3 . In 2019, Gotham Greens opened its 9,300-square-metre Baltimore farm on the former site of Bethlehem Steel, which was the largest steel-manufacturing plant in the world.     1     It aimed to repurpose unused rooftop spaces and abandoned factories for food production.

Urban populations are projected to increase by 2. 5 billion by 2050.     2     But despite the rise in city-based farms, there’s still a lot we don’t know about them, including the economic and environmental costs.

Florian Payen, an environmental scientist, and his colleagues looked at previous studies done in 53 countries where crops were grown in different urban environments, including “grey” spaces such as rooftops, and by using different growing methods. They found that yields(产量) of urban crops were often the same as those from conventional farms. Just as importantly, they revealed the most commonly-grown types of crops and the most effective growing methods.     3    

It’s known that the benefit of urban farming is a reduction in food miles.     4     In one study, researchers analyzed the carbon footprint of different vegetables grown in greenhouses in Canada and that of the importing vegetables from the USA. “They found that it was less carbon-intensive to import the crops because of the high energy input required to grow them locally in greenhouses,” says Payen.

    5    Urban agriculture has the potential to enhance local ecosystems, attracting pollinators (传粉媒介) such as bees and birds that boost urban biodiversity while providing more green spaces to help keep cities cool and counter the urban heat island effect.

4 . When I made the decision to quit my full-time employment, I never thought that I could get involved in an increasing global trend. I had to leave my relatively high-profile position for an unexpected move that hurt my pride and prevented me from getting promoted. Yet, I excused my departure by saying “I wanted to spend more time with my family”.

Curiously, after around two and a half years, my experience in what Americans refer to as “downshifting” has turned my excuse into an absolute reality. I have been transformed from a passionate advocate of Linda Kelsey’s “have it all” concept, which she has been promoting for the past seven years in the pages of She magazine, into a woman who is content to accept a little bit of everything.

I have discovered that abandoning the idea of “juggling your life” and adopting the alternative strategy of “downshifting” has benefits that go far beyond financial success and social status. Nothing could convince me to go back to the lifestyle Kelsey used to promote and which I had previously enjoyed: 12-hour workdays, tight deadlines, the terrifying pressure of office politics, and the demand of being a parent on “quality time”.

After the widespread layoffs (裁员) brought on by cost-cutting in the late 1980s, America started to move toward a simpler, less materialistic way of life as a response to the economic downturn. In America, simplifying one’s life is frequently done for financial reasons, but in Britain, at least among the middle class I know, we have different motivations for doing so. For the women of my generation who were encouraged to keep juggling, downshifting is not so much a search for a mythical (虚无的) good life—growing your own organic vegetables, and risking turning into one—as a personal recognition of your limitations.

5 . Cyberbullying (网络霸凌) has become quite severe across the United States. But what exactly is cyber-bullying? It’s when someone repeatedly and intentionally harasses (侵扰), humiliates (羞辱), mistreats, makes fun of, or threatens another person online or while using cell phones or other electronic devices.

According to a recent Pew Research Center survey, 59% of U. S. teens have experienced at least one of six identified types of abusive online behaviors. Those behaviors include name-calling (42%), having false rumors spread about them on the internet (32%), receiving explicit images that they didn’t ask for (25%), or being the target of physical threats (16%).

The peers of some teens have even posted humiliating web pages or videos, or created embarrassing images on social media platforms. Others have taken unauthorized (未授权的) photos or videos in a bedroom, bathroom, or another location considered private, and posted them online for the world to view, rate, share, and discuss.

There are many reasons to monitor your son or daughter’s online behavior and pay close attention to the warning signs. Among the most worrisome, students who experienced bullying or cyberbullying are significantly more likely to attempt to take their own life.

“If your child suddenly has no interest in their electronic devices, appears jumpy or nervous while using their phone, or appears angry, frustrated, or depressed after going online or gaming, then they may be experiencing cyberbullying,” says Sameer Hinduja, Ph. D., co-director of the Cyberbullying Research Center and professor of Criminology at Florida Atlantic University. Also, if your child avoids conversations about what they’re doing online, becomes unusually secretive when it comes to their phone or electronic devices, or makes excuses to stay home from school, they may be the target of online bullying.

Something odd is happening to the tired millennial (千禧年的) workers of America. After a year spent with their computers at home, they are turning over the carefully arranged chessboards of their lives and determining to take a risk. Some are giving jobs up to launch a new business, while others are stepping off the boring work totally. Their bank accounts (账户), fattened by a year’s stay-at-home saving, have increased their desire for risk.

If this movement has a battle cry, it is “YOLO” — “you only live once”. Stock (股票) traders use it when making irresponsible bets that sometimes pay off anyway. More broadly, it has come to refer to the attitude that has described a certain type of bored office worker in recent months.

“I didn’t feel like I knew how to do my job anyway,” said Ms. Messer, 28. So she announced her quitting. Since then, she has been writing and keeping time for hobbies like painting and skiing. She admitted that not all people could uproot themselves so easily. “I have this renewed creative sense about what my life could look like, and how satisfying it can be” she said.

“It feels like we have been so locked into careers for the past few years, and this is our opportunity to switch it up”, said Nate Moseley, 29, a buyer at a major clothing store. Mr Moseley recently decided to leave his $ 130,000-a-year job. He created an Excel file called “Late 20s Crisis(危机)”, which he filled with possible choices for his next move: join in a 2023 political campaign, move to Caribbean and open a tourism business. “The idea of going right back to the pre-COVID set-up sounds so unappealing after this past year,” he noted. “If not, when will I ever do this?”

Not everyone can afford to put carefulness behind them. But for a growing number of people with enough savings and practical skills, the fear and the anxiety of the past year are giving way to a new kind of professional fearlessness. COVID-19 changed their priorities, and they realized they didn’t have to live like this. Adventure is in the air.

9 . The livestreaming and fast delivery industry have attracted so many young people that the industrial sector is short of manpower. “My advice is to encourage more young people to work in the factories and less in the express delivery sector,” Zhang Xinghai, a deputy to the National People’s Congress, China’s top legislature, said during the ongoing NPC annual session.

Zhang wants more young people to work in the factories so that China’s manufacturing (制造业) sector continues to flourish.

Whatever job young people do is a matter of choice, but the manufacturing sector is facing a labor crunch (短缺) for too many people prefer jobs in other sectors.

A survey conducted by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security in the third quarter of 2021 found that of 100 jobs that were facing a manpower crunch, 58 were in the manufacturing sector. By 2025, the shortage in 10 key manufacturing industries could be as high as 30 million.

It is time some strong measures were taken to attract people back to the factories. This can be done by raising the salaries of factory workers.

According to a survey in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, the annual income of express delivery workers in the city is more than 100,000 yuan ($15,831). In contrast, the average monthly salary of those doing blue-collar jobs in Guangdong in 2020 was just 7,108 yuan, or about 84,000 yuan a year. That gap surely needs to be reduced.

Besides, the legal rights and interests of those doing blue-collar jobs need to be better protected. Express delivery workers can decide when they want to work, but factory workers have to work whenever the factory demands.

Therefore, the authorities should protect factory workers’ rights to weekends, 8-hour working schedules and paid leave.

Also, the promotion and salary growth structure of factory workers must be clearly defined. In a nutshell, to lure young people back to the factories, it is necessary to make blue-collar jobs more attractive.

10 . Samuel Baron, a student at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, has traded his 55.7㎡Edmonton apartment for a 23㎡micro-flat downtown. He was determined to live closer to Vancouver’s city center and cut out his transport expenses. He achieved both, but the trade-off was space. “Between work and school, I am rarely home,”said Baron. “My suite functions as a place to simply store my possessions, and for sleeping, because I live in a neighborhood that has plenty of coffee shops, restaurants and pubs. My neighborhood functions as my living room , blurring the lines between public space and private space.”

The tiny house movement has been on the rise. Driven by housing shortage and an affordability crisis in cities across the globe, these micro-suites are being planned and promoted by developers. These living spaces of less than 46.5㎡are becoming popular with entry-level income groups and young people who want to be close to urban conveniences, job opportunities and city life in places like New York, Paris and Vancouver. A report from Neilsen, a consumer research company, showed 40% of Americans between the age of 18 and 36 prefer to live in urban areas instead of the suburbs. However, the trend doesn’t just apply to young people. Many empty nesters have been selling their houses in the suburbs to buy a place in the city.

Rising house prices in big cities have squeezed many homebuyers out of the market. The average price of a new home in Toronto is $733,578; in London it’s $794,549. However, the demand for affordable accommodation near work is endless in cities where land is limited. Thus the micro-flat offers an affordable alternative.

New York City opened a pioneer project called My Micro NY at the end of 2015. “We have built to optimize every inch of space inside, so there is no unused room,” said Tobias Oriwol, the building’s project manger. Similar projects are being developed in the UK and Canada, too.