Actuaries, Sponge Cities, Green Bonds, and Thermostats

1. The International Actuarial Association's Analysis of the IPCC Report-

What the IPCC Climate Change Report 2021 Means for the Actuarial Profession.
Actuaries, as risk professionals, need to understand the physical impacts of climate systems and climate changes. Such impacts will affect how risks are underwritten, priced, managed, and reported, whether for general, life or health insurance, pensions, other financial institutions, or social security.
The Summary focuses on the physical changes affecting the most common perils analysed by actuaries and is supplemented with two Annexes on data and regional specificities and a glossary to support its users.
Link to Source: https://www.actuaries.org/iaa/IAA/Publications/Papers/Climate_Issues/IAA/Publications/Climate_Issues.aspx

2. Global Electricity Review 2022-

Ember’s third annual Global Electricity Review aims to provide the most transparent and up-to-date overview of changes in the global electricity transition in 2021.
Wind and solar, the fastest growing sources of electricity, reach a record ten percent of global electricity in 2021; all clean power is now 38% of supply. But demand growth rebounded, leading to a record rise in coal power and emissions.
"Our dataset comprises annual power generation and import data for 209 countries covering the period 2000 to 2020. For 2021, we have added data for 75 countries which together represent 93% of global power demand. You can download the data or use our Data Explorer."
Link to Source: https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/global-electricity-review-2022/

3. Turning Cities Into Sponges to Save Lives and Property-

Officials around the world are implementing techniques to absorb or divert water and protect urban areas from the effects of climate change.
Engineers, architects, urban planners and officials around the world are seeking ways to retrofit or reconstruct cities to better deal with water — basically, to act more like sponges. While water management has always been an essential service in cities, climate change, combined with urban expansion into wetlands and floodplains, is making flooding and drought worse at the same time.
So, around the world officials are moving away from the traditional, hard infrastructure of flood barriers, concrete walls, culverts and sewer systems, and toward solutions that mimic nature.
Link to Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/28/climate/sponge-cities-philadelphia-wuhan-malmo.html?searchResultPosition=1

4. Weaning Europe Off Russian Energy Will Mean Making Changes-

So far, little has been asked of citizens.
What is startling is how little is being asked of Europeans. Even simple measures that might barely inconvenience people are treated as taboo. Earlier this month the International Energy Agency (IEA), which advises rich-country governments, suggested that Europeans might consider turning down the thermostat by just one degree centigrade. What might seem like mere virtue-signalling greenery would actually cut consumption by 10bn cubic metres of natural gas over a year. That is roughly one month’s worth of Russian imports. This modest appeal was relayed by precisely nobody in office.
Why is Europe not rediscovering the spirit of the 1970s? Back then the European public was expected to accept some discomfort and inconvenience.
Link to Source: https://longterminvesting.stanford.edu/

5. IFC's Green Bond Handbook-

A Step-By-Step Guide to Issuing a Green Bond.
The Green Bond Handbook has been developed at the initiative of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Green Bond Technical Assistance Program (GB-TAP) which aims to stimulate the supply of green bonds in emerging markets by creating and disseminating best practice and knowledge as global public goods.
Since the market is already well-served by pertinent and timely research, this living document is intended to be a practical guide for potential issuers. The Green Bond Handbook is designed as a tool through which to disseminate Best Practices along the green bond process, including but not limited to, the quality of reporting.
Link to Source: https://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/publications_ext_content/ifc_external_publication_site/publications_listing_page/202203-green-bond-handbook

One more thing: Another chapter of methane hunters. This time in Europe from the Deutsch Welle’s Planet A channel.

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