Welcome To The Pyrocene Era
September 1st, 2023
Via ClimateBase, a look at how human-influenced fire activity is shaping our world and six companies working to combat wildfire by leveraging everything from Machine Learning and AI to advanced imaging and fire-fighting tech: The world is on fire. With thousands of wildfires burning across the globe, many have begun to speculate that we are entering a Pyrocene […]
Read more »One of the World’s First Insurance Schemes for Extreme Heat
August 25th, 2023
Via The Print, a report on one of the world’s first insurance schemes for extreme heat in which poor workers in Gujarat can receive payouts when temperatures add up to between 134C and 138C over three days, assessed using satellite data. The policy can pay out multiple times, to a maximum of $85. A bright […]
Read more »Why Indonesia Is Covering Its Roofs With Reflective White Paint
August 23rd, 2023
Via Fast Company, a report on an initiative that uses light-reflecting paint to cool buildings without the need for an air conditioner: In Indonesia, temperatures remain high throughout the year without any real winter season, making indoor conditions unbearable for residents. Most people don’t have air-conditioning, and those who do have low-quality units that do […]
Read more »Surviving the Phoenix Heat
August 20th, 2023
Via The New Yorker, a report on how researchers at Arizona State University are bringing relief to the residents who need it most: For thirty-one days in a row, the temperature in Phoenix hit at least a hundred and ten degrees. It was one-nineteen on one day, one-eighteen on another, and one-seventeen on a couple […]
Read more »China’s ‘Sponge Cities’ Aim To Re-Use 70% of Rainwater
August 15th, 2023
Via The Conversation, an article on Chinese ‘sponge cities’: Asian cities are struggling to accommodate rapid urban migration, and development is encroaching on flood-prone areas. Recent flooding in Mumbai was blamed in part on unregulated developmentof wetlands, while hastily built urban areas are being affected by flooding across India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. This is not a trend only in developing […]
Read more »Stormwater Reform Won’t Be Enough – We Need ‘Sponge Cities’ To Avoid Future Disasters
August 15th, 2023
Via The Conversation, a look at how – during the 2023 Auckland floods – people recognized that even stormwater reform won’t be enough and there is a need for ‘sponge cities’ to avoid future disasters: We’ve built our cities to be vulnerable to – and exacerbate – major weather events such as the one we […]
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.