Decoupling growth from carbon emissions in NRW
The German state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) is a supersized economy in Germany and Europe with a GDP of over EUR 500 billion per annum. 33 out of Germany’s top 100 companies,…
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Category: Business and economics
A focused intelligence section from the Mark and Focus archive, connecting recurring analysis across policy, infrastructure, resilience, technology, and urban systems change.
Investing in green climate adaptation solutions
By 2050, 66% of the world’s population will be living in urban areas, increasing the concentration of people exposed to climate change extremities. To mitigate the risks associated with extreme weather events,…
Developing the UK’s smart grid
In the UK, 53 million smart meters for electricity and gas will be installed across all households and small non-domestic premises between 2015 and 2020 to achieve a low carbon and energy-secure…
Mitigating bio-energy-food nexus pressures
Countries around the world are beginning to transition away from fossil fuel-based economies towards bio-economies that use biological sources, materials and processes to achieve sustainable economic, social and environmental development. One of…
Demand management reducing energy-water nexus pressures
Nearly half of all water withdrawn in the U.S. is used to cool thermoelectric power plants, ensuring they operate safely and efficiently: On average a kilowatt-hour of electricity requires 25 gallons of…
The Nordic Eco-label successful 25 years on
The Nordic Eco-label is over 27 years old, making it one of the world’s oldest eco-labels. Shaped like a swan the Nordic Ecolabel is found on products throughout the Nordic region: Denmark,…
Reducing the costs of land degradation from agriculture
Over the past two centuries, humans have converted or modified 70% of the world’s grasslands, 50% of the savannah, 45% of temperate forests and 27% of tropical forests for farming and grazing…
Sydney Water becoming a utility of the future
Sydney Water is Australia’s largest water utility and is among the ten most largest water utilities in the world. The utility provides water, recycled water and wastewater services to 1.4 million properties…
Smart water meters managing limited supplies
One of the major challenges for all nations, developing and developed, is ensuring people have reliable access to water supply services. By 2050, the UN projects that one in four people is…
Mitigating water risks to the pharmaceutical industry
The World Economic Forum’s annual Global Risks report has ranked the water supply crises as the number 1 global risk to businesses over the next ten years: Globally, individuals and communities are…