A lot of Latin American women are opting out of motherhood.
Plus, the design of the torches for next year’s winter Olympic games in Milan.
Happy Monday!
Some scenes and sentiments from the weekend.
To begin, a conversation with an aesthetician of the rare, no-nonsense variety—someone who appears unmoved by branding and entirely grounded in results. Her recommendations? Dermalogica’s Daily Superfoliant and Antioxidant Hydramist, which she deemed “non-negotiables,” followed by La Roche-Posay’s Hyalu B5 serum “for the full glow.” She said it with such clarity and conviction that I promptly bought all three. Do with that what you will, but initial trials suggest she was right.
Friday evening brought an early sign of spring’s soft unfurling: a community dinner hosted by the CSA we joined last year. Customers who had never met before gathered around two tables to enjoy Illinois-grown greens, hand-made pasta, and stories (including my offering of when I rode an ostrich in Vietnam). Strangers, at first, then companions by dessert. There’s something quietly radical about a meal like that—rooted in place, offered in goodwill, a joining of people who want to help build something different.
Saturday’s outing was more urban in tone: Mariscos San Pedro, where we made a pilgrimage for the Shrimp Gobernador taco crowned “Taco of the Year” by Eater Chicago. A dramatic title, yes—but pretty delicious. It arrived golden and generous, with just enough heat. (However, there is another taco in the city that I think is better and only costs about $3.) My girlfriends and I lingered afterward for hours over citrusy, non-alcoholic palomas, sipping slowly as the city hummed around us.
Wardrobe-wise, I’ve been reaching again for my orange Barbour jacket—purchased in 2013, and still among my favourite possessions. It manages to feel both practical and eccentric, and has aged into something I’d describe as a second skin. A reminder that longevity, in style as in so much else, is its own kind of luxury.
As for books, I’m deep in four at once, mostly dictated by upcoming book club calendars, though I’ve tucked an Annie Ernaux in there for myself. Still, my attention keeps drifting toward Audition, Katie Kitamura’s latest. I adored Intimacies, and early reviews of this new one suggest a similarly elegant dissection of performance and interiority. It sits on the shelf, waiting.
I went down a slight Youtube rabbit hole watching a sweet video about antique stores in the Scottish highlands, then the senior curator of jewelry at the V&A unboxing some seriously sparkly Cartier jewels (the museum has a new major exhibition on the brand), followed by a rare remastered video of Chicago in the 1930s (depressing), and finally a look at the absolutely incredible Barbican flat of Veronica Ditting. All of them are worth a watch.
Lastly, a cultural murmur: three people have independently brought up Buffy the Vampire Slayer in conversation over the past two weeks. No reason, no revival, just quiet mentions—like something stirring beneath the surface. Is Sunnydale calling us back?
In today’s edition: a lot of Latin American women are opting out of motherhood, Ecuador’s presidential election, Oslo and Paris’s initiatives for cleaner cities, Clorox Australia’s greenwashing, and the design of the torches for next year’s Olympic games in Milan.
In a marked cultural shift, a growing number of Latin American women are opting out of motherhood—an act that challenges the deeply rooted expectations of family and gender roles long dominant in the region. The drop in birth rates across Latin America and the Caribbean—now the steepest globally since 1950—signals not just demographic concern but also a quiet rebellion, driven by a lack of state support, widening career aspirations, climate change, and a desire for personal autonomy. Online platforms such as Nunca Madres, founded by Mexico’s Iran Sosa and Colombia’s Isabel Cortes, have created space for Spanish-speaking women to share their experiences and dismantle taboos, offering workshops and candid discussions on everything from workplace discrimination to climate anxiety. Representation matters—especially in a region where child-free women have often been cast as cautionary tales. And while figures like Argentina’s Javier Milei and El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele push back on reproductive rights in the name of family values, women across the region are increasingly rejecting the premise that motherhood is their sole cultural currency. As the traditional family ideal loses its monopoly, one thing is clear: autonomy is not a passing trend but a rising reality—though support from governments, particularly in the form of child care, economic security, and freedom from violence, remains elusive. “We’re not just a fringe,” Sosa says. “We exist—and we’re growing.”
France is poised to modernize its legal definition of rape by finally enshrining the concept of consent into law—an overdue move in a country where, until now, rape has hinged on proving violence, coercion, threat or surprise. The shift gained political momentum following the harrowing trial of Gisèle Pelicot, whose ex-husband and dozens of other men were convicted of raping her while she was drugged, yet who collectively claimed they assumed consent had been granted—sometimes by her husband. In response, lawmakers Marie-Charlotte Garin and others have advanced a bill to reframe the law around active, affirmative consent, marking what Garin calls a transition “from a culture of rape to a culture of consent.” Critics argue the legal tweak won’t be a panacea: some feminist thinkers contend that focusing on consent risks centering investigations on victims’ behaviour rather than perpetrators’, and that deeper social change—via better policing, education, and judicial resourcing—is what’s truly needed. Still, supporters view the reform as a pragmatic first step, one already adopted by 20 European nations since the #MeToo reckoning. For France, the Pelicot case laid bare the extent of impunity and cultural complacency around sexual violence; this bill, its backers hope, is the first stone thrown against that wall.
Ecuador’s presidential runoff delivered a decisive win for conservative incumbent Daniel Noboa, who secured over 55% of the vote against leftist challenger Luisa González. With an 83.7% voter turnout, the election served as a referendum on Noboa’s hardline “war on drugs,” which has placed the military at the centre of public security but drawn criticism for rights violations and authoritarian overreach. González, backed by former president Rafael Correa, cried fraud and vowed to contest the results, though some in her party acknowledged the defeat. Noboa, heir to a banana fortune, will now serve a full term through 2029, as Ecuador grapples with surging violence, blackouts, and economic decline.
Chicago’s annual Cinco de Mayo* parade has been called off, with organisers citing growing fears tied to U.S. immigration policies. The event, which usually draws crowds to the city’s Southwest Side to mark Mexico’s 1862 victory at the Battle of Puebla, was cancelled amid anxiety within immigrant communities. “There is nothing to celebrate,” said Hector Escobar, president of Casa Puebla. “People are afraid—even to go to work.” (*Cinco de Mayo commemorates Mexico’s victory over Napoleon’s French army in the Battle of Puebla in 1862.)
Despite its reputation as one of Europe’s greenest capitals—boasting forests, widespread EV adoption, and car-free zones—Oslo still struggles with air pollution. This winter, nearly all city monitors recorded PM10 levels above legal limits, with some spikes rivaling those in far more industrialised regions. The problem isn’t tailpipe emissions—those have dropped dramatically—but particulate matter from brake dust, tire and road wear (worsened by studded winter tires), and wood-burning stoves. Oslo’s valley geography traps polluted air, while gravel-heavy winters and road tunnels add to the dust load. The city combats this with regular tunnel washing, magnesium chloride treatments, and potential new tech like electrostatic filters. The lesson? Electrification helps, but clean air requires more than clean engines—it demands attention to the unseen particles that linger long after the exhaust has cleared.
Elsewhere, Parisians have voted to pedestrianise 500 more streets, with nearly 66% in favour—though only 4% of eligible voters turned out (!). It’s the latest in a series of referendums aimed at curbing car use in the capital, following bans on e-scooters and a hike in SUV parking fees. The plan, led by the city’s left-leaning administration, will eliminate 10,000 additional parking spots, bringing the tally to 20,000 since 2020. Car traffic has more than halved since the early 2000s, yet Paris still trails other European capitals in green infrastructure, with just 26% of its area covered versus the 41% average. Residents will help decide which streets make the switch, expanding what the city calls its “green lungs” to nearly 700 pedestrian zones.
On the other side of the world, illegal charging stations are powering Delhi’s e-rickshaw revolution.
Inside a lab in New Mexico, researchers have made a startling estimate: the average human brain may contain microplastics equal to five bottle caps. The next challenge for them? Understanding what, exactly, that means for our health. The next challenge for us? Trying to reduce that number…I hate even thinking about this, but it is important.
Sweden’s recycling centres are buckling under a flood of fast fashion cast-offs, following an EU-wide ban on discarding textiles with regular waste. With a 60% surge in clothing drop-offs since January, municipalities are overwhelmed, lacking the infrastructure to sort the volumes now required under new circular waste laws. Most discarded items are exported to Lithuania for reuse or incineration, as local capacity remains limited. Real impact will require fast fashion giants like H&M and Zara to take responsibility. Under a draft EU deal, they may soon foot the bill for collection and recycling, pushing design towards longevity. Until then, local initiatives—from charity shops to student-run swaps—are helping to stem the tide, one feathered pink jacket at a time.
Clorox Australia has been fined $5.2 million over false claims of using recycled plastic in its kitchen and garbage bags. Ugh, these companies.
While Target wrestles with the fallout of its DEI retreat—shedding nearly five million store visits over a four-week period—Costco is busy basking in the retail glow. The warehouse giant logged 7.7 million more visits in that same stretch, proving that bulk bins, sample stations, and a consistent values compass might just be the winning formula. As Target's aisles grow quieter, Costco’s are abuzz—with both carts and commentary.
Bluesky’s CEO, Jay Graber, says that she wants to give power back to the user. I’m still not on there. What do you think of the platform?
To add to the things I have loved from Milan Design Week (read here): Faye Toogood’s collection with Japanese ceramics specialist Noritake.
Have a great start to your week!
xxx