The Global Gender Gap Report 2014
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Through the Global Gender Gap Report 2014, the World Economic Forum quantifies the magnitude of gender-based disparities and tracks their progress over time. While no single measure can capture the complete situation, the Global Gender Gap Index presented in this Report seeks to measure one important aspect of gender equality: the relative gaps between women and men across four key areas: health, education, economy and politics.
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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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.
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COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 26 February
Friday 26th of February 2021
1. How COVID-19 is affecting the globe
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We asked for your big ideas to change the world. This is what you shared
Friday 26th of February 2021
UpLink and TikTok have partnered to source innovative solutions to the world’s biggest issues under the #MyBigidea campaign.
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Beyond IT: why lawyers are the key to cybersecurity
Friday 26th of February 2021
The modern general counsel is a critical cyber risk ally for boards
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2 in 3 adults think race, ethnicity or national origin affects job opportunities
Friday 26th of February 2021
A new Ipsos-World Economic Forum survey finds that in 27 countries, an average of 65% of all adults think that, in their country, someone’s race, ethnicity, or national origin influences their employment opportunities.
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4 lessons on designing responsible, ethical tech: Microsoft case study
Thursday 25th of February 2021
Despite their best intentions, there’s often a gap in businesses between the desire to act ethically and following through on those good intentions.
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How COVID-19 has changed the way we educate children
Thursday 25th of February 2021
Students, parents and educators are in the midst of another tumultuous school year due to COVID-19. At the height of school closures, in mid-April 2020, 94% of learners worldwide were affected by the pandemic, representing nearly 1.6 billion students in 200 countries.
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UNICEF calls on supply chain and transport industry to take COVID-19 vaccines to the world
Thursday 25th of February 2021
With the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus continuing to spread despite the containment measures put in place by countries around the globe, the world’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic is at a critical juncture. However, the light at the end of the tunnel is already visible: COVID-19 vaccines are being rolled out, with around 60 countries now actively vaccinating their citizens; and the first shipment of COVID-19 jabs under the global COVAX vaccine-sharing initiative arrived in Ghana on February 24.
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The world has lost one-third of its forests, but an end to deforestation is possible
Thursday 25th of February 2021
Shortly after the end of the last great ice age – 10,000 years ago – 57% of the world’s habitable land was covered by forest. In the millennia since then a growing demand for agricultural land means we’ve lost one-third of global forests – an area twice the size of the United States. Half of this loss occurred in the last century alone. But it’s possible to end our long history of deforestation: increased crop yields, improved livestock productivity, and technological innovations that allow us to shift away from land-intensive food products gives us the opportunity to bring deforestation to an end and restore some of the forest we have lost.
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The first COVAX vaccines have been delivered to Africa. Here’s why it matters
Thursday 25th of February 2021
The World Health Organization’s global vaccine-sharing scheme COVAX delivered its first COVID-19 shots on Wednesday 24th of February, as the race to inoculate the world’s poorest people and tame the pandemic accelerates.
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How everyone has a role to play in protecting biodiversity
Thursday 25th of February 2021
The crisis facing nature has never been more apparent. The costs to mankind of our degradation of the natural world have never been more evident. Fortunately, the beginnings of a meaningful response – in the form of a post-2020 global biodiversity framework – is close at hand.
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Bendable concrete and other CO2-infused cement mixes could dramatically cut global emissions
Thursday 25th of February 2021
One of the big contributors to climate change is right beneath your feet, and transforming it could be a powerful solution for keeping greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere.
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This is how much different commodities contribute to deforestation
Thursday 25th of February 2021
New analysis shows that just seven agricultural commodities — cattle, oil palm, soy, cocoa, rubber, coffee and plantation wood fiber — accounted for 26% of global tree cover loss from 2001 to 2015. These agricultural commodities replaced 71.9 million hectares of forest during that period, an area of land more than twice the size of Germany.
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How businesses could cut plastic waste with a track and trace system
Thursday 25th of February 2021
While many businesses ground to a halt at the start of the pandemic, the market for disposable packaging was forecast to grow by 5.5% as the demand for single-use plastics soared. Before COVID-19, the market was already projected to grow by 4% a year until 2027. As a result of all the things we buy and throw away, the average person in the UK is responsible for 99kg of plastic waste each year.
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These 3D printed homes are helping tackle homelessness in the US
Thursday 25th of February 2021
After years of homelessness and hard living, Tim Shea has swapped the sharp corners in his life for the round, flowing design of his new 3D-printed home in Austin, Texas.
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COVID-19: The $4 trillion cost of not vaccinating everyone
Thursday 25th of February 2021
Rolling out a vaccine to stop the spread of a global pandemic doesn’t come cheap. Billions of dollars have been spent developing drugs and putting in place a program to get those drugs into people’s arms.
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5 Black heroes of the environmental movement
Thursday 25th of February 2021
From Greta Thunberg to Sir David Attenborough, the headline-grabbing climate change activists and environmentalists of today are predominantly white. But like many areas of society, those whose voices are heard most often are not necessarily representative of the whole.
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There aren’t enough computer chips to power modern cars
Thursday 25th of February 2021
Besides reeling from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the motor sector now faces another major challenge – it can’t get all the computer chips it needs.
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COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 25 February
Thursday 25th of February 2021
1. How COVID-19 is affecting the globe
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Why countries are desperate to defy the odds and access Mars
Thursday 25th of February 2021
Getting there takes seven months, and landing on a surface where the average temperature is about -60°C involves “seven minutes of terror.”
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How businesses can help solve society’s workforce problems
Thursday 25th of February 2021
In the past nine months, I’ve been proud to see so many businesses stepping up to help their employees and communities. From rolling out new benefits and programmes aimed at helping people navigate the pandemic to making layoffs a last resort, businesses of all types have led with purpose and empathy.
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This opera company is helping people in their recovery from COVID-19
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
An opera company in the UK is encouraging people recovering from COVID-19 to sing lullabies to help them manage breathlessness and anxiety.
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This is why you need that second COVID-19 vaccine dose, says WHO’s Chief Scientist
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
Hospital admissions have been dramatically reduced by just one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, public health officials in Scotland have said. Measuring the impact of 1.14 million doses administered between 8 December and 15 February, vaccines from Pfizer and AstraZeneca led to an 85% and 94% drop in hospitalization, respectively.
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COVID-19 increased the use of AI. Here’s why it’s here to stay
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
From virtual learning, to video chats with our doctors, we’re are all currently negotiating the ways of a new normal that is likely here to stay.
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What can we learn from Nicaragua’s new, preventative approach to storms?
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
In a year already like none other, the 2020 hurricane season broke records with 30 named storms, surpassing the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, which to date was the most active on record. The last two powerful tropical storms, Eta and Iota, also broke records.
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Why creating art with your children is important
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
Many of us may be looking to art activities to keep children busy while at home. If you are, I want you to know that you are doing something positive for your children. From improving communication and motor skills to helping them develop a sense of self, there are many reasons why art making is valuable to children. That’s why it’s important to encourage such creativity from infancy and to include art alongside home learning and as an extension of their play.
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World Bank: COVID-19 school closures threaten women’s economic future
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
Returns to schooling for women are high – so says Bono and the research. A couple of years ago, in an essay in Time magazine Bono wrote: “Give girls just one additional year of schooling and their wages go up almost 12 percent.” He said the same thing a year before that at the Munich Security Conference. The source of that quote was a 2014 World Bank paper and a recent update confirms this is still the case. At the same time, girls are staying in school longer and learning more. However, these gains are at risk as COVID-19 is presenting a crisis within a crisis for girls’ education.
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Here’s what happened when two women set out to clean Johannesburg’s dirtiest river
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
A river filled with sewage, broken TVs, dead dogs and used needles or a clean, bird-luring oasis lined with indigenous plants?
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4 ways we can prioritize food sustainability in 2021
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
As the world continues to confront the coronavirus pandemic, it also has before it a striking opportunity — and obligation — to bring about a fairer, more inclusive, more sustainable and more resilient food and land use system.
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In an AI world, children must learn to write like humans
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
Students across Australia have started the new school year using pencils, pens and keyboards to learn to write.
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How lack of internet access has limited vaccine availability for racial and ethnic minorities
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
Racial and ethnic minority communities that lack internet access have been left behind in the race to get a COVID-19 vaccine. The average monthly cost of internet access, about US$70, can be out of reach for those who can barely afford groceries.
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Air pollution kills thousands in megacities despite COVID lockdowns
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
Air pollution caused tens of thousands of deaths in the world’s five most populous cities last year despite coronavirus lockdowns, researchers said, urging governments to ditch fossil fuels and invest in a green recovery.
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Google has invented a tool which allows you to hear colour
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
Have you ever heard colours?As part of a new exhibition, the worlds of culture and technology collide, bringing sound to the colours of abstract art pioneer Wassily Kandinsky.
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Why India’s gaming industry is on the rise
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
The first nine months of 2020 saw India rise to the number one spot in mobile game downloads worldwide, clocking 7.3 billion installs and raking in a 17% market share of the installs volume, as per SensorTower’s data.
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3 ways to make any partnership successful
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
In 2020, partnerships proved to be a powerful way to mount responses to COVID-19. The World Economic Forum’s COVID Response Alliance for Social Entrepreneurs is a case in point and shows the potential generated when organizations support impact enterprises.
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This is what a human-centred approach to AI technology could look like
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
There’s a pervasive concern today that people are becoming obsolete. The cause and the culprit? Technology.
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COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 24 February
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
1. How COVID-19 is affecting the globe
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Closing the data gap: a cost-effective way to improve air quality
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
According to the World Health Organization, 90% of the world breathes unhealthy air every day. The major source of air pollution is fuel combustion, the key human activity responsible for climate change. In terms of public health, poor outdoor air quality causes an estimated 3.4 million deaths globally each year. Despite being the fourth leading risk factor for early death worldwide – surpassed only by high blood pressure, tobacco use, and poor diet – air pollution is easy to ignore because it is an invisible and constant killer that can only be attributed at a population level and not an individual one. But make no mistake, the air we breathe is dirty, it’s killing us, and heating up the planet.
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3 principles to reinforce digital trust in supply chains
Wednesday 24th of February 2021
• Cyber-threats are increasing with the transformation of digital life in the wake of the pandemic.
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How to follow the Global Technology Governance Summit
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
The World Economic Forum is convening the first Global Technology Governance Summit virtually on 6-7 April 2021 hosted by Japan in close collaboration with the Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) Network. This global network comprises more than 40 governments and international organizations as well as 150 companies.
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We can end routine gas flaring by 2030. Here’s how
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
We are now less than a decade away from the goal of Zero Routine Flaring by 2030, an ambition that sits at the nexus of climate change mitigation and energy policy. Developed by the World Bank and launched in 2015 by the UN, World Bank and several governments, along with oil companies and development institutions, the Zero Routine Flaring initiative is designed to end an oil industry practice that has existed since oil production first began more than 150 years ago.
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Diversity in law enforcement may improve policing, study shows
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
A study of diversity in US law enforcement has backed up theories that a more diverse police force may improve policing.
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Stolen colonial-era objects will be ‘unconditionally’ returned, says the Netherlands
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
Dutch state museums and art galleries are set to return thousands of items taken from former colonies in a move that experts say will make the country a leader in repatriating colonial-era objects.
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This is how local people are helping to map the trees that tech cannot
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
There’s no mistaking the value of trees. They provide jobs and resources for people worldwide, and their carbon dioxide mitigation potential plays an important role in climate action. Fully understanding their value — and where more are needed — requires credible and up-to-date information on where and how many trees are growing.
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This app is preparing Kenya’s herders for extreme weather
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
Sitting under a low tree to escape the blazing Kenyan sun, Kaltuma Milkalkona and two young men hunch intently over the older woman’s smartphone – but they are not transfixed by the latest sports scores or a trending internet meme.
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What we can learn from Japan’s adoption of robots in the service sector
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
Robots hold polar extremes in economic narrative and popular imagination. One narrative depicts a looming dystopian future with robots and other forms of automation increasingly replacing human workers, depressing wages (Brynjolfsson and McAfee 2014), feeding inequality, and contributing to further ‘deaths of despair’ (Case and Deaton 2020, Mulligan 2021). In counter-imaginations, robots embody innovative technology spurring productivity and freeing workers from repetitive, strenuous, monotonous work while helping to relieve labour shortages arising from ageing populations. Such demographic challenges are salient particularly in higher-income countries farther along in the demographic transition, such as the OECD nations, where populations in 18 out of the 36 countries are projected to decline by 2055. These nations face rising old-age dependency ratios, declining employment-to-population ratios, and challenges in providing services to the growing number of frail older adults.
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Chart: Which countries have the largest electric car markets?
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
With Tesla’s meteoric stock market rise in 2020 and several countries and car manufacturers announcing new electric vehicle targets, electric cars have been in the spotlight for a while now. And while they still account for a single-digit percentage of global passenger car sales, several countries, especially across Europe, have made huge strides towards a cleaner future in 2020.
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What can the Texas electricity crisis tell us about the future of energy markets?
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
Severe winter weather in Texas caused the worst energy shortages in the United States since the 2003 blackout in the Northeast and Midwest. Millions of people suffered power outages, which frequently extended beyond 24 hours in areas with freezing temperatures.
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Here’s what landing on Mars looks like thanks to footage from NASA’s rover
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
NASA scientists have unveiled first-of-a-kind home movies of its daredevil Mars rover landing, vividly showing its supersonic parachute inflation over the red planet and a rocket-powered hovercraft lowering the science lab on wheels to the surface.
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This robot jellyfish could help service offshore windfarms
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
Some of the last areas of pristine and untouched wilderness on Earth exist beneath the seas. Yet these marine ecosystems are under threat from deep-sea mining projects, oil rigs and offshore windfarms. When these facilities are built and maintained, they tend to damage the rich ecological networks around them.
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Diversity, Equity and Inclusion have failed. How about Belonging, Dignity and Justice instead?
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
• Existing DEI initiatives only expose discriminatory attitudes, but do nothing to mitigate their effects on those who suffer from them.