Toronto’s Green Revolution: Harnessing Nature-Based Solutions for a Sustainable Urban Future
June 19th, 2023 Via Medium, a look at how Toronto is using nature-based solutions such as green roofs to build a sustainable urban future: Green roofs offer a multitude of environmental benefits. They serve as [...]
As We Build harder, Hotter Cities: It’s Vital To Protect and Grow Urban Green Spaces
June 19th, 2023 Via The Conversation, an article on the importance of urban green spaces: Recent extreme weather events have provided a foretaste of how supercharged storms might threaten our future. So the release [...]
Air Conditioning Can’t Stop Climate Migration
June 19th, 2023 Via Bloomberg, commentary on how humans are being pushed out of our temperature comfort zone. It’s a good time to be in the air-conditioning business. As my colleagues at Bloomberg News write, an [...]
Hurricane Resilience: Hiding In Plain Sight
June 19th, 2023 Via Fast Company, a look at how leaders can explore and leverage green infrastructure to prepare for storm resilience? Preparation is an essential element of being a successful CEO. Preparation [...]
Quantifying The Human Cost of Global Warming
June 19th, 2023 One in five people could live in dangerously hot conditions by the end of the century if global warming continues at its current pace, even if nations uphold their pledges under the Paris Agreement, [...]
Is Green The New Black? Developers Rush To Make Offices Energy Efficient
June 19th, 2023 Via South China Morning Post, an article on how Hong Kong developers are rushing to make offices energy efficient to shrink carbon footprint, fight for tenants amid glut: Hong Kong’s government has [...]

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.