#5SmartReads - July 14, 2020

A race is on to make enough small glass vials to deliver coronavirus vaccine around the world (Washington Post)

It’s not just the active pharmaceutical ingredients or other excipients that can delay a drug development program.

It can also be the vials. Sometimes you need vials that are best suited for your formulation, or have already been qualified on your contract manufacturer’s filling line.

And these specialized vials can take a while to get. Best case scenario, 2 months. Worst case - 8 months.

Thankfully, companies are aggressively ramping up production and the government is investing heavily to ensure availability for vaccines. But something as small as a vial or a syringe could impede other drug development programs.

What We Lose When Retail Stores Disappear (Zora)

How many women - especially women of color - launched or relaunched their careers through retail? The closing of so many stores - and thus, retail jobs rooted in community and service - is quite sad to me, especially when the alternative is an Amazon distribution center.

How Europe’s green pandemic recovery will push the rest of the world (Axios)

I think a lot about how COVID has accelerated certain things - how we work, how we’re living - to a new normal.

If Europe is successful in ramping up clean energy and green economic plans to help the countries recover from the pandemic. And that would be incredible.

Harry Styles Is Terrible At Putting Me To Sleep (Elle)

Having trouble sleeping? Harry Styles won’t help with that - but he might help in other ways ;)

And if you haven’t read The Idea Of You yet, PLEASE do.

Naya Rivera Took a Basic ‘Glee’ Character and Made Her Unforgettable (Variety)

This is such a beautiful tribute to Naya Rivera, who I can’t stop thinking about and whose Glee’s performances I’ve been listening to the past few days.

May we all live the rest of our days with the fierce bravery of Santana and the deep love of Naya.