| We’re back bringing you the latest updates from the team CCC. Let’s recap what we have been up to this past month! |
 Removing patent protection will cost us decades of progress Member states of the World Trade Organization are discussing a draft agreement on TRIPS flexibility to waive intellectual property protections. If adopted, the agreement would legalise compulsory licencing, a practice that allows the government to hand out the right to produce COVID-19 vaccines without the consent of a patent owner. While the mass production of vaccines is a noble goal, Maria warns us that scraping patent protection will create a dangerous precedent and will put all future innovations in jeopardy. |
 Bees are doing just fine! In his latest op-ed, Bill reiterates that declines of both managed and wild bees occur naturally through weather changes and the decisions of beekeepers about how many bees they currently need. Radical conservationists have blamed pesticides for the decline of bee population, even though there has been a 35% increase of beehives since 2000. Bill calls for journalists to do a better job at fact-checking and not to spread misinformation in their chase of catchy click baits. |
 PFAS ban or EV transition? The choice is up to Democrats Democrats have put electric vehicles at the heart of their climate ambitions. But little do they know that their green agenda can not be realized without PFAS, so-called forever chemicals that they want to ban altogether. In this op-ed, Maria and Anna pointed out that these chemicals are an essential part of green energy applications and argue that the ban will simply shift production to countries like China, giving them the upper hand for the production of EV battery, solar panels, and semiconductors. |
 Canada can learn a thing or two from the US on how to tackle a housing crisis Our North American Affairs manager David has previously stated that exclusionary zoning is the root cause of the housing crisis. Recently, President Joe Biden voiced the same opinion and the federal government will be seeking to tackle this specific cause in their attempt to alleviate the crisis. The U.S. offers plenty of examples of state and municipal legislators carrying out dramatic zoning reforms which lead to decreasing rental prices. It’s time the Canadian government took and example, abolished exclusionary zoning and started building more houses |
 Keep an eye on our social media not to miss our first Index of the year European Railway Stations Index 2022 is coming! We looked at Europe’s 50 largest railway stations and ranked them in terms of passenger experience and according to a mix of factors ranging from how crowded platforms are and accessibility to the number of destinations. Last year Leipzig Hauptbahnhof ended up in well-deserved first place, followed by Wien Hauptbahnhof. Let’s see which railway station ends up leading the list of this year’s best railway stations. |
 Help us fight the Consumer Choice Supervillains If you’re just as tired of being told what you can or can not consume as we are, we might have a solution for you. We need your help fighting consumer choice supervillains, like mini Michael Bloomberg and Sleepy Joe Biden, watch the video below to find out more! |
| That’s a wrap for this month! Make sure to follow us on our social mediachannels to get all the updates we couldn’t fit in here! See you next month |