The Best Roofs to Keep London Cool in Summer May Not Be Green
July 16th, 2024
Via Bloomberg, a look at new research showing that white roofs are most effective at cooling the city down on the hottest summer days: Increasingly hot summer days in London have city dwellers seeking relief. And a new study shows the best bet might not be green roofs but white ones. Conventional wisdom has long held […]
Read more »Dubai: Looking To Transform Highway Into Lush Urban Corridor with 1M Trees
July 15th, 2024
Via Fast Company, a look at Dubai’s plans for a 40-mile-long ‘High Line’ will transform the desert city into something much more livable: For all its futuristic towers and rococo gilded luxury, Dubai is not exactly a pleasant city to live in. It’s an ocean of asphalt and cement that’s cooking in sand, with highs […]
Read more »Ancient Technology That Is Helping Millions Stay Cool
July 10th, 2024
Via Wired, an article on cheap low-energy evaporative cooling devices are keeping water, food, people, and even whole buildings cool across India. This summer, India has endured possibly its worst ever heatwave. The capital, Delhi, logged a record high of 52.9 degrees Celsius (127 degrees Fahrenheit) on May 29, while India’s northern states have baked at sustained […]
Read more »The Biochar King of Minneapolis
July 5th, 2024
Courtesy of Heatmap, a report on one of the first municipally owned carbon removal programs: Minneapolis may be the only city in the country with a carbon sequestration program manager on staff. Now, Jim Doten — who holds that title — is about to realize his dream of starting up one of the first municipally […]
Read more »Desert Saudi City Will Turn Green In $23 Billion Project
June 28th, 2024
Via Newsweek, a report on Riyadh’s plans to turn green in a a $23B project: Saudi Arabia aims to turn its arid capital into a desert oasis, though the ambitious project may encounter issues that have plagued the kingdom’s other sustainability-focused initiatives. Nicknamed “Green Riyadh,” the urban forestation effort aims to improve the air quality […]
Read more »Dubai to Boost Rainwater Drainage System with $8.2B Project
June 26th, 2024
Via Reuters, a report on Dubai’s plans to boost its rainwater drainage system with $8.2 billion project: Dubai will spend 30 billion dirhams ($8.2 billion) to boost its rainwater drainage system after the Gulf city was hit by the heaviest downpours recorded in the UAE in 75 years in April. Dubai, widely considered the Gulf’s tourism and […]
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.