The financial argument for clean technologies and climate resilience has significantly strengthened at a macro level. Global energy affordability and security challenges, exacerbated by geopolitical events and rising data center demand, now bolster clean tech’s appeal beyond just emissions reduction. Escalating climate events worldwide also highlight the urgent need for adaptation investments. Experts emphasize that companies must produce future infrastructure to remain economically relevant. However, a critical hurdle remains: connecting this compelling long-term economic vision with executives‘ daily business decisions. For instance, manufacturers struggle to convince customers to pay more for low-carbon materials that perform similarly, illustrating the disconnect between strategic imperatives and practical market adoption.
At a macro level, the financial argument for companies has become more robust. The energy affordability and security challenges triggered in part by the Iran war and the growth in data centers’ electricity demand have bolstered the argument for clean technologies originally developed to cut emissions. And climate events, from heat waves in Europe to fires in the U.S., have shown the need for investments in adaptation and resilience.
“If you are interested in being an important part of the future economy,” says David Young, senior advisor at BCG and executive managing director of decision intelligence and innovation venture firm CascAIdient, “you’ve got to be making the stuff that will be part of the future infrastructure of global growth.”
And yet several participants said that it remained challenging to connect the big picture economic case with the day-to-day business decisions facing executives. No matter the long-term direction of travel, a manufacturer of low-carbon materials, for example, still faces the familiar question: if the product costs more and performs the same, who will pay for it?
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