The Surprisingly Simple Way Cities Could Save People From Extreme Heat
July 16th, 2024 Via Grist, an article on the impact that reflective cool roofs can have on reducing the ‘urban heat island’ effect: The city is a growing paradox. Humanity needs its many efficiencies: [...]
Stay Cool: Cutting-Edge Technology Could Massively Reduce the Amount of Energy Used for Air Conditioning
July 16th, 2024 Via Wired, a report on one effort to make air conditioning more efficient: PHOTOGRAPH: NOSTROMO ENERGY The Chinese bus company couldn’t work it out. Some days when its buses merely crawled along [...]
The Best Roofs to Keep London Cool in Summer May Not Be Green
July 16th, 2024 Via Bloomberg, a look at new research showing that white roofs are most effective at cooling the city down on the hottest summer days: Increasingly hot summer days in London have city dwellers [...]
Dubai: Looking To Transform Highway Into Lush Urban Corridor with 1M Trees
July 15th, 2024 Via Fast Company, a look at Dubai’s plans for a 40-mile-long ‘High Line’ will transform the desert city into something much more livable: For all its futuristic towers and rococo gilded luxury, [...]
We Built Our World For A Climate That No Longer Exists
July 13th, 2024 Via CNN, commentary on the growing tension between climate change and existing urban infrastructure: Earlier this week, the Third Avenue Bridge in Manhattan had to be shut down because the bridge – [...]
Rising Seas, Subsidence, and Our Crumbling Shores
July 10th, 2024 Via Earth Island, a report on rising seas, subsidence, and our crumbling shores: THIS SPRING, I found myself on a nature run in Junipero Serra Park, in San Bruno, a small town on the peninsula south [...]

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.