The High-Speed Evolutionary Downsizing of Sicily's Dwarf Elephants

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The High-Speed Evolutionary Downsizing of Sicily's Dwarf Elephants AOC Sustainability

The Amazing Shrinking of Europe’s Colossal Straight-Tusked Elephants

Imagine massive elephants towering 15 feet tall and weighing over 30,000 pounds.. The vision seems straight out of a science-fiction movie, but these super-sized, straight-tusked elephants (Palaeoloxdon antiquus) were for real, making them among the largest mammals to ever live during the Pleistocene era.

Migrating out of Africa about 800,000 years ago, the giant straight-tusked elephants became widespread across Europe and Asia. Picturing these monumental-sized elephants roaming the British countryside is fantastical enough.

Now imagine that these same super-sized elephants dwindled in size over time — say a few hundred thousands of years or 40 generations and as few as 1500 years— after migrating south to the island of Sicily.

At 15 percent of their original size, the colossal-size elephants became dwarf elephants the size of a donkey. Visualize humans becoming the size of a rhesus macaque monkey, suggests Josh Davis, of Britain’s National History Museum, as a way to understand the focus on new research on Sicily’s dwarf elephants.

The groundbreaking analysis published last month in 'Current Biology', showcases just how rapidly evolutionary changes can occur when animals are isolated on an island.

Jessica Chastain Will Present Trophée Chopard at Cannes Film Festival July 9

Jessica Chastain in Cannes; Since 1998, Chopard is official partner with the Cannes International Film Festival. Courtesy Chopard.

Jessica Chastain Will Present Trophée Chopard at Cannes Film Festival July 9

Actor and two-time Oscar nominee Jessica Chastain will return to the 2021 Cannes International Film Festival to announce the winner of the Trophée Chopard on the 20th anniversary of the award. The male and female winners of the “revelation” prize for emerging talent will be announced at a dinner Thursday, July 9 in Cannes, hosted by Chopard co-president and artistic director Caroline Scheufele.

Chopard is a leader in the Journey to Sustainable Luxury since 2013. Anne of Carversville has written about Chopard’s ethical jewelry efforts for years. The company outlines its sustainability efforts in an extensive explanation of its philosophy and operations on its website.

How Ape Cousins Reveal Human History and Our Common Story of Evolution

How Ape Cousins Reveal Human History and Our Common Story of Evolution

Looking at the numbers, there are approximately 7.67 billion people on the Earth today. In contrast, according to the World Wildlife Fund, the wild chimpanzee population is under 300,000, wild orangutans are fewer than 120,000, and although gorillas are notoriously hard to count, it is estimated there are some 100,000–200,000. Every great ape is endangered—except us.

The tragedy of those numbers is apparent to anyone who cares about conservation. We lose species to extinction every day, driven by economically motivated habitat destruction or unfettered consumerism. Wherever humans go, biodiversity often suffers, and we are everywhere.

Great apes are special because they are the closest remaining threads on that web of humanity, and we can never recover the information they have to share about our origins once they are lost. Apes are uniquely impactful to the field of anthropology, where we researchers look to the past to understand our present. If the desire to preserve biodiversity isn’t enough to save the apes, then unlocking the human story should be a further impetus for their conservation.

Kate Middleton, Beekeeper, Delivers Her Own Honey to Urban Nature Project

Kate Middleton, Beekeeper, Delivers Her Own Honey to Urban Nature Project

The Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton may not be in the same league with her brother beekeeper James Middleton, but Kate fell into her own groove with a group of school children at the Urban Nature Project at London’s Natural History Museum in South Kensington, where Kate is the royal patron.

Beekeeping is a very romantic notion, especially in urban areas, where conscientious environmentalists are genuinely concerned about the dire assault of modern life on the world’s pollinators and guardians of the world’s food supply.

The Forward Thinking Museum in London — a virtual space for contemporary photography and videos —exhibited wonderful photos of urban beekeepers around the world. Images include Brian Mc Callum and his hives on the roof of Sir John Cass Primary School. Callum is a pro-bee activist trying to set up as many hives as possible in London.

What a lovely idea, we all exclaim! But wait one moment. Kate Middleton’s very patronage — London’s Natural History Museum, site of her bee honey visit with school children — issued a very alarming report in September 2020. I’ve heard this same call to action about beekeeping in other urban areas. Beekeeping in cities is harming other wildlife, writes the NHM.

What Elephant Crop Raids in Kenya's Masai Mara Are Telling Us About Future Conflict

What Elephant Crop Raids in Kenya's Masai Mara Are Telling Us About Future Conflict

Elephants need large amounts of space to roam in search of food and water. Because of this, they often move outside the boundaries of protected areas – such as the Masai Mara National Reserve and wildlife conservancies – into areas where people live.

These people are impacted by elephants that eat and destroy farm crops. Sometimes their lives are threatened. This often creates fear and anger towards this species and sometimes leads to elephants being killed in retaliation.

These negative interactions – termed human-elephant conflict – pose a huge threat to populations of this endangered species.

World Oceans Day: We Cannot Meet Sustainable Development Goals with a Sick Ocean

World Oceans Day: We Cannot Meet Sustainable Development Goals with a Sick Ocean

Jute Rugs and Biophilic Design: Why Natural Fibers May Create Brain Bliss

Jute Rugs and Biophilic Design: Why Natural Fibers May Create Brain Bliss

6 Reasons Why Interior Designers Vouch For Jute Rugs | AOC Agrees

Almost every interior decorator is raving about jute rugs, and there must be a reason behind it. It’s as if something ancestral — almost primal — happens when we talk on jute rugs, and especially in bare feet.

Working on a recent AOC post Raffia: AOC Launches Earth-Friendly Fibers Sustainable Inquiry in Fashion and Design, we came across the same concept twice in a couple hours: “biophilic design”. Fast Company summed up the concept this way:

Biophilic design dates back to the early 1980s, when the biologist Edward O. Wilson outlined his philosophy of biophilia, hypothesizing that humans have an innate, biological affinity for the natural world. Biophilic design takes this idea one step further: Because humans today spend 90% of our time indoors, according to the 2001 National Human Activity Pattern Survey, it’s necessary to bring the outdoors in and create indoor environments that reference nature in both obvious and subtle ways.

As a reminder, modern humans may be awash in a sea of plastic, but 99% of human life has been lived in concert with nature. Biophilic design assumes that core aspects of nature have contributed to our health and wellbeing, and this connection can be scientifically measured.

Mango Committed 2021 Campaign Advances Strong Sustainability Goals

Mango Committed 2021 Campaign Advances Strong Sustainability Goals

Models Felice Nova Noordhoff and Hamid Onifadé front Mango’s Committed Campaign SS 2021. Julia Sanchis Meseguer styles the couple in relaxed silhouettes, made of natural fabrics such as linen and cotton in terracotta and ecru tones. Ronan Gallagher [IG] photographed the campaign ./ Hair by Paolo Soffiatti; makeup by Egon Crivillers

The Barcelona-based global fashion retailer is raising its sustainability goals, most-certainly as a reflection of evolving consumer mindsets. Currently, 79% of the Mango assortment is “Committed”, meaning that they are recycled or have sustainable characteristics. By 2022, Mango hopes that 100% of every item meets this criteria, writes WWD.

Note that Mango is not asserting that these garments are fully-sustainable in every way. But the company does have an ambitious environmental agenda.

Paloma Elsesser Dives Into H&M Sustainable Swimwear SS 2021 Lensed by Amber Grace Johnson

Paloma Elsesser Dives Into H&M Sustainable Swimwear SS 2021 Lensed by Amber Grace Johnson

Global fashion powerhouse H&M delivers a physical and emotional power punch with its Spring Summer 2021 Swimwear campaign. Led by superwoman Paoma Elsesser, the campaign takes a deep dive into the terrain of unapologetically feminine strength with a cast that celebrates all body types and forms.

The brand comes straight at us with a definitive statement that’s light years away from the “flawless” messages (one of the most harmfull words in modern marketing in the opinion of AOC) of summers past.

Dive in & enjoy the silence

Hey, you! It's your summer, done your way. Don't let self-doubt, other people's opinions and negativity tag along. Dive into the water, swim away from the noise, follow your own voice, and come back recharged.

Mother Earth Lovers Led by Carolyn Murphy Front NAKED Cashmere LOVE Campaign

Mother Earth Lovers Led by Carolyn Murphy Front NAKED Cashmere LOVE Campaign AOC Fashion

Photographer John Russo captures NAKED Cashmere’s Mother’s Day campaign with a focus on its LOVE collection. Supermodel Carolyn Murphy headlines the campaign, joined by Molly Sims and daughter, Jordana Brewster and her mom, actor Cheryl Hines with daughter, and investigative reporter and media leader Lisa Ling and her family.

The cast honors NAKED Cashmere’s commitment to protecting the environment and also protecting women with the company’s more than $215,000 donations to curing breast cancer.

Gisele Bundchen Joins DraftKings As Environment and Social Goals Adviser | Brazil Cuts Environment Budget 24%

Gisele Bundchen Joins DraftKings As Environment and Social Goals Adviser | Brazil Cuts Environment Budget 24% AOC Sustainability

Supermodel, environmentalist Gisele Bundchen as joined sportsbook operator and daily fantasy player DraftKings as ESG adviser to the CEO.

Bündchen and DraftKings have already collaborated on a project in which the company will plant 1,000,000 trees by Earth Day 2022. 

"It is very important for successful corporations to make the necessary shifts in ESG initiatives to truly make a difference on a global level," Bündchen said in a release announcing her hiring. "In today’s world, in my opinion, it isn’t enough for companies to just be successful financially. Companies have to be successful in ALL areas, including social impact and sustainability initiatives that impact the future for all of us around the world.”

Gisele Covers Vogue Hong Kong Sustainability Issue

Gisele Bundchen's Vogue Hong April Sustainability Issue Cover Story by Kevin O'Brien

Supermodel, eco-warrior Gisele Bundchen covers the April 2021 ‘Sustainability’ issue of Vogue Hong Kong. Bobette Cohn styles the prominent environmentalist in images shot on location in Costa Rica by Kevin O’Brien [IG] Bundchen’s home is on the Nicoya Peninsula, near the beachside town of Santa Teresa./ Makeup by Jenna Anton

In our earlier article about Gisele’s Vogue Hong Kong cover story, we noted the very sad reality that the supermodel with the biggest voice on climate change and especially saving the Brazilian rain forest is losing her battle.

Gisele Bundchen's Vogue Hong April Sustainability Issue Cover Story by Kevin O'Brien

Gisele Bundchen's Vogue Hong April Sustainability Issue Cover Story by Kevin O'Brien

Supermodel, eco-warrior Gisele Bundchen covers the April 2021 ‘Sustainability’ issue of Vogue Hong Kong. Bobette Cohn styles the prominent environmentalist in images shot on location in Costa Rica by Kevin O’Brien [IG] Bundchen’s home is on the Nicoya Peninsula, near the beachside town of Santa Teresa./ Makeup by Jenna Anton

In our earlier article about Gisele’s Vogue Hong Kong cover story, we noted the very sad reality that the supermodel with the biggest voice on climate change and especially saving the Brazilian rain forest is losing her battle.

Most recently Gisele is the executive producer of ‘Kiss the Ground’, narrated by Woody Harrelson, with interviews with Bündchen, her husband Tom Brady and Patricia Arquette. The hopeful message of the documentary deals with the topic of Biosequestration or the capture and storage of the atmospheric greenhouse gas carbon dioxide by continual or enhanced biological processes.

Related Reading: Earth Mother Gisele Bündchen Covers Vogue Hong Kong April 2021 by Kevin O'Brien;

Humans Have Turned the Amazon into a Net Greenhouse Gas Emitter: Study; and a 2020 post 'Carbon Cowboys': Saving Our Planet Starts in the Soil' Says Peter Byck AOC Sustainability.

Gabriela Hearst Joins Stella McCartney At Front of Luxury's Sustainability Pack

Gabriela Hearst Joins Stella McCartney At Front of Luxury's Sustainability Pack AOC Sustainability

“In every piece, a sense of purpose,” noted designer Gabriela Hearst, in the introduction of her first 2021 Chloé collection for fall/winter 2021. There was no live invite for what would have been the hottest ticket at Paris Fashion Week.

Hearst, who put herself forward for the Chloé job by submitting a 92-page proposal outlining a purpose-driven vision for the house, represents a significant change in mood at Chloé, which has long been a breezy, carefree sort of brand.

In her many interviews upon her arrival at Chloe, Gabriela Hearst describes her own brand as Athena, while Chloe is Aphrodite. The designer shares this view and explains the essentials of this philosophy to Good Morning Vogue.

Bottom line, what Vogue calls hearst’s “earthy puritanism” is the primary point of view in both collections, and AOC begs to differ with the suggestion that Chloé is “girlie and kickie”.

With Stella McCartney also a longtime fixture on the Paris fashion week schedule, the new Chloé places Paris fashion week in a key position to join Stella in leading the industry at a time when values are surging in importance.

To be as blunt as possible, consider that a little friendly, womanly competition might inspire Dior’s Maria Grazia Chiuri to pull out all the stops at Dior on the eco-friendly front, making the three women the center of the sustainability fashion world and finally putting the message “the future is female” on the map.

Bain Forecasts Online Luxury Sales at 35% of Total by 2025/6 | Progressive Values Dominate

Bain Forecasts Online Luxury Sales at 35% of Total by 2025/6 | Progressive Values Dominate

V Magazine’s Holiday 2020 issue shares uptown woman, luxury market must-haves. If you’re fortunate enough to shop in the luxury market, then look your best. Aryeh Lappin styles models Chiharu, Eniola Abioro, Heather Kemesky, Julia Van Os and Varsha Thapa in luxury sweaters, must-have accessories and more treasures from the world’s top luxury brands including Chanel, Dior, Fendi, Gucci, Hermès, Saint Laurent. Photographer Max Papendieck(IG) is in the studio for ‘What V Want: Holiday Edition’./ Producer Alexey Galetskiy; makeup by Maki Tyoke; hair by Ben Skervin

Gisele Bündchen Fronts Vivara Holiday 2020 Campaign | Vivara Sustainability Goals Update

Gisele Bündchen Fronts Vivara Holiday 2020 Campaign | Vivara Sustainability Goals Update

Supermodel icon, Brazilian eco-activist and businesswoman Gisele Bündchen returns (as always) as the face of Vivara Jewelry Holiday 2020. Photographer Nicole Heiniger (IG) shoots the campaign with styling by Renata Correa./ Creative direction by Giovanni Bianco; beauty by Henrique Martins

It’s routine now for AOC to check the sustainability credentials of jewelers featured in our pages. Vivara is the largest jewelry in Brazil, and Gisele Bundchen (IG) is one of the most prominent eco-warriors in the world, and particularly in her home country of Brazil. Together, they make sweet music for stones lovers.

Vivara has posted their sustainability policy online. Vivara has an application pending with the Responsible Jewellery Council, with a target certification date of September 2021.

AOC is not an expert in any way on sustainability practices among luxury jewelers. We note that the Vivara sustainability policy is very general and lacking in any specificity around goals or expected dates of achieving them.

DAME's 'Bleed Red. Think Green' Tampon String Showing Campaign Hits London Buses

Image via DAME

Britain’s DAME eco-friendly tampons have generated plenty of holiday spirit on London buses with the message ‘Bleed Red. Think Green.’ Perfect! There’s nothing better than a Dame who knows what she’s doing. Note that this DAME ships to the US and throughout Europe.

“Tampons and period products have been hidden in the shadows for too long,” DAME co-founder Celia Pool tells Dazed. “Still today, major brands boast on their boxes about silent wrappers. Why? There's no shame in rustling a tampon wrapper in the next door cubicle. Periods are not shameful.”

Image via DAME

Even though DAME has an excellent reputation in Britain with strong sustainability and product integrity credentials, launching the campaign was not easy. Veterinary nurse, law student and vegan beauty blogger Demi Colleen photographed herself standing in her underwear with a visible tampon string hanging down. Scandalous!

“We faced many roadblocks,” explains co-founder Alec Mills who says he was told that the ad was too ‘racy’ and would encounter problems broadcasting it on breakfast shows. “Many iterations of our advert got rejected. This clearly demonstrates the vast cultural chasm between what is happening with women’s bodies and how they are portrayed in reality.”

“This tampon string on the side of the bus is momentous, in that it hasn't happened before, but it's also utterly boring and normal. No one bats an eyelid when they see a tissue on the side of the bus, and it should be the same for a tampon string,” says Pool. “If every parent and carer were this cool about periods, period shame would be eradicated in one generation.”

DAME in the News

Award-Winning Brand DAME Is Changing The Face Of The Femcare Industry - One Tampon At A Time Forbes

The Founders of Dame on How They’ve Shaken Up the Feminine Care Industry Pop Sugar UK

Candice, Irina, Joan in 'Human After All' by Rowan Papier for Vogue Greece December 2020

Candice, Irina, Joan in 'Human After All' by Rowan Papier for Vogue Greece December 2020

Three of the world’s top models — Candice Swanepoel, Irina Shayk and Joan Smalls cover four December 2020 covers for Vogue Greece, each with the tagline ‘Human After All’. Anna Katsanis styles the covers and editorial content in which pays the three women speak about the value of activism, urging us to look beyond the images — in this case captured by Rowan Papier (IG).

Since its relaunch in March, 2019 Vogue Greece, helmed by editor-in-chief Thaleia Karafyllidou, the youngest Vogue EIC at age 29, the magazine has delved more deeply into topics that matter than sister Vogues.

Clearly in our new COVID-19 world and its worldwide protests around sustainability and racial justice, a Vogue editorial reset was playing out at the beginning of 2020. But Greece had already endured a decade of austerity, prompting Karafyllidou to tell Vogue Australia in April 2019: “ . . . We are bringing the Vogue brand back to the country in a new era where ‘luxury’ has been redefined. It’s not just about a beautiful pair of shoes or a handbag – now ‘luxury’ is your free time and the time that you spend offline.”

Kenzo's New Era: Felipe Oliveira Baptista + Glen Luchford Launch Fall 2020 Campaign

Artistic director Felipe Oliveira Baptista charts Kenzo’s future.

KENZO unveils its first Fall 2020 campaign by Portuguese fashion designer Felipe Oliveira Baptista. The original, pre-COVID campaign plan intended a photographic road trip in The Azores, Baptista’s original home. Photographer Glen Luchford and long-term partner, stylist Jane How would be Baptista’s campaign companions. And then COVID struck.

“When could we travel? Be together again?” were unanswered and predominant questions. We were to collaborate and put a campaign together, but how?

Glen Luchford knew the campaign would now involve distance photography. But how could it transform into a series of original images? Into the archives — as a few select photographers lucky enough to have them — have already done. Check. Now send the clothes to New York or Los Angeles, where Luchford would shoot models in the same pose and under the same light as the vintage image. Check.

The result is a fresh campaign featuring Lara Stone, Lil Buck and Rose Valentine, as reflected in these first images. Refusing to bow to the challenging moment, the Kenzo campaign expresses the ‘Going Places’ spirit of the collection. Kenzo has always rooted itself in a youthful, nomadic style, and Baptista is ready for takeoff.

In the mid-1960s, Takada Kenzo moved from Japan to Paris, traveling by boat with stopovers in Hong Kong, Mumbai and Saigon. It was this voyage that helped inspire Kenzo’s modern nomad, global progressive spirit. Young creatives with open minds took advantage of affordable, global transportation. Like Kenzo, they set off with the same nomadic spirit born in the eponymous ready-to-wear house the designer founded in 1970.

Today Kenzo heralds a mobile wardrobe that embraces urban elegance and metamorphosis — a keyword in narrating the original spirit of the Kenzo brand.

The name of my first plant store, ‘metamorphosis’ is again a timely word in a COVID world of shaken values and environmental concerns. So many of the hopes of Kenzo-mindset progressives living in the world of The Beatles — and especially John Lennon — are well aware of the meaningless heap of shattered dreams of clean energy, women’s equality and racial justice that inspired deep convictions around global change.

Those same young people find it hard to believe that on June 20, 1979, US President Jimmy Carter unveiled 32 solar panels on the roof of the White House. Yale Climate Connections reveals the Jimmy Carter’s solar panels moment:

Humanrace 'Clean' Beauty Skincare Is Pure Pharrell Williams Philosophy

Humanrace 'Clean' Beauty Skincare Is Pure Pharrell Williams Philosophy

Pharrell Williams has launched an epic skincare brand at humanrace.com. Not only does the brand name Humanrace dovetail perfectly with the singer/rapper/designer/entrepreneur’s philosophical mindset. But because the two words are typically split in typography, searching for the single word brings up Pharrell Williams’ new venture in Google’s top position. Nice — and I doubt he paid much for it.

Yes, it helps that Humanrace’s November 25 launch covers the current issue of Allure magazine, lensed by Ben Hassett. All the relevant details of Humanrace’s DNA are covered in Brennan Kilbane’s interview Pharrell Dives Into the Beauty Business.

The chief sensations officer of Humancare is perfectly at home Zooming from his Miami kitchen about the super simple, skin-loving essentials developed with his longtime dermatologist, Elena Jones.

Eyeing the New South

It was an impactful, online New York Times ad recruiting artists to Virginia that first attracted me to Virginia Beach. That July 2017 midnight sighting was followed by the August 12, 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville. That memorable weekend left me wondering if a move to Virginia was realistically in my destiny.

My cousin Jo and I spent several November 2017 days in Virginia three months later, and I remained positive about the move — highly impacted by the ‘truths’ about Jefferson that were openly-discussed in our tour at Monticello.

Looking out over a desolate, wintery Civil War battlefield was sobering post-Charlottesville, and I felt more strongly than ever that creating a New South was part of my older and wiser DNA.

I can say with total honesty, though, that news of Pharrell Williams’ 2019 ‘Something in the Water’ festival sealed the deal, removing any further hesitation about moving to Virginia. All systems became GO!

The beauty entrepreneur’s Allure interview with Brennan Kilbane delves into activism in a post George Floyd world.