World must rewild on massive scale to heal nature and climate, says UN–Guardian, June 3, 2021
A new UN report argues that the world must rewild farmlands, forests, oceans and other ecosystems on a never-before-seen scale (with all the ambition of the space race)—restoring an area the size of China to meet commitments on nature and the climate. Existing conservation efforts won’t cut it to prevent widespread biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse, and humans are using about 1.6 times the resources that nature can sustainably renew every year.
What executives are saying about the future of hybrid work–McKinsey, May 20, 2021
The future of work is hybrid! According to a recent McKinsey survey, 9 out of 10 organizations are switching to hybrid working, de facto combining remote and on-site working (and interestingly, the survey confirms that productivity and customer satisfaction have increased during the pandemic). The majority of executives expect that (for all roles that aren’t essential to perform on-site) employees will be on-site from 21% to 80% of the time, or from one to four days per week. The consequences will be manifold.
Pilates, fruit and Amazon’s Zen booths: why workplace wellbeing efforts can fall short–The Conversation, June 8, 2021
COVID-19 has raised “wellness” up the agendas of corporations like never before—and not always in the most meaningful ways. Many companies have introduced exercise classes, fruit and other sticking-plaster solutions rather than measures that assess risk, focus on prevention, and prioritize “decent work” as a driver of both wellbeing and productivity. Amazon took heat for moves like introducing AmaZen booths (mindfulness kiosks) when there are too many reports that they treat workers like “galley slaves.”
Long slide looms for world population, with sweeping ramifications–New York Times, May 22, 2021
Almost all over the world, countries are confronting population stagnation and a fertility bust. This reversal is dizzying but doesn’t have to be seen simply as a cause for alarm. Demographers now predict that by the latter half of the century at the latest, the global population will enter a sustained decline for the first time, leading to hard-to-fathom adjustments. Take the example of China: If the trend doesn’t reverse, its population will fall from 1.41 billion now to about 730 million in 2100, implying that the population pyramid would flip (instead of a base of young workers supporting a narrower band of retirees, China would have as many 85-year-olds as 18-year-olds). Mind-blowing!
A Striking Stat: The Fit-Tech Surge
Investment in fitness tech reached an all-time high of $2 billion in 2020, with the market forecast to reach a staggering $1.1 trillion by 2023.
Source: Pitchbook research, June 2021
