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September 2021 | Issue #260

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September 2021 | Issue #260

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About the Cover: About the cover: Our September cover image by the talented iPhone photographer Ahmad Al Motawa sets the mood perfectly. We’re quickly seeing our city streets get busier with the full return to work, and a slow saunter to get things done in the city is exactly what we need to slow down and appreciate just how much everyday life has changed for everyone. Not afraid of infusing his thought provoking images with philosophical musings, we love Ahmad’s work for precisely that. A caption that makes you wonder, or an entirely personal excerpt on his own journey of selfgrowth. After all that is said and done, though, we’re all trying to bravely march towards our own version of normal. Whether you choose to run, saunter or powerwalk, do what you have to do to take care of yourself to get to where you need to go. For more on Ahmad, follow him on Instagram @ahm2o.

Back to life, back to school, back to university, and for tens of thousands of residents, finally back to Kuwait, and back to work, their homes, cars, friends and families. You guys were all sorely missed!

The bazaar team...

Now that life is kind of back to normal, the horrible traffic jams that I’m sure nobody missed, are back with a vengeance, and will probably only get worse once the dreaded online classes end, and the kids finally go back to school if everything goes according to plan, and there are no more surges, hiccups, variants etc.

Ahmed El-Adly

We couldn’t have made it this far without the inspiring creatives around us who keep us motivated and excited to see what they’re doing next. This month we got Up Close and Personal with Nada Al Shammari, an extraordinary woman who has been tirelessly working on several internationally recognized science-related programs with an interest in space exploration. We love that, even during times of hardship, we have brave individuals like Nada who are still persevering and looking to the stars.

Operations Manager

From the astronomical to the deeply personal, this month we met up with Saleem Sash, plus-size influencer and body-positive advocate for Truth or Dare. Using his eclectic and fun fashion taste he is able to serve an often-ignored audience, and shed light on the importance of inclusivity in an image-centric fashion industry.

Mixed Media Solutions

Art is beautiful, but more importantly it is also a communication tool, which is why we loved The Promenade Cultural Center’s Mural Residency Program. Three artists, Noor Ebrahim, Yuser Al Mutawa and Danah Al Mukaimi created visually stunning and intellectually stimulating murals representing the theme of ‘socializing’; and with our transition back to life, witnessing these murals come to life came at the perfect time. We interviewed these talented artists to learn more about the project and their work, and their experiences were fascinating.

Shadi Mofeed

We’re also excited about getting ready for school. A fresh pair of kicks, a new backpack, notebooks, fun pens and colorful markers will get anyone in the mood for class. You can find everything you need this season on TAMMANA.com. For those of you who want to work smarter instead of harder this year, our friends at MUJI gave us some ideas for organization and studying. We’re all set for a productive and colorful year. If you have been considering a new set of wheels, you need to give the Highlander HEV 2021 model a test drive. The hybrid SUV offers the amazing handling, spacious interiors, off-road capability and intelligently designed bells and whistles. We love a perfect ride that is well-suited to the modern person who wants a car that can do everything in style!

Happy reading! Ahmed El-Adly

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Editor

Alia Al Duaij Ihab Youssef

Content Manager Yasmine El Charif Jennifer Cádiz

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Staff Writer/Online Media Mariam Raslan Yasmin Gamal

Communications Hala Y. Sharara

Cover by

Ahmad Al Motawa

Contributing Photographers Eslam Khalifa

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INDEX SEPTEMBER 2021 28 MOHAMMED BURBAYEA’S EYE ON THE CROWN Professional jet ski athlete Mohammed Burbayea has won the coveted Pro Runabout Grand Prix. The Red Bull athlete who once graced our cover, is well on his way towards garnering another Triple Crown Season, and we can’t wait to see what he does next.

54 THE PROMENADE CULTURE CENTRE'S MURAL RESIDENCY PROGRAM We love the Promenade Culture Centre and its constant involvement in the community and the promotion of local talent. Their Murals Residency Program is no exception and secures a safe space for artists to fully express themselves. We met up with the three Kuwaiti female artists to learn more about their experience in bringing the theme of ‘socializing’ to The Promenade’s walls.

34 NADA AL SHAMMARI

SALEEM A.K.A. SASH

Some people dream of the stars, while Nada wants to make them accessible to a generation of future-scientists and researchers. The founder of MAPP-Kuwait, codirector of STARS Camp and director of TEDxKuwaitCity is constantly finding ways to bring science and the arts together to inspire. Read more in this edition of Up Close and Personal.

As a child, Saleem knew exactly what he liked and what he didn’t, and fashion was something that fascinated him. In this edition of Truth or Dare, he tells us more about how his eclectic taste and excellent eye for detail has helped him amass a large following on social media who want to learn more about navigating the world of plus-sized fashion for men.

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The hybrid SUV from Toyota is a powerful beast that can do everything, but still delivers on luxury, and space. Every feature was intelligently designed for a superb driving experience while still being fuel-efficient. It is the car that can do it all and take you everywhere.

112 H&M STUDIO AW21 After a year of athleisure and comfy sweatpants, we are ready to get into something a little more fashionable and edgy. H&M Studio’s Autumn/Winter 2021 collection is charged with attitude, passion and regal spirit – and it’s ready to rule the world. Find out why this is a glamorous and dramatic collection.

128 OCEAN’S PRIDE We are embarrassed to admit that we had some pretty false ideas about frozen foods, until we were educated on the benefits and superiority of Ocean’s Pride’s products. The brand offers an array of seafood options, flash frozen to conserve quality and nutritional value. Find out what seafood you should be eating for a healthier life.

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what's trending September 2021

What: @thehappydesigner.me Info: Fashion design courses. Editor’s Note: Who knows? Maybe you’re the next Coco Chanel.

What: @home.edit.kw Info: Edit your home to suit your style Editor’s Note: Why hide your beautiful mug collection when you can display it?

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What: @softandlight.kw Info: Products that honor the planet. Editor’s Note: We’re so ready for a day at the beach with this fab rattan chair.

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JET SKI WORLD SERIES: KUWAIT SEES CROWN IN POLAND Burbayea Makes Headway Towards Another Triple Crown Season By bazaar staff

Professional jet ski athlete Mohammed Burbayea has won the coveted Pro Runabout Grand Prix. This was the first round of a three-round Jet Ski World Series, which took place July 21 – 25. The athlete is well on his way towards garnering another Triple Crown Season, and we can’t wait to see what he does next.

CMY

And while winning is an integral part of Mohammed Burbayea’s DNA, he believes it is all the more meaningful for him to proudly represent Kuwait on the world stage. His most recent victory at the World Series is made all the more special by being the first major competition he had returned to after being away for more than a year and a half, due to the ongoing worldwide challenges presented by the current pandemic. In Poland, Burbayea’s win was hard fought. His Grand Prix total of 202 points was enough to stay ahead of Danish rider Marcus Jorgensen’s excellent 200-point total. In third place came Jeremy Perez of France to close out the top podium spots. Perez scored a fine total of 192 points. It should be mentioned that points from this round are carried forward for all riders going into the next World Series tournament. Mohammed Burbayea felt good after the win. “Poland was an incredible test that I wanted for myself, to take it on as a challenge.” The first-place finish has set him up to attempt a repeat of his 2019 World Series Triple Crown achievement where the World Series events were held in Belgium, America, and Thailand. He reiterated that this is only a first step towards another triple crown, and that there is still much work to be done in the meantime to prepare for the upcoming challenges. Nonetheless, he was thankful to be off to a good start. “I want to thank Red Bull for always being a class-act in the world of sports, especially for how they’ve always treated me.” Burbayea said. “This victory is dedicated to

everyone who continued to believe in me. This is for the people of Kuwait, and its leadership.” Burbayea went on to further thank his host of supporters and sponsors, whose support he is always eternally grateful for. They include the Kuwait Public Authority for Sport, Kuwait Marine Club, as well as Kuwait Finance House, the Kuwait Center for Physiotherapy, and 6-year sponsor, Red Bull. But that’s not all for our champion, as Burbayea has more exciting plans in Kuwait. Through his long-standing working relationship with Red Bull, he plans on opening his own school, the Pro Rider Academy, to teach watercraft novice students and enthusiasts proper riding techniques. He wants the school to be open and accessible to all to help bring in new people into the sport. Mohammed Burbayea is currently the Guinness World Record holder for most IJSBA wins in the male category. He’s participated in over 150 races during his career, and won 150 trophies, 22 of which he was awarded gold. The venerable Red Bull athlete will be seen at the second round of the Jet Ski World Series, which will be held at Lake Havasu, Arizona, USA, October 6 - 10, 2021. Mohammed Burbayea is a professional athlete. He lives and trains in his hometown of Kuwait City, Kuwait. To find out more about Mohammed Burbayea and the ongoing Jet Ski World Series, follow @RedBullKuwait on Instagram and Twitter, @RedBull on Facebook, and @m.burbayea on Instagram.

ABK WANTS YOU TO GO DIGITAL Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait’s latest campaign encourages customers to fully embrace change By bazaar staff

Digital banking felt like a useful option, until we were hit with the pandemic and realized that it was a powerful and indispensable tool. Visiting the bank is now almost unnecessary because you can do everything you need using the bank’s app. Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait (ABK) promised us ‘Simpler Banking’ and has been consistently delivering on it. Their latest ‘Push Notifications’ campaign ‘Want to win KD100?’ is a great way to encourage all customers to sign up for it. The ‘Push Notifications’ service is an inapp service that notifies customers on all transactions. The monthly draw campaign started on the 22nd of August and will run until the 24th November 2021. Every month, two customers who have downloaded the ABK app and enabled the ‘Push Notifications’ service will win KD 100 cash. With ’Push Notifications’ customers will benefit from the convenience of transaction updates and smooth browsing of saved transaction history. The service is particularly valuable to travellers, who in the absence of a roaming network, can access the service as long as they are connected to a WIFI network. To enable the Push Notifications service on the ABK app, customers should go to ‘My Profile’, click on ‘Notification Settings’, and enable Push Notifications. We spoke to Johair Marafi, Acting GM, Retail Banking Division at ABK to learn more about the campaign. ABK’s latest digital offering now has a campaign attached to it. Can you tell us more? The lessons reaffirmed during the pandemic were that we have to move into an anytime, anywhere banking mode on digital channels, and Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait (ABK) has implemented a strategy towards achieving this goal. We have noted an increase in demand for digital offerings from customers, and ABK’s continuous investment in digitization has built trust and loyalty amongst our customers through seamless digital experiences. ABK has been introducing several digital initiatives especially on its mobile app and this campaign ‘Want to Win KD100?’ incentivizes customers to enable the ‘Push Notifications’ service on their ABK apps. What are push notifications? Push notifications are in-app message alerts that you receive once the ABK app is installed on your phone. The push notifications service will keep customers up-to-date with all account and card transactions. What are the benefits of ABK’s push notifications service? Customers will benefit from the convenience of transaction updates and smooth browsing of the

saved transaction history. The service is particularly valuable to travellers, who in the absence of a roaming network, can access the service as long as they are connected to a WIFI network. Push notification ensures that necessary information stands out when customers are inundated by SMS. While traditional text messages may be missed while travelling, Push Notification keeps transaction updates top of mind. Why should I enable push notifications today? As the uptake of digital banking channels continues to rise, the function alerts customers with immediate updates on their bank accounts and card transactions. If any ABK customer enables push notifications for the next 3 months, the customer enters a monthly draw to win KD100 cash prize. 3 draws over 3 months, and 2 winners per draw. The push notifications service features enhance customers’ digital banking experience by providing real-time alerts on bank accounts and card transactions. In addition, transaction status can be checked remotely and around the clock through the website and mobile application, ensuring that customers enjoy a convenient, up-to-date experience consistently. What are some of the other digital services ABK offers its customers? In keeping with the Bank’s ‘Digital First’ ethos, ABK has invested heavily in contactless digital banking services. We believe in integrating customer needs with relevant products and services to ensure a simpler yet vibrant banking experience. ABK continuously delivers on its ‘Simpler Banking’ strategy by providing its customers with a convenient way to conduct remote transactions swiftly and seamlessly. Our breakthrough ‘Global View’ platform allows customers to manage multiple accounts across Kuwait, Egypt, and the UAE, through a single login point. With easy access through our Mobile and Internet Banking, the platform delivers enhanced functionality to our increasingly sophisticated customers. The launch of the ‘PIN Self-Generation’ service enables customers to generate new PIN numbers for their recently issued cards within seconds at ABK ATMs. The bank also reached a key milestone,

Johair Marafi, Acting GM, Retail Banking Division, Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait upgrading its Interactive Voice Response Service (IVR) and introducing voice biometrics and fraud detection functions on the ‘Ahlan Ahli’ banking app, adding a layer of security and safeguarding customers’ data security. ABK also offers secure digital payments on Garmin Pay, Samsung Pay & Fitbit, whereby customers can pay without the need of a wallet. Capitalizing on the Bank’s existing digital reach and technological infrastructure, ABK has also pioneered a virtual banking assistant in Kuwait, an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven chatbot for ABK account queries and service requests. This demonstrates the Bank’s determination to stay ahead of the curve and provide the best digital banking experience to customers, powered by the most innovative technology for the financial sector.

For more information about this and other ABK offers, kindly visit eahli.com or contact an ABK customer service agent via ‘Ahlan Ahli’ at 1 899 899.

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ROBOT REVOLUTION

Elon Musk claims Tesla will debut a humanoid robot next year By Russ Mitchell

Elon Musk showed off his next big project: a sleek white and shiny humanoid robot, sized a bit smaller than the average man, engineered to perform “dangerous, repetitive, boring” tasks – sometime in the future. Called the Tesla Bot, it will be ready for unveiling in prototype form sometime next year, Musk said — but if it’s not, it wouldn’t be the first time a promised Musk innovation turned out to be vaporware. The mock-up robots that were onstage with Musk at a Tesla company event Thursday night were not even vaporware. One was a statue-like model that didn’t do anything but stand still. The other was a person in a costume and mask who performed a crazy dance. “Obviously, that was not real,” Musk said after the dancer finished. “The Tesla Bot will be real.” Musk showed a slide with the robot’s specs. According to the slide, it will stand 5-foot-8 and weigh 125 pounds, with a top speed of 5 mph. “It’s intended to be friendly, of course,” he said. The robot reveal came at the end of a livestreamed event filled with technical detail about Tesla’s efforts in artificial intelligence. If Musk was joking about the robot, he didn’t let on. He talked about the need to provide a universal income to those who lose their jobs as robots take over. “In the future, physical work will be a choice,” he said. Musk has an adolescent’s love of science fiction jokes and sprinkles them into many of his public appearances and interviews, but he has spoken seriously about the threat posed by advanced artificial intelligence and cofounded a company, OpenAI, dedicated to keeping AI safe for humanity. He severed his ties with OpenAI sometime around early 2018. Another of his companies, Neuralink, is working on a brain/computer interface; Musk has said augmenting human brains with computing power will help humans compete with future forms of AI. He’s said Neuralink will cure blindness, paralysis, deafness and mental illness. MIT Technology review has labeled such claims “neuroscience theater.” Although Musk has notched many successes at Tesla and SpaceX, his rocket company, he has a long history of touting innovations that don’t pan out or arrive years behind schedule. For several years, he’s promised that the company was on the verge of launching a fleet of robotaxis powered by its Autopilot software, a million of them by the end of 2020. He’s yet to deploy a single one. Years ago he promised an electric semi truck, a pickup-like Cybertruck and a rocketpowered roadster, but none are close to production. While Tesla allows vehicle owners to “beta test” what it calls “Full Self-Driving”

on public roads, experts say it’s years away from achieving true autonomous driving. Musk, however, said the Tesla Bot will use Autopilot technology, “making use of all the same tools that we use in the car.” “Our cars are semi-sentient robots on wheels,” he added. Earlier this week, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced an

investigation into why the company’s partially robotic Autopilot feature has driven Teslas into police cars, fire trucks and other emergency vehicles stopped by the roadside at least 11 times. The crashes injured 17 people and killed one.

Photo by Yuyeung Lau on Unsplash.

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LOOKING TO THE STARS WITH NADA AL SHAMMARI

Making space exploration more accessible for bright young minds in Kuwait By bazaar staff

Nada began her career as a photojournalist, environmentalist, and writer of creative nonfiction but has pivoted into the world of science education. She founded MAPP-Kuwait, an Applied Media Arts research and education platform that helps facilitate the convergence of art and science in sustainable development. That’s not all, she is also the director of TEDxKuwaitCity and is currently codirector of Stars Camp. “I’ve never had a traditional title - I’m one of those interdisciplinary people who are lucky enough to be able to teach, exhibit, document, design, create links, share ideas – and I love being able to connect people with their passions,” Nada explained. She is heavily invested and involved in different projects and initiatives. Her curious nature drives her to experiment and to stay active in the community. Her brain is constantly buzzing with exciting ideas and she is unafraid to take the first step to bring them into reality. “My approach has always been interdisciplinary – and that helps me to widen the circle for collaborative and innovative interventions in my community. This also helps me to be able to approach things from different perspectives – there’s nothing more powerful than that,” she explains. Nada likes working on several projects at once because that: “... refreshes my energy and creativity, and often there’s a rhizomatic effect, one stem sends out roots and shoots that in turn grow and take on a life of their own,” she told us. MAPP-Kuwait was inspired by Johnny De Philo, one of Nada’s professors who motivated her in her current research and practice. The organization is a toolbox for civic innovators and helps create spaces and opportunities for passionate people to connect and collaborate. The projects address youth education, gender empowerment, science communication, and spreading innovative ideas. One of the earliest projects was Project SEED - Science Education Exploration & Discovery – a collaboration across the Middle East and North Africa to provide learning resources and 34

Nada Al Shammari - Inspirational Woman of the Year - Kuwait 2016 tools for students and educators which included science communication through films, games and art. “MAPP allowed us to amplify alternative narratives of the Arab world, something that stems from the misinformation about our locale around the world. A great example of this is the documentary series ‘Trailblazing Women in Kuwait’, which I produced and directed. This series got people so excited, and in it we highlighted the pioneering role of Kuwaiti women in a variety of fields, including the economy, media, science & technology, education and healthcare,” Nada explained. The current research at MAPP focuses on Aesthetics and Science, specifically Space Science Communication by bringing together artists, scientists and technologists for the project “The Studio and the Lab”. They will start showcasing collaboration of science and art in the new ground station installation space in Dubai, UAE. It is a space where educators and students across the GCC can contribute their own research and practice related to space science communication to be showcased around the GCC.

Most of Nada’s work revolves around STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) and she advocates for education using these disciplines. Especially the use of Art. “For me the convergence of art and science is inevitable – not intentional. Things don’t have to be one way or the other, they can be one way and the other. I loved maths, poetry, genetics, music, biochemistry and anatomy, to me these were exciting ways to figure out how and why things worked. I was convinced I would be doing something in medicine or become a correspondent or writer or a distance runner – my romanticized ideas of future careers, inspired by novels like Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series, and inevitably, Stanley Kubrick’s Classic 2001: A Space Odyssey. I was published for the first time when I was very young and was obsessed with writing and photography because of journalists like Kate Ady, James Nachtwey and Ryszard Kapuscinski. Throughout my time as a student, you would find me in the labs or the studios. I played my cello and made cameras out of anything I could get

my hands on, mixed and produced electronic soundscapes, experimented with all kinds of chemistry and went on all night writing sprees. What is important is to get out there, and just do it!” she explains. Over the past few years, MAPP-Kuwait has transitioned to ‘MAPP EDUCATION’ and one of Nada’s favorite projects has transitioned with it – ‘STARS Camps’. STARS Space Education Camps are all about exploration and discovery experiences. Her business partner and her started this as a not-for-profit initiative in 2015. STARS Camp takes young people from the GCC around the world to learn about science, technology, and leadership through space exploration activities. This was something important for them, because they wanted the youth in Kuwait and the GCC to have access to unique learning experiences like we had, something to develop their skills and let them know they can dream big, because everything is possible. Nada believes that young people should be given opportunities to connect with their passions, since it is the best time for their curious sparks to grow. They have already gone to space as part of the Orbital Space Launch program. More than six months ago they helped send Kuwait’s first scientific experiment into space, an experiment that was conducted onboard the International Space Station by an astronaut Shannon Walker on behalf of the students in Kuwait. Nada excitedly told us that more than 75% of the team managing the project were women. As for QMR-KWT, it was years in the making and is an educational space mission that is already inspiring and empowering students to become the future professionals in the space sector. The main education mission is ‘Code in Space’, an opportunity for students to develop and test new software solutions by writing software code to be uploaded and executed on the satellite’s onboard computer – for the first time ever. “We have been receiving proposals from students around the world and we invite students from everywhere to challenge themselves and connect with this unique opportunity. We have just commissioned QMR-KWT mission control and ground station at DTEC in Dubai, as part of our collaboration agreement with Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) under the umbrella of MBRSC Space Ventures for startups,” Nada says. These initiatives and programs provide people with access to literal space that was never available before. But Nada doesn’t have to go too far to do good and community changing work, she has also been a part of the TED and TEDx family for many years and has worked with a wonderful small team in Kuwait to make the local conferences happen. “TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design,

Nada Al Shammari and Bassam Alfeeli winning the Broadcast Pro best space initiative and to me it is like a free but very valuable learning opportunity. It is a wonderful platform to shed light on the innovation, invention and discovery going on in Kuwait, including Abdulaziz Alateeqi’s focused research into Makkan history, allowing us to travel in time; Jassim Al-Awadhi’s project ‘Kuwait Commute’, an initiative on public transportation systems; Maryam Aleisa’s ‘Refood’, dedicated to saving food from being categorized as “waste”; Nasser Al-Azmi’s innovative farming techniques in the desert environment, Abdullah Al-Mikhyal’s environmental activism through documentary film supporting native people across the Globe, and many others. Ours is an active and engaged society, and it’s our responsibility to share

these ideas with the world,” Nada elaborates. She is not even close to being done. “We have exciting space missions coming up in the next couple of years, we are aiming for the moon! I am continuing to work through MAPP Education on a field guide on the creative technology of citizenship and still continuing to do things one step at a time, looking forwards towards dreaming big, and working with students to help them excel at whatever they choose to do,” Nada said. We’re glad that someone is out there opening doors for young people to pursue disciplines and fields that are exciting and interesting and to inspire others to reach for the stars even when they seem too far away. [Continued...]

UP CLOSE & PERSONAL QUESTIONNAIRE What do you most value about your friends? Integrity. Which living person do you most admire? My mom – hands down – she single handedly brought up nine of us, and lived to tell the tale! What is your idea of perfect happiness? Coconut ice-cream and hanging out with my nieces and nephews. What is your greatest extravagance? Living in Dubai. What is your most treasured possession? Mine and my loved ones’ health. What is your greatest fear? Regret. Hosnia Hashim and Nada Al Shammari documentary projects What is your most marked characteristic? Unequivocal optimism. Which talent would you most like to have? Teleportation. What is one trait you have that you are most grateful for? Adaptability. What is the human trait you most dislike about others? Ignorance. What is it that you most dislike? Profiteering. Which words or phrases do you most overuse? You are awesome! What are your favourite words to live by? You are awesome! Where would you most like to live? Amongst loved ones. If you could have any job, what would it be? Explorer in Chief. What would you consider your greatest achievement? Inspiring thousands of students over the years and being a witness to their happiness and success. What do you hope for in the future? Good things to come. Follow @mappkuwait on Instagram and Twitter to stay up to date with their news and visit mapp. education and orbital-space.com for more details. 36

[...Continued]

Nada Al Shammari commissioning ground station at DTEC in Dubai, UAE

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DON’T GET BORED

This one thing can break up the monotony of remote work By Kaleigh Moore

Approximately 5 million American workers worked remotely before COVID-19. These numbers quickly rose during the pandemic, and they haven’t slowed down. Global Workplace Analytics forecasts that 25% to 30% of the workforce will work remotely multiple days per week by the end of 2021. This means about one in four Americans would be able to enjoy the benefits of working from home. Up until now, I’ve been working remotely as a freelance writer for seven years. As someone who’s not new to working from home, I’ve come to realize that while this arrangement can be highly productive, it isn’t without its downsides. Sometimes remote working can be highly monotonous, which leads to a drop-off in efficiency, inspiration, and creative energy. However, I’ve learned that taking work outside can be the simple shift in scenery that reboots one’s productivity. Taking your work outside Research shows that simply looking outdoors can help boost productivity. And this remarkable effect is compounded when you place yourself in an outdoor environment. And the benefits don’t end there. The presence of green, natural surroundings is proven to lower concentrations of cortisol in the brain, reduce heart rate and blood pressure, increase parasympathetic nerve activity, and decrease sympathetic nerve activity. Together, these sensations can lead to a feeling of relaxation. It’s clear that working outdoors puts people in a much better mental and physical state to tackle tasks and accomplish deep work. So, with all these benefits, how do you set up a work space outdoors that’s both functional and comfortable? Speaking with Sacha Leclair, a longtime designer and founder of Canadian-based Leclair Decor, he told Fast Company the main things to consider when creating an outdoor work space are the same as any indoor work space: comfort, function, and focus. To tie these three factors into your outdoor office setup, turn to these tips. Setting up your outdoor work space While it would be ideal to have a small enclosed structure in which you could work outside, many of us don’t have the space or financial capacity for this option to be realistic. Instead, start by choosing an outdoor spot away from noise. This is especially important if you participate in online meetings or need to take phone calls. Seek out a shady spot to limit screen glare and reduce sun exposure. If no natural shade is available, consider installing an umbrella. Don’t forget to factor in internet availability and proximity to a power source; both should be

easily accessible to maintain the function of your outdoor space. Catering to comfort and function Comfort is essential to productivity, so when I went to build out my own outdoor work space, finding comfortable seating was at the top of my priority list. In my case, Industry West’s Perth chair and this outdoor lounger from Article are two solid options that provide a perfect blend of both comfort and function. When it comes to a desk setup, your ideal option depends on how you work best: Some people like having an outdoor standing desk, a lap desk, or a small table that functions as a worktop. For me, a small lap desk does the trick. The main conceit is to not limit yourself. It’s your home office; you can set things up according to your individual needs. Fostering a conducive space Being outdoors reduces stress and increases productivity, but sometimes the pull of nature can be too difficult to ignore. If you find yourself getting distracted, try incorporating some music into your outdoor work space. Researchers found test

subjects were more productive when listening to songs pitched at 121 bpm. Music with an upbeat tempo can boost performance. Personally, I enjoy listening to lo-fi music while working outdoors. I use a wireless, portable speaker by Sonos that I can easily take outdoors cord-free. Where I live in the Midwest, my other biggest outdoor distraction comes in the form of mosquitoes and gnats, which can be outdooroffice nuisances. To keep them at bay, I use Thermacell’s portable bug repeller without having to use a distracting, highly scented bug spray. The benefits of fresh air and sunshine make working outdoors a revitalizing alternative that may be a worthwhile adoption for a remote worker. As our world becomes more open to remote work as a potentially long-term setup, it’s time to take advantage of the flexibility it provides. Experiment a bit and get your outdoor office set up so it’s functional, comfortable, and conducive to focused work. You may find that by working outdoors, you get more done.

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GET THAT DOUGH

5 key steps to negotiating a better salary (and what to avoid) By Savanna Bous

By now you’ve probably heard a lot about about the Great Resignation that’s upon us. According to a study conducted by Microsoft, 41% of workers are contemplating leaving their current job this year. If you’re part of this group, now is a great time to sharpen your negotiating skills, as settling on a competitive salary is a critical final step of the job-search process. Even if you plan on staying at your current workplace for the foreseeable future, the job market might present the perfect opportunity to negotiate a raise. After all, no matter if you’re a seasoned professional or a recent college grad eager for your first job offer, knowing how to negotiate your salary is vital. Here’s how to get this sometimesawkward conversation right: Do your research Don’t pull a random figure out of the air. Spend some time browsing different salary guides like glassdoor.com, payscale.com, and salary. com. Know your worth and present a reasonable request. Factors to consider when gathering information include geography, experience, and education level. Track your impact You’re essentially “selling” yourself to an employer, so come prepared. No one knows what you do—and how well you do it—better than you, especially if you’re negotiating your starting salary at a new company. Find what makes you stand out. Take the time to outline what you do on a daily basis and the accomplishments you’ve made within or for the company (or at your previous company). Make them aware of the hard work you’ve done. Determine what you want It’s time to get down to the nitty-gritty: What do you want? Determine your needs and your wants, make a salary range, and come up with some alternatives to your ideal agreement. It’s important to consider and include different kinds of non-salary compensation. These benefits include vacation time, health and dental insurance, retirement, travel compensation, the ability to work remotely, and more. You can also negotiate for more leadership roles, authority over your work, or professional development opportunities. This shows your employer you’re taking the initiative to be your best for the next time you want a bump in pay. Get the timing right If you’ve just received a job offer, the timing for a conversation about expected salary is usually pretty clear. But if you’re talking with your current employer about a promotion, things can be a bit more complicated. If possible, use recent success and accomplishments to your advantage. Whether you

just killed a client presentation or a performance review, use the positive momentum to bring up a raise. Just do it It can be easy to talk yourself out of asking, but you should always negotiate when you get a job offer. Companies rarely lead with their best offer. And you’re more likely to get what you want if you’re negotiating about more than just money. Don’t feel pressured to agree immediately. It’s okay to take some time to think it over—even if they give you an offer over the phone. Email is your pal. It lets you take your time when sharing your counteroffer, which helps you not forget the details. Even if you’re not successful in your negotiation this time, negotiating can make you more enticing to employers because it shows you value yourself and your work. Talk with your manager and make a timeline for when it would be appropriate to reassess a possible raise. What to avoid when negotiating Asking for more money is awkward and uncomfortable, but if you apologize every step of the process, you’re undermining yourself. Don’t say sorry. The lack of conviction might make

employers think you lack confidence in yourself or your work. Stay away from negative wording. Remember, you’re working with an employer to get a raise. The word “no” can often end the conversation or slow the momentum. Try shifting to the positive like, “I’d be more comfortable with…” or “Is it possible…” to keep the conversation going and open to more prospects. When gunning for a raise, make sure it’s because of your performance at work. Oversharing about personal expenses isn’t a reason that will persuade a company to give you more money. Also, stop yourself from using how much another coworker makes as part of your argument. Bringing up topics like this may seem unprofessional, too. Don’t make an ultimatum. You risk gaining nothing. Companies can’t always cater to additional salary requests, but you can negotiate additional benefits like forms of non-salary compensation. As Will Bachman, cofounder of Umbrex, points out: “A prospective employee who obtains an extra week of vacation gains an effective 2% increase in the salary per day worked.” Think smarter, not harder.

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ARE NETFLIX MOVIES TOO HD?

It is all in the medium By Ari Mattes

The history of cinema as an art parallels its history as a technology. Ever wondered why the color in The Wizard of Oz is so saturated? Well, it wasn’t the first technicolor film, but it was the first to effectively advertise MGM’s new 3-strip color process to a global audience. Why advertise something at half mast? This kind of technological innovation in cinema is, of course, spurred by economic motives. For instance, 3D thrived in three waves in direct response to the economic threats posed by new technologies: in the 1950s, in response to television, in the 1980s, responding to VHS, and in the 21st century in the face of increased online streaming. In this era of digital cinema, with celluloid virtually replaced by video technology, the latest technological battle concerns image resolution. A digital image is made up of pixels—little shapes (usually boxes) that are the smallest controllable element of the image. Resolution refers to the number of pixels appearing in an image, and is usually measured in pixels per inch. As a rule, the more pixels, the crisper the image—that is, the sharper the edges of the subject appear. Image capture resolution is only one factor in how an image looks—dynamic range, that is, difference between the darkest and lightest parts of the image, is another. But most cinematographers and techies agree the camera’s resolution is crucial to the crispness of the image. In 2018, Netflix were snubbed by the Cannes Film Festival on the basis Netflixproduced films are not true cinema. This year again, there are no Netflix-produced films in the festival competition due to a rule all films selected to compete must have a local theatrical release. Cannes is right. Most made-for-Netflix productions don’t look like the cinema we’re used to. Why? There’s a technical answer. Though the company streams some films that are not “Netflix Originals,” it requires narrative feature films made for Netflix be shot on cameras with a “true 4K UHD sensor.” Flat and depthless This technical specification is strikingly evident in David Fincher’s recent Netflix Original production, Mank, a black and white biopic about Herman J. Mankiewicz’s ghostwriting of Citizen Kane. An old black and white film, shot on celluloid, has a grainy texture that draws the eye into and around the image. This is partly the result of the degradation of the film print, which occurs over time, but primarily because of the physical processing of the film itself. 42

All celluloid film has a grainy look. This “grain” is an optical effect related to the small particles of metallic silver that emerge through the film’s chemical processing. This is not the case with digital cameras. Thus video images captured by high resolution sensors look different from those shot on celluloid. The images in Mank look flat, depthless, they are too clean and clear. This is not as much of a problem on a big screen, when the images are huge, but the high resolution is really noticeable when the images are compressed on the kind of domestic TV or computer screens most people use to stream Netflix. The edges look too sharp, the shades too clearly delineated — compared to what we have been used to as cinemagoers. Netflix does allow limited exceptions to its rule, with use of non-approved cameras requiring its explicit approval and a “more flexible” approach to non-fiction productions. According to Y.M. Cinema magazine, 30% of Netflix’s “best movies of 2020” were made on non-approved cameras. Still, in stipulating the use of 4K (or higher) sensor cameras, Netflix radically reduces the aesthetic autonomy of film directors and producers. If we think of Netflix as a production studio, this is not surprising—all studios (like all major corporations) dictate the nature of their products, including the aesthetics and feel of their films. But this requirement means their productions look similar, and the imagery (to a cinephile, anyway), too clinical. Glorious granularity All film festivals, distributors, and networks request delivery of films conforming to their

specifications, but this usually has nothing to do with the source camera behind the delivered file. If it looks and plays well, it looks and plays well. The film Open Water (2003), for example, which made over $50 million at the box office (from a budget of under $200,000), was shot on mini-DV, a low quality and now obsolete video format, but it perfectly suited the film and thus works. Netflix, in stipulating 4K camera sensors, reproduces the assumption higher resolution is necessarily better, for all (or even most) films. But one of the reasons American film noir still looks so good — or the New Hollywood films of the 1960s and 1970s, like Easy Rider and Bonnie and Clyde — is partly because of the celluloid technology itself, in all its glorious granularity. The beauty of these cinematic images has nothing to do with the sharpness of the edges of the photographed subjects. From where is this assumption that sharper images are better, and more aesthetically effective? Art has always sought to say something in its deviation from its realistic reproduction of the world — that is, in its expression. As with all technological innovation in a capitalist context, this assumption stems from the competitive impulse to appear to be doing something better than everyone else — the bigger, more expensive, clearer, the better. But when it comes to aesthetics, this is a redundant form of economy.

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LIVE AND LET LIVE

Saleem Sash has something significant to say By bazaar staff

When Lizzo recently got emotional on Instagram live after receiving criticism on her plus-size figure instead of critique on her latest single “Rumors’’, Cardi B – featured on the same track - jumped to Lizzo’s defense, “I dunno, maybe it’s because I’m a Libra, and we protect people”. This comment really landed because when bazaar recently met and chatted with content creator Saleem Sash, plus-size influencer and proponent of body positivity, we touched on astrology and he’s a Libra, “Open minded, fair, strong sense of justice” says Google. Saleem’s influence does offer an opportunity for audiences to be exposed to a rarely appreciated aesthetic, and he stands up to be recognized on behalf of others who look like him where there has been no representation before. 44

It certainly is no surprise that with a name like “Sash” Saleem’s interest turned to fashion, and he tells of how at the early age of 4 or 5 he innately knew what he liked and didn’t like. “As a kid, fashion always fascinated me and I always looked at people who looked a certain way with admiration.” His apartment annex features floor to ceiling displays of beautiful items, some behind glass, and towers of sneaker boxes. If you look closely, you’ll see that the brand names run the gamut from Alexander McQueen to Giuseppe Zanotti; an A to Z of fashion collection, with more than a healthy collection of Hermès spread throughout the room. Everywhere you look, a mishmash of texture and color can be seen, the physical embodiment of Saleem’s eclectic taste, and yet it all works. Even roommate, McQueen the Corgi, bites down on two well-loved toys and a much-enjoyed dog chew all at the same time; a metaphor for Saleem’s love of life, fashion and creative projects, all the elements of which he handles himself – production, styling, videography, photography, and editing. There is a real elegance about Saleem, he’s an empathetic and caring host and an honest interviewee. It’s a revelation to see an influencer being so transparent, and he shows so many facets to his character; a real diamond. Answering whether he’s seen a societal change in attitude since the wave of the body-positivity movement for women, alongside “Time’s Up and “Me Too”, Saleem describes that while society is becoming more accepting of the plus-size woman, men are still being shamed, and it will take a long time for this to change. Astutely, Saleem also understands that this is, justifiably, most likely because men can’t really have a “cause”, unlike women. It’s a global patriarchy we all live in, after all, and there’s not much sympathy for “the man”. Pair that with the, often mistaken, assumption that differently typed bodies show a certain laziness or gluttony, and there isn’t much sympathy to be had for the large man. Saleem’s not asking for any though, he thinks we should all stay out of each other’s business if there’s no harm being done. “People come in all shapes, sizes and colors and that’s part of life; we cannot all look the same, and acceptance to that fact is a must, it’s not a choice; you need to accept other people. It’s not up to you”. bazaar asks by paraphrasing, “Live and let live?” and Saleem signposts us to that exact answer, which he’s given to our Truth or Dare question, “What is the first famous quote that comes to your mind?” Checking the @sash_designz Instagram account you immediately see the numbers. It’s impressively well over the one hundred thousand mark. There’s not really a plus-size male influencer in this region with which to compare, but recognized and lauded western, male, plus-size influencers have significantly lower numbers. Generously – no pun intended - Saleem comments that this is because these influencers

have other outlets, whereas he is only online. With a significant number of followers and high engagement, Saleem has become attractive to brands for collaboration purposes. What Saleem does insist on is legitimately enjoying whatever it is he endorses. Already the @sash_designz feed is full of looks, products and items that he himself has purchased, used, or chosen, and the one thing that this influencer refuses to compromise on when working with brands, is his integrity. This in turn means followers can trust and believe in Saleem’s posts, leading to a truly engaged audience which in turn is even more attractive to business partners. It seems like success comes from being true to oneself, and to others. But, the numbers don’t matter to Saleem, although he laughs, “You do need numbers, otherwise who are you influencing?” With customers observing that most malls are all filled with all the same shops, where does Saleem get his outfits from, considering that plussized menswear options are extremely limited here. He shops online, but the oversized fashion trend also helps because what would be oversized on the average person fits him snugly and well. He also chooses quality, and prewashed cottons for example, so he knows how the garment will wash and wear. He’s a big fan of mixing and matching labels too, mostly because he says you must with limited choice available, but you must also select

pieces carefully, curate your look, groom well too, and accessorize. This seems to be advice that is great for anyone, actually, at any size, man or woman. But what we really want to know the answer to is, as Saleem represents an aesthetic and body type not typically celebrated by most social media communities – even #bodygoals influencers get called out for not being perfect enough or for feeling the pressure to over photoshop their images. “What I do is something most people are afraid of doing. If you are plus size, you are not supposed to dress a certain way, you are not supposed to be seen in certain places.” So where did Saleem first get the confidence to reject this oppression, and put himself out there in the way that he does; where did the self-acceptance come from? He says, “There hasn’t been a journey, but there has been a thought” going on to explain that when born, we inherit our looks and don’t choose them, so how can we not accept it? If we don’t like what we see, we should either come to love it, or make the changes and accept that choice to change too. There is simply no judgement from Saleem, and it all seems very plain and simple to him. If only we could all be this matter of fact, and live and let live, the world would really be a better place. “I really hope I can be a role model,” says Saleem emphatically. “If I can change just one person’s life, I would be extremely happy.” [Continued...]

TRUTH OR DARE QUESTIONNAIRE

How would your mother describe you in one word? Loveable. How would you describe your mother in one word? Resilient. What is the most spontaneous thing you’ve ever done? I decided to fly to Turkey all alone on New Year’s and that was on the 29th of December 2018. What is your theme song? Unwritten - Natasha Bedingfield. What word in the English or Arabic language do you wish you had invented? Fashion. Where would you like to live? Paris, France. What is your dream retirement location? Paris, France. What is the first famous quote that comes to your mind? I’m known for my usage of quotes, especially the Arabic ones and I have an arsenal of them but the one I love the most is, “Live and let live”. Which animal best describes your perfect partner, be it in business, or in life? Gazelle. What animal best describes your personality? Tiger. If you could change your name, what would you change it to? I love my name, it is special and holds a meaning so I wouldn’t change it. What is the toughest part of your character? High maintenance. Who is your fashion icon from history? Alexander McQueen as a designer it is no secret that he inspires me a lot even in my work as a graphic designer. What do you think is lacking in the world, which [if there were more of it would make the world a better place? Humility and compassion, also being able to understand the people in front of you and being able to evaluate their emotions and deal with them according to that. 46

[...Continued]

Why do you think most people who do, like you? I have huge walls built around me, by my resting witch face, but once they know me they feel like they cracked that wall and working hard to get something makes people appreciate that thing more and I’m more like that.

Finish this sentence: “Happiness is…” …a new pair of shoes. Follow @sash_designz on Instagram and like and subscribe to his YouTube channel Sash Designs. Images courtesy of Saleem Sash.

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SPEAK UP ABOUT BURNOUT

How to tell your boss you’re feeling burned out By Stephanie Vozza

If you’re feeling burned out, you’re not alone. Working remotely has put many of us on a “work, eat, sleep, repeat” cycle, with family responsibilities thrown in to make things interesting. In fact, Greg McKeown, author of Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most, says there are two kinds of people today: “people who are burned out and people who know they are burned out.” “It’s an achievement to get into the second category,” he says. “Research has shown that the more burned out you are, the less you are to be aware of it. The nature of burnout is that it clouds your judgment and clarity, including your self-awareness.” After 16 months of the same cycle, it’s time to find a different way of doing and being. “Assume you’re burned out, then look for the evidence,” says McKeown. “One litmus test is when any request pinches you. Your child may come in and ask for you to brush their hair. It’s not a huge thing, but with so little space everything costs more, emotionally.” Telling Your Boss and Others You may assume that your manager knows how burned out you feel, but this is probably an inaccurate assumption, says Staples. “Speaking up is absolutely critical,” she says. “When approaching the conversation with your manager, it’s really important to come to that discussion with insights on how he or she can best support you. Everybody has different requirements, and what you need could be very different than your colleagues.” For example, you may want clearer boundaries around your working hours. You may need a more flexible schedule, especially if you’re juggling a fulltime job and homeschooling your children or caring for elders. You may need paid time off to pursue passion projects or to travel. Or you may want to continue to work remotely full or part time when the office reopens. “Asking for what’s specific to your circumstances is what’s most important,” says Staples. “And it’s okay to have conversations about what’s imperative today and what’s imperative for the next two to three months.” If You’re the Boss Ideally, managers should be starting these conversations, says McKeown. “They have a responsibility to talk about it,” he says. “Ask if an employee is feeling burned out, but don’t leave them with it. Lead by admitting that you’re struggling. You have an obligation in the hiring social hierarchy to make it safe for everybody else.” Staples recommends asking employees how you can best support them. “You’re not a mind reader, and you may not understand what each individual employee needs,” she says. “It’s fair 48

as a manager to say, ‘I want to help you. I will be as flexible as I can in addressing whatever requirements you might have, but help me understand what will work for you specifically.’” Giving your team space to breathe is essential, says Staples, who recommends instituting mental wellness days or programs. “Some companies are offering webinars for employees on how to manage time or practice mindfulness,” she says. “These programs can help.” After the Conversation Asking for support is one thing; acting on it is another. Overachievers tend to think they can solve burnout by powering through it, says McKeown. “The irony is as they approach burnout, they do more of the things that led them to being in burnout,” he says. If you need greater separation between work and home life, you’ll need to set boundaries, says McKeown. “Before the pandemic, there were geographical boundaries,” he says. “The physical office and home were not the same place, and the commute was the transition. Now this is gone.” McKeown recommends writing a “done for the day” list. Instead of endless to-do lists that can literally never stop, write a list of things that will make you feel satisfied if you finish them. When you’re done with the list, you’re done for the day.

Another way to circumvent burnout is to set a concrete quitting time. The catch is that you need accountability around it. “For me, I stop at 5 p.m.,” says McKeown. “I come out of my office and yell out the time like a town crier. The whole home knows it, and it’s a fun way to stop.” Building self-care rituals into your day can also help. McKeown suggests making a list of 20 things that relax you. “You have to have selfawareness to know what these are,” he says. “Many overachievers don’t know how to relax. It can feel awkward and uncomfortable, and they’d rather get back to email.” Relaxing rituals are the building blocks of joy, says McKeown. For example, take a bath with Epsom salt and lavender, read fiction, drink herbal tea, do a 10-minute meditation, a three-minute dance, take a 15-minute nap, or plant in the garden. “Of course, we are all burned out,” says McKeown. “Give yourself permission to admit it. And then take the steps to do something about it. Managers are under an obligation to talk about it. But don’t stop there. We can all make different choices and find an easier path to doing what is essential. If we do what matters most, we can achieve great results without burning out.” Photo by JJ Jordan on Unsplash.

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SCHEDULE STRUCTURED SUCCESS

3 easy ways to structure your schedule for success By Nick Wolny

People say college is a waste of money these days, but I’m inclined to disagree. The two degrees in classical French horn I completed over a decade ago didn’t give me job security or alumni connections, but they did give me the formative experiences that come with relentlessly pursuing one skill set. Classical music fired up my penchant for deliberate practice. Whenever I had a new étude or concerto to master, focused work sessions were how I made progress.

As it turns out, I wasn’t the only student who preferred this approach. The late professor K. Anders Ericsson is best known for his 1993 study coining the idea that it takes 10,000 hours to achieve mastery. But that research also found another interesting anecdote that’s been less publicized: The musicians at the top of their class often practiced in larger, deeper time blocks. They also took mental breaks in between their sessions. When I later transitioned out of the arts and into marketing, I found that these longer, blockier chunks of time were better for making meaningful progress. Whether it was learning my way around emerging technologies or pumping out content, deep-focus sessions became my best friend and even helped me both work less and finish more. It’s for these reasons that I can’t seem to get into the Pomodoro Technique. If you’ve hung around entrepreneur circles for more than a hot minute, you’ve probably run into someone who swears by the 25 minutes on, 5 minutes off approach developed by then-university student Francesco Cirillo in the 1980s. Pomodoro is certainly one of the more digestible and approachable techniques for time and attention management. But it’s not the only way to work smart. And if you have to disconnect every half hour on the half-hour . . . are you ever even finding your flow in the first place? You might prefer tapping into your ultradian 50

rhythm, which not only sounds cool but is also your body’s natural energy cycle. While researching sleep patterns and circadian rhythm in the 1950s, scientists Eugene Aserinsky, Nathaniel Kleitman, and William C. Dement noticed how the principles of REM sleep also applied to wakefulness. Sure, you could squeeze three Pomodoros into a 90-minute block. But why interrupt yourself when you’re on a roll? If you’re not sure what flow state feels like, allocate time to try different approaches and see what works best. Then replicate your process until it becomes accessible on command. How to structure your schedule for success Rather than defining productivity as doing things more quickly, consider an alternative in which productivity is taking action on those big rocks that will move the needle. If you’re not sure what that might be, here are a few ideas to get you started. Embrace “relative prioritization” The Eisenhower matrix is a tried-and-true way to sort tasks into quadrants based on urgency or importance. But what if, at the end of your plotting, you still have dozens of “urgent and important” projects? Sort yourself further using relative prioritization; a rule of thumb that’s worked for me, taken from Brian Tracy’s Focal Point, is to ask yourself what one task you’d take care of if you

were about to go off the grid for a month. Repeat for each task to line up your to-dos. Identify your zone of genius While we’re on the topic of ideas that are overrated, let’s throw “being well rounded” in the pot as well. Gallup’s CliftonStrengths research notes that employees who feel they’re operating in their zone are three times more likely to report having an excellent quality of life and six times more likely to be engaged in their jobs. Knowing your sweet spot can help you identify not only what to prioritize, but also what to delegate or eliminate altogether. Bet on yourself Many of us stay plugged in all the time to try and get ahead, only to find ourselves ineffective and burnt out. Part of healthy work productivity is ensuring that you show up fresh when it’s go time. Checking your emails in bed at midnight steals cognitive energy that would be better spent recharging for tomorrow. Flow state is a productivity superpower that lives within each and every one of us. But unlocking it requires that you try different approaches and figure out what works for you. Test out different workflows, find your sweet spot, and your winning rhythm might be closer than you think. Photo by Alexander Schimmeck on Unsplash.

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THE ALGORITHMS ARE NOT THE SOURCE OF EVIL

Yes, algorithms can be biased. But they have an even bigger danger By jer thorp

Algorithms hold a pivotal and particularly mysterious place in public discussions around data. We speak of Google’s and Facebook’s algorithms as wizards’ spells, cryptic things that we couldn’t possibly understand. Algorithmic bias is raised in almost every data discussion, in classrooms and congressional hearings, as if all of us have some kind of shared definition of what an algorithm is and just exactly how it might be biased. Computers run by executing sets of instructions. An algorithm is such a set of instructions, in which a series of tasks are repeated until some particular condition is matched. There are all kinds of algorithms, written for all kinds of purposes, but they are most commonly used for programming tasks like sorting and classification. These tasks are well suited to the algorithm’s do/ until mentality: Sort these numbers until they are in ascending order. Classify these photographs until they fall neatly into categories. Sort these prisoners by risk of re-offense. Classify these job applicants as “hire” or “do not hire.” A neural network is not an algorithm itself, because, when activated, it runs only once. It has the “do” but not the “until.” Neural nets are almost always, though, paired with algorithms that train the network, improving its performance over millions or billions of generations. To do this, the algorithm uses a training set—a group of data for which the programmer knows how the neural network should behave—and at each generation of training the network gets a score for how well it’s doing. The algorithm trains and retrains the network, rolling down a gradient of success, until the network passes a threshold, after which training is finished and the network can be used for whatever classification task it was designed for. Neural networks excel at classifying things that have a lot of data attached to them. What’s more, they’re particularly good at classifying things in which the reasons for classifying correctly are hard to describe. Take, for example, a task in which a neural network is asked to decide whether a set of images contains birds: the images are labeled either “bird” or “no bird.” This is a problem that most humans are quite good at but one that computers have, in the past, had a really hard time with. This is because it’s actually quite tricky to describe what a photograph of a bird looks like. Your brain and mine might be able to look at a photo with a white cockatoo on a perch and another with a flock of starlings against a sunset and think “bird.” But where does the “birdiness” of these photos lie, exactly? It’s both beautiful and a little terrifying that we can avoid the stickiness of this question by training a big enough neural network, for enough generations, with a sufficient number of input images, to define “birdiness” on its own. By later feeding the network some “bird adjacent” images (other, similar animals, patterns 52

that resemble feathers), its programmer might be able to reverse engineer exactly what part of the input signal the network has latched onto, but more often programmers are content with the result, a bird-finding machine built on nodes and weights and chance. There’s an important difference between the way neural networks work and the way a standard computer program does. With a run-of-the-mill program like a decision tree, we push a set of data and a list of rules into our code-based machine, and out comes an answer. With neural networks, we push in a set of data and answers, and out comes a rule. Where we were once drafting our own rules for what is and what isn’t a bird, or which prisoners may or may not reoffend, the computer now constructs those rules itself, reverse engineering them from whatever training sets it is given to consume. Training sets, we’ve come to learn, are too often incomplete and ill-fitted to the nuances of the real world. When Matthew Kenney ran his experiments with word2vec, the algorithm didn’t decide to link “black” to “criminal” because

it found some pattern in the real world; it did it because its training set of news articles, largely from the United States, commonly placed those words together. Joy Buolamwini’s computer vision program [at MIT’s Media Lab in 2018] didn’t fail to see her face because of some mistake in its code; it failed because the image set it was trained on contained a hugely overweighted majority of white faces. Algorithms can, in themselves, be biased. They can be coded to weight certain values over others, to reject conditions their authors have defined, to adhere to specific ideas of failure and success. But more often, and perhaps more dangerously, they act as magnifiers, metastasizing existing schematic biases and further darkening the empty spaces of omission. These effects move forward as the spit-out products of algorithms are passed into visualizations and company reports, or as they’re used as inputs for other computational processes, each with its own particular amplifications and specific harms. Photo by Michael Dziedzic on Unsplash.

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“WHOSE PRETTY HOME IS THIS? “

Unveiling the Promenade Culture Centre’s Mural Residency Program with artists Noor Ebrahim, Yuser Al Mutawa and Danah Al Mukaimi By bazaar staff

We’ve always been massive fans of The Promenade Culture Centre. Since its inception, this special hub been a safe haven for artists, entrepreneurs and social activists alike. We always feel welcome at PCC, and the center’s collaborative spirit continues to persevere despite the challenges brought on by the current pandemic. This is why it came as no surprise to us to learn that the good folks at PCC have initiated a special Murals Residency Program to secure a safe space for artists to fully express themselves. For three dynamic female artists based in their hometown of Kuwait, PCC’s Murals Residency Program has been an incredibly enriching experience. PCC Resident Artists from Left to right: Danah Al Mukaimi, Yuser Al Mutawa, Noor Ebrahim 54

Tackling the theme of ‘socializing’ through their murals are Noor Ebrahim, Yuser Al Mutawa and Danah Al Mukaimi—three talented local female artists from Kuwait, each with their own story to tell. Noor Ebrahim has a background in architecture and art. She enjoys constructing vivid abstract worlds for people to get lost in, and possibly find a meaning. For Yuser al Mutawa, art is a highly personal reflection of herself. She is constantly exploring the inner mechanism of her creative consciousness. Danah Al Mukaimi sees something remarkable in everything, yet she hopes to create art that is timelessly cherished. And while this isn’t their first time venturing into the world of mural art, each artist enjoys their unique artistic style and vision. Noor already has already completed a few murals around Kuwait, Yuser loves the challenge presented by a mural’s development and the precision and patience the process requires, and Danah continues to learn to enjoy the process with every mural she takes on, with the PCC Residency Progam arriving as her fourth mural project. Taking on the very definition of socializing in the midst of a raging pandemic is surely interesting, as the artists are free to interpret this concept both literally and figuratively. From attending zoom weddings to extended FaceTime sessions with friends and family near and far, many people have been fortunate enough to safely shelter in place during this pandemic. We’ve learned from lockdowns and curfews the true meaning of staying together while being apart through utilizing technology and maintaining physical distancing practices. In doing so, the very definition of socializing has changed, and it is continuously evolving. The idea to have murals came rather naturally as The Promenade is home to Promenade Culture Centre. Murals have been depicted since the dawn of time, and made especially popular during the Mexican muralism movement spearheaded by artist Diego Rivera. Murals represent complex art, as these large paintings have to work harmoniously with the architectural elements in their surroundings. The center was excited by the idea of how murals seamlessly bring art into a public sphere, as large spaces benefit from murals.

Artist Yuser Al Mutawa working on her Mural titled Gesture of Affection PCC’s Murals Residency Program arrives as an excellent opportunity for artists to work outside their usual environments. Noor, Yuser and Danah have been exposed to new concepts, and they are energized by an entirely new perspective when it comes to their artistic research. They are dedicated to the idea of artistic growth. Their background and stories might differ, but they are

all united in a common idea - to leave something behind, a trace, a legacy perhaps, to have their art speak for itself. We were fortunate enough to interview these talented young female artists to share their perspectives on the PCC’s chosen theme, their artistic processes, and their experience in bringing their vision to life. [Continued...]

Please introduce yourself to our readers. Noor: Hello, my name is Noor Ebrahim and I like to paint on walls sometimes. I have a background in architecture and I am currently the art club mentor at AUM. Yuser: I am Yuser, I like to call myself a creative and an artist as I like to experiment and explore with different mediums and art materials. I started painting since I was 13-years-old. I have worked as an apparel and accessories customization artist for the last three years known as Mangoush (Instagram) where I started the unyielding obligation to myself to explore the inner mechanism of my creative process. I use acrylic as my main medium but I also like to experiment with other media such as gold leaf, watercolors and pastels. From small sketches to large scale projects, my art is a highly-personal reflection of myself. I’ve been lucky enough to have participated in many collaborative projects, as well as exhibiting in a solo capacity, which is solidifying my reputation in the art world. Danah: Danah Al Mukaimi, creator and a lifelong visual arts admirer.

Artist Danah Al Mukaimi working on her Mural titled Synapses

How would you describe your artistic style? Noor: Strange but familiar worlds. Life in different colors. Yuser: I would describe it as colorful, cheerful and eccentric. Danah: Versatile, playful, developing. What are your preferred mediums to portray your work? Noor: Copics when planning the design and then hope to start acrylics on a wall. I like taking my time with a brush rather than spray paint. Yuser: I prefer to use acrylic with my paintings but I’m currently experimenting with mixed media pieces. Danah: Acrylic and digital are my favorite to experiment with right now, and I have recently added murals to the list. Please tell us your thoughts on the PCC’s chosen theme, socializing, and how you wished to convey this via your visualized mural. Noor: It was fun to work with a theme rather than have it originate from site. I think the mural is a great way to leave something in memory of a difficult time that we are learning to adapt to. Yuser: I really liked the chosen the theme selected by PCC as we all can relate to it, especially during these tough times. The essence of my mural is an interpretation of the socialising dilemma during the COVID-19 pandemic which I wanted to translate through gifting to express our love and care toward others. The golden rope expresses the deep connection between people and their loved ones. With each separated hand, I wanted to emphasise on the phenomena of social responsibility with social distancing. The yellow tulips are exaggerated 56

Artist Noor Ebrahim working on her Mural titled Seven to convey the undeniable human expression during the tough times we went through: Hope. Danah: The theme was a big selling point for me. I wanted to convey the awareness of the self as a fundamental element in socializing. What would you like the viewer to take away from your work? Noor: Hard moments can be masked with pretty colors to make it all a little easier. Yuser: That being connected is important, and socialising can always be translated through the act of gifting others. Danah: Anything they need, really. Finally, how has your experience been in terms of creating art with the PCC? Noor: Amazing; scheduling was great, the team provided the necessary hardware and ensured securing the adjacent surfaces properly to complete the work. They were open to the artist interpretation, rather than imposing themes and visual identity.

Yuser: It was a lovely experience. I really appreciate PCC giving us this opportunity as artists to showcase our skills and connect to the general audience through art. Danah: It was a very pleasant experience. The team was wonderful to work with and the interaction with Promenade goers, especially the kids, was the highlight of it all. Through this special Murals Residency Program, PCC continues its mission of becoming a destination that is reflective of vibrant, enriching experiences for visitors and cultural customers. You can visit The Promenade today to experience the artists’ displayed murals and interact with the artists to learn more about their work, as PCC plans to host either workshops or talks with each artist that will be open to the public. Keep an eye out for these updates on their socials! For more information about The Promenade Culture Centre, please follow @PCCKuwait on Instagram, email pcc@thepromenadekw.com or call 9559 5123.

Gesture of Affection by Yuser Al Mutawa

Synapses by Danah Al Mukaimi

Seven by Noor Ebrahim

[...Continued]

AVOID DEATH BY EMAIL OVERLOAD

Do these 3 things and you’ll never clog your inbox with newsletters again By Justin Pot—Zapier

Newsletters are the new blog. Most of the web’s best essays and curation have moved to the inbox, for tech and economic reasons I won’t break down here. The problem: some of us don’t like reading things in our inbox.

I, personally, like the idea of newsletters, but I don’t like mixing my list of things to read with my list of messages that need responses. It makes Inbox Zero borderline impossible to get to, and it’s also terrible if you use your inbox as a to-do list. So I’ve been working on ways to keep newsletters out of my inbox. Here’s what I found. Use an RSS reader instead Newsletters are arguably replacing RSS, and that makes sense—it’s a great technology that never caught on with most users. But I still love my RSS reader and will mourn Google Reader’s passing until the day I die. And there are great RSS reader apps out there that you can use to keep up with newsletters. Substack is the fastest-growing platform for newsletters, and Substack offers RSS feeds. Just add /feed to the end of the URL for the publication (for example, https://example. substack.com/feed). If you’re not looking at a Substack newsletter, no problem. You can easily find the

RSS feed for any website, and those tips should apply to most newsletters as well, assuming the newsletters also live on a website. If you can’t find an RSS feed, Kill the Newsletter is a free service that can turn any newsletter into a feed. The service gives you a custom email address that you can use to sign up for any newsletter, then an RSS feed that turns every email received into a post. It works well, though newsletters with a lot of formatting sometimes get messy. Not ready to use an RSS reader? If you’re a Pocket or Instapaper user, I’d consider using Zapier’s RSS integration to automatically save newsletter articles for reading later. Use Gmail filters Maybe you don’t mind reading newsletters in Gmail, but you don’t want them in your actual inbox. You can automatically sort them into their own label using Gmail filters. Just set up filters for each of your newsletters, so messages skip the inbox and end up under the appropriate label.

Set up a dedicated address for newsletters If the above tips don’t work, there’s one more thing you could try: set up a dedicated email address for newsletters. We recommend this for junk email, but it could also work for newsletters you actually want. It’s very easy to set up a new Gmail, Outlook, or other email address. Do that, and use it to sign up for all newsletters (instead of using your actual email address). Log in to that address when you’re ready to do some reading, without seeing any emails from your boss or inlaws. I highly recommend it. Email newsletters aren’t going away anytime soon, and there really are some wonderful ones. Don’t let your aversion to reading things in your inbox keep you from reading.

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AUK Prepares Campus for Visitors and Students By bazaar staff

The American University of Kuwait (AUK) conducted a full upgrade on the health and safety measures in its campus in preparation for receiving visitors and students. The University’s Campus Services Department has implemented a meticulous plan to safeguard the campus starting from the outside gates which have been supplied with Hikvision thermal cameras to measure people’s temperatures and new ID cards for the University community which provide touch-free access to campus; disposable masks and gloves as well as hand sanitizers are also provided to ensure all those who enter are well-equipped and safe. All campus buildings and hallways contain signs regarding health and safety and distancing measurements, and shields have been constructed around all staff and faculty desks in addition to a supply of face shields as an added layer of protection during daily interactions. AUK also has a trained team to disinfect frequently-touched surfaces on a daily basis and the whole campus on a weekly basis. To ensure that the University always stay up-todate with the latest health and hygiene practices, AUK introduced NanoSeptic stickers all over campus. Using a new technology powered by light, NanoSeptic products turn high traffic touchpoints into selfcleaning surfaces by utilizing mineral nano-crystals which create a powerful oxidation reaction. Working around the clock, the surface continually oxidizes organic contaminants. Unlike traditional disinfectants and cleaners, the NanoSeptic stickers do not contain any poisons, heavy metals, or chemicals. The AUK Campus Services Department has also produced a health and safety manual, as well as an awareness video, which have been published on the University’s website to ensure that all campus community members and visitors are informed of the latest updates before entering the University grounds. AUK is diligently working to stay within the international standards for safety and security during this time to ensure the wellbeing of its community and to providing a healthy working environment in compliance with the guidelines provided by the Kuwait Ministry of Health. For more information visit the AUK website auk.edu.kw. Follow them on social media to stay up-to-date with their news on Instagram @AUK_Official, Twitter @AUKTweets and at The American University of Kuwait on Facebook. 60

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THE FOLLOWING

Leaders matter. So do followers By Brendan Keegan

We both spend our lives researching, teaching, and writing about leadership and agree with the conventional wisdom that leaders are important. Good leaders and bad leaders and the overwhelming importance of each have become a fixation, an obsession even. There are numberless leadership centers, institutes, and programs; courses, seminars, and workshops, experts, coaches, and gurus—all narrowly focused on leaders at the expense of everyone else, including their followers—confirming that point. Nowhere is this unhealthy fascination more prevalent than in America, where the virtues of individualism have always been celebrated over the virtues of the commons. The result is a cult of leadership that veritably worships those who attain status and power while under-appreciating and even undermining the inevitable counterpart of leaders: their followers. Again, we do not question the importance of leaders. Academic literature regularly reiterates that leaders generally have some measure of power, authority, and influence over their followers. For example, some studies show that 30% of the variability in team performance can be directly attributed to leaders, their personalities, their values, and the decisions they make. This is not, however, to say that followers are unimportant. Yet judging by the attention they receive—in business, in government, in the academy—followers would seem to be completely inconsequential. Quite the opposite. Though they are not usually as impactful as leaders, they can be. Moreover, they routinely influence their leader’s behaviors, nudge, or even push them in one direction or another. Which is as it should be. After all, leaders and followers are inextricably entwined. It is impossible to have a leader without at least one follower. Consider a recent report by the New York Times, which revealed that three lawyers stopped former President Donald Trump from firing acting attorney general Jeffrey A. Rosen in the final days of his term. They threatened to resign, as one, if he did. Trump thought to dump Rosen in favor of a toady who agreed to do what Trump told him to do: use the Justice Department to compel lawmakers in Georgia to overturn the results of the state’s presidential election. The three attorneys who told Trump they would quit the administration rather than stay silent while Trump violated the spirit if not also the letter of the law were good followers. They were subordinate to the president, but they were unwilling to play a subordinate role. Instead, they banded together to resist a leader who already was, or was threatening to become, a transgressor. Good followers decline to follow leaders who are dangerously bad. And good followers line up behind leaders who are good or, at least, good enough. Similarly, bad followers follow leaders even if they are dangerously bad. And bad followers 62

decline to follow leaders who are good or, at least, good enough. Why then are followers widely ignored and excluded nearly entirely from the leadership industry? It makes no sense. More precisely, while it makes no sense on the surface, it does if you follow the money. The leadership industry is a money-making business in which individuals and institutions, groups, and organizations pay money—big money—to get people to learn how to lead. Whether or not the investment pays off is a separate question. Does it make sense to try to develop good leaders without, at the same time, trying to develop good followers? Relative to leaders, followers were once of scant importance. Certainly in the distant past, leaders had virtually all the advantages. In addition to almost all the power, authority, and influence they had other assets, such as almost all the information. But times change. Over time power and influence have devolved, authority has been devalued, and information has become widely disseminated. Moreover, our ideas have changed including our understanding of who has a right to do what to whom. In the last half-century especially, changes in culture and technology—social media particularly— have forever altered relations between leaders and followers. As every leader of a certain age will testify, no matter in which sector, including in addition to business and government, the military, education, and religion, leaders in liberal democracies have become weaker and their followers stronger. Woe now to CEOs who ignore advisory boards or activist investors, clients, customers, or suppliers, the press or the public, or for that matter Facebook, Twitter, or the numberless other platforms on which they are being graded—and degraded. Evaluated

at every turn not by other leaders but by followers. By ordinary people who feel more entitled than ever before to pass judgment on those more highly placed than they. Notice the recent furor when it emerged that troops in Washington DC to protect the inaugural proceedings had been ordered to sleep in an unheated garage? The outrage was so great—”We feel incredibly betrayed,” said one Guardsman— that President Joe Biden personally called the chief of the National Guard Bureau to apologize. We do not advocate the virtues of anyone sleeping on the floor of a parking garage, least of all during a pandemic. We are nevertheless pointing out that a generation or two ago such follower outrage—publicly expressed no less— would have been inconceivable. We are similarly pointing out that if such an outcry had come to pass, an apology from the Oval Office would not likely have been forthcoming. We live in a time when teaching people how to lead wisely and well will no longer suffice—if it ever did. For the system to work and for cooperation, collaboration, and compromise regularly to take place, teaching people how to follow wisely and well must be equally important. If the leadership industry is to realize its promise and potential, it will have to evolve. It will have to become, like the rest of America, more inclusive. Sometimes good followers do not follow. Sometimes they resist, as opposed to mutely going along with, bad leaders. The importance of this point is impossible to overestimate. For if we are ever going to learn how stop or at least slow bad leadership, learning to be a good follower will be key.

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RANYA O. KHALIFA The Sophie’s World author tells us about the book, her process and future plans By bazaar staff

If you had asked Ranya Khalifa what she did, right after she graduated with a B.A in Mass Communication from The American University in Cairo, she would have excitedly told you that she was a journalist. But she didn’t feel that was where she belonged so she started working as a researcher and went on to receive an M.A in Middle Eastern Studies. While she wholeheartedly loved the field, her heart was somewhere else and she found herself writing a psychological thriller. Her just-released Sophie’s World, tells the eponymous character’s story who has to deal with unreciprocated love while also suffering from a mental illness. We spoke to Ranya to find out more about her journey towards writing and her new book. You have a degree in Mass Communication and an M.A in Middle Eastern Studies, have either of these helped shape who you are today as a person or an author? I strongly believe that you are the sum of your parts. Not feeling a passion for journalism, made me delve deeper into fiction writing, as I felt restricted in my writing as a journalist. My M.A helped me excel as a researcher and writer. So, yes, I believe that my academic studies did help shape who I am today as an author. You have worked in journalism, advertising and research, have your jobs helped you on your writing journey? I would say that research has helped the most in my writing journey. As an author, research is crucial in adding authenticity and depth to your writing. Did you always know you wanted to become a novelist? What inspired you to write Sophie’s World? Why did you start with a psychological thriller? I have always enjoyed writing from a very young age. I began by writing poetry and by the age of twenty, I had compiled fifty poems. I always dreamed of becoming a novelist, but I wasn’t sure I had the patience and consistency to do it, that is because poetry is completely different in its writing style and format. Sophie’s World was born during the pandemic, in 2020, when fear and panic gripped the entire world. I had both the time and the motivation to want to express myself in writing more than ever before. I started with a psychological thriller because that is my favorite sub-genre, in the thriller genre. I wrote the book to challenge myself to become persistent, and in doing so I felt that I was keeping my passion in writing alive, waking up every morning knowing that I was accomplishing my dream despite all the obstacles and restraints. In fact, writing gave me a sense of power during one of the most tumultuous and difficult periods in modern human history. 64

How do you describe the book? What kind of reader would enjoy it? Sophie’s World is a psychological thriller, filled with riddles and mysteries, as well as characters that are meant to leave an impression in my reader’s mind. The book sheds light on the plight of psychologically or mentally challenged people, and the need for family, friends, and society to have more empathy and consideration when dealing with such cases. I think that this book will have a broad range of readers, as it has young and mature characters that play very important roles in the story’s narrative. Readers need not be die-hard thriller genre advocates per se, they could also be readers interested in psychology, as well as novels infused with family drama. I truly hope the book will be enjoyable and thrilling for everyone who reads it. Can you tell us a bit about your writing process? My writing process is founded on two pillars, consistency and persistence. I would wake up at around five o’clock in the morning, when everything was quiet and peaceful. That is usually when my inspiration is at its peak. Of course, in order to be consistent and persistent, I had to find a compelling plot that would interest me enough to remain committed to the storyline. It took me three months to write the book, in the summer of 2020. My publisher helped with editing. My daughter was perhaps the only person who read parts of the book before it finally went to print. How did you select names for your characters? Are any of them based on people you know? I have always liked the name Sophie, and luckily for me it turned out to be a common Scottish name. I chose the rest of the character names according to the characteristics of each character and how I wanted each character to be portrayed. For example, I named Sophie’s mother, Grace. I chose that particular name to bestow upon Grace’s character an air of kindness and generosity. The characters are all purely fictional. I did, however, do my best to try to make them as lively and realistic as possible. Now that your first book is out, is there something that you would like to do differently? Not really. I think for my next book, which I am currently in the process of writing, I will continue to do my best to be consistent and persistent.

Your book centers around mental illness, is that something you have always been interested in? Was researching it difficult? Are there any trigger warnings for your book? I have always been interested in how humans, whether or not they are mentally or psychologically challenged, have different perceptions of life and events. I am very interested in human psychology and in human interaction in general. Researching schizophrenia was very compelling, as I have always wanted to understand how it differed from other mental disorders. I think that people tend to confuse it with split personality (dissociative identity disorder) and bipolar disorders. It was very challenging for me to portray some of the manifestations of schizophrenia in a thrilling and compelling manner to the reader. Did the pandemic affect the way you had planned to release the book? Definitely, due to the pandemic I chose not to have a public book launch event, for everyone’s safety. Hopefully, my upcoming book signing events will have social distancing measures and

safety guidelines, whereby I will able to interact with readers and discuss my book with them! I truly look forward to such a privilege with my enthusiastic readers. There’s a teaser on your website about a second book, will it be related to Sophie’s World? When can people expect to see it on book shelves? I have already been asked if there will be a sequel to Sophie’s World by some readers. I would really love to write a sequel to this book, but that will depend upon a number of variables and considerations. So, it is open for discussion. The book I am currently writing is a crime thriller and I hope I will complete it in about two months from now. I will aim to have my next book released by April or May of 2022.

Visit ranyakhalifa.com to purchase the book and to stay up to date with Ranya’s work. 65

BARBIE GETS A MAKEOVER

Now she’s made from recycled plastic By Jeff Beer

Barbie’s “Fashionista” line features dolls in 22 different skin tones, 94 hair colors, 13 eye colors, and five body types, as well as ones with wheelchairs and prosthetic legs. Despite the variety, which has been credited with Mattel selling more Barbies in 2020 than any time in the past 20 years, they all have one thing in common: They’re made of virgin plastic.

Now Mattel is starting to change that with a new collection called “Barbie Loves the Ocean.” The line of dolls is made with plastic that might’ve ended up in the ocean if it hadn’t been recycled. The Barbies use recycled plastic flakes Mattel is sourcing from U.S.-based company Envision Plastics, which is in turn sourcing raw materials from local collection points in the coastal region of Mexico’s Baja peninsula, in order to recover plastic before it even enters the ocean. Available in stores and online, it includes three different dolls, three beach-themed play sets, and a doll and play set combo. Prices vary, but are comparable to Barbies made of virgin plastic. It also includes a partnership with the ocean cleanup organization 4ocean on a limitededition, $20 4ocean x Barbie bracelet made with post-consumer recycled materials. For every bracelet sold, 4ocean will pull one pound of trash from oceans, rivers, and coastlines. And it’s all being hyped by a new ad campaign called “The Future of Green is Pink,” created with agency BBH Los Angeles, which depicts the material shift as the iconic doll’s latest makeover. 66

This move is part of a slow shift in the toy industry away from virgin plastic. Lego is replacing its clear plastic bags with recycled paper, with an aim to make all its packaging from renewable or recycled materials by 2025. It’s also working to develop bio-based bricks (though it has struggled to do so). In March, Hasbro announced it would be phasing out plastic packaging by the end of next year. And in 2019, Mattel pledged to use 100% recycled, recyclable, or bio-based plastic materials by 2030. According to a Mattelspokesperson, the company has launched Fisher-Price and Mega Bloks sets made from bio-based plastics, and the first fully recyclable Uno deck without cellophane packing materials. In April, the company unveiled Mattel PlayBack, a new toy take-back program to recover and reuse materials from old Mattel toys, including Barbie, to use in manufacturing future Mattel products. But for now, the toy industry remains heavily dependent on plastic. An estimated 90% of the toys on the market are made of plastic. And as much as 80% of toys end up in landfills.

Barbie Loves the Ocean is the brand’s latest effort to position Barbie as a role model. “To show the next generation they can be anything, we must do our part in protecting the planet,” says Lisa McKnight, global head of Barbie and Dolls at Mattel. The marketing push behind the new Barbie line also includes content like the popular Barbie vlogs (which gained widespread attention last October for its episode on racial allyship), with a new episode around how kids can be more environmentally friendly in their daily habits. The collection has important symbolic value. After all, Barbie is an iconic toy that brought in more than $1.3 billion in sales last year. But as a way to reduce the brand’s environmental footprint, it barely makes a dent. It’s one collection amid at least 10 other collections that are still made with virgin plastic. At best, it’s a small step toward— as McKnight put it—the Barbie brand doing its part to protect the planet.

Photo by Shi Min Teh on Unsplash.

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MONDAY DREAD

We hate Sundays instead of Mondays By Kevin Smith

When I was in my twenties, I worked for a finance company. I was the most junior person on the team that kept our computers and servers with complete precision. As Sunday night rolled around, I began dreading the week ahead, slogging through painful meetings in a role that just wasn’t a “right fit.” This was not the case when I started my first company, shortly after that. I noticed that while I was prepping for the week Sunday evening, I wasn’t dreading the next five days. This is where it kind of clicked for me and I gave a name to what I call the Sunday Night Test. The Sunday Night Test is simple: are you dreading the week ahead in your job? If so, then it’s time to embrace a brass tacks analysis of the source of that dread and figure out whether it may be time to make a change. You can apply it to yourself as an employee. But now as a company founder, rather than just apply the test to myself, I encourage my fellow team members to apply the test themselves. If you are a leader or a manager, it’s incredibly important to know whether your teams are passing or failing the Sunday Night Test. I like the Sunday Night Test because it spans age groups. It’s highly subjective and qualitative, but that’s sort of the point. What it’s supposed to do is not just have the person think, ‘Oh I don’t want to go to work tomorrow’, but if that’s the case, let me think about the things I can do to not dread going to work tomorrow. A culture of candor is key Importantly, in order for employees to feel that they can tell you their job doesn’t pass the Sunday Night Test, they need to feel that management and the company are open to hearing it. You can help to build this into your culture by walking the walk. Talking about your own mistakes. Share where you’ve struggled and what you’ve learned. But know that you’ve got to build this culture early on. It’s not unlike cooking versus baking. With cooking a steak, you can fine tune flavor, adding a pinch of spices here and there, even throwing it back on the grill a few more minutes, if needed. With baking—much like culture—there’s no adding an egg after the cake comes out of the oven. Be very conscientious of the culture that you’re building and communicate often that it has to 68

be a shared responsibility that we all participate in building. What it feels like to be here, how we communicate, how we problem solve, what our routines are, how we make decisions. All of those pieces of our culture need to get baked in early, and with contributions from the entire team, because the culture gets set early and it is harder to change as you grow. Identifying the source of the dread What’s at the core of the dread? Do you not feel supported? Not clear on what success looks like? Not challenged? Not heard? Afraid of making mistakes? Are there inner personal conflicts with people on your team? Are you feeling like there’s a role within the company that you may be better suited for?

Moving forward/proposing solutions As a manager, I don’t believe that someone on my team has to always have a solution in mind if they identify a problem. Some problems need collaboration and just because a team member doesn’t know how to fix a problem doesn’t mean they can’t identify one. As an alternative, I like to say that with problems come projects. As such, I suggest taking a Socratic approach, stepping back and asking questions to bring you and your employee to what a solution might be and then empowering them to solve the problem. It’s one of the most rewarding things I do in my job and it’s helping my team to pass the Sunday Night Test on a regular basis. Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash.

BACK-TO-SCHOOL COOL WITH TAMANNA.COM

SAY GOODBYE TO ENDLESS STORE VISITS AND FIND ALL YOUR BACK-TO-SCHOOL ESSENTIALS WITH NEXT-DAY DELIVERY ON TAMANNA.COM!

By bazaar staff

It’s been a minute since we’ve had to do that back-to-school run-around. While we’re super excited for our youngest family members’ return to on-campus learning, we know that satisfying each child’s desires when it comes to getting them ready for school can be a daunting challenge. You’re stuck out in traffic all day, racing against time and running from one store to the next in search of the perfect unicorn backpack for your youngest daughter, and your teenage son has declared that he won’t step foot in school without donning those limited edition kicks he’s been eyeing for some time. If, like us, you’re in search of the coolest gear for your family for this back-to-school season, then you’ll find everything that you need and more on TAMANNA.com!

The Kuwait-born online retailer is the new destination for everything fashion, lifestyle and beauty. Discover all your favourite international brands and shop the very latest in seasonal trends locally with a convenient next day delivery service and a simple 30 day return process. THE ULTIMATE BACK-TO-SCHOOL EDIT TAMANNA.com’s back-to-school edit has it all! The one-stop-shop for fashionsavvy customers is redefining our online shopping experience in Kuwait. Just in time for back-to-school season, their latest edit will help you beat the traffic, and in doing so, save your sanity, by curating everything your child needs for a seamless transition back to campus. With convenient next-day delivery service, a simple 30-day returns policy, and an easy Click & Collect service center located at The Avenues, all you have to do is shop TAMANNA.com for your back-to-school essentials, and your wishes will be delivered. TAMANNA.com’s back-to-school edit features all of your favorite shopping destinations in one place, with brands like

Mothercare, Foot Locker, Claire’s, The Disney store at TAMANNA, MUJI, River Island Kids, Jack Wills Kids and the cutest selection of backpacks from Victoria’s Secret. You’ll find everything you need for kids of all ages, with adorable rainbow style bags from Claire’s, Disney character favorites from The Disney store at TAMANNA to sportier backpacks from Jack Wills Kids. Also, we can never forget the all-important lunch-box, and Mothercare’s selection on TAMANNA.com is fun, food-safe, and will keep your little ones’ snacks either hot or cold, all day long! We know that the highlight of every child’s return to school is the opportunity to choose new stationery (Okay, we adults LOVE doing this, too). With fun options like fuzzy diaries, sequined pencil cases and jumbo multicolor pens with fun animals from Claire’s, to a wide array of the best notebooks, colored pencils, highlighters and notepads from MUJI now available on TAMANNA.com, your kids will be spoiled for choice. An organized back-to-school season is a successful one, so make sure that you arrange all of your kids’ new

stationery with amazing storage solutions from MUJI. We’re massive fans of their acrylic organizer trays, and the PP storage drawers can be used to sort notebooks, craft gear and everything in between. We can't forget about those everyday essentials! This is why we love Mothercare and Jack Wills Kids’ everyday vests and briefs for an easy start to the day. Complete these essentials with the coolest hoodies and outfits for everyday back-to-school cool, and your kids will be rocking the latest Nike, New Balance and Adidas Foot Locker looks in no time. These versatile pieces are perfect to wear to school, and after. Your child’s back-to-school shopping spree is never complete without the perfect accessories, as they make going back to class all the more fun! Choose from safe blue light eyewear for long hours in front of the computer, key rings, and reusable cloth masks to stay safe in class. Find tech accessories like earbud cases, charging cables in popping colors, fuzzy unicorn headphones, fun phone covers, and so much more! [Continued...]

ABOUT TAMANNA.COM Founded by The Alshaya Group, TAMANNA.com leverages a wealth of market experience, infrastructure and support. Yet, TAMANNA.com is an entirely independent brand with their own unique DNA and company culture- set to redefine the Kuwait online shopping experience. Customers can easily browse and shop various fashion and lifestyle assortments from international brands like American Eagle, Foot Locker, River Island, Victoria’s Secret, Dr Vranges, Mothercare, MUJI, Starbucks, and so many more! The platform is fully functional and easily accessible on phones too with an app already in the pipeline. Descriptions and sizing information are clear, so you know exactly what you are buying. Rest assured that TAMANNA.com‘s friendly support team is always ready to help ensure that you enjoy the smoothest shopping journey. TAMANNA.com is hopeful, ever-changing, and on a journey to evolve to offer a world-class shopping experience to the Kuwaiti market.

All your wishes. Delivered. 72

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Shop TAMANNA.com, and Follow @Shop.tamanna on Instagram for the latest updates.

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FAMILY LENDING

How to determine whether you should give financial support to loved ones By Marcy Keckler

If you feel inclined to help someone you know who’s struggling to make ends meet amid today’s challenging environment, you’re not alone. According to new research from Ameriprise Financial from 2020, one in five people have provided financial assistance to a friend or family member whose finances have suffered due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even before the global pandemic began negatively impacting people, nearly half of respondents (45%) in a separate Ameriprise survey said they have given money to someone they know who experienced hardship. The impulse to help is natural, since people hate seeing their loved ones struggle, and it feels good to support them in their time of need. But, while generosity is a great inclination, make sure it doesn’t cloud your judgment about how much you can afford to give and what impact it may have on your relationship with the recipient. Before you make a commitment to help, keep these tips in mind to avoid unintended consequences. Assess your own financial picture Prior to giving money to a loved one, take a step back and assess your own financial situation. Consider how your gift, especially if it is a significant amount of money, might impact your ability to cover the cost of your immediate expenses and save for your long-term financial goals, such as retirement. If offering money could jeopardize your own financial situation, you may want to consider other ways of lending a hand. For example, you might help with childcare or offer to do household chores in order to free up time for your friend or family member to focus on their job search. Determine whether you’ll make a gift or a loan If your finances are in strong enough shape for you to help your loved one, the next step is to decide how you will extend assistance. Will the money be a gift or a loan? If you decide to provide a loan, it’s important to mutually agree upon a timeline, and potentially an installment plan, for the recipient to repay you. Be realistic with the terms. If you feel there’s a risk that the individual may not be able to fulfill his or her end of the agreement, determine if not getting the money back would strain your relationship. If the answer is yes, you may want to reevaluate the conditions of the loan and whether you’re truly comfortable lending the money in the first place. Communicate clearly Money can be a delicate topic among friends and family even during more normal times. But it can take on added sensitivity when someone you care about is struggling financially. Nevertheless, if you’re planning to give money to a loved one, honest and open communication is key to avoiding misunderstandings and hurt feelings that could harm your relationship down the line. Make it a

point to be transparent about your intentions and expectations for your gift or loan. Take the time to chat with them about your ability to support them financially, how much you are willing to give, and how often, as well as a game plan for repayment, if applicable. Seek impartial and knowledgeable advice Deciding how to handle financial support to a loved one can be tricky. It’s likely that seeing

a friend or family member struggle may make you susceptible to reacting impulsively. Getting impartial advice from a knowledgeable outsider, such as a financial professional, may be useful in this case. An informed and objective third party can help you navigate the situation and make rational decisions that will keep your relationships (and finances) intact. Photo by Melissa Walker Horn on Unsplash.

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WE’LL TAKE THE SALTED PEANUTS

Airplane food is back, but it’s not like you remember By Hugo Martín

Full airline menus are back — but say goodbye to pre-meal cocktails, warm cookies and a lot of chitchat with your flight attendants. After cutting most food service during the pandemic, airlines are once again offering premium dishes such as misomarinated cod, Greek chicken salad and braised short ribs to entice the big spenders who buy first- and business-class seats. But COVID-19 has forced changes in the way they serve food and drinks, as well as some usual offerings such as snacks, to reduce interaction between fliers and flight attendants. To help return airlines to profitability, carriers are meeting the recent uptick in travel demand by expanding their onboard offerings to include the kind of high-end meals and drinks that were popular with first- and business-class travelers before the pandemic. After all, the nation’s airlines lost a combined $35 billion in 2020, after seven consecutive years of profitability, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics. In-flight meals, drinks and airport lounges are not significant revenue generators but are essential to attracting first- and businessclass fliers, who made up as little as 5% of all passenger traffic before the pandemic but generated about 30% of all passenger revenues, according to the International Air Transport Association, an airline trade group. Among the most noticeable changes in the cabin are to meal courses, previously dished out on separate plates in upper-class cabins. Now they get served all at once on large trays. “We’re offering all courses at once to limit the handling of trays, dinnerware and glasses between our guests and flight attendants,” said Alaska Airlines spokesperson Ray Lane. In the aisle, instead of pouring drinks into plastic cups from food carts, flight attendants are now handing passengers throughout the plane full cans or bottles of beer, soda, wine or hard seltzer to eliminate the pouring time. Many of the changes to in-flight food service have been made at the behest of the nation’s flight attendants, who have been hard hit by the pandemic. An estimated 4,000 flight attendants on U.S. carriers have contracted the virus and 20 have died, according to the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, which represents 50,000 flight attendants at 17 airlines. At airport lounges, covered dishes have replaced buffet-style food. Self-serve beverage dispensers are now staffed by lounge workers, or they’ve been eliminated altogether to reduce intermingling. For some flight attendants, the changes are not enough. Heather Poole, a flight attendant with more than 20 years of experience, said her fellow flight attendants are put at risk by serving

passengers who lower their masks for too long to nurse a drink or take their time eating a snack. She would prefer that airlines return to eliminating all food and drinks on short flights. “No one ever starved on a three-hour flight,” Poole said. Delta has stopped offering premium passengers cocktails before a meal. Now beverages are served with the meals to reduce the contact between passengers and flight attendants. Most airlines began cutting back or eliminating food and beverages sales on planes and closing airport lounges in March 2020 to help slow the spread of the virus. Some airlines limited the onboard service to boxed meals for long-haul and international flights. Other airlines encouraged passengers to bring their own snacks. Within a few months, airlines began to offer passengers packaged snacks and drinks,

with full meals reserved for long-haul and international flights. As coronavirus case numbers dropped this summer and air travel demand began to increase, airlines expanded their food and beverage offerings. The recent surge in cases tied to the Delta variant has not altered the airline industry’s food and drink expansion plans. Eric Rose, a partner in a lobbying and crisis communications firm in Los Angeles, described the lunch on a recent Delta flight from Los Angeles to New Orleans as “very sterile.” The prepackaged sandwich served in the businessclass section was cold and his request for a Scotch on the rocks was answered with a small bottle of Scotch and a cup of ice. “This is the new reality until COVID is under control,” Rose said. Photo by Toni Osmundson on Unsplash.

DKNY X JEREMYVILLE AN ILLUSTRATED NEW YORK By bazaar staff

DKNY invites you to step into the new New York. A quriky re-interpretation of DKNY’s hometown created by renowned Brooklyn-based artist, product designer and author, Jeremyville. Combine Jeremyville’s unique illustrations with DKNY’s distinct city attitude, and you get a capsule that reflects the hustle and optimism of a New York renaissance.

This limited-edition, unisex capsule incorporates these exclusive, monochromatic graphics on a bucket hat, an assortment of tees, and a denim jacket. All styles showcase a whimsical cast of characters and iconic New York city imagery—a manhole, a taxi cab, the Brooklyn bridge, and beyond. Phrases like “hopes and dreams,” “spread hugs” and “stay alive in the 9 to 5” pay homage to the DKNY woman and man alike—multi-hyphenate dreamers who work hard and play harder. On the collaboration, artist Jeremyville says, “I wanted to capture the city that I love and call home in a stylized, abstract way – like a jazz tune, or pedestrians dancing on a crowded sidewalk. I was inspired by a “pavement” of characters, neon signs, skyscrapers and classic New York iconography, so I visited my local café and sketched my take on the creative energy and vibrant feeling of downtown New York.”

DKNY x Jeremyville hits dkny.com and select global retailers on August 20. For more on the collaboration visit donnakaran.com. DKNY is located in Al Kout Mall, Al Kout – Soku, Gate Mall, Marina Mall, 360 MALL, The Promenade, Grand Avenue – The Avenues, Phase 2 – The Avenues. Follow the @DKNY Instagram account for updates and fashion ideas or call 1 820 012. 79

OUR COLLECTIVE GRIEF

Post-pandemic life has thrust us into the 6th stage of grief: the search for meaning By Ruth Reader

My mother died of cancer when I was 25. The six months that contained the-rest-of-her-life were both fleeting and excruciatingly long. The good days snapped shut like the shutter on a camera. The bad days were months long. Afterward, I searched for answers: What did it all mean, and what was I going to do with the rest of my life? To find them, I quit my job, I severed relationships, and I moved back home to New York, a place that was at once familiar and entirely new. I was starting fresh—or something. The truth was I didn’t really know what I was doing. I just wanted to begin again. In the wake of the pandemic and 3.7 million deaths worldwide, many are feeling this same need to throw off the entrapments that no longer serve. We are languishing: a condition that can only be treated by making shifts in our lives. And people are making changes. The “great reassessment” has Americans rethinking where and how they want to work. Pew Research reports that 66% of Americans are thinking of changing fields. Others are considering a longer sabbatical, to spend more time with family and figure out what kind of work really matters to them—a phenomenon Kevin Roose of The New York Times coined the “YOLO economy“. While many may be leaving behind menial jobs that didn’t pay, some people are leaving good jobs, perhaps feeling burned out. This resetting of priorities is a part of grief. As many in the zeitgeist have said, we’re all likely in one stage or another of pandemic grief: a collective desolation caused by the loss of loved ones, jobs, and even the minor normalcy of going out to lunch. In grief terminology, this clean slating is known as the “sixth stage” and it’s about the search for meaning. It is the most brutal and potentially rewarding of the stages. The quest to figure out what’s next will upend you, so get in, but don’t worry about buckling up. “What I try to help people understand is meaning is not in that horrific event. Meaning is in us afterward,” says David Kessler, author of Finding Meaning: The Sixth Stage of Grief. When someone we love dies, life transforms, says Kessler. In the wake of death—of our friends, our families, strangers, the potential of our own— jobs no longer seem meaningful. Our plot to take over the corner office feels hollow, vain. But making extreme alternations to your life while experiencing grief is much like operating heavy machinery while drunk—you shouldn’t do it. “And so many people went, this work is just meaningless. Well, everything’s meaningless in grief, right? But let’s not quit our jobs. You might need some income,” he says. “The second part of that is people would say things like, ‘I’ve got to get out of the house, it’s too painful.’ So, they would sell their house only to find the pain went with them.” 80

Grief is individual, and while there may be discernible stages, they don’t necessarily happen in order or on a generic time table. If possible, go slow. “Some people have to sell a house or some people have to move, but if you don’t have to make a decision, just sort of let things settle,” says Kessler. “That doesn’t mean that reevaluation and rethinking life isn’t appropriate in that time either . . . a pandemic, a crisis, a tragedy gives us a different view. And why would we want to miss that perspective?” Starting over again can be euphoric, but it’s also hard work. Beginnings are filled with possibility, but eventually there are the blunt tasks that need to be done: training for a new job, dating again, making new friends, establishing yourself in a new community. While the busyness of these activities may be a welcome distraction from the pain, grief can also make these already difficult transitions even harder. Grief can also cloud your reasoning. When our priorities are suddenly thrust into the sharp relief of life and death, the gray areas dissipate. We are seeing things clearly, yes, but with less nuance.

“You’re not quite yourself post-pandemic and nor are other people,” says Kessler. “So, just make sure as we’re reevaluating relationships, we’re reevaluating in the big picture. Not whether Jane’s a fun person . . . as she’s awkwardly trying to find her way back into society.” He says that everyone who feels pulled to reevaluate their lives should do so, but they should try not to rush a major metamorphosis. The search for meaning also does not have to lead to massive life upheaval. There is relief even in the small epiphanies and actions. “You turn outward and see what’s needed—the kids are asking for more help, your spouse wants to do things now that you can, there is something in the world you always wanted to do that you haven’t had a chance to do,” he says. “This is a good time for that.” Of course, if you are impatient like me and you have already sold the house, the car, and the kids—don’t worry. You’re about to find out a lot about yourself. Photo by Jennifer Griffin on Unsplash.

PRIORITIZE TO REENERGIZE

This one trick can help you reenergize, plan, and set priorities By Thomas Peng—Zapier

It is very, very easy to get lost in the day-to-day. There’s always some fire to put out, or some recurring task that needs doing, which makes it hard to focus on big-picture stuff. This is what a Quarterly Think Day is all about. The idea is to take time and space to reflect, learn, and prioritize for the next three to six months. I learned about this concept from Jessie Link, VP of Engineering at Twitter, at a LeadDev Together conference session on personal development. I decided to try it out. I found it a good way to prioritize, think strategically, and re-energize. I’m going to talk about what I learned, but first, let’s talk about how to plan your own Quarterly Think Day. What to do on a Quarterly Think Day The name kind of explains it: once a quarter, you take an entire day to think. What about? This time is for asking yourself some critical questions. What’s important to me? What are all the things I need to get done? Where do I want to be six months from now? What must I do? What should I do? What can I delegate? What do I want to do? Don’t do anything other than think about these questions, and make sure you do that completely offline. Yes: computers are nice. You will have plenty of time to use them later. Today is about thinking, and computers have a tendency to distract you from that. So use Post-its, Sharpies, and index cards. Draw on your window, if it helps. Just take the time to be alone with your thoughts. A few steps for planning ahead You probably can’t just disappear from work without any planning, and you need to make sure this day is productive. Here are a few things you should do before your Quarterly Think Day so that everything goes smoothly. Block out the whole day. Announce to your team that you will be offline, and make sure you don’t have any meetings scheduled (at least, not meetings that aren’t related to your quarterly think day). Set a schedule. You don’t want to stare at a blank sheet all day, so make sure you know which questions you’ll be thinking about when. Have clear goals. Be clear with yourself on what you want to accomplish by the end of the day. Schedule in breaks. Thinking about big questions is intense, so plan on having some downtime. Take a walk, maybe, or go get some coffee. Just try to stay offline so that your mind can keep wandering. Document what you come up with. This way, you can revisit your thoughts in six months and review 82

how much you actually followed through. Yes, this means you’ll be spending time on prep in addition to spending an entire day on the thinking. Believe me: it’s worth it. My first Quarterly Think Day As a data engineering manager, my days are gobbled up by one-on-ones with nine direct reports, meetings with stakeholders, and planning meetings. That doesn’t leave much time for deep thinking. And I can unambiguously call my first Think Day a success. I found time to re-energize and formulate a plan for the next several months. What went well? A few things really, really worked out for me. I was mostly offline for the entire day—everything was conducted on paper, sticky notes in particular. This alone is a success. I took a few breaks for walks and workouts, which helped me recharge and get back to thinking with a fresh mind, but for the most part, it was just my mind and a bunch of paper.

I focused on the BICEPS framework, which is all about finding balance between six core needs: belonging, improvement/progress, choice, equality/fairness, predictability, and significance. Finally, I scheduled a meeting with my business coach. I recommend you do the same if you have a coach because it’s hard to think of a better time to talk about your long-term goals. What could have been better? It wasn’t perfect—I will do things differently next time. For example, I should have planned out my agenda a week ahead of time. I left this until a couple of days beforehand, and that meant I didn’t get into my Think Day in the proper headspace. Overall, a success So, what did I end up thinking about? Here are my answers to every question outlined above. As you can see, I did a lot of thinking. I learned a lot. I fully intend to do one of these every three months from now on and to use this to update my personal growth plan. If this sounds useful to you, I recommend you try it out.

FIERCE, UNAPOLOGETIC, PIONEERING INTRODUCING H&M STUDIO’S AW21 COLLECTION By bazaar staff

Are you ready to reboot your style template? H&M Studio’s Autumn/Winter 2021 collection is charged with attitude, passion and regal spirit – and it’s ready to rule the world. Designed to strengthen and empower, the collection mixes and matches dramatic volumes with energetic bodysuits and leggings, oversized tailoring with second-skin knitwear, glamorous crystal-studded accessories with streetwise loungewear. Simply put: it’s fit for a new-gen queen.

Inspired by an agenda-setting muse that is fearless, brave, and unafraid to make a statement, the Autumn collection is full of regal style references, including a custom-designed “Queendom” print in a graffiti-style scrawl. A punchy color palette of royal blue, power purple, and acidic shots of orange and green enliven pale grey, black and cream staples; and the collection is made with more sustainably sourced materials such as recycled polyester, organic cotton and recycled polyamide. H&M Studio is H&M’s most directional, fashion-forward offering. Developed by an in-house design team at the brand’s Stockholm atelier, the limited-edition collections are unveiled biannually. Volume is a recurring theme: a puffer jacket, puff-ball mini dress and a series of wide-legged trousers featuring clever cut-outs at the knees are all key pieces. Then there’s a modern variation on a three-piece, pinstriped suit: a shrunken jacket and bustier top that pairs with baggy trousers. Equally important are skintight bodysuits, leggings and mesh tops, some sprinkled with sequins and rhinestones, which switch up the silhouette and emphasize elevated comfort. Underwear sets with multi-straps and metal ring details are designed to be seen, pairing just as seamlessly with sweatshirts and T-shirts as with cropped knitwear. “We were inspired by modern women who can command power in any situation, whether they’re wearing a pinstriped suit or lace dress. We wanted to create versatile designs that you can style to suit your mood, but that always hit you in the solar plexus – these are statementmaking designs for confident women,” says Linda Wikell, Concept Designer for H&M Studio. As for accessories, more is more: a rubberized rhinestone collar necklace and waterfall-style

choker come with hardware-store fastenings and contain recycled zinc and brass, blending glamour with grit. Similarly, stiletto-heeled boots with a chunky platform toe and heavy gum boots, both partly rendered in VEGEA, a plant-based alternative to oil-based and animal-derived leathers made from discarded grape skins left over from the wine-making process, bring attitude to after-dark outfits. “It feels like the right time for a strong Studio collection designed to make you feel like a queen. Comfort is still key, but we’ve amped up the attitude with empowering pieces in ultracomfortable fabrics to make you look and feel confident,” says Ann-Sofie Johansson, Creative Advisor at H&M We speak further with Creative Advisor AnnSofie Johansson, Concept Designer Linda Wikell and Print Designer Moa Bartling to get you all the details on this amazing collection: Ann-Sofie Johansson, Creative Advisor How would you describe this collection in 3 words? What inspired it? Courage, attitude, comfort. We started with this word, “Queendom”, and created mood boards of fearless, confident women who we found inspiring. We wanted to create a collection that

was empowering, that made you feel invincible when you pulled on the garments, so there was an emphasis on attitudinal designs. At the same time, over the last year we have all become accustomed to wearing more comfortable pieces while being confined to our homes, so comfort was also key. We settled on a kind of “elevated comfort”, so the collection contains not only sweatpants, but suiting in stretchy, soft fabrics, and dresses with volume that feel easy to wear. You have been the Creative Advisor for H&M since 2015, is it easier or harder to find fresh ideas every season? I oversee a number of extremely creative individuals and teams who are always bursting with exciting ideas, inspired by art, by nature, by our customers, by social media... There are always challenges, and the last year when we were unable to travel on the research trips we would often make before designing collections certainly presented obstacles. But we have a very talented team at H&M so there are always new ideas – we never run out! What is your favorite item from this collection? I have three! I love the motorcycle coat, which is a great functional winter coat that will be good [Continued...]

for the Swedish weather; the pin-striped suit, because I love tailoring that is timeless and versatile; and the crystal choker, because it’s always good to have a bit of bling. Linda Wikell, Concept Designer As a concept designer, what is your role in the designing process? I work with a dedicated team that designs the H&M Studio collections under the guidance of Ann-Sofie. We come up with the ideas that drive the collections each season. H&M Studio is our most fashion-forward offering, so it’s really an opportunity to give our customers a super refined collection in premium fabrics that speaks to a mood of the season while offering timeless wardrobe pieces. What is the most special feature of this collection? We really wanted this collection to be unapologetically empowering. As a result, it’s extremely edited and focused. As a design team, we said to each other, if the garments don’t hit you in the solar plexus, then we won’t include 86

[...Continued]

them. It’s also democratic in the sense that you might be living in a tiny village in the middle of the countryside, but if you’re wearing these clothes, whichever way you want, you can be a queen. What is your favorite item from this collection? It’s a very versatile collection so it’s difficult for me to choose, but I really love the contrasts you can create with the silhouette. For example, pairing the oversized puffer jacket with slim leggings; or the other way round, pairing a mesh top with slouchy pants. It’s about making it yours. Moa Bartling, Print Designer The A/W collection is always a clear transition from summer prints and fabrics, how do you make sure it stays fun and exciting even in heavier fabrics? I think the success of a print is always about having a clear idea. Obviously, we always have samples to test the prints on different fabrics. But it always comes back to clarity of expression. With this collection, we wanted the prints to

incorporate global influences, so I created graffiti-style scribbles in felt pens, using Spanish and English phrases. It gives the collection a street-wise feeling. The color palette is punchy, why did you choose these colors? We were talking as a team about the importance of fearlessness. We wanted things to feel uplifting and energizing, and naturally that dictated bright colors. What is your favorite item from this collection? I really love the puff-ball dress with the graffiti print, the Los Manos rainbow print came out so well on the recycled polyester and gives what is quite a simple silhouette a real injection of energy.

The H&M Studio AW21 collection will be available exclusively online at kw.hm.com and the H&M MENA App from September 9 with prices starting from KD 4.990.

RECYCLE IT ALL This man is on a mission to recycle everything in your life By Elizabeth Segran

Have you ever felt guilty about tossing your old Teva sandals, or Colgate toothbrush, or Etch A Sketch into the trash, where they will clog up a landfill for hundreds of years? I have good news for you. All of those items—and many more—are now recyclable thanks to TerraCycle, a company that can recycle just about anything, especially items that can’t be processed by municipal facilities. When the company launched in 2001, eliminating waste wasn’t something the average consumer cared about, but two decades later, environmentalism has gone mainstream, and that’s been good for TerraCycle’s business. Over the past five years, TerraCycle has grown explosively thanks to partnerships with brands that pay the company to collect and recycle customers’ old products. Today, more than 500 brands have signed up, a tenfold increase from 2016. In 2020, TerraCycle generated upward of $50 million in revenue across 20 countries and grew its staff by 33% to 380 employees globally. TerraCycle’s remarkable growth tells a larger story about the progress the world is making toward a circular economy–a more sustainable system in which companies stop extracting raw materials from the earth and instead recycle products that already exist. While brands and consumers are eager to keep things out of landfill, there are still big challenges ahead in the war on waste. Who should bear the cost of recycling? And what will it really take to recycle a complex object, like a shoe or an Etch a Sketch, back into its original form? Tom Szaky launched TerraCycle as a 19-yearold Princeton student. The company began as a humble side hustle: transforming food waste into high-quality fertilizer with the help of worms. In college, he emptied his bank account to build a “worm poop conversion unit” and spent his free time shoveling decomposing food from Princeton’s cafeterias. Two years later, he dropped out to pursue the business full-time, selling the fertilizer he created to Home Depot and Walmart. Spending every waking hour of his twenties thinking about waste helped Szaky grasp the full extent of the global problem—long before many Americans had woken up to the crisis. He realized that food is just the tip of the iceberg: The real— and trickier—issue is plastic, a cheap, versatile material that companies use in everything from food wrappers to furniture. Since plastic does not biodegrade, it ends up in landfills and oceans, where it breaks into tiny fragments and enters the food chain. Curbside recycling programs launched in the 1970s, but they have always been limited in the plastic products they accept; most only collect simple objects made from a single form of plastic, like takeout containers. Everything else ends up in the landfill because it’s made from multiple materials that are complex and labor-intensive to separate. A high chair, for instance, uses metal bolts and screws to connect different plastic pieces together. So Szaky decided he needed to create a new 88

business model for recycling. He would build the infrastructure to recycle all kinds of objects and ask companies making these products to bear the cost of recycling them. “We asked ourselves, ‘Is there a stakeholder, like a manufacturer or a retailer or a consumer or someone who is willing to cover what it really costs to collect it and process it?’” he says. “With this business philosophy, we can unlock the ability to recycle just about everything.” The idea of asking companies or individuals to pay to recycle their own waste seemed crazy two decades ago. But Szaky has observed how people around the world have begun to realize that waste has real costs. This awareness reached a tipping point in 2018, when a video of a turtle with a straw up its nose went viral, prompting consumers to call for cities to ban straws and other single-use plastics. The following year, National Geographic devoted an issue of the magazine to the problem of plastic waste which circulated widely; brands like Everlane and Adidas began swapping out new plastic for recycled plastic in their products; and new research emerged about how microscopic pieces of plastic end up in our food and water, damaging our bodies. Szaky first asked brands to sponsor recycling efforts in 2007, when Honest Tea, Stonyfield Farm, and Clif Bar paid Terracycle to set up collection centers for consumers to drop off used food packaging from their brands, which it would recycle. It wasn’t until 2015 that big brands created ongoing programs, like Bausch + Lomb with contact lenses and Target with baby car seats. Some turned their recycling efforts into marketing: In 2017, Right Guard and L’Oreal launched playgrounds and gyms made from recycled products with great fanfare. This paved the way for the current moment, when many brands feel pressure to take responsibility for some of their waste—or risk alienating consumers who are highly conscious about sustainability. This is why Teva, maker of iconic outdoor sandals, proactively reached out to Terracycle to collect used shoes and transform them into new products. “There is a cost for generating waste without regard for the environment,” says Anders Bergstrom, Teva’s global GM. “It’s a stiff financial penalty that is coming on the backs of young consumers who are seeking out sustainable brands. This is a new reality that I believe many enterprises are going to face in the future.” To keep the carbon footprint of this shipping low, TerraCycle uses a network of its own recycling center as well as third-party recycling plants, and

sends products to the nearest facility. Bergstrom says that Teva will pay for the entire cost of shipping, sorting, and processing, but declined to say exactly how much it will come to, partly because it depends on how many customers send their shoes in. Financial documents reveal that the lion’s share of TerraCycle’s revenues come from these brand partnerships. Szaky says that each new partnership involves developing new systems for collecting, cleaning, and separating products into their core components. Then, the materials go through the company’s existing machinery: Metals are melted, and plastics are shredded, melted, and extruded into pellets. TerraCycle then sells these recycled materials. The plastic from Teva sandals will be used to make playgrounds, athletic fields, and track ground cover. At just shy of 40, Szaky has come a long way from shoveling Princeton cafeteria food into a worm poop conversion unit. He’s hopeful about what he has seen over the past two decades. When he started TerraCycle, few people understood his mission. Today, values have shifted and his business is booming. “We’re in the middle of a mass extinction and it’s entirely because we’re not paying the bill for the waste we’re creating,” he says. “We’re essentially using all of these resources on credit, expecting our children, animals, and the planet to pay for it in the future. But consumers are crying out for change, which is prompting lawmakers and companies to rethink the way we’re doing things. The future they want is circular, and they’re going to vote for it with what they buy.” Photo by Sigmund on Unsplash.

ZOOM INTERVIEWS ARE HERE TO STAY

3 reasons why I’ll continue remote interviewing post-pandemic By Sachin Gupta

When the pandemic began, businesses were focused on putting their heads down and weathering an uncertain economic environment. For many, this meant a temporary freeze on hiring. As things thawed, hiring came back, but this time, it was virtual. A Gartner poll found that “86% of organizations were incorporating new virtual technology to interview candidates” by the second month of the COVID-19 pandemic. This mad scramble to integrate new interviewing tools was, for some, disorienting. In tech hiring, it’s been a godsend. While we still appreciate face-to-face interaction, the digital nature of remote interviews comes with so many benefits that we won’t be doing whiteboard coding challenges with candidates ever again. Here are three reasons why: 1. Less work, more data I work in tech, and I love data. Tech companies evangelize harvesting data wherever possible, but before the pandemic, interviews were a data dark spot. Most of the information conveyed lived either in the mind of the interviewer or via their notes. Even if there were coding assessments that added a quantitative element to the interview, these were often done on whiteboards or pieces of paper that then needed to be digitally transferred. The result was that interviewers often spent an extra 30 minutes simply capturing what had already transpired. Today, the entire process is digital, which means that so much more data is automatically captured, and it’s now being put to use. We have transcription tools and video recordings that make reviewing the interview that much easier. This means that interviewers spend less time writing and more time carefully weighing a candidate’s skill. Starting digitally puts all the data at our fingertips and allows us to make the most informed decision. Instead of a data dark spot, remote interviews are now richer than a resume. 2. Geographic flexibility There’s no question that tech has a talent shortage. Only 60% of all tech positions are filled. When we were dependent on in-person interviews, we constrained our talent pipeline even further. With tech roles only becoming more important over time, we can’t think locally about tech hiring anymore. There is now a bigger pool of tech talent that can work from anywhere, and assessing them remotely has never been easier. In fact, 30.7% of recruiters said that remote hiring had actually increased their talent funnel. As the global workforce becomes even more accustomed to remote work, this means that remote interviews 90

will be a feature of the hiring process for years to come. 3. Reduced bias More than half (57.6%) of enterprises have placed extra emphasis on hiring for diversity in 2020. As much as I love meeting candidates face-to-face, first impressions are often clouded by personal biases that can unintentionally limit diversity. Recruiters and hiring managers tend to prefer candidates that mirror their own backgrounds in what has been termed by researchers “Looking Glass Merit.” While interpersonal and other soft skills are absolutely important, face-to-face interviews sometimes overvalue them relative to hard skills. One way to combat this problem is to mask personally identifiable information (PII) during remote interviews so a candidate’s skills can speak for themselves. This means that name,

gender, academic background, etc. are hidden during the interview itself, so the interviewer’s impression of a candidate is solely based on their skills. Today, hiring—especially in tech—is more competitive and geographically untethered than ever, so we need to make the interviewing process as convenient and flexible for candidates as possible. In the end, remote interviewing saves the company and the candidate time, and more importantly, allows interviewers to limit bias significantly relative to in-person interviews. These more objective interviews are helping managers create the best teams where skills matter.

Photo by Surface on Unsplash.

SLOOOW COOKED Fall-Off-The-Bone RIBS

SWING BY TODAY! Grand Avenue - The Avenues Arabian Gulf Street - Bneid Al Gar Sidra Restaurants, Mahboula

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REACH OUT

How the pandemic’s lack of connection affected our ability to think positively By Tracy Brower

It’s no secret as humans, we need our people (and you’ve likely been missing friends, family, and colleagues through the pandemic), but there is some surprising new research on just how much we you may be craving relationships. Our fulfillment and our happiness are significantly affected by the extent to which we establish strong bonds with others. But in addition to knowing how important connections are, science can guide us in how we can create, nurture, and sustain relationships going forward. Over the past year, many have experienced the deterioration of relationships. While they are our lifeblood, they’ve been harder to maintain through the isolation over the past year. A Columbia University study of 226,638 people across North America, Europe, and Asia found depression and anxiety are rife, and they are linked with the deterioration of relationships and the distancing we’ve had to endure during the pandemic. Part of the reason we’re struggling is our need for people is hardwired. According to an MIT study, we crave interactions in the same region of our brains where we crave food. A related study showed we experience social exclusion in the same region of our brain where we experience physical pain. And in research by the University of New South Wales, after periods of social isolation, the introduction of social interaction had the effect of reducing cravings for food and nicotine. We need each other, not just for overall well-being, but for our brain health as well. 92

There are some important ways to stay connected and leverage relationships for good health—and these are based on some interesting new science. Consider the following tactics to reap the benefit social connection. Reach out through voice From social media to direct messaging to email to zoom chats, the options for communicate are far and wide. However, recent research from the University of Texas at Austin shows phone calls may be much more effective at helping people feel connected and supported. Phone calls allow for more immediacy, and being able to ask and answer questions without the delay of typing or sending. In addition, phone calls allow for more cues—allowing participants to tune into each other more thoroughly. Tone of voice, speed of speech, pausing, and inflection all provide clues about emotions and circumstances—and these help build relationships. In order to foster friendship, consider dialing someone up rather than choosing other methods of connection. Lean into strong friendships When friendships inspire activity and variety, it can also have a positive effect on well-being. New research from the University of Miami shows when we marinade in negativity, it can have far-reaching impacts on our health. Previous research has shown how negative thinking can have deleterious results, but this new research shows that the length of time we spend in undesirable thoughts matters, as well. The findings demonstrate the longer our brains maintain these thoughts, the harder it is on our mental condition.

Relationships provide an antidote to this pattern. When we engage in activities with friends, we are more likely to get distracted and disrupt the pattern of thinking—in a way that helps get us away from the less positive mental experience. Whether it’s having coffee together, grabbing a quick lunch during the work day, or meeting with the pooch at the dog park, these kinds of activities can be important diversions from adverse mental processes. Grow and learn with confidantes Another way you can leverage friendships for your health is by seeking out new experiences and engaging activities to do together. Research from Carnegie Mellon University finds we learn more deeply when we are more completely engaged in a process. Find opportunities with friends to do new things—rock climbing, axe throwing or cooking classes all qualify if they’re new to you. Perhaps you and a work colleague can learn a new language or build your skills in coding. The novelty effect and the process of doing things together can help you learn and cement new knowledge—and this growth and development is good for well-being. Study after study shows getting together with friends and colleagues is good for your health. While this may seem terribly straightforward, in reality, there’s some terrific new science that can drive not just whether you connect, but how you connect and the types of activities and events that can bring you the most happiness and fulfillment.

Photo by Nik Shuliahin on Unsplash.

THE HIGHLANDER HEV 2021 EXPERIENCE

FUEL YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE WITH STYLE, COMFORT AND TECHNOLOGY

Since its debut in 2000, the Highlander has become a global favorite and in 2005 it became the world’s first seven-passenger hybrid SUV. The Highlander HEV Hybrid boasts a 2.5L engine, 4 Cylinder, and 240hp offers the amazing handling, spacious interiors, off-road capability and intelligently designed bells and whistles. State of the art engine technology and superb fuel-efficiency provide a truly exceptional driving experience. Whether you are cafe hopping in the city or going for an off-the-grid weekend in the desert, there are masses of features and the latest technology, all at a highly competitive price. From stylish alloy wheels available with 20 inches to leather seats in a modern and elegant design equipped with heating and cooling system for the front seats, the Highlander is designed for style and comfort.

Schedule a test drive today to experience the Highlander HEV for yourself. Visit toyota.com.kw, call 1803803, or follow @toyotakw on Instagram.

NUTRITION SCIENCE MOVES ON

It is complicated By Richard Williams

Do you ever feel like figuring out what to eat is harder than doing your own taxes? If so, you may be among the healthconscious Americans who actually noticed that the Food and Drug Administration revised the Nutrition Facts Panel to include calorie counts in bold and updated the Daily Values of recommended nutrients. Not to be left out, Congress wants to tinker with the food label even more, but much of what they want to do is not consistent with current science. As opposed to the FDA’s agency actions, the recently proposed Food Labeling Modernization Act of 2021 is the first legislative update for the food label since 1990 and is deemed necessary because Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.) noticed that using the current food label “isn’t always easy with today’s opaque food labels and marketing claims.” But that’s exactly what the food label was supposed to fix back in the early ’90s as then-Secretary of Health and Human Services Louis Sullivan announced that, by revising the 1973 labels, the “Tower of Babel in food labels has come down” and that “consumers could now compare nutrition values and make healthy choices.” Yet with 36% of Americans now obese, and with that figure expected to rise to 50% by 2030, it seems like the food labels simply aren’t working. And that increase in obesity will bring with it increased cases of diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. Congress has a lot of ideas about how to help, like instructing the FDA to define the term “natural.” But this is a largely useless exercise, as Tom Standage—the author of “An Edible History of Humanity”—explains, virtually all of the plants and animals that we consume “are man-made technologies.” Congress’ new bill also requires that the FDA develop icons to signal the healthiness of individual foods, similar to the nonprofit Keystone Group’s voluntary 2008 labeling efforts. They assembled food companies, activists, and the government to create the never-used “Smart Choice” icons. At the time, that was an excellent idea, but now over a decade later, the science has moved on. There are more requirements in the bill, including defining what is healthy and putting warning labels on offending nutrients like salt, saturated fat, and trans fatty acids that exceed a defined amount. Although some of the provisions may be useful, much of this is problematic. Changing labels will be extremely costly, and manufacturers will add to those costs by eliminating, adding, or revising products. Many of these warnings or hasty revisions may be misguided, too, as we’ve seen in the past when the government focus on total fat and dietary cholesterol was later discredited. The proposed law would also require manufacturers to register every label and label

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change with the FDA, which it would then post on the internet. If manufacturers fail to send the labels, they’ll be fined $10,000 per day. The law would also make these proposed rules final if not done by congressional deadlines, apparently to ensure no meddling from future unfriendly administrations. Given that the vast majority of consumers have been unable to use labels to eat healthy meals, this latest bill may make food activists happy, but it’s focus is in the wrong direction. The problem is the rapidly evolving field of precision nutrition. As senior National Institutes of Health investigator, Dr. Kevin Hall notes, “People may respond differently to foods and nutrients and therefore, a diet that is best for one person may be quite different from that of another.” That’s to say, each of us has our own genetic profile, microbiome, environment, and health status.

For example, one Stanford University study found that some people lost weight on a lowfat diet, but others gained weight. Generalized dietary recommendations—whether label icons, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate app, or the same standardized cookie-cutter diets suggested for everyone—are not generally helpful. In fact, they may actually be harmful for some people. A low-salt diet, for example, can be just as dangerous as a high-salt diet. Nutrition innovators are making great strides in precision nutrition, along with the novel devices that will implement it. That’s the guide star we need to use. Maybe we should leave the complex, misguided food labels alone.

Photo by Anna Pelzer on Unsplash.

REFRESH YOUR RESUME

The only résumé template you’ll need for 2021 By Marc Cenedella

Whatever career plans we hoped to achieve last year likely got torn up by the pandemic that also scrambled our economy. To get back on track for 2021, think about updating your résumé both to take advantage of opportunities presented by a vaccinated world and to defend yourself against the downsides of the coronavirus recession.

The good news is that the unemployment rate for college-educated Americans has returned close to pre-COVID-19 levels. This rate of improvement has had a big impact on businesses’ enthusiasm for hiring. Now is a time to carefully review your résumé to position yourself well for what the year ahead may bring. Showcase your remote skills We’ve all learned to work and succeed in new ways in a very short period of time. On your résumé, highlight for future employers how you’ve taken the opportunity to grow during the pandemic. Recruiting and managing remotely, keeping up with communications through Zoom, taking your client schmoozing skills to new levels online—all of these achievements deserve recognition on your résumé. For your current or most recent job, be explicit in your top bullet points on how you helped your team and your company succeed despite the odds. If your company thrived in 2020 There were winners in 2020. Home entertainment,

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online retail, delivery, remote-friendly business tools, all prospered in an environment that was kind to companies enabling socially distanced living. Some combination of speed, volume, and rapid coordination helped your team and your firm make it through the pandemic with flying colors. If this is your situation, be explicit about your role in the fast-changing environment and how you helped turn lemons into lemonade. If your company suffered in 2020 Conversely, most businesses were hurt by the pandemic. Airlines, hospitality, restaurants, physical retail, and more all suffered greatly, and still do today. Describe how you helped your company respond to the pandemic and the measures you took to soften the blow. If the pandemic turned into a layoff for you, and that layoff has turned into an employment gap of four months or more, take comfort. This is the most forgiving employment market of our adult lives. Even more so than during the Great Recession, employers understand the capricious, unfair, somewhat random, impact of the pandemic.

There’s no need to apologize, or even address, the reasons behind your layoff. Employers are familiar with the news. Just list the facts, including your employment end date (don’t be tempted to falsely list “-present”), and march ahead, keeping the focus on your ability to contribute to the future. If your employment gap has extended for more than four months, it’s useful to have some professionally related activity on your résumé. Whether that’s participating in an industry association, having kept up an active blog, completing online nano degrees or courses, or volunteering for a nonprofit, it helps position you as someone who is taking advantage of the downturn to stay active and give back. Our new year, 2021, is shaping up to be much brighter for knowledge workers, and you can take comfort in the steadily improving economy. Getting your résumé updated and post-COVID-19 ready now will enable you to soar in the year ahead.

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash.

COS ANNOUNCES ITS AUTUMN WINTER DEBUT WITH HYBRID SHOW AT LONDON FASHION WEEK

DISCOVER REFINED WARDROBE ICONS AND A NEW DIRECTION FOR COS By bazaar staff

COS is pleased to announce it will debut its Autumn Winter 2021 collection at London Fashion Week presented by Clearpay this month, with a hybrid show encompassing a physical catwalk, merged with artistic portraiture and moving image, digitally livestreamed to all at cos.com.

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Emerging from a time of change with a reinvigorated sense of purpose and commitment, the Autumn Winter season will mark a new direction for the brand. The collection will embody timeless COS style signatures and embrace elevated, redefined wardrobe icons. Exploring new ways of looking at contemporary culture through a fashion lens, the campaign features activist, futurist and storyteller, Janaya Future Khan; Actor, Jodie Turner-Smith, and coveted supermodel Raquel Zimmermann, alongside a cast of other inspiring innovators and creators shaping the way we think about tomorrow -- a collective expression that sets out to rethink the future. Material innovation and long-lasting design concepts remain at COS’ core, as the brand continues to nurture its commitment to sustainability with a collection crafted towards circularity. From organic and repurposed materials to recycled fabrics, a considered approach throughout the design and production process limits the demand on natural resources. COS’ in-house atelier revisits the intrinsic details and meticulous construction behind the iconic garments. From contrast binding to hand-stitched re-enforcements and adjustable new fits on tailoring, the brand continues to focus on craftsmanship and making for longevity. A new logo will also feature on the collection and will be updated across all packaging this autumn. Made using responsibly sourced paper and featuring durable woven paper handles, new material innovation ensures packaging is 100% recyclable, aligning with the brand’s wider sustainability values.

Shop COS in Grand Avenue – The Avenues, Marina Mall and Al Kout Mall. For the latest, check out @cosstores on Instagram or visit COS.com.

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NEW ANXIETIES

Research reveals the return to work is causing a specific type of anxiety By Sunita Sah

After a year of social distancing, mask-wearing, and–for millions–working from home, many employers are eager to bring their staff back to the office. But for many, the prospect of readjusting to in-person work is a daunting one. A recent survey found that out of 4,553 office workers in five different countries, every single person reported feeling anxious about the idea of returning to in-person work. Employers face a conflict of interest. On the one hand, they want to look after their employees’ health and reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission. While on the other, they’re motivated by financial incentives to justify expensive office rents and have their employees physically on hand for meetings and discussions or to simply monitor their working time. But putting pressure on employees to return to the office might be creating more anxiety. For those surveyed, the top causes of return-to-work stress included being exposed to COVID-19, the loss of work flexibility, the added commute, having to wear a mask while in the office, and a need for childcare. Some managers recognize that working from home doesn’t necessarily mean reduced productivity, and a “work-fromanywhere” approach could drive greater equality, unlock new growth opportunities, and lead to greater ethical behavior. When people aren’t wasting hours in traffic, the free time unlocked from commutes can lead to more rested, happier, healthier, and productive employees. What’s worrying, though, is that 56% of respondents in the recent study reported that their organization hadn’t asked for their opinions about return-to-work policies and procedures. Such a breakdown in communication between employees and employers could create anxiety for those employees who don’t want, or are not yet ready, to return to their physical workplaces. They may worry that voicing their concerns to return to work will signal distrust in their managers’ decision to reopen for in-person work. I’ve studied advice-giving and advice-taking for over a decade and found that people getting advice often struggle to signal distrust to their advisor. People often feel anxiety to express disagreement with or defy an advisor, a boss, manager, leader, or authority figure. Rejecting advice makes employees anxious because it can insinuate that they think the other person is incompetent, biased, or even corrupt. I call this distinct type of anxiety insinuation anxiety. It arises when people worry that not complying with another person’s wishes may be interpreted as a signal of distrust. 106

Insinuation anxiety Across a series of studies investigating this type of anxiety, my collaborators and I found that patients frequently follow medical advice, even if they believe their doctor to have a conflict of interest. Imagine someone’s trying to sell you some advice, an opinion, or a product, and the seller says: “I have a conflict of interest. I recommend you follow my advice, but I should let you know that I get paid more if you follow my advice.” You might think such disclosure would decrease trust and compliance with such advice–after all, there’s now some uncertainty as to the quality of that advice. However, I found that although conflict of interest disclosures do indeed decrease trust in advice–arguably the “correct” response to such disclosures–they can also counterintuitively increase compliance with that distrusted advice. Why? Because the other person now feels

greater pressure to comply with advice they do not trust, as rejecting it insinuates that the other person has been corrupted by the conflict of interest and is untrustworthy. People are reluctant to signal distrust in another person. Insinuation anxiety persists regardless of the size of the conflict of interest, but it can be reduced if people can make their decisions in private, away from the pressure of their advisor or employer. As employees navigate the shift back to inperson work, employers should consider the role of insinuation anxiety increasing pressure on their workers to reluctantly comply with new inperson work policies. If employees feel unable to express their discomfort or choose more flexible working options, organizations may end up losing their best talent to workplaces with more open communication and flexibility. Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash.

H&M HOME FALL 2021 When everything feels like home By bazaar staff

This season at H&M HOME, we look to the senses for inspiration. Decorate your living space with all senses to make it look, sound, smell and feel like home – add tactile materials like decorative cushions and soft blankets, reduce the noise with furry wool rugs and explore the exquisite fragrances of the scented candles and reed diffusers.

“This season at H&M HOME is about the importance of feeling good at home. We want to focus on our senses and how we can satisfy them. We want to explore and dig deeper into the rooms and interiors - using colors, materials, lights, and scents to help our customers create a feel-good-athome experience,” says Evelina Kravaev-Söderberg, Head of Design and Creative at H&M HOME. The Fall collection displays an array of artful, sculptural, and bold pieces with a clean and cozy feeling. We see a lot of textures and tactility with inspiration from contemporary craft, and graphic neutrals. Shades of neutral colors dominate, while a splash of klein blue is introduced this season in the form of arty cushion covers made from recycled cotton. Pile cushions in a mix of quality fabrics on to the sofa and drape over a cozy wool blanket for enhanced comfort and warmth. Add softness to the wall with a modern wall hanging and let your feet sink into the fluffy rugs made from jute, wool, and cotton with an abstract but discrete pattern showing in the deep-pile weave. In addition to the decorative cushions and blankets, the furry rug minimizes echoes and captures noise in the room.

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Wake your loved ones in the morning with the scent of fresh coffee served in a beautiful ceramic mug, while they relax in the signature linen bed covers which also come in new colorways this season - including autumnal tan and klein blue. The linen bedding only gets softer and more elegant the more you use it and will easily become a long-lasting favorite in your home. For ultimate comfort, add a tufted short pile bed spread. Curate your breakfast table with seat cushions, linen napkins, and stylish tablecloths to gather the brood. The abstract patterned mugs and tableware set in beautifully glazed ceramics will add an artistic touch and urge the family to rise and shine. Add oranges and lemons to the morning bath for an invigorating awakening. Mix plush and waffle towels for sensorial sparks in the bathroom and add candles for a spa like feel to elapse in the fragrance. The sense of smell is closely linked to memories and emotions and adding a subtle scent to every room can make your space feel even more welcoming. Collection available now in stores, online on kw.hm.com and on the H&M app.

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live like the 1%

BELL & ROSS BR 01 CYBER SKULL SAPPHIRE ONLY WATCH

DIAMOND FALSIES

ROSE DIAMOND FACE CREAM

LOUIS VUITTON HORIZON LIGHT UP SPEAKER

COOLER MASTER ORB X GAMEPOD

J.P. MORGAN RESERVE CREDIT CARD

“Only Watch” is a charity auction that gives horologists’ the chance to show off and raise money for research into Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Bell & Ross have decided to mock the masses with their skull design, a dig that is estimated to auction at 40,000 KD. Manually wound, it includes an automaton movement that makes the jaw move — as if laughing at the 99% — when winding the spring.The timepiece case and skull dial are built almost entirely from sapphire. The orange of the angular, gem-like skull sits above the main plate of its custom BR-CAL.209 movement, created specifically for this watch.

Inspired by the Toupie handbag, the new Louis Vuitton Horizon Light Up Speaker reinvents the world of portable audio. At home, it is an art object in metal and noble leather, adorned with the House’s emblematic signatures. In use, a colorful light show synchronizes to the beat, with a digital interpretation of the iconic Monogram Flower. Sounds lovely. With its wireless connectivity and high-quality 360° sound, this speaker is an elegant and discreet travel companion, perfectly in tune with Louis Vuitton’s Spirit of Travel which of course hasn’t once been compromised for we 1%ers by the last 18months’ pandemic.

For too long we’ve dressed our lashes in only mink fur brushed carefully from the bellies of the Siberian animal and then placed delicately by hand onto the false lashes strip. “This is no longer luxury enough,’ thought Taylor Chang Babaian when he decided to give our lashes more of a lift. These “diamond lashes” have 0.2 karat diamonds that are hand-set on 18K gold strips. These lashes are exclusively made for Barneys in New York and at only 400 KD a pair, losing one shouldn’t worry you too much. These lashes are designed for an elegant and embellished look while also reflecting one’s wealth…but not class of course.

Have your workers plug into the matrix and tell them it’s a fun 4205 KD gamepod, not a totally immersive multi-purpose workstation. A sleek, semi-enclosed desk space is housed in a fully automated motorized shuttle dome for a semblance of superior privacy, but you’ll be watching them like Bezos tracks bathroom breaks. Enhanced visual and audio capabilities elevate the immersion: the Orb X supports up to three 27” monitors, and surround sound speakers are housed directly in the workstation to create a soundstage even without headphones. An ergonomic recliner provides an adjustable headrest, lumbar support, and footrest for comfort. #StayLonger.

As if it weren’t enough to glimpse the world through rose-colored glasses placed firmly on the nose – rhinoplasty’d for a deviated septum only of course - by a surfeit of disposable income, we now bring you Rose Diamond skincare. This luxurious silky cream is made with actual diamond powder moisturizes and plumps, leaving skin radiant and luminous. If you use all 6 products twice a day for a year then you will be spending just a teensy 10,000 KD smidgen over a quarter of a million dinars annually to maintain a healthy glow behind your facemask, probably the Levy 18k gold mask set with 3,600 white and black diamonds.

Fed up with the 99% gushing over your Amex “Black” card, even though everyone has one because of its low barrier to entry? More exclusive is the J.P.Morgan private banking members invitation only Palladium card. So called for the fact that it uses the precious metal to help reach its 28-gram weight, the heaviest among mainstream cards. Despite its exclusivity, it shares nearly all its benefits with the far more attainable Chase Sapphire Reserve card, including a $300 annual travel credit, 3X points on travel purchases, Priority Pass Select membership, and an application fee credit for TSA PreCheck / Global Entry.

live like the 99%

BASTA

Basta is all about sustainability, thinking globally and acting locally. They want you to donate, sell or buy previously loved items. Instead of throwing away items you no longer need you can sell or donate them. You can also buy used items from Basta instead of purchasing new items. Proceeds from their sales go towards more of their projects. It is a win-win situation all around. Basta is 100% run by volunteers so why not offer to give up a few of your series’ binging on Netflix hours to help out? Contact Basta through direct message on Instagam, or Whatsapp only: 92216287 and register for any of their events, training courses, or projects. They have previously held workshops on paper making, eco-friendly origami, and acrylic pouring as well as hosted fashion for sustainable development conversations, as well as offering story time reading sessions for children. More information about Basta can be found on their Instagram @bastakwt. Sources: uncrate.com, goop.com 110

H&M’S AUTUMN/WINTER 2021 COLLECTION Functional, Forward-thinking With A Metropolitan Edge By bazaar staff

Gorpcore meets sartorial style in the latest H&M Autumn/Winter 2021 collection; this edit brings a twist of athleisure, function and tech to the modern wearer. Additionally, in another leading step from H&M towards a positive future, this collection champions conscious garments, as the vast majority of the clothing collection is made with more sustainably sourced materials. 112

Let’s break down the very notion of Gorpcore. The rise in the term is credited to shifting desires for more form and function out of our everyday essentials. ’GORP’, which stands for ’good old raisins and peanuts’ refers to the classic trailmix that is often the most chosen snack for outdoorsy exploration and adventure takes on a new meaning when it comes to the technical aspects being offered in advetnure clothing and accessories. Perfect for wintery desert Kashta days and Mutlaa’ Ridge explorations, these are the peices that will take you from the city to the great outdoors with most ease, style and function. Working with ECOVERO, organic and recycled fabrics, H&M created a selection of versatile pieces that bring a contemporary edge to the classic countryside aesthetic. A spectrum of earthy green tones brings a natural freshness to the utilitarian feel, while the contrasting hits of orange and black capture an urban sensibility. Actors Precious Mustapha and Lily Newmark are the faces for the collection’s campaign. The collection will launch in stores and online at kw.hm.com from the 30th of September 2021. This Autumn/Winter 2021 collection is practical yet fashion-forward. The foldable recycled polyamide waterproof anorak, for example, can transform into a handy bag, while the recycled polyester jumpsuit and turtleneck bibs can be layered with any piece. Other key pieces, including the black and orange stirrup leggings, the 100% recycled polyester padded vest and the oversized hooded pullover, epitomise contemporary but comfortable 90s street style. “I love the duality of this collection; we wanted to bring the practical elements of outdoor gear to our trend-focused customers. Even with the charming nostalgic references, there’s a feeling of bold, newness.” said Maria Östblom, Head of Design for Womenswear at H&M. Knee-high boots, Chelsea boots with chunky soles and neutral-toned baseball caps continue the sophisticated great outdoors aesthetic. Shapes are adjustable, supportive and layer-able, with a modern twist in material and finish. The collection also includes coordinating dog accessories, quilted and knitted dog coats, and a quilted dog bag.

The collection will be available in select stores starting from September 30, and you can shop it online at kw.hm.com and on the H&M MENA App.

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bazaar movie night September Movies

THE PROTEGE

ENDANGERED SPECIES

VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE

ADDAMS FAMILY 2

SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS

EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE

Release Date: 26 August Genre: Action, Thriller Cast: Michael Keaton, Maggie Q, Samuel L. Jackson Synopsis: Rescued as a child by the legendary assassin Moody (Samuel L. Jackson) and trained in the family business, Anna is the world’s most skilled contract killer. But when Moody is brutally killed, Anna vows revenge.

Release Date: 30 September Genre: Animation, Adventure Cast: Oscar Isaac, Charlize Theron Synopsis: The Addams get tangled up in more wacky adventures and find themselves involved in hilarious run-ins with all sorts of unsuspecting characters. Sequel to the 2019 animated film, ‘The Addams Family’.

Release Date: 9 September Genre: Action, Thriller Cast: Rebecca Romijn, Isabel Bassett, Zoe Halsey, Philip Winchester, Jack Halsey, Jerry O’Connell Synopsis: Intense, action packed survival-adventure about a wealthy American family who travel to the vast African wilderness of Kenya hoping for a dream vacation filled with excitement, bonding and a chance to fix the growing rifts within their family.

Release Date: 2 Septmeber Genre: Action, Adventure Cast: Awkwafina, Simu Liu, Tony Chiu-Wai Leung Synopsis: Martial-arts master Shang-Chi confronts the past he thought he left behind when he’s drawn into the web of the mysterious Ten Rings organization.

Source: cinescape.com.kw 114

Release Date: 16 September Genre: Adventure, Superhero Cast: Tom Hardy, Woody Harrelson, Amber Sienna, Michelle Williams Synopsis: Tom Hardy returns to the big screen as the lethal protector Venom, one of MARVEL’s greatest and most complex characters. Directed by Andy Serkis, the film also stars Michelle Williams, Naomie Harris and Woody Harrelson, in the role of the villain Cletus Kasady/Carnage.

Release Date: 30 September Genre: Drama, Thriller Cast: Casey Affleck, Michelle Monaghan Synopsis: A psychiatrist, whose client commits suicide, finds his family life disrupted after introducing her surviving brother to his wife and daughter.

bazaar books

APPLES NEVER FALL

by Liane Moriarty, Mystery Thriller

UNDER THE WHISPERING DOOR By T.J. Klune, Paranormal Fantasy

If your mother was missing, would you tell the police? Even if the most obvious suspect was your father? The Delaneys are fixtures in their community. The parents, Stan and Joy, are the envy of all of their friends. They’re killers on the tennis court, and off it their chemistry is palpable. But after fifty years of marriage, they’ve finally sold their famed tennis academy and are ready to start what should be the golden years of their lives. So why are Stan and Joy so miserable? One night a stranger named Savannah knocks on Stan and Joy’s door, bleeding after a fight with her boyfriend. The Delaneys are more than happy to give her the small kindness she sorely needs. If only that was all she wanted. Later, when Joy goes missing, and Savannah is nowhere to be found, the police question the one person who remains: Stan. But for someone who claims to be innocent, he, like many spouses, seems to have a lot to hide.

THE LAST GRADUATE

When a reaper comes to collect Wallace Price from his own funeral, Wallace suspects he really might be dead. Instead of leading him directly to the afterlife, the reaper takes him to a small village. On the outskirts, off the path through the woods, tucked between mountains, is a particular tea shop, run by a man named Hugo. Hugo is the tea shop’s owner to locals and the ferryman to souls who need to cross over. But Wallace isn’t ready to abandon the life he barely lived. With Hugo’s help he finally starts to learn about all the things he missed in life. When the Manager, a curious and powerful being, arrives at the tea shop and gives Wallace one week to cross over, Wallace sets about living a lifetime in seven days. By turns heartwarming and heartbreaking, this absorbing tale of grief and hope is told with TJ Klune’s signature warmth, humor, and extraordinary empathy.

CLOUD CUCKOO LAND

By Naomi Novik, Fantasy

By Anthony Doerr Bailey, Science Fiction

Thirteen-year-old Anna, an orphan, lives inside the formidable walls of Constantinople in a house of women who make their living embroidering the robes of priests. Outside the walls is Omeir, a village boy, miles from home, conscripted with his beloved oxen into the invading army. His path and Anna’s will cross. Five hundred years later, in a library in Idaho, octogenarian Zeno, who learned Greek as a prisoner of war, rehearses five children in a play adaptation of Aethon’s story, preserved against all odds through centuries. Tucked among the library shelves is a bomb, planted by a troubled, idealistic teenager, Seymour. This is another siege. And in a not-so-distant future, on the interstellar ship Argos, Konstance is alone in a vault, copying on scraps of sacking the story of Aethon, told to her by her father. She has never set foot on our planet.

Naomi Novik has already mezmerized us with her previous work like Spinning Silver and Uprooted and if you have already read A Deadly Education then you were already waiting for this one. A budding dark sorceress determined not to use her formidable powers uncovers yet more secrets about the workings of her world in the stunning sequel to A Deadly Education, the start of Naomi Novik’s groundbreaking crossover series. At the Scholomance, El, Orion, and the other students are faced with their final year--and the looming specter of graduation, a deadly ritual that leaves few students alive in its wake. El is determined that her chosen group will survive, but it is a prospect that is looking harder by the day as the savagery of the school ramps up. Until El realizes that sometimes winning the game means throwing out all the rules.

BEAUTIFUL WORLD, WHERE ARE YOU? By Sally Rooney, Contemporary Fiction

Beautiful World, Where Are You is a new novel by Sally Rooney, the bestselling author of Normal People and Conversations with Friends. Alice, a novelist, meets Felix, who works in a warehouse, and asks him if he’d like to travel to Rome with her. In Dublin, her best friend, Eileen, is getting over a break-up and slips back into flirting with Simon, a man she has known since childhood. Alice, Felix, Eileen, and Simon are still young—but life is catching up with them. They desire each other, they delude each other, they get together, they break apart. They have sex, they worry about sex, they worry about their friendships and the world they live in. Are they standing in the last lighted room before the darkness, bearing witness to something? Will they find a way to believe in a beautiful world?

HARLEM SHUFFLE

By Colson Whitehead, Historical Fiction

To his customers and neighbors on 125th street, Carney is an upstanding salesman of reasonably priced furniture, making a decent life for himself and his family. Cash is tight, especially with all those installment-plan sofas, so if his cousin Freddie occasionally drops off the odd ring or necklace, Ray doesn’t ask where it comes from. He knows a discreet jeweler downtown who doesn’t ask questions, either. Then Freddie falls in with a crew who plan to rob the Hotel Theresa -- the “Waldorf of Harlem” -- and volunteers Ray’s services as the fence. Thus begins the internal tussle between Ray the striver and Ray the crook. As Ray navigates this double life, he begins to see who actually pulls the strings in Harlem. Can Ray avoid getting killed, save his cousin, and grab his share of the big score, all while maintaining his reputation as the go-to source for all your quality home furniture needs? Source: Goodreads.com

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THE FINE BEDDING COMPANY

DISCOVER THE FINEST BEDDING FOR THE BEST NIGHT’S SLEEP, ONLY AT DEBENHAMS! By bazaar staff

A good night’s sleep is truly an underrated experience, and we often neglect to think about all of the elements that make nighttime snoozing all the more soothing. A good night’s sleep, after all, will lead to a more-rested you. Have you ever really wondered why you sleep really well in a luxurious hotel bed? Maybe it’s being away from your daily routine that sets the tone to relax, but it’s mainly because most luxury hotels make active investments and research all of the key factors that contribute to restful sleeping. The type of mattress makes a difference, but so does the material of the bedding. From the weight of the fabric of your bedding to the actual material used in your duvet, all of these factors can help improve your sleep. The good news for you though, is that The Fine Bedding Company’s incredible selection of quality bedding is now available at Debenhams, so you can make real changes that will benefit your mood and your sleep.

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The Fine Bedding Company are experts in quality bedding, with sustainability at the core of the brand. The brand has over 100 years of sleep experience behind them, and is sought after by many premium hoteliers as the ideal bedding choice for their guests. Priding themselves on their sustainability credentials, all of the duvets and pillows are crafted in their own eco certified zero-waste factory, running entirely on renewable energy. All the cotton used in their collection is sourced through the Better Cotton Initiative whilst fibre fillings are made from recycled plastic bottles in an effort to reduce the plastic waste impact on the planet. The Fine Bedding Company’s mission is to make the very finest bedding for the best night’s sleep. A fourth generation UK based company, The Fine Bedding Company has been successfully running and managing an eco-certified factory producing premium down feather and innovative fibre filled bedding for over 100 years. The Fine Bedding Company prides itself in their clear attention to those little but super intricate details to deliver you with a consistently relaxing experience. An example includes their choice to only use the softest, yet most durable cases so you never lose on quality with every wash, to beautifying their bedding selections with inimitable hand-stitched binding. They employ flair and finesse in all of their products, and follow the highest quality-control processes to guarantee that customers are purchasing a premium quality product. Their entire range of duvets, pillows, bedding protection and bed linens has been designed to give the best night’s sleep, using innovative fabrics and fibres to offer ultimate comfort. The collection includes practical solutions for every sleeper, from easy-wash and quick drying duvets and pillows to bedding designed for those who suffer with dustmite allergies. The recently launched bed linen collections have quickly become a favorite, with a range of thread counts and bed sizes to suit every sleeper.

Shop The Fine Bedding Company at Debenhams in Grand Avenue – The Avenues, Souq Sharq, and The Gate Mall in Kuwait. Call Customer Service: 182-1212. Follow @debenhamsmiddleeast on Instagram and Facebook for all the latest updates.

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bazaar techno

LONG DISTANCE FRIENDSHIP LAMP

SEVENHUGS SMART REMOTE U

REON POCKET 2

STEAM DECK

POWERVISION S1

COOLING BEACHSAFE

Feeling disconnected from your friends and loved ones? They might be half way across the planet or just a couple of streets down, but if you are feeling a little bit lonely and would like the “glow” of love and care to light up your room, then these lamps are perfect. You can get two or more in-symc lamps, turn one on and its mates go on too. They cycle through the colors of the rainbow, one at a time, or you can assign each person one color, so you know who is tapping the lamp. Let these colorful warm lights remind you of how loved and remembered you are.

The Steam Deck handheld gaming console has been unveiled by the brand as an advanced piece of video game hardware that will transform the capabilities for players. The unit features a seveninch display that’s flanked by a full range of controls on either side for intuitive use when at home or out of the house. The system is powered by a custom AMD-built Zen 2 + RDNA 2 chipset that enables it to run the Steam UI as well as Windows to accommodate a range of gaming abilities. The Steam Deck handheld gaming console can also be used in docked mode thanks to a built-in USB-C port to work with a range of additional peripherals.

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Raise your home’s IQ and make it smarter with the Sevenhugs Smart Remote U. The new model offers consumers an easy solution for people who want more control over their living spaces and devices without having to control everything from your phone. It is sleek, has a touchscreen and absolutely no physical buttons. It is compatible with over 650,000 smart home devices and can connect via WiFi, Bluetooth and Infrared. The intuitive design makes it easy to use, just connect and play.

The PowerVision S1 smartphone gimbal is a powerful accessory for avid photographers looking to capture a range of content like never before with a distinct attention to precision. The gimbal maintains an impossibly compact design that can be stored in a pocket between uses and will provide access to artificial intelligence (AI)-powered tracking. The PowerVision S1 smartphone gimbal also functions a backup battery pack that will wireless charge a smartphone at up to 10W when not in use. The magnetic design of the gimbal will mount onto virtually any metallic surface to keep it in place when being used handsfree.

Luckily for us, we have air conditioning and climate controlled homes and offices, but what if you need or want to spend some time outdoors? The Reon Pocket 2 is a revolutionary little device that provides you with personal wearable cooling. It is the second version of the device and comes with many design improvements. The devices maker, Sony says that it’s improved the sweat-proofing in the Reon Pocket 2, making it more suitable for light exercise situations. Pair it with specially made clothing that have little pockets in the back for it, or use the neck strap to instantly become cooler.

The ‘beachsafe’ is a personal security safe for beachgoers and travelers alike that will keep their valuables protected from theft, while also providing cooling heat relief when the temperature rises. The unit features a storage section for valuables within that is only accessible by entering a PIN code to allow travelers to leave their items behind without having to worry about theft. A built-in battery pack will offer power for smartphone charging as well as for the built-in fan that provides heat relief when spending extended periods on the shore or sightseeing.

Y E A RS

bazaar music

SEPTEMBER MUSIC

It is official, the kids are going back to school. It is a bittersweet moment and this might be the only year that kids are excited to go back to their campuses and be able to interact with their friends and teachers in-person again. That doesn’t mean there won’t be grumbling so we’re pulling out some of our favorite tunes from the archive and adding some new ones to our playlist so we can get this party started.

OLD SCHOOL

Title: School’s Out Artist: Alice Cooper Release date: 1972

Title: Another Brick In The Wall Artist: Pink Floyd Release date: 1979

Title: Mark Me Absent Artist: The Clash Release date: 1976

Cooper said he was inspired to write the song when answering the question, “What’s the greatest three minutes of your life?”. Cooper said: “There’s two times during the year. One is Christmas morning, when you’re just getting ready to open the presents. The greed factor is right there. The next one is the last three minutes of the last day of school when you’re sitting there and it’s like a slow fuse burning. I said, ‘If we can catch that three minutes in a song, it’s going to be so big.’”

If you haven’t sung “we don’t need no education”, then there might be something seriously wrong with your childhood. This song has long-since become an anthem for disinterested students all over the world and has become a protest song of sorts. Interestingly, it was part of a rock opera and was meant to be more about the protagonist’s personal reflection.

The Clash arrived on the music scene with the original wave of British punk rock, and were often called “The Only Band That Mattered”. The iconic band’s Mark Me Absent tells the story of ditching school to avoid listening to the lies that are told by school. The Clash were lucky and got away, but the rest of us still have to go to school.

CLASS OF 2021

Title: We Are Young Artist: fun. Featuring Janelle Monáe Release date: 2012

Title: Good Riddance Artist: Green Day Release date: 1997

Title: Graduation (Friends Forever) Artist: Vitamin C Release date: 2000

Worried that you might be wasting your life at school? Queue this one up to remind yourself that you still have time to do all the things you want to do. The chorus in this one is always powerful and you will find that your friends will join in, singing at the top of their lungs every single time.

When Billy Joe Armstrong’s girlfriend moved to Ecuador, in true punk form, he wrote a song about it. This song might have started life as a breakup song, but it has taken a life of its own and it has also become a graduation party favorite because it reminds us to make the best of this test and to take those photographs.

This song by American pop singer Vitamin C, was released as the third single from her self-titled debut studio album. Vitamin C wrote the song as a response to how many friends drift apart soon after graduation from high school. If you are graduating this year, don’t forget to enjoy this final year with your friends.

Source: Genius.com 122

SPEAK NO EVIL

4 science-backed ways to identify and stop negative self-talk By Aisha Beau—Shine

The road to self-love is a winding one, with self-talk as the navigation system. It’s no secret that the way we communicate with ourselves plays a major role in the way we see and experience the world around us. That’s why being mindful of these very delicate words we use on a regular basis is extremely important. Yet there are times when negative self-talk can get the best of us, and that’s completely normal. Unfortunately, there’s no switch to completely turn off our negative self-talk, but the most important thing we can do in these instances is to get mindful. “Usually negative self-talk is so automatic that it happens outside of conscious awareness,” LaToya Gaines, PsyD, tells Shine. “The first step is to practice being mindful of these thoughts as they happen at the moment.” Gaines says once you get better at noticing your self-talk, you unlock greater flexibility to deal with and change those thoughts. The tricky thing about negative self-talk is that it can come in many forms. According to Mayo Clinic, there are four main ones to be exact: personalizing, filtering, catastrophizing, and polarizing. Here, we break down each one and share some tips on how to overcome it. Personalizing Personalizing is basically when “It’s not you, it’s me” becomes your mantra. If something bad occurs, you automatically blame yourself. For instance: If you text the group chat and everyone takes much longer to reply than normal, you start thinking to yourself, “Everyone is probably mad at me” or “they clearly don’t want to be friends with me anymore.” When, in fact, they all could just be having a very busy day. “The first step is to do some reality testing,” Gaines says. She recommends challenging the thought by asking yourself: Is there any evidence to support this thought? Is the thought factual or just my interpretation? “Next, think of an alternative explanation to counteract the negative thought,” she says. The next time you’re feeling as though you’re to blame if something goes wrong or seems different than normal—take a step back. Breathe deeply and look at the situation from the outside. You know your friends care about you—what are some other, more realistic reasons you haven’t heard from them? Filtering With filtering, you magnify the negative aspects of a situation and filter out all of the positive ones. For example: If you’re trying to save money and go over budget by $50, you might get caught up on that instead of the fact that you still put $200 away in savings. 124

Personally, I do this one a lot. Every accomplishment, no matter if they are big or small, can outweigh the negative. When you begin to look at the glass as half full, instead of half empty, life will feel so much more rewarding. If you find yourself filtering, try to jot down all the things that have gone right recently. You’ll slowly begin to realize that things may not be as bad as they seem. Catastrophizing With catastrophizing, you automatically anticipate the worst. For example: On the way to the office, the train gets stopped underground and you immediately assume you’ll be stuck for hours. When this comes up, Gaines suggests putting things into perspective. “This includes thinking ‘How likely is this to happen?’ considering other outcomes, and distinguishing between uncomfortable vs. catastrophe,” she says. Can a stalled train actually stay stuck for hours? And, if it does, wouldn’t you still be okay in the long run? This is another instance in which taking a step back to look at a situation for what it really is can come in handy.

For example: If you’ve been getting up early all week, and one morning you feel the need to get a few more zzz’s and hit snooze—suddenly, you feel as though this makes you a lazy person. In these instances, you’ve got to treat yourself with kindness. If you don’t do something perfectly, reassure yourself that you’re only human. You’re allowed to make choices that cater to your needs at the moment. And sometimes, what we view as a mistake can become a lesson or motivation to keep trying. Combating these types of negative self-talk takes practice. I know first-hand that they can sometimes be hard to shake, so it’s important to incorporate positivity whether you’re experiencing tough moments or not. “Start the day off with some positive affirmations,” Gaines says. “These can include simple phrases such as, ‘I am good enough,’ ‘I will be able to cope,’ or my favorite, ‘Breathe, you got this!’ Similar to when negative thoughts arise, challenge yourself to put a positive spin on them.” Practicing positivity isn’t about disregarding the unfortunate nature of a situation, but instead acknowledging that you will find a way around it. And trust me—you will.

Polarizing With polarizing, you see things only as either good or bad. There is no middle ground. It’s the feeling that you have to be perfect or you’re a total failure.

Photo by Ian Taylor on Unsplash.

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SENSATIONAL HEART-HEALTHY SEAFOOD

WITH OCEAN’S PRIDE

Experience delicious, healthy seafood offerings at home, available now all across Kuwait! By bazaar staff

We’re all for treating ourselves to decadent meals, but we always tend to gravitate towards seafood when we’re looking for guilt-free indulgence. Salmon, in all of its glorious forms, is the ultimate treat. Who doesn’t love a perfectly pan-fried cut of salmon, or a spicy, creamy curry overflowing with plump pieces of shrimp? And when it comes to that weekend BBQ, there’s nothing quite like seeing grill marks on seafood. Lucky for us, research is on our side when it comes to including more seafood goodness into our diets; it’s one of the easiest ways to improve your health and wellbeing. Whether you love salmon or shrimp, Zubaidi or calamari, seafood is a key source of nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins (D & B2), and minerals like calcium, phosphorus and more. A 2012 metaanalysis study commissioned by the Canadian Center of Science and Education showed that communities with diets that were high in seafood showed a lower prevalence of many lifestyle-based diseases like obesity, diabetes and heart issues. 128

Now, adding more fish to our weekly intake is a breeze with Ocean’s Pride. Brought to us by the good folks at Alyasra Foods and available at all retailers across Kuwait, Ocean’s Pride presents delicious seafood offerings that are good for you! Whatever you may be craving, know that all of Ocean's Pride offerings are hormone free (with their prized Salmon offering being both hormone and antibiotic-free), exceptionally tasty and flavorful while providing you with the key health benefits you need—all at amazing accessible prices that offer you the best value for money. The Ocean’s Pride line offers a wide selection of frozen seafood for your enjoyment and convenience. Everything is sourced directly from the best global suppliers and is meticulously quality checked before it is imported. All the products carry the “Alyasra’s Quality Seal” and they make sure that the ‘Source to plate journey’ is tracked, monitored and continually adjusted to ensure every product’s pristine condition. All of Ocean's Pride products are flash frozen as soon as they’re harvested and are processed, cleaned and filleted in a consistently cold environment to ensure the highest safety and quality standards. Frozen seafood has so many benefits that are often forgotten. The long shelf-life means you can stock your freezer and never worry about needing to run for ingredients. All you need to do is thaw it gradually in the fridge the night before you plan to cook it so it defrosts gently. It also prevents food waste since you can portion out exactly the amount you need without having to thaw the entire package.

This added convenience means it is much easier to cook seafood more often, and you will be reaping all the benefits without any of the hassle of buying fresh fish. Finally, no one really wants to deal with the cleaning, descaling and chopping up of fresh fish or the kitchen clean-up afterwards. Additionally, frozen fish is better for the environment since it doesn’t need to be airfreighted. Which also means that logistical costs are decreased and these savings are passed on to you as the consumer so it is great value for money and economical. In terms of nutritional value, the freezing technology used by Ocean's Pride producers and vendors is far more advanced than the freezers we have at home. Flash-freezing, seals in all the nutrients and protects protein and fat structures. Texture, flavor and nutritional value are preserved and are identical to a freshly caught fish. Shrimp, by far, is the biggest available category at Ocean’s Pride since it comes in several sizes and variants, from the simply peeled to breaded butterfly and popcorn shrimps sourced from world-class suppliers. Shrimp is a chameleon when it comes to food and can easily fit into almost any dish. You can grill them, bake them, deep fry them or add them to a creamy pasta sauce. If you are looking for a fish that works perfectly with our local cuisine and recipes, then look no further than the Zubaidi, also known as pomfret. It is low in calories and high protein as well as being an excellent source of fish oil that supports brain

development in kids as well as a myriad of health benefits. If you struggle with anemia or are trying to make sure you are getting enough iron through your diet naturally, then reach for the Zubaidi. And for those of us who want younger looking skin, Zubaidi is rich in vitamin D. Ocean's Pride offers a lot more, like quality cod and sea bass fillets as well as already breaded shrimp for your convenience, lobster tails, and yummy New Zealand Green Shell mussels. These are perfect for whipping up quick nutritious meals without needing a lot of prep or work. Having access to this wide array of options will help you choose seafood more days of the week and your body and mind will thank you for it. The next time you are buying groceries, pick up a selection of Ocean’s Pride so you are all set for the week.

Visit @Oceanspride.me on Instagram to learn more about Ocean’s Pride frozen seafood. You can also find Ocean's Pride products across all supermarkets and co-ops in Kuwait. 129

bazaar around town THE TAYCAN UPDATED: MORE RANGE, MORE CONNECTIVITY, MORE COLOURS The Taycan and Taycan Cross Turismo will start the new model year in September with extensive changes. Thanks to technological developments, the day-to-day range of the electric sports cars will be improved. Further significant upgrades include the deep integration of Android Auto in the Porsche Communication Management (PCM) system. With the new Paint to Sample and Paint to Sample Plus options, unusual and personal color choices can now be realized. For example, the Taycan can now be painted in the ‘90s classic Rubystar Red, or in bright Acid Green. “The continuous technical development of our vehicles is part of the Porsche DNA. The latest generation of Taycan impresses with seamless smartphone connectivity, which now includes Android Auto,” says Kevin Giek, the Vice President Model Line Taycan. “Our all-electric Taycan range is growing and thriving. The new Cross Turismo, which was added to the line-up in spring, is proving extremely popular with our customers, as has been shown by the excellent number of orders being taken for it.” The new Taycan model year will not be homologated separately, so there will not be any new WLTP range values. However, the real-world range of the latest versions will be greater in day-to-day use. Extensive technological developments have been implemented to achieve this increase. The sixth generation of Porsche Communication Management (PCM) has been fitted to the Taycan since its introduction. Android Auto is now also integrated in the PCM, along with Apple CarPlay support for iPhone. For more information, visit Porsche Centre Kuwait Behbehani Motors Company, please call 1870 870 or head to porschekuwait.com. For the latest updates on social media, follow @PorscheCentreKuwait on Instagram and Facebook.

RADISSON BLU HOTEL RECEIVED 2021 CUSTOMER REVIEW AWARD Agoda, a hotel booking platform, just announced the winners of its 2021 Customer Review Awards. And we’re proud to announce that Radisson Blu Hotel, Kuwait has received an award with a score of 9.2. This recognition is given to hotels that are consistently delivering excellent service and facilities. Given the unprecedented challenges the tourism industry has been facing over these two years, this award reflects the hard work, dedication, and passion of the entire team of Radisson Blu Hotel. The award is based on reviews received from guests who booked their stay via Agoda. The award reflects the hotel’s ‘Yes I Can!’ service philosophy that lies at the heart of all interactions with guests, setting them apart from the competition. It shows in the positive attitude and professional approach our team members display every day, delivering a memorable guest experience. Each and every team member is empowered to make sure the guests have a seamless experience from check-in to check-out. At Radisson Blu Hotel, everyone understands how important it is to keep the high quality of service and make the guests feel welcomed and at ease. Located on the shores of the Arabian Gulf, the Radisson Blu Hotel offers five-star amenities to both locals and travelers from all over the world. For more information, follow Radisson Blu Hotel on Instagram @radissonblukuwait and visit their website radissonhotels.com/en-us/hotels/radisson-blu-kuwait.

SONY MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA LAUNCHES BRAVIA XR Reimagining gaming entertainment in the region, Sony Middle East & Africa has launched the new BRAVIA XR Next-Gen TV series with dedicated gaming mode. Powered by the company’s BRAVIA XR Cognitive Processor, the TV series offers Sony’s signature picture quality and ingenious sound design for an immersive gaming experience. The BRAVIA XR A90J, A80J and X90J models offers ultrasmooth transitions between gaming scenes, quick responsiveness and HDMI 2.1 compatibility to deliver responsive gameplay and maximum performance in shooting, sports, and high-performance games with instant on-screen action. With the new models, gaming enthusiasts can enjoy a vast array of real-world colours and deep contrast that brings out the finest details in all gaming action on screen. The TVs have wide viewing angles, so users can enjoy the same breathtaking scenes from the sides as from the centre. Fast-moving content – such as in sports and action games – looks sharp, bright, and clear. The ingenious Cognitive Processor XR in BRAVIA XR TV, which thinks like a human brain, offers a complete immersion in an experience that thrills and moves users and feels just like the world around them. The TVs use a new processing method that goes beyond conventional Artificial Intelligence and is designed to replicate the ways humans see and hear. For full product details, please visit: https://www.sony.com/en-ae/electronics/bravia-gaming. 130

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all matters so that it will be difficult to make even the smallest mistakes. Therefore, your success will be only a matter of time.

ARIES MAR 20 – APR 19

VIRGO AUG 23 – SEP 22

Have faith in yourself, if you want success in life. Be enterprising and make things happen. Though in matters of love your attitude will be complex, there is no doubt about your sincerity. When it comes to personal matters, this month promises to be very interesting. In dealing with other people, you can regain agreement and harmony.

LIBRA SEP 23 – OCT 22

Allow others time to understand you in relationships. Up to the middle of the month, it is time to enlarge the social circle. You should be pragmatic in your expectations from relationships and may be disappointed by pitching high. You should have faith in your partner fully. This will help you shine and to attain full satisfaction in close relationships.

TAURUS APR 20 – MAY 20 You are looking for affectionate and delightful relationships. This will help to enhance your self-assurance. It is important to accept that there will be differences in the way you and your spouse think. You should make your point of view clear. This will help relationships flourish this month.

GEMINI MAY 21 – JUN 21

This month the importance will be on love relationships and the focus will be on having ones. It will be a breakthrough month for you, now you can make a bold step forward. Some of your closest friends will show you a lot of warmth and joy. Values such as success, recognition and love will accompany you at every step.

The beginning of the month presents you with opportunities to excel yourself while facing hardships. Keep away from the turmoil in the family environment. The month offers you wonderful opportunities for getting into affectionate love partnerships. You have to overcome the challenges you may face from the family environment. Peace will be restored by the end of the month.

SCORPIO OCT 23 – NOV 22

CANCER JUN 22 – JUL 22

You should not expect too much from others or yourself. This will make life lot easier. Look for good attributes in others and this will help good relationships. The month is encouraging for mutual understanding. Keep harmony with family members and this will help you to live a peaceful life.

New love partnerships and business projects should be based on confidence. It is important to believe in your capabilities and take quick decisions. Family relationships can be made delightful by attending to their requirements. Be prepared to make a few sacrifices, if required. There will be plenty of support from the loved ones for your activities.

SAGITTARIUS NOV 23 - DEC 21 This month is perfect for meeting new people and enlarging your social network. You can expect compassion and happiness from these friendships. Family affairs will be on the agenda during the first half of the month. The second half of the month is favorable for sorting out all the problems.

CAPRICORN DEC 22 – JAN 19

LEO JUL 23 – AUG 22 Life will be peaceful if you listen to your spouse and close relations. You should not allow your self-esteem to come in the way of getting advice from your close relations. You like to be in the limelight and there will be many opportunities. This month will be marked by further laziness and romance.

Do not be deterred by minor disappointments and be courageous enough to handle bigger things. Be more adventurous and do not forget to enjoy life. Make sure this is a month spent with your family. Get rid of anger and negative feelings. Provide both yourself and your loved ones with a pleasant and friendly atmosphere.

AQUARIUS JAN 20 – FEB 18 You will definitely find bliss in life. The timing will be decided by the stars. The time is propitious for commencing new ventures. You have the guts and will not hesitate to take tough decisions. You will be accompanied by dilemmas related to a different gender, which, fortunately, you should be able to solve. Your inclination to analyze will come to the fore.

PISCES FEB 19 – MAR 19 This month is favorable for enjoying happiness. You will have the stellar support for love partnerships as well as business ventures. There may be minor break-ups and getting back together will be more refreshing. You fix 132

Source: wisehoroscope.org

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