Preview of Tomorrow

On December 5th, 1933, the 21st amendment of The U.S. Constitution was ratified, effectively ending Prohibition in the United States. 90 years later, alcohol has become a well-studied substance with universally accepted quantities for what constitutes a single drink. But recently, there’s been a new player in town. Cannabis. Across the United States, widespread legalization of marijuana has hurtled our country into uncharted territory. In 2018, more than 12 million Americans admitted to driving while under the influence of cannabis. Unlike alcohol, with no “legal limit” or field sobriety test, the dangers of driving while impaired by marijuana become all the more consequential. In fact, it was found that the rate of fatal crashes attributed to impaired driving doubles in states that have recently legalized the drug. All in all, it doesn’t matter if you are for or against cannabis, as my guest today is an advocate for safety. Hello, I am your host Mike Lake and in today’s preview I will be talking with Denise Valenti, CEO of IMMAD, a company that has developed a technology that can measure visual field functions that are essential for safe driving. 

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In the time it took you to brush your teeth this morning, there were over 900 calls placed to 911 emergency services in the United States alone. But would you believe that out of these 900 calls made, almost 300 of them were either non-emergencies or complete butt dials? Unfortunately, within the past couple years, the coronavirus pandemic has spurred an increase in call volume to emergency services, while simultaneously introducing a myriad of understaffing issues. In fact, 77% of public-safety answering points, such as 911 and emergency dispatch, reported being consistently below authorized staffing levels in 2022. But it’s not just emergency services that have been suffering. The utilities sector experienced the second to highest percentage of worker resignations last year, leaving those still in the field to be completely overburdened with customer calls. Hello, I am your host Mike Lake and in today’s preview I will be talking with Tinna Hung, director of marketing at Daupler, a company that has created a response management system that can be used to help service providers prioritize emergencies and effortlessly match a service to an available provider. 

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When was the last time you had a meal? Maybe it was a quick granola bar before work, or possibly you’re eating some lunch right now. Whatever the case may be, I bet you didn’t realize that you were consuming a resource that, in about 40 years, will be as precious as gold. It has been estimated that, in order to keep up with the current population growth, humans will need to produce more food in the next 40 years than in the previous 10,000 years combined. But here’s the kicker. If we increased production by clearing out more agricultural space (like we have in the past), it’s estimated that by 2050, this would create about 2 billion more metric tons of CO2 to be emitted into the atmosphere. So, how do we deal with such an imminent crisis if we don’t even have the space or the resources to do so? Where do we go from here? … Well, how about up? Hello, I am your host Mike Lake and in today’s preview I will be talking with Juan Succar, co-founder and CCO of Verde Compacto, a company designing indoor vertical farms allowing fresh food anywhere, anytime with their revolutionary farm-to-table supply chain. 

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Just a few decades ago, the concept of unmanned aerial vehicles, or, as you may know them: drones, was a reality confined only to science fiction films and comic books. In fact, if you told someone just 30 years ago that there are over 900,000 drones registered in the United States, with over half of them being used for recreational use, they’d probably look at you like you were crazy. But the truth is, unmanned aerial vehicles are quickly becoming a close companion to the concept of smart cities, with the potential to offer cost-efficient services for everything from environmental monitoring to traffic management. Yet, with no established system within cities to rent out drones, the potential to use these flying machines for good is wasted. Drones can deliver packages in under 30 minutes and cut surveying costs by up to 98% - so why shouldn’t we make them accessible to all?

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When it comes to our plumbing, we usually take an out-of-sight, out-of-mind approach. Once we don’t see it anymore, we don’t think about it anymore - but for the waste that we put in our drains and plumbing systems, the initial flush is only the beginning of its journey. After flowing through mazes of pipes below our cities, waste ends up at a sewage treatment site, where tanks and aerators process the waste into byproducts. But want to hear a dirty little secret? These byproducts can contain pathogens, heavy metals and excess nitrogen that pollutes our landfills and forests. And any excess byproducts end up being incinerated, putting large amounts of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. So, the question remains: how do we sustainably dispose of our waste’s waste?

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Potholes: the modern car driver’s worst enemy. How many times have YOU hit a pothole just a little too hard, eyes darting to the dashboard, hoping and praying that you don’t see that flat tire light blink on? In the U.S alone, there are reportedly 220 million flat tires that happen every year on our roadways, posing a risk to the driver and everyone around them. Flat tires aren’t the only threat: heartbreakingly, traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for both Australians and Americans under the age of 15. Despite this, it takes multiple years to gather enough data from police reports to identify an unsafe road. We need a proactive, not reactive approach to maintaining our city's traffic patterns and roads to effectively prevent further tragedy. Hello, I am your host Mike Lake and in today’s preview I will be talking with Emily Bobis, founder of Compass IoT, a road intelligence company that utilizes connected car data to better identify unsafe road or traffic conditions.  

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The first ever solar panel cell was created more than eighty years ago: and like many other innovations, it was created by pure accident. Yet since then, those signature rectangular structures can be spotted on the roofs of houses and buildings all over the world. In fact, the number of US solar panel installations is 23 times higher today than in 2014. While this is a clear win for environmental sustainability, it remains near impossible to measure and manage one’s clean energy consumption with solar panels alone. And with more than a third of the world’s population calling apartment buildings home, many consumers lack easy access to clean energy altogether. 

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A recent study in Texas found that, in local governmental elections, the first name listed on the ballot earns an average of ten percentage points more than the last name on the ballot. This is no coincidence, as it turns out that many voters simply chose a random name if they’re unfamiliar with a particular election. With an average of only 19% of eligible voters casting a vote in their local elections at all, municipal governments rely that much more heavily on those who do vote. It has become clear that voter education is an important yet widely ignored issue that will threaten both local and national governmental structures if we continue how we have in the past.

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Is your office building suffering from a cold? As strange as this sounds, Sick Building Syndrome is a serious and legitimate problem that can be found in buildings, like your very own corporate office. The culprit of this sickness? Tiny, invisible, airborne pathogens. These tiny villains cause infections, illnesses, and overall reduced productivity in the office. It’s not just your office that’s in danger though. In the hotel industry, a tiny bacteria called Legionella is commonly detected in AC vents, which can cause guests to feel ill or unrested. Even in hospital buildings, patient illnesses can become significantly worsened if exposed to these toxins, making it even more important to fend off these airborne pathogens. Hello, I am your host Mike Lake and in today’s preview I will be talking with Eugenie Addison, CEO of Senzi.Me, a medical device created to detect common airborne pathogens to reduce hospitalization and death associated with airborne diseases.  

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With more carbon dioxide in our atmosphere than at any time in human history, and sea levels rising faster than ever before, it is clear our world is facing a global climate crisis. Despite our urgency, did you know that over two thirds of businesses have reported having no plan for sustainability? With small businesses comprising over 99% of all businesses in both the US and UK, their participation is critical in making a significant environmental impact.  Corporate social responsibility has proven to be an important issue for consumers as well, as 87% of buyers admit they will make a purchase simply because a company advocated for an issue they care about. Clearly, the time is now for businesses to begin tracking their carbon footprints and goals for sustainability. Enter SDG Assessment, an application that helps small businesses and fast growth companies easily report sustainability, ESG and corporate social responsibility performance. Hello, I am your host Mike Lake and in today’s preview I will be talking with Sian Young, co-founder and COO of this groundbreaking sustainable solution. 

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