Summer used to be a time for teenagers to get a part-time job, earn a few bucks and pile up some work experience. Now, cultural and economic shifts are making that tradition a thing of the past.

America’s teenagers “face a bleak job outlook heading into summer,” said Yahoo Finance. Automation and artificial intelligence are part of the problem, as work is simply more difficult to find. But today’s young people are also increasingly turning to “club sports, extracurriculars, college prep and even content creation” as an alternative to lifeguarding at the local pool.

What did the commentators say?
Youths “aren’t bothering to get summer jobs,” said Stephen Moore at The Washington Times. Working a low-paying seasonal gig can teach vital lessons in how to “show up for work on time, be nice to the foreman and do a little extra to get noticed.” But federal data suggests about a third of teens are seeking summer work, down from 50% in earlier decades. 

This data is “troubling” because studies indicate that the “earlier one begins working, the more successful they are likely to be later in life,” said Moore. One solution would be to create a lower minimum wage for teens of $5 or $6 an hour to “incentivize employers to hire them for starter jobs.”

Teens have “found better opportunities” than taking summer work, said Roland Fryer at The Wall Street Journal. While summer hiring projections are the “weakest since the government began counting in 1948,” the “classic” teen summer gig has been “disappearing for nearly half a century” for good reason. Time “spent folding shirts at the Gap” is less valuable than building a college resume. 

What next?
The issue has taken on political dimensions. Next week, Oklahoma voters will decide on a referendum to gradually raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour. Doing so could “make things even worse by pricing many teenagers out of the market,” said Ray Carter at the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs. But a higher minimum wage could provide stability that’s the “difference between staying in school and dropping out” for lower-income young workers, said Jill Mencke at the Oklahoma Policy Institute. 

Though caffeine remains the world’s most widely consumed drug, some people are turning to a smaller dosage to achieve their morning kick. A slew of lower-caffeine beverages are hitting the market as consumers look for ways to shake the negative effects of caffeine while still having their daily cup of coffee.

‘Experimenting with a new range of options’
Even as millions of Americans consume mass quantities of caffeinated drinks, some question their caffeine intake. Many started “experimenting with a new range of options beyond the traditional cup of hot java,” said Bloomberg. 

Younger consumers have begun to “embrace cold, canned beverages over hot coffee,” said Bloomberg. Sales of ready-to-drink, low-caffeinated bottles of coffee and tea were “up almost 15% in the 52 weeks ending March 22” of this year, while sales of “coffee beans and cocoa fell nearly 10%,” according to market research group Spins, per Bloomberg.

Several companies are also moving toward this trend. Panera Bread began “rolling out a new line of lightly caffeinated drinks,” which comes about two years after the company’s discontinued ultra-caffeinated Charged Lemonade was “linked to two deaths and multiple lawsuits,” said Business Insider. There has also been a resurgence in sales of Coca-Cola Zero Zero, which has no sugar or caffeine, said Bloomberg.

Why less is better
Most people, despite the shifting tides, are consuming too much caffeine, which could have negative health effects. While drinking up to three cups of coffee per day can “reduce dementia risk and slow cognitive decline,” even that would still be over the recommended daily 135-milligram dosage of caffeine, said a JAMA study.

The shift toward low-caffeine is because “health and wellness trends have persuaded many consumers to scrutinize ingredients more closely, with many trying to cut back on artificial dyes, added sugar, processed food and, in some cases, caffeine,” said Bloomberg. The anxiety of Jeremy Clark, an engineering professor in Montreal, has declined “almost to negligible levels” since he cut back on caffeine, he said to Bloomberg. So “it was worth it.”

The opening ceremony of the World Cup kicks off at Mexico City’s iconic Azteca stadium before the Group A football match between Mexico and South Africa. The performance, headlined by Colombia’s Shakira and J. Balvin and Nigeria’s Burna Boy, was watched by more than 80,000 people at the venue.
Alfredo Estrella / AFP / Getty Images

From sunrise gatherings to dance festivals and floating-flower rituals, summer solstice celebrations certainly blow away the cobwebs. The longest day of the year usually falls on June 21, while in the Southern Hemisphere, it’s six months later. Midsummer has been marked all around the world for thousands of years, with traditions, holidays and festivals, and these are some of the best places to mark the day, maybe with some chanting and drumming.

Chichen Itza, Mexico
All eyes turn to El Castillo pyramid at Chichen Itza, which was constructed so that the shadows of the setting sun at the summer solstice “look like a feathered serpent descending,” said Condé Nast Traveler. The symbol of Kulkulcan, a Mayan deity of wind, rain and the passing of time, is a reminder that the “arrival of summer is a pivotal time to accept new beginnings.”

Mount Olympus, Greece
In Greece, many “still follow the 2,500-year-old tradition” of climbing Mount Olympus to observe the solstice, said Condé Nast Traveler. The mountain is “seen as the home of the gods, making it a popular pilgrimage route to reconnect with nature and enjoy the solstice scene from the summit.”

Stonehenge, U.K.
The 4,000-year-old stone circle (pictured above) is one of the most famous places to observe the solstice. Visitors flock to the site to “witness the moment the sun rises behind the heel stone, the ancient entrance to the monument,” said the BBC. Parking is limited and must be pre-booked, and there will be special shuttle buses from Salisbury train station.