The Orange

By Wendy Cope

At lunchtime I bought a huge orange—
The size of it made us all laugh.
I peeled it and shared it with Robert and Dave—
They got quarters and I had a half.

And that orange, it made me so happy,
As ordinary things often do
Just lately. The shopping. A walk in the park.
This is peace and contentment. It’s new.

The rest of the day was quite easy.
I did all the jobs on my list
And enjoyed them and had some time over.
I love you. I’m glad I exist.

✏️ We Don't Need No Education: Public schools in the United States have been facing a decline in enrollment since the mid-2010s, but the pandemic exacerbated the trend. According to an international study, American schools closed for an average of 70 weeks during the pandemic, and public schools lost some 1.2 million students in the first two years of the pandemic. Some students migrated to private institutions, while homeschool numbers rose by 30%. The departure of students is prompting waves of school shutdowns as education officials look to downsize their operations in response to smaller student populations and disappearing COVID-19 bailout funds. Failing to act will only worsen budget deficits during economic uncertainty. - Steven Malanga

❄️ Crypto vs. The World: The DC-based law firm Cooper & Kirk released a white paper titled “Operation Choke Point 2.0: The Federal Bank Regulators Come for Crypto,” claiming that federal bank regulators are secretly waging war against the cryptocurrency industry. The US government denies the allegations of a coordinated effort against cryptocurrency, stating that they support responsible technological innovations. Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission, led by Gary Gensler, has been cracking down on the cryptocurrency industry, causing some companies to consider moving offshore. Coinbase has sued the SEC to settle questions about which parts of its business are legal. - Jen Wieczner

💰 No Trade Is Free: The free-trade consensus that prevailed during the 1990s and 2000s in the US has been challenged over the past decade. The entry of China into the global trading system destroyed American workers' careers and economies, and complacency about Chinese politics encouraged the rise of a hostile superpower. While Trump's regime of tariffs, investment restrictions, and export controls constituted the first halting attempt to formulate an alternative to free trade, Biden's policies have expanded investment restrictions and export controls. - Noah Smith

✍️ A CEO’s Journey from the Forest Service to Wall Street

Monica Reid founded Kestrel Consulting, a firm that evaluates the sustainability of investment-grade municipal bonds in the US, providing comprehensive data to help investors make informed decisions. She grew up in Florida and developed a passion for the environment, working as a park naturalist before moving into public affairs. Reid started Kestrel Consulting as a grant-writing business before realizing the potential of providing sustainability evaluation for investors. Kestrel's platform allows investors to identify leaders and laggards in terms of environmental and social impact and screen bonds for green or social bond eligibility. The goal is to leverage capital markets to prioritize climate action and address the global biodiversity crisis.

Source: Visual Capitalist

A Crash Course In Creativity With Stanford Professor Tina Seelig

May 12, 2023 | 12:00 PM MDT | Tina Seelig

Dr. Tina Seelig is the Executive Director of Knight-Hennessy Scholars and Emeritus Director of the Stanford Technology Ventures Program at Stanford School of Engineering. She teaches courses on leadership, creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship at the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design (d.school) at Stanford.

In 2014, Dr. Seelig was honored with the SVForum Visionary Award, and in 2009 she received the Gordon Prize from the National Academy of Engineering, recognizing her as a national leader in engineering education. She also received the 2014 MS&E Award for Graduate Teaching, the 2008 National Olympus Innovation Award, and the 2005 and 2019 Stanford Tau Beta Pi Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching.

Dr. Seelig earned her Ph.D. from Stanford University Medical School in 1985, where she studied Neuroscience. She has worked as a management consultant for Booz, Allen, and Hamilton, as a multimedia producer at Compaq Computer Corporation, and as the founder of a multimedia company called BookBrowser.

She has written 17 popular science books and educational games. Her books include The Epicurean Laboratory and Incredible Edible Science, published by Scientific American; and a series of twelve games called Games for Your Brain, published by Chronicle Books. Her three newest books, published by HarperCollins, are What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20, inGenius, and Creativity Rules.

Parag Khanna Reveals the Future of Civilization in a Must-Read for Business Leaders and Policy Makers

"Connectography: Mapping the Future of Civilization" by Parag Khanna is an insightful and thought-provoking book that examines connectivity's role in shaping humanity's future. Khanna, a global strategist, presents a compelling argument that connectivity, rather than traditional geopolitical boundaries, is becoming the primary determinant of wealth and power in the 21st century.

"Blues" - Tommy Alexander

👥 We're launching an invitation-only, highly curated network of the world's best CEOs. We're only letting 500 leaders join.

Written by

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CEO, Founder | CEO.com