🌱 The Grumpy Optimists #79
Celebrating positive climate news and two years since starting a company 🎉
Happy Monday. 👋
Welcome back to another episode of The Grumpy Optimists and another attempt to put a positive spin on climate news.
There’s plenty of positive news this week but one key thing I’d like to flag is that it was my company Zevero’s second birthday this week 🎉 . That’s two years of committing to helping companies decarbonise and building tools and technology to make that easier. It’s also over two years of being positive about the opportunities and solutions we have to fix the crisis we’re in.
For that to be my life and to be the thing I get to work on is a true privilege and one I'm proud to be able to do. So I’m celebrating the victory and I appreciate you all for reading this blog - the number of messages and positive comments I get is honestly so cool, so thank you.
For now, have a great week and enjoy this week’s episode.
👀 Articles to read
🇬🇧 Bill Gates helps launch cleantech for UK. Cleantech for UK is a new initiative bringing together investors worth over £4bn to accelerate green innovation in the UK. This comes at a time when the green economy is booming, growing at 30% YOY in the UK.
🛣️ All major road projects scrapped in Wales. This story will likely annoy the anti-15-minute city crowd, but Wales has scrapped all new major road projects due to environmental concerns. The Welsh government have stated that all future roads must not increase emissions, increase the number of cars on the road, or negatively impact the environment. The aim is not only to reduce car dependency but also to invest more money into public transport, which will be critical to the success of the policy.
🌴 31% of corporations linked to deforestation have no plans to stop it. Research by Global Canopy revealed that only 31% of companies with the strongest ties to deforestation in their supply chains have any commitments to limit it, and only half are monitoring suppliers or sourcing from regions in line with deforestation commitments. Land clearing, which contributes to nearly one-fourth of all greenhouse gas emissions, requires policies to limit deforestation. The good news is that it shows more action is possible and with politicians like President Lula in charge, more will be done.
♻️ UK advertising authority make greenwashing harder. Don’t you just hate it when you see a product that is ‘better for the planet’ or a ‘green product’, well so does the UK’s advertising authority who are clamping down on green claims. While slightly older and are part of the ‘Green Claims Code’ which will continue to make it harder for companies to greenwash their way out of a climate crisis.
🇧🇷 Deforestation falls in Brazil under president Lula. Deforestation in the Amazon fell by 61% compared to January 2022 as President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva clamps down on logging. Satellites measured tree cover and loss and found that deforestation is lower than the historical average since 2016. However, some of the deforestation may be hidden by cloud cover. Regardless, it's good news that shows the power of electing the right politicians for the climate crisis and the role the government plays in tackling climate change.
🏍️ Harley-Davidson go all-out electric. If there were to be one signal that we are shifting towards an electric future, I'd say the CEO of motorbike legend Harley-Davidson saying they are shifting to all-electric bikes is a pretty good one. However, while it’s a good signal of where the world is going, it’s unlikely to happen until the mid-2030s or early 2040s. This comes at a time when the EU aims to ban combustion engines from 2035.
🦈 Costa Rica bans hammerhead shark fishing. Hammerhead sharks are critically endangered but have been bought and sold in Costa Rica before being exported to countries like China for fin soup. Despite their green persona, Costa Rica has been pretty relaxed about the overfishing of sharks so there is hope that the new law will help protect shark populations.
🌞 Solar looks set to rise quicker than expected, again! Historically, solar installations have consistently been lower than the capacity added. This trend is likely to continue, but it is not sufficient to keep temperatures below 1.5°C.
Interesting things I saw this week
🚶🏻 15-minute cities are the new target of conspiracy theories, but why? This video from Motherboard Vice digs into it. It’s baffling to me, why would you not want to be able to get all your needs in a short radius? The main source of the argument is that we’d be removing the freedom of movement via car, ah yes, let’s build around inefficient cars and be like the US (sorry US readers).
🐟 For the lovers of a good social media account and valentines joke.
Inspired by Dan Ruben of FoodTech Weekly, this blog was written after 3 delightful beers of good local craft beer in the sun and to the tones of Tinie Tempah, it’s a good job I do this for fun.
The Grumpy Optimists 💚