In fighting COVID-19 (Coronavirus), the airlines’ new face mask requirement is a step in the right direction. But in order to fully “upgrade”, airlines will have to do a lot more to address hygiene and bacteria concerns. Planes can serve as bacterial/viral “super-carriers” and so airlines will become the key testing and proving ground for
Credit: Photo by Ramon Costa/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images We have been talking to the Infectious Disease Epidemiologists (“Disease Detectives”) on our COVID-19 Response Team about the important of Contact Tracing. So, what exactly is Contact Tracing and why is it so important? Per this article, it’s a tried and tested method of determining who has
Happy Earth Day! Just some useful numbers to keep in mind: 120% — Sustainable brands outperform the market by 120% (Interbrand — Best Global Brands) 12.2 Trillion — Sustainable business models could open economic opportunities worth up to US$12T and increase employment by up to 380 million jobs by 2030. Worth keeping in mind for
Are you able to effectively respond to and manage through the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic? We have mobilized our Crisis/Emergency Management Team to support governments, institutions and corporations with actionable solutions drawn from the frontlines. Get guidance from our leading Epidemiologists and Public Health, Crisis Management, Emergency Response, Humanitarian Response, Evaluation and Data Management experts.
In a matter of weeks, the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) has transformed Western democracies. States have shut down businesses and sealed people indoors. With the expected slowdown in the economy and dark clouds of a global recession, governments around the world are scrambling to find a financial cure that would stimulate the economy and midgate the
Although it seems from an entirely different era, it was only last month when we covered the gathering of the world’s leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Unlike in other years, this year’s conference was dedicated mostly to sustainable development and climate change. Indeed, When reading these lines, it is hard to believe
As the impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is felt here in New York City and across the globe, The Bassiouni Group (TBG) is taking all necessary measures to ensure that our workplace, people and clients are safeguarded and that we have the strictest protocols in place for business continuity. We have taken the following
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic requires strong and decisive leadership. Governments can learn from the UN’s humanitarian response experiences. In this article, Dr. Bassiouni shares his experiences as a former UN Humanitarian Coordinator, and how the lessons from Somalia, Ethiopia, Israel and other countries can inform the response today. Excerpt below: “The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has
With the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic impacting and transforming lives all over the world, there has never been a more important time for corporations to demonstrate Social Responsibility and Corporate Citizenship through action. With your help (use the #CorporateHeroes hash-tag), we want to start tracking and listing all of the companies that are *proactively* taking measures
Unfortunately, global financial markets are finally catching up to the threat posed by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) as they now act as a litmus paper that shows the risk and uncertainty of rapidly approaching global recession. Interdependence between economies – resulted from interlinked supply chains and tourism – means that the outbreak cannot be considered an
Today marks International Women’s Day 2020. It’s worth noting the following facts about Women’s Leadership and and how “women as leaders and decision-makers at all levels are critical to advancing gender justice and gender equality—and to furthering economic, social, and political progress for all.” When women are meaningfully represented and engaged in leadership bodies—such as legislatures,
Over the weekend, Tesla CEO Elon Musk suggested on Twitter that Tesla’s solar roof technology would be made available worldwide during 2020. After a surge in the company’s electric tiles sales, Musk announced that “the world is ready for the next energy revolution”, referring to the electric vehicles revolution Tesla had initiated almost a decade
Today, on February 20, 2020, we’re excited to launch #TBG2020, a new series that will showcase some of the most dynamic innovators who are solving key challenges around the world – from Kansas to Kenya to Kazakhstan. Throughout 2020, the #TBG2020 series will take you into our world and you will meet the
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced on Monday via instagram that he will commit $10 billion to create the Bezos Earth Fund. This fund will support scientists, activists, and NGOs. Bezos stated that he will begin issuing grants this summer. Bezos said, “Climate change is the biggest threat to our planet. I want to work alongside
With increasing concern about the global climate crisis and unprecedented urbanization, this year’s World Urban Forum theme of “Cities of Opportunities: Connecting Culture and Innovation” was especially apt. Over 540 events occured, with 13,000 participants discussing the importance of using cities in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This year’s outcome, the
On Tuesday evening, February 4th, President Trump delivered his third State of the Union address in front of Congress. While noting economic achievements, among them, is the U.S.-China “Phase One” trade deal that had induced a wave of optimism amongst analysts across the political spectrum. However, amid celebrated achievements, the markets delivered a very different
The World Health Organization(WHO) officially declared the coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency of international concern on January 30th, 2020. The very next day, the U.S. declared a public health emergency over coronavirus and restricted entry into the U.S. from China. Because of the increase of cases, WHO indicated that the coronavirus outbreak could become a
Earlier this month, Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s founder and CEO, flew to India in an attempt to reignite Amazon’s ambitions for global dominance of e-commerce overseas. During his visit, Bezos announced that the firm would invest $1 billion in digitizing small and medium-sized businesses in India, bringing its total investment in the subcontinent to $6.5 billion.
CSR/Sustainability executives, what is your number one priority in 2020? Check below and let us know what else is on your mind.
How is your CSR/Sustainability program performing? Where are you making progress and where are you falling behind? What are your goals and are they aligned? Are you using the right metrics and reporting standards? Are you fully compliant? What measures do you need to put in place now – at the beginning of the year
This year’s World Economic Forum in Davos placed climate change clearly on the agenda, signaling a shift that businesses are realizing the real consequences for their profits. In fact, the Wall Street Journal described the event as a “climate change conference this year.” At the conference, many climate topics were addressed, such as sustainable development,
We are excited to introduce you to The Bassiouni Group’s Winter/2020 Internship Team: Yunzhen Wang — MPA “21 (International Finance & Economic Policy), Ines Boussebaa — MPA “20 (Sustainable Development, Energy & Environmental Policy), Yuval Bresler — MPA “21 (International Finance & Economic Policy and Management),and Chunyan Qiu — MPA “20 (Environmental Science & Policy).
Wall Street is finally waking up to Sustainability and Sustainable Finance & Investment. So, if you’re still denying science/climate change and living in a cave somewhere, you may want to digest the recent news from BlackRock. The world’s largest money manager is putting Climate Change/Sustainability at the center of its investment strategy with environmental sustainability
It’s no secret that we are big proponents of Emerging and Frontier Markets. While some advisors and investors maintain a myopic focus on North American and European markets, we will continue to promote Emerging Markets (EMs) and Frontier Markets (FMs), which now represent approximately 60% of global GDP (source: IMF/using PPP measures). During the last
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)/Sustainability is now a fixture at most companies but that doesn’t mean the path is well-worn or easy to navigate. Most CSR executives are often charting a new course (with little support) and dealing with the day-to-day challenges of implementation, measurement and improvement. Leading the way as a CSR/Sustainability leader requires vision
Did you know that effective CSR can lead to a 4-6% increase in a company’s market value? Implementing an effective CSR/Sustainability program is not just a “nice” thing! Good business is good business! #TBGPurpose #CSRLeaders #TheBassiouniGroup #CSR #CorporateSocialResponsibility #CorporateResponsibility #CorporateCitizenship #Sustainability #SustainableBusiness #Sustainable #Sustainable Development Goals #SDGs #ThursdayThoughts Source: “Project ROI: Defining the Competitive and
Whether you’re a startup, a growing SME/SMB or multinational, you need practical, growth-focused solutions to successfully navigate the global economy. So, CONTACT US NOW for a rapid assessment of your situation and needs. Why choose The Bassiouni Group? We have 500+ experts in over 150+ countries — and they’re proficient in over 100 languages. We combine business/market
Very powerful and moving speeches by Pres. Obama and Pres. Clinton at Chairman Cummings’ funeral today. Pres. Obama said that we “have an obligation (as citizens) to root ourselves in good soil” and noted that “being a strong man includes being kind”. That is a simple and powerful lesson. This sense of strength and compassion
So, you made it through the 3-hour Democratic Debate on Tuesday night. Well done. Have some Gatorade to rehydrate. Our guess is you’re now asking yourself this question: Just why do we use debates as a key indicator when determining “Presidential readiness?” Do we really learn anything, especially when you have 12 candidates on stage
TBG is excited to introduce the Summer 2019 Internship Team. This accomplished group of graduate students will be assisting TBG on our ongoing projects covering Consulting (Business, Institutional, CSR/Sustainability), Investment and Trade and will tackle numerous sectors from Agriculture to Cleantech/Energy to Infrastructure Development.Learn more about our each intern below. George Khoury — Columbia University
The word ‘Artificial Intelligence’ or ‘AI’ has increasingly been a spotlight of the business world since early 2010. According to Statista, global revenues from AI for enterprise applications is projected to grow from $1.6 billion in 2018 to 31.2 billion in 2025. The growth in AI investment is a global trend: The UK announced approximately
In late June, Facebook unveiled its plans for a new blockchain-based currency, Libra. Expected to launch in 2020, Facebook claims that its new digital currency has the unique potential to advance financial inclusion and create economic opportunity for billions of people around the world. So what sets Libra apart from existing cryptocurrencies and
At its inception, venture capital (VC) investing was huge in clean tech, pledging billions of dollars to eventually produce a wave of startups between 2006-2008. However, VC investment in clean technologies plummeted in 2012, after investors took a number of losses from bad bets, as well as dealing with fallouts from the 2008 financial crash.
Pollution, global climate change, and growing income inequalities are major problems in the world. There is another issue that needs greater attention: extinction. Saving our planet is necessary for the present and future generations. We have a great responsibility to correct the negative environmental impact to slow the rate of extinction. According to the Intergovernmental
As a former United Nations official specializing in Humanitarian Response and Complex Emergencies, I had the opportunity to work in some highly challenging post-conflict environments such as Liberia, war-zones such as Somalia and post-disaster environments such as Southeast Asia after the 2004 Tsunami. However, assessing the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico is particularly
In 2017, the Institute for Environmental Analytics (IEA) announced that they would be undertaking a new project using environmental data to create an energy planning tool aimed at islands increasing renewable energy use. The Renewable Energy Space Analytics Tool (RE-SAT) is now in partnership with the Government of Seychelles, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
As a region, Asian Pacific countries are coming together to evaluate their progress in achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. From 27-29 March 2019 more than 850 participants from governments, inter-governmental organizations, United Nations bodies, and civil society organizations convened for the Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development in Bangkok, Thailand. This 6th forum
The US Department of Energy has named energy sector preparedness a key area in both cyber and energy security, as there is increased need for information sharing in our digital age. However, with this comes an element of risk, which must be addressed through situational awareness and thorough risk analyses. There are a number of
The World Bank Group has two primary goals to achieve by 2030. One is ending extreme poverty by decreasing the percentage of people living on less than $1.90 a day to no more than 3 percent, and the other is promoting shared prosperity by fostering the income growth of the bottom 40 percent in
Everyone that wears clothes participates in the fashion industry. The process of sourcing materials making clothes, shipping orders across the globe, wearing the clothes and disposing of them is a trillion-dollar industry. We can all do more to become aware of how our clothes are made, how often we wear the items in our
Blockchain is a technology that was originally created for the digital currency, Bitcoin, essentially allowing digital information to be distributed but not copied. However, since then it has come a long way in the tech world, and it now has potential uses that span a wide range of industries. One of these industries is energy.
“In these turbulent times, books embody the diversity of human ingenuity, giving shape to the wealth of human experience, expressing the search for meaning and expression we all share, that drive all societies forward. Books help weave humanity together as a single family, holding a past in common, a history and heritage, to craft a
Happy International Mother Earth Day where this year’s theme is “Protecting Our Species.” Peace activist John McConnell, US Senator Gaylord Nelson, and environmental activist Denis Hayes contributed to the creation and worldwide celebration of Earth Day. Numerous activities are taking place today to clean-up trash, plant trees and flowers, conserve energy, and use alternative
India is currently the world’s third largest economy; a result of GDP growth amid a period of serious poverty decline. However, the country also has a large and steadily increasing population, bringing with it a growing energy demand, increasing at a rate of 3.1% per annum. Since 93% of the country’s current energy supply is
What if you could generate power by kicking around a soccer ball? Jessica O. Matthews, founder and CEO of Uncharted Power, formerly known as Uncharted Play, did just that with SOCCKET, a portable power-generating soccer ball designed to promote physical activity and spread awareness about the global energy problem. Matthews, a dual citizen of Nigeria
EDITOR’S NOTE: TBG maintains a Global Consultancy Network of 500+ experts in 150+ countries. To access TBG’s Energy/Cleantech & Environment practice group, just send an email. The International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that in 2040, 60 percent of primary energy generation will still come from fossil fuels, despite acceleration in renewable generation, as fossil fuels
The Idai Cyclone has caused catastrophic damage in Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Malawi. Idai struck the coast of Mozambique, near Beira on March 14, 2019. Weeks after the cyclone hit, flood waters receded to show the landscape of destroyed houses, roads, and crops just before harvest. The confirmed total number of deaths is still unknown, but
Until last year, Nicaragua was a tourism hot spot and home to one of Latin America’s fastest-growing economies, ticking upward at about 5 percent per year. President Daniel Ortega, who for years had been accused of consolidating power through nepotism and graft, maintained popular support by administering welfare programs for the nation’s poor. Things
In 2008, The United Nations General Assembly unanimously decided that 2 April would be recognized as World Autism Awareness Day to acknowledge and advocate for the estimated one percent of the world’s population that has autism spectrum disorder – in the US it is estimated that around 1 in 59 people, over 3.5 million Americans,
Gender and trade gained attention at the 63rd UN Commission on the Status of Women session. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Deputy Secretary-General Isabelle Durant said that trade affects men and women differently due to the distinct roles each plays in our economies and societies. Trade policies have to account for gender-specific
