Minister for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, Robert Troy TD welcomed the agreement by the European Parliament last night on the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive which introduces new rules on corporate sustainability reporting for companies.

Welcoming the agreement, Minister Troy said:

“This agreement is excellent news for consumers, investors and other stakeholders with an interest in how the businesses they engage with are addressing sustainability matters. The Directive will ensure that the largest businesses operating in Europe and listed SMEs provide reliable and comparable information annually about their impacts on the environment, social and governance matters as well as human rights. I believe it strikes the correct balance between requiring reporting which gives maximum relevant information while also avoiding unnecessary burdens on companies.”

He continued: “The need for real action on climate change continues to deepen and more and more we see the impact of climate change on business and investment in our country. Ultimately, we cannot be leaders in the charge against climate change without business and I am committed to working with companies to realise our ambitions.”

Minister Troy acknowledged the significant work of the European Commission and Parliament and thanked the French Presidency for its focus and ambition in reaching an agreement on this important proposal.

“We set ourselves an ambitious agenda under the European Green Deal and Sustainable Finance Agenda, the comprehensive agreement reached is a clear indication of our commitment to delivering on those commitments and I congratulate the French presidency on this milestone. I will now be working with officials from my Department to progress the transposition of the Directive. An important part of this process will be engaging with stakeholders, businesses and civil society alike, and I intend to conduct a robust public consultation process in the autumn.

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive will make businesses more accountable by obliging them to disclose their impact on the environment and human rights. The Directive is a cornerstone of the European Green Agenda and aims to end greenwashing and lay the groundwork for sustainability reporting standards at the global level.

Overview of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive

The new sustainability reporting requirements will apply to all large companies (with over 250 employees and a 40 million euro turnover, as defined in the Accounting directive), whether listed or not. Companies will have to report on their impact on the environment, human rights, social standards and work ethics, based on common standards.

The information companies provide on their impact on the climate or human rights will be independently audited and certified.

Financial and sustainability reporting will be on an equal footing and investors will have access to reliable, transparent and comparable data.

Non-EU companies with substantial activity in the EU market (150 million euro in annual turnover in the EU) will have to follow equivalent reporting rules.

Member States will have 18-months from adoption of the Directive to transpose it, with a view to mandatory requirements commencing for financial years on or after:

1 January 2024 for companies and public interest entities in the scope of the existing rules (greater than 500 employees).

1 January 2025 for other larger companies and public interest entities (greater than 250 employees); and

1 January 2026 for listed SMEs, with a potential opt-out until 2028.

A public consultation will be held later in the year to inform the transposition. The final text of the Directive will be published once it has undergone the formal adoption process.

The Roe v. Wade overturn destroyed 50 years of progress in women’s rights to privacy and the ability to choose for themselves.

According to the data collected by the Atlas VPN team, apps dedicated to women’s health, like pregnancy or period trackers, heavily collect sensitive data and share it with third parties.

After the Supreme Court in the US overturned Roe v. Wade, information gathered from these apps could be used as evidence for getting an abortion.

A few most popular women’s health apps stand out when looking at trackers. Pregnancy App & Baby Tracker (Babycenter) has 15 trackers on their Android and 20 trackers on iOS applications.

Pregnancy Tracker & baby app WTE has 7 and 22 trackers on its Android and iOS versions, respectively.

Flo Period tracker & calendar app seems to have 2 trackers, the least among Android apps. At the same time, the MeetYou Period Tracker application has 3, the least amount of trackers among women’s health apps on iOS devices.

Permissions Spy on Your Data

Permissions help the user regulate and control which system and device functions the application can access.

MeetYou Period Tracker has 36 permissions on their Android app, 8 of which could be considered dangerous. The iOS application requires 7 permissions, giving access to data that can be used to track you.

Pregnancy Tracker & baby app WTE on Android devices has 19 permissions (3 dangerous), meanwhile, the iOS version has 9. The least amount of permissions on Android and iOS devices can be found in the Spot on period tracker, 7 and 4, respectively.

During the research, Atlas VPN found some apps that even ask for permissions to access your search history and contact information, like your name and email address.

Later on, this data could be sold to third-party services and used against women who are considering getting an abortion.

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The 22nd Accenture Technology Vision report is out and it places a big emphasis on the metaverse. So besides seeing the metaverse as something businesses should be prepared for, what else does the Technology Vision report mention. Ronan talks to David Kirwan, Head of Technology, Accenture Ireland about this and more.

David talks about his background, what he does in Accenture, trust and transparency, Accenture’s latest Technology Vision report and the metaverse, . David also talks about AI, Star Trek, and what technology will become ubiquitous.

More about the Accenture Technology Vision report:

The annual Technology Vision report identifies the latest technology trends that will have the greatest impact on companies, government agencies and other organisations in the next three years. The Technology Vision explores disruptive technology that impacts digital business and includes examples, bold predictions and critical decision points for leaders to consider related to their digital technology investments.

The research is based on input from the Technology Vision External Advisory Board comprised of public and private sectors, academia, venture capital and entrepreneurial companies. Insights are also drawn from nearly 100 Accenture business leaders who have deep expertise with digital technology. To understand the perspectives of both business leaders and consumers, the research process includes a global survey of more than 6,000 business and IT executives, and a global consumer survey.

See more podcasts here.

Expert Reviews has revealed the winners of its third annual Remote Working Awards, with 23 categories covering the full spectrum of home working equipment including laptops, printers and speakers.

The awards were launched in 2020 during the height of the pandemic when the UK’s workforce was asked to turn their homes into offices, and they’re just as relevant today. In 2022, remote working is here to stay and everyone has become their own Head of IT, sourcing products for their own home setup.

The range of products currently available is vast, so where does one start? The Expert Reviews team has tested hundreds of products – from laptops to printers, webcams and Wi-Fi extenders – in their home offices throughout the year, testing each one to find out what works best for home offices across the UK.

Monica Horridge, Editor of Expert Reviews, said: “Over the past few years, remote working has gone from being a novelty to a part of everyday life for huge numbers of working people. As the dust begins to settle after the pandemic, many have made permanent changes to the way they work, continuing to spend significant time working at home.

But how many are still working with a setup that was supposed to be temporary? As we look to the future with more certainty, now is the time to invest in the proper equipment to help transform the humble study into a place for serious work.

“At Expert Reviews, we’ve tested hundreds of products to find the very best for the home office. Whether it’s speedier Wi-Fi, crystal-clear image quality for video calls or a more comfortable office chair that’s required, we’ve found the products to help make the upgrade go as smoothly as possible.”

The full list of winners is as follows:

Click to Reveal

Best Office Chair Winner | Herman Miller Sayl Highly Commended | Herman Miller Aeron

Best Webcam Winner | Obsbot Tiny 4K PTZ Highly Commended | Jabra PanaCast 20

Best USB Microphone Winner | HyperX QuadCast S Highly Commended | Joby Wavo Pod

Best Home Working Laptop Winner | Asus ZenBook S 13 OLED Highly Commended | Acer Swift 3 (2022)

Best Chromebook Winner | Acer Chromebook Spin 713 Highly Commended | Asus Chromebook Flip CX5

Best PC Speakers Winner | Creative T60 Highly Commended | Edifier S351DB

Best Router Winner | Asus ROG Rapture GT-AX6000 Highly Commended | Netgear Nighthawk RAXE500

Best Value Router Winner | D-Link R15 Eagle Pro AI Highly Commended | Linksys MR7350

Best Mesh Wi-Fi Router Winner | TP-Link Deco X90 Highly Commended | Linksys Atlas Pro 6

Best Wi-Fi Extender Winner | TP-Link RE505X Highly Commended | Devolo Magic 2 WiFi 6

Best Monitor Winner | AOC Q27P2CA Highly Commended | HP Z34c G3

Best Value Monitor Winner | BenQ GW2785TC Highly Commended | Dell P2422HE

Best Printer Winner | Canon Pixma G650 Highly Commended | Epson EcoTank ET-810

Best External Hard Drive Winner | Crucial X8 Highly Commended | Kingston XS2000

Best Mouse Winner | SteelSeries Prime Wireless Highly Commended | Logitech MX Anywhere 3

Best Keyboard Winner | Razer Pro Type Ultra Highly Commended | Cherry G80-3000N RGB

Best Ergonomic Mouse Winner | Logitech MX Vertical Highly Commended | Kensington Orbit Fusion

Best Ergonomic Keyboard Winner | Logitech Ergo K860 Highly Commended | Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic

Best Laptop Stand Winner | VonHaus Laptop Stand Highly Commended | Oripura Laptop Stand

Best Mouse Mat Winner | Logitech Studio Series Highly Commended | Kensington Duo Gel

Best Conferencing Headset Winner | Plantronics Voyager Focus UC Highly Commended | Microsoft Modern USB

Best USB Hub Winner | Anker PowerExpand 6-in-1 USB-C Highly Commended | Razer Thunderbolt 4 Dock

Best Paper Shredder Winner | Bonsaii EverShred Highly Commended | Rexel 2101942UK

To read the full writeup for each winner and highly commended go to: www.expertreviews.co.uk/remoteworkingawards2022

St Augustine’s National School Clontuskert, Ballinasloe, Co Galway and Kinsale Community School, Co.Cork have been announced as the winners of the inaugural Schools Sustainability Project competition, an SSE Airtricity and Microsoft Ireland initiative that aims to create awareness among primary and post-primary students about renewable energy, sustainability and biodiversity, and technology and innovation.

The Schools Sustainability Project competition is the most recent project that SSE Airtricity and Microsoft Ireland have partnered on as part of their Solar for Schools programme. Launched in 2020, the renewable energy programme enables schools to power classrooms using energy generated from their own roof, helping them to reduce their carbon footprint, and their energy costs.

With an investment of close to one million euro, the partnership involved the rollout, installation and management of internet-connected solar panels in 29 primary and post-primary schools, which are connected via Azure IoT to Microsoft Azure, a cloud computing platform. The panels installed across all 29 locations have the combined power to generate enough electricity for 68 Irish homes for a full year.

A key objective of the project was to show students first-hand how they can play a part in combatting climate change. Digital screens were installed as part of the project to show the school’s energy use in real time, allowing students to see the impact of the energy efficiency upgrades and helping them and the wider school community to better understand their consumption and how they can become more energy-efficient, while also further reducing their emissions.

Following the initial installation, SSE Airtricity and Microsoft Ireland committed to the delivery of an education program to primary and post-primary schools involved in the project. It was from this commitment that the Schools Sustainability Project competition was born.

As part of the Schools Sustainability competition, schools from Connacht, Munster, and Leinster took part in a three-module course on renewable energy, sustainability, biodiversity, technology and innovation. Following these modules, project submissions were made demonstrating the efforts of the schools to improve the environment.

Winning primary school, St Augustine’s National School Clontuskert in Ballinasloe, Galway, undertook a series of activities to help improve the environment including installing a bug hotel to increase biodiversity; installing an environmentally friendly sewage treatment plant; successfully petitioning to change waste management symbols in Ireland and being the first school in Ireland to receive the Climate Action School of Excellence Award.

Students from winning post-primary, Kinsale Community School, Co. Cork undertook a Save the Bees initiative, planting a biodiversity orchard and a hedgerow in their school to provide food for bees and other pollinators, and fruit for birds. They will also provide local organic food for the school’s Home Economics department and raise awareness of the importance of biodiversity and the climate crisis.

Prize for Schools Sustainability Project Competition

In a prize-giving held at both schools, a sustainability grant worth €2,500 from Microsoft Ireland was awarded to each school, with each participating student also receiving a computer Tablet worth €100 from the SSE Airtricity eStore.

Following the prize-giving, Fergal Ahern, Head of Business Development, SSE Airtricity said: “SSE Airtricity is proud to be Ireland’s largest provider of 100% green energy. Providing renewable energy solutions is in our DNA and we are delighted to partner with Microsoft Ireland on this educational schools’ competition that engages primary and post-primary students and gets them thinking about the impact they can make on the environment whilst helping them to develop and implement sustainable options for their schools.

“The pupils of St Augustine N.S. Clontuskert and Kinsale Communi...

The EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum has announced its first physical event since the Covid-19 pandemic started.

The event titled “Blockchain: a key enabler to innovation in Europe and the world” will be held on July 8th in Brussels and will feature speakers across a variety of panels and keynotes on blockchain trends and innovation in Europe and beyond.

The event is set to attract attendees from the European Commission, startups, NGOs, academia, and governments and will cover a variety of topics such as the EU Blockchain ecosystem landscape, Law & Regulation, Metaverse, NFTs and Energy Efficiency of blockchain.

In addition, the event will host a Policy Dialogue co-organized with INATBA, which will address eIDAS and the Future of Digital Identity in Europe.

Speakers at the EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum Event

The confirmed speaker line-up for the event so far includes:

Eva Kaili, MEP, VP of European Parliament

Helen Koepman, DG CNECT

Nena Dokuzov, Head of Project Group for New Economy and Blockchain Technologies at Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, UNECE expert and Head of Delegation for Slovenia

Mark Taverner, Bluesphere Solutions

Jeff Bandman, Bandman Advisors, University of Nicosia, EUBOF Expert Panel

Prof Joshua Ellul, Director, Centre for Distributed Ledger Technologies, University of Malta

Dr Ingrid Vasiliou Feltes, CEO SoftHread, EUBOF Expert Panel

Dr Ioannis Revolidis, University of Malta

Dr Ioannis Vlachos, EnergyWeb & European Blockchain Observatory & Forum

The event will be held at the DG CONNECT Building, Avenue de Beaulieu, 25, 1160 Auderghem, Brussels. Attendance is free of charge, but registration is required.

Click here to proceed with the registration. The conference will be organized in a hybrid model, which will allow for both physical and online participation of attendees and speakers.

The EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum is a European Commission initiative to accelerate blockchain innovation and the development of the blockchain ecosystem within the EU and so help cement Europe’s position as a global leader in this transformative new technology.

Dr. Efi Pylarinou interviews Law Professor Crenguta Leaua about the Metaverse

The Greek Gods and the Metaverse: Legal Order in the Layered Universe, Crenguta Leaua

A delightful and thoughtful perspective on the reality we can build through the Metaverse by Law Professor Crenguta Leaua. As a specialist in international arbitration and New Technology law, Professor Crenguta Leaua, shares her thoughts on arbitration in an AI-driven world, and her takeaways from the events in Davos during the WEF2022.

In the second part of our discussion, she animates her alternative thinking on the Metaverse, which she has presented during the 2022 European conference on international arbitration and is the topic of her Long article: `The Greek Gods and the Metaverse: Legal Order in the Layered Universe`

Crenguta Leaua is a professor at the Bucharest University of Economic Studies in Bucharest, Romania, where she teaches international comparative arbitration and alternative dispute resolution, the law of communication and new technologies and business law.

She is the director of The Swiss Institute for Alternative Thinking in Lugano, Switzerland and a member of the Board of Directors of The Silicon Valley Arbitration and Mediation Center (SVAMC), chair of the SVAMC Initiative for Arbitration and Mediation for Blockchain-based Transaction. She is practicing international arbitrator and counsel ( founder of LDDP, a GAR 100 lawfirm).

Dr. Efi Pylarinou is the No.1 Global Woman Influencer in Finance & the Data conversation by Refinitiv, a Top Thought Leader by Onalytica, and a Top Digital Futurist, Linkedin and Twitter Voice, by Engatica.

A seasoned Wall Street professional & a recognized technology thought leader on innovation topics. Founder of Efi Pylarinou Advisory servicing Big Tech, Financial Services and Fintech clients. She strongly believes in building bridges between the old and the new economy. She shares her passion of content creation with her 190,000+ followers on Linkedin and 18,000+ on Twitter. Join her on the social platforms

See more podcasts here.

El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele had bet the economic salvation of the country on Bitcoin, but things haven’t worked out in the manner that he would have hoped. The crypto coffers of the government have been cut in half and the adoption of Bitcoin throughout the nation hasn’t taken off. The most crucial aspect is that the country still needs a lot of cash and quickly, for meeting its debt payments that are set to go over $1 billion in the coming year.

All that comes on the back of Bitcoin’s price falling over 70% from its peak in November 2021, and over 55% since the moment Bukele had made announcements of his plan. In the meantime, the economic growth of El Salvador has gone down substantially, as it still has a high deficit, and the debt-to-GDP ratio of the country, which is a metric that is used for comparing what is owed by a country to what it is generating will hit around 87% in the current year. That has led to increased fears that El Salvador would fail to meet its loan obligations.

After combining these economic woes with another war on gang violence, you get all the readings of a country that is on the receiving end of a disaster. The Bitcoin experiment hasn’t paid off on the surface, but it’s not the fault of Bitcoin that this government is heading towards financial ruin. The government is losing out around $50 million on Bitcoin, which, when you look at the national budget, is less than 0.5%. If you count the entire numbers on display, according to the estimates this whole experiment and the costs associated with its implementation has cost nearly $374 million to the government.

That’s a big number when you consider that there are $7.7 billion of outstanding bonds for El Salvador, but it’s a small number, when you factor in the $29 billion economy. However, the optics don’t make for good reading. Negotiations with international lenders have stalled, and that’s mainly because they don’t want to spend money on a country that is throwing millions of dollars on an extremely volatile cryptocurrency. Rating agencies such as Filch, have given a poor credit score to El Salvador as the financial future of the country is uncertain after adopting Bitcoin as the legal tender. This has made it even more expensive to borrow cash for President Bukele.

When you look at the financial situation of El Salvador, it’s in a difficult situation right now, as there are plenty of bonds that have been trading at drastically discounted rates. The country’s economic policy is now at a stage, where it is considered to be magical thinking. They have already scared the IMF and the financial markets, and nobody wants to lend money to the President unless it is at drastically expensive rates that are around 20% or 25%. That means El Salvador is walking towards a debt default stage.

However, the tech-savvy and millennial President, who is the self-proclaimed “coolest dictator in the world” on Twitter, has bet his political future to gambling on crypto, so there is plenty of incentive for making things work out, and currently to pay off El Salvador’s debt. President Bukele is already gearing up to face re-election and wants to run the country for another five years, starting in 2024.

The Bitcoin Experiment In El Salvador

El Salvador was the world’s first country that adopted Bitcoin as legal tender back in September 2021. The goal behind it was that they would use public funds to purchase Bitcoin, and launch a virtual wallet nationally that would be called “Chivo”, which is slang for something cool in the native language. The virtual wallet would provide a no-fee transaction, and also let quick payments across borders.

El Salvador is a country that is mainly a large cash economy, and here nearly 70% of the people don’t have credit cards, bank accounts, or other financial services. It was thought that Chivo would be the solution as it would help conveniently get those people who weren’t part of the banking system onboard the system. Another pa...

With Paul Sisnett, CEO of SMD Group, and Kunal Jhanji, Partner & MD at Boston Consulting Group

Project New Era is a privately-led, cross-industry initiative that will evaluate a future digital currency ecosystem in the UK that could include stablecoins and a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). Differing from other initiatives which seek to promote policy theories for digital currencies, Project New Era is about testing them in practice through a private sector pilot, using a live Digital Sterling (‘dSterling’) asset.

The pilot, set to launch in September, will be run by the private consortium but aims to engage with The Bank of England, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Payments Systems Regulator to update them around the progress and learnings in order to help them make informed decisions on implementing a CBDC in the future. These authorities are not, however, directly involved in the pilot itself.

Elements being investigated include evaluating the risks, both from macroeconomic and technical aspects, looking at cybersecurity, resilience, and ease of integration in order to generate a fully simulated environment for digital currencies and perhaps eventually a CBDC for the UK.

Listen to the full interview here

We look at this rugged and durable piece of kit. The Ruxton pack is a Hands-free Tablet Chestpack, you can see more about the product on their website here.

Ruxton Pack, Hands-free Tablet Chestpack, reviewed

This product is tough, well put together and it has been thought through in terms of the usecases that it is aiming to solve. The company seems focussed and targeted in what they are trying to achieve, and their demo videos are also pretty good too. In the one we have included below it does a good job of walking through when you might use it, how it can be helpful, and how to apply it and put it on.

This is a company whose products we have not reviewed before, but they seem to be doing a lot of things well, and have a good customer service department, which is always a winner when it comes to dealing with anybody. We liked this product, it performs well, and, if you have to hike to remote places, and then still pull out a tablet, then products like this make sense, and also help to contribute to the increased longevity of your devices. Well worth checking out.

More details about the Ruxton Chest Packs

The Ruxton Chest Packs are designed for field users of tablet computers. All three sizes of the Ruxton pack are sold attached to the Comox Harness. With the sides of the pack unzipped, the front folds down to support the tablet in portrait or landscape. This system provides users with a secure, comfortable, and ergonomic way to fully utilize the capabilities of their tablet computer. Users can customize the pack by changing the front to add pockets and/or high visibility orange front covers. Adding a variety of pouches and holsters to the Comox Harness further enhances the versatility of the system.

Features Ruxton Pack

Protects the tablet computer with a padded main compartment. Unzip the sides of the pack to fold down the front and support the tablet in portrait or landscape for viewing and data entry.

Uses the patented Fidlock® magnetic- assisted buckles to secure the tablet to the chest pack and quickly release the tablet from the pack as necessary.

The Fidlock® buckle is secured to the back of most tablets with hook and loop fabric – alternatives are available.

Highly durable nylon fabric.

Removable front covers allow users to change the colour from black to orange and/or add pockets.

Available in three sizes to accommodate tablets with up to 13- inch screens.

Comox Harness

Fits almost any user – from 5’ to 6’6” (152 to 198 cm) tall. Uses tough plastic staves to secure the Ruxton Pack and other available accessories. Weave the staves between alternating rows of webbing on the Comox Harness and compatible accessories. Eliminate loose webbing ends with hook and loop webbing keepers.

You can learn about our products by having a look at the attached Product Spec Sheet or by visiting our EU website:/

See more reviews here.