Published in Predict·PinnedThe time for Adaptation Ambition under the Paris Agreement has arrivedWith news that we’re not likely to solve the climate crisis, hope now shifts from Article 4 to Article 7. — What a seismic start to 2021. It is a climate moment that really must not be lost on anyone. First, a quick recap: January 20, inauguration day, President Biden signed an Executive Order to rejoin the Paris Agreement. A week later, January 27, he penned another one launching the promised…Climate Change7 min read
Published in Predict·PinnedHow Biden’s climate policy has created a historic adaptation revolutionWe asked for ambition, and here it is. Now, let’s capitalize, following this Guide to Adaptation Leadership in America. — “This really is it,” I found myself whispering to the mirror, more than once, at times using some Humboldt Park Latin slang from my youth in Chicago — “This dude’s for real” — as President Biden’s climate policy grew evident and his robust all-star team was named in the weeks…Sustainability15 min read
Published in Predict·PinnedClimate risk management: a tipping point to celebrateAdaptation ESG: a corporate movement to launch — Wow. What a difference a year makes. Not even a year, actually. It was last April when I wrote this column announcing the upcoming launch of a movement, which I called Adaptation ESG, to urge sustainable companies — bellwethers in Environmental, Social & Governance standards — to lead a new…Climate Change8 min read
Jan 13Cloud NineWhere he always lived. Where he wanted all of us to live. “Coño, qué frío.” I hadn’t felt cold like this since mom passed three years ago and I came to visit a couple of times. That was January and February, too. But it’s worse today. It hit below zero…Family10 min read
Nov 10, 2020I was in the original base. Here’s what’s next post Trump.Sustainability was my light in the ‘90s. The country’s today? You. — The grass helped. It was soft and just the right bit of moist. When it caressed between the toes, it was particularly satisfying. Looking back, I was like Richard Gere in the barefoot-on-the-grass scene in Pretty Woman. Except this was 1981. …Elections12 min read
Published in Predict·Aug 10, 2020How to find hope in the latest dreary climate scienceYes, we will overshoot 2° Celsius, but you can still redirect optimism, unleash a new wellspring of value, and become the brand that makes it through. The bomb fell a month ago, when the release of this landmark climate sensitivity study ushered in a new moment, a turning point, in…Climate Change17 min read
Published in Predict·Apr 24, 2020Become deeply adaptable today, or elseTHE ADAPTIVE CO: This week changed it all. We now know recovery will take long, as the COVID Restricted Economy is on. As a business leader, you simply cannot afford not to adapt at this point, not with what we now know about how long it will take for some…Climate Change10 min read
Published in Predict·Apr 13, 2020Time for ESG companies to lead on adaptationTHE ADAPTIVE CO: That’s the mission of Adaptation ESG, a novel movement urging portfolio companies to usher in a new era of sustainable finance You be the judge. Exhibit A: ESG investments, in companies that implement above-average Environmental, Social & Governance standards, have skyrocketed to $35 trillion in assets under…Climate Change9 min read
Published in Predict·Mar 15, 2020The Clarity of FragilityTHE ADAPTIVE CO: Go from COVID-19 to Cypriana, and take everyone with you. If there is one thing the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic has made abundantly clear, it is the absolute fragility of the global system. Hospitals and their supply chains are overwhelmed. Travel halts. Events are canceled. Markets crash. Billions…Leadership8 min read
Published in Predict·Mar 10, 2020The thunderous emergence of RELiTHE ADAPTIVE CO: Not thunderous as in splashy, but the USGBC’s new RELi standard now becomes the world’s premier climate-resilience rating for the built environment. Climate change is and will continue to be worse than anticipated, since the rise in global temperatures can no longer be stopped. That means many…Predict Column5 min read