Making Cities More Like Forests
January 16th, 2024 Via The New Yorker, commentary from a leading proponent of vertical farming discusses how urban areas should adapt to a perilous environmental future: In 2000, Dickson D. Despommier, then a professor [...]
Energy Impact of Urban Heat Mitigation Technologies
January 16th, 2024 Courtesy of Nature, a new journal article on the energy impact of urban heat mitigation technologies: Abstract Advanced urban heat mitigation technologies that involve the use of super-cool materials [...]
The Neglected Clean Heat We Flush Down the Drains
January 16th, 2024 Courtesy of BBC, a look at how the heat trapped in the sewerage system could be easily contained and harnessed for heating buildings cleanly – and it needn’t smell: In this part of Vancouver, [...]
The White House Just Announced a $623 Million EV-Charging Bonanza
January 11th, 2024 Via Wired, an article on the White House announcement of grants totaling $623 million to build electric vehicle charging stations across the U.S.: As the number of electric vehicles on American roads [...]
China Plans Two-Way Charging System Between EVs and Grids
January 11th, 2024 Via Caixin Global, a report on China’s push for ‘vehicle-grid interaction’ The central government has announced a plan to build a two-way charging system between electric vehicles (EVs) [...]
How U.S. Cities Can Scale On-Site Solar with New Federal Incentives
January 11th, 2024 Via RMI, a look at how US cities can leverage the new “direct pay” mechanism build on-site solar projects for local governments: Last year, San Antonio set a new record of 75 days at or above [...]

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.