17 must-read stories for the weekend

1. Inspiring quotes on gender equality. For International Women’s Day 2015, what leaders have to say on creating a more equal world.

2. 15 women changing the world in 2015. From an astronaut to an online activist, from scientists to social entrepreneurs.

3. Five ways to close the gender gap. We’ll get there faster if business and government work together. Find out how old you’ll be when the gender gap closes by using our gender gap calculator.

4. Why a win-win is possible for Greece and the EU.There have been tangible gains from tough negotiations.

5. What China’s economic shift means for Africa. As Beijing moves manufacturing offshore, the continent is on the cusp of an industrial revolution.

6. The future of genetic engineering, from personalised medicine to crops that can cope with climate change.

7. Storms, floods, earthquakes, volcanoes. Businesses are more exposed than ever to disasters – and have a crucial role to play in resilience.

8. Gordon Brown: $500 a year can secure the education of a Syrian refugee in Lebanon. The former British Premier on his new role as the UN’s special envoy for global education, the challenge of providing opportunities for young people in the Middle East, and the upcoming World Economic Forum Middle East and North Africa meeting in Jordan, which he will co-chair. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

9. 11 things to know about Tidjane Thiam, Credit Suisse’s new CEO. “In 1998, he was selected as one of 100 ‘Global Leaders for Tomorrow’ by the World Economic Forum, helping put him on the business world’s map.” (Wall Street Journal)

10. The World Bank is seeking EDGE certification on gender equality, a Forum initiative launched in 2011. (World Bank)

11. Gender discrimination is rampant in India. Cites our Global Gender Gap Report. (Financial Express)

12. Despite an epidemic of scandal, Latin America is making progress against a plague of corruption. Cites Forum research on corruption. (The Economist)

13. Can night-time light images play a role in evaluating the Syrian conflict? An analysis of satellite photographs taken over Syria found that the country is 83% darker at night than before the war.

14. Why is Apple making a gold watch? “There are plenty of $10k watches on the market already that sell just fine, but those are normally mechanical ones, and mechanical watches are sold primarily on the complexity of the mechanism, where of course the gold Apple watch is internally identical to the $350 aluminium model.”

15. On board the world’s biggest ship. “Like an office block lying on its side.” An impressive feat of engineering.

16. Made in China. A new round of industrial consolidation to refresh the country‘s stale state-owned enterprises.

17. The rate of anthropogenic climate change is speeding up. “We find that present trends in greenhouse-gas and aerosol emissions are now moving the Earth system into a regime in terms of multi-decadal rates of change that are unprecedented for at least the past 1,000 years.”

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Author: Adrian Monck is Managing Director and head of Public Engagement at the World Economic Forum.

Image: A woman plays with her shadow on top of ‘Test Pattern’, the last installation by Japanese artist Ryoji Ikeda, during its opening exhibition as part of Vivid Festival in Sydney June 7, 2013. REUTERS/Daniel Munoz