Hi, Life Size’s International PR Director, Lee here.
Many people in the Life Size community will know I’ve been on quite a rollercoaster journey buying a house. Thankfully, that ride finally ended in April, as I moved to Worthing on the UK’s south coast. While it’s usually sunnier and warmer down here than in Yorkshire, where I grew up, the weather recently has been more akin to what we’d expect in autumn or winter. In fact, the UK currently has numerous flood alerts in place after heavy downpours last weekend.
By contrast, millions in the northern hemisphere have endured scorching temperatures of more than 40°C thanks to a high-pressure weather system and jet stream stuck over central Europe. Unfortunately, more frequent, intense heatwaves and changing weather patterns are the new normal we’ll need to adapt to unless we rapidly address the climate crisis.
Bringing a child into a changing world
I recently became a father (another rollercoaster journey!), which got me thinking about the conditions my newborn son will live in if the world keeps heating up at its current rate. So I re-read the 2°C chapter of Our Final Warning: Six Degrees of Climate Emergency by Mark Lynas to remind myself of the expected consequences of the planet heating by that amount, given that experts believe we’re likely to cross the crucial 1.5°C threshold within the next decade without significant action. Some of the facts are sobering:
- Ice will completely disappear from the Arctic Sea, and a climate tipping point will be reached in the Antarctic, resulting in a 5m rise in global sea levels, destroying coastal megacities like London, New York and Shanghai.
- Global food availability will reduce by approximately 99kcal per person, leading to over 500,000 climate-related deaths by 2050.
- Intensified heatwaves will hit more countries, while megadroughts will have a considerable impact on the already vulnerable Africa as well as the Amazon rainforest.
- We’ll lose all but 1% of reef-building corals globally, causing significant numbers of fish and other reef-dependent species to go extinct.
I don’t know about you, but this doesn’t sound like a world I want my child to live in. That’s why clean technologies must continue to receive financial backing and favourable regulatory conditions to reduce emissions and reverse the global temperature increase. I thought I’d share a recent example from each of these areas in the remainder of this thought piece.
Positive legislative changes are happening
One encouraging development regarding biodiversity protection happened earlier this month. The EU Parliament adopted its position on the first-ever regulation on nature restoration in the continent’s history. Aside from offering desperately needed benefits such as healthier ecosystems, halting deforestation and combating rising global temperatures, the new law promises positive knock-on effects for farming and food security. It also commits to not blocking new renewable energy infrastructure and delivering substantial financial benefits.
However, adopting a position is just the first step. The final shape of the legislation still needs to be agreed upon, while the European Commission must assess the finances required and propose plans to remediate any shortcomings within a year.
If you’re wondering why the timeline is so tight, this legislation forms part of the European Green Deal and the United Nations Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity framework. Signed at the end of 2022, this agreement saw governments worldwide approve plans to implement measures to not only stop but reverse biodiversity loss and to protect 30% of land and oceans by 2030. Current EU proposals commit to protecting “at least 20%” of land and oceans, so stronger commitments will be required to meet this new international resolution.
Fuelling funding through storytelling
Having developed groundbreaking technology that can improve the efficiency of all buildings by 20-40%, Swiss start-up viboo needed to secure funding to further propel its growth. Convinced by our cleantech expertise and strong track record in helping other start-ups raise funds, the company asked us to develop new investor materials combining data, storytelling and striking visual design.
By sharpening its value proposition and developing a consistent, visually appealing story across a four-pager and full investment deck, we helped viboo raise an oversubscribed round from high-calibre investors ahead of the company’s fundraising timeline.
Earlier this month, we shared a case study of our work with viboo on our website. If you have a funding round on the horizon, don’t hesitate to reach out so we can help you showcase your business potential and catch the attention of potential investors.
I hope you enjoyed reading this month’s thought piece. Feel free to get in touch with any questions about our communications expertise or views on this month’s content.
Enjoy the rest of your summer,
Lee
