Internet outages, Biden/Putin, friendly neighborhood spiders

Plus: Delta’s shareholders’ important climate vote. [Quartz]( Good morning, Quartz readers! Was this newsletter forwarded to you? [Sign up here](. Show your friends that you [value the labor]( of newsletter writers by sending them a copy. Here’s what you need to know Major websites went down again. Airlines, banks, stock exchanges, and trading platforms had [short outages]( caused this time, according to Virgin Australia, by a failure at content delivery network Akamai. Juneteenth is becoming a national US holiday. [Congress overwhelmingly approved]( the proposal to annually mark June 19, the date slavery ended in 1865. Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin talked it out. The leaders agreed to return ambassadors and [start talks]( on cybersecurity and nuclear weapons, but disagreed on Russia’s opposition, or the origins of recent cyberattacks. The World Bank rejected El Salvador’s bitcoin request. The lender refused to help implement the cryptocurrency as legal tender, citing [transparency and environmental concerns](. Defective construction caused Mexico City’s fatal metro crash. [A preliminary report]( into last month’s incident, in which 26 people died, found flaws in building materials and structural supports. Chinese antitrust authorities are reportedly investigating Didi Chuxing. According to Reuters, the ride-hailing firm is [being scrutinized]( ahead of its planned blockbuster US IPO . What to watch for Shareholders of Delta Airlines will vote today on a proposal introduced by the French bank BNP Paribas that would compel the company to [disclose information about its lobbying activity related to climate change](, and whether it aligns with the Paris Agreement. If it passes, the resolution would put new pressure on a company that, [according to the watchdog group Influence Map](, has lobbied in favor of state, federal, and international policies that “support a long-term role for fossil fuels in global aviation.” It could force new levels of transparency in the aviation industry, which has pushed to water down [airplane fuel efficiency standards]( in favor of [carbon offset credits]( that [in many cases are highly suspect](. And it would cap a recent run on the successful passage of similar resolutions at other carbon-intensive US companies. It’s too soon to gauge how much such disclosure requirements impact policy outcomes. But Kirsten Spalding, a senior director at the sustainable investment advocacy group Ceres, says it’s a vital first step. “If we don’t start seeing the policy move in the right direction, investors can’t move their own investments in the right direction,” she says. “So lobbying is linked to real economic change, and it’s a critical piece of the climate challenge.” Charting Covid-19 complaints from essential workers [A chart showing monthly Covid-19 OSHA complaints by US essential industry, moving down from May 2020, with a spike and then plateau from November 2020 to January 2021, and then down from there.] When the pandemic first hit the US, many of those working in what the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has defined as “essential industries”—such as healthcare, retail trade, grocery stores, construction, general warehousing and storage, restaurants, and automotive repair—were unable to stay home, and were therefore at greater risk. Common [Covid-19-related complaints to OSHA]( include employers not following federal guidelines, employers not developing or implementing infectious disease plans, and suspected exposure at work. Hoping to address this problem, the Biden administration in January called for the US Department of Labor to clarify guidelines, so that workers who refuse to go into unsafe workplaces were more likely to be granted unemployment benefits. But fear of getting the virus is likely still keeping people out of the workforce. Quotable So, one thing that I realize when you own a sports team is it’s larger than a sports team. It’s a social institution, you’re doing it for the fans, you’re doing it for the broader population. That was Alibaba co-founder and vice chairman Joe Tsai, also the owner of the Brooklyn Nets basketball team, on CNBC’s Squawk Box program on June 15. He was speaking on the role of business owners in addressing social justice issues. But when it comes to China, many of those same business owners do a convenient pivot. When the conversation, led by Andrew Ross Sorkin, turned to the situation in Hong Kong, Tsai defended the national security law. It’s against sedition, it’s against people that advocate splitting up Hong Kong as a separate country. These are things that are not allowed. You know why? Because Hong Kong used to be a colony, you know, a few hundred years ago, China lost Hong Kong to the Brits because of the Opium War. Companies and their leaders usually say what they think their audiences want to hear—they only became so vocal on US racial equality once it became important to consumers and employees. And when it comes to Hong Kong, executives like Tsai have only one audience that they must make sure not to displease: the Communist Party of China. Read more about [how corporate wokeness keeps falling short when it comes to China](. ✦ We’re tracking the way companies handle—[or just appear to handle](—rapidly changing social landscapes. Access all of our work with a membership—[try it out free for a week](. Quartz announcement Not to brag, but we’re pretty good at writing emails. And, if you love the perspective and insights we bring to the Daily Brief, you’ll appreciate the exclusive emails members receive twice-weekly on emerging companies and trends. Plus, Quartz membership includes a paywall-free experience including on our iOS app, access to 100+ field guides and more. [Sign-up for membership at 40% off today](. [Take 40% off.]( Handpicked Quartz (Psst. 👇 We took the first story out from behind our paywall because we think everyone should read it.) 💉 [What we know about the efficacy of China’s Covid-19 vaccines]( 🎲 [The Federal Reserve’s inflation gamble is a sea change in monetary policy]( 📦 [These are the categories with the biggest deals on Amazon Prime Day]( 🦴 [Rover’s global growth will depend on where pets are considered family]( 💪 [Cameo shows even celebrity women value their labor less than men]( 🧳 [How an Indian online travel portal nearly doubled its profits during a pandemic]( Surprising discoveries Rare orchids are growing on the roof of a London bank. The small flowered-tongue orchid was [thought to be extinct]( in the UK. To survive a flood, Australian spiders threw up a giant sheet of silk. The webs covered [more than a kilometer]( of roadside vegetation in one area. The web’s original source code is being auctioned as an NFT. (The internet, that is, not the defensive work of art made by Australian spiders.) Tim Berners-Lee plans to [donate the winning bid](. A wooden satellite is headed for space. At least there are [no termites]( to worry about. Betelgeuse is not going supernova. Scientists now think the [star’s sudden dimming]( was probably [caused by a dust cloud]( blocking our view. SHARE TO EARN SWAG Coffee cups, tote bags, free membership, and more. Refer the Quartz Daily Brief to friends, family, and coworkers to earn all of these premium prizes. [Share the Daily Brief today]( and start reaping the rewards. Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, obscured views, and high-tech wooden objects to hi@qz.com. Get the most out of Quartz by [downloading our iOS app]( and [becoming a member](. Today’s Daily Brief was brought to you by Hasit Shah, Tripti Lahiri, Michelle Cheng, Tim McDonnell, Susan Howson, and Liz Webber. 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