This week, the world watched as the entire global trade system was disrupted by a single ship lodged in the Suez Canal. The recently refloated Ever Given reminds us that businesses are not only globally connected, but also have a tangible and significant impact on the world. What kind impact do we want to have? To what end do we want to use the power of business? 

Here is our weekly round up of the individuals and organisations creatively pursuing purpose everyday. 

• Was the Ever Given an inevitable consequence of ever-growing ship sizes to keep up with corporate and consumer demand? Niraj Chokshi explores why container ships have continued to grow alongside the global economy, and why bigger is not necessarily better.  
• Eco-anxiety is on the rise as people become more informed about the climate crisis. Find out how to channel your fear and anxiety into action.
• Explore how businesses bounce back from failure. 
• GoogleMaps will begin to direct drivers to the most eco-friendly routes when navigating, calculating traffic, distance, gradient and other factors in order to produce the lowest carbon emissions possible.  
• Oxford professor Robin Dunbar makes the case for human connection in this episode of the Eat Sleep Work Repeat podcast. Have humans evolved the feeling of loneliness as a resistance to isolation? 
• How businesses can innovate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion workshops in order to achieve real change and close the diversity opportunity gap.  
• 40% of the world’s plastic is used for food packaging, and almost all of it is single use plastic. Read about some of the companies who are leading the charge in a food packaging revolution to reduce waste and increase sustainability. 
• Tomoko Yakoi explores the pursuit of happiness and the ways in which the digital age is transforming how we connect with each other. 

And finally, some words to reflect on: 

“One of our greatest freedoms is how we react to things.” 

– Charlie Makesy, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse.