verge of economic collapse. Fast-forward to the present day, the West African nation has staged a remarkable comeback and is predicted to be the world’s fastest growing economy in 2019.
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Watch the launch of Space X’s first Starlink satellites
Friday 24th of May 2019
SpaceX, the private rocket company of high-tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, launched the first batch of 60 small satellites into low-Earth orbit on Thursday for Musk’s new Starlink internet service.
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Taiwan celebrates Asia’s first same-sex marriages as couples tie knot
Friday 24th of May 2019
Same-sex couples tied the knot in emotional scenes in Taiwan on Friday, the first legal marriages in Asia hailed by activists as a social revolution for the region.
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Chinese sci-fi takes a giant leap towards global prominence
Friday 24th of May 2019
For 40 years, Science Fiction World has been the center of the Chinese sci-fi universe. By shining a light on works from a wide range of innovative and thoughtful authors — from ice giants like Liu Cixin to fiery comets like Hao Jingfang — the influential magazine has played a crucial role in Chinese sci-fi’s rise to acclaim.
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Time to measure up: 5 ways the fashion industry can be made more sustainable
Friday 24th of May 2019
Clothing is a reflection of our cultural and personal identity. It has helped historians track societal progress, and anthropologists understand cultural and social norms.
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Corporations must help shape a better world – or risk being left behind
Friday 24th of May 2019
Corporations are powerful actors in society. They have the opportunity to shape the world around them and to influence global agendas. They have a responsibility not just to shareholders, but also to their employees, customers and the general public. Employees are increasingly choosing employers based on social responsibilities, rather than short-term profits, pushing companies to put transparency and accountability at the forefront of their operating principles.
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Life in Chernobyl, blockchain saves lunch and other top stories of the week
Friday 24th of May 2019
After the world’s worst nuclear accident. Life in Chernobyl today.⇒ Explore: Nuclear Security
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Air pollution affects happiness, Chinese study finds
Friday 24th of May 2019
For many years, China has been struggling to tackle high pollution levels that are crippling its major cities. Indeed, a recent study by researchers at Chinese Hong Kong University has found that air pollution in the country causes an average of 1.1 million premature deaths each year and costs its economy $38 billion.
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Across the world, children are stepping up global calls to fight climate change
Friday 24th of May 2019
Thousands of young activists in Australia and New Zealand launched a global protest on Friday demanding that politicians and business leaders move swiftly to curb greenhouse gas emissions to fight climate change.
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This is how global warming is reshaping Greenland
Friday 24th of May 2019
Nestled between icy peaks and lapped in frozen ocean waters, the tiny town of Tasiilaq in southeastern Greenland is home to some 2,000 people.
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As Arctic ship traffic increases, walruses and other unique animals are at risk
Friday 24th of May 2019
Most Americans associate fall with football and raking leaves, but in the Arctic this season is about ice. Every year, floating sea ice in the Arctic thins and melts in spring and summer, then thickens and expands in fall and winter.
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Morse code has an amazing 175-year history, and is still used in the digital age
Friday 24th of May 2019
The first message sent by Morse code’s dots and dashes across a long distance traveled from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore on Friday, May 24, 1844 – 175 years ago. It signaled the first time in human history that complex thoughts could be communicated at long distances almost instantaneously. Until then, people had to have face-to-face conversations; send coded messages through drums, smoke signals and semaphore systems; or read printed words.
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Climate change: sea level rise could displace millions of people within two generations
Friday 24th of May 2019
Antarctica is further from civilisation than any other place on Earth. The Greenland ice sheet is closer to home but around one-tenth the size of its southern sibling. Together, these two ice masses hold enough frozen water to raise global mean sea level by 65 metres if they were to suddenly melt. But how likely is this to happen?
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These are the books Bill Gates thinks you should read this summer
Friday 24th of May 2019
I always like to pick out a bunch of books to bring with me whenever I get ready to go on vacation. More often than not, I end up taking more books than I could possibly read on one trip. My philosophy is that I’d rather have too much to read on a trip than too little.
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Is U.S. fertility at an all-time low? Two of three measures point to yes
Friday 24th of May 2019
For the fourth year running, a key U.S. fertility rate has reached a record low, according to the most recent government figures. To some, this is cause for hand-wringing, as concerns arise that fewer births will spell problems for the nation’s economy; while others, concerned about limited natural resources, may look positively on the decline.
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The challenges facing the EU aren’t a surprise, so why haven’t leaders tackled them?
Friday 24th of May 2019
This year’s European Parliament election has spurred months of nail biting. Will the pro-European center hold? Will the body be too fractured to function? Will a vocal contingent of nationalist-populists disrupt every sitting?
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The UN went to one of the world’s richest countries to look at poverty – this is what it found
Friday 24th of May 2019
Picture a country where a fifth of the population lives in poverty. People have to choose between eating or heating their homes and children go to school hungry. Homelessness is rising. And basic services are in crisis, leaving many struggling to cope.
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Pollution could be harming every part of your body. Here’s how
Thursday 23rd of May 2019
It’s not just the environment that pollution is harming, it’s also our bodies.
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Precision medicine should be accessible to all
Thursday 23rd of May 2019
What will health ministers and thought leaders gathering for the 72nd Annual World Health Assembly (WHA) imagine for the future of global healthcare in 2030?
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These cities score an ‘A’ for environmental action – but hundreds more are falling behind
Thursday 23rd of May 2019
Barcelona, Cape Town, London and New York are among the few cities that top a list of those taking action on climate change.
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What’s happening to Greenland will affect the whole world – and our leaders need to understand why
Thursday 23rd of May 2019
“The stability of nature can no longer be taken for granted,” David Attenborough said recently. If anyone still thought they could ignore the climate crisis, recent reports and drastic changes to our planet should shatter that perception. Nowhere is this more visible than in Greenland. Today a group of 20 Young Global Leaders heads for Greenland to witness devastating local changes that have global consequences, and commit to being part of a movement to reverse these trends.
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We’re approaching a point of no return in Greenland. Here’s why
Thursday 23rd of May 2019
Greenland’s ice is melting six times faster now than it was four decades ago.
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Peru is building a new international airport near Machu Picchu – and archaeologists are worried
Thursday 23rd of May 2019
The bulldozers arrived in January to clear the site of Peru’s newest and most controversial airport. Chinchero International, which is expected to shuttle five million passengers a year, is being built in the Sacred Valley of the ancient Inca empire.