2022

There are entire ecosystems thriving beneath our feet. I co-authored this week’s Instigator with Toby Kiers, Professor of Evolutionary Biology and University Research Chair at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and the Executive Director of the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (SPUN). I serve as the Chair of SPUN’s Board of Directors.  SPUN’s mission is to protect […]

My response to the proposed Energy Transition Accelerator Last month, US Climate Envoy John Kerry, along with the Rockefeller Foundation and the Bezos Earth Fund, came out with a proposal to create a new voluntary carbon credit market — the “Energy Transition Accelerator.” The goal is to quickly ramp up the flow of capital to the developing world

Here’s how you can do your part this Thanksgiving. It’s almost Thanksgiving here in the US, traditionally a time to pause, reflect on what we’re grateful for and express our appreciation.  I’d like to thank the readers of The Instigator for all of your engagement with us. You keep us on our toes, regularly challenge our positions,

Use it to Start Some Broad, Bi-Partisan Dialogue Winston Churchill is credited with the expression, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” The context was the end of World War II, one of the most destructive and tragic events in world history. And the opportunity he found in its aftermath was the formation of

How to Accelerate Corporate Decarbonization A rash of recent reports are sounding the alarm about greenwashing. The basic argument is that companies are intentionally trying to fool the public by exaggerating their decarbonization progress, thereby squandering our opportunity to actually achieve the net-zero emissions the world so badly needs.   Want to know our take?  Concerns

How we can get every company to be more like Patagonia This week, The Instigator is coming to you live from the conclusion of Climate Week in New York City. We’ve spent an action-packed few days encouraging corporate leaders to prioritize decarbonization, pushing investors to take longer views and make bigger bets to support bold climate strategies, urging political

And how not to do it Editor’s Note:  The Instigator is co-authored this week by Mark Tercek and Peter Ebsen Some good news in the net zero stocktake report 2022: some one-third (702) companies from the Forbes Global 2000 have pledged to achieve net zero targets (up from one-fifth as of 12/20). That’s pretty encouraging.  But . .

Biodiversity extinction markets break down as prices soar. Like the global carbon offset program, the international biodiversity extinction credit market is designed to organize the private sector’s responsibility to pay for the environmental consequences of their business activity. The specific goal is to incentivize companies to reach net-zero extinction-causing behavior.  Under the global extinction credit

President Biden makes a key climate nomination Back-to-back good news on the climate front is good news indeed. I for one could get used to this unexpected but very welcome turn of events when it comes to government action on climate.   First was the incredible news of the Manchin-Schumer climate proposal (aka The Inflation Reduction Act), which

Homework for the climate concerned News of the pending Manchin-Schumer bill came as a very welcome surprise this week. It still has an uncertain road ahead (all eyes on Senator Sinema), but if it does pass, it will be the biggest climate legislation in US history. That’s worth taking a moment to celebrate. It’s also