“Growth” has recently joined the club of words that have gained a whole new meaning and message in our lexicon – alongside others such as woke, gate and bubble. It now comes with a prefix of “de” or anti” and people are either replacing themselves or being placed in the growth, de-growth or anti-growth camp.
Life was simpler when talking about growth seemed generally straightforward and positive – good for our children, our gardens, and of course our investment portfolios. There is one form of growth however that remains positive for all of the above and one that sits centrally in everything I do – Sustainable Wealth, or “green growth” if you prefer.
By green growth, I mean business growth and economic growth on a national and global scale that operates within the limits of sustainability. Economic and business activity that operates within the boundaries our planet places on how much clean air, water, and productive land we have at our disposal and reduces damage to the climate and nature.
The good news is that green growth is not only necessary on our stressed out planet, it is also well and truly in season. It not only brings great investment opportunities, new jobs and positive environmental impact, but also benefits from cost effectiveness and undeniable momentum.
In 2018, US politician and businessman Al Gore said
“We are in the early stages of a sustainability revolution, which bears the magnitude of the industrial revolution and the speed of the digital one”.
I think the scale of the transition to a lower carbon, greener economy is widely understood, its speed is currently less clear. One factor that will definitely raise the tempo, especially in these inflationary, budget-stretching times, is the realisation that green energy will be much cheaper going forward than its brown alternatives.
New analysis from Oxford University has calculated that a rapid transition to green energy is likely to save the world trillions of dollars. The scale of the potential savings has only recently become evident because historically scientific institutions have not been properly accounting for the greater savings in unit costs that arise, the more green energy we produce.
“The belief that the green energy transition will be expensive has been a major driver of the ineffective response to climate change for the past 40 years,” the Oxford research write in the journal Joule.
With a world population that is growing in number and in wealth, the demand for energy is not going to fall back any time soon. Can we generate enough green energy to meet this need? A recent report by energy research specialists Ember found that global electricity demand growth was met entirely by renewable power in the first half of 2022, halting the rise in fossil fuel usage.
Wind and solar met 77% of this demand growth, and hydro more than met the remainder. In China, the rise in wind and solar generation met 92% of its electricity demand rise; in the US it was 81%, while in India it was 23%.
I work with sustainably aware clients to help them achieve Financial Mastery, live a Richer Lifestyle, and leave and Enduring Legacy, all with less financial hassle. I work with my clients to design wealth portfolios excellently positioned to contribute to and benefit from this energy revolution*. They avoid production of brown energy, and invest in companies producing renewable energy and those in their supply chain. I firmly believe this is the right way forward, for your personal portfolio, and our planetary one.
If you’d like to find out more, DM or get in touch via the website here: https://www.somersetwm.co.uk/call/
*Please note that capital is at risk and these investments are designed for the long term.
Sources:
Al Gore: ‘We’re in the early stages of a sustainability revolution’ | WIRED UK
Way R. et al. “Empirically grounded technology forecasts and the energy transition.” Joule 2022.
Global Electricity Mid-Year Insights 2022 | Ember (ember-climate.org)
