Milwaukee Wants To Build The World’s Largest Timber Skyscraper (Again)
August 18th, 2024 Via Popular Science, a report on Milwaukee’s plans to build the world’s tallest timber skyscraper (again): The new skyscraper could be feature as many as 55 floors. Credit: Michael Green [...]
Parks for Tomorrow: Harnessing Nature To Cool Cities
August 17th, 2024 Via Harvard Magazine, a look at one landscape architects efforts to use nature to cool cities: In 2009, Bas Smets walked across an old industrial plaza in Arles, France. Entirely concrete, the space [...]
World’s Largest Mass Timber Airport Opens In Portland, Oregon
August 17th, 2024 Via Design Boom, a look at the beautiful – and sustainable – mass timber airport in Portland: Portland International Airport (PDX) has officially opened its expanded main terminal of mass [...]
New Plan To Protect California’s Coast Against A Rising Ocean: Tidal Wetlands
August 16th, 2024 Via The Mercury News, a look at a new oceanfront wetland on California’s farmland to help reduce the risk of flooding during storms Recent raging winter storms have caved in streets, wrecked [...]
Faced With Heavier Rains, Cities Scramble to Control Polluted Runoff
August 16th, 2024 Via Yale’s e360, a look at how – to manage contaminated stormwater – Philadelphia went all in on “green” infrastructure, like rain gardens and permeable pavement. But an [...]
Head Above the Water: Today’s Blueprints for Building Tomorrow’s Floating Cities
August 15th, 2024 Via Architizer, an article on structural and environmental techniques that prove floating structures are a real possibility in our world of rising sea levels, and not just a vision from a sci-fi [...]

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.