Two major research projects are under way to see if the US central bank should begin minting digital money.
![Two United States-based efforts are exploring the concept of a digital fiat dollar in an era when cash isn’t king anymore [File: Lee Jae-Won/Reuters]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/dollar.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)

Ben reports on global economics and geopolitics for AJ Impact, the new business and finance vertical at Al Jazeera Digital. He often writes about inte... rnational trade, climate change and urban policy. He was previously a Planning Editor at Al Jazeera America in New York City and an Online Producer at Al Jazeera English in Doha, Qatar. Before joining Al Jazeera, Ben worked at PBS Worldfocus. He holds a master's degree in digital media from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. In 2007, he researched the caste system as a Fulbright scholar at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai. Originally from Baltimore, he studied Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) at the University of Pennsylvania. In his free time, Ben enjoys cities, languages, music and travel.
Two major research projects are under way to see if the US central bank should begin minting digital money.
![Two United States-based efforts are exploring the concept of a digital fiat dollar in an era when cash isn’t king anymore [File: Lee Jae-Won/Reuters]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/dollar.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
Admirers laud the Amazon empire Bezos built, but labour activists and monopoly watchdogs question how he did it.
![Amazon.com Inc CEO Jeff Bezos hands over the reins to his successor on Monday, marking the end of an era at the internet giant supercharged by new business growth [File: Anindito Mukherjee/Bloomberg]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/356134813.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
G7 leaders are meeting to rally democratic spirits and develop deals on global taxes and COVID-19 vaccine distribution.
!['Mount Recyclemore' is an artwork depicting the G7 leaders looking towards Carbis Bay in Cornwall, where western leaders are meeting to discuss myriad challenges, from fending off autocratic governments and global warming to the lingering coronavirus pandemic and unbalanced trade relations [File: Tom Nicholson/Reuters]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/2021-06-08T133723Z_1698535814_RC2CWN9I8OJ0_RTRMADP_3_G7-SUMMIT.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
Non-profits aim to close the racial wealth gap by boosting financial literacy on subjects ranging from crypto to stocks.
![New Black Wall Street’s goal is to increase by 50 percent the number of minorities with FICO credit scores of 700 or greater — which is considered 'good' by lenders — and, in the next two decades, increase median Black household wealth in the United States to $165,000 [Courtesy of New Black Wall Street]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/100_For_100.png?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
Environmental defeats against ExxonMobil and Shell show energy giants could be forced to decarbonise more aggressively.
![Shareholders of ExxonMobil pulled off a resounding win against the company’s management on Wednesday by electing at least two out of four candidates for board seats selected by activist investors [File: Jim Young/Reuters]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/exxon.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
Efforts to elevate labour concerns come amid allegations of monopolistic practices and environmental racism.

One year after the murder of George Floyd, Al Jazeera examines the intersection of racial and climate justice.
![Black activists are fusing calls for racial justice with climate action and proposing what they call a Red Black & Green New Deal [File: John Minchillo/AP Photo]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/AP20362545817482.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
Governor Andrew Cuomo says state’s restart critical, but urges New Yorkers to keep taking proper COVID precautions.
![A guest purchases a ticket in front of a box office at AMC movie theatre in Lincoln Square, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, US, March 6, 2021 [File: Jeenah Moon/Reuters]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/3_USA-BOXOFFICE.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
Bitcoin and Ether are the most environmentally unfriendly crypto tokens, but there are alternatives.
![Bitcoin is far from the only environmental villain in the crypto space, because there are plenty of other tokens that also rely on energy-sucking proof of work (PoW) consensus mechanisms to validate transactions and mint new coins [File: Alessandro Bianchi/Reuters]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/2021-02-10T000000Z_1418103204_RC2MPL97BMNU_RTRMADP_3_CRYPTO-CURRENCY-TESLA-CLIMATE.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
ReConnect Rondo is pushing for a $460m land bridge to support Black-owned enterprises and right historical wrongs.
![Rondo was once home to 80 percent of the Black community in Saint Paul, Minnesota in the United States, but 60 years ago, the community and its culture were displaced when highway Interstate 94 was built [File: Jim Mone/AP]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/AP100226187753.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)