China became famous for its eternal working days. The solution has been to throw employees at their time

The Reduction of the working day It seems to be a path of no return that many countries have proposed to move. Some, Like GreeceThey do not do it with a determined step. Instead, others whose self -denial It seemed immovable, they are surprising the world with day reduction measures. China is one of those countries that, unexpectedly, has proposed to cut its workday. Labor culture 996. While in a large part of the West the eight -hour workday begins to be seen as a vestige of the last century and fights for the reduction of working hours, in China the culture 996 still continues: work from nine in the morning to nine o’clock at night and six days per week. Such and as they tell In ethic, that pace of work is taking Chinese society to the extreme, pulling on the soils The birth rate in a country that for years has sinned just the opposite. Chinese authorities have been trying for years Eliminate the culture of 996 of the workplace, but Without too much success. Dji has seriously proposed. According to The published by SCMP, Since the end of February something very curious is happening in DJI, the Chinese drone manufacturer. When the clock marks nine o’clock at night, a squad of human resources managers travels through the brand’s central offices in Shenzhen. Their mission is to make sure that all employees without exception leave their jobs and go home as if it were a fire drill. Instead of evacuating the building for security, employees are “guests” to leave their cubicles to meet a new rule: no one can work beyond their day. The fault is “Neijuan”. No, Neijuan It is not the name of the company’s Human Resources Manager. The term could translate to something as “involution” and, as they explain in SCMP, It refers to the need to reduce excess competition in certain areas of the economy. The measure is imposed as a New economic policy of China in which it is intended to reduce the excess of competence that makes companies in certain sectors such as The technological either Renewable energiesinvest an unnecessary amount of resources without obtaining an improvement in their profitability or in their R&D in return. Therefore, it implies outbound templates without registering a significant advance generating inefficient competition. It is something unpublished in China. Until recently, it was common to see the offices of DJI illuminated until the early hours of the morning with employees who lengthened their days until infinity. Now, the image is very different and has impacted many who have commented on social networks. The Asian media highlighted the publication of a worker surprised by the measure that commented “it was the first time they threw me from the office.” Other technological giants are adding. Although the work culture 996 has the support of prominent names of the Chinese technology industry Like Jack Mamore and more international companies such as Haier or Measure They are adding to the call of the Chinese government of limit the days of its employees. According to sources of SCMPHaier would have ordered all the staff of his headquarters to respect the breaks of two days of the weekend, while Midea has begun to demand that the workers file their departure at 6:20 p.m., instead of 9 pm. In Xataka | Working more than 60 hours a week is not healthy: Japan is starting to learn by force In Xataka | To motivate its Chinese workers, it has opted for a prize. His name is Caracol, and it is a public humiliation Image | Unspash (Duc Dao)

The dirty reality of what we throw

“The waste is history. The bodies break down, the paper is raised and undone, the treasures can get out or the conquering forces can melt them. But no one steals in a landfill and, therefore, for centuries archaeologists (…) They have rebuilt our history from waste “, Oliver Franklin-Wallis told us And, if he is right (he carries it), one thing can ask us: what will our garbage say? And, even if it seems, that is a key question. Because the image that these waste returns us is terrible. The great cheat of garbage. “Every year We produce 2,000 million tons. They are everywhere, but since it is disgusting, we don’t think about it. ” Franklin-Wallis held A few weeks ago talking about ‘Dump‘(Captain Swing, 2025), but that is to fall short. As he recognizes, it is not a ‘natural and understandable forgetfulness’; on the contrary, “The (international) industry of waste has been an opaque business on purpose“With the accomplice collaboration of governments, management and media companies. Before, in 2028, China I decided to stop buying waste In the middle of the world, everything seemed like a haven of peace and good management. But it was a lie. As Cheryl Katz explained years ago in Wireddeveloped countries that had recycling systems for many years, took advantage of the facilities that gave them countries like China to make the most accessible and cheap waste management. A trap in which we got alone. The negative side is that this pressure dismantled the local waste management industry. To get an idea of ​​the problem dimension: Before that year 201895% of European plastics and 70% of Americans ended up in China. But that “treatment” ended. China decided that it no longer brought to continue importing waste and the international garbage system convulsed. The developed world was found that all structural solutions They were too complex and faces To implement: they required, ultimately, rebuild an industry that had almost completely relocated. Given that, the alternative was to look for new countries that want that garbage: during the last years, millions of tons of garbage have redirected Towards the Gulf of Guinea And, above all, towards Southeast Asia looking for “new landfills.” Nothing has changed substantially and what least obscurantism. In the shadows the monsters grow. And when I use the term “monster” I am not using a metaphor: I am describing reality. Garbage -related crime is already the fourth most important criminal activity in the world (after drug trafficking, human beings and forgery). Moreover, According to the Civil Guardthis type of crime grows at a rate of between 5% and 7% per year. How to get out of this spiral? In which perhaps it is the most valuable part of ‘landfill’, Franklin-Wallis explains what he himself experienced when he finished his very long investigation for “the dirty realdiad of what we threw.” Several of the people I have met in the waste business have shared similar stories: once you really start looking at the waste, you see them everywhere. They become an obsession. After a while, start my mood. After all, as Heather Rogers wrote in 2005“garbage is the visible interconnection between everyday life and deep horrors, and often abstract, of ecological crises.” Therefore, when we talk about these issues, the first temptation is asking “What can I do?” And the answer is complicated. In most cases, all the options we have at our disposal have problems: there are no strategies – and less at the micro – that are fully positive. That, of course, does not mean that initiatives such as the circular economy or responsible consumption strategies do not have a role. Simply, it means that you have to understand the dimension of what we are talking about (and not put more hopes in them than are reasonable). We need macro strategies, Franklin-Wallis says; But above all, we need to get the garbage in light, we need to discuss waste, we need to think about waste. And we need to do it in a way that drives us to improve. It is the only way to find something valuable among so much because. Image | Jilbert Ebrahimi In Xataka | Someone who wants to be the landfill in the world is sought: the global recycling crisis shows no recovery signs

Investing in carbon capture instead of renewable energy is to throw money

The fight against climate change is fundamentally based on reducing the amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. One of the most direct solutions is carbon capture: extract the co₂ from industrial fireplaces or ambient air. So why don’t you finish taking off in front of renewables? Short. Carbon capture technologies are equipment that is placed in industries or outdoors to eliminate pollution without modifying the source. Although it sounds promising, A recent Stanford study It shows that carbon capture is in the long run much more expensive and less effective than direct transition to renewable energy. In addition to improving air quality and stopping climate change, for most countries of the world, electrifying the industry and obtain Energy, compared to a total bet for carbon capture that maintained the consumption of fossil fuels. The study. The researchers compared two extreme scenarios: a world that bets 100% for renewable energies and electrification; and a world that continues to burn fossil fuels, but tries to reduce its impact with carbon capture and improvements in energy efficiency. In contrast to intuition, the most profitable option is by far completely replacing fossil fuels by sources such as wind, sun, geothermia and hydroelectric energy. Because They directly eliminate the use of fuelswhich is the main source of pollutants in the air, and because they reduce energy demand instead of continuing to increase it. More profitable. Clean sources and electrification would not only directly reduce carbon dioxide, avoiding five million deaths a year caused by pollution. Since carbon capture consumes energy, the first scenario would also involve economic savings compared to the other scenario, reducing energy consumption by 54% and energy costs by 60%. The key is the opportunity cost. Using renewable energy to feed carbon capture systems prevents those same energies from being used to replace polluting sources. “If you spend a dollar in carbon capture instead of renewables, you are increasing carbon dioxide, air pollution, energy requirements, energy costs, pipelines and total social costs,” Explains the main author of the studyMark Jacobson. Conclusion. What the study points out is that, although carbon capture may seem an attractive technical solution, in practice it maintains the inefficient and polluting infrastructure of combustion. How to try to empty a bathtub without closing the tap. The substantive problem is not solved: the use of fossil fuels. The researchers conclude that, to face the climatic crisis effectively, it is much more beneficial to abandon the idea of ​​cleaning the air after polluting and betting on a total transformation towards renewable energies. The evidence says that investing in clean energy is not only cheaper, but also the safest option for the environment and global health. Image | Pixabay In Xataka | The big business in which CO2 is becoming captured and burying it underground

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