Issuu

THE JOURNAL MARCH 2022

BUSINESS // TRAVEL // POLITICS // CULTURE // LIFE PRODUCED BY

ALEA GLOBAL GROUP

Contents FOREWORD

Page 2

EDUARDO GARCIA: 'THE BIONIC CHEF'

Page 3

BRIGHT LIGHTS, EMPTY CITY

Page 5

FUNDING SOUQ: REVOLUTIONISING FINANCE IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Page 7

INTRODUCING AVOCADOCOIN

Page 8

ALL ABOUT WATER MANAGEMENT: HOW WE STRIVE FOR WATER EQUALITY

Page 13

LEARN FROM THE WISDOM OF WISE HUMANITY

Page 15

WORLD LEADERS OF THE PAST: HOW WOULD THEY HAVE MANAGED THESE TROUBLED TIMES?

Page 18

INTRODUCING GRANADA FC'S PATRICIA RODRÍGUEZ

Page 21

THERME GLASGOW

Page 25

THE ‘DIGITAL RENAISSANCE’ OF LATIN AMERICA

Page 29

WELCOME

MARCH 2022

The alea journal FOREWORD BY MOHAMMAD AL DUAIJ CEO OF ALEA GLOBAL GROUP You may remember in a previous issue of The Alea Journal that I compared business to one of my favourite hobbies – climbing mountains. Now it's time for me to consider one of my other favourite passtimes – surfing. It occurred to me recently how much these post-pandemic times can be like surfing, and how we can learn lessons in how to deal with uncertainty in business by considering the way surfers handle the unpredictable ocean. It is time to combine our skills with our faith in a bright future, and take to investment like never before. We must be looking out for good investment opportunities as a surfer looks for a good wave. It may begin small and distant, but with the right kind of trained eye a surfer can tell which waves are going to become the biggest and best for surfing. And if we lose sometimes, that's ok. As we come out from some of the darkest times, we need to feel gratitude that we are still here and able to make these investments, and absorb the lessons as well as the successes. In this issue you will learn about people who have taken a chance and found success sometimes against high odds. They include 'bionic chef' Eduardo Garcia, whose professional and personal journey I find deeply inspiring and I hope you will too. We will also hear about new cryptocurrency AvocadoCoin, and Funding Souq – a revolutionary investment resource for small businesses and collaborative lenders.

We do highlight some of the world's problems in this issue, as always, but we also seek to suggest or find solutions at the same time. This issue is no different, and we include our own opinions on how some of our current problems could be solved. But there is also plenty of good news in these pages, and we invite you to share with us any of your projects you would like us to highlight in future issues. In the meantime, we hope you see you at one or more of our forthcoming events. As ever you can contact me at info@aleaglobalgroup.com

eduardo garcia: 'the bionic chef'

With his talent, passion and charisma, Montana-born chef Eduardo Garcia may always have been destined for stardom.

But then, while out hunting, Eduardo was electrocuted by a buried power line as he tried to retrieve the claw of a dead bear caught in a metal can.

But his story of overcoming a life-changing injury to continue his work has catapulted him to a level of fame that has an altogether more meaningful dimension.

He was alone, and was immediately knocked unconscious by the force of the electricity. To all intents and purposes, he could have been left for dead.

Getting his first job cooking at Chico Hot Springs at age 15, Eduardo quickly fell in love with the craft. He went on to attend the Art Institute of Seattle, at the same time as working in kitchens, and then became a chef on a private yacht.

B u t , wa k i n g u p f r o m a n u n c o n s c i o u s s t a t e , h e hiked three miles for help and was airlifted to hospital. This talented chef had to have part of his left arm amputated, among other significant surgeries – a devastating injury for someone so reliant on carrying out such detailed work with his hands.

11 years of traveling the world later, Eduardo returned to Montana to launch his own brand of seasonings, sauces and kitchen essentials – Montana Mex.

With an outdoor cooking show, Active Ingredient, also in the pipeline, his future looked certain.

With the support of professionals and his loved ones, Eduardo chose to find a way to recover and continue his work, learning to use a prosthetic left arm; a development that led him to become known as ‘the bionic chef’. Eduardo continued his mission to combine food with his passion for nature, but with the added element of determination that comes from overcoming such a momentous obstacle. This tragedy in turn generated new projects that would never have come to pass had he not suffered and overcome his huge setback.

A film about his life, ‘Charged: The Eduardo Garcia Story’, was released in 2018. The fivepart TV series Hungry Life was released the same year, and saw Eduardo traveling the world on cooking adventures in wild landscapes. Ultimately his victory led to his becoming a celebrated motivator, speaker and media personality, as well as the superstar chef he was always born to be. Find out more at chefeduardo.com

bright lights, empty city Throughout the pandemic, this invisible virus has sometimes become clearly visible to the naked eye. Only if you stand in certain places, and know just where to look and how to spot it, but then you can see covid as clear as day. While in the countryside everything may appear completely normal, as though nothing globally devastating has happened at all, city centers around the world have become the visible depictions of long covid.

work from home was a particular theme around the world). What is missing is much of the business that made those cities unique and distinct from one another, and memorable to people who visited them. Chain stores and global brands have fared just fine, in some cases seeing huge profit increases because of the pandemic – Amazon being the most cited example.

There were plenty of eerie photographs posted all over the internet at the height of the pandemic, showing normally bustling cities like New York and London completely devoid of people.

But smaller businesses whose specifically location-based customers stopped coming in have struggled, to a greater or lesser degree depending on the government support available to them.

But this post-viral situation is different. The people have returned, at least in some part (flight from city centers to more rural areas for those who had the resources and were able to

Many have closed permanently, leaving shuttered premises alongside the partially or temporarily closed offices of bigger businesses with work-from-home staff.

The effect is not just directly economic – fewer businesses meaning a damaged urban ecosystem – but is also influencing how people feel about their cities, and therefore whether they actively want to spend enough time in them to help aid recovery.

Our cities’ and countries’ circulations are struggling, and it’s a dangerous symptom of long covid. Theories on how to fix the problem are many and various, but some common themes have emerged.

For someone who has visited London for several years for entertainment, and has only ever experienced it through the lens of 24hour leisure of all kinds, seeing the bare bones of the city without those highlights can paint a very unappealing picture without too much to recommend a return to a oncefamiliar and sought-after lifestyle.

From turning empty office spaces into affordable housing, to heavy investment in the co-working spaces that work-from-home employees are desperately calling out for, the majority of solutions focus on real estate and new use of once top dollar spaces, now of uncertain value.

Independent restaurants, cinemas and stores gone, the city is less joyful than it was, less interesting, and less visitable.

More than simply creating more shells to be occupied, however, is it our hope that moves are made to fill these spaces with unique businesses that allow cities some independence from global chains.

While we are all ready to support, experience and enjoy the things we did before – with even more vigor if possible – there are far fewer businesses supplying our demand.

Not merely an idealistic nice-to-have, it is only by facilitating the growth of independent businesses in these cities that we can make them each distinctive enough to bring back visitors from outside the city – a boost to our national and international circulations, and a sign of strong health and recovery.

And the ones that are ready and open to us are ubiquitous to every major city, leaving fewer reasons to travel to a capital from elsewhere, for example.

funding souq: Revolutionising Finance in the Middle East

Funding Souq is a digital lending platform that connects established businesses with investors (lenders) and it could be the answer to postpandemic recovery of the small business ecosystem.

The campaign includes relevant information about the company and details about the requested loan.

The organisation aspires to bridge the SME financing gap by leveraging the latest technologies to boost local economies.

Once a loan is fully subscribed, the investor funds will be transferred to the business’s account. The business will then make monthly repayments to investors until the maturity of the loan.

The platform uses technology to connect both parties through the principle of crowdfunding – raising small amounts of funds from many individuals.

How could it shape our communities?

Funding Souq offers funders at a grassroots level the opportunity to support the kinds of businesses they want to see in their local area.

How does Funding Souq work?

Funding Souq connects investors with established SMEs who are looking to borrow funds and grow their operations. Investors can finance a wide range of businesses across different sectors and risk profiles. Their team uses an innovative credit model to analyse every business that applies to them. They analyse tens of variables before deciding to fund the business. The companies that meet their requirements are onboarded and a fundraising campaign is launched on their behalf.

By giving this kind of decision-making power to people who actually live and work in a community, the community’s facilities and local resources can be shaped in line with what that community wants and needs, and not necessarily with how and where a global business wants to expand next. Ultimately Funding Souq could be the key to reshaping our cities and towns in the wake of the pandemic, replacing what was lost with what is genuinely wanted. Find out more at fundingsouq.com/en

Introducing

AvocadoCoin

Latin America is the world’s leading food supplier, and by 2030 its famous export the avocado will be the world’s most sold tropical fruit.

Co-founder Alba Medina said: “I believe in the power or technology and how it can impact and transform the planet. "U n f o r t u n a t e l y t h e B e n e f i t s o f g l o b a l i z a t i o n a n d those provided by the fourth industrial revolution were not evenly distributed. I saw that blockchain technology has the capacity to make an impact and to democratize opportunities for the developing economies and third world countries.”

Now the first cryptocurrency to be backed by the avocado industry, AvocadoCoin, is available as the first project of its kind to help support the avocado farming sector, increasing production and cutting waste through its collaborative economic model.

AvocadoCoin is the first token from the GreenGold Project. GreenGold Project is a revolutionary new blockchain technology project that combines investment in cryptocurrencies with green projects that improve the planet.

This groundbreaking currency has the ambitious yet achievable aim of becoming a global reference in the development of disruptive technologies applied to agriculture. And it’s exactly the right time to get on board with this new project, dedicated to providing funding and sustainable tools to the farming sector.

This crypto ecosystem allows the raising of massive funds from millions of people around the globe with the intention of investing them in green and sustainable projects, releasing different tokens that will be used to fund underlying projects to improve lives and the planet.

Based on the Smart Blockchain 4.0 and ready to foster sustainable avocado farming in Michoacán, Mexico, AvocadoCoin is the first Token of multiple agribusiness industry-backed cryptos that will foster green agricultural projects.

Its name is derived from the avocado industry, which has turned into a literal green gold for everybody involved in it. According to the WBOC, the Avocado sector alone is worth more than $10 billion right now and is likely to reach more than $16 billion by 2026. This single industry has transformed agrarian economies across Central America from Mexico, Colombia, the

Avocado Coin will be part of an ecosystem created to support, help and generate mass micro-funds for the improvement of the planet.

Dominican Republic, Peru and Indonesia. Therefore it is often referred to as Green Gold. The GreenGold project is inspired by the rapid progression of the Avocado sector and aims to provide a new platform that systematizes the rapid development and fundraising of new green initiatives in countries across the globe. At the heart of the GreenGold project is a blockchain-driven ecosystem that uses disruptive technologies to deliver safe, sustainable and traceable green products. The use of IoT and Agro4.0 technologies is the solution to decrease waste, care for natural resources and protect the planet. It is essential to double and improve food production for the coming years and GreenGold Project enables massive investment to people from all over the world to achieve it. The platform is powered by the GreenBlocks blockchain Decentralized Ledger Technology (DLT) which is a Blockchain 4.0 system, way ahead of the conventional 3.0 (PhS) systems currently under development in much of the crypto world. GreenBlocks utilize the full power and sustainability of the only blockchain that uses Proof of History (PoH) as consensus. eliminating power-based consensus (PoW) and delivering the lowest fees and maximum transactional power, SOLANA. Such a revolutionary system is the need of the hour as the farming sector is still often reliant on decades old technology and funding sources that are outdated and designed to suppress farmers and deprive them from financial independence. The GreenGold ecosystem is powered by a fast, reliable and cost effective mechanism. Transaction costs are set at the lowest among all such tokenbased fundraising systems in place. The GreenGold project is a completely open, transparent and decentralized approach to human enhancement. Its “points without borders” approach, enhanced privacy features and instant transactional capability make it a lucrative option for investors. GreenGold is backed by several tokens from all successful industries. These are security tokens and are backed by real-world investments and agricultural innovation including Avocado Coin (AVDO), Lemon Coin, Berry Coin and others. Currently, the Avocado Coin is being promoted by the GreenGold project in a first offering. Avocado Coin is the first one of these digital security tokens to be offered by the company. The total supply of AVDO is set at 21 million coins, which is exactly the same as Bitcoin itself. If you missed the chance to become a millionaire through Bitcoin, this is a good option. AvocadoCoin starts with a value of $1,000 and is expected to surpass the current value of bitcoin in the next few years. Find out more at avocadocoin.com

all about water management: How we strive for water equality

Water is arguably our most precious resource, although it is often taken for granted. We all need it to survive, yet it is not equally abundant around the world. It is predicted that by the year 2025, half of the global population will be living in areas without easy access to enough clean water. Meanwhile, floods cause billions of dollars in damage each year. And it’s not only the human population who suffer from problems with our water; freshwater wildlife is also experiencing a global decline which threatens to wipe out some species completely. There are, however, water management strategies that can be applied to specific situations around the world to tackle some of these problems. Water transfer schemes

A water transfer scheme is applicable when a nation has areas of water shortage and areas of surplus water.

By creating water transfer networks, countries with a high proportion of inhabited desert land can take advantage of their greener regions to supply those citizens with the water they wouldn’t otherwise have access to. Dams and reservoirs

By largely blocking rivers which are transferring water to the sea, dams create reservoirs of water which can then be transported elsewhere. However, they also address problems of flooding by controlling the flow of large bodies of water, creating a more stable and managed stream with a year-round supply of water no matter the season. As a further added bonus, electricity can be generated from dams and reservoirs by using hydroelectric power. Desalination plants

Seawater is undrinkable and dangerous to The excess water is collected in reservoirs through consume due to its high salt content. But once rainfall, and is then distributed to other areas of the this is removed, it can be turned into safe country through a network of pipes and canals to the drinking water. further reservoirs and rivers where it is most needed. A desalination plant processes seawater to

remove the salt, transforming seawater into a fresh supply of drinkable water. Due to the high cost of this process it is still only available to richer nations.

and gardens, while water meters can measure individual household usage.

Water conservation schemes

About 30% of the freshwater available worldwide is groundwater, meaning it is found beneath the earth’s surface in soil or rock.

Through a combination of product design and behavioral change, it is possible to save water at an individual domestic level which adds up to a much larger national combined saving. The design of products such as toilets, washing machines, dishwashers and showers can be tweaked to use less water while still functioning effectively. In addition to these design solutions, citizens can be educated in ways to save water around the home by actively using less water in their homes

Groundwater management

Keeping this supply of water clean by monitoring and preventing pollution from farming, mining and fracking is essential to maintain its purity. Mapping and controlling the areas where groundwater is most abundant can ensure this water can continue to be used safely.

learn from the wisdom of wise humanity

As our lives and our work become more intertwined in our lives than ever before, one organization seeks to transform both of these elements in a single swoop with revolutionary new coaching.

Wise Humanity’s courses are based on philosophy, literature, psychology, neuroscience and physics, and aim to level up individuals and teams in both their ambitions and their abilities. This international organization supports people from all walks of life in fulfilling their goals and being happier along the way, maximizing their potential. For companies and individuals alike, the changes can be profound.

Through either a 12-week online course for individuals, or a choice of several programmes for companies, Wise Humanity applies their teaching in a way that is easy to digest and practical to implement. Advocates cannot say enough good things about the process, with testimonials including such gems as ‘learning how to reframe our challenges and trust this process allows for less ego and greater impact in our lives’ and ‘in simple terms their concepts will change your life. Not because they are magic and hold some secret remedy but because they open your mind to new ways of thinking’. Wise Humanity describe their mission as one which combines ancient and modern wisdom and science about how we can live our best lives, helping people to ‘remove the selflimiting beliefs that are keeping them from turning into the best version of themselves and living life fully. It’s a personal transformation journey for people individually and to create a compassionate, global community of human beings who respect each other and the Planet’.

This bold ambition is achieved through a step-bystep process to teach participants new inner tools and to activate them. The course content

For people taking part in the 12-week Zoom course, each week focuses on a different topic with a two-hour lesson each weekend and exercises to complete during the week: Week Week Week Week Week Week Week Week Week Week Week Week

1: Mental Chatter 2: Unstick Your Story 3: The Practice of Gratitude 4: The Journey of Happiness 5: The World of Connectedness 6: Walking with Purpose 7: Being Present in the Present 8: Self-love and Relationships 9: Values and Choices 10: The Wisdom Behind Fear Fears 11: True Meditation 12: The Ego Bubble

This combination of the personal and the professional aims to address the issues many of us may be experiencing as we feel more and more connected to our work and how it links with our identities.

Bootcamps

It’s not only individuals who can benefit from these teachings; companies can also choose from a number of bespoke options for their teams:

These are retreat-like events of three to five days for a maximum of 20 people. The organization completely designs them around the client company culture and the desired objectives.

One-Hour Workshop Series

These are typically one-hour events, each one focused on one simple yet powerful tool of applied wisdom and emotional wellbeing that participants discuss and practise at the workshop. The series comprises twelve workshops.

Coaching

Half-Day Workshops

This is a one-to-one journey of three to six months. On top of the typical coaching tools, participants also use the Wise Humanity tools and the method of live sessions followed by practical exercises.

These are typically three/four-hour events, for an audience of maximum 20 people.

To find out more about the work of Wise Humanity, visit wisehumanity.org

world leaders of the past: How would they have managed these troubled times? With the faults of many governments of the world being exposed or highlighted through the troubles of the pandemic – and now the geopolitical troubles of Russia and Ukraine – we cannot help but wonder how we may have fared had these troubles arisen in previous years. Would the leaders of yesteryear have handled things differently? In all probability, yes. Had we lived through these times under the leadership of Nelson Mandela, George WH Bush, Margaret Thatcher and Sheikh Jaber Al Sabah, it’s highly likely we would be experiencing them very differently. We are currently experiencing a terrible rise in poverty, racism, and economic and educational imbalance, which is completely at odds with the huge progress we should be making in these areas considering our advanced resources and experience. Perhaps, through more independently minded and strong leadership, we would be able to take the many resources at our disposal and work to restore order in ways that took care of citizens of our individual countries, as well as the harmony between them. So what is the difference between the leadership styles of today, and those of the 80s and 90s? Our governments now seem to be more connected with each other and with global business interests than with their own people, and have displayed a willingness to act without accountability to those people. That is a huge problem

when the citizens of those countries have elected leaders to work primarily for the people, to represent their nation’s culture, economies and growth. Friendly international relations and trade must always be in place, but not at the expense of the wellbeing of individual nations. One factor in this situation could be global media and social media, which can be played to effectively to portray leaders in a certain light to give them a global appeal. This can be dangerous, if leaders are playing to an international audience and marketing their actions to look good online, grandstanding globally rather than doing the less impressive but more vital work of ensuring their own house is in order and their own citizens are happy. At the foundation of our disappointment in the leadership of today is a lack of love for their own countries which we, as family offices, feel deeply ourselves. We have generations of history tied to a single country, we identify so strongly with our own nations and we give back to them however we can, yet at the same time we foster international collaboration and seek good working relationships with other family offices around the world who are each as embedded in their own countries of origin. To see our current leaders doing the same may make all the difference.

Introducing GRANADA FC's PATRICIA RODRÍGUEZ As CEO of Granada FC, Patricia Rodríguez is one of the most powerful and prominent women in football. Patricia has extensive club management experience and was one of the first women in management of a top tier football club during her time at Eibar. She went on to become the director of the club, and from there joined Eiche, before reaching Granada. As well as being a member of the World Football Summit Advisory Board, Patricia also works on training programmes across several higher education bodies. On top of all this, she is on the Committee of Experts of the Spanish Marketing Association. Her entry into the world of football came about unexpectedly, when she was working at PwC. A colleague sent her information about a job opening as financial director at SD Eiber – at that point recently promoted to first division.

Although Patricia hadn’t been looking to leave her role at PwC right away, she had planned to move on at some point in the future, but had yet to decide what she wanted to do next. The role at SD Eiber promised everything she had been looking for: travel, building new relationships, and ultimately a change from the stability and predictability of the work she was doing at that point. Patricia thought her chances of being offered the role may be slim due to her

being a woman and from an unrelated professional background, she was successful in being chosen for the job. It was a chance application which ultimately changed the course of her life and has inspired more women into the game. The multi-talented CEO told Show Racism The Red Card that she was initially attracted to the football industry by its variety of day-to-day work, and the distinctiveness of each club, citing the fresh new challenges that make the job so satisfying.

Therme glasgow a new spa experience in a somewhat unlikely place

When it comes to a trip to Glasgow in Scotland, you would do well to pack for wet chilly weather, and prepare to see a lot of beautiful historical sights to truly make the most of your visit. But in just a few years’ time, you’ll be able to pack your swimsuit and sandals to enjoy one of Europe’s most exciting and jaw-dropping new spas.

The new spa and wellbeing resort, from operator Therme Group, will be based on grand thermal bathing traditions. The 20month construction period is expected to begin at the end of 2023, and the facility will cost around £100 million. This botanical garden type design will sit at the intersection of the Kelvin and Clyde rivers. With its all-glass construction, there will be a pride in the exotic spa’s location, thanks to views right across the local landscape. But this is not to be an elites-only destination, with the operators very clear that it will have a family focus and will offer something for everyone. Inside will be thermal pools, an indoor water park, and a wellbeing center. Elsewhere on the site will be a vertical farming facility from Intelligent Growth Solutions, a Scottish company, which will grow fresh produce for the community using stateof-the-art growing technology.

This spa is one of several similar projects from Therme around the world in various stages of planning and development, on top of four open facilities in Germany and one in Romania. The site is 20 acres in total, and sits next to the Riverside Museum, ensuring it will be as popular a destination for tourists as for locals. Therme have placed a strong emphasis on wellbeing with this particular project, making it clear they see the facility as having a role in improving the health of the community in which it will sit. There’s even talk of a global center of excellent for wellbeing, which could work alongside the resort and work in partnership with the Government and the University of Glasgow. Before Therme in Glasgow opens, potential visitors can take a peek at Therme Manchester which is due to open in 2023. For more information visit thermegroup.com

The ‘digital renaissance’ of Latin America

Two separate leisure sectors held conventions recently which highlighted a similar trend: Latin American consumers are becoming more mobilesavvy and willing to spend via their devices than ever before, and it’s making Latam the emerging online market to watch. Both the Latin American Fashion Summit in Miami, and the GAT (Gaming and Technology) Expo in Colombia carried the theme of what one speaker called a ‘digital renaissance’ of the region. The key takeaway from one session at the Latin American Fashion Summit is that digital consumers are swelling. Istituto Marangoni Miami’s Massimo Casagrande said: “In 2021, at the end of the first quarter, we’d seen that 50 million e-commerce customers emerged in the Latin American market”. And the consumers are from unlikely – previously untapped – demographics, sped up in their adoption of new online habits because of the demands and restrictions of the pandemic. As we have previously discussed in this Journal, the online retail experience became significantly more important during the pandemic than ever before,

not only for essentials but also for lifestyle and luxury products which people were still keen to buy despite the dramatic times. For those not previously au fait with the online shopping experience, this was an excellent time to get used to it, with brands putting incredible amounts of resources into tempting new shoppers to take a chance with an online purchase. As comfort levels and familiarity with the online process grew, so did the potential for Latam consumers to continue to purchase online even when brick and mortar stores are open. Meanwhile at the GAT Expo, conversation flowed around the opportunities presented to those industries by the pandemic. Considering internet infrastructure is lacking, mobile phones were already important tools for consumers in the region, but the pandemic made the use of these devices for entertainment and purchasing ever more familiar and vital. It remains to be seen who will win the long term battles for the hearts of online consumers in Latam, but for those who wish to try, the time is now.

Upcoming Events 15-16 June 2022 Europe Family Office Investment Summit London, UK 8-9 September 2022 APAC Family Office Investment Summit Singapore 7-8 November 2022 Middle East Family Office Investment Summit Dubai, UAE 13-15 November 2022 Dawn of Oman Sultanate of Oman 7 December 2022 The Alea Sessions, US Edition Miami, USA 22-23 February 2023 Africa Family Office Investment Summit South Africa

See aleaglobalgroup.com for updates

Published by