Are You Sure Your House Is Worth That Much?
August 26th, 2024
Via The Atlantic, a look at how climate risk is still not being priced into American homeownership: Across the United States, homeowner’s insurance is getting more expensive. In storm-battered Florida and coastal Louisiana, they’ve gone up a lot; the same is true for scorched Colorado and California. But even Ohio and Wisconsin have seen rate […]
Read more »Extreme Weather Prompts Growth of Parametric Insurance
July 18th, 2024
Via Cipher News, a look at how extreme weather prompts growth of parametric insurance, offering faster, more flexible payments after disasters: Joemar Flores, a spindly 28-year-old, gestured across his family’s farmland, nestled between a steep hill and a river, and expressed gratitude for the rice paddies in the distance. They’re still there, producing food and […]
Read more »Extreme Heat Is Causing Billions in Damages That Insurers Won’t Cover
July 18th, 2024
Via Wall Street Journal, a report on the impact of extreme heat on insurers: The heat waves broiling tens of millions of Americans can warp roofs, shrivel crops, buckle roads and disrupt power supplies. Much of that damage is hard to quantify—and isn’t covered by insurance. Now cities, regulators and companies are sounding the alarm about the […]
Read more »Housing Insurance Is Melting Down In Some Markets Due to Climate Change
June 28th, 2024
Via Fortune Magazine, a report on how housing insurance is melting down in several property markets as climate change renders old assumptions obsolete The end of climate stability signals the end of the insurance market as we know it. Will it also signal the beginning of a broader understanding of physical risks by equity and […]
Read more »Three Ideas to Beat the Heat, and the People Who Made Them Happen
June 26th, 2024
Via the New York Times, a look at how – as temperatures soar around the world – practical experiments are emerging to protect people: An app that helps people find relief from the heat. A tiny insurance policy that pays working women when temperatures soar. Local laws that help outdoor workers get water and shade […]
Read more »In Graphic Detail: As Sea Levels Rise, Insurance Retreats
June 20th, 2024
Courtesy of Hakai Magazine, an illustrated look at when insurance companies will call it quits on New Zealand’s coastal communities: West of New Zealand’s biggest city, Auckland, the coastal community of Muriwai, population 1,410, is well known for its black-sand beach, gannet colony, and relaxed vibe. But in February 2023, Cyclone Gabrielle devastated the settlement. […]
Read more »'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.