Improving storm forecasts with drones

This week, we're recovering from a full set of events in New York, exploring how technology is helping to improve weather forecasts, and looking at Colombia's plan for a more sustainable future.

Follow Tectonic on Instagram and LinkedIn for regular updates about the innovators and innovations moving climate ambition into action.

Wrapping up Climate Week NYC: With a wide-ranging mix of cross-sector conferences and conversations, it could be easy to forget that historically, it was the United Nations General Assembly opening and not Climate Week that brought people from around the world together in New York at the end of every September. There were many suggestions that Climate Week NYC might even eclipse COP29 later this year, with fewer business and civic leaders showing up than at last year’s COP28 in Dubai. On Tuesday, Prince William’s Earthshot Prize announced their fifteen finalists for this year, with winners to be announced in Capetown in early November. That afternoon, President Joe Biden touted his administration’s climate record at a speech at the Bloomberg Global Business Forum, including more than $370 billion in tax rebates and subsidies and 300,000 jobs in the green economy. Regeneration.vc hosted hundreds of climate innovators and investors for their Reassembly while Newlab showcased more than 70 climate startups at their flagship event in Brooklyn. Leading media companies, including The New York Times, TIME, and Axios, each hosted a series of in-depth conversations moderated by their climate reporters. And Goals House brought together a mix of roundtables, larger conversations, and fun nightcaps for their annual event in Central Park. With those being just a small selection of the hundreds of events for tens of thousands of participants, it’s understandable that many felt both energized and exhausted by the week.

Researchers launch drones into Hurricane Helene: Scientists and engineers are using a fleet of advanced technologies, including satellites, aircraft, drones, and buoys, to study Hurricane Helene and improve storm prediction models. Deployed at various altitudes and depths, these instruments will collect crucial data on wind speed, humidity, barometric pressure, ocean temperature, and energy transfer between the ocean and atmosphere to help meteorologists forecast the storm's path, speed, and strength.

California takes on plastics: California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit against Exxon Mobil, alleging the company misled consumers about the recyclability of its plastic products and violated state laws regarding pollution, false advertising, and unfair competition. Bonta claims Exxon's advertising campaigns falsely promote plastic as recyclable, while in reality, only a small percentage of the plastic waste processed through their advanced recycling technology actually becomes recycled plastic. Separately, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law a ban on all plastic shopping bags that will begin in 2026, expanding a previous ban on thin plastic shopping bags.

Colombia develops transition plan for future without fossil fuels: Colombia will announce a $40 billion investment plan next week to offset declining fossil fuel export revenues after halting new oil and gas exploration in 2021. The plan will focus on clean energy, sustainable agriculture, nature-based climate solutions, electrification of transport, biodiversity protections. The country's environment minister set a goal of securing $10 billion from international financial institutions and developed countries. The country will host the biodiversity COP16 later next month.

Banks signal support for nuclear power: Fourteen of the world's largest banks joined White House climate policy adviser John Podesta on Monday to announce their support for the goal announced at COP28 to triple the world's nuclear energy capacity by 2050. Participants included Bank of America, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Citi, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs. Their support could range from increasing direct lending and project finance to arranging bond sales or providing access to private equity or credit funds.

Influencing consumer behavior on climate: An analysis of data from strategies to improve consumer behavior on climate found that of six interventions to influence outcomes, providing data or information was the least successful while providing incentives like rebates, coupons, or fines made an impact. The most successful strategy involved social comparisons informing consumers how their actions, such as energy use, compared to those of their neighbors. An earlier 2019 report from Rare explored the climate impact of seven consumer choices, such as switching to an EV or reducing food waste, and found that if one in 10 people adopted the reduction behavior, the U.S. would cut its greenhouse emissions by 8%.

Tech companies back carbon credit program: A coalition of tech companies joined former US climate envoy and Secretary of State John Kerry in voicing their support for carbon credits to offset emissions. The program will help finance the shift to renewable energy by selling carbon credits generated by regional governments or state bodies reducing emissions from their power sectors. Part of the U.S. State Department's Energy Transition Accelerator, the program received backing from OpenAI, Microsoft, Meta, IBM, Amazon, and Netflix. 

"[Voluntary carbon markets] have the potential to create both economic and climate opportunities by channeling private capital to high-impact and cost-effective climate projects across technologies, ecosystems and geographies." - U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo speaking on behalf of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen this week

Sustainable heating and cooling system in London: When completed in the next few years, the 5.5-acre, $3.3 billion Bankside Yards project in London, UK, will utilize a novel "fifth-generation" heating and cooling network that captures and redistributes excess heat within and between buildings, reducing energy consumption and costs and operating without fossil fuels. The system is one of the largest of its kind globally, employing electric heat pumps and an ambient loop of water maintained at low temperatures to minimize energy loss.

Powering Barcelona's metro stations through braking: Through a project called MetroCHARGE, Barcelona's subway system utilizes regenerative braking technology to convert the energy generated from braking friction into electricity. One-third of the power is used for the trains, while the remaining power fuels a range of station amenities and network of EV chargers. Once all planned 16 inverters are in place, the metro system expects regenerative braking to provide 41% of the energy needed to power the trains and recoup the investment in 4-5 years. 

Rare earth materials recycling company raises $53 million: Toronto-based Cyclic Materials raised a $53 million Series B round to expand its recycling infrastructure for rare earth metals in the United States and Europe. New investors including Hitachi Ventures and Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund joined existing investors Fifth Wall and BMW i Ventures. The company works to sustainably recover rare earth metals from EV motors, wind turbines, MRI machines, and electronic waste from data centers.