Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Nissan holds a key board meeting. It’s unlikely to choose a successor to Carlos Ghosn, ousted as chairman for alleged financial misconduct. French partner Renault wants the Japanese carmaker to call an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders as soon as possible to discuss the alliance’s future (paywall).
Tumblr’s ban on adult content goes into effect. The social-media platform has been more lax on content moderation than its peers, but ramped up content policing after the sale of parent company Yahoo to Verizon last year.
The US and the Taliban meet in Abu Dhabi. Pakistan helped arrange the meeting after Trump reportedly asked prime minister Imran Khan to help bring the Taliban to the table for Afghanistan peace negotiations.
Turkey begins issuing foreign-currency bonds to individual investors. It’s facing a currency crisis with the lira down sharply this year. The euro- and US dollar-denominated bonds will allow the government to broaden the investor base.
Over the weekend
Around 10,000 Hungarians protested a “slave law” in Budapest… The demonstrations on Sunday were the fourth in a week by students, trade unions, and opposition groups protesting a new labor law that allows employers to ask for 400 hours of overtime a year. The ruling party claims the protests are organized by criminals associated with Hungarian-born, liberal billionaire George Soros.
…While protests in Brussels against a UN migration pact turned violent. Flemish right-wing parties organized a march on Sunday with about 5,500 people protesting an agreement to foster cooperation on migration. They clashed with about 1,000 counter-protestors, leading police to deploy tear gas and water cannons. The right-wing N-VA, the largest party in Belgian parliament, withdrew from the ruling coalition last week after the prime minister, along with 163 other countries, signed the compact.
A Brazilian faith healer accused of sexually abusing hundreds of women turned himself in. Joao Teixeira de Faria, also known as John of God, spent a day on the run before surrendering to police on Sunday. More than 300 women, including his daughter, have come forward against the 76-year-old, who gained international fame when Oprah Winfrey interviewed him in 2012.
Sri Lanka overcame its political crisis. Under pressure, president Maithripala Sirisena reinstated Ranil Wickremesinghe (paywall) as prime minister on Sunday, seven weeks after replacing him with former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa. Given the hostility between the two leaders, long-term stability remains in doubt.
A climate rulebook was finalized. At the COP24 meeting in Poland on Saturday, nearly 200 countries agreed to rules for how they’ll adhere to the Paris climate agreement. The rules define how nations will record their emissions and their progress toward climate goals.
Obsession interlude
Fanny packs are one of humankind’s oldest accessories. Belt bags, which accounted for nearly a quarter of the US accessory industry’s growth in the first 10 months of 2018, are hip. But don’t call it a comeback.
Matters of debate
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Using Alexa can hinder a child’s development. Smart devices offer the illusion of companionship without the eye contact, empathy, and demands of human relationships that are critical for kids.
The economics profession is vulnerable to groupthink. It suffers from a stark absence of diversity that results in missing crucial information.
There’s no skills gap in tech. Job seekers actually have too many skills but aren’t deepening the ones employers need.
Quartz membership
Cannabis is about to become big business. Legalization in the US, Canada, and other places will turn weed from an illegal recreation to a multibillion-dollar industry—one that will likely rival tobacco, alcohol, and even beverage companies. To learn more about how cannabis is maturing into legitimacy, check out this week’s field guide.
Surprising discoveries
Russia’s rap scene is at risk of a Kremlin takeover. As Vladimir Putin put it, “If it’s impossible to stop something, you’ve got to take charge of it.”
A royal Egyptian priest was a total mama’s boy. In a newly discovered 4,400-year-old tomb (paywall), he “mentions the name of his mother almost everywhere,” according to an excavation official.
It rained money in Hong Kong over the weekend. Police are trying to find a crypto entrepreneur known as “Coin Young Master” for causing a public disturbance.
A US federal court cited Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax in an environmental ruling. It quoted the forest-saving creature to throw out a permit to build a pipeline across two national forests.
SpongeBob SquarePants is hot in fashion now. Moschino, Kith, Vans, and other labels are keen to incorporate the character into their products.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, Kremlin-approved rap lyrics, and found banknotes to hi@qz.com. Join the next chapter of Quartz by downloading our app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was written by Alice Truong and edited by Tripti Lahiri.