Can investment in biodiversity really deliver strong financial returns? April 11, 2021 There are myriad myths surrounding the climate crisis which desperately need to be debunked this year. Two in particular that are long overdue: the belief that environmentally-focused investments don’t deliver a strong bottom line and the idea that responsibility to deal with climate change and protecting biodiversity rests on the shoulders of Governments. Both are [...]
Museum of London: From the Great Fire to the Black Death, the City has always carved out a bright future April 10, 2021 Last week, I cycled into work for my first day in the office since December. I had the galleries and all of the glorious parts of our collections all to myself. A treat, some might say. But as Museum Director, what makes my life in my little corner of the City of London meaningful are [...]
Northern Ireland riots: who stirred the combustible pot of tensions? April 10, 2021 Rioting is not uncommon in Northern Ireland, nor is the sight of young people throwing missiles at the police. They do, however, tend to be wearily predictable in terms of dates and locations. Twelfth July, the Protestant celebration of the anniversary of the battle of Boyne, is a flash point, and skirmishes often centre around [...]
HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh: ‘I try to put matters right’ April 9, 2021 A few hours ago, the prime minister will have received a telephone call from a senior official in the Royal Household, probably the Lord Chamberlain, Earl Peel. That official will have said to him words he will have half-expected to hear for some time: “Forth Bridge is down.” This afternoon Buckingham Palace announced that Her [...]
Ministers don’t understand artificial intelligence, so how can they regulate it? April 9, 2021 Regulators are scrambling to stay abreast of the rapid growth of artificial intelligence and machine learning. There are the two familiar camps: one favouring strict regulation in the name of protecting consumers and ensuring responsible use of technology or the other, advocating for a light touch approach to allow innovation and competition to thrive. This [...]
Screenshot: Can cinemas bring Brits back to the big screen? April 9, 2021 This week **Media Moment of the Week: Every dog has its day **Can cinemas bring Brits back to the big screen? **Is Clubhouse really worth $4bn? Media Moment of the Week: Every dog has its day Doing a live piece to camera comes with risks, as any broadcast journalist will tell you. But one thing [...]
In AstraZeneca we trust: it’s not just about blood clots, it’s about understanding fears of young Britons April 9, 2021 Few will emerge from the pandemic unscathed, but the young have made colossal sacrifices and suffered some of the worst consequences. University students have struggled to learn online, career opportunities have been hampered as jobs dried up, and those living in cramped quarters trying to combat loneliness, let alone date, have found lockdown particularly challenging. [...]
Apple’s China dilemma: as the tech giant cracks down on privacy, Beijing finds a workaround April 9, 2021 China’s tech companies have long lived in a parallel universe to their western rivals. But the news that a number of them are testing a tool to bypass Apple’s new privacy rules raises a number of questions about the future of privacy – and perhaps the internet in general. In short, app developers have long [...]
Fighting Russian and Chinese disinformation requires a cohesive strategy from Western governments April 8, 2021 Given the world of the internet and multiple platforms, there is undoubtedly more content out there than at any other time in the history of man. Unfortunately, and predictably, along with this news explosion, the very unhealthy scourge of state-sponsored disinformation–with the West’s authoritarian foes trying to take advantage of this editorially unregulated Wild West [...]
DEBATE: Are NFTs going to change the art world? April 8, 2021 Ezra Konvitz, Director at Founders Intelligence says No NFTs are immutable receipts, not artworks per se. Right now, they’re speculative assets without intrinsic value; unlike Dogecoin, however, the number of interested buyers for any single NFT will be highly constrained, defeating that purpose. Their prime use is either to launder money or to somehow show [...]