Decarbon Daily - Issue for July 29, 2021

Over the past two days, I've been able to participate in the VERGE Net-Zero sessions. I'd attend again and my hope for next time is that there are more practical case studies and clearer steps for leaders to take back to their companies. Pooja Khosla, an economist at Entelligent summed it up quite nicely:

The journey to net zero will not be linear and smooth

I'm an advocate for evolutionary and revolutionary thinking when it comes to energy and clean technology. Advancing our thinking and experience does not happen over night, and there's no doubt we are and will be in the early days for quite some time.

Unfortunately, the problem of scale and second-order effects come into energy and clean tech. Scale is understood and you can see infrastructure, for example, all around us in our daily life.

By second-order effect, I mean each consequence (good or bad) has its' own consequence. Often these are unintended consequences that we do not visualize at the time. Your unknown-unknowns so to speak. Infrastructure, policy, social responsibility, and geo-politics will always come into play as we discuss energy security and energy transition. Solving a simple problem in one construct may be detrimental to another.

For instance, yesterday I wrote about the battery wars heating up based on EV and battery demand. Clear first-order effects include economic jobs for nickel and cobalt mines and more demand for a country's rare minerals. Not to mention more products and technology for developed countries. But what about the second-order consequences? A second-order impact may be other consequences for supply chain such as recycling more batteries, increased emissions due to logistics between Africa and China, or taking investment capital away from higher impact investments.

Ms Khosla is right ... it will be a journey.

Find out more on the VERGE Net-Zero online event.

Inside this Issue

♻️ Microsoft's Sustainability Resources - Scope 1, 2, & 3
📒 Vechain Tracks Emissions on the Blockchain
📒 Devvio Brings ESG to the Blockchain
👩‍💻 Open Footprint Forum: Data Accuracy for Emissions
💰 Redwood Materials Raises $700M to Expand Battery Recycling