globalbriefs


News and resources to inspire concerned citizens to work together in building a healthier, stronger society that benefits all.


Decisions, Decisions Breaking Glass Ceilings Benefits the Bottom Line


Women’s ability to make fair decisions amidst multiple and competing interests tend to make them better corporate leaders, researchers have found. A survey of more than 600 board directors showed that women are more likely to consider the rights of others and apply a cooperative approach to decision-making, which can result in better performance for their companies. The study, recently published in the International Journal of Business Gov- ernance and Ethics, was conducted by Chris Bart, Ph.D., a professor of strategic market leadership at Canada’s DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University, in Hamilton, Ontario, and Gregory McQueen, senior associate dean at A.T. Still University’s School of Osteopathic Medicine, in Mesa, Arizona. Male directors, which made up 75 percent of survey par-


ticipants, prefer to make decisions using rules, regulations and traditional ways of doing business or getting along. Mean- while, female directors are less curtailed by these param- eters and are more likely to try new and unconventional business methods. “We’ve known for some time that companies


that have more women on their boards have bet- ter results,” explains Bart. “Our findings show that having women on the board is no longer just the right thing, but also the smart thing to do.” Yet women still only comprise approximately 9 percent of corporate board memberships worldwide.


Pill Chill Birth Control Meds Foul Global Waters


After ethinylestradiol (EE2), the active ingredient in most birth control pills, has done its duty in preventing pregnancy, it can begin a second life as a pollutant that harms wildlife, creat- ing “intersex” fish and amphibians, and is difficult and costly to remove from wastewater streams that carry it into natural waterways. EE2 is only one of many synthetic hormones that


humans excrete into wastewater. The European Union wants to upgrade 1,360 wastewater treatment plants to utilize necessary charcoal-filtering technology to tackle EE2 contamination across England and Wales. Meeting proposed limits will require expenditures of $41 billion to $47 billion, according to Richard Owen, a professor at the University of Exeter, in the UK. In the journal Nature, Owen and Susan Jobling, Ph.D., an ecotoxicologist at


London’s Brunel University, write that more public debate on EE2 regulation is needed. “Animals are exquisitely sensitive to it,” observes Jobling. Owen queries: “Are we willing to pay this cost as a society or would we pre-


fer to live with the environmental impact?” Source: LiveScience.com


14 Knoxville TNNaturalAwakenings.com


Nearing Equality Gender Pay Gap is Eroding


Recent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that women now earn 82 percent as much as men, up from


64 percent in 1980. This latest figure represents median annual earnings for full-time, year-round workers, including self-employed, but not seasonal work- ers.


Progress has also been made in gender segregation within the labor market, with many previously male- dominated fields including law, bank- ing, medicine and civil service jobs such as bus drivers and mail carri- ers opening up to women. In 2012, President Obama cited his signing of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act as a second-term issue for addressing gender discrimination.


Veggie Power Food Revolution Day is May 17


Food Revolu- tion Day, a collaborative effort between the Jamie Oliver Food Foundation in the United States, the Better Food Foundation in the UK and The Good Foundation in Australia, aims to get people around the world talking about real food and food education. Last year, the global day of action encompassed more than 1,000 events and dinner parties among fami- lies and friends, school associates, work colleagues and community neighbors in 664 cities in 62 countries.


To get involved, visit FoodRevolution- Day.com.


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