new year + new trends

didn't see this one coming

and

Jan 07, 2025

Happy new year to each and every one of you!

I’ve been in Bermuda the last few weeks, spending the holidays with family and friends, which is why you might’ve noticed these e-mails coming in later than usual. The next time I write to you, I’ll be back in London with the team at Thred who I’ve missed so much.

Hopefully the end of 2024 offered the recharge you deserve. Let’s get back to the swing of thing with our first newsletter of the year, shall we?

👙 Culture

Why is ‘full bush in a bikini’ trending on Tiktok? – dazed digital
Fresh discourse around personal shaving routines are emerging on social media, with TikTok users challenging the beauty rules women have been taught to follow by society. Rebelling against pressure to be perfectly hairless 100 percent of the time, internet creators are promoting the ‘full bush in a bikini’ trend in 2025… and it has all been inspired by an Etsy review.

Gen Z are more about crocheting than clubbing – thred.
The verdict is in: the couch is more appealing than the club, at least in Gen Z’s eyes. Early morning yoga classes may have taken precedent over dancing until the early hours of the morning, but does this mean young people are missing out on having fun while they’re still young? Our writer Annie says maybe so.

🐟 Science & nature

Tiny fish on ketamine may show how drug eases depression – npr
Scientists are investigating why ketamine is so good at offering relief from depression. In tests on tiny zebrafish, researchers have noticed the drug causing long-term changes to a brain circuit involved in "giving up” which allows the fish to persevere in the face of adversity instead of becoming passive. They’re not exactly sure how this change occurs, but it appears to be linked to brain cells called astrocytes.

The Japanese micro-forest method is changing cities – euronews
Since 1990, more than 420 million hectares of forest have been lost globally. With 85 percent the world’s population living in cities, implementing micro-forests in urban areas could help us cool our cities, boost biodiversity, and combat deforestation. A unique reforesting technique developed by a Japanese ecologist Akira Miyawaki during the 1970s could be the foolproof answer to better, bushier, and bustling-with-nature cities in the future.

💬 Politics

Explaining Mozambique’s post-election crisis – thred.
Mozambique’s election result has been much disputed, as the Frelimo party’s Daniel Chapo emerged as the apparent winner over the expected appointment of the Podemos party’s Venancio Mondlane. Political unrest immediately erupted across the country, claiming hundreds of lives and displacing thousands of people to neighbouring countries such as Malawi and Eswatini. The violence is disproportionately affecting Mozambique’s youth, who make up close to 80% of the population.

Meta ends third-party fact-checking scheme as it prepares for Trump return – ft
The tech giant has announced plans to follow Elon Musk’s lead. Rather than continuing with its third-party fact checking program, Meta will now rely on community notes from active users – similar to what we see on X. The company says this is a move will ‘lift restrictions on some topics that are part of mainstream discourse’ so that it can focus its enforcement on illegal and more severe violations. It added that the platform will be taking ‘a more personalised approach to political content.’ Hm…

📺 Recommendation

Speaking of bushes…. I’ve become hooked on Discovery Channel’s Naked and Afraid. The show documents pairs of total strangers as they try to survive in extreme environments (the South African bush, Amazon Rainforest, Louisiana Bayou) and fend off dangerous wildlife of the wilderness. Oh, and they’re completely naked.

I did read that the History’s Channel similar show Alone is even better, but I will have to check that out in the near future.

Thanks for reading and make sure to subscribe for the latest news on Gen Z and youth culture. Also, don’t forget to check out The Gen Zer for a weekly roundup of more trending insights, stories, and discussions.
Until next time,