Balancing environmental economics - The Dasgupta Review
More than 1.5 Earths will be needed to support our current living standards if we continue the way we do now. That is the impact we collectively have on nature. Unfortunately, we do not have another Earth to sustain us, and for that reason, the global economy needs to consider nature as an integral asset to be managed appropriately.
As examined by Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta in his 600-page commissioned review for HM Treasury, our economic impact has had a negative effect on the environment. Between 1992 and 2014, the consumption and production of goods per person increased globally by 13%, while natural resources or capital available decreased by nearly 40%. Our shared failure to consider nature and its value has resulted in an unsustainable relationship where our demands outweigh the capacity it must supply.
We are now at a global tipping point where our decisions greatly impact our future relationship with the environment and our economy.
However, we can tip the results in our favour. Dasgupta calls for a united recognition that the results will be easier to reverse and less costly if we act now. The solution is that we all need to become "asset managers of nature" and accept our economies are not separate from it but are dependent on it.
Demands must not outweigh supply, integrate nature and sustainability into our economic success measures; and change our current institutions and systems to give way and sustain these shifts for future generations.
A Glasgow based green energy company is looking to rebalance these resources scales to give zero-carbon solutions. Katrick Technologies provides smart innovative technology that can produce clean, green energy solutions by capturing waste heat, wind, and wave without negatively impacting the environment. The systems reduce CO2 emissions by capturing waste heat, wind, and wave by converting it into usable green energy.
Manufacturing facilities, data centres, and power stations all lose energy through excess heat generation. Up to 70% of the energy produced by the typical power plant is wasted in heat. Even if Katrick Technologies systems captured just 10% of the UK's total waste heat from power plants, it could power 175,000 homes and cut CO2 emissions by 166,000 Tonnes.
Their wind technology does not infringe on the natural environment and can be used in rural and urban settings to provide energy and noise reduction. Due to their multi-directional aerofoil technology, they can capture more energy from the wind with a fraction of space than traditional turbines. It can also be fitted to existing buildings, along roads, or even within airports.
With this year's COP26 in Glasgow, Katrick Technologies looks to impact green energy being a valuable investment on the global portfolio. They have several grant-funded projects in the public sector and are a fast-paced team. As an IP-based green business, they already have multiple patents and are rapidly expanding their technology to cover other spheres such as increasing fuel reliant engines' efficiency. However, to increase their already aggressive plan of action, Katrick Technologies are looking for investment.