The Balcony Solar Boom Coming to the U.S.
May 8th, 2026
Via MIT Technology Review, a look at the growing popularity of plug-in panels: Dozens of US states are considering legislation to allow people to install plug-in solar systems, often called balcony solar. These small arrays require little to no setup and could help cut emissions and power bills. Balcony solar is already popular in Europe, […]
Read more »Louisiana’s Shrinking Coast Offers a Narrowing Window for Managed Retreat
May 6th, 2026
Via Yale School of Environment, a report on Louisiana, which is losing its coast faster than anywhere else in the U.S. What happens next could become a blueprint — or a warning — for vulnerable communities around the globe. Louisiana’s coast is disappearing, and its population has already started to retreat. The shoreline, the most […]
Read more »India’s Heat Exposes a Fragile Grid as Energy Crunch Deepens
May 1st, 2026
Via Bloomberg, a look at how extreme heat is impacting India: India is preparing for a blistering summer until monsoon rains arrive in June, with above-normal heat already straining power grids at a time when the country is grappling with energy shortages. Heat waves are forecast to persist for longer than usual in densely populated […]
Read more »Taking On Water: Can Sponge Cities Save Us from the Coming Floods?
April 25th, 2026
Courtesy of The New Yorker, a look at how – as the planet gets warmer and the rains fall harder – the future of flood control is looking less like a wall and something more like a park: On October 29, 2025, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority released an update to its Climate Resilience Roadmap. In […]
Read more »Harvard professor: Climate is an Investment Opportunity, Regardless of Politics
April 20th, 2026
Via Harvard Business School, commentary on the attractiveness of climate related investments: Editor’s Note: Harvard Business School Senior Lecturer Vikram S. Gandhi teaches about sustainable investing and climate-related opportunities and risks in a growth economy. We sat down with him to discuss advice for business leaders in today’s complicated context, when the U.S. is a leading producer of […]
Read more »Why Boston’s Biggest Institutions Should Co-Invest in Climate Protection
April 19th, 2026
Via the Commonwealth Beacon, commentary on why Boston’s biggest institutions should co-invest in climate protection: DURING THE BLIZZARD OF ’26 in late February, Boston narrowly escaped a costly reminder of its climate vulnerability – the storm surge arrived hours after high tide. Had the timing been different, flooding could have rivaled the winter storms of 2018, […]
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.