Singapore Is Fighting Rising Seas to Save $50 Billion in Real Estate
October 11th, 2023
Via Bloomberg, a look at Singapore’s efforts to prepare for – and battle – rising seas: During a half-century of independence, Singapore has fought to expand its territory, inch by hard-won inch. On the tip of the Malaysian peninsula, the island city-state piled up sand to expand its coastline and reclaim land from the sea. […]
Read more »These Places Could Become ‘Unlivable’ As Earth Warms
October 11th, 2023
Courtesy of The Washington Post, an article on the hottest parts of the world where high temperatures and humidity will, for longer stretches, surpass a threshold that even young and healthy people could struggle to survive as the planet warms: Heat waves can already be deadly for the most vulnerable people — but in a […]
Read more »Come Hell or High Water: Building Community Resilience to Floods, Droughts and Water Contamination
October 11th, 2023
Courtesy of ImpactAlpha, a look at building community resilience to floods, droughts and water contamination: Water — too little, too much or too dirty — isn’t simply emerging as a climate consideration. It’s forcing its way into the conversation. Water professionals say it’s high time. “This is water’s moment,” Radhika Fox, the Environmental Protection Agency’s […]
Read more »How To Build A Heat-Resilient City
October 10th, 2023
Courtesy of Grist, a look at a model metropolis for an era of high temperatures, using the coolest technology available: Florencia Fuertes / Grist Cities are hot. When you cover the ground with asphalt and concrete, jam millions of cars together on congested streets, and erect thousands of buildings that leak their own heat, you create […]
Read more »Blue Frontier and its Energy-Efficient AC
October 7th, 2023
Via MIT Technology Review, a report on a start-up company aiming to redefine air conditioning: Global demand for air conditioning is growing. But AC consumes lots of electricity, which comes mainly from fossil fuels, and leaks harmful refrigerants. Blue Frontier’s approach cools buildings more efficiently with alternative refrigerants, and its units store energy to avoid […]
Read more »How Green Roofs Can Help Cities Adapt To Climate Change
October 6th, 2023
Via Yale Climate Connections, a report on how green roofs can lower energy costs, help control stormwater, and cool urban areas: In cities, you may notice some roofs that are covered with plants. Many of these green roofs are planted with a low-lying ground cover like sedum. Kathryn McConnell of Brown University says other, more elaborate […]
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.