Blogs and Opinions
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5 facts you might not know about why forest biodiversity matters
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
The Earth’s forests are some of the richest and most biodiverse habitats we have.
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Why private capital is the key to unlocking carbon capture at scale
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
The UK has recently mandated all its companies to disclose the financial risks associated with their climate risks, impact and strategies – as per the framework set out by the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) – by 2025. Not only will this help understand how a given company’s activities are contributing to climate change, but the transparency of reported data will also help unlock the investment required by the more complicated carbon emission-management technologies.
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Record numbers of people in the UK have applied to study nursing
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
Applications to join the nursing profession in the UK are soaring. In the past year, the number of people applying to study to become a nurse has risen by almost a third to more than 60,000. There has also been increased interest in related disciplines, including dentistry and medicine.
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The developing world must get ready to adapt its trade to climate change
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
• In the absence of adaptation, developing countries stand to be hit the hardest by trade losses due to climate change.
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This chart shows South Korea’s population is ageing and shrinking
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
After the number of residents registered in South Korea had already shown a decline for 2020, the fact that the country’s population is decreasing is now cemented by the release of births and deaths data.
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Introducing the ‘world’s greenest football club’ – and their new kit made from coffee beans
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
Already in a league of their own when it comes to sustainability in sport, innovative English soccer club Forest Green Rovers are trialling a kit made from coffee bean waste.
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Brazil’s plan for a 2,600km ‘Green corridor’ that will plant 1.7 billion trees
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
The Black Jaguar Foundation (BJF) has just one goal, but it’s a very big one: the NGO founded by the Dutch entrepreneur and environmentalist Ben Valks plans to reforest 1 million hectares (2.4 million acres) on either side of Brazil’s Araguaia and Tocantins rivers in the Amazon and Cerrado biomes.
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Why we need to bridge the digital divide for greater equality
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
COVID-19 is deepening inequity both within and beyond borders. And as the world shifts increasingly online, uneven access to technology is leaving much of the global population behind.
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Texas power crisis shows need to build a clean, resilient grid
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
What unfolded in Texas wasn’t a power outage – it was a tragedy. And unfortunately, it’s far from the first or the worst we’ve seen in recent years.
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On World Wildlife Day, a host of conservation success stories
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
Whether on land, in the air, or in the water, plants and animals large and small are struggling.
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This country is restarting air travel. Here’s how
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
COVID-19 struck the aviation industry with unprecedented losses as international passenger traffic dropped by about 90% and around 46 million aviation-related jobs were at risk. In Kuwait alone, those losses were in excess of $1 billion. There were repercussions for families separated, livelihoods interrupted, medical and compassionate travel delayed, education programmes canceled, among many other consequences.
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7 ‘Champions for Nature’ tell us their must-read books
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
During this year’s Davos Agenda Week, leaders from the private and public sectors highlighted the urgent need to halt and reverse nature loss. Deliberate action on the interlinked climate and ecological crises to achieve a net-zero, nature-positive economy is paramount. At the same time, these leaders also presented a message of hope: that investing in nature holds the key to ensuring economic and social prosperity and resilience.
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COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 3 March
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
1. How COVID-19 is affecting the globe
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Reducing plastic waste at source is a key part of Indonesia’s battle against ocean pollution
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
Right now an estimated 150 million tonnes of plastic waste is floating in our marine environments. Every year around 11 million additional tonnes make their way into our oceans.
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Here’s a simple and fair way to end corporate tax abuse
Wednesday 3rd of March 2021
The global losses from multinational companies’ tax abuses amount to hundreds of billions of dollars a year – revenues that are badly needed as the costs of the pandemic mount up. But international reform efforts have stalled and some future consensus seems unlikely.
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How improved data could boost humanitarian investment
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
The COVID-19 crisis has exacerbated the pressing challenges already faced by families and communities in fragile contexts. The Global Humanitarian Response Plan for COVID-19, together with existing humanitarian appeals, totalled $39 billion. As of November 2020, donors had given $17 billion to inter-agency plans – around a $22 billion shortfall. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) estimates confirm that donor funding and development finance remains insufficient to meet the overall need (Figure 1).
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For climate policies to stay on track we must prepare for transition risks
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
The world is well behind target on its climate change goals, but there are growing signs of accelerating action. More and more countries are committing to carbon neutrality in two or three decades. Oil and gas companies are under increasing pressure from investors and activists to do more. COP26 in Glasgow later this year offers the prospect of renewed momentum.
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This retro milk float is helping Londoners pursue a ‘zero-waste’ future
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
Heralded by the whirr of its underpowered electric engine and the clink of bottles stacked in crates on the back, Ella Shone’s ‘Topup Truck’ started life ferrying morning milk to the doorsteps of bleary-eyed Londoners.
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Investors are failing African entrepreneurs — it’s time for a change
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
Despite the global economic slowdown caused by COVID-19, the case for investing in Africa is stronger than ever. Africa will remain a competitive investment destination for decades to come because of its improving relative risk profiles, regional integration and strong economic fundamentals.
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For better diversity, leaders should create a cultural shift – here’s how
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
Two scholars who have been studying diversity for decades say that the business case is a dangerous fallacy, one that lets leaders off the hook and trades human dignity for dollars.
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China’s new 5-year plan: Shifting investment from coal to green tech
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
China, which long targeted rapid industrial growth despite its environmental consequences, now aims to become the global leader in “low-carbon tech for a carbon-constrained world” as it unveils its new five-year plan this week, China analysts said.
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Gender equality: Why pay equity isn’t enough
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
Fixing pay inequality is not the silver bullet solution to creating more inclusive fair organisations and economies (famous last words of the CEO of a company developing innovative pay equity and fair pay software). But an innovative rewiring of jobs, complete with a new innovative look at reward and compensation is.
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IMF Head: How governments can prevent widening inequality
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
As G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meet virtually this week, the world continues to climb back from the worst recession in peacetime since the Great Depression.
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Women’s rights must be central to the global recovery. Here’s why
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
The economic crisis resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic is having a profound detrimental effect for most people around the world. Yet, it has impacted men and women differently. Women are more likely to work in health care, unpaid care, and domestic work, making them more susceptible to the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Women still earn less than men for equally valued jobs, bear more of the childcare burden, and face a higher risk of violence in their homes. The pandemic has widened the gender gap in labor force participation, risking decades of progress for women as workers and entrepreneurs. As we write this, the COVID-19 pandemic is still claiming lives and livelihoods, and government policies to address the gender effects of the pandemic have not been enough given the magnitude of the challenge.
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Why we must reimagine capacity building to strengthen education after COVID-19
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
In the past year, COVID-19 has tested education sectors around the world in unprecedented ways. From the massive spread of online learning to the emergence of alternative providers, the remarkable efforts to cope with the pandemic have opened an invitation to reimagine school education in a post-COVID-19 world.
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Your diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives are missing the point. Here’s how to fix them
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
Governments have always had to deal with complex and conflicting criteria in their decision-making processes. Take cost versus the quality of services, for example. Increasingly we are seeing private enterprises grappling with similar issues under the label of ESG (environmental, social and governance factors).
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Scientists say this ‘super plant’ could help soak up pollution on busy roads
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
Nine-in-10 people around the world live somewhere that has air quality below levels recommended by the World Health Organization. Polluted air is killing millions of people every year, knocking several years off life expectancy for many many children and triggering debilitating respiratory conditions.
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International Women’s Day: The women making history in 2021 – so far
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
“While I may be the first woman in this office, I won’t be the last. Because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities.”
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COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 2 March
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
1. How COVID-19 is affecting the globe
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4 ways to improve trade rules and support climate action
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
There is a myth that trade policy and climate action are inherently at odds. That does not have to be the case. Trade can, and should, be a driver of sustainable innovation, productivity, efficiency, and growth.
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Europe needs to learn from Asia to stop falling behind in tech
Monday 1st of March 2021
When I started my technology company in China 7 years ago, everybody in the West thought China was just copying European and US technology and there was no real innovation taking place.
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Why the UK government must do more to boost green revolution
Monday 1st of March 2021
Innovation, specifically green innovation, will be essential in respect of every one of the points in the Prime Minister’s recent 10-Point Plan for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction, and to get anywhere near the pathway to net zero released last month by the Climate Change Committee. Green innovation is something the UK could be doing much better and its encouragement and stimulation provides one of the brightest opportunities for recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Getting in on the ground floor: how street-level lots could reinvigorate the post-COVID city
Monday 1st of March 2021
• Changing patterns in home and office use following the pandemic are interlinked.
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A 5-step guide to scale responsible AI
Monday 1st of March 2021
Machine Learning is a revolutionary technology that has started to fundamentally disrupt the way that companies operate. Therefore, it is not surprising that businesses are rushing to implement it into their processes, as reported by the McKinsey & Company Global AI Survey. At the same time, a tiny percentage of these companies have managed to deploy Artificial Intelligence (AI) at scale – a process which seems harder to achieve given regular reports of unethical uses of AI and growing public concern about its potential adverse impacts.
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3 things to consider when adapting entrepreneurship for the post-COVID world
Monday 1st of March 2021
The current global reality comprises a concurrence of wicked problems – intractable and complex societal challenges – that encompass all aspects of life, which are, day by day, becoming more complex. As the world has been engulfed by the COVID-19 pandemic, acts of violence, highlighting inequality and systemic racism in the United States, have sparked protests around the world. The threat of climate change, ecosystem degradation and natural disasters is ever-present and increasing. Meanwhile, a global economic crisis simmers in the background.
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Why the world’s tallest trees could be even bigger than we thought
Monday 1st of March 2021
They are among the largest trees in the world, descendants of forests where dinosaurs roamed.
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The next decade is critical for the climate. Here’s how the circular economy can help
Monday 1st of March 2021
Many of our environmental calamities – climate change, extreme weather, loss of biodiversity, extracted ocean and eroded soil – stem from the collision of two systems: Earth’s natural system and humankind’s economic system. Such a clash has led geologists to inform us that we have left the Holocene – which supported our civilization – and entered the Anthropocene, the era of humans dominating the earth.
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5 ways parents can help their children avoid gender stereotypes
Monday 1st of March 2021
In the last century, significant progress has been made in advancing gender equity in the United States. Women gained the right to vote, fathers have become more involved parents and more people and institutions recognize gender identities beyond the binary categories of male and female.
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4 lessons from remote learning during COVID-19, study
Monday 1st of March 2021
Despite the overwhelming consequences of the pandemic, this global crisis has also been an extraordinary time for learning. We are learning how adaptable and resilient educational systems, policy makers, teachers, students and families can be. In this blog (which is part of a series highlighting key lessons learned from a study to understand the perceived effectiveness of remote learning solutions, forthcoming) we summarize lessons learned in different countries, with special focus on teachers and how they had to quickly reimagine human connections and interactions to facilitate learning. The role of teachers is rapidly evolving becoming in many ways more difficult than when learning took place only in person.
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How biases influence CEOs throughout their careers
Monday 1st of March 2021
When a celebrity CEO decides to move on, as Amazon’s Jeff Bezos announced he would later this year, it’s an opportunity to revisit what makes people in those roles successful, or flounder, as the case may be. CEO appointees often have a tailwind of strong performance and are expected to be more rational and objective than others. However, CEOs are equally vulnerable to biases, according to a new research paper titled “Behavioral Corporate Finance: The Life Cycle of a CEO Career,” by Wharton finance professor Marius Guenzel and Ulrike Malmendier, professor of finance and economics at the University of California, Berkeley.
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How many hours of work pay the internet bill?
Monday 1st of March 2021
A study by VPN provider Surfshark has found that the planet’s least affordable internet is also often its worst. According to the 2020 Digital Quality of Life Index, Nigerians would have to work more than 33 hours at average pay to be able to afford for the cheapest monthly broadband contract available in the country. This is despite the fact that Nigeria has the third worst broadband speed and fifth least reliable broadband in the survey that looked at 85 countries.
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Okonjo-Iweala becoming WTO head is ground-breaking for all women
Monday 1st of March 2021
What does her career rise represent for Nigerian women?
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Taking early action is key to preventing homelessness, according to this Scottish report
Monday 1st of March 2021
Homelessness is a global problem of staggering proportions, with about 100 million people homeless around the world, according to the United Nations.
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Cybersecurity’s visibility problem: if a self-driving car crashes, whose responsibility is it?
Monday 1st of March 2021
• Ubiquitous connected computing and complex supply chain pose new security challenges.
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This site aims to show how race and gender affect your pay and prospects at work
Monday 1st of March 2021
Look on the website of many employers and you’ll find a statement of their commitment to diversity and inclusion. But how many of them deliver on that promise? Now a leading jobs site is answering that question by publishing employees’ views about how companies perform in relation to race and gender.
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People were asked about communal living – this is what they say is the biggest benefit
Monday 1st of March 2021
The coronavirus pandemic has shone a light on a trend that’s catching the eye of more and more city dwellers – co-living.
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Renewable energy: common myths debunked
Monday 1st of March 2021
Critics of renewable energy often cite two reasons for why they think a transition from fossil fuels will take half a century. Firstly, that sources of renewable energy are too intermittent to be reliable and secondly, that governments cannot bear the costs of switching entire economies to clean energy.
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COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 1 March
Monday 1st of March 2021
1. How COVID-19 is affecting the globe
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This is how one cycle of poverty and ill health is being broken in Brazil
Monday 1st of March 2021
Hundreds of millions of people live in poverty: from the shantytowns of South America to the slums of Africa and Asia. These vulnerable people urgently require decent housing, education, job opportunities, access to government services and medical care. Where to start?
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Giving hope to those living with rare diseases
Sunday 28th of February 2021
Rare diseases are characterized by having low prevalence (e.g. defined as 1 in 2,000 people in Europe) with chronically debilitating and severely life threatening implications. Unique profiles, yet when added together, equate to approximately 200 million people living with rare diseases in Asia Pacific (APAC). Unfortunately, due to the low prevalence, they are often not prioritized.
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11 surprising habits of powerful leaders
Friday 26th of February 2021
Power gets a bad rap, but only because people pursue it for the wrong reasons. When power is pursued for the right reasons, it can be a tremendous force for good.
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Here’s why robots are actually going to increase human employment
Friday 26th of February 2021
The fear that machines will render large swaths of people unemployed is vastly overblown. By taking over the drudgery of repetitive tasks and the danger of more perilous ones, automation will free up humans to do more challenging work—interfacing with customers, developing better products, and yes, managing those robots themselves.
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The economies that are home to the poorest billions of people need to grow if we want global poverty to decline
Friday 26th of February 2021
The huge majority of the world today is very poor. About 85% of the world live on less than $30 per day and 63% live on less than $10 per day.
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Here’s what flood damage is predicted to cost America by 2051
Friday 26th of February 2021
Rising sea levels and extreme weather could cause $20 billion of flood damage to at-risk U.S. homes this year, rising to $32 billion by 2051, according to research from New York-based flood research non-profit First Street Foundation published on Monday.
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Chart: This is how much each of NASA’s Mars missions have cost
Friday 26th of February 2021
After a mammoth 293 million mile journey, NASA’s Perseverance rover safely touched down safely on the surface of Mars. The six-wheeled rover landed inside the Jerezo Crater which is thought to have been a huge lake billions of years ago. It will examine different types of rocks such as clays and carbonates to determine whether they contain traces of microbial life. The vehicle is equipped with a host of scientific instruments and even a helicopter drone called Ingenuity which is set to attempt to first powered flight on another planet.
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This Syrian Refugee wants to run for the German parliament
Friday 26th of February 2021
Almost six years ago Tareq Alaows drifted across the Aegean in a rubber boat before walking most of the way from Athens to Vienna. Now the migrant who fled military conscription in Syria is trying to win a seat in Germany’s parliament.
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An expert explains: 3 ways AI can help in the global battle against cancer
Friday 26th of February 2021
Cancer—or the ‘Big C’, as we call it—is chronic yet curable, provided that it is diagnosed early and healthcare costs are affordable. According to the WHO’s GLOBOCAN report, 19.3 million new cancer cases were diagnosed in 2020, and this is likely to grow by 27.5 million cases each year. By 2025, India is expected to see a rise of 12% in the number of cancer cases, adding another 1.56 million to the disease burden, reports the ICMR.
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3 ways virtual reality could transform mental health treatment
Friday 26th of February 2021
With one in four of us expected to experience a mental health problem at any one time, increasing access to treatment has become essential. But doing so is challenging. Therapists require extensive training, and the most effective forms of therapy involve coaching patients in everyday situations, which is time-consuming and therefore costly.
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Why urban gardens are a lifeline for the world’s pollinators
Friday 26th of February 2021
As humans have industrialised farming to feed a growing global population, pollinators – animals vital for plant reproduction – have seen their food supply decline. In the UK, intensive agriculture has eroded biological diversity in large portions of the countryside, with vast swathes of cereal crops and ryegrass pastures now replacing flower-rich habitats.
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Serious fun: UN launches ozone layer video game
Friday 26th of February 2021
A recently launched video game called Reset Earth envisions a terrifying disease that has swept the planet, creating confusion, chaos and loss of life. Sounds all too familiar, doesn’t it? But on this occasion, the disease is called the Grow, its cause is the collapse of the ozone layer, and the year is not 2021 but 2084.