⚡Reason
Good morning! If you missed yesterday’s update, you can find it here.
Today is World Philosophy Day. Throw us some of your favorite quotes by replying to this email.
In the spirit of freedom and especially free thinking, we need to be watchful of the protests and struggles in Iran. Currently, Iran has reached its 5th day without access to internet. The shutdown is part of a fight against anti-government protests, which not only is harming the economy, but limiting communications and access. We at Tomorrow believe that internet access should be a right just as much as the ability to protest. Students and journalists are being arrested and sent to prison for their involvement and more than 100 protestors are believed to have been killed by Iranian security forces as the government gives them the green light to use lethal and excessive force to stop them. Here’s a petition to help the people in Iran by giving them access to internet. Sign it, keep paying attention, and let us know if there’s any other actionable ways we can help.
We’re trying to think of different ways to improve this dashboard. Something we’re considering is making it entirely based on our community. How can we track the impact our community is making? How can we better use this as a way to celebrate the changes we are making together?
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Let’s get into it!
Worker power
The gig economy is expected to grow tremendously in the next 10 years and is comprised of a variety of different roles. From dairy worker to construction contractor, what do all these they have in common? They’re standing on a shifting landscape with growing concerns for their future wages, safety, and community. In order to help, the Workers Lab 2019 Innovation Fund launched its 2019 class yesterday, and it has awarded $750,000 to a cohort of organizations working on improving worker wages and protections.
Empowerment. Workers Lab, founded in 2014, seeks to empower workers by fighting for their wages, protections, and benefits as the environment in labor industries are changing.
“Across the economy, what we’ve seen in the last 30 years is a hollowing out of benefits, protections, and wages that working people need to live lives of opportunity in the United States,” says Carmen Rojas, founder of Workers Lab.
The winners. The five innovation winners are given $150,000 to commit 12 months to building their idea and solving how to create greater worker power. (These appear in no particular order.)
Migrant Justice. Dairy companies enroll in their Milk with Dignity program, which is a code of conduct for the employers to ensure their workers receive dignified wages, schedules, housing, safety protocols, etc.
Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en la Lucha (CTUL). Works with nonunion construction workers and helps them “raise the floor” of their work conditions by setting the standards that eliminate labor trafficking, wage theft, fraud, etc.
Co-op Dayton. Builds a co-op model for small, working class cities to assess the gaps in neighborhood goods and services and then create new businesses that solve them.
Working Washington. Leads a national #PayUp campaign that calls for digital gig workers to have pay standards. That means at least $15 an hour after expenses, tips on top of base pay, and transparency in how they are paid. This supports the gig workers from delivery platforms like Instacart, DoorDash, and Postmates)
New Deal Home Improvement Company. Will create a center for support in the sustainable construction and renovation market. Small and new businesses will have the opportunity to compete in the green building space.
Yes! Of course, there’s a lot of issues out there that need attention, but there are also people working tirelessly to solve them. We should always celebrate that. This Innovation Fund has invested more than $2,000,000 in 38+ projects nationwide. Check out the ideas and if you know of anyone in need of pre-seed funding, please reach out.
Global fight against Anti Vax
Some believe that refusing vaccines for your children equates to child abuse, and that the parents who choose this path should be punished. Vaccines are overwhelmingly safe and effective. They prevent the spread of disease and people without vaccines have tremendous risk of illness and even death during breakouts.
Fed up. Germany, Australia, and a few other countries are experimenting with punitive measures for parents that refuse to vaccinate their children. They’re not claiming child abuse, but parents may face fines and even directors of schools could be fined if they let unvaccinated kids in. Here’s a quick roundup:
Here’s a quick roundup of the global crackdown on vaccine-refusing parents:
In Germany on Thursday, lawmakers passed a law stating that parents need to prove they’ve vaccinated their kids against measles — or risk fines up to €2,500 (about $2,750). Unvaccinated children also risk losing their places in school.
Italy’s parliament passed a law that makes 10 childhood vaccinations mandatory for kids up to age 16, and requires parents to prove their children are immunized before entering school or else face a €500 (about $560) noncompliance fine. And kids who aren’t vaccinated are being told not to come to school.
In France, the health ministry made 11 vaccines — up from the current three (diphtheria, tetanus, and polio) — mandatory for children, though there’s no talk of a fine yet.
Further afield, New South Wales, Australia, passed “no jab, no play” legislation in September 2017: The law bans unvaccinated kids from preschool and day care and fine the directors of schools that admit un-immunized children $5,500 Australian dollars ($4,400). The law in New South Wales is modeled on similarly stringent laws in other Australian states, and across the country, parents with children who aren’t immunized aren’t eligible for child care benefits.
In the US, New York — where a large measles outbreak raged on for nearly a year — the government threatened parents who don’t vaccinate their children with a fine of up to $1,000.
It’s back. Measles cases all around the world have been creeping its way up, with a 300% increase in cases over the same time period in 2018. Countries such as US, Britain, Greece, Brazil, France, and Germany that have eliminated measles from their population have found the disease appearing again. With more than 1,200 cases this year, this has been the largest outbreak since 1992.
Short takes
A strategy on how the US can get to zero emissions by 2030.
Coldplay won’t go on tour because the environment. They want to develop a “carbon neutral” show first.
Doctors put humans in suspended animation for first time.
US bill on Hong Kong is now on Trump’s desk. People say if he signs it, it’ll worsen China relationship.
Tens of thousands are marching in Colombia. The borders are currently sealed as the government prepares for the national strike.
Tomorrow Today
🎟️ Thursday, December 5: Intro to Unconventional Activism
Change cannot be achieved alone, only together. In that spirit, we are kicking off community events at our space in New York City. Eat some food and learn from seasoned unconventional activists who have started mission-driven companies to accelerate change. Stayed tuned for speaker announcement and the menu. Get excited!
Only 10 spots remaining.
Password: tomorrow139
Igniting Tomorrow
💰 $100k-$250k Pre-Seed Funding
UPDATE: We’ve already had multiple people reach out and share their ideas. It gets us super excited to learn more about the projects and companies everyone is working on. Please keep reaching out. We’ll be releasing more information around this in the upcoming year.
Many of you are either already working on a number of world-changing things or have ideas bursting out of you everyday. Our goal is to see unconventional activists like you succeed. Let us help connect you into the space and access the financing you need to get started. If you’d like to share your ideas (or know a friend working on something exciting), please reply to this email!
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