Solutions: Don’t doubt human ingenuity.

• Humanity is stuck in short-term thinking. Here’s how we escape. (mit)

• Is tech the solution to a planet in peril? (triplepundit)

• Could biological batteries from the ground be our next source of renewable energy? (fastcompany)

• Four-day work week is a necessary part of human progress – here’s a plan to make it happen (theconversation)

• Focusing on rivers could prevent 90% of ocean plastic (cnn)

Markets & Economy: Make the irrational, rational. 

• Epic S&P 500 rally is powered by assets you can’t see or touch (msm)

• Investors may need to become more comfortable with volatility in their portfolios (awealthofcommonsense)

• Economic downturn? These sectors are innovating climate solutions. And they’re thriving. (grist) 

• Climate, not elections, will move markets soon (bloomberg)

• US (65%) lagging rest of the world in adopting ESG investment strategies (94% – Europe, 89% – Canada, 72% – Asia) (forbes) 

Crypto & Digital Currency: A digital revolution. 

• PayPal to allow cryptocurrency buying, selling and shopping on its network (reuters) 

• China’s digital yuan tests leap forward in Shenzhen (techcrunch)

• Commodities Chairman Heath Tarbert talks ethereum, defi and the next bitmex (coindesk)

• Bitcoin investment thesis; Bitcoin’s role as an alternative investment (fidelity)

• Fed’s Powell: More important for U.S. to get digital currency right than be first (investing)

Robots & AI: Oh My!

• Defense official calls Artificial Intelligence the new oil (defense.gov)

• Artificial Intelligence: By 2070, robotic judges will analyze body language to pin guilt (dailyalts)

• The deepfake apocalypse never came. But cheapfakes are everywhere. (mashable)

• Machines to ‘do half of all work tasks by 2025’ (bbc)

• Robots encroach on up to 800 million jobs around the world (bloomberg)

Sustainable Investing: Align your dollars with the rest of your life.

• Sustainable investing is changing the world faster than you think (barrons)

• The case for impact investing in public equities (blackrock)

• No such thing as “passive investing” (marketwatch)

• How to measure a company’s real impact (hbr)

Trends by Generation: History is seasonal. 

• NextGen Chamber of Commerce roundtable calls for a new kind of capitalism  (yahoomoney)

• Teens are buying fewer clothes, less food as their spending hits two-decade low (cnbc)

• Millennials control just 4.2 percent of US wealth, 4 times poorer than Baby Boomers were at age 34 (newsweek) 

Tech & Innovation: Unlimited possibility; the good, the bad, the transformative. 

• Is technology actually making things better? (pairagraph)

• First there were boomtowns, now there are Zoomtowns (fastcompany)

• Digital transformation (DX) – the fourth Industrial Revolution? (techzooka)

• How many jobs do robots really replace? (MIT) 

• Yesterday’s anti-trust laws were not built to rein in today’s technology platforms (stratechery)

Markets & Economy: The dismal science. 

• 5 biggest startup trends for 2021 (thestartup)

• House prices vs national average wage index (calculatedrisk)

• Is your risk formula capturing the full picture? (sustainablebrands)

• America’s Main Street revival goes into reverse, cutting a small-town lifeline (WSJ)

Carbon, Climate, and the Environment: The not so silent crisis. 

• Solar is now ‘cheapest electricity in history’, confirms IEA (carbonbrief) 

• Wind and solar supply more than 50 pct of Australia’s main grid for first time (reneweconomy) 

• The Amazon rainforest is near a survival tipping point (fastcompany)

• New data shows climate risk is rising among executives’ biggest concerns (greenbiz)

Solutions: Don’t doubt human ingenuity.

• Now is the time for big infrastructure projects, says the IMF (theguardian)

• 6 lessons on how to scale sustainably (fastcompany)

• How scientists are making sure fires don’t wipe out forests forever (fastcompany)

• How to save a planet (BBGM podcast: the future we want) (gimletmedia)

• Now streaming on Netflix: “the key to combating climate change” (kissthegroundmovie)

Markets & Economy: The dismal science. 

• Here’s what IPO euphoria actually looks like (we aren’t there yet) (reformedbroker)

• Consolidation continues: big companies are starting to swallow the world (NYT) 

• IPO fever: a record breaking year for initial public offerings, with Kathleen Smith (Renaissance Capital) and Jay Heller (Nasdaq) (thecompoundshow)

• How the digital surge will reshape finance (economist)

• Stashing cash in a low-interest world: many wonder where to find the best place for their savings (WSJ)

Social Justice, Diversity, & Ethics: No more tradeoffs.

• Meet the female leaders from 100 brands and businesses, all fighting for a better future (entrepreneur)

• 1 in 4 women considering a career step-back due to increased home responsibilities from COVID (quartz)

• How to invest in businesses that will exit faster for double the returns? Invest in women (women2)

• How tech company culture drives women away (venturebeat)

Crypto & Digital Currency: A digital revolution. 

• SEC chair: perhaps all stocks could become blockchain tokens (ledgerinsights)

• Novel insights into the state of the cryptoasset industry (UoCambridge)

• European Central Bank must prepare to issue a digital euro (reuters)

• China’s digital yuan tests leap forward in Shenzhen (techcrunch)

• Fiat winter is coming? (efficientfrontier)

• Square puts $50 million in bitcoin on crypto ‘empowerment’ bet (bloomberg)

• As 60:40 strategy falters, could bitcoin be an alternative? (dailyalts)

• Forgive and be free (aeon)

Corporate Social & Environmental Responsibility: It’s time to step up. 

• New survey shows 87% of Americans believe people can be effective when they act together to change companies’ behavior (fortune)

• 50 of the 100 companies most systemically responsible for global industrial emissions have set targets for net-zero (triple pundit)

• New SEC rule blocks advocacy proposals from most small & medium shareholders (ceres)

• New report from Test of Corporate Purpose shows companies signing pledges aren’t walking their talk (valuewalk)

• Video: is this the great reset of capitalism? (yahoofinance)

Carbon, Climate, and the Environment: The not so silent crisis. 

• Companies with lowest carbon intensity outperform their peers (just)

• Most partisan polling group ever assembled says climate change not a partisan issue (wattsupwiththat)

• How much will the planet warm if carbon dioxide levels double? (nyt)

• Maybe it’s not all the fault of the individual after all (grist)

Small Business: The life blood of our economy. 

• Applications for new businesses rising at the fastest rate since 2007 (wsj)

• Almost 40% of furloughed employees have returned to work, but 29% have come back to fewer hours or lower wage (usatoday)

• New York bankruptcies reportedly surge 40% during pandemic (CNBC)

Social Justice, Diversity, & Ethics: No more tradeoffs.

• More than 250 companies take action to advance women’s leadership and equality (unglobalcompact)

• Five common misconceptions about workplace diversity (forbes)

• Key factors driving diverse and inclusive workplace (refinitiv) 

Odd Lots: A little bit of this, a little bit of that, a little bit of oh that’s interesting… 

• Are your takeout containers recyclable? (3blmedia)

• Honing the ability to withstand fear and uncertainty (forbes)

• Food wrappers just passed cigarette butts as most common beach trash (fast company)

• Forgive and be free (aeon)