The Forthcoming Economic Collapse Could Save Us From Ourselves

We are headed for a paradigm changing economic collapse.  COVID-19 is exacting a massive toll on human life and it will devastate our economies, but this tragic turn of events may also augur hope. It may very well prove to be the catalyst that helps us to avert even bigger crises.

Wildlife Conservation Society's Joe Walston explained it this way: "It actually, sadly, takes people to die on people's doorsteps, for people to die in people's families, for that wake-up call to happen, which is always inevitably later than it should be. But I believe that the world is realizing now that these are environmental problems, that they are going to happen again unless we take action."

The cornavirus will cost hundreds of thousands of lives and trillions of dollars. It reveals the unconscionable immorality of wealth inequality and lays bare the need for universal health care. According to a new report by researchers at King’s College London and the Australian National University, this pandemic is expected to increase global poverty for the first time in 30 years pushing up to 580 million people into poverty.  Although people of the global south are the most vulnerable, this pandemic also exposes racial injustice in the some of the world's wealthiest nations.

Although this modern day plague will inflict terrible suffering it may help us to find the resolve to stave off climate change which is a far greater threat to human life and economic well being. The emotional resonance of COVID-19 may even help us to challenge some deeply entrenched views that detract from the common good. The myopic focus on short term profits is incapable of producing the change we need in the time we have.

The coronavirus highlights the importance of science and evidence based policy. A rational reassessment of our economy makes an irrefutable case for prioritizing climate action. Failure to do so will cost trillions of dollars not to mention pose a significant threat to civilization as we know it. According to one study these costs could be as high as $160 trillion over the next 30 years. Whereas acting on climate change will yield trillions of dollars in net economic benefits.

The logic of climate action is overwhelming and yet this logic has not augured the action we need. We must face the reality that we are ebbing ever closer to tipping points from which we may not be able to recover. We have not been able to galvanize the popular will or garner the political support required to move us decisively in the direction we need to go. Despite a plethora of scientific warnings governments have not done what they must to address climate change.

The biodiversity crisis and climate change are tragedies of the global commons. The core of the problem is an economic system that rewards and incentivizes plundering our planet and destroying our climate. This has led Canadian sustainability strategist and the Founder of the Toronto Sustainability Speaker Series (TSSS) Brad Zarnett to say: 

"The path towards a stable climate will need to run through some kind of economic collapse. It will have nothing to do with a more sustainable business model or more progressive government action — both of those approaches have failed. Let’s face it — people just don’t feel the urgency to change how they live their lives and government is too weak and/or corrupt to lead the way...For real change to occur there needs to be a trigger, something has to jolt us out of our familiar ways. Something has to alter our expectations about what the future will look like if we follow our current path. That is to say, we perceive a greater level of risk with our old behaviour as compared to trying something new. And that’s where a perfect dose of fear comes into the equation — that’s the activation button for us to collectively realize that it’s time to take the medicine that science tells us is necessary...covid-19 is like nature reasserting itself, turning on a switch that says enough is enough — if you won’t make the economic system more climate friendly then we’ll just shut the whole thing down."

The fact is our current economic reality is untenable. We need to come to terms with the perils of an economy that is premised on endless growth. Instead of GDP and stock market valuations we need to emphasize metrics that reward efforts to conserve biodiversity and preserve ecosystem health. One noteworthy measure was proposed by statistician Nic Marks. He has suggested that nations measure their success with an altogether different metric called HPI.

The ways we assess success are important because these measurements frame our responses.  We already have data that indicates COVID-19 has accomplished more in a matter of weeks than we have seen in decades. Global emission are going down and support for climate action is increasing.  This pandemic is even eroding the infrastructure responsible for climate change. The oil price crash is bankrupting thousands of extraction and production companies and contributing to the demise of the industry.

Depending on an economic collapse to address the world's most serious challenges is indeed extreme. But more reasonable warnings have fallen on deaf ears. We must find a way to radically slash our emissions and sustainably manage our resource consumption. The alternative is suicide. 

Related
The Revolutionary Upside of COVID-19

COVID-19 is Driving Down Emissions and Buoying Hope for Climate Action

The coronavirus will result in one of the largest declines in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) in history.  This is the biggest emission reduction in more than seventy years.  In a mere matter of weeks COVID-19 has done what we have been trying to do for decades. This modern day plague has also dealt a significant blow to the fossil fuel industry and thousands of extraction and production companies are expected to become insolvent due to the oil crash of 2020. Any decrement in fossil fuel infrastructure increases the likelihood that we can keep temperatures below critical thresholds.

According to data commissioned by the Guardian, restrictions associated with the coronavirus will cut carbon emissions from fossil fuels by 2.5bn tonnes in 2020 or 5 percent. Restrictions on travel, work and industry are expected to cut millions of tonnes of coal, billions of barrels of oil and trillions of cubic metres of gas from the global energy system in 2020.

The combination of less industry, less cars and less air traffic is expected to produce an emissions reduction of at least 5 percent this year.  This is five times the emissions reduction we saw during the great recession of 2008. This is a bold step in the right direction and close to the levels of emissions reduction we need to keep temperatures from surpassing the upper threshold temperature limits. As reported by UNEP, the UN Gap report indicates that emissions will need to fall by an average of 7.6 percent each year to stay within acceptable limits.

Our experience with the coronavirus buoys hopes for climate action. The emissions reductions we have seen from the shutdown definitively proves that humans activity drives emissions. The reduction in GHGs reinforces the message of scientists who have been warning governments to lower emissions for decades. The COVID-19 pandemic makes the point that although humans do not respond to things they don't directly feel and experience they have demonstrated that they are very good at responding to immediate threats. Another lesson we have learned is that governments are capable of acting quickly.

Prior to the pandemic we were rushing headlong to disaster, burning through our carbon budgets and rapidly running out of time.  We have been forced to pause and this gives us a chance to consider the greatest looming catastrophe humanity has ever faced.  The coronavirus gives us a small foretaste of what a world ravaged by climate change will be like.  Such a world will not only include supply chain disruptions, we can also expect to see more outbreaks of deadly diseases, devastating extreme weather events and a host of apocalyptic chain reactions.

This pandemic offers us a glimmer of hope. By captivating global attention we are being forced to reexamine our economies are consider stimulus packages that could help us curtail the climate crisis. As always there are caveats to our economic and energy predicaments. While low oil prices are killing the fossil fuel industry, low prices also make dirty energy more attractive compared to renewable sources of energy.  Most importantly we need to be weary of efforts to resume our pre-coronavirus economy. We will never be able to address the climate crisis if we return to business as usual. If the rebound after the great recession is any indication we have reason to be concerned as  emissions increased by more than 5 percent after 2009. We are already seeing evidence that emissions are increasing again in China after a short-term reduction of 25 percent.

This is precisely what worries Pierre Friedlingstein, chair in mathematical modelling of the climate system at the University of Exeter in southwest England. "Even if there is a decline in emissions in 2020, let’s say 10 per cent or 20 percent, it’s not negligible, it’s important, but from a climate point of view, it would be a small dent if emissions go back to pre-Covid-19 crisis levels in 2021," Friedlingstein said

The coronavirus is a wake-up call that affords us an opportunity to retool our economies. While it is tragic that hundreds of thousands of people had to die to get us to take notice, it would be even more tragic if we go back to where we were and they die in vain.

The Oil Crash of 2020 Could Bankrupt Thousands of Fossil Fuel Companies

The oil crash of 2020 is driving down prices and contributing to the demise of the fossil fuel industry. This will drive hundreds and perhaps even thousands of companies into bankruptcy as part of a cascade of industry failures. In the face of oversupply and falling demand due to the cornavirus the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Russia agreed to cut oil output by 10 percent but this did not stop the free-fall.

The fossil fuel industry was in trouble long before the start of the price war between Russia and OPEC. Market realities have been signalling the end of fossil fuels for many years. In 2016 it was becoming apparent that diminishing oil returns were threatening the future of the industry. In 2019 we saw a wave of fossil fuel bankruptcies.

The coronavirus is another nail in the coffin of an already enfeebled oil industry. These dramatic price declines pushed crude oil futures into negative territory for the first time in history. On April 20, 2020 the price of crude oil was -$38 per barrel forcing companies to pay to get rid of their oil oversupply. This is due in part to a shutdown in business activity which has significantly diminished energy demand and travel.An analysis by Rystad Energy indicates that global oil demand contracted by 22 million barrels per day in April and 2.2 billion barrels for the year amounting to 5.7 percent dip.

Many had predicted a crash in oil prices years ago. In 2016 Thierry Lepercq, head of research at French energy company Engie, predicted that oil could get as low as $10. In 2017 Stanford University economist Tony Seba published a report which also predicted the collapse of the price of oil.

Declining oil demand is heading towards what CNN described as a "doomsday scenario" in which many oil and gas companies will not survive. The shale oil and tar sands sectors of the fossil fuel industry may disappear altogether. The Rystad analysis reveals that at at $30, FCF from public exploration and production (E&P) company will drop 70 percent year over year. At $20 a barrel 533 US oil exploration and production companies will file for bankruptcy by the end of 2021. At $10, there would be thousands of bankruptcies including almost every US E&P company carrying debt.

According to Reid Morrison, US energy leader at PwC, the situation is far worse than it was during the contraction of 2014-2016. It will also be far worse than what we saw in the wake of the financial crisis on 2007-2008. Erik Holm Reiso, a senior partner at Rystad Energy, said in 2008 and 2009, "demand fell by 1.3m barrels of oil a day. But Covid-19 could cause oil demand to fall by more than five times as much."

Fossil fuel titans like Noble Energy, Halliburton, Marathon Oil and Occidental have all lost more than two-thirds of their value and giants like Chesapeake Energy and Oasis Petroleum are on the verge of dissolution. While they may be the next dominoes to fall, they wont be the last. Rather than filing for Chapter 11 which allows firms to restructure their debt, we are likely to see many Chapter 7 liquidations.

Online Event - Sustainatopia Virtual Conference Series 2020

Sustainatopia Virtual Conferences series 2020 will take place on May 20th, June 23rd, July 22nd and August 20th. This series is focused on accelerating business development and investment acquisition within social, financial and environmental sustainability. Founded in 2009, SUSTAINATOPIA remains one of the leading events in the world of its’ kind. Attendees have participated from more than 60 countries. Sustainatopia curates an expert global ecosystem of Investors/Fund Managers, Corporations, Foundations, Non-Profits, Social Entrepreneurs, Government, Think Tanks & Leading Intermediaries within a high engagement, heavy networking format- supplemented by outstanding, leading-edge content.

4 virtual conferences
  • Accelerating the Purpose Economy will take place on Wednesday, May 20th
  • Money4Good 2020 will take place on Tuesday, June 23rd
  • Sustainatopia2 will take place on Wednesday, July 22nd
  • All In On Impact will take place on Thursday, August 20th
  •  
Engagement activities:
  • Live video and on demand keynote speakers and panels presentations
  • Collateral information sharing Live chatting options
  • Recorded sessions for archival review 1-on-1s and group meeting capabilities
  • Concurrent breakout sessions
  • Exhibiting booths for vendors Ability to connect and share contact details with participating colleagues

 

8 TRACKS

1. The Ecosystem of Impact, SRI & ESG Investing

SUSTAINATOPIA curates one of the world’s most powerful networks of leading Impact & SRI Investors, funds, foundations, social entrepreneurs, B Corporations, government agencies, and top intermediaries in order the accelerate the flow of capital to projects and investments

2. Sustainable Strategies & Innovation (Fortune 500s)

Focus on Fortune 500 companies: Leading Executives For Latest Trends in Strategic Branding & Sustainable Innovations.

3. Energy, Water & Smart City Revolution

Clean Tech & Energy, and Water includes leading investors, companies in renewable energy, recycling, info tech, green transport, green chemistry, buildings. Water Investment is a continuation of our previously successful California program . Smart Cities focuses on both tech and non-tech solutions to developing more sustainable communities and better quality living standards.

4. Focus on Base of the Pyramid (Global Impact)

Impact & Sustainability is truly Global! This track is specific to the leaders of organizations of all sizes targeting the base of the pyramid in communities around the world. For both long-standing experienced global development organizations and also new social entrepreneurs + small non-profits also welcome.

5. Paris & the SDGs

Paris in 2020 includes special workshops + sessions for Paris Under2 Coalition members + other sustainability professionals. Both tech and non-tech solutions featured as well as underserved & collaborative solutions.

6. Inclusive & Sustainable Economy: It’s Time

Meet the leading companies, investors, foundations & non profit leaders who are creating a truly inclusive & sustainable economy. With a large focus on empowering women through investment and underserved communities. Includes Opportunity Zone investing.

7. Empowering Women through Investment
8. Design & New Impact Opportunities (including cbd/cannibas economy)

Click here to register

Online Event - Virtual Momentum Summit: Real Leaders & Resilience How to Lead Before, During, and After A Crisis

The Virtual Momentum Summit titled "Real Leaders & Resilience How to Lead Before, During, and After A Crisis" will take place on May 19, 2020 | 12 pm – 5 pm EDT.  At this summit more than 200 CEOs will gather virtually and explore how to build more resilient companies.  They will share their lessons, experience, and challenges as part of an effort to cope with an increasingly chaotic world in which companies will have to contend with outbreaks, climate disruption, and associated social unrest.

While coronavirus is separating us at the moment, this virtual summit is an opportunity to connect, engage and come together as a community of real leaders who are using business as a force for good. This virtual summit will focus on building resilient company that can recover and adjust easily to change.

This event is designed for of rapidly-growing companies with annual revenues over $500k.  It is opened to founders, CEOs and c-suite executives including chief executive officers (CEO), chief financial officers (CFO), chief operating officers (COO), and chief information officer (CIO). However, there must be a demonstrative positive environmental and/or social return from the company's activities.

Click here to apply. If approved, you will receive an email with a link to complete your registration.

COVID-19 Exposes Supply Chain Vulnerabilities that Cause Food Insecurity

The cornavirus pandemic has highlighted supply chain weaknesses that are causing food shortages. As explained in an FAO report, the global pandemic is threatening supply lines leading to concerns about food insecurity. "A protracted pandemic crisis could quickly put a strain on the food supply chains, a complex web of interactions involving farmers, agricultural inputs, processing plants, shipping, retailers and more," the report said. In a March paper the U.N. Committee on World Food Security (CFS) warned that Covid-19 will cause heightened instability in global food supply. The pandemic also prompted the Food and Land Use Coalition to issue a call to action for world leaders over what they describe as a humanitarian crisis requiring urgent coordinated action.


Food shortages are already apparent around the world and according to Business Insider, food retailers may experience food shortages for 18 months or more. Food that comes from large industrial farms are especially vulnerable. The megabarns in which livestock and poultry are produced are breeding grounds for disease. Social distancing is not an option for farm workers or those that work in food processing facilities. Disease rapidly spreads in such workplaces and when these workers get sick the supply chain breaks down.

However, our current situation affords insight into the mechanics of supply chain disruptions. COVID-19 is far from over and it is certainly not the last pandemic we will face. We also know that climate change will be far more disruptive to supply chains. A warming planet interferes with food production by decreasing the fertility of soils, reducing the number of pollinators and increasing extreme weather events including droughts and floods.

As explained by Seckin Ozkul, a supply chain management expert at the University of South Florida, these disruptions help us to identify vulnerabilities. "We had seen regional, we had seen national disasters and destruction, but we had never seen a full global [disruption] at the same time — everyone shot down at the same time," Ozkul said. "So now we want to look at this so that the next time it happens we can be better prepared and we can actually take the necessary precautions so we don't see the impact as much as we see it now."

Using the lessons gleaned from this pandemic we can redesign our supply chains in ways that mitigate against the risks of disruption. One of the most important things we can do is create sustainable supply chains. To help reduce the risks associated with factory farms we can diversify the procurement of our foods so that we are not overly dependent on any one source.

Related
Building Resilience to Supply Chain Disruptions due to Climate Change
Supply Chain Sustainability Guidance and Standards
Sustainable Procurement: Environmental Social and Economic Supply Chain Considerations
How to Craft Value Out of Sustainability Focused Supply Chains
The Sustainable Supply Chain Imperative
The Supply Chain of CO2 Emissions (White Paper)
Digging In: The Nuts and Bolts of Supply Chain Sustainability (White Paper)
Sustainable Supply Chains are Profitable

The Coronavirus is Killing Dirty Energy

The fossil fuel industry is dying and COVID-19 is expediting the demise of this climate destroying monster. This comes after years of volatility and poor returns which had already forced many investors to concede that the industry is approaching the end of its life cycle. We know that phasing out fossil fuels could go a long way towards arresting climate change and the current market realities are inviting us to do so. According to a study published in the journal Nature Communications we have a 64 percent chance of staying below 1.5 C above preindustrial levels if we stop building new fossil fuel infrastructure (power plants, factories, vehicles, ships and planes) and replace them with zero-carbon alternatives when they reach the end of their lives. The longer we wait the more it will cost and the less likely we are to get there. If we wait until 2030 our chances of staying within the upper threshold limits fall by half.

"We are rapidly approaching the end of the age of fossil fuels. This study confirms that all new energy infrastructure must be sustainable from now on if we are to avoid locking in commitments to emissions that would lead to the world exceeding the goals of the Paris agreement," said Nicholas Stern, of the London School of Economics.

We may have moved past peak oil but we still have a long way to go. Although fossil fuels are the leading source of climate change causing emissions emissions the world still gets 80 percent of their energy from oil, gas and coal. The first step towards weaning ourselves off of hydrocarbons involves ending fossil fuel subsidies. It is only reasonable that big polluters must begin to pay for the pollution they produce. Continuing to build out dirty energy infrastructure is madness and bailing out oil companies makes no sense. The smartest and cheapest place to store oil is in the ground.

The fossil fuel industry will fight to the bitter end. They will call on their political minions to continue doing their bidding and protecting their interests. Those who reside in the world's most powerful nation may hold the future of the planet in their hands. If Americans can find their way through the maze of disinformation they will realize that the future of life on this planet is in the balance and they cannot afford to reelect the current administration.

Will Americans support parties and presidents that are beholden to fossil fuel interests? If truth prevails they will turn their backs on the manipulative politics of hate and division and demand a government that supports policies that are in the national interest and serve the public good.

The speed at which governments were able to institute a response to the coronavirus suggests that with sufficient political will we could also address the climate crisis. The sickness and tragic loss of life associated with COVID-19 forces us to reflect on our perilous trajectory. Although there is little reason to expect a quick recovery Forbes predicts that we will go right back to where we were. However, others predict that there is no normal to return to. If we do return back to our pre-coronavirus path, we will have missed a golden opportunity to save ourselves from ourselves and the suffering and death will have been in vain.

Earth Day Special: The Road to Recovery - The Courage to Hope for a Better World

On the 50th anniversary of Earth Day we must summon the courage to dream and find the resolve to strive to make those dreams a reality. It is easy to be overwhelmed with hopelessness. However, from within the womb of this dystopian nightmare a lofty hope is emerging. An inclusive narrative is being born in which we are all called to be heroes.

We have achieved great things in recent decades. Poverty is at it lowest levels in human history and global life expectancy is at its highest. We have shown that we can make a difference. We are burning less coal and this has reduced acid rain and by eliminating CFCs we are healing the ozone hole. Dangerous chemicals like DDT and glyphosate are banned in much of the world. Although glyphosate is still available in the U.S., cities across the country are banning it. This is due to the environmental activism of citizens. The same environmental activism that contributed to the clean air act, and the clean water act.

However, there is much that needs to be done and little time to do it. Extreme weather events and wildfires remind us of this urgency. Sea levels are rising threatening island states and coastal cities. Humans have wiped out 60 percent of the vertebrate animals on Earth in what can only be described as a genocide against nature. The road to recovery starts with the acknowledgement of our interdependence with nature and understanding that what we do to the Earth we are doing to ourselves.

We do not have the time to wallow in despair, now is the time to rally and take charge of our future. We first need to confront our fears and acknowledge that there is hope even in the midst of a global plague. While the coronavirus highlights the economic and political weaknesses of our system, it also illustrates the speed and scale at which governments can respond.

Necessity is the mother of invention. We can remake our world because we must. We know what we have to do but it begins with realizing that we have the right to demand clean air, water and soil, just as it is our right to demand a livable future. However, there is no going around the obstacles that block our way. This means we must confront authoritarian leaderships who are trying to control the narrative to enrich themselves and serve their own political objectives.

The anti-science disinformation campaign from U.S. president Donald Trump has been an environmental nightmare. He and his administration have systematically eradicated a wide range of safeguards designed to protect Americans. His unique brand of fossil fuel powered politics is at war with nature. At a time when the country needs responsible leadership Trump continues to engage in the politics of hate and division. Trump's failure to act on COVID-19 and his mishandling of the crisis illustrate how he makes bad situations painfully worse.

The way to a better world is through holding political leaderships accountable. If we want a livable future we need political change. If we want clean air and water we have to stop relying on dirty energy. We all have different reasons to be part of the solution and millions of people all around the world are committed to change, but it starts with finding the courage to hope that we can make a difference.

Related
An Earth Day Like No Other

SRI Call for Proposals

Submit your proposal for SRI2020 before May 12, 2020. SRI welcomes all timely, topical, and relevant suggestions with a clear connection to investing to drive change through SRI and ESG. SRI2020 will take place on November 8-11, 2020 in Orlando, Florida. The theme this year is: “Designing Our Future with SRI and ESG."

In the spirit of this forward looking theme SRI is calling for proposals that explore what the future may look like and map out  how will we get there. Winning proposals will provide participants with thought-provoking, action-oriented content that showcases a path forward. This can include topics like the future of healthcare, public policy, industry, the environment, cities and communities, food and land use, space, and privacy.

The SRI Conference features the best and brightest from across the SRI and ESG ecosystem. More than 1,500 participants are expected to attend including
  • Academic practitioners
  • Advisors, investors, and other sources of capital
  • Asset managers
  • Asset owners such as retirement plans, insurance companies, foundations, endowments, and family offices
  • Corporate leaders (CEOs, Chief Sustainability Officers, Investor Relations)
  • Media representatives
  • NGOs
  • Research analysts
  • Service Providers
Keep these guidelines in mind as you craft your proposal, so you can put your best forward: Be forward-looking with sessions that focus on the future of specific industries and organizations. Disruptive new business models are welcomed.
  • Share actionable ideas - Your goal should be to provide content that participants can use right away
  • Be impactful – Tell a story, use case studies, be creative.
  • Be authentic - Our participants want to hear from those on the front lines of SRI and ESG.
  • Be unique - Do you have a bold, "out of the box" idea to move SRI/ESG forward? Tell us everything.
Speaking spots are limited and competitive and priority will be given to those who address:
  • Diversity and inclusion - Sessions that reflect diversity of race, gender, age, background, and belief systems are given priority.
  • True leadership - Are they leading in this time of disruption? Are they leading by example?
  • Authenticity -Do they have a unique story to tell? Are they willing to share both their successes and challenges?
  • Forward thinkers - Can they offer their vision and project what the industry will look like in 10 years?
  • Asset deployers - Our audience is keen to hear from financial advisors, asset owners, and others who direct investment dollars.
When you submit your proposal, you'll be asked to assign it to one of the categories listed below: Advisor Practice Management Capital Raising Climate Change Community Investing Corporate Sustainability Initiatives Cultivating the Next Generation of SRI and ESG Leaders Data and Research Direct Impact Investing Disaster Response (e.g. COVID-19 Virus Outbreak, the Opioid Crisis) Donor Advised Funds/Philanthropic Investing Economic Empowerment Fundamentals of SRI and ESG Future Trends Gender and Racial Equity Human Rights Measuring Return on Investing and Impact Portfolio Construction/Management Techniques Product and Service Innovations Resource Scarcity Retirement Plans and SRI/ESG Share-Owner Advocacy Social Entrepreneurship SRI and ESG Public Policy Stories of Impact Sustainable Agriculture Working with Foundations and Endowments Marketing to Millennials and Women.

You may submit a formal proposal by clicking on the link below, or simply share an idea more informally with us via email at info@sriconference.com with the subject line: "SRI2020 Ideas." 

Click here to share your proposal.

Four Oil and Gas Spills that are Worse than we Thought

Fossil fuels are a leading cause of climate change and research shows that ubiquitous spills and leaks are often far worse than reported.  This is according to studies out of Stanford University,  the University of Miami, Florida State University, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the American Chemical Society (ACS) and North Dakota’s Department of Environmental Quality.

Deepwater Horizon


Ten years ago BP's Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. As a result oil poured into the Gulf of Mexico for nearly three months straight, resulting in the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history. More than 200 million gallons of light crude flowed into the sea, devastating marine life and fisheries. Now we are finding out that the toll on wildlife is even worse than originally thought. According to research out of the University of Miami, assessments of the spill looked at the surface slick which accounted for 70 percent of the spill an additional 30 percent was hidden below the surface. Research indicates the spill extended to the west coast of Florida, the Florida Keys, and Texas which is far beyond the area that was closed to fishing. This means that the devastation to marine life and fisheries was even worse than we imagined. The dangers have been revised due to the newly discovered phenomenon that reveals how oil interacts with ultraviolet radiation to produce what is called photo-induced toxicity.  This corroborates Stanford/NOAA research, as well as studies published in ACS and PNAS five years ago that looked at marine impacts.

Taylor Spill


A 2019 report states that a spill that began in 2004 may rival the Deepwater Horizon. According to new reports the Taylor spill in the Gulf of Mexico has been pouring thousands of gallons of oil into into the Gulf per day since it was damaged by a hurricane. This makes it thousands of times worse than original estimates of 3 or 4 gallons per day. According to CNN, the report was written by scientists at NOAA and Florida State University. In May 2019, the US Coast Guard installed a containment system and in September 2018 a NOAA research vessel was spotted at a Taylor Energy production site in the Gulf of Mexico. Taylor Energy liquidated its oil and gas assets and ceased production and drilling in 2008.

Keystone XL


The now infamous Keystone pipeline was the source of another spill that was far worse than initially reported. As reported by Democracy Now, in 2019 North Dakota’s Department of Environmental Quality admitted that the Keystone spill in that state was 10 times bigger than initially reported by TC Energy Corp. (formerly TransCanada) which said over 380,000 gallons of crude oil spilled in a rural wetland after the pipeline ruptured on October 29, 2019. Frequent spills have contributed to the controversy surrounding the Keystone XL and other pipelines.

Ohio fracking well


Another epic spill that has turned out to be worse than originally thought is the 2016 Porter Ranch methane leak. At the time some had hoped that the spill would be a catalyst for change, instead we have come to realize that there may be even more devastating methane leaks that have not been reported. According to a study published in the PNAS, satellite monitoring reveals that a little known gas-well blowout at an Ohio fracking site may rival Porter Ranch as one of the largest methane leaks ever recorded on U.S. soil. The inference drawn by these scientists is that methane releases may be far more widespread than previously thought.

Related
Repeated Oil Spills Show the Soulless Self-Interest of Fossil Fuel Companies
Oil Industry Ignores Coastal Restoration Efforts Despite Being Battered by Louisiana Flooding
Top 25 Oil Spills in the Last Decade

Online Event - World Bank and WWF Webinar: Sustainable Financing of Protected Areas

On April 23, 2020 | 12:00 – 1:30 p.m. PST, the World Bank and WWF are presenting a webinar titled Sustainable Financing of Protected Areas Conservation and Local Community Development in the Great Bear Rainforest.  Coast Funds will be featured in the webinar hosted by the Amazon Sustainable Landscapes Program.  Coast Funds' executive director, Brodie Guy, will share the innovative approaches and experience gained over 10 years of supporting First Nations’ businesses, economic development, and conservation management in one of the Earth’s largest remaining temperate rainforests, highlighting lessons that could inspire similar approaches for protected areas around the world.

This free event will feature:

Chair: Adriana Moreira, Senior Environmental Specialist, Manager of the Amazon Sustainable Landscapes Program, World Bank A Biologist with a PhD in Ecology from the University of Harvard, Adriana is an expert in environment and sustainable development, with over 20 years experience in natural resources management, rural development, and climate change.

Speaker: Brodie Guy, Executive Director, Coast Funds As Executive Director of Coast Funds, Brodie leads a team that works in close partnership with First Nations on conservation finance for ecological and cultural stewardship, guardian programs, and economic development initiatives.

Discussant: Melissa Moye, Senior Director, Conservation Finance, WWF US As Senior Environmental Economist of World Wildlife Fund US, Melissa leads WWF’s Conservation Finance Program which creates market-based financing approaches to achieve WWF’s conservation and sustainable development goals.

Background:

Protected Area systems (PA) are globally considered as one of the most effective approaches for conservation and to tackle climate change, but they are facing ever increasing threats and chronic lack of critically needed financial resources. Current estimates suggest that expenditures for PA are less than one third of what is needed in developing and half of what is required in developed countries (CBD High Level Panel, 2014). This lack of funds jeopardizes the possibility of effective management and threatens the conservation of remaining biodiversity hotspots and the livelihoods of millions of people. The ASL Working Group on Sustainable Finance is leading a three-part webinar series to showcase diverse and successful approaches to generate sustainable PA financing at scale.

Click here for the time zone converter
Click here to Livestream
Meeting number: 471 265 128

Join by Phone
1-650-479-3207 Call-in (US/Canada)

Online Event - Global Virtual Impact Capitalism Summit

The Global Virtual Impact Capitalism Summit will take place on April 21st, 10:00 am - 5:00 pm EDT. This free summit is the world’s largest virtual impact investor summit. It brings together the world's impact investors. This event is brought to you by Big Path Capital, impact investing's investment bank.

ICS is the longest-running series of convenings for investors focused on maximizing impact and maximizing return. All summits produced by Big Path Capital are curated and attendees must apply to attend. Big Path Capital works with more impact companies and funds exclusively than any other investment bank. Top impact companies and funds engage Big Path Capital for company exits, capital raises, and founder liquidity.

While coronavirus is separating us at the moment, this crisis demonstrates how interconnected we really are to one another, our communities, and the planet. That’s something impact investors have recognized for years. At the Summit, world leaders will discuss and chart impact investing’s new role in the age of COVID-19.

Who is attending?
  • Family
  • Offices
  • Foundations
  • Institutional Investors
  • Wealth Advisors
  • Asset Managers

SPEAKERS

Opening remarks

Kurt A. Morriesen Head of Europe, Sustainable Finance & Impact Investments UNDP

10:00 AM | Family Offices' Investment Perspective on the Current Environment
  • Jennifer Kenning, CEO & Co-founder, Align Impact
  • Dimple Sahni, Managing Director Impact Funds Portfolios, Anthos Fund & Asset Management B.V.
  • Peter Brock, Family Officer, Private Family Office
  • Jim Sorenson, Founder, Sorenson Impact Foundation
  • Julia Balandina Jaquier, Founder & Managing Director, JBJ Consult

11:00 AM | Investors' Current State of Mind on the Markets & Economy What is the State of Mind of Various Stakeholders in the Market?
  • Emily Chasan, Bloomberg LP, Sustainable Finance Editor
  • Nimrod Gerber, Managing Partner, Investment Committee Member, Vital Capital
  • Jameela Pedicini, Executive Director, Climate Finance Initiatives, Bloomberg LP
  • Ron Cordes, Co-Founder, Cordes Foundation
  • Rekha Unnithan, Co-Head Impact Investing, Managing Director, Nuveen
12:00 PM | Impact in Action

Presentations by Best-in-Class Impact Companies and Private Equity Funds

1:00 PM | Private Market Outlook Panel

Penny E. Zacharias, Partner, McGuireWoods
Christian Wray, CEO, JCM Power
Bert van der Vaart, Co-founder and CEO, SEAF, Piet Klop
Senior Advisor Responsible Investment, PGGM
Jonathan Rose, President, Jonathan Rose, Companies

2:00 PM | Impact Management: Essential Practices

Kim Wright-Violich, Managing Partner, Tideline
Leticia Emme, Senior Manager, Global Impact Investing Network
Diane Damskey, Secretariat, Impact Principles, IFC,
Maria Teresa Zappia, Deputy CEO & CIO, BlueOrchard
Cecilia Chao, Managing Director, Bain Double Impact Boston

3:00 PM | GP Outlook on COVID-19’s Impact

Kostis A. Tselenis, Investment Partner - Head of Fund Investments, Quadia
Ian Bowles,Co-Founder & Managing Director, WindSail Capital Group
Gerhard Pries, CEO, Sarona Asset Management
Mark Lewis, Managing Director, Lime Rock New Energy
Amy Francetic, Buoyant Ventures Managing Director

4:00 PM | Impact Investing's New Role in the Age of COVID-19

Tania Carnegie,KPMG, Leader and Chief Catalyst, Impact Ventures
Praveen Sahay, Founder & Managing Director, WAVE Equity Partners
Matthew Weatherley-White, Co-Founder, Managing Director, The Caprock Group
James Gifford, Credit Suisse, Head of Impact Advisory
Neil Gregory, Chief Thought Leadership Officer, International Finance Corporation

To register click here.

Online Event - Harnessing Digital Solutions to Improve Product Sustainability and Supply Chain Transparency

Harnessing Digital Solutions to Improve Product Sustainability and Supply Chain Transparency will take place on Tuesday April 21, 2020. Online events brought to you by EL and EMT. Registered attendees receive exclusive access to slide decks and/or custom white papers (provided by most clients).

This webinar to understand how digital transformation can enable an organization to address these complexities through cross-functional collaboration, process optimization, and a management systems approach.

Summary

Stakeholder influence continues to pressure organizations to improve sustainability measures within their operations and across the supply chain. Investors, shareholders, customers, and regulatory bodies demand more transparency in how products and packaging are manufactured. In response, organizations are reaching upstream into their supply chain to better understand the entire value stream.

Speaker

Donavan Hornsby is Vice President & Corporate Strategy Executive at Gensuite LLC, software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider of Gensuite®, the award-winning suite of cloud-based software solutions enabling compliance and management systems excellence across EHS, Sustainability, Quality, Security, Responsible Sourcing, and Product Stewardship. Donavan leads Gensuite’s market development and product innovation strategies. Prior to Gensuite’s spin out from General Electric Company in 2010, he served as a consultant to GE’s EHS&S organization starting in 2001. Donavan received his MBA with distinction from the University of Louisville and his undergraduate degree from DePauw University. Outside of his professional commitments, he leads a non-profit organization, working with landowners to protect and conserve land with special natural, agricultural or scenic value in the great state of Kentucky.

Click here to register.

Trump Ignored COVID-19 Despite Repeated Warnings

Although U.S. President Donald Trump said said no one could have anticipated the COVID-19 pandemic, records show that he was repeatedly warned. He made light of the virus even after the first confirmed case in Washington state on January 22. At one of his rallies he even called it another "hoax" created by the Democrats. On numerous occasions he said it would go away. It hasn't. Over and over again he said he has a plan and the situation is under control. He does not have a plan and the pandemic is clearly not under control.

Like climate change and hate, viruses predate this president, but Trump has the dubious distinction of making all three worse.  To suggest that he could not have anticipated COVID-19 is not credible. Viruses are ubiquitous and humans have been periodically ravaged by virus-born diseases dating back to prehistory. There are many times more viruses on planet Earth than there are stars in the universe. They are everywhere but when these viruses hijack human hosts they can be devastating.

Some like the much publicized SARS outbreak was largely contained keeping the death toll relatively low at 774, while others like repeated outbreaks of Ebola have killed thousands. These outbreaks pale in comparison to plagues like Smallpox which killed 500 million between 1877 and 1977. In modern times we have seen the rise of a number of deadly viruses. In 1968 and 1969 Influenza A virus subtype H3N2 (Hong Kong flu) killed between 1 and 4 million. The HIV/AIDS pandemic has killed 32 million from 1981 to the present and in 2009 and 2010 the H1N1 (Swine Flu) pandemic killed between 151,700 and 575,400.

The point is the incidence of previous pandemics made it abundantly clear that we should expect another. A 1997 study in Nature is one of many that predicted it. So did the three presidents that preceeded Trump (Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton). Fifteen years ago president Bush said the following about pandemics, “Our country has been given fair warning of this danger to our homeland.” More recently a bipartisan report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, co-chaired by former Republican senator Kelly Ayotte, and Julie Gerberding, George W. Bush’s one-time director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study was ironically titled "Ending the Cycle of Crisis and Complacency".

In 2017 Senator Elizabeth Warren and four other members of Congress warned the Health and Human Services secretary: “Actions taken by President Trump could also impair our readiness in the face of a public health crisis, such as a flu pandemic.”

As reported by Time, the Global Health Security and Biodefense unit — responsible for pandemic preparedness — was established in 2015 by Barack Obama’s National Security Advisor, Susan Rice. The unit was overseen by the National Security Council (NSC). In May 2018, the Washington Post reported that the team was disbanded and its head Timothy Ziemer, the top White House official in the NSC leading U.S. pandemic response, left the Trump administration.

The New York Times reported that the Trump administration ignored a more recent pandemic warning from White House economists. The economists issued their warning in a 2019 study that was ordered by the NSC and it predicted such an outbreak could cost the American economy as much as $3.8 trillion. A Times of Israel article indicated  that US intelligence agencies alerted Israel to the coronavirus outbreak in China in November.

According to the LA Times, Trump also ignored a NSC pandemic playbook written by the Obama administration in 2016. Two months before COVID-19 broke in Wuhan, China, the Trump administration ended a $200-million pandemic early-warning program aimed at training scientists in China and other countries to detect and respond to such a threat.

Although Trump has a track record of deriding science, research based approaches to understanding, tracking and managing this pandemic are precisely what is required. We need to employ 21st century methods of control through identification and isolation. In the longer term there may be vaccines but the initial step requires testing. As reported by CNN, Harvard researchers are saying the the U.S. must test 500,000 people per day. Currently only 150,000 are being tested across the the country.  Despite calls for more testing from governors, the Trump administration has thus far refused to even consider testing at the required scale.

Now Trump is inciting violence in Democrat led state capitals through his reckless tweets supporting armed protestors who are demanding states reopen. To add another dangerous level of insanity to the mix Trump is also suggesting people should take hydroxychloroquine even though there is no scientific evidence supporting its use for COVID-19. The New York Times reports that the doctor who told Trump about this drug has been charged in a federal court.

As of the morning of April 19th, 740,746 Americans are confirmed to have contracted coronavirus representing an increase of 28, 562 in the last 24 hours. The number of dead is now at 39,158 an increase of 6,335 from the day before.

This article has been updated on April 19, 2020

Related
The Deadly Implications of Trump's Cuts to Environmental Protections
Trump's Handling of the Coronavirus is a lot like his Climate Strategy
Coronavirus Augurs Hope for Climate Action
Emissions Reduction from the Coronavirus is Being Undermined by Government Subsidies 
Coronavirus Related Stock Losses in 2 days Equal to the Cost of Climate Adaptation
Coronavirus Reduces China's Emissions by 25 Percent

An Earth Day Like No Other

This is an Earth Day like no other that has gone before.  It is a terrifying time in which people are sick and dying while others are suffering from isolation due to social distancing. Although it may be hard to fathom from where we are today this virus may augur the change we so desperately need.

In 2020 we are celebrating the 50th Earth Day and the theme this year is climate action. This event, which is celebrated in more than 193 countries, has succeeded in raising awareness and increasing calls for both political action and civic participation.

The inaugural event in 1970 was chaired by Senator Gaylord Nelson (D-Wisconsin) and Representative Pete McCloskey (R-CA).  On that day 20 million Americans participated in protests, festivals, and rallies. Their actions led to the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Shortly thereafter Congress passed the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Since then the arc of America's environmental progress has been slow but steady culminating in the signing of the Paris Climage Agreement on Earth Day 2016.

Then darkness descended and newly elected president Donald Trump withdrew from the Paris Agreement. He then launched an anti-science crusade and unleashed a barrage of deregulation that has systematically rolled back protections for clean air and water. He also gutted the ESA and the EPA. This president has declared war on nature and this not only threatens the health and well being of Americans, it threatens all life on Earth.

The United States is not alone, authoritarian governments around the world continue to poison our air, land and seas. This includes governments in Brazil, Russia and Australia. Their genocide against nature is a global concern.  Their wanton disregard for nature is responsible for unprecedented anthropogenic extinction rates and and their unholy attachment to dirty energy is exacerbating climate change. They are destroying the Earth's biodiversity and killing the web of life upon which we all depend.

COVID-19 may help to expose the unconscionable incompetence of this new wave of authoritarian populism. This modern day plague forces thinking people to acknowledge the critical importance of science and the dangerous consequences of politics that rely on lies. Although we still have far to go, this crisis may prove to be the catalyst that helps end the fossil fuel industry's hold on power.

We have come so far since 1970, but this progress is at risk. This year's Earth Day has a gravitas unlike any that has gone before. This is a make or break year that will determine whether or not we have a future.

Related 
Trump's Mishandling of the Coronavirus is a lot like his Climate Strategy
Earth Day Everyday: Sierra's Efforts and Reasons for Hope
Earth Day 2017: We Have Met the Enemy and it is the U.S.
President Obama's Earth Day Address: Action on Climate Change Cannot Wait (Video)
Responding to Grist's Anti-Earth Day Rants
The Importance of Science and Nature on Earth Day
Silencing Earth Day Critics

Easter and the Environment: The Call for Spiritual and Cultural Transformation

The symbolism of Easter offers an opportunity to reflect on the importance of the natural world and the shift of consciousness required for the survival of life on this planet. If we are to find a way forward we urgently need to address climate change and environmental degradation.  To alter our perilous trajectory we need to assume responsibility for the state of our world. Science alone will not take us where we need to go. We need a transformation that will enable us to address the wide range of human activities that are adversely impacting the Earth's geology and ecosystems. Science alone cannot solve the crisis we face, to do that we will need a spiritual and cultural transformation.

"I used to think the top environmental problems were biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and climate change. I thought that with 30 years of good science we could address those problems. But I was wrong. The top environmental problems are selfishness, greed, and apathy...to deal with those we need a spiritual and cultural transformation - and we scientists don't know how to do that."

- Environmental advocate James Speth.

The egg is a prominent symbol of Easter and a fitting metaphor for the Earth. An egg symbolizes both fragility and the promise of new life. However, Easter is more than just a festival celebrating the return of spring. As a Christian event Easter calls us to remember the cycles of renewal and the interconnectedness of life and death.

For Christians, Easter is a celebration of Christ's resurrection, the ultimate symbol of rebirth. Easter's known pagan origins date back to the 8th century, specifically an Anglo-Saxon fertility goddess known as "Eostre," whose name may be derived from "eastre," meaning spring.

Easter eggs are rooted in Celtic and Teutonic pagan traditions. Eggs are directly associated with springtime festivals in many older texts and narratives. From a Christian perspective, Easter eggs are said to represent Jesus' emergence from the tomb and resurrection.

Decorating eggs for Easter is a tradition that dates back to at least the 13th century. One explanation for this custom is that eggs were formerly a forbidden food during the Lenten season, so people would paint and decorate them to mark the end of the period of penance and fasting, then eat them on Easter as a celebration.

Judaism celebrates Passover around this time of year and it commemorates the Hebrews' escape from Egyptian enslavement. This is metaphorically relevant to ecology as a symbol of freedom from the bondage of environmental destruction.

From Judeo-Christian and pagan perspectives Easter symbolizes renewal and this is precisely what is required as we engage the serious work of being better environmental stewards. With so many around the world seeking to renew our relationship to the Earth, Easter is particularly relevant in modern times.

Easter is an opportunity to reconsider our relationship to this planet, and a good time to reflect on the truly transformational work that lies ahead. Easter is also an aspirational homage to the possibility that we can live in harmony with our environment.