The Impact Innovator | Issue 316
In this week's The Impact Innovator edition:
What is it: Pension managers, including CalSTRS, have expressed their support for Climate Action 100+ (CA100+), a global investor initiative aimed at reducing corporate greenhouse gas emissions, following the departure of several prominent U.S. investors.
Why it's important: Climate Action 100+ plays a significant role in pushing companies to address climate risks, which is crucial for mitigating investment risks related to climate change. The continued support from major pension managers underscores the importance of collective action in addressing these risks.
Key takeaways: Support Amid Exits: Asset owners managing $4.6 trillion, including CalSTRS and CalPERS, reaffirmed their commitment to CA100+ after high-profile exits from Wall Street investors such as Pimco, JPMorgan, State Street, and Invesco. Political Backlash: The departures were partly due to political pressure from U.S. politicians concerned about potential antitrust issues. Statement of Commitment: The pension managers' statement emphasized that addressing climate-related investment risks is a fiduciary duty and that collaborative engagement through CA100+ is an effective way to tackle these risks. Ongoing Challenges: While acknowledging the complexities of climate action, the statement stressed the necessity of taking proactive steps to protect investments and ensure long-term security for beneficiaries.
What is it: The Symbiosis Coalition is an initiative aimed at contracting up to 20 million tonnes of high-quality carbon removal credits from nature-based projects by 2030. These projects include forest and peatland restoration.
Why it's important: This initiative addresses the pressing need for scalable, high-quality carbon removal solutions to combat climate change. By creating demand signals through collective, long-term purchasing agreements, the coalition seeks to attract more investment into nature-based carbon removal projects.
Key takeaways: Market Challenges: The market for nature-based carbon removals has faced issues due to a lack of high-quality projects and uncertainty about payment willingness. The coalition aims to address these issues by standardizing quality and promoting long-term investment. Quality Standards: The coalition will develop a quality standard aligned with the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market and the Core Carbon Principles. This ensures the projects deliver meaningful and long-term climate impacts. Challenges: The market struggles with assessing environmental benefits, protecting projects from climate shocks, and ensuring local communities benefit from these projects. Supporting Organization: ZOMALAB, which supports nature conservation and restoration, is backing the coalition. Corporate Support: Microsoft, Salesforce, Google, and Meta are key corporate supporters, with each having ambitious carbon reduction and removal goals. Microsoft, for instance, aims to be carbon-negative by 2030 and has made significant investments in nature-based and technological carbon removal projects.
What is it: The article discusses a significant funding round for Vizcab, a Lyon, France-based company that provides a SaaS platform for reducing the carbon impact of construction projects. The company raised an additional €4.5M in Series A funding, bringing the total amount to €9M, led by KOMPAS VC and other investors. Vizcab plans to use the funding to support its growth and expand into new international markets, with an initial step in its global expansion roadmap being the launch of the first international module to engage with new customers in 33 countries.
Why it's important: The article reports on Vizcab, a French SaaS platform provider, raising an additional €4.5M in Series A funding, extending the total to €9M. The funding will support Vizcab's growth and expansion into new international markets, with the company's platform aimed at reducing the carbon impact of construction projects by automating the calculation of CO2 emissions and Life Cycle Assessments. This is significant as it highlights the growing investment in technologies that promote sustainability in the construction industry.
Key takeaways: Vizcab, a Lyon, France-based SaaS platform provider that calculates the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to reduce the carbon impact of construction projects, has raised an additional €4.5M in Series A funding, extending the total amount of the round to €9M. The round was led by KOMPAS VC, with participation from Global Brain and Brick and Mortar Ventures. The company, founded in 2015, plans to use the funding to support growth, expand operations into new international markets, and promote sustainable practices in the construction industry.
What is it: Polyester recycling company Syre launched by H&M Group and green industry investor Vargas, has raised $100 million to finance the construction of a pilot plant in the US and two commercial facilities by 2025. The funding will also support the acquisition of patented technology integral to the venture. Despite the challenges faced by the textile recycling industry, Syre has secured significant backing and a guaranteed market for its material, with plans to expand globally over the next decade.
Why it's important: This could potentially revolutionize the fashion industry, a major contributor to environmental pollution, by turning old clothes back into new fibers. The involvement of high-profile players like H&M, TPG, and others indicates a strong push towards sustainable and scalable solutions in textile recycling.
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Key takeaways: The company says its recycling solution offers a competitive alternative to virgin polyester. However, scaling up will require billions more dollars to build 12 industrial facilities globally over the next decade.
What is it: Researchers at RMIT University of Melbourne are developing a more sustainable and stronger type of concrete using waste coffee grounds and a material called biochar. This new concrete not only aims to reduce reliance on sand and divert coffee grounds from landfills but also has the potential to lower construction costs due to its increased strength. The researchers are now moving from lab testing to real-world trials by partnering with a local council to lay sections of sidewalk made with this coffee biochar concrete.
Why it's important: This development not only addresses environmental concerns by reducing reliance on sand and diverting coffee grounds from landfills, but also has potential economic benefits, such as decreased construction costs due to the increased strength of the concrete.
Key takeaways: This method reduces reliance on sand, a finite resource, and diverts coffee grounds from landfills, where they contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. The concrete is now being tested in real-world conditions, and if successful, could lead to reduced construction costs and a smaller environmental footprint. The researchers are also exploring the use of biochar derived from other organic waste materials.
What is it: A high-efficiency thermophotovoltaic (TPV) cell has been developed by researchers at the University of Michigan. The new TPV cell, made from indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs), reportedly achieves a power conversion efficiency of 44%, which could potentially make thermal battery systems more affordable and enhance the use of wind and solar power. The technology has been lauded as a significant advancement in solid-state heat-to-power generation, with the potential to overcome current limitations in traditional photovoltaics.
Why it's important: This advancement could make TPV technology commercially viable, potentially revolutionizing the way we generate and store power, and helping to transition the grid to wind and solar power.
Key takeaways: The improved efficiency could potentially make thermal battery systems more affordable, thus enhancing the viability of wind and solar power on the grid. The researchers believe that with further development, the efficiency could be pushed to 50%. This technology offers a passive form of battery that doesn't require mining lithium, making it an attractive alternative for energy storage.
What is it: EU’s Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) aims to bolster clean energy manufacturing industries by setting a target for European manufacturers to meet at least 40% of the EU’s annual renewable energy deployment needs by 2030. The Act also includes policies for the establishment of 'Net-Zero Industry Academies' and 'regulatory sandboxes' to encourage investment and innovation in the sector.
Why it's important: This legislation seeks to encourage investment in clean energy manufacturing, with a target for European manufacturers to meet at least 40% of the EU’s annual renewable energy needs by 2030. It also highlights the challenges faced by the European renewables manufacturing sector and the potential impacts on the solar industry.
Key takeaways: The European Council has adopted the EU’s Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA), which aims to boost clean energy manufacturing industries. The NZIA encourages investment in clean energy manufacturing, setting a target for European manufacturers to meet at least 40% of the EU’s annual renewable energy needs by 2030. Other NZIA policies include the establishment of 'Net-Zero Industry Academies' to train workers for the renewables manufacturing sector, and "regulatory sandboxes" to encourage more investment. The act was proposed to address the imbalance in the European renewables manufacturing sector, which has significantly impacted the solar industry. The European solar manufacturing sector has welcomed the EC's vote as a means to address this decline.
What is it: A remote-controlled robot is being used to retrieve a sample of nuclear fuel from one of Fukushima's damaged reactors. The operation, planned by Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (TEPCO), is intended to gather vital information for the cleanup of the site, which is part of an ambitious 30 to 40-year remediation plan. The article also mentions the challenges faced in the cleanup process, including delays and technical issues with the robots used in the highly irradiated environment.
Why it's important: The robot's successful demonstration and upcoming deployment in October signify a significant advancement in dealing with nuclear disasters and their aftermath, despite the challenges and delays encountered in the process.
Key takeaways: This operation is a crucial part of TEPCO's ambitious plan to clean up the site within 30 to 40 years. The cleanup work has been delayed by two years due to technical challenges, including issues with robots breaking down. The robot's task is to enter the highly irradiated reactor, retrieve a small amount of nuclear material, contain it, and return it for analysis.