5 must reads to uplift you this weekend

We keep an ear to the ground for the interesting stats, insights and discussion points you need to feel in the know. This time, we've rounded up some of the inspirational stories from our Value Realized report launched earlier this week.

1. A positive spin on tackling climate change?

The need for climate action is typically defined in negative terms (of the dystopian future that must be avoided) rather than creating a new sustainable future for ourselves. However, there is plenty of inspiration to be found in a new report from EY and Ashoka. It profiles nine innovators who have tackled climate change head on and achieved outstanding results. From forest conservation to ethical banking and investment in nature-based solutions, their achievements reveal the business model innovations needed to help put the world on a 1.5°C pathway. The window of opportunity to restore our planet may be shrinking but by learning from changemakers, the financial sector can certainly play their part.?

Five ways changing finance can finance sustainable change ?

2. Creating a thriving business in just six months??

With dairy milk consumption in decline, farming organization Mooh cooperative wanted to benefit from an increased demand for cheese. This demanded a strategy to transform at incredible speed, despite COVID-19 restrictions. EY helped establish the new business, cheezy, in just six weeks. In the first year of business, cheezy reached thousands of customers with a moderate marketing budget and shipped more than 1,000 orders during the winter holiday season alone. Eighteen months later, many of the earliest customers are still active, with 80% rating the service as excellent. Today, it is trending toward becoming a sustainable online business – which is also reflected in a great customer satisfaction score of 4.7 out of 5 from Trustpilot.?

How to launch a sustainable direct-to-consumer business in no time

3. Unleashing the power of neurodiversity in the workplace?

People with autism spectrum disorder or dyslexia, often possess exemplary math, pattern?recognition and memory skills, to name but a few. However, only 16% of diagnosed autistic adults are in full-time employment, according to the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute. As businesses worldwide adopt technologies like Artificial Intelligence and machine learning, there is an increasing need for detail-orientated and data-driven individuals. Moreover, there is a critical shortage of STEM skills, and the overall workforce is shrinking. By tapping into the neurodivergent talent pool, thought leaders can help fill critical skills needs and drive transformation, innovation and sustainable growth.?

How neurodiversity drives value at the intersection of talent and technology ?

4. A game changer for cancer treatment?

The World Health Organization (WHO) predicts that by 2040, new cancer cases per year will exceed 27 million – a 50% increase from 2018. Cell and gene therapies (CGT) offer some of the most life-changing possibilities for patients:?

• Cell therapy aims to treat disease by restoring or altering certain sets of cells or by using cells to carry a therapy through the body.?
• Gene therapy replaces, inactivates or introduces genes into cells.?

These therapies are difficult to create and administer. They are also very expensive and only available to a handful of people. But health outcomes that were once unimaginable, are now within reach.?

How a collaborative approach helps CGT treatments reach more patients ?

5. Restoring trust in the media?

Research by MIT Media Lab found that “lies disseminate farther, faster, deeper, and more broadly than the truth and falsehoods are 70% more likely to be retweeted than the truth.” So, it is no surprise that ‘fake news’ has left a significant dent in the reputation of the media over the past five years. To ensure they remained a trusted news source, an Italian news agency - Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associata (ANSA) - reached out to EY for help. The blockchain solution implemented helps readers of ANSA online news confirm that story origins are true and trusted, through the presence of an ANSACheck sticker on the article.?

How blockchain helps the public see the truth in the story ?

If you do one thing:?

Find your superpower - and use it.?

Don’t miss a must read, find all the issues of the weekly must reads newsletter by EY on LinkedIn here .??