Below the Fold - Happy New Year!

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Happy Friday, Below the Fold!

Last week, we put the spotlight on important U.S. legislation lost in the sea of holiday headlines. Before we end the year, we wanted to zoom out to a more global view: There’s been a lot happening around the world that’s easy to miss. Join us in reflecting on some important international stories our team covered through 2021.

Canada Tries To Hold U.S. Gunmakers Responsible for Shootings
February 2021

What Happened: At the start of the year, victims of shootings in Toronto sought to hold Massachusetts-based firearms manufacturer, Smith & Wesson, responsible for inadequate safety measures. This included the lack of “smart gun” technology, the development of which Smith & Wesson had abandoned. Simultaneously, Canada introduced a bill focusing on gun owners, which would allow police to seize firearms for up to 30 days without warrant and search the home of any gun owner subject to a legal complaint. It may also outlaw the transport of handguns altogether.

Since Then: Canada’s conversations around guns have continued, escalating in debate around their most recent federal election. To learn more, turn to the National Post.

Spain’s 4-Day Workweek
March 2021

What Happened: In March, Spain became the first European country to test a four-day workweek. Given how Spain is known for its workers putting in more hours than the European average, the hope is that the country can start experiencing the benefits other companies have already seen in their own trials, such as a 25-40% improvement in productivity. For more on the cited benefits of a 32-hour workweek, catch up with our previous coverage.

Since Then: Over 200 companies signed up for the trial, which will last three years.

Mass kidnappings continue in Nigerian schools
April 2021

What Happened: Nigeria’s kidnap-for-ransom business is sadly booming, leading to emptier classrooms than ever before and causing concerns that the country’s education system could collapse altogether. By April, more than 600 schools had shut down — some temporarily, some permanently — due to the spike in mass abductions of schoolchildren. And the students who still show up can’t focus, too afraid that gunmen may appear.

Since Then: Unfortunately, the problem has persisted. In September, Nigerian schools shut down after 73 students were abducted from a state-run school.

Cuba’s first smartphone
June 2021

What Happened: Cuba has been working on its first homegrown smartphone in a country that has struggled for years to get online. With the help of China’s Huawei, the project has been in the works since 2015 — before the country as a whole even had access to the internet. In fact, Cuba was among the last in the world to get 3G.

Since Then: While we couldn’t find an exact technological update, it seems Huawei held 8% of Cuba’s smartphone market share last month.

Ghana fights for a taste of their own cocoa
June 2021

What Happened: Ghana produces a fifth of global cocoa exports, and yet, most local farmers have never even tasted the chocolate bars made from their hard work. Even worse? They continue to live in poverty despite a growing demand for chocolate. This is because more than 80% of profits go to companies in Europe and the U.S. who make, sell, and market the chocolate, leaving just a dollar a day for the farmers. In June, Ghana threatened to stop cocoa exports and instead began exploring ways to make chocolate themselves and own more of the supply chain.

Since Then: Some Ghanaians have created their own chocolate brands in an effort to make Ghana known for the products it exports.

Australian court says artificial intelligence can be named inventor on patents
August 2021

What Happened: Patents are intended to encourage innovation. These legal documents publicize the invention, including its owner and inventor. While the same person can be both, in many cases the owner (who owns all rights to the invention) is different from the inventor (who helped conceive the invention). In August, an Australian court decided artificial intelligence (AI) can be also credited as an inventor on a patent. This makes it possible for some AI inventions to get legal recognition, which some argue will encourage innovation.

Since Then: To better understand how this would work, refer to our earlier coverage.

Saudi Arabia pledges to aggressively cut planet-warming gases
August 2021

What Happened: Not only does the oil and gas sector represent most of Saudi Arabia’s business dealings, but the desert country burns these fossil fuels to meet power-hungry needs such as air conditioning and processing salty seawater into drinking water. Still, Saudi Arabia is pledging carbon neutrality by 2060, meaning the country will remove as much greenhouse gas as it emits. Their submission to the U.N. makes a number of promises, including actively capturing and storing enough carbon dioxide deep underground to reduce carbon emissions by 35% (or 278 million tons) per year by 2030.

Since Then: More companies have followed the country’s lead, such as Saudi Aramco (the Middle East’s largest petrochemical maker) who is pledging to rely on more renewable power generation.

🎬 Action of the Week

Want to do your part in the fight against global warming? The U.N. suggests these ten actions.

ASCII-ING ABOUT THE NEWS

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What did Ghana say to exports?
Wake me up! Before you cocoa...

Art Credit: Hayley Jane Wakenshaw

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Below the Fold - Happy New Year!

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