Pandemic recovery presents opportunities for addressing gender imbalances in air transport: ICAO Secretary General
Source: ICAO
The Director General of ICAO Dr. Fang Liu gave a speech addressing members of Women In Aviation International in India and highlighted the opportunities of tackling gender inequality in the aviation sector as the industry is pivoting towards recovery.
Dr. Liu stressed this situation is unique as the set-up of the industry recovery is also supported by innovation which has transformed our expectations for global and personal mobility. There is still a long way to go until we see gender equality in this industry, especially in leadership and decision-making positions, but it is truly encouraging to see the leader of the most important civil aviation organization voicing its importance and its urgency.
A zero emission first for AFKLM Cargo and Kuehne+Nagel
Source: Air Cargo Week
Kuehne+Nagel, a Switzerland-based freight forwarder, has joined the Air France KLM Martinair Cargo SAF programme to transport CO2 neutral cargo on airline's flights from Los Angeles to Amsterdam. Although this is the first carbon neutral route Kuehne+Nagel is joining, the company has an ambitious goal to become fully carbon neutral by 2030.
Why sustainability is the new digital
Source: Bain & Company via WEF
The article argues that even in the year of global pandemic progress in sustainability has accelerated and even expanded including a wider range of environmental and social issues. Consumers and investors are demanding change and rapidity. These are some of the areas that experienced disruption in the past 5 years:
The research found that only 4% of corporate sustainability-related initiatives succeed and provided the following recommendations to help companies improve:
Make strategic business changes before the inevitable disruption takes place
Reinvent products
Rethink operations
Form innovative partnerships to tackle complex issues together
Edelman Trust Barometer 2021
Source: Edelman
The 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer, a highly anticipated annual survey published by global communications firm Edelman, presented findings pointing to a continuous decrease of public trust in social institutions - governments, businesses, NGOs and media due to COVID-19 pandemic, global fight for racial justice and a general mistrust in political leaders and the media.
As the world seems to be in a deep crisis of trust, misinformation, we found it interesting that business comes out as the only trusted institution. This is a truly interesting opportunity and momentum for companies and their CEOs to step up and engage in societal issues, raise their voice and take action to embrace public's perception as the only ethical and competent institution:
Source: Edelman
7 ways the circular economy will grow in 2021
Source: Fast Company
The idea of a circular economy where the materials are used in a closed loop, using renewable energy is becoming a reality as more and more companies are moving from plans to action:
Companies selling food, including takeout and grocery delivery, cleaning products and cosmetics are offering refill stations and well designed reusable packaging
Plastic packaging is replaced by new technologies like a special type of glue, or no packaging at all with a focus on more local sourcing, or even growing produce directly in grocery stores
Companies like Levi's and Patagonia take back old clothes for reselling or recycling, or others, like ON and Ikea experiment with product rental
Circularity is part of a company's CO2 reduction strategy
Government bans on plastic and incentives like reduced taxes on used products take shape
Companies are starting to measure the results and report on them using tools like the Circular Transition Indicators and the Circulytics
Product designers play an active roles in determining how reusable their products will be
The FAA just greenlit this drone to fly autonomously without a human nearby
Source: The Verge
The US FAA has approved American Robotics to operate their drones without needing a human pilot or an observer the the aircraft. Although a human will still need to be assigned for each flight, this is a major step forward towards a wider use of beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) operations. The data that will be collected from the American Robotics could open doors for a more independent and less restricted use of drones for delivery.