What's interesting this week...

Develop Impact - Issue 131

Happy Monday!

I hope you're having a great week so far. I wanted to share with you five articles that I found interesting and thought-provoking last week. I believe that they could provide some valuable insights or inspiration for your current or future projects.

As we continue to explore the vast world of technology, it's important to remember the concept of "tech for good" - using technology to improve the lives of individuals and communities, and make the world a better place. This can be through creating solutions to pressing problems, empowering marginalized groups, or promoting sustainability and social responsibility.

In this spirit, I want to encourage you that this community is all about learning, sharing, and growing together. If you have any interesting resources or thoughts to share, please don't hesitate to do so. Let's continue to use technology for the greater good.

Let’s jump in!

Jesse

What’s interesting…

How the pandemic inspired a new generation of creators

The COVID-19 pandemic spurred the development of new products, technologies, and approaches to innovation, but questions remain about how long this sense of cooperation can last.

The COVID pandemic inspired creativity, with governments, universities, non-profit organizations, and other groups sponsoring a series of 'hackathons' in 2020. These events generated several products, including a platform for virtual learning and a prototype for a monitoring system.

As waste-to-energy incinerators spread in Southeast Asia, so do concerns

Waste-to-energy technology is making inroads in Southeast Asia, where it's presented as a tried-and-tested green energy solution. However, environmental and public health impacts have already led to protests and project delays.

While proponents of waste-to-energy technology say it's a sustainable solution to waste management challenges, opponents worry that expanding the use of the technology in Southeast Asia may also have a detrimental impact on the region's climate goals.

Why Singapore is building digital public goods

Singapore has been open-source-oriented from the start, and the COVID-19 pandemic reaffirmed this importance. Countries can learn from each other's successes and lessons, and build on existing solutions without needing to start from scratch.

GovTech has been working with UNDP to accredit several of its digital initiatives as digital public goods so that governments around the world can explore and implement them based on their local needs.

Digital public goods need to be future-proofed and engaged with emerging technologies. Distributed-ledger technologies (DLTs) such as blockchain could play a crucial role in traceability, accountability, and integrity, from improving digital governance to ensuring that academic and other credentials are trusted.

Singapore's government agencies share lessons learned and best practices through the Singapore Government Developer Portal, which is open-source for other product teams to use and adapt.

Time for action on EU-ASEAN shared connectivity goals

Despite the good premises mentioned in formal documents, there are two big questions that both Southeast Asian and European stakeholders need to answer: Does ASEAN-EU connectivity really matter? And does the EU walk the talk in fulfilling the shared goals of ASEAN-EU connectivity?

One significant ongoing project is ARISE+, which aims to enhance ASEAN regional integration support from the EU. It has successfully engaged the ASEAN secretariat's sectoral bodies and working groups and implemented some major initiatives such as the bloc's trade repository, solutions services, Investments and Trade (ASSIST), and Customs Transit System.

COP15: Why does the UN biodiversity conference matter?

Biodiversity affects everything from global health and food security to the economy and the wider fight to tackle the climate crisis. Scientists, rights advocates, and delegates from nearly 200 countries are gathering in Canada last week to tackle the loss of biodiversity. The conference aimed to set out a plan to tackle global biodiversity loss over the next decade and beyond.

The environmental rights organizations have urged caution about any framework that would designate 30 percent of the planet as "protected areas", saying that such efforts have led to widespread evictions, hunger, ill health, and human rights violations.