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It is almost getting close to a year when a war broke out in the Northern Tigray region in Ethiopia. The crisis has taken scores of the lives of people in that region, and several businesses have shut down. Today we ask the fate of Tigray. Joining CNBC Africa for this discussion is Feven Girmay, Researcher at the Harvard University, and Samuel Getachaw, Political and Economic Analyst.

What lies ahead for Ethiopia’s Tigray region?

<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/john-hall/">By John Hall</a>



Americans have a much shorter life expectancy compared to almost all other high-income countries, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db293.pdf" class="">CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics</a>.



<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db293.pdf" class="">Recent data</a>&nbsp;reveals that people in the U.S. can expect to live an average of 78.7 years. That puts Americans well behind the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/360/bmj.k496/F1.large.jpg" class="">Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development</a>’s (OECD) average life expectancy of 80.3 years. (The OECD includes a group of developed countries like Canada, Germany, Mexico, Japan and France.)



Luckily, a 2018&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/five-healthy-lifestyle-habits/" class="">study</a>&nbsp;from Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health found five habits that could&nbsp;<a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/harvard-says-these-5-habits-can-prolong-your-life-by-10-years-2018-04-30" class="">prolong a person’s life by up to a decade</a>&nbsp;or more. For the study, researchers reviewed 34 years’ worth of data from 78,000 women and 27 years’ worth from more than 44,000 men.



The results showed a correlation between healthy behaviors and cardiovascular issues: Women and men who maintained the healthiest lifestyles were 82% less likely to die from cardiovascular disease and 65% less likely to die from cancer when compared to those with the least healthiest lifestyles over the course of the roughly 30-year study period.



The study suggested that maintaining these five habits could add up to 10 years or more to a person’s life:1. Maintain a healthy diet



This isn’t as easy as it sounds, especially when you’re juggling your work, family and social commitments. It may be tempting, for example, to grab a quick bite at a fast food chain on your lunch break or order takeout during late nights at the office.



But a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(19)30041-8/fulltext" class="">recent study</a>&nbsp;published in the British journal The Lancet found that poor diets leads to one in five deaths. It can also lead to problems like high blood pressure and diabetes. A good diet, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thelancet.com/gbd" class="">researchers</a>, contains minimally processed, whole foods and grains, vegetables, fruits, nuts and any natural source of protein (i.e., fish and beans).



If you’re serious about changing your eating habits, it may help to consult with a nutritionist. But for some instant inspiration, Richard Branson’s diet isn’t a bad one to follow: The Virgin Group founder eats&nbsp;<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-successful-leaders-eat-for-breakfast-2015-10" class="">muesli and fruit salad for breakfast</a>&nbsp;every day.2. Exercise daily



It’s absolutely essential to set aside time to exercise. Even the world’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/29/what-successful-people-like-bill-gates-and-jeff-bezos-do-on-weekends.html" class="">most successful business leaders</a>, like&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/01/how-oprah-winfrey-found-her-calling.html" class="">Oprah Winfrey</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/11/09/jeff-bezos-sheryl-sandberg-and-other-leaders-who-prioritize-sleep.html" class="">Sheryl Sandberg</a>and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/02/micrsoft-billionaire-bill-gates-paid-30-million-for-this-book-25-years-ago-and-it-still-inspires-him-today.html" class="">Bill Gates</a>, make physical activity a daily priority.



A <a class="" href="https://www.cancer.gov/news-events/press-releases/2012/PhysicalActivityLifeExpectancy">study</a> from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) found that just small amounts of daily exercise can extend life expectancy by as much as 4.5 years. The main idea is to avoid inactivity, which can be a problem for those who have desk jobs. A few solutions: Get a standing desk, take walking meetings or dedicate 30 minutes of gym time before or after work.



“Physical activity has been shown to help maintain a healthy body weight, maintain healthy bones, muscles and joints, promote psychological well-being and reduce the risk of certain diseases,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/obesity/physical-activity-fact-sheet" class="">including some cancers</a>, ” according to the NCI.3. Keep a healthy weight



According to the Harvard study, “weight control significantly reduced the risk of diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular risk factors and breast cancer.”



A “healthy” weight varies from person to person, but the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) indicates that a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/educational/lose_wt/BMI/bmicalc.htm" class="">body mass index (BMI) between 18.5 and 24.9</a>&nbsp;is considered healthy. (Calculate your BMI&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/educational/lose_wt/BMI/bmicalc.htm" class="">here</a>.)



Make it a point to weigh yourself often — not in an obsessive way, of course. A&nbsp;<a href="https://www.prevention.com/weight-loss/a20430880/how-often-you-should-weigh-yourself-for-weight-loss/" class="">study</a>&nbsp;published in the International Journal of Obesity found that those who monitored their weight less frequently were more likely to gain weight. Start viewing the scale as tool to stay within the healthy range.4. Limit your alcohol intake



It’s hard to escape the sight of alcohol — it shows up at happy hour, conferences, social outings and so much more. To get through long days, some may even rely on alcohol as a stimulant in social settings. But there are many downsides. For starters, it can&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4338356/" class="">add to your waistline</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.asco.org/about-asco/press-center/news-releases/statement-alcohol-linked-to-cancer-november-2017" class="">increase the risk of several cancers</a>&nbsp;(i.e., breast, colon, esophagus).



While it can be difficult to moderate your alcohol intake — especially if you’re the&nbsp;<a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/article-abstract/2647075?redirect=true" class="">one in eight Americans</a>&nbsp;who struggles with alcohol addiction — keep in mind that the U.S. government’s&nbsp;<a href="https://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/appendix-9/" class="">“Dietary Guidelines”</a>publication defines “moderate drinking” as one drink for women per day and two for men. (Note: One alcoholic drink-equivalent is defined as containing 14 grams (0.6 fl oz) of pure alcohol.)



But avoiding alcohol altogether puts you in good company; Warren Buffett, an 88-year-old billionaire, is a well-known&nbsp;<a href="https://www.entrepreneur.com/slideshow/299353" class="">abstainer</a>.5. Don’t smoke



It’s been decades since the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3894634/" class="">tobacco industry started losing favor</a>&nbsp;with the American public. As the health risks of smoking have become increasingly apparent, there’s been more effort in warning people about the dangerous side effects.



That doesn’t mean it’ll be easy to kick the unsightly habit, but your body will thank you in the long run. Former president Barack Obama was one successful leader who&nbsp;<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/boehner-obama-smoking-scared-to-death-of-michelle-2017-10" class="">quit smoking</a>&nbsp;through Nicorette gum. He gave up the habit while still in office and claimed to&nbsp;<a href="http://time.com/3916342/barack-obama-smoking/" class="">be “tobacco free” in 2017</a>.



John Hall is the co-founder and president of <a class="" href="https://www.calendar.com/">Calendar</a>, a time management app, and the co-founder of <a class="" href="http://www.influenceandco.com/">Influence &amp; Co.</a>, a content marketing agency. He is also the author of the best-selling book <a class="" href="https://www.amazon.com/Top-Mind-Content-Unleash-Influence/dp/1260011925">“Top of Mind.”</a>



This article was first published by CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/09/harvard-study-says-these-5-habits-may-help-you-live-10-years-longer.html">https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/09/harvard-study-says-these-5-habits-may-help-you-live-10-years-longer.html </a>and is republished with its permission.

A 30-year Harvard study reveals the 5 simple habits that may prolong your life by 10 years or more

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Gearing up for prosperity requires a change of thinking, CNBC Africa spoke with one of New York’s best sellers Clayton Christensen, a professor of business administration and Harvard University&#8217;s Business School about what it would take to develop Africa.

Clayton Christensen on what it would take to develop Africa

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The ways to transform economic goals into action was the topic of conversation at the South African Reserve Bank this morning. Finance Minister Tito Mboweni was joined by professor Ricardo Hausman, Director of the Centre for International Development and Professor of Economics at Harvard University.

Ricardo Hausman on how to grow SA’s economy

Stephanie Giamporcaro and Xolisa Dhlamini | UCT Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town
Universities are no longer simply institutions of learning. Over the past 50 years, they have also become important players in global financial markets. They have become institutional investors.
Universities have to decide what to do with the pension fund contributions of their staff. They also receive large monetary donations from alumni and other private donors. This money – millions, sometimes billions of dollars – goes into university investment funds. These can be managed internally or delegated to investment managers.
Harvard University in the US has the biggest endowment fund in the world with USD$32.7 billion, while university endowment funds in the UK hold between £2.5 million and £1 billion. Pension funds in the US and UK are even more substantial. For example, the California University pension fund boasts more than USD$70 billion.
University funds in southern Africa are much smaller, but some are still significant. According to our calculations, the universities with the largest endowments are all in South Africa, with the top five representing a little less than USD$1 billion collectively. The pension funds of the top 10 universities in the region come to around USD$3,6 billion.
<div id="attachment_281759" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-281759" class="wp-image-281759 size-medium" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/University_of_pretoria_Wikemedia-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />The University of Pretoria</div>
The question of how universities choose to invest all this money is increasingly coming under scrutiny. In the US, Europe, Australia and New Zealand universities’ pension funds and endowment funds are starting to align their investment portfolios with the social concerns of their students and staff.
<h2>Putting assets to work for a better world</h2>
In the 1970s student and staff activists at US universities put serious pressure on their managements to stop investing in companies involved in the Vietnam war or, later on, in apartheid South Africa.
Today climate change is the issue that’s increasingly dominating the activist agenda on university campuses. Since 2012, 350.org, a climate change activist movement, has been pushing for total disinvestment from fossil fuels – with some significant victories . Student activists in the US have also called successfully for disinvestment from prisons.
In 2005 the UN established a responsible investment coalition called the Principles for Responsible Investment. Signatories pledge to invest according to six principles, aiming to achieve long-term sustainable investment returns and benefits for society as a whole. So far over 1000 investment managers have signed up, making it the biggest coalition of this kind in the world.
A few academic institutions have signed up too. Harvard’s USD$35 billion University Endowment Scheme joined in 2014. And at least four retirement funds, endowment funds or foundations linked to tertiary education institutions in the US and Europe signed up this year. As was the case with Harvard, this has often happened under pressure from student activists.
<h2>Progress at South African universities</h2>
So far no universities in South Africa or Africa have signed the principles. But there are signs that the idea of responsible investment is starting to gain some traction – especially within the heightened activism at South African universities.
For example, the South Africa fossil free disinvestment campaign has made significant progress at the University of Cape Town. After a four-year campaign, the university’s convocation of alumni and students this year voted to support a motion to disinvest from fossil fuels.
The Rhodes Must Fall movement also brought the issue of workers’ exploitation into focus. It accused leadership at the University of Cape Town of having blood on its hands for being invested in Lonmin at the time of the Marikana Massacre.
This was closely followed by nationwide Fees Must Fall protests. Protesters called on government to provide free education for all. In doing so, they challenged the idea that universities should operate as businesses according to free market principles. They also challenged the role of the university in society by calling for decolonisation of the institution.
<div id="attachment_281770" style="width: 960px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-281770" class="wp-image-281770 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/UCT_Wikimedia_RZ1.jpg" alt="" width="950" height="616" />The University of Cape Town</div>
Since then the University of Cape Town’s council has agreed to design a responsible investment policy. This makes it the first known Southern African university to do so.
&nbsp;
<h2>Paradigm shift</h2>
For this movement to truly take off in Southern Africa’s universities, there needs to be a paradigm shift at the level of university management.
As stressed by the University of California, becoming a responsible investor is not about giving up on financial returns. Rather it’s about finding ways to achieve these while addressing societal challenges and opportunities. A responsible investor can decide to disinvest from environmentally and socially harmful sectors, but also to support new investment opportunities such as renewable energy.
An institutional investor that takes its responsibility towards future generations seriously should reflect on its values to take informed decisions on how financial returns can be better achieved. Fortunately it’s becoming easier to do this thanks to a surge in innovative investment strategies and funds that seek to achieve both good financial returns and positive social impacts. The African Investing for Impact Barometer – a research project that we run for the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the UCT Graduate School of Business – charts the rise of opportunities like this and shows that impact investing on the continent is booming.
This trend, combined with activism, can persuade universities to become more proactive, creative and responsible investors.
Student and staff activists have clearly begun to interrogate the links between social and environmental issues and their universities’ investment choices. For university management, these questions present an opportunity to think about how their investment portfolios can be used address the social concerns of their students and staff. Universities – being both institutional investors and places of education – can ultimately find improved investment solutions that create a more sustainable future for the generations of learners to come.
&nbsp;
This article was published on The Conversation.

Harvard University

What lies ahead for Ethiopia’s Tigray region?

A 30-year Harvard study reveals the 5 simple habits that may prolong your life by 10 years or more

Clayton Christensen on what it would take to develop Africa

Ricardo Hausman on how to grow SA’s economy

South African universities need to rethink how they invest their millions

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Harvard University

What lies ahead for Ethiopia’s Tigray region?

A 30-year Harvard study reveals the 5 simple habits that may prolong your life by 10 years or more

Clayton Christensen on what it would take to develop Africa

Ricardo Hausman on how to grow SA’s economy

South African universities need to rethink how they invest their millions

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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