Inflated opinion
Each January, business leaders and politicians from across the world gather in Davos, Switzerland, for the World Economic Forum (WEF), to look at what the coming year may hold for the global economy. And 2023 is no exception, with a focus on the inflation that is hitting every national economy, driven by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine just after the 2022 WEF and its impact on energy costs, as well as the ongoing problem of Covid and decarbonisation.
Energy investment
It is now almost a year since the world was plunged into an energy crisis by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But this crisis might become the potential turning point for world climate – with the move away from fossil fuels gaining momentum as society looks at the route to energy security and also decarbonisation.
Solidarity in crises
Responsibility, international solidarity, openness, inclusion, mobility, flexibility and predictability. They are words that will already be familiar to all of us engaged in the international scientific community. So perhaps it’s not too surprising that they are also the watchwords selected by a recent report on the Ukraine crisis.
Climate accountability
COP-27 is on us, and the organisers have stated their objectives: The hope is that COP27 will be the turning point where the world came together and demonstrated the requisite political will to take on the climate challenge through concerted, collaborative and impactful action. Read the leader article by Sharon Todd, SCI's CEO.
Energy and R&D
The energy crisis continues to cause global disruption, pushing inflation rates across many countries to levels not seen for many years. Governments are scrambling to raise interest rates to stop the rise, however interest rates are a blunt instrument, with limited impact on the cause of the inflation but substantive knock-on effects.
Biotech burnout
The US biotech sector has seen major upheaval and contraction over the first half of 2022, which is only just beginning to reverse. The pace and the numbers of employees affected over such a short period has been described as unprecedented by many observers.
Highwire act
We are now halfway to COP27 and three years after the UK set its Net Zero target. Meanwhile the UK, along with the rest of Europe, is facing a winter of extraordinary fuel bills as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its impact on the world energy markets. So where does the UK currently stand?
Renewables booming
Global renewable power is forecast to break another record in 2022, despite all the issues and concerns around higher costs and supply chain problems, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Recovery funding
In the months since COP26 in November 2021, the continuing questions have been: What has happened since the discussions ended? Has any progress actually been made? Will there be a re-run of the same discussions in Egypt at the next COP?
Winners and losers
Despite the raft of new biotech company entries, the first quarter of 2022 has also seen massive job losses in the sector, particularly in the US. And the companies concerned are not just small startups, they include names in Big Pharma, like Pfizer, Lundbeck, Daiichi, Gilead and Biogen.