Climate Crisis Has Become A Home Insurance Crisis
July 26th, 2023 Via The New Lede, a look at how the climate crisis has become a home insurance crisis: It’s an ominous sign of how the climate crisis is hitting ever closer to home: Because of the heightened risk [...]
Paris When It Sizzles: The City of Light Aims to Get Smart on Heat
July 26th, 2023 Via Yale e360, a report on how Paris – with its zinc roofs and minimal tree cover – was not built to handle the new era of extreme heat, but is now looking at ways to adapt to rising [...]
Why Someday We May Be Storing Carbon in Sidewalks
July 26th, 2023 Via The Washington Post, a report on two tech companies just demonstrated that it’s possible to take CO2 from the air and store it in concrete: There is a big climate problem right under your feet. [...]
The Moisture-Sucking Materials That Could Transform Air Conditioning
July 26th, 2023 Via MIT Technology Review, a look at how desiccants that pull water out of the air could help cool buildings more efficiently: A surprising set of materials could soon help make more efficient air [...]
New York City Has America’s Worst Heat Islands
July 26th, 2023 Via Gothamist, an article on New York city’s heat island effects: When it comes to blistering metropolitan temperatures, New York has the worst existing conditions — known as urban heat [...]
Cement Warms the Planet; A Green Version Just Received a Key Nod of Approval
July 26th, 2023 Via The Washington Post, a report on how one of the biggest challenges to decarbonizing cement isn’t technological, but rather getting builders to trust the alternatives: Companies are finding more [...]

ABOUT
BLACK SWANS GREEN SHOOTS
Black Swans / Green Shoots examines the collision between urbanization and resource scarcity in a world affected by climate change, identifying opportunities to build sustainable cities and resilient infrastructure through the use of revolutionary capital, increased awareness, innovative technologies, and smart design to make a difference in the face of global and local climate perils.

'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.