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Did you just say human hair? Usually you only think of growth with hair while it's on your head, but now this industry is . So what exactly can you do with this hair? Well, fashion designers are creating clothes from it that go for up to 30,000 U.S. dollars. Hairdressers will charge up to $3,500 for extensions, which normally will go for around $1,000 dollars a pop. The amino acids in hair can be used as a food additive. Hair is actually very useful for mopping up crude oil.

We all know that is a place full of innovation, business growth, and a giant work force. However, they have not been known as an extremely ‘green nation’. But now, they are attempting to make the future of business more environmentally friendly. The China Greentech Initiative was started about two years ago and was designed to encourage innovation in the green technology sector in China. Both the U.S. and Chinese governments have made climate change commitments and are both striving to be more sustainable.

The first round of the World Cup has definitely been cut throat so far! But the action on the field has not been the only competition centered around the world cup. In our blog series last week we talked about how sponsoring the world cup and advertising during it is not only extremely expensive, but very competitive as well. Any international sporting event brings the opportunity to bring global attention to your brand, product, or even country. The 32 countries that have a team representing them in the tournament have an advantage for international exposure, but other countries aren’t out of the game yet.

We all know that countries like and are becoming global giants. In order for India to keep up with countries like the and China, it must improve its .  Railroad routes are often severely backed up due to overbooked trains and the fact that railroad travel is the only affordable option for many people in India. In order for India to compete with China for major global economic growth, Indian transportation needs to be improved significantly. The Prime Minister of India recently set a goal of an annual growth rate of 10%, but without a major renovation of India’s transportation system this goal will be unattainable.  It looks like India has a lot of work to do to continue to compete globally. 

“Feeding the world” has gotten more difficult as world population has risen, but the countries contributing the most to this population growth are also in making food for it as well. A recent joint study put forth by the United Nations-OECD says that agricultural output in the BRIC countries over the next decade will grow three times as fast as in the major developed countries. The report says a lot about changing diets production, and what and where one can expect to see their food coming from.

So we've heard about a lot of the positives about what a World Cup can bring a country, but is it for South Africa?

With 32 different countries represented, and almost the whole world watching, the World Cup is a hot spot for advertisers across the globe. While FIFA is exclusive with who is officially sponsoring the tournament, other companies are still trying to get a piece of the action. The six main sponsors of the World Cup are Adidas, Coca-Cola, Emirates Airlines, Hyundai Cars, Sony, and Visa. There are also several other sponsors that are not as prominently featured at the tournament. 

The World Cup, currently taking place in , is well underway. Tomorrow in this blog series, we'll discuss the prevalence of large sponsorship deals that many businesses have with FIFA, the international governing body of football. FIFA takes its role of protecting World Cup sponsors , and the warnings it has issued towards many businesses are ones that should be heeded.

With the excitement of the World Cup evident in , there is also great pride and .  The energy of the World Cup has spread all over the country, and has even hit the poorest areas.  This energy has provided harmony among citizens and although many areas in South Africa are still suffering, right now everything is about football.  Problems such as poverty stricken homes and jobless citizens still exist, but they are being put on hold for a very important event for South Africa.  During the game between Mexico and South Africa, over 3,000 locals gathered in a park to enthusiastically watch the game. The World Cup has greatly improved the moral of South African citizens. 

Very recently, all 27 member nations of the European Union (EU) approved the entry of into the eurozone, meaning that Estonia would adopt the euro as its primary form of currency. At first glance, it seems that tying itself to a widely-used, strongly-supported currency would be a no-brainer for Estonia. However, with Europe’s , the situation becomes a bit more complicated.