What if we save the world?
⏩ 10 big questions from the front lines of climate tech.
I’m back in London after a whirlwind three days in New York moderating 10 intimate, founder-focused events with Climate Impact.
Two quick macro reflections:
First, it’s hugely inspiring to see how many super smart people are working on so many different issues.
Second, the ways these pioneers are driving industry and/or behaviour change offers valuable lessons for every leader and innovator, even if you're not working in climate.
With that in mind, read on for 10 big, non-obvious, cross-industry questions about our future normal, inspired by the amazing startups I met this week.
A note from our sponsor (me!): As we approach y/e planning season, many of you will be looking ahead to 2025.
🚨 I’d love to help.🚨 The two main things I can bring to your next event:
VisuAIse Futures: a new interactive, ‘multiplayer’ AI-powered creative experience. Watch the 2-min highlight video.
Your Future Normal: a non-obvious trend keynote.
Read more about these at the bottom of this email, if you’re interested.
We’re deep in event ‘season’. In the last 2 weeks I’ve done events in London, Bournemouth, Hamburg, Berlin and New York. Next up is New York (again!), Las Vegas, Rome, Greece, Riyadh. Oh, and Berkshire :)
If you’d like to discuss bringing me to your next event, please do mail Renee Strom on renee@ideapress-speakers.com.
What if we could have limitless clean water, everywhere? Desolenator is a Dutch startup using solar power to create net zero, solar desalination plants in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. I wrote about the decentralisation of energy systems in The Future Normal, now these same ideas could apply to water, too. This will have fascinating second-order implications in every industry.
What if we had portable, cheap fusion power, that could fit on your desk? Avalanche Fusion is taking a solar-like approach to building micro fusion power generators (first potential use case: decarbonising shipping). Wow.
What if sustainable solutions could also create good, local jobs? Technological solutions are nothing if they aren't maintained. Chargerhelp! is an inspirational black, female-founded startup that trains EV charger technicians, ensuring that communities have reliable access to infrastructure and economic opportunities.
What if we could use existing infrastructure to better understand our climate? Maersk and United Airlines are partnering with NOAA’s scientists to capture richer atmospheric data as their ships and planes traverse the globe. One unexpected benefit? The companies found their teams wanted to participate in such an important effort.
What if we looked beyond just carbon emissions and net zero? Balance.eco is trying to remedy our carbon tunnel vision by issuing credits that factor in biodiversity and social & economic wellbeing as well. What gets measured gets managed.
What if we could farm the ocean to help farmers on land? Kelp Blue harvests the top layer of its ocean-based kelp forests to produce its crop biostimulant (‘like Red Bull for crops’), while the lower layers capture CO2. We need many more of these triple wins – increased yields, fewer chemicals and improved biodiversity – in the future normal.
What’s the Tesla equivalent in your industry? Flux Marine are making electric boats. Oh, and their engines are also quieter, need less maintenance and accelerate quicker. A great example of sustainability without sacrifice.
What if brands kept their products in circulation? Circular economy commerce platform Pentatonic is partnering with LEGO to enable customers in the US and Germany to sell their old (‘pre-loved’) bricks back to the company. As a dad to a LEGO-obsessed six-year-old, I want this to come to the UK so badly!
What will ‘local’ mean in the future normal? Today, “Made in NY” applies to either cheap tourist tat or service businesses like finance, ads, law and tech. C16 Biosciences (synthetic palm oil) and Fork & Goode (cultivated ground pork) are two synbio startups making their physical products in Manhattan and New Jersey, respectively.
With Stephen Murphy the founder of Climate Impact at IndieBio’s Manhattan-based biotech lab. What if we can imagine a better future normal? My final yet also biggest takeaway is the power of our collective imagination. The founders who joined us face incredible obstacles. Some face technical challenges as they create frontier technologies. Others face financial challenges, as they seek funding for things that have never been commercialised. Others face cultural challenges, as they try to drive behavioural and/or systemic change. Yet the general vibe was one of amazing optimism. Maybe it is triggered by New York's energy, but it felt a world away from the negativity and nihilism around climate that you find in the press.
We need to imagine a future normal we want to live in. Because we’ll only create the future we can imagine. Let’s go.
Can I inspire your team to seize the future?
This year I’ve delivered 20+ sessions, both live and virtually – from Brazil to Saudi Arabia, Slovenia to Shoreditch.
As well as my regular trend & innovation keynotes, I’m hugely excited about the reactions to my newest offering – VisuAIse Futures.
It’s an interactive, ‘multiplayer’ creative experience that will leave your audience thinking differently about AI:
“It was so refreshing to hear how AI can be used to power human imagination, rather than replace it. And then it was even better to actually experience it”
“Fantastic session! Hugely insightful and fun, too!”
“Brilliant. The feeling in the room was positively intense whilst the images were coming through!
Feel the optimistic vibes it will bring to your event in the 2-minute video below.
If you’d like to discuss bringing me to your next meeting or event then please do reach out directly to Renee Strom or check out my speaking site.
Thanks for reading,