Category Archives: Resource Based Economy

HUHTAMKI OYJ PRESS RELEASE 27.8.2021 AT 07:00 EET

Huhtamaki partners with RiverRecycle and VTT to develop technology to tackle floating river waste. New technology river waste collector now operational on the Mithi River in Mumbai, India

Finding new ways to address our environmental challenges is reliant on our ability to foster innovation to find ways of driving systemic change. To support such innovation and progress towards circularity, Huhtamaki, a key global provider of sustainable packaging solutions for consumers around the world, donated 600,000 to fund the development and piloting of a river waste collector, invented by the Finnish cleantech start-up RiverRecycle. The collector is an integral part of RiverRecycles solution to solve marine waste, one of the biggest global challenges of today. With Huhtamakis support, a prototype waste collector was built and tested in Finland. This was then transported to and assembled in Mumbai, where it is now operational and where it will be collecting waste from the Mithi River for the next 12 months.

We believe in protecting food, people and the planet. We also believe that cooperation across the value chain with key stakeholders is needed to address global sustainability challenges, for example such as in this case marine plastics. If we want to drive systemic change, we not only need to support the development and commercialization of innovation that can help stop waste from getting into the oceans, but we also need the monetization of waste and incentivization of local communities to improve their waste management practices, says Thomasine Kamerling, Executive Vice President Sustainability and Communications at Huhtamaki.

When operating in a circular economy, cooperation among different players is fundamental to sustainability. Huhtamaki funding enabled us to complete two of the three parts of our journey of transforming plastic waste into a resource, with the positive engagement of affected communities. Huhtamakis commitment is an example of how collaboration helps solve global problems such as plastic waste pollution," says Anssi Mikola, CEO and Founder of RiverRecycle.

The Mithi River project is run by a global partnership between UNTIL (now known as UN Global Pulse), VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd, RiverRecycle and Earth5R, an India-based citizen-led environmental movement. In addition to building, setting up and operating the river cleaner for a year, Huhtamakis donation has been used to organize local hands-on workshops on effective waste management and recycling with a view to drive systemic change. The project also provides input to VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland on the floating waste and its seasonal variations that can be used to optimize clean-up operations and recycling processes for the future.

The Huhtamaki funding enables the adaption of optical sensors and drones in the detection of floating plastic objects and differentiation of plastics from organic material. VTTs contribution also includes pyrolysis test runs and assessing chemical recycling of the recovered plastic waste fractions. At a broader level we aim to enhance circular economy solutions for the global challenge of plastic waste pollution. In addition to the technology involvement, we also appreciate the collaboration between local partners and communities as an essential part of the successful project implementation, says Jukka Sassi, Senior Scientist, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd.

Huhtamakis ambition is to have 100% of its products designed to be recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2030. In India, where Huhtamaki has 16 units and manufactures mainly high-quality flexible packaging that protect for example food, pharmaceuticals and personal and home care products, the Company has already several recyclable flexible packaging structures in the market under its Huhtamaki blueloop concept. In addition to the Mithi River project, Huhtamaki is contributing to the building of necessary recycling infrastructure by setting up a pilot recycling plant for flexible packaging in India which should be operational by the end of 2021.

We are excited to be a part of this global partnership and the development of the technology enabling us to clean Mithi, the only river that flows through the heart of Mumbai. This project promotes sustainability with a holistic approach by collecting plastic waste, while also empowering local communities to gain knowledge and employment, notes Sudip Mall, Managing Director, Flexible Packaging India at Huhtamaki.

The Mithi River project is one of three initiatives that Huhtamaki funded as part of its 100-year anniversary to address global sustainability challenges and build and learn from circular economy initiatives globally.

For further information, please contact:Katariina Hietaranta, Head of Media Relations, tel. +358 10 686 7863

For more information and materials on the Mithi River project, please visit: https://www.riverrecycle.com/india-mithi-river-cleanup/

HUHTAMKI OYJGlobal Communications

About HuhtamakiHuhtamaki is a key global provider of sustainable packaging solutions for consumers around the world, enabling wellbeing and convenience. Our innovative products protect on-the-go and on-the-shelf food and beverages, ensuring hygiene and safety, and help prevent food waste. We embed sustainability in everything we do. We are committed to achieving carbon neutral production and designing all our products to be recyclable, compostable or reusable by 2030.

We are a participant in the UN Global Compact and as of 2020, we received an MSCI ESG Rating of A, on a scale of AAA CCC. To play our part in managing climate change, we have committed to set science-based targets through the Science Based Targets initiative. Huhtamaki has been awarded the Gold medal by EcoVadis for performance in sustainability.

With 100 years of history and a strong Nordic heritage we operate in 36 countries and 82 sites around the world. Our values Care Dare Deliver guide our decisions and help our team of 18,200 employees make a difference where it matters. Our 2020 net sales totaled EUR 3.3 billion. Huhtamaki Group is headquartered in Espoo, Finland and our parent company, Huhtamki Oyj, is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd. Find out more about how we are protecting food, people and the planet on http://www.huhtamaki.com.

The rest is here:

Huhtamaki partners with RiverRecycle and VTT to develop - GlobeNewswire

Introduction

History has a way of reminding us that while the good times are great, a business as usual comes with many unforeseen risks and challenges. On a positive note, stress, anxiety, and other mental health issues have turned around many mindsets in certain groups. There are now significant and unprecedented levels of compassion, empathy, and more, originating from many populations. One such instance, wherein significant challenges were posed to the community is at the time of the First World War. Besides, there was the Spanish plague, there was the second world war and for the last 60 plus years, we have had to live in a world of misgivings; ranging from populism to political unrests and instability in several parts of the world, primarily the Middle East and some parts of Asia.

When the current Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) started in December 2019, many assumed that like its predecessors H1N1, SARS, different plagues, and viruses, etc., it was going to pass with a thud (Chatterjee et al 2020: para 9).1 Five months into the pandemic and countries continue to live in fear, driven by many unknowns and limited scientific evidence. In the meantime, this aggressive, stealth, and brutal virus continues to spiral unabated. There is at least some consensus that once the peak of the pandemic has been achieved, there will be a reason for optimism. This is based on the assumption that everything being equal (continuous self-exclusion, personal hygiene, social distancing, etc.), the worst would then be behind us. For the most part, this assumption is correct if the processes are effectively and comprehensively implemented. The reality is that the potential for a subsequent wave is real and compelling. To be specific, as per the study findings of Salyer et al,2 the second wave of Covid-19, which was evident by December 2020, was more aggressive than the first one in several cases. In this regard, the Spanish flu, also known as the 1918 flu pandemic, serves as a classical example. Its second wave of infection proved to be even deadlier than the first after non-medical intervention measures put in place at the time had been relaxed.3

It must also be noted that during the outburst of COVID-19 also known as SARS-CoV-2 disease, healthcare workers are found to play a pivotal role. According to the report published by World Health Organization (WHO),4 healthcare workers have been providing frontline services in the pandemic. They are also found to undertake several responsibilities in maintaining health and wellbeing during the outbreak of the coronavirus such as implementing effective health measures, which, in turn, can protect the occupational health and safety aspects of the healthcare organizations. Their significant roles, as well as responsibilities in all the Covid-19 pandemic stages, are found to expose them to risks. The hazards that these healthcare workers have been immensely exposed to during this pandemic include psychological distress, pathogen exposure, fatigue, psychological violence, physical impacts, occupational burnout, extensive working hours, and stigma, among others (World Health Organization (WHO) 2021: 1).4 Even community health workers are found to be playing a vital role in facilitating successful COVID-19 vaccination programs. Health workers are found to plan, as well as coordinate the vaccine rollouts. They are also responsible for identifying the target groups for vaccination along with engaging communities, service delivery, facilitating mobilization, tracking progress, and conduct follow-ups (World Health Organization and the United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) 2021: 8).5

Additionally, Al Thobaitya and Alshammari6 asserted that healthcare workers and nurses have played a significant role in disasters and daily routine, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. They are engaged in providing holistic care to all patients. Since nurses constitute many of the healthcare professionals, they have an important role within healthcare systems. Specifically,

Their roles in treating patients with COVID-19 involve triaging patients and detecting suspected cases with infections; providing essential treatment in an emergency and dealing with suspected patients with precautions; helping in decontamination and coordination with other healthcare providers; supplying holistic nursing practices in managing multiple infections simultaneously; playing critical roles in expanding care services; and dealing with relatives.6

However, Lahner et al7 stated that due to their pivotal role in maintaining the health and wellbeing of the patients even during Covid-19, health workers are found to be at a high risk of getting infected. In the context of Covid-19, it has highly influenced the dynamics of quality of life along with incorporating AI. This has been particularly highlighted in the scientific research conducted by Laudanski et al.8 In this study, it has been understood that technological advancements of AI have significant scope to improve the pandemic response at every stage. Appendix 1 illustrates the pandemic phases propounded by the WHO, wherein distinctive AI applications have been visible considering hypothetical cases. It shows that in the majority of all the stages, AI can be applied in one way or the other. It is during this pandemic that AI engines have been prominently performing with a higher level of sensitivity. This has helped to track cases along with the performance of response programs. Even in cases, wherei limited data are available, AI can be developed and deployed. However, pre-training of AI is found to be highly necessary so that appropriate outcomes can be attained.9

Hence, with the consideration of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the transformation, which has been evident across the world concerning the quality of life as well as AI technological advancements, will be explored in this research paper. The key objective of this research paper is to perform an exploratory review of the varied dynamics of the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to emphasizing the theme of pandemic morbidity and mortality. AI and its contributing role will also be reviewed. The reason for conducting this exploratory review on the concerned topic is to explore the pandemic dynamics, and its contribution in addressing such issues in the future. The present study indicates that it has a high contribution to the existing literature. This is because this topic can be relevant to other health and social issues. For understanding the literature gap, a literature review has been conducted. Thus, it must be noted that limited literature is present, which examines the dynamics of AI and QOL concerning the recent outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, it can be evident that this study can provide important information concerning the QOL and AI dynamics during the pandemic.

The method, which has been incorporated in this research study, is a review of the literature. Besides, anecdotal evidence along with exploratory reviews and reports on the morbidity of COVID-19 have also been taken into due consideration for understanding the dynamics of QOL and AI. This research paper also provides the scope of the devastating effects of the pandemic in select countries: a challenge that should awake all policymakers and create scope for more innovative, cost-effective, and pragmatic interventions. In that regard, the importance of supply chain management systems cannot be adequately emphasized. For the study, a literature review has been conducted by collecting reports and anecdotal evidence. Only recent sources have been selected or included for exploring the review. This is because the issue of the pandemic is recent. Hence, only recent sources are valid for the study. The sources before 2019 have been excluded from the study.

A troublesome pre-occupation in many affected regions is vulnerability. The notion that we are all equal in the fight against this virus has been quickly dispelled with early findings, revealing health inequalities amongst populations ranging from front-line service providers to marginalized communities to racial minority groups (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 2020).10

Specifically, in the United States (US), preliminary nationwide data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)11 revealed that although African Americans represent approximately 13% of the US population, they accounted for 30% of all COVID-19 patients. Although far from complete, these data are consistent with the findings from other data collected on race and COVID-19 so far. A disproportionate toll is also being seen in the UK after the Guardian did an analysis of 12, 593 patients who died of COVID-19 as of April 19, 2020. It showed that 19% were Black, Asian, and minority ethnic (BAME) even though they make up 15% of the population.12

In many cases, keeping food on the table means foregoing safe working conditions and a greater risk of exposure to COVID-19. Hence, it can be stated that this issue closely aligns with pandemic morbidity: the focus of the present paper. Besides, a lack of economic resources often translates to food insecurity, amongst other things, which in turn often leads to poorer health outcomes that include a higher risk of underlying health conditions. In India, millions of people, including migrant laborers and daily wage earners, are facing hunger since the countrys shut down in late March 2020 left them with no means to earn a living. A similar dire outlook is also threatening First Nations communities in Canada and black communities in the US. Canada does not report Coronavirus morbidity by race or ethnicity; making it difficult to address disparities. The study conducted by Nguyen further suggested that to eliminate such economic issues, AI technology can be implemented. In this context, it has been recommended that economic recovery can be predicted, as well as tracked with the help of AI applications by detecting cars and solar panel installations in parking lots.13

Many front-line workers like transport employees, sanitary workers, delivery personnel, etc., are often made up of BAME groups.14 In New York City, for example, Blacks and Latinos make up more than 60% of the hard-hit Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). As of April 22, 2020, eighty-three MTA workers have died.15 Apart from them, healthcare workers are also found to be adversely affected due to COVID-19 economically. According to Shukla, Pradhan, and Malik,16 the outbreak of COVID-19 has posed an economic impact on the healthcare sector of India. As a result of which

A stimulus package at 0.8% of GDP was announced on 26 March 2020 and included in-kind and cash transfer to lower income households, insurance coverage of healthcare workers and financial support to low wage workers and others seeking jobs.16

Even the most basic health recommendations to avoid contracting or spreading infection like hand washing and social distancing are major challenges in marginalized communities without sufficient access to water or housing. The number of people who do not have regular access to water is mind-boggling: 36 million people in Mexico, over 2 million in the US, more than 100 in First Nations communities in Canada, 63.4 million in India, etc. In all, 40% of the worlds population lack access to basic hand-washing facilities in their homes.1720

The inability to self-isolate, when faced with a virulent virus, places additional stress on people within communities, who are affected by overcrowding and housing shortages. In many Indigenous communities in Canada often living in remote areas with limited medical services there are sometimes two or three families living in the same house.21 Indigenous Australians face the same troubling dilemma, compounded by a higher prevalence of underlying health conditions in Indigenous communities compared to general populations.21 There is compelling evidence that unprecedented measures such as national lockdowns were incorporated in Italy due to the pandemic. The main reason for undertaking such measures was that Italian people were facing several health issues, including psychological issues. Even post-traumatic symptoms were evident and hence, psychological interventions were suggested in the study present by Roma et al.22

For Brazils Indigenous groups, where some have little or no contact with non-Indigenous society leaves them particularly vulnerable to disease. Fears grow that the entire community could be wiped out amidst a rising number of illegal land invasions from loggers, miners, etc. As of April 17, 2020, Brazils Socio-Environmental Institute (ISA) has recorded at least 27 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 3 deaths, including a 15-year-old from a village on the Uraricoera River - an access route for gold rush miners.23 Besides, in South-East Asia, it has been reported that Covid-19 was evident earlier than in other parts of the world. The concerned states took 17 days to declare an emergency ie, after 50 positive cases of the contamination of the virus.24 Similarly, several African nations have recorded lesser than 1000 cases. Specifically,

WHO has warned that the pandemic could kill between 83,000 and 190,000 people in 47 African countries in the first year, mostly depending on governments responses; and the virus could smolder for several years.25

Based on the understanding derived from the preliminary research, it has been found that due to the significant roles and responsibilities undertaken by the healthcare workers, they become prone to being infected by the virus. This is the reason why Lahner et al. affirmed that there is a high prevalence of COVID-19 infection among healthcare workers. This was prominently evident from the cross-sectional study, which was done considering the retrospective data of healthcare workers. The results of this study showed that

A total of 2057 HWs (median age 46, 1969 years, females 60.2%) were assessed by the RNA RT-PCR assay and 58 (2.7%) tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Compared with negative HWs, SARS-CoV-2-positives were younger (mean age 41.7 versus 45.2, p < 0.01; 50% versus 31% under or equal to 40 years old, p < 0.002) and had a shorter duration of employment (64 versus 125 months, p = 0.02). Exposure to SARS-CoV-2 was more frequent in positive HWs than in negatives (55.2% versus 27.5%, p < 0.0001).7

It was further observed that nearly half of the healthcare workers considered for this study were not exposed to any COVID-19 infected subjects. This helps in assesing the vulnerability of the healthcare workers while dealing and responding to the pandemic because they are playing the essential role of the frontline workers.7 This study is found to significantly contribute to the literature review. The main reason being that in conducting vaccination drives, the healthcare professionals have important roles. However, if they are affected, the healthcare programs may not lead to positive outcomes. This study can be used in the future for exploring the situations and understanding the risks that are associated with frontline workers so that the third wave of COVID-19 can be managed appropriately along with responding to future healthcare issues.

While lockdowns continue to serve as a geopolitical prevention strategy against COVID-19, the financial and economic outcomes on the poor populations undoubtedly are remarkably onerous. In Asia, for example, and according to the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), 70% of workers belong to the informal economy (no benefits or safety net).26 Many countries in this region have introduced support mechanisms financial and economic (rice, sugar, etc.). These strategies are necessary but not sufficient! As demonstrated by the lockdown insubordination in countries like Bangladesh, the poor in these economies remain vulnerable with limited options and an extremely unenviable way of life: contract the virus by risking going out or follow the lockdown and starve.

The biggest concern for the World Health Organization (WHO) is COVID-19s potential to spread in countries with weak health systems. While the 2019 Global Health Security Index, a health security assessment listing of 195 countries, highlighted fundamental weaknesses of healthcare systems around the world, its not surprising that many countries found to be the least prepared were in Africa.27 Less than 50% of the continents population has access to modern health facilities and countries are plagued with shortages ranging from low numbers of healthcare workers in ratio to the population to medical equipment, medications, and capacity (AFRIC 2019).28

Densely populated cities, slums, and displacement camps; struggles with other simultaneous communicable diseases, ongoing conflicts in some regions, and myriads of other dangerous conditions, make it inevitable that the continent will experience a substantial epidemic.

The one silver lining in terms of mortality rates is that Africa has the youngest population in the world 60% of its 1.25 billion population is under the age of twenty-five, an age group likely to recover from COVID-19 infection.

Besides, data collected from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC) in January and February 2020, identified people aged 60 and over as the most vulnerable to COVID-19. Mortality rates based on these findings were determined by University of Bern researchers as 4.6% for ages 6069, 9.8% for ages 7079, and 18% for ages 80 and over.

Unsurprisingly, with 23.1% of Italys population being 65 and over, it has one of the highest mortality rates in the world (28,236 as of May 1, 2020). In Canada, 79% of all deaths in the country have been linked to seniors homes and long-term care facilities as of April 13, 2020, according to chief public health officer Theresa Tam. Similarly, as per the study conducted by Bhapkar et al, the mortality rate during the pandemic is constantly altering with time and hence, it has been termed Progressive Mortality Rate (PMR). In this study, it was observed that the PMR rates of Russia, India, Japan, the US, Brazil, Germany, China, Mexico, Singapore, New Zealand, and Canada were 1.83, 2.82, 2.75, 3.61, 3.92, 4.35, 5.34, 12.79, 0.05, 1.4, and 7.63 respectively. On the other hand, Progressive Recovery Rates (PRR) of the same countries were recorded to be 85.58, 106.44, 101.15, 38.89, 96.53, 94.85, 94.44, 95.6, 97.93, 97.7, and 92.63 accordingly.29

Furthermore, the study of Samlani et al, suggested that in Morocco, the quality of life of the people was moderately affected by the pandemic. This was because the Mental Health Score (MCS) of all the participants was 34.49. On the other hand, their Physical Health Score (PCS) accounted for 36.10. It was also found that the impact of the concerned pandemic was evident in those people with chronic illnesses, which significantly deteriorated their wellbeing and quality of life. The main reason for such results is that people with or without chronic illness were found to suffer from mental health and panic issues. Besides, the isolation and quarantine made people face psychological health problems.30 It has also been observed that Covid-19 has led to the death of several people, which has further affected the food systems and presented unprecedented challenges to work-life and public health.31

On the other hand, as of March 2021, a total of 1,521,068 people have been infected by the pandemic in South Africa and the most affected region was Gauteng (Johannesburg), which reported about 406,729 Covid-19 cases. It was also found that the highest increase in the daily cases of Coronavirus was evident on 8th January 2021 with 21, 980 new cases. Besides, viewing from a different perspective, it has been found that the pandemic significantly hampered the businesses across the nation, thereby adversely affecting their survivability at large.32,33 This indicates that South Africa has been largely affected by the pandemic, which is bound to change the quality of life of people living and working therein. Concerning South Africa, Covid-19 largely influenced the deaths and mortality rates of the nation due to the presence of underlying causes. It has made a significant impact on the quality of life. Contextually, the mental health of people was negatively affected by the pandemic due to the uncertainty that it created. Besides, restrictions, quarantine, financial losses, high infectivity, continuous lockdowns, fatality, and unemployment rates have altered the daily lives, as well as activities of people. This has led problems associated with mental health along with substance abuse. Even educational institutions have remained closed, which negatively affected the learning and teaching activities of people. Even teenage marriages were observed to increase along with gender-based violence, demonstrations, and social unrest. This implies that there are less human capital and economic opportunities in the future of the nation.34

Another study conducted by Guo et al portrayed those lockdowns, which have been implemented as a precautionary measure during the Covid-19 pandemic have significantly influenced the quality of life of people with Parkinson's disease (PD). In this regard, it was found that the concerned patients were unable to seek medical advice or guidance from their respective doctors. As a result, most of the patients had to alter their routine medicines, which made their quality of life or health conditions even worse. In such situations, telemedicine is found to be significantly effective and efficient for the patients during the lockdown. The challenges concerning adequate treatment caused the symptoms of patients to get aggravated, which further exacerbated their quality of life. On the other hand, healthcare professionals are also finding it difficult to maintain healthcare quality.35,36 Zhang and Ma further affirmed from their study that the quality of life, as well as mental health of local people, especially that of China has deteriorated significantly. Specifically, a mild level of stress was evident among most of the survey participants irrespective of the devastating pandemic outbreak. The mean Impact of Event Scale (IES) score was found to be 13.6 7.7.37 Even social and economic developments have been adversely affected, thereby increasing poverty along with inequality.38 All these aspects indicate that Covid-19 has largely affected people throughout the world, thereby transforming the way they live or their quality of life.

On a similar note, Dey et al highlighted that because of COVID-19, there are several psychosocial and psychological impacts: especially fear among the public. In this review, it was particularly found that the psychological effect was more taxing. Hence, long-term quarantine was implemented by the governmental bodies of various countries. This is the reason why boredom, fear, and frustration have been observed to be highly evident among the citizens. This has increased the difficulties in the trying times of the Covid-19 outbreak. The latter stages of the pandemic were observed to pose more significant impacts such as psychological disorder and stress along with mental stigma and financial losses. This study found that 22% of adults (a survey among 1000 people) have been experiencing worse sleep patterns during this pandemic, which may increase the risk of cardiovascular events [9]. In this situation of adversity, yoga, meditation, and video chat with relatives and friends induce mental relaxation, to some extent. In contrast, self-isolation gives us opportunities to connect with our passions and inner identity.39

Additionally, AI along with augmented intelligence plays a significant role in understanding the collected data through data analytics, pattern recognition, anomaly detection, and machine learning.40 Similarly, Mukherjee et al stated that AI-driven tools have been used to track as well as observe the developments of positive cases during the outbreak of the pandemic. However, it was argued that differences in data can influence the critical decision-making concerning the preparedness and responses of the pandemic. With the advancement in the pandemic stages, technical innovations concerning AI have also been evident, especially for detecting and predicting purposes.41

Currently, there are several achievements, which have been evident during the outbreak of a pandemic. According to report findings of United Nations, telephone-enabled services such as teleconferencing along with social media and other smartphone applications as well as online shopping have been increasing. These services are used to resolve the problems due to Covid-19 in most of the nations, including the US and China. These improvements have increased e-commerce business activities and forced traditional businesses to undergo digitalization.42 In the social context, one of the positive aspects, which have been highlighted by the pandemic, is the role and contribution of women in society. Cities and communities have facilitated innovation for achieving sustainable developments even in this crisis. Besides, marine, as well as land ecosystems are also improving during this pandemic due to reduced exploitation of resources. Also, due to lockdowns and isolations, the flora and fauna are being restored in their natural habitat, as they are not disturbed by humans. Another positive aspect of this pandemic is the unity with which people have been fighting against Coronavirus.43,44 Furthermore, Covid-19 has facilitated the importance of distance learning. However, there are students, who are facing problems in switching to the online mode of learning due to the lack of adequate resources and support from their parents IESALC 2020: 45; UNESCO 2020).4547 On the contrary, Gonzalez et al48 affirmed that the confinement evident due to Covid-19 had a positive impact on the performance of the students in Spain. Similarly, it was found in the study conducted by Chaudhary, Gupta, Jain, and Santosh that the air quality was considerably improved during the lockdown phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in most nations. Hence, it can be stated that due to COVID-19, isolation practices were implemented, which proved to be climate favorable. In many regions of the US, Brazil, China, and India, air quality indices improved due to restrictions in air pollution activities.49 Besides, currently, big data and AI incorporation have been evidenced to enhance the pandemic situation and reduce the adverse impacts of COVID-19. In this context, it was found that By training on an open-source dataset with 13, 975 images of 13, 870 patients, the proposed CNN model can achieve an accuracy of 93.3%. (p. 5).50 Herein, CNN model refers to the convolution neural network (CNN), which incorporates AI techniques.50

Ethical issues are being faced in several areas during the pandemic, especially in terms of physical distancing, conducting clinical trials, rights of healthcare workers, priority-setting, public health surveillance, and resource allocation. The ethical issues are mainly at the time of conducting healthcare research, policy-making, and decision-making process.51 Hence, ethical aspects must be closely considered while responding to the issue at the post-pandemic stage. Specifically, ethical concerns have emerged with the increase in the influx of patients requiring ICUs. Healthcare professionals have been facing ethical dilemmas along with life-support withdrawal decisions. Similar issues have also been faced concerning the quality of end-of-life support and family visits. Hence, effective triage policies are to be formulated so that these issues may not be faced in the post-pandemic phase.52 Similar aspects have been highlighted by McGuire et al wherein it has been affirmed that ethical issues emerged not only within the healthcare system but also in society. Particularly, ethical issues can be evident while defining the benefits, handling informed consent, understanding the special needs of other patients, mitigating discrimination, identifying structural inequalities, and engaging communities.53 Ethical issues have also been found to emerge at the time of resetting healthcare services after the outbreak ie, post-pandemic.8 Contextually, it has been affirmed in the study of Laudanski et al that

Numerous predictive models of COVID-19 prognosis in various individuals based on AI-driven algorithms have been designed and published [7580]. Their ability to distinguish between favorable outcomes and demise is significantly accurate. A few of them were implemented to test their suggestions in real life, a fact that leaves unaddressed concerns about dataset impartiality and concomitant ethical concerns about the implication of AIdriven decisions.

This indicates that in the post-pandemic era, ethical concerns have been prominent, especially at the time of implementing AI-driven decisions.54

The latest technology has been of utmost importance during the pandemic. This is because AI is found to be effective not only in detecting pathogens but also in responding and recovering from Covid-19. According to a report presented by OECD, AI systems had predicted an outbreak of pneumonia in China before coronavirus became the worldwide threat. Hence, understanding the effectiveness of this technology, it is clear that AI technologies and tools can be incorporated for supporting the efforts of medical communities, policymakers, and societies. This can enable the concerned authorities to manage activities at all stages of the pandemic, including the acceleration of research, detection, response, prevention, and recovery. AI can be effective in enhancing research for the discovery of proper solutions such as vaccines and drugs through distributed computing and open data projects.55 Similar opinions have been provided by Arora, Banerjee, and Narasu, wherein AI largely contributed to developing several types of vaccines to date. It seemed that there is a race between the virus and vaccine developers. Hence, for the betterment of mankind and to improve the situation created by the pandemic, AIs ability continues to be vital. This was because The pace of the discovery can be accelerated manifold by harnessing the power of AI.56

To win in the race, several biotechnology companies are depending on AI such as Blue Dot for pacing up the ways to find a cure for the virus. This technology has the potential to identify changes and spot patterns so that the process of vaccine development does not get hampered. In this context, several successful trials have been made. For instance, the Deep Learning-Based Drug Screening method was created using DenseNet for predicting the interactions between ligands and proteins, which further helped in determining the drug combination that worked well while responding to Covid-19. Besides, DeepMind has used the AlphaFold library for understanding the protein structure of the virus. Furthermore, Machine learning (ML) models were developed by the AI scientists of Wuhan for identifying the infection intensity with the help of factors such as gender and age.57 As a result of such initiatives, an AI-based flu vaccine has been developed in the US for which the clinical trials are being sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The scientists of Flinders University used synthetic chemist, which is an AI program that generated numerous synthetic compounds. They also used the Search Algorithm for Ligands (SAM), which is an AI program that assisted the scientists to determine good candidates for vaccine trials. This program has shortened the development process of vaccines. This indicates that AI can contribute not only to examine the drugs that are currently available but also helps in accelerating the antivirus development procedure.58 Additionally, the Human Vaccines Project, as well as the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, has started the Human Immunomics Initiative.This initiative made use of AI models to speed up the process of vaccine and therapeutic development, thereby understanding effective immunity concerning old-aged populations.59

The pandemic has also illustrated that with cooperation at the local, national, and global levels communities can thrive in the wake of the crisis.60 It has also been understood that at the time of pandemic without effective control and prevention measures, the healthcare systems become restricted when considering general measures such as limited travel, social contact, hygiene and sanitary measures, usage of PPE, isolation, and quarantine.61,62 The ongoing carnage experienced by this population is not only despicable but also confirms the degree of incompetence and lackadaisical efforts of some institutions both government and private.

As counterfactuals, there are compelling needs to know if these gruesome and unacceptable mortality rates could have been avoided if:

The memories of this pandemic in these vulnerable communities will be long-lasting and tenuous, especially between the affected families and these institutions.

Additionally, it must also be noted that communities need to prioritize and appreciate essential values along with their needs so that the true importance of healthcare professionals and frontline workers in maintaining the wellbeing of people can be understood. Even the businesses require focusing on values and fulfill the needs of the people. Piccialli et al affirmed that AI technologies have the potential to be successfully used in healthcare systems so that society can be benefitted in future pandemic situations.63

Irrespective of several positive achievements evident during the pandemic due to lockdowns and less human intentions on social, business, and environmental aspects, it has posed significant adverse impacts. To minimize or mitigate the negative consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, certain strategic decisions need to be undertaken by the nations at the post-pandemic stage. Innovation has been one of the widely used strategic initiatives to be undertaken by several countries, especially to revive the healthcare systems along with gain economic stability.64 On the other hand, a recent Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report highlighted that the social economy has been playing an essential role in addressing or minimizing the impacts of the pandemic. This indicates that nations must focus on strengthening their social economies so that both long-term and short-term impacts can be eliminated during the post-pandemic phase. This is because social economy firms have the potential to reshape the national economy, thereby encouraging sustainable economic along with inclusive models. This, in turn, can facilitate social innovation, which will help the economy to improve in the future.65 It has also been suggested by Piccialli et al that in the post-pandemic era, careful application of AI technologies must be enabled for managing complex situations similar to COVID-19 in the future, thereby involving research, healthcare, and society.63

As we go through these trying times, there is a need to regularly remind ourselves that while the vulnerable groups on the front lines specifically continue to subject themselves to this devastating virus, their motivation and dedication to respond to this professional call of duty requires special recognition, empathy, and compassion at all levels. This applies specifically to health professionals who continue to expose themselves daily to alleviate the suffering of victims of the pandemic. Institutional support remains relatively inadequate and yet its involvement is a sine qua non that cannot be adequately emphasized. Institutional support needs to be strengthened, especially concerning individual risks and supply chain coordination.

In the future, it will be important to take effective public interventions so that new cases of Covid-19 can be prevented along with mitigating community transmission. Besides, innovation must be taken into consideration for tracing cases along with online learning and telemedicine for managing the second wave of the Covid-19 outbreak more effectively than the earlier one.66 Since the second wave has been phased out; recommendations for the third wave must be taken into consideration. Vigilant monitoring of the cases must be maintained for tracking the new variants to control the cases at the earliest.67 Disparities evident during the pandemic must also be eliminated cooperatively in order to ensure that future pandemics and similar issues can be averted effectively. Additionally, the health issues such as anxiety and stress must be evaluated, as well as addressed immediately among the healthcare staff.68 It has also been understood that elderly people have higher risks of transmission, which suggests that in the future, the healthcare requirements of the older citizens must be taken into high consideration so that their safety and wellbeing can be ensured.62 Besides, the importance of AI technology has also been found to be immensely imperative, as it has been estimated to play a vital role in tackling COVID-19. AI can contribute not only to pacing up the vaccine development procedure but also in identifying future threats posed by viruses beforehand. It also helps in diagnosing, predicting infections, surveillance, gathering information, delivering materials, deploying services, and tracking the recovery process, thereby expanding strategies. Evidence of these implications has not been evident to date. This can be highly effective in tackling Covid-19 in the future.65 Additionally, AL-Hashimi and Hamdan asserted that AI has been showing positive results in detecting conditions such as diseases. It must also be effectively used in the healthcare sector. With its implentation, healthcare organizations can track the progress of any situation at a quick pace. With more advancement in AI-driven technologies, higher-quality healthcare services can be delivered for the betterment of society.69

Based on the findings gathered in the above sections, it has been understood that Covid-19 has significantly affected the world both positively and negatively. It can be concluded that the pandemic has facilitated global transformations, especially by deteriorating the quality of life of millions of people. Additionally, the public along with healthcare workers was also found to be adversely affected due to COVID-19. It became highly important on the part of the healthcare workers that their health and safety were maintained in order to perform their duties effectively. On a positive note, COVID-19 has made the best use of AI-driven technologies for aiding or responding to the pandemic. Hence, it has been suggested that its full potential needs to be explored in the future. This can help in providing better quality healthcare services in pandemic situations in the future both efficiently and effectively. This will confirm that the objective of the research study has been met effectively. Finally, an exploratory review of COVID-19 has been conducted by emphasizing the theme of pandemic morbidity and considering the dynamics of AI and Quality of Life (QOL).

The pandemic also made us realize the importance of cooperation among people along with values. It is also understood that healthcare workers and other frontline workers are vital in responding to the pandemic. Additionally, innovative approaches and effective health interventions are found to be essential in addressing the adverse consequences of the crisis. This further indicates the lessons that must be learned from the pandemic so that new waves and future epidemics can be handled as effectively as possible. One of such future implications is to ensure the health and wellbeing of elderly people. Another important future implication is to optimally utilize AI capabilities to tackle the pandemic throughout its different stages.

Personal Funds.

The author reports no conflicts of interest for this work.

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Read the original:

COVID-19: quality of life and artificial intelligence | JMDH - Dove Medical Press

While quantitatively, the literacy level is making great strides in India, the type of education that the students are receiving has been questioned time and again. To change the education system at its core has taken years of waitingexactly 34 years and a massive consultation and brainstorming process. Which has finally resulted in the formulation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, that was announced last year amidst the first wave of the pandemic, and which aims to provide high quality, equitable and inclusive education to all.

One year after Indias educational policy was completely overhauled, it has resulted in numerous changes in the ecosystem. It replaces the 10+2 education model with the 5+3+3+4 model and mandates that education should commence at the age of three, as opposed to the previous age of six. The curriculum has been tinkered with and regional languages as a medium of instruction have been included as well. As per the new policy, there will be 12 years of schooling with three years of Anganwadi or pre-schooling. While in the field of higher education, the government aims to raise the gross enrolment ratio to 50 per cent by 2035, along with effecting many other changes.

Recently, the government has come with some new additions to this policy.

These initiatives arethe Academic Bank of Credit and the Artificial Intelligence programmes to facilitate an open education system and prepare students for the future AI based economy.

Educationists in India see this policy as really good and transformative for Indian education with a 360-degree holistic approach that will bring it at par with global standards.

The NEP came out with the vision of transforming the education system like the much-needed tectonic shift. Its a transformative public policy as it is aimed at a blend of digital and traditional learning systems which is the need of the hour. It envisions a complete overhaul and re-energizing of the higher education system to overcome the hurdles and thereby deliver high-quality higher education, with equity and inclusion,

The completion of one year of the NEP 2020, has certainly paved the way for transformational reforms in the school and higher education systems. Students will have flexibility and autonomy in designing their course content, says Dr Silpi Sahoo,Co-founder and Chairperson, SAI International Education Group in Odisha.

The policy is meant to provide an overarching vision and a comprehensive framework for the education system across the country. Its re-envisioned so that the duration, structure, and design of the educational programmes need to match the role requirements that the students will play to help them decide on the career path that they would like to take up in their further higher education, she further says.

At the same time, the experts feel that the NEP is not only going to positively transform the future of the students, but the teachers are going to benefit immensely too.

Surabhi Goel, CEO, Aditya Birla Education Academy, adding in her thoughts says, Bringing in integrated programmes such as NISHTHA 2.0 for teacher training designed by the NCERT, will protect teachers from becoming obsolete. It will help make the education industry more accessible to the teachers, aiding in their overall development. Additionally, by adding further guidelines for skill development programmes as well as by making education accessible to all sections of society, the National Education Policy truly appears to be future-ready, and we look forward to the revolutionary transformation of Indias education sector.

However, every good thing has a few grey areas too. First of all, a policy of this scale needs the support of a massive infrastructure to turn the aspirational part of the NEP into reality, which is obviously not ready or well-equipped enough to do that yet.

The other reason is the current downfall in the literacy rate.

Due to the impact of the lockdowns, the inception of online learning and other reasons, there has been a downfall in the literacy rate. Before the outbreak of the pandemic, it was 79.5 per cent in 2019. It dropped by 2 per cent in 2020 and is now at 77.7 per cent. This calls for the quick and strategic implementation of this policy.

The educationists that SME Futures spoke to have a lot to say about their take on the new education policy.

The National Education Policy, 2020 is the first education policy of the 21stcentury. It has been a year since its announcement.

On being asked about whether the implementation of the NEP 2020 is on track, education expert, Dr. Anuradha Shridhar, Head Curriculum Development and Training at Aditya Birla Education Academy, while hoping for the timely execution of this policy says, The government task forces have been set up across various states to study its implementation and address the various challenges. The government dashboard too will monitor and track the ongoing work. Higher education institutes are working on integrating curricular areas, which is going to be an area of challenge. Now, I can hope that things can be rolled out in phases for the NEP as per the timeline.

She strongly believes that the NEP is overall a plan for the major transformation of the education sector.

When the NEP came around everyone welcomed the new policy with gusto, and there were discussions all around given that we were in the online space, and everyone could afford to give their views. But at this stage I feel that there are some important questions we need to ask, she says.

According to her those questions areWill India be ready to roll it out by the 2023 timeline in the classrooms, both in the K-12 space and in the higher education space?

Will the teachers be trained?

Are the policies outlined? How will the assessments work? And many more questions remain in addition to those.

These questions have arisen at a time when the work on this policy has been going on at a frantic pace behind-the-scenes.

The government, the policymakers, the CBSE and the board officials have been working relentlessly to build the proper framework.

181 tasks are to be completed as part of the NEP 2020, as identified by the education ministry. Earlier this year, the government announced a phased policy implementation plan titled Students and Teachers Holistic Advancement through Quality Education (SARTHAQ). Which represents the NEP roadmap for the next ten years.

Besides that, the ministry will set up a review committee which will monitor the progress of these various tasks. And the officials associated with it will be held accountable in case of any lapses or discrepancies.

Another expert in the field Neha Parti, DirectorSchools at Quest Alliance, a non-profit organisation, feels that the progress has been slow.

While the ministry for human resource development (MHRD) has made certain efforts to aid in bringing the NEP to life, the progress has been slow, she asserts.

Talking about the introduction of key efforts such as SARTHAQa guideline to implement the policy, Parti says, Its adoption has been dependent on the initiatives taken by the various states themselves. These have largely been limited to the setting up of task forces to interpret the NEP and develop the implementation plans. Apart from the roadmap, there seems to be a lack of definitive milestones.

The NEP is an ambitious project and to expedite its implementation, the government needs to reach the very last mile in the ecosystem. But there are many challenges that need to be overcome before that can happen.

Parti tells us that translating the understanding of the NEP at the last mile is a challenge. In our own capacity-building workshops, we have found that the teachers struggle to grasp the policy document and its implications, she asserts.

Which can be a roadblock in implementation.

Prof Marwah of JK Business School agrees, saying, The present education regime excludes formal training and orientation towards pedagogy for college and university educators. This calls for curriculum design revamps to make it more flexible and organic for enabling foundational and higher-order thinking and skill inculcation at different levels of education.

Shridhar also adds in, saying, To this end, it will require good guidance and teacher skilling from experts who have a thorough understanding of the NEP requirements like the holistic report card, interdisciplinary subject teaching and competency-based curriculum planning.

The fact is that the teachers of today are the products of the old education system. Many times, it has been noted and media reports have also shown that the quality of the teachers has been questioned by many. Experts suggest that this calls for continuous professional development trainings to improve the quality of the current teaching system.

Training the government teachers is a humongous task for CPD. I believe that there is the need for a dedicated programme for consistent teacher training to sustain the quality of the currently employed teachers, says Sahoo of SAI InternationalEducationGroup.

Whereas the cost of CPD is another recurring expense.

To put it simply, there is a stringent need to restructure the training of the existing teachers according to the new curriculum, especially in the rural regions. This is another big task for the government.

The Indian education sector needs more teachers.

Capacity building within the education departments to bring about comprehensive change remains a task.

On this, Parti says, There is a need for collaborative and consolidated efforts by various stakeholders at the state level to come together and chart a new vision for education. It requires state education departments to design a change management process to make the NEP a reality.

Another fact on which the government needs to align its focus is on the availability of educators. For a long time, there has been a dearth of trained teachers.

According to the latest data, the total number of teachers in 2019-20 was 9.68 million (surge of more than 250,000 from 2018-19). But the study predicts that the number for 2020-21 may vary or reduce as an aftermath of the pandemic. We will know the outcome of that in 2022.

On the other hand, the figures from the Standing Committee on Human Resource Development (2020) reveal that 23 per cent of the total posts for teachers (including elementary and secondary levels) under Samagra Shiksha are vacant.

The states with comparatively higher vacancies includeJharkhand (48 per cent), Uttarakhand (39 per cent), Kerala (39 per cent), and Karnataka (33 per cent).

The NEP also talks about vocational training in schools. Its execution will be impossible without bringing in trained experts or professionals as teachers into the classrooms. For example, a normal teacher cant teach carpentry, or how to use tools or the differences between various kinds of woods. This fact has created another challenge for the stakeholders.

There is a need for focused attention towards teacher capacity-building and for ensuring that the requisite number of teachers and resources are present within the schools to complete the policy provisions and translating this into action will require a systemic overhaul in the processes like teacher recruitments, the growth pathways and the ongoing support systems available for them, suggests Parti.

While the policy does touch upon these aspects, the on-ground reality is that the initiatives for policy implementation remain restricted to isolated instances of teacher workshops and trainings, content revision or digital content production.

At the same time, this argument doesnt consider the fact that in the NEP draft, the implementation of the various programmes is heavily reliant upon the Anganwadi workers. And they are already overburdened by their public health and nutrition duties in the process of delivering quality Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE).

The policy says that the Anganwadi workers or teachers with 10+2 or above qualifications shall be given a 6-month certification programme in ECCE. While those with lower qualifications will be given a one-year diploma programme covering early literacy, numeracy, and other relevant aspects of the ECCE.

But the question is, how much can they learn in this timeframe?

Experts feel that the government should plan degree-equivalent in-service courses to adequately prepare the facilitators, enabling them to take pre-primary and primary education to a world-class level.

Like for everything else nowadays, the pandemic has been a huge dampener for the education sector as well.

Reverse migration, job loss, economic loss and the shift to the online space have been detrimental to education. There has been a significant surge in the dropout rates. Government data suggests that this rate in India is more than 17 per cent at the secondary school level. While the dropout rates at the upper-primary (VI to VIII) and primary levels are 1.8 per cent and 1.5 per cent respectively.

These numbers will have a direct impact on the implementation of the NEP, feels Dr. Shridhar.

Two years in the life of the students have gone by without being in a physical classroom space due to which there are huge learning gaps. It will take a year or two to bridge these learning gaps in terms of the students skills of comprehension, understanding and application, she says.

Once all students have been brought to the same level, one can think of slowly and parallelly rolling out the NEP reforms and the new NCF, she continues. This is easier said than done since it requires governance, teacher understanding and most importantly robust implementation at the grassroots level, Dr. Shridhar further comments.

Parti also feels the same and according to her, the NEP and its implementation have taken a back seat due to the pandemic.

Due to the lockdown and with the schools closed, the state departments have been compelled to focus on ensuring that learning is available to all the children, as well as in ensuring the mental well-being of both the children and the teachers. As the country begins opening up, they are now focused on devising a safe school reopening plan. Amidst all of these pressing concerns, the NEP implementation seems to have taken a backseat, she points out.

To implement the NEP, to build capacity or to reach the last mile, the education sector needs infrastructure. In other words, it requires funding!

Which the educators believe is lacking in this sector.

In fact, there were no separate funds for the NEP 2020 in the budget announced this year, which further discouraged them.

Lets break it down numerically to give you a better picture.

The education ministry requested Rs 10.37 lakh crores under the 15th Finance Commission (2021-26) to implement the NEP 2020. This equates to Rs 2 lakh crores per year. However, the budget announced in February was cut short by Rs 6,037 crores.

The funds allocated for 2021-22 were Rs 93,224 crores, 6.13 per cent lower than the previous budget of Rs 99,312 crores for 2020-21.

The education sector was dissatisfied with what they got, as it stood in total contrast with what the government wanted to achieve with the NEP 2020.

At the same time, the policy stipulates that public investment in education should be up to 6 per cent of the GDP. Which has been a goal since the national policy of 1968 and has yet to be achieved. While the current investment has only reached to 3.1 per cent, as per the Economic Survey.

Considering this, the education fraternity is most concerned about the how part.

How will the NEP implementation succeed? How does it plan to retain students? How does it plan to enhance social and gender inclusion? And many more such questions abound.

Under the NEP, the aim is to build school complexes or clusters, ideally one per district across the country. Besides that, it talks about pleasant classroom spaces, safe and clean drinking water, playgrounds and other amenities. All these to be met in a funding of only 3.1 per cent of the GDP seems like a task, and I ask, how it is going to happen? says Sahoo.

Funding is a hurdle hampering the NEPs implementation in the higher education sector. Private institutions too need to offer more scholarships to make admissions possible for the students who belong to the low-income strata, but the NEP fails to discuss how this can be achieved. This indicates a great need for large public funding in higher education, which in reality does not fit well within the current scenario, says Marwah.

According to some experts, the central and state governments will face significant financial liabilities as a result of this; they will need to find an additional 6.4 lakh cores. Therefore, funding for policy implementation is the most significant challenge for them.

It also implies that schools and colleges are going to increase their fees to fulfil their targets.

The increase in the education budget from 3 per cent to 6 per cent of the GDP is simply not enough to meet the implementation needs. Lastly, our country still lags in digital penetration. The digital divide is a very big hindrance in the way of the NEP, adds Marwah.

Due to COVID-19, there has been a dynamic shift in the education sector. Lately, online or hybrid education has become the mode of learning, indicating the need to establish a robust digital infrastructure.

But in the current scenario this is not the case, and we have been left grappling with the huge learning gaps that have been engendered due to the pandemic and the lack of a proper digital infrastructure.

Thats why during the lockdowns, many students were deprived of education, and scores of them just dropped out.

Being a diverse and a developing nation, around 65 per cent of our population is rural and 8.5 per cent of the population resides in the tribal belt. Where the connectivity of roads and electricity and the internet is not at par with the urban or semi urban areas. Reaching out to these areas is a herculean task especially when the NEP 2020 stresses on technology driven education. But a big challenge here is establishing a digital infrastructure that caters even to the remote areas, says Sahoo.

To strengthen the infrastructure digitally or otherwisethe only way is to bring in a huge investment in this sector. How the funding for that is going to be managed, is yet another challenge.

To overcome this financial challenge, one way is to collaborate in the form of the PPP model, i.e., a public-philathropist partnership. Huge private investments are also equally essential for strengthening infrastructure. However, this ultimately leads to more privatisation of the education sector despite all the precautionary measures mentioned in the policy.

If the provisions in the NEP are to become a reality, there is a need to bring about mindset shifts at all levels, say the experts.

Though the policy seeks to bring about a holistic change in the education system of India, its success depends on the will and way in which it will be implemented, feels Sahoo.

According to Dr. Shridhar, the crises of the past two years have done a lot of damage to the education system. Further, the implementation of the NEP at an India level is too overwhelming and pressure inducing, which might lead to some discrepancies.

Students, teachers, school heads and boards have gone through a lot of uncertainty in the past two years and are still struggling. The NEP implementation will put a lot of pressure on them. Further, since they have been only experimenting with new technologies and new ways of teaching and learning, the zeal to learn the new needs to be subdued because at the moment, the teachers are tired, she avers.

More than anything the willingness to unlearn and learn needs to be there, she adds.

On the other hand, Dr. Marwah posits a different argument.

He believes that although technology is a great enabler, it also limits us. It connects people but has its own set of limitations as far as teaching and learning are concerned. The NEP is extremely experiential and palpable, and it cannot be brought into full action through online devices alone, he said.

The essence of the NEP essentially lies in learning through observation, listening, exploring, experimenting, and asking questions. All of these are hands-on experiences, which require interest, motivation, engagement, and the need for children to understand why they are learning. As a nation and society, it is very important to take the NEP more seriously. Thus, every step ought to be taken to ensure that the NEP is implemented in letter and spirit and in an expedited manner, he suggests.

For the implementation of the NEP, there are many other measures that need to be taken to ensure the flexibility and feasibility of this policy in our education system.

Dr. Marwah puts forth some of them. Firstly, it should be made mandatory for institutions to shift from the content-driven curriculum that earlier inspired rote learning to applied learning. Secondly, institutions should design a 360-degree assessment model that covers the overall well-being of the students.

Last but not least, educational institutions should bet big on experiential learning. This can be done by inculcating vocational skills and encouraging mathematical thinking among the students and by teaching them modern-day subjects like data science, machine learning, robotics, analytics, coding etc.

Finally, a fundamental shift from what to think to how to think is the need of the hour.

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The paradoxes and challenges remain, say educationists after analysing the National Education Policy 2020 - SME Futures

Technology is defined as the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, especially in industry; machinery and equipment developed from the application of scientific knowledge; and the branch of knowledge dealing with engineering or applied sciences.

For Nevada County Economic Resource Councils Gil Mathew, it is evident that separating technology from industry is all but impossible.

In todays world, every industry sector includes technology, the executive director stated. While the ERC is working to connect different industry sectors, be it, education, manufacturing, agriculture, or healthcare but whatever the sector, technology is part of how that group does business.

While Nevada County boasts several technology-based businesses, from AJA to Telestream to Grass Valley (to name a few), the reality is that most businesses rely on tech in some form to operate. The days of handwritten ledgers and snail mail correspondence have all but disappeared. Those who want to succeed in todays business world have learned to embrace technology in a variety of formats from cell phones to computers to programmable machinery technology is deeply embedded in most daily operations.

In the last year, technology has been the basis for meeting and communicating across the world. Social platforms have exploded, and industry leaders have pivoted to find ways to remain relevant while practicing social distancing. Bringing people together remains a vital part of the fabric industry across all sectors.

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The Economic Resource Council is tasked with bringing like industry personnel together to discuss challenges as well as successes and to, hopefully, find common ground within the area businesses to help contribute to a vibrant, thriving economy in Nevada County. Each month a series of meet ups is planned to further that mission.

Teaming with California Manufacturing Technology Consulting (CMTC), the Economic Resource Council is inviting those in the manufacturing sector to a meet-up on Thursday, Sept. 9 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Enticing participants with free pizza and beverages, the evening will focus on networking with peers and a short presentation by Mathew on the topic of ever-changing regulations affecting the specific industry. The event is free but does require an RSVP at info@ncerc.org.

Bringing people together while adhering to state health regulations will undoubtedly be discussed during the event. Safety protocols will be in place to ensure the well-being of all who attend.

Other meet ups including the monthly web development group and the writers forum have stayed online, utilizing the technology of social platforms to continue to bring people together. Those dates and links can also be obtained by emailing the Economic Resource Council.

In October, the Economic Resource Council will bring back the Economic Summit, a well-received afternoon featuring renowned economist Chris Thornberg who will breakdown the fiscal outlook on a national, regional, and local level. Both entertaining and informative, Thornberg has a long history of delivering accurate and pragmatic information around housing, development, and business in a variety of sectors. Tickets for the Oct. 25 event taking place at The Center for The Arts will be limited. Sponsorship, vendor, and participation information is available by contacting the Economic Resource Council.

To become a member and to find out more, use your technology and send any inquires to info@ncerc.org.

Hollie Grimaldi Flores is a freelancer writer in Nevada County. She writes a monthly column on behalf of the Nevada County Economic Resource Council

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Nevada County Economic Resource Council: Technology and business go together - The Union of Grass Valley

VidhiBatra

Pick up the latest newspaper and browse through the headlines, an issue you will see consistently brought up is that of climate change and its effects on several sectors of the economy. Reports highlighting heat waves, sea level rise and increasing carbon emissions have become common terms, tossed around on a daily basis, for any regular reader.

As is the case with several other industries, financial policy makers have also begun waking up to the damaging impact of climate change, bringing the world on the brink of a fundamental shift in lending and investment behavior.

There has been a surging shift towards Green Financing that aims to increase financial flows from public, private and not-for-profit sectors to sustainable priorities.

The key aim of this is to better manage environmental and social risks while taking up opportunities that encourage a better growth rate alongside environmental benefit and deliver greater accountability.

This cause can be promoted through changes in the countries regulatory frameworks by undertaking investment in clean technologies, financing for sustainable natural resource-based green economies, alignment of a climate-smart economy and so on.

The Green Bond market

Globally, there has been a remarkable interest among firms, especially those of the private sector to scale up investments dedicated to mitigate and adapt to climate change driven by growing concern about these issues and the enormity of the economic costs and financial losses facing the financial sector.

The most obvious reflection of this interest is the rapid growth of the Green Bond market accounting for new issuances surging to more than $250 billion in 2019. So, what is a Green Bond and how is it different from a regular bond market instrument?

The Green Bond is a fixed-income instrument that finances environment-friendly projects and appeals in particular to an expanding pool of investors who are interested in making measurable, beneficial social and environmental impact, while earning commercially appealing returns.

While capital markets play a significant role in transitioning towards a green economy, it is also necessary to understand that a large number of underdeveloped nations do not necessarily depend on such markets for financial assistance. In such cases, traditional financial agents like banks can play an important role in lowering the carbon footprint of rapid growth by redirecting capital flows to environmentally responsible projects and clean technologies.

National adoption of Green Finance

Market regulators, mainly the central banks and governments of different countries can use a combination of policy, guidelines and incentives to steer the national banking systems towards adoption of a clean and green economy. This has been successful in the several countries aiming towards making their overall growth sustainable by adopting climate-conscious outlooks.

For example, green credits such as loans to projects offering energy savings or emission reductions now make up approximately 10% of the portfolios of Chinas top 21 banks owing to mandatory Green Credit Guidelines issued by the Peoples Bank of China.

Moreover, the government of Malaysias Green Technology Financial Scheme has incentivized banks to extend loans actively to green projects by offering a 2% rebate on the total interest charged as well as a 60% guarantee of the total approved loan.

Another interesting type of loan that is gaining traction is the Sustainability-Linked Loan in which the proceeds of the loan are used for general corporate purposes, rather than green projects, but the pricing of the loan is based on the borrowers environmental, social and governance (ESG) score or overall sustainability achievements such as emission reductions.

If the borrower achieves its sustainability target, it benefits from favourable interest rates on the loan. If it fails, it pays a higher rate.

In a nutshell, Climate Change is a global responsibility to be tackled through joint efforts, especially today, when its gradual but imminent effects can be felt directly through depletion of resources, deterioration of natural habitats and rising pollution; putting us at the periphery of destruction.

Green financing of sustainability projects that encourage the economy as a whole to pursue environmental-friendly projects through investment in green technology is the only way to sustain prolonged economic development.

Moreover, it is also a new way to secure financial inclusion by introducing low-risk securities backed by the government, that guarantee lucrative returns by allowing those earlier excluded, to participate in the capital markets.

To put it simply, a greener economy ensures future security, social inclusion alongside prolonged and equitable growth.

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Green Financing: Sustainable Lending In The Time Of Climate Change - Qrius

But actually, it was not just the action on the pitch that was special, but the pitch itself.

Other than being an unmissable bright blue, for the first time in Olympic history, conventional oil-based plastics were not used for the pitch surface as organisers have instead opted for turf made 60% from re-growable raw materials.

In this case, Brazilian sugar cane that has already been processed for food. The manufacturers claim that the bio-polyethylene surface will require two-thirds less water than previous Olympic turfs, and that for every kilo of the material used in the turf, five kilos of CO2 will be captured.

Using sugar cane in this way is a genius example of the circular economy in action.

In other words an economy in which resources are kept in use for as long as possible and are continuously reused and recycled to extract the maximum economic value.

Who would have thought excess sugar cane could have a useful economic life in providing gold medal opportunities on a hockey pitch?

The circular economy concept has been around for a while now, but it is quickly becoming a key priority for many governments given it is seen as a vital piece in the puzzle to achieving net zero by 2050.

The EU, for instance, has made the circular economy a central tenant of their Green Deal, estimating that it could result in an additional 0.5% of GDP across the EU by 2030 and creating around 700,000 new jobs.

It is a no-brainer for the planet, too.

The European Commission estimates that half of all greenhouse gas emissions and more than 90% of biodiversity loss and water stress stems from the extraction and processing of natural resources.

It is a monumental waste of energy to go through this process time and time again without using as many materials as possible from something that has already been made.

For businesses, too, there are obvious advantages to using resources over and over again, including less spending on materials which can boost profitability and make businesses less sensitive to fluctuations in the price of materials. For investors, therefore, businesses operating in the circular economy have clear advantages in generating attractive and stable cash flows.

It may, at first, appear to be a challenge turning the concept into an investment strategy, but when you scratch the surface there are opportunities all around.

Take waste management, for example. Our growing global population is putting considerable stress on the way we manage waste. But for some businesses this presents an opportunity.

Staying in Japan, the environmental company Daiseki provides waste disposal services to industrial businesses in Japan, and has a core competence in industrial waste management and lead battery recycling.

But the circular economy idea is also taking hold in many other sectors and many other walks of life. None more so than in clothing. Oxfam estimates that 13 million items of clothing end up in landfills each week, mainly the rejects of recycling banks and charity shops, with many items being exported to Ghana to be sold on or dumped.

When another elite athlete, Dame Ellen MacArthur, returned from sailing round the world single-handedly with minimum resources, she realised that the world was not so different from the boat with finite resources. On her return she set up a foundation to encourage businesses to design out waste, keeping products and materials in use and to regenerate natural eco-systems.

One of the foundation's many initiatives is the Jeans Redesign' project, in which 60 companies are making jeans from stronger fabrics and biodegradable denim, with water that is 98% recycled and dye that doesn't spill into the environment. New business models will emerge to ensure that these same jeans can be collected, sorted and recycled once again so they do not end in the landfill.

As the technology allowing consumers to reuse, reduce and recycle materials continues to improve, the global resource management value chain will provide exciting opportunities for businesses that are able to harness the power of the circular economy, and investors interested in resource efficiency.

Going round in circles is not bad thing after all.

Caroline Langley is co-manager of Quilter Cheviot's Climate Assets Fund

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What the Olympic hockey pitch taught us about the circular economy - Investment Week

TORONTO, Aug. 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EnviroGold Global Limited (EnviroGold Global or the Company) (CSE:NVRO), a clean technology company accelerating the worlds transition to a circular resource economy, is pleased to announce the appointment of Philipa Varris as a Director of the Company effective immediately. The Company is also pleased to announce the appointment of Leah Dionne as Corporate Secretary of the Company effective immediately.

Philipa Varris has held leadership positions in environment, health, safety and community management in the mining sector for over 25 years, primarily in Africa and Australasia and across a number of mineral commodities. Philipa has been awarded the Australian Centenary Medal for leadership in Australias largest community consultation and strategic vision development initiative and was recognized in 2020 as one of the WIM UK 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining. Philipa holds an MSc in Natural Resources, is a Chartered Environmental Professional with the AusIMM and is a qualified Board candidate with Corporate Directors International. Philipa is the Executive Vice President, Head of Sustainability with Golden Star Resources.

Leah Dionne is the Managing Director of Corporate Advisory Services for Partum Advisory Services Corp., a leading Vancouver corporate administration and financial reporting firm. Leah Dionne has 14 years collective experience working in leading Canadian law firms, and for publicly-traded companies. During her career, she has focused on securities and corporate finance and assists with managing public company listing requirements with a focus on the CSE, TSXV, NEO and TSX stock exchanges, as well as listings on the OTC Markets. Through Partum she helps clients navigate complex corporate compliance matters, financings and IPO preparations for the Canadian markets.

The Company also announces the resignation of Roger Bethell from the Board of Directors. The Company would like to thank Roger for his time, services, and for the valuable contributions he made during his tenure as a director.

About EnviroGold Global

EnviroGold Global is a clean technology company capitalizing environmental stewardship and sustainably supplying the worlds increasing demand for precious, critical, and strategic metals by reclaiming unrecovered value from mine tailings and resource development waste streams. EnviroGold Global leverages proprietary technology, superior operationalized knowledge, and an ag ile, efficient culture to recover valuable metals, recharge critical resources and accelerate the worlds transition to a sustainable circular resource economy. EnviroGold Global is actively expanding the Companys significant reprocessing pipeline.

Further Information

Dr. Mark B. ThorpeEnviroGold Global Limited

Telephone: +1 (416) 777 6720Email: mark.thorpe@envirogoldglobal.com

Jonathan L. Robinson, CFAInvestor Relations Contact

Telephone: +1 (416) 669 1001Email: JRobinson@oakhillfinancial.ca

Forward Looking Statements

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. All statements contained herein that are not clearly historical in nature may constitute forward-looking statements.

Generally, such forward-looking information or forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or may contain statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "will continue", "will occur" or "will be achieved". The forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the implementation of ESG and corporate governance policies, the Companys expansion of its reprocessing pipeline, and the Companys ability to accelerate the worlds transition to a circular resource economy. Forward-looking information in this news release are based on certain assumptions and expected future events, namely: the Companys ability to continue as a going concern; the continued commercial viability and growth in the clean technology and mining waste reprocessing industry; continued approval of the Companys activities by the relevant governmental and/or regulatory authorities; the continued development of clean technology and mining waste reprocessing technology; and the continued growth of the Company. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements, including but not limited to: the potential inability of the Company to continue as a going concern; the Companys inability to accelerate the worlds transition to a circular resource economy the risks associated with the mining and mining waste recycling industry in general; increased competition in the clean technology and waste reprocessing market; the potential unviability of the clean technology and mining waste reprocessing market; incorrect assessment of the value and potential benefits of various transactions; risks associated with potential governmental and/or regulatory action with respect to clean technology and mining waste reprocessing; risks associated with a potential collapse in the value of clean technology and waste reprocessing; and risks relating to the Companys potential inability to expand its reprocessing pipeline.

Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list is not exhaustive. Readers are further cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement and reflect the Companys expectations as of the date hereof and are subject to change thereafter. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, estimates or opinions, future events or results or otherwise or to explain any material difference between subsequent actual events and such forward-looking information, except as required by applicable law.

Original post:

EnviroGold Global Appoints one of Women in Mining UK's Top 100 to Board of Directors - GlobeNewswire

Once British Empire was known as one where Sun never sets as they were ruling countries across the globe. They were forced to leave all these and now they are basically part of the UK. Sunset and sunrise are the continuous universal process which is known to the world. But in todays geopolitical scenario Indians do not have a sunset. India has the worlds largest network of overseas population. They are one of the most widely spread and diverse communities across the world from the most advanced USA to Zimbabwe, from Japan to Burkina Faso, there are more than 210 countries where 32 million overseas Indians live. The Overseas Indians still maintain strong cultural and social linkages with India, through food habits, social mores, marriages, Bollywood, etc. Our country has long been an important player in the global supply of professionals and students. The scale and magnitude of emigration or the brain drain from India continue to be voluminous quantitatively as well as qualitatively for both these categories. India has acknowledged and welcomed the contribution the overseas Indians have made to its development by way of remittances, deposits which are more than US$80 billion. They have brought a good amount of technology along with propriety to them and their relatives here. In turn, India has developed several measures to meet its aspirations by providing protection of its interests in India and abroad. India became proactive in interceding with the host countries when problems arose even though they had gone on their own contracts. In countries where the Indians are powerful and influential, they became Indias unofficial ambassadors, who promote Indian interests there. On balance, both sides benefited from this cooperation.

The world has seen many epidemics but all of them were largely contained within the regions where they originated. But COVID-19 has hit nearly every country in the world in just over three months and many countries have registered several more cases than China, where the virus originated. The presence of a virus anywhere is clearly a threat to people everywhere. Globalized cities are the most vulnerable and, by extension, any country that transacts through them is at risk. Most of the Indians stayed wherever they were and worked hard for the country where they stayed to come out of the pandemic state. They were very effective as medical practitioners as also other areas of importance to serve humanity to their best capacity. That means more global cooperation, not less and in this, there is a very big role for India and Indians abroad as 32.10 million Indians are the most spread people globally. There are 13.46 million non-resident Indians (NRIs), those holding an Indian passport, and 18.68 million personsof Indian Origin(PIOs) but ordinarily residing outside the country, spread across more than 210 nations, according to the MEA. But 8.9 million of them live in just six countries. Among them, the largest number of Indians, 3.4 million, live in the United Arab Emirates, which is approximately 27% of all NRIs around the world. Another 2.6 million are in Saudi Arabia while Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and Bahrain were home to another 2.9 million NRIs.

The major positive impact has been the rapid increase in remittances from Indians abroad, but the economic costs of remittances are often high. A strong relationship with its population abroad is important for India. Indians in the West Asian countries also account for annual remittances of over US$40 billion. Remittances and investment should only be one element of that relationship. It is also the duty of the government to ensure that the demands of sections of the Diaspora who lack political and economic clout is also given attention and that they do not feel neglected.

Skills and knowledge are the driving forces of economic growth and social development for any country. India is blessed with 65% of its youth in the working-age group. As compared to other developed and developing countries, India has a unique window of opportunity for another 20-25 years called the demographic advantage. If India can skill its people with the requisite life skills, job skills, or entrepreneurial skills in the years to come the demographic advantage can be converted into the dividend wherein those entering the labor market or are already in the labor market contribute productively to economic growth both within and outside the country.

An extensive new report found that by 2030, more than 85 million jobs could go unfilled because there arent enough skilled people to take them. Indeed, the study finds that by 2030, there will be a global human talent shortage or roughly equivalent to the population of Germany. Left unchecked, in 2030 that talent shortage could result in about US$8.5 trillion in unrealized annual revenues. Governments and private organizations must make talent strategy a key priority and take steps now to educate, train, and upskill their existing workforces.

Much of the shortage is based on simple demography. Japan and many European nations, for instance, have had low birth rates for decades. In the United States, most baby boomers will have moved out of the workforce by 2030, but younger generations will not have had the time or training to take many of the high-skilled jobs left behind. A major crisis is looming over organizations and economies throughout the world. By 2030, expectations for skilled workers will outstrip supply, resulting in a global talent shortage of more than 85.2 million people. Signs are already emerging that within two years there wont be enough talent to go around. In countries with low unemployment and booming manufacturing production, including the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, and Slovakia, a labor shortage has already accelerated automation and increased use of roboticsnot to replace people, but because there arent enough of them to fill the factories.

Left unchecked, the financial impact of this talent shortage could reach US$8.452 trillion in unrealized annual revenue by 2030, equivalent to the combined GDP of Germany and Japan. The United States alone could miss out on US$1.748 trillion in revenue due to labor shortages, or roughly 6% of its entire economy. While leaders are betting heavily on technology for future growthas per survey report says that 67% of CEOs believe technology will be their chief value generator in the future of workthey cannot discount the value of human capital. Even companies that are using more robotics foresee a growing need for human talent with advanced skills; for example, redeploying people from the factory floor, where robots can perform repetitive work, to the research laboratory. The problem, however, is the mismatch between technological advances, including automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning, and the skills and experience workers need to leverage these advanced tools. Technology cannot deliver the promised productivity gains if there are not enough human workers with the right skills. This has set the scene for a global talent crunch.

The talent crunch, as modeled in this study, refers to the gap between talent supply and expectation at three critical milestones: 2020, 2025, and 2030. Despite the risk, by examining the scale, impact, and timing of the talent crunch and what it means for organizations over the long term. The global growth, demographic trends, under-skilled workforces, and tightening immigration mean that even significant productivity leaps enabled by technological advances will be insufficient to prevent the talent crunch.

More granularly, we examined talent supply and demand in each of the 20 economies as a whole and within three major knowledge-intensive industriesfinancial and business services (including insurance and real estate), technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT), and manufacturingand at three distinct skill levels, referenced throughout as:

The scale and impact of the talent crisis at each milestone in terms of skilled employee shortages and what they imply in terms of lost opportunity for value creation. For instance, the United States financial services sector will suffer the most from stunted growth due to lack of talent, with US$435.69 billion in projected unrealized economic output, equal to about 1.5% of the countrys entire economy.

For the all-important technology sector. a labor-skills shortage will reach 4.3 million workers by 2030, or 59 times the number of employees of Alphabet, Googles parent company. On the positive side, India is projected to have a skilled-labor surplus of around 245.3 million workers by 2030, the only country in our study expected to have a surplus, owing mainly to its vast supply of working-age citizens and government programs to boost workers skills. Fortunately, there is time to mitigate the risk. Governments and organizations must make talent strategy a key priority and take steps now to educate, train, and upskill their existing workforces.

The gap between the growth in demand and the growth in the supply of talent, 2011 to 2021

(Red indicates trend deceit, green a trend surplus, yellow a broad balance. Numbers show trend growth as annual percentages.)

This global skills shortage could result in US$8.452 trillion in unrealized annual revenue by 2030equivalent to the combined GDP of Germany and Japan. The impact of the talent crunch is so significant that the continued predominance of sector powerhouses is in question, from London as a global financial services center to the United States as a technology leader to China as a key manufacturing base. As a result, organizations may be prompted to relocate their headquarters and operational centers to places where the talent supply is more plentiful. Governments will be forced to invest in improving their peoples skills to avert corporate flight and to defend their nations income and status.

Secured Governance for Overseas Indians through Education A Channel for Prosperity through Knowledge Growth

Secured Governance for skill development is a strategy that relates to the develop a relationship between the development of Education infrastructures to various other sectors along with various institutions as partners and Government as governing body to foster, coordinate and create a defined Skill Training Centre along with various existing educational infrastructure or to create a new cluster/s on strategically defined locations that improves and develops the center as a whole through regional strategies, technology, and interdependency among various other sectors of growth.

The skill gap in India is addressed effectively by the National Skill Development Policy (NSDP) Government having recognized that skill development will play a vital role in transforming India into an economic power to reckon with had set a target of skilling 500 million people. For this, the country has rightly understood the need to set up many Skills Universities including Private Skills Universities in partnership with the industry.

There is a high correlation between skill levels and building skill capital. The National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF) has defined levels of skills based on outcomes such as

Thus, the levels vary from skills involving simple and routine physical or manual task(Level 1) to skills involving the operation of machinery and electronic equipment (Level 2) to skills involving records of work (Level 3) to decision making and creativity based contribution (Level 4 High-end Skills).

NSQF further classified skills into Domains Specific Skills and Soft Skills and concluded that Skills Universities conceptualized with a clear mandate of skill education can alone offer the necessary practical real-world training in industrial and services sectors to lay the foundation for the required skills training system in India. In the wake of the Skill India Mission, some Skills Universities have come up to provide standards in the Skills field. These Universities exercise constant ingenuity and are providing innovative models.

The concept of secured governance does not believe that dramatic changes can be achieved only through a revolution that requires upturning all the procedures evolved through years of efforts and experience. It realizes the tools for bringing about effective and sustainable changes are already available in the system. They can be made more effective by defining linkages, effective response mechanisms, and dynamic feedback systems. Emphasis is placed on defining the relationship between sectors of growth, institutions, and government to foster coordination and create an environment that improves the system through regional strategies, technology and by taking cognizance of the myriad of interdependencies.

Secured governance for Education has major characteristics like participation, rule of law, transparency, and responsiveness, at each stage of its operations and in developing a robust education system in the country. With improved resource allocation, enhanced governance, Interdependency among sectors, and transparency in the system going hand in hand with development and effective use of Information Technology and Innovation can deliver a safer, cleaner, and more accountable delivery of self-sustaining Education infrastructure and services.

More Potential to reap more Remittance through Secured Governance:

Indias population is huge at 1.38 billion. It is fast expanding at a rate of 17% and integrating rapidly into the global economy. India is among the young countries in the world, with the proportion of the workforce in the age group of 15-59 years, increasing steadily. However, presently only 2% of the total workforce in India have undergone skills training. India has a great opportunity to meet the future demands of the world, India can become the worldwide sourcing hub for a skilled workforce. Besides over 65% of Indias large population is below 35 years of age; a robust skills training and certification system for these large numbers is a mammoth task.

Even India has the largest population of English speakers. Due to its colonial legacy, English became a part of the Indian education system, which has now become an advantage. Indians thus have an edge over other countries due to their fluency in English.

Equipping the workforce with the skills required for the jobs of today and those of tomorrow is a strategic concern in the national growth and development outlook of India.

The most widely recognized immediate benefit from the international labor migration remains the flow of remittances, which not only augments scarce foreign exchange but also provides a potential source of additional savings and capital formation. India could look at preparing the workforce for global opportunities so that it can utilize its premium position as the human resource reservoir. Given the dynamic labor markets, it is also important the workforce learns and readies itself as quickly as possible.

India will continue to play a greater role for sustained growth and with Indians with better skills ready to take up the challenges for all the countries. Indians going abroad are equivalent to Export of Supercomputer and India should plan this properly and effectively with Education and skilling from Education playing a good role.

Most of the Indians abroad are highly skilled and professional enough to deserve great pay. By 2025, Indias demographic dividend is expected to contribute 25% of a global workforce. They can be made more effective by defining linkages, effective response mechanisms, and dynamic feedback systems. Emphasis is placed on defining a relationship between sectors of growth, institutions, and government to foster coordination and create an environment that improves the system through regional strategies, technology and by taking cognizance of the myriad of interdependencies.

India is the only country expected to have a surplus of highly skilled financial and business services labor by 2030. India is projected to have a skilled-labor surplus of around 245.3 million workers by 2030, the only country that is expected to have a surplus, owing mainly to its vast supply of working-age citizens and government programs to boost workers skills.

We could contribute greatly to the worlds labor-intensive manufacturing jobs. India could play a vital role in this greater global opportunity in technology and other knowledge-intensive fields. A designated region intended to attract foreign investment, retain local students, build a regional reputation by providing access to high-quality education and training for both international and domestic students, and create a knowledge-based economy. A multitude of education HUBs can include different combinations of domestic/international institutions, branch campuses, and foreign partnerships, within the designated region. Businesses worldwide need management graduates who have the tools to succeed globally leadership skills, cultural awareness, foreign language proficiency, and an understanding of how the global marketplace functions. Outbound Exchange Program wherein we send our students to associated universities or corporate houses for skill development and knowledge exchange. Inbound Exchange Program will facilitate initiatives for welcoming students from other countries to facilitate knowledge transfer targeting at least 10% of the students from other universities.

India is a rapidly rising economic power and will also by 2020 be the youngest country in the world with 64% of its population in the working-age group. Through secured governance establish a vibrant institutional framework in the educational system. India could capture a greater global opportunity in technology and other knowledge-intensive fields.

By,Dr. P. Sekhar, Chairman,Global Smart Cities Panel & Micro Tech Global Foundation

Summary

Article Name

Sun never sets on Indians, the spirit of Overseas Indians working for Global growth

Description

The Overseas Indians still maintain strong cultural and social linkages with India, through food habits, social mores, marriages, Bollywood, etc. Our country has long been an important player in the global supply of professionals and students.

Author

TPT News Bureau

Publisher Name

THE POLICY TIMES

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Sun never sets on Indians, the spirit of Overseas Indians working for Global growth - thepolicytimes.com

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Li-Cycle Holdings Corp. (NYSE: LICY) ("Li-Cycle" or "the Company"), an industry leader in lithium-ion battery resource recovery and the leading lithium-ion battery recycler in North America, today announced that John Mitchell and Govind Arora have joined the Companys Board of Advisors.

Mr. Mitchell and Mr. Arora both have an exceptional track record leading prominent companies at the senior executive level and join Li-Cycle at a critical juncture following its listing on the New York Stock Exchange. They will be providing management advisory services to Li-Cycles senior management team, leveraging their experience and expertise in the areas of business development, commercial support and strategic and business planning. The other members of the Board of Advisors are Dr. Yuan Gao and Dr. Ahmad Ghahreman, who have been providing technical advisory services to the Company over the past several years.

"John and Govind both have impressive backgrounds and were looking forward to leveraging their expertise as we pursue our growth plan, said Ajay Kochhar, co-founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of Li-Cycle. They are aligned with our vision to create a truly circular battery supply chain by utilizing our breakthrough commercial technology to transform end-of-life batteries and battery production waste into materials of great value for our customers and partners.

John Mitchell

Li-Cycle has already served as a catalyst for tremendous, positive change in the lithium-ion battery market, said Mr. Mitchell. Li-Cycles technology is second to none and I look forward to working closely with Ajay and his best-in-class management team as the Company continues to disrupt an industry that needs a low-cost and sustainable battery supply chain.

Mr. Mitchell brings more than 30 years of experience in executive leadership roles in specialty chemicals, energy materials, utility infrastructure, and industrial gases. He is currently a partner and co-founder of Blue Horizon Advisors and Blue Horizon Capital, focused on the worlds transition to the new energy economy by supporting leading companies to scale and providing index-based investment products across the new energy economy thematic. Previously, he served as President of Lithium for the Albemarle Corporation, where he guided Albemarles lithium division to a global market leading position. Prior to Albemarle, Mr. Mitchell served as Rockwood Lithiums North American President, Environmental Management Corporations President, and Senior Advisor to Lindes business in Africa and South America.

Mr. Mitchell holds his B.S. in Materials Engineering from Drexel University.

Govind Arora

Li-Cycle is a pioneer, establishing a proven lithium-ion battery recycling technology before it became the prevalent topic that it is presently, said Mr. Arora. The Company has a robust global growth strategy that will be essential in contributing to a circular lithium-ion battery market that continues to demonstrate rapidly growing demand for critical, finite materials.

Mr. Arora brings more than 20 years of experience in energy materials, the automotive industry, industrial automation, and the aerospace industry. He currently serves as a partner and co-founder of Blue Horizon Advisors and Blue Horizon Capital. Previously, he was Chief Commercial Officer for Albemarle Corporations Lithium business, which is the global leader in advanced lithium materials as well as a thought leader within the energy storage value chain. Prior to Albemarle, Mr. Arora led several businesses to achieve high growth, serving as President of Stanley Black & Deckers Latin American Group, Chief Financial Officer for Stanley Black & Deckers Global Emerging Markets business and Chief Financial Officer for Honeywells process solutions business in Asia, based out of China.

Mr. Arora holds a B.A. in Business Administration from California State University, Fullerton and acquired his Executive MBA in International Business from the Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Dr. Yuan Gao and Dr. Ahmad Ghahreman

As disclosed above, Mr. Mitchell and Mr. Arora will be joining the Companys existing Advisory Board members, Dr. Yuan Gao and Dr. Ahmad Ghahreman.

Dr. Gao is Vice-Chairman of the board of directors of Qinghai Taifeng Pulead Lithium-Energy Technology Co. Ltd. (Pulead), one of Chinas leading lithium-ion battery cathode producers and a key player in the lithium-ion battery supply chain. Dr. Gao was previously President and Chief Executive Officer of Pulead and prior to joining Pulead in 2014, he held senior positions with Molycorp Inc. and FMC Corp.s lithium division. Dr. Gao originally obtained his BSc from the University of Science and Technology of China, and his PhD in Physics from the University of British Columbia.

Dr. Ghahreman has over 15 years of hydrometallurgical/wet chemistry experience. He has deep expertise in the advanced recovery of many of the constituents in lithium-ion batteries, gained in the context of primary resource mineral processing and hydrometallurgy. Dr. Ghahreman has a bachelors degree and a masters degree in Materials Science and Engineering from Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran, and earned his Ph.D. in Materials Engineering from The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC. Upon completing his Ph.D., Dr. Ghahreman joined the Technology Centre of Barrick Gold Corp. in Vancouver, as an NSERC Industrial Research & Development (IRDF) Postdoctoral Fellow. He joined The Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining at Queens University as an Assistant Professor in January 2014.

About Li-Cycle Holdings Corp.

Li-Cycle (NYSE:LICY) is on a mission to leverage its innovative Spoke & Hub Technologies to provide a customer-centric, end-of-life solution for lithium-ion batteries, while creating a secondary supply of critical battery materials. Lithium-ion rechargeable batteries are increasingly powering our world in automotive, energy storage, consumer electronics, and other industrial and household applications. The world needs improved technology and supply chain innovations to better manage battery manufacturing waste and end-of-life batteries and to meet the rapidly growing demand for critical and scarce battery-grade raw materials through a closed-loop solution. For more information, visit https://li-cycle.com/.

CAUTION CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements contained in this communication may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, Section 21 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements generally include statements that are predictive in nature and depend upon or refer to future events or conditions, and include words such as "may," "will," should, would, expect, anticipate, plan, likely, believe, estimate, project, intend, and other similar expressions among others. Statements that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on current beliefs and assumptions that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of Li-Cycle and are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results could differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement as a result of various factors, including, without limitation: (i) the possibility that the anticipated benefits and/or the anticipated tax treatment of the recently completed transaction between the Company and Peridot Acquisition Corp. (the transaction) will not be realized; (ii) the risk that stockholder litigation in connection with the transaction or other settlements or investigations may result in significant costs of defense, indemnification and liability; (iii) changes in general economic and/or industry specific conditions; (iv) possible disruptions from the transaction that could harm Li-Cycles business; (v) the ability of Li-Cycle to retain, attract and hire key personnel; (vi) potential adverse reactions or changes to relationships with customers, employees, suppliers or other parties; (vii) legislative, regulatory and economic developments; (viii) unpredictability and severity of catastrophic events, including, but not limited to, acts of terrorism, outbreak of war or hostilities and any epidemic, pandemic or disease outbreak (including COVID-19), as well as managements response to any of the aforementioned factors; and (ix) the ability of Li-Cycle to maintain the listing of the Companys common shares or warrants on The New York Stock Exchange, and (x) other risk factors as detailed from time to time in Li-Cycles reports and other documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and securities regulatory authorities in Canada, including, without limitation, the Companys final prospectus dated August 10, 2021 filed with the Ontario Securities Commission in Canada and the Form 20-F filed with the SEC. The foregoing list of important factors is not exclusive. You should not place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Except as required by applicable law, Li-Cycle does not undertake any obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement, or to make any other forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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Li-Cycle Welcomes Lithium Industry Veterans to Board of Advisors - Business Wire

OmranHamad Al-Kuwari, CEO of Qatar Foundation International, discusses the role Qatar is playing in mitigating the climate crisis and the importance of not-for-profit organisations in bridging the gap between the public and private sector.

For the past three decades, the international community has been increasingly aware of the seriousness of climate change and its potential impact on human populations. Since then, global efforts have been made to tackle this escalating issue from the Kyoto Protocol of 1997 to the Paris Climate Agreement of 2015.

Nevertheless, much more action is needed if we are to reverse the damage being done and protect the planet. In 1997, the year of the Kyoto Protocol, the coal percentage in the world energy mix was 38%. Twenty years later it was still the same.

While progress has been made by some countries to meet the targets of the Paris Agreement, at current rates, we are far from being in line with targets to limit global warming to 1.5-2C.

The green transition

Over the past 200 years, society has seen many energy transitions, from wood to coal, oil to gas, and more recently the shift to renewables. But unlike many transitions in the past, the green transition is different: its purposive.

To achieve our goals, we need the world to commit to fundamental shifts in economic systems. Its not enough for countries to accept that they need to become more sustainable. They must genuinely embrace transition if they are to become low carbon, resource-efficient and socially inclusive.

Overreliance on technology is an easy trap to fall into. In reality, social organisations are also vital to implementing lasting change.

The challenge for Qatar

When it comes to the risks of the climate crisis, smaller, less developed states often stand on the frontline of climate change and bear its burden. Qatar is no exception.

Qatar is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change in the world. In fact, for every one-degree rise in temperature globally, Qatar will see a three-degree rise. Already, we are recording some of the hottest days on record, with temperatures regularly exceeding 45 degrees Celsius.

On top of this, Qatar is among the 10 countries that will be most impacted by rising sea levels. The country already lacks arable land and water resources for the development of carbon sinks, forests, and green areas.

If sea levels continue to rise, the coastlines of Qatar and its marine life will be affected, land degradation will occur, and freshwater levels will fall. Added to increasing temperatures, this could result in rising underground water salinity and falling freshwater levels that would threaten water security and reduce the efficiency of the regions vital desalination plants.

Qatars transition

Our history in Qatar coupled with the threat we now face puts us in a unique position when it comes to climate change.

Having thrived in the past on an oil and gas-based economy, and currently playing a positive role in most of the world in switching away from coal, we have recognised the need to transition to a more sustainable, future-proof model in the long term. As a small nation, our contribution to global emissions figures is limited.

But, as both a producer of fossil fuels and a country especially threatened by sea-level rise, we are very attuned to the challenges and benefits of decarbonisation

We now see ourselves as somewhere that can facilitate the difficult conversations about the energy transition already taking place between the Global South and Global North, and we hope to inspire change internationally.

Accelerating progress

When we talk about transitioning, people often think of this at the policy level or in terms of the everyday changes made by the public. However, a resilient energy ecosystem actually has three key players: public bodies, private actors and the general population.

We can achieve much greater progress by recognising the unique role that not-for-profit organisations can play in the green energy transition. Their power lays in the fact that they are perfectly placed to work with both governments and the private sector, and bridge innovation gaps.

Were doing this through our work at Qatar Foundation, where we are actively working toward the management of risks associated with climate change, such as water security, via the Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (QEERI).

QEERI helps to bridge the gap between all key players in the energy ecosystem by advising the Qatari government, conducting environmental research and assessing the economic impact, and helping to help implement government policy and economic measures. Its a role that cannot be underestimated.

The way forward

It is clear we need to look beyond the 1.5-degree target if we want to succeed in making permanent, positive changes to the environment. Currently, too many initiatives are economically driven at the expense of sustainability, and this needs to change.

We need to recognise the role that not-for-profits can play as brokers and intermediaries of climate information. From their close engagement with individuals and communities to their ability to facilitate interactions between scientists, decision-makers, and local communities these organisations can help us to meet our climate targets and ensure the right transitions are made effectively.

Photo by Radoslaw Prekurat

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Feature: Bringing the world together on climate change - Environment Journal