8 Sustainability ideas that will change the world | FT Rethink

Summary

This video script highlights innovative sustainability solutions aimed at achieving a net-zero economy. It covers groundbreaking biotech advancements like FabricNano's sustainable bioplastics, the Empire Building Challenge for retrofitting high-rise buildings, and new energy-harvesting technologies using wood. It also discusses sustainable fashion practices, carbon credit limitations, and nature-positive business models. The script emphasizes the importance of integrating ecosystem services in investment decisions, and showcases Costa Rica's successful efforts to halt deforestation through strategic funding and government action. These examples reflect how innovative technologies and policies are transforming industries towards a more sustainable future.

Takeaways

• 😀 2020 is a critical year to achieve a net zero economy and implement policies to drive sustainability.
• 🌱 FabricNano is a biotech startup that sustainably synthesizes bioplastics and fossil-fuel-free chemicals 100 times faster than petroleum-based alternatives.
• 🏢 The Empire Building Challenge is funding high-rise retrofits in New York to improve the sustainability of old buildings, which make up 80-90% of energy usage.
• ⚡ New technology allows electricity to be generated from wooden flooring, a sustainable building material, by modifying it with silicone and nanocrystals.
• 🌳 MIT researchers have developed a method to grow wood in labs in specific shapes, reducing waste and combating deforestation.
• 👗 A global e-commerce brand creates affordable, sustainable fashion by producing only what is ordered, reducing waste, and encouraging resale of used items.
• 🌍 Carbon credits alone won’t achieve Net Zero—nature-positive solutions require pricing of negative externalities to ensure long-term sustainability.
• 🌿 NCAVES, a UN-funded project, is working on environmental and ecosystem accounting, creating tools to measure the value of ecosystem services in Brazil, China, India, Mexico, and South Africa.
• 🏙️ InVest is developing software to model the impact of investments in natural infrastructure, helping investors support sustainable urban development.
• 🌳 Costa Rica has reversed deforestation by taxing fossil fuels and paying landowners to protect forests, having saved 1 million hectares and planted 7 million trees.

Q & A

What is the goal for 2020 in terms of sustainability?

The goal for 2020 is to achieve a net-zero economy by finding solutions and policies that can move the needle toward a 'nature-positive future'.

How does FabricNano contribute to sustainability?

FabricNano, a biotech start-up, has developed a way to sustainably synthesize bioplastics and fossil-fuel-free chemical ingredients at scale, producing them 100 times faster than traditional petroleum-based products.

What is the Empire Building Challenge, and what does it aim to achieve?

The Empire Building Challenge is a program that provides $50 million in funding to high-rise building owners to pilot innovative retrofit solutions, aiming to make old buildings more sustainable and reduce energy consumption.

What makes wood a potential source of electricity?

Wood has electro-neutrality, which has prevented it from being used for energy harvesting. However, scientists have developed a method to modify wood using silicone and nanocrystals, making it triboelectric and able to generate electricity.

How can wood be grown in a lab, and why is this important?

Researchers at MIT have discovered a way to replicate wood by isolating tunable plant tissues and growing it in specific shapes. This process can reduce waste and has the potential to transform the use of biomaterials while combating deforestation.

What makes this global e-commerce brand's fashion approach sustainable?

The e-commerce brand practices sustainability by making each item to order, eliminating unsold production waste. They also encourage customers to resell items they no longer want, offset their carbon footprint, and donate material scraps to independent fashion brands.

Why is buying carbon credits not enough to reach Net Zero?

Buying carbon credits alone will not achieve Net Zero. Nature-positive business solutions require placing a price on 'negative externalities', which means accounting for the environmental costs of business operations.

What is the NCAVES project, and what does it aim to do?

NCAVES is a UN-funded research project focused on environmental and ecosystem accounting. It aims to develop tools, language, and structure for measuring the value of ecosystem services, with pilots in countries like Brazil, China, and India.

How does InVest help investors support nature?

InVest has created modeling tools that evaluate the impact of investments in natural infrastructure. The software models the connections between nature and the well-being of populations, showing how investors can become allies to nature.

What is Costa Rica's approach to reversing deforestation, and why is it successful?

Costa Rica has reversed deforestation by taxing fossil fuels and using the revenue to pay landowners, saving over 1 million hectares of forest and replanting 7 million trees. The program's success is attributed to strong political will and a national recognition of the importance of environmental preservation.