Research says being lonely shrinks brains and increases dementia risk
We might be out of lockdown, but social isolation hasn’t ended for everyone. Loneliness prevails across all generations – and science says it’s not so great for our brains. At some point in our lives, we’ve all felt lonely. Whether you moved to a new place, ended a close and valued...
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What is the 30×30 conservation initiative?
The 30x30 initiative aims to designate at least 30% of all land and oceans as ‘protected areas’ by 2030. The target was first created in 2019, with over seventy nations agreeing to participate. As you’re no doubt aware, our oceans are under serious threat as climate change becomes more severe. There...
Amsterdam airport becomes first to cap flight total for the climate
Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport is the third-largest in Europe, and yet it will become the world’s first to cap the number of flights permitted every year. Touted as a response to the climate crisis, will this prompt wider industry change? Still preoccupied with the whole EPA debacle? Here’s a tidbit of...
Rethinking international trade routes vital to saving marine life
With demand for global freight on the rise, maritime trade is set to triple its capacity by 2050. What could this mean for the ocean’s largest animals? What a time to be alive, eh? Our blueberries are from Morocco, our prawns from Vietnam, and even our avocados travel across the...
One in six UK adults still doubt human links to climate change
In a frankly exasperating turn of events, a report has revealed that one in six UK adults are doubtful that humans significantly contribute to climate change. Ready for the most face-palm inducing content you’ll consume this week? According to a recent survey conducted by the King’s College London, one in...
Why are a growing number of Baloch students going missing?
The number of enforced disappearances of Baloch students across Pakistan has been rising, leading to concerns among the Baloch student community of profiling by the state’s security agencies. The province of Balochistan in Pakistan has been home to an insurgent movement for the past two decades; to counter this, the...
1 in 5 UK women can’t afford period products
The extent of period poverty in the UK has been highlighted in recent reports by WaterAid and Plan International. Everyone’s been feeling the squeeze lately. Gas and electric bills are through the roof, food prices (and shortages) are increasing, and the countdown to pay-day seems to stretch on for months. People with periods have felt this cost-of-living crisis in uniquely painful ways. New research from WaterAid has found that almost...
Google Earth Engine update helps companies monitor their ecological footprint
For the first time, Google Cloud is commercialising its Earth Engine software for companies. This means they can now keep tabs on their own ecological footprint with real-time, detailed data – and so can we. This is a greenwasher’s worst nightmare, and we’re pretty excited about it. Among the boundless applications of cloud computing is the ability to map out real-time digital info-graphics of our planet. Talking of which, Google’s Earth Engine...
Mattel introduces the first Transgender Barbie Doll
The new Barbie is modelled after actress and trans activist Laverne Cox, and is available for online purchase to mark her 50th birthday. Barbie has been a symbol of beauty, controversy, and femininity since Mattel launched the doll in 1956. First came ‘Barbie’ as many of us know her today – with flowing blonde hair, heavy makeup, and an impossibly small waist atop impossibly long, slender legs. In the 63...
What’s wrong with the commercialisation of Juneteenth?
You can already celebrate Juneteenth – a federal holiday marking the emancipation of enslaved African-Americans – with paper plates and party hats, thanks to a swathe of US supermarkets. It’s commercialisation reflects the sanitised version of America’s history that the holiday sought to re-write. Many were elated when Juneteenth was named a federal holiday on June 19th 2021. Like most Black American history, the day that enslaved African-American’s were emancipated...
