Tag Archives: land use

Green Economy Creating Abundance of Opportunities for Businesses Worldwide

World Economic Forum
 
The Multi-Trillion Dollar Growth Opportunity: New Report Shows Green Economy Expected to Surpass $7 Trillion in Annual Value by 2030
The global green economy has surpassed $5 trillion usd/ $6.88 trillion cad and is projected to exceed $7 trillion usd/ $9.64 trillion cad annually by 2030, creating an abundance of growth opportunities for businesses worldwide.

New report reveals that green revenues are growing twice as fast as conventional revenues on average, while companies involved in green markets often secure cheaper capital and typically enjoy valuation premiums.

Yet green markets are moving at different speeds, with mature solutions such as solar, wind, batteries and electric vehicles achieving cost competitiveness at the global level, while costly technologies such as low-carbon hydrogen and carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) require substantial support to bend the cost curve.

Learn more about the report here. Follow the Annual Meeting 2026 here and on social media using #WEF26.

Geneva, Switzerland, December 2025 – Businesses across industries are already benefiting from the strong growth of the green economy, the second-fastest growing sector over the past decade. A new report, Already a Multi-Trillion-Dollar Market: A CEO Guide to Growth in the Green Economy, finds that the green economy has already reached $5 trillion a year and is on track to exceed $7 trillion within the decade.
 
Developed in collaboration with the Boston Consulting Group, the research indicates that despite economic uncertainty and diverging environments, investment in green technologies continues to reach record highs. The report identifies the green economy as one of the world’s fastest growing sectors, outpaced only by tech, and highlights the advantages enjoyed by many companies embracing green solutions.
 
“Two years ago, in the World Economic Forum’s Winning in Green Markets: Scaling Products for a Net Zero World, we argued that pioneering in green markets is a bet that would pay off and that large-scale green markets would become a reality proving the business case. Despite the current headwinds for global climate action, this report shows that the green economy is not a distant opportunity but already a major growth engine of this decade,” said Pim Valdre, Head of Climate and Nature Economy, World Economic Forum.
 
The research shows that companies with green revenues often outperform across multiple financial metrics. On average, green revenues grow two times faster than conventional business lines across the market, while the cost of capital for companies with green revenues is typically lower. Firms generating more than 50% of their revenues from green markets often enjoy valuation premiums of 12%-15% on capital markets, reflecting investor confidence in their long-term resilience and profitability.
 
Technological cost declines have accelerated this trend, although solutions are moving at different speeds across markets. Since 2010, the cost of solar photovoltaics and lithium batteries has fallen by around 90% and offshore wind by 50%, making low-carbon solutions increasingly cost competitive. The report estimates that 55% of global emissions reductions needed to decarbonize can now be achieved with solutions that are already cost competitive, with another 20% addressable at minor cost premiums and 5% requiring a behavioural change. However, an additional 20% of critical deep decarbonization technologies currently face major cost disadvantages and will require dedicated policy and industry support to achieve cost competitiveness.
 
These cost declines follow massive investment in clean energy, increasingly led by China. The report finds that in 2024 China invested $659 billion in clean energy and is responsible for over 60% of new global renewable capacity additions through 2030. It leads the world in patents for solar, electrical vehicles and battery technologies, reshaping global supply chains and shifting the centre of green innovation to the East.
 
Lessons from the Leaders
 
The report features 14 case studies from members of the World Economic Forum’s Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, showcasing how pioneering companies have turned participation in green markets into a competitive advantage. The report concludes with a CEO playbook, which shows how leading companies leverage growth accelerators – scaling technologies to cost maturity, shaping regulatory ecosystems and unlocking diversified finance – to win in the green economy.
 
“Three things are striking: the resilience of the green economy, with investments in green technologies jumping from record to record against a change in public headlines and sentiments; China’s leadership in manufacturing, innovation and deployment of green technologies; and the opportunity for companies operating in green markets to outperform and earn a premium in capital markets,” said Patrick Herhold, Managing Director and Senior Partner, Boston Consulting Group. “With projections to become a $7 trillion market, there will be many more opportunities for companies that act boldly today.”

About the Annual Meeting 2026
 
The World Economic Forum’s 56th Annual Meeting, taking place 19-23 January 2026 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, will convene leaders from business, government, international organizations, civil society and academia under the theme, A Spirit of Dialogue. Click here to learn more.

Urbanization Of Rural Farm Land Threatens Archaeological Evidence

The Haldimand-Norfolk Archaeological Research Project was a regional study meant to discover new information about the past that has impacted the region such as; glaciers, climate change, prehistoric and historic settlements, wildlife, and geologic formations. 

The agricultural lands of Norfolk and Haldimand County combined is approximately 2,286.49 km2 and is identified as a zone of geologic, archaeological, and historical significance, promising to reveal a great deal about past environmental events and people.

Yet, the urbanization of agricultural lands continues to alter the landscape by removing evidence of forests, tributaries, reduced land elevations, current and past ecologies, and lastly, evidence that people and their descendants once crossed the landscape of this region.  For these reasons a regional study was initiated before this information is lost forever.

A stone tool retrieved by J. Barker at one of the site surveys.


When you take a closer look at the landscape you can find physical evidence proving that this region is unique. 

Evidence such as the scrapes and grooves on bedrock surfaces by glaciers, erratics and drumlins left behind when glaciers melted away.

Watersheds and their tributaries, originally a result of glacial melt water, continue to drain seasonal waters from the agricultural lands year round.  Present day Carolinian forests represent evidence of climatic changes in the great lakes region that supported a successful transition from a tundra-like environment over 10,000 years ago. 

Mega mammals such as mastodon once roamed the ecosystems of Southern Ontario only to disappear and be replaced by other mammal species.

Geologic formations date back over 80 million years ago where fossils of coral reefs can be found and chert formations were formed and found across Haldimand County.  People identified as Paleo-Indians used these same chert formations over 8,000 years ago to make stone tools as they crossed the landscape.

Regional studies were long-term and paid special attention to all aspects of a changing environment and landscape from one region compared to another.  Typically, a regional study combines different scientific disciplines (e.g., archaeology, geology, hydrology, and paleobotany) that can bring specialists to assist with the recovery of new information.   The results of a scientific study can produce new and unexpected insights into how the environment within a landscape once looked and how it was used by people.

Studies such as this create opportunities for community heritage to improve public awareness and education to understand how long term changes (e.g., climate, urbanization, and development) that can have an impact on a region.

What can a land owner expect when someone comes to their farm as part of a regional study? 

Permission is always asked to begin a study of the landscape on private property. For example, I always work independently, and if help is needed, permission is asked to bring an assistant along.  Once permission is given the study begins by walking over land repeatedly over a period of time and preferably free of crops.

Walking over open fields creates opportunities to examine the topography of the landscape, tributaries, plant and tree life, natural drainages, tree growth, and land elevations.  Observations of prehistoric camps or historical homesteads, and their refuse pits is recorded when found. 

Evidence of a camp or homesteads where people lived is called settlement patterns. 

When settlement patterns are observed Geographic Positioning System coordinates are collected to record the exact location.  Even though archaeological excavations are sometimes necessary, they are restricted to a small area.  No excavation activity takes place unless permission is given by the landowner.

Even then, the landowner is first shown where an excavation is proposed on their property, and if crops are on the land, there is an offer of crop damage compensation based on current markets prices for wheat, soy, and corn.

A standard practice for a regional study is to recover and record the location of artifacts (e.g., prehistoric or historic) observed on the ground. These are recovered to gain new scientific insights regarding their origin, exact age, context, and association to surrounding landscapes.  This includes the recovery of samples from rock formations for geologic studies.

Since regional studies are focused on private lands, all information is kept confidential and private.  Information is not shared with the general public at any level, and there is absolutely no interference with farming practices whatsoever.  Its business as usual!  If landowners are curious to know what I am learning about the region from studying their farm land I am happy to share this information. For the Silo, Lorenz Bruechert/ Jarrod Barker.