Nea-Kosma’s What’s Hot? What’s Not? (Jan-Mar 2023)

If you follow Nea-Kosma on Instagram or TikTok, you’re already familiar with our monthly “What’s Hot? What’s Not?” series. In it, we look at the things and news that excited, inspired, or frustrated us. As we’re now switching to a bi-monthly What’s Hot’s, we thought why not share them with our LinkedIn audience as well — so here is an overview of our high- and lowlights of the first quarter of 2023.

That’s Hot + Driving

Even though we are currently in May, which is the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month, let’s rewind back to?Black History Month. Throughout February, important Black activists, creators, and movements of the past and current times were celebrated. It is incredibly important to spotlight and uplift Black voices and their work, but it is equally crucial to not reduce the recognition of Black history and culture to just one month of the year. It is incredibly important to spotlight the contributions and struggles of Black people globally beyond designated months and incorporate credit and financial resources where they are due in all aspects of our societies, continuously and regularly.

At N-K, we strongly believe in fighting gatekeeping and other discriminatory practices, such as nepotism or the so-called glass or lavender ceiling, common especially in the creative industry. Therefore, we applaud the singer?FKA Twigs for opening up about gatekeeping in the music business?and calling out how artists and creatives are prevented from learning about and managing their various income sources, money, and especially masters. You can hear more of her thoughts on the topic in the?Forbidden Fruits podcast.

As we have mentioned in?our last article, we firmly believe that the?4 Day Work Week?will become a much more common way of work organization. Since the overwhelmingly positive results of a 6-month long trial of UK companies adopting the 4DWW were released in March, it has been a hot topic all over the Western business world. It is predicted that this new and reduced work structure will be becoming more and more common, and we’re very excited about that!

That’s Hot + Draining

In February, we learnt about a phenomenon that is equally fascinating and disturbing: we are witnessing?“evolution in action”?as animals adjust to the damage of our planet. Chornobyl tree frogs are adapting to live with radiation with heightened levels of melanin turning their skin black. Meanwhile, in NYC, the local rats have an additional gene (CYP2D1) that might be helping them with better mobility as well as being able to digest human food like pizza or even salads.

That’s Not + Driving

We kicked our year off with a new habit:?ice-cold showers.?Even if it might feel challenging to take the plunge and let the cold water pour on our bodies, lowering the temperature when showering has incredible health benefits, especially for our nervous systems. That in turn boost our mood, improves our general wellbeing, and allows us to be more productive and focused.

In Germany, the time spent raising children can be reflected in your pension thanks to the?“Mütterrente” law, which is undoubtedly a great way to recognize the hard work it requires to take care of an offspring. Unfortunately, the law still overlooks people caring for the elderly, an equally important and challenging care work on which the welfare of our society depends.

That’s Not + Draining

We loved?Nemesis’ essay entitled?“Max Pain”?which explores how our ‘attention economy’ shifted to a?‘tension economy’?since the turn of 2020, and how a contrarian’s shock value diminishes when done by everyone. Due to the pandemic, there has been a disconnect between the actual value of things and their meaning. This so-called “Clown Town” period, where unconventional behaviors became the ultimate way to gain attention and money has it made challenging to stand out. Now this shifted to a state called “Max Pain”, where people start to realize that actually improving things is much more valuable than attention. However, ultimately both states make it harder for regular individuals to navigate the complexities of our economy and secure their financial position.

These were just a few things featured in our ‘What’s Hot / What’s Not’ posts of the first three months of the year. If you would like to read more about our selection, make sure to check out?our Instagram!