Why the private sector has an interest in swamps

+ inflation isn’t cooling fast enough for the Fed US Edition - Today's top story: The US is losing wetlands at an accelerating rate − here's how the private sector can help protect these valuable resources [View in browser]( US Edition | 13 June 2024 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Top headlines - [Chemo-carrying algae-bots target lungs in new cancer treatment]( - [Support for violence is higher among politically ambivalent people]( - [Explosive space weather challenges US return to Moon]( Lead story The United States has lost half of its wetlands since the Colonial era, according to a recent report from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Swamps and marshes are disappearing at an increasing rate, and the Supreme Court added to the pressure with a 2023 ruling that sharply cut back federal protection for them. Environmental law scholars Steph Tai of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Michael Vandenbergh of Vanderbilt University see hope in [actions by private businesses](, including banks, insurers and retailers that want to show their sustainable bona fides. By adding wetland protection to their investment decisions and supplier guidelines, Tai and Vandenbergh assert, private companies can help prevent these valuable ecosystems from being filled in or paved over. [ [Help us bring journalism written by experts to the public, without a paywall]([]]( Jennifer Weeks Senior Environment + Cities Editor Roads divide what once was a larger wetland into four smaller pools in east-central North Dakota. AP Photo/Charlie Riedel [The US is losing wetlands at an accelerating rate − here’s how the private sector can help protect these valuable resources]( Steph Tai, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Michael Vandenbergh, Vanderbilt University The Supreme Court drastically reduced federal protection for wetlands in 2023. Two environmental lawyers explain how private businesses and nongovernment organizations can help fill the gap. 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Economy + Business - [Inflation is cooling, but not fast enough for the Fed: Policymakers now expect only one rate cut in 2024]( Christopher Decker, University of Nebraska Omaha The Federal Reserve is being characteristically cautious. Ethics + Religion - [Civil rights leader James Lawson, who learned from Gandhi, used nonviolent resistance and the ‘power of love’ to challenge injustice]( Anthony Siracusa, St. John Fisher University Lawson learned in India how to resist racism and subsequently trained his students on the systematic use of nonviolence to fight injustice. - [Spikes, seat dividers, even ‘Baby Shark’ − camping bans like the one under review at SCOTUS are part of broader strategies that push out homeless people]( Robert Rosenberger, Georgia Institute of Technology Anti-camping laws are the centerpiece of the ‘hostile design’ strategies cities use to push the unhoused out of public spaces. Environment + Energy - [Cities with empty commercial space and housing shortages are converting office buildings into apartments – here’s what they’re learning]( John Weigand, Miami University Turning excess office space into apartments isn’t a panacea for the housing shortage, but it’s producing thousands of new units yearly and is more sustainable and economical than new construction. Podcast 🎙️ - [Scientists can’t agree on how fast the universe is expanding – why this matters so much for our understanding of the cosmos]( Gemma Ware, The Conversation Astronomers Vicent Martínez and Bernard Jones explain the mystery of the Hubble tension, and why it matters so much for our understanding of the universe, on The Conversation Weekly podcast. Trending on site - [How do you build tunnels and bridges underwater? A geotechnical engineer explains the construction tricks]( - [American slavery wasn’t just a white man’s business − new research shows how white women profited, too]( - [Eye exercises to improve sight – is there any science behind them? An ophthalmologist explains why you shouldn’t buy the hype]( Today's graphic 📈 [The percentage of truly independent voters in the U.S. electorate has remained stable since at least 1988, even as numbers of Democrats – including strong Democrats and those who say they are independents but lean Democratic – and the similar range of Republicans have fluctuated over time.]( From the story, [Independent voters are few in number, influential in close elections – and hard for campaigns to reach]( - - More of The Conversation Like this newsletter? 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