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Leonardo DiCaprio has faced backlash recently over his use of a private jet- despite consistently campaigning for environmental issues. 

It must be a 'New Year New Me' kind of vibe, as the 44-year-old Once Upon A Time in Hollywood actor was spotted flying commercial with his (baby) 21-year-old girlfriend Camila Morrone.

He's faced a lot of criticism since emails from film studio Sony were hacked in 2014, and revealed he took SIX private jet flights in just six weeks, costing $177,550.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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The actor was spotted in JFK airport heading to a commercial flight on Sunday night, after his own carbon footprint was called into question despite all of his activist causes.

The Wolf of Wall Street star really was trying his best to keep a low-profile, covering his eyes with a baseball cap and sporting dark, casual clothing.

However, his young girlfriend stood out in a bright red puffer jacket, maybe she didn't get the whole secrecy memo? A TSA agent eventually forced Leo to show his face, just like us plebs have to do.

The model and Hollywood icon were first linked in December of 2017 when DiCaprio was seen leaving her home in LA. 

Image: JustJared

DiCaprio was initially slammed back in 2016 for taking a private jet to… collect an environmental award. Oh Dear Leo, bit hypocritical?

He used his acceptance speech at the 2016 Academy Awards to campaign for environmental causes, preaching to lawmakers to stop procrastinating climate change aid.

"Climate change is real. It is happening right now. It is the most urgent threat facing our entire species. We need to work together to stop procrastinating…Let us not take this planet for granted. I do not take tonight for granted."

The Titanic star also set up the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, totally "dedicated to the long-term health and well-being of the Earth’s inhabitants" and has been renowned for its conservation work.

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How much would you turn down to maintain the integrity of your family business?

For global business woman Phuong Tran and her home-grown Vietnamese company THP Beverage Group, it was $2.5 billion dollars. Yup, just think of how much guilt-free online shopping you could do…

An unimaginable sum, but for Tran and her father, allowing Coca-Cola to acquire controlling interest in their valued family business, no sum was worth it.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Watching her father, Dr. Tran Qui Thanh, reject such an incredible amount of money that most could never even dream of has shaped Phuong Tran’s entire legacy from that day on.

Her philosophy revolves around the lessons learned from attempting to compete with giants, and face them down.

Since Tran and her father turned down the astounding offer, they have grown their business to full flourishment and have spread their company to over 16 countries including China, Australia and Canada.

She has now written her debut novel, Competing With Giants, and aims to inspire businesswomen around the world.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Phuong Uyen Tran (@uyenphuongtran3) on

Her first book involves Tran, as Vice-President of THO Beverage Group, weaving her advice from her father alongside her own insights into a rich tapestry which divulges fascinating facts on the changing global business landscape as well as the incredible origin story of her own company.

According to Tran, David can indeed compete with Goliath, and even outperform him. “We proved that nothing was impossible.”

Western style multinationals are now being incentivised to devise of new strategies to compete with the emerging Asian market.

“To western countries, the Asian market is a big piece of pie with robust growth in new economies. The world needs to know how an Asian business runs and how its business culture is formed. That’s the story that I wanted to tell in the book.”

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Tran will travel to Ireland to launch Talent Garden Dublin’s Innovation School on October 30th and will share her vast expertise by delivering an exclusive lecture free of charge.

She will join the faculty at the Innovation School to share her knowledge with Talent Garden’s Innovation School students across Europe in the coming months.

Talent Garden’s Innovation School is a highly-regarded digital skills boot camp model with a proven track record in giving it’s entrepreneurs the skills they need to succeed.

Tran will focus specifically on granting expertise to the Innovation School in the areas of female and family entrepreneurial business, through Skype calls, online chat forums and podcasts.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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She will join the commendable faculty at the Innovation School, which boasts employees such as Jen Stirrup, a data strategist and Microsoft Data Platform MVP, and Steph Locke, one of only 58 people globally recognised with Microsoft’s AI MVP award.

Innovation School Director Ruth Kearney comments on the school’s aims: “Put simply, we are in the business of developing great 'digital talent' and bringing about a digital cultural and mind-set within organisations.”

The exciting event is free to attend, but places are limited so register early to avoid disappointment. Gets your tickets now from Eventbrite or check out www.talentgarden.org for more information.

The Innovation School is also launching two courses for November;

Executive MINDSET (23rd November): a one-day masterclass on leadership outlooks aimed at CEO’s and senior managers.

Data Science in Practice Informing Real Business (29th & 30th November) for IT professionals, scientists and software engineers.

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Battling its own financial crisis since 2008, Greece, a country of 11million people, has lately been hit yet more instability – namely because it's fast running out of money.

And, of course, if a government runs out of cash, it means that schools and hospitals can't stay open, and the likes of pensioners won't get their weekly allowance. In short, the country will shut down and likely spiral in chaos. 

Greece owes billions to international creditors. But Athens was also been deeply unhappy with the terms of its 2010 bailout from the Troika (made up of the European Commission, the IMF, and the European Central Bank). It claims that its loan-terms are grossly unfair and, with unemployment hovering around the 25 percent mark, that growth and recovery is being severely prohibited.

On Tuesday, Greece missed a loan repayment deadline: it was supposed to cough up €1.5bn to the International Monetary Fund, but never did. It has thus become the very first developed country to miss an IMF payment. This weekend, it holds a referendum on whether it should adhere to bailout conditions or not.

A 'no' vote (oxi in Greek) is being backed by the Greek government and will likely see the return of its old currency, the drachma.

Here, SHEmazing! gives a breakdown of the latest developments from Athens:

Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras

 

How much does Greece owe and why is it in so much financial trouble?

Greece owes some €323bn to its creditors (Ireland owes €200bn – still considered high internationally). Understandably, its residents are beginning to panic – last weekend ATMs were emptied as citizens rushed to remove their savings from banks. The crisis has been brewing for years, however: the Athenian government spent beyond its means for a long time; it had to borrow heavily (a quarter of a trillion euro, in fact) in 2010 just to keep the country running. And because it is tied into the euro rather than its own currency, it couldn't just print more money to solve the issue.

Does it really matter if a country defaults on an IMF loan?

Yes it does – so much so that countries go to incredible lengths to avoid defaulting. But Greece's ruling Syriza party, which has been in power since January, has long wanted to prioritise domestic obligations – health, education, roads etc – over honouring bail-out installments. By missing its loan payment this week, it joined a less-than illustrious group of defaulters: DR Congo, Iraq, Sudan and Zambia have all been in the same boat. Its debt is beginning to mount too: Greece has to pay the European Central Bank €6.6bn by the end of the summer, and yesterday the IMF said Greece will need another €60bn in loans over the next three years just to stay afloat.

So, who is Alexis Tsipras?

​He has been the Greek prime minister since January, when his Syriza party gained power via a landslide victory. A member of parliament since 2009 and a civil engineer by trade, he's still only 40. He's had to dilute some of his more extreme left-leaning persuasions in recent years, but still believes in withdrawing his country's Nato membership, imposing a 75 percent tax on Greece's wealthy citizens, and totally nationalising public services – including the banking sector. Understandably, the European ruling ascendancy (especially Germany) doesn't like him and wants him out; they'd just rather negotiate with a brand new parliament, in fact. 

What's happening on Sunday?

Greece holds a referendum this weekend: its citizens are being asked whether to accept the terms of the 2010 bailout or not. Mr Tsipras argues that these austerity measures are "unbearable," and Greek finance minister, Yanis Varoufakis, has said that the programme imposed on Greece "is going to go down in economic history as the greatest cock-up ever." But German chancellor Angela Merkel disagrees, stating that the deal is "extraordinarily generous". Essentially, Greece reckons a no vote will allow it to negotiate better deals with its creditors, something the Troika has totally dismissed. Still, latest polls suggest a no vote will be passed.

What is it like in Greece right now?

The country's banks have been closed all week to all but pensioners (many of them don't have ATM cards). Otherwise, all citizens are allowed to withdraw €60 a day from cash machines: the money is released at midnight, prompting long queues to form once evening time comes around. People have been taking to the streets to protest too, though these demonstrations have largely died down now. Tourists (totaling 22.5million annually) continue to visit the country – especially the historical sites of Athens, and its picturesque islands and coastline.

'Grexit': what happens if Greece leaves the eurozone?

Well, no one knows for sure (a country has never left the EU before) – but it's likely to be pretty chaotic. For the Greeks themselves, hundreds of thousands of ordinary people would probably see their life-savings vanish. Further afield, a Grexit would have a ripple effect around Europe, but especially in fellow Troika territories: Portugal, Italy and Spain, and to a lesser extend Ireland and Cyprus. And other countries might consider leaving the euro themselves if their economies take a battering in future years. Finance Minister Michael Noonan reassured Irish people this week that the risk to our economy was small, as direct trade and financial links between the two countries is limited.

 

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