About 30 massive, intricate computer networks serve the scientists who stand at the forefront of climate change research. Each network runs a software program consisting of millions of lines of code. These programs are computational models that combine the myriads of physical, chemical and biological phenomena that together form the climate of our planet. The models calculate the state of Earth’s atmosphere, oceans, land and ice, capturing past and present climate variability and using the data to predict future climate change. These results are analyzed by leading research institutes across the globe, including the Weizmann Institute of Science, and then incorporated into the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment report. Policymakers rely on the IPCC report when they form adaptation and mitigation strategies for climate change, one of our generation’s greatest crises.

A new study, published today in Nature Climate Change, will certainly make the IPCC – and other environmental bodies – take notice. A team of scientists led by Dr. Rei Chemke of Weizmann’s Earth and Planetary Sciences Department revealed a considerable intensification of winter storms in the Southern Hemisphere. The study, conducted in collaboration with Dr. Yi Ming of Princeton University and Dr. Janni Yuval of MIT, is sure to make waves in the climate conversation. Until now, climate models have projected a human-caused intensification of winter storms only toward the end of this century. In the new study, Chemke and his team compared climate model simulations with current storm observations. Their discovery was bleak: It became clear that storm intensification over recent decades has already reached levels projected to occur in the year 2080.

Dr. Rei Chemke with an illustration depicting future changes to Earth’s surface temperature by the end of the 21st century, as predicted by climate models

Dr. Rei Chemke explains:

“A winter storm is a weather phenomenon that lasts only a few days. Individually, each storm doesn’t carry much climatic weight. However, the long-term effect of winter storms becomes evident when assessing cumulative data collected over long periods of time,”

Cumulatively, these storms have a significant impact, affecting the transfer of heat, moisture and momentum within the atmosphere, which consequently affects the various climate zones on Earth.

“One example of this is the role the storms play in regulating the temperature at the Earth’s poles. Winter storms are responsible for the majority of the heat transport away from tropical regions toward the poles. Without their contribution, the average pole temperatures would be about 30°C lower”, he said. 

Similarly, the collective intensification of these storms yields a real and significant threat to societies in the Southern Hemisphere in the next decades.

“We chose to focus on the Southern Hemisphere because the intensification registered there has been stronger than in the Northern Hemisphere,” Chemke says. “We didn’t examine the Northern Hemisphere, but it seems that the intensification of storms in this hemisphere is slower compared to that in the Southern Hemisphere. If the trend persists,” Chemke adds, “we will be observing more significant winter storm intensification here in the upcoming years and decades.”

In his lab at the Weizmann Institute, Chemke researches the physical mechanisms underlying large-scale climate change. In this study, he and his research partners sought to understand whether these changes in climate patterns were caused by external factors (such as human activity), or whether they have resulted from the internal fluctuations of the global climate system. They analyzed climate models that simulated storm intensification patterns under the isolated influence of internal climatic causes, without external impact. They showed that over the past 20 years, storms have been intensifying faster than can be explained by internal climatic behavior alone.

In addition, the researchers discovered the physical process behind the storm intensification. An analysis of the growth rate of the storms showed that changes in atmospheric jet streams over the past few decades have caused these escalations, and current climate models are unable to reflect these changes accurately.

Chemke, Ming and Yuval’s study has two immediate, considerable implications. First, it shows that not only climate projections for the coming decades are graver than previous assessments, but it also suggests that human activity might have a greater impact on the Southern Hemisphere than previously estimated. This means that rapid and decisive intervention is required in order to halt the climate damage in this region. Second, a correction of the bias in climate models is in order, so that these can provide a more accurate climate projection in the future.

Could the climate models be inaccurately predicting other important phenomena?

“The models are doing a very good job at forecasting nearly all the parameters,” Chemke says. “We’ve discovered one parameter for which the sensitivity of the models needs to be adjusted. Changes in temperature, precipitation, sea ice, and summer storm patterns, for example, are all being simulated accurately.”

The study’s findings are expected to help climate researchers around the world correct the bias in the models and create a more accurate prediction of future climate patterns. In addition, the updated understanding of the intensification of winter storms over the past several decades will help us gain a better understanding of the state of the Earth’s climate. Climate scientists will now be able to estimate more accurately the extent of the damage that climate change is expected to wreak – damage that will only be mitigated if humanity intervenes and takes responsibility for the future of the planet.

The partnership delivers customers access to Pexapark’s suite of analytical tools and services through the Fluence IQ digital ecosystem, including market intelligence about renewable energy power purchase agreements (PPAs) and energy portfolio risk management optimization solutions, reported EnergyStorage.

Combining with Fluence’s fleet of 3.6 GW of battery-based energy storage solutions will accelerate the Pexapark incorporation of energy storage analytics into its software products. The company also noted that it has supported more than 20 GW of renewable power purchase agreement (PPA) transactions.

We are all aware that software is becoming a key differentiator for energy storage technology companies. According to most companies, data-driven market intelligence is a must-have for electricity market participants.

In fact, software platforms can connect energy assets to energy markets through enabling optimization and real-time bidding. This move can actually help drive digitization in the market.

Syed Madaeni, AMS’ CEO-turned-Fluence chief digital officer, noted that acquisition will help increase return on investment on energy storage assets from 10% to 30% for customers.

Back in time, Fluence was founded as a JV between Siemens and AES in 2018 and IPOed on the NASDAQ late last year at a valuation of US$4.7bn. The company acquired energy storage software and AI pioneer Advanced Microgrid Solutions (AMS) in October 2020 and rebranded its offerings as Fluence Digital and Trading Platform.

The solution is built on Red Hat OpenShift and runs on the AWS Cloud, simplifying the ability for customers to run workloads in the AWS cloud. The companies also intend to collaborate on further co-development to provide greater flexibility and choice on where to run OSDU applications. An IBM and Reuters whitepaper, sponsored by IBM, found that the energy industry is facing pressure to reduce greenhouse gases as demand for affordable energy continues to rise.

Energy companies need solutions that help drive efficiencies to free up capital, time and resources to invest in discovering new, more sustainable energy sources. Data and digital technologies can help to navigate this transition, hence an IBM survey found that less than half of oil and gas executive respondents are using data to drive that innovation.

This is in part because most of the digitization efforts have been in proprietary closed systems, hindering the potential to combine and maximize the value of data. The collaboration between IBM and AWS aims to accelerate the reduction of data barriers in the industry.

IBM Open Data for Industries is an open-source solution using the OSDU data foundation for the oil, gas and energy industry. IBM Open Data for Industries is entirely integrated with IBM Cloud Pak for Data for easy data management, and built on Red Hat OpenShift.

With this collaboration, customers will gain the flexibility to run OSDU Data Platform applications in the AWS cloud or on-premises while addressing data residency requirements. Combined with the expansive cloud infrastructure of AWS cloud services, this data platform can help energy companies reduce the cost, time and resources needed to leverage their data.  Bill Vass, vice president, engineering, AWS, commented:

“Much of the data needed to solve the complex energy challenges, such as superior subsurface decisions, already exists, yet is untapped. This is because one of the greatest values of that data is derived when it can be effectively combined, but usually, this data is locked by data residency requirements, legacy applications or proprietary data formats. By collaborating with IBM and leveraging Red Hat OpenShift, we will be able to offer customers a global, seamless offering with the flexibility to run on virtually any IT infrastructure and drive longer-term digital innovation.”

IBM and AWS collaboration will accelerate the value of this platform for global customers. The goal is to help serve the needs of energy companies today with the flexibility to adapt to change amid energy transition. According to Manish Chawla, global managing director, energy, resources and manufacturing, IBM:

“Data is a critical asset to help fuel energy transition, yet too often energy companies must choose between running applications on-premises or in the cloud, and often each deployment uses a proprietary data format. This means that rather than using all of that collective data to gather insights, augment operations and inform innovation, some of it was going unused. Our collaboration with Amazon Web Services is addressing the need to make it easier for energy customers to access their data and provides the industry with a flexible solution to meet the challenges of today, as well as more easily adapt as the industry evolves.”

The collaboration underscores the value of IBM and Red Hat to provide flexibility and unlock greater business value for operational data across industries.

In an era of increased awareness surrounding environmental, social and governance (ESG) efforts, the UNGC has outlined several key objectives as it aims to provide both a universal language for corporate responsibility and a framework to guide businesses on ESG strategy regardless of complexity, size or location. As a global initiative, the UNGC’s main goals are to “mainstream the 10 principles in business activities around the world” and to “catalyze actions in support of broader UN goals, such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).”

Eka’s UNGC certification comes on the heels of several sustainability-driven initiatives, most notably the recent launch of its cloud-driven ESG reporting solution to help enterprises comply with operational and compliance best practices. To ensure the long-term success of this innovative solution, Eka has onboarded a new team of sustainability subject matter experts with experience in developing sustainable solutions for firms in the manufacturing, retail, energy and banking spaces.  Shuchi Nijhawan, Chief Sustainability Officer, Eka Software Solutions noted:

“At Eka, we understand that sustainability is an inevitable area of growth across all industries, and a vital component to solving some of the most critical challenges the world has ever seen. As an official signatory, we will apply the UNGC’s principle-based framework to our long-term vision of propelling holistic business transformations through our multi-faceted, powerful cloud platform.”

As a participant in the UNGC, Eka will have access to partnerships with a wide range of United Nations stakeholders from over 160 countries, providing opportunities to share perspectives on emerging solutions and best practices. As a public advocate for the UNGC, Eka will further amplify the goals of the initiative implementing the UNGC’s 10 principles in its overall business strategy, culture and day-to-day operations.

London-based Queequeg is about to submit planning applications for the first projects in its 1.3GW tranche of grid-secured solar projects, with two gigawatt-hours of grid-secured standalone battery schemes also due to enter planning in the months ahead. The solar projects range in size from 10MW to 50MW and will be subsidy-free and powered by power purchase agreements (PPAs).

The battery pipeline comprises schemes ranging in scale from 20-480 megawatt-hours and will deliver capacity and grid balancing services to the grid. Projects are planned in England, Scotland and Wales with Queequeg intending to initially build and operate a number of the assets.

All projects have grid offers and land agreements in place and it is Queequeg’s plan to bring further renewables projects into the portfolio. The pipeline is the culmination of more than a year’s work by Queequeg, which has “built a strong development team” countrywide with key hires from across the renewables industry and more roles to follow.

Photo Credits: Queequeg Renewables

The venture is led by company founders Gabriella Palla and Daniele Stiglitz, each of whom brings almost two decades of development experience in Italy, where they have delivered significant wind, solar and biomass projects with a range of partners. Their initial tranche of projects has funding in place, with the company keen to speak to new partners for future schemes. Palla said:

“We were attracted to the UK by its clear regulatory environment and the country’s drive towards increased renewable generation. We believe that developing flexible assets – including standalone battery storage and combined solar and battery schemes – will play a vital role in accelerating the net-zero transition, through mitigating grid congestion and delivering more stable prices. It will be vital for us to develop strong and positive relationships in the communities in which we operate through ensuring that each project we develop is built to the very highest ecological principles.”

The solar projects are being designed with single-axis trackers technology and bifacial crystalline modules to optimise land use and reduce their footprint.

Storage systems will be implemented alongside the solar projects to combine renewable generation with flexible output, providing stability and frequency response to the grid.

But he’s not hearing “no” much, so far. His first pitch, to Y Combinator, provided some idea-stage funding. Since then, a long list of prominent investors has signed on to back the 3-year-old venture, including Bill Gates-founded Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Amazon.com, and Chris Sacca’s Lowercarbon Capital.

Now, with over $24 million in Pachama’s coffers, its founder is preparing to scale up a mission inspired by a trip back to his native South America, where he saw the ravages of deforestation firsthand. Saez Gil said:

“Every government, corporation and consumer should have the ability to contribute back. The idea is that if you want, you should be able to invest with trust, with confidence, into projects that are planting trees, preserving forests.”

While Pachama appears to be the highest recent funding recipient in the climate software space, it’s far from the only startup drawing heightened interest from investors. As more companies and governments declare commitments to reducing carbon footprints, startups offering tools to help meet those pledges are in high demand.

Looking at early-stage funding data for the past few months, it’s clear climate and carbon-tracking software are having a moment.

At least 20 startups doing something at the intersection of decarbonization and software to measure progress have raised funding in roughly the past year, per Crunchbase data. Deals are overwhelmingly seeded and early-stage, indicating that investors see potential for sharp growth ahead. Here are some of the funding recipients:

Why now?

It’s easy to see why carbon tracking and decarbonization software hold appeal, with climate scientists pointing to a future of accelerated warming and potentially catastrophic impacts on myriad ecosystems, should emissions go unchecked.

The question with a less obvious answer is: Why now? After all, we’ve known about climate change and the case for reducing carbon footprints for decades. What are the reasons for a burst of early-stage activity in the space right now?

That’s a question frequently directed at Andrew Beebe, managing director of Obvious Ventures. He says the current investment environment compares favourably to “Cleantech 1.0,” the period in the mid to late aughts when early climate startup investment peaked and crashed.

This time around, the calibre of entrepreneurs is much better, according to Beebe. He’s also seeing enterprises take on carbon accounting at the CFO and boardroom levels, with demand for more sophisticated tools to help track and reduce emissions. Beebe said:

“We can’t manage what we can’t measure. And once you measure … Then you ask the question: What do I do now?”

Carbon meets software

Recently funded startups offer a sampling of options for what entities can do about their carbon footprint.

• ClimateView, a Stockholm-based startup that closed on a $10 million Series A in September, offers tools for cities to manage their planning as they transition to low- or zero-carbon economies. It’s an enormous addressable market, as the company estimates cities make up 70% of the world’s global emissions.
• Persefoni, an Arizona-based provider of software for conducting carbon accounting and preparing sustainability disclosures, has raised just over $13 million. Such tools are in demand due to environmental conscientiousness as well as economic considerations, as more institutional investors add sustainability requirements for companies they back.
• SINAI Technologies, a San Francisco SaaS startup that works with enterprises to measure and reduce their carbon footprints, closed on $10 million in an Obvious Ventures-led round this summer. CEO Maria Fujihara said the company is filling a high-demand niche, as more companies are making net-zero commitments but have not yet hammered out a strategy for how to meet them.

Fujihara commented:

“It’s kind of a new category we are creating: Decarbonization as a service. Its rollout comes as internal carbon pricing in businesses is becoming the norm, with enterprises looking to meet investors’ environmental standards, offset climate risk and prepare for future carbon taxes.

It’s a scalability thing

One standout trait about the latest crop of climate-tracking startups is that they’re a SaaS-heavy cohort, with a lot of tech credentials among founding teams and investors.

Several of the largest new climate-focused funds, including Breakthrough, LowerCarbon, and Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund, were launched by investors better known for their tech prowess than environmental creds.

The same often holds true for founders. Pachama’s Saez Gil, for instance, has a resume that reads like a tech startup guy. Previously, he founded Bluesmart, a Y Combinator-backed smart luggage startup. Before that, he launched WeHostels, a mobile travel booking app aimed at young travellers.

It makes sense at this juncture to see more techies moving into decarbonization, Saez Gil said, observing that: “What Silicon Valley has figured out is how to use technology as leverage to scale very rapidly.”

For venture-backed technology companies, we’re used to seeing scalability translate into massive valuations and platforms that go from garage startup to global powerhouse in a few short years. In the climate software space, the hope is not only to grow big companies but also to make a substantial impact in building the infrastructure for a lower-carbon future.

In support of the EU Green Deal, Mastercard selected Stockholm, Sweden as the home of the global Lab. Kristina Kloberdanz, Chief Sustainability Officer, Mastercard, commented:

“Fostering innovative solutions with practical applications is urgently needed to achieve global climate change goals. As we continue to build a more sustainable digital economy, the Sustainability Innovation Lab will enable us to co-create a robust portfolio of environmentally friendly solutions, uniting everyone – businesses and consumers alike – in climate action.”

Recognizing that consumption will have to shift to a more sustainable paradigm in order to meet global carbon reduction targets, Mastercard is reimagining the future of commerce by collaborating on digital solutions designed to empower businesses, governments and billions of consumers across its network to help preserve the environment. The Lab will focus specifically on solutions that enable sustainable spending, as more consumers want to take action for the environment, as well as increase visibility and traceability across value chains for producing products that have a positive impact on both people and the planet.

Open innovation to drive sustainable impact

Mastercard has a track record of building partnerships with startup innovators in the Nordics region, where the new Lab will be based, having most recently collaborated with the Swedish fintech Doconomy to create the Mastercard Carbon Calculator. Mastercard is also nurturing climate-focused fintech innovation through the Climate Fintech Cards & Payments Challenge and its Start Path startup engagement program. Mathias Wikström, CEO, Doconomy, also said:

“Human activity has undoubtedly created the climate crisis and it’s ours to fix. Working with Mastercard and our partners across the world, we are confident that innovation will help us address it. It is truly inspiring to see the Sustainability Innovation Lab capabilities support inclusive climate action by every bank in every market.”

Research and development within the Lab are already underway and the physical space will open in spring 2022.

The new Lab builds on Mastercard’s experience in impact-driven innovation, in areas such as financial inclusion, and will explore how technologies such as 5G, quantum and advanced AI can be applied to address environmental challenges. It will consist of an R&D Center focused on solutions for sustainable consumption and value chains; a “Labs as a Service” platform to convene partners and customers in the co-creation of sustainable shared-value solutions, and a Mastercard Experience Center for hands-on product demos and in-person engagement.

The Lab’s initial priorities include iterating on the Mastercard Carbon Calculator feature, now embedded across the company’s global network, ensuring that it is seamlessly implemented by customers. It will also explore how Mastercard Provenance can continue to elevate transparency not only for social impact but also for environmental initiatives.

To further drive collective climate action, Mastercard continues to make progress on its pledge to reach net-zero by 2050, having recently joined the 1.5°C Supply Chain Leaders initiative to address emissions across its network of suppliers. The company has also united more than 65 partners globally as part of the Priceless Planet Coalition, which aims to restore 100 million trees.

OS-C is a non-profit, non-competitive organization that seeks to use open source technology and collaboration to align the efforts of the financial community in addressing the challenge of global climate change while preserving the opportunity to innovate and compete in global capital markets. This approach is a crucial component for closing the $1.2 trillion annual gap in investment needed to achieve the Paris Climate Accord goals. The organization’s members include Allianz, Amazon, BNP Paribas, Goldman Sachs, KPMG, Microsoft, the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance and many more technology and financial leaders, with membership having tripled since the community’s launch in September 2020.

Red Hat brings a wealth of experience and expertise in building open source communities for other Linux Foundation projects, serving as a founding member of the Cloud Native Computing Foundation, the Open Container Initiative and many more. Beyond the technical skill to actively contribute code to these initiatives, Red Hat also provides a nuanced understanding of how to encourage collaboration between organizations that would otherwise be competitive in-market.

The open-source model championed by Red Hat and selected by OS-C is intended to enable the creation of a complex, multi-layered ecosystem for OS-C members, including an open data platform that can be adopted by individual organizations for their own specific uses. This helps to provide a more level data playing field that meets a variety of regulatory requirements, providing global financial institutions with better, deeper views to evaluate climate change risk and opportunity as a core part of finance, banking and investment strategies.

As in all of the natural sciences, biology has developed mathematical models to help fit data and make predictions about the future. However, because of the inherent complexities of living systems, many of these equations rely on simplifying assumptions that do not always reflect the actual underlying biological processes. Now, researchers at The University of Tokyo Institute of Industrial Science have implemented a machine learning algorithm that can use the measured size of single cells over time to predict their future size. Because the computer automatically recognizes patterns in the data, it is not constrained like conventional methods.

“In biology, simple models are often used based on their capacity to reproduce the measured data,” first author Atsushi Kamimura says. “However, the models may fail to capture what is really going on because of human preconceptions,.”

The data for this latest study were collected from either an Escherichia coli bacterium or a Schizosaccharomyces pombe yeast cell held in a microfluidic channel at various temperatures. The plot of size over time looked like a “sawtooth” as exponential growth was interrupted by division events. Human biologists usually use a “sizer” model, based on the absolute size of the cell, or “adder” model, based on the increase in size since birth, to predict when divisions will occur. The computer algorithm found support for the “adder” principle, but as part of a complex web of biochemical reactions and signaling.

Several factors make the return to work more challenging. For employees, it will be a staggered, disjointed process marked by uncertainty. Workers will return to unfamiliar surroundings, with masks, plexiglass screens and hand sanitiser, wondering if their coworkers are vaccinated and how they should greet them.

This is anything but a unifying experience, and it comes at a time when many people are mentally and physically drained after more than a year of lockdown. A study by the University of Chicago showed that employees worked 30% more than normal during the shutdown, and Microsoft found that work-related messages sent between 6 p.m. and midnight jumped 52%. No wonder people are burned out.

The result is a fatigued and fragile workforce that in many cases will collide with a senior leadership team that is keen to get back on track and resume a trajectory of rapid growth. This is a recipe for disaster, and it’s critical that senior leaders, managers, and HR teams build a plan to address the vulnerabilities in their teams.

So, here are five steps that senior leaders, managers, and HR teams should carefully consider before returning to the hybrid office.

SET REALISTIC PERFORMANCE GOALS

With the exhaustion and uncertainty, people are feeling, if you ask your teams to operate at 110% out of the gate, you will be let down and they will feel they have failed. Setting realistic goals can take many forms. It may be reducing sales quotas or production targets, but it should be meaningful and expressed clearly from the outset.

LEAD WITH COMPASSION, NOT EMPATHY

People need compassion. Empathy is saying, “I know you’ve had a tough year.” Compassion is saying, “I know you’ve had a tough year—and here’s how we’re going to help.” Give people the space to get their heads back in the game. Pay attention to their needs.

CLOSE THE EMOTIONAL DISTANCE

The return to work is about more than physical distance and ensuring that desks are properly spaced apart. It’s about finding ways to close the emotional distance between your employees. Managers should organize moments of small-scale, concentrated human connection—virtual water coolers, game nights, kicking off a meeting by asking about a teammate’s weekend. These personal moments help teams stay connected, combat burnout, and work together effectively when they’ve been physically apart for a long period.

SET A DATE TO REASSESS YOUR PLANS 

Many companies will need to change plans and revise protocols after welcoming employees back to the office. When you make unexpected changes, people think the plan’s not working and get anxious. A better strategy is to say, “We will try this system for two months and then see what needs to be changed.” When people expect change, they handle it far better because they can see it coming.

ONE SIZE WILL NOT NOT FIT ALL

A one-size-fits-all “hybrid plan” is not going to fix the exhaustion or lead to a sustainable work environment. Consider what hybrid work means at the team and the individual levels. The right approach for your sales team may be very different from the right approach for your engineering team. Look for tools and approaches that enable you to offer the kind of personalized support to managers and teams that enable them to figure out the best ways of working together.

Getting back to a predictable pattern of work will be a relief for many employees, but they need your compassion and support to do their best work. The companies that succeed will be those where leaders prioritize their employees’ well-being by addressing the exhaustion of the past 12 months, and who recognize this as a “printable moment” in which to reassert their company’s values and the purpose of their work. This will not only make the return to work a smooth one but also strengthen your business in the long run.