Brown to Green: In NE Ohio, Hello to Solar and Storage; Goodbye to Coal
July 26th, 2024
Via Inside Climate News, a look at how IRA funding will help a city shut down a very old power plant in favor of something cleaner: A coal-fired power plant that started running more than a century ago is about to get a long-overdue retirement, and its electricity will be replaced by a solar farm and […]
Read more »Green Building Pioneers Chart Persuasive Paths To Profit
July 25th, 2024
Via National Observer, a report on a new generation of Canadian developers and architects are designing a future for the building sector that is less polluting and profitable: Decarbonizing Canada’s construction and building sector presents a wealth of opportunity for developers, architects, suppliers and workers in the emerging clean economy, the federal government said in […]
Read more »How Battery-Powered Trailers Could Transform Trucking
July 24th, 2024
Truckers have to transport massive loads long distances, every single day, under intense time pressure—and they rely on the semi-trucks they drive to get the job done. Their diesel engines spew not only greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change, but also nitrogen oxide, which can be extremely harmful for human health. Cleaning up trucking, […]
Read more »New York Wants Tall Commercial, Multifamily Buildings To Test Low-Carbon Heating Retrofits
July 22nd, 2024
Via Smart Cities Dive, an article on seven finalists in a $10 million competition will develop heating and distribution systems that can be installed without displacing occupants: Dive Brief: New York Gov. Kathy Hochul named seven finalists Wednesday for the $10 million Empire Technology Prize, launched last October to advance technologies for low-carbon heating system retrofits in […]
Read more »The Critical Role Trees Play During Heat Waves
July 17th, 2024
Via Time, an article on the critical role that trees play during heat waves: My two-year-old is too young to know about climate change. He doesn’t understand what an “urban heat island” is either. He just knows that his papa keeps saying “No” because it’s too hot out to go to our local park in […]
Read more »The Surprisingly Simple Way Cities Could Save People From Extreme Heat
July 16th, 2024
Via Grist, an article on the impact that reflective cool roofs can have on reducing the ‘urban heat island’ effect: The city is a growing paradox. Humanity needs its many efficiencies: People living more densely and taking up less land — with easy access to decarbonized public transportation — collaborating and innovating as urbanites have […]
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.