Climate Tech Index roller coaster | 200 million climate refugees | Reviving wooly mammoths for GHG reduction
Plus, a new ESG framework from Engine No. 1, ClimateRaise for women founders, we're all insecure (so what?), an angel investor and data scientist walk into a bar
Howdy folks,
Hope you enjoy the latest ZERO: Climate Finance newsletter from Entrepreneurs for Impact. If you have feedback, I’m all ears. Drop me an email!
Cheers,
Chris
3 climate headlines worth reading
Report: Climate change could move 200 million people by 2050 (AP)
Scenarios matter — The “216 million refugee” estimate is based on the most pessimistic scenario from the World Bank report. But even in the scenario of “we all hug trees in unison while singing Kumbaya,” the projection is still more than 40 million climate refugees.
Some climate impacts were left out — Projections were only based on “slow-onset” climate change including water scarcity, decreasing crop productivity and rising sea levels. But short-term impacts of climate change (e.g., extreme weather events) were not considered. (“Wait, is my thermometer melting? Well, that’s new, honey.”)
Takeaway — Climate. Change. Is. Not. Just. An. Environmental. Issue.
Exclusive: Engine No. 1 investment framework aims to tie company valuations to climate impact (Reuters)
Who’s Engine No. 1? — An impact investment group whose activity helped get three of its climate-aware candidates onto the Board of Directors at Exxon, despite only holding a 0.02% stake in Exxon.
Their Total Value Framework — “Our Framework avoids common ESG scores and rankings in favor of quantifying corporate stakeholder impact in actual dollar amounts.” Download their white paper here.
Bitcoin billionaires bet big on reviving woolly mammoths to combat climate change (Fortune)
Say what? — A serial entrepreneur and Harvard genetics professor have teamed up to launch startup Colossal with $15M of funding from the likes of “billionaires Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss of Winklevoss Capital, Tim Draper of Draper Associates, Peter Diamandis of Bold Capital, Jim Breyer of Breyer Capital,
Thomas Tull of Legendary Pictures, and the amazing “Mr. You Can Do Anything But Not Everything” Tony Robbins.Shooting for the moon — If things go right, they hope to use mammoths to restore “the plant root systems where they graze and thereby pull more carbon from the atmosphere,” while also helping protect other endangered species knocking on the door of extinction.
An angel investor and a data scientist walk into a bar…
If you’ve ever been curious about angel investing in climate tech or sustainability startups, then Zecca J. Lehn might be your sherpa. His Medium post is a great “how-to” with a true data scientist’s approach to quantifying his approach.
Are you looking to support more women innovators solving climate change?
If so, then ClimateRaise has some ideas for you. Each week, they profile 3-4 women-led climate startups via their newsletter. So far they’ve highlighted about 38 of these changemakers. Check them out here.
Oh snap. The Climate Tech Index needs a jolt of yerba mate.
Well, I would have said a “caffeine boost from coffee,” but my morning podcast told me that that delicious, dark, and brooding delight the adrenal glands. Those poor guys.
Alas, the rise and fall of the EIP Climate Tech Index — which tracks about 35 public companies — reminds us of a few things.
What does up usually comes down
Climate tech is awesome, but not full proof — despite the Armageddon Day headlines and seemingly infinite list of net zero by 2050 pledges
Public markets are fickle and emotional
Private markets are different than pubic markets, and good luck creating a believable index for those
EV and AV SPACs have created lots of hyped prices before settling down for a more normal ride
Thanks to Energy Impact Partners (EIP) for putting this together.
Do you want the last seat in our Climate Mastermind?
Entrepreneurs for Impact is the only private executive mastermind community for CEOs, founders, and investors fighting climate change.
We’re on a mission to help “scale up” climate leaders supercharge their impacts and reach their full leadership potential.
Our highly vetted, invite-only cohorts of 11 executives catalyze personal development and business growth via monthly meetings, annual retreats, a member-only Climate Investor Database, and 1:1 coaching and strategy calls. Here are some sample CEO members.
It’s lonely at the top. But it doesn’t have to be.
Check out membership benefits.
Learn more about us.
Application deadline — September 15.
That’s all, folks.
Make it a great week, because it’s usually a choice.
— Chris
P.S. You are better than you think.
“If you are insecure, guess what? The rest of the world is, too. Do not overestimate the competition and underestimate yourself.”
— Tim Ferris: Author (Four-Hour Work Week, etc.), podcast (500+ million downloads), angel investor, human guinea pig, and the guy that got me hooked on entrepreneurship and lifestyle hacking while reading on a hammock in El Yunque rainforest
P.S.S. Global startup competition — Sept. 23
My friends at Startup Basecamp are hosting the Future of Climate Tech GLOBAL Startup Competition on September 23 to bring together high-potential startups from 6 continents that are seeking to have a global impact on climate change. Apply here.
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Dr. Chris Wedding
Founder and Chief Catalyst, Entrepreneurs for Impact
The Only Private Executive Mastermind Community for CEOs, Founders, and Investors Fighting Climate Change
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