A circular economy enables us to restore natural ecosystems while still accelerating business and financial objectives. With 90% of CEOs seeing sustainability as important to success and 66% of consumers paying more for sustainable brands, the circular economy might be closer than we think—and it often starts in the supply chain.
We need sustainable and resilient cities—we need the technology and intelligence to enable them. But we also need to be thinking about building cities with materials that can be reused. Let’s look at what this really means for the planet.
Is the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act too little too late? Is the push by President Joe Biden’s administration to “Buy American” enough to revitalize America’s manufacturing industry? Are these initiatives from Washington enough to essentially change our culture in America and in manufacturing? I sure do hope so, but I am not so sure.
Peggy and Anne Munaretto, senior manager of climate change and sustainability services, Ernst & Young, discuss sustainability and ESG (environmental, social, and governance). Munaretto says ESG is an umbrella term—and they all are nonfinancial issues but do in time drive financial value for an organization. They also discuss the key drivers for how we get people to rethink being a make-take-waste society and how the younger generation fits into the equation.
I have declared this the decade of sustainability—as enterprises, cities, and everyone in between hurries to meet carbon neutrality and net zero goals by the elusive 2030 target many have set. But is there one subset that is hurdling toward this faster than others? If so, then how can we get everyone on the same page? A recent survey looks to provide some insights.
Cyberattacks are on the rise—something I predicted years ago would happen. Now, with a large amount of people working remotely, the COVID-19 pandemic has sped this up a bit. We are seeing what some might call an alarming surge phishing and ransomware attacks. Let’s look at some of the numbers, and break this down by vertical.
For roughly two decades we have been discussing the need for free access to commercially attractive spectrum in order to support new services and to expand the capacity and reach of existing wireless systems—particularly in rural and underserved areas.
Heather Mueller, supply chain COO, Breakthrough, joins Peggy to talk about logistics and supply chain systems. She talks about the challenges as a result of COVID and how they have been tackled; some of the common supply-chain disruptions; and lessons learned to avoid future shortages. Mueller also discusses how transportation and supply-chain decisions made at the local level can help dramatically improve the global landscape. Case in point: she says, you cannot improve what you can’t measure, and actuals are not averages.
Could poor digital employee experience cost your company money? A recent survey says yes—to the tune of $4 trillion in lost revenue for global Fortune 500 companies. The past year has created a number of hurdles—particularly as it relates to facilitating equal access to technology and ensuring adoption and digital literacy.
Today, let’s talk 5G and what opportunities arise from enabling ubiquitous connectivity. 5G can be world changing, catalyzing autonomous vehicles and the IoT (Internet of Things) and making edge computing and AI (artificial intelligence) more pervasive. But first we must move past the misperceptions.
We are seeing the return to work ramp up, as employers are looking to bring their workforce back into the office. Combine this with the amount of downsizing from employers due to the COVID-19 pandemic and one question remains: Are we really getting more people, or will technology be replacing some of the tasks since we found the value in AI (artificial intelligence)?
In 2019, the number of people killed in motor vehicle crashes were 36,096. Roughly 94% of serious crashes are still due to human error. The NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Admin.) aims to change that—and AVs (autonomous vehicles) are a big part of that.
We know the COVID-19 pandemic has changed a lot—and transit is certainly at the top of the list. Monthly transit ridership hit a low of 156.6 million rides in April 2020, which is 81.3% lower than the 835.2 million rides taken in April 2019. While transit usage has risen since that time, ridership is still down compared to previous years. But if we implement safeguards and contactless technology can transit make a strong comeback?
Christian Auty, partner, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, and leader of BCLP’s U.S. Global Data Privacy and Security Team, joins Peggy to talk about data security and data privacy and looking to the future issues. He also explains the attack surface is vast and there are 50 different data breach laws in the United States—one for each state. He also explains the likelihood of a federal law for cybersecurity coming to the United States and the ways to you protect yourself and mitigate your liability—actual defense and everything else like the regulator after the fact, potential class action, angry customers, and more.
The COVID-19 pandemic has sped up a lot of things—the move to FinTech, digital banking, and the digital wallet is one of them. Being able to tap a phone, rather than pay with cash or a card, means moving one step closer to a contactless world—something many retailers are aiming for these days.