⚡ 7 climate finance insights from Jamaica and its Rastafari roots (#191)
4 insights, 4 minutes, 400 climate CEOs & investors
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Four topics:
7 climate finance insights from Jamaica (and its Rastafari roots).
$15M of VC for ex-Uber executives: “Stripe for electric vehicle charging.”
Avoid being crushed by external forces: Wisdom from a poet & cancer survivor.
A story about hot dogs, or the #1 driver of startup success.
1.
7 climate finance insights from Jamaica (and its Rastafari roots).
Last week, I joined a few dozen impact investors, entrepreneurs, and policymakers in Jamaica for the Global Climate Finance Forum.
Our workshop question was this: “How do we move more capital to climate solutions in the Global South?”
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Why does this matter?
85% of the global increase in GHG emissions by 2100 is to come from the Global South (which includes China, which some debate).
The impacts of climate change are often felt first, and most severely, by Global South countries, despite their tiny contribution to the problem.
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Here are a few of my takeaways, but these are just the tip of the (melting) iceberg.
We need to dispel the myth that data tells the whole story: In fact, stories of personal wins and challenges are often more convincing than numbers and spreadsheets (though I love them so!).
Renewable energy can also support food abundance where it’s needed most: Koolboks is a VC-backed, Paris- and Nigeria-based company selling “solar-powered freezers, equipped with Pay-As-You-Go technology and offered through an innovative Cooling-as-a-Service model.” Low refrigeration rates in many parts of Africa (~17%) contribute to serious food waste (~40%).
Climate investment in the Global South “buys a lot more benefits” than in high-income countries: Given lower labor costs, material costs, and company valuations, the same investment in, say, solar systems in Southeast Asia can produce far more clean energy than, say, in the EU. This sounds obvious, but I hadn’t given it enough thought before.
The Global South also includes low- and middle-income communities in high-income countries: This reminds me of an MBA course I taught at UNC Chapel Hill years ago. It was a social enterprise capstone course, so we had teams of students working with clients on real-world projects in two places: Ethiopia (obvious) and eastern North Carolina (less obvious), just hours from the high incomes and opportunity in Research Triangle Park.
The entire event was plant-based and alcohol-free. And nobody ran away crying in tears: We often assume that the way things have always been done is how they will always be done. Not so. The food and drink choice was inspired by the Rastafari tradition of ital — a plant-based diet focused on natural, unprocessed foods — and avoiding alcohol as “a processed, impure substance that doesn't belong in the temple of the body as it clouds thinking, truth-seeking.” (Note: There might have been after parties where different rules applied.) In addition, plant-based diets rank #3 in Project Drawdown’s list of high-potential climate solutions.
The benchmarks of business as usual might be easier to beat in the Global South: For example, the cost of electricity in Jamaica is ~42 c/kwh (versus ~10-15 c/kwh in the US), and the cost to finance small businesses in much of the Global South is 20-30% interest from legitimate financial institutions. (It’s even higher with predatory lenders.)
Be so great they can’t ignore you: We traveled from Montego Bay on the coast 2,000 feet and 90 minutes up into Jamaica’s mountains to Stush in the Bush, an award-winning farm-to-table, entirely plant-based extravaganza. Or in the words of the husband (photo below) and wife owners: “It is sustainable luxury and sexy vegetarianism. It is the first ingredient on every bottle, in every meal, in all we do… love and affection.” It was not easy to get there, but it was one of the best meals of my life, and an inspiration for building something so unique that people will flock to your door, however remote.
2.
$15M of VC for ex-Uber executives: “Stripe for electric vehicle charging.”
Ashwin Dias, CEO of Presto Charging, was my recent guest on our Entrepreneurs for Impact (EFI) podcast.
Presto provides fleets and their drivers with a single app or API to charge on the go across thousands of public fast-chargers.
Their app is the top-rated U.S. charging app and is trusted by some of the largest, most rapidly electrifying fleets, including Uber, Hertz, and Avis.
Previously, Ashwin was the Global Head of Vehicles & Electrification at Uber.
They recently raised a $15 million seed round led by Union Square Ventures and included investments from Congruent Ventures, Jetstream, and Powerhouse Ventures.
🎯 So what?
Listen to the podcast and share your thoughts on my LinkedIn post.
3.
Avoid being crushed by external forces: Wisdom from a poet & cancer survivor.
“There is a wind that keeps blowing since the beginning of time, and in every language ever spoken, it continues to whisper, ‘You must meet the outer world with your inner world or existence will crush you.’
This is why ninety-year-old widows remain committed to tending small flowers in spring; why ten-year-olds with very little to eat care for stray kittens, holding them to their skinny chests; why painters going blind paint more; why composers going deaf write great symphonies.
This is why when we think we can’t possibly try again, we let out a sigh that goes back through the centuries, and then, despite all our experience, we inhale and try again.”
This comes from poet Mark Nepo’s book, The Book of Awakening: Having the Life You Want by Being Present to the Life You Have.
🎯 So what?
It’s easy to neglect our inner worlds.
The outer world is so visceral, so convincing, so urgent.
But we can’t fall for that illusion.
The urgent and the important are often not the same thing.
4.
A story about hot dogs, or the #1 driver of startup success.
Once upon a time, a wise business school professor with piercing humor* asked his class, “What’s the most important key to success for a hot dog stand?”
The students responded: “Location, high quality, low prices, great taste, more toppings, guys in silly costumes doing acrobats with signs out front...”
They continued until their ideas ran out like ketchup on a hot dog. (Sorry, too easy.)
The professor smiled and replied: “A starving crowd.”
🎯 So what?
Maybe you’re the next Steve Jobs or Akio Morita (Sony’s founder), and you can sell billions of dollars of product with no explicit customer demand or market research. (Think iPhone and Walkman.)
If not, then make sure your customers are salivating for what you’re selling.
As the old cliche goes: It’s better to sell Tylenol than vitamins.
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* No similarity to yours truly
That’s all, y’all.
Make it a great week. It’s usually a choice.
~ Chris
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I work in luxury travel, and I've seen firsthand how much harder it is for small, local businesses in the Caribbean or parts of Southeast Asia to access affordable infrastructure,whether it's clean energy, refrigeration, or financing.
Also, that phrase “be so great they can’t ignore you” really stayed with me. It reminds me of a remote lodge I visited in Costa Rica,plant-based, solar-powered, no cell service, and still booked solid year-round. People will go the extra mile for authenticity and vision.
Do you think more investors are starting to understand that ROI isn’t just about financial returns, but also long-term resilience in places like Jamaica or Indonesia?
Thanks for sharing!