Urban Forests: Planting The Wrong Trees In the Wrong Places Can Diminish Cooling Benefits
January 8th, 2025
Via Anthropocene Magazine, commentary on the first comprehensive global study of the effect of trees on urban temperature, in which researchers discovered that in hot, compact cities, narrow species and sparse planting strategies work best: Urban trees need to be planted strategically to maximize their ability to help keep cities cool, according to a new […]
Read more »The Business Case For Saving Coral Reefs
January 6th, 2025
Via Grist, an interesting look at a growing body of research shows the nation’s coral reefs protect $1.8 billion in economic assets each year and should be protected for our sake and their own: Days after hurricanes Irma and Maria tore through Puerto Rico in 2017, Ernesto Diaz formed a team to survey what the Category […]
Read more »The Future of Urban Housing Is Energy-Efficient Refrigerators
January 3rd, 2025
Via MIT Technology Review, a look at how adapting old, energy-inefficient buildings is less sexy but far greener than many high-tech solutions: The scars and pockmarks of the aging apartments and housing units under the purview of the New York City Housing Authority don’t immediately communicate the idea of innovation. The largest landlord in the […]
Read more »To Solve Climate Change, We Need To Restore Our Sponge Planet
January 3rd, 2025
An interesting comment in Nature Water on how to help stabilize the climate by moving towards a Sponge Planet. Humans have degraded 75 percent of Earth’s land, destabilizing the water cycle, amplifying effects of excess CO2. The water cycle is a key climate stabilizer but overlooked by policymakers. Restoring wetlands, floodplains, forests, recreating a Sponge […]
Read more »Healthier Cities Will Require a Strong Dose of Nature
December 29th, 2024
Via Wired, a report on the growing importance of designing cities around green spaces: If current global trends are correct, in 2025, around 41 million people will die from noncommunicable diseases (NCDs)—which include cancer, heart disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory illness, and severe mental illness—representing around 74 percent of all deaths globally. Despite major advances in medicine […]
Read more »‘If 1.5m Germans Have Them There Must Be Something In It’: How Balcony Solar Is Taking Off
December 19th, 2024
Via The Guardian, a report on balcony solar panels which can save 30% on a typical household’s electricity bill and, with vertical surface area in cities larger than roof space, the appeal is clear: They are easy to install, and knock chunks off electricity bills. It may not be Romeo and Juliet, but Spain’s balcony […]
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.