‘Roll Out Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer’*

As many of us are aware, 2023 is on track to be the hottest year on record, a year which, to date, has seen record breaking sea temperatures and Antarctic sea ice loss. We have seen catastrophic weather events, from heat bombs, wildfires and severe flooding.

‘You’ll Wish That Summer Could Always be Here’

So far in 2023, on about a third of the days, the average global temperature was at least 1.5°C higher than pre-industrial levels. This is the upper temperature limit that many climate scientists consider to be crucial for avoiding the most damaging impacts of climate change.

September was the hottest month on record across the planet and was, on average, 1.8°C warmer than pre-industrial levels. This followed the hottest August and the hottest July ever.

Something is seriously wrong – Zeke Hausfather, a scientist at the Berkeley Earth Climate Data Project described it as, “absolutely gobsmackingly bananas.”

Unless there is a dramatic change in how we tackle global warming and unless we reduce the burning of fossil fuels, the events that we have seen and continue to experience in 2023 may become normal in just a decade.

‘Those Days of Soda and Pretzels and Beer’

My role as a Lifestyle Financial Planner is to help clients design and plan for their ideal lifestyle. After a successful career, many clients are looking forward to a comfortable retirement living life on their terms and doing all of the things they want to do in their later years. The way we are heading, should I consider modelling the impact of extreme weather events into our financial plans!?

More and more clients are concerned about the impact of global warming and it is clear that investors can play a crucial role in helping tackle the climate crisis.

‘Dust Off The Sun and Moon and Sing A Song of Cheer’

As well as having a positive impact on the planet, investors can benefit from investing in companies that are tackling their carbon footprint and reducing emissions. For example, today’s low carbon companies will be the industry leaders of the future especially if we see increased regulations around emissions. Those companies that help others to reduce their emissions will also see increased demand.

There are sectors which could see increased demand for their products and services going forward and these include:

The circular economy.
Biodiversity solutions.
Green Bonds.
Resource efficiency.
Renewable energy.
Energy efficiency.
Sustainable transport.

Conclusion

The extreme weather events that we witnessed in the summer are a stark reminder that we can’t continue as before and that we need to take action. Governments, businesses and individuals all have a role to play and how and where we invest our wealth can make a huge difference to tackling climate change.

To live our ideal lifestyle in the future and to help enable future generations to live their ideal lifestyles, we need to consider how our investments can achieve a positive impact, both for us financially but also for people and the planet.

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Are you concerned about where your wealth is invested? Contact us today, for a free investment review.

*’Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer’ by Nat ‘King’ Cole