The Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability at Harvard University

Live on Thursday, 11/21 at 5PM: Learn about sea level rise and the impacts of Greenland's melting ice sheets from Harvard professors Jerry Mitrovica and Fiamma Straneo. Register here: https://cvent.me/OD90ng

Live on Tuesday, 11/26 at 5:30PM ET: Hear from Harvard faculty about what the 2024 U.S. election results may mean for U.S. and global climate policy, the outlook for corporate climate action, and more. Featuring Jody Freeman of?Harvard Law School, Robert Stavins?of?Harvard Kennedy School, Peter Tufano of Harvard Business School and Jim Stock, Director of the Salata Institute. Register to submit a question now: https://cvent.me/K2DNDW

Insights from climate scientists I was honored to help kick off the Office for Financial Research- Cornell University conference on #Climate Science and #Climate Finance.??We began reviewing the newest findings from climate scientists, starting with an insightful and sobering keynote from Professor Johan Rockstr?m. I then had the pleasure of moderating a panel with Dr. Gavin Schmidt, Prof. Tim Lenton, and Dr.?Rebecca Shaw.??Here in the run-up to #COP29 where the emphasis will be on #climatefinance, here are some of my key takeaways from the discussions: ·?????The bad news:?The newest UNEP Emissions Gap report (https://lnkd.in/eVdpQyvs) puts us (probabilistically) on a very treacherous path.?The newest Planetary Health Check Report (https://lnkd.in/ekA9eCeu) show us breaching six of nine planetary boundaries. Negative tipping points are threatening. Climate and nature are intertwined, so we must focus on both. ·?????The good news:?We know what we have to do and largely have the technology to make progress.??We can also trigger positive tipping points. It's mostly a question of our determination to act. ·?????Specific advice for climate finance and finance academics: o??Get out of our silos. Work in larger research teams that include not only economists but also scientists so that our work is better grounded in the latest science. o?Look forwards, not only backwards. Look beyond historical data and gain comfort with research based on foward-looking forecasts and scenarios. But in doing this, appreciate that some well used scenarios, such as NGFS, may underestimate plausible outcomes. o??Keep learning. Climate science is a huge field and even scientists struggle to keep up with all of the work. There are ways to keep up with the science, including Gavin Schmidt’s excellent RealClimate blog (https://lnkd.in/e3xqYHfD) ? o??Don't pretend that our work is value-free. As economists we often pass on "distribution" issues that involve questions of fairness and ethics. Gavin's latest blog post discusses the fallacy of "value-free science." (https://lnkd.in/eNQRMHMJ) While we must do our work rigorously, this does not exempt us from interpreting it as citizens--which necessarily involves our values. Alissa M. Kleinnijenhuis, Andrew Karolyi, Dashol Kim (OFR), The Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability at Harvard University, Harvard Business School, HBS Business and Environment Initiative,

Thank you to all who attended the second annual Salata Institute Climate and Sustainability Career Expo on Friday! 55 organizations and 450+ Harvard and MIT students and alumni attended, making important connections ???? A big thanks to all our partners in hosting this great event: Harvard Mignone Center for Career Success (MCS), Harvard Business School, Harvard University Graduate School of Design, Harvard Divinity School, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Law School, Harvard Medical School, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Environmental Defense Fund has been exploring how insurance can help support and accelerate the energy transition. Building off our session at NYC Climate Week with the The Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability at Harvard University, we have launched a blog series exploring these issues in more detail. Take a read of the second in the series by HBS's Peter Tufano on how insurance can help support needed innovation and scaling of clean tech.

I'm excited to share my latest insights on how the insurance industry can help drive the energy transition. With the right frameworks, insurers can support new climate technologies and accelerate clean tech growth. Key Takeaways: 1?? ?De-risking for Progress: By offering new types of risk transfer, like performance guarantees and specialized coverage, insurers can make it easier for capital providers to fund high-potential projects. 2?? ?Bringing Together Stakeholders: Innovators and insurers must collaborate closely, with support from government and civil society, to unlock scalable climate solutions. 3???Expanding the Insurance Mindset: From data sharing to sandbox environments, insurers can take proactive steps to align with climate goals, turning uncertainties into manageable risks. The ideas in the blog sprouted from a great discussion with insurance stakeholders during a New York Climate Week event last month from The Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability at Harvard University and Environmental Defense Fund. The two institutions are collaborating on a multi-part content series where we explore the role of insurers in supporting climate innovations and overcoming the unique risks faced by emerging clean tech solutions. More to come! https://www.edf.org/Z6EA #NYCW #CleanTech #InsuranceInnovation?#climatesolutions #climatetech Harvard Business School Digital Data Design (D^3) Institute at Harvard #insurance

New from Peter Tufano with EDF+Business: the second in a series on how insurers can support the clean energy transition. Read more about how insurers can de-risk clean tech: https://lnkd.in/eC5mhAC7

I’m excited to share our new report, “Lessons from Leading EV Charging Cities.” Designed to guide city governments earlier in their own journeys to create EV charging networks for their residents, it explores lessons from a June workshop with eight early adopter cities. ? Public charging is particularly crucial in cities. The U.S. Department of Energy predicts that urban EV owners will do 62% of the charging away from home, versus just 32% for suburbanites and 16% for rural residents.? ? Cities have a large toolkit to facilitate investment in charging, from directly investing in chargers, to facilitating private investment, to using building codes to encourage investment at multi-family residences and workplaces.?We hope “Lessons from Leading EV Charging Cities” will help cities leverage all their tools. ? Check out our blog and the full report at https://lnkd.in/epYNzuh2. #EV #Climate

Transitioning to electric vehicles is key to the clean energy transition. But charging infrastructure in cities is holding potential #EV drivers back. Our new guide with MIT - Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research and the Taubman Center for State & Local Government offers lessons learned from 8 leading EV charging cities. Read the blog by co-authors Elaine Buckberg, Laila Ale, and Kathryn Carlson and download the report here:

We are thrilled to announce that four Harvard University research teams have been awarded translational funding and business development support to propel their climate change technologies toward real-world impact. The Climate and Sustainability Translational Fund, launched by #OTD and The Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability at Harvard University, aims to advance innovations that are both visionary and practical in addressing the urgent challenges of climate change. This support underscores Harvard's commitment to turning innovations in the lab into tangible solutions for a greener, more sustainable future. From revolutionizing carbon capture to advancing renewable energy technologies, congratulations to the research teams leading these vital initiatives. https://lnkd.in/eFkYNeXr #HarvardInnovation #ClimateChangeTech #Sustainability #TranslationalResearch