Recreation

• LONDON, April 10, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --  New research by Hornetsecurity highlights the AI cybersecurity gap affecting UK businesses: although nearly half (45%) of companies have fallen victim to cyberattacks, 26% are still not using AI to enhance their cybersecurity defences.
• The survey, which gathered responses from over 500 C-suite professionals across the UK, reveals that cyber threats are an escalating concern.
• Businesses must recognise the potential of AI in tackling cyber threats and integrate it in their security strategies to stay ahead of increasingly sophisticated attacks."
• The survey was conducted by Perspectus Global in March 2024 with a sample of 516 business leaders in the UK.

• Family entertainment centers (FECs) are vibrant leisure and community hubs, offering various activities that cater to all ages, emphasizing family-first experiences.
• This global shift toward immersive family-oriented entertainment experiences signifies a promising expansion of the family entertainment center market, promising enriching experiences for families worldwide.
• We proudly unveil ThinkMi, a cutting-edge AI product designed to transform how businesses interact with the Family Entertainment Center Market.
• "Dive into the Family Entertainment Center Market Landscape: Explore 194 Pages of Insights, 480 Tables, and 26 Figures"

• Many of these tree planting projects target Africa’s rangelands (open grasslands or shrublands used by livestock and wild animals).
• Our goal is to protect and promote rangelands that combat desertification and support economic
  growth, resilient livelihoods and the sustainable development of pastoralism.
• In pursuit of this goal, we reviewed all the scientific studies we could find on the effects of planting trees in rangelands.

Why rangelands matter

• Rangelands provide critical ecosystem services, but these are lost when open grassy vegetation is converted to forest or plantation.
• Many rangelands are too dry, steep or rocky to grow crops but are suited for livestock grazing to produce meat, milk and fibres such as wool.
• Read more:
  When tree planting actually damages ecosystems

  The ecosystem services provided by rangelands are generally overlooked while those provided by forests and trees are assumed to be far superior.

Afforestation in the wrong places often fails

• This is a suitable form of land use for those environments, which would be harmed by planting trees.
• Tree planting projects are commonly portrayed as reforestation, which implies that the target areas have lost their original forest cover.
• In fact, planting trees in rangelands that naturally have low tree cover is afforestation.
• This often fails because they don’t have enough rainfall throughout the year to support high tree cover.

Afforestation can be damaging to people, water and climate

• Despite being portrayed as supporting local economic development and ecosystem restoration, afforestation projects often exclude existing land users and limit their access to land and resources.
• Rangeland afforestation also reduces streamflow and lowers water tables as trees use much more water than grasses.

What is a better solution?

• If these initiatives were focused on degraded forest instead, three-quarters of degraded forests could be restored.
• In rangelands, the best approach is to protect and enhance their existing carbon stores rather than replacing them with forests or plantations.

Susanne Vetter does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

• Beyond managing related risks, the financial sector can also contribute to the transition toward a net-zero economy.
• Our work aims to enhance data transparency in climate change analysis, while informing monetary policy, financial stability and banking supervision.
• The indicators we have developed focus on the euro area financial sector and are built from harmonised granular datasets.