Urban Forestry: Climate Infrastructure Hiding In Plain Sight
March 5th, 2026
Via Harvard’s Salata Institute, a report on how Boston and Cambridge treat trees as a public system, not decoration. Three contributors to these cities’ urban forest plans explain how heat and historic disinvestment are guiding where canopy goes next – amid pressure to add housing and density. On a hot July afternoon, the most effective […]
Read more »Growing Greenery: The Rise of Urban Green Space
February 9th, 2026
Via Triple Pundit, a look at how green space provides abundant advantages to urbanites, from cutting air pollution and managing heat islands to increasing physical activity. Planners in major cities like London, Singapore and Berlin are capitalizing on these benefits to improve quality of life for residents. In 1634, the first public park in the […]
Read more »Advancing Adaptation: Mapping Costs From Cooling To Coastal Defenses
January 7th, 2026
Via McKinsey, a new report on how the benefits of adaptation far outweigh its costs. Yet, the world today spends just one-third of the amount needed to protect everyone exposed to hazards to developed-economy standards. What would it cost to adapt as the Earth warms, and how much will get spent? At a glance Societies […]
Read more »Protecting Coasts Without Cooking The Planet
January 7th, 2026
Via the Salata Institute, an interesting look at how low-carbon, low-cost coastal resilience is possible if designers, builders, and policymakers work together: In the 2010s, when New York City decided to fortify the East River Promenade in the Lower East Side, it turned to a typical solution: emissions-intensive concrete and steel. Around the same time, […]
Read more »EVs Aren’t Just Cars Anymore. They Can Power Your Home Slashing Emissions — and Bills.
December 24th, 2025
Via Anthropocene Magazine, a report on a first-of-its-kind national study finds that vehicle-to-home charging can turn electric cars into grid-smart assets, reducing both energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions: Tapping into electric vehicle (EV) batteries as a source of household power could save car owners thousands of dollars and slash carbon dioxide emissions, according to […]
Read more »India’s Buildings Could Be a Big Part of Its Climate Solution
December 8th, 2025
Via The Diplomat, an interesting look at how integrating solar directly into India’s buildings could turn homes and offices into decentralized power plants and cut emissions right where they begin: By 2060, the total floor area of buildings worldwide is expected to double. Most of the expansion will take place in emerging economies in Asia, Africa, […]
Read more »'Black Swans' are highly improbable events that come as a surprise, have major disruptive effects, and that are often rationalized after the fact as if they had been predictable to begin with. In our rapidly warming world, such events are occurring ever more frequently and include wildfires, floods, extreme heat, and drought.
'Green Shoots' is a term used to describe signs of economic recovery or positive data during a downturn. It references a period of growth and recovery, when plants start to show signs of health and life, and, therefore, has been employed as a metaphor for a recovering economy.
It is my hope that Black Swans / Green Shoots will help readers understand both climate-activated risk and opportunity so that you may invest in, advise, or lead organizations in the context of increasing pressures of global urbanization, resource scarcity, and perils relating to climate change. I believe that the tools of business and finance can help individuals, businesses, and global society make informed choices about who and what to protect, and I hope that this blog provides some insight into the policy and private sector tools used to assess investments in resilient reinforcement, response, or recovery.