THE FINANCIAL TIMES
Why leather from fishskin and fungi fibres are becoming the height of fashion

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As an avid scuba diver, Aarav Chavda was dismayed to witness the slow demise of the coral reef off the coast near his hometown in Florida. Over the years, the reef’s kaleidoscopic colours vanished along with the ocean dwellers it sustained —buffeted by rising global temperatures, warmer oceans and heat stress/pollution – until one day the entire reef was desolate, resembling a ghostly underwater grave. But there was one creature that thrived: the lionfish.

THE FINANCIAL TIMES
Pink rice serves up alternative to carbon-intensive meat 

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The rice is pastel pink. It has a nutty, umami aroma. A slightly brittle texture. But, most surprising of all, each grain contains beef cells. It is a hybrid rice, laced with muscle and fat cells and nurtured in a petri dish to create something novel: part cow, part grain.

THE FINANCIAL TIMES
Architects take inspiration from nature to build sustainable future

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“Those who look to the laws of nature as a support for their new works collaborate with the Creator.” So said Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. But can buildings behave like trees? Might nature itself provide the answers to combating climate change? Can we design buildings that are not only net-zero but net-positive?

THE FINANCIAL TIMES
Is a sustainable electronics industry possible?

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Over the past decade, tech has become an indispensable companion in our lives. A growing number of devices answer our every daily need. But all of these — from smart watches, to wireless headphones, virtual assistants and tablets — have a shelf life. And, once discarded, they linger on in e-waste graveyards, leaching toxins into the soil, or gathering dust in drawers. All of the resources extracted, transported and transformed in their manufacture — the rare minerals, plastics, chemicals – are lost. And all of the energy used to create them is lost to the ever-warming atmosphere.

The i Paper

Medicine shortages forced emergency rubber-stamp on 50 drugs in two years

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National warnings of medicine shortages have more than tripled in the past two years as the UK continues to grapple with a drug shortage crisis, The i Paper can reveal.

The Government was forced to intervene 50 times to authorise the emergency use of alternative drugs for patients via a Serious Shortage Protocols (SSP) because of “acute” medicine shortages, according to an analysis by a leading industry body.

Experts have said that the findings revealed “just the tip of the iceberg” in terms of the severity of the challenges currently facing pharmacists and their patients, with increasing fears about the threat to patients’ health.