Homeowners Face $25T Bill from Climate Change
April 14th, 2024 Via The Economist, a report on the risk that climate change poses to property owners: The residents of northern Italy had never seen anything like the thunderstorm that mauled their region last [...]
Why Heat Pumps Are the Future, and How Your Home Could Use One
April 14th, 2024 Via the New York Times, a report on heat pumps, highly efficient devices considered by many to be powerful tools in combating climate change: Heat pumps, which both warm and cool buildings and are [...]
Toronto Wants to Manage Storms and Floods—With a Rain Tax
April 14th, 2024 Via Canada’s National Observer, an article on the outcry in Toronto that reached such a crescendo last week that the city canceled public hearings on the tax, which is intended to help offset [...]
Inside the Rise of Groundwater-Based Geothermal Heat Pumps
April 12th, 2024 Via Utility Dive, an article on the rise of groundwater-based geothermal heat pumps: The technology, which is cost-effective across 75% of the U.S. landmass and ideal for space-constrained users, [...]
Voltpost Launches EV Charging Solution Integrated Into Lampposts
April 12th, 2024 Via Energy & Environment Leader, a report on a new start up deploying EV charging solutions into lampposts: Voltpost, an electric vehicle (EV) charging company, has unveiled its commercial-ready, [...]
Slow Water: Can We Tame Urban Floods By Going With The Flow?
April 12th, 2024 Via The Guardian, a look at urban flooding: After epic floods in India, South Africa, Germany, New York and Canada killed hundreds in the past year, droughts are now parching landscapes and [...]

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.